Sailor Moon V
                                    *
                 The Dark Adventures of the Sailor Scouts


                               Episode Six
                                    *
                        "The Return From Darkness"



     Time flowed strangely in The Dark.  While the flow of Time seemed to be
even and continuous inside the neo-void, it was quite chaotic when compared 
to
the flow of Time in another dimension.  The discovery of the consciousness
inside the burnt-out shell of the soul took only a handful of minutes from 
her
perspective, but the same span of Time covered three months in the small 
branch
of Time that was the place of origin for the soul.
     <....my name is.... Pluto....> the soul said hesitantly as it woke up.
     Most interesting, she thought as she continued to examine the small 
ball
of light.  This soul has been virtually dead for almost a thousand years, 
and
now it's talking to me.
     <....who.... who are you?> the soul continued.
     She blinked as she considered the question.  She did have a name, but 
it
was not something to be shared, for the knowledge of the true-name of an
inhabitant of The Dark meant absolute power over the individual.  It was 
said
that those who have lived in the neo-void the longest have gone by other 
names
for so long that they have forgotten their own true-name.
      she said after a moment's thought.  
      the soul replied at once.
     She blinked again, amazed by how fast the soul was recovering.   she asked the soul, not entirely sure why she was
doing so.
     
     She blinked again, now totally confused.  
     
     She could sense the soul's frustration at being unable to remember.  
 she said soothingly, 
      the soul said slowly, as if speaking an unfamiliar word.  

     She blinked yet again, the soul's fragmented thoughts beginning to 
slowly
make sense to her.  
     
     She took a slow breath and sat back, letting the soul work out her 
train
of thought on her own.  Her? she thought for a moment before she nodded.  
Yes,
this 'Pluto' was definitely female, she decided.
     
      she said when Pluto fell
silent, exhausted from the effort of remembering.
     
      she reminded Pluto.
      Pluto thought.  
     She frowned lightly when Pluto's thoughts started to become slightly 
more
fragmented.   she said soothingly
without thinking about it.  
      Pluto replied, then fell silent as her words 
echoed
inside her soul-mind.  
     She jumped back as Pluto's soul started to pulse with energy.  Her 
first
thought was that she was being attacked, but her defensive impulses quickly
faded when she realized that Pluto was in a severe state of panic.   she asked, reflexively casting a wary eye around her tiny keep.
      Pluto thought, still
highly agitated at the thought.
     She frowned as Pluto's words failed to make much sense.  
      Pluto replied.  
     She frowned again as something clicked within her memory.  
      Pluto asked slowly, calming down slightly.
       She 
hesistated
only a moment before she made up her mind.  
she thought towards the soul as she gathered it up and put it in her storage
pouch.  She looked around her tiny sanctuary to make sure everything was
secure before she concentrated her internal energies and dimension-shifted
into another portion of The Dark.

                *               *               *               *

     Leda sighed and let her head fall forward, smacking into the open 
biology
textbook with a dull thump.  "I give up," she said, her words muffled by the
mass of paper mashed against her face.
     Ami absently patted her on the shoulder, most of her attention still
focused on the textbook in front of her.  "Take a break and come back to 
it,"
she said as she studied the advanced mathematics problem she was currently
working on.  "It'll make sense in a few minutes."
     "That's what you said half an hour ago," Leda replied as she 
straightened
herself up with a heavy sigh.  "This thing still isn't making any sense."  
She
didn't even bother looking up when a steaming mug slid across the table to 
come
to a halt in front of her.  "Thanks, Mina," she said as she picked up the 
mug
and downed half of the contents in one gulp.
     The blonde's head suddenly snapped up from her physics textbook, her 
blue
eyes darting frantically around the room.  "What?  What I'd do?" she blurted
out in confusion.
     "Nothing, I did it," Rei replied with a small frown as she glanced up 
from
her own studies.  "When in doubt, Leda, carry the two."
     Leda blinked and looked down at her book.  "This is biology, Rei, not
math.  There's no two to carry."
     The priestess blinked for a moment before she shrugged.  "Can't help 
you,
then.  Could someone wake up Serena before she starts snoring again?"
     Leda fished an ice cube out of Ami's cup of juice and tossed it across 
the
room, bouncing it off of the top of the blonde's head with amazing accuracy.
Serena immediately bolted upright, her blue eyes nearly twice their usual 
size
with surprise.  "Yiii!  I'm up, I'm up!" she squealed.
     "That's nice," Ami said distantly as she started scribbling furiously 
on
a scratch piece of paper before writing down the answer on her homework 
paper.
"Mina," she said quietly.
     Mina jumped again, startled out of her studies.  "What?"
     "Don't forget to include the delta-v in your third equation," Ami 
replied
without looking up from her paper.  "Mr. Meyers wants all parts of the 
physics
model to be defined correctly."
     Mina blinked in confusion and looked down at her paper.  "But I'm only 
on
the second equation."
     "Keep working at it, it'll make sense soon," Ami said soothingly as she
continued to crunch numbers at a mind-numbing pace.
     Rei sighed as she reached for the nearly empty bowl of fruit.  "How do 
you
do that without a calculator?" she said tiredly as she searched for a banana
that wasn't too badly bruised.
     Serena looked down at her own mathematics textbook and sighed heavily.
"Nevermind the calculator, how do you do that problem period?" she asked in 
a
weary tone.
     "When in doubt, carry the two," Rei offered.
     "And what was your final grade in math last year?" Leda inquired.
     "Umm...." Rei said, her cheeks turning a light pink color.
     "Why don't you go study your history lesson and let us worry about 
helping
Serena with the math?" Leda suggested gently.  She blinked as there was a 
heavy
thunking sound as another head hit the table in frustration.  "Cheer up, 
Mina,
it can't be that bad."
     "What was the equation for work again?" Mina muttered, her voice 
muffled
by the textbook pressed up against her nose.
     "Force times displacement," Ami responded immediately.  "Think of it 
like
this: work equals force times displacement.  Force is mass times 
acceleration.
The most common variable for mass is m, a for acceleration, and d for linear
displacement.  So put it together and you have m times a times d.  String 
the
letters together and what does it spell?" she reiterated without glancing 
up.
     Mina blinked.  "Mad."
     "Exactly.  If you remember the mnemonic 'work makes me mad,' 
substituting
the equal sign in place of 'makes me,' then you will remember that work 
equals
mass times acceleration times displacement," Ami said slowly and calmly.
     Four minds thought about that for a brief moment before there was a 
brief
scramble for paper as Mina, Serena, Rei, and Leda all tried to write down 
that
tiny fragment of wisdom before they forgot it.  "Ami, you're a genius," Mina
cooed as she scribbled.
     Ami sighed and finally looked up from her work.  "If you had been 
paying
attention in class like you should have been, Mina, you would have 
remembered
Mr. Meyers telling us that."
     Mina smirked.  "Why do I need to pay attention when I've got you as a
handy reference?"
     Serena giggled.  "That's what I've been saying about the classes I've 
had
with her in the past."
     "And what of your grades in those classes?" Ami replied reprovingly.
     Serena blinked and blushed.  "Well...."  There was yet another heavy 
thunk
as yet another head hit the table in frustration, followed by gentle words 
of
encouragement by Ami.
     Dragoon Lieutenant Maze leaned against the entraceway to the dining 
room,
silently watching the five girls try to study their school homework.  Makes 
me
glad I'm past those days, he mused.  This could get amusing after awhile, he
thought as Rei picked her head up off the table.  Of course at this rate,
everyone except Ami is going to have impact headaches by dinnertime.
     Shaking his head to himself, Maze stood up straight and walked down the
hallway towards the cathedral's central computer, a small smile of amusement
still on his lips.  He walked past the open door and was about to say 
something
to the room's occupant but stopped when he heard the heavy sound of a 
forehead
meeting the leading edge of a Negaverse-design crystal computer.
     "One of those days already, boss?" he quipped as he sat down in an 
empty
chair next to Tolaris.
     Dragoon Commander Tolaris sighed quietly as he lifted his head up from 
the
computer screen and rubbed at his temples.  "Maze, this has been driving me 
up
the wall for hours now.  See if you can make sense of it," he explained as 
he
turned the crystalline monitor so Maze could get a better look.
     Maze glanced at the display, blinked hard and did a double-take, and 
sat
back with a deep frown on his face.  "Tell me that's not a search worm."
     "It is," Tolaris said with a grunt.
     Maze closed his eyes and sighed.  The whole purpose of a search worm 
was
to check something out in a distant computer and report back what it found.
"Did it already send out its reply?"
     "Just as soon as I discovered it," Tolaris said quietly.
     "So Rune knows we're here now?" Maze said softly.
     Tolaris blinked and gave Maze a curious look.  "Rune has known that for
some time now, Lieutenant.  Why she hasn't acted on that is beyond me, but 
she
definitely knows about Nephlyte's base being used by us, as well as the fact
that the dimensional phase-link to his computer is still active."
     Maze sat up with another frown.  "So why the search worm, then?"
     Tolaris shrugged.  "I suppose we'll find out eventually."
     "Wait a second, boss...." Maze said slowly as something bubbled up from
the depths of his memory.  "When I discoverd that the phase-link was still 
in
use by you, I rerouted it so it looks like an ordinary remote link.  I did 
it
myself, so there couldn't be any way that Rune knows about it."
     Tolaris frowned and looked at the computer screen, trying to figure out
this latest development.  Both Dragoons jumped slightly when the computer
emitted a soft tone, indicating that a network service message had been sent 
to
their terminal.
     Both denizens exchanged glances before Maze pulled out his communicator
and opened a channel to Ra'vel and Whisper, asking them to come to the 
computer
room immediately.  Maze had barely finished putting his communicator back in
his pocket when the air shimmered briefly as Psi-Corp Captain Whisper and
Dragoon Lieutenant Ra'vel teleported into the room.  Tolaris and Maze 
blinked
hard when they realized that Whisper was wearing only a towel and was 
dripping
water everywhere.
     "I was in the shower," she said mildly in response to their looks.  
"With
all due respect, Lieutenant, this had better be very good."
     "I think this might prove to be worth your time," Tolaris replied 
evenly
as he turned his attention back to the computer and opened the message.  All
four of the denizens leaned forward slightly in anticipation as the message
began to scroll up onto the screen.

     FM: SYSADMIN, DHQCX (314.485.117.501)
     TO: 284.336.84.502
     RE: NETWORK ALT-ROUTE
     TX: HOST NET MUST REPEAT MUST ALT-ROUTE DIST SIGNAL THRU ALT SYS BREAK
         DIST SIGNAL READS LIVE VIA SEARCH WORM BREAK REQ ACK OF MSG TO
         VERIFY CHANGE IN NET BREAK VR K'TAL CDR DRAGOON DIV BREAK END

     No one spoke for a moment, the only sound being heard was the steady 
drip
of water on to the floor.  "So K'tal is in command of the Dragoons now," 
Maze
said softly.  "Not a bad choice, to be honest."
     "He's a little too gung-ho, in my opinion, but he is one of the best,"
Tolaris agreed.  "My question is, why did he send us this message?"
     Ra'vel chirped softly as she reread the message, trying to vocalize her
ideas.  Whisper shook her head, accidentally spashing water droplets all 
over
Maze.  "No, I think this message means much more than what it says."
     "Agreed," Tolaris said as he thought.  "What do we know about K'tal?"
     Maze snickered.  "He has the two qualities most desired in a Dragoon."
     Whisper blinked.  "And what are those?" she said warily.
     "He's got brains and he's got k'vesan," Maze replied with a grin.
     "Men," Whisper sighed and traded only partially-amused looks with 
Ra'vel.
The avian made a distasteful chirping noise and glared at Maze.
     Maze chuckled and shook his head.  "Oh, please.  I saw how you handled
yourself in the Outreaches.  You've got more k'vesan than some guys I know."
     Ra'vel blinked in mild surprise and looked at Whisper.  The telepath
merely shrugged and cinched her towel a little tighter.  "I think he does 
have
a point, Ra'vel."
     "Now that we have established that Ra'vel has what it takes to be part 
of
the Dragoons despite being female, we need to figure this out," Tolaris said
mildly.  "Something is definitely going on here and we need to know as soon 
as
possible.  Suggestions?"
     "Send a reply back," Whisper said.  "Something tells me he wants to 
make
absolutely certain that it's us on this end before he does something."
     "Question is, do we really know what he's going to do?" Maze countered.
"We don't even know if that is K'tal on the other end."
     Whisper nodded.  "That is true, but keep in mind that they already know
we're here.  I'm not sure what sort of plan K'tal has in mind, but I don't
think that a Dragoon would do anything like this unless he had a good 
reason."
     Tolaris nodded.  "That makes sense.  I'm for sending a reply back.  Any
objections?"  Both Maze and Ra'vel shook their heads and Tolaris nodded.  
"Very
well, then, here goes nothing."
     Everyone remained silent as Tolaris typed up a quick anonymous reply 
and
sent it back to the Dragoon Headquarters Complex.  A tiny beep signaled the
receipt of the message at the distant end and Tolaris sat back.  "Well, 
then.
So now we wait."
     "I don't suppose I have a few minutes to go get dressed?" Whisper said
mildly as she ran her fingers through her still-dripping hair.
     Tolaris saw Maze biting his tongue out of the corner of his eye and he
sighed quietly.  "By all means, Captain."
     Whisper nodded and was preparing to teleport back to her room when the
computer beeped again, signaling another incoming message.  "That was fast,"
she said slowly.
     Tolaris frowned.  "Too fast," he said as he opened the message.

     FM: SYSADMIN, DHQCX (314.485.117.501)
     TO: 284.336.84.502
     RE: RE-XT ACK
     TX: THISTA RCV'D ACK MSG BREAK REQ POS IDENT OF DIST END USER BREAK
         USE SEC FREQ DCT BREAK VR K'TAL CDR DRAGOON DIV BREAK END

     Maze sat up with a scowl.  "Why does he need to know who we are?"
     Tolaris's mind was working as fast as it was capable.  "Maze, wait a
moment.... Standard operating procedure is to get a positive ID of the user
on other end before performing a network alt-route.  Using a secure 
frequency
is not uncommon.  However, the frequency he suggested doesn't exist."
     Whisper frowned and leaned forward to get a better look at the screen,
cinching the towel a little tighter as she did so.  "It looks like a valid
frequency to me.  Maze, if you don't find something else to look at other 
than
my chest, I will tear your eyeballs out," she said evenly.
     Maze coughed discreetly and focused his attention on the crystal 
computer
screen.  "She's got a point, boss.  I don't see why that frequency wouldn't
exist."
     "It's one of those division-level Commander's-Eyes-Only secrets," 
Tolaris
replied.  "No message traffic is ever transmitted with a middle-band 
frequency
of C.  It's one of those little designations that means someone is trying to
tell us something but can't do it on any sort of free-range medium."
     Whisper blinked.  "Why is it they never told me that?"
     Tolaris turned his head to one side to look at her.  "Did you ever 
receive
a formal in-brief when you got promoted to Captain of the Psi-Corp?"
     The telepath wrinkled her nose at the thought.  "No, I didn't."
     "Trust me, it would have been in there," the Dragoon commander replied 
as
he turned back to the monitor.  "Now if we can only figure out what exactly
he's trying to tell us."  Ra'vel chirped a query and his head snapped around 
to
look at her, only to wind up mashing his face against Whisper's chest.
     "Excuse me," Whisper said icily as she took a step back and tightened 
the
towel around her.
     Tolaris's face flushed a dark shade of gray.  "Sorry, ma'am," he said
sheepishly.  He blinked and focused his attention on Ra'vel.  "Say that just 
a
little slower, Ra'vel."
     Ra'vel gave him a curious look and repeated her chirps slower.  Tolaris
sat back to consider the thought for a moment while Maze gave Ra'vel an odd
look.  "What exactly did you say?  My language skills aren't what they used 
to
be...." he apologized.
      she telepathed to the room.
     Whisper's eyes went wide.  "DCT.  Dragoon Commander Tolaris."
     Both Maze and Tolaris frowned as they turned to give her an odd look.
"What exactly are you saying?" Tolaris inquired.
     Whisper shook her head, sending more water droplets flying around.  
"Don't
you see?  We know he's trying to reach you, but he can't or won't come out 
and
say who he's trying to reach.  He needs to make absolutely sure it's you 
he's
got before he switches you over to another network."
     Tolaris thought about the idea for a full second before he turned back 
to
the keyboard and started typing as fast as he could.

     FM: 284.336.84.502
     TO: SYSADMIN, DHQCX (314.485.117.501)
     RE: ALT-ROUTE ACK
     TX: THISTA RECONF RCV'D MSG RE ALT-ROUTE BREAK ID CONF STERLING LTCDR
         SEC DIV IDENT 21354SCD BREAK THISTA AT SB FOR ALT-ROUTE BREAK END

     Maze waited until the computer beeped softly before he shook his head.
"Congratulations, boss, you just totally confused me.  I understood the part
about reconfirming the network alt-route, and I understood the part about
standing by for the switch, but who exactly did you say you were?"
     Tolaris looked up at his friend and smiled.  "My great-grandfather."
     Whisper blinked.  "Your great-grandfather?" she echoed.
     Tolaris merely shrugged.  "Well, think about it.  If he can't ask for 
me
by name for some reason, what makes you think it's safe for me to reply with
mine?  He knows who my great-grandfather was, or at least he should," he 
added
with a small sigh.
     "So now what do we do, boss?" Maze asked as he gave Ra'vel a curious 
look.
     "So now we wait for the network to switch over," Tolaris replied.
     Ra'vel chirped at Maze curiously and he squinted at her.  "I could be
wrong, Ra'vel, but I think that might be a dust mite on your shoulder," he
said slowly.  Ra'vel screeched and immediately started fluffing her 
feathers,
sending a tiny cloud of feather particles into the air.
     Whisper took a hasty step back, but not before she accidentally inhaled
some of the particles.  Her nose twitched briefly for a moment before she 
let
loose with a loud sneeze.  Her eyes suddenly doubled in size as she felt the
towel unwrap itself from her body and fall to the floor.
     Some people may have considered Ra'vel to be somewhat slow-minded 
because
of the brain damage she received during the Mintaka campaign.  However true
that may be, she certainly wasn't stupid.  She heard Whisper sneeze behind 
her
and realized the probable result.  With what some might have called an avian
version of a grin, she extended her wings out as far as they could, 
effectively
blocking Maze's line of sight.
     "I will be right back," Whisper said quickly, blushing a dark shade of
blue.  She scooped up her towel and teleported out of the room, leaving a 
small
spray of water in her wake.
     "Lieutenant," Tolaris said evenly, fixing Maze with a reproving look.
     "What'd I do?" Maze replied, his tan eyes wide with innocence.
     Tolaris just sighed heavily and looked over at Ra'vel, who was occupied
with preening her feathers for dust mites.  "I'm sure Captain Whisper is 
very
appreciative of your excellent timing, Ra'vel," Tolaris told her.
     Ra'vel looked up from her work long enough to scold Maze for a few 
moments
before she returned to her task, making quiet, distasteful chirping noises 
to
herself as she worked.
     Everyone blinked and looked up at the computer as it made a harsh noise
and flashed a "Network Failure" warning.  The message continued to flash on
the screen for a few seconds before being replaced with an "Establishing
Connection to Distant End" message.
     "This should be interesting," Maze commented as they watched the 
computer
go through the motions of connecting to another site through the dimensional
phase-link.  Ra'vel chirped an agreement and resumed her task, her attention
divided between the monitor and her feathers.
     "I think Maze was making a joke about the dust mites," Tolaris told 
her.
     "Umm, no I wasn't...." Maze said with a frown.
     Ra'vel paused her work to look up at them, her gaze alternating between
the two of them.  She was about to chirp something at them when she caught
motion out of the corner of her eye.  She turned to look and started 
screeching
almost in the ultra-sound range, causing Tolaris and Maze to wince in pain 
at
the high frequency.
     Tolaris watched with mild interest as Ra'vel snapped her beak at 
something
on her feathers, chomped down hard and quickly spat it out, and then proceed
to stomp on it, her talons scratching up the floor tiles in the process.
     "She hates dust mites with a passion," Maze observed with a smile.
     "So I see.  I think you got it, Lieutenant, so you can stop clawing up
the floor now," Tolaris called out to her.
     Ra'vel hissed at the now-deceased dust mite and gave it one final stomp
before she fluffed her feathers and calmed down, chirping apologetically at 
the
other Dragoons.
     "We understand," Maze said soothingly.
     The avian grumbled to herself for a moment before she resumed preening 
her
feathers, pausing long enough to take one step to the side.  The air 
shimmered
briefly as Whisper teleported back into the room, wearing a snug-fitting 
tank
top and sweatpants.  "Hold still," she growled at Maze as she walked over to
him and grabbed his nose.
     "Euungh..?" Maze grunted before his gaze went vaccant and he fell 
silent.
     Tolaris's eyebrow went up almost to his hairline as he watched Whisper
scan Maze's mind for something.  He exchanged a mild glance with Ra'vel and 
got
a casual shrug in response.  Okay.... he thought before he returned his
attention back to Whisper and Maze.
     Whisper sighed and released her hold on Maze's nose.  The Dragoon 
blinked
and leaned forward, his nose twitching briefly before he let loose with a 
very
forceful sneeze.  His hands immediately came up to his face and his eyes 
took
on a slightly disgusted expression.
     "Ewww...." he groaned.
     "Tissues are in the bathroom," Whisper said mildly.
     "Danks," Maze replied as he stood up and made a hasty exit.
     Tolaris sighed.  "Do I want to ask...?"
     The telepath made a face.  "I just wanted to see if he did that on 
purpose
or not.  He didn't, which is why he's still breathing," she added.  Ra'vel
chirped something at her and she nodded in reply.  "Yes, I am very grateful 
for
your wingspan, Lieutenant.  Oh, and if you remind me tomorrow, I'll help you
try to set up some sort of oil bath to get rid of those mites."
     Ra'vel chittered back a reply that Whisper wasn't able to translate.  
She
blinked in confusion and gave Tolaris a blank look.  "Did she say something
about soap in her last oil bath?" she asked hesitantly.
     The Dragoon commander just shook his head.  "You don't want to know."
     "About what?" Maze asked as he walked back in the room, still wiping at
his nose with a tissue.
     "About that little incident where someone 'accidentally' dumped a full 
jar
of concentrated liquid soap into her oil bath last year," Tolaris said 
mildly.
     Maze flushed a dark green and fought to keep his tone level.  "Yeah, I
heard about that.  Soap isn't good for your feathers, is it?" he asked.
     Ra'vel's rather profane reply was cut off by the sound of the computer
beeping as it received a message from its new network host.  Everyone 
exchanged
mild glances and gathered around the terminal before Tolaris opened up the
message.

     FM: SYSADMIN, DHQCX (314.485.117.501)
     TO: 441.95.274.511
     RE: EST SEC NET
     TX: THISTA READS DIST END ON UNSEC FREQ BREAK REQ EST SEC FREQ USING
         KEYTAPE 218AGH954 BREAK VR K'TAL CDR DRAGOON DIV BREAK END

     "Now what?" Whisper muttered.
     "Apparently he wants us to establish a secure connection," Tolaris 
said.
"The only problem is, we don't have that keytape."
     Maze frowned.  "Is that a good tape?  I mean, it's not another one of 
your
little commander's-only games, it it?"
     Tolaris sat back to consider the matter.  "No, that is a valid keytape 
to
the best of my knowledge."
     Ra'vel snapped her beak quietly several times before she blinked as an
idea occurred to her.   she telepathed.
     Whisper frowned.  "What do you mean?"
     Tolaris blinked and looked up.  "Ra'vel, did you telepath something?" 
he
asked, once again mentally cursing the fact that he was psi-mute.
     Maze straightened up so fast he almost strained something.  "Boss, 
she's
right!  What if that's not a keytape name, but the actual encryption key?"
     Whisper blinked and gave Maze an odd look.  "Do you think that someone
like K'tal would send the key over the open like that, even disguised as the
name of a keytape?"
     "Remember what I said about him being just a little too gung-ho?" 
Tolaris
replied as he typed a response back.  "Trust me, this is exactly the sort of
gutsy stunt I'd expect him to pull."
     "Too much k'vesan and not enough brains, eh?" Whisper said wryly.
     "You can never have too much k'vesan," Maze said with a grin.
     "Men," Whisper sighed as she shook her head.  "So we're sure that it's
K'tal on the other end?"
     "Well, I'm staking our lives on it by replying, Captain," Tolaris 
replied
evenly.  "I'd rather go down trusting another Dragoon than anyone else."
     Ra'vel chirped her agreement while Maze nodded.  "We're with you on 
that
one, boss," he said.
     Tolaris merely grunted in reply and waited for the distant end to 
respond.
He blinked in surprise when the computer made a peculiar humming noise and a
text box appeared on the screen.  "Entering Secure Mode, Please Stand By," 
he
read aloud, sitting back and waiting.
     "So now what?" Whisper asked, already knowing the answer.
     "So now we...."  He trailed off as the screen was suddenly filled with
lines of seemingly random characters.  "This is interesting...."
     Maze blinked.  "Is someone doing a data dump?"
     "Perhaps, perhaps not," Tolaris said as he waited for the text block to
finish displaying itself.  "I may not be an expert on communications, but 
this
looks like an encrypted data file."
     "Well, well, well...." Whisper said slowly.  "Anyone want to bet on 
what
we'll get if we run that through a decryption program with the character 
string
Commander K'tal just gave us?"
     "One way to find out," Maze said as he rose from his seat.
     Tolaris gave him an odd look.  "Where are you going?"
     "I was going to go ask Ami if we could borrow her toy computer.  I've 
seen
what kind of processing power it has and I'm sure it'll zip right through 
this
thing in no time," he explained.
     "Sit down, Lieutenant," Tolaris said as he split the display in half 
and
opened another program in the second window.  "She and the others are busy
studying right now.  It's bad enough that their lives have been disrupted by
being Sailor Scouts as it is.  We don't need to be adding to the chaos by
having them assist us with things like this when they're trying to learn how 
to
function as adults in their own society."
     Maze sat down with a small grunt.  "I guess I see your point, boss."
     "How long will this take?" Whisper asked.  "I really need to finish up 
my
shower before dinner."
     Tolaris and Maze exchanged glances and Maze smiled.  "I'm going to have 
to
code this decryption program from scratch, so it should take at least an 
hour.
I'll have someone knock on your door when we're finished," Tolaris said as 
he
typed away at a furious pace.
     "Thank you," Whisper replied and prepared to teleport back to her room.
     "One thing before you go, ma'am," Maze said, still smiling.
     The telepath paused and gave Maze a wary look.  "What?"
     "You really ought to dry off before wearing something form-fitting like
that tank top," he said evenly.  "Water tends to collect in the strangest of
places."
     Whisper blinked and glanced down, her face turning a dark shade of blue
when she realized that the water had turned the front of her tank top 
totally
transparent.  "Men," she grumbled as she hastily teleported out of the room.

                *               *               *               *

     Maze walked into the computer room carrying two steaming mugs of 
ma'cha,
the denizen version of coffee.  "So what's it look like?" he asked Tolaris 
as
he held out a mug.
     Tolaris grunted as he accepted the mug and set it on the edge of the 
work
station, never taking his eyes off of the computer display.  "I finished 
that
decryption program five minutes ago.  That data file we got isn't just any 
data
file, its another encryption key," he said grumpily.
     Maze paused, the mug halfway to his lips.  "Another encryption key?" he
echoed.
     Tolaris nodded, his attention still fixed on the computer.  "Yes.  The
thing with this key is it's an actual copy of a keytape.  All we would need 
to
do is load it into a crypto-linker and we could establish a secure link to 
the
other end of this network."
     "Great!" Maze exclaimed.
     "Problem," Tolaris countered.
     The Dragoon sat back and pondered the matter for a moment.  "What sort 
of
problem?" he finally asked warily.
     "Do you see a crypto-linker anywhere around here?" Tolaris replied with 
a
heavy sigh.
     Maze blinked.  "Sure, there's one in the arsenal vault."
     "You mean the one you fed to Dyvach so it could fabricate the parts you
needed to rewire Mina's coffepot into an instant hot chocolate machine?"
Tolaris replied.
     "D'oh...." Maze muttered as he slapped himself on the forehead.
     The Dragoon commander sat back and gave his friend a strange look.  
"What
exactly is that you just said?" he asked curiously.
     "Sorry, I guess I sort of got that from watching too much of that 
animated
whatever Mina keeps watching," Maze explained sheepishly.  "I think this 
Earth
culture is starting to get to me."
     "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"
     Maze frowned as he took a sip of his ma'cha.  "I'm not sure anymore, 
boss.
I mean, at first living here was a great idea.  We got away from all of the
backstabbing and politics from working in the Negaverse, not to mention 
being
away from all those wonderful animals and such we have running around.  But 
now
that I've been here for awhile...."
     Tolaris took a calculated sip of his own mug as Maze trailed off.  
"Keep
going, Lieutenant.  It's not like anyone is going to court martial you for 
your
opinions about your exile."
     "That's just it, boss," Maze said suddenly with a grunt.  "Right now, 
it's
starting to feel like we're in exile.  I mean, I know I don't have anyone 
back
in the Negaverse that I could see even if I wanted to, but every now and 
then
I feel like just taking a walk down some city street and enjoying a sense of
familiarity and belonging."  He blew out his breath in frustration and took 
a
large gulp of the ma'cha, ignoring the pain as it scalded his throat.
     "You're bored, aren't you?" Tolaris asked softly.
     Maze sighed and looked into his mug, watching the odd patterns the 
rising
steam made.  "Yeah, I guess you're right," he said after a moment.  "I mean, 
at
least when I was in the Negaverse I had my job to keep me mostly occupied."
     "Not to mention having a seemingly endless supply of female company to
help occupy you when you weren't working," Tolaris said with a grin.
     Maze snorted.  "Admit it, you were always jealous of that."
     "If you say so," Tolaris snickered.
     Maze gave his friend an odd look.  "Come on, boss, you mean to tell me
that you never had the desire for female company at least some time during 
your
seven-hundred-plus years of life in the Negaverse?"
     Tolaris's eyebrow arched up in mild amusement.  "You know very well 
that
I have, Maze.  However, I was always too busy to accomodate."
     "Of course," Maze muttered darkly as he sipped his ma'cha.  "So you're
saying that you couldn't forget that never-ending stack of reports for at 
least
one night to just sit back in your quarters and relax with someone?"
     "What, with Queen Beryl's wrath looming over my head if those reports 
were
ever improperly handled or were late being filed?" Tolaris countered.
     Maze blinked.  "What kind of reports were those?"
     "Classified Seven-Aerce," the Dragoon replied.
     "Straight to Beryl?" Maze asked with a sickened expression.  He 
received
a nod in reply and he shivered.  "Eww.... No wonder you were so anti-social.
You honestly and truly didn't have the time, did you?"
     "So nice to be believed after all these decades," Tolaris replied 
wryly.
     Maze made a distasteful face.  "Oh, hush.  Why didn't you ever put in 
for
a short field assignment or a request to take some leave?"
     "Several reasons," Tolaris replied as he sat back.  "First, I was the 
only
officer in the Dragoon ranks who was cleared for that stuff.  Second, those
reports were rather vital to Queen Beryl's operational plans.  Third, even 
if
I did manage to get an assignment, the responsibility for those reports 
would
have fallen to Shar-Tei, and I wouldn't want to have that dumped on anyone.
And the final reason, Maze, is that I simply didn't feel like it," he 
finished
with a sip of his ma'cha.
     Maze just sighed heavily and looked at the ceiling.  "You know, I 
wonder
if Captain Raijen founded the Dragoon Legion as a means of uniting the most
loyal or the most work-hard-until-you-drop type of soldiers.  You sure seem 
to
fit the second category."
     The Dragoon commander grunted in mild amusement.  "Probably both."
     "Figures," Maze agreed.
     Tolaris nodded and looked at the computer warily.  "We need to get back 
to
our original problem."
     "What, the crypto-linker?" Maze asked.  He received a nod in reply and 
he
sat back to think, idly sipping at his nearly-empty mug.  "The only real 
vital
component is the actual encryption modulator.  Everything else can be rigged 
up
or patched from scratch.  Do you think Dyvach could reconstruct a modulator 
if
we feed it enough raw material?"
     Tolaris shrugged as he tossed back the last mouthful of ma'cha and 
stood
up.  "I have no idea, Maze, but Dyavch might know.  So why not ask it?" he
said as he set the empty mug on the table and started walking towards the 
door.
He only managed to take three steps past it before he accidentally tripped 
over
the large crystalline spider curled up in the middle of the hallway.
     The Dragoon grunted as he got to his feet.  "Must you take a nap in the
middle of the hallway?" he grumbled at the weaver.
     Dyvach made a disoriented chiming sound before it started flexing its 
many
crystalline legs, sounding like a tangled set of wind chimes.  It's usually
transparent carapace was flushed a dark orange color as it struggled to cope
with the sudden shock of being tripped over while napping.  It continued to
stretch for a few moments before it chimed a still mildly disoriented query 
at
the Dragoon.
     "Of course I'm fine," Tolaris replied as he leaned against the wall for 
a
moment.  "Trust me, if I can get run over by Ami and not damage anything, 
then
I'm sure tripping over you won't hurt too badly.  Are you awake yet?"
     Dyvach's color returned to normal as it chimed back an affirmative.  It
stood up and continued stretching its many legs one by one, making soft 
chiming
sounds to itself in the process.
     Tolaris nodded.  "Good.  I've got a question for you.  Do you remember
that crypto-linker you ate awhile back?"  He received a rather happy chime 
in
response and he smirked.  "Tasted that good, eh?"
     Dyvach immediately cut loose with a stream of chittering noises that
Tolaris wasn't quite able to translate properly.  The Dragoon sighed quietly
and rubbed at his temples.  "Slow down, Dyvach, you know I can't always make
out what you say, even on a good day.  You said something about the 
modulator?"
     The weaver chimed back a brief explanation that caused Tolaris to blink 
in
mild surprise.  "Mina's using it for what?" Tolaris asked.  Dyvach tried to
explain in greater detail but Tolaris wasn't able to fully understand what 
it
was trying to say.
     Maze poked his head out of the room at the mention of Mina's name.  "So
what's up?" he asked, slightly curious as to what Mina had to do with the
current situation.
     Tolaris shrugged.  "From what I understand, Mina's got the modulator 
for
some sort of project."
     "Great," Maze grunted.  "Knowing her, she's probably got it wired into
that demonstrosity she calls her synthesizer.  Which also means she's not 
going
to be too happy about having to give it up."
     "I'm afraid she'll have to do without it for the time being," Tolaris 
said
with another shrug.  "She can have it back when we're finished with it, but 
I
think this takes priority over it's entertainment value."
     Maze snickered.  "Just try getting her to see that."
     Tolaris gave his lieutenant a decidedly evil grin.  "That's your job."
     Maze blinked and immediately quit snickering.  "What?"
     "You said you were bored, right?" Tolaris said mildly.
     "I said I was bored, not suicidal," Maze countered.  "You know how she 
is
about her synthesizer."
     "Come now, surely your unnatural charm can win her over," Tolaris 
teased.
He laughed as Maze started muttering highly acidic comments to himself about
blondes and electronics.
     "Times like this makes me wish I was single," Maze muttered as he 
started
walking towards the room where Mina and the others were still studying.

                *               *               *               *

     General Rune looked up in irritation as someone knocked on the door to 
her
private bathroom.  "Who is it?" she called out, letting her irritation show 
in
her voice.
     "Moirah," came the voice from the other side of the door.
     Rune grumbled to herself and sat up, trying to decide what sort of 
crisis
was happening now.  She was still mildly upset at the intrusion, but she 
knew
that Moirah had enough personal experience in dealing with her to know when 
and
when not to disturb her while she was taking a bath.
     "Come in," she grunted as she picked up a washcloth and began to rinse 
the
soap off of her skin.  She heard an odd liquid sound and looked up as a 
puddle
of water started flooding the room from the crack under the door.  Rune 
watched
with mild curiosity as the puddle started to rise up and solidify into a
humanoid shape.
     "A little theatrical today, are we?" Rune said mildly when the 
aquamorph
had assumed her normal, solid form.
     "Begging the general's pardon, I didn't think you wanted me opening the
door given your current state of undress," Moirah said evenly as her eyes
reflexively scanned the room for any possible sign of danger.
     Rune snorted.  "I gave up on modesty after the first month of having 
you
and V'Kreeth taking turns watching over me while I bathe."  She looked up 
and
caught the aquamorph's glance towards the tiny pocket of shadows in the
distant corner of the bathroom.  "So what sort of crisis do we have today?"
Rune asked after a careful moment of observation.
     "Sensors report a massive energy disturbance coming from the 
dimensional
rift in the Hinterland region.  The current analysis of the disruption is
inconclusive, but Science thinks it might be an artificial rift in the 
process
of opening," Moirah reported.
     Rune paused in mid-motion as her bodyguard's words sank in.  "From the
Hinterland region, you said?" she asked slowly as she gave Moirah a 
carefully
neutral look.
     "Yes, General," Moirah replied.
     Rune sighed and sank back down into the bathtub, letting the steaming
water flow over her body.  "Tell me, V'Kreeth, what do you think is going on
in that region?" she asked the shadowy corner.
     The shadow detatched itself from the wall and moved foward to stand 
next
to Moirah, appearing only to be a pair of dark gray eyes set into a humanoid
mass of darkness.
     "The best guess is that Nop'tera is about to make her return," V'Kreeth
said in a voice that sounded like dry leaves whispering over stone.
     "Which is what I would conclude," Rune said with a heavy sigh.  "Time 
has
a way of sneaking up on you, doesn't it?"
     "It all depends on your perspective," V'Kreeth replied.
     Rune said nothing as she resumed running the washcloth over her body.  
"Do
you have anything else to report while you're here, Moirah?" she asked 
somewhat
wearily.
     "We received a Flash message from Leviathan North an hour ago saying 
they
might have a possible submerged contact," the aquamorph replied.  "They only
detected it because they almost collided with it.  The contact does not 
appear
on their sonar and they are currently trying to locate it by audio tracking.
They do not believe they were detected during the incident and immediately
assumed a Stage 4 alert."
     Rune sat up so quickly that she splashed a considerable amount of water
onto the floor.  "A submerged contact?" she repeated with a frown.  She 
thought
about the matter for a few moments before she made a decision.  "Send a 
Flash
to both Leviathan North and Leviathan South.  Tell them to immediately 
assume a
Stage 3 alert with the instructions to go to Stage 2 upon a solid contact 
with
any submerged vessel.  If the contact shows any hostile intent at all, they
have full sub-surface weapons release authority."  She blinked as someone
started knocking on the door.  "Now what?" she grumbled to herself.  "Who is
it?" she called out.
     "Admiral Si'ren," came the dulcet voice from the other side of the 
door.
     "One question, V'Kreeth," Rune said quickly.  "Did Queen Beryl ever 
have
to hold a conference while she was in the bathtub?"
     "The shower, yes, but I don't recall one from the bathtub," V'Kreeth 
said
in all seriousness.
     "Let her in," Rune said as she sank back down into the water.
     Moirah blinked.  "Begging the general's pardon...."
     "If you are concerned about my modesty, Moirah, there isn't anything I
have that she doesn't," Rune said with a slight edge to her voice.
     Moirah traded mild looks with V'Kreeth before she went to the door and
opened it, quickly closing it after Si'ren entered.  V'Kreeth quickly 
retreated
back into the corner of shadows while Moirah tried to remain as unobtrusive 
as
possible under the circumstances.
     Admiral Si'ren glanced over Rune's nude body and blinked, her delicate
eyebrows almost arched up to her hairline.  "If I had known we'd be doing 
one
of these kinds of meetings, I'd have brought a swimsuit," she said mildly.
     Rune sighed.  Si'ren was the Negaverse Navy's Fleet Admiral, which 
under
ordinary circumstances made her the equal to the Army's Commander General.
However, with the absence of a monarch, the power of the throne went to the
Commander General.  This technically made Rune Si'ren's superior, but the
admiral often still viewed them as equals.
     "And how many of 'these kind' of meetings have you been to?" Rune 
asked.
     Si'ren gave her a strange little smile.  "Queen Beryl had the worst 
luck
when it came to developing crises.  They always seemed to happen while she 
was
in the shower."
     "I'll bet that made the other generals happy," Rune replied evenly.
     "To be honest, I don't think anyone cared," Si'ren said with a casual
shrug.  "Malachite was only interested in Zoicite, Nephlyte never considered
Beryl to be attractive, and neither Zoicite nor Al'vexi were attracted to 
other
women."
     "And what of Jedyt?" Rune asked with mild curiosity.
     Si'ren made a face.  "I don't think Beryl had to have a meeting like 
that
since Jedyt was promoted to the rank of general.  Or if she did, I wasn't 
able
to attend for some reason or another."
     "Interesting," Rune said mildly.  "So what brings you here at this 
hour?"
     Si'ren smiled at her again.  "What, I can't be sociable anymore?"
     Rune frowned.  "If you are trying to be sociable, Si'ren, then you 
picked
a really bad time.  Unless you wanted to see me naked in the bathtub," she
added in a neutral tone.
     Si'ren blinked, her eyebrows arching up again.  "I have just received a
Flash message from Leviathan South about a possible submerged contact almost
running them over...."  She blinked again as Rune sat up again, splashing 
even
more water onto the floor.
     "Moirah, get that message out now!" Rune snapped.  "Tell them both that 
I
want hourly reports on anything they find, no matter how insignificant."
     Moirah didn't bother taking the time to reply.  She immediately became 
a
column of liquid that splashed to the floor in a large puddle, quickly 
oozing
out the crack beneath the door.
     Si'ren watched the whole process with mild amusement.  "It must be nice
to be able to do that," she observed.
     "It depends on the situation," Rune said.  "Having a bodyguard that can
hide in the fountain in my private chambers is a definite advantage, but you
have no idea how many times I've had to chase her out of my bath.  She 
claims
she can protect me better if she's right there with me," Rune explained.
     Si'ren erupted into peals of laughter, much to Rune's irritation.  "You
should have listened to Beryl go on about having to put up with bodyguards 
in
her bedroom.  She didn't mind their presence while she slept, but she sort 
of
had a thing against being watched while, shall we say, entertaining a 
private
guest," the admiral explained, giving Rune a knowing look.
     Rune gave her a neutral look before she glanced over at the corner of 
the
bathroom.  "V'Kreeth...." she started to say.
     "We can leave you alone provided you are by yourself, General, but we
cannot leave you alone with someone else, even if you give us a direct order
to," V'Kreeth explained almost apologetically.  "What goes on during that 
time
is nobody's business and is never spoken of."
     "Am I not allowed any privacy any more?" Rune muttered.
     "Privacy is what you make of it," Si'ren said with another odd smile.
     "Perhaps," Rune replied.  "Now unless you have any other business that
needs to be addressed at this moment, I would like to try to finish my bath 
in
some semblance of privacy."
     "Of course," Si'ren said smoothly.  "Perhaps we can arrange to have
another one of these meetings at a later date when we don't have any other
crises to worry about.  Pleasant evening, General Rune," she said with a 
small
bow and left the room, quietly closing the door behind her.
     Rune sat in the bathtub with a slightly puzzled look on her face.  She
remained that way for several minutes, trying to figure out a new puzzle 
that
life had just handed to her.  "V'Kreeth...." she said slowly.
     "It is not for me to say," the shadow replied.
     Rune frowned lightly.  "I see.  What would you suggest I do, then?"
     "Again, it is not for me to say," came the voice from the shadowy 
corner.
"If the idea appeals to you, then that's your business.  As I said before, 
what
goes on in your chambers is nobody's business and is never spoken of."
     Rune sighed and opened the drain valve, letting the water slowly empty
out of the bathtub.  "Were you there when Beryl had her guests?"  She 
received
silence in reply and she sighed.  "Did Beryl ever have any privacy at all?"
     "None," said the shadow.
     "Why didn't anyone tell me about that part before I assumed command?" 
she
grumbled to herself as she picked up a towel and began drying herself off 
under
the ever-watchful eyes of her bodyguard.
     "It would probably spoil our fun," V'Kreeth replied in a rare moment of
humor, drawing a dark look from Rune.  "We must protect you every moment of 
the
day, General Rune, and it's not an easy task.  We need to get something out 
of
it."
     "And what do you get out of watching me take a bath?" Rune inquired.
     "I rarely watch you as I am busy watching everything else," said the 
voice
from the corner of the bathroom.
     Rune paused and gave her bodyguard a mild look.  "Honestly, V'Kreeth, 
you
expect me to believe that?"  She received more silence in reply and sighed
heavily. "Tell me again why I like my job...." she muttered to herself.

                *               *               *               *

     Tolaris looked up at the door and sighed quietly as Mina walked in with 
a
very unhappy look on her face.  "Do I even want to ask?" she said with an 
edge
to her voice as she held out a small circuit board.
     "The short version is we need this to create a secure link so we can 
talk
to someone in the Negaverse without being detected," Tolaris explained as he
took the circuit board and looked it over carefully.
     Mina blinked.  "What?"
     Tolaris frowned slightly.  "I'll explain in a moment.  What exactly did
you do to the modulator?" he asked as he tapped a somewhat bulky computer 
chip
securely soldered to the board.
     "I set it up so I could use it to multiplex the signals to and from a
laser array," Mina explained.  "Without that chip, I'd need at least another
CPU chip if not two just to handle the data traffic between the control 
console
and the array."
     Tolaris blinked.  "This thing has an I/O port?" he asked, lapsing into
computer technical talk.
     "Of course," the blonde replied as she leaned toward him.  "See, this 
is
where it connects to the console, that gets connected to the array's data 
hub,
and this thingy right here gets plugged into the console's power matrix," 
she
explained as she pointed everything out.
     The Dragoon nodded in understanding.  "Okay, here's what I need to do.  
I
need to have a signal come in one end, have the modulator descramble it with 
an
encryption key, display the result on the computer, have it scramble the 
data
I send back, and have the signal go back out the other end."
     Mina gave him a blank look.  "Umm.... that's Ami's department, not 
mine.
I know how to use computers, even Ami's to some extent, but all that 
hardware
and data processing stuff is way over my head."
     Tolaris chuckled.  "You asked what I wanted it for."
     "Not what I meant," she replied as she looked at the computer.  "Umm, 
who
exactly are you trying to talk to and what are you talking about?  I don't 
mean
to be nosy or anything, but I'm kinda worried about advertising our presence 
to
General Rune, if you know what I mean."
     Tolaris sighed quietly.  "To be perfectly honest, Mina, I have no idea 
who
I'm going to be talking to about what.  All this chip would do is let me 
talk
to that person without having to worry about someone listening in or 
otherwise
tapping into the encrypted link."
     Mina blinked and gave the crystal computer an odd look.  "I'll be right
back," she said and quickly left the room, leaving Tolaris standing there 
with
the circuit board in his hands and a mildly confused look on his face.  She
returned a few minutes later with a somewhat upset vampire following her,
highly irritated at having her studies interrupted without any warning.
     "This had better be good," Ami said.
     "Tell her what you told me," Mina said without any preamble.
     Tolaris blinked for a moment before he took a deep breath and explained 
to
Ami everything he had explained to Mina earlier about needing the chip and 
how
he was going to use it.
     Ami gave him a reproving look.  "Surely you're capable of performing 
the
installation and everything yourself."
     Tolaris shrugged.  "I am."
     Ami sighed and glared at him.  "So why did you have to bother me?"
     Mina tapped her on the shoulder.  "Hello, Ami?  You're missing a rather
serious point here."
     Ami looked at her.  "And that point is...?"
     "Who's on the other end?" Mina said slowly.
     Ami blinked at the realization sank in.  "Umm.... good question...."
     "We think it's the new Dragoon commander, but we can't be absolutely
certain," Tolaris explained before Ami could ask.
     "Who's we?" Mina asked.
     "The rest of us denizens who live here," Maze replied as he walked into
the room.  A somewhat lengthy scratch on the back of his hand was still 
slowly
oozing his green blood, a sight which slightly unsettled Ami.
     Tolaris raised an eyebrow.  "What happened to you?"
     "I think Mina leaves sharp edges in odd places inside her synthesizer 
to
keep anyone who doesn't know better from removing anything," he said dourly.
     "I told you that I would get to it in a few minutes," Mina replied.  
"It's
not my fault you got impatient and tried to remove it yourself."
     "But was I right about the sharp edges?" he asked pointedly.
     The blonde snorted.  "Would I do a thing like that?"
     "Yes," chorused Maze and Ami.
     Mina gave Ami a dark look.  "You stay out of this," she said archly.
     Tolaris cleared his throat.  "Can we get this taken care of before you
decide to further injure my lieutenant?"
     "Why don't we start from the beginning," Ami suggested.  "What prompted
you to suddenly start wanting to talk to someone in the Negaverse?"
     Tolaris nodded and turned to the computer.  "It all started when we got 
a
message like this," he explained and began to show them the contents of the
network administration messages he had received.
     "Wait, don't translate for us," Ami said quickly as the spidery symbols
that made up the written denizen language began to scroll up on the crystal
monitor screen.  "Time to see if our language skills are up to par."
     Tolaris and Maze exchanged glances before Maze shrugged.  "Okay...." 
the
Dragoon commander said slowly as he sat back.  "Just let me know if you need
help or when you're ready to see the next one."
     "Sure...." Mina replied absently, her mind already focused on trying to
translate.  "Umm, is this supposed to mean 'distant' or am I misreading it?"
she asked as she pointed to a symbol.
     "Keep in mind that the military mindset is the same, no matter what 
world
you're from," Ami said as she squinted at a different symbol.  "It probably
means the same, only it's been abbreviated to save space."
     "Oh, so you're saying that we're no different than your Earth armies?
Thanks," Maze said dryly.
     Mina giggled. "Not at all, it's just that doing stuff like that is so
basic a military tactic that it's universal."
     "She may have a point," Tolaris said.
     "What's this?" Ami asked as she pointed to a group of symbols.  "This 
looks
like a name, but I've never been able to fully grasp the rules of when you 
use
that apostrophe in the middle of words."
     "K'tal," Tolaris explained.  "He was my second officer, so to speak, 
and
is now in command of the Dragoons."
     "So that made Shar-Tei your first officer?" Mina inquired.
     Tolaris sighed heavily at the mention of Shar-Tei's name.  "Yes, she 
was."
     Mina blinked at the unexpected reaction.  "Sorry, didn't mean to dredge
that up," she aplogized.
     "I don't get it," Ami said after a moment.  "This just looks like a 
normal
message sent to users on a network that's about to be shut down."
     "That's what it's supposed to look like," Maze explained.  "However, 
this
computer was supposed to have been attached to an isolated network.  In 
other
words, there shouldn't have been any need for an alt-route."
     "You read too fast, Ami," Mina said with a grunt.  "What's a search 
worm?"
     "It's an invasive program that sneaks into a computer, looks for 
something
in particular, and reports back to its creator on what it found," Ami said.
     "It's like a Trojan Horse, right?" Mina asked hesitantly.
     Ami gave her an odd look.  "In a sense, yes, only it's not destructive.
Should I bother asking what you know about hacking into computers?"
     The blonde made a face.  "Hacking is such a harsh term, Ami.  Okay, so
Sailor V did have to do a bit of creative reconaissance involving a set of
computer-controlled security cameras on one unremarkable occasion, but she
never 'hacked' into a computer database or destroyed anything before.  You 
on
the other hand...."
     "We don't need to discuss my computer skills at the moment," Ami said
quickly.  "I was just wondering what you knew."
     "What did you do?" Tolaris sighed.
     Ami blushed.  "Well.... I didn't quite understand how to log into the
cathedral's mainframe computer at first, so I had to bypass all of the 
security
functions.  I never destroyed anything.... unless you count the Trojan Horse 
I
transmitted on a wide-band frequency during our first trip into the 
Negaverse.
I don't think that worked, though...."
     Maze coughed.  "You mean the one that went off when someone tried to 
save
any sort of file with the words 'Sailor Scouts' in the file?"
     Ami blinked.  "You mean it worked?" she said incrediously.  "That was
something I wrote in an effort to relieve some frustration.  I never thought
your computers would have been able to do anything with it due to the 
extremely
differing architecture."
     "It worked only because some numbnut cadet ran across a copy of a 
program
written in a computer language he had never seen before, somehow managed to
translate the coding into a standard Negaverse code, and ran it," Maze said
with a grunt.
     Ami couldn't contain the grin slowly spreading across her face.  "So 
what
happened?"
     "Looking at the original coding, it was only supposed to work on files
with the keywords in the file name, right?" Maze asked.  He received a nod 
in
reply and he continued.  "Well, that fool cadet mistranslated that and set 
it
to go off if it found the keywords anywhere in the file.  The end result was
that your 'Trojan Horse' quickly mutated into an armed search worm."
     Tolaris blinked, his gaze alternating between Ami's smug expression and
the slightly haunted look in Maze's tan eyes.  "What do you mean by an armed
search worm?" he asked warily.
     "It became a search-and-destroy program.  If it found a file with that 
so
much as mentions 'Sailor Scouts' in the contents, it deleted it," Maze 
grumped.
"That little bug ate a good ten percent of the files in the central computer
before we picked up on it and started isolating memory banks.  The task of
flushing it out fell to the Dragoons, and the person with the most 
experience
in dealing with rogue programs got the job of cleaning up.  Guess who that
person was?" Maze explained, giving Ami an icy glare.
     Ami blushed.  "Sorry."
     Tolaris blinked.  "I thought they would have given it to Asrial."
     "They would have if she hadn't been on assignment," Maze grumbled.  
"She
wasn't around, so it fell to me.  I'd compliment you on doing good work, 
Ami,
if I didn't have to spend a month trying to squish that worm."
     "Sorry...." Ami giggled, not sounding the least bit repentant.
     "And you say I'm a bad girl...." Mina snickered.
     Ami made a grunting noise as her facial expression changed 
unexpectedly,
causing everyone to blink in confusion.  "What was that about?" Mina asked.
     "Mmph," Ami said, letting the tip of her tongue protrude past her lips 
to
show everyone the blood on it.  "When biting your tongue to keep from making
any sort of smart aleck reply, make sure you use flat teeth and not fangs," 
she
muttered.
     "We try," Maze said dryly.
     "One of the downsides to being a vampire," Ami said, her humorous mood 
now
forgotten.  "Okay, enough about my computer skills and back to this message.
What's wrong with it?"
     "It never should have been sent," Tolaris explained, "Nor should this
computer have been invaded by a search worm unless someone on the other end 
of
this network is trying to reach us."
     Mina looked at the message again.  "So do you think this K'tal is 
trying
to reach us?"
     "I think he's trying to look for me," Tolaris clarified.  "Here, let me
show you what we wrote back and forth."
     Ami and Mina spent the next half-hour trying to translate the spidery 
text
into something more immediately comprehensible.  "Okay," Ami said after a 
few
minutes of careful study.  "I take it a keytape is like a punch card in the
sense that it has data physically imprinted on it?"
     Tolaris nodded.  "Exactly.  However, this keytape doesn't exist in a
physical form, only as a stream of data.  That modulator chip Mina borrowed 
is
capable of turning that data into a secure algorithm used to scramble and
descramble communications traffic."
     "Which you would then use to talk to this K'tal person, right?" Mina 
said
as she rubbed at her temples.  She felt Maze's fingertips brush hers aside 
and
she leaned back to let him gently massage her head.
     "Which we're not sure he's who he claims to be," Ami finished up.
     "In a nut," Tolaris replied with a shrug.
     Mina giggled.  "In a nutshell, you mean."
     Tolaris sighed.  "Leave me alone, I'm still working on learning that 
part
of your language."
     "You're doing just fine," Ami consoled him.
     "Here's the bottom line," Tolaris said as he picked up the circuit 
board
with the modulator soldered into it.  "Unless any of you have any 
objections,
I intend to connect this chip to the computer, use it to establish a secure
link to the other end of this dimensional phase-link, and find out who wants
to talk to me and why."
     Mina suddenly sat up, mildly startling Maze in the process.  "Sorry," 
she
apologized.  "Commander, what are the odds that this is another one of those
fun traps of Rune's that we've come to know and love?"
     Maze pulled a tissue out of his pocket and held it out to her.  "Here, 
use
this.  You're dripping sarcasm on the floor."
     Tolaris coughed discreetly and spoke before the blonde could formulate 
an
appropriate reply.  "There is a significant chance that this is indeed one 
of
Rune's traps, but I have my doubts.  Granted K'tal is just a little on the,
shall we say, trigger-happy side when it comes to situations needing tact, 
but
I honestly think that he has his reasons for doing what he did."
     Ami and Mina exchanged concerned glances for several seconds before 
Mina
wrinkled her nose and made a gesture in the general direction of the living
room.  Ami nodded and stood up.
     "Go ahead and connect the chip to the computer, but don't use it yet," 
Ami
told Tolaris.  "Mina and I have to discuss this with Luna and the others 
first
to see if we really want to take the risk of announcing our presence to 
General
Rune or whomever is sitting on the other end of that thing."
     Tolaris nodded and leaned over to kiss her cheek.  "I understand, love.
Maze, do you remember where I put that screwdriver set?"
     Maze snickered.  "Last I saw of it was about half a second before I 
sent
it flying across the hall after I got electrocuted awhile back.  No idea 
where
it wound up."
     Tolaris stood up and sighed.  "See if I ever let you borrow those 
again,"
he grumbled as he left the room to search for them.  Ami and Mina exchanged 
a
partially amused glance before Mina shrugged.
     "Come on, let's go see what the others think of this," Mina said.
     "What do you think of it?" Ami inquired as she followed the blonde down
the hall towards the living room.
     Mina sighed.  "I'll let you know when I make up my mind."
     Ami frowned to herself and remained silent, her own doubts about the
situation starting to weigh heavily upon her.  This could either help us a 
lot
or hurt us very badly, she thought.  Do we really want to risk it?
     Still thinking, she entered the living room with a sigh and, making 
sure
she had everyone's full attention, began to speak about the situation.

                *               *               *               *

     They plane-shifted into another section of The Dark, which looked and 
felt
just like the area they had just left.  As soon as they had materialized she
was on the alert, nervously looking in all directions around her for any 
sign
of anything even remotely hostile.  After a few seconds, she was satisified
that she was undetected for the time being and started her search.
     Her search only lasted for a few moments before she froze, her senses
screaming an alarm that something was wrong.  Moving as quickly as possible
while trying to remain seemingly motionless, she scanned the area around her
again, searching for anything that seemed out-of-place.
     She blinked as something seemed to be missing.  A reflex automatically
checked her holding pouch for everything, momentarily surprising her to find
a soul inside before she remembered she was carrying it.  Satisfied that she
was still carrying everything she had when she left, she began to move in a
small circle, searching carefully even though she had no idea what she was
looking for.
     She froze as she thought she detected the faintest movement in front of
her.  On impulse, she began to run various sensory filters over her optic
nerves in an attempt to look at the entire energy spectrum.  She paused in
mid-cycle as the sense of something missing returned, nagging at the edge of
her mind.
     She began to cycle through the filters once more, only this time at a 
much
slower pace, comparing each image to the previous ones.  She paused when her
eyes were attuned to background radiation, appearing to her as a somewhat 
hazy
collection of colored sources of radiation.  She looked around her slowly 
and
froze when she saw a section of The Dark that was completely devoid of any
background radiation at all.
     Fear filled her when she realized that it wasn't an absence of 
radiation
she saw but the result of something blocking her line of vision.  She began 
to
shake when she realized that she only had two choices:  Ignore it and hope 
that
it wasn't a creature trying to hunt her, or she could do a scan for life 
energy
and give her location away in the process.
     She remained absolutely still as she contemplated the situation.  It 
was
her guess that she was as invisible to it as it was to her, but that was 
only
because she wasn't moving and actively trying to mask her presence.  The 
scan
for life energy would let her clearly see what it was, but the burst of 
energy
she gave off would announce her presence like a flare in the dark.
     She was just about to make her choice when the creature suddenly became
visible and she was engulfed in a burst of radiation.  Her brain had just
identified it as a life energy scan when her reflexes kicked in and she 
darted
away as fast as she could move, trying to escape from the creature.
     The creature was simply too fast.  Within a mere moment it had closed 
the
short distance between them and snared her in what might have been called a
tendril of energy.  The realization that she was about to die had just sunk
into her brain when a beam of energy shot out of the darkness, narrowly 
missing
her and striking the creature square in the center of its mass.
     The creature began to writhe around in agony as its life energy was 
being
polarized by the sudden attack.  She had barely enough time to grasp what 
was
going on before she was grabbed by a second creature and felt herself being
torn apart by a teleport.
     She had no idea where her molecules reassembled themselves, nor did she
care as she tried to deal with the agonizing pain that a molecular teleport
brought on.  All that mattered was that she was alive, but the pain gave her
second thoughts about enjoying it.
     "I am sorry I had to do that, but I wasn't ready enough for a 
dimensional
shift," a voice said as he released his hold on her.  He looked at her oddly
for a moment before he remembered.  "So we meet again," he said, then 
speaking
the syllables of her true-name.
     The shock of her true-name being spoken drowned out the residual pain 
she
was in.  "How...?" she asked as she looked up at her savior, trying to 
discern
his identity.  "You...."
     He nodded.  "So you do remember me."
     "How do you know my true-name?" she whispered, the shock being replaced 
by
fear at the situation, for she knew that he now held absolute power over her
with the knowledge of her true-name.
     "That is unimportant, my friend," he said softly.  "What is more 
important
is why have you come here?  This region is far more dangerous than the area
you usually inhabit."
     "Actually, I was looking for you," she said quietly.
     He blinked in mild surprise.  "Looking for me?" he echoed.
     "You once spoke of a legend of a kingdom that lies outside The Dark," 
she
explained.  "I believe you referred to it as the 'Moon Kingdom.'"
     He looked at her with an intense gaze for a moment, making her slightly
wary of the whole situation.  "I doubt you have manged to escape The Dark, 
yet
you speak of that which lies outside of this neo-void," he said softly.  
"How
did you come by that name?"
     She hesitated for a moment, unsure of how far she could trust him.  He 
saw
the look on what passed for her face and gave her a comforting look.  
"Believe
me when I say I have no reason to wish you harm.  I am merely curious as to 
how
you came across a reference to the Moon Kingdom."
     "A soul told me about it," she said, her voice a bare whisper.
     He gave her an odd look.  "A soul?  I don't understand."
     She finally made a decision and withdrew the glowing soul from her 
storage
pouch.  "Listen to her," she said as she held the soul out to him.  She saw 
him
carefully touch it like it was a poisonous object, then watched as his eyes
nearly tripled in diameter as the soul spoke to him.
      he thought-broadcasted, the shock of having the soul 
speak
to him upsetting him enough to forget to direct his thought only at the 
soul.
He listened intently as Pluto reawoke and told her fragmented story again.
     "A thousand years?" he whispered aloud.  "Wait.... I've seen something
like this before.... Hold her," he said as he held out the glowing soul to 
her.
She carefully accepted the soul and watched in amazement as his form began 
to
dissolve, quickly collapsing into a swirling maelestrom.
     She blinked as something intangible emerged from the center of the 
vortex
and floated to the ground.  The tiny particles quickly coalesced into their
usual solid form and he picked up the object.  "I found this a long time 
ago,
but didn't know what it was or what to do with it," he said as he held it 
out
to her.
     She took it from him and nearly dropped it in shock when she recognized
it.  "It's another one!" she said in utter amazement.  "It's another soul, 
just
like Pluto was when I found her!"
     "Strange it could have existed this long without fading out," he mused.
"How did you revive Pluto?"
     "I gave it as much energy as I could spare," she replied.
     "Interesting...." he said as he turned his mind inward to his own 
supply
of energy.  He carefully extracted a tendril of energy and transferred it to
the nearly faded soul, waiting to see what the reaction would be.
     Both of them jumped as the soul sucked up the tendril of energy like a
vacuum.  They took a closer look at it and noticed that the soul had taken 
on
a very faint yellow glow.
     "Most interesting," he commented.  "If it's energy it wants, I think I
have enough available to satisfy its immediate needs."  He searched inward 
and
extracted almost half of his reserve supply of energy, carefully 
transferring
it to the soul.
     The tendrils of energy quickly wrapped themselves around the soul, 
causing
it to glow brighter and brighter until there was a blinding flash of light.
When they could see again, they saw a vibrant yellow ball of light floating
calmly in the air.  The only visible difference between it and Pluto's soul 
was
the color.
     "Unbelievable," he said after a moment.  Carefully, almost fearfully, 
he
reached out and touched the soul.  After a careful check to ensure that the
soul was still intact, he picked up Pluto's soul and held the two next to 
each
other.
     <.........>
      Pluto said.
      he answered.  
      Pluto asked.  
      he replied.  
     <.........>
     
      Mephisto asked.
     
     <........?>
     
      Pluto replied.
     <....?.....???>
     
     <...?.....?............!>
     <........Alex?>
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
      Pluto said, mildly amused.
     <...?.... What happened?>
      she said soothingly.
     <..........?>
     
     
     
      Mephisto said quietly.
     
      Pluto replied.  
     <...?  Thank you....>
     
     
      Pluto said softly.
     
     
     

                *               *               *               *

     General Rune sighed and glanced down at the display console she had 
been
staring at for the past hour.  The display was split into three windows, the
first two showing an overhead tactical map of each of the polar oceans while
the third displayed the results of several scans of the region where the odd
rift was still forming.
     "What's the latest word from the Leviathans?" Rune called out over her
shoulder.
     Lieutenant Admiral Ne'tan walked over from the communications console 
to
stand next to her.  "Leviathan North reports no contacts," he said in a low,
even tone.  "We have not yet received an update from Leviathan South."
     Rune frowned.  "Where exactly are they?"
     Ne'tan reached past her to quickly tap a few buttons on the keypad at 
the
base of the display.  After a few seconds, a pair of green circles lit up on
the screen, one in each polar region.  "These were their last known 
positions
as of ten minutes ago.  For various security reasons they never report their
exact positions, instead giving us a certain radius that they are currently
operating in."
     The frown on Rune's face deepened as she digested the information.  The
Navy was fiercely protective of their ultra-secret Leviathan project for 
some
unknown reason, a fact that didn't sit well with Rune's Army background.  
"Who
knows their exact locations?"
     Ne'tan shook his head.  "Only the captain of each Leviathan and their
navigators."
     Rune have the Navy second-in-command a sharp look.  "Not even Admiral
Si'ren knows?"
     Ne'tan's reply was cut off by the loud voice of one of the 
communication
console operators.  "Sir, Leviathan South reports multiple submerged 
contacts.
The are assuming a Stage 2 Alert as per orders and are rigging for 
ultra-quiet
to assess the situation.  They will report when they have further 
information
provided they can transmit while remaining silent."
     Rune's fingers were a blur as she punched in several commands into the
display console.  On the far wall of the tiny underground command center, 
the
topographic map of the Negaverse vanished and was replaced with a full-size
display of the southern ocean.  As further commands were entered, various
objects and types of information were superimposed on the map.  The green 
ring
that appeared tiny on Rune's display was several inches across on the map,
representing an area of several square nautical miles.
     All eyes turned to the map when five smaller white rings appeared, each
denoting the possible location of a submerged contact.  The rings were close
enough to overlap each other several times, indicating that the contacts 
were
rather close to one another.
     "Someone contact Admiral Si'ren and tell her to report here 
immediately,"
Rune ordered.
     "Someone starting a war?" Si'ren asked as she walked into the command
center.  Unlike Queen Beryl and her predecessors, she had always preferred 
to
receive her information as it came in, instead of having to wait for various
military personnel to process it into something the Queen could understand.
Discovering that General Rune preferred to do the same had given the admiral
a small measure of hope that the throne's power would be more focused on 
what
the military was doing, as opposed to worrying about what the rest of the
civillian population was planning.
     If Rune seemed surprised at Si'ren's sudden entrance, she hid it well.
"I'm glad to see that timing doesn't go down the tubes in a crisis," she
observed.  "Leviathan South just reported several submerged contacts."  Rune
took one look at the way Si'ren's eyes doubled in size and decided that this
was a very bad development.
     "What is Leviathan South doing right now?" Si'ren asked Ne'tan.
     "They have assumed a Stage 2 Alert and have rigged for ultra-quiet," he
replied evenly.  "They will respond when they have more information on the
situation, provided they do not risk revealing their position in the 
attempt."
     Rune waited patiently for Si'ren to finish cussing beneath her breath.
"I will admit ignorance to some of your branch's terminology," Rune said 
very
evenly, "As no doubt you are sometimes confused by ours.  What exactly takes
place when they 'rig for ultra-quiet?'"
     Si'ren ran her fingers through her close-cropped white hair.  "Do you
want the short-and-stupid version or the long-and-complex version?" she 
asked.
     Rune raised an eyebrow.  "Short-and-stupid will work for the time 
being,"
she said dryly.  "The full explanation can wait until I have the time to 
deal
with the headache caused by technical details."
     "Very well," Si'ren said with a soft smile.  "In short, they're doing
their absolute best to remain as quiet as possible, which means they make no
motion at all, turn off all active sensors, and don't transmit any messages.
In other words, they make like a hole in the water."
     Rune turned back to the oversized display board, already deep in 
thought.
"Can they move when ultra-quiet?" she asked absently.
     "They can, but as any motion makes some degree of noise underwater, 
they
can only move very slowly and still remain undetectable," Ne'tan explained.
     "And what are they armed with again?" Rune asked.  She heard silence in
reply and she turned around to fix Si'ren with a look.  "I asked a question,
Admiral, and I would appreciate an answer."
     Si'ren suddenly appeared to be slightly nervous.  "Forty sub-surface
missiles, ten sub-surface-to-air missiles, and thirty ballistic missiles."
     Rune blinked hard.  "And with what kind of warhead on each?"
     "Impact, conventional, and either conventional or nuclear, 
respectively,"
the admiral replied softly.
     Rune looked back at the map and studied the large green ring.  "Let me
summarize this," she said, her voice deceptively soft.  "We have a pair of
Navy vessels in operation that don't report their exact whereabouts to 
anyone,
have the ability to disappear off of the rest of the Navy's sensors at will,
are able to go beyond the reach of the secure frequency communications net,
and are armed with enough nuclear weapons to turn a good tenth of the known
map into so much free-floating radioactive air pollution.  Am I right?"
     A sudden noise behind her caused her to whirl around in time to see a
Navy officer draw his side-arm and point it at her.  Immediately the room
erupted into chaos as everyone scrambled to either get out of the way or to
try to stop the assassination attempt.  "Die, bitch!" the officer screamed 
as
he pulled the trigger a scant second before he was taken down by three 
people.
     Rune would have been shot in the dead-center of her chest if she hadn't
been forcibly shoved aside by Ne'tan.  His actions saved Rune from immediate
harm but put himself in the path of the projectile.  There was a muffled 
crack
as the round imbedded itself in his ribcage and the small explosive charge
detonated.
     Rune looked up in time to see Ne'tan's amber eyes widen in shock as 
most
of his lifeblood was splashed across the wall, creating a hideous cascade of
blue that immediately started to pool around him.  Then the life faded from
his eyes as his brain overloaded from the extreme shock and simply shut 
down,
mercifully sparing him from any sensation of pain.
     She quickly sprang to her feet, the adrenaline burning in her veins 
like
wildfire and her senses alert for any further attempts on her life.  A quick
glance around the room was all it took for her to realize that Si'ren and 
the
other naval officers had things under control.
     Two ensigns had the would-be assassin in secure arm-lock, putting 
enough
pressure on his arms to make the bones creak loud enough for Rune to hear 
from
across the room.  A lieutenant had secured the side-arm and was pointing it 
at
the man's forehead, ready to pull the trigger in an instant.
     Rune blinked when she saw the expression on Si'ren's face.  She had 
known
the admiral for decades, but had never seen her as furious as she was now.  
So
perhaps it wasn't a Navy plot after all, Rune thought, or perhaps the 
admiral
is a first-rate actress....
     Si'ren made sure that the assassin was securely restrained before she
walked over and forced him to look up at her.  "What were you thinking?" she
seethed, her eyes showing quite clearly her anger.
     "You know why the Leviathan project was started," he replied.  "And now
you betray it to someone like her?  Had I known you were as undeserving as 
she
is, I'd have fired the next shell at you."
     "General Rune," Si'ren said quietly, her voice absolutely flat, "Do you
have any questions for him?"
     Rune frowned.  Ordinarily she would have turned the assassin over to 
her
own security force for detailed questioning, followed by a suitably messy
execution, but something in the back of her mind told her to let Si'ren 
handle
the situation.
     "I doubt he would be able to answer the questions I have in mind," Rune
said after a few moments of silence.
     Si'ren heard the odd tone in the general's voice and turned to look at
her, the two women communicating somehow without word or gesture.  "I see,"
Si'ren said quietly.  "Then as I doubt neither of us have any patience left
for the matter, is there any particular way you would like to see him die?"
     Rune blinked in surprise, having expected Si'ren to have the officer
taken away for further questioning.  She briefly toyed with several options
that sounded appealing to her before she caught the look in the admiral's 
dark
eyes.  "Surprise me," Rune said with a small smile.
     Si'ren didn't smile back, only nodding her head once before turning her
attention to the assassin and reaching out.  Her hand had almost touched the
base of his throat when she paused and cast a quick glance back towards 
Rune.
"You aren't squeamish, are you?" she asked.
     Rune blinked in surprise again, caught off-guard by the question.  "Of
course not," she said, giving Si'ren an uncertain look.
     This time, a soft smile tugged at the corners of Si'ren's mouth.  
"Good,"
she said simply and turned back to the assassin, her fingertips lightly 
making
contact with his skin.  "This may get.... disturbing."
     Nothing happened for a few seconds at first.  Then Rune noticed that 
the
assassin was starting to sweat, his eyes starting to go wide for some 
reason.
Rune knew something was happening when his skin started to turn a light 
shade
of pink and his muscles started to twitch.  The two ensigns holding onto him
began to exchange nervous glances and discreetly began to shift positions,
wary at what was happening.
     Si'ren laughed very softly.  "You two may release him and step back.  
He
isn't going anywhere anymore.  As for you, Lieutenant," she said, addressing
the officer still holding the assassin's weapon, "I want that weapon taken
down to the lab and analyzed.  I don't recall ever seeing that type of shell
being used before, and I want to know all about it."
     "Yes, ma'am," the lieutenant replied as he made a hasty exit, not 
wanting
to stay around to see the assassin's demise.  The assassin was now making
choking noises as his eyes started to bulge and his skin started to redden.
     "My, you're a tough one," Si'ren commented.  "I think you have about 
one
more minute of life left in you before you die."
     Rune remained silent as she sought to figure out just what exactly 
Si'ren
was doing to him.  She immediately ruled out electrocution, as his short 
hair
wasn't standing on end or crackling with static.  He wasn't bleeding yet, or
at least not that she could see, so she tentatively ruled out any sort of
internal damage being done.  Still, she thought, she's doing something....
     Si'ren smiled as steam began to emerge from his mouth.  "I suggest that
everyone take a few steps back," she said lightly.  "And if you are of the
squeamish type, you are dismissed from the command center."
     Of the twelve people in the command center, only five bothered to 
remain
and watch.  Rune cast a quick glance at the retreating mass of people before
she turned back to watch the assassin.  He appeared to have lost all 
muscular
control and now his abdomen appeared to be swelling slightly.  The 
realization
of what was happening had just occurred to Rune when the assassin let out a
high-pitched whistling noise a bare second before his entire body exploded
outwards.
     Rune reflexively ducked as an unholy amount of blood and gore was 
thrown
into the air and started raining down.  She waited until the last of the 
bits
and pieces had fallen before she cautiously stood up and looked around, her
stomach churning at both the sight and the smell of burnt flesh.
     Si'ren was calmly brushing off the front of her uniform, which was now 
a
solid mass of pink and blue ichor.  She caught the horrified look in Rune's
eyes and shrugged.  "'Any day that I am covered up to my elbows in the blood
of my enemies is a good day,'" she quoted with a casual smile.  "This 
uniform
is going to need some serious work, though."
     Rune finally found her voice.  "Who said that?" she asked, a small 
creak
still in her voice despite her best efforts.
     The smile fell from Si'ren's lips.  "General Nop'tera."
     "I see," Rune said as she surveyed the control room.  "You," she said 
as
she pointed at a young lieutenant who was obviously fighting her nausea.  "I
want you to call maintenance and tell them that we need a cleaning team over
here.  Make sure they send people who aren't easily nauseated, and be sure 
to
specify that they need to spray everything down with a heavy-duty type of
disinfectant."
     The lieutenant could only nod in numb compliance before she turned 
around
and quickly bolted down the hall towards the nearest latrine.  Rune closed 
her
eyes and counted to ten, opened them slowly, and turned to face Fleet 
Admiral
Si'ren.
     "I'll admit that was a surprise.  What exactly did you do?" she asked.
     Si'ren gave her a mild look.  "I have a strong control over water," she
replied.  "Part of the reason I joined the Navy instead of the rest of the
ground-based military.  As for our friend here, he was composed of 
eighty-six
percent water, just like the rest of us."
     "So you boiled that water?" Rune finished for her, slightly disgusted.
     Si'ren spread her hands.  "Very messy, but very effective, wouldn't you
say, General Rune?  Tell me you wouldn't have crystalized something in his
bloodstream or something to that effect."
     Rune indeed had considered doing exactly that, although she had never
attempted to do such a thing before.  "It matters not.  I think it is safe 
to
say that justice has been served, but there still leaves quite a lot that
needs to be answered," Rune said slowly.
     Si'ren nodded.  "Indeed, and I may have some of the answers that you
seek.  But this is not the place and my uniform needs to be changed.  Ensign
Raw'eth, you will oversee the clean-up of the center and continue to monitor
the situation with Leviathan South.  If anything changes, notify me in my
quarters at once.  Understood?"
     "Understood perfectly, ma'am," the stocky ensign replied crisply.
     Si'ren nodded and turned to Rune.  "I believe there is an Earth saying
that goes, 'The time has come... to talk of many things.'"
     Rune nodded silently and followed Si'ren out of the command center and
down the corridor, her mind already sorting the questions she would ask 
about
not only the Leviathan project, but about other things as well.  Who knows,
she mused, this might turn out to be exactly what I need after all....

                *               *               *               *

     Leda quietly walked into the room, trying not to disturb anyone from 
their
work.  As she looked around, she had to bite her tongue to keep herself from
giggling out loud.  And me without my camera, she thought to herself.
     The front casing of the crystal computer had been removed and Tolaris 
had
both of his arms buried up to his elbows inside.  From what she could see, 
he
had a series of wires held in one hand, some sort of tool in the other, and 
a
small penlight clamped between his teeth.
     Maze had pried up several of the floor tiles in order to get to the 
main
node of the dimensional phase-link connector.  All that could be seen of him
were a pair of sweatpants-clad legs hooked around a bar that had been 
secured
between the legs of the computer table.
     "Wait a minute, go back to the fourth wire again?" Maze's voice drifted
up from the pit in the floor.
     There was a dark growl from within the computer as Tolaris peered 
inside
and traced down a wire.  "I thought we already ruled that one out," he said.
     "Yeah, well I just discovered I had a loose connection here," Maze shot
back.  "That second wire is clear, that third is definitely null, but I want
to try to get another reading on that fourth."
     Leda gave serious consideration to yelling 'boo' and most likely 
scaring
them both.  However, she thought, scaring someone holding a glass of water 
is
one thing.  Spooking someone poking around in delicate electronics or doing
their impression of a bat is another.  But still....
     "Connected," Tolaris called out.
     "Ay'cha navidshi, that's it!" Maze called out from within the depths of
the narrow access conduit.  "See, told you all we had to do was pin down the
return data path."
     Tolaris muttered something cryptic that Leda's limited knowledge of the
denizen language couldn't translate properly.  "What was that about fish?" 
she
asked cautiously.
     There was a muffled curse as Tolaris jumped and bumped his head on the
top edge of the computer casing.  "Hang on," he growled as he secured the 
wire
into place with the tool he was holding.
     "Who's up there?" Maze called out.
     Leda smiled as she walked over to the conduit and peered down.  "Just 
me,
Maze.  We having fun yet?"
     "Loads," Maze replied as he glanced down at his feet to see who it was.
     "Speaking of loads," Tolaris replied, "Are we sure this line will be 
able
to handle the stream of data?"
     "It should, but we all know how far that usually goes," Maze replied as 
he
briefly returned his attention to firmly attaching the wire into the data 
hub.
"Look on the bright side.  If it blows, at least we know which one it is."
     The Dragoon commander snorted.  "Great.  In that case, you can replace 
it
as I'm not quite suited to hanging upside down for hours on end."
     There was a brief burst of laughter from within the conduit.  "I don't 
get
it, boss.  You can spend hours in an underwater or null-g environment for
training, but you can't hang upside down for fifteen minutes to replace one
simple wire?" Maze said.
     Tolaris finally withdrew from the inside of the computer and cast a 
mild
look at the pair of legs.  "It's probably the same reason why you can handle
variable-gravity situations but can't stand free-fall."
     Maze grunted.  "Yeah, well...."
     "Do I want to ask what you two are talking about?" Leda inquired.
     "If you think you can follow it," Tolaris replied with a shrug.
     "Put it like this," Maze grunted as he finished the last connection.  
"If
the Dragoons ever have to go to war again, I will probably be one of the six 
or
seven people who won't be participating in the 'Death From Above' tactic."
     "Yeah, sorry I asked," the brunette said with a sigh.
     Tolaris shrugged.  "It's easy.  We get a large airborne transport, 
strap
on airframes, fly over to our objective, and deploy once we're overhead."
     Leda blinked.  "Airframes?"
     "I think you humans refer to them as hang-gliders," Tolaris said.
     Maze grunted as he started to wiggle out of his inverted position.  
"The
only thing wrong with that idea is Kota's First Law."
     Leda looked at Tolaris in time to see the Dragoon rolling his eyes.  
"And
what exactly is Kota's First Law?" Leda asked cautiously.
     There was another grunt as Maze flexed his legs and flipped out of the
access conduit.  "Gravity works," he said.
     Leda smiled.  "Ahh.  What goes up must come down, eh?"
     "Precisely."
     "Admit it, Maze, you're just afraid of heights," Tolaris teased.
     The Dragoon lieutenant glared at him.  "I'm not afraid of heights, 
boss,
I'm just afraid of that sudden stop at the end if I should happen to fall."
     "I think hang-gliding would be cool," Leda said.
     "You would," Maze muttered beneath his breath.
     "So what brings you here?" Tolaris asked before Maze went off.
     The brunette sighed.  "Well, first to tell you that everyone had to go
home.  Mina poked her head in here earlier to say good-bye, but you both 
looked
like you had your hands full so she asked me to tell you when you were 
done."
     Maze grinned.  "She just didn't want to stick around to see if we 
needed
to further mutilate her synthesizer for parts," he snickered.
     Leda spread her hands in a gesture of surrender.  "Hey, I'm just 
telling
you what they told me.  Anyway, Serena and the others came to an agreement 
to
let you talk to what's-his-face in the Negaverse.  However," she said, 
giving
Tolaris a warning look, "If anything happens that could even remotely put us 
in
any sort of trouble or anything, cut the link and give Rei a call 
immediately."
     Tolaris nodded, a small frown on his face.  "Understood, but why should 
we
call Rei instead of someone like Ami or Luna?"
     Leda shrugged.  "Rei said something about not seeming to get much sleep
anymore and would probably be the only one awake at odd hours in the 
morning."
     "That's not a good sign," Tolaris observed.
     Leda shrugged again.  "Yeah, we know, but Rei said that she's had a lot 
on
her mind as of late, and not just about school work.  Mina tried to get her 
to
talk about it but almost wound up getting chased out by a fireball."
     Maze said something cryptic in the denizen language and Tolaris 
smirked.
"I doubt that would be the case, lieutenant," Tolaris said dryly.
     Leda gave the Dragoon a dark look.  "I'll be sure to tell Rei you said
that about her," she said evenly.
     Maze blinked.  "Umm...."
     The brunette giggled impulsively.  "Of course, I personally came to the
same conclusion, but I'm not rude enough to voice it openly like that."
     "Now there's a first," Maze muttered beneath his breath.
     "Are you two finished?" Tolaris said dryly as he turned his attention
towards the computer and began to initialize the newly installed computer 
chip.
The computer immediately came back with a multi-harmonic chime and displayed 
an
error message in bright red spider-like characters.  The two denizens 
exchanged
glances before Maze flushed a light shade of green and quickly climbed back
down into the conduit.
     "Problem?" Leda inquired.
     "Yeah, it usually works better if you turn it on after you plug it in,"
Maze said from within the depths of the conduit.  "The hub should be back up
now, boss.  Try it again."
     "Do us a favor and stay down there until we're sure everything works," 
the
Dragoon commander replied as he tried to initialize the chip again.  The 
result
was the same but the error message was completely different.
     "Now what does it say?" Maze called out from his inverted position.
     "External matrix port not ready," Tolaris replied.
     "That's your fault, not mine," the lieutenant shot back.
     Tolaris grumbled something acidic beneath his breath that Leda couldn't
even come close to translating.  He carefully reached inside the computer 
and
reset the tiny power circuit connecting the modulator chip to the rest of 
the
system.  There was a momentary hum as power started to flow through the chip
and it began to communicate with the main CPU.
     Leda smiled.  "Third time's the charm," she said.
     "Let's hope so," Tolaris replied as he initialized the chip again.  
This
time, he got a small status screen with a single, green spider-like 
character
that was slowly blinking on and off.
     The brunette squinted at the character for a moment.  "Acting?"
     Tolaris shook his head.  "Working.  Acting is drawn like this," he said 
as
he picked up a pencil and started to draw on a scrap of paper.
     Leda compared the two characters and shook her head.  "They're almost
identical.  How do you tell them apart so easily?"
     The Dragoon shrugged.  "Practice, I guess.  You tend to become skilled 
at
certain tasks if you've been doing them since you learned how to walk."
     "True...."
     Maze coughed lightly from within the access conduit.  "Language lessons
are always nice, boss, but is everything working to the point where I can 
come
on out of here now?"
     Tolaris chuckled.  "But I thought you liked doing your impression of a
mer'cata."
     There was a derisive snort from within the conduit.  "Yeah, so you get 
a
different view of the world when you do that, but your blood also tends to
start pooling in your brain after a few minutes.  Especially after you've
already spent an hour in this position."
     Leda looked up at the computer in time to see the text message change 
to
a lengthy explanation of something.  "I think it's finished," she said as 
she
struggled to translate the first five characters.
     Tolaris glanced at it and nodded.  "It's finished now, Maze, so you can
climb back out of there."
     "Great," Maze grunted as he quickly extracted himself from the narrow
confines of the access conduit.  As soon as he was free, he quickly sat down
and stared up at the ceiling.  "Whee, blood rush...."
     "I thought you said you liked those," Tolaris said absently as he 
opened
up a utility program and began to configure the chip's software interface 
for
use with the crystal computer.
     "A blood rush from fighting for your life is always a good feeling," 
Maze
replied slowly as his vision slowly refocused.  "A rush from adrenaline is a
good one as well.  A rush from sex.... well, no need to comment.  But a rush
from having half of your blood supply go from your brain to your toes in two
seconds is not the most pleasant of feelings...."
     Leda giggled.  "You only hate that because you don't like freefall."
     "You hush," the Dragoon lieutenant replied with a mild look.
     "Children, please, not in here," Tolaris said as he continued to work.
     "Children?" Leda echoed, her green eyes narrowing.  She moved forward 
to
smack him upside his head but halted when she found Maze's arm blocking her.
     "Now, now, Leda, it's not Tolaris's fault he's old enough to be one of
your ancestors," he said smoothly with a large grin.  "And after all, a 
fifteen
year old girl in the Negaverse would still be in post-diaper training."
     Tolaris blinked at Maze's words and quickly started to explain things 
to
Leda before she took offense and went ballistic.  "What Maze is trying to 
say
is that denizens have an extremely slow initial growth rate, both physically
and mentally.  It takes us five years to get past the initial 
brainless-infant
stage and another ten to learn how to walk.  Public education doesn't start
until the twenty-fifth year and that is geared towards learning how to 
learn.
Once our minds 'solidify' as we call it, then we can begin to really learn
about the sciences and all."
     Leda blinked as she digested all of the information.  "Why does it take
denizens such an unimaginable amount of time to grow up?" she asked, still 
in
a mild state of awe.
     Tolaris shrugged.  "I sat down with Ami one day and compared the human
timespan and the denizen timespan of life at certain key points.  
Surprisingly
enough, the only time difference between the human lifespan and the denizen
lifespan is the amount of time between birth and death of old age.  
Everything
else is virtually a direct time ratio."
     Leda blinked again, this time lost by the Dragoon's words.  "Huh?"
     Maze smiled.  "What he's trying to say is that if you took the 
denizen's
average lifespan and crunched it down to a human's lifespan, we'd grow up as
fast as you humans do.  The reverse is also true.  If we stretch your 
lifespan
out to two thousand years, it'd take you just as long to grow up as we do."
     "Ooooh, I get it...." Leda said slowly as her mind grasped the concept.
     "And contrary to what Maze was trying to insinuate," Tolaris said 
dryly,
"I do not view you and the other Sailor Scouts as being merely young 
children."
     Leda sighed and looked down at the floor.  "Yeah, well, we kinda still 
are
that, in a way."  She looked up as she felt Maze gently squeeze her 
shoulder.
     "Age is a state of mind, Leda," he said quietly.  "So Tolaris is two
centuries my elder.  When you live as long as we do, or are supposed to," he
added with a roll of his eyes, "What does a few years matter?"
     "Supposed to?" Leda echoed.
     Tolaris laughed humorlessly.  "Speaking from a strictly biological 
view,
yes.  However, the amount of violence in our society definitely has a major
impact on things."
     Leda wrinkled her nose and was about to make a comment when the 
computer
screen changed and a series of denizen characters appeared.  A 
neutral-sounding
synthetic voice filled the room as it read the words out loud in the denizen
language.
     Maze blinked.  "Now this is interesting."
     Leda frowned as she studied the screen.  "Something about being ready?"
she asked as she quickly went over the text and paused at the few unfamilar
characters.
     "Vocal interface for dual input-output mode is ready," Tolaris 
translated.
     "I take it the chip works?" Maze asked cautiously.
     "So far, but I still have to load the encryption key into it," Tolaris
replied.  "I wonder....  Nak'seth."
     "Venta," the computer replied as it displayed the denizen character for
'ready' on the screen.
     "When did this thing become voice-activated?" Maze wondered aloud.
     "Wait a second...." Leda said.  "Which circuit card is that whatever 
wired
into?"
     "This one," Tolaris said as he picked up the penlight and shined it 
into
the open computer casing.  "There, the one with the three amber lights on 
the
left side."
     "And Mina let you borrow that indefinitely?" Leda gasped, her eyes 
wide.
     Maze and Tolaris exchanged mildly concerned glances.  "That's what she
said," Maze said slowly.
     "Oooh boy," Leda grinned.
     "What?" Maze said, a small frown tugging on the corners of his mouth.
     "That circuit board also holds her artificial language matrix's speech
pattern ROM.  Her synthesizer won't be able to simulate human speech without
that circuit board," Leda explained.
     "Uh oh...." Maze said quietly, turning rather pale.
     "Human speech.... hang on," Tolaris said as he turned his full 
attention
to the computer and started to work on reconfiguring the chip again.  He 
worked
for ten minutes before he reinitialized the chip and sat back, waiting to 
see
the results.  After a few moments, the computer displayed the previous ready
message and repeated the words in the denizen language.
     "Mmm, not a good sign," Tolaris muttered.  "Nak'seth."
     "Venta," the computer said as it displayed the denizen character.
     "Looks fine to me," Maze commented.
     "Computer," Tolaris said in English.
     "Ready," the computer replied as it redisplayed the denizen character.
     "Good enough," the Dragoon said as he sat back with a smile.
     "Hey, how'd you do that?" Leda asked, her eyes wide with wonder.
     Maze smiled.  "Using Ami's translator program?" he asked.
     Tolaris shrugged.  "Well, I just linked her translator to that unknown
program sitting on the chip, which thanks to Leda I now know to to be Mina's
synthesizer language database.  After that was done, I just tied Ami's 
program
to the vocal interface properties of the communications program.  And as you
can see, the result is a computer that now understand both languages."
     "Mmm," Maze said as he looked at the display.  "I take it you can't do 
a
written-word translation because you don't have a master database for that?"
     "Exactly," Tolaris replied with a nod of his head.
     "So this thing can understand what I say now?" Leda asked with an evil
gleam in her eyes.
     Maze and Tolaris exchanged looks before Maze smiled and Tolaris sighed.
"Yes and no, Leda," Tolaris explained as he rubbed his eyes.  "Yes if all 
you
are doing is using the computer like a telephone to talk to someone or to 
issue
brief, simple commands, but it won't understand most of what you say if you 
try
to do anything else with it."
     "Aww...."
     Maze snickered.  "You've been watching too much of that science fiction
program, Star-whatever."
     Leda grinned back at him.  "Hey, a girl can dream, can't she?"
     "Nak'seth, a'rein kurush'an-taal Tolaris aan," Tolaris said.
     "A'ren'i," the computer replied as it displayed a single character.
     Leda blinked.  "I understood that except for that one word."
     "If you mean kurush'an-taal, it means encrypton key," Maze explained.
     "Kurush'an-taal a'ren'en," the computer said as it displayed the text.
     "So far, so good," Tolaris said mildly.
     "If I may interrupt for a moment," Leda said as she leaned past him to
study the computer screen.  "I just want to add to my limited understanding
here.  A'rein is the verb form of load, right?"
     "Yes," Tolaris replied.
     "And a'ren'i means loading, right?"
     "Last time I checked it did," Maze replied with a smile.
     "Smart aleck.  Anyway, and a'ren'en means loaded?" Leda continued.
     "Correct," Tolaris said.
     "So when you write it out, you add an 'i notation to the end of a word 
for
the present-tense action and an 'en notation to the past-tense action, 
right?"
she concluded.
     Maze chuckled.  "Yes, but if the last syllable contains an ein mark, 
you
substitute the en mark in its place when you add the notation.  And if it 
has
an i mark at the very end, you leave it off totally when you add the 
notation,"
he explained slowly.
     Leda blinked and looked over the spidery words.  "I think I understand 
it
now," she said hesitantly.
     "Good, you'll be quizzed in the morning," Tolaris said evenly.  He 
looked
up at the stunned expression on Leda's face and chuckled quietly.  "That was 
a
joke, Leda."
     "Not funny," she muttered as her cheeks turned pink.
     "Perhaps," Maze chuckled.
     "Umm, might I ask a potentially rude question?" Leda asked cautiously.
     Maze blinked.  "Umm, sure."
     "Why doesn't the verb k'ves have the notations when you conjugate it?"
     "Because when you use that word, you're already conjugating," Maze said
almost inaudibly beneath his breath.  There was a strangled noise next to 
him
as Tolaris bit his tongue to keep himself from laughing aloud at the remark.
     Leda's gaze alternated between the two Dragoons.  "Umm...."
     "You do know what that word means, right?" Maze asked slowly.
     "Not quite, which is why I'm asking," Leda admitted with a blush.
     "Oh, great, here it comes...." Tolaris muttered in his native dialect,
knowing full well that Maze probably wouldn't be able to translate his 
accent.
     "I'll handle this, you go back to your work," Maze said smoothly as he
reached out and turned Tolaris's head to face the computer screen.  He then
quietly and calmly explained to Leda the literal translation of the word and
all of its associated connotations and implications.
     By the time he was finished, Leda's blush had deepened by at least five
shades of red.  "Well now...." she managed to say after a few seconds of
silence.  "Any other fun words I should know about?"
     "You don't need to teach her any more profanity, Lieutenant," Tolaris 
said
sternly as he worked.  "Granted she isn't a child, but her mind doesn't need 
to
be corrupted any more than it already is."
     "Gee, thanks," Leda said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
     "Venta," the computer said, interrupting any further conversation on 
that
particular topic of discussion.
     "Here goes nothing," Tolaris said quietly.  "Computer, create secure 
link
to distant end host."
     "Creating," the computer said in it's synthesized neutral-toned voice 
as
it displayed a denizen character.  The computer hummed to itself for a 
moment
before several lines of spidery text started to scroll up onto the screen.
     "Error: Cryptographic key has not been initialized.  Now initializing
cryptographic key....  Initialization completed.  Searching....  Located
distant end.  Creating link....  Link has been established.  Establishing
secure link....  Warning: Cryptographic key cycle mismatch.  Attempting to
cycle....  Cycle match established.  Establishing secure link...."
     "This should take a bit," Tolaris said as he sat back and blew out his
breath.  "Give it, what?  Three minutes?"
     Maze shook his head.  "Three to re-establish, five to establish a link 
for
the first time once you get the right cycle going."
     Tolaris sighed and reached for his cup of ma'cha.  He picked it up, 
looked
at the inside of the empty cup, and stood up with another sigh.  "Anyone 
else
want anything to drink while I'm up?"
     "What time is it?" Leda asked.
     Maze leaned forward and peered at the tiny clock display bottom edge of
the computer display.  "Should be.... somewhere around eight o'clock."
     Leda made a face.  "Bah, too late for coffee.  Tea if you can find 
some,
whatever fruit juice is in the 'fridge if you can't."
     "Okay.  What about you, Maze?" Tolaris inquired.
     "Tea sounds like a good idea," he said wearily.  "Need to get flushed 
out
anyway.  Lunch is still sitting in my gut like a lead weight."
     Leda grinned as she heard Tolaris's laughter echoing all the way down 
the
hall as he headed off towards the kitchen.  "When are you going to learn?"
     "You know how Mina gets when you turn down her cooking," Maze muttered.
     The brunette gave him a wicked smile.  "You just need to learn how to 
get
out of eating her cooking without seeming to be trying to get out.  Trust 
me,
both Rei and myself are highly skilled at it, Darian is learning very 
quickly,
and Ami somehow manages to always be legitimately occupied elsewhere when 
it's
Mina's turn to cook."
     Maze shrugged.  "And what about Serena?"
     Leda just sighed and looked up at the ceiling.  "Serena is either too
dense to learn how to avoid Mina's cooking or she has a cast-iron stomach.
Knowing her, it's probably both."
     "I can imagine," Maze said with a smile.  "And what of Artemis?"
     "Poor thing...." Leda said with a sigh as she shivered.  "After living
with her for so long, he probably doesn't even have a stomach anymore.  Just 
a
hose that connects his throat to his rear."
     "What's this?" Tolaris asked as he walked into the room carrying 
several
steaming mugs.
     "Not much, boss, just theorizing on what prolonged exposure to Mina's
cooking has done to Artemis's digestive system," Maze explained as he 
accepted
the mug of ma'cha from Tolaris.
     The Dragoon grunted as he handed the mug of tea to Leda.  "I can 
imagine,"
he said with a mildly sour look on his face.  "Don't get me wrong, Leda.  
Mina
is a good friend and a truly remarkable girl, but she could probably manage 
to
ruin breakfast cereal if you let her handle it."
     Leda promptly set the mug of tea down before her fit of giggles could
spill the steaming liquid everywhere.  "You know," she said between spasms,
"She did that once.  I think it was when we were up at the Hot Spring 
Resort,
the morning after you and Darian took off."  The memory became too much for
her to handle and she sat down on the floor before she fell over with 
laughter.
     "The scary thing of this is that I can picture it happening," Maze 
said.
     Tolaris chuckled.  "It's your girlfriend."
     "Don't remind me," Maze replied as he rolled his eyes.
     "Secure link established to distant end host 314.485.117.501," said the
voice of the computer as it displayed the message in the denizen language on
the screen.
     "Good timing," Maze said as he glanced at the tiny clock.
     "Aww, you just didn't want to hear us continue to tease poor Mina," 
Leda
said with a giggle before she calmed down to the point where she could 
safely
handle her mug of tea.
     "You two sound like you're related," Tolaris said with amusement as he 
sat
down in front of the computer and studied the display message.
     "Hey, now...." Leda said, pretending to be deeply offended.
     Tolaris blinked as the text message unexpectedly changed and the 
computer
emitted a soft chime.  "Direct text exchange request received from user 
K'tal
at host 314.485.117.501 via secure link.  Do you wish to accept or deny?" 
the
computer translated in soft monotones.
     Leda leapt to her feet and almost knocked Maze over in her haste to 
move
over next to Tolaris.  "What did it just say?"
     "Sounds like K'tal wants to have a word with us," Tolaris said calmly 
as
he read and re-read the text message several times.
     "So, you ready to find out if this is a trap?" Maze asked warily.
     Tolaris sighed.  "Despite all you can do to prepare, you can never be
ready for traps.  But still...."  He sighed softly again, took a deep breath 
to
calm himself, and started to pray that he wasn't about to make a fatal 
mistake.
     "Computer," he said slowly, "Accept request."
     The computer's response was to clear the screen and split the display 
in
half horizontally.  A small blinking cursor appeared on the lower half and a
line of text was printed on the upper half.
     "Text exchange session open," the computer translated.
     Maze waited impatiently for something else to happen.  "Well?" he said
after a few moments.
     Tolaris grunted.  "Fine, fine, be that way," he muttered to himself as 
he
typed a quick command on the keyboard.  "Computer, activate voice-to-text
interface mode," he said.
     A single character appeared on the screen in response, looking almost
exactly like a small spider that had lost a fight with a semi on the 
highway.
"Active," the computer said in its monotone.
     "Who are you?" Tolaris said to the computer, watching with mild 
interest
as his words were translated into the written denizen language on the lower
half of the screen and sent to the distant end.
     Everyone waited in tense silence for the person on the distant end to
respond, each wondering what the response would be.  After a few seconds of
silence, a small line of text was printed on the upper half of the screen 
and
the computer began to translate.
     "I am Dragoon Commander K'tal, but I think you already know that.  The
question is, who exactly are you?"
     "Is it just me, or did that sound slightly arrogant?" Leda whispered 
very
quietly in Maze's ear.
     "More than slightly, but that's K'tal for you," Maze whispered back.
     "Indeed," Tolaris muttered.  He then cleared his throat and spoke loud
enough for the computer's microphone to hear.  "I trust you'll excuse my
caution and hopefully have the brains to understand why, but I need to make
sure this isn't another one of your so-called fool-proof traps."  He then 
sat
back and smiled while he waited for the computer to finish translating and 
send
his message to the other end.
     Leda blinked at Tolaris's words and gave Maze a confused look.  "Excuse 
me
for being dense here, but I thought he was supposed to talk to this guy, not
piss him off," she whispered.
     Maze gave her a small smile.  "He's testing the other person.  We'll 
know
if it's really K'tal or not by how he responds."
     "Here we go," Leda said ominously as a few lines of text started to 
scroll
up on the upper half of the screen.
     "As for excusing your caution," the computer translated, "I've always
maintained that there is no excuse for you.  And contrary to what delusions 
you
might currently be holding, this isn't a trap.  Besides, I keep telling you
that you should always make an idiot-proof trap instead of a fool-proof trap
because fools can be unbelievably creative when you least expect it."
     "It's him," Maze and Tolaris said simultaneously.
     "Okay, so now what?" Leda asked, eyeing the message warily.  She was 
glad
that the computer was translating the text out loud.  Otherwise, she would 
have
been lost after the first eight characters.
     "Can I trust you?" Tolaris said to the computer, counting the seconds
until K'tal's reply came back.
     "Could you ever, Tolaris?" the computer said.
     The Dragoon raised an eyebrow and motioned for Maze and Leda to remain
silent.  "What makes you think I'm Tolaris?  I thought he was still frozen 
in
crystal in the Wastelands."
     "Butt-ugly lawn ornament that he was, some idiot set him free," said 
the
monotone voice after a few seconds.  "Of course, if you're a denizen exile 
on
Earth and don't know about that, then either you're playing dumb, which 
really
isn't that hard for you, or I've made one major miscalculation and will
probably have to cover my tracks by sending the NP-3 to visit you."
     "I see he hasn't changed," Maze said darkly.
     Tolaris shrugged.  "You really ought to watch your tone, K'tal.  Some 
of
us might consider that to be disrespectful.  And even if you didn't sleep 
your
way to full commander, I still outrank you with time-in-grade.  Oh, and use 
the
NP-2 model instead.  I've discovered that they're surprisingly lethal if you
drop them into small valleys," he said evenly.
     Leda sighed and rubbed her temples.  "Is this guy your brother or what?
You two sound like Serena and Rei on a rainy Monday morning."
     "The trick to dealing with K'tal is to take whatever he throws at you 
and
shove it right back," Maze smirked.  "You may wind up sounding like you're
getting ready to get into a fight, but believe me, you accomplish quite a 
lot
more than you would if you try to talk normally to him."
     "Did you know that they're still developing the NP-4 series?" the 
computer
said as the text continued to scroll up onto the screen.  "You would think 
that
after a hundred years, those morons would have gotten something right by 
now."
     "If Rune put people like you in charge, it's no wonder," Tolaris 
replied
after a few moments of silent thought.  "I'm often surprised that you can
change your own diapers without having to call for backup."
     The distant end remained silent for almost a minute, cauing Tolaris to
worry that something was wrong.  Finally, the block of text started to 
scroll
up the screen again and the computer started to translate.
     "You'd be surprised what you can accomplish with a mirror.  But as for
calling for backup, any Dragoon will tell you that you only do that when you
either are obviously outnumbered or when you have zero idea how to handle 
the
current situation."
     Tolaris sat back with a small frown.  Behind him, Leda and Maze 
exchanged
concerned looks.  "That doesn't sound too good, boss," Maze said softly.  
"If
K'tal is in charge, and I don't have any reason to doubt that he isn't, he'd
only request help like this if there was a major internal problem."
     "Agreed," Tolaris said softly.  "Go get Ra'vel and Whisper.  I think 
they
need to hear about this."  He didn't bother to wait for an acknowledgement
before he cleared his throat and spoke up.
     "So eat some v'etu.  That'll help solve your digestive problems," 
Tolaris
said pleasantly.  "If that isn't the problem, which is a common occurence 
with
people as anal as you are, then I'm afraid you'll have to go into some sort 
of
detail about the situation."
     "Excuse me?" Whisper said as she and Ra'vel walked into the room.
     Tolaris quickly motioned for them to be quiet and to come over to the
computer.  "I'm using a voice-activated link to talk to K'tal," he whispered
to them when they were close enough to hear him.
     Whisper nodded and studied the screen, reading the log of what was said
from both sides.  Ra'vel made a soft clucking noise as she ruffled her 
feathers
and read the text as well, chirping quietly in laughter as the conversation
unfolded.
     "I guess you do have a lot of experience on those matters," the 
computer
said as more text scrolled up.  "However, I'm afraid a fit of constipation 
is
going to be the least of our worries if what I think is going to happen 
starts
to happen.  I need your help, but I need to know if I can trust you."
     Everyone blinked at K'tal's words.  "I think that should be my question
to you, K'tal," Tolaris said.
     There was a lengthy pause from the distant end.  "If you are Tolaris, 
then
you have my word of honor as a Dragoon that I am the only one who knows 
about
you using General Nephlyte's cathedral as a base," the computer translated.
"But I need to make absolutely sure that it's you there instead of some 
other
operative."
     Tolaris sighed and looked around at the room's occupants.  "Time to 
make
the decision.  Do I tell him or not?" he asked softly.
     "Boss, either he's there alone or he's working with someone, but we 
know
that it's K'tal on the other end," Maze said.  "I'd rather go down for 
trusting
a Dragoon than for trying to save our butts and later discovering that he 
truly
needed our help."
     Ra'vel chirped an agreement and Whisper nodded.  "If we trust him, we 
may
be able to help.  And if we don't, he still knows that someone who knows the
denizen language quite well is here, and that pretty much narrows it down to 
a
handful of suspects.  In that case, he just might throw a nuke at us.  I say
we trust him," the telepath said quietly.
     "And what do you think, Leda?" Tolaris asked.
     Leda chewed on the edge of her lip.  "Tolaris, I've only known you for
about half a year, but I've trusted you with my life on several occasions 
and
have yet to have my faith in you proven wrong.  I know there's always a 
first
time for everything, but we'll just have to deal with that if it ever 
happens.
I say go for it."
     "Thank you," Tolaris said softly and took a deep breath.  "Very well," 
he
said out loud.  "Just so there is no doubt, I am Tolaris, formerly the 
ranking
officer and Commander of the Dragoons until my exile to Earth."
     Everyone held their breath as the computer translated his words into 
the
denizen text and sent it across the secure link to the distant end computer.
The response took a surprisingly short amount of time to come back and 
Tolaris
blinked as the text started to scroll up once more.
     "It's been a long time, Commander," said the computer.  "However, just 
so
you know and are aware of this, I may hold the rank of Commander myself, but
every true Dragoon knows you are still the commanding officer."
     Tolaris sat back with a loud sigh of relief and rubbed his temples in 
an
effort to get rid of the sudden tension headache.  "I'm honored that I'm 
still
remembered, K'tal.  Forgive my bluntness, but what sort of crisis is 
happening
that would cause you of all people to willingly violate almost every single
regulation we have by trying to contact me?"
     The response was not what Tolaris expected it to be.  "Commander, I'm
trying to prevent a war," the computer translated in an even monotone.
     "This is not a good sign," Whisper muttered.
     "What kind of war?" Tolaris asked.  "Conventional, nuclear, what?"
     The time delay was almost unbearable, and when the response finally 
came
back after what seemed to have been several minutes, everyone suddenly 
wished
it hadn't come back.
     "Civil war," the computer said.  "Only this one could destroy the 
entire
Negaverse in the process."
     "You have my complete attention, K'tal," Tolaris said flatly.
     "Good, because here's the problem...." the computer replied, and 
started
to speak as page upon page of text started to scroll up on the screen.

                *               *               *               *

      she said hesitantly as she remembered.
      the one named Mephisto asked gently.
     
      Pluto said softly.  
      said 
the
soft voice of the other Shinma.  She felt Pluto's soul become agitated again 
at
the reminder of the passage of Time and she tried to comfort her.  
     Pluto sighed.  
      Uranus said, more than mildly confused.
     Mephisto cast a mild glance of amusement at the glowing sphere that was
Uranus's soul.  
Uranus said nothing for several minutes.  Pluto was about to ask if she had
gone into shock when Uranus spoke up softly.
     
     Pluto found herself doing something she had rarely done before in all 
her
years of life: she started to laugh hard with genuine humor.
     
     Uranus's comment made her laugh all the harder, causing everyone else 
to
suddenly worry about her sanity.  She continued to laugh to herself for 
several
minutes until she finally managed to calm down and control her emotions.
      Pluto said, a hint of a smile
still evident in her voice.  
      the nameless Shinma asked.
      Pluto stared to say.
      Uranus yelled in a mild state of panic.  
     <.........> Pluto said as she struggled to remember.
      Mephisto asked softly.
      Pluto said suddenly.  
     
      Pluto said.
     "A third soul?" she asked as she withdrew from the mental conference 
with
the two glowing souls.
     "So it seems," Mephisto replied.  He paused and added, "Are you going 
to
help them find their missing friend?"
     She sighed and studied the floor of Mephisto's sanctuary.  "We don't 
have
a clue where to start looking, and even if we do find this third soul, it's
going to take a lot of energy to revive it.  I don't have enough to spare."
     Mephisto gave her a slightly bemused look.  "If all you're concerned 
about
is energy, I have more than enough to spare."
     She looked up and gave him a curious look.  "Why would you help me with
such a matter as this, especially when the cost is your own supply of 
energy?"
     "I have my reasons," he said as he looked down at the glowing yellow 
ball
cupped in his hands.  "As for what they are," he continued, cutting her off
before she could ask the obvious, "Suffice it to say that they are not of 
any
importance or impending concern to anyone but me."
     "But the energy...."
     He softly spoke the syllables of her true-name and she fell silent.  He
let the silence build for a few seconds before he spoke again.  "The energy
cost of reviving this one was rather substantial, as you no doubt know," he
said quietly as he continued to study the physical manifestation of Uranus's
soul.  "However, believe me when I say that I have a more than ample source 
of
energy to sustain me and my travelling endeavors for quite some time."
     She blinked hard, not sure which part of his statement stunned her 
more.
"You have a.... a source of energy?" she whispered, hardly able to fathom 
the
concept.  The only energy she had ever been able to find during her entire
existence was the life-energy of other beings in The Dark.
     Mephisto gave her a measured look, debating on the merits of letting 
her
in on his most-guarded secret.  "Yes, I do," he said after a few moments of
careful thought.  "However, that is not important right now.  We must first
locate their missing friend.  Then we must find a way to restore their 
bodies
and return them home."
     She blinked hard again, not believing her ears.  The concept of trying 
to
revive a soul removed from its body had been hard enough for her to grasp, 
and
the concept of resurrecting a living being with only a soul to work with was
making her slightly light-headed.  But the concept of taking three 
life-forms
and helping them escape the neo-void they had become trapped in would simply
not register on her mind.
     "Escape?" she whispered incrediously.  "Escape from The Dark is simply 
not
possible.  You know that as well as I do."
     His response was to throw his head back and start laughing.  "Think, my
friend," he said when his mirth subsided.  "How could I have learned of 
their
Moon Kingdom and the outside realm unless I or someone else was able to 
visit
there and return?"
     "Impossible...." she breathed.  "The Dark..."
     "Can be breached," he interrupted her.  "It can be done, my friend, for 
I
have done it myself."
     Shock threatened to overwhelm her.  "How?" she said, her voice barely
audible as a whisper.  "How is this possible?"
     "A focused energy beam of the right sort will tear through the curtain 
of
darkness that surrounds this world," he explained.  "But the beam takes a
nearly unimaginable amount of energy to use, and there are very few Shinma 
who
are capable of gathering that much energy together, let alone learning how 
to
use it."
     "HOW?" she screamed out, unable to contain herself anymore.  "How is it
that you claim you can do this while so many of us can barely find enough
energy to live?"
      Mephisto looked at her for a moment before he finally made his choice.
"I'll show you," he said as he gathered the two souls together in his hands.
His body quickly dissolved into particles and formed into a whirling vortex.
The glowing souls were drawn inside and the maelestrom collapsed around 
them,
the tiny particles reforming into Mephisto's usual form.
     "Come with me," he said as he held his hand out to her.
     She looked at his outstreched hand for a moment before she reached out 
and
grasped it with her own.  The world around her seemed to waver ever so 
slightly
as he folded space around them, changing their location in an instant.  Then
the world became solid once again.  "Touch nothing," he warned as he 
released
her hand and she began to look around.
     Her first impression was that they were in another small cave, but as 
she
looked around she saw that they were surrounded on all sides by solid rock, 
a
bubble that formed when a pocket of air was trapped in molten rock that 
later
cooled.  "What is this place?" she breathed as she glanced around before her
eyes focused on the tiny puddle of incandescent water in the very center of 
the
lava bubble.
     Mephisto said nothing as his body dissolved into the vortex and 
released
the two souls.  As soon as they were free the whirlwind collapsed and 
reformed
around them, his hands materializing beneath them before they could fall to 
the
ground.
     "Have you ever heard the legends of the creation of The Dark?" he said
softly.  "Of a once energy-rich world forged as a prison for those cast out 
of
the outside realms, enshrouded in a curtain of darkness and sealed with an
unspeakable power to keep those entrapped from ever gaining their freedom?"
     She nodded.  "Yes, I do remember the old legends, but what do they have 
to
do with this place?" she asked, her attention still focused on the glowing
pool of water.  "And what is that glowing puddle?"
     He said nothing as he too studied the pool for a moment.  As they 
watched,
a tiny incandescent drop of water collected on a small protrusion hanging 
off
of the ceiling and dropped into the puddle.  There was an odd sound as the 
drop
hit the surface, creating small ripples that sparkled oddly in the glow of 
the
pool.
     "Remember the legends of the fountains of power that sustained the 
first
inhabitants of The Dark?" he said softly.  He glanced over at her in time to
see her eyes nearly triple in size with recognition.
     "Impossible...." she breathed.
     Mephisto smiled.  "You seem to have developed a sudden fondness for 
that
word, my friend, but I assure you that it is not only possible, but standing
before you."
     "A mana pool?" she said, her voice almost failing her.
     "A puddle, really, but that does not change it's nature," he replied.
"Pure energy in liquid form.  Do not touch it," he cautioned as she edged
forward for a better look.  "The amount of energy collected in that pool 
would
destroy you in an instant."
     "How do you draw energy from it?" she asked softly.
     He gestured.  "Catch the next drop, but do not disturb the pool," he 
said
as another drop began to form on the protrusion.
     She looked up and frowned, her gaze alternating between the drop and 
the
pool, trying to decide on the best method of catching the drop without 
coming
any closer to the pool than she absolutely had to.  "Will the drop harm me 
if
I drink it?" she asked as an idea formed in her mind.
     Mephisto smiled.  "No, but your tongue will tingle for a few moments as
the energy is absorbed."
     "Good," she said as she tapped into her meager supply of energy.  A 
small
angled plane of force appeared beneath the drop just as it released its hold 
on
the protrusion of rock.  The drop struck the plane and was channeled towards
her mouth, moving across the plane a great deal faster than she had thought 
it
would.  Her mind had barely registered the fact that the drop was in motion
before it splashed across her tongue.
     The plane vanshied into nothingness and she sat back abruptly as she 
felt
her mouth being turned inside out, only without any sensation of pain.  Raw
power flowed through her body, filling her energy reserves to a level she 
had
only dreamed about having.  She waited until her senses reoriented on the 
world
around her before giving Mephisto a more-than-mildly surprised look.
     "You call that a tingle?" she said, still adjusting to the amount of
energy she now posessed.
     He shrugged and carefully set the two souls down on the floor of the 
lava
bubble.  "It feels like a tingle to me," he said as he closed his eyes and
concentrated.  A single drop of pure mana separated itself from the rest of 
the
pool and floated towards him, landing in the center of his palm.
     "Absorbing more than one drop at a time is dangerous," he said after he
had absorbed the energy from the small drop.  "So is trying to absorb any 
more
energy when your reserves are anything other than almost depleted."
     She reached out and carefully picked up the dark green sphere that was
Pluto's soul.  "So now what do we do with them?" she asked.
     "I have an idea, but we must talk to them first," he replied as he 
picked
up Uranus's soul and studied it.  He then moved over next to her so the two
souls could be in close contact with one another.
      Uranus asked.
      Mephisto consoled her.  
      Pluto asked.  
      Mephisto explained.
      Uranus asked hopefully.
      Pluto chided her.
      
Uranus
apologized.  
      Mephisto said and
began to explain his idea.
      Uranus said.  
     Mephisto sighed quietly.  
      Uranus immediately replied.  
      the mysterious Shinma asked softly.
      Pluto said.
      Uranus said.  
     
Pluto replied with amusement.  
     Uranus's reply was a phrase that Pluto understood perfectly, Mephisto 
had
a passing understanding of, and was totally new to the other Shinma.  All 
three
of them, however, had no difficulty discerning the approximate meaning of 
the
phrase.
      Pluto said mildly.
     
      Mephisto said evenly.
      Pluto replied.
      Uranus grumbled.
     Mephisto declined to try to translate Uranus's meaning.  "Hold her," he
said as he held out Uranus's soul.  She took the yellow ball of light and
passed him the dark green ball that was Pluto's soul.
      he said as he carried the soul to 
the
edge of the mana pool.
      Pluto replied.
     He paused in mid-motion, but only for an imperceptible instant.   he said, mildly amused.
      she replied.  
     He laughed softly as he knelt down.  
     
     Mephisto closed his eyes and concentrated.  The glowing ball rose up 
from
his hands by an unseen force and slowly floated over to the center of the 
pool.
Good luck, my friend, he thought to himself as he shifted his concentration 
and
the glowing ball became submerged in the mana pool.  He watched as the 
glowing
ball began to glow brighter for a moment, then abruptly exploded outward 
into
a mass of tiny luminescent particles that dispersed into the pool.
     He heard a sharp gasp behind him and felt his own breath catch in his
chest.  I'm sorry.... he thought to himself as he closed his eyes, saddened 
by
the unexpected destruction.
     "Is she...?" he heard her say.
     He tried to speak but his voice failed him, and he could do nothing but
sit still as the sadness and guilt threatened to overwhelm him.
     "Look!" she said suddenly.
     He opened his eyes and blinked.  The tiny particles were slowly 
emerging
from the mana pool and lazily drifting around the confines of the lava 
bubble.
As they watched, the particles started to come together to form a mishappen
glowing mass.
     "Interesting...." he heard himself saying aloud.
     The glowing shape began to glow brighter as more of the particles 
merged
with it.  When the last of the particles was absorbed by the glowing mass, 
the
lava bubble was suddenly filled with a blinding light, forcing the Shinma to
briefly alter their physical forms to protect their vision.
     Mephisto waited until he could no longer see the inside of his eyelids,
counted to twenty, and slowly opened his eyes.  When they were able to focus
properly, he looked around the room and blinked in surprise.
     "Pluto?" he asked softly.
     The figure was lying on her side, appearing to be just like any other 
nude
human female with dark green hair that flowed gracefully down to the small 
of
her back.  The only difference between her and any of the other human 
females
Mephisto had ever seen in his lifetime was the pair of large, batlike wings
emerging from her back and neatly folded behind her.
     She stirred slightly as she started to regain consciousness, her arms 
and
legs moving slowly in response to commands from her still-awakening mind.  
The
wings on her back flexed experimentally for a few seconds before trying to
spread out, the one wing smacking against the side of the lava bubble and
eliciting a soft grunt from her.
     A sudden memory bubbled up from Mephisto's mind and he blinked.  
"Change
your form," he whispered to the other Shinma as his body started to change 
into
the humanoid form he had used during his brief visit to the outside realm.
     "What?" she said, confused at both the sudden development and 
Mephisto's
surprising request.
     "For some reason, our natural forms terrify humans," he said as his 
body
solidified.  "Change into something they can recognize before she wakes up."
     Susan grunted softly again as she rolled over onto her stomach and 
lifted
her head up, her eyelids trying valiantly to open.  They had only partially
succeeded when the image of a hideous, shapeless mass wandered into her line
of vision.
     Eh? she thought as she blinked rapidly, trying to wake up enough to get 
a
good look at the being and hence identify it.  A small tendril reached out 
from
the mass and brushed across her forehead, sending a decidedly unpleasant 
chill
down her spine.
     Shinma? her thought fuzzily for a moment before the dark mass in front 
of
her started to waver, causing her to forget her initial thought and to worry
about what was going on.  The wavering solidifed into a small figure and she
blinked, not believing what her eyes were telling her.
     Summoning a strength she wasn't sure she possessed, she rolled over and
sat up, one hand reaching out to steady herself against the wall as her 
world
started to spin briefly with the effort.  She waited until all of the double
images had vanished before she looked around her.
     There was a small glowing pool a few feet away from her and a strange
but handsome looking man was kneeling at the edge, looking at her with open
curiosity.  Sitting on the ground next to him was a yellowish ball of light
that glowed softly from within.  And right in front of her was a small gray
kitten with a golden crescent mark on its forehead.
     Her memory immediately flashed back to her first few years in the Moon
Kingdom and the small lunar kitten that she had adopted.  She had often 
gotten
the impression that the kitten had adopted her, but she never bothered to 
argue
the semantics of the issue.  And now that very same kitten appeared to be
sitting in front of her, looking at her with those ever-curious pale red 
eyes,
just as she always used to when confronted with something strange.
     Impossible, Susan thought.  This isn't possible.  But....
     "Myst?" she asked softly.
     The kitten blinked and shook her head slowly.  "I am not the kitten you
once knew.  I only took her form to spare you the sight of my normal form,
which I am told causes distress to those who view it."
     Susan blinked.  The kitten's voice sounded exactly as her memories told
her it should, which brought her a small measure of discomfort.  "You're the
one who found me," she said, saying it as a statement rather than a 
question.
     "Yes," she replied softly.
     "I am grateful, of course," Susan said as she sat back on her heels and
absently flexed her wings, "But you still haven't told me your name yet."
     "The knowledge of my true-name commands great power over me, and so I
must keep it a secret," the lunar kitten replied almost sadly.
     "It is difficult to thank someone without a name," Susan said 
pointedly.
     The kitten tilted her head at an angle, unconsciously acting as a real
lunar kitten would.  "What did you call me a few moments ago?" she asked.
     "Myst.  That was the name of the kitten I had back in the Moon 
Kingdom."
     "Myst," the kitten repeated softly.  "It sounds like a nice name."
     "Thank you for saving my life, Myst," Susan said softly.  She then 
looked
up towards the figure still kneeling by the edge of the strangely glowing 
pool
of water.  "And you must be Mephisto.  You have my thanks as well."
     He nodded his head.  "I am, and you are more than welcome, Pluto."
     Susan shook her head.  "My name is Susan.  Sailor Pluto is my name when 
I
am in avatar form."
     Both Myst and Mephisto shrank back slightly at the mention of the word.
"Avatar?" Mephisto whispered, then nodded to himself.  "I was wondering why 
a
human had wings."
     Susan's wings flexed slightly before they folded flat against her back 
and
were suddenly absorbed into her skin, leaving only a pair of dark-colored 
scars
behind that stretched from the base of her shoulder blades down to the small 
of
her back.  "I have wings for a different reason, not because I am an 
avatar,"
she said simply.  Her gaze fell to the glowing ball next to Mephisto and she
frowned slightly.  "Is that Alex's soul?"
     "Yes, it is," Mephisto said as he picked up the soul.  He studied the
glowing ball for a few moments before he held it out over the mana pool and
began to concentrate.
     "Susan, do not interfere with what happens, and whatever you do, do not
touch the pool," Mephisto said evenly as Uranus's soul slowly floated up out 
of
his hand and moved over the center of the pool.
     Susan watched with mild interest as the glowing ball hovered over the
incandescent surface of the pool for a brief moment before plunging into the
center of it.  As she watched, the yellow soul began to glow brighter for a
moment, then abruptly disintegrated into a multitude of tiny glowing 
particles.
     "Alex!" Susan yelped in surprise and started to lean forward.  She 
yelped
again as two sets of claws raked across her bare thigh as Myst tried to hold
her back.
     "Susan, don't worry, it's supposed to do that," Myst said quickly.
     Susan blinked and brushed a stray lock of dark green hair out of her 
line
of vision.  "Okay...." she said slowly as she looked at the dark red blood
slowly seeping from the claw marks on her thigh.  "Thank you for telling me
that, but you didn't have to claw me to do it," she said somewhat archly.
     Myst blinked in surprise, first looking at the marks on Susan's skin 
and
the blood seeping from them, then at her paws.  She flexed them 
experimentally
and nearly jumped in surprise when claws slid out from between the pads of 
what
passed for her fingers.
     "I'm sorry, I.... I didn't know I had these...." Myst apologized.
     "Susan, look," Mephisto said quietly.
     Everyone's attention went to the pool and to the mass of tiny sparkles
slowly emerging from the depths.  Very slowly, the particles floated up out 
of
the pool and started to merge into a rather mishappen form near the wall of 
the
lava bubble.  The mass started to grow brighter and brighter as more and 
more
of the tiny particles merged together.  As soon as all of the particles had
finished merging, the glowing form gave off a blinding burst of light.
     Susan waited impatiently for her retinas to quit burning before she 
tried
opening her eyes.  They opened, but it took her a second to realize that she
wasn't seeing anything because they were still recovering from the temporary
overload.  The blindness quickly passed and she looked around to see what 
the
result had been.
     The figure was lying on her side, almost exactly as Susan had been when
she first woke up.  The only clues to her identity was the close-cut blonde
hair and the nearly invisible network of scars criss-crossing her bare leg,
scars that had resulted from her having lost a fight with a lunar cat that
hadn't liked being picked up while napping.
     Susan quickly moved over next to her side, looking her over for any 
sign
of illness or injury.  "Alex?" she asked softly as she carefully shook the
blonde's shoulder.
     "Gwuh," was the fuzzy and indistinct reply as Alex started to regain 
most
of her senses.  She took a deep breath and tried to open her eyes, giving up
after a few seconds when she realized that it was going to take more effort
than she was currently capable of putting out.
     Susan began to breathe again when she saw Alex's muscles slowly start 
to
respond to what her semi-unconscious brain was telling them.  "Wake up, 
Alex.
Do it slowly so you don't strain anything, but wake up," Susan said softly 
as
she brushed the hair off of Alex's face.
     "Mergh," Alex grunted as she started to wake up.  She focused her mind 
and
managed to succeed in rolling over onto her back.  "Mich, what did you do 
with
the pillows?" she muttered to herself as she pressed her hands to her 
forehead.
     "Does she always wake up like that?" Mephisto asked softly from behind
Susan's shoulder, watching Alex with mild interest.
     Susan cast a mildly reproving look over her shoulder.  "I don't know, I
usually don't sleep next to her," she said.
     "I'm not sleeping, honest," Alex grunted as her eyes fluttered open.
     "Don't try to get up yet," Susan said as she held her hand against 
Alex's
chest, preventing her from trying to sit up.  "Give your body another few
minutes to get your blood circulating properly."
     "Yuck, why do I feel like last week's roadkill?" the blonde moaned.  
"And
I'm not going any where, Sue, so you can get your hand out from between my
tits."
     The corners of Susan's mouth twitched in amusement as she removed her 
hand
from Alex's chest.  "I see you haven't changed much, despite our ordeal," 
she
observed lightly.
     Alex flexed her fingers briefly, wincing at the slight stiffness in the
joints.  "Are you sure we've been alive all this time?  Feels like I've been
dead for at least a month, maybe two."  Her blue eyes suddenly darted to the
side to look into Susan's dark red eyes.  "How long have we been like that?"
     Susan sighed quietly.  "You don't want to know."
     "Sue, how long?" Alex in a flat tone that Susan knew she only used when
she wanted an answer and wouldn't rest until she got one.
     "Perhaps you should worry more about yourself and your missing friend
first," Mephisto said quietly.  "After all, how long you were in that state 
is
something you can discuss once you are safely back home."
     Alex craned her head back to look at who was talking.  After a few 
seconds
of futile effort, she took a deep breath and forced herself into a sitting
position, ignoring Susan's cautioning look.  She flexed her shoulders for a
moment before turning around to see who it was.
     Her eyes met Mephisto's and she felt her body suddenly become ever so
slightly warmer.  Hello.... she thought slowly to herself as she was briefly
taken aback by how handsome he looked.  Then the little voice in the back of
her mind told her to do a quick check because something felt out of place.  
The
slightest flexing of her spine was all it took to tell her that she wasn't
wearing any clothes.
     Susan's delicate eyebrows rose as Alex's skin abruptly flushed a medium
shade of crimson and she sat back, folding her legs at an angle in front of 
her
and crossing her arms over her breasts.  Susan knew that she wasn't wearing 
any
clothing either, but had long ago ceased to have the slightest concern about
modesty in most situations.
     Mephisto blinked at Alex's unexpected reaction before he remembered the
human culture's rules about clothing.  He had included clothing in his own
changed appearance out of reflex rather than thought.  I'll fix that in a 
bit,
he thought to himself, but first things are first....
     "Forgive me for not introducing myself," he said as he stood up and 
bowed
his head in Alex's direction.  "My name is Mephisto."
     "Alex Ten'ou," Alex replied as she shifted positions slightly, her 
cheeks
still burning with embarrasment and shame.
     "Alex," he repeated softly.  "Forgive me, but that does not sound like 
a
proper name for someone as beautiful as you."
     Susan cast a sidelong glance at Alex and noted the deeping of her 
blush.
Interesting, she thought to herself before she turned her attention back to
Mephisto.  "Her name is actually Alexis, but she prefers to use the 
shortened
version for some reason," Susan said calmly, ignoring the dark glare from 
Alex
that her words produced.
     "Alexis," Mephisto repeated with a soft smile.  "Alexis sounds so much
more pleasing to the ear than the shortened pronounciation," he said slowly.
     "Thanks a lot, Sue," Alex whispered out of the corner of her mouth, her
skin darkening yet another shade of red.  Susan gave her an amused look in
response and Alex softly blew her breath out in frustration.  She looked up
suddenly as Mephisto coughed lightly.
     "Please excuse my lack of manners, Alexis, for your beauty has been 
quite
a distraction for one such as I," Mephisto said as he walked over to her.  
"If
you would stand for a moment...?" he asked as he held his hand out.
     Alex's eyes went wide as she started to worry what he had in mind.  She
looked over at Susan and saw her nod slightly at her.  Oh, great, Alex 
thought.
Here I am, butt-naked in the middle of god-knows-where, some really cute guy
with a sexy voice wants to dance with me, I'm naked, mind you, and Susan is
telling me to go for it.  Of all the insanity I've been through in the past
half-hour....
     She took a deep breath as she reached out to grasp his hand.  He 
carefully
helped her to her feet and looked into her eyes.  Whoa, and I thought Sailor
Mars had deep eyes.... she thought breathlessly as she gazed into his 
seemingly
bottomless black eyes for a moment.
     "Hiding beauty such as yours is a crime," he said softly to her, "But 
when
beauty is hidden behind more beauty, there is no injustice in that...."  He
then brought her hand to his lips and kissed it.
     Alex blinked as her skin started to tingle, then gasped as her hand was
surrounded in a soft glow.  The glow started to spread up across her arm, 
then
quickly across the rest of her body.  Her skin started to tingle for a brief
moment before the glow faded and she looked down, not believing her eyes.
     She was now dressed in a shimmering white gown, looking almost exactly
like one of the gowns she used to wear for ballroom dancing back on the Moon
Kingdom.  "Nice...." she breathed as she took a step back and ran her 
fingers
over the silken fabric.  She blinked as she realized she was now wearing 
white
shoes along with elbow-length white gloves.  "Very nice...."
     "I'm impressed," Susan said as she stood up and moved next to Alex.  
"You
either are an excellent tailor or have visited the Queen's Ballroom during 
one
of her diplomatic functions," she said evenly.
     "I'm honored to say that I've visited your kingdom once, although it 
was
quite some time ago," he replied as he held out his hand to Susan.  "I 
assume
you have the same fashion preference?"
     "I would prefer something in black, if you don't mind," she replied as 
she
gracefully took his hand in hers.
     "There you go again, always gotta be a dark spot," Alex muttered.  She
blinked in surprise as Susan's hand began to glow.  Fascinated, she watched 
as
the glow spread across her body and solidified into a jet-black evening 
gown,
one more suited to quiet nights on a moonlit terrace rather than festive 
nights
dancing on a ballroom floor.
     Susan looked down at her dress and nodded her head in approval.  "Thank
you, this is just what I had in mind."
     Mephisto smiled.  "I am glad to be of service," he said as he released
Susan's hand.
     "And who might you be?" Alex asked as she crouched down to get a better
look at Myst.
     "My name is Myst," the Shinma replied.
     "How'd you wind up here?" Alex asked as she carefully picked up what 
she
thought was a lunar cat.  "I didn't think you'd find YEOUCH!" she yelped as
she released her hold on Myst and examined the claw marks on the underside 
of
her arm.
     Susan sighed.  "When will you learn to ask before you pick up a cat?"  
She
decided to ignore Alex's rather profane suggestion and knelt down to examine
Myst.  "Are you alright?"
     Myst's whiskers twitched as she examined her hind paws.  "I thought I 
was
slipping so I tried to get into a better position.  I didn't think I had 
claws
there as well."  She looked up at Alex apologetically.  "I didn't mean to
scratch you like that," she said softly.
     "Ah, what's a few more scars?" Alex said as she examined the cuts.  The
back of her mind was working on something, however, and quickly presented 
its
problem to the rest of her consciousness.  She froze in mid-motion and 
looked
at Myst.  "Umm.... you're not a lunar cat, are you?"
     Myst shook her head.  "This is only a guise, as my normal form would be
highly disturbing to your species."
     Alex blinked and exchanged a mildly concerned look with Susan.  
"And....
ah, if you don't mind.... what exactly are you, then?"
     Myst's tail twitched briefly as she tried learning how to manipulate 
it.
"Shinma," she said simply.  Both her and Mephisto were surprised when Susan
hissed in shock and pulled Alex behind her, dropping into a defensive stance
in the process.
     "Whoa, Sue, what's the problem?" Alex quickly asked nervously.
     "Both of you are Shinma?" Susan asked flatly, her red eyes narrowed.
     Mephisto blinked as a puzzle piece fell into place and things started 
to
make sense.  "You're a demon, aren't you?" he asked softly.
     "Demon?" Myst hissed, her fur sticking straight out in a reflex.
     Susan winced as Alex put her fingers to her mouth and made a very loud
whistling noise.  "Everyone hold it for a few moments," the blonde growled.
She waited until everyone seemed to calm down slightly before she continued.
"Okay, will someone kindly tell me just what the hell is going on here?"
     "If I may?" Susan asked evenly.  Mephisto made a gesture and she took a
deep breath.  "According to ancient legends, when the Underworld was forged 
out
of Chaos to house the souls of the dead, there were those who sought to 
usurp
power from Hades so that they may wield control over the souls and use their
powers for their own purposes.  Hades fought back against the uprising and
forged a prison out of the remaining pieces of Chaos.  The prison was made 
so
that any who entered could never escape, and it was into this neo-void that
he threw those who tried to take control away from him.  Those demons who 
were
condemned in this manner were called Shinma."
     Mephisto nodded.  "You know the legends well."
     "It is always a good idea to know what one must often travel to," Susan
replied in a cryptic tone as she continued to glare at Mephisto.
     Mephisto regarded her carefully.  "Myst and I are indeed Shinma, but 
only
in name.  Our ancestors were the ones cast out from the Underworld, but they
continued to exist here and have spawned many offspring.  Neither Myst nor
myself have committed any sort of crimes against the Underworld, but we 
remain
trapped here nevertheless, along with others who have."
     Susan's defensive posture wavered for a few moments before she relaxed 
and
let her arms fall to her sides.  "I assume we are in The Dark, then?"
     "We are," Mephisto said simply.  "I'm curious, Susan.  Alexis appears 
to
be entirely human, but you are not.  Are both of you avatars?"
     "What's an avatar?" Alex whispered in Susan's ear, confused at the 
sudden
turn of events.
     "Yes, but we serve different gods," Susan replied.
     Alex sighed and sat down on the ground before her head started to spin
from confusion.  She looked up to find Myst sitting next to her.  "Do you 
have
any idea what they're talking about?" she asked the kitten, picking her up 
and
putting her in her lap without thinking about it.
     "Unfortunately," Myst sighed.
     "And what sort of demon are you, if I may ask?" Mephisto asked quietly.
     Susan gave him a mild look.  "I have the blood of a demon in my veins, 
and
aside from being able to manifest the wings of a demon, I am otherwise just 
as
human as Alex is."
     Mephisto decided not to press the issue, instead turning to stare into 
the
incandescent pool of mana.  "It matters not," he said softly after a moment.
     "That's it," Alex grumbled as she stood up, making sure she kept a 
solid
hold on Myst.  "The next person to say something I don't understand gets 
their
toes stomped on."
     Mephisto looked over at Susan in time to see her rolling her eyes.  "Am 
I
to assume she is always this.... forceful?" he said softly.
     Susan nodded.  "You should see her when she's really angry."
     "I'm about to get that way unless someone starts talking," Alex 
growled.
"First off, someone needs to tell me what the problem is between you two.
Second, it's getting a little stuffy in here, so I suggest we start looking 
for
a way out of this rat-trap.  And third, we need to find Michelle and make 
sure
she's okay so we can get out of this place and back to the kingdom."
     Susan and Mephisto looked at each other.  "We do need to find your 
friend
and get you out of here," Mephisto said softly.  "If any of the other Shinma
learn of your presence here, it would present an immediate and probably 
fatal
problem."
     "Why would you help us now that you know who we are?" Susan asked 
softly.
     Mephisto looked over at Alex and said nothing.  Susan glanced over to 
the
blonde and saw her blush faintly under the sudden scrutiny.  She looked back 
at
Mephisto and regarded him very carefully.
     "Suffice it to say that I have my reasons and leave it at that," he 
said
finally as he turned back to look at her.
     "How long have you watched over her soul?" Susan asked, speaking soft
enough so only he could hear her.
     "Well over eight hundred years," Mephisto replied, equally as soft.  "I
don't know why I bothered to do so for so long, to be honest, but I am 
most....
gratified that I did."
     "Can we trust you?" Susan asked.
     Mephisto laughed humorlessly.  "Come now, how would I profit from your
demise?  Vengeance?  Justice?  Why should I keep you captive?  To use for my
pleasure?  Amusement?  No, demon," he said as he shook his head, "Despite 
what
your god has done to us, I have no reason to harm you in any way."
     "That is not what I asked."
     "Sue, will you get that weed out of your butt and calm down?" Alex said
with a sigh.  "Mephisto, will you help us find Michelle and get out of 
here?"
     Mephisto nodded at her.  "Yes," he replied.
     "Great, thanks," she said with a smile.  "Now then, unless you and 
Susan
want to continue your game of verbal fencing, can we find a way out of here?
This puddle is pretty to look at, but we really need to find Michelle."
     Mephisto glanced out of the corner of his eye and watched Susan roll 
her
eyes again.  She muttered something cryptic beneath her breath about Alex's
hair color and sighed before glancing over at him questioningly.
     "You humans are strange," Myst observed as Alex absently scratched her
behind the ears.
     "You have no idea," Susan said, then grunted as Alex stomped on her 
foot.
     "You hush," Alex said acidly.
     "The only way out of here is to use dimensional teleportation," 
Mephisto
said with a light cough.  "If you will take my hand...."
     Alex made sure she had a tight grip on Myst before she reached out and
firmly took hold of the offered hand.  Susan sighed quietly to herself and 
did
the same after giving Mephisto a neutral look.
     The air around them seemed to ripple ever so slightly as space started 
to
fold around them in a complex quasi-geometrical shape and they simply 
vanished.
Space unfolded itself back to normal and the only motion left in the tiny 
lava
bubble was the gentle rippling of the surface of the mana pool.

                *               *               *               *

     It's amazing how fast people will either do their job or get out of 
your
way if you growl loud enough, Rune thought to herself as she walked down the
corridor at a fast pace, flanked on both sides by heavily armed bodyguards.
She covered the distance between Si'ren's quarters and the command center in
what she thought was record time, not happy in the least at being disturbed 
at
such a late hour.
     "Status report," she snapped as she strode into the large room, the 
guards
taking up mildly unobtrusive positions on either side of the main doors.
     The lieutenant at the main communications console looked up at her and
motioned her over, most of her attention still focused on what was happening
in the communication network.  "TacSat 31, Control.  Repeat your last 
message,
I say again, repeat your last message, over," she said into her headset as 
she
turned on an external speaker.
     "Control, TacSat 31," came the static-filled voice over the speaker.  
"We
have visual confirmation of a rift opening over the Hinterland region.  
Ground
radar is being jammed by an energy field.  We estimate the rift to be half a
mile in length.  Request further instructions, over."
     "This plugged into the network?" Rune asked as she picked up a spare
headset and put it on.
     "One second, ma'am," the lieutenant said as she pressed a few buttons 
on
her console.  "It's active now."
     "Network, Rune," the general said into the microphone.  "Scenario team,
please respond, over."
     "Rune, red team, over."
     "Rune, blue team, over."
     "Rune, green team, over."
     "Rune, black team, over."
     Rune nodded her head in satisfaction at the prompt reply she received.
"Scenario team, Rune.  This may be what we discussed, so be ready for 
whatever
comes through that rift.  Is everyone clear on the assignment, over?"
     "Rune, black team," said a voice over the speaker.  "We will take point
and green will provide back-up.  Red and blue will provide contingency 
cover.
Any further instructions before we go silent, over?"
     "Black team, Rune.  Negative, instructions stand.  Good luck.  Out," 
Rune
said and turned off the headset.
     "And you said you hated welcome parties," a soft voice purred from 
behind
General Rune's shoulder.
     Rune turned around to give Fleet Admiral Si'ren a mild look.  "Who said
anything about a party?  Or a welcome, for that matter," Rune added with a
slight edge to her voice.
     Si'ren opened her mouth to reply but closed it again when the control 
room
doors opened to admit Dragoon Commander K'tal and Psi-Corp Captain Ael'ien.
"Forgive a stupid question, General Rune, but have you heard the latest 
report
from the Hinterland region?" Ael'ien asked without preamble.
     Rune ran her fingers through her dark hair for a moment before 
responding.
"If you're referring to the rift, Captain, I assure you I'm well aware of 
it,"
she said slowly and evenly.
     K'tal and Ael'ien exchanged concerned glances.  "Begging the general's
pardon, but that rift is only half the problem," K'tal said slowly.
     General Rune frowned, a small tingle of unease crawling down her spine.
"So what's the other problem?"
     "Intelligence has reason to believe that there is a rogue unit deployed 
in
the Hinterland region, one that isn't under your control," K'tal explained.
"We think it might belong to the remains of General Malachite's forces, but
we're not absolutely certain."
     Si'ren took a small step forward, a dark frown crossing her otherwise
delicate features.  "So what can this rogue unit do?" she asked.
     "Shoot down whatever tries to come through the rift," Ael'ien stated.
"Or if not, at least inflict a large quantity of damage on it.  Either way, 
the
person in charge of those forces is going to get royally pissed off."
     "Great," Rune growled.
     "Control, TacSat 31!" came the excited voice from the speakers.  "We 
have
a visual of something coming through the rift!  What did you say it was?  
Umm,
stand by, control...."
     Rune and Si'ren moved over to the main display screen console.  "Give 
me
an overhead projection of that area, now," Rune said to the room in general.
There was a brief pause before the screen lit up, showing a topographical 
map
of the immediate region around the Hinterland area.  Several dozen lights 
lit
up, each represeting units deployed around the area.  A large, jagged black
line represented the rift and a relatively sizable white dot was starting to
form in the center of the rift.
     "Control, TacSat 31.  Object is identified as an airborne carrier, old
Vresh'tan class, designate target as avatar one.  Sensory units still being
jammed by the rift.  Target is moving slowly at an estimated twelve miles 
per
hour, bearing two seven zero, altitude estimated to be fourteen angels," the
voice said slowly.
     "How old is the Vresh'tan class of carriers?" Rune asked over her left
shoulder, her eyes glued to the screen.
     K'tal blinked.  "At least four thousand years old, General," he said.
"Might be closer to five, depending on what particular model they're using."
     Si'ren made a soft grunting noise.  "Nop'tera deployed her forces 
around
that time, correct?"
     "I think so," Rune replied quietly.  "If I remember right, they were on
the leading edge of the airborne carrier technology at the time and she took
five of those things with her."
     Si'ren blinked.  "Five carriers?" she breathed, knowing the full 
firepower
potential of the naval equivalent.
     "Didn't one of them come back crippled a thousand years ago?" Ael'ien
said.  "Something about an internal reactor explosion?"
     "Something like that," Rune said, still intently watching the white 
blip
on the display screen.
     "Transient, transient!" a voice screamed over the communications 
network.
"Missile transient, ground-based missile fired, it looks to be headed 
towards
the carrier!"
     Rune's head snapped up to look at the speaker as she let loose with a 
very
inventive string of profanity.  "You, get on every frequency you can and 
warn
the carrier off.  And tell those trigger-happy bastards to hold their fire!"
Rune snapped at the lieutenant.
     "Network, TacSat 12, tracking missile with auxiliary system," said 
another
voice over the network.  "Missile is live and tracking avatar one.  Avatar 
one
has increased speed to approximately seventy-five miles per hour and is 
trying
to increase altitude...."
     "Network, ComPost 3, I want to know who fired that p'tahk'enn thing!"
     "ComPost 3, MisBat 1, all missiles grounded, over."
     "ComPost 3, MisBat 4, ditto, over."
     "ComPost 3, MisBat 2, ordinance still accounted for, over."
     "Network, TacSat 12, time to impact seven seconds.  Avatar one now at
twenty-three angels and still climbing."
     "ComPost 3, MisBat 3, all weapons visually accounted for, over."
     "Network, TacSat 12.... missile strike confirmed, avatar one is hit....
Maintaining position at twenty-five angels, forward velocity now zero....
Transient, missile transient from avatar one!"
     "They're firing?" Si'ren said incrediously.  "On what?"
     Rune said nothing, watching the chaos unfold on her display screen, her
face a blank mask of controlled emotions and reactions.
     "Postman!  Postman!  Postman!" a voice started screaming on the 
network.
     "Ay'cha navidshi," K'tal breathed, his eyes going wide in utter shock.
     Rune's body started to shake.  "She didn't....." she whispered.
     "Everyone get down!" the voice continued to scream.  "Get down n......"
     Everyone stared at the display screen in mute shock as the speaker 
started
to emit a high-pitched tone and a large red blotch appeared on the screen.  
The
lieutenant at the communications console quickly switched over to a 
different
frequency and the speaker fell completely silent, save for the usual static
hissing.
     "Network, control, all units respond, over," she said into her headset.
     "General Rune...." Ael'ien said quietly.
     "Network, control.... All units respond, over...."
     Rune held up one hand and the telepath fell silent, everyone still 
waiting
to hear a response from the units deployed in the Hinterland region.
     "Network, control.... All units please respond, over...."
     "...ntrol... at 31, s.... ain, over.... ra.... ference...."
     "TacSat 31, control, your signal is breaking up, please signal again."
     "...ol, TacS.... witching to.... ncy two one f.... ay again, we.... 
hing
to frequ.... one five...."
     The silence in the control room made everyone's skin crawl with 
tension,
yet they remained quiet as they listened to the fragmented broadcast from 
the
tactical satellite transmitter.  The lieutenant's concentration was absolute
as she worked, her only concern was trying to re-establish the link.
     "Switching to frequency 215," she reported as she worked.  "TacSat 31,
control, please respond, over."
     "..ntrol, TacSat 3.... clear detonation confir.... say again, nuclear
deton.... nfirmed.  Radiation.... fering with transmission,  I sa.... ain, 
the
radi.... is interfering with transm.... ver...."
     General Rune stood up straight and slowly walked over next to the young
lieutenant.  She picked up the headset and put it on, momentarily giving the
communications officer a comforting squeeze on her shoulder.
     "TacSat 31, Rune, do you copy, over?" the general said into the 
headset.
     "Rune, TacSat 31, transmi.... s shaky, but.... opy, over."
     "TacSat 31, evacuate the region and report to the nearest emergency
radiation fallout shelter," Rune said, her voice a flat monotone.
     "Rune, Ta.... 1, negative," replied the voice almost sadly.  "Rad count 
is
over four five zero, it wouldn't.... us any good anyway.  Request per.... to
continue broadcast, over."
     Rune sighed and closed her eyes, knowing that any radiation dose of 
over
three hundred points was fatal to denizens.  "Commander K'tal," she said as 
she
turned off the microphone, "I want the names of everyone in TacSat 31.  
Their
sacrifice will not go unrecognized."
     "I'll see to it myself," K'tal replied softly.
     Rune nodded and turned the microphone back on.  "TacSat 31, Rune.  You
have permission to continue broadcast as long as possible, over."
     "Rune, TacSat 31, we copy.  Avatar one is maintaining previous position
at twenty-five angels, no forward velocity.... New contact emerging from the
rift, designate target avatar two.  Moving at an estimated fifteen miles per
hour bearing two seven three, altitude at an estimated fourteen angels...."
     The communication officer's head snapped up suddenly and she frowned as 
a
message relayed itself through her headset.  "Admiral Si'ren, flash report 
from
Leviathan North.  The shockwave from the blast has disturbed an undersea 
lava
vent right beneath it and the vent is going active.  External water 
temperature
has risen twenty degrees and is continuing to rise.  The're going to 
withdraw
from the immediate region and will most likely loose the subsurface contacts
in the thermal.  They state that unless they receive further orders, they 
will
remain under a Stage 3 Alert and run silent until they relocate the 
contacts."
     Si'ren said a very rude word as she rubbed her temples.  "Acknowledge 
the
message, Lieutenant, and tell them no further orders at this time."
     "Understood, ma'am," the lieutenant replied and turned to her console.
     Ael'ien moved over to stand next to Admiral Si'ren.  "How large is the
primary radiation zone and what is the expected fallout pattern?" she asked 
the
room in general.
     An operator quickly checked her console before looking up.  "Captain, 
the
primary zone is a two-mile radius with the radiation count dropping almost
exponentially the further away from ground zero you measure.  The radiation
count has already dropped by half a percent and is projected to decay to 
zero
in slightly more than seventy-two hours."
     Everyone's head snapped up at the stunning news.  "Total radiation 
decay
in three days?" Si'ren asked, her eyes wide.  "What kind of nuclear weapon 
is
capable of that?"
     "Tactical," K'tal said flatly.  "Not just tactical, but surgical.  You 
go
in, drop the NP-whatever that is, kill every living thing within a very 
small
radius, and sweep up the ashes three days later.  No worries about exposing 
the
clean-up teams to radiation, and you don't worry about accidentally causing 
ten
times as many casualties with fallout."
     "We don't have any of those, do we?" Si'ren said as she looked at the
Dragoon commander.
     "Not that I am aware of, ma'am, but you know as well as I do how far 
that
often goes around here," K'tal said darkly, ignoring the reproving look he 
got
from Captain Ael'ien.
     "Control, TacSat 31, new contact emerging from the rift, designate 
target
avatar three," said the static-filled voice from the speaker.  "Avatar three 
is
bearing two six eight at roughly eighteen miles per hour, altitude estimated 
to
be fourteen angels.  Avatar one is dropping altitude and has increased 
forward
velocity to twelve miles per hour, bearing two six nine.  Avatar two is 
coming
around to bearing two six eight and maintaining speed."
     Si'ren glanced over at Rune and frowned lightly.  The general was 
staring
at the display screen with a distant look in her eyes, almost as if she were
daydreaming.  Si'ren knew that look well enough to know that was nowhere 
near
to being accurate and started to worry slightly about what Rune was 
thinking.
     "Control, TacSat 31, respond please..... radiation interference 
starting
to increase, losing carrier signal...."
     "TacSat 31, Control," the communications officer said into her headset.
"We still read a clear signal from you, over."
     "Control, TacSat 31, please respond.... losing carrier signal.... rift 
is
now starting to close.... all avatars are now bearing two six nine, altitude
sixteen angels, forward velocity thirty miles per hour....  Control.... at 
31,
plea.... nd, we are los.... ier signal...."
     Both K'tal and Si'ren looked at General Rune.  The general's eyes were
closed and her head was slightly bowed as she listened to the increasing 
amount
of static coming from the speakers.
     "Con.... acSat.... ease resp.... al bre.... up, re.... a.... ing...."
     "TacSat 31, switch frequencies and signal again, over."
     ".... a.... n.... sp.... k.... o...."
     "TacSat 31, please respond."
     "....."
     "Control to TacSat 31, please respond," the lieutenant said loudly into
her headset.  "I repeat, please respond."
     Everyone listened in silence as the only response heard from the doomed
unit was the usual soft crackling of static.  The communications officer 
spent
five minutes trying to reestablish a link to the unit before she quietly 
sighed
to herself and closed down the network frequencies.
     "General Rune, we've lost communication with TacSat 31," she said 
quietly.
     "Understood, Lieutenant," Rune replied softly.  "You did an excellent 
job
keeping the line up as long as you did.  You'll get a commendation for 
this."
     "Thank you, ma'am," the lieutenant replied.
     "What is the projected destination of the carriers?" Rune asked.
     K'tal looked at the display board and did a few quick mental 
calculations.
"Provided they don't change course or speed, they should reach the Imperial
Castle in three days," he said slowly.
     "She has a great deal of k'vesan for a woman," Rune said quietly.  
"More
so than I had thought.  What do we have between us and the carriers?"
     "The entire Eastern Division of the military," Ael'ien replied 
instantly.
"Their regional command post is almost directly in the carriers path."
     "Could they stop the carriers?" Rune inquired, still staring at the 
main
display board.  The jagged black line that was the rift was rapidly becoming
smaller with each passing second and the edges of the red blotch were 
starting
to take on a somewhat fuzzy aspect.  The white blips that were the airborne
carriers had formed up into a wedge and were slowly moving together in a 
tight
formation.
     "Give the word, ma'am, and we'll drop them," K'tal stated.
     "That is not what I asked, Commander," Rune said.
     K'tal blinked.  "The carriers could definitely be stopped, General."
     "Admiral Si'ren, what is the missile strike range of the Leviathans?"
     Si'ren gave Rune a puzzled look.  "There is a hundred-mile-wide band,
centered on the equator, that they can't reach from the polar oceans.  Aside
from that, they can hit any surface or relatively stationary airborne 
target."
     Rune grunted.  She knew that both the Imperial Castle and the original
Hinterland rift were situated well within fifty miles of the equator, as 
well
as the fact that the carriers were definitely not stationary.
     "Lieutenant, has there been any sort of signal or transmissions made 
from
the carriers?" Rune asked suddenly as she spun around to face the young
communications officer.
     "Unknown, ma'am," the lieutenant replied.  "All the radiation in the 
area
is interfering with the local sensor network and the fixed-site tactical 
posts
are still disoriented from the EMP wave."
     Ael'ien frowned in mild confusion, not having a great deal of 
background
in communications.  "I don't get it, Lieutenant.  I thought the fixed sites
were satellite dishes with sensor webs.  How do you 'disorient' something 
like
that?"
     The lieutenant cleared her throat quietly.  "When anything nuclear is
detonated, it gives off a wave of electro-magnetic energy.  The pulse is 
strong
enough to literally fry any electronics in the immediate area and to 
severely
disrupt any electronics within range.  When the carrier's NP missile hit, 
the
EMP wave it emitted struck the fixed sites and caused their automatic 
tracking
computers to become temporarily scrambled.  Without computers to guide them,
the dishes started to lose track of the satellites.  Until the computers 
bring
themselves back on-line and reorient themselves on the satellites, the data
their sensor webs receives can't be transmitted.  Provided the EMP wave 
didn't
fry the sensors as well," she added.
     "Lieutenant, call the Eastern Division headquarters and get me their 
field
commander," Rune ordered as she strode over to the communications console 
and
put on the headset.  "K'tal, what sort of aircraft do we have available that 
is
capable of getting close to those carriers and staying there?"
     "One moment, General," the Dragoon said as he turned to a nearby 
console
and started to run a link to the central archive computer.
     The headset crackled faintly as a channel was opened.  "This is 
Lieutenant
General Ra'en," a strong voice said.  "I assume that if someone has sent the
Nuclear Postman to visit us, we're going to war?"
     The corners of Rune's mouth twitched in amusement.  She had dated him 
for
a short period of time before joining the military and it always struck her 
as
funny just how often they ran into each other.  The only reason she hadn't
resumed their relationship was because his lack of a sense of humor 
seriously
grated on her nerves at times.
     "This is Commander General Rune, and we're still debating on that one,"
she said into the headset's microphone.  "Are you tracking the three 
airborne
carriers that have emerged from the Hinterland rift?"
     "We are," Ra'en replied.  "We're also tracking the aftermath of what 
looks
like a brand-new and highly interesting type of NP missile.  A missile that
obliterated a significant portion of my reconaissance units," he added 
darkly.
     "Yes, I know," Rune said.  "I think she was trying to send a message to
us and now it's time to send a message back."
     "Payback or something else?"
     "Something else, Ra'en.  I'm not about to start a nuclear war," she 
said,
leaving off the unspoken 'yet'.  "What I want you to do is simple.  Deploy 
your
entire division along their flight path and be ready to take them down at a
moment's notice."
     "With pleasure, ma'am," Ra'en said, the smile evident in his voice.
     Rune raised an eyebrow at the level of enthusiasm.  "Not so fast, 
Ra'en,
I'm not finished yet.  What I want is for those carriers to see you prepared 
to
take them down.  I want every radar and active sensor you have trained on 
them
and lit up.  Let them know you're watching them.  Do you have any sort of
airborne interceptors over there?"
     There was a soft grunt from the field commander.  "All we have are 
those
ancient Red Wing troop transports and a handful of Mer'cata-class drones.  
The
drones can take out soft targets like soldiers standing on the carrier 
decks,
but they're virtually useless against anything remotely armored."
     "Get them airborne and around those carriers.  Can they hover or do 
they
need forward motion to remain in-flight?" Rune asked.
     Ra'en made a huffing noise deep in his throat.  Most would think he was
clearing his throat, but Rune knew that was his equivalent of a belly laugh.
"They can hover.  If you want, I can park them six inches away from the 
hulls
of the carriers and keep them there.  If the carriers move, so do the 
drones."
     "All I want is for those carriers to know that they're there and 
keeping
an extremely close eye on them," Rune said.
     "Correct me if I'm wrong, Rune, but I take it all you want us to do is 
to
rattle their cage and make sure they know we're ready for them?" Ra'en asked 
in
an even tone.
     Rune smiled.  "Exactly, Ra'en, but under no circumstances do you 
provoke
them or do anything that might make them think they're under attack.  Is 
that
clear?"
     "Clear as crystal, ma'am," said the voice over the headset.
     "Oh, and one more thing," Rune said evenly.
     "Yes?"
     "If they do fire on you, you have full authority to bring them down."
     "Understood.  Do you want to see the craters from orbit?" Ra'en asked.
     Rune sighed and rubbed her temples, knowing full well that he was being
serious and wondering what she had seen in him so many centuries ago.  "It
doesn't need to be messy, Ra'en, but do what you have to do to take them 
down
if it becomes necessary," she said wearily.
     "Understood, General Rune.  Eastern Division headquarters out," he said
and closed the line down.
     "I assume you have a plan of action in mind, ma'am?" Ael'ien asked when
Rune removed her headset.
     "I might, but I'm going to need time to work it out, and time is in 
very
short supply right now," Rune replied as she looked at the display screen 
once
again.  "Commander K'tal, I want that aircraft status report ready in half 
an
hour, along with the technical data regarding the Vresh'tan class of 
carriers
and a scientific analysis of that nuclear device they used."
     Inwardly, K'tal winced at the short deadline, but was too professional 
to
allow his discomfort to show.  "Yes, ma'am," he said simply and turned his 
full
attention to his computer link.
     "Captain Ael'ien, I want you to coordinate with the other unit captains 
in
the area to organize a tight defense of the castle.  Concentrate the bulk of
the defenses to the east and prepare for primarily air strikes, but don't 
leave
any angle unprotected against either air-based or ground-based offensives,"
Rune continued.  "Keep in communication with the Eastern Division and 
contact
the other Divisons if necessary."
     Ael'ien saluted sharply and spun on her heel, leaving the command 
center
in such a manner as to move as fast as possible while retaining the dignity 
of
her rank.
     "Lieutenant, I want you to monitor the carrier group for any attempts 
at
communication, either between themselves or to anywhere else.  If they so 
much
as break wind, I want to hear about it," Rune said to the young 
communications
officer.
     "Understood, General," the lieutenant said and turned to her console.
     "And as for you, Admiral," Rune said, her voice low but containing a
noticable edge, "I think we need to resume our talk and quickly.  There are
still a few things I need to know, things that may have a profound impact on
what course of action we take."
     Si'ren nodded silently and the two of them began to make their way out 
of
the control center and back towards Si'ren's quarters.  The Fleet Admiral
waited until they were out of earshot of everyone before she took Rune's 
elbow
and pulled her to a stop.
     "Rune, what are you thinking?" Si'ren asked quietly.
     "I'm thinking that Nop'tera is going to want to take control of the 
entire
military when she gets back," Rune said quietly, "And I don't think she's 
going
to take 'no' for an answer.  The problem is, she's been gone from this world
for over four thousand years.  Things have changed in that time and I'm not
convinced she's capable of adapting to the changes."
     "You could be wrong," Si'ren pointed out.
     Rune turned around and looked straight into Si'ren's eyes.  "Before you
start making up your mind on who the Navy is going to side with," Rune said,
"I want you to ask yourself this: Do you want to take orders from someone 
who
has no qualms about using nuclear weapons as a first-strike option?"
     Si'ren raised a slender eyebrow.  "Didn't you just authorize Ra'en to 
use
nuclear devices a few minutes ago?"
     "Who got nuked first?" Rune said flatly, her voice as cold as steel.
     Si'ren remained silent as they resumed their journey to her quarters,
neither of the two women noticing when their respective bodyguards swiftly 
and
silently gathered around to escort them like invisible shadows.  Rune's 
words
continued to echo in Si'ren's mind and the admiral couldn't help but wonder 
if
indeed she wanted to follow the orders of a historical legend who had been 
out
of touch for so long.
     This is going to be very, very interesting, she thought as they reached
her quarters and she ushered Rune inside.  Yes, very interesting, the 
admiral
thought as the doors closed behind her and the general.

                *               *               *               *

     Ami glanced over at Leda as she took her seat on the school bus.  "Are 
you
sure you're going to be okay?" she asked yet again, wondering just what 
exactly
the brunette had been thinking, or even if she had been.
     Leda shot her a dark look, a look made even worse by the thin cut on 
her
left cheek.  "I told you I'm fine," she growled as she readjusted the 
backpack
on her shoulder and tried not to wince as the straps rubbed across a bruise.
     "Another fight?" Rei asked as she walked past and took a seat behind 
Ami.
She saw the reproving look she received from Ami and sighed.  "Alright, so 
who
lit the fuse on your tampon this time?"
     "I'm about to readjust the location of yours if you don't leave me 
alone,"
was Leda's harsh reply.
     Rei blinked at the hostility.  "Calm down, Leda, I didn't do anything 
to
you.  I was just curious as to what happened."
     "What happened was some juvenile punk decided he wanted to see what I 
was
wearing beneath my skirt," Leda said with another growl.  "He said something
about hearing rumors I don't like to wear panties and tried to get a look 
for
himself."
     Rei exchanged glances with Ami, the vampire raising a slender eyebrow 
in
response and the Shinto priestess blinking in surprise, not believing 
someone
had been stupid enough to pull that sort of stunt with anyone, let alone 
with
a girl with Leda's temperment.  "And so you decided to introduce him into 
the
pavement?" Rei asked cautiously.
     Leda smirked.  "Three times, and that was after he met the fence."
     "Now who do we know that likes to gossip and spread rumors?" Rei said
loudly as Mina stepped onto the bus, struggling to keep an overweight 
backpack
balanced on her shoulders.
     "It had better not have been you, Mina, or you're really going to be in
for it," Leda said with a frown, still in a dark mood.
     The blonde stopped in mid-motion and blinked, regarding the three of 
them
curiously.  "What'd I do this time?"  She took a closer look at Leda and her
blue eyes blinked again.  "Whoa, what happened to you?"
     Rei spoke up quickly before Leda could growl a potentially profane 
reply.
"Someone direly needed an attitude adjustment, and if it had happened to me,
I'd have rung his bell too," she explained with a small smile.
     "Another fight?" Mina sighed as she sat down next to Ami.  Her motions
caused her backpack's weight to shift, resulting in her tilting to one side 
and
promptly falling out of the seat.
     "So much for grace," Rei commented.
     "Have you seen Serena lately?" Ami asked quickly before the blonde 
could
come up with a suitable scathing retort.
     "Detention yet again," Mina replied sourly as she slipped the straps 
off
of her shoulders and sat back down, dragging the backpack under the seat in 
the
process.  She blinked as something occured to her and she turned to give 
Leda a
cautious look.  "What were you saying earlier about me doing something?"
     The brunette gave her a decidedly dark look.  "I'm just wondering who 
it
is around here who's been spreading the extremely inaccurate rumor that I 
like
to wear skirts without panties," she said slowly with an edge to her voice.
     Mina made a face.  "Don't look at me, girl, that's not the sort of 
gossip
I deal with.  Granted the no-panties thing sounds an awful lot like 
something
you would do, but...."  Her voice was cut off as she tried to scramble out 
of
the seat as Leda launched herself towards the opposite side of the bus, her
green eyes blazing.
     The impending melee was brought to a screeching halt as Ami went 
vampiric
and froze Leda in place with a look from her hypnotic steel-blue vampire 
eyes.
"Are you finished?" Ami asked softly.
     Leda was captivated by the eerie glint in her eyes and could only nod
slowly in agreement.  Ami's eyes faded from steel-blue back to their usual
shade of blue and Leda felt her body start to respond to her brain again.  
She
quickly stood up and shook her head rapidly for a moment to clear out the
residual hypnotic cobwebs.  "You know I hate it when you do that," she said
flatly as she sat back down, ignoring the blonde cowering being Rei.
     "If you and Mina would behave, I wouldn't have to do that," Ami replied
mildly as she fished a textbook out of her backpack and started to study.
     "Do what?" Molly asked as she got on the bus.  She looked around for an
empty seat and saw the open space next to Leda.  "Mind if I sit here?"
     Leda looked at Molly warily.  Molly had been Serena's best friend since
kindergarten and the two had been almost inseparable until Serena's 
awakening
to her true identity as Sailor Moon.  Their friendship still continued, but
Serena's constant worry that she might slip up and reveal herself to Molly 
was
starting to take its toll on the blonde.
     "It might be safer if you sit next to me," Rei said as she casually 
shoved
Mina out of the seat with her elbow.  "Psycho over there got herself into
another fight."
     Leda's head whipped around to fix the priestess with a venomous glare.
"If you call me that one more time...." she growled, then glanced over at 
Ami
as she cleared her throat loudly, still reading the textbook.  Leda muttered
something acidic beneath her breath as she turned around and stared out the
window.
     Molly blinked as her gaze alternated between Ami and Leda.  "Am I 
missing
something?" she said softly to Rei as she sat down next to her.  "I mean, I
know as well as everyone else how short-tempered Leda is," she said slowly,
shivering lightly as she saw Leda's expression reflected in the window, "But
if I didn't know better, I would think she was afraid of Ami."  She blinked 
as
four heads suddenly turned around to look at her.
     "Not quite," Leda said in a tone cold enough to condense nitrogen.
     Rei caught the look of mild surprise in Ami's eyes and had to bite her
tongue to keep herself from laughing.  "What makes you say that?" she asked.
     "Well," Molly said hesitantly.  "Why would a person who routinely kicks
people's butts for fun back down from someone as harmless as Ami?"
     Leda opened her mouth to say something but remained silent as she felt
rather than saw Ami's warning glance in her direction.  Someone is going to
pay for this one, the brunette thought to herself as she gritted her teeth.
     "Ami?  Harmless?" Mina said incrediously, ignorning the sudden wave of
pain spreading across her wrist as it was grabbed by a hand and held in an
inhuman grip with the strength of steel.  "Girl, you have no idea just how
dangerous Ami can be."
     Molly blinked in surprise, glancing between the serious look in Mina's
blue eyes and the neutral look on Ami's face.  "Umm...."
     Mina leaned closer to Molly, partially to keep from being overheard and
partially to try to relieve some of the pressure on her wrist.  "Ami isn't 
what
she appears to be," she whispered, struggling valiantly to keep her facial
expression constant while the pressure on her wrist drastically increased,
threatening to implode the bones into powder.  "She's been specially trained 
in
the seven-hundred-year-old Dragoon unarmed hand-to-hand combat techniques 
and
could easily hand Leda her butt if they ever got into another fight."
     Molly blinked and looked around her.  Leda had turned around to face 
the
front of the bus, her facial expression unreadable.  Ami's expression was 
one
of mild amusement while Mina's was an odd mixture of seriousness, pain, and
relief.  She saw motion out of the corner of her eye and turned her head in
time to see a tiny drop of blood fall from the corner of Rei's lip onto the
edge of her skirt.
     "Are you alright?" she asked in concern.
     "Juth bit my tongue," Rei mumbled to herself as she inwardly struggled 
to
keep her insides from bursting with laughter at Mina's statement.  She had
accidentally bitten her tongue hard enough to make it bleed and was now 
trying
to use the pain as a focus to control herself.
     Molly blinked again and turned to look at Ami curiously.  "How is it 
that
you've never told anyone about this before?" she asked cautiously, still 
trying
to decide if Mina had been telling her the truth about Ami.
     Ami shrugged and smiled mysteriously.  "Two reasons.  First, I've only
learned within the past year.  And second...."  She trailed off, pretended 
to
be in deep thought for a moment, and simply shrugged.  "Well, it just never
occured to me to tell anyone."
     Molly blinked yet again.  "Seriously?" she asked in awe.
     Ami nodded.  "Seriously."
     "Whoa...." Molly breathed quietly with a glance towards Leda.  "So 
maybe
she really is afraid of you."  With good reason, she mentally added as she
tried to fight the tiny tendril of fear developing within her.
     Leda snorted.  "Not quite," she said without bothering to turn around.
     "Well, you know what they say," Mina said with an impish grin as she
discreetly massaged her wrist and tried not to imagine how badly it was 
going
to bruise and ache by sundown.
     "What?" Leda growled with a look at the blonde.
     "Beware the quiet ones," she said mock-ominously.
     Everyone blinked and tried not to shudder as Ami started to laugh, a 
soft,
low-pitched laugh that sent chills down everyone's spine and made Molly 
start
to wonder if Ami was laughing because of the humor or because of the effect 
it
was having on everyone else.  Everyone else already knew the real reason Ami
was laughing, which made their unease even worse.
     "Should I ask?" Molly asked in a small voice.
     Ami's eyes closed as a small smile tugged on the corners of her lips.
"Be afraid," she stage-whispered, "Be very afraid."  And if it wasn't for 
the
fact that she had felt herself going vampiric, she would have smiled at 
Molly.
     I'm sorry I asked, Molly thought as she repressed a shiver as the bus
driver started the bus and pulled out of the school parking lot.

                *               *               *               *

     Leda's head snapped up as the bus came to a halt, the sound of the air
brakes grating on the few nerves she had left.  Here already? she thought
fuzzily as she tried to chase the cobwebs out of her mind.  She was about to
get up and leave the bus when she saw Mina and Rei stand up.
     Nope, one more stop, she thought as she let her head fall back onto her
arms.  She closed her eyes and tried to stay awake for another ten minutes.
She heard Mina's overly-cheerful voice saying something to Rei about going 
to
the mall later, then heard her suddenly-not-so-cheerful tone as her backpack
shifted again and she started to lose her balance as she got off the bus.
     Leda growled quietly to herself as she heard Rei's quiet laughter and 
felt
someone pat her on the back before moving past her to exit the bus.  She 
heard
the soft squeak of the bus doors closing, then felt someone tugging rather
insistently on her arm.
     "Come on, Leda, this is our stop," Ami said mildly.
     "What?" Leda said as she peeled her forehead off of her arms to glare 
at
the scenery around her.  "C'mon, Ami, we're still at the other.... stop?" 
she
trailed off as the landscape around her registered on her brain.
     "Just a moment, she's still asleep," Ami apologized to the bus driver 
as
she continued to gently tug on Leda's arm.
     "Hey, no prob, we all get those days," the bus driver said with a grin.
     Leda growled softly softly to herself as she stood up and hefted the
backpack onto her shoulder.  Her blood supply remained where it was, 
however,
and the world around her whirled madly as her brain started to starve from
temporary lack of oxygen.  She would have fallen over if it hadn't been for 
the
supporting hand still gripping her shoulder.
     "I had better take you home before you hurt yourself," Ami said mildly.
     "I'll be fine, Ami," Leda muttered as the world reoriented itself.
     "Of course you will," Ami said soothingly as she guided Leda off of the
bus and down the street.  "We also need to talk for a bit, so I might as 
well
take you home while I'm at it."  She turned around and blinked in surprise 
when
Molly followed them off of the bus.  "I thought your bus stop was the next 
one
over," she said.
     Molly shrugged.  "I live between the two stops, so it's the same 
distance
no matter which stop I use.  I only usually use the other one because it's 
the
one Serena uses.  Is Leda going to be alright?"
     Leda sighed.  "I'm fine, people, I just need a bit of a nap.  I was up
late last night and didn't get much sleep."
     Ami smirked.  "That explains quite a lot, actually."
     "Cork it, girl."
     Molly frowned.  "You two aren't going to start fighting, are you?"
     Ami laughed.  "Oh, no, Leda's always like that when she's 
sleep-deprived
and I never pay any attention it.  She'll be fine once she crawls into bed."
     "Crawl is the word," Leda muttered as her head started to ache.
     Molly blinked, looking like she was on the verge of saying something.  
She
apparently changed her mind when she shrugged and waved to them.  "Well if
you're sure she'll be alright, I'll catch you two later.  Take care!"
     Ami nodded.  "You too," she said as she turned around and took hold of
Leda's elbow.  "It's down this street, not that one," she said lightly as 
she
corrected Leda's course, pointedly ignoring the toxic comments coming from
beneath the brunette's breath.
     Molly paused and watched them walk down the street, her thoughts 
occupied
with Mina's words about Ami's training.  Seven-hundred-year-old Dragoon 
unarmed
hand-to-hand combat training, she thought.  It sounds like something someone
dug up out of one of those Chinese fighting movies, one of those supposedly
ancient and obscure techniques only heroes can learn.  Not that I doubt in 
the
least that Ami hasn't had some sort of training but....
     She paused in mid-thought as her subconscious told her she was missing
something.  She was about to find a place to sit down and do some serious
brain-wracking when she heard a rather squeaky voice speaking from right 
behind
her ear.
     "So what did the Psycho-Killer do this time?" Melvin asked.
     Her actions were a mixture of reflex and habit.  Without looking behind
her, her arm shot out and grabbed for the front of his shirt.  She got a 
sense
of satisfaction when she felt the cotton-nylon mix right where it should 
have
been.  Predictable, if nothing else, she thought as she braced herself and
heaved with all of her strength.
     She did her best to conceal her smile as Melvin smoothly sailed past 
her
and into a nearby tree.  It's amazing, she thought as he bounced to the 
ground,
with as many times as I've done this, he still hasn't learned to either quit
sneaking up on me like that or to stand elsewhere when he does.
     "Gosh, I'm sorry, Melvin," she said in her American drawl, "You just
scared the daylights out of me, sneaking up on me like that.  Are you okay?"
     Melvin grunted as he stood up and readjusted his oversized glasses.  
"I'm
just fine, Molly.  Didn't mean to spook you like that," he said as he 
brushed
tiny bits of bark off of his black school uniform.  "You know, I think 
you've
gotten stronger as of late."
     Molly sighed.  I don't believe this, she thought.  Perhaps meeting so 
many
trees has rattled his brain.  Assuming he had one to rattle to begin with, 
she
thought with a mental smile.  "I guess all those exercises in gym class are
helping out."
     Melvin wrinkled his nose at the mention of gym class.  It was no secret
that he hated gym class, namely because it forced him to focus his attention 
on
something that had absolutely no bearing on computers and the sciences.  Or 
on
the only other thing he really paid any attention to.
     "Guess what I heard in the rumor mill the other day?" he said 
cheerfully
as he worked a kink out of his now-sore shoulder.  "Ami's got a boyfriend, 
and
an older one at that."
     Whatever particular train of thought that was trying to work its way
through Molly's brain was instantly derailed by Melvin's words.  "Melvin, 
are
you joking?" she said incrediously.  She had never held him in a high 
regard,
but virtually everything that had come out of his 'rumor mill' had proven to 
be
at least partially accurate.
     Melvin shook his head, knowing that he now had her full attention.  
"I'm
telling you the truth!  One of my sources saw her having dinner in a small
Chinese restaurant with a guy who looked to be pushing thirty-five."
     Molly sighed.  "So what makes you think it's a boyfriend and not 
someone
like her father or another relative?" she sighed.
     "Because someone like Ami doesn't take romantic walks in the park with 
a
relative," Melvin said as he adjusted his glasses.  "We're talking some 
major
hand-holding.... and more."
     Molly blinked, her green eyes going wide.  "And more?"
     Melvin nodded soberly.  "Lip action," he whispered conspiratorally.
     A sudden burning sensation in her chest told Molly that she had been
holding her breath for too long.  She turned to look in the direction Ami 
had
gone as she slowly exhaled, not believing that a bookworm like Ami would 
fall
for an older man.  "You know what they say," she said as the words started 
to
echo within her mind.
     Melvin squinted at her.  "What's that?"
     "Beware the quiet ones," Molly said quietly as she repressed a shiver.
     "You don't say...." Melvin said quietly.  "Come on, I'll walk you home.
I've managed to pick up a ton of gossip after school today...."
     Molly repressed a second shiver at the thought of having to put up with
Melvin's prattle the entire walk home.  "Actually, I've got a few errands to
run before I head home," she said smoothly.  "Perhaps another time."
     Melvin nodded in deluded understanding.  "Hey, no problem.  I've got a 
few
places to go myself after dinner.  Maybe we'll run into each other."
     Not if I can help it, she thought.  "I'll try to keep an eye out for 
you.
See you around!" she said as she waved and made a quick but causal exit.  
Once
she was sure he was out of both sight and sound, she paused to lean against 
a
brick wall and let out a large sigh.
     "Why does he have to bother me?" she muttered to herself before she 
took
a calming breath and headed towards the park.  Her subconscious was starting 
to
bother her again and she needed to do some industrial-strength thinking in a
place where she was sure to be left alone in relative peace.
     The park was empty of people when she arrived.  She knew that only the
hard-core joggers would be out at this hour and that the crowd of romantics
wouldn't be out until close to sunset.  A small breeze was drifting across 
the
surface of the artificial lake, bringing with it the reassuring scent of 
cool
water and the faint calls of a trio of hungry seagulls.
     Just the thing to help clear the mind, she thought happily to herself 
as
she absently headed towards the gazebo.  She had almost made it when a 
figure
stepped out from a large bush and stood before her.
     "Excuse me," he said softly in a deep voice.
     Molly looked up at him, blinked twice, and promptly started screaming.

                *               *               *               *

     The walk from the bus stop to her apartment was enough to wake most of 
her
mind up, much to her dismay.  Give me a shot of something hard and ten 
minutes,
Leda thought hazily, and I'll probably be out until three in the morning.
     "I'm here and in one piece, Ami, so you can go away now," she sighed as
she dug her keys out of her skirt pocket.
     "We still need to talk," Ami said pointedly.
     Leda sighed as she unlocked the door.  "Fine, fine, just let me use the
can first and grab a drink or three, then we'll talk."
     Now it was Ami's turn to sigh at the mention of drinks.  "Your body is
suffering enough as it is, Leda, and alcohol will only make it worse."
     The brunette snorted as she opened the door and ushered Ami inside.  "I
think I've learned my personal tolerances by now, thank you," she said as 
she
followed Ami inside and closed the door behind her with a slightly 
off-balance
kick.  She paused at the entraceway and mentally gauged the distance between
her and her living room couch.  "Step aside for a moment."
     The vampire gave her an odd look as she stepped into the kitchen, 
keeping
a slightly wary eye on what Leda was up to.  She blinked as Leda slid the
backpack off of her shoulder, carefully hefted it, and launched it into the 
air
with a flick of her wrist.
     Ami watched as the backpack sailed smoothly through the air, landed 
hard
on the carpeting, rolled twice, and came to a halt face-up right next to the
coffee table.  "That was impressive," she said in amazement.
     Leda's face crinkled in disgust.  "Bah, I was aiming for the couch," 
she
said as she turned down the hallway and into the bathroom.  "You know the 
deal,
Ami, make yourself at home, blah blah blah."
     Ami just shook her head as the bathroom door closed somewhat 
forcefully.
Her mind was already tallying up the rather substantial collection of subtle
and not-so-subtle signs of Leda's sleep deprivation.  Irritation, 
crankiness,
significant drowsiness, slight loss of balance, worse than usual aggression,
Ami thought to herself as she made her way into the living room and sat down
on the couch.
     She looked up when she heard the bathroom door open and heard footsteps
making their way down towards the bedroom, accompanied by a constant 
monotone
growl.  She tentatively decided Leda was going to change out of her school
clothes and thought it best to spend the estimated ten minutes studying.  
With
that in mind, she opened her backpack, retrieved her somewhat oversized 
physics
textbook, and quietly resumed studying particle physics.
     Her first clue that she had completely lost track of time and the 
outside
world came when there was a loud pop, quickly followed by the sensation of a
small, light projectile bouncing off the page in front of her.  Startled, 
she
looked up to see Leda holding a bottle in both hands and giving her a very
evil and wicked grin.
     "I keep telling you that if a freight train can go screaming past 
without
you noticing, you're studying too hard," the brunette said mildly as she 
poured
the bottle's contents into a pair of wine glasses on the coffee table.
     "So when did you become a freight train?" Ami replied, blinking in mild
surprise as she noticed that Leda was dressed in a rather immodest 
nightgown.
"And I take it you plan on going to bed real soon?"
     "Just as soon as you go away and leave me in peace," Leda replied.  She
set the half-empty bottle back down on the table and picked up the glasses,
handing one of them to Ami.  "Here, you should like this.  It'll warm your
blood if nothing else."
     Ami sighed.  "Alcohol?" she said as she eyed the glass warily.
     The brunette just sighed.  "Just taste the damn thing before you start
passing judgement.  Yeah it's got some alcohol in it, but the amount is so 
low
you couldn't get a cat drunk on it.  I know your tolerance for alcohol is
depressingly low, but I'm sure you'll hardly feel it at all."
     Ami repressed another sigh as she took the offered glass and held it up
to the light to study it.  It's pretty if nothing else, she thought as she
gazed at the amethyst liquid.  She cautiously sniffed at it for a moment 
before
she took a hesitant sip.
     Leda leaned back to watch Ami's reaction, sipping at her own glass.  
"So
what do you think?" she asked slowly.
     Ami blinked and swallowed, gently running her tongue along her teeth as
the liquid tingled faintly on the way down.  She took a second sip of the
amethyst liquid, letting it roll around on her tongue for a moment before
sending it down after the first sip.  "What is it?"
     A smile started to form on the edges of Leda's lips.  "So you like it?"
     Ami took another sip, trying to decide if it was as pleasing to her as
she thought.  "Actually, I do," she admitted after a moment.  "So what is 
it?"
     "Plum wine," Leda said as she showed her the bottle.  "I had never 
heard
of it before and picked up a bottle last week to see what it was like."
     "Mmmm...." Ami hummed to herself as she studied the bottle.  She had
almost finished reading the label and was about to ask Leda where she got it
when she suddenly froze in position and closed her eyes.
     "Problem?" Leda asked, one eyebrow arched up in concern.
     Ami slowly leaned back and sighed to herself as she felt an odd warmth
start to bloom in her abdomen.  "No, just the alcohol hitting my 
bloodstream,"
she explained with a faint smile of contentment.
     Leda blinked.  "Already?"
     Ami's eyes opened to reveal the steel-blue color of her vampiric side.
"Things that affect the blood affect you fast when you're a vampire," she 
said
as the warmth started to spread across her entire body.  "And trust me, this 
is
a very pleasant feeling."
     The brunette laughed to herself.  "At least someone is having a bit of 
fun
around here.  Or should I say still," she added.  She caught the confused 
look
in Ami's eyes and she chuckled.  "Come now, don't tell me you didn't enjoy
seeing the look in Molly's eyes when Mina told her about your 
'seven-hundred-
year-old Dragoon' training."
     Ami couldn't refrain from laughing for a few moments.  "Yes, that was
rather amusing.  Did you see the look on Rei's face?  I thought she was 
going
to strangle herself trying not to laugh."
     Leda started to giggle so hard she almost spilled her wine.  "Oh, man, 
I
wish someone could have caught that on film."
     Ami smiled as she took another sip of wine, mentally calculating how 
much
she could safely drink without casuing too much chaos in her bloodstream.  
She
knew that her vampiric nature wouldn't be bothered by small amounts of 
alcohol
but her human side was a different matter altogether.  She had learned the 
hard
way that just because the burning in her veins feels good now doesn't mean 
that
it'll continue to feel good in a few hours.
     She looked up at Leda as the brunette's moment of humor passed and she 
saw
the effects of insufficient sleep starting to return.  At this rate, she'll 
be
asleep within the next ten minutes, Ami thought with a mental sigh as she 
took
a sip of her wine.  Her thoughts were followed by a physical sigh as she 
leaned
forward to set her glass down on the coffee table.
     Neither the sigh nor the movements were lost on Leda, and the brunette
sighed heavily herself as she leaned back in the chair.  "Alright, so what 
did
you want to talk about?" she said wearily.
     Ami raised a blue-tinted eyebrow in response.  "So what happened last
night that caused you to lose so much sleep?" she asked gently.
     Leda snorted and took a sip of her wine.  "Nothing much, really.  
Tolaris
was able to talk to what's-his-butt over in the Negaverse, and most of what 
was
said was said in the denizen language.  I left there shortly before 
midnight,
returned here, and couldn't fall asleep because I had too much on my mind."
     "Like what?" Ami asked cautiously as she took a calculated sip of wine.
     Leda shot her a dark look.  "None of your business."
     Ami blinked and set her glass down, leaning back against the cushions 
to
think for a moment.  Something about Leda's statement didn't sound quite 
right
to her and the feeling didn't sit well.  "Something tells me you're not 
telling
me everything I want to know," she said after serveral minutes of silence.
     Leda merely shrugged and sat back, looking at her with tired green 
eyes.
"Sorry if you had high expectations."
     Ami frowned and leaned forward.  "Shortly after eleven o'clock last 
night,
all of the denizens' communicators were switched into privacy mode.  If you
left around midnight, you would have still been in the cathedral when 
whatever
it was happened that caused them to want privacy."
     Leda sighed and looked towards the ceiling.  "So maybe they didn't want 
to
be disturbed when talking to whomever that guy was.  I don't know, Ami."
     Ami frowned as she picked up her glass of wine and took a small sip.  
"If
that was the case, which I'm starting to doubt, they would have done that 
when
they first contacted the Negaverse, not three hours later.  And seeing how 
all
four of them still have their frequencies locked in privacy mode, I don't 
think
they're doing it while they talk."
     Leda drained her glass and set it on the coffee table before standing 
up.
"You're barking up the wrong tree, girl," she said as she started to 
stretch,
accidentally revealing a sizable amount of her feminine anatomy in the 
process.
She noticed Ami glance away with a faint blush on her cheeks and she 
frowned,
tugging the silk-like fabric back into place.  Whomever designed this 
nightgown
obviously didn't give a damn about modesty, she thought.  Either that, or 
they
had a different purpose in mind when they designed this.  Come to think of 
it,
that's probably why I bought this in the first place....
     Her thoughts led her mind down the path it had taken late last night,
causing her to sigh heavily as the familiar burden settled itself on her 
soul
once again.  Not tonight, she sighed to herself as she rubbed her face with 
her
hands and started to make her way to her bedroom.
     "Tired?" Ami asked softly.
     "Tired, me?" Leda said mock-cheerfully.  "No, never.  Go away and let 
me
get some rest, Ami."  She looked up as Ami reached out and took hold of her
arm in a surprisingly gentle grip.
     "You're hiding something from me," Ami said softly.
     The brunette sighed.  "Listen, you can either come with me or stay 
here,
but I am going to go to bed," she said, her voice betraying her weariness 
more
than she would have liked.  She tugged her arm free of Ami's grasp and 
walked
down the hall, mildly surprised when Ami followed her into her bedroom.
     Leda sighed again as she walked over to her closet and started to lay 
out
the clothes she was going to wear to school the next day.  Ami stopped only 
a
few feet beyond the doorway, wanting to get Leda to talk more but not 
wishing
to further intrude.  Her eyes glanced around the room briefly before her 
gaze
was captured by the open photo album on the dresser.
     Interesting, Ami thought as she moved closer for a better look, I don't
recall ever seeing this particular album before.  It only took a few seconds
for her to realize why.  The photo on the left was one of Leda and the photo
on the right was one of Jenni, the girl Leda had fallen in love with not too
long ago.  The thing that set the photos apart from all the others was the 
fact
that neither one of them had been wearing any clothes when the pictures were
taken.
     Ami looked up as Leda walked over to see what she was looking at.  
There
was an awkward moment of silence as deep blushes spread across the faces of
both girls.  "I thought I had put that away," Leda mumbled as she reached 
out
to close the album.  She blinked when she felt Ami's hand blocking her path
and looked up.
     "When were these taken?" Ami asked softly.
     Leda sighed.  "About ten months ago.  I don't know if I ever told you 
just
how benevolently mischievious the little imp could be.  She somehow managed 
to
get her hands on a fully loaded Polaroid camera and talked me into a photo
session," she said, the blush on her cheeks deepening slightly.
     "You don't regret it, do you?"
     Leda blinked in surprise and looked over at Ami.  She was about to ask 
why
she was asking that particular question when she suddenly remembered seeing 
a
picture of Ami in a very similar situation.  "Nope," Leda replied 
truthfully.
"Both she and I enjoyed the whole thing.  Both during and after," she added.
     Ami said nothing as she studied the pictures, paying particular 
interest
to the emotions reflected in the eyes and smiles of both girls.  Her hand 
was
reaching out to turn the page when Leda suddenly remembered where exactly 
she
had put that picture of Ami she had acquired.
     "Sorry, got to have some secrets," Leda muttered as she somewhat 
hastily
picked up the album and snapped it shut, locking the cover with a flick of 
her
wrist and setting it down inside her dresser drawer.
     Ami's only response was to raise an eyebrow and to study her reflection 
in
the mirror, her thoughts unreadable in the depths of her vampiric steel-blue
eyes.  "Leda, why won't you tell me what happened last night?" she said 
softly.
     Leda sighed and turned to look out the bedroom window, her mind already
becoming plagued by the sadness and loneliness that had enveloped her since
Jenni's death.  She debated on what she could say versus what she wanted to 
say
versus what she felt Ami deserved to know.  She finally decided on sighing
heavily and speaking the truth softly.  "Tolaris asked me not to tell you."
     Ami's head snapped around sharply.  "What?"
     Leda looked over her shoulder at her.  "I thought that was easy enough 
to
understand.  Tolaris asked me not to tell you about it.  If you want to 
know,
you'll have to ask him."
     Ami gnawed on the edge of her lip as she thought.  "Using my hypnotic
powers to stop a fight is one thing, but you know how I feel about having to
use it for other purposes.  Don't make me force you to talk," she said 
quietly.
     Leda looked at her carefully for a moment before walking over to her,
sliding her arms around her slender waist, and gently kissing her.  Ami 
didn't
resist but didn't yield to her either, something that Leda was in a way glad
for.  A distant part of the brunette's mind told her that if Ami had 
yielded,
she probably would have tried to seduce her on the spot.
     Leda broke the kiss after a few seconds and looked into Ami's eyes,
watching their steel-blue shade fade into a medium-blue shade as her 
vampiric
nature went dormant.  "Sorry," she said quietly.
     Ami didn't know if she was apologizing for the kiss, for not talking, 
or
for both.  Nor did she particularly care at that moment in time.  She knew 
that
Leda harbored a semi-secret desire for her, but unlike Mina's hormonal 
desires,
she wouldn't try to do anything that Ami wouldn't have wanted in one way or
another.  The only reason she could think of for kissing her was to use as a
distraction, and unfortunately for Ami it worked as her focus was thrown 
off-
balance by the tactic.
     "I guess you're going to be stubborn about this?" Ami asked quietly 
after
a few seconds of silence.  She received a slow nod in response and she 
signed.
"Alright, I'll leave you alone now.  Sleep well," she said as she pulled
herself free from Leda's somewhat intimate embrace.
     "Hey, Ami?" Leda said quietly before she could reach the door.
     Ami paused and turned around to look at her.  "Yes?"
     "Would you stay with me for awhile, at least until I fall asleep?" Leda
said, still speaking softly.  "Thinking about the pictures has started to 
make
me miss her again and I.... don't want to be alone right now."
     Ami remained motionless for a few seconds before she walked over to 
Leda
and gave her the same kind of kiss as the one she had received only moments
before.  She was rather surprised when Leda reacted as she had, neither
resisting nor yielding.  She held the kiss for a few moments before she took 
a
step back and whispered, "Sorry."
     She then turned around and quietly left the room, not really wanting to
see the look in Leda's slightly-haunted eyes.  She was halfway down the hall
when she heard the bedroom door close quietly, shortly followed by the 
metallic
click of the lock being turned.  She had almost made it to the end of the 
hall
when her sensitive ears heard the soft sounds of Leda crying quietly as she
leaned against the locked door.
     Ami paused and closed her eyes, weighing her desire to go back and 
comfort
Leda against what would most likely happen if she did.  Another day, 
perhaps,
she decided with a heavy sigh as she walked into the living room and began 
to
gather her stuff together.  She had almost finished she her gaze fell on the
half-empty bottle of plum wine.
     This really is some good stuff, she thought as she poured a small 
amount
of the amethyst liquid into her wine glass and looked around for the cork.  
She
found it in the far corner of the room and picked it up, briefly studying 
the
wooden object before jamming it back into the bottle.  She paused long 
enough
to drink what was left in her glass before carrying it into the kitchen,
putting the bottle back in the refrigerator and rinsing out the glass in the
sink.
     Ami took one final glance around the apartment to make sure she hadn't
forgotten anything as she picked up her backpack.  She glanced down the 
hallway
with a small sigh and quietly left, making sure to set the lock before she
closed the door.  Hopefully a few hours' rest will make her feel better, she
thought as she jogged down the apartment steps rather than wait for the 
rather
sluggish elevator.
     She had just reached the street across from Leda's apartment complex 
when
a column of bright purple energy rose in the distance and an icy wind swept
through her body.  Oh no.... she thought as her pulse started to race.  She
started to reach for her computer and blinked when she realized that she had
already retrieved it out of pure reflex.
     She opened the compact-sized computer with a practiced flick of her 
wrist
and started to scan for the disturbance.  The purple light had already 
faded,
but there was still enough residual energy for the computer's sensor suite 
to
easily lock onto.  A subroutine scanned for the carrier waves of the Global
Positioning Satellite network, triangulated her position, and superimposed a
map of the city with the fastest route to the objective highlighted in 
amber.
     Ami glanced quickly glanced around to make sure no one was watching as 
she
slid the backpack off of her shoulder.  Why do these things always seem to
happen in the park? she wondered as her hand went to the small of her back 
and
pulled her Mercury Wand out of her Lunar Space pocket.
     "Mercury Power!" she yelled as she held the Wand up to the sky.  She 
was
immediately engulfed in a mass of light and energy as her clothes melted 
into
radiance and reformed into her Sailor suit.  Tiny bits of luminescence 
gathered
together and formed into her tiara while other particles of light and energy
merged together into sapphire earrings.
     The entire process took only seconds and the mysterious transforming
energy vanished as quickly as it had come, leaving an upset and slightly 
wary
Sailor Mercury standing on the sidewalk with computer in hand and a worried
look on her delicate features.
     As she reached down to pick up her backpack, the communicator in her 
Lunar
Space pocket started beeping frantically.  "Yes, I know," she sighed as she
strapped the backpack onto her shoulders and retrieved her communicator.  As
soon as she touched the flashing button, Mina's worried face appeared in the
tiny display screen, blinking in mild surprise.
     "I take it you know what's going on already?" she asked quickly.
     Mercury shook her head.  "Not quite.  All I know is that it was a 
focused
beam of negatively-charged energy and that it originated from the park."
     "Great," Mina said with a sigh.  "Serena's still in detention, so it'll
have to be just the four of us.  Rei and I will meet you there."
     Mercury sighed.  "Three of us.  Leda just went to sleep and I don't 
advise
waking her up just yet."
     Mina blinked.  "Are you sure about that?  We may need her for this."
     "As sleep-deprived as she is, she may prove to be more of a hindrance 
than
a help," Mercury pointed out.  "And if we need backup, Whisper and Ra'vel 
can
teleport here within a matter of seconds."
     The blonde blew out her breath.  "Hope you're right, Mercury.  See you 
in
a few," she said and closed the connection.
     "So do I," Mercury said to the wall next to her as she closed her end 
of
the frequency, put both her communicator and computer back into her Lunar 
Space
pocket, and set off at a dead run for the city park.

                *               *               *               *

     Alex blinked and leaned briefly on Susan's arm as the vastness of The 
Dark
unfolded around them.  "And I thought dimension-shifting with you was a 
major
headache...." she breathed softly.
     Susan shot her a reproving look.  "If you get headaches, they're not 
from
dimension shifting," she said mildly.
     Myst wrinkled her nose.  "If you think shifting is bad, try being 
caught
in a molecular teleport," she muttered as she looked around the area.
     Mephisto chuckled quietly as he also looked around for signs of 
potential
danger.  "Would you have prefered that I had let you be eaten?"
     "I'm still debating on that," Myst dourly muttered beneath her breath.
     Alex glanced around the area, blinked hard, and let out her breath very
slowly.  "Sue, this place gives me the creeps...." she whispered as she 
tried
to look past the utter darkness that seemed to eminate from everywhere.
     "Indeed," Susan replied softly.  She turned and gave Alex a mild look 
when
the blonde started cussing softly to herself.  "Now what?"
     "I know how you are, and if this place is enough to spook you, then I 
want
outta here right freaking now," Alex hissed.
     "Without Michelle?" Susan inquired, already knowing the answer.
     Alex shot her a look darker than the surrounding terrain.  "You know 
damn
well that I'm not...."
     "Nobody move," Mephisto interrupted quietly.  "We've got company."
     Myst immediately leapt out of Alex's arms and crouched low on the 
ground
while Susan and Alex went into defensive positions.  "I don't think it made 
it
here with us," Alex muttered as Susan absently made a snatching motion at 
the
air.
     Susan looked momentarily confused before she realized what she was 
doing.
"No, I guess not," she sighed quietly.  "So what's out there, Mephisto?"
     "A shadow wraith, possibly two of them," Mephisto replied.  "Look a bit 
to
your right, about fifty yards away."
     "Where...?  Oh, I see," Susan replied as her eyes narrowed.
     Alex frowned.  "I don't see anything, Sue," she cautioned as she 
glanced
around, trying to see what they were talking about.
     "You wouldn't be able to see it unless your vision extends into the 
infra-
red spectrum," Susan replied.  "What is it doing?"
     "Probably trying to decide if we're worth the effort of hunting," 
Mephisto
replied quietly.  "However, I don't think it's ever seen a humanoid before, 
so
it's still sizing things up."
     "There's another one behind us," Myst growled as her fur started to 
stick
out in a reflex.
     Mephisto glanced over his shoulder and frowned.  "Strange," he 
commented.
     Alex growled softly.  "Just tell us what the new problem is."
     "Shadow wraiths don't hunt in pairs, do they?" Susan asked.
     "Not that I know of," Mephisto replied.
     "Wait a sec," Alex said.  "If they don't hunt in pairs, then what are 
the
odds that we've been caught between the two of them by purely bad luck?"
     "A reasonable deduction," Mephisto said softly.
     "So, what happens when two wraiths who are hunting the same prey come 
in
close proximity to one another?" Alex replied, trying to keep a wary eye on
something she couldn't see.
     "Never mind that, we've got a new problem," Myst hissed quietly, her 
tail
lashing back and forth furiously.
     Alex looked ready to cry.  "Now what?" she asked softly.
     Mephisto looked up and grunted softly.  "I don't think that's a problem
we're going to have to worry about for a few minutes."
     Susan's focus was on the first shadow wraith and she wasn't about to 
turn
around just yet.  "So what is it?"
     "Something is hunting the second wraith," Mephisto said, a slight note 
of
amusement evident in his voice.  "I can barely see it myself, but it's 
energy
signature feels like a phantasm."
     "Oh, that's an improvement," Myst said, her voice dripping with 
sarcasm.
     "Energy signature...." Susan whispered to herself.  "Of course...."
     "If you people are trying to scare the life out of me, you're doing a
remarkable job," Alex muttered.  "Sue, quit talking to yourself and let us 
know
what you're thinking."
     "Mephisto, how many human souls exist within The Dark?" Susan asked.
     "Not too many, I would think," Mephisto replied as he continued to keep 
a
watchful eye on both the wraith and the phantasm.
     "If that's the case, then I can probably find Michelle's soul if I 
search
for the energy signature of human souls," Susan explained.
     "Finally, some good news," Alex muttered.  "Sue, can you hold that 
thought
long enough for us to deal with our current situation or do you need someone 
to
find you a pencil and piece of paper?"
     "I assure you my short-term memory is quite capable," Susan said dryly.
     Everyone tensed when there was a sudden blur of movement in the 
distance
and a high-pitched shriek ripped through the air.  The noise was quickly
followed by the sounds of life-or-death combat as sparks of light exploded 
into
existence around both the shadow wraith and the phantasm.
     "Tell me that's a good thing," Alex said warily.
     "It's a good thing," Susan replied, hoping it was the truth.
     "Thank you, I feel so much better now.  Now can someone tell me what's
going on over there?" Alex said.
     "It appears that the phantasm has a fondness for eating wraiths," Susan
observed as she glanced back towards the location of the first wraith.  "And
it appears that the other wraith has no desire to hunt anything when another
one of its kind is being hunted."
     "So it seems," Mephisto said as he glanced at the rapidly retreating 
form
of the wraith.  "I don't know how long the wraith is going to be able to 
hold
off the phantasm, but now seems like a good time to leave the area."
     "Alright, some good news," Alex muttered as she bent down and scooped 
up
Myst in her arms.  "You know, you're kinda heavy for a kitten.  Don't look 
at
me like that, that's just an observation, not a complaint."
     "You humans are strange," Myst muttered.
     "This way," Mephisto said as he pointed towards a featureless section 
of
the neo-void.  "I doubt this route will be safer than any other, but it does
lead towards one of the more desolate areas of The Dark."
     They moved quickly and in silence, keeping a watchful out in every
direction and trying to ignore the now-piercing screams coming from the 
fight
behind them.  Susan waited until the sounds of the battle had faded from her
slightly enhanced hearing before she stopped and looked around the area.
     "Does this look like a safe spot for a few minutes?" she asked.
     The whiskers on Myst's face twitched briefly.  "As safe as any one spot 
in
this place can be," she muttered.
     "There is nothing around us, if that is what you mean," Mephisto said.
     Susan nodded.  "Good.  Step back, please," she said as she closed her 
eyes
and started to concentrate.
     Alex muttered something inaudible beneath her breath as they all took a
few steps away from Susan and watched her carefully.  Everyone blinked as 
the
dark scars on her back seemed to ripple briefly before ballooning outward 
and
reshaping themselves into a pair of bat-like wings.
     "You know I hate it when you do that," Alex muttered as she 
involuntarily
shivered at the sight.
     Susan's head turned to one side and her eyes opened briefly, revealing 
the
glowing red irises and fixing Alex with a piercing stare.  "Would you prefer
that I not search for Michelle's soul?" she said, her voice taking on a 
rather
sultry tone.
     Alex couldn't bring herself to look into those demonic eyes and instead
focused on the gray cat she was holding.  "Just hurry up, please," she 
muttered
as she nervously stroked Myst.
     Susan continued to look at her for another moment before closing her 
eyes
and concentrating once more.  Her wings flexed briefly before spreading out 
to
their full length and locking into place.  As they watched, tiny motes of 
dull
white energy began to form at the very tips of her wings and lazily made 
their
way across the leathery surface towards the small of her back.
     Mephisto silently moved to stand behind Alex's shoulder.  "I take it 
her
demonic form bothers you," he whispered softly to her, his lips almost 
brushing
against her ear as he spoke.
     "Yeah, kinda," she whispered back.  "I mean, she's served the throne 
since
Queen Serenity's great-great-grandmother was in diapers, and I'd like to 
think
that I know her quite well, but I've never really gotten used to just how 
dark
her nature can be."
     "You say that as if being from the Underworld is a bad thing," Susan 
said
flatly as she slowly started to turn in place, her wings moving like a radar
dish.  "Might I remind you that not all who dwell there are evil?"
     Alex blushed a deep shade of crimson as she remembered how much sharper
Susan's hearing was in her demonic form.  "I know that, Sue, and I never 
said
anything about being evil."
     "You implied it, did you not?"
     Alex sighed quietly to herself, wondering yet again how Susan's demonic
voice could be so sultry and alluring, yet so harsh at the same time.  
"We've
discussed that one before, Sue," she said quietly, wishing she could forget
that particular conversation so long ago.
     Susan said nothing as her wings swept back and forth, the tiny motes 
still
forming at her wing tips and collecting at the small of her back.  After a 
few
moments of uncomfortable silence, she suddenly stopped in place and frowned.
     "You sense something?" Mephisto asked quietly.
     The motes on her wings started to glow brighter as more power was drawn
out of the air and into her wings, illuminating the network of tiny veins 
that
ran along their length.  "I think so, but it's so faint I'm not quite sure.
Plus there seems to be some sort of interference in that area."
     Myst blinked.  "What kind of interference?"
     "If I knew, I would have told you."
     Alex sighed.  "Leave her alone, Myst, she's only like that when she's 
in
her demonic form," the blonde whispered as quietly as she could.
     "Which direction is it coming from?" Mephisto asked quietly.
     "From there," Susan replied as she pointed almost directly behind him.
     He looked at the surrounding terrain first before turning to look 
towards
the specified direction.  "Would you say the disturbance is about an hour's
walk away from here?" he asked, trying to ignore the sudden icyness forming 
in
his insides.
     Susan opened her eyes as she sought to gauge the distance.  "That seems 
to
be about right," she said after a moment.  The motes on her wings faded into
nothingness as her wings flexed before folding against her back.
     "Balor," Mephisto said quietly.
     Alex grimaced in pain as Myst twitched in shock, her claws reflexively
extending and accidentally scratching Alex's bare arm.  "I take it that's 
not
a good sign?" the blonde asked as she gave the kitten a dark look.
     "Sorry," Myst aplogized quietly.
     "Where have I heard that name before?" Susan asked, her glowing red 
eyes
narrowing as she tried to remember.
     Mephisto shook his head.  "It is not the same one as you are thinking 
of.
He is not the greater demon of the lower planes but a Shinma who gains his
power from using other souls."
     "So that's it," Susan said.  "The sheer number of souls in his 
possession
was creating the interference.  Interesting."
     "Is Michelle there?" Alex asked.
     "I'm not sure, but I think so," Susan said.
     "If that is the case, then freeing her from Balor's grasp will not be 
an
easy task," Mephisto cautioned.
     "You said he's a Shinma like yourself?" Susan asked archly.  Mephisto
nodded and she smiled, revealing a pair of very sharp fangs on both her 
upper
and lower jaws.  "Then leave him to me."
     Alex closed her eyes and did her best not to shiver at the note of dark
pleasure and anticipation that had made its way into Susan's alluring voice.
"Let's go," she said quietly and started walking towards Balor's lair.

                *               *               *               *

     Molly was in the process of drawing in enough air for a third scream 
when
his hand gently clamped over her mouth.  It didn't prevent her from 
breathing,
but it effectively blocked any sound she might have made.
     "If you will listen for a moment, you will find that screaming isn't
necessary," he explained softly as his ears twitched, still ringing slightly
from her previous screams.  "I'm not going to hurt you, I just need to ask 
you
where I can find someone."
     Molly's brain overcame her screaming reflex long enough for his words 
to
register.  Her lungs and throat were burning from the exertion of screaming 
at
the top of her lungs, and her blood was a solid sheet of ice from mortal 
fear.
It took her a few seconds to overcome her temporary paralysis long enough to
nod slightly at him.
     "Thank you," he said as he let his hand fall to his side.
     "Wh..... wh..... what..... are you?" she whispered as she started to 
step
back from him.
     "A visitor from another world," he explained as his tail twitched with
slight impatience.  "My name is Reish'id, and I'm looking for the one called
Sailor Jupiter."
     Eight different thoughts tried to cram themselves into her brain at 
once,
resulting in another moment of mental paralysis.  "Sailor Jupiter?" she said 
as
her mind selected the easiest concept to deal with.
     Reish'id nodded.  "Yes.  Do you know where I can find her?"  His 
whiskers
twitched briefly as he noticed the mental chaos reflected in her eyes and he
sighed quietly.  "I assure you that you are not in any sort of danger, miss,
so you can try to relax and breathe normally."
     Molly blinked as she realized that she had stopped breathing again and 
let
her breath out as evenly as she could.  She was still in a profound state of
shock and it took quite some time for her brain to override her reflexes and
sort things out.  "Sailor Jupiter?" she stammered again.  "I.... no one 
knows
who or where she is....  She just shows up with the other Sailor Scouts when
trouble happens...."
     Reish'id grunted quietly.  "I see," he said slowly.  "Tell me, what 
would
be the quickest way to get the Sailor Scouts' attention?"
     Molly tried to think, but the sight of a giant, talking panther kept
interfering with her thoughts.  "Umm.... I.... uh...."
     The felinoid warrior chuckled softly to himself.  In another time and
place, he thought, this could get amusing.  "Please sit down for a moment.  
I
fear you're on the verge of fainting and that wouldn't help matters."
     She blinked twice in mild confusion before she slowly knelt down on the
grass, her green eyes nearly triple their usual diameter.  "Why.... why are
you here?" she said, her breathing still rather unstable.
     He dropped to all fours and started to stretch out a hind leg.  
"Simple,
really," he said.  "I need to return a few things to Sailor Jupiter.  She 
sort
of left them behind during her last trip into my world."
     She blinked.  "Your world?" she said before something bubbled up from 
the
depths of her memory and surged into her consciousness.  "Are.... are you 
from
the Negaverse?"
     Reish'id froze in mid-motion and looked at her, his almond-shaped 
purple
irises widening against their yellow background.  "How do you know of the
Negaverse?" he asked in amazement.  "I thought only the Sailor Scouts and 
their
allies knew of it."
     Molly was taken aback by his reaction.  "I was told about your society 
by
someone I met," she said carefully, not sure how much she should reveal to 
him.
     He tilted his head to one side in curiosity.  "May I ask what his name
was?  I might know him," he added.
     "His name was Nephlyte...."  She jumped as Reish'id suddenly leapt to 
his
feet, his jaw falling open in amazement.
     "General Nephlyte?" he said incrediously.  He searched his memory for 
the
name that had been attached to the copy of the report he had managed to 
acquire
and narrowed his eyes.  "Your name is Molly, isn't it?"
     Molly's eyes grew even wider, her eyeballs looking like they would fall
out any second now.  "How...?" she managed to choke out before her brain 
locked
up once more with shock.
     He sighed quietly to himself as he realized that his task might take a
considerable time longer than anticipated.  "Your name became known to us 
when
Nephlyte turned against Zoicite in an attempt to protect you from her 
minion."
He sighed yet again as she started to show more signs of an impending 
fainting
spell at the information.
     "Before you faint, can you think of a way I can get in contact with the
Sailor Scouts?" he asked softly as she briefly struggled to retain what 
little
higher brain functions she had available.
     "I.... umm.... let me think for a moment...." she said weakly.
     Reish'id tried his best to give her what he thought would look like a
reassuring smile.  "Please, take your time.  I know things must be very
confusing for you right now."
     No kidding, Molly managed to think.  Now let's think here.... what 
usually
happens a few minutes before Sailor Moon shows up....  Monsters everywhere,
city airport gets taken over, cruise liner gets taken over, major bus route
gets taken over.... very, very few people killed, considering.... !!!
     "Energy," she blurted out as she looked up at him.  "In the past, lots 
of
really weird monsters were running around and draining energy out of 
everybody.
I think the Sailor Scouts picked up on something that went on while they 
were
draining people."
     Reish'id nodded to himself.  It makes sense, he thought.  Sailor 
Mercury
does have that scanner of hers and Leda told me about their sensitivity to 
what
they called 'dark vibes' of energy.  Interesting....
     Molly blinked as he stretched and quickly stood up.  "Wait, what are 
you
going to do?"
     "I am merely going to create a beacon for the Sailor Scouts to find 
me,"
he said as he held his hands over his head.  He paused and gave her a mild
look.  "This won't do anything to you, but you might not want to look 
directly
into the beam," he cautioned.
     She blinked again.  "What...?"
     "Dark Energy Electrify," Reish'id intoned as he focused his powers and
sent a column of Dark Energy shooting into the sky.  He was able to keep the
residual energy backlash to a minimum, but the negatively-charged energy 
still
caused the fur on his arms to tingle and stick out.  He kept up the beam for 
a
few seconds before letting it disperse into the atmosphere and letting his 
arms
fall to his sides.
     "I think that should be sufficient to get their attention," he said 
with
a satisfied flick of his tail.  He looked up at her and frowned, his 
whiskers
twitching slightly.  "Are you okay?"
     Molly grunted softly and she wiped the tears out of her eyes.  "Sorry, 
I
didn't quite know what you meant," she said as she waited for her 
temporarily
overloaded retinas to quit burning.
     "My apologies," he said sincerely.  "Are you sure you'll be okay?"
     "Yeah, I'm fine," she said as she opened her eyes, squinting as the 
light
caused her some minor discomfort.  "I don't think it's any worse than the 
time
Melvin caught me by surprise with his new flash camera."
     Reish'id chuckled quietly to himself as he dropped to all fours and 
began
to stretch out his hind leg once more.  Old age must be catching up to me, 
he
mused as he worked on relaxing the muscle.  "If I may ask a personal 
question,
Molly, how old are you?" he asked out of idle curiosity.
     Molly blinked at the sudden question.  "I just turned sixteen.  Why do 
you
ask?  And are you alright?" she asked quickly when the fur on his tail 
suddenly
stuck straight out in surprise.
     "I'm fine," he assured her as he quickly preened the fur back into 
place.
"It's just the vast time difference between humans and denizens that keeps
surprising most people.  Do you have any idea how old General Nephlyte was 
when
you two met?"
     Molly gave him a slightly wary look.  "He looked to be somewhere 
between
his late-twenties and early thirties.  He never told me his exact age, 
though."
     Reish'id chuckled.  "Perhaps I should leave it at that.  I'm not sure 
if
L.... I mean, Sailor Jupiter is any indication of how shock-resistant humans
can be, but I'd rather not put any more strain on you as it is," he said in 
an
even tone that belied how mortified he was at almost revealing Sailor 
Jupiter's
human identity.
     The slip went right over Molly's head.  "You mean he's not as old as he
seems to be?" she said slowly.
     He shook his head.  "Far from it."
     She took a deep breath and tried to steel what was left of her nerves.
"How old is he?"
     Reish'id gave her a measured look.  "Perhaps you should wait until your
body hasn't been over-stressed before you ask," he cautioned gently.
     Molly shook her head.  "I'm too young to have a heart-attack, if that's
what you're worried about," she replied.  "And if I can handle sitting down 
in
the middle of the park and having a conversation with a giant, talking 
panther
from another world, I think I can handle discovering that the man I fell in
love with is a little older than he appears to be."
     He nodded his head slowly.  "Very well.  A month before his promotion 
to
Commander General and subsequent assignment to Earth, Nephlyte celebrated 
his
one hundred and thirty-eighth decade of life," he said evenly.
     Okay, she thought as her mind automatically did the math, that puts his
age at....  "You're joking, right?" she said, not entirely convinced at the
unbelievably high figure.
     Reish'id raised a furry eyebrow in response.  "I assure you that I am 
not
making a joke," he said evenly.  "General Nephlyte is almost fourteen 
hundred
years old."
     Molly was suddenly grateful for the fact that she was sitting down, 
having
the suspicion that she would have keeled over if she were standing up.  "You
know...." she said slowly as it began to register, "That does explain more 
than
a few things about him...."
     "Indeed?" he asked, curious.
     "Hold it right there!" a voice cut across the park.  "Don't move or 
you'll
regret it!"
     At least their response time is excellent, Reish'id thought as he 
sighed
and remained in place.  "I assume you are the Sailor Scouts?" he said as he
turned to look at the two figures cautiously advancing towards him.
     "Yup, that's us," Venus said as she kept her finger pointed at him, the
twin crescents of her Crescent Beam already merged at her fingertip.  "Now 
let
her go."
     "Are you alright?" Sailor Mars asked as she kept a wary eye on what she
thought was a giant alien panther.  You know, she thought to herself, I 
could
have sworn I've seen this somewhere else before....
     Molly cautiously glanced between her strange visitor and the two Sailor
Scouts.  "I'm fine, but I think he just wants to talk to you."
     "Indeed," Reish'id said as he looked glanced at Venus.  "My name is
Reish'id, and I'm looking to get in contact with Sailor Jupiter."
     Venus blinked and exchanged startled glances with Mars, her 
concentration
starting to waver slightly.  "Wait a minute...." the blonde said slowly.  
"Say
your name again?"
     "Reish'id," the felinoid warrior said slowly, slightly amused at their
reaction.  "I take it you've never ran across a denizen who wants to talk as
opposed to starting a fight?"
     Mars's jaw fell open.  "You mean to tell me that you're Jupiter's
boyfriend?" she said in utter amazement.
     Reish'id's tail twitched slightly in amusement.  "I'm not sure if the
term applies in this sense, but I am the one she was with during her 
vacation
in the Negaverse."
     Venus let her breath out slowly as she lowered her arm, carefully 
letting
the Crescent Beam energy dissapate from her fingertip.  "Oh boy...." she 
said
softly.  "This is going to get interesting."
     "Trust me, it already is," Mars replied quietly.
     Molly opened her mouth to say something but remained silent as she 
heard
pounding footsteps behind her and turned to look.  "Sailor Mercury, over 
here!"
she said to the figure on the other side of the street.
     Mercury continued to run until she got close enough to really see what 
was
going on.  Venus suppressed a giggle as Mercury's eyes widened as she 
applied
the proverbial brakes and skidded to a stop several feet away from Molly and
Reish'id.  "My goodness...." she breathed softly as she assessed the 
situation
and discovered no impending danger.
     Reish'id's eyes narrowed slightly as he recognized Mercury from what 
Leda
had told him.  "Well met, Sailor Mercury," he said slowly.
     Mercury blinked in surprise at what Tolaris had told her was a rather
formal, if outdated, greeting.  "Well met, Warrior," she replied cautiously,
hoping that was the proper form of address.  She blinked again as she 
realized
that she had said it in the denizen language instead of her own.
     Reish'id laughed quietly.  "Indeed," he said in English.  "Commander
Tolaris has taught you well, considering he never mastered the accent on 
that
particular dialect."
     Mercury blinked yet again, unsure of what to do.  Sailor Mars spared 
her
further confusion by clearing her throat loudly.  "So what brings you to 
Earth,
and what did you want to talk about?" she asked.
     "I'm here for a rather simple reason, really," he said as he walked 
over
to a thick bush.  He reached inside and pulled out a rather beat-up backpack
that looked to be holding a considerable amount of stuff inside.  "Your 
friend
Jupiter left this behind during her trip and I wanted to return it to her.  
Do
you know where I can find her?"
     Both Mars and Venus glanced towards Mercury as she coughed delicately.
"Umm.... well, to be honest, she's had a very rough day and she's sleeping
right now, so I don't advise waking her up.  At least, not for a few hours,"
she amended as she saw the look on his face.
     "Hey, Mercury?" Venus asked cautiously.  "Say your father drops in for 
a
surprise visit and you just happen to be taking a nap.  Don't you think 
you'd
want to be woken up?"
     Everyone blinked as Mercury's expression darkened considerably.  "Not 
for
him," she said, her voice cold enough to freeze blood.  "Poor choice of 
example
aside, your point has been duly recognized," she said, her tone starting to
thaw ever so slightly.
     "Looks like someone else has been having a rough day," Mars muttered,
drawing a sharp look from Mercury and an amused look from Reish'id.
     "Perhaps," he whispered in the denizen language, speaking soft enough 
so
only Mercury could hear him.  "Or perhaps you are letting your vampiric 
nature
get the better of you."  He blinked and involuntarily took a step back as 
her
head swung around to fix him with a chilling gaze.
     "What do you know of being a vampire?" she said, equally as quiet and 
in
the same language.
     "I have dealt with them long enough to know that the greatest danger 
they
pose is not to others but to themselves," he replied softly.  "The darkness
within is a deadly adversary indeed."
     Mercury remained silent as she regarded him carefully, ignoring the 
looks
of confusion and curiosity from the other Sailor Scouts.  Molly was 
completely
lost, not being able to understand the language Mercury and Reish'id were
using.  She looked at Sailor Venus and frowned lightly at the look of 
complete
puzzlement on the blonde's face.  Well, if they don't know what's going on, 
she
reasoned, then I guess I can feel better about being totally clueless.
     "What do you want?" Mercury finally asked, still speaking in the 
denizen
language.  "Aside from wanting to see Jupiter."
     "Merely to better understand your nature," Reish'id replied softly.  
"She
only told be a little bit about you and I admit curiosity with regards to 
your
vampirism.  But I'm afraid that will have to wait until another day, for 
time
is running short and the longer we stay in the open like this, the greater
chance there is for discovery."
     "So how are you planning to return to the Negaverse once this is over?"
Mercury said, switching to English so the others could understand.  She knew
that Venus's grasp of the denizen language was almost equal to her own, but 
she
had her doubts about Mars's mastery of the alien tongue.
     "I've borrowed this from an old friend for a few hours," he said as he
held up an iridescent purple gem.
     Sailor Venus frowned.  "Just how many of those things exist?  I was 
told
only a handful."
     The tip of Reish'id's ear twitched briefly.  "Actually, several dozen
Silkworm crystals exist now.  Only a few existed naturally until General 
Rune
learned how to grow them properly, which I understand has taken her close to
six centuries to do so."
     "Several dozen?" Mercury said, a ball of ice forming in her gut.
     "Sounds like an invasion plan to me," Mars muttered.
     "Invasion?" Molly asked cautiously.
     Reish'id grunted as Molly's complexion paled slightly.  "Perhaps we 
should
discuss matters when time isn't so pressing," he said evenly.  "Sailor 
Mercury,
will you take me to see Sailor Jupiter?"
     "You know she'll be royally pissed if you don't," Venus warned Mercury.
"Especially after that mood she was in last week."
     "I know," Mercury sighed.  "Listen, you two can go ahead and head back 
to
whatever you were doing.  I'll take care of things from here."
     Venus shot a questioning look at Mars and the priestess nodded.  
"Fine,"
Venus said slowly, "But if anything comes up, don't hesitate to scream for
backup."
     "I'll give you a call on the communicator since screaming will most 
likely
only give me a sore throat," Mercury replied dryly.
     "Deal," Mars said and looked at Molly.  "You want us to take you home 
or
anything?"
     Molly sighed and shook her head.  "Actually, I think I'll just stay 
here
and relax for a while.  There's suddenly an awful lot on my mind that I need 
to
think about."
     Venus smiled.  "Hey, we understand perfectly.  After all," she added as
she gave Reish'id a curious look, "It's not every day that you get to meet a
talking panther from another world."
     "I hope you don't find me too disturbing, Miss Venus," Reish'id replied
with a soft growl of amusement.
     "She's disturbed enough as it is," Mercury replied, drawing a badly
suppressed giggle from Mars and a dour look from Venus.  "Since walking down
12th Avenue in broad daylight would be a very bad idea, I'm going to need to
borrow the crystal to open a wormhole into her apartment."
     "Time to boogie," Mars said as she tugged on Sailor Venus's skirt bow.
"C'mon, let's go before something else happens."
     Venus shrugged and waved to everyone.  "Catch ya later," she said 
simply
and started jogging down the path.  Mars started jogging to keep up with 
her,
muttering toxic comments to herself about having to run.
     "Are you sure you'll be alright?" Mercury asked Molly as she accepted 
the
Silkworm crystal from Reish'id.
     Molly nodded.  "Yeah, just give me a few hours to calm down and all.  
I'm
sure I'll be fine," she assured her.
     "You know, there has to be an easier way to get in touch with you in 
case
of emergency," Reish'id commented as a swirling maelstrom of energy opened 
in
front of Mercury.
     "Perhaps," Mercury replied softly.  "Follow me," she said as she 
stepped
into the wormhole.
     "Thank you for your help, Molly," Reish'id said as he paused at the 
edge
of the vortex.  "Hopefully we can meet again under better circumstances."
     Molly blinked and could only nod in reply at his words.  Strange, she
thought as she watched the wormhole collapse in on itself after he had 
passed
through.  What did he mean by better circumstances?
     She blinked again as another wormhole opened up a few feet away from 
where
the first had opened.  As she watched, Reish'id stepped back out, picked up 
the
forgotten backpack, shrugged to himself, and stepped back into the 
maelestrom.
     A smile started to spread across her lips at the image.  He may be a 
big,
talking panther from another world, but he has those days just like every 
other
life-form in this universe, she thought in mild amusement as the whirling
vortex vanished into nothingness.
     I wonder what other surprises this day has in store? she thought before
she laid back against the cool grass and let her mind try to sort out the
chaos in her brain.  As if this day could get any stranger....

                *               *               *               *

     You are going to die a slow, painful death, Leda thought darkly as the
incessant knocking on her bedroom door woke her up.  I just fell asleep, and
now you want to talk to me.  She growled softly to herself as she got out of
bed and put on an old bath robe.
     The person on the other side of the door knocked yet again, drawing a
dark look from Leda.  "I'm up already," she growled, adding a decidedly
profane descriptive word to the end of her statement.  She marched across 
the
room, unlocked the door, and threw it open with enough force to rattle the
hinges.  Seeing Mercury standing in the hallway only served to further 
increase
her blood pressure.
     "Bitch, this had better be...." was as far as she got before Mercury
reached out, grabbed her jaw in an iron grip, and twisted it to the left,
forcing the brunette to look down the hallway.
     "Is he worth it?" Mercury asked softly, not currently having enough
patience to deal with Leda's present temperment in her usual fashion.
     Leda's eyes grew impossibly wide at the sight of a black panther 
sitting
in the middle of the hallway.  "Good afternoon," Reish'id said calmly.  "I
hope you'll forgive the disturbance."  He chuckled softly as Leda cussed in
surprise at the unexpected visit.  "I see you haven't changed much," he said
in amusement.
     Mercury sighed as she released her hold on Leda and took a step back.  
"Do
us both a favor and look before you get hostile next time, okay?" she said 
in
a slightly weary tone.
     The shock had worn off to the point where Leda could think coherently.
"What are you doing here?" she said in amazement, unconsciously rubbing at a
sore spot on her jaw.
     "Visiting you," Reish'id replied dryly.  "That, and I wanted to return
these," he said as he held up the backpack she had left behind during her
vacation in the Negaverse.
     "Are you awake yet?" Mercury asked, giving Leda a measured look.
     "I am now," Leda replied sheepishly.  "Sorry about going off on you, 
but
I had just fallen asleep...."
     Reish'id walked over to her and brushed his tail across the base of her
throat.  "I apologize for having her wake you up, but I thought that you 
would
at least like to say hello for a few moments," he purred softly.
     Leda chuckled as she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him 
tightly.
"I think I can forgive the both of you," she said as she rubbed her cheek in
his dark fur.  "Umm, how long are you going to be here?"
     "I have to return the Silkworm crystal to Maq'i in roughly three 
hours,"
he explained.  "Which leaves me enough time to pay you a short visit."
     "Mmmm," the brunette hummed to herself.  "I think I can stay awake for
another three hours...."
     Sailor Mercury coughed lightly to herself.  "Just make sure you go to 
bed
afterwards and sleep until dawn.  All we need is to have to put up with your
temper for another day."
     Leda sighed quietly and cast a sidelong glance at her friend.  "Hey,
Mercury?" she said slowly.  "Do us a favor and disappear, and I don't mean
using your powers of hypnotic invisibility."
     Mercury blinked and gave Reish'id a measured look.  "Can I leave you 
two
alone or should I have to worry about various denizen powers running 
rampant?"
     Leda sighed again, knowing exactly what she meant.  "Everything will be
fine as soon as you go away, Mercury.  Thanks for dropping by and I'll see 
you
tomorrow at school."
     "Leda...." Mercury started to say.
     The brunette fixed her with a piercing gaze.  "Go," she said firmly.
     The vampire sighed, having enough experience in dealing with Leda to 
know
when she was just being tempermental and when the line was being drawn.  
"Take
care," she said quietly as she started to walk down the hallway.  She paused 
at
the end of the corridor and cast a look over her shoulder.
     Leda was still tightly hugging Reish'id, her cheek continuing to brush
against his as she spoke softly to him.  He purred softly in response, his 
tail
arching around his body to wrap around her wrist in what looked to Mercury 
to
be an unmistakable gesture.
     To each their own, Mercury thought as she remembered the fact that her 
own
boyfriend and lover was from another world.  Sighing softly to herself, she
willed herself to become invisible and left the apartment, quietly closing 
the
door behind her.
     Leda heard the door close and smiled to herself.  Took her long enough,
she thought before looking up into Reish'id's purple-on-yellow eyes.  "So 
what
should we do with our three hours of time together?" she asked softly.
     "If you are as tired as I think you are, very little," he admonished 
her.
"I do need to show you something, however," he said as he extracted himself
from her embrace.  "It took me longer than I had anticipated, but your suit
hood is finally finished."
     Leda blinked as she remembered about the suit.  "Ooo, good.  Thank 
you,"
she said as she planted a kiss on the tip of his ear.  "Let me go change so 
you
can sew it on."
     "Sewing it on isn't necessary and would probably only serve to restrict
your head's range of motion," he explained as he carefully opened her 
backpack
and took the folded pelt out.  "Here, just put it on like this...."
     Leda slid the dark fur pelt over her head and blinked.  "Umm, I can't 
see
out of this thing...." she said.  The hood covered her entire head and 
looked
almost exactly like the head of a felinoid warrior, complete with rather
wicked-looking canine teeth protruding from the lips.  The only discernable
difference was that the eyes were a featureless black, giving the head a 
very
demonic look.  "And what is this thing pressed against my chin?"
     "That is the control panel for the sensor systems," Reish'id explained.
"Press your chin against it and move it to the right until it clicks on."
     It took her a few seconds to figure out how to do it right, but as soon
as it clicked her senses were almost overwhelmed by the sudden deluge of 
input.
The hood's eyes began to glow white and the whiskers began to twitch in a
random pattern as the various electronics powered up.  The catlike ears on
the top briefly rotated like radar dishes before orienting forward.
     "What is this?" Leda said, her voice being electronically altered and
projected from the 'mouth' of her hood.  "This is too weird...."
     "Look at me," Reish'id said simply.
     The featureless white eyes blinked a couple of times as they mimicked 
the
movements of Leda's real eyelids and focused on him.  Her ears automatically
reoriented on him and her whiskers twitched as they scanned the immediate 
area,
both sending various data to the small optic device inside the hood.  The
device, rather than try to act as a display for her to read, used a series 
of
specially-built microlasers to imprint the desired images directly onto her
retinal nerves, in effect acting as a virtual-reality system.
     "Not quite," Reish'id said as she uttered a string of profane oaths.
     "Sorry," she apologized.  "But this is way too cool....  I think this 
is
like how Mercury's Virtual Visor works.  Umm, is there a way I can filter 
this
down some?  Information is nice, but I currently don't need to see what your
circulatory system looks like...."
     Reish'id chuckled.  "You can cycle through the sensors by pressing up 
and
down on the chin pad.  It's a rather over-simplified and crude method, I'm
afraid, but it was the only one I thought would prove to be effective."
     "Hey, not a problem...." she breathed as she spent a few minutes 
learning
how to manipulate the various sensors.  "Whoa, this is nice," she said when 
she
came across a setting that allowed her to see thermal traces through most 
solid
objects.  "I'll bet Mercury's toy doesn't have this sort of thing."
     "Probably not, since the sensor suite needed is rather sizable, even if
you manage to minmize it as much as possible," he explained.
     She continued to experiment with the settings for a few moments before
the electronic eyes went dark as she switched everything off.  "Mmm, this is
wonderful, furball.  Thank you," she said as she removed the hood and took a
deep breath.  "The only complaint is it gets a little stuffy after a bit.  
Not
that it's not ventilated enough," she said quickly as he blinked, "It's just
all that fur pressing against my face."
     He raised a fuzzy eyebrow.  "I thought you said you like the feel of 
fur
against your skin," he murmured softly as he nuzzled her neck.
     "But not when it's up my nose, furball," she said with a grin.
     "A minor detail," he growled softly as his tongue brushed across her 
bare
throat, eliciting a soft noise from her.
     "Hey now," she protested softly.
     "Sorry, reflex," he purred quietly.
     "I'll bet," she said.  She would have said more, but her breath was
suddenly caught up in a massive yawn.  She tried to suppress it and failed
rather miserably.
     "Tired?" he asked softly.
     "You could say that," she admitted as she nuzzled his ear.
     "Perhaps we should do as your friend suggested and put you to bed," he
said as his tail wrapped itself around her wrist.
     "Mmmmmmmmmm," she purred as she thought about it.  "It'd be rude to go 
to
sleep now that you're here and under a time limit...."
     "Not if I'm with you, Leda," he replied.  "I don't think I'd mind 
holding
you for a few hours.  Shall we go?" he asked as he carefully picked her up 
in
his arms.
     "Hey, what are you doing?" she asked.
     "Putting you to bed," he replied as he carried her down the hallway and
into her bedroom.  "After all, you wouldn't want to move once you got all
comfortable and all, would you?"
     Leda chuckled to herself.  "True, but getting really comfortable is 
going
to take some time," she said with a sly grin.
     Reish'id blinked, unsure of what he had just missed.  "How so?" he 
asked
as he carefully set her down.
     "Forgotten already?" she asked as she toyed with the sash on her robe.
"I know you're old, but I thought your kind didn't get senile.  At least, 
not
for another few centuries at least...."
     "Perhaps you should remind me," he growled softly as he understood what
she had in mind.  Part of him was genuinely concerned for her well-being 
given
her apparent state of sleep-deprivation, but another part of him thought 
that
she knew her limits well enough to know what she was doing.
     "Since you put it that way...." she replied as she tugged on the sash 
and
let the robe fall to the floor.
     "Perhaps there is something to be said for being young," he purred in
appreciation as he leaned forward and drew his tongue across her throat.
     "They say you're only as young as the one you feel...." she quipped as
she ran her fingers through his short, dark fur.
     Reish'id declined to reply to her comment, instead concentrating on the
current situation at hand.  It wasn't long before most thoughts of humor 
left
them both and the feeling of renewed love filled them, a love that even 
being
worlds apart couldn't diminish.

                *               *               *               *

     Molly sighed to herself as the headache securely lodged itself in the
middle of her forehead.  This is going to be one of those nights, alright, 
she
thought dourly to herself.  Perhaps it's a good thing Mom still has some of
that stuff with coedine in it....
     The sensation of someone poking her in the shoulder scared the 
daylights
out her and she jumped up, a piercing cry of surprise escaping past her lips
before she could even think about trying to suppress it.
     "Whoa, calm down," Serena said as she took a step back.  "What's got 
you
all worked up?"
     "Serena," Molly breathed in relief as she clutched her chest, trying to
calm her pounding heart by sheer force of will.  "I'm sorry about that, you
just scared the jeepers out of me."
     Serena gave her a partially amused look.  "Well, seeing how I've been
trying to get your attention for the past two minutes, I thought poking you
would do the trick.  Are you sure you're alright?"
     The redhead let out her breath and sat back down on the grass.  "Yeah, 
I'm
fine.  I just seem to have an awful lot on my mind as of late," she said.
     Serena nodded and sat down next to her best friend.  "So what's got you 
so
strung out, Mol?  I know you get a little scatter-brained every now and 
then,
but I thought you didn't do the zoning-out thing."
     "Now there's the pot calling the kettle black," Molly teased.
     "Oh, hush," the blonde replied, her cheeks turning pink.  "Seriously,
what's bugging you bad enough to spook you?"
     Molly hesitated, not sure of how much she should reveal to Serena.  She
was still trying to figure out the strange and unexpected reaction she had
gotten when she had told the blonde about her involvement with Nephlyte, but
she hadn't told her everything about him and where he came from.
     "Well...." she said slowly, trying to stall for time while she thought
furiously.  A memory surfaced in the chaos in her mind and she smiled.  "For
one, I hear Ami has a boyfriend, one that is considerably older than she 
is."
     Serena blinked and sat back, trying to conceal the expression on her 
face.
"Oh, yeah?" she said neutrally.  Ami's been trying to keep her relationship
with Tolaris out of the spotlight, she thought, but I guess the cat's out of
the bag on this one....
     "It's just something Melvin said he heard about," Molly said.
     Serena made a soft grumbling noise in her throat.  "That little weasel
doesn't have the first clue about relationships, Molly.  He's probably got 
the
wires in his brain crossed or something."
     Molly shrugged.  "Perhaps," she said distantly as her mind started to
withdraw in on itself again.  A stray thought popped into her mind and she
turned to give her friend an odd look.  "I thought you and Ami were good
friends," she said slowly.
     Serena blinked.  "We are."
     "And you don't know anything about her boyfriend?"
     Serena blinked again, looking like a deer caught in the headlights.  
"Um,
well.... I, uh...." she stammered.
     The corner of Molly's mouth crooked upwards into a smile.  Gotcha, she
thought.  "Out with it, meatball head.  What do you know?"
     "Well...." Serena said, her cheeks turning pink again.  "Umm.... Ami 
kinda
asked me to keep it quiet, given the, ah, unusual nature of their 
relationship
and all...."
     Molly laughed, delighted in the knowledge that even a rather 
anti-social
bookworm like Ami could find someone attractive, and vice versa.  "So what's
he like?" she asked, eager to know the details.
     The blonde shook her head.  "Sorry, Mol, but I promised Ami I wouldn't
start telling everyone about him.  And I want you to promise me you won't 
tell
anyone else about him, either," she said as she gave the redhead a mild 
look.
     She smiled and nodded.  "It's okay, Serena, I promise not to tell 
anyone
else.  Although I do have to tell you that Melvin was the one who told me 
about
Ami having a boyfriend."
     "Clueless little inchworm," Serena muttered beneath her breath.
     "Can you at least tell me his name?" Molly pleaded, wanting to know
something, anything about this latest discovery.
     Serena chewed on the tip of her tongue, weighing her friendship with 
Molly
and her desire to gossip against the potential harm the information could 
do.
If it were anyone else.... she decided.  "Alright, but I'll never forgive 
you
if you tell anyone else."
     Molly nodded solemnly.  "I won't tell a soul, Serena."
     "Okay...." Serena said.  "His name's Tolaris Sterling, and he's.... 
umm,
are you alright?" she asked in concern.
     Molly blinked.  "What?  Oh, I'm fine.  I just could of sworn I've heard
that name before.  Wasn't he the one who made the papers last week when he
happened to stop some guy from mugging an old lady?"
     Serena frowned as she searched her memory.  "Not that I know of," she
admitted.  Besides, she thought, I thought he had been camped out in the
computer room for most of the past month.
     The redhead shrugged.  "Guess not.  Still, Tolaris is a rather unusual
name, don't you think?"
     Serena smirked.  "About as unusual as Serena," she said.
     Molly giggled.  "You have a point," she said with a smile.  Deep inside
her mind, however, she was far from smiling.  I know I've heard that name
before, I just know I have, she thought.  C'mon, where did I hear it?
     The blonde stood up and stretched.  "Listen, I've got to head home for
dinner.  Don't want to be late for that."
     Molly chuckled.  "Now if you could just have the same viewpoint about
being late to school, you'd be all set."
     Serena sighed.  "It's not my fault it's so hard to get up in the 
morning,"
she protested.  "Especially when it's for something as boring as classes."
     "Of course, I understand completely," Molly said soothingly.  "Go on, 
I'll
see you at school tomorrow."
     "Don't remind me," Serena muttered darkly.  "See you around!" she said 
and
walked off.
     Molly chuckled to herself for a few moments.  She may be a bit of a 
ditz
and more than a little clumsy, she thought to herself, but she certainly has 
a
way of cheering people up.
     The moment of humor passed and she felt her mind descending into chaos
once more.  Wait, she thought, I need to try to piece all of this together.
Tolaris.  Now where did I hear that name?  Tolaris.... Tolaris....
     Several voices started speaking softly in the depths of her 
subconscious
and she sat up suddenly, her eyes widening as various puzzle pieces started 
to
fall into place of their own accord....
     Forgive me for visiting you at this hour, Miss Baker, I am Dragoon
Commander Tolaris....  Guess what I heard in the rumor mill the other day?
Ami's got a boyfriend, and an older one at that....  She's been specially
trained in the seven-hundred-year-old Dragoon unarmed hand-to-hand combat
techniques.... Okay, his name's Tolaris Sterling....  How do you know of the
Negaverse?  I thought only the Sailor Scouts and their allies knew of it....
Commander Tolaris has taught you well, considering he never mastered the 
accent
on that particular dialect....
     "No way...." Molly breathed softly as the various snippets of 
conversation
blended together to paint a disturbing picture.  Wait, let me think this one
through, she thought.
     Tolaris is the one who brought me Nephlyte's crystal.  Tolaris is also
the name of Ami's boyfriend.  Coincidence.  Ami said she was trained in what
Mina called the Dragoon unarmed combat techniques.  Tolaris said he was the
commander of the Dragoons.  Coincidence again?  Tolaris taught Sailor 
Mercury
a language and apparently taught her well enough to converse with a native.  
So
perhaps Mercury and the other Sailor Scouts hired him to help teach them the
language.  However, he also taught Ami martial arts.  Both require a great 
deal
of practice and attention.
     Molly shook her head gently as something still didn't quite make sense.
Okay, she thought, let's back up for a moment.  Mina said 
seven-hundred-year-
old Dragoon techniques, which might refer to Tolaris's age rather than the
origin of the techniques.  If Nephlyte could live to be fourteen hundred, 
which
still doesn't quite sound right but anyway, and if both Nephlyte and Tolaris
are from the Negaverse, then it would make sense, such as it were, if 
Tolaris
could be seven hundred years old.  I wonder what it's like to have lived for
that long? she mused.
     She sighed once more as she got the sensation of the truth dangling 
just
beyond her proverbial fingertips.  What is it? she screamed in the depths of
her mind, What am I missing?!
     How do you know of the Negaverse? the voice in her subconscious said.  
I
thought only the Sailor Scouts and their allies knew of it....
     Her green eyes widened as the realization came down on her mind like a
ton of bricks.  How would Ami know about the Negaverse unless she was 
somehow
involved with the Sailor Scouts?
     Commander Tolaris has taught you well....  Guess what?  Ami's got a
boyfriend....  His name's Tolaris....  She's been specially trained....  
Only
the Sailor Scouts and their allies knew of it....  Only the Sailor 
Scouts....
     The extreme shock of the thought overwhelmed her and, for the first 
time
since she learned how to talk, Molly cussed softly to herself.  And had 
anyone
been around to hear her and ask why she did so, the explanation she could 
have
given was more than enough to justify it.

                *               *               *               *

     "General Rune?" the voice asked softly.
     Rune blinked and looked up from the stack of reports Commander K'tal 
had
managed to produce on the Vresh'tan carriers.  I definitely need a break 
from
all of this technical stuff, she thought darkly to herself as her mind 
focused
on the figures standing before her desk.
     "Sergeant, go find a large pot of ma'cha and some cups," she said to 
the
nearest bodyguard.  "Any new developments?" she asked when he had left.
     Captain Ael'ien nodded.  "We've discovered something rather interesting
about how those carriers are communicating.  We weren't able to pick up any 
of
the usual ship-to-ship signals after the sensor nets came back on-line and 
we
knew that they had to be communicating somehow.  Then the lieutenant here
started to wonder if they were using telepaths to relay communications and
asked if we could detect them," she said, gesturing to the young 
communications
lieutenant quietly standing beside her.
     "Telepaths?" Rune asked incrediously, her gaze alternating between the
two women.  "But I thought the carriers were too far apart to make 
telepathic
broadcasts ineffective."
     Ael'ien made a face.  "We thought so too, but a few of the pilots 
flying
the Red Wing transports between the carriers are telepathic.  They didn't 
pick
up on the psi-energy at first, but after we told them about the possiblity,
they started actively looking for it.  Whatever those carriers are doing, it
involves a lot of psi-energy, both focused and unfocused."
     Rune's expression went vaccant for a moment as she thought about the
unconventional and supposedly impracticable tactic.  She looked up as her
bodyguard returned with a ten-gallon silver canister and a stack of ceramic
mugs.
     "I asked for pot, Sergeant, not a fuel tank," she said in faint 
amusement.
     "Begging the General's pardon, we know what we're doing," he replied as 
he
set the canister on a conveniently empty desk.  "Chief Mal'ek sends his 
regards
and says he can have a complete refill available with ten minute's notice."
     Rune couldn't quite suppress the smile on her lips.  "Is he 
anticipating
a sudden desire to overindulge on ma'cha this morning?"
     Her bodyguard gave her an even look.  "With all due respect, ma'am, 
we've
known you long enough to know how you get in a crisis situation.  The chief 
was
surprised you waited this long to send someone for some ma'cha."
     The dark-haired general merely shook her head in wonder.  "Give him my
compliments next time you see him, Sergeant."  He nodded once and took up 
his
duty position, casually fading into semi-invisibility in the way that all
bodyguards do when trying to remain unobtrusive.
     "So, Captain, I know about your proficienty in psionics and telepathy, 
but
what gave you the idea of checking for psi-energy between the carriers?" 
Rune
asked as she stood up and walked over to the tank of ma'cha.
     Ael'ien coughed lightly.  "Actually, General Rune, it was Lieutenant
D'mer's idea, not mine."
     Rune frowned slightly as she sipped at her ma'cha, ignoring the pain of
the near-scalding temperature of the liquid.  "Your idea, Lieutenant?" she 
said
in surprise.
     D'mer's cheeked turned a light shade of azure.  "Yes, ma'am," she said
rather softly.
     "So what gave you the idea?" Rune asked.
     "Well, ma'am, when the fixed-site posts reset themselves and reacquired
their satellite links, we were able to scan the carriers for any signals.  
The
thing was, they weren't picking up anything from them.  I spent several 
minutes
doing distant-end diagnostics and made absolutely sure that there wasn't 
some
sort of lingering hardware problem.  The sensor nets were working fine, 
which
meant that the carriers weren't transmitting anything, not even proximity
packets."
     Rune frowned at the unfamiliar terminology.  "One moment, Lieutenant, 
I'm
not a communications expert.  What exactly is a proximity packet?" she said 
as
she took a large swallow of ma'cha, making a slight face as she burned her
tongue on the steaming liquid.
     "When large aircraft travel in close formation, they continually 
transmit
a carrier wave with an exponentially degenerating power curve.  Sensors on 
the
outside hulls pick up the signals and read their strengths.  If they receive 
a
signal above a certain energy level, it means they're drifting too close to 
the
transmitting aircraft and warns the navigator.  The whole thing is a safety
measure designed to prevent collisions," the young lieutenant explained.
     "And the carriers aren't using this safety feature?" Rune asked.
     Ael'ien shook her head.  "No, they're not, which is highly unusual.  
The
proximity sensors were deisgned well before the Vresh'tan carriers were, so 
we
know they have them.  And as close as the carriers are flying now, it would 
be
not only dangerous but stupid not to use them."
     "And Nop'tera is no where close to being stupid," Rune said quietly as 
she
tried to take a sip of ma'cha.  She blinked in surprise, peered into the 
empty
mug, and sighed softly to herself.  "Continue with your explanation," she 
said
as she refilled her mug.  She glanced up in time to see her bodyguards 
quickly
removing traces of bemusement from their faces.  I'll have to chew out the
first one who laughs, she thought with a sigh of patient suffering.
     "Well, I knew they had to be communicating somehow," D'mer continued.  
"If
they didn't, they'd collide the first time someone made a course correction 
to
adjust for the wind.  I was about to ask one of the drone pilots to start
searching for some sort of physical connection between the carriers, such as
mono-filiment wire, when Captain Ael'ien walked past my station and her
Psi-Corp patch caught my eye."
     Rune blinked.  "And so you thought about telepathy?"
     The azure blush on D'mer's cheeks deepened a shade.  "Not at first," 
she
admitted.  "I knew about the effective-range limitation, but after trying to
detect some other sort of transmission, I decided to bring my suggestion to 
the
Captain's attention."
     "Which led to the discovery of the carriers' method of communication,"
Ael'ien said.
     "Excellent," Rune said as she sipped a fresh mug of ma'cha.  "And I 
assume
your team is busy intercepting their communications?"
     The telepath blinked and coughed discreetly.  "This is where the bad 
news
comes in," she said carefully.  "We can listen in, so to speak, on any of 
the
unfocused broadcasts, but not on the focused ones.  Those are a direct 
mind-to-
mind link of some sort."
     Rune frowned.  "So what are they saying on the unfocused broadcasts?"
     "It's little more than low-level synaptic static," Ael'ien explained.  
"In
essence, they're using that to gauge the distance between the carriers 
instead
of using the standard proximity sensors."
     The general sighed quietly to herself and tossed back the rest of the
ma'cha in her mug.  "At least there is some good out of this," she said, 
giving
Lieutenant D'mer an appraising look.  "Captain, I want you to return to the
operations center and continue to monitor the situation.  If you haven't 
done
so already, inform Ra'en of your discoveries and keep him updated as well."
     Ael'ien saluted and spun around on her heel, quickly exiting the 
general's
office without seeming to hurry.  D'mer was about to return to her post when
Rune turned her attention towards her, rooting the young lieutenant in 
place.
     "Permission to return to my post, ma'am," she asked rather softly.
     Rune shook her head.  "Stand fast, Lieutenant.  You and I need to have 
a
little talk.  Grab a cup of ma'cha and follow me," she said as she made her 
way
over towards the tiny briefing room.  D'mer hesitated for a moment until one 
of
Rune's bodyguards discreetly made a hurry-up-and-move gesture.  She nodded 
and
went after Rune, pausing only long enough to fill a mug with ma'cha.
     "Have a seat," Rune said as she gestured to a chair and closed the door
behind D'mer.  She noticed the slightly shaky way she sat down and a hint of 
a
smile crept across her face.  "At ease, Lieutenant, you're not in any sort 
of
trouble or anything.  I just wanted to ask you a few questions."
     D'mer nodded as she did her best to appear relaxed while sitting 
straight
up in her chair, looking to Rune like someone trying to act calm when they 
were
standing before a firing squad.  The general took a seat across from D'mer 
and
leaned back in her chair, casually sipping her ma'cha.
     "Lieutenant, how old are you?" Rune asked gently as she studied the way
D'mer's uniform hung on her somewhat wispy body.  Can't be older than two
hundred, she thought, two-fifty at best.
     "Two hundred and seventeen, ma'am," D'mer replied as she 
self-consciously
ran her fingers through her bright amber hair.
     "And how long have you been in the military?" Rune asked.
     Another azure blush sprang to D'mer's cheeks.  "Close to thirty years,
ma'am," she said, a faint note of nervousness making its way into her tone.
     Rune blinked and set her mug down on the table, clearly impressed.  
While
the regulations stipulated that you had to be at least sixteen decades old, 
the
vast majority of society felt that anyone under the age of two hundred was 
too
young to be risking their lives in a profession as hazardous as the 
military.
     "Might I inquire why you started at such a young age?" Rune asked.
     The lieutenant blinked and glanced down at her untouched mug of ma'cha.
"With all due respect, ma'am, that's not something I would like to discuss."
     Rune blinked in momentary surprise before she nodded.  "Very well, 
then,
Lieutenant.  What exactly prompted you to apply for a commission?"
     D'mer's blush deepened by a shade.  "Well, ma'am, to be honest, my 
section
chief threatened to physically carry me over to the academy if I didn't 
apply
myself."
     Rune blinked again.  "Your section chief?" she asked in puzzlement.
     D'mer blushed an even darker shade of azure.  "Yes, ma'am.  When I 
signed
up with the military, I was an enlisted soldier in an engineering 
detatchment
assigned to the Northern Division.  I had a bit of a knack for electronics,
especially communications gear, and she felt that I was wasting my talents
working as an enlisted soldier out in the field.  Hence my application to 
the
academy."
     The general took a sip of her ma'cha, more to stall for time while she
thought rather than out of thirst.  "Why did you select communications if 
your
background was engineering?" she asked.
     "It was her suggestion, since she thought I was more comfortable with 
the
communications gear than with anything else," D'mer admitted.
     "And how long have you been an officer?" Rune asked, making a mental
calculation and suppressing the urge to take another sip of ma'cha.
     "Almost eight years," D'mer said quietly.
     Rune was suddenly glad she hadn't taken that sip of ma'cha, else she 
would
probably have spewed it out in surprise.  "You made full lieutenant in only
eight years?" she said incrediously, knowing the average promotion time from
cadet to full lieutenant was on the order of fifty or sixty years.  When 
D'mer
had told her she had only been in for thirty years, she thought that she had
gone straight in as an officer instead of spending twenty years as an 
enlisted
soldier.
     "I made ensign straight out of the academy," D'mer explained.  "They 
made
that decision based on my class standings and my enlisted personnel file."
     The general sat up and punched a button on the tiny console recessed 
into
her end of the table.  "Have someone get me Lieutenant D'mer's personnel 
file,"
she said into the microphone.  There was a faint blip of an acknowledgement 
and
Rune closed the circuit.  She glanced up and saw the color draining out of
D'mer's features.
     "Lieutenant D'mer, I'm going to be honest with you," Rune said evenly.
"If you are half as good as I think you are, you're going to be reassigned 
to
a section where your communication skills would be more useful to me."
     "Begging the general's pardon...." D'mer started to say.
     "Enough, Lieutenant," Rune said firmly.  "Now how long ago did you make
full lieutenant?"
     "Last year," she replied, her voice barely audible.
     The door quietly opened and a records clerk stepped in, placing a 
rather
sizable black folder by Rune's elbow and refilling her mug of ma'cha from a
small pot.  She set the pot down in the middle of the table and quietly made
a hasty retreat, closing the door behind her.
     Rune sighed as she eyed the pot.  "You would almost think they want me 
to
overload my bladder this morning," she grumbled before she turned her 
attention
to D'mer's personnel file.
     "Let's see," Rune said as she spent ten minutes skimming over the 
contents
of the file.  "Backgrounds in field electronics and communications.... spent 
a
full year in the Outreaches.... several commendations for superior 
performance,
including one from a general officer.... interesting, Nephlyte didn't give
those out easily to enlisted soldiers," she commented as she read the rather
flowery citation.
     "Standard combat training.... the usual horde of routine paperwork, all
oustanding.... now this is odd," Rune said as she looked up at D'mer.  "You
were awarded the Dragoon Legion of Merit?"
     "It was during a joint training exercise," D'mer explained, the azure 
hue
continuing to deepen on her cheeks.  "I was able to decypher most of the
encrypted traffic on their secure networks, all the way up to level 5-Aerce.
The result of that was a restructuring of their encryption methods."
     Rune examined the award's citation and blinked at the signature 
scrawled
on the very bottom.  Dragoon Commander Tolaris, she thought.  If he thought 
her
worthy of an award usually only given to Dragoons for exceptional 
reasons....
"You do know this makes you an honorary Dragoon, right?" she said slowly.
     "That's what Commander Tolaris told me when he awarded it to me, but I
never had any desire to work for Intelligence," D'mer said.
     Rune nodded absently as she skimmed through the rest of D'mer's file.  
"I
must say, Lieutenant, there are very, very few people with records like 
yours.
How do you like your current position in the command center?"
     D'mer's aquamarine eyes blinked.  "I like it rather well, ma'am.  I 
know
how to do my job to everyone's expectations and it's something I find to be
personally rewarding."
     Rune closed the file and gave D'mer an even look.  "How would you like 
to
work directly for me?"
     The young lieutenant blinked in surprise.  "Ma'am?"
     "After going through the appropriate training, you'll be assigned to 
the
Red Wings as a field communications expert," Rune explained.  "If your unit 
is
deployed, you'll go with them and take your instructions from the team 
leader,
but until then you report directly to me as part of my personal 
communications
team."
     D'mer blinked again.  "Red Wings?" she echoed.  "But they were 
disbanded
three thousand years ago and no longer exist."
     Rune smiled.  "That's right, Lieutenant D'mer, they don't exist."
     "But I thought you just said...." D'mer said before the realization 
began
to sink in.
     "You do have the field background needed and your record speaks for 
itself
about your potential," Rune said as she gestured to the black folder.  "And
seeing how four of my best teams are now radioactive air pollution, I could
use a few more good soldiers."
     D'mer blinked and looked down at her now lukewarm mug of ma'cha.  "If I
may have a few minutes to think about it...." she said softly.
     "It will be a very difficult challenge for you, D'mer," Rune said 
softly.
"The physical training is the most demanding program we have, and while 
you're
not physically ideal for the task, your other qualifications more than make 
up
for the deficiencies," she explained as she glanced over D'mer's wispy 
frame.
"Besides, a young girl like yourself could use a little muscle here and 
there,
if only to attract others to your bedside," she said with amusement.
     D'mer's skin color almost went completely azure.  "And what's the price 
to
be paid for accepting this?" she asked.
     Rune sighed quietly, knowing she would have to be honest about this 
one.
"The price, D'mer, is you will appear to die in an accident and cease to 
exist
to society.  You will be given a new name, one of your own choosing, a new
face using minor cosmetic surgery, and a new life.  No friends or family, no
ties to society, and no past.  You'll be starting over with a clean slate."
     D'mer paled.  "No friends or family...?"
     Rune nodded.  "I know that you have no living relatives left, which is 
why
I'm offering this job to you.  Breaking off friendships is hard enough, but 
no
one could expect you to turn your back on your family."
     D'mer's hand was trembling slightly as she reached out and picked up 
the
mug of ma'cha.  She slowly sipped at it as she thought, her gaze going 
vacant.
Something clicked in her mind and she quickly refocused on the present.  
"And
if something should happen to me, like what happened this morning?"
     "The Red Wings don't exist," Rune said quietly.  "They haven't existed 
for
three thousand years, and they will stay that way.  Very, very few people 
even
know as much as you know now, Lieutenant, and it is going to be kept that 
way.
As far as everyone is concerned, those teams were never there this morning."
     "And so it'll be the same with me in a situation?" D'mer said bluntly.
     Rune nodded.  "Unfortunately.  If a team is captured, we'll do 
everything
we can to get you released as long as no one knows.  The reason I'm telling 
you
this now is because you need to know the truth in order for you to make the
right decision."
     D'mer nodded, slightly sickened at the thought.  "If you'll forgive a
rather mercenary question, General, but what's in it for me?"
     Despite her best efforts, a smile spread across Rune's face.  "The 
money
is rather substantial, even by my standards, and you get access to all of 
the
latest technology.  Priority access to most resources, especially when 
you're
on an assignment, and very little to worry about from us.  We give you the
tools to do the job and turn you loose.  What exactly you do, how you do it,
when, where, who, that's all up to your team as long as the job gets done.  
And
whatever you decide to bring back is yours.  The only exception to that is 
if
its information, in which case we get a copy.  Anything else is yours."
     D'mer blinked.  "So, hypothetically speaking, say I join up, go on a
mission, and on the way out I happen to see a nice set of frequency scanners
just lying around...."
     "Then hypothetically speaking, as soon as your mission is officially 
over,
you get to spend some quality time playing with your new toy," Rune said.  
"I
take it one of your hobbies is custom electronics?"
     D'mer nodded.  "Has been since I was fifty."
     "Good electronics are hard to find these days," Rune mused.  
"Especially
the higher-powered ones."
     D'mer's sigh spoke volumes about the weight suddenly dumped upon her 
soul.
She sat back and sipped at her ma'cha, her gaze once again going vacant as 
her
thoughts turned themselves inward.  "How long will the initial training 
take?"
she asked distantly.
     Rune thought for a moment.  "It all depends on how fast you can learn.  
It
takes about a month for the average new recruit to get through the basics.
Once that's over with, you'll be assigned to a unit and placed on back-up
status.  From there, you'll learn as you go.  Once the unit captain feels
you're ready, you'll be placed on active status and deploy as an integrated
member of the unit."
     "How large is a typical unit?" D'mer asked, still thinking hard.
     "It depends on the mission, but twelve is a nice, even number."
     "And how many women are assigned to these units?" D'mer asked, looking 
up
at Rune with an odd look in her aquamarine eyes.
     Rune blinked at the unexpected question.  "Very few, I've heard."
     "Sounds like a challenge," D'mer said softly.
     "Indeed it is," Rune replied.
     Lieutenant D'mer suddenly stood up and straightened her uniform.  "So 
when
do I leave?" she asked, a gleam appearing in her eyes.
     "When would you like to die?" Rune answered.
     D'mer thought for a moment.  "You know, I've been trying to build a 
type-4
sensor suite for the headsets found in TacSats for quite some time now," she
said slowly.
     Rune blinked.  "Oh?" she said, knowing that any unauthorized 
construction
of military hardware above type-3 was strictly illegal.
     "It's a shame that I miswired the power supply and electrocuted 
myself,"
D'mer continued with an impish grin.
     Rune nodded.  "Nice, neat, won't attract undue attention, and is 
something
plausible.  I like your style, Lieutenant.  You'll receive full honors, of
course, despite your obviously illegal activity.  When did you do this?"
     D'mer glanced at her watch.  "I go off shift in three hours.  Give me 
four
hours after that to change, get something to eat, and start to relax with my
favorite hobby."
     Rune nodded and opened another channel on her tiny communications 
panel.
She waited for the secure link to be established before speaking into the
microphone.  "V'Kreeth, I want you to come to my office and escort our newly
promoted Lieutenant Commander down to supply.  She's volunteering to go on 
the
field training exercise in the northern mountain range and will need to be
issued the appropriate gear."
     There was a soft beep of an acknolwedgement and the circuit was closed.
Rune looked up in time to catch the surprised look on D'mer's face.  "Is 
there
a problem, Commander?"
     "I knew I'd make rank eventually, ma'am, but not this fast," she said 
with
a grin.  "Who'd imagine that anyone could make Lieutenant Commander in just
eight years?"
     Rune shook her head.  "Trust me, D'mer, with the price you're paying, 
the
extra weight on your rank patch is just a small compensation."
     "Understood, General Rune," D'mer said, snapping into attention.  "Just
one thing, if I may."
     General Rune looked at her curiously.  "Of course."
     "Call me Azure," she said with a faint smile.  "My mother used to call 
me
that when she was teasing me about blushing."
     The door quietly opened and a shadowy form silently walked in, seeming 
to
be no more than a pool of darkness with two dark gray eyes.  "You sent for 
me,
General?" he said softly, his voice sounding like dry leaves whispering over
stone.
     Rune stood up and nodded.  "V'Kreeth, this is Lieutenant Commander 
Azure,
my new communications specialist.  She'll be attending the field training 
camp
we have up in the northern mountain range after tomorrow."
     V'Kreeth nodded.  "Understood.  If you'll come with me," he said to 
D'mer
and left the room.  D'mer only paused long enough to salute Rune before she
spun around on her heel and followed Rune's bodyguard out the door.
     The door closed and Rune sat back down, opening D'mer's personnel file
once more.  Something tells me I'm going to need to keep a close eye on this
one, she thought as she slowly read each entry in the black folder.  A 
mental
list of preparations unfolded in her mind and she reached out to open the
communications line to Red Wing command center hidden deep within the 
northern
mountain range.
     "Get me Colonel Azi'mar," she said into the microphone.  "I've got a 
new
soldier for him, one with a high level of potential."  She waited until she
could hear a soft voice coming from the speaker, then began to talk to the
open air about what was on her mind.

                *               *               *               *

     "Hold it," Alex said as she leaned against what she dearly hoped was an
inert rock.  "I don't know about the rest of you, but I need to stop and 
rest
for a few minutes.  That last one nearly did me in."
     Susan frowned, her expression adding a sharper cast to her demonic 
form.
"Are you injured?" she asked as she absently rubbed the slash on her forearm
that was the result of their most recent encounter with the inhabitants of 
the
neo-void.
     "Physically, no," Alex said as she stretched her leg muscles.  "But to 
be
honest, this place is really, really starting to get to me.  And I don't 
mean
just in a mental sense," she added.
     "Now you know what we go through all our lives," Myst said softly as 
she
readjusted her position in Alex's arms.
     "How badly are you hurt?" Mephisto asked as he tried to get a better 
look
at the wound on Susan's arm.
     Susan's wings twitched as she gave him an even look.  "I assure you it 
is
of no consequence.  It is merely a minor cut that will be fully healed 
within
the hour," she said.
     Alex sighed to herself at the edge to Susan's otherwise alluring voice.
One of these years, she thought, someone is going to explain to me how it's
possible to have a voice that can make you desire her and fear her at the 
same
time.  "And how far do we have to go?" she asked warily.
     Mephisto turned around to stare into the darkness that surrounded them.
"Another ten minutes of walking should put us at the front gate," he said.
     "Great," she said as she sat down and removed her shoes for a few 
moments.
"These shoes are great for ballroom dancing, but they're at the bottom of my
list of shoes I like running in."
     "So what do we plan to do once we reach the gate?" Myst asked as she 
leapt
out of Alex's lap and briefly stretched.
     Susan raised a slender eyebrow.  "We knock and ask this Balor to give 
us
Michelle's soul," she said simply, drawing looks of surprise from everyone.
     "Just like that, huh?" Alex said, a faint edge to her voice.  She 
blinked
and glanced away when Susan's glowing red eyes fixed her with a piercing 
gaze.
     "Do you have a better suggestion?" Susan said softly.
     "Perhaps it would be better if you explained to us what exactly you 
have
in mind," Mephisto said carefully, privately agreeing with Alex's stated
disbelief at the simplicity and audacity of the plan.
     "Very well," Susan said, turning around to scan the surrounding area 
for
any danger.  "I am seeking a human soul to try to reanimate as a gift for my
human.... companion," she said, placing a strange emphasis on the last word.
"I have heard that a Shinma named Balor collects souls and have asked you,
Mephisto, to guide me to his keep."
     Mephisto blinked and exchanged glances with Alex and Myst.  "And what 
of
Myst?" he asked.
     "A friend I made during my travel," Susan said.
     Alex shook her head in wonder as she put her shoes back on.  "You know,
Sue, that story almost sounds like it'll work."
     Susan's wings flexed as she cast a look over her shoulder.  "Who said 
it's
not the truth?" she asked archly.
     "Cover story aside, you think he's going to give you a soul out of the
kindness of his heart?" Alex wondered as she picked up Myst and stood up.
     "Everyone has their price," Susan said softly.
     "So what are you going to offer him in exchange?" Mephisto asked 
quietly.
     Susan merely turned around and looked at him, one slender eyebrow 
arched
up in mild amusement.  "Leave that to me," she said, her voice taking on a
faint note of anticipation.
     A small flag suddenly went up in Alex's mind.  "Umm, Sue?  Don't tell 
me
you're planning on doing what I think you're going to do...." she said.  She
saw the corners of Susan's mouth twitch in amusement and she sighed, knowing
exactly what she had in mind.
     "Again, do you have a better suggestion?" Susan said lightly.
     "Just promise me one thing," Alex said wearily.  "Don't make it last 
for
more than an hour, and whatever you do, don't let us hear you two."
     Mephisto frowned as Susan chuckled quietly to herself, wondering what 
he
was missing.  "If I may ask...." he started to say.
     "You don't wanna know," Alex muttered as she started scratching behind
Myst's gray ears.  "Trust me, you really don't."
     Mephisto was inclined to agree with her assessment, but something was
still bothering him about the whole deal.  After a few more moments of 
thought
he turned to Susan for an explanation, but the look in her glowing red eyes 
and
the smile on her lips told him all he needed to know.
     "You're a succubus, aren't you?" he asked softly.  He heard a sharp 
hiss
behind him as Myst accidentally clawed Alex again in her state of shock.
     "You're about this close to getting forcibly declawed," Alex muttered 
to
the Shinma as she tried to calm her down.
     Susan nodded.  "In part.  My father was an inccubus and my mother was
human, so my demonic heritage is that of a succubus.  However, because I am 
not
a pure succubus, what powers I do have is somewhat weakened."
     "But you do have them nonetheless," Mephisto said as evenly as he 
could.
     Susan tilted her head to one side as she regarded him curiously.  
"Don't
tell me that you fear a half-breed succubus," she said mildly.
     "Fear would not have been my first choice to describe it, but yes," he
replied.  "I've heard of your kind and know what they can do."
     Alex sighed as her gaze alternated between the demon and the Shimna.  
"Why
is it I never seem to understand what they're talking about?" she asked 
Myst.
     The cat bristled momentarily.  "Trust me, if you don't know, then you 
are
better off not knowing."
     "I still don't get it," Alex continued.  "I mean, I think she's told me
everything she can do with her kiss and tried explaining about her 
supposedly
not-quite-controllable appetite for pleasure, but what's the problem?"
     "May I?" Mephisto asked.
     Susan raised an eyebrow.  "By all means," she said with faint 
amusement.
     "According to the creation legends, when the Underworld was forged out 
of
Chaos, Hades knew he would need a great deal of help to keep everything 
under
control, so he tore off a fragment of the AEther and began to make his 
minions.
While the demons were created to maintain the Underworld, he created 
specific
forms for specific tasks.  The fire demons for the Lake of Fire, for 
instance.
When he came to the task of harvesting the souls of those living in the sin 
of
Lust, he created a breed of women whose beauty would entice and whose kiss
could send a soul to the Underworld.  Hence, the succubi," Mephisto 
explained.
     Susan nodded.  "Your knowledge of the ancient legends is impressive."
     Alex frowned.  "I'll admit it sounds better than evolving from monkeys,
but I don't see where the fear factor comes in."
     "Perhaps I should explain," Susan said.  "I'll admit this gave me some
difficulty at first, but I got used to the idea.  In essence, I and the 
other
succubi were created for the sole purpose of seducing and killing."
     The blonde blinked as the concept finally sunk into her brain.  "Wait a
sec," she said slowly.  "You mean to tell me you were created to sleep 
around
and, once that's finished, yank your victim's soul out through his nose?"
     "Or her nose, or out of whatever happens to be convenient at the time, 
but
that is, for all intents and practical purposes, correct," Susan replied.
     Alex decided to sit down before she fell down, cursing softly beneath 
her
breath as she landed harder on her rear than she had intended.
     "Precisely," Susan said in response to the choice of profanity, drawing 
a
not-quite-amused look from the blonde.
     "You know...." Alex said, her voice suddenly sounding very tired, "This
explains quite a lot about some of the stuff you used to do.  And just 
between
you and me, I'd rather not have known about this little detail of your 
nature."
     "You asked," Susan replied.
     Alex just sighed and shook her head.  "Just one question, Sue.  You 
ever
kill anyone by accident with your kiss?"
     Susan blinked at the unexpected question and thought for a moment.  
"Hmm.
I don't quite remember, to be honest, but if I did, it was when I was still 
a
child and learning how to use my powers."
     "For some reason, I can't picture you as a child," Alex said as she 
stood
back up and cradled Myst in her arms.
     The succubus laughed softly to herself.  "Granted my childhood wasn't 
the
most pleasant of experiences, but it was.... interesting."
     "May I ask how old you are?" Mephisto asked quietly.
     Susan's light mood evaporated like fog as she gave him a mild look.  
"No,
you may not," she said evenly.
     "She's rather touchy about her age," Alex offered.
     "Indeed," Mephisto replied, returning Susan's gaze.  "Perhaps we can 
have
a discussion about your knowledge of divination and astrology at a later 
date?"
     "Perhaps," Susan replied.
     Alex just sighed.  "There they go again, talking about something that
makes very little sense to us ordinary humans."
     Mephisto was about to explain when suddenly both he and Susan spun 
around
and took up defensive positions against the darkness behind them.  Startled,
Myst leapt out of Alex's arms and crouched low to the ground, her gray fur
sticking out in all directions.
     "A little warning would be nice," Alex hissed as she dropped into a 
combat
stance and started glancing around her.
     "Who's out there?" Susan said sharply, her glowing red eyes narrowed as
she peered into the shadows.
     "Perhaps that should be my question to you," replied an inhuman voice.
"It is not often that I find.... visitors near my keep."
     "Lord Balor, I assume?" Susan said, flexing her wings slightly.
     A humanoid figure stepped out of the darkness, completely enshrouded in
a massive black cape and cowl.  "Indeed I am," he replied.  The cowl shifted
position slightly as if his head had moved to look around.  "And who might 
you
be?"
     "Susan Meiou," Susan replied with a slight nod of her head.
     "Meiou?" Balor asked, his voice betraying momentary surprise.  "That is
not a clan name I am familiar with," he said slowly.  The cowl shifted again
and a low rumbling sound emerged from its depths.  "I thought you prefered 
not
to involve yourself with any of the clans, Mephisto."
     "Indeed I do not," Mephisto replied.  "I have been asked to serve as a
guide to your keep, nothing more."
     "Ever the disinterested observer," Balor said, his voice laced with 
scorn.
"So what brings you here this time, Watcher?"
     "I asked him to bring me here so that you and I could have a 
discussion,"
Susan said, flexing her wings slightly.  "I understand you collect souls for
your own purposes."
     "Indeed I do," Balor said slowly, his voice rumbling in his chest.  
"And
what is your interest in my.... hobby?"
     Susan tilted her head to one side as she regarded the cloaked Shinma 
very
carefully.  "I am looking for a human soul to give as a.... gift for my 
human
companion," she said as she gestured to Alex.
     The dark cowl shifted towards Alex and the blonde shrank back slightly
under the sudden scrutiny.  "A human?" he said, his voice tinged with 
surprise.
"Might I ask how you managed to acquire her?"
     Susan saw the expression on Alex's face at the thought of being 
considered
as property and did her best to ignore it.  "You would be surprised what you
find lying around," she said lightly.  "Much, as I would imagine, like the 
way
you find some of your souls."
     "Indeed," he said as he nodded.  "And what of this one?" he asked as he
gestured to the gray cat on the ground.  Myst bristled slightly at the 
sudden
attention, trying to relax as Mephisto made a discreet gesture for her to do
so.
     "An ally I made during my travels," Susan explained.  "We were 
travelling
in the same general direction and thought it best to travel together for 
each
other's protection."
     Balor nodded in understanding.  "But obviously it didn't work out quite 
as
well as you had hoped," he said, gesturing to the still-healing slash on her
arm.
     Susan smiled.  "They had the same idea."
     "Indeed...." Balor said softly to himself.  "So you say you are looking
for a human soul, and have come here to ask me about it."
     Susan nodded, her expression turning serious.  "I understand that they 
are
quite fragile and next to useless as sources of power, but they do have a 
few
redeeming qualities."
     Mephisto silently edged next to Alex and gently placed a restraining 
hand
on her wrist, an unspoken gesture for her to remain silent as Susan and 
Balor
talked.  She sighed quietly and kept her facial expression neutral, vowing 
to
have a not-so-polite discussion with Susan about the matter.
     Balor laughed quietly.  "Are we talking about humans or their souls?"
     Susan raised a delicate eyebrow.  "Their souls, of course.  Believe me,
my Lord, humans may not be as strong or as enduring as you or I, but what 
they
lack physically is more than made up for in their strength of character."
     "Perhaps," he mused as he looked Alex over once more.  "But while their
souls are for the most part devoid of power, I do have an occasional use for
them," he said evenly.
     "I am willing to negotiate for one," Susan replied.  "While I don't 
have
a direct use for one, it would keep her.... occupied, and that in turn would 
be
most.... beneficial to me," she explained with a hint of a smile in her 
voice.
"And that is worth a meaningful price."
     "And what sort of payment did you have in mind?" Balor asked.
     "That depends," Susan said slowly.  "If you do indeed have a human soul
you could bear to part with, I should like to see it first."
     The dark cowl shifted slightly and tilted to one side, still concealing
what lay beneath in darkness.  He regarded her for a moment before something
shifted beneath his cloak and emerged from a sleeve.  "Will this do?" he 
said
as an appendage swathed in darkness held up a faintly glowing ball of light.
     Susan reached out to touch it, moving slow enough to ensure he knew 
what
she was doing.  As her fingers brushed the edges of the intangible sphere, 
she
got the fleeting impression of a dormant consciousness contained within.
     "Alexis," she said softly as she held out her other hand, "Come here."
     Alex had to bite her tongue to keep herself from verbally lashing out 
at
Susan, instead hesitantly walking up next to her.  Susan reached out and 
took
her hand, drawing her closer to the glowing ball.
     "This is what you wanted, correct?" Susan said softly.
     Alex blinked and looked at the soul carefully, studying the color of 
the
glow.  Well, she thought, at least the color matches the color of her sigil.
However....  "It looks so.... dim...." she said, trying to keep her voice 
soft
and even.
     "The color will improve once you start feeding it the energy strands I
gave you," Susan explained, as if talking to a child.  "That is, if we can
reach an agreement on a price," she said as she looked up at Balor.
     "You have yet to tell me what you're willing to give to me as payment,"
Balor rumbled.
     Susan smiled and turned to Alex, giving her a gentle kiss on her 
temple.
"Go back with Mephisto," she said gently.  "I will catch up with you once 
this
matter has been finished."
     Alex blinked.  "But Sue...."
     Susan reached up and stilled her lips with a finger.  "Go," she said.
     Alex cast a nervous glance towards Balor and the soul before gently
sliding her hand free from Susan's grasp and moving over next to Mephisto,
casting a backwards glance at Susan as she went.
     "I find it rather.... odd that one such as you would have another 
female,
and a human at that, as a.... companion," Balor said softly.
     Susan regarded him with open curiosity.  "Given the shortness of her
lifespan, she is little more than a diversion for me.  But she does it well, 
I
have to admit, and talent such as that is hard to come by."
     The dark cowl shifted as Balor tilted his head again.  "Indeed.... and
might one inquire about her talents?"
     A small, rather predatory smile crossed Susan's demonic face for a 
moment.
"I'm afraid her talents are out of the question," she said slowly.  "Her
techniques do leave a bit to be desired, however, but that is hardly her 
fault
as she can only work with what she has."
     A deep rumbling sound emerged from the depths of Balor's cloak.  
"Indeed,"
he said softly.  "And what did you do for a diversion before you found her?"
     She gave him an apprasing look.  "The same thing.  Some hobbies only 
get
better with each century, wouldn't you agree?"
     "Indeed," Balor said again.  "Perhaps we should arrange a trade of 
sorts."
     Susan raised an eyebrow.  "You mean my hobby for yours?"
     "Does the idea bother you?"
     "Of course not," Susan said with a hint of a smile.  "Even diversions 
need
an occasional diversion."
     The cloak stirred momentarily as if caught by an unfelt wind.  "Well 
then,
if we're trading a hobby for a hobby, I think I can spare a soul from my
collection," he said evenly.
     Susan bowed her head slightly.  "With your permission, Lord Balor, I 
would
like my companion to return to my keep and take the soul with her.  There is
much work to be done on it first, and unforunately patience isn't one of her
stronger characteristics."
     "Impatience is usually not desired in your sort of hobby," he said as 
the
indistinct appendage held out the soul to her.
     "Who says we don't teach each other certain things?" she said mildly as
she took the soul from him and motioned to Mephisto.  He approached and she
gently handed him the glowing sphere.  "Here, take this and return to the 
keep
with Alexis.  Lord Balor and I have some more matters to.... discuss, and I
will return when finished."
     Mephisto nodded.  "Myst will guide you back when you return," he said
slowly.  Susan frowned slightly as she saw Myst cradled in Mephisto's arms, 
a
strange look in the kitten's red eyes.  "She'll be waiting for you here."
     "Very well.  Take good care of Alexis, Mephisto," she cautioned.
     Mephisto nodded and whispered something to Myst.  The kitten 
immediately
started to lose her shape, becoming little more than a wispy black mass that
could easily be mistaken for a trick of the mind.  Susan lost track of her
almost instantly and was about to say something when she felt the lightest 
of
weights settle around her, clinging to her evening gown like a second layer 
of
fabric.
     Clever, she thought as she turned around to face Balor.  "Shall we go,
my Lord?" she said respectfully as she extended her hand to him.
     "Indeed," he said as something indistinct emerged from the folds of his
cloak to touch her hand.  Space suddenly seemed to twist and bend around 
them
for the briefest of moments before it unfolded back to normal, leaving 
nothing
but displaced air in their place.
     "Are they gone?" Alex asked as she glanced around.
     "They are," Mephisto replied as he discreetly edged away from her, 
sensing
what was about to occur.
     "I don't believe the bitch did that!" she growled.
     "Perhaps you should consider the end result of her choice of actions," 
he
suggested, trying to calm her down before she went ballistic and knowing it 
was
probably a futile effort.
     "Of all the arrogant, conceited, stuck-up, over-bearing...!"
     He shook his head to himself as Alex's language started to degenerate 
into
somewhat graphic profanity.  Hopefully she will calm down once we return to 
the
mana pool, he thought to himself as he knelt down and started to imprint a
marker into the ground so he could find his way back to their current spot.
     "....and then she goes off to get laid while leaving my butt stuck in 
the
middle of nowhere in Hell's prison!" she fumed to the general area.  "Not 
only
that, she takes the damn cat with her so I've got no one to talk to except 
some
guy who's a good tailor but forgot to add a goddamn zipper so I can let some
air into this thing...."
     He finished his task and sat down on the ground, not thinking it wise 
to
interrupt the near-continuous monologue.  She is quite beautiful, he found
himself thinking as he studied her, despite her penchant for using 
profanity.
     "....and the worst thing about this whole godforsaken situation," Alex
fairly yelled out, "I can't even find a bush, let alone something civilized,
and I NEED TO USE THE BATHROOM!!"
     Mephisto winced as her voice seemed to resonate across the terrain.  I
sense stealth is no longer an option, he thought to himself as he glanced
around the neo-void.  He glanced at her again and noticed that she had 
calmed
down somewhat and was now staring out into the darkness, muttering softly to
herself.  "Alexis...." he started to say.
     She whirled around and fixed him with a piercing gaze.  "Call me that
again and I swear I'll kick your gonads up into your throat," she growled.
     Mephisto blinked at the outburst.  He had never heard the slang term
before, but he had a pretty good idea of what she meant.  "Forgive me, Alex, 
I
didn't realize that you were offended by it," he said slowly.
     She sighed and sat down on the ground, her fingers running through her
short blonde hair as she tried to calm down.  "Yeah, well, I just never 
really
cared for the long version, despite what Mother's intentions were.  And no,
don't bother asking what they were 'cause I'm not going to waste my breath 
by
telling you about them," she said as he opened his mouth.
     "Very well," he said slowly as he studied the faint soul he still 
carried
in his grasp.  "We should return to the pool before trying to revive her, 
since
it is rather dangerous being out in the open like this."
     Alex knelt down next to him to study the soul.  "Are you sure you can
revive her?" she asked, all traces of her outburst of anger gone.
     He looked up at her for a moment.  "Of course.  After all, I was able 
to
revive you."
     She blinked as his words registered.  "Whoops, guess you're right," she
said as a faint blush appeared on her cheeks.  "Well, now that we've got 
that
established, let's get going."
     Mephisto nodded and stood up, holding out the soul to her.  "You had
better hold her, as I might need my hands free to deal with whatever we may
find after we teleport."
     "Hold it, I thought you could teleport us directly into the cave," she
said with a frown as she carefully took the soul from him.
     He sighed quietly.  "I could, but a point-to-point dimensional shift 
can
be traced from its point of origin.  We'll have to make several shifts to 
make
sure we aren't being followed before entering the cave."
     "And we won't know what'll wind up in our faces until after we complete
the shift, right?" she said warily.
     "Unfortunately, which is why I need my hands free," he explained.
     "Lovely," she muttered.  "Alright, tall, dark, and handsome, let's get
this party started," she said as she took hold of his wrist.
     Mephisto said nothing, raising an eyebrow at her choice of words before
turning his focus inward and wrapping three-dimensional space around them in 
a
complex quasi-geometrical shape.  There was the briefest of visible 
distortions
before space unfolded back into a normal shape, leaving only displaced air 
in
its place.

                *               *               *               *

     Ami paused in the middle of the cathedral hallway, not entirely sure if
her hypnotic invisibility was having any effect on the giant crystalline 
spider
casually hanging off of the ceiling.  One of these days, I'm going to have 
to
do a little experimentation with it, she thought with a mental sigh.  But in
the mean time.... what exactly is it doing, anyway?
     She blinked and took a step back as Maze stepped out of the computer 
room
with a very weary expression on his face.  He took a few steps forward 
before
he glanced up and jumped at the sight of Dyvach clinging to the ceiling as 
any
normal spider would do.
     "What are you doing?" he said tiredly as he tried to calm his nerves.  
He
sighed quietly to himself as he received a multi-harmonic chime in response.
"Just don't scratch the paint, okay?" he said as he rubbed his eyes and made
his way down the hall towards the bedroom he shared with Mina, completely
unaware of Ami's invisible presence a few feet away from him.
     Dusting? she thought as she watched the weaver for a moment.  She 
blinked
as she realized that Dyvach wasn't so much dusting as eating the dirt off of
the ceiling.  That's it, I give up.... she sighed as she focused her will on
remaining undetectable and started to walk down the hall.
     She made it to the doorway without Dyvach showing any signs of having 
seen
her.  Okay, she thought as she peered inside the computer room, now comes 
for
the tricky part.  She took a slow, deep breath and concentrated.  You do not
notice the door being closed, she thought as she eased the door shut as 
quietly
as she could.
     Tolaris failed to notice the door shutting as he sat back in the chair 
and
re-read the lines of spidery text on the computer screen for at least the 
tenth
time in as many minutes.  His complexion was rather pale and his eyes were
bloodshot, giving them a sickly gray tint that made Ami start to worry about
his state of health.  "Nak'seth," the Dragoon commander said quietly, his 
voice
sounding like gravel.
     "Venta," the computer replied.
     "Kor'osa mase'l K'tal vu'cha-aan," the Dragoon said slowly as he rubbed
at his eyes.
     "A'ren'i mase'l," the computer said in its flat monotone.
     Ami had to bite her tongue to keep herself from making any noise at the
shock of hearing the computer talk back to him.  When did that happen? she
wondered as she silently moved to a position slightly behind him, trying to
read the screen without alerting him to her presence.  While her hypnotic
powers could make someone forget that they see her, which effectively makes 
her
invisible, it only worked when no one had any reason to suspect she was 
around
and hence be more aware.
     "Mase'l a'ren'en, na kor'osa'i," said the computer as the display 
cleared
and lines of spidery denizen text began to scroll up.
     She only read the first three lines before she had to bite her tongue
again, her steel-blue eyes going wide as the situation started to unfold in 
her
mind.  Okay, large rift, something comes through, someone fires a missile at
the.... carrier?  She frowned as she tried to find another translation for 
the
unfamiliar character that would make more sense.  An airborne carrier?  
Anyway,
then it fires back with.... a mailman?  No, that can't be right....
     Ami was about to sigh heavily in frustration before she remembered that
she was invisible and hovering almost right behind Tolaris's ear.  Don't 
need
to give him another heart attack.... she thought before she covered her 
mouth
with her hand and silently let her breath out.  Cha'nak-Vilash'ne, she 
thought
as she translated the odd character.  I don't know what cha'nak means, but I
thought Maze said that the vilash'nea acted as message couriers back before
they discovered electronic communications....
     Her train of thought was disrupted as Tolaris suddenly sat back and 
began
to stretch, a huge yawn starting to build up in his chest.  Ami quickly 
moved
back in time to avoid brushing up against him, but wasn't aware of the 
static
charge he had acquired until it too late.
     There was a sharp snap of electricity as the charge jumped the narrow 
gap
between Tolaris's fingertips and the tip of Ami's nose, quickly followed by 
a
brief cry of pain.  Tolaris leapt out of his chair and whirled around in 
time
to see Ami fade into view only a few inches away, both hands pressed to her
face and the look of shock still in her eyes.
     He sighed as he turned the chair around and sat back down, rubbing the
tips of his fingers.  "As I often tell Maze, sneaking up on someone like 
that
is an excellent way of getting yourself killed.  Are you alright?"
     "I should be," Ami said quietly as she rubbed her nose with one hand 
and
wiped a tear out of her eye with the other.  "You've accidentally zapped me
with static electricity before, but not on my nose.  Was that from spending 
too
much time at the terminal or from not getting any sleep?"
     Tolaris grunted.  "Probably both.  I thought you were supposed to be
studying with the others."
     Ami frowned slightly.  "That was the plan for today, but that was 
before
Leda decided to stay up all night instead of sleeping.  Having Reish'id 
decide
to pay us a visit didn't help matters."
     The Dragoon blinked and looked up.  "Reish'id is here on Earth?"
     "Maq'i lent him her Silkworm crystal for a few hours," she explained.
"And after unintentionally causing a bit of chaos in the park, he's now at
Leda's apartment."
     Tolaris's expression darkened slightly.  "Did he run across anyone?"
     "Just one person," Ami said slowly.  "Molly."
     Tolaris sat back in his chair with a heavy sigh, the information 
putting
an even greater strain on his mind and body.  "Great...." he muttered.  He
looked up as he felt Ami take his hand in hers.
     "Dear, what's wrong?  I don't think I've ever seen you look this 
worn-out
before," she said softly.  "It has to do with the message from K'tal, 
doesn't
it?"  He said nothing and she continued with a heavy sigh.  "Leda told me 
that
you said for her not to tell me what's going on, and after reading about 
what
happened in this incident report or whatever it is...."
     "Nak'seth, kurush mase'la ae s'vaer," Tolaris said suddenly.
     Ami frowned as the computer chittered briefly before the display went
blank and the terminal went into a low-power standby mode.  "Do I want to 
ask
why you just did that?" she said cautiously.
     "It's not something you and the other Sailor Scouts need to be 
concerned
with just yet," he said, the lack of sleep evident in his voice.  "You 
should
be more concerned about Molly.  She's been exposed to too much information 
and
might be in a position to piece a few things together."
     Ami blinked.  "What makes you say that?" she said, immediately wary of 
the
sudden change of conversation.
     "Think," he explained.  "First off, she's been caught in the middle of 
a
lot of incidents between the Negaverse and the Sailor Scouts.  Then there's
her involvement with General Nephlyte, and we still don't know the full 
extent
of that.  Then you take into account that she's a close friend of Serena, 
and
while Serena might not intentionally give anything away, mistakes can be 
made.
And now that she's run into a denizen like Reish'id...."
     "I think I see your point," Ami said as a dark shiver passed through 
her.
Each incident alone isn't enough to go on anything, she thought, but if you
put enough of them together....  "So what do you think we should do?"
     Tolaris sighed again as he tried to think.  "Keep a close eye on her," 
he
said after a moment's thought.  "Try to learn what she knows.  And if she 
does
figure out enough, you and the other Sailor Scouts have to make a decision 
on
how important it is for your identities to remain a secret."
     Ami's eyes widened as she straightened up, a look of horror crossing 
her
features.  "You're not suggesting we consider...." she trailed off, unable 
to
vocalize the rest of the thought.
     The Dragoon sighed yet again, feeling every bit as old as his seven
hundred-plus years of life.  "If you want to take the risk of trusting her 
with
your true identities, that's your decision.  But you have to consider all of
your options, no matter how undesirable they may be."
     Ami said nothing as she turned around, not able to meet his gaze at the
thought and not believing that he had even suggested it.  She tried to think 
of
something else that could be done if the situation called for it.  A stray
thought suddenly popped into her mind and she turned around to give him an 
odd
look.  "If she does find out, can Whisper make her forget she knows?"
     Tolaris blinked at the thought and considered it carefully for a 
moment.
"You'll have to ask her as I don't have much of an understanding on how her
psionic powers work, but it does sound like a plausable idea," he said 
slowly.
     Ami nodded, feeling more than slightly relieved at finding a solution 
she
could easily live with.  "Good, that's one problem close to being solved.  
Now
about the message...." she said as she gestured to the now-blank screen.
     Tolaris gently tugged his hand out of her grasp and rubbed at his eyes
again.  "Ami, please believe me when I say you shouldn't be concerned about 
it
right now," he said, his weariness evident in his voice.
     "It has you so upset that you haven't even tried to get any sleep since
yesterday, and Maze only now went to bed a few minutes ago," she said 
softly.
"How can I not be worried about it if it's doing this to you?"
     The Dragoon just sighed.  "If you like sleeping peacefully at night, 
then
you really don't want to know just yet.  I thought we already went through 
this
once before about you wanting to know about certain things."
     Ami frowned.  "Like what?"
     Tolaris gave her a measured look.  "Like the cathedral's reactor."
     The vampire paled slightly at the mention of the reactor chamber in the
lowest level of the cathedral.  Her curiosity about the cathedral's source 
of
power had led her to question Tolaris about it, ignoring his warnings that 
she
really didn't want to know until he finally gave up and told her what kind 
of
reactor it was.  Afterwards, it had taken her three days to calm down to the
point where she could get a decent night's sleep without worrying about what
might happen if anything ever went wrong.
     "See my point?" he said when some of the color had returned to her 
cheeks.
     "I didn't need to be reminded of that," she muttered as she glanced 
away,
the images she had tried to hard to forget bubbling up from her memory.
     He reached out and drew her to him, giving her a gentle kiss.  "It's 
not
as bad as that, but...." he said softly.
     "But?" she prompted.
     "But it could be," he finished.  "However," he said as he reached out 
and
stilled her lips with a finger, "There's nothing any of us can do from here
except watch and wait, so there's no use in needless worry unless things 
start
to go downhill."
     Ami said nothing for a moment, studying the dark circles beneath his 
gray
eyes and the worry lines framing his face.  "If it's nothing to worry about,
why haven't you gotten any sleep?" she asked.
     Tolaris blinked for a moment before he chuckled softly to himself and
nuzzled her neck.  "Old habit," he murmurred in her ear.  "I always like to 
see
the reports as they come in, not a few hours later."
     She said nothing as she returned his embrace, not doubting in the least
that he liked to get his information as it came in, but not entirely sure 
that
was his only reason for staying up for so long.  She blinked and pulled away
from him to give him a curious look as he sighed heavily.  "What is it?"
     "Old age setting in," he said with a hint of a smile.  "Five hundred 
years
ago, I could have stayed awake for an entire weekend without winding up 
totally
brain-dead.  I've only been up for two days, and already my mind is turning
into a cinder."
     Ami gave him a reproving look.  "Go to bed, dear."
     "Yes, Doctor," he chuckled as he released her and stood up, taking the
time to stretch as he did so.
     "Funny," she said as she kissed his cheek.  "You need me to go with you
to make sure you don't bump into anything?"
     Tolaris gave her an amused look.  "That depends.  If I leave you alone,
are you going to do something constructive like study or are you going to do
something foolish like try to break the encryption lock I just put on the 
data
files in the computer?"  He couldn't resist smiling to himself as a dark 
blush
spread across her features.
     "I love you too," she muttered as she took hold of his arm and led him 
out
of the computer room.  She had opened the door and was about to step into 
the
hallway when a thought suddenly occured to her.  "Wait...." she started to 
say.
     Tolaris was about to say something when he happened to glance up and 
saw
the weaver hanging off of the ceiling.  While he knew that weavers were very
much capable of climbing walls when they put their minds to it, he hadn't
thought it possible for them to hang from ceilings and wasn't prepared to 
see
one doing so a few feet away from him.
     Ami yelped as Tolaris's combative reflexes momentarily took over, 
sending
an electrical current along his arm in preparation for hurling a lightning
bolt.  He recovered his wits before he actually did so, but since Ami had 
been
holding onto him, the charge briefly passed through her hand with a sharp
crackle.
     "Are you alright?" he asked quickly as he dispersed the energy into the
air around him, briefly giving everything a static charge and coming rather
close to dislodging Dyvach from the ceiling.
     "What did I ever do to you?" she muttered as she flexed her hand, 
trying
to get some sensation back into it.
     "Sorry," he aplogized before looking up at the slightly upset 
crystalline
spider.  "And what are you doing up there, aside from scaring the navidshi 
out
of us?"
     Dyvach chimed an apology before it released its hold, twisting its body 
to
land with a heavy thump on its many legs.  It made a disoriented chiming 
noise
as it flexed a few joints before giving the Dragoon a lengthy explanation of
what it had been doing.
     "Do we not feed you enough?" he asked with a sigh.  The weaver made a
rather sour chiming noise as it flushed a rather odd shade of orange, adding 
a
complex series of chimes to its original statement.  Tolaris sighed again as 
he
rubbed the bridge of his nose.  "You could have said something earlier, you
know."
     Dyvach made a rather strangled chiming noise as its usually 
crystal-clear
carapace turned a deep shade of black, chittering away at a rapid-fire pace 
in
its native language.  Tolaris blinked and frowned as he quickly translated 
the
weaver's chimes into something he could understand.
     "Of course you can," he said when Dyvach finally fell silent, softly
chittering unkind things to itself.  "We're surrounded by a small forest of
trees.  I don't think anyone will miss half a dozen or so of the large ones.
The only thing we're concerned about is keeping enough of the foilage around 
to
conceal the cathedral.  As long as that's done, you can eat as much of the
landscape as you want."
     Ami gave Tolaris an odd look as Dyvach chimed happily and made its way 
off
towards one of the balcony doors.  "Do I want to ask what that was about?" 
she
asked cautiously.
     Tolaris shrugged.  "Dyvach had apparently asked Mina if it could eat 
one
of the trees growing outside.  She didn't like that idea too well for some
reason and told Dyvach it couldn't."
     Ami just shook her head slowly.  "Another reason to have a dog instead 
of
a giant spider as a pet," she muttered to herself.  "Dogs like wood too, but
when you throw them a branch, they bring it back to you instead of eating 
it."
     Tolaris chuckled to himself as they continued to walk down the corridor
towards the bedroom wing.  "Luna would be offended if she heard you say 
that,"
he said.
     "When was the last time Luna fetched a stick for you?" Ami replied.
     "When was the last time you asked her to?" the Dragoon countered.
     Ami just sighed.  "Perhaps Mother had the right idea."
     Tolaris raised an eyebrow.  "And what idea was that?"
     "Maybe there is something to be said for raising goldfish after 
all...."

                *               *               *               *

     "So where will you go now?" the Shinma said rather languidly as he 
tried
to summon the energy to sit up and failed miserably.
     "Back to my keep and back to business," Susan replied as she stretched
rather provocatively before rising from the bed and flexing her wings.  
"While
I do have time to indulge my hobby here and there, I still have duties I 
must
attend to."
     "Indeed," he said softly, still enjoying the pleasant state of 
exhaustion
he was in.  "And might that mark on your forehead have anything to do with 
it?"
     Susan frowned for a moment before she held her hand up to her head and 
saw
a green glow being reflected off of her skin.  Forgot about that, she 
thought
darkly to herself.  "The sign of my master," she said truthfully.  "It has 
the
tendency to appear at odd moments as a.... reminder that I shouldn't spend 
too
much time indulging."
     He said nothing as he watched her get dressed, still curious as to why 
she
had wings.  He had asked her earlier about it during their lovemaking, but 
she
had brushed his question aside with a soft comment and a kiss that had sent
shocks down what passed for his spinal cord.  Even now his body tingled at 
the
memory of the kiss, something that didn't quite sit well with him.
     "Perhaps we can do this again sometime later," he suggested as she 
tugged
the jet-black evening gown back into place and smoothed out the wrinkles.
     She gave him a partially-amused look.  "Perhaps," she said as she knelt
down to put her shoes on.  As she did so, she could feel the fabric of her 
gown
shifting slightly, a subtle reminder that there was more there than silken
threads.  She stood up and smoothed out the wrinkles once more, making a 
near-
silent noise in her throat.
     "I trust the payment has been sufficient?" she asked the Shinma.
     "Most sufficient," Balor said with a smile.
     "Then with your permission, Lord Balor, I must return to my keep," she
said with a small bow.
     "Of course," he said with a nod of his head.  "I wish you a safe 
journey
and I hope we can see each other again."
     "Perhaps," she said with a small smile before she turned around and 
left
the small room, heading towards the keep's front gate.
     Balor said nothing as he watched her go, listening to the fading sounds
of her footsteps in the corridor and the sound of her closing a rather heavy
door behind her.
     "I'll admit that this one has me completely confused," he said to the 
air
around him.  "Usually at least something is obvious, but not in this case."
      said a
decidedly inhuman voice.  The voice seemed to come from nowhere and 
everywhere
at the same time, being both soft as a whisper and as loud as a scream.
     Balor frowned slightly.  "Granted, but things have often been explained 
to
me before, in case I need to intervene and don't have the time to.... 
consult
with you about the matter."
     
     A dark shiver ran down Balor's spine at the unholy voice's words.  "Can
you at least satisfy my curiosity about why she had wings?" he ventured, not
sure if he was crossing a line by asking further questions.
     
     The Shinma suddenly sat up in his bed in shock.  "A succubus!"
      said the voice, sounding faintly amused.  
     "I...Indeed," Balor replied, knowing that his mysterious 'guest' had 
been
generous in giving him any compensation at all.
      the
unholy voice said and fell silent.  As it did so, the air in the chamber 
seemed
to become ever so slightly lighter, as if an intangible weight was being 
lifted
from the room.
     Balor sighed and laid back against his pillows.  Strange, he thought to
himself.  Usually his assignments were more involved than simply giving one
particular soul to a wandering succubus and having his reward be having part
of his life-force extracted out through his nether region in a most 
enjoyable
fashion.  He shuddered when he thought of what else could have been 
extracted
from him at her whim.
     The price to be paid for having a Demon as an ally, Balor thought as he
laid back down and started to do some serious thinking about the situation.
So what does a succubus, a human, two Shinma, and a soul have in common? he
thought.  Curious indeed....

                *               *               *               *

     Ami sighed quietly to herself as she looked up at the various displays 
the
central computer's crystal monitor was currently showing.  Two screens were
occupied with the cathedral's external sensor array, one doing a diagnostic 
and
the other searching for something that would only last for a few moments 
when
it happened.  The third screen displayed the current configuration for the
voice-interface program, and the fourth was a blank screen with a flashing 
red
spider-like character in the very center.
     "Computer," Ami said slowly.
     "Ready," the flat monotone of the computer replied.
     "Request super-user access, authorization Mercury alpha two five four,"
she said carefully.
     The crystal computer chittered to itself for a moment before making a 
soft
buzzing noise.  "State authority for alpha clearance," it replied.
     Let's hope this works, she thought to herself as she took a deep 
breath.
"Preparation for impending invasion via Silkworm-class wormholes.  Request
access to be granted upon detection of wormhole formation at the following
location," she said, rattling off a string of letters and numbers that would
correspond with a partiular spot on the denizen maps of downtown Tokyo.
     The computer chittered to itself as it processed the information, the
hyper-fast CPU attempting to validate her request against a list of accepted
and denied factors in it's access database.
     Ami glanced down at the tiny clock displayed on the bottom of the 
computer
screen and prayed she had gotten the timing right.  Too soon and it won't 
start
looking until after it happens, and if it takes too long, it'll abort the
request and set off an alarm, she thought.  Let's hope he's as punctual as I
think he would be....
     "Access granted upon detection of Silkworm-class wormhole formation at
specified coordinates.  Request window is ten minutes, mark," the computer
finally replied in its synthetic monotone.
     One down, one to go, she thought as she glanced up at the display of 
what
the external sensors were picking up.  She had modified the sensor array's
search pattern to look for the wormholes, but she couldn't tell if the 
array's
range was large enough to pick up the signal.
     As if on cue, one of the readings began to spike as it picked up the 
tiny
burst of quasi-dimensional radiation associated with a wormhole being opened
up between Earth and the Negaverse.  Thank you, Reish'id, Ami thought as her
head whipped around to stare at the fourth display screen.
     "Wormhole formation detected at coordinates N3149W2210A0329.  
Alpha-level
super-user access granted," the computer said.
     Ami smiled to herself.  You just have to love technology, she thought.
"Computer, modify access priveledges to include theta-level super-user 
access
for the following accounts: Mercury, Senshi, Remote.  Lock and verify."
     The computer chittered to itself for several seconds as it made changes 
to
its security access roster and bleeped quietly.  "Theta-level super-user 
access
granted to users Mercury, Senshi, and Remote," it replied.
     "Gotcha," she whispered to herself, still smiling.  The secret of 
gaining
alpha-level access had eluded her for weeks until she realized that it 
existed
as a means of ensuring orders given under certain conditions are executed
without waiting to see if the person is cleared or not.  The drawback was 
that
the 'certain conditions' usually required a discernable state of emergency 
for
it to be implemented.
     Fortunately for me, Ami thought as she sat back for a moment, the 
system's
decision tree was designed by the military, which makes it rather easy to 
fool
it into thinking that a forming wormhole is a prelude to an invasion.  And
since I had advanced warning of Reish'id's wormhole, it made even more sense 
to
the computer that knowing a wormhole is going to open up at a particular 
spot
means we know about the 'invasion' and need to prepare for it.
     And now that I've secured super-user access for myself and the computer
links, it's time to cover my tracks, she thought as she leaned forward, a 
faint
echo of the smile still evident on her face.  "Computer, terminate 
super-user
session."
     "Alpha-level super-user access withdrawn," the computer replied after a
momentary pause.
     "Request super-user access, authorization Mercury theta seven two one."
     The crystal computer chittered to itself as it checked the access 
roster
and bleeped softly.  "Theta-level super-user access granted."
     Too easy, Ami thought with a chuckle.  While alpha access was used for
emergency situations, theta access was supposed to be an internal level of
access, used only by programs within the computer to gain access to certain
types of data.  The reason she had spent weeks trying to gain theta-level
access, despite it's limitations, was because the system didn't keep track 
of
commands given under theta authority since they were theoretically supposed 
to
be issued by a user with a logged access level.
     "Computer, purge all records and trace logs of all alpha-level activity
within the past fifteen minutes by user Mercury," she said slowly.
     "Working," the computer replied as it started to search through the 
data
logs for the specified information, erasing the information where 
appropriate.
"Purge completed," it reported a few seconds later.
     Now that we've covered our butt, she thought, it's time to get to work.
"Computer, access and display technical schematics for external matrix port
zero nine," she said evenly as she pulled her computer and personal set of
micro-screwdrivers out of her Lunar Space pocket.  A new window opened up on
the crystal screen and displayed the information she requested as she 
selected
a 'driver and began to remove the tiny screws on the bottom of her computer.
     "Playing with the computers again?" said a soft voice from the door,
briefly sending an icy wave of surprise through Ami's blood.
     "Serena, don't sneak up on me like that," Ami chided her as she glanced
out of the corner of her eye.
     The blonde shook her head as she stepped into the computer room, still
wearing her school uniform.  "I swear, if you don't have your nose buried in
some book, you're either got your computer spread out across half a room or
you're poking around on the cathedral mainframe.  Or occasionally both," she
added as she glanced at Ami's set of tools and the screwdriver in her hand.
     "Oh, please," Ami said as she briefly rolled her eyes.  "I don't spend
nearly as much time working with my computer as you think I do."
     "Or as much as you'd like to," Serena countered with a smile.  "And do 
you
have a good reason for your decision to start talking to it, or has your 
brain
finally cracked from information overload?"
     Ami turned her head to give her a sweet smile.  "Nak'seth, kurush 
a'vel,
men'kata Mercury n'thenan s'ech vuun ann," she said evenly.
     Serena's eyes doubled in size as the door slammed shut behind her and a
reinforced bulkhead began to descend from the ceiling.  Protective shutters
started to move into place over the windows, and by the time the blonde was
able to figure out what was going on, everything was locked into place with 
an
ominous thumping sound.
     "A'vel kurush'en," the computer replied.
     "As you can see," Ami explained, still smiling, "The cathedral's 
central
computer can somehow understand spoken words now.  You have to know what 
you're
doing for it to work, but figuring out what to say and how isn't all that
difficult."
     "I see...." Serena said slowly as she gave the security bulkhead behind
her a measured look.  "Should I ask how strong this steel whatever is?" she
asked as she tapped it with a fingernail.
     "It's nothing compared to door on the arsenal vault," Ami admitted with 
a
shrug as she turned most of her attention back to disassembling her 
computer.
"However, it is more than sufficient to keep most people out of the computer
room in case of an emergency."
     Serena frowned lightly as she turned back around to face Ami.  "Or when
you don't want to be disturbed when playing with it?" she asked pointedly.
     "Of course not," Ami replied.  "The room is only supposed to be 
isolated
when something is seriously wrong, like we're being invaded.  I just did it 
as
an example of what can be done without having to type in each instruction by
hand.  Nak'seth, i'kurush a'vel, tae men'kata ti p'rien," she added.
     The blonde just shook her head slowly as the bulkhead and protective
plates started to move back into their usual unsecured positions.  "You're
starting to sound like a denizen with the ease at which you say things like
that.  I can't say six syllables without having to clear my throat at least
twice, and even then I can barely manage to get my tongue to say them the 
way
you or Tolaris can," she complained with a faintly sour look.
     Ami just shrugged.  "Practice makes perfect," she said as she removed 
the
last screw and carefully pried apart the outer casing of her computer.
     "Umm, Ami, before you take that thing apart...." Serena started to say.
     "Too late," Ami said with a wry grin as she held up the two halves of 
her
computer, still connected by the multitude of tiny wires inside.  "It's only
the casing, so I can put it back together if you need it.  What's up?"
     "Well...." Serena said slowly as she moved a vacant chair over next to
Ami and sat down.  "I could have sworn I felt one of those dark chills while 
I
was still at school, but I had a teacher watching me so I couldn't try to 
reach
any of you on the communicator.  Did something happen or anything?"
     Ami sighed quietly as she set her computer and screwdriver down on the
table.  "I'm.... glad you brought that up," she said slowly.  "Reish'id 
decided
to pay Leda a visit and had trouble finding her, so he did something to get 
our
attention."
     "I think it worked, too," Serena muttered to herself as she shivered at
the memory of the chill that had gone through her when it happened.  A stray
thought crossed her mind and she looked up with a faintly suspicious look in
her blue eyes.  "What else happened?"
     "Well...." Ami started to say, then hesitated for a brief moment.
     Serena blinked.  "You didn't blast him or anything, did you?" she asked
in concern.
     A faint smile played on the edges of the vampire's lips.  "No, nothing
like that, Serena.  It's just that.... well.... he...."
     A dark chill swept through Serena as Ami hesitated again.  This can't 
be
anything good if she doesn't want to talk about it, she thought as she 
started
to worry.  "Spit it out, Ami.  What happened?"
     Ami took a deep breath and tried to calm down.  "He sort of ran into 
Molly
before we got there.... relax, Serena, he didn't hurt her or anything," she
said quickly as Serena's eyes nearly doubled in diameter, "It's just that we
have a reason to suspect that after her contact with Reish'id, she might be
able to discern our identities as Sailor Scouts."
     Serena blinked as she digested the information.  "That's not good...." 
she
said quietly.  She looked up into Ami's medium-blue eyes and sighed quietly.
"She knows a few things already, like the fact that you've got a boyfriend 
who
appears to be significantly older than you are."
     Ami blinked in surprise before she sighed heavily.  "And how did she 
find
this out?" she said wearily as she slumped back in her chair.
     "Melvin told her, which means...."
     "....that the entire school will know by sundown tomorrow," Ami 
finished
for her.  "Great, just what I need.  You didn't tell her anything about us,
did you?"
     Serena turned a light shade of pink.  "Well.... um, now that you happen 
to
have mentioned that, she did ask me for his name...."  Her breath was cut 
off
in her throat as Ami suddenly leaned forward and grabbed the top of her 
blouse
in an iron grip, a look of panic in her eyes.
     "You didn't tell her, did you?" she said, her eyes as wide as saucers.
     An icy droplet of sweat crawled down Serena's back.  "Umm.... well, 
I....
I sort of told her, but I told her not to tell anyone else...."
     Ami released her grip and slumped back in her chair again, her gaze 
going
vacant.  "Oh no...." she whispered.  "Serena, do you know what you've done?"
     Serena blinked.  "I know you told me not to tell anyone about you 
having
a boyfriend, Ami, but she already knew that, and besides...."
     "Serena," Ami said quietly.  She waited until the silence started to 
rub
on the blonde's nerves before she spoke again.  "She knows that a Dragoon 
named
Tolaris is from the Negaverse."
     "What?!" Serena said incrediously.
     "Remember when we came back from the Negaverse and had the Star Crystal
with us?" the vampire said softly.  "He gave it to Molly that night, telling
her who he was and why he was giving it to her.  Are you going to be okay?" 
she
asked when she saw how pale Serena had become within the past few seconds.
     "Oh, god.... Ami, I-I'm sorry, I didn't know...."
     Ami sighed softly as she picked up her computer and snapped the casing
back together.  "Where was she when you ran into her?" she asked as she 
began
to replace the tiny screws.
     "Umm, she was in the park, but that was half an hour ago and I think 
she
would have gone home for dinner by now," Serena said.
     "We're just going to have to find out," Ami replied as she broke a 
speed
record for screwing her computer shut.  "Computer, terminate all sessions by
user Mercury."
     The crystal computer chittered to itself for a brief moment as it 
closed
all of the display windows and reset the screen to show a single blinking
spider-like character.  "All sessions terminated," the computer replied in 
its
flat monotone.
     Serena blinked as Ami stood up and grabbed her arm, dragging her out of
the room and down the hallway.  "Wait a moment, Ami, where are we going?"
     "Come on, Serena, we've got to go talk to her and now," Ami replied, 
still
tugging on the blonde's arm.  "You're her friend and we've got to get her to
tell us what she knows."
     "Alright, already, don't get your panties in a wad," Serena grumbled as
she yanked her arm free of Ami's grasp and followed her down the hallway.
"But how do we do that without letting her know we know something?  We can't
just walk up to her and ask, 'Hey, Molly, what do you know about the true
identities of the Sailor Scouts?'"
     Ami blinked and suddenly came to a halt in mid-stride, causing Serena 
to
almost run her over.  "Why not?" she asked softly, giving her a mild look.

                *               *               *               *

     "General Rune?" the voice said softly as it intruded into a rare 
pleasant
dream, dispersing the images like fog touched by the morning sun.
     What now? Rune thought darkly as she groaned quietly and rolled over,
trying valiantly to open eyelids that seemed to weigh several pounds each.
"What sort of crisis do we have now, Si'ren?" Rune grumbled as she 
recognized
the silvery insignia affixed to the admiral's dark-blue nightgown.  Do I 
want
to wonder why she wears rank on her bed clothes? she thought fuzzily.
     "Several, actually," Si'ren replied, her own voice sounding like she 
had
woken up only a few moments earlier.  "Which do you want to hear about 
first,
the carriers, the Leviathans, or your communications lieutenant?"
     Rune said a rude word as she sat up and fumbled for the light switch,
cursing softly again as the sudden brightness gave her an instant headache.
"V'Kreeth," she said, "Go find me some...."
     She blinked as a patch of darkness emerged from her private bathroom 
and
she felt a small, sealed packet being pressed into her still-outstretched 
hand,
followed by the sound of a glass being set down on her nightstand.
     "...thing for a headache," Rune finished softly.  She looked up at her
shadowy bodyguard and shook her head back and forth.  "Tell me, V'Kreeth, 
are
you telepathic or was that one just hideously obvious?"
     "It was expected," he replied evenly.
     "Thank you," Rune said as she tore open the packet and emptied the 
bluish
powder into the glass of water.  "You said something about my communications
lieutenant?" she said, glancing up at Si'ren.
     Si'ren sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose.  "Yes, Lieutenant 
D'mer.
An alarm was triggered in her quarters about ten minutes ago, and when 
security
arrived, they discovered that she had apparently been working on some sort 
of
sensor suite for TacSat helmets and had accidentally electrocuted herself
rather thoroughly."
     Rune didn't wait for the powder to finish dissolving compelely before 
she
drained the entire glass in one large gulp, making a face at the bittersweet
aftertaste.  "Yeech.  I want a full report on the incident as soon as 
possible.
Who did you leave in charge?"
     "Security Lieutenant Tempest.  She said she had seen this kind of thing
before and said she would take care of the incident," Si'ren replied.
     Rune nodded, knowing full well that Tempest was one of her better 
agents
and had been briefed beforehand on what to expect.  "Very well, then.  Who's
her replacement?"
     "I've got one of my officers filling the slot until we can select one.
I'll admit he's not the best of operators, but he will suffice until one 
with
better skills can be found," the admiral said.
     Rune grunted softly, still waiting for the medicine to produce an 
effect.
"So tell me about the crisis involving your Leviathans."
     "We've managed to get a positive fix on the sonar contacts in both 
oceans.
Six ships in the south, five in the north, all subsurface ships," she said 
as
she sat on the far end of Rune's bed.  "We still don't have a clue as to 
where
they came from or who's got control of them, but what they seem to be doing 
is
scouting the oceans."
     Rune blinked.  "Scouting?"
     Si'ren sighed and ran her fingers through her short white hair.  "What
they're doing is using a new type of sonar to determine the number, type, 
and
location of the surface ships.  And since it's a brand-new type of sonar, 
the
ships didn't realize they were being pinged until it was far too late to do
anything about it."
     "Wonderful," Rune grumped.  "So we know that they're there, but not who
they are or how they got there, and they know what we've got and where.  
Have
they discovered the Leviathans yet?"
     Si'ren shook her head.  "We don't think they have, or if they do know,
they aren't giving any indications of it.  I sent a message to the Leviathan
captains telling them to follow the ships, but to be extremely careful about
doing it."
     "Better and better," the dark-haired general said sourly.  "Do you have
any good news for me, Si'ren?"
     Si'ren laughed quietly, a rather delicate sound that seemed 
out-of-place
given the current situation and mood.  "Of course not, General Rune.  No 
good
news has ever arrived at this hour of the morning.  But now that you seem to
be awake, I'll tell you why I decided to wake you up in the first place."
     "What did the carriers do now?" Rune asked evenly.
     "Well, this is going to sound strange...." Si'ren began.
     "On second thought, let me use the bathroom first," Rune suggested as 
she
threw aside the covers and made her way into the bathroom, muttering dark
things to herself about rude surprises and full bladders.
     "Probably a wise course of action," Si'ren said to V'Kreeth when the 
door
closed somewhat forcefully.
     "Queen Beryl often did the same thing, if you recall," replied the 
shadow,
his voice sounding to Si'ren like dry leaves whispering over stone.  "And 
she
was almost always glad she did beforehand."
     Si'ren smiled.  "Tell me something, V'Kreeth.  A personal question."  
She
received silence in response and continued.  "How are things between you and
Moirah?"
     "I don't understand what you mean," he rumbled softly.
     "I know you two are discreet around Rune and never do anything while
either one of you are on-duty," Si'ren said slowly, "But things have 
been....
shall we say, noticed happening between you two."
     Again she received silence in response and she sighed.  "Very well, 
then,
but I would like you to consider something.  I know very well about the 
rules
and regulations about two officers having a relationship within the ranks, 
and
quite frankly, I agree with the wisdom behind them.  However, few people 
have
noticed that they only apply within the same branch of service."
     "So what exactly is to be considered?" V'Kreeth said after a moment.
     Si'ren tilted her head to one side.  "I always thought the ability to
transform one's body into a cohesive liquid would be highly useful within 
the
Navy, especially in the security division.  We do have bodyguards as well, 
you
know, not to mention a hideously large network of plumbing that water can go
through as it moves from point to point, unnoticed by everyone else."
     The shadow said nothing, merely moving to one side as the bathroom door
opened and Rune walked out, only looking slightly more awake then when she
went in.  "If anything is going wind up killing me, it'll probably be from 
my
bladder exploding from drinking too much ma'cha," Rune grumbled.
     Si'ren's eyebrows rose up in feigned surprise.  "I heard Chief Mal'ek 
say
something about sending up an old fuel tank filled with ma'cha for you 
earlier
today.  I thought he was joking, but perhaps he hadn't been...."
     "Let's not get into that one, Si'ren," Rune grumbled as her insides
twinged at the memory.  "Now then, you were going to explain to me about the
problem with the carriers."
     "Two of them disappeared," the admiral said simply.
     Rune blinked.  "Disappeared," she repeated slowly.
     "One moment we had them on our sensors, the next they simply vanished.
The pilots we had 'escorting' them say the carriers seemed to ripple like a
reflection in a puddle of water before fading from both their sensors and
visual sight," Si'ren explained.
     "V'Kreeth, call down to Chief Mal'ek's office and see if you can't have
someone find a bottle of something with a serious kick to it and have it
brought up here," Rune said wearily as she sat down on her bed.  "So what's
K'tal say about this one?"
     Si'ren paused for a brief moment.  "I sent someone to go find him and 
have
him report to you as soon as he had reviewed what little information we have
and put something together on it.  And knowing our little Dragoon, he should
be here within the next five m...."
     Everyone blinked as there was a polite but firm knock on the door.  "If 
we
weren't in the middle of a crisis, I could be highly amused at this," Rune 
said
as she waved V'Kreeth back and opened the door herself.
     "Ma'am, Dragoon Commander K'tal reporting as ordered," he said crisply,
despite the fact that he looked like he hadn't slept in a week.  His uniform
was still in order, but his eyes were so bloodshot as to almost appear to be
a featureless black.
     "You can come in only if you've got good news for me," Rune muttered as
she stepped back and waved the Dragoon into her quarters.
     K'tal seemed to hesitate for a brief moment before he stepped in and 
moved
to one side, not wanting to intrude any more than necessary.  "I've seen the
data we have on the carriers' disappearance and the best we can come up with
is some sort of electromagnetic cloaking device.  Don't ask me for specifics
because this is something new to us and we're still trying to figure out how
they managed to pull it off," he explained almost breathlessly.
     Rune and Si'ren exchanged concerned glances and Rune sighed.  
"V'Kreeth,"
she started to say.
     "Another few minutes," her bodyguard replied almost apologetically.
     "What about the telepathic communication between the carriers?" Si'ren
asked, ignoring the sudden icy chill making its way down her spine.
     "The telepathic pilots said it continued for a few moments after the
carriers cloaked, if you will, but it began to decrease in intenisty within 
a
matter of seconds," K'tal said as he glanced down at the condensed report he
carried.  "Captain Ael'ien is currently occupied trying to direct an effort 
to
locate the cloaked carriers using telepathic means, but it's her opinion 
that
the fading signals meant that the carriers probably altered their course and
could be anywhere by now."
     Rune suppressed the urge to scream.  "And what about the third carrier,
the visible one?" she said, trying to keep her temper in check.
     "It's maintaining it's previous course, speed, and altitude," K'tal
replied after quickly re-reading the report.  "Bearing two-eight-zero, speed
fifty miles per hour, and an altitude of two thousand feet."
     "That doesn't sound overly fast," Rune commented.  "I know transports 
that
move faster than that."
     "But that is a rather significant speed for a carrier," Si'ren replied.
"Especially an airborne one.  You have to consider they not only need the 
power
for forward velocity, they also need a great deal more just to remain aloft.
And given the fact that it's about the size of a small landing strip, that's
quite a lot of mass to be moving around at that height and speed."
     Rune frowned.  "And how do they do it, with jet thrusters?"
     K'tal closed his eyes as he briefly searched his memory.  
"Actually...."
he said slowly, "The Vresh'tan carriers use a series of rotary propellers."
     Si'ren's eyes nearly fell out of her head.  "What?!  They're keeping a
carrier aloft with propellers?  That's insane!"
     "Begging the admiral's pardon," K'tal said evenly, "If it's insane and 
it
works like it's supposed to, then perhaps insanity needs to be redefined."
     Si'ren's reply remained unspoken as there was a soft knock on the open
door and what could only be described as a wizened old man poked his head 
in.
"'Tis a rough night indeed if'n y'r still askin' for th' bottle at this 
hour,
General Rune," he said lightly as he held out a small bottle and a rack of
glass tumblers.
     Rune's eyebrows rose up.  "Chief Mal'ek, what are you doing up at this
hour?" she said as she took the bottle from him and examined the label.
     Mal'ek chuckled softly to himself, his breath rattling in his lungs.
"Aye, I be wond'ring that m'self, if'n I dinna happen t' catch word o' a bit
o' a crisis a'brewin," he said, his voice marred by both his accent and age.
"I know how ye be, Rune.  All too well, perhaps," he added as he thrust the
rack of tumblers into K'tal's hands, causing the Dragoon to make a quick
scramble to keep both the report and the rack in his hands while trying to
regain his balance.
     "Perhaps," she said in amusement.  Mal'ek was probably one of the 
oldest
denizens she knew still in active service, and it continued to amaze her how
someone could be as active as he was at his age without the aid of some sort
of regenerative ability.  While he was rather irreverent at times and had
little respect for rank by itself, his past record of service to the throne 
and
the military rivaled that of most generals, which allowed him some measure 
of
leeway with the formalities and other things.
     "Chief...." Rune said slowly as she took a good look at the label on 
the
bottle of amber fluid.  "This is from Earth?"
     Mal'ek smiled.  "Aye, that it 'tis.  One o' y'r agents picked up a bit 
o'
Earth spirits for me as a special favor, as I 'twas curious as t' how much 
o'
a mean brew those humans could make."
     K'tal scratched the back of his head.  "Begging the general's pardon, 
but
I'd be careful with that stuff if I were you.  I've heard that some of their
alcohol is on the level of fermented le'un berries."
     Si'ren shivered lightly.  "If that's the case, General, I would take 
his
advice and be careful.  I don't know about you, but alcohol as strong as 
that
would have me on my ptanka in very little time."
     Mal'ek snorted distainfully.  "Here now, ye'll have none o' th' sort o'
problems wi' this.  'Tis called 'skot'ch,' and while it'll have ye a'chasin'
mer'catas outta y'r skull after about half a bottle, ye shouldna have any 
sort
o' problem if ye only drink a glass or two."
     "And the taste?" Rune inquired as she peered at the label and tried to
translate the written words.  I swear, their alphabet looks like something a
hatchling vep'tera scratched into the dirt while looking for food, she 
mused.
She blinked as Mal'ek plucked the bottle from her hands and worked the cork
free.
     "Try some an' see," he said as he poured a small measure into a tumbler
and held it out to her.  "I think 'tis rather smooth m'self, but ye should
always judge for y'self."
     "Excuse me," V'Kreeth said suddenly as he took the tumbler from Mal'ek
and passed his hand over the rim of the glass.  He then studied the pattern 
of
dim lights on the tiny and nearly invisible scanner he held before he held 
the
glass out to Rune.
     "Did ye think I would poison her?" Mal'ek said mildly.
     "No offense, Chief, but in my line of work, we can take no chances," 
the
shadow replied evenly.
     Rune took the glass from him and sniffed it experimentally, blinking in
surprise as the sharp scent made the inside of her nose start to burn.  
"Mmm,
smells strong enough to peel wallpaper," she commented before she took a 
sip.
She swallowed and gasped as her senses seemed to explode momentarily before
returning back to normal.
     "Ye said ye wanted somethin' wi' a bit o' a kick t' it," Mal'ek said 
with
a twinkle in his jet black eyes.
     "That.... that it does," Rune said, still slightly stunned.
     "May I?" Si'ren asked politely as she gestured to the bottle.
     "O' course, help y'self," Mal'ek replied as he plucked another tumbler
out of the rack and poured a small measure of scotch into it.  "I'll be 
headin'
off t' bed soon, Admiral, so I hope ye'll forgive me if I don' stick around 
t'
peel ye off o' the walls when y'r finished wi' the bottle, but ye and the
General are welcome t' keep it," he said as he passed her the bottle and 
kept
the glass for himself.  "I'll have a steward come pick up th' glasses in th'
mornin' o' afternoon, whichever is most convenient for ye."
     "Your services are most appreciated, as they always are," Rune said as 
she
took another sip of the scotch.  "Pleasant dreams, Chief Mal'ek."
     Mal'ek nodded his head.  "And t' ye as well, General Rune."  He turned
around to leave but paused in mid-motion and craned his head around to look 
at
her.  "I heard 'bout th' incident with th' missile this mornin'," he said 
very
slowly, as if choosing his words carefully.  "And if'n ye don' mind m' 
sayin'
so, ye shouldna let that pass lightly, but ye should also tread carefully 
when
dealin' wi' th' Dark One.  Few people are aware o' this, but she returned t'
th' Imperial Castle 'bout a thousand years back, and I had the chance o' 
bein'
part o' th' crew that saw t' her needs while she was a'visitin'.  Her temper
makes Beryl's fits seem like mild farts an' she's 'bout as warm as a block 
o'
ice, but t' this day I ne'er met one who mets out rewards an' punishments 
wi'
as much fairness or fervor as her.  She'll slice ye t' ribbons if'n you 
oppose
her, but she'll also make tatters of whomever dares to e'en so much as think 
o'
lookin' cross-eyed at those she calls allies.  She's a right thorny one, but
t' a one her soldiers dearly love her.  I'm jus' sayin' for ye to be 
careful,
Rune.  Fair evenin'."
     Rune said nothing as she watched the ancient denizen shuffle down the
hallway.  She took another sip of her scotch before she crossed the room and
closed the door, a thoughtful yet haunted expression on her face.  "So what 
do
you think of the Chief's words?" she asked softly.  "You can set the rack 
down
over there, K'tal, unless you feel like holding onto that all night."
     "Thank you, ma'am," he replied as he carefully set the rack of glasses
down in the distant corner and came back with a pair of glasses.  "You may
need this, Admiral, unless you've had one of those days," he said as he held
out a glass tumbler to her.
     "Tempting as the idea sounds, I'll stick with being civilized," Si'ren
replied as she accepted the glass and poured herself a goodly amount of 
scotch
before passing the bottle to K'tal.  "And how old is Mal'ek, if I may ask?"
     Rune did the math in her head and gave K'tal a measured look.  "I'm not
sure on the exact numbers, but I'd say he could have retired from the 
military
with full honors and benefits before K'tal was even an idea.  You're what, 
six
hundred some-odd years old, Commander?"
     The skin on K'tal's face darkened as he blushed.  "Six hundred seventy-
three, ma'am."
     Rune grunted.  "Okay, so perhaps while you were still in diapers, 
then."
     Si'ren blinked and sat down on the bed.  "And I thought Al'vexi had 
stayed
in for an overly long time.  You know...." she said, pausing to take a sip 
of
her scotch, "I had heard a rumor that Nop'tera had returned with the damaged
carrier so long ago, but no one could ever prove it.  If she did return 
briefly
and Mal'ek did meet her as he claims to, and I don't see any reason for him 
to
lie about that, then I think it would be wise to consider his.... words of
wisdom carefully."
     "Indeed," Rune said as she sipped at her own scotch.  Once you get past
the initial kick-in-the-pants, she thought, this really does have a smooth
taste to it.
     "Personal experience notwithstanding," K'tal said carefully, "He does 
have
a point about wanting to tread carefully.  Anyone who reacts to a 
conventional
missile attack with a nuclear warhead isn't someone to be taken lightly."
     "Nor is the nuclear response," Rune said as she set her glass down on 
her
nightstand with a dull thump, watching the surface of the amber liquid 
ripple.
She blinked as she felt a tiny nagging sensation in her mind, almost as if 
her
subconscious was trying to tell her something.
     Rune had learned long ago that it was ultimately best for her to stop
whatever she was currently doing and try to figure things out whenever she 
got
that nagging feeling.  It didn't start until I set the glass down, she 
started
to reason, so it's either something I did or something I saw....
     K'tal and Si'ren both noticed Rune's gaze going vacant at the same time
and exchanged glances, knowing full well that something had clicked in 
Rune's
mind and that she was trying to work it out.  Si'ren made a gesture and 
K'tal
spread his hands, not having the slightest idea what Rune was thinking.  
They
both blinked as Rune picked up her glass and set it back down again, 
watching
the amber liquid slosh slightly and causing them to wonder if she really was
thinking or if the alcohol was starting to have a serious effect on her.
     Ripples, Rune thought, watching the tiny rings move back and forth 
inside
her glass.  Almost just like what the pilots said the carrier did, ripple
slightly before vanishing.... some sort of electromagnetic cloak, something
that can mask both energy and light waves.... ripples.... waves.... 
light....
     "Sound," Rune suddenly said, her head snapping up fast enough to 
startle
even V'Kreeth.  "The carriers used an electromagnetic cloak to hide 
themselves,
which is why we lost them both on scanner and visually, since light is a 
part
of the electromagnetic spectrum.  But what about sound waves?"
     K'tal blinked as he started to see where Rune was going.  "We might be
able to locate the carriers by using sound waves instead of energy waves as 
a
form of radar, but the range on that would be frustratingly small."
     "Wait a minute...." Si'ren said as she narrowed her eyes.  "If those
carriers are using propellers to keep themselves aloft, wouldn't that make 
an
awfully loud noise?"
     The three of them looked at each other for a brief moment before they
tossed back what was left in their respective glasses and quickly made their
way towards the command center, leaving V'Kreeth alone in the room with the
bottle of Earth alcohol and a collection of empty glass tumblers.
     He sighed quietly to himself as he eyed the bottle of amber spirits.  
"And
to think I don't go off-duty for another seven hours," he grumbled to 
himself
as he began to straighten up the room out of habit.

                *               *               *               *

     Susan stopped and looked around her, her sense of unease becoming 
steadily
worse with each passing minute.  "Myst," she said softly after another 
chilling
wave of apprehension passed through her.  "Does something feel wrong to 
you?"
     The gray kitten leapt out of her arms and crouched low to the ground, 
her
whiskers twitching as she sniffed a spot on the ground.  "There seems to be
some sort of marker imprinted on the ground here," she said slowly, "But 
aside
from that, it doesn't feel like anything else is here."
     The succubus frowned, her wings twitching slightly as she studied the 
dark
landscape around her.  "That's the problem," she replied.
     Myst blinked and looked at her curiously.  "What do you mean?  Mephisto
and Alex should have returned to the pool already, so what else would be 
around
here?"
     Susan's red eyes narrowed as she peered into the darkness.  "What about
other Shinma?  Surely there should be something around here, but I can't 
sense
even the slightest hint of life around here.  There's an Earth expression 
that
deals with situations like this," she said slowly.  "It's quiet.  Too 
quiet."
     Myst blinked again as she considered Susan's words and carefully 
scanned
the area around her.  She's right, she thought as a sudden icyness started 
to
make its way down her back.  Even if the nearest creature was half an hour's
walk away, I should at least be able to feel it's life-force.   But now I 
can't
feel anything, not even background auras, and it certainly wasn't this empty
when we left....
     "You're right, something does feel odd...." Myst said slowly.
     Without warning, several flashes of light appeared several feet away 
from
them as Mephisto and Alex teleported into the area, followed by several 
other
creatures.  Susan took one look at the creatures and decided that things had
just taken a drastic change for the worse.
     "Susan!" Mephisto yelled as he ran towards her, keeping a solid grip on
Alex's arm and fairly dragging her along with him.  "Grab hold and don't let
go!"
     Susan didn't bother replying, instead scooping up Myst in one fluid 
motion
and running towards him.  The creatures wasted no time in closing the gap 
and
were mere feet behind Mephisto when he got close enough to grab hold of 
Susan's
arm.
     The contact sent painful shocks shooting across her nerves before her
vision seemed to explode into white sparks.  Then the pain set in, waves 
upon
waves of pure agony that would have had her screaming if she had been able 
to
do so.  The sensation seemed to last for an eternity before the pain 
vanished
and her vision returned to normal.
     She had just started to draw in a breath when her vision exploded once
more and she was again beseiged by the second-worst pain of her several
centuries of life.  Time seemed to come to a virtual standstill before the
agony abruptly disappeared and she could see straight.
     Her mind had barely begun to orient itself before her legs collapsed 
out
from under her and she fell to the ground, her nerve endings still raw with
residual pain.  Beside her, she heard a disturbingly weak moan as Alex also
slumped to the ground and tried to curl up into a tiny ball.
     "Are you alright?" Mephisto said behind her, his voice tight with pain.
     "Wh.... what...?" Susan managed to croak out as her voice refused to
cooperate.
     "Molecular teleport," Myst whispered as she uncurled herself and tried 
to
move slowly.
     "I'm afraid so," Mephisto grunted.  "Alex and I teleported into a horde 
of
those creatures and we've been trying to escape them since.  Problem was, 
they
were able to track us and kept teleporting after us."
     "D.... did we.... lose them?" Susan whispered as she struggled 
valiantly
into a kneeling position, casting a glance at Alex and trying to assess the
blonde's condition.
     The Shinma grunted again.  "I would hope so, because I'm not sure I 
could
handle another incident like that," he replied.
     "Next time, just let me die," Alex whispered softly, not even 
considering
trying to move just yet.
     "Are you alright?" Susan asked as she flexed her wings experimentally
before folding them tightly against her back.  They seemed to ripple briefly
before shrinking in on themselves and were absorbed into the skin on her 
back,
leaving only a pair of dark-colored scars behind.
     "Even my name hurts right now," the blonde replied, her voice still 
very
unsteady.  "Mephisto, what did you do to us?"
     "Didn't have enough time for a normal dimension shift, so I had to use 
a
molecular teleport instead," he explained.
     "What's the difference, aside from the pain?" Susan asked as she 
shakily
rose to her feet.
     "A dimension shift wraps four-dimensional space around you in such a 
way
as to allow you to cease to exist in one spot and resume existing in 
another.
A molecular teleport does the same thing, except that you're getting wrapped
around space instead of the other way around," Mephisto explained.
     "So this is how taffy feels after it's been through the mixer," Alex
grumbled as she started to slowly uncurl her body.  "See if I ever look at 
it
the same way again."
     "Where did you manage to find taffy in the Moon Kingdom?" Susan 
inquired
as she bent down to carefully pick up Myst.  "And are you alright?" she 
asked
the Shinma.
     "I've been better," Myst replied sourly.
     "Prince Darian brought some from Earth one time and gave a bunch of it 
to
the Princess," Alex said as she tried to roll over.  "Being the sugar fairy
that she is, her Highness shared some of it with us and I swear it was a 
week
before Lady Mercury would let us hear the end of it.  Kept saying something
about how the 'hideously high sugar content' would give us all cavities.  
I'm
surprised you don't remember that incident."
     Susan chuckled to herself, easily being able to picture the image given
the Lady Mercury's often overwhelming concern for the health of the Princess
and her court.  "If I was around when it happened, I assure you I would not
have forgotten such a thing."
     "Oh, that's right, I forgot you have a near-perfect memory despite 
being
older than three generations of Sailor Scouts put together," Alex muttered 
to
herself as she struggled into a sitting position.
     The succubus merely rolled her eyes and glanced around, blinking hard 
in
surprise when she realized that they had teleported into the lava bubble 
that
held the mana pool.
     "You're bleeding," Mephisto said suddenly as he moved over next to Alex
and touched her shoulder.  She winced at his touch and brushed his hand 
aside,
making a face at the dark red stains on his fingertips.
     "Great, so I guess that thing did manage to tag me after all," she 
sighed
as she craned her neck to try to look at her shoulder blade.  "Oh, bah, 
that's
just a messy scratch, nothing serious."
     "Let me see," Susan said as she moved over next to the blonde.  "Mmm, 
it
doesn't look too bad...." she started to say.
     "Is there an echo in here?" Alex muttered.
     "...but I think you're going to wind up with another scar once that 
heals
in a few days," Susan finished dryly.  "Provided, of course, it doesn't get
infected and make matters worse."
     "Joy, another scar," Alex said as she rolled her eyes and unconsciously
brushed her fingers across her thigh.  "Mich is going to love that one."  
She
paused as a realization sank in and she looked sharply at Mephisto.  "You 
still
have her soul, right?" she asked quickly.
     "Of course," he replied.  "One moment."
     Both Susan and Alex blinked as his body started to dissolve into 
particles
that quickly collapsed into a whirling vortex.  The center of the vortex 
irised
open like a flower and the faintly glowing soul emerged from the depths, 
slowly
floating to the ground.  The vortex collapsed in on itself and quickly 
reformed
into a humanoid shape, catching the soul before it hit the stone floor.
     "That's spooky...." Alex said quietly, repressing a shiver.
     Susan merely raised an eyebrow in reply as she absently scratched 
Myst's
ears.  "How soon can you revive her?" she asked Mephisto.
     "I have to awaken her first, and for that I need energy," he replied as 
he
turned his focus inward to his own supply of energy, extracting a small 
tendril
of power and transferring it to the faded soul.
     Alex's blue eyes widened as Mephisto's arm seemed to ripple slightly 
and
a glowing string of light wrapped itself around the glowing sphere.  The 
string
was quickly absorbed by the sphere and it began to glow noticeably brighter
than before.
     "Wait, what did you just do?" she asked, her eyes still wide with 
wonder.
     "Giving your friend the energy she needs to wake up," Mephisto said as 
he
wrapped another tendril of energy around the soul, causing it to glow even
brighter.  "You may wish to close your eyes for a moment," he cautioned as 
his
arm started to ripple once more.
     Susan and Myst did so, but Alex continued to stare at the soul as the
tendril of energy coiled itself around the soul like a snake before it 
suddenly
was absorbed and the soul seemed to explode in a flash of light.
     "Owwwww...." Alex moaned as she turned her head away, briefly blinded 
by
the flash.
     "He did warn you," Susan said mildly as she opened her eyes, her vision
unaffected by the effects of the light.  "Mmm, that certainly looks to be 
the
right color."
     "Oh, shut up and give me a moment," the blonde replied as she blinked 
her
eyes rapidly, trying to clear the residual afterimage.  She waited until she
was able to focus on her hand before trying to look up at the soul.  
"Ohh...."
she breathed as her eyes widened once more.
     The soul, once a dim ball of light, was now a vibrant sphere of 
aquamarine
light that filled the lava bubble with it's radiance.  It seemed to be 
hovering
slightly above Mephisto's hand, giving it a slightly ethereal effect.
     "I'm curious," Susan said slowly as she stared at the soul.  "Do living
souls always coalesce into spheres once they've been removed from the body?"
     Mephisto blinked, surprised by the question.  "You're a succubus, and
you're asking me about souls?" he said.
     Susan's lips curved into an amused smile.  "The key word is living 
souls.
Trust me, by the time I've extracted a soul to the point where I can 
physically
see it, it's as dead as the body and in a somewhat liquidy form."
     Alex tried to fight off the dark shiver that crawled down her spine and
failed miserably.  "Must you be so morbid?" she muttered as she tried to 
calm
her nerves.
     "Death is an odd teacher," Susan mused.  "Quite effective, I assure 
you,
but it extracts a toll in exchange for the knowledge."
     "I would imagine so," Mephisto said after a moment of heavy silence.  
The
silence continued for a number of moments before it was abruptly dispelled 
by
a forceful sneeze from Myst that nearly dislodged her from Susan's arms.
     "Whoa, you alright?" Alex asked as she gave the Shinma a concerned 
look.
"I'm surprised that didn't turn your nose inside-out."
     Myst made a sour face as she jumped down from Susan's arms and batted 
at
her nose with a paw.  "Finally," she said.  "My nose had been tingling since
we teleported here and I thought it would never work its way out."
     "I think it's out now," Susan said mildly.
     "I hope so," Myst replied as she wrinkled her nose.
     Alex glanced over at Mephisto and frowned at the look on his face.  
"What
is it, Mephisto?" she asked.
     "She awakens," he replied softly as he studied the aquamarine soul.  
"I'm
going to revive her now.  Please stand back and no matter what happens, 
don't
touch the mana pool."
     Susan's head snapped around hard enough to make a joint creak somewhere
along her spine.  "Mana pool?  Is that what this place is?" she said in awe.
     Alex blew her breath out hard in frustration.  "Why can't you two spend
five minutes together without having to start talking about something that's
completely over my head?" she growled.
     A delicate green eyebrow rose in response.  "Once you've lived among 
the
inhabitants of the Underworld for a few centuries, you'll understand most if
not all of what is said," Susan explained in mild amusement.
     The blonde resisted the urge to flip her off and instead settled for
giving her a dark look.  "Well, in the meantime, can you try to keep it to a
level that a mere seventeen-year-old like myself can comprehend?" she said 
with
a slight edge to her voice.
     Both Myst and Mephisto blinked in surprise and exchanged glances.  
"You're
only seventeen?" Myst said amazement.
     "Yup," Alex said.  "So how old did you think I was?" she asked as she 
put
her hand on her hip and gave Mephisto an appraising look.
     "Significantly older, but I had forgotten about the shortness of human
lifespans," he said carefully.  "I would have said no more than two 
centuries,
but that would roughly be the Shinma equivalent to a human your age."
     Alex raised an eyebrow, clearly not amused.  "Two hundred years, huh?" 
she
said, the edge returning to her voice.
     "A young two hundred," Mephisto offered in a light tone, suddenly 
sensing
he may have made a mistake in voicing his opinion.
     "Sue's older than dirt and most people think she looks to be in her 
young
twenties.  I'm only seventeen and you say I look like I'm two hundred.  
Thanks
a lot," Alex said with a sour expression on her face.
     "Perhaps we should concentrate on reviving Michelle and worry about our
respective ages at a later time," Susan said gently, giving Alex a slightly
reproving look.
     Mephisto nodded and started to concentrate on the glowing aquamarine 
soul.
"As I said earlier, do not touch the pool no matter what happens," he 
cautioned
as he closed his eyes.
     Everyone watched in mute fascination as the luminescent sphere started 
to
float up into the air and over the center of the pool.  The soul paused 
halfway
in it's journey and hovered for a moment to avoid a drop of mana falling 
from
the ceiling.  Once the odd ripples had vanished, the soul continued to move
across the pool, coming to a brief halt a few inches from the surface before
suddenly plunging deep into the center of the pool.  As they watched, the 
soul
began to glow brighter for a moment before suddenly exploding outward into
several thousand tiny points of light that quickly faded into nothingness.
     "MICH!!" Alex yelled as she instinctively lunged forward, only to be 
held
back by both Susan and Mephisto.
     "It's supposed to do that," Susan quickly explained, cursing herself 
for
not thinking to warn the blonde beforehand.  "Give it a few moments, Alex."
     In a burst of almost inhuman strength, Alex shrugged off both grips and
lashed out, grabbing the collar of Mephisto's tunic and pinning him against 
the
wall of the lava bubble.  "Where is she?!  What happened?!" she demanded.
     "Alex, look," Susan said softly as she stared into the mana pool.
     The blonde's grip relaxed only fractionally as her head snapped around 
to
look.  A cloud of luminescent particles was slowly emerging from the depths 
of
the pool and started to float around aimlessly.  As the air began to grow 
thick
with the points of light, they started to gather together into a glowing 
mass
only a few feet away from Alex, glowing brighter and brighter with each 
passing
second.  After a few moments, the last of the particles merged together and
suddenly gave off a burst of light that forced everyone to look away.
     "Oww, damn!" Alex moaned as her eyes began to tear from the overload.  
It
took several moments before the pain in her retinas subsided enough for her 
to
open her eyes, and it took her another few moments before she was able to 
focus
on the nude female figure lying next to her.
     "Michelle!" she cried out as she recognized the wavy aquamarine hair of
her friend.  She fairly tossed Mephisto aside as she scrambled over to her,
gently taking Michelle's hand in her own and carefully looking her over for 
any
obvious sign of injury.
     "Are you alright?" Susan quietly asked Mephisto as she too looked over
the inert form for any abnormal indications.
     "I've had better days," he replied with faint amusement.
     There was a soft moan as Michelle started to stir.  Alex reached up and
brushed away a few stands of aquamarine hair that had fallen over Michelle's
face.  "Easy, love," the blonde said softly.  "Don't move just yet."
     "A.... Alex?" Michelle whispered faintly as she tried to open her eyes.
     "Right here, hon," Alex replied with a gentle smile.
     "Wh.... what happened?" Michelle asked as her eyelids finally fluttered
open.  It took her a few moments before she was able to focus on Alex, and 
she
blinked as she saw the patch of blood on her shoulder.  "You're bleeding!" 
she
exclaimed and immediately tried to sit up.
     "Whoa, I said don't move yet," Alex said as she gently pushed her back
down.  "I'm fine.  You, however, could use some work.  Rest for a moment."
     Michelle closed her eyes and sighed for a moment before they suddenly
snapped back open and gave Alex a slightly wary look.  "Wait.... what did 
you
do with my clothes?" she said with a slight edge to her voice.
     The corners of the blonde's mouth twitched in amusement.  "I haven't a
clue," she replied softly, "But I thought you liked being naked with me...."
     Michelle immediately blushed and looked away.  "Of course I do," she
whispered.  "However, there is a time and place for that, and somehow I 
don't
think this is either.  Where are we?" she asked as she glanced around.
     "I see you haven't changed much," Susan said as she moved over and 
knelt
down next to Alex.  "Welcome back."
     "Susan!" Michelle said happily and tried to sit up again.  She grimaced 
as
her muscles protested but she refused to give up, finally managing to 
achieve a
sitting position with Alex's help.
     "Easy, love, don't strain yourself," Alex said with concern.
     "I'll be alright once this headache goes away," Michelle replied as she
looked around the lava bubble.  "I'll be even better when I find my clothes,
but in the meantime could someone tell me just where exactlEEEEEEEE!" she
screeched as she saw a fully clothed man looking at her nude body.
     "WHOA!" Alex yelped as Michelle yanked her off-balance and she tumbled 
to
the ground in front of her, effectively hiding Michelle's state of undress 
from
everyone else in the lava bubble.  "Jeez, girl, warn me before you do that!"
     "Who are you?" Michelle demanded, blushing furiously with 
embarrassment.
     "Perhaps I should do the introductions," Susan suggested before 
Mephisto
could open his mouth.  "Michelle, I would like you to meet the Shinma 
Mephisto.
The lunar cat is another Shinma named Myst.  Both of them saved our souls 
and
restored our bodies.  Mephisto, this is Michelle Kaiou, the avatar of 
Neptune."
     Michelle blinked and could only nod a polite greeting to Mephisto.  
Alex
saw the deer-caught-in-headlights look on Michelle's face and sighed 
quietly.
"Mich here is rather shy with people.  We're both very grateful for your
assistance up to this point, Mephisto, and I was wondering if I might ask a 
bit
of a favor of you...." Alex said slowly, trying to soothe a slightly 
disturbed
Michelle.
     "Clothing, I would imagine," Mephisto said as he moved closer to her.  
"If
you would stand for a moment....?" he said as he held out his hand.
     Michelle hesitated for a moment as she considered her options and Alex
sighed softly to herself.  "He already looked over your luscious bod while 
you
were still unconscious, dear, so there's no use in hiding it now.  C'mon, 
time
to get up," she said as she stood up, grabbing Michelle's arm in the process
and hauling her up with her.
     Susan raised an eyebrow at the intensity of the blush on Michelle's 
face.
It has always amazed me how someone as shy and reserved as Michelle could be 
so
deeply involved with someone as forceful and outgoing as Alex, she thought 
to
herself in amusement.  But neither one seems to mind, so to each their 
own....
     It took Michelle a moment to regain her balance before she could extend
her hand to Mephisto, giving the Shinma an uncertain and slightly wary look.
Mephisto merely took her hand in his and gave her a soft smile.
     She nearly yelped in surprise as a soft white glow enveloped her hand 
and
quickly spread across her arm.  The glow continued to expand until her 
entire
body was covered by the soft radiance.  She blinked as her skin started to
tingle for a moment before the glow faded as quickly as it had come.
     Alex waited until the glow had faded before she turned around and took 
a
step back to look at Michelle.  She blinked hard and let out a soft whistle 
of
appreciation at what she saw.  "Damn, you do good work," she breathed.
     Michelle glanced down and blinked as well.  "Ooooh, this looks nice," 
she
said as she studied the aquamarine gown she was now wearing.  She hiked the 
hem
up a few inches to look over the matching low-heeled shoes she was wearing 
and
nodded.  "Shoes are a good match, too.  Thank you, Mephisto," she said as 
she
glanced up at the Shinma and gave him a shy smile.
     "My pleasure," Mephisto replied as he kissed the hand he was holding,
causing a furious blush to appear on Michelle's cheeks.
     Alex frowned and reached out, tugging Michelle's hand free from 
Mephisto's
grasp and holding it tightly in her own gentle grip.  "Hey, now, no one gets 
to
kiss her but me," she said with a faint edge to her voice.
     Mephisto blinked hard in surprise, at a momentary loss for words.  
Myst,
who had been quietly watching the scene from the corner of the lava bubble,
moved forward and gave all three girls a very curious look.  "I don't quite
understand the relationship between you three.  Can you explain it to me?" 
she
asked cautiously.
     Alex and Michelle exchanged glances before Michelle blushed and a smirk
appeared on Alex's lips.  They both looked at Susan as the succubus coughed
lightly and gave Alex a reproving look.  "I think I'll handle this one, if 
you
don't mind," she said with a hint of amusement in her voice.
     "Spoilsport," Alex muttered as the smirk grew wider.
     "We are all avatars from the Moon Kingdom," Susan began explaining.  
"As
I've inherited my father's eternal lifespan, I have been serving the Kingdom
for many generations and knew both Alex and Michelle before they were born.
Since I've not only changed their diapers but also helped to train them as
Sailor Scouts, we've become very good friends over the years."
     Both Alex and Michelle blushed at the mention of being diapered.  
"That's
great, Sue," Alex muttered.  "Why don't you just show them the baby pictures
while you're at it?"
     "If I had them with me, I would," Susan replied evenly, resisting the 
urge
to smirk in satisfaction as Alex's blush deepened.  "As for the relationship
between Alex and Michelle, they've been the best of friends since they were
able to crawl.  However, over the years their relationship has...."  She 
paused
as she searched for a suitable word.
     "Evolved?" Michelle suggested softly as she edged behind Alex.
     Susan thought about it for a moment before shrugged.  "A good word as 
any.
Their relationship evolved beyond friendship and into what can only be 
thought
of as a serious romance."
     Mephisto blinked.  "Romance?" he echoed, giving Alex and Michelle a 
mildly
confused look.
     Alex smirked again as she felt Michelle's arms around her waist and 
felt
her leaning against her back, seeking the comfort of the blonde's presence.
"In other words, we're lovers," Alex said with a touch of pride.
     Susan studied the expression on Mephisto's face and frowned lightly as
she couldn't immediately identify it.  It's not shock, she thought silently.
Surprise, yes, but not much of it....  Her dark red eyes narrowed for a 
moment
before they suddenly snapped wide open and blinked in surprise.  Could that
have been.... disappointment? she thought for a moment before she forced her
facial expression to return to normal.
     "I see...." Mephisto said slowly, his expression changing to one of 
faint
amusement.  "That does explain matters.  Forgive me, I meant no 
transgression,"
he said with a bow towards Michelle.
     "Ah, don't worry about it," Alex said with a wave of her hand.  "Just 
as
long as you don't try to kiss her again, I won't feel compelled to injure 
you."
     "I'll try to keep that in mind," the Shinma replied somewhat dryly.
     "Hello there," Michelle said softly as she knelt down to pet Myst.  
"How
are you doing?"
     Myst blinked as Michelle began to scratch behind her ears.  "You humans
are strange creatures," the cat said with a slight frown.  Michelle froze in
mid-motion and blinked, giving Alex and Susan a slightly uncertain look.
     "I don't think she was paying attention," Susan observed with 
amusement.
     "To what?" Michelle asked, slightly wary.
     "You tell her, Sue, I'm having too much fun with this," Alex said with 
a
grin, thoroughly enjoying Michelle's state of confusion.
     "Tell me what?" Michelle demanded as she tried to decide whether she
should be getting angry or worried.
     Susan raised a slender eyebrow.  "That's not a lunar cat you're 
petting,"
she explained gently.
     Alex had to bite down hard on her tongue to keep herself from bursting 
out
laughing at the expression on Michelle's face.  "Relax, hon, Myst won't hurt
you unless you do something that would get you clawed by any other lunar 
cat."
     "The voice of experience, no doubt," Susan added, unable to resist.
     "I think you need to go get laid again.  Your sense of humor is 
starting
to wear thin," Alex replied evenly without looking at the succubus.
     "Umm.... if you're not a lunar cat, then what are you?" Michelle asked.
     "Shinma," Myst replied.
     "A species of outcast demons," Susan explained as Michelle gave her a
blank look.  "Granted they are far from harmless, but I assure you that 
these
two bear us no ill will and in fact have gone to great lengths to help us."
     "Speaking of which," Mephisto interrupted gently, "Now that you've 
found
your friends, we need to return you to your kingdom."
     Michelle's aquamarine eyes went wide as the mention of the Moon Kingdom
caused a memory to bubble up from the depths of her mind.  "Susan, the 
battle!"
she exclaimed as she quickly stood up.
     Susan sighed quietly and held up a hand to silence any further 
potential
outbursts.  "The battle has been over for some time," she explained softly, 
"So
there is no need to be concerned about that."
     Alex frowned as Susan's words triggered her own memories.  "For how 
long?
You still haven't told me how long we were dead or whatever it was that we
were," the blonde said, her eyes narrowed.
     The succubus sighed again, feeling the weight of her years bearing down
upon her already overburdened soul.  "Alex...." she started to say.
     "How long?!" Alex demanded as Michelle moved slightly behind her, one 
hand
gently wrapping around the blonde's wrist.
     "A thousand years," Susan said softly.
     The silence in the lava bubble was so sudden it echoed.  The only sound
that could be heard for several seconds was the sound of a drop of mana 
falling
into the pool.
     "A thousand years?" Michelle asked, almost too softly to hear.  Susan
nodded in response and she began to tremble with the realization.  "But....
what about the Kingdom?"
     "You know as much as I do right now," the succubus replied.
     "Queen Serenity...." Alex said softly, "The Princess.... the other 
Sailor
Scouts.... they're all gone, aren't they?  Even if we won, they would 
have....
I mean...."
     "Susan, can you take us back in Time?" Michelle asked.  "Perhaps to a
point just a few days after.... whatever it was that sent us here?"
     "I cannot," Susan said with a shake of her head.
     Alex frowned.  "Wait, Sue, I know you feel about taking others with you
when you time travel, especially in the past, but this is something...."
     "I CANNOT!" Susan screamed, her temper snapping for one brief moment 
and
causing everyone to jump back, cringing with fear.  She sighed and closed 
her
eyes as she struggled to regain her composure.  "Even if the Rules allowed 
me
to send us back, it is impossible for me or anyone else to travel through 
Time
anymore."
     Michelle blinked.  "Why?  What happened?"
     Susan opened her eyes and stared into the mana pool.  "My staff was
destroyed during the fight, and that release of temporal energy is what 
trapped
our souls here in the first place.  Without that staff, without the Key to
Time, the Portal of Time is sealed shut."
     Alex and Michelle exchanged looks of horror.  Neither of them had been
able to fully grasp the celestial mechanics involved in time travel, but 
Susan
had managed to explain a few of the basics about the Portal and the Key, and
how the interaction of the two helped keep the fabric of the Universe from
tearing apart at the seams.
     "Wait a moment," Mephisto said slowly as something clicked in his mind.
"Susan, you're one of the Guardians of Time?"
     Susan nodded and ignored the sudden ball of ice in her gut.  "Yes."
     The Shinma blinked hard.  "But if you're an avatar, then why...?"
     She sighed heavily, once more feeling the weight of her responsibilites 
on
her soul.  "It is not something I wish to discuss," she said softly.
     Mephisto blinked hard again, not completely understanding what he was
hearing.  He let out his breath silently and nodded after a moment of 
silence.
"As you wish, then."
     Alex and Michelle looked at each other and merely shook their heads, 
not
having the slightest idea what Susan was talking about.  "Think she was like
this way back when she first became a Sailor Scout?" Alex asked Michelle in 
a
hushed tone, receiving a wry look and a whispered, "Probably...." in reply.
     Susan shot them both a reproving look before looking at Mephisto.  "In
any case, the three of us need to return to the Moon Kingdom as soon as we 
can
manage to find a way back.  I am very grateful for your assistance up to 
this
point, Mephisto, and your's as well, Myst, but considering what you've 
already
done for us I can't ask you to do anything more."
     Mephisto chuckled to himself for a brief moment.  "Come now, my dear
Guardian, you would have us rescue you and your friends, and then do nothing 
to
aid you in returning to your post?"  He shook his head and chuckled again
before his moment of humor passed and he looked up at Susan.  "Besides, 
think
of what might happen if Lord Hades were to hear of mere Shinma helping to
return his avatar to his side."
     Susan blinked.  "What do you mean?" she asked as she narrowed her eyes.
     "The Shinma as a whole have been condemned since the creation of the
Underworld as the result of the actions of a handful of demons.  If Lord 
Hades
were to realize that perhaps not all Shinma are as.... unruly as the 
original
traitors, then perhaps he might be willing to let some of us return to the
Underworld and take our places as his minions."
     Susan considered that for a moment while Alex knelt down to pick up 
Myst.
"Can you tell us what they're talking about this time?" she asked the gray 
cat
as she started to scratch behind her ears.
     "I'm not sure," Myst said with a silent sigh as she gave up trying to
understand the human interest in holding and petting her.
     "I was wondering why a Shinma would willingly help a demon," Susan said
carefully after a moment's thought.  "After all, ulterior motives are common 
to
both species."
     The temperature in the lava bubble seemed to drop by twenty degrees as
Mephisto spoke.  "I had once heard that the demon society had somehow 
managed
to become civilized in the countless centuries since the Creation, perhaps 
even
becoming enlightened to the concept of treating others as you would like to 
be
treated.  Obviously that information was in error."
     "Whoa, time out," Alex said as she carefully handed Myst to Michelle.
"Susan, what the hell are you doing?  I'm not going to pretend I know even a
fraction of the full story between you two, but as far as I know, Mephisto 
has
done quite a lot for us and I have yet to hear him ask for anything in 
return.
And now all of a sudden you're picking a fight?"
     The succubus shook her head slowly.  "That is not my intention, I 
assure
the both of you.  I am merely trying to ascertain why we have been receiving 
an
unprecedented amount of help from a historical.... adversary is a bad word, 
but
the relations between demons and Shinma have never been what you would call
cordial."
     "Not that we don't have a justified reason to resent our imprisonment,"
Mephisto said evenly, his voice still tinged with frost.  "Tell me, avatar 
of
our Lord Hades, what crimes have I committed to deserve such punishment?"
     Susan said nothing for several seconds, listening to the sounds of 
falling
drops of mana and the rhythmic beating of her own heart.  "As I said 
before,"
she said slowly, "It is not my intention to upset or offend you.  Indeed, I 
am
very much in your debt for your assistance, whatever your intentions may be.
If you were to come me when I return to the Underworld, I am reasonably sure
that Lord Hades would give you an audience for what you may have to say 
about
The Dark and it's inhabitants."
     Mephisto nodded slowly.  "Very well, then."
     "Okay," Alex said as she clapped her hands and rubbed them together.  
"Now
that you two seem to be finished with your usual round of verbal fencing, 
can
we crank this party up and get out of here?  Like I said before, this puddle 
of
whatever is pretty to look at, but we need a change of scenery and I really,
REALLY need to find a bathroom sometime soon."
     Mephisto and Susan exchanged amused looks and the succubus nodded.  
"She
has a valid, if unrefined, point," Susan said.
     "Indeed," the Shinma mused.  "In any case, we are going to need to move 
to
another location.  The type of gate I can open operates on fixed points 
between
the origin and destination.  In order to open the gate I used to visit your
Moon Kingdom, we will need to be standing in a particular place in The Dark.
Fortunately, I marked that place so I could return if I ever needed to."
     "Great!" Alex said as she smiled at Michelle.
     "Unfortunately...." Mephisto continued.
     "Wait, let me guess," the blonde grumbled, "It's in the middle of a 
chunk
of land infested with all sorts of evil and hungry critters."
     "Your insight is astonishing," Mephisto said dryly.
     "How long will it take to open the gate after we arrive?" Susan asked.
     Mephisto sighed.  "The problem is not the timing but the energy.  When 
the
gate first starts to form, it will give off a burst of energy that will be
detected by every Shinma within three miles.  Granted the gate will start to
open seconds after that, but that's more than enough time for the curious to
start teleporting to us."
     "They're not going to be hostile or anything, are they?" Michelle asked
cautiously, nervously stroking Myst in a failed effort to calm down.
     Everyone exchanged glances before Alex sighed.  "Love, saying they'll 
be
hostile is like saying the Princess likes sugar.  In other words, bet on 
it."
     Mephisto made a gesture towards the mana pool and a drop started to 
float
up into the air.  "Are we ready then?" he asked.
     "One moment," Susan said as she concentrated.  The skin on her back 
seemed
to ripple and pulse before exploding outwards as her wings emerged.  She 
flexed
them experimentally for a few seconds before she nodded to Mephisto.
     Mephisto briefly glanced at the looks on Alex and Michelle's faces at 
the
demonic transformation before shaking his head.  "Very well then," he said 
as
he concentrated.  The drop of mana darted towards him and splashed against 
his
outstretched hand.  A tremendous amount of energy began to surge through the
Shinma as he shifted his mental focus to the fabric of space surrounding 
them.
     They seemed to shimmer briefly as four-dimensional space was folded 
around
them in a complex quasi-geometrical shape.  Then as soon as it had started,
space unfolded itself into it's normal shape, leaving behind an empty 
cavern.

                *               *               *               *

     Molly sighed quietly to herself as she closed her eyes and laid back on
the grass.  Her ears heard the sounds of hungry seagulls flying over the 
city's
artificial lake, but her mind was far too preoccupied to pay any attention 
to
the minor distractions around her.
     It's got to be a coincidence, she thought to herself.  So Ami's got a
boyfriend with the same exotic name as the person from the Negaverse that's
been helping Sailor Mercury learn his language.  I've seen Mercury in action
and somehow I can't imagine a bookworm like Ami being that physically 
active,
with all that running around and whatnot they do.
     Molly's green eyes snapped open as a thought crossed her mind.  
However,
if Ami has been trained in martial arts like Mina said, that would mean that
Ami would have been physically active like that, and for quite some time, so
it is possible.... maybe.
     She sighed quietly again as she closed her eyes and rubbed her temples.
This seemed a lot easier to think about an hour ago, she thought, but now 
I'm
really starting to wonder.  Ami Mizuno as Sailor Mercury?  Yeah, they've got
the same color hair, but I also know three other girls with blue hair, 
although
none of them keep it short like Ami does.... Or Mercury....
     Molly almost giggled to herself.  C'mon, girl, I've seen them both 
really
up close and personal, and they don't look much alike.  However, she 
thought,
neither did Superman and Clark Kent.  Now there's a sobering idea.  Could
whatever power they use as Sailor Scouts also disguise what they really look
like?  Why not ask?
     This time she did giggle to herself.  That's it, your brain has 
cracked,
she thought.  Why don't I just walk up to them next time we happen to run 
into
each other, look Mercury in the eye, and ask, "Hey, aren't you Ami Mizuno?"
And if pigs could fly....
     "Molly?" a voice asked gently.  "Do you mind if we talk to you for a 
few
minutes?"
     It took Molly a full second to decide whether or not she had indeed 
lost
her mind and was now hearing the voices of the Sailor Scouts in her head 
before
she remembered to open her eyes.  The sight of two Sailor Scouts standing 
over
her didn't disturb her nearly as much as the fact that one of them was 
indeed
Sailor Mercury.
     The redhead scrambled to her feet, a mixture of surprise and panic in 
her
eyes.  "H... hello," she stammered out as her tongue suddenly seemed to 
twist
itself into knots and her stomach started doing aerobics on its own.  She
blinked in surprise as she noticed that Mercury was wearing some sort of 
blue
plastic visor over her eyes and that she held some sort of compact device in
her hand.
     "Are you doing okay after that incident this afternoon?" Mercury asked 
as
she discreetly scanned Molly with her computer and read the results on her
Virtual Visor.  Heart rate, blood pressure, and adrenaline levels are all
abnormally high, she thought to herself.  Perhaps that meeting with Reish'id
rattled her harder than I thought....
     "I've had better days," Molly replied with obvious nervousness.
     Sailor Moon blinked.  "Are you alright, Molly?  You sound like you're a
little strung-out."
     "I've just got a lot on my mind, that's all," the redhead replied.  
"Hey,
how come you didn't show up this afternoon with everyone else?" she asked as
the thought suddenly came to mind.
     Sailor Moon blushed a delicate shade of pink.  "Well, I was busy taking
care of some other business at the time."
     "Things don't always happen in just one place," Mercury added, hoping
Molly wouldn't inquire further.  "You said you've got a lot to think about?"
She received a nod in reply and added, "Is there anything in particular 
you'd
like to talk about?"
     Molly was about to stall for time when they heard a voice cutting 
across
the park.  "Oh, look, Sailor Scouts!"
     Sailor Moon gave Mercury a strange look as the vampire cringed.  
"Great,
just p'takh'enn great," Mercury muttered beneath her breath as the voice's
owner fairly bounded across the path towards them, toting a somewhat 
oversized
and seemingly weighty backback.
     "Howdy!" Sailor V said cheerfully with a smile, her blue eyes twinkling
behind the oversized red glasses she wore.
     "Hello, V," Mercury said somewhat tiredly.  Sailor V's usually cocky,
overconfident, and somewhat arrogant attitude never failed to irritate her,
and today was no exception.  Why V and not Sailor Venus? she thought to 
herself
as she glanced at the backpack.  A thought crossed her mind and she frowned.
I hope she wasn't messing around on the black market again....
     "My, aren't we in a cheerful mood," V teased as she set the backpack 
down
with a heavy thump and a nearly silent rattle that only Mercury's vampiric
hearing could detect.  "Did somebody dye your cat purple or something?"
     "The voice of experience?" Mercury shot back, unable to resist 
reminding
her about the time she had forcibly given Artemis a bath and grabbed the 
wrong
bottle from the closet.  It had taken two weeks to get the dye out of his
normally white fur and even longer for him to start speaking to her again.
     "Ha ha, funny girl," V replied, her voice dripping acid.
     Molly blinked as she alternated her gaze between Mercury and V.  "Are 
you
two related or something?" she asked hesitantly.  "You sound as bad as two 
of
my friends."
     Sailor V looked at Mercury for a moment before bursting out laughing,
causing Mercury to raise an eyebrow.  "Heavens no," said when she could draw
enough breath to speak.  "Mercury's just the type that needs to learn how to
let her hair down, so to speak, and to enjoy life a little bit more.  She 
can't
stand cheery types like yours truly."
     "Which friends are you referring to?" Sailor Moon asked before Mercury
could formulate a suitable reply.  "Who knows, we might even know them."
     "You might," Molly said with a slight shrug.  "Serena and Rei.  They're
okay friends for the most part, but they do have the tendency to snipe at 
each
other for sometimes hours at a time."
     "You know, I think I might know them," V said slowly, trying not to 
burst
out laughing as she watched the corner of Sailor Moon's mouth start to 
twitch.
     "So what brings you here?" Mercury asked, stalling for time as she 
tried
to figure out a way to get the situation under some semblance of control.  
I'm
not sure which is more important, she thought to herself, getting Molly to 
talk
about what she knows, keeping Sailor Moon calmed down, or figuring out how 
to
get rid of Sailor V.
     "Oh, just a little shopping," V said as casually as she could while she
fought the sudden icy chill that had started to work its way down her spine.
Oh, boy, she thought, I can see this one coming down the pipe....  "Even 
Sailor
Scouts need to stock up on this and that every now and then, you know.  So 
what
brings you two out here?"
     Mercury opened her mouth to give a rather evasive answer when she heard
several voices coming from the bus that had just pulled up to the sidewalk 
at
the edge of the park.  A small red flag went up in her mind as she glanced 
at
the chronometer in the upper corner of her visor.  The elementary 
after-school
bus, she thought with a heavy sigh.  Fifty-someodd little kids who all just
noticed three Sailor Scouts standing around, which means all hell is going 
to
break loose in the next thirty seconds....
     Sailor V frowned at the sudden change in Mercury's expression.  She 
turned
her head to look at the sudden profusion of noise and blinked.  
"After-school
bus?" she asked softly.
     "Unfortunately," Mercury replied.  Twenty-four seconds....
     V smiled sweetly.  "My biggest fan club."
     "Good, you go deal with them and let me finish taking care of Molly," 
she
said softly as the bus doors opened.  The kids instantly started to scramble
off and began to move with all the speed and grace of a stampede towards 
Sailor
Moon.  Sailor Moon smiled and started waving to the horde, which only made 
them
move with that much more motivation.  Fifteen seconds....
     V blinked hard.  "Problem?" she asked in all seriousness, her concern
temporarily overriding her usual streetwise attitude.
     "We think she might know our identities after meeting with Reish'id,"
Mercury answered.  "I'm trying to find out how much she knows, if anything,"
she added as she watched the stampede draw closer, the noise level already
starting to overload her vampiric hearing.  Six seconds....
     V smiled.  "Okay, let me handle Molly.  You and Sailor Moon go do some
autographs and all.  It's about time you spent some time basking in the 
public
spotlight," she added as she waved her arms.   "Hey everyone!  Who wants to
meet Sailor Mercury, live and in person?" she called out, causing half of 
the
stampede to abruptly change course towards her.
     "I'll get you for this," Mercury growled softly as she was surrounded 
by
a horde of elementary school children, all pleading that she give autographs
and answer their questions about Sailor Scouts.
     "Maybe later," V said cheerfully as she quietly slipped away from the
crowd.  It's absolutely amazing how often I can get away without being 
noticed,
she thought to herself as she glanced towards Sailor Moon.  Like Mercury, 
she
too was up to her armpits in little kids trying to get her autograph, 
although
unlike Mercury, she didn't seem to mind the attention.
     "So what do you think of the rugrat patrol?" V asked quietly as she 
moved
next to Molly.
     Molly blinked.  "I don't see how you can deal with that many little 
kids
on a regular basis."
     V shrugged.  "The price of being a celebrity.  You do get used to it 
after
a few months of practice and patience, but it does get old after awhile."
     "So how come they're not mobbing you like the other Sailor Scouts?" 
Molly
observed as she watched the two groups.
     V snickered.  "Easy, I've been around longer than they have and I've 
done
this sort of thing before.  They're used to seeing me here and there, but 
they
don't get to meet the Sailor Scouts very often.  I guess you can say I'm 
like
the old toy at the bottom of the toybox, ignored in favor of the newer 
ones."
     Molly nodded, knowing exactly what she meant.  "Umm, would you mind if 
I
asked you a few questions?" she said hesitantly, not quite sure how to deal
with a minor celebrity face-to-face.
     "Only if I can ask you a few questions in return," V said 
mischieviously.
     The redhead blinked at that.  "Umm.... sure," she said after a moment.
     "Okay, then, shoot," V replied as she clasped her hands behind her 
back.
     "Are you a Sailor Scout like they are?" Molly asked.
     "Ouch," V sighed.  "Not really.  Granted I've got what it takes to kick
butt and take names, but not on the level of what they do.  I go after 
people
like bank robbers and drug dealers.  Yeah, I've worked with them on 
occasion,
and there have been times when I've saved their collective bacon and they've
saved mine, but what they do on a day-to-day basis is on a completely 
different
scale.  Actually, now that I think about it, I wouldn't say I've worked with
them so much as had either the good or the bad luck to blunder into them 
from
time to time."
     Molly nodded.  "So what exactly do they do?"
     V frowned slightly and gave the redhead a measured look.  "From what 
I've
been told about you, Molly Baker, you could probably tell me a few things 
about
what they do."
     Molly blinked.  "What have you heard about me?" she asked, not entirely
sure she wanted to know.
     "This and that," V said evenly.  "Mostly rumors, things like that you 
know
Sailor Moon personally, that you know the Sailor Scouts' true identities, 
that
you were involved with the Negaverse, more often than not as a victim of a 
plot
as opposed to voluntarily becoming friends with some of their agents, things
you'd hear on the grapevine and all.  Speaking of which, it's my turn to ask
you a question."
     Molly blinked again as she struggled to sort out the sudden deluge of
information.  "Okay...." she said slowly.
     "How much of that is true?" V asked.
     "What?"
     V sighed.  "I'm just curious as to how much of that is fruit from the
grapevine and how much of that is actually true.  I know the Sailor Scouts
personally, but I don't know their true identities, and just between you and
me, I don't ever want to find out."
     Molly blinked for the third time in as many minutes.  "What do you 
mean?"
     "Let me try to explain it like this.  I have to keep my identity a 
secret
because I've put some people in jail.  If they found out who I was, they'd
probably come after me once they got out.  But if they know someone who does
know my true identity, they'd probably go after them in order to get to me.
You know what Sailor Moon and the others have dealt with.  If the Negaverse
were to ever find out their true identities, they could come after not only
them whenever they wanted to, but their friends and families as well.  The 
only
thing that keeps them safe is the fact that once they revert to their secret
identities, the Sailor Scouts effectively drop off the face of the planet."
     Sailor V sighed and rubbed at a kink in her neck.  "I guess what I'm
babbling about is that if you do know something, go talk to one of the 
Sailor
Scouts as quietly as you can, tell them what you know, and then do your very
best to forget that you know.  Personally I'd suggest talking to Mercury, as
she seems to have the brains of the group, but you didn't hear me say that,"
she added with an impish smile.
     Molly just nodded, her mind already deep in thought about the 
situation.
How many times has the Negaverse come after me to get to Sailor Moon? she
thought, the realization sending a dark chill down her spine.  I don't know
who she is, but if they think I do....
     "I can hear the gears turning in your brain," V observed.  "Something 
on
your mind?"
     "I think I understand what you mean," Molly replied.
     V breathed a sigh of relief.  "Good, I wasn't sure I could throw 
anything
more at you if it didn't click," she said with another impish smile.
     Molly blinked before she chuckled.  "Thanks.... I think."
     "Anytime.  Hang on for a few, I gotta go rescue Mercury.  She's new to
the publicity thing and she's probably stressed out to the point of wanting 
to
bite someone by now," V said as she walked over to the group of children 
still
mobbing Sailor Mercury.  "Are we having fun yet?" she asked cheerfully.
     "Sailor V!" the crowd replied enthusiastically.
     "That's me," she said as she struck a stylized pose, drawing a cheer 
from
the horde of kids.  "So how are you holding up?" she asked Mercury as she
accepted a pen and pad of paper from someone to do an autograph.
     "This is probaby the best method of birth control I've ever seen," 
Mercury
replied quietly as she finished what she dearly hoped was her last 
autograph.
     "But think of how much you want to be a pediatrician!" V teased.  She
blinked suddenly as her use of the elementary "p-word" caused about a full
second's worth of silence.
     "You're a doctor?" a little girl asked Mercury.
     "I'm not, at least not yet.  My mother is a doctor, though," Mercury
replied.
     "Do you have a band-aid?  I scratched myself on the bus," she said as 
she
held out her arm.
     Mercury blinked as she took a closer look.  The scratch was a minor 
one,
although it was deep enough to cause it to slowly ooze blood.  "Umm, I don't
have...." she started to say.
     V clapped her on the shoulder.  "Hold that thought, Doc," she said as 
she
hurried over to her backpack.  She opened it and fished out half a dozen 
rather
questionable containers before was able to retrieve the portable medical kit
she bought less than an hour ago.
     "Can you give this to Sailor Mercury for me?" she asked the nearest kid
as she held the kit out to him.  His eyes lit up at the thought of helping
Sailor V and he eagerly did so, carrying it towards Mercury as if it was a
major sports trophy.
     "Thank you," Mercury said as she knelt down and took the kit from him.
She set the kit down on the ground and opened it, her eyes nearly falling 
out
of her skull at what she saw inside.  "What kind of kit is this?" she said,
giving V a stunned look.
     V coughed lightly.  "I'll tell you about it later," she said.
     "That should be an interesting conversation," Mercury muttered to 
herself
as she quickly searched through the kit and came up with a small box of 
large
band-aids, a piece of gauze, and a small bottle marked H2-O2.
     "What's that?" the little girl asked as she eyed the bottle warily.
     Mercury sighed at the question, knowing what was coming.  "This is just 
a
little hydrogen peroxide to make sure that your scrape doesn't get infected.
I know it stings a little," she said as the girl cringed, "But just think of
how much it will hurt if it does get infected.  Now hold still while I scan 
it
with my computer."
     The little girl blinked as Mercury passed her computer over the scrape 
and
she saw things start to appear on Mercury's Virtual Visor.  "What's that 
thing
doing?" she asked as she pointed to the visor.
     "My visor can act like a computer monitor so I can both see what my
computer is telling me and see what's going on around me at the same time,
instead of stopping to look at the screen," Mercury explained as she read 
the
results.  "And since you can see how tiny the screen is, you can imagine how
hard it is to stop and read when you're in the middle of a fight," she said 
as
she handed her computer to the little girl.
     The girl's eyes went wide as she carefully took the compact computer 
from
Mercury.  "It's so small and light," she said incrediously.  With the sensor
suite now pointed at Mercury, the display was changing to show her 
biological
readings and the little girl was absolutely captivated as she watched the 
tiny
words and symbols scroll across the screen.
     "It has to be, since I can't carry a full-sized computer with me every
time I want to go somewhere," Mercury explained soothingly as she quietly 
pried
open the bottle of peroxide and dabbed the gauze in it.  One of the lessons
learned from Mother is always do the stuff they hate when they're 
preoccupied
with something else, she thought to herself as she carefully wiped the gauze
over the scrape.
     The little girl blinked as she felt a prickling sensation on her arm 
and
looked down.  "Hey!" she exclaimed, more out of surprise than anything.
     "Does it hurt?" Mercury inquired as she gently finished cleaning the
scrape and opened the box of band-aids.
     The girl blinked as she realized that she wasn't in mortal agony.  
"N-no,
not really...." she said, surprised that it really didn't hurt.
     "I told you it only stings a little," Mercury replied with a smile as 
she
peeled open a band-aid and gently placed it over the now-disinfected scrape.
She smoothed the adhesive tabs down securely and looked up at her.  "There,
that should do it."
     The little girl looked down at the new bandage before looking back up 
at
Mercury, the smile spreading across her face like a sunbeam.  "Thank you!" 
she
exclaimed and gave Mercury a bone-crushing hug.  Mercury was caught 
off-guard
by the outburst of emotion and could only return the hug as best she could.
     "Still having second thoughts, Doctor?" Sailor V whispered in Mercury's
ear, smiling at the sight.  Mercury said nothing as the little girl finally
released her and handed her computer back.
     "Thank you," Mercury said automatically.
     "I don't mean to be a spoilsport here, kids, but Sailor Mercury and I
have to be going.  It's getting awfully close to dinnertime, and even Sailor
Scouts need to eat," V said loudly enough for everyone to hear her.  
"Besides,
some of you have parents standing over there waiting for you."
     Mercury blinked and looked around, noticing for the first time the 
small
group of adults standing together about twenty feet away.  The children 
noticed
this at exactly the same time and there was another brief stampede as all 
but
three of them went running towards their parents, waving farewell to the 
Sailor
Scouts in the process.
     The little girl smiled at Mercury and gave her another hug.  "I have to
go.  Thank you, Sailor Mercury!" she said before she too turned around and 
made
a mad-dash towards her patiently waiting mother.  Mercury looked around and
noticed that the two kids who remained were only waiting long enough to get
Sailor Moon's autograph before they also headed towards Mom and Dad.
     "I think you've just made a friend for life," V observed quietly.
     "Perhaps," Mercury said softly, her mind already occupied with trying 
to
figure out the feelings the whole experience had caused.
     "Is the coast clear?" Sailor Moon asked with a weary expression as she
walked towards V and Mercury.
     "For today, at least.  Now Mercury, tell me you didn't enjoy that," V 
said
with another impish grin.
     "Don't make me bite you in front of everybody," Mercury replied evenly
with a not-quite-amused look.
     "I told you she was stressed out to the point of wanting to bite 
someone,"
V said over her shoulder with a wink.  Mercury looked behind V and blinked 
hard
as she realized that Molly was still standing there.  Uh oh, she thought, I
forgot she was still with us....
     "Anyway, now that the rugrat brigade has gone elsewhere, it's time for 
me
to make myself scarce again," V said as she knelt down and quickly repacked 
her
backpack.
     "Hold it, V," Mercury said with a slight edge to her voice.  "I want to
ask you a few questions about that medical kit."
     "Like...?" V replied warily.
     "Like what exactly it's supposed to be, where you got it, and how you 
paid
for it," Mercury said.
     V raised a slender eyebrow.  "And when did you become my mother?"
     Sailor Moon and Molly exchanged glances.  "I think now would be a good
time for me to head back home," Molly told Sailor Moon quietly.
     "You stay put for a few minutes," Mercury said over her shoulder 
without
taking her eyes off of Sailor V.  "We still need to talk about a few 
things."
     V smiled sweetly.  "Oh, by all means, don't let me keep you from taking
care of something of far greater importance than my shopping list.  I'll 
just
have to take a rain check and catch up with you two Sailor Scouts later," 
she
said as she zipped the backpack closed and hefted it onto her shoulder.
     Mercury gave her a look that came dangerously close to melting a hole 
in
her Virtual Visor.  She closed the lid of the medical kit with enough force 
to
dent the olive-green casing and wordlessly held it out to V.
     "Thanks," V said as she took the kit from Mercury and flashed a smile 
at
everyone.  "See ya later!" she said as she started jogging down the path,
disappearing from view as she turned a corner.
     "You need to calm down," Sailor Moon said quietly to Mercury after a 
few
moments of heavy silence.
     Mercury sighed quietly and muttered something toxic beneath her breath 
in
the denizen language.  "Sorry," she apologized as she deactivated her 
Virtual
Visor and rubbed her temples.  "I just don't know how she manages to always 
get
on my nerves like that."
     "Knowing V, she'd probably call it a skill," Sailor Moon ventured.
     The vampire grunted as she closed her eyes.  "The truly disturbing 
thing
is that you're probably right," she said as she gave up trying to massage 
out
her headache and let her hands fall to her sides.
     Molly shook her head.  "And you're sure you two are friends?"
     Mercury opened her eyes and gave the redhead an odd look.  "Sailor V is 
a
completely different person once she takes her mask off," she said, 
referring
to the oversized Sailor V Transformation Glasses.  "I'm not overly fond of 
V,
but I'm a close friend of the person beneath the attitude."
     "I see," Molly said slowly, trying to figure out what was sending a 
subtle
chill creeping down her spine.  She summoned the same courage she used to 
force
herself to speak to Reish'id and drew in a slow breath.  "Sailor Mercury, 
can I
talk to you for a few minutes?"
     Molly almost whimpered as both Sailor Mercury and Sailor Moon seemed to
stop breathing and looked at her.  Sailor Moon's gaze was filled with unease
and nervousness, but the carefully concealed emotions she saw in the depths 
of
Mercury's steel-blue eyes and the intensity behind them is what truly 
bothered
her.  She knows, she thought suddenly, she knows I know....
     "Of course," Mercury replied evenly, doing her best to ignore the 
sudden
formation of ice in her veins.  "What's on your mind?"
     It seemed like an eternity passed before Molly's lips began to move as 
she
spoke.  "I.... I think I know who you are...." she said, her voice barely a
whisper.  Sailor Moon blinked at her words but Mercury continued to gaze at
her with almost inhuman intensity, the steel-blue eyes seeming to bore into 
her
very soul with each passing moment.
     "I see...." Mercury said slowly.  "And who do you think I am?"
     "Ami," Molly said softly, "Ami Mizuno."
     "Mmm, one of the students from Crossroads High School, I believe," 
Mercury
said slowly, as if in deep thought.  "So what makes you think I'm her?"
     Molly took a deep breath and started to talk about information taken 
from
several different events and weaved together to form her conclusion.  The
explanation took several minutes to finish and Mercury's vampiric gaze never
wavered from her even once the entire time.
     "Interesting," Mercury said when Molly fell silent.  She briefly 
glanced
at Sailor Moon and frowned slightly when she noticed that the blonde's eyes
were wide with shock.  She was about to whisper something to her when an 
idea
suddenly blossomed in her mind with the force of a supernova.
     She blinked hard as she quickly considered her options and their 
potential
repercussions before she decided on a course of action.  I hope this works, 
she
thought as she turned to face Sailor Moon.  "That sounds amazing, doesn't 
it?"
she said as an eerie gleam appeared in her vampiric eyes.  You will nod your
head and say nothing, she thought with all her willpower as she unleashed 
her
hypnotic powers.
     Sailor Moon seemed to freeze in place for a moment, her blue eyes 
becoming
even wider with shock before she slowly nodded to Mercury.  Mercury turned 
to
face Molly and took a deep breath.  "However, there is one serious flaw in 
your
otherwise brilliant reasoning," she said slowly as she focused her hypnotic
powers on Molly.
     Molly blinked as her breath seemed to catch in her throat briefly and 
her
mind started to grow fuzzy.  "What's that?" she managed to say as she looked
into Mercury's eyes and was captivated by the faint gleam she saw in them.
Such strange color eyes, she thought distantly.
     "If I was Ami, I couldn't be in two places at once, now could I?" 
Mercury
said reasonably, keeping her voice soft and even.  "So if I'm Ami, then who 
is
that on the other side of the street over there?"
     Molly blinked and turned to look, her eyes going wide as she saw a very
familiar figure with short blue hair walking along the sidewalk, completely
oblivious to the presence of the Sailor Scouts not more than forty or fifty
yards away.
     Sailor Moon turned to look as well and nearly suffered a heart-attack.
"What?" she managed to gasp before Mercury discreetly took hold of her elbow
and lightly pinched a nerve.  The resulting surge of pain forced her to fall
silent as she continued to stare at the impossible visage of Ami walking 
along
the sidewalk, disappearing from view after a few seconds.
     "That was Ami, wasn't it?" Mercury asked neutrally as she struggled to
keep an even expression and hoped that she wasn't obviously sweating.
     "I.... I guess so," Molly said after a few seconds of silence.  It took
her another few seconds before she was able to shake off the residual 
effects
of the hypnosis and turned to face Mercury.  "Looks like you're not Ami 
after
all, Sailor Mercury."
     "From what I know of Ami, she and I would probably get along quite 
well,"
Mercury said.  She was still holding onto Sailor Moon's elbow but was no 
longer
pinching her, a subtle reminder for the blonde to remain silent.  "But as 
we've
never met, that's just an educated guess."
     Molly blushed a medium shade of red.  "Guess I was wrong about you, 
Sailor
Mercury.  Sorry."
     Mercury just smiled.  "Just a case of mistaken identity, don't worry 
about
it," she replied lightly.  "Well, seeing how you look well enough and all, I
think it's time Sailor Moon and I got back home for dinner."
     "Good idea," Molly said as she glanced at the horizon, trying to 
discern
the time by the position of the setting sun.  "It's about what, getting 
close
to six o'clock by now?"
     "Five-thirty would be my guess, but that's close enough for anyone's
stomach clock," Mercury said with a glance towards Sailor Moon.  "What do 
you
think?"
     Sailor Moon blinked hard as her mind snapped back into reality.  
"Sorry,
I was thinking about something.  What did you say?" she asked sheepishly.
     "Thinking about dinner yet?" Mercury said with a faint edge to her 
voice
and the lightest of squeezes on the blonde's elbow.
     Sailor Moon blinked again at the subtle suggestion and smiled weakly.
"Yeah, I guess so."
     Mercury gave Molly a knowing look.  "Well, if she's getting hungry, 
then
you know it's time to go."
     "Hey," Sailor Moon protested, more out of reflex than understanding.
     Molly giggled.  "I guess I'll catch you two some other time, I guess."
     "Probably," Mercury replied.  "Let's just hope the next time won't be a
cause for concern for anyone."
     "No kidding," the redhead said with a serious nod.  "Take care," she 
said
and started walking in the general direction of her house.
     Sailor Mercury waited until Molly was out of her sight before she 
sighed
heavily and released Sailor Moon's elbow.  "I hope I never have to do that 
sort
of thing again," she said softly, her voice laced with weariness.
     Sailor Moon whirled around to face her friend.  "How'd you do that?" 
she
said, still quite rattled from seeing both Mercury and Ami at the same time.
"One moment you're standing right next to me, and then all of a sudden 
you're
crossing the street, and then you're right back here again."
     "It was a hypnotic illusion," Mercury explained.  "It's almost exactly
like my invisibility, except that time I was making you see me when I really
wasn't there instead of the other way around.  It obviously worked, seeing 
how
you both reacted like that."
     Sailor Moon gave her a slightly confused look.  "So how come you've 
never
told us about this trick before?"
     "Well.... to be honest, the idea just occurred to me five minutes ago 
and
this is the first time I've tried something like that," Mercury admitted 
with a
faint blush of embarassment.  "I wasn't sure it would work since I couldn't 
see
the illusion myself."
     The blonde blinked hard and stared at the distant sidewalk.  "But.... 
that
looked so.... so real...." she said slowly.
     Mercury just shrugged.  "Guess that means I did something right.  Come 
on,
we need to get out of here before someone else comes along and decides to 
ask
for our autograph."
     Sailor Moon shivered lightly at the thought of signing any more 
autographs
in the near-term future.  "And to think some people thrive on such things," 
she
muttered to herself as they started walking towards a dense group of bushes.
Once they were safely concealed from anyone who might have been watching 
them,
they reversed their transformations and headed for the sidewalk in silence,
Ami lost in introspective thought and Serena intent on arriving at her house 
in
time for dinner.
     "So I take it our identities are safe for now?" Serena finally said 
they
came to a halt at an intersection and waited for the light to change.
     Ami nodded.  "For now," she echoed.  "The only things that I can think 
of
that would really screw up everything would be for Molly to either bump into
Tolaris again and have him say something or to see him with one of us.  She
already knows what he looks like, so all she needs is to see a picture of 
him
with a few friends and she'll start trying to put puzzle pieces together 
again.
If she manages to put together another chain of events like she did with me, 
or
even does so much as add another link or two to what she's already got, our
'secret identities' could very well be blown wide open."
     Serena nodded in understanding as the traffic light changed and they
started walking across the intersection.  "So what are you going to do, keep
Tolaris locked inside the cathedral all the time?" she teased.
     The vampire gave her a reproving look.  "You know I would never suggest
such a thing.  We just have to be more careful about what we do together in
public, that's all."  She blinked as something in her peripheral vision 
caught
her attention and turned her head to look.
     Serena noticed Ami's gaze shifting suddenly and also turned to look, 
her
blue eyes widening slightly at what she saw.  "Hey, isn't that your mom's 
car
parked over there?"
     "Do you know anyone else with an electric-blue Porsche in this city?" 
Ami
answered with a slight frown.  She couldn't see the licence plate from where
she was standing, but she would have bet a considerable sum of money that it
was indeed her mother's car.  Odd, she thought to herself, she shouldn't be
getting home until close to midnight.  Unless....
     "I'll catch you later, Serena," she said abruptly as she made a 
decision
and started walking towards the car.  Her mind was already becoming 
preoccupied
with trying to figure out why her mother wasn't working right now and didn't
hear Serena's slightly confused farewells.
     Ami was only a dozen feet away from the car when the slender figure of 
her
mother stepped out of a small corner store with a slightly harried look on 
her
otherwise stunning features and carrying a large grocery bag.  She wasn't 
aware
of Ami's approach until she had stashed the bag in the trunk and happened to
look up at the sound of footsteps.
     "Hello, Ami," Doctor Amelia Anderson said, only mildly surprised to 
find
her daughter standing in front of her instead at home studying in her room.
     "Hi, Mom," Ami replied as she gave her mother a hug.  The hug only 
lasted
a brief moment as the overwhelming smell of medical-strength antiseptic 
reached
Ami's keen nose.  She quickly took a step back, wrinking her nose as the 
smell
made her eyes start to water.
     "I know, it is rather strong," Dr. Anderson said apologetically before 
Ami
could say anything.  "There was a major accident last night and we're just 
now
finishing up the post-ops.  I figured that since they were letting me go, 
I'd
finish scrubbing off the antiseptic at home."
     Ami nodded and tried not to imagine what her mother had just gone 
through.
"Is that why you're headed home so early?" she asked as she walked to the 
other
side of the car and opened the door.
     Her mother got in the car and unlocked the passenger side door with a 
tap
on the armrest.  It wasn't until Ami had sat down, closed the door, and 
buckled
her seatbelt that she noticed the odd look her mother was giving her.  
"What?"
she asked cautiously.
     "Early?  Ami, I haven't been able to leave the hospital since I checked 
in
for work yesterday morning," Dr. Anderson said, the strain of working 
nonstop
for so long finally starting to show on her face.  "I've been up to my 
elbows
in work for the past twenty-eight hours."
     Ami blinked incredulously as her mother closed the door and started the
ignition.  The well-maintained Porsche's V-6 engine immediately caught on 
the
first revolution and started purring softly, eliciting the faintest 
suggestion
of a smile on the usually mild-mannered doctor's face.  The car was her only
concession to lavish spending and her habit of striving to always keep it in
near-perfect operating condition sometimes bordered on the fanatical.  Ami 
had
often suspected that her mother enjoyed driving the Porsche just a little 
bit
too much, but had no real complaints as the good doctor always drove with 
the
utmost care and caution.
     Her mother's words repeated themselves in her mind and Ami struggled to
repress a shiver.  Her mother was a highly-skilled surgeon and was more 
often
than not called upon to work on emergency trauma cases.  The hospital 
wouldn't
have kept her on call for such an extended period of time unless her skills 
had
been direly needed.  That being the case, Ami thought grimly, she very well
might have been up to her elbows in surgery.  Literally.  The image that 
sprang
to her mind wasn't a pretty one and she had to repress another shiver.
     I can think of worse jobs, she thought as she cast a concerned glance 
at
her mother.  Dr. Anderson's dark blue hair was still securely wrapped up in 
her
usually tight bun, but Ami noticed a sizable number of errant strands of 
hair
that had managed to work themselves free, a sign of stress and fatigue that
only those close to the doctor could discern.  The few lines of age that had
engraved themselves on her stern yet alluring features over the years were 
more
sharply pronounced than usual, yet another barely-noticable indication of 
the
physical burden on her.
     Ami sighed quietly to herself, not able to completely understand the 
sort
of weight her mother carried on her shoulders on a day-to-day basis.  She 
knew
that not being able to understand was partly a good thing, as her mother 
said
on occasion that no human being should have to see what she sometimes sees 
on
a really bad night, but the frustration of not being able to fully 
understand
sometimes wore on her soul as well.
     "Something on your mind?" her mother asked gently as she buckled her 
seat
belt and cast a curious glance at her daughter.
     Ami blinked as her mind refocused itself on the surrounding reality.  
"I
was just worried about you having to drive given how tired you are," she 
said
carefully.  She blinked again and fought the urge to cringe as her mother 
gave
her a decidedly cool look in response.
     "I'll be fine, dear," Dr. Anderson said evenly without a hint of 
reproach
in her voice.  She didn't need to say anything else or to use any other tone 
to
convey her meaning as her look communicated everything that needed to be 
said.
     Ami merely glanced away, knowing that she wasn't the only one to ever 
be
given 'that look' by her mother.  The look could have many possible 
meanings,
although in this case Ami took it to read, "Your concern is touching, but I
know quite well what I'm doing, thank you very much."
     "Unless, of course, you happen to be suggesting that you would prefer 
to
drive home," she continued, a note of faint humor creeping into her voice.
     This time Ami couldn't stop herself from cringing at her mother's 
words,
despite the fact that she knew that her mother was simply teasing her.  They
were both aware that Ami had never driven a car before, let alone sat behind
the wheel of one with a manual transmission.
     "Of course not," Ami replied, then cautiously added, "But I wouldn't 
mind
learning one of these months."  She blinked in surprise when her words 
didn't
draw another cool look from her mother at the suggestion of trying to learn 
how
to drive on her Porsche.  The look she got in its place was one of careful
consideration.  Maybe, just maybe.... she thought as the tiniest spark of 
hope
ignited deep inside her heart.  "I am sixteen, after all," she ventured.
     She suddenly had to fight the urge to cringe once more as her mother 
gave
her the look again, this one seeming to say, "As if I would forget the age 
of
my only daughter."  The look unexpectedly softened after a few moments as 
her
mother sighed quietly to herself, turning her attention out towards the 
evening
traffic on the street.
     "Yes, I know," she said softly, almost sadly, as she shifted the car 
into
gear and smoothly drove into the flow of traffic.
     Ami blinked at the sudden change in her mother's mood.  Now that was 
odd,
she thought as she glanced at her out of the corner of her eye.  Maybe she's
even more tired than I thought.  Ami gave the matter a few more moments of
thought before she shoved it onto one of the many 'back burners' in her mind
before she turned her attention out the window and let her mind drift off to
other topics.

                *               *               *               *

     Time and spaced seemed to twist inward on itself in an unusually 
graphic
display of quasi-dimensional energy for a brief moment before unfolding back
into its usual shape, leaving behind a rather odd assortment of individuals.
     "And I thought Susan's keep was a creepy place to visit," Alex observed 
as
she studied at the dark landscape surrounding her.  "Either someone needs to
find the lightswitch for the sun, or I need to get out of here."
     "I assure you if such a switch is to be found, it would have been 
turned
on a very, very long time ago," Mephisto replied with a raised eyebrow as he
scanned the area for other life-forms.  He blinked as something moved in his
peripheral vision and he foused on it.  "Michelle, don't move," he said very
quietly.
     Michelle blinked as she froze, her eyes darting about as she searched 
for
whatever it was that he had seen.  "W-what?" she said nervously.  She was 
about
to say more when the darkness started to ripple a few feet away from her and 
a
mishappen creature became visible.
     "Erk-burgle?" it blubbered at her, staring at her with beady eyes.
     Michelle's reply was to leap back into Alex's arms, screaming at the 
top
of her lungs.  The creature promptly made a shrill cry of its own and ran 
away
as fast as it could, clearly terrified of the unexpected visitors.
     "I think it's gone, love, so you can calm down now," Alex said as she
gently hugged an extremely upset Michelle.  "To be honest, I'm not sure who
scared who more."
     "So much for first contact," Susan mused as she watched the retreating
creature.  She glanced towards Michelle and blinked.  "I think you can let 
go
of Myst now," said evenly.
     Michelle blinked and looked down, quickly releasing her death-grip on 
the
Shinma.  Myst made an odd coughing noise as she jumped down onto the ground,
carefully stretching out her legs and muttering somewhat unkind things 
beneath
her breath.
     "Are you okay, Myst?" Mephisto inquired gently as he searched around 
for
the marker he imprinted after his visit to the Moon Kingdom.
     "Next time I find a living soul, I'm going to eat it instead," the cat
said sourly as she continued to stretch.
     "Human souls don't taste nearly as good as you would imagine," Susan 
said
with a faint smile on her lips.
     "Thanks, Sue, we really appreciate hearing that," Alex muttered darkly 
to
herself, still comforting Michelle after her close encounter with the 
unknown.
     "Here it is," Mephisto said as he located the marker.  He glanced 
around
before he carefully probed the fabric of space-time, carefully feeling for 
the
tiny seam that, when torn open, would create a wormhole to the Moon Kingdom.
     "Wait," Susan said suddenly, her eyes narrowing.  She carefully looked
around them before sniffing the air.  "Do you smell something?"
     Mephisto frowned and tested the air.  "I don't smell anything."
     "I do," Myst said with a slight edge to her voice, her whiskers 
twitching
violently.  "Smells like.... tengu."
     Susan grunted softly as she exchanged concerned glances with Mephisto.
"Let me guess," Alex said warily.  "This tengu thing we can't smell but you 
and
Myst can is bad news, right?"
     "Decidedly," the succubus replied.  "As soon as the gate is open, I 
want
you and Michelle through it, no matter what starts to happen."
     "Wait, Susan, what...." Michelle started to say.
     Susan glared at them over her shoulder.  "No arguments," she said in a
voice laced with steel.  She waited until she got a subdued nod from 
Michelle
before she turned her attention back out towards the darkness, small ripples 
of
bright-red energy starting to form on her arms.
     Mephisto glanced at Susan's back in concern for a moment before he 
turned
his attention to the seam in the fabric of space-time.  He closed his eyes 
and
concentrated, a wave of pure energy forming around him as a spike of quantum
energy began to form.  The spike began to glow as more power was fed into it
until it was almost strong enough to pierce the fabric of space-time.
     Myst's head snapped around as movement caught her eye.  "Here they 
come!"
she yelled as a horde of creatures suddenly became visible a short distance
away and began to charge forward, eager to tap into the unknown but 
obviously
powerful source of energy.
     Susan's eyes began to glow as she raised her hands towards the 
onrushing
horde, her hands balling into fists.  "Get them out of here!" she snapped as
the ripples of energy on her arms quickly coalesced into a pair of 
bright-red
spheres on her fists.  With a snarl, she released the spheres and sent them
blazing towards the tengu mob like miniature comets.
     Mephisto thrust the quantum spike forward as hard as he could, catching
the seam head-on and neatly ripping it open.  The tear widened instantly,
creating a tremendous whirling maelstrom of energy that nearly blinded 
everyone
with it's radiance.  Without hesitation, Mephisto grabbed Alex by the arm 
and
literally threw her into the vortex.
     "GO!" he roared at Michelle as he turned around and unleashed a stream 
of
sparks towards the tengu.  Michelle didn't pause to look as she leapt into 
the
maelstrom and disappeared.  Myst started to change her shape in preparation 
of
a battle when Susan grabbed her by the scruff of her neck and threw her into
the vortex, her free hand still firing energy balls at the tengu.
     The first two energy balls had already reached the leading edge of the
mob and was wreaking absolute havoc, literally exploding the flesh of those
tengu unfortunate enough to be in the way.  The creatures split up and began
to scatter, making themselves harder targets while still drawing closer to 
the
wormhole.
     "I'll handle them, get out of here!" Mephisto yelled as he let loose 
with
another stream of sparks.
     "I'm not leaving you behind!" the succubus yelled back as she began to
edge towards the vortex, still blasting the demons with her unholy energy.
     "I will catch up with you later, trust me," the Shinma said as he broke
off his attack and grabbed Susan by the wrist.  "Take care of Alex for me," 
he
said as he heaved her into the wormhole and collapsed it behind her.
     An energy wave exploded around him as the fabric of space-time resealed
itself and everything suddenly became disturbingly quiet.  He turned around 
and
studied the group encircling him, the tengu confused by the sudden loss of 
the
source of energy and unsure what to do next.
     "Forty against one, is it?" Mephisto said slowly as he glanced around.  
He
began to laugh quietly to himself, a low-pitched and decidedly dangerous 
sound
as his form began to expand and divide.  "Let's see how you vermin handle a
real Shinma," he said as he unleashed his powers....

                *               *               *               *

     The air, which for the past thousand years had remained undisturbed, 
was
suddenly agitated as a whirling vortex of energy irised open and a humanoid
figure was flung out, cursing loudly as she landed hard on the ashy dirt.
     "Of all the...." Alex began to say before another figure emerged from 
the
maelstrom.  The edge of the wormhole was several inches above the ground and
she stumbled as she exited, crashing into Alex and drawing another burst of
profanity.
     "Goddamn it, get off my.... Mich!  Are you alright?" the blonde asked 
as
she struggled to get out from under Michelle's presently unwelcome weight.
     "What happened?" Michelle said, somewhat disoriented by the brief time
spent travelling through the wormhole.
     "You landed on me, that's what," Alex grunted.  "I love you dearly, but
you need to get off of me right now.  Where's everyone else?"
     Michelle was about to reply when Myst emerged from the vortex, not in 
the
least bit in control of her trajectory.  She slammed into Michelle's 
shoulder,
knocking her off-balance and causing her to fall back down on the 
unfortunate
blonde.
     The burst of profanity lasted for several seconds, during which 
Michelle's
complexion turned a vivid shade of red and Myst was able to regain her sense
of direction, including which way was down.  "I don't think even Susan's 
done
that," Michelle ventured as she hastily moved herself off of Alex's foot and
moved a safe distance away from the blonde's explosive temper.
     "Watch out!" Myst hissed as she glanced at the swirling vortex and 
curled
up into a tiny ball.  Alex barely had time to glance up before she saw a 
large
winged shadow looming over her as it emerged from the wormhole.  The blonde
merely grunted and held her arms out in a vain attempt to prevent further
damage from being inflicted on her already battered and bruised body.
     Alex somehow managed to catch Susan without breaking anything, despite
the jarring impact of their collision.  Behind them, the wormhole suddenly
collapsed in on itself and vanished, leaving the four of them alone on what
appeared to be a barren and lifeless world.
     Susan quickly reoriented herself and moved off of Alex.  "Thank you, 
you
broke my fall perfectly," she said as she stood up and tried to help the 
blonde
to her feet.
     "I'll break something else if you don't shut up," Alex growled as she 
did
her best to retain her balance and almost failed.
     Michelle glanced at the spot where the wormhole was and frowned.  "Wait 
a
minute, where's Mephisto?"
     The succubus glanced at the empty air and muttered something beneath 
her
breath.  "Apparently he closed the wormhole behind me in an attempt to keep
anything from following us here.  He said that he would catch up with us at 
a
later time."  She sighed quietly to herself and decided that it would be 
best
not to repeat what else he had told her, at least for the present.
     "Myst, are you okay?" Michelle asked as she knelt down in the dust to
stroke the kitten's gray fur.
     "What.... what is that?" Myst asked as she stared up into the sky, her 
red
eyes opened wide in wonder.
     Alex glanced up in the direction the Shinma was staring at and whistled
softly.  "That's the planet Earth," she said as she studied the beautiful 
orb
hanging in the sky.  She glanced at the dark side of the planet and blinked.
"Hey, is it just me, or are there lights on the dark side?"
     Susan barely glanced at the planet before studying the barren landscape
around them.  "You have to remember that a thousand years has passed since 
you
last saw the planet.  If memory serves, their calendar should be in the late
1900's and they should possess a startling array of technology.  What you 
see
are their cities at night, lit up by electric lights."
     "Umm, I take it those are different than the glowstones we use?" 
Michelle
asked hesitantly as she looked around.  "And where are we?"
     "Glowstones don't work on Earth, love," Alex said.  "At least, they 
didn't
last time I tried taking one there."
     "They still don't," Susan said absently as she looked around.  "If 
those
ruins are what I think they are, we're probably at the extreme southern edge 
of
the Shield."
     Michelle blinked as she looked around the barren landscape.  "What 
ruins?"
     Susan gave her a curious look.  "Those ruins," she said, pointing at an
apparently empty section of lunar terrain.
     "Umm, Sue?" Alex said slowly.  "I don't see anything over there except 
a
buttload of dust and maybe a small pebble."
     Myst made a strange noise.  "You can't see those huge columns of 
marble?"
she asked slowly, wondering if a joke was trying to be made.
     Susan's wings started to twitch as she turned around to stare at the 
image
she was seeing.  After a few moments of silence, she closed her eyes and 
turned
her concentration inward.  Her wings flexed once before they were folded 
flat
and abosorbed into the scars on her back.  "So that's it," she said when she
opened her eyes and saw the world with her human vision.
     "We're waiting, Sue," Alex muttered, more to herself than to anyone.
     Susan shot her a reproving glance.  "I think the Screen is still active
around the Kingdom, but the bubble generator is no longer functional."
     "Sounds bad," Alex commented.  "Now you wanna explain that in small 
words
so the rest of us can understand it?"
     "I thought the Screen was a ward surrounding the Kingdom that makes it
invisible to anything standing outside the Shield," Michelle said carefully.
     "Precisely," Susan said.  "However, the Screen also cloaks anything 
that
is inside it.  In order for the people inside the Shield to see everything
around them, a special generator was designed to nullify the cloaking effect
within a certain radius, creating a 'bubble' of visibility."
     Alex shook her head slowly.  "Oh, yeah, I remember now.... You 
explained
that to Prince Darian once when he asked why he couldn't see the Moon 
Kingdom
from his palace on Earth."
     Susan tilted her head to one side.  "Alex, you amaze me sometimes," she
teased with a faint smile.  "I always thought you had been too busy playing
with the inside of Neptune's skirt to be paying attention to anything I 
might
have said then."
     Alex and Michelle exchanged glances before they both blushed a deep 
shade
of red.  "Umm.... we didn't think anyone would notice...." the blonde 
mumbled.
     "Can the bubble generator be fixed?" Michelle asked.
     "I hope so," Susan replied.
     "I have a question," Myst said cautiously.  "What is this shield you 
are
talking about?"
     "Lecture mode now in effect," Alex muttered to herself.
     Susan ignored the comment.  "It is a barrier designed to keep the 
vacuum
of space out and a breathable atmosphere inside the boundaries of the 
Kingdom,"
she explained.  "The Shield works only on the air, so objects may pass 
freely
in and out of it.  However, as there is a total vacuum beyond the Shield, 
one
must be careful not to get near it without protective gear."
     "And how close are we to the wrong side of the Shield?" Alex asked 
warily.
     Susan paused to think for a moment before she resumed her demonic form,
looking around the barren landscape with inhuman eyes that could see beyond 
the
effects of the Screen.  "Why don't we start walking towards the Palace?" she
suggested gently as she studied something behind the group.
     "How close, Sue?" the blonde said wearily.
     The succubus shrugged.  "I'd say about seven feet behind you."
     "Time to go," Alex replied hastily.  "C'mon, love, grab the kitty and
let's get moving."
     Michelle carefully picked up Myst and held her in her arms as the group
began walking.  "How much of a walk do we have ahead of us?" she asked as 
she
looked around the area.
     "Bladder's getting to you too, eh?" Alex said with a wry grin.
     "Starting to," Michelle replied.  "I can wait, though."
     "Myst...." Susan said slowly as an idea hit her.  "Can you warp space
around us like Mephisto did?"
     The Shinma nodded.  "Yes, but you'll have to tell me exactly where 
we're
going or I won't be able to do it."
     Susan gestured.  "See that building there, the one on the hill?"
     "What hill?" the blonde muttered to herself.
     "That's where you want to go?" Myst inquired.
     "Yes, that's the Royal Palace," Susan replied.  "At least, that's what 
it
was a thousand years ago."
     Myst said nothing as she studied the ruins of the palace, a mirage that
was only partially visible to her inhuman vision.  She imagined tendrils of
energy leaving her body to cross the vast distance between her and the 
palace,
twisting and folding space as they went.  When the two points were bridged 
by
the energy she wrapped space-time around them and reversed the orientation 
of
the bridge, causing them to cease to exist at the first point and to resume
existing at the second point.
     "Bizarre," Alex said as space-time unwrapped itself and the universe 
began
to make sense once more.
     "Problem?" Susan inquired.
     "Nah, just felt like down was in sixteen different directions for brief
moment," the blonde explained.  "And don't even get me started on which way
up felt like."
     Michelle looked around and blinked.  "Hey, what's that?" she said as 
she
pointed towards a building that kept fading in and out of view like a ghost.
     "That, I believe, is where the bubble generator is housed," Susan 
replied
as she started walking towards it.  "You three stay here.  Oh, and don't 
move
around too much or you'll disturb the corpses."
     Alex blinked hard.  "Corpses?" she said as she glanced down at her 
feet.
"Sue, I don't see anything...."
     "Which is why you shouldn't move," the succubus replied as she gingerly
tried to open the stone door.  The door resisted for a moment before 
crumbling
into a cloud of dust that flickered in and out of view.  "Not what I had in
mind, but it'll do," she mused as she stepped into the doorway and into the
small stairwell.
     Most of the glowstones had failed over time, but a few were still able 
to
cast a dim glow, providing just enough light.  How long has it been since I 
was
last down here? she mused as she descended further and further into the 
lowest
levels of the Royal Palace.  Now that I think about it, I think I've only 
been
down here that one time....
      the voice from the distant past said, 

     Susan looked up, a faint smile touching her lips.  "Lady Saturn," she 
said
very softly as she came to the bottom of the stairs and entered the chamber
that housed the bubble generator.  She was alone, but in her mind's eye she 
saw
the familiar figure of her childhood mentor following her down the ancient
staircase, chastising her for entering the forbidden room.
     The generator was composed of several crystals surrounding a decidedly
massive black crystal, each suspended in mid-air by magnetic fields when it 
was
operating.  Lasers emitted by the surrounding machinery were refracted 
through
each of the smaller crystals and focused together in the large one to create 
a
unique energy field that disrupted the cloaking effect of the Screen within 
a
certain radius.
      Lady Saturn said as she 
entered
the chamber, still wearing her ballroom gown.
     "I just wanted to see the generator," Susan said, repeating the words 
she
had uttered more than fifteen hundred years ago as she surveyed the room.  
Even
though everything was covered in a thin layer of dust and the machinery 
hadn't
been touched by a living hand in a thousand years, virtually all of the 
various
consoles and displays still functioned.
     She approached the master console and immediately noticed a very weak 
but
still readable blinking message on the panel.  Code 72, she thought as she
searched her memory for what it meant.  Generator off-line, safeguards still
intact, cause unknown.  Which means it can be repaired, she thought with a
small sigh of relief.
      Saturn replied with 
a
hint of amusement in her jet-black eyes.  
     "I wasn't going to touch it," Susan protested.  "I just wanted to know 
how
it works in case I have to fix it some day."  She looked up at the network 
of
crystals and frowned.  When the magnetic fields had collapsed, the crystals
had all settled down into special housings designed to hold them while the
generator was being worked on.  While the main crystal and most of the other
crystals appeared to be normal, one of the smaller crystals was lying at a
strange angle inside its housing.
     A delicate eyebrow was raised in reply.  
     Susan sighed.  "I want to learn, just in case.  I'll be around for 
quite
some time as I'm not human like you or Mother," she said softly, knowing 
that
nothing more needed to be said.  She moved away from the console and over to
the machinery to get a better look at the tilted crystal.  She studied it 
for
a moment before she carefully tried to remove it from the housing.
     The crystal was already badly fragmented and her light touch caused it 
to
further shatter with a muted crack, turning into a mass of tiny shards of
useless crystal in her hand.  So this is the problem, she mused as she 
briefly
studied the slivers of crystal before she dumped them into a pile on the 
floor
and started to pick the remaining shards out of the housing.
     Lady Saturn sighed quietly to herself as she placed her hand over her
abdomen, trying to feel the life inside her that was not even six weeks old.
 she said quietly and began to explain everything she 
knew
about the bubble generator.
     Susan checked the remaining crystals as the voice continued to speak in
the depths of her memory, pointing out this and that and explaining what 
each
one did.  She had only been seventeen at the time, still mastering her 
skills
as a Sailor Scout and trying to cope with her demonic heritage, and was 
rather
awed by the power of the bubble generator technology.  She had long ago lost
that sense of awe, but still marveled that such a device could function for 
so
long with only the most superficial maintenance requirements.
     "So what happens if a crystal should break?" she asked in the past 
while
she finished her checks of the other crystals in the present.
     
     "So where are the replacement crystals?"
      Saturn said as she gestured to a large cabinet.  Susan walked 
over
to the cabinet and tried to open it, frowning as she discovered it was 
locked.
"You never mentioned it was locked, Jeanne," she muttered to herself as the
memory of the Lady Saturn returned to the depths of her subconscious mind.
Well.... she thought as she considered her options, I can't blast it open
without taking the chance of breaking the replacements, and I don't have the
first clue where the key might be, so....
     She got a solid grip on the cabinet handle, placed one foot against the
wall for stability, and heaved with all her demonic strength.  The lock, 
solid
as it once was a thousand years ago, resisted for a total of two seconds 
before
ripping free from its housing, taking a good portion of the cabinet door 
with
it and throwing Susan off-balance in the process.
     The only thing that saved her from a very ungraceful and probably 
painful
encounter with the floor was her wings, which she furiously began flapping 
as
soon as she lost her balance.  Although she couldn't fly because her 
heritage
had given her smaller wings than was normal for a succubus, she still had
sufficient aerodynamic power to provide a forward force strong enough to
stabilize her balance until she could get both feet firmly on the ground.
     Scale of one to ten, that deserves a three, she thought sourly to 
herself
as she dropped the remains of the cabinet door onto the floor and looked 
inside
the now-open cabinet.  "This should do nicely," she said to herself as she
carefully extracted a replacement crystal and held it up to get a good look 
at
it in the dim light.
     Sighing quietly to herself, she reviewed the procedure for activating 
the
dormant generator as she gently set the crystal down in the vacant housing,
making sure it fit properly.  Once she was sure that the crystal wasn't 
going
to fracture on her again, she returned to the main console and studied the
display.  Satisfied that nothing else was obviously wrong, she opened the 
main
circuit panel, pressed the sequence of buttons that would reset the 
generator,
and toggled the reset switch.
     She paused as nothing happened.  She was about to try the restart 
command
again when she felt the hair on her arms start to tingle, a sign that a 
strong
magnetic field was building up.  When the subharmonic hum reached her ears, 
a
small smile formed at the corners of her mouth.  "Thank you, Jeanne," she 
said
quietly as a cloud of dust suddenly sprung up around the generator as the
magnetic fields came on-line, entrapping the crystals in an invisible web of
energy and causing them to rise up into the air.
     A loud klaxon went off and she jumped, more than slightly startled by 
the
sound.  She had just begun to worry about what it could mean when the laser
arrays powered up and sent their focused beams of light into the hearts of 
the
smaller crystals.  The crystals began to resonate for a few moments, adding 
a
curious hum to the chamber, before they started to glow and refract the 
laser
light into the center crystal.
     Susan glanced down at the console and tried to read the display.  Even
though the text was very dim, she could tell that everything was working 
just
fine, despite the machinery's age and condition.  A small clock in the 
corner
of the display was counting down the time remaining until the generator was
fully active and the 'bubble' could be created.
     "I think that should do it," she said softly to herself and left the
chamber, thinking pretty much the same dark thoughts about the steepness of 
the
staircase as she had thought the first time she had to climb them.
     "Well?" Alex demanded as Susan stepped out of the only 
partially-visible
building.  "Can it be fixed or what?"
     Susan merely smiled, waited until just the right moment, and snapped 
her
fingers.  An invisible shockwave blasted out from the depths of the 
building,
pushing the cloaking effects of the Screen away like dirt riding the crest 
of
a tidal wave.
     "Daaaaaaaaammmmmmnnnn," the blonde breathed softly as the Moon Kingdom
became visible to her human eyes.  "What the hell happened?"
     Nothing had been left intact.  Most of the buildings had been reduced 
to
rubble in the battle, and the passage of a thousand years of time only made 
the
decay worse.  The great columns of marble standing at the perimeter of the
Kingdom were now little more than stumps, most of the material lying broken 
and
scattered across the landscape.  Most of the Royal Palace had been 
destroyed,
but oddly enough the front portion and the courtyard had been spared the 
wrath
of destruction.
     Michelle glanced down momentarily to try to calm herself when she 
spotted
a decayed skeleton wearing a suit of armor and holding a sword in its bony
hand.  "ALEX!" she yelped as she stumbled back and nearly knocked Susan 
over.
     "Mich, what?  Oh boy...." Alex said as she saw the source of her 
lover's
sudden panic-attack.  "Umm, Susan?"
     "I told you there were corpses around," Susan said as she knelt down to
examine the remains.  "Judging by the armor, I'd say she was a foot soldier.
However, I don't think she died in battle."
     Alex took a deep breath as she sought to calm both herself and 
Michelle.
"We don't need a graphic description, Sue."
     Susan nodded and stood up, looking for another corpse to examine.  She
found one several feet away, the tattered remains of what once might have 
been
a suit hanging on the skeleton.  "As I thought.  These two didn't die from
wounds in battle.... they died when the Shield collapsed."
     "What?" Alex and Michelle said simultaneously.
     "Notice how dry and stale the air is," Susan said.  "Had the atmosphere
been intact these past thousand years, all the decaying bodies would have 
had
a tremendous effect on what the air would smell like right now.  My guess is
that the Shield collapsed shortly after the attack and the air was dispersed
into the void of space."
     "So why are we still able to breathe?" Alex asked.  "Not that I'm 
filing
a complaint, mind you, I'm just asking," she added hastily.
     The succubus shrugged.  "I have no idea right now," she replied.  "But 
I
think that's a secondary concern right now, as we have more important 
matters
to attend to."
     Alex grunted to herself.  "Like finding a place to take a piss."
     Susan merely shook her head.  "Of course, Alex.  I think there was an
intact toilet downstairs," she said as she pointed to the stairwell leading
down to the bubble generator.  "As for me, I need to find the place where we
died so I can recover what's left of my staff."
     "Great idea," the blonde said as she dashed towards the staircase.  
"I'll
catch up with you in a bit."
     Myst jumped out of Michelle's arms and followed Susan.  "I think I'll 
walk
this time," she muttered to herself, drawing a faint smile from Susan.
     "Wait, what about me?" Michelle said nervously as she glanced around at
her surroundings, cringing again at the sight of the fallen soldier's 
corpse.
     "Wait for Alex to finish up, then head towards the Market Square," 
Susan
replied as she and Myst started walking, disappearing behind a ruined 
building
after a few seconds.
     Michelle looked around and sighed, the sudden desolation making her 
unease
all the more worse.  "C'mon, Alex, hurry up," she pleaded softly as she 
turned
around and glanced at the ruins of the Palace behind her.
     
     She blinked as the thought intruded into her mind, as if it had come 
from
someone other than her.  Hmm? she thought.
     
     She suddenly became rigid as the mysterious mind expanded outward and 
took
control of her body.  Her aquamarine eyes misted over until they were a deep
shade of red, glowing faintly in the light reflected by the Earth.
     "The Queen's broach...." she whispered as she moved quickly towards the
ruins of the Palance.  She paused to get her bearings and set off towards 
the
lower levels, moving with the ease of one who knew her way around.
     While most of the royal treasures were stored in the vault buried deep
beneath the crypts at the northwestern edge of the Kingdom, a few of the 
minor
ones were kept in a museum-like room inside the Palace, guarded day and 
night
by dedicated and elite soldiers.
     She was not surprised in the least to find a pair of skeletons wearing
suits of ceremonial armor still guarding the door when she arrived.  She 
barely
glanced at them as she braced herself and pushed open the heavy doors, 
making
a face at the loud grating noise they made as they slowly swung inwards.  As
soon as the opening was wide enough, she slipped inside and made a beeline 
for
a simple glass case mounted on the far wall.
      the voice urged her as her mind recognized the 
golden
broach used by then-Princess Serenity to make her transformation into Sailor
Moon.  She took a step back and shoved her hand forward, stopping a few 
inches
away from the glass.  A pressure wave blasted out from her palm and 
shattered
the ancient glass, making a very strange sound as the shards fell to the 
floor.
     Michelle reached in and lifted the broach out of the case, examining it
curiously before she tucked it away in her Lunar Space pocket and quickly
retraced her steps back up to the top of the Palace and towards the bubble
generator building.
     When she reached the building, she stopped and staggered slightly, the 
red
in her eyes quickly fading and restoring their natural aquamarine color as 
the
invading mind withdrew.  She stopped and blinked in confusion as she looked
around, wondering if she had imagined seeing something.
     "Oh, that feels SO much better," Alex said as she walked out of the 
small
building, still puffing slightly from climbing the steep stairs.  "Hey, 
where'd
Susan crawl off to now?"
     "What?  Oh, umm.... she said she was going to the Market Square to see
where we had died," Michelle said with a sour look.
     "Joy," the blonde replied.  "Bad enough we have to see skeletons 
aplenty,
but now we get to look at our skeletons.  Still, you got to admit, it's not
every day that you get to see your own corpse," she said with a shrug.
     Michelle took hold of Alex's arms and drew close.  "Let's go," she said
softly.  "This place is starting to get to me."
     Alex looked around once more and grunted.  "I hear you, love.  C'mon, I
think the fastest route is this way," she said as they started walking.

                *               *               *               *

     "I don't get it," Rune fumed loudly as she walked the hallway towards 
the
throne room.  "Two of them are parked over the oceans, and the only way we 
can
tell where they are is by a very small noise signature.  And the one that we
can see is still on a direct course, still moving slower than a newly 
hatched
vep'tera, still isn't talking to us, and nobody has the first p'takh'enn 
clue
what their intentions are.  Am I right?"
     Si'ren took a deep breath as she followed Rune into the vast throne 
room
and toward the Inner Chambers.  "I don't like this anymore than you do," she
said sourly.  "At least they're keeping their distance from my fleet, and 
they
have their orders if they should come under attack."
     "That's a small comfort considering your all-powerful fleet won't be 
able
to intervene if something starts here," Rune snarled as she entered the 
Inner
Chamber and traditional center of power in the Negaverse.  "I need to know 
what
that woman is up to."
     Both women started and whirled around as the doors slammed shut of 
their
own accord, the sound of the locks engaging echoing in the sudden silence 
like
a death knell.  "Perhaps you should ask," said a voice behind them, and they
whirled around once more.
     "Who the...." Rune began to say, then fell silent as the sight of her
unexpected visitor registered on her mind.
     "I trust you'll forgive me sealing off this room without warning," she
said from where she was sitting behind the ancient desk, "But I thought it 
best
that the two... or as it seems, three of us have a little talk first."
     Rune blinked hard.  She had been seriously wounded once before, when 
she
accidentally intercepted a team of assassins who planned to kill Queen 
Beryl.
The knife had entered her side with surprisingly little pain, but the 
feeling
that would forever haunt her was the sensation of warmth draining away as 
her
blood pooled on the floor.  That same feeling of vanishing warmth engulfed 
her
now as she stared at visage sitting before her.
     "General Nop'tera...." Admiral Si'ren said softly, she herself briefly
reliving her own worst state of shock.
     Nop'tera nodded as she stood up, her white hair and featureless yellow
eyes standing out in stark contrast to her dark blue skin and black uniform.
"Admiral Si'ren, current Fleet Admiral, I presume?  I must admit that, after
having fought and nearly lost several crucial battles involving sea-going
warships, I have developed a healthier respect for our Navy."
     Si'ren could only blink in surprise at the words, delivered in a calm 
and
respectful tone.
     "What is the meaning of this?" Rune said as she finally found her 
voice.
     There were no irises or pupils in Nop'tera's eyes, only an expanse of
yellow.  The only indication that her gaze shifted from Si'ren to Rune was a
slight movement of the eyelids, a movement that would have gone unnoticed by
people not used to dealing with featureless eyes, one of the more rarer 
results
of the mutation-like chaos visited upon denizens as a result of puberty.
     "I would like to ask the same of you, General Rune," Nop'tera said 
evenly.
"My carrier isn't even clear of the Hinterland Rift and we get fired on, 
none
of my communication requests on the Datalius network are answered, and since 
I
can't get confirmation that the broadcast frequencies aren't compromised, I
have to resort to sneaking into the Royal Palace.  Which was not exactly an
easy task," she added.
     "Nor should it have been," Rune replied, her dark eyes narrowed.  "If I
may inquire, General Nop'tera, what exactly is this Datalius network you are
referring to?  We have received no such communications at all from any of 
your
carriers."
     Nop'tera blinked.  "The Queen promoted you to Commander-General in my
absence, and didn't tell you of the Datalius network?" she said slowly.  "I
find that a little hard to believe."
     Si'ren felt a cold draft blow down her spine as Nop'tera mentioned the
promotion and her absence at the time.  "With all due respect," she said 
very
carefully, "Rune's so-called promotion was done according to law upon the 
death
of the Queen and the absence of any higher-ranking member of the Army."
     Both Rune and Si'ren blinked as Nop'tera sighed and rubbed her temples.
"So much information gets missed when you're in another dimension.  I heard 
of
the Queen's demise, of course, but not that her successor was.... 
uninformed.
So this wasn't something that was planned, I assume?  Your promotion, not 
the
death of Queen Beryl," the Dark General amended.
     "It was, shall we say, anticipated by some," Rune said carefully.
     "But not by Beryl," Nop'tera said, saying it as a statement rather than 
as
as question.  She sighed heavily and plopped back down into the chair, one 
hand
still rubbing her temple.  "If you'll pardon my saying so, Rune, this is 
quite
a mess for one to come home to."
     Rune and Si'ren exchanged concerned glances, neither having the 
faintest
idea of how the situation was going to develop.  Nop'tera quit massaging her
temple and looked up, frowning slightly at the expression on their faces.  
"I
get the distinct impression that you two have a lot on your minds."
     "That's putting it mildly," Si'ren observed.
     "Very well then, let's get to the point, shall we?" Nop'tera said.  
"You
will find that in most cases, I am a very blunt individual and prefer that 
my
officers be the same when dealing with me.  That way, we can get right to 
the
heart of the matter without fooling around.  Is that okay with you?"
     Rune heard a faint emphasis on the word 'heart' and suppressed a 
shiver,
not forgetting for an instant that Nop'tera was an eternal vampire, 
transformed
during a Bloodmoon conjunction and never returned to normal afterwards.  
Most
agree that such a change was a result of the powers Nop'tera developed 
during
her childhood, but few would care to speculate about the destruction she 
might
have caused before she learned how to control her vampiric nature.
     "I have no problems with the idea," Rune said carefully.
     "Excellent," the vampire replied with a faint smile.  "Now then, what 
sort
of questions did you have for me?"
     "What exactly are your intentions?" asked Rune.
     Nop'tera stood up and walked to the edge of the desk.  "The conquest of
the worlds on the other side of the Hinterland rift has taken four thousand
years, and I should like to have a bit of a rest for myself and my divison.
Before the usual spate of ceremonies and celebration are to begin, however, 
my
division would like to hold a sort of memorial for our departed Queen.  And
once everything has been taken care of, my soldiers and I shall resume our
respective posts in service to the military and the NegaForce."
     Rune blinked as a sense of unease made its way down her back.  "I must
confess a bit of curiosity as to where your division will be assigned."
     The dark general frowned.  "The initial part of my division was drawn 
from
the ranks of the Red Wings."
     Rune winced.  "I thought so, but the problem is that they were 
disbanded
three thousand years ago," she said carefully, adding a bit of faked 
sympathy
to her tone.
     "Then it seems the Red Wings are about to be recommissioned."
     Rune frowned slightly at the tone in Nop'tera's voice.  "I think it 
would
be a somewhat simple matter to do so and have you officially appointed as 
the
division commander."
     "Actually, my second-in-command has been deserving of the position for
quite some time, and I should like to see it given to him," Nop'tera replied
smoothly, her casual tone sending a chill down Si'ren's back.
     Rune hesitated for a brief moment.  "If your second-in-command is to be
named as the divisional commander, then what exactly would your position 
be?"
     A slender eyebrow rose in response.  "I'll admit surprise that you have 
to
ask, General Rune," Nop'tera said slowly.  "As the highest ranking general 
in
the Army with the most seniority, the laws are quite clear that I become the
Commander-General until my death or retirement.  Of course, I would also 
wield
the power of the throne until a new monarchy is established, but I honestly
hope that will take no more than a decade or two.... a century at most."
     Si'ren watched the color drain from Rune's face and discreetly took a 
step
forward.  "Speaking only for myself, General Nop'tera, I find it rather....
disquieting that you would seek control of the military after such a 
prolonged
absence.  I have no objection at present for your eventual promotion to the
position, provided you haven't found retirement desirable by that time, but 
I
do believe this is a rather sudden turn of events."
     The vampire nodded towards the admiral.  "I will admit that one does 
lose
touch of events when you're conducting a war, especially when it involves a
dimensional shift.  I am not suggesting I be handed the keys to the Imperial
Castle when my carrier lands in two days, as that would be too sudden a 
change.
No, what I have in mind is an adjustment period of a few months, perhaps a 
full
year if necessary, to reacquaint myself with the present-day military before 
I
take full command.  As my present second-in-command would by then be in 
charge
of the Red Wings, I would need someone with a great deal of experience to 
fill
the position, and who would be better suited for that than General Rune?"
     "If I may ask," Rune said slowly as she struggled to control her 
reaction
to Nop'tera's words, "How long do you plan on staying in the military?  I 
can't
think of anyone who would think that after five thousand years of faithful 
and
valiant service to the military you haven't earned the right to relax and 
enjoy
the rest of your life in peace."
     Nop'tera slowly drew herself to her full height.  "When I joined the
military so long ago," she said slowly, making sure each syllable of each 
word
was heard, "I decided that I would serve the throne and the NegaForce until 
I
felt that I could accomplish no more in my lifetime, at which point I would
accept retirement and enjoy the rest of my time in relative peace.  However,
it seems I've been given the gift of an eternal lifespan, so I shall 
continue
to serve until I am either dismissed by the Queen, discover that my lifespan
is near a natural end, or until I die in the line of duty.  But until such 
an
event happens to occur, I will not retire.  Is that understood, General 
Rune?"
     Both Rune and Si'ren shivered involuntarily at the icy tone in the dark
general's voice.  "Understood perfectly, General Nop'tera," Rune replied,
somehow managing to keep her voice steady and even.
     "Do you have any other questions for me?"
     It took a great deal of control for Rune to calmly reply, "I think 
you've
answered all of my questions for the present."
     A dark smile appeared on Nop'tera's lips.  "Excellent.  Then if you 
will
excuse me, I must return to my division and prepare for the landing."  She
tugged on her uniform for a moment to straighten it out before she began to
walk towards the still-sealed door.  She paused before opening it and turned
around to give Rune and Si'ren a thoughtful look.
     "Oh, about the Datalius network, Rune.... make sure most of the desk is
cleared off first.  Insert the drawer key into the lock on the topmost 
drawer,
turn it all the way to the right, push inwards, then turn it a quarter turn 
to
the left," she explained before she pressed a button to unlock the massive
doors to the Inner Chambers.
     Rune waited until the doors closed behind Nop'tera before taking a deep
breath and carefully sitting down in the cushioned chair.  She studied the
ancient desk and the pattern of tiny cracks ingrained in the wood for a few
moments before leaning back to search for her personal set of keys.
     "That could have gone a lot worse," Si'ren finally commented.
     Rune looked up sharply, giving the admiral a piercing stare.  "Oh?  
I've
just been told we're about to be taken over by someone who hasn't set foot 
in
the Negaverse in a thousand years and seems not to hesitate to destroy 
anything
or anyone that stands in her way.  So tell me, my dear Fleet Admiral, how 
could
things have gotten worse?"
     "We're still alive, aren't we?"
     Rune paused to think about that for a moment.  "You do seem to have a 
bit
of a point," she finally admitted with a heavy sigh as she pulled her set of
keys from her pocket.  "Question is, for how long?"
     Si'ren said nothing as Rune inserted the key into the lock and twisted 
it
to the far right.  There was a slight resistance as she pushed the housing
inward and turned the key to the left.  There was a very faint clicking 
noise
and the surface of the desk seemed to liquify into a puddle of silvery goo.
     "Symipa?" Si'ren asked as they watched the metallic liquid began to 
ooze
into a new shape, slowly forming into a surpisingly sophisticated 
communication
center.
     "No one said the technology was restricted to only making them into 
those
bladed-staff weapons," Rune replied with a shrug, fascinated with the desk's
transformation.  "To tell you the truth, I always wondered about the 
supposed
limitations on the molecular patterns you could make with the stuff."
     The console finally solidified and a display promptly lit up, the 
speaker
making a soft beeping noise.  The layout, although complex, was familiar 
enough
to Rune for her to identify it as a secure communications request from 
another
network user.  "Well, well, what have we here?" she muttered to herself as 
she
pressed a button and leaned foward, listening intently to the speaking.
     The line crackled faintly to itself for a moment before a deep voice 
said,
"Identify yourself."
     Rune frowned slightly.  "This is Commander-General Rune," she said.
     The voice replied at once.  "Ma'am, this is General Ar'kanis, 
commanding
the airborne flagship V'ral, requesting a flight path and landing clearance 
for
approach to the Imperial Castle.  ETA is approximately the thirteenth hour 
in
two standard days."
     "This is not the proper channel for the air traffic authority," Rune 
said,
her voice as cold as ice.
     The speaker seemed to hiss with concealed rage.  "Air traffic control 
does
not possess sufficient safeguards on the secure channel to prevent data
interception.  As per standard procedure, we are defaulting to contacting 
the
closest communication network that is both relevant and possesses the 
necessary
safeguards for this communications request."
     Rune stared at the speaker for a moment and was ready to lash out at 
the
carrier's commander when Si'ren reached past her and held her finger down on
the mute button.  "They're using the same procedure the Navy uses today," 
she
said softly, "So ripping him a new p'tanka won't help matters."
     "You deal with him, then," Rune growled as she sat back in the chair.
     Si'ren lifted her finger off the mute button.  "This is Fleet Admiral
Si'ren," she said into the microphone.  "The V'ral is advised to maintain
present course, altitude, and speed, and will be granted an approach vector 
and
landing clearance by air traffic control upon final approach to the Imperial
Castle.  Be advised that the airspace above both oceans has been designated 
as
restricted until further notice.  Your other two carriers are ordered to 
stand
down their radar-evasion screens and to dock at the appropriate naval 
shipyards
as soon as possible."
     The speaker was silent for a full twenty seconds.  "Maintain present
course, speed, and altitude, acknowledged," the deep voice finally replied.
"The restricted airspace warning and landing instructions will be passed on 
to
the other carriers as soon as possible.  Flagship V'ral out."
     "That was interesting," Rune observed as Si'ren closed the connection.
     "It'll be interesting to see what the carriers will actually do," 
Si'ren
replied as she sat on the edge of the desk and gave the communications 
console
a wary look.  "With as long as I've been the Fleet Admiral, you would think
that someone would have told me about this little setup of Beryl's."
     "You would think so, but with this place...." Rune said, then left her
sentence unfinished with a heavy sigh.  "I think it's time to call all the
divisional and regional commanders in for a meeting."
     Si'ren frowned.  "About...?" she prompted.
     "About the future of the military, and consequently the Negaverse as a
whole," Rune replied as she closed her eyes and began massaging her temples.
"The question is rather simple.... do we think Nop'tera is fit to remain in 
the
military, or has she become as outdated as her fleet and should be asked to
retire?"
     Si'ren blinked hard.  "And if she refuses?"
     "What do you think?" Rune said softly.  She heard only silence in reply
and nodded to herself.  "It's a shame really," she said, more to herself 
than
to Si'ren as she reached forward and turned the key back to the right, 
causing
the Datalius network interface to dissolve into a puddle and reshape itself
back into the desktop.  "You can't help but admire her devotion to her duty
for close to five thousand years, but as with all things.... what goes up, 
even
to the highest ranks of the military.... must come down."
     Rune stood up and looked over at Si'ren.  "If you'll excuse me, 
Admiral,
I have a few people to get in touch with," she said, then turned and left 
the
room.
     Si'ren still said nothing as she slowly sat down in the chair that was
positioned behind the most powerful desk in the Negaverse.  She could hear 
the
fading sound of Rune's footsteps echoing down the hallway and began to 
wonder
what the future would hold.... and where the true danger comes from.

                *               *               *               *

     Susan looked up as the faint crunching noise of the footsteps reached 
her
ears.  "Feeling better?" she asked when they came into view.
     Alex made a sour face.  "Only partially.  Bladder's fine right now, but
seeing all these bodies is really, really starting to spook me."
     "You might not want to get any closer, then," Susan suggested as she 
knelt
back down to re-examine the small group of corpses clustered together.
     The blonde glanced over her shoulder to look at Michelle, squeezing her
hand gently at the haunted look on her face.  "It's okay, love, we're still
alive.... I think."
     A dry chuckle emerged from Susan's throat.  "Relax, you are very much
alive," she said as she stood up and made a gesture.  "A pity I can't say 
the
same for your former body."
     Alex glanced down at the mangled remains and felt her stomach twinge
briefly.  "That's me, huh?  I don't see how you can tell, though," she said 
as
she tilted her head to one side.  Behind her, Michelle tugged her hand free 
of
the blonde's grip and wrapped both hands around her waist, hugging her 
tightly.
     "Well, if you look here, you can see where the rib was once broken and 
had
mended," Susan explain as she pointed at the corpse.  "Left side, third one 
up
from the bottom.  Also, I found this lying in the dirt next to the skull," 
she
said as she held up a partially melted earring.
     "Ouch, looks like mine alright," the blonde said before she glanced at 
the
remains.  Most of the right arm was missing and almost the entire right side 
of
the skull had been shattered by a tremendous force.  "That looked like it 
would
have hurt something fierce."
     Susan nodded.  "I'll bet it did.  I still can't locate my body, though.
I'm not quite sure that I even have one, seeing how the blast was enough to
cause this much damage."
     "There's a cheerful prospect," Alex muttered as she stared at her 
corpse.
"You know...."
     "Over here," Myst suddenly interrupted.  "I think this one had wings."
     "Excuse me," Susan said, more to the corpse than Alex as she gingerly
stepped over the remains to walk over to where Myst was carefully examining 
a
seriously mishappen corpse.
     "You alright?" Alex asked softly as she gently rubbed the arms tightly
clinging to her waist.
     "Get us out of here," Michelle whispered, almost in tears.
     "Just as soon as Sue figures out what she's doing," Alex replied.
     They watched in silence as Susan knelt down to examine the corpse Myst 
had
indicated.  Even from a distance they could see a pair of curious 
protrusions
at the base of what was left of the skeleton's shoulder blades.  The bony 
nubs
appeared to be intact instead of broken or sheared, which unfortunately 
could
not be said for virtually all of the skeleton's ribs.  The sight of so much
skeletal damage made Alex wary to think of what the blast had been like.
     "So what do you think we'll find on Earth?" Alex said, trying to make
conversation in an attempt to calm Michelle and herself down.  She 
alternated
her gaze between the demonic wings emerging from Susan's exposed back and 
the
remains of the thousand-year-old skeleton.  I never really stopped to think
about it, she thought, but if the bones in her wings aren't solidly attached
to her back, then they would need something for the muscles to hold on to.  
And
if those protrusions on the skeleteon are what I think they are....
     It took Michelle a few moments to gather the strength to speak.  "I 
don't
know," she replied softly.  "Somehow I don't think the Earth kingdoms are 
left
standing either.  At least, not as we know them."
     Alex blinked.  "What, you think the Negaverse destroyed them too?"
     Michelle shook her head gently.  "No, something tells me they never 
made
it to Earth, but.... you know how unstable the kingdoms were."
     The blonde grunted.  "Yeah, you've got a point.  I know Serenity did 
her
best to convince that one kingdom to refrain from invading those barbarians 
to
the east, but knowing them they probably decided to throw a crusade anyway.
And you know those barbarians were never one to turn down an invitation to
attend a small war...."
     "Well, since it's now past history instead of future occurences," Susan
said as she slowly stood up, holding a pair of metallic rods in her hands, 
"I
think it's safe to tell you that there indeed was a crusade in Earth's 
history,
and that the barbarians decided to join the fun, as it were."
     Alex frowned lightly.  "Past history now, huh?  Anything else you want 
to
share with us?"
     "The Crusades, the Spanish Inquisition, the exploration of the western
continent, the Renaissance, the French Revolution...." the succubus said as
she walked towards them, tightly gripping the shattered remains of her 
staff.
"Two global wars, countless localized conflicts, the Black Plague.... I'm
almost sorry I missed out on that particular harvesting of souls," she added
quietly to herself.
     "And of course all of those events you've named just happen to involve 
a
significant amount of violence, bloodshed, destruction, and of course death,
which is your favorite event second only to sex.  Am I right?"  Alex 
muttered
dourly as she squeezed Michelle's hand.
     "But of course," said a quiet voice behind the blonde.
     Alex somehow managed to hold onto Michelle and whirl around at the same
time, keeping her lover protectively behind her.  Her eyes went wide at the
sight of a scantily-clad woman casually sitting on a massive chunk of 
marble.
Her dark green hair seemed to spill over her shoulders and flow down her 
back,
neatly bisecting the massive pair of wings emerging from her shoulder 
blades.
A tiny pair of wings could be seen emerging from her hair, drawing attention
away from her unearthly beauty.
     "But then again," she continued softly, "Most succubi would find it 
rather
arousing to be a part of such death and destruction.  Wouldn't you agree, 
Lady
Pluto?"
     Susan frowned lightly at her visitor's use of her official title in the
Moon Kingdom.  "It all depends on one's role in the situation.  Who are 
you?"
she asked, ignoring the uncertain looks she was getting from everyone else.
     The succubus tilted her head to one side and slowly ran her tongue over
her lips.  "An emmisary of our lord Hades.  You may call me Megan."
     A delicate eyebrow rose in response.  "I know I've been away for quite
some time, but I seriously doubt Megan is a demonic name," Susan said.
     "No less demonic than Susan," Megan replied with a knowing smile.
     Alex carefully cleared her throat.  "Umm, excuse me...." she said 
slowly
as she alternated her gaze between Susan and Megan.  "I don't mean to be
interrupting what looks to be a demonic family reunion here, but can someone
kindly explain what's going on?"  She had already noticed that they both 
shared
the exact same shade of dark green hair and bore a seeming resemblance, a 
fact
that she found more than slightly unsettling.
     Megan gave the blonde an apprasing look.  "Ooo, a human!  Two of them, 
in
fact," she said as she glanced behind Alex and gave Michelle a small smile.
"I haven't had the chance to play with one in ages.  Can I borrow one for a 
few
hours?" she asked, casting a hopeful glance towards Susan.
     "They're avatars," Susan explained with a small smile.
     "Awww...." Megan replied as she gave Alex a disappointed look.
     "Wait a minute here...." Alex said somewhat nervously.
     "It's alright, Alex, I'm sure Megan didn't have any bad intentions," 
Susan
said as she gave the pure-blood succubus a look that said she had damn well
better not.
     She gave Susan an apologetic shrug.  "I haven't had the chance to find
anyone for a little stress-relief in the past few days," she said as she 
cast
a wistful glance in Alex's direction.  "And it's not my fault she's pretty."
     Susan nodded slowly.  "Understood.  I trust you're here for a reason?"
     Megan sighed and slid down off of the marble ruins.  She was wearing an
almost translucent purple ribbon of fabric around her waist that rose up to
cross over her breasts before being tied off in a simple knot behind her 
neck.
A fairly wide black loin-cloth hung down almost to her ankles from a silver
belt at her waist, and a pair of black panties could be glimpsed beneath the
loin-cloth.
     "Lord Hades is quite adamant that you return with me to the Underworld 
at
once," Megan said as she stretched, flexing wings that were nearly double 
the
size of Susan's wings.  "And given the fact that he is not the most patient 
of
Gods, I have no choice but to ensure that you are summoned to him in a very
timely fashion.  So, if you will agree to the Pact...." she said as she drew
herself close Susan, the tiny pair of wings on her head fluttering slightly.
     "Whoa, wait a minute...." Alex started to say.
     Susan shook her head.  "I'm sorry, Alex, but I have no choice.  I'll be
back as soon as I possibly can.  Keep and eye on Michelle and Myst for me,
please."  She turned her attention to Megan and nodded.  "Of course I accept
the Pact."
     "But...!" the blonde tried to say.
     "I'll return her, I promise," Megan said as she took hold of Susan's 
arm
and gave her a gentle but deep kiss.  With the personal contact established 
by
her kiss, Megan extended her demonic powers both inward and outward, opening
up a dimensional rift and transporting them into the Underworld.
     Susan closed her eyes and savored the kiss of another of her kind as 
only
a succubus could experience it.  While the succubi could affect other beings
through an assortment of indirect methods, none was as potentially dangerous
or as deadly as their kiss.  With it, they could tap directly into a 
person's
soul and do as they please with the energy contained within.
     Having been created with an extremely strong desire for physical 
intimacy
that few could resist for long, the succubi often turned to each other for 
the
pleasure and sexual release they needed.  Knowing the danger their kiss 
posed
to others, a mutual agreement called the Pact was developed in which each
promises to refrain from using any hostile or harmful powers when kissing 
the
other.  Violations of the Pact were exceedingly rare, as a succubus who 
would
not be trusted by others to safely share intimacy lived a very miserable 
life.
     Megan held the kiss for awhile after the dimension shift was complete,
taking the opportunity to lightly probe the outermost edges of Susan's soul.
Susan was immediately aware of the probe but cautiously let it continue.  
Under
more relaxed settings she would indulged in a probe of her own, but she was
keenly aware of her current situation and wasn't in the mood for it.  Megan
sensed the unease in Susan's soul and gently withdrew the probe before she
broke the kiss and took a step back, taking the chance to get a very close 
look
at one of the more well-known succubi in the Underworld.
     "Problem?" Susan asked as she studied the surroundings.  Unlike most of
the Underworld, which was lit in some way or another by fire, this 
particular
section was in total darkness save for the faint blue glow surrounding a 
sealed
archway.  To her horror she realized that they were standing before the 
Portal
of Time, a physical conduit into the eternal flow.  Usually the room would 
have
been brightly lit by the glow of the swirling maelstrom of the open portal, 
but
now that it was sealed shut the room looked more like a crypt than the 
doorway
into the nexus of temporal energy.
     Megan shook her head gently.  "No, but after you are finished with Lord
Hades, you and I need to find a place to sit down and talk.... Setsuna."
     Susan's eyes went wide at the mention of her true-name before she 
managed
to regain some semblance of her usual composure.  "How did you...?"
     Megan laid a finger on Susan's lips, stilling them.  "Later," she said
very quietly before she gave her another kiss, this one significantly warmer
than the one used to shift them between the planes.  The succubus then took 
a
step back before disappearing in a brief flash of dimensional energy.
     Susan barely had time to comprehend things before she felt a powerful
presence behind her and heard a deep voice speaking her name.  "Setsuna....
It's been a long time, my child."
     Susan spun around and knelt down before the wraith-like figure that
emerged from the surrounding darkness.  "My lord...."
     Hades, God of the Underworld, shook his head and pulled her up to her
feet.  "There is no time for formalities, child.  Give me the Key."
     Susan looked up and held out the ruined pieces of her staff.  "My lord,
the Key was destroyed during the battle in the Moon Kingdom," she said 
almost
sadly.
     Hades blinked as he accepted the broken staff from his avatar.  "So 
this
explains matters...." he said quietly.  He turned around and looked into the
darkness at something Susan wasn't able to see.  "Hephaestus, can you 
possibly
reforge this?"
     A shadowy figure emerged from the darkness surrounding Susan and Hades.
"Let me see," the gruff voice of the God of the Forge said as he drew near,
moving with a pronounced limp.  He took the shattered halves of the Key from
Hades, hefted them in his hands for a moment, and spat on the floor.
     "I told you tying her soul to the Key would weaken it," Hephaestus said
with a snarl.
     "Enough bickering," said a third voice as its owner stepped out from 
the
darkness.  A crown of lightning bolts adorned his head, adding a glow to the
room and lessening the darkness.  "What's done is done.  Can it be fixed?"
     Susan knelt down before the new arrival and bowed her head, showing the
respect due to the king of the Gods while Hades gave a respectful nod to his
brother.  "The Key is only physically broken.  The power it contains is 
intact,
but useless until the body is reforged," Hephaestus said.
     Zeus grunted softly.  "Back to your forge with you, then.  I don't 
think
anyone needs to remind you of the importance of that Key."  The lame God 
sighed
almost inaudibly as he made a gesture and disappeared in a subdued flash of
light.
     "Knowing him, it shouldn't take him long to fix it," Hades said.
     "Once he gets to his precious forge," Zeus replied.  "Might take him a 
bit
to do just that.  He never was much of a runner," he added with a dark 
smile.
     Susan said nothing and remained perfectly still as she listened, 
knowing
that only a God like Zeus could make fun of Hephaestus's lameness and not be
struck down by the artificier.  She suspected that Hephaestus would get even
with the Thunder God in some indirect way for the comment, usually by taking 
it
out on his followers, and she was suddenly grateful that Fate had chosen for
her to serve Hades instead of Zeus.
     "So this is your long-lost avatar," Zeus mused as he carefully studied
Susan.  "And a succubus, at that.  How'd you let that happen, by the way?"
     "Her heritage or misplacing her for a thousand years?" Hades grumbled.
     Zeus chuckled.  "I think her mother would be the best one to answer 
that
first question.  And in any case, we could always blame Aphrodite.  You 
really
should keep a closer eye on your avatars, you know, if only to keep 
surprises
from showing up in a generation or two."
     Hades cast an unamused glance towards his elder brother.  "Strange, I
could have sworn that your avatar was currently involved with an alien, and 
if
it wasn't for the incompatibility she'd probably be bearing his child by 
now.
If you find Setsuna's heritage disturbing, try to imagine what the other one
would look like."
     Zeus grunted to himself.  "I'm trying not to," he grumbled.  "I could
always intervene like Ares did...."
     "And hear no peace from Gaea for a millenium," Hades finished for him.
     The Thunder God rolled his eyes.  "She's just pissed because she 
doesn't
have an avatar of her own to toy with.  Although I must admit that after
stopping to think about it, I could find several uses for a succubus as an
avatar," he said as he eyed Susan's slender form.
     "Have a little respect for her," Hades said with a discernable edge to 
his
low tone.  "Setsuna's unique heritage has allowed her to perform her duties
quite well for centuries, both as my avatar and as a Guardian of Time."
     "And allowing the Portal to close and vanishing for a thousand years is
performing her duties well?" Zeus demanded, the crown on his head beginning 
to
crackle with his anger.
     "What of the other avatars, then?" Hades countered.  "How long ago were
they reincarnated, without their memories or any knowledge of their true
purpose?  If it wasn't for the foresight and wisdom of their Oracle, they 
would
still know nothing!"
     Zeus said nothing as he stared at the sealed portal, his legendary 
temper
simmering dangerously.  Hades took a deep breath and continued in a measured
tone.  "We do not know exactly what happened that caused the Portal to seal
itself shut, but perhaps now that Setsuna has returned, we can find out."
     "Speak, succubus," Zeus said quietly as he tempered his anger.  "Tell 
us
what happened to you and the Key."
     Susan feared few things in life, but Zeus's reputation for taking his 
fury
out on the bearers of bad news was certainly one of them.  Taking a deep 
breath
and trying to quit trembling, she quietly began to relate the events that 
took
place in the final days of the Moon Kingdom.
     Neither of the Gods said anything as they listened to her words.  She 
told
them of the warning Queen Serenity had been given so long ago, and about the
many years of quiet preparation for an invasion.  Even with so much advanced
warning, the actual attack had come as a complete surprise as legions of the
alien warriors had emerged from the great dimensional rifts that opened up 
at
the edges of the Kingdom.
     The initial losses were staggering and forced them to abandon the outer
perimeter.  They regrouped as they fell back and made their stand in a large
ring surrounding the Royal Palace.  The frontal assault against the phalanx 
of
defenders quickly degenerated into hand-to-hand combat, and it was then that
the colossal Shadow Warrior began to attack the Palace itself.  A decision 
was
made by the Queen's Celestial Guardians to split up: Four of them were to 
fall
back to protect the Queen and deal with the Shadow Warrior while the 
remaining
three were to remain on the front lines, defending the perimeter.
     Sailor Pluto led the counter-attack, unleashing her demonic powers with 
a
fury few had ever seen as she pressed forward.  Not very far behind her, 
Sailor
Uranus was wreaking her own brand of havoc, her glittering Soul Saber 
cutting
a path through the enemy lines and leaving an unholy mess in her wake.  
Sailor
Neptune stayed very close to Uranus, using her Soul Mirror to ward off 
attacks
and reflecting some of them back at their alien owners.
     The trio of Sailor Scouts were able to make serious progress in 
decimating
the enemy's front lines before they encountered a small unit of elite troops
led by a warrior in dark armor and holding a strangely glowing sword.  It 
soon
became obvious that the sword was every bit as powerful as Uranus's Saber,
cutting down all who stood in it's path.  Realizing the danger the glowing
blade posed, the Sailor Scouts quickly made a radical change in tactics in 
the
hopes of catching the warrior off-guard.
     Ironically, the warrior had thought of the same plan and made a 
surprise
change in his own tactics.  The two groups met sooner than expected, and 
Pluto
found herself suddenly under attack by the glowing sword.  Skilled as she 
was
in the art of combat, her staff simply wasn't enough to hold off the elite
warrior at close range.  As she tried to fall back to give herself enough 
room
to use her demonic powers, she found herself under attack from all sides.  
She
lashed out to one side with her staff to protect her flanks, saw the warrior
sieze the opportunity, and instinctively brought her staff up to try to 
defend
against the sword stroke that, unblocked, would surely have eviscerated her.
     "And that's when the Key was snapped in half?" Hades asked quietly when
Susan fell silent, unable to continue with the final moments of her story.
     "Yes, my lord," Susan replied quietly.  "I.... I remember the sound of 
it
snapping, and then.... I remember nothing."
     Zeus sighed quietly to himself, his anger calmed by Susan's story.  
"The
blade had to have been their version of a Soul Reaver," he grumbled.  "The 
Key
should have been able to withstand the blow itself, but because her soul was
part of it...."  He trailed off and sighed quietly again.  "Do you know what 
we
had to do to keep the vibes from the Portal from tearing Creation apart?" he
asked Susan.  "Do you know what that damned blade cost us?"
     "No, my lord," Susan replied.
     Hades spoke quietly.  "Every single one of us had to merge our powers
together in a sort of brace around the Portal to keep the vibes from 
spreading
around.  With the entire pantheon occupied thus, we were unable to maintain
our presence on Earth and in very short order became mere myths in the eyes 
of
the mortals."
     Susan blinked hard.  She knew from her time travels that the pantheon's
influence began to wane after the introduction of Christianity into the 
region
on Earth known as Europe, but hadn't been aware of their utter 
disappearance.
     Zeus grunted.  "And now that we've been all but totally abandoned for 
the
past millenia, could you imagine what it would be like if we tried to resume
our roles?  One whiff of our existence and the infidels would instantly 
start
a war.  I don't know how familiar you are with their present-day technology,
Setsuna, but they possess sufficient firepower to incinerate the entire 
globe
a dozen times over."
     "A little war now and then is good for business," Hades said lightly.
     The Thunder God shot him a dark look.  "I see you've forgotten about 
that
little backlog of souls you acquired during their second global war when 
they
erased a pair of cities off the map in the blink of an eye," he grumbled.
     "They were all processed in due time," the God of the Underworld 
replied.
"Besides, I said a little war, not the Apocalypse."
     "Are you.... gentlemen finished?" a sultry voice interrupted as a very
beautiful figure stepped out from the shadows surrounding the Portal.
     Hades bowed his head respectfully while Zeus gave the new arrival a 
mild
look.  "What do you want, woman?"
     The goddess shrugged.  "I heard that the Key had returned and wanted to
see for myself if it were true.  I see Hades's beloved Guardian has 
returned,
looking as beautiful as ever, but no sign of either the Key or an end to 
this
wretched confinement.  Or, it seems, to the endless babble of men about the 
art
of War," she added pointedly.
     "I see you're as charming as ever," Zeus sneered.
     Aphrodite waved her hand.  "You should hear what that bloodthirsty 
bastard
has to say about the 'impending and glorious Apocalypse'," she said, rolling
her eyes.
     "I'll be sure to let Ares know that you think so highly of him," Zeus
replied.  "Although I'm still not quite sure why you haven't bedded him yet.
They do say Love and War are on the opposite side of the same coin."
     The goddess gave him a decidedly glacial look.  "Funny you should 
mention
bedding people.  I hear your avatar has found herself a rather interesting
companion yet again.  At least it's a male this time," she added with a 
smile.
     "It seems your avatar as well has found a lover of her own that is, 
shall
we say, decidedly different," Zeus said, his voice edged with his anger.  
The
corner of his mouth twisted up into a cruel smile as he added, "And what did
Hermes do to you for his avatar to deserve a similar fate?"
     Aphrodite sighed and looked away.  "I had nothing to do with that one,"
she said softly, surprising both Zeus and Hades with the sudden change in 
her
mood.  "In fact, I had nothing to do with your avatar as well.  Not this 
time
at least.  You know as well as I do that we can't intervene in matters 
related
to the other side."
     Susan remained quiet as she listened to the gods talk among themselves,
their words greatly disturbing her.  She was fairly sure that the avatars 
they
spoke of were in fact the other Sailor Scouts, but the mention of alien 
lovers
was confusing at best and her sense of unease grew the more she thought 
about
matters.
     Everyone looked up as there was a subdued flash of light and Hephaestus
reappeared in the room holding the reforged staff.  "Try not to let it get
broken this time," he grumbled as held it out to Susan.
     "Thank you, my lord," Susan replied as she stood up and took the staff
from him.  A surge of immense power began to course through her veins in the
instant that her fingers closed around the dark staff.  She closed her eyes 
and
yielded to the sensation, a thousand years of hunger and longing satisifed 
by
a touch, a rejoining of the two parts of a whole that should never have been
separated in the first place.
     She opened her eyes and turned towards the faintly glowing archway, now
able to fully sense the power eminating from within.  She felt more than saw
the intricate network of divine forces surrounding the Portal, keeping it
perfectly still despite the immense power precariously held at bay inside.  
As
she drew closer to the archway, she could feel the Key begin to vibrate in 
her
hands, resonating with the power of the Portal.
     She closed her eyes again and concentrated on the subharmonics both the
Key and the Portal were producing.  She carefully began to focus the energy 
of
her staff in a precise pattern, trying to exactly match the harmonics with 
that
of the Portal.  The divine energy supporting the Portal made things somewhat
more difficult and it took her longer than usual to tune the Key.
     As soon as the attunement was completed the Key began to hum audibly 
and
vibrate faster.  Susan fought a momentary struggle to retain her grip, took 
a
deep breath, and inverted the subharmonics of the Key.  The whole room began
to resonate as the harmonics of the Key and Portal briefly interfered with 
each
other.  The two sets of energies began to cancel each other out, nullifying 
the
restraining harmonics surrounding the Portal and allowing it to open with a
blinding flash of blue light.
     The light seared her eyes and burned her flesh, the intense wave of 
utter
agony coming as a complete surprise.  She was only exposed to it for a 
moment
before she was enveloped in a cloak of sorts, reducing the searing pain to a
more tolerable level.  The light persisted for a few moments before fading 
to
the Portal's normal blue glow.  It took her a few seconds before she was 
able
to move, her skin feeling like it was partially blistered and torn away.  
She
finally managed to open her eyes and discovered that her skin was very much
intact and undamaged, despite what her nerves were claiming.
     The same wave of light that inflicted so much agony on Susan's body 
only
managed to give headaches to the divinities in the room.  "Well, that was
unexpected," Zeus commented as he blinked rapidly to clear the afterimages.
     "Probably a backlash of power after being sealed for so long," Hades 
said
as he looked at the dark figure standing behind his avatar.  "Setsuna, are 
you
alright?"
     "I will be, my lord," she replied, not exactly sure if she really would
be.  She sighed quietly and leaned back against the skeletal form that was
holding her.  She had known who he was the moment she felt his presence 
behind
her, shielding her from the worst of the shockwave with his shroud.
     Aphrodite looked at the servants of Hades and let a soft smile touch 
her
lips.  "You have interesting timing, Charon," she said.  "Knowing what that
energy did to me, I have no doubt that you just saved Setsuna's life.  She
still looks a bit shaken to me, so perhaps you should both return to the
Underworld for a time.  Unless your master requires anything further from 
his
avatar," she said as she glanced at Hades.
     "We need to have an extensive talk," Hades said as he observed Charon 
and
Susan, "But that can wait until she's well-rested.  Until then, I think I 
will
be rather busy cleaning up this mess.  Charon, see to her comfort then 
return
to your duties."
     Both the succubus and the demigod bowed to their master before Charon
plane-shifted them both into a remote lair deep in the lowest levels of the
Underworld.  Once the shift was completed, he released his hold on her and 
took
a few steps back, gazing at her carefully.
     Susan turned around and returned the gaze, a soft smile forming on her
lips.  "You have my sincerest thanks for your help, my lord," she said 
softly
as she laid her staff against the wall.
     The infamous Boatsman of the River Styx said nothing.  He was close to
seven feet tall and appeared to be nothing more than a skeleton enshrouded 
in
a black cloak.  Two fiery red pinpoints of light burned in the empty sockets 
of
his skull, a sight to inspire fear in even the most stout of hearts.
     "I would think that we are beyond the need to convey thanks," he 
finally
said.  His jaw never moved, but the powerfully deep voice emerged from 
within
the depths of his hood.
     "You have my thanks nonetheless," Susan replied.
     The silence stretched on again as they carefully regarded each other,
Susan's face not betraying any emotion or thought and Charon's face unable 
to
show any.  "I thought your soul was lost," he finally said.
     Susan sighed and ran her fingers through her hair.  "Not lost so much 
as
misplaced in The Dark for a thousand years.  It takes more than physical 
death
for my soul to be lost, you know," she added, knowing full well that he was
every bit as aware of her soul's nature as she was.
     It was another full minute before Charon spoke.  "I'm glad you could
return here," he said.
     Susan smiled.  She knew that Charon was hardly the talkative type and 
was
even less so when it came to admitting to personal feelings.  "I'm glad to 
be
here," she replied.  "And if it wasn't for your timely intervention, my 
return
would have been decidedly short-lived.  If you don't mind my asking, why did
you show up at the Portal?"
     The silence stretched on longer than expected.  "Come now, Charon, 
surely
you had a reason for taking a break from your duties," she prodded, knowing
that the demigod very rarely delegated the task of ferrying the souls of the
dead across the River Styx to one of his minions, even if only for a 
momentary
respite.  "Not that I'm ungrateful that you did, I'm merely curious."
     It seemed an eternity had passed before his voice emerged from his 
hood.
"I wanted to see you," he said simply.
     Susan blinked.  "You surprise me, Charon.  If I didn't know better, I'd
think that you were trying to say you missed me."
     Another eternity passed before he slowly reached out and cupped her 
face
in his hand.  A brief and nearly silent rumble emerged from his chest, 
almost
as if he had stopped himself from speaking.  With an equally quiet sigh, he
wrapped his other arm around her and held her close to him.
     She closed her eyes and returned the embrace, ignoring the icy feeling 
of
his skeletal form pressing against her flesh.  She knew he could summon a 
more
corporeal form when he desired, surrounding the bones with a layer of muscle
and flesh, but that the effort was rather taxing and could only be 
maintained
for a few hours at a time.  As a result, he only assumed his 'softer' form 
for
special occasions.
     So he did miss me, she thought as she deliberately avoided thinking 
about
the chain of events that took place when she first learned he could assume a
human form.  Instead, she wondered about the implications of his apparent
fondness for her and what the future might hold if she were to pursue the 
idea
to the fullest extent.
     "You should return to the other avatars," he said after a period of 
time
had passed.  The low rumble of his deep voice make his rib cage vibrate 
against
her breasts, sending an electric thrill running through the rest of her 
body.
     "I thought Hades said for you to see to my comfort," she said softly as
she pressed herself harder against him.  Desire started to well up in her as
her body responded almost automatically to the accidental stimulation.  She
knew it wasn't because she needed sexual release, but because was deeply
touched by Charon's unspoken affection for her.
     The boatsman hummed quietly to himself for several seconds, the 
vibration
of his ribs drastically increasing Susan's state of arousal.  "I don't think 
he
meant that kind of comfort," he replied as his hands lightly traced the 
edges
of her wings.
     It took her a great deal of effort not to moan.  The taut skin and 
rock-
hard muscles of her wings were rather rough and leathery, just like the 
wings
of any other succubus.  However, unlike the other succubi, Susan's wings 
were
very sensitive and the gentlest touch in the right places was more than 
enough
to light the fires of her passion.
     The sound of gentle laughter interrupted her attempts at controlling 
her
demonic desires.  "Forgive me, Setsuna, I didn't mean to be teasing you like
this," he said with an obvious smile in his voice as his hands moved down to
the small of her back.
     The sensation of his ribs moving with his laughter merely aroused her 
all
more.  "Liar," she whimpered softly, knowing that he knew full well what he 
was
doing to her.  The thing that made it worse was that she was enjoying the
feelings as much as he was, and he knew it.
     A muted but high-pitched screeching sound filled the room as a fire bat
flew into the room, its wings engulfed the bright flames of hellfire.  
Charon
made a grunting sound as he held his hand up, keeping it away from Susan's
body.  The bat immediately zeroed in on his hand and fluttered over, making 
an
upside-down landing on his wrist-bone.  Susan could feel the heat of the 
flames
across her back and wings before the hellfire vanished as the bat's wings 
came
to a standstill.
     The bat quickly chittered a message to Charon and shifted uneasily from
foot to foot.  The boatsman made no obvious reply, but after a moment the 
bat
screeched in acknowledgement and immediately began flapping its wings again.
The hellfire returned with a soft whoosh and a blast of heat as the bat 
became
airborne and flew away, disappearing from both sight and sound after a few
seconds of flight.
     Susan sighed heavily.  "Let me guess, you have to return to the River 
at
once," she said as she struggled to control her rampant desires.
     "Duty calls," he replied as he released his hold on her and stepped 
back.
     She sighed again and looked away as she gave in to the impulse to pout
for a few seconds.  She felt his touch on her cheek and turned back to face
him, her hand coming up to cover his.
     "We will meet again," he said quietly, his voice echoing slightly in 
his
hollow chest.  "Soon."
     "Is that a promise?" she asked as she looked into the fierce pinpoints 
of
his unholy eyes, wishing she could see some emotion, any emotion, in their
fiery depths.  The silence seemed to last forever in Susan's mind before she
heard him speak.
     "Yes, it is," he replied quietly.  "I will see you later, Setsuna," the
demigod said as he withdrew his hand from hers and departed the chamber.
     Susan closed her eyes and listened to the nearly inaudible footsteps as
they slowly faded from her demonic hearing.  She knew his role as the 
Boatsman
of the River Styx was as demanding as it was crucial to the function of the
Underworld, and how difficult it was for him to gain even a moment's 
reprieve
from his ceaseless duties.  She harbored no doubt, however, that he would 
keep
his promise and see her again in the not-too-distant future.
     Her desires forgotten, she stood alone in the room and thought once 
more
about the nature of her relationship with the demigod, trying to forget 
about
the past and focusing more on the present.  I've been gone for a millenium, 
and
yet he still showed me something deeper than mere fondness, she thought.
Countless demonesses have sought him as a consort, and he could have had any 
of
them if he so desired.  And yet....
     Susan abruptly shook her head to clear her mind of the thought, not 
daring
to even consider the possibilities for now.  Who knows, she thought with a
mental shrug as she picked up her staff.  Had anyone else been in the room 
at
the time, they would have noticed that the staff had been picked up from a
decidedly different spot than where it had been laid down.
     She paused ever so briefly as a tingle ran through the tips of her 
fingers
when she touched the staff.  The sensation was like a phantasmal caress of 
an
old lover, comforting and familiar yet exotic at the same time.  It was like
that every time she touched the staff, and as always she was reminded of the
burden she was condemned to bear as the Guardian of Time.
     Making sure she had a secure grip, she focused her mind on the staff 
and
tapped into its energies.  She was immediately enveloped in a glowing nimbus 
of
light as she was briefly drawn into the flow of Time, travelling the 
currents
as a fish swims through water.  The journey lasted only for an instant in 
her
perception before she emerged from the cosmic flow in an entirely different
location, accompanied by another display of temporal energy.
     Alex was sitting on the ground and leaning against the same rock Megan 
had
made her appearance on.  Michelle was sitting next to her, leaning against 
the
blonde and absently stroking the ball of gray fur curled up in her lap.  
They
were clearly occupied, however, as Alex was in the process of giving her 
lover
yet another passionate kiss, one hand gently kneading her breasts through 
the
aquamarine gown.
     The brief flash of temporal energy was more than sufficient to announce
Susan's arrival.  Both humans quickly turned their heads to look at the 
sudden
disturbance while Myst's ears perked up reflexively.  Susan decided from the
Shinma's reaction that she had been paying very little attention to Alex and
Michelle's somewhat intimate activity.
     "I see you've managed to keep her calm during my absence," Susan 
observed
as she gave Alex a knowing look.  "I apologize for my sudden disappearance,"
she said as she held up a hand to forestall the expected deluge of questions
from her friends, "But believe me when I say I had no choice and that it was
for a very good reason."
     "What happened?" Alex demanded as hastily withdrew her hands from 
rather
familiar territory and scrambled to her feet.  Michelle started to get up as
well, but seemed to be distinctly uneasy about something.
     "I had to do a few cosmic errands as well as get this fixed," Susan 
said
as she showed them the reforged Key to Time.  It was fashioned out of an
unusual type of metal, seeming to be both purple and silver in color at the
same time.  An intricate series of protrusions and ridges adorned the base 
of
the staff, looking like the pattern on a key designed to fit a very 
complicated
lock.  The top of the staff had been split into two and curved back in on
itself, forming a broad heart-shaped loop decorated with a pair of large red
rubies and countless other tiny, glittering gemstones.
     Myst's eyes went wide as she sensed the power contained in the staff.
"What is that?" she asked, more than slightly awed and wary of the vibes of
energy she was feeling.
     "It's something important to the structure of the universe, or so we've
been told," Alex said hastily, trying to forestall what she suspected would 
be
a rather lengthy lecture on the origin and purpose of the staff.  "She can 
give
you a better description later, but right now we've got a problem."
     Susan frowned.  "What is it?" she asked as she glanced around the ruins
of the Kingdom, trying to see any obvious source of trouble.
     "There's something here," Michelle blurted out, hugging Myst tightly in
an effort to remain calm.  "I don't know what, but something is here.  I can
feel it."
     The frown on Susan's face deepened.  She knew that Michelle was not the
bravest of people when confronted with an unknown, but usually Alex's 
presence
was enough to keep her nerves somewhat calm.  She also knew, or at least had
a suspicion, that Michelle possessed an awareness of her surroundings that
worked on the subconscious level.  Such an innate sense was exceedingly rare
for a human to possess and Michelle gave no indication that she even knew 
she
had such a gift.
     Something's bothering her, she thought, and whatever it was not only
rattled her hard enough that Alex can't keep her calm, it is also something
that everyone else missed as well, including myself.  However....
     "Talk to us, Sue," Alex said cautiously as she noticed Susan's 
expression
shifting from thoughtfulness to concentration.  "What's up?"
     The succubus ignored her as she closed her eyes and extended her 
demonic
senses outward in a series of ripples.  She immediately detected the auras
around the three life-forms standing near her as well as the faint traces of 
a
fourth that had been present not too long ago.  That probably was Megan, she
reasoned as she continued to expand her senses.  She realized after a few
seconds of concentration that she was beginning to detect a very faint and
hollow echo of an aura not too far away.
     "Myst," she said quietly, "Can you sense auras?"
     The kitten blinked and leapt out of Michelle's arms.  She made a face 
as
her landing kicked up a cloud of dust and she closed her eyes, her whiskers
twitching as she extended her own senses outward.  "I can't sense very far
because the fuzz is rather thick," she said after a few moments.
     "What fuzz?" Alex said warily as she glanced around, absently placing a
comforting hand on Michelle's shoulder.  "What are you talking about now?"
     "If a soul isn't claimed when the body dies, it will drift around the
immediate area on the Astral winds," Susan explained as she tried to focus 
on
the faint echo she was sensing.  She frowned as the echo seemed to begin
moving, but she wasn't entirely sure if it wasn't a distorted echo from the
spectral fuzz in the area.
     "And...?" Alex prompted after a few seconds of silence.
     "However, if a soul is allowed to spend too much time drifting, it will
eventually be absorbed by the Astral plane and thus be lost forever.  When 
it
is lost in such a fashion, it leaves behind an astral imprint of itself as 
it
is drawn into the Astral plane.  That imprint is seen as a somewhat foggy 
echo
when one is searching for auras and it tends to obscure other auras in the
immediate vicinity."
     "So you refer to the memories of lost souls as fuzz?" Alex asked with a
frown.  "How charming."
     Susan whirled around angrily.  "Do you think I like it?  Looking around
and sensing little more than a personal and very painful reminder of the 
battle
that took place in this kingdom?  Countless lives were lost on that day, and
while that in itself is tragic, it pales in comparison to the realization 
that
their souls are lost as well.  Do you have any idea how much it hurts to
imagine it?  Do you know what such a loss means to one who has a duty to see
that the souls of the dead are taken to the gates of the Underworld?"
     Michelle started cowering behind Alex, unsure of what had brought on 
the
sudden display of Susan's demonic temperment.  Alex, on the other hand, had 
no
one else to hide behind and did her best to weather Susan's fury.  Myst was
occupied trying to concentrate on something she had just sensed while giving
serious consideration to the idea of finding a place to hide until Susan had
calmed down.
     "I knew a great number of those people, Alex," the succubus continued,
"I knew them well, and I knew their families well.  Very, very few people
deserve such a fate as to have their souls become lost for eternity, and no
one.... not a single soul within the boundaries of the Moon Kingdom should
have been lost."
     "Susan...." Myst said.
     "What about those two punks?" Alex replied, trying to keep herself from
cowering as well.  "You know which ones I'm talking about."
     Susan said nothing for a moment as she fought to rein in her anger and
regain her composure.  "After Rei and I reaved their souls from their 
bodies,
I personally took them into Underworld," she said in a soft, low-pitched 
voice.
"I was there when they were Judged and damned.  You have my personal 
assurance
that they are now suffering and suffering greatly for their deeds."
     "Susan...." Myst said again as she started to back up, staring into the
air at something she could sense but not see.
     Susan turned around to look and immediately felt the tiny hairs on the
back of her neck stand up.  A faint chill began to surround the area a few
seconds later, a chill that she recognized at once.  While there were many
things that could add a chill to the air, none were as distinct as the 
presence
of the wandering souls of the dead.
     Michelle whimpered quietly and latched onto Alex with a death-grip.  
Alex
frowned at the unexpected chill and shivered lightly.  "Whoa, what gives?" 
she
asked as she tried to comfort her disturbed friend.  "Sue, did you turn off 
the
heater or something?"
     "I believe we have company," Susan said quietly as she adjusted her 
grip
on her staff and concentrated.  What she sensed as a faint echo before could
now be discerned as a very weak but definite aura that was drawing closer to
the group.
     "Company?" Alex said, blinking in surprise.  She quickly glanced around
but failed to see what Susan and Myst were sensing and what had been 
upsetting
Michelle.  "Don't tell me that.  Haven't we had enough surprises for one
afterlife?"
     Susan said nothing as she stared out into the air.  The source of the 
aura
had stopped moving and was only a few feet away from her.  Strange, she 
thought
as she focused her demonic senses on the faded aura, it almost feels....
familar.  Like I should know who it is....
     "It's here, isn't it?" Michelle asked softly, her voice on the verge of
cracking.  She was trembling now as she continued to hold Alex's arm in a 
grip
that threatened to cut off blood circulation.
     "There!" Myst yelped as she leapt back, her red eyes wide and her gray
fur sticking straight out.  Everyone tensed as a spectral mist began to form
and coalesce into a humanoid figure.  The process only lasted for an instant
before the mist vanished and a ghostly figure stood before them.
     Susan blinked hard.  "Impossible," she breathed as she recognized the
long, dark hair and exotic beauty of one of her fellow Sailor Scouts.  
"Aria?"
Behind her, she heard both Alex and Michelle gasping as they too recognized 
the
spectral image.
     The spirit of Lady Mars nodded her head once in slow motion, her facial
expression showing signs of extreme weariness.  Her beauty hadn't changed, 
but
her eyes, once a bottomless shade of black, were now a featureless black 
that
seemed to be sparked with the light of distant stars.  Susan briefly glanced
at the inhuman eyes and, for a moment, could have sworn she had been staring
into the depths of the cosmos.
     The strain of making herself visible to the living seemed to overwhelm
her and she collapsed to her knees.  Susan immediately rushed foward to try 
to
help her, and nearly cried out in pain as her hand passed through the 
spectral
form, sending a deep chill through her flesh.
     "Aria, can you speak to me?" Susan asked as she knelt as close to Lady
Mars as she dared.  It was almost incomprehensible how a soul could resist 
the
lure of the Astral plane for a thousand years as well as retain both the 
sanity
and willpower to manifest itself to others.
     Her lips moved, but she made no sound that anyone could be heard.  
Susan
shook her head slowly.  "I can't hear you, Aria.  Speak slowly and I can try
reading your lips," Susan said.  Lady Mars seemed to sigh for a moment 
before
she tried speaking again.  Again no sound could be heard, but this time 
Susan
was able to read her lips and understand her meaning.
     "This is spooky," Alex muttered quietly as she bent down and picked up
Myst.  The kitten hadn't been expecting such a move and nearly clawed Alex 
in
surprise.  She sighed quietly and resigned herself to put up with Alex's 
rapid
and nervous stroking of her gray fur.
     I don't have much time left, Susan thought as she watched Lady Mars's 
lips
move.  The Princess and four others of her court are alive, and the Imperium
Silver Crystal still stands.  They were here not too long ago, but how or 
why
I don't know.
     "She's alive," Susan whispered as tears threatened to flow.  "Alex, 
she's
alive.  The Princess is alive, on Earth."
     "What?" both Alex and Michelle demanded.  Michelle turned her head to 
look
up at the blue planet floating in the sky and began to cry silently with 
joy.
"Susan, how's that possible?"
     "I suppose we'll find out once we find her," Susan replied.  "Aria says
that four others of her court are with her as well."
     "Well what the hell are we waiting for, then?  Let's get our butts over
to Earth and start looking!" Alex said as she tried to loosen Michelle's 
grip
and restore some circulation to her arm.
     "In a few minutes, Alex," Susan replied as she turned her attention 
back
to the spirit of Lady Mars.  The succubus blinked as she realized that Lady
Mars's spectral state was becoming more and more translucent with each 
passing
moment.  "Aria, try to stay with us just a little longer."
     Lady Mars slowly shook her head, her features showing she was teetering
on the brink of exhaustion.  Tired, she tried to speak.  I don't know why I
fought this long to remain in the Kingdom, fought the pain of being alone 
for
countless eternities.  But now.... I need to rest.  So tired....
     "Aria, don't go," Susan said.  "I can take you with us to Earth, and 
you
can have your eternal rest with the Imperium Silver Crystal once we find the
Princess.  Please, just hold on a little longer."
     I don't know if I can, Lady Mars replied as she closed her eyes.  Her 
hair
suddenly stirred as if an unfelt breeze was drifting by and the strain 
became
more pronounced on her face.  You have no idea how tiring these past few
centuries have been, how tempting it is to just relax for a moment and go 
with
the wind....
     "Is your daughter also with the Princess?" Susan asked quietly.
     Lady Mars's eyes opened, their spectral depths momentarily startling 
Susan
again.  Yes, she is, she said after a moment.  She sighed quietly and then
added, I know what you're going to say, Lady Pluto.  Yes, I want to see my
daughter one more time.
     "Then I will hold your soul inside me until I can deliver it to her and
the Princess," Susan said softly.  Lady Mars nodded and Susan leaned 
forward,
ignoring the icy chill as she brushed her lips against the spectral image 
and
concentrated.  She waited until she felt the faint tingle in her lips as she
tapped into the soul before she slowly began to inhale.
     Alex blinked hard as the spectral form of Lady Mars was suddenly broken
into tiny particles of mist that was inhaled by the succubus.  As she 
watched,
a glowing blue sigil began to take form on Susan's shoulder.  A memory 
suddenly
bubbled up from the depths of her mind and she shuddered.
     "Oh, no...." Michelle said quietly from behind the blonde as she too
remembered seeing something similar before.  "Alex!"
     "I know, love," Alex replied soothingly.  "This is only a temporary 
thing
and she's not going to use it.  I hope," she added.
     Susan finished absorbing Lady Mars's soul and slowly stood up, flexing
her arm experimentally and casting a glance at the soul rune tattooed on her
bare shoulder.  "Such power she has," she said quietly.  She studied her 
hand
as she slowly curled her fingers and made a fist.
     Everyone blinked as her fist suddenly was engulfed in fire, the flames
burning quite hot yet leaving her skin untouched.  She glanced up at the 
looks
on the faces of her friends and let the fire vanish into nothingness.  "Are
you three alright?" she asked.
     "You said you wouldn't use those.... things," Michelle said, extremely
upset at the turn of events.  "You promised you wouldn't."
     Susan cast a glance at the soul rune.  "This is the only way I can 
carry
her soul with us.  And I'm not going to use her powers, Michelle.  She's far
too weak to survive for very long, even in this form."
     Myst frowned in confusion, not understanding in the least what was 
going
on between the three avatars.  "I don't understand," she said slowly.
     "It's a long, complicated, and evil story," Alex said, speaking before
Susan had a chance to say anything.  "And if it's all the same with you, I'd
rather not listen to her talk about those damned things again.  Besides, 
we've
more important things to do, like finding a certain Princess."
     "Is she really alive after all this time?" Michelle asked, casting a
nervous glance at the glowing sigil on Susan's shoulder.
     "Aria thinks so," Susan said as she adjusted her grip on her staff.  
"And
that is good enough for me.  Let's go," she said as she held out her staff.
     "Where to?" Alex said as she reached out to touch the staff.
     "Aria said that the Princess had been briefly sent here by the power of
the Imperium Silver Crystal," the succubus replied as she made sure Michelle
also got a grip on the staff.  "As for where from, she thinks it might have
been from the ancient island kingdom on the far eastern coast.  The kingdom
itself is pretty much destroyed in this era, but it still exists somewhat."
     Michelle nodded.  "So where do we start?"
     "In the heart of that empire, in the city they call Tokyo," Susan said
as she concentrated on the staff.  The staff hummed to itself for an instant
before they were enveloped in a shroud of temporal energy and vanished 
without
a trace.

                *               *               *               *

     Darian blinked and looked up from the magazine he was reading.  He had
noticed that Dyvach had gotten unusually busy in the past hour, making 
several
trips between the stairwell and the remaining pair of unoccupied rooms in 
the
residential wing.  However, the purpose of such activity was presently 
beyond
him and he finally gave in to his simmering curiosity.
     "Hey, Dyvach?" he asked.  The weaver paused it's task and gave him a
questioning chime.  "I don't mean to be nosy or anything, but what exactly 
are
you doing?"
     Dyvach replied with a complicated series of chimes, sounding to 
Darian's
ear like hailstones bouncing off of a xylophone.  "I.... didn't catch a word
of that," he said sheepishly.
     The weaver made a disgruntled sound to itself that Darian understood 
quite
clearly and quickly scuttled off to the residential wing.  It returned a few
moments later and climbed onto the couch next to him, curling its many legs
beneath its carapace and turning a faint purple color.
     It chimed a single word at Darian and he nodded.  "Cleaning, I 
understand
now.  Didn't mean to interrupt your work."  It made a flat chime in response
and added another single-word chime.
     Darian blinked.  He considered himself to be somewhat knowledgable when
it came to the more 'simple' chimes of the weaver language, although he 
would
readily admit he only understood a fraction of what Tolaris or even Ami had
learned about the language.  However, there were times in which he had his
doubts that he was hearing Dyvach correctly.
     "Guests?" he repeated.  Dyvach chimed an affirmative and Darian blinked
again.  "Are you saying you're cleaning because we're going to have guests?
No, wait, keep it to the one-word chimes, please," he said wearily as Dyvach
started to chime away at it's usual rapid-fire pace.
     "Guests, soon, friends," he repeated as Dyvach slowed down 
considerably.
"Umm, does Tolaris know about this?"  Dyvach hesitated for a moment before 
it
grumbled quietly to itself and made a single multi-harmonic chime.
     Darian had to strain his brain to translate the sound.  I think that 
was
one of the ones Ami had trouble with, he thought.  She said it meant both 
"not
yet" and "too soon" about the same subject, but that she thought it was in
two different contexts.  Talk about your headaches....
     The weaver interrupted his train of thought with a string of slow-paced
chimes, most of which he was easily able to translate if not immediately
comprehend.  "Whoa, wait a second," he said slowly.  "You want me to do what
with a towel?  I'm sorry," he said as Dyvach grumbled in mild frustration.
     "Say this one word at a time.... Okay, okay, I'll save the why part 
until
you're done.... Umm, grab a few towels.... and put them.... where?  OH, you
mean my jeep!  Okay, put the towels in my jeep, and.... Luna?  You want me 
to
go get Luna?  Sure, but....  Wait, you just lost me on that.  Take her 
where?
Bath?  No, not that, then.... pool?  A big pool.... in the city?  Wait, do 
you
mean the lake?"
     Darian sat back and rubbed his eyes for a moment while Dyvach chimed 
with
happiness.  "Let me try this from the top, my friend," he said slowly.  "You
want me to put a bunch of towels in my jeep, then go get Luna and take her 
to
the artificial lake in the center of the city.  Am I right?"  The resulting
cheer from the oversized crystalline spider definitely needed no 
translation.
"Okay, now comes the fun part.... WHY?"
     He blinked hard when Dyvach made a strangled noise as it rolled off the
couch, landing on its back with its legs curled up in a classic 'dead 
spider'
pose.  Very slowly and patiently, it repeated what it said when the cleaning
question first arose.
     The full realization hit Darian with the force of a baseball bat being
slammed into the back of his head.  "Dyvach, who's coming?  I know you said
guests and that they're friends, but who are they?  I mean, are they from 
the
Negaverse, and if so, is Tolaris aware of this?"
     The weaver made a grouchy noise as it flipped back over and reoriented
itself.  It took a deep breath tried to explain things as best it could 
while
keeping the vocabulary down to a level Darian could understand.
     He let out a sigh of frustration.  "This isn't working, Dyvach, I can't
make sense of what you're saying.  It's not your fault," he added as the 
weaver
turned a bright green color, "I just can't translate sounds well."
     Dyvach suddenly froze, the colors of its carapace shifting rapidly 
through
the visible spectrum before finally settling on a blotchy mix of dark blue,
orange, and neon yellow.  It then began to chitter excitedly to itself at a
very rapid pace while tugging hard on Darian's leg.
     Darian blinked.  "I hope you're not going to throw up or something....
Okay, okay, I'll follow you, you can let go of me now," he said as he got to
his feet and was almost literally dragged halfway across the cathedral.  "So
what's going on?" he asked as he followed the weaver into the computer room.
     It merely motioned for him to sit in the chair while it picked up the
crystalline keyboard and set it on the floor.  It then sat back on half of 
its
legs and used the other half to type away at a furious pace, accessing the
mainframe with mind-boggling speed.
     Okay, Darian thought as he sat down in the chair and tried to figure 
out
what Dyvach was up to.  Boy, and I thought Ami could type fast.  Of course, 
she
only has two hands as opposed to how many legs? he thought, trying to get a
count of the number of limbs in motion.  They were moving faster than he 
could
follow and he finally settled for estimating there where somewhere between 
six
and eight legs on the keyboard at once.
     He refocused on the screen as Dyvach suddenly quit typing and sat back,
watching the line of characters slowly appear on the display.  Darian 
blinked
as he realized that Dyvach had filled up the keyboard buffer and was waiting
for the computer to catch up with what it had already typed in.  "Hey," he
said as he studied the spidery denizen text scrolling across the screen, "I
think I can read some of that.  Can you...."
     "Can you understand me now, your Highness?" the computer said in a flat
monotone voice, the text turning from green to blue as it translated each 
word
into verbal English.  Darian leapt out of the chair as if something had 
bitten
his backside.  He let loose with a brief burst of profanity and added, "What
did you do?!"
     Dyvach made a curious tinkling noise as it began to type.  "I accessed 
the
new translator program.  I do not know why I did not think of this earlier,"
the computer replied.
     Darian's eyes were nearly double their usual size.  "Is THAT what 
Serena
was babbling about when she said Ami had taught it to talk?"
     There was a slight delay between Dyvach's typing and the computer voice
translation of what was typed.  "I do not know what the Princess said, but I
do know that this computer program was written by the mistress."
     Princess?  Mistress? he thought as his brain threatened to shut down 
from
too much information at once.  "Hang on, you're confusing me here...."
     "There is not much time for me to explain.  You must take Luna and 
three
large towels to the west edge of the lake," the emotionless voice said from
the speaker.  "There you will meet the rest of the Princess's royal court."
     "Royal court?  Are they from the Moon Kingdom?" Darian asked.
     Dyvach made a frustrated sound as it typed furiously.  "I only know 
what
I see in what you would term a daydream.  If this is not acted upon, it will
change and I will not know what will happen next.  Take the towels from the
linen closet outside and go get Luna.  I will explain when we have time."
     Darian paused to briefly consider the situation.  Here I am, sitting in
the middle of a room surrounded by technology that came from another world,
I'm being told by an oversized crystal spider to take some towels and a 
talking
cat from the moon to go meet people who probably aren't expecting me, and 
all
of this is based on something that happened in a daydream.
     "Oh, what the hell," he grumbled to himself as he stood up and walked 
out
into the corridor.  Of all the things I've done since I've discovered my 
past
reincarnation, this has got to be one of the strangest, he thought as he got
three fluffy towels from the linen closet and made his way towards the front
door of the cathedral.
     He chuckled to himself as he tossed the towels in the back seat of his
jeep and climbed in.  Yeah, ranks up there with talking to a sentient being
who looks like a seriously overgrown spider with a translucent shell that
changes colors for whatever reason, playing chess with (and losing to) a
completely different species of sentient being who looks like a five-foot 
owl
that speaks with her mind instead of her voice, and waking up butt-naked in 
a
different dimension next to a woman from yet another sentient alien species 
who
just happens to be the queen of the whole planet.  But you have to admit, 
not
very many people get the chance to do stuff like that.  That reminds me, I
still owe Ra'vel a rematch.  Who taught her to play chess that well, anyway?
     Darian was almost at the end of the cathedral's gravel road when the
thought popped back into his conscious mind.  He immediately slammed on the
brakes hard enough to create a geyser of gravel behind him and skidded to a
halt.  Wait.... when did I wake up next to Beryl? he thought as a wave of 
pure
ice flooded his veins.  He closed his eyes tightly and searched his memory 
of
the only possible time he could have done such a thing.  He remembered very
little of the events surrounding his brainwashing by Queen Beryl's minions,
but he was almost positive that he would remember something like THAT.
     I don't recall anything like that happening, but that memory had to 
have
come from somewhere, he reasoned as he carefully resumed driving.  He 
frowned
as he thought about it.  Was it a memory? he asked himself as he tried to
remember the exact image that had popped up.  It was like a phantom memory,
something he thought he remembered doing but couldn't actually remember 
doing
so.  This is going to drive me nuts, he thought as he warily watched the 
road
ahead of him.  What I do remember is looking up from that stasis cylinder 
and
nearly wetting myself at the sight of being surrounded by so many of Beryl's
henchmen.... yeah, maybe that's what I was thinking of.  I hope.
     He blinked as he felt his communicator start to vibrate in his pocket.
I'm glad they were able to talk Ami into adding a vibration setting to these
things instead of just beeping, he thought as he pulled the communicator out
and glanced at the flashing icon.  Had a hard time explaining to the guys at
work about this 'pager' going off in the middle of the day all the time.
     He opened the ash tray and propped the communicator up at an angle in 
it
before he opened the channel.  "You have interesting timing, Serena," he 
said,
keeping one eye on the tiny screen and the other on the road.
     The image of Serena blinked.  "Oh?  What'd I do this time?"
     Darian chuckled.  "Was just about to call you in a few moments."
     The blonde giggled.  "I guess we just know each other too well.  Umm, I
take it you're busy driving?"
     He spared the monitor a half-second glance.  "Now that you mention it, 
I'm
on my way to your house as we speak.  Where's Luna?"
     "She's here," Serena replied as she cast a puzzled glance off-screen.
     "I need to pick her up and take her with me on a mission from Dyvach," 
he
said as he changed lanes to pass an ancient truck.  "I'm almost at your 
house
now, so tell her to just get ready and I'll explain as we go."
     "I'll be at the front of the house," Luna said as she poked her head 
into
the monitor's field-of-view.  "You said Dyvach asked you to do this?"
     Darian sighed.  "Long story, Luna, but yes."
     Luna perked her ears up as she heard his jeep.  "I'll be with you in a
moment," she said as she jumped down from the bed.  Serena watched her leap 
out
the window and scramble down the tree before she cast a questioning glance 
at
the monitor.  "This isn't something we should alert the others about, is 
it?"
she asked hesitantly.
     "Hang on," he said as he turned down Serena's street and slowed down.  
He
found Luna perched on top of the mailbox and drove as close to the curb as 
he
could.  She easily leapt into the front seat next to him and he quickly 
turned
the jeep around, heading into the heart of downtown Tokyo.
     "Good evening," Luna said as she sat back and began to preen.
     "Sorry to drag you out at this hour on such short notice, but I've been
told we're running against a clock of sorts," he replied.
     Luna chuckled.  "Well, it's not like I had a hot date tonight."
     Darian wisely decided to refrain from comment.  "Anyway, to answer your
question, Serena.... Dyvach said I'm going to be meeting some people he said
were going to be guests at the cathedral, and that they were, quote, the 
rest
of the Princess's royal court, end quote."
     "What?" Luna and Serena said simultaneously.
     "I'm just the gopher boy on this one.  I was told to grab three towels 
and
Luna, and to take them to the west side of the lake," he explained as he 
drove
down the street.  "And supposedly we're going to meet up with a few people 
who
probably won't be expecting us, according to Dyvach.  I know this sounds 
like
an oddball plan, but after what Whisper said about it being precognitive....
well, worst that could happen is that it's wrong and I get to spend a 
romantic
evening sitting on a pile of towels by the lake with Luna."
     "Hey!" Serena protested.
     He chuckled and smiled at the monitor.  "I'm only teasing, Serena."
     Luna shrugged in typical feline fashion.  "Well, I wouldn't mind."
     "Luna!"
     "Anyway," he said slowly, trying to defuse Serena's momentary fit of
jealousy.  "Get this.... Dyvach started typing on that mainframe computer 
and
the computer started translating what he typed!"
     "See, I told you Ami did something to it," Serena said with a smile.  
"I
don't know how she did it, but she got it to start responding to whatever 
she
says to it."
     Luna's ears perked up.  "A talking computer?"
     "The wonders of denizen technology," Darian said as he stopped at a red
light.  "Five bucks says if she did it with the cathedral mainframe, she'll
have her little toy computer talking inside of two weeks."
     Serena opened her mouth to say something when she suddenly glanced at
something off-screen and her blue eyes widened.  "Hi, mom," she said as she
quickly closed the connection.
     Darian just shook his head as he picked up his communicator, closed the
channel on his end, and stuffed it back into his pocket.  "Sometimes it's 
easy
to forget about her family," he said quietly as the light turned green and 
he
began to accelerate.
     Luna nodded.  "You have no idea how many times I've had to bite my 
tongue
to keep myself from talking to her when other people are around.  And having
to go 'meow' gets really old after awhile."
     "Mmmmm," he said to himself as he made a right-turn and found a parking
spot.  "Well, here we are," he said as he set the brake and turned off the
engine.  The edge of the lake was only a dozen yards in front of him, 
separated
by a narrow expanse of sidewalk and a field of grass.  Off in the distance 
was
the gazebo that the romantics seemed to favor, himself included.  Strangely
enough, it was empty at the moment even though it was late at night and the
weather was seasonally good.
     The black cat purred as she stretched.  "So now what?"
     He shrugged helplessly.  "Your guess is as good as mine right now, 
Luna.
Dyvach only said for me to bring you and the towels here.  Didn't say 
anything
about what to do once we arrived."
     Luna climbed up onto the dashboard and looked out across the surface of
the artificial lake.  "Well, we could always...."
     She was interrupted by a bright flash of light high over the water.  
The
flash had barely begun to fade before there was a series of screams as 
several
humanoid figures suddenly appeared and began to plummet towards the surface 
of
the lake.
     Darian was scrambling out of the jeep when they splashed into the lake,
the sound accompanied by a garbled curse that echoed quite clearly across 
the
park.  "I'm going to have to have a word with Dyvach," he muttered to 
himself
as he ran to the edge of the railing and looked out at the water.
     Three heads broke the surface of the lake and immediately began to spit
out the lungfuls of water they had accidentally inhaled.  One quickly 
glanced
around and gestured towards the nearest edge of the lake, which 
coincidentally
happened to be where Darian was standing.  All three appeared to be rather
proficient swimmers and covered the distance in a very short time.
     "Hey, are you alright?" Darian yelled out as he ducked under the 
railing
and held his hand out.
     A woman with close-cut blonde hair coughed loudly and grasped his hand.
"I've  had better  days," she gasped as she hauled herself out
of the water.  She was wearing a white ballroom gown, and from the way it 
clung
to her body it was obvious there wasn't much else beneath it.
     Next to them, a woman with dark green hair in a black gown reached up 
to
grab the railing with one hand.  Her other hand was holding onto the arm of 
a
woman with aquamarine hair and wearing a matching color gown.  With a grunt,
she heaved the other woman up to the railing and pulled herself out of the
water.  "Is everyone alright?" she asked as she glanced at the blonde.
     "I think so," she replied with a sour look.  She suddenly blinked and
quickly glanced around.  "Wait, where's Myst?"
     The other woman blinked once before she whirled around and dove back 
into
the water, swimming furiously out to the point where they had been dumped 
into
the lake.  She paused to search around before she dove beneath the water.
     Darian heard a sound behind him and glanced over his shoulder.  Luna 
had
managed to take the towels out of the jeep and was in the process of 
dragging
them across the grass towards the group.  "Good thinking," he said as he 
made
sure both women were safely out of the water before rushing over to pick up
the towels.
     The woman with aquamarine hair coughed for a moment before she turned 
her
head out to look at the lake.  "Where is she?" she asked, casting a glance 
at
her friend.
     A small geyser of water erupted as the woman burst forth from beneath 
the
surface of the lake holding something in her hands.  She quickly swam back
towards the edge of the water and fairly heaved the object at the blonde 
before
scrambling out herself.
     "Here," Darian said as he wrapped a towel around the blonde's shoulders
before passing a second one to the woman in aquamarine.
     "You're a godsend," the blonde replied as she immediately wrapped the
towel around the small gray bundle in her lap and began rubbing furiously.
     "Thank you," Susan said as she accepted a towel from Darian.  She began
to dry herself before she froze and blinked, staring hard at him.
     Darian blinked at the unexpected attention and noticed that the woman 
in
aquamarine was staring at him as well.  "Umm...." he said slowly.
     "Prince Darian?" Michelle said incredulously.
     "What?" Alex said as her head whipped around.  Her eyes became 
impossibly
wide as she saw that Michelle was speaking the truth.  "Holy...." she 
started
to say, for once unable to finish her usual spate of profanity in surprise
situations.
     "Susan, is that you?" Luna said in amazement as she stared at the 
familiar
figure, her jaw hanging down to her knees.
     All three women turned their heads to look at the source of the voice 
and
blinked.  "Luna!" they chorused in near-unison.
     "It is you!" Luna said happily as she ran over to Susan.
     "Indeed," Susan replied as she knelt down and ran her fingers through
Luna's dark fur, hardly believing her luck at finding her.  Her priorities
quickly reasserted themselves and she looked up sharply at the blonde.  
"Alex,
how's Myst doing?"
     Alex was about to reply when there was an explosion of water from the
ball of fur in her lap, followed by a spate of decidedly unhealthy coughing.
The blonde glanced down and suddenly scrambled back with a yelp of surprise.
     Darian blinked and tried to see what startled her.  He blinked again as
he thought he saw an oozing mass of.... something inside the towel before it
rippled slightly and a gray kitten poked her head out.  She then proceeded 
to
finish coughing the rest of the water out of her lungs, her red eyes giving
Susan a baleful look.
     "I'd say she'll live," Susan commented to herself as she glanced over 
at
Michelle.  "And are you alright?"
     Michelle nodded sourly as she finished towelling the worst of the water
off of her.  "I'm fine," she said as she wrung out the towel and made a face
at the amount of water that splashed onto the grass.
     "So, your Highness, long time no see," Alex said as she stood up and 
began
to shake the water out of her hair.
     Darian blinked.  "Uh, I take it I'm supposed to know you?" he said 
slowly.
     The three women quit towelling themselves and gave him stunned looks.
"You mean you don't remember us?" Susan asked curiously with a faint frown 
on
her face.
     "It's a very long story," Luna said as she walked over to examine Myst.
"He is Darian Chiba, the reincarnation of Prince Darian of Earth."
     "Reincarnation?" Susan said quietly.  She then sighed and nodded.  "I 
see.
Forgive me, your Highness.  I am Susan Meiou, avatar of Pluto and the 
Queen's
Chancellor.  This is Alexis Ten'ou, avatar of Uranus, and Michelle Kaiou,
avatar of Neptune," she said, gesturing to each in turn.
     The blonde growled quietly.  "Call me Alex, if you don't mind."
     "Umm, sure, no problem," Darian replied.
     "Are you alright?" Luna asked as she began to preen the kitten.
     Myst jumped back and gave her a wide-eyed look.  "What are you doing?"
     Luna blinked hard, surprised by Myst's unexpected reaction.  "I was 
just
going to try to help get that water out of your fur," she said cautiously.
     "Luna, Myst isn't a lunar cat," Susan explained as she wrung her towel
out.  "She is a Shinma, a species of demon.  She is an ally," she added as 
she
noticed the look on Darian's face.
     "Demon?" he asked slowly, casting a wary glance at what appeared to be 
a
lunar kitten.  Luna also gave her a concerned look, slowly backing away from
the Shinma.
     "Relax, she's on our side, alright," Alex replied as she tossed her 
towel
to Michelle and began to wring the water out of her gown.  Michelle frowned
lightly, wrapped one towel around her shoulders, and began to towel her 
friend
off with the other one.
     "Is the Princess alright?" Susan asked Darian as she did her best to 
dry
off her back.  The shock of hitting the cold water had caused her to absorb 
her
wings and revert to her human form.  A distant part of her mind told her 
that
the same shock also caused her to drop her staff and that it was probably at
the bottom of the lake by now.  She sent an empathic command toward the 
staff
and felt it unobtrusively blend itself into the temporal flow of Time where
she could get it later when she wished.
     "She's fine," Luna replied as she continued to look over Myst from a
distance.  "In fact, all of them are fine.  Ami, Rei, Leda, and Mina.... 
even
Artemis is here, too."
     "Artemis?" Alex said as she looked up with a grin.  "Aw, that sour old
furball is still kicking?"
     "Luna, I realize that we probably have a great deal to talk about," 
Susan
said as she shook a few water droplets from her hair, "But first we need to
find a place we can stay for the night and get some dry clothes."
     Darian and Luna exchanged looks.  "Funny you should mention a place to
stay," he said.  "I think someone saw you coming and made a few arrangements
ahead of time, although I still don't know how the others are going to react
to this one.  Umm.... hang on a second," he added as he felt his 
communicator
start to vibrate in his pocket again.
     "Saw us coming?" Susan echoed as she gave Luna a curious look.
     Luna sighed.  "As I said, it's a very long story."
     Darian frowned as he pulled out his communicator and saw the flashing
icon.  "So it begins," he muttered as he thumbed the display on.  "I take it
Dyvach woke you up?" he said as the image appeared on the monitor.
     "It did indeed," the image of Tolaris replied.  "And it also told me 
that
we were going to be having a few guests in the very near future, as well as
telling me you were on your way to pick them up."
     "What the hell is that thing?" Alex asked as she stepped over to Darian
to peer at the communicator.  "And who are you talking to?"
     "You could say that," Darian said to Tolaris as he glanced at Alex.  
"In
fact, they're already here.  Luna's with me and she knows them."
     "I see," Tolaris said evenly.  "Do the other Sailor Scouts know?"
     Darian sighed.  "We're working on that, but things happened too fast 
for
us to really think this one through."
     Alex blinked.  "You're here to meet us, you bring us towels after we 
get
dumped in the lake, and now you're saying this wasn't planned ahead of 
time?"
     "Don't interrupt," Susan admonished her as she wrung her towel out once
more and picked up Myst.  "Are you alright?" she asked the kitten as she 
began
to dry her off as best she could.
     "Put me back," Myst grumbled.  "Just toss me back in The Dark.  At 
least
I knew how to deal with everything in there," she said as she gave up trying
to assess the situation and submitted to being rubbed dry.
     Darian blinked as he felt a cool breeze start to blow past him and 
turned
to look in the general direction of the cathedral.  He wasn't at all 
surprised
to see a mass of dark clouds slowly forming in the sky high over the grove 
of
trees that hid the cathedral from sight.
     "I take it this isn't sitting too well with you?" Darian asked Tolaris.
     The Dragoon blinked.  "You could say that.  Why do you ask?"
     Darian smirked.  "Call it a gut instinct.  That, and a storm front is
rapidly developing over a nondescript part of the forest."
     Susan frowned as she glanced in the direction Darian was looking at.  
She
noticed the storm clouds forming as well and felt a dark chill slowly creep
down her spine.  That's not a natural storm, she thought to herself.
     Darian almost dropped the communicator as Luna leapt up at him, using 
her
claws to grab hold of his shirt and climbing higher until she could see into
the communicator.  "Commander, we need to make a decision and fast.  I know
them personally and can attest that they are Sailor Scouts as well.  They're
also thoroughly soaked, and if we don't get them dried out soon they'll all
catch cold."
     "And Susan is not a nice person to deal with when she's got a 
headcold,"
Alex added loudly as she craned her head over Darian's shoulder.
     Tolaris frowned at the unexpected voice.  "Dyvach is being unusually
insistent about this one for some reason.  And seeing how we've got 
everything
prepared, you might as well bring them over here for the night.  There will 
be
a great deal to discuss in the morning, however, and everyone will need to 
be
here."
     Darian nodded.  "Understood, but it might have to wait until 
afternoon."
     "They have school, I know," Tolaris replied with a weary sigh.  "I'll 
go
wake up Maze and the others so they know what to expect.  And Darian?  Don't
make me regret any of this," he said and closed the channel.
     "He seems like a happy camper," Alex commented.  "Who is he?"
     Darian sighed.  "Tolaris is a good friend of the Sailor Scouts," he 
said
as he pried Luna free from the front of his shirt and held her in a more
comfortable position.  "He may be a little stiff at times, but you'll get 
used
to him fairly quickly.  Come on, everyone in the jeep," he said as he 
started
walking towards the parked vehicle.
     Alex blinked.  "In the what?"
     "A type of surface vehicle," Susan explained as she followed him, 
making
sure she stayed close to Michelle and Alex.  She knew that they hadn't been
paying much attention to their immediate surroundings and that the culture
shock was only seconds away.  "It is powered by a combustion engine and is
usually only driven on paved roads, although I believe that 'jeeps' are also
capable of being taken off-road as well."
     "Sounds like fun," the blonde commented as she glanced around, blinked
hard, and came to an abrupt halt.  Michelle bumped into her and was about to
say something when she too looked around and froze at what she was seeing.
     Darian noticed the girls' state of shock and paused as well.  "Is there
something wrong?" he asked as he looked around for something amiss.
     "Sue... what IS this?" Alex said in utter awe and amazement.
     "Welcome to twentieth-century Tokyo," Susan said as she looked around.
"As you can see, their level of technology has improved considerably since 
you
were last on the planet."
     Darian blinked and exchanged curious glances with Luna.  "You mean to 
say
you have no memory of what has happened since the end of the Silver 
Millenium?"
Luna asked cautiously.
     Susan shook her head sadly.  "It is, as you said, a very long story.  
The
short explanation is that we've been dead for the past thousand years and 
have
only now been resurrected."
     "Whhhaaaaaaat?" Darian said in surprise, his eyes widening.
     "Hey, are these the electric lights you were talking about?" Alex said 
as
she craned her head up to stare at a street light.
     "What's that?" Michelle said at the same time, pointing to a car moving
slowly in the distance.  "It looks like a rover, but it sounds 
different...."
     "Culture shock," Susan said with a smile as she gestured to her two
companions.  "I suspect it will be quite awhile before you hear the end of 
the
questions."
     Darian frowned as he set Luna on the hood of his jeep and began to 
clean
out the back seats.  "They won't be the only one asking questions.  Why is 
it
they don't know about any of this, but you do?" he asked Susan.
     "I'm a time-traveller," she explained.  "I mostly travelled between 
what
you would call 200 BC and 2100 AD, and have a fairly extensive knowledge of
the various cultures and socities between those times."
     Luna blinked.  "Oh, that's right...."
     Susan frowned.  "Luna, how could you forget something like that?"
     The black cat sighed heavily.  "It's not my fault," she said quietly as
she glanced away.  "So much gets lost after a thousand years."
     "Time travel?" Darian said incrediously.  "You mean, as in go back in 
time
to see what happened, say, four hundred years ago?"
     "Cheer up, you'll get used to her talking about it all the time," Alex
said as she continued to study the modern-era city.  "No pun intended," she
added, winking at Michelle and eliciting a groan from her.
     Everyone blinked as Myst suddenly burst into a fit of sneezes.  
"Perhaps
we should worry about getting dry first," Susan suggested.  "The temperature
is starting to drop and these towels have absorbed all the water they can, 
so
it would be a good idea to find clean clothes before we do catch colds."
     "Good idea," Alex replied.  "My tits are starting to freeze and having
them showing through this gauzy excuse for a dress isn't helping matters.  
Of
all the colors to pick, he just had to choose white," she muttered sourly as
she tugged on her gown.  The fabric pulled away from her skin easily, but
quickly stuck again once she let go.  She glanced up and caught Darian's
reflexive gaze in her direction.  "Problem?" she asked lightly, the corner 
of
her lip curling up into a faint smile.
     Darian coughed to himself as he turned his attention back to his jeep,
feeling the blush creeping up on his face.  "Come on, everyone in and make
sure to buckle up," he said as he unlocked the doors.
     "Oooo, what have we here?" Alex said as she examined the jeep.
     "You can look at it later," Susan chided as she moved past her and sat
down in the front passenger seat, still rubbing Myst's damp fur.  "Right 
now,
we have to get dried out and warmed up soon."
     "Yes, mother," Alex said with enough sarcasm to scorch a rock.
     Susan gave her an odd look.  "Unless you want to stay cold and wet."
     The blonde merely grumbled to herself as she climbed into the jeep and
plopped into the back seat.  Michelle shook her head as she climbed into the
seat next to her and fastened the belt around her waist.
     "Come on, Luna, unless you want to be a hood ornament," Darian said as 
he
started the engine.  He waited until Luna had jumped up from the hood to the
rollbar and down into Michelle's lap before he shifted into reverse and 
began
to back out.
     "So, your Highness," Alex said casually as she glanced around the city,
"Where exactly are we going?"
     Darian frowned lightly as he glanced at her in the rear-view mirror.
"There's a small cathedral hidden deep within a remote part of the forest at
the edge of the city," he explained as he shifted gears and began to drive
down the street.  "Luna can tell you more about the past history of it, but
right now it's being used as a base by the Sailor Scouts and our allies."
     Susan glanced over at him.  "Allies like Tolaris?"
     "Exactly."
     "You have yet to tell us about him," she said.
     Luna sighed quietly.  "They're going to have to know sooner or later," 
she
said to Darian.  "And I'd much rather they know now before they meet."
     "Why do I get the feeling that you're about to tell us something that 
we
probably won't like?" Alex asked slowly as a chill ran down her spine.
     "You want the short or the long version?" Darian asked.
     "The short version for now," Susan replied.
     "Okay, in short, Tolaris and the others are from the Negaverse," Darian
said simply.
     "What?" Alex, Michelle, and Susan said in unison, each voice tempered 
with
a decidedly dangerous edge to it.
     "You must understand a few things," Luna said quickly.  "None of them 
are
old enough to have been a part of the invasion of the Moon Kingdom, and they
have all been branded as traitors by the Negaverse for helping us."
     "Wait, let me get this right," Alex said, her voice laced with steel.
"We're on our way to go meet with a few people from the Negaverse?  Stop the
jeep, I'm getting out," she said as she stood up, holding onto the rollbar 
for
support.
     "Hey, sit down!" Darian yelped as he took his foot off the gas and 
slowly
applied the brakes.
     "You're crazy if you think I'm going to have anything to do with those
bastards," the blonde fumed, her eyes narrowed.  "They destroyed our 
kingdom,
slaughtered thousands of innocents...."
     "Sit down, Alex," Susan said quietly as she stared at the road ahead.
     Alex shot her a dark look.  "Sue, I'd think that you of all people...."
     "SIT DOWN!"
     The blonde blinked hard and slowly sat down, giving Michelle an 
uncertain
look in the process.  Michelle was curled up in the seat and holding Luna 
tight
against her.  Her skin was unusually pale and she was staring off into 
space,
listening to her surroundings but not seeing.
     "Mich, are you alright?" Alex asked as she leaned forward and laid her
hand on Michelle's arm.  Her eyes went wide as she felt how dangerously cold
Michelle's skin had become.
     "Cold...." Michelle replied softly, trying not to shiver.
     "Don't misunderstand me, Alex," Susan said, her voice much calmer than
before her momentary outburst.  "I'm not looking forward to this anymore 
than
you are.  But if we don't get warmed up soon, we'll have a bigger problem on
our hands than worries about the Negaverse."
     Alex said nothing as she leaned back, keeping a wary eye on Michelle 
and
suddenly aware of the chill that was starting to creep into her bones.  No 
one
else said anything either, and the only sound heard for quite some time was 
the
loud roaring of the jeep's engine as it accelerated.

                *               *               *               *

     "Move," Whisper growled as she stormed down the hallway holding an 
armful
of towels.  Dyvach was following her closely, doing its best to keep a grip 
on
the pile of clothes stacked on top of it's carapace.
     Maze blinked and quickly stepped out of her way.  "What exactly is 
going
on here?" he asked, more than slightly confused by the telepath's sudden 
burst
of activity.
     She didn't slow her pace for an instant as she made for the door.  "To 
be
honest with you, Lieutenant, you probably know just as much as I do.  I just
know that we have three very wet visitors arriving in a few moments, and 
with
the temperature dropping outside, our first concern should be about their
welfare.  We can ask them questions once they're not in any danger of 
getting
hypothermia or worse."
     "Need any help?" he asked, not being one to get in the way of a purely
humanitarian concern.
     Whisper paused for half a second to think.  "Actually, yes.... go make
sure the showers in the main hall and the large spare room are cleared out.
They're going to need to warm up, and the fastest way for that is with a hot
shower."
     "Yes, ma'am," Maze replied as he turned around and headed back down the
residential hallway.
      a voice gently intruded into her 
mind
as she came to the main foyer of the cathedral.
      she telepathed back to Ra'vel as
she opened the door.  
     
     Whisper stopped before going outside, suddenly reminded of the fact 
that
the only humans to ever have met an avian like Ra'vel were the Sailor 
Scouts.
"Dyvach, set the clothes down here and go back to your nest," she said with 
a
quiet sigh.
     It would have blinked if it had eyelids.  Instead, it froze in 
mid-motion
and gave her a perplexed chime, it's carapace turning a rather pretty shade 
of
lavender.
     "Odds are they've never seen a weaver before," she explained.  "We 
should
spare them the culture shock until they're somewhat settled in first."  She
blinked as Dyvach began to make a noise that sounded like a piece of 
concrete
rapidly being drawn across rusted piano strings.  It took her a moment to
realize that it was actually laughing out loud.  It carefully set the pile 
of
clothing down on the inside of the foyer and headed towards the staircase, 
it's
carapace a blotchy mix of red, light blue, and an incandescent shade of 
green.
     "It's not going to throw up, is it?" Tolaris asked with concern as he
poked his head in the open doorway and glanced at the retreating weaver.  He
knew that weavers often lost control of the coloring of their crystal shells
in certain situations, the two most notable being when laying eggs and as a
precursor to being forced to evacuate their stomachs.
     Whisper shook her head.  "Dyvach found the idea of culture shocking our
guests to be.... amusing."
     "Just as long as he doesn't throw up again," Tolaris replied with a 
very
sour expression on his face.  He caught Whisper's mildly curious look and
shook his head.  "Bear in mind his stomach acids are strong enough to break
down virtually any type of matter into its constituent elemental particles."
     The telepath frowned as she sorted through her limited knowledge of 
basic
chemistry and blinked at the results.  "Umm, how bad was it?"
     "It was outside at the time, so didn't do any serious damage.... 
although
it did dissolve through a good fifteen feet of solid rock before the acids 
and
enzymes neutralized themselves," Tolaris explained.  "Of course, having 
Dyvach
belch chlorine gas for a few minutes afterwards didn't quite help."
     Maze blinked hard as he crossed the floor from the residential wing to
the foyer.  "We have a chlorine gas leak?" he asked with a small note of 
alarm
in his voice.
     "Of course not," Tolaris replied.  He waited until Maze was finished
sighing with relief before he continued.  "The only gas we have stored here 
is
the reactor coolant.  I was just telling the Captain about the hazards when 
a
weaver has to throw up."
     "Yeech," Maze said as he cast a reflexive glance towards the stairwell.
"Umm, this is just a topic of conversation and not a concern, right?"
     Whisper nodded.  "I doubt we'd be standing here idle if there was a 
puddle
of concentrated acid around."
     The conversation came to a halt as the sound of an engine reached their
ears, shortly followed by the sounds of Darian's jeep slowly driving down 
the
stretch of packed gravel that served as the 'road' in and out of the 
secluded
cathedral.
     Whisper took one look at the group huddled in the jeep and frowned.  
"Are
the showers ready, Lieutenant?" she said as she started forward, even before
the jeep came to a halt.
     "Perfectly," Maze replied as he glanced over the newcomers.  "You 
know,"
he said quietly to Tolaris as the women's expressions changed as they saw 
the
denizens, "I have a feeling this might not be too pleasant.  The one with 
the
green hair is giving me chills already."
     "As you were, Lieutenant," Tolaris said quietly.  His voice was 
carefully
neutral but contained an edge of command to it.  Maze shot him a brief 
glance
but didn't say anything further.
     "They're on our side," Darian cautioned quietly as he set the brake and
turned off the engine.
     Susan unbuckled her seatbelt and opened the door, still keeping a 
careful
grip on Myst.  "With all due respect, your Highness, I will be the judge of
that," she replied in a soft tone that could only be described as glacial.
     Whisper didn't slow her pace until she was standing next to the jeep.
"My name is Whisper, and I think we can skip the formalities until you're 
all
dry," she said as she held out a towel to Susan.
     Susan regarded her very carefully before slowly reaching out.  "Susan
Meiou.  Thank you," she added neutrally as she took the offered towel.  She
then began to rub Myst with it while still keeping a very wary eye on 
Whisper.
     "Should I ask why you're all wet?" Whisper carefully asked as she moved
over to where Alex and Michelle were climbing out of the back of the jeep.
     "Long story," Alex muttered sourly as she gave the telepath a look that
was none too friendly.  Whisper frowned slightly as the look and glanced 
over
her shoulder to find Susan wearing a similar expression of distrust.
     "You three don't trust me, do you?" the telepath asked slowly as she
extended a towel to the blonde.
     "You're from the Negaverse, aren't you?" Alex said with an edge to her
voice.  "I think that speaks for itself."
     "That's enough, Alex," Susan said, her own voice turning to steel.
     Alex gritted her teeth for a moment before she silently blew her breath
out and took the towel from Whisper.
     Whisper turned and held out a towel to Michelle.  "And what do you...."
she said before her voice failed her.
     Darian had only twice before seen the color drain from a person's face
that fast, and both times involved an obviously life-threatening situation.
"Captain...." he said as he stepped forward and took her arm.
     The telepath blinked hard, her gaze fastened on Michelle's face and her
world in total chaos.  "S'Rel?" she breathed softly before her disciplined 
mind
reoriented itself and jarred her back into reality.  "No, that's.... that's 
not
possible."  She cleared her throat and continued.  "I'm sorry, I just.... 
for
a moment I thought you were someone I once knew."
     Darian glanced between the two of them and was struck with the 
realization
that there seemed to be a more than faint suggestion of resemblance.  
Whisper's
hair was several shades lighter than Michelle's and she was about three 
inches
taller, but they both bore almost identical builds and seemingly similar
cheekbones.  He glanced up at Susan and saw that he wasn't the only one to
have noticed the similarities.
     "Something wrong, Captain?" Tolaris asked as he reached the group with
Maze right behind him.  They had seen the look on Whisper's face and decided
it would be best to resolve everything on the spot.
     Whisper shook her head.  "Just a case of mistaken identity.  This is
Tolaris and Maze," she said as she introduced the Dragoons.
     "Susan Meiou," Susan replied with a faint edge of distrust to her 
voice.
"This is Myst, and they are Alex Ten'ou and Michelle Kaiou."
     "I take it you're part of the military?" Alex said flatly as she passed
her towel to Michelle and glared at the denizens.
     "Yes, we are," Whisper replied as she offered Alex another dry towel.
She waited until the blonde grudingly accepted it before continuing.  "I am 
the
captain of the Psi-Corp, Tolaris is the commander of the Dragoon Legion, and
Maze is a Dragoon lieutenant.  At least, that's what we were before we 
became
exiles here on Earth."
     Susan frowned.  "Exiled for what?"
     Tolaris sighed softly to himself.  "I fell in love with Sailor Mercury
and betrayed the throne rather than destroying both her and Sailor Moon.  
The
rest of the denizens here, and you'll meet Ra'vel and Dyvach later, are my
friends who helped me and the Sailor Scouts when we had to get a few things
from the Negaverse."
     Maze grunted.  "What are friends for?" he said dryly.
     "Susan...." Luna said quietly from Michelle's arms, "I've known Tolaris
for some time now, and he is a very trustworthy ally.  I understand how you
feel about the Negaverse because of the attack on the kingdom.  I have to 
admit
with a small amount of shame that it took me far longer to trust him than 
the
rest of the Scouts because, unlike them, I retained my memories of that 
day."
     Susan frowned slightly as she first looked at Luna, then at Michelle 
and
Alex.  She knew on an intellectual level that she could trust Luna's 
judgement
implicitly, but still had deep reservations engraved into her heart.  She 
had
just begun a little soul-searching when her thoughts were interrupted by a
sneeze from Michelle.
     "That's it, everyone inside," Whisper growled.
     Susan blinked at the tone in her voice and glanced up in time to catch 
the
expression of surprise on Tolaris's face.  She then turned her attention to
her human companions and instantly disliked the expression of discomfort on
Michelle's face.
     "I suggest we do as she says," Susan said to Alex and Michelle.
     "Susan...." Alex said in a low tone, still regarding the denizens with
open suspicion.
     "I assure you there will be a discussion about this, Alex.  Later," she
added in a tone that clearly indicated the current discussion was over.
     "This way," Tolaris said politely as he started walking towards the 
front
door of the cathedral.  Susan followed him without hesitation but at a 
rather
noticable distance, pausing only long enough to cast a glance at Alex.
     Alex frowned and was about to stand her ground when Michelle took her 
hand
and squeezed it reassuringly.  She returned the gesture with a heavy sigh 
and
followed Susan towards the cathedral, trying to keep a close eye on the 
three
denizens.
     Whisper immediately started walking towards the cathedral, but Maze 
hung
back for a moment to talk to Darian.  "So what do you think?" he asked in a
quiet tone.
     Darian sighed quietly and leaned against his jeep.  "I think we're 
going
to have our work cut out for us.  I don't know them, but I think Michelle 
takes
most of her cues from Alex, and Alex reminds me of Leda with PMS.  Susan, on
the other hand, seems to have a fairly level head and seems to be the type 
who
would at least listen to what the other guy has to say before making up her
mind.  I'd be wary of her, though.  I'll admit that I get nervous when 
either
Rei or Leda truly loses their temper, even Ami to some degree, but there is
something about Susan that seriously scares me, and I don't know what."
     Maze just chuckled.  "Tolaris likes a diplomatic challenge, but you 
won't
ever hear him admit it."
      a voice blasted into their minds.
     Maze winced.  "Yes, ma'am," he muttered as he and Darian quickly caught 
up
to the group now standing in the foyer of the cathedral.  "You didn't have 
to
yell, Captain," he said as he stepped inside and closed the door behind him.
     "If you would cooperate, I wouldn't have to," Whisper replied with a 
mild
look before turning her attention back to Susan.  "We've cleared out two 
rooms
for you to use.  We're short on space, so two of you will have to share one 
of
the large rooms."
     Susan almost smiled.  "I don't think that will be a problem at all."
     "You can use the shower in the large bedroom and the one in the hall
bathroom to warm up," the telepath explained as she picked up the bundle of
clothing that Dyvach had left behind.  "We also have some clean clothes you 
can
pick through.  We weren't sure about sizes or anything, so we tried to make 
a
few guesses."
     "We're soaked to our panties, and she wants us to take a shower?" Alex
grumbled softly to Michelle.
     "It's for the heat," Susan said without turning around as she quickly
sorted through the clothing.  "That would be the fastest way to warm 
yourselves
up.  You can worry about getting dry later.  Here," she added as she passed 
a
set of dry towels and some clothing to Alex.
     "Thanks, I think," Alex said as she glanced at the clothing.  "Umm, 
does
anyone have a pair of sweatpants they can loan me until tomorrow?"
     "Not a problem," Darian replied.
     "The residential wing is this way," Whisper said as she guided the 
group
down the hallway.  "The large bedroom I was talking about is the second door
on your left, the hall bathroom is the third on the left, and the other 
small
bedroom is the last door on the right."
     "Thank you," Susan replied before she turned to Michelle.  "I want you 
in
that shower before your body temperature drops any more.  Warm, not hot, and
don't worry about getting waterlogged."
     Michelle nodded and gently set Luna on the floor before she stepped 
into
the bedroom, looking around for a moment before spotting the bathroom door 
at
the far end.  She gave Alex a brief kiss before she took a set of towels and
clothing from her and quickly made her way into the bathroom.
     "Alex, you take the hall bathroom, and don't argue with me," Susan 
said,
forestalling the expected protest.  "Your body temperature is just as low, 
and
I don't need you getting hypothermia.  I'll bring you the sweatpants in a 
few
moments.  Now move."
     "Yes, mother," Alex said sourly as she moved past her and walked into 
the
bathroom.  "Whoa, who's the decorator?" she said to no one in particular 
before
she closed the door behind her.
     Susan waited until she heard the vent fan start up before she turned 
her
attention to the denizens.  "While they're busy, we need to have a talk."
     Luna frowned.  "I think it would be best if we were to wait until the
three of you are warm and dry first."
     "I'm significantly less vulnerable to illnesses like pneumonia than 
they
are," Susan said with a slight edge to her voice.  "And what I'd like to 
talk
about isn't something I wish them to hear just yet."
     "Very well then," Tolaris said as he clasped his hands in front of him.
"I sense an interrogation as opposed to a conversation, but I don't think I
can blame you given the circumstances."
     Susan paused for a moment as she regarded him very carefully.  "I'm 
aware
of the extreme length of the denizen lifespan," she said slowly.  "Were any 
of
you involved in the invasion upon our kingdom?"
     Tolaris blinked.  "No.  I wasn't born until almost three hundred years
after that, and I'm older than anyone else here."
     Whisper cleared her throat.  "I beg your pardon, Commander, but I've 
got
almost a full century over you."
     The dragoon flushed a light shade of gray.  "My apologies.  It's not 
easy
to keep track of everyone's age after a few hundred years."
     "So how old do I look?" the telepath asked carefully.
     Tolaris shrugged.  "Truthfully?  Low-end six hundred."
     "Thank you."
     Susan gave Tolaris a slightly quizzical look.  "May I ask your exact 
age?"
     "Let me think for a moment," he said as he did a bit of mental math.  
"I
think I'm seven hundred and twenty-five, but I've lost track of the exact 
date
in the Negaverse."
     Susan blinked in surprise for a moment before regaining her composure.
"I see...." she said slowly.  "I am also aware of the 'chaos factor' in the
denizen biological makeup.  May I ask how that has affected each of you?"
     Tolaris gave her an odd look.  "Excuse me for a moment, but for a human
from the Moon Kingdom, you seem to know an awful lot about denizens."
     "You're not the first denizen I've held a discussion with that didn't
involve a demand for my surrender," she replied flatly.  She cast a glance 
at
Darian before she added, "And I'm not fully human."
     Everyone blinked at her statement.  Tolaris gently cleared his throat 
and
gave Susan a slightly wary look.  "That denizen you had a talk with.... I 
don't
suppose he happened to have been a Dragoon Captain named Raijen, would he?"
     Susan stepped back as if she had been slammed in the gut with a hammer.
"What?  How...." she said, at a momentary loss for words.
     "Like everything else that's happened in the past hour or so, it's a 
long
story," Maze said dryly.
     Susan struggled to regain her composure and looked at Darian again.  
"Then
I take it that you know...."
     "...That Serena's father was a denizen," Darian finished for her.  
"Yes,
we made that discovery not too long ago."
     Tolaris reached a decision and placed a hand on Susan's shoulder, 
knowing
full well that he was risking serious bodily harm by doing so.  "Susan, 
listen
to me," he said softly, ignoring the sudden flash of anger in her eyes.  "I 
am
a Dragoon like Raijen.  I once commanded the legion as he once did, and I 
have
done my best to uphold the same moral values that he once taught.  Yes, some
of the legion attacked the Moon Kingdom, but had they known that they would 
be
fighting Raijen's consort and daughter, they would have refused."
     "I was with them when they discovered Serena's lineage," Maze said.  
"When
we met Raijen's spirit and the spirit of Queen Serenity told him that he had 
a
daughter, I wasn't sure who was going to have a stroke first, Tolaris or the
Captain.  And to be honest, I wasn't feeling too good myself.  What you 
don't
realize is that we're not just special intelligence soldiers, but students 
of
Raijen's beliefs."
     Tolaris nodded and removed his hand from Susan's shoulder.  "And one of
his core beliefs is loyalty.  Not just to the throne, but to the legion as a
whole and to each other.  When the legion was first founded, most of those 
who
volunteered were without living blood ties.  Raijen forged the legion into a
sort of family for them, and in doing so became a legend to those who served
with him.  We would extend that sense of trust and loyalty to his daughter.
Despite the fact that even today most Dragoons are single and few with 
living
relatives, we still hold such family values in the highest regard.  And so,
until she proves unworthy of loyalty either through word or deed, Serena's
words would be regarded as Raijen's and acted upon accordingly by any 
Dragoon."
     "Provided the legion is aware of her bloodline," Whisper said quietly.
     "K'tal knows," Tolaris replied.  "Don't ask me how he found out, but he
asked me about it before I could bring it up.  He's being very careful about
how he lets that information out, since he doesn't want to tip off Rune and
call the legion's loyalty to the throne into question."
     Susan said nothing as she glanced down at Myst, still absently stroking
her damp fur.  "I think I understand a few things now," she said, then 
paused
as she heard a rather delicate chiming sound coming down the hall.  She saw 
the
looks of horror cross the denizens' faces and tensed up, unsure of what was
going to happen next.  She was preparing herself for a dimensional teleport
when the source of the chiming came into view and she blinked hard.
     "You have bad timing," Tolaris said wearily as he saw Susan's 
expression.
"I told you to wait for awhile before coming up here."  Dyvach shrugged as 
it
stepped past him, carrying a pair of sweatpants and chiming softly to 
itself.
     Susan felt Myst's claws digging into her arms in shock and she suddenly
wasn't feeling too stable either.  "What.... are you?" she asked slowly, 
unsure
if the crystal spider could understand her.  She had met life-forms that 
were
far more hideous that it, but wasn't sure how dangerous it was.
     "Susan, this is Dyvach.  Dyvach is one of the more sentient weavers 
that
live in the Negaverse," Tolaris explained.  "It can understand us quite 
well,
although my understanding of its native language is pathetic at best."
     "Hello," Susan said cautiously.  Dyvach chimed back a greeting and held
up the sweatpants to her, adding a series of chimes as it did so.
     "Ahh.... I think those are the sweatpants Darian said Alex could 
borrow,"
Tolaris said after a doing a quick mental translation.  "I'm not quite sure
where he said he got them from, though."
     "Hopefully from the dryer in the lower level," Darian said.
     "Thank you," Susan said as she took the offered sweatpants with only a
slight hesitation.
     "You seem to be taking this well," Darian observed.  "You should have 
seen
the others freak out when they first met it."
     Susan regarded the weaver carefully.  "I would think that after going
through as much as I have, it would take more than meeting a sentient spider
to seriously upset me.  Disturb, yes, but not truly upset."
     The door behind her suddenly opened and Alex stuck her head out, 
holding
a very large towel against her body.  "Oh, there you are.... cool, you got 
it,"
she said without preamble as she snatched the sweatpants out of Susan's 
grip.
"Thanks, Sue," she said and closed the door.
     "Patience is not her strong suit," Susan said lightly.
     "We've noticed," Maze replied dryly.
     The door slowly opened and Alex stuck her head out again, the towel 
still
wrapped around her.  She looked down at Dyvach and blinked.  "Umm, Sue, I 
have
a question for you," she said slowly.
     "You're not hallucinating," Susan said.
     Alex blinked hard.  "That's what I was afraid of," she said as her face
turned a sickly shade of white.  "Is it okay to panic now?"
     "Go ahead and get dressed and I'll introduce you," Susan replied with a
faint smile on her lips.
     "Right...." Alex said uncertainly as she closed the door again.
     "How about if we get the heart attack over with and get Ra'vel over 
here?"
Maze suggested as he leaned against the wall.  "After meeting Dyvach, 
someone
like her shouldn't be too difficult to comprehend."
     Tolaris gave Susan an appraising look for a moment and she raised an
eyebrow at him.  He shrugged and turned to Whisper.  "Might as well ask her 
to
join us."  He turned back to Susan and added, "Be warned, however, she will
probably decide to teleport in."
     Susan almost smiled.  "Now sudden appearances and disappearances are
something I'm definitely used to."  As if on cue, Ra'vel suddenly winked 
into
existence a few feet away from Whisper.  She blinked when she saw Susan and
chirped a greeting at her.
     "This is Dragoon Lieutenant Ra'vel," Tolaris said.
     Susan frowned.  "I think I've met your species before," she said with a
slight edge to her voice.  "The term is avian, correct?"
      Ra'vel's voice echoed inside Susan's mind.

     Darian just sighed quietly as he saw Susan's eyes widen unexpectedly.
"Both Ra'vel and Whisper are telepathic," he said carefully.  "They can't 
read
your mind from a distance, but they can project their thoughts."
     "I see," Susan said flatly.
     The bathroom door opened and Alex stuck her head out, this time wearing
a loose-fitting blouse and the pair of sweatpants.  "Okay, Sue, I think I'm
prepared for.... WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!" she yelped as she saw Ra'vel.
     "Ladies, please calm down," Tolaris said with a weary sigh.
     "Alex, this is Dyvach," Susan said evenly as she gestured to the 
weaver.
"And this is Ra'vel.  Now if you don't mind, I'm still a little wet and 
would
like to warm up in the shower."
     "W-Wait, wait a minute," Alex stammered as she struggled to get a grip 
on
the present situation.
     "They're both intelligent and can understand what you say, so be nice,"
Susan said as she stepped past her and into the bathroom, still holding Myst
in her arms.  "I'll be out in a few minutes, and both Darian and Luna are 
right
here so there's no need to panic," she said and closed the door behind her.
     Alex blinked, glanced at the closed door, then looked at both Ra'vel 
and
Dyvach.  "Oh, crap, this is definitely not a good day..." she muttered.
     Everyone jumped as a truly piercing scream erupted from behind the 
group.
They all whirled around to find Michelle standing in the doorway of the 
large
bedroom, dressed in a light-colored blouse and skirt.  Her eyes were nearly
triple their usual diameter and she was staring at Dyvach, her skin as white
as a sheet and looking like she was only moments away from either cardiac
arrest or fainting.
     "I know what you mean, love, but don't do that again," Alex called out 
to
her as she rubbed the inside of her ear.  "Sue says everything's cool and 
we're
just meeting the rest of them."
     "But.... t-that.... that's a SPIDER...!" Michelle whimpered as she 
edged
away.  "A BIG spider...!"
     Alex looked down at Dyvach and gulped.  "Yeah, I know.  His name's 
Dyvach,
and from what I understand, he's not only smart but kinda friendly," she 
said
as she reached down and hesitantly patted it's carapace.
     Darian gave the blonde a concerned look.  He could see that her hand 
was
visibly shaking as she touched the weaver, and knew that she was putting on 
a
show in an effort to calm Michelle down.  Dyvach made a cooing noise as it 
was
patted, the crystalline shell turning a soft green color where she touched 
it.
Alex wasn't prepared for the color change and had to bite her tongue to 
stifle
a yelp of surprise, forcing a weak smile on her lips instead.
     "A VERY BIG spider...." Michelle whimpered, still looking deathly pale.
     Alex sighed and walked towards her.  "I know you don't like spiders, 
Mich,
and quite frankly I'm not too keen on the idea of one the size of a small 
pony
either, but you need to calm down," she said as she took her hand and gave 
it
a comforting squeeze.  "Hell, I need to calm down, but if Sue's not throwing 
a
bitch-fit about it, then I guess it can't be all that bad."
     Michelle blinked and cast a nervous glance at Ra'vel.  "And w-what.... 
I
mean, who are you?" she hesitantly asked the avian.
     "That's Ra'vel," Alex said as Ra'vel chirped a greeting at her.
     "I still say Ami had the best reaction," Darian said to Luna.  "Granted
she didn't scream like that, but I still wish I had a picture of the 
expression
on her face."
     Luna gave him a sour expression as she flicked her ears back.  "I don't
think I've heard Serena scream like that," she muttered.
     Maze chuckled.  "That was actually a pretty good scream for a human," 
he
said with a mischievous grin.  "You should hear Ra'vel when she gets hyper.
Well, maybe you shouldn't," he added as he thought about it.  "The last time 
I
heard her scream, it was in the in the ultra-sound range and it shattered 
the
windows for three of your city blocks."  Ra'vel shot him a dark look and 
made
a distateful chirping noise to herself.
     Whisper walked over to Michelle and Alex.  "Are you going to be 
alright?"
she asked Michelle.  "I know this is a major shock for you both, but I 
assure
you that we aren't your enemies."  She noticed that Alex's expression 
hardened
when she said that, but Michelle's expression didn't change.  "Do you think 
you
can handle another surprise?"
     "Like what?" Alex said flatly as she edged herself in front of 
Michelle.
     "Ra'vel and I are telepathic, which means we can speak directly to your
minds," Whisper explained slowly.  "We can't read your thoughts without 
making
a direct link, so you don't have to worry about any sort of intrusions."
     Alex frowned and Michelle blinked.  "Oh, lovely," Alex grumbled.  "Just
what we need to think about.  I hope you're telling us this for a reason."
     Whisper ignored the burning sensation on the back of her neck caused by
Tolaris staring at her.  "Yes, I am.  I thought it would be wise to tell you
about it now instead of having you find out about it later and worry if 
we've
been reading your mind."
     "How do we know you're not doing it now?" Alex said.
      Whisper's soft voice echoed in their minds.  
     "Whoa...." Alex said as she took a step back.
     Darian chuckled.  "Yeah, I remember being taken aback the first time 
she
spoke to my mind like that.  I heard what she said to you, by the way, and 
she
usually doesn't broadcast openly like that."
     "Have pity on the psi-mutes," Tolaris said dryly.
     Whisper gave the Dragoon an amused look.  "Commander Tolaris's brain is
defective," she explained to Alex and Michelle with a grin.  "He not only 
can't
hear me, but he's totally immune to all mental forms of psionics."
     "So sorry, Captain," Tolaris replied, his voice tinged with frost.
     Michelle blinked and looked around.  "Did anyone just see a flash?"
     There was a moment of silence as everyone looked around.  "I don't 
think
anyone did," Alex said carefully.  "At least I didn't see anything."
     Dyvach made a single multi-harmonic chime and pointed at the bathroom
door.  Tolaris frowned at the translation of the weaver's words.  "Dyvach 
said
it saw a flash coming from inside the bathroom."
     Alex just sighed.  "If that's the case, then it was probably Susan 
doing
her time-travel stunt again."  She noticed the identical blank looks she was
getting from the denizens and shrugged.  "She's the Guardian of Time and has
the ability to move back and forth among the temporal flow," she explained.
"You'd need to ask her about it as I barely understand it myself, but I know
that it creates a flash of light everytime she uses that power."
     "That would explain what we saw over the lake," Darian said to Luna.
     "Time travel...." Whisper said slowly as she narrowed her eyes.  
"Ra'vel,
do you remember those strange bursts of energy you said you were picking up 
on
occasion awhile ago?  Around the time Leda was in the Negaverse?"
     Ra'vel nodded slowly, then suddenly fluffed her feathers and hissed as 
a
dull flash of light emerged from under the bathroom door.  The door opened a
few moments later and Susan stepped out, dressed in a rather nice blouse and
skirt.  She was holding her staff in one hand and Myst was carefully perched
on her shoulder, looking decidedly drier than before.
     "Where'd you get that?" Maze asked with a frown as he stared at the 
staff.
     "I'll explain in a moment," she said as she turned to Alex and 
Michelle.
"I just spent three days doing a little observation of the interaction 
between
the Sailor Scouts and the denizens.  Luna's right, they're not only 
trustworthy
allies but good friends.  And a little bit more in some cases," she added,
giving Tolaris and Maze a meaningful look.
     "He started it," Maze protested as he pointed at Tolaris while everyone
else blinked hard at the sudden declaration.
     "Lieutenant," Tolaris said reprovingly.
     "Hey, if you and Ami hadn't hit it off, Mina and I would never have met
under favorable circumstances, if at all," Maze explained with a shrug.
     "Sue, what are we going to do with you?" Alex said as she buried her 
face
in her hands and leaned against Michelle.  "One minute you're saying they're
more dangerous than snakes, and the next you're saying they're our pals.  
Hey,
wait a sec," she said as she lifted her head up and glared at her.  "Have 
you
been smoking those herbs again?"
     "I assure you I have not," Susan replied with an edge to her voice.
      Whisper's voice echoed through their
minds loud enough to make them all wince.
     "Must you yell?" Maze muttered as he massaged his temples.
     Whisper ignored him.  "Now that I have your attention, let's try to get
a few things clarified.  Susan, can you explain what you just said?"
     Susan nodded and leaned her staff against the wall.  "As the avatar of 
the
Underworld, I am responsible for guarding the portal to Time.  As such, I 
can
travel through time at will.  From your standpoint, I was in the bathroom 
for
only a few minutes, but from my perspective I spent three days in the past
observing you and the Sailor Scouts."
     Dyvach made a series of simple chimes and Susan nodded.  "Yes, I know.
Dyvach first met me months ago when I arrived in that time period.  I'll 
spare
you the details of that meeting, but I gave him a small gem to hold onto for
awhile that would record what happened around it."
     Ra'vel suddenly squawked and Whisper blinked.  "So that's what that 
was,"
she said as she turned to Tolaris.  "Do you remember when you told us about
your experiences during the Mintaka campaign?"
     Tolaris grunted and nodded.  "Yes, I remember that gem now."  He turned
and gave Susan an odd look.  "And I also remember finding a strand of dark
green hair in the hallway that evening.  Now I know where they both came 
from."
     Susan smiled and ran her fingers through her long, dark green hair.  "I
had snagged the painting by accident, but I didn't think I had left anything
behind.  Anyway, I then returned to my keep and spent quite some time 
viewing
the images in the gem.  It's one thing for a trusted friend like Luna to say
you're trustworthy, but it's another to actually see how you act around the
Princess and the others."
     Alex sighed.  "That's nice, Sue, but can we get to the point?"
     Susan resisted the urge to roll her eyes.  "The point," she said 
slowly,
"Is that that we are in no danger whatsoever.  I haven't been able to reach 
a
decision on the trust issue from a personal standpoint, but that is 
something
we have time to deal with.  They are, for the most part, as benign as they
claim to be."
     Maze shrugged.  "Thank you, I think."
     "Maybe you should save your thanks until after I've had a chance to 
talk
to Mina about you," Susan suggested evenly, then turned to Tolaris.  "And 
you
and I need to sit down in the very near future and have a long talk about 
Ami's
condition."
     Michelle frowned.  "Did something happen to Ami?"
     "Well...." Susan said hesitantly.  "I can't really say if something has
happened or not.  You must realize that they, like Darian, are 
reincarnations
of past individuals.  They may look like them, probably almost all the way 
down
to the genetic level, but they have been raised in this environment and 
would
of course behave differently.  Rei, for instance, retains her fascination 
with
the spiritual but has pursued it with a startling degree of vehemence, and I
don't know where Leda picked up her penchant for cooking."
     "She's a very good cook, by the way," Maze added and the rest of the
denizens nodded in agreement.  "Not just with human foods, but with denizen
dishes as well."
     Alex sighed and glanced at Michelle.  She received a rather reluctant 
nod
and the blonde grumbled something inaudible to herself.  "Thanks a lot, you
just had to mention food," she said.
     Darian chuckled.  "That's easily solved.  Leda usually has two or three
different things pre-cooked and stored in the refrigerator to use as a 
rather
large snack.  What would you like?"
     "Right now?  Probably anything," Alex admitted and Michelle nodded.
     "Ooo, be careful when you say that," Darian cautioned her.  "I once saw
Ra'vel trying to eat something that was desperately trying to ooze out of 
the
bowl as she ate it.  I don't think we have any of that left, but I do know 
we
have a few rather.... unique denizen foodstuffs stored here."
     "Ick...." Michelle said as she turned pale.
      the avian telepathed with a shrug.
     Alex grunted.  "I don't mind coffee strong enough to crawl out of the
cup, but I'll pass on anything that moves on its own.  Got any steak?"
     Whisper shrugged.  "I think we still have a few oratu steaks that could
be cooked easily enough.  And I know everyone likes the taste of that."
     Alex glanced at Susan and the succubus shrugged.  "Do I even want to 
ask
what an oratu is?" Alex asked cautiously.
     "Denizen idea of a cow," Darian replied.  "I've never seen one, but 
they
do taste pretty good.  And unlike some things Maze has been known to eat, 
oratu
is perfectly harmless to humans."
     Maze made a face.  "I hope you're referring to Mina's cooking and not 
to
what she was supposed to have been cooking," he muttered.
     Michelle giggled and a small smile crossed Susan's face.  "Perhaps some
things don't change after all," she observed.  "I just hope her cooking 
skills
haven't gotten worse."
     "Not sure it can get any worse," Darian muttered.
     "So who's turn is it to cook?" Maze asked, ignoring Darian's comment 
while
privately agreeing with his assessment.
     "It's still technically Rei's turn, but seeing how she's not here, I 
guess
I can volunteer for it," Whisper said as she looked at Michelle and Alex.  
"But
I might need a little help from you two.  I usually don't cook oratu steaks
suited to human tastes, so I'll need someone to tell me if I'm using the 
right
amounts of spice."
     Darian chuckled.  "That might not be a bad idea.  I don't think you've
ever eaten any denizen foods before, but for the most part they tend to be
very bland.  That's not to say they lack flavor," he added hastily as 
Whisper
gave him a mild look.  "It's just that denizen digestive systems aren't able
to handle a lot of spice."
     "Ahh, I see," Alex said as Michelle nodded.  "So what does oratu taste
like without the spices?"
     The denizens all looked at Darian as he flushed.  "Well.... I don't 
know
if there are exact words for it, but it does kinda beg for a bottle of A-1 
or
something," he said carefully.  "Leda could probably tell you better."
     "You mean like comparing ma'cha to dirty dishwater and v'etu to 
shredded
cardboard?" Tolaris said dryly.
     "Something like that," Darian said with a faint blush.
     Alex chuckled.  "Yeah, we always knew Leda would make a great 
diplomat."
     "That's odd, we used to say the same about you," Susan observed as she
reached up and scratched Myst's ear.
     Michelle giggled and Alex shot her a dark look.  "Keep it up and you'll
be sleeping alone tonight," she growled softly at her.
     "Maybe we should worry about those steaks first," Whisper said 
carefully
as Michelle blinked and gave the blonde a slightly hurt look.  "Michelle, 
how
good are you at cooking?"
     Michelle blinked again.  "I'm not all that good, but we should be okay 
as
long as nothing fancy needs to be done."
     Whisper nodded.  "Fair enough.  Maze, go see if you can find something
suitable in the cellar.  Nothing too strong, and make sure it's pale."
     "Not a problem," Maze replied as he started walking towards the 
stairwell
at the other end of the cathedral.
     "Now if you two will come with me, we'll get those steaks started and 
let
Tolaris and Susan finish their meeting of the minds," Whisper said as she 
cast
a sidelong glance at Tolaris before heading towards the kitchen.  Michelle 
and
Alex exchanged looks before the blonde shrugged and they both began to 
follow
the telepath.
     Ra'vel made a curious chirping noise as she moved over to Susan's side 
to
get a better look at Myst.  The Shinma's fur started to spike at the sudden
scrutiny and Susan winced as she felt her claws digging into her shoulders.
"Watch the claws," she admonished the kitten.
     "Sorry," Myst replied as she tried relaxing, still keeping a very wary
eye on Ra'vel.
     "I wasn't sure if you could talk or not," Tolaris observed.  "I know 
you
looked like a lunar cat, but wasn't sure if they could talk as kittens."
     "Unfortunately, kittens can," Luna grumbled quietly to herself.  "And 
just
like human children, learning can be a rather.... taxing experience."
     Myst gave him a resigned look.  "I'm not a lunar cat."
     "She's a type of demon called Shinma," Susan explained.  "I met her 
when
I awoke in The Dark and took her with us when we escaped here."
     Tolaris and Ra'vel exchanged slightly concerned looks and the avian 
made
a very quiet chirping noise.  Tolaris shrugged and turned back to Susan.  
"I'm
not going to pretend to understand any of that," he admitted.  "Perhaps you 
can
explain it to me at another time."
     Myst blinked and gave Ra'vel a strange look as she heard the avian's
telepathic voice inside her mind.  "If you don't mind, I'll stay with Susan 
for
the time being," she said slowly.  Ra'vel shrugged and gave Luna a 
questioning
look, telepathically asking her the same question she had asked Myst.
     Luna shook her head.  "Usually I'd be delighted to, Ra'vel, but I think
it would be best if I too remained with Susan for the present.  There is 
much
we have to talk about, and I suspect a lot will be said before we go to 
bed."
Ra'vel shrugged again and chirped something at Tolaris before she fluffed 
her
feathers and teleported out of the room.
     "She's still tired from yesterday," Tolaris explained.  "She said to 
give
you her regards and she hopes that we can reach an understanding tomorrow."
     Susan nodded.  "Hopefully, but I suspect tomorrow is going to be more 
of
a surprise to everyone than expected.  How long do you think it will take 
for
those steaks to be cooked?"
     "Half an hour at most," Tolaris replied.
     She nodded again.  "Well then, I suppose that gives us enough time to
answer a few more questions.  You said the last bedroom was one we could 
use?"
     "Yes, the last one on the right," Tolaris replied as he gestured 
towards
the end of the hall.  "Dyvach already set it up so it can be used tonight."
     "If I may ask, how did you know we were coming?" she asked as she 
started
walking down the hall.
     "Dyvach apparently has a precognitive sense of things, but from what it
tried to tell me, it's not entirely able to differentiate between the 
present
and the immediate future," the Dragoon explained as he fell in step beside 
her.
"Your arrival just happened to be one of those times it could tell."
     "It?" Susan echoed.
     "Weavers don't develop gender until the later stages of their lives," 
he
said with a shrug.  "A curious aspect of their biology, but it's nothing to 
be
worried about."
     Susan reached the bedroom door and opened it.  The room was empty save 
for
a somewhat large bed, a chair, and a small desk.  "Goodness, and this is 
your
idea of a small room?" she said with mild surprise.
     Darian chuckled.  "You should see the large ones.  Twice the space, the
bed is twice as big, and they even have their own bathrooms."
     "Who designed this?" she asked as she stepped into the room and set 
Myst
down on the desk.  She walked over to the closet and opened the doors, 
making
a quick estimation of its size.  She heard silence in response and cast a 
mild
look over her shoulder.
     Tolaris sighed.  "A rather respected Negaverse general."
     Susan raised an eyebrow.  "Let me guess.  Someone who invaded?"
     "Yes," Tolaris said quietly as he sat down in the chair with a heavy 
sigh.
"From what I understand, then-Captain Nephlyte led the charge from the south
staging areas towards the royal palace."  He blinked hard as Susan started 
to
chuckle softly to herself.  He cast a glance at Darian and received a 
confused
shrug in reply.
     "Forgive me," Susan said after a moment, "I was just struck by the 
sheer
irony of this.  If what you say is true, then odds are he was the one we 
came
close to killing during the counter-attack.  He had dark hair that came down 
to
the base of his shoulder blades?"
     Tolaris nodded.  "Yes, that's him."
     "Interesting," Susan said as she continued to study the room.  "You 
would
be well advised not to mention any of that to Alex, as they were practically
nose-to-nose at one point in the battle and wounded each other.  It didn't 
look
to be serious," she said as she stared off into space while her mind relived
the past.  "Just deep enough to draw blood, but still....  Tell me, 
Commander,
what color is your blood?"
     Tolaris blinked at the unexpected question.  "Gray."
     "I was just curious," she said as she sat down on the edge of the bed.
She looked up and gave Darian a slight smile.  "You may as well sit down, 
your
Highness, we're not going anywhere."
     "Why do you keep calling me that?" Darian said as he sat down on the 
far
end of the bed.  Luna crouched for a moment before leaping up onto the desk 
and
picked a convenient place to stretch out.  She kept one eye on Myst as she 
did
so, still not entirely sure what to think of the gray kitten.
     "You are of royal blood, after all," Susan replied.
     "A thousand years ago, maybe," Darian said with a shrug.
     "You never know, Darian," Luna spoke up.  "You said yourself that you 
knew
next to nothing about your parents before they died.  They just might have 
been
from a royal bloodline."
     "Stranger things have happened," Susan added with a faint smile.
     Darian cleared his throat nervously.  "Speaking of strange things and
bloodlines, I have a question I'd like to ask you.  You said earlier that 
you
weren't fully human?"
     "I'm only half-human," she replied, still faintly smiling.  "I wouldn't
be an avatar if my mother hadn't been a Sailor Scout."
     "I take it the other half is denizen?" Tolaris asked quietly.
     Susan sighed and glanced towards the shuttered window.  "I should be so
fortunate," she said quietly.  "No, Serena is the only half-denizen known to
exist, and that was only possible because the Imperium Silver Crystal 
decided
to intervene for some reason.  Her bloodline was only known to three people
back in the kingdom, however, and it was the Queen's wish to keep that a 
very
guarded secret.  The Princess didn't even know."
     "She knows now," Darian said quietly.
     "Have her powers evidenced themselves yet?" she asked sharply.
     "Not that we're aware of," Tolaris replied.  "And since she's only 
half-
denizen, she might not possess the chaos factor.  I don't mean to be rude or
anything, but I believe you're evading the question of your own bloodline."
     Susan blinked before the faint smile returned to her face.  "That was 
not
my intention.  I am what humans call a succubus."
     Darian leapt to his feet as if he had been zapped with a lightning 
bolt.
"WHAT?!" he said, his eyes wide.
     "Please, sit," she said as she rose to her feet and slowly paced around
the room.  "My father was an incubus who had a rather long romance with my
mother.  She didn't exactly intend to have his child, but she didn't have 
any
adverse thoughts to the idea either.  Her only complaint about getting 
pregnant
was that it lasted for eleven months," she added with a quiet chuckle.
     "Usually when a demon impregnates a human, or in extremely rare cases 
the
other way around, the result is an alu demon.  However, since mother was an
avatar, her DNA was rather resistant to being over-written by father's 
demonic
DNA.  So instead of being an alu demon, I was born with my father's demonic
nature with a mostly human form, resulting in a slightly atypical succubus.
Darian, you should sit down before you pass out."
     Darian sat down hard on the edge of the bed, giving Susan an uncertain
look.  "I thought things like that were mere myth," he said quietly.  
"Demons
who live in a burning lake, women who prey upon men in their sleep and steal
their souls, stuff like that."
     Susan shrugged.  "Demons do exist," she said simply.  "And as for what 
you
said about what we succubi do.... You're absolutely right."
     Tolaris frowned.  "I'm not as well-versed in human mythology as Darian.
What exactly am I missing?"
     "You know about the ancient legends of the Underworld?" she asked.
     The Dragoon nodded.  "According to the Greek and Roman myths, yes.  
Their
lord was a god named Hades, if memory serves."
     Susan smiled.  "Good, this is going to be easier than I thought.  When 
he
created his minions, he made the succubi look like the most beautiful women 
any
man had ever seen and imbued them with the ability to seduce even the most
reserved of men.  They were also given the power to free souls from a 
mortal's
body and return to the Underworld with it."
     "They used their kiss to kill their victims," Darian said.
     "Messy at times, but most effective," Susan replied.
     Tolaris raised an eyebrow.  "You sound as if you've done that before."
     "I have," she said with a casual shrug.  "You have to understand that,
when I was born, my mother made a deal with my father.  He wouldn't 
interfere
in my upbringing until I was 'old enough', at which point I would spend an
equal amount of time living in the Underworld learning about my heritage as 
a
demon."
     She stopped walking around and began to unbutton her blouse.  "I was 
born
looking human, but puberty decided to evidence itself in a rather unusual 
way
in addition to the usual signs of femininity."
     Both Darian and Tolaris blinked as they noticed what she was doing.  
"Umm,
Susan...." Darian started to say.
     She gave them both a soft smile as she turned her back to them and took
off her blouse.  She held the fabric against her bare chest as she craned 
her
head over her shoulder to watch their reaction to the sight of the pair of 
dark
scars running almost the full length of her back.
     "Ay'cha navidshi," Tolaris breathed.  "What happened?"
     She closed her eyes and concentrated, mentally unlocking the barrier 
she
usually kept in place around the demonic psyche in her mind.  She sighed as 
the
scars rippled briefly before exploding outward, reshaping themselves into a
large set of wings.
     "It started when I was fourteen," she said quietly.  "A gradual 
swelling
of a pair of oblong lumps on my back.  Mother kept worrying about it, but my
father would always assure her that it was normal for some type of demons.  
It
took two years before they finished growing and fully emerged.  
Unfortunately,
the emergence was a rather painful and protracted experience," she said as 
she
flexed her wings.  "It took a few months before I learned how to reabsorb 
them
and assume a more human form, but the scars would always remain."
     "Can you fly?" Tolaris asked quietly.
     "No," Susan said as she shook her head.  "My wings are too small.  
They're
about half the size of the wings on a full-blooded succubus.  I can still 
use
them to glide and slow my descent if I fall from a height, though."
     "So what about your demonic side?" Darian asked carefully.
     Susan turned around to look at him, still holding the blouse against 
her
chest.  She gave him a smile and watched him cringe reflexively at her 
faintly
glowing red eyes and razor-sharp fangs protruding from both jaws.  "I won't 
lie
to you," she said softly, her voice causing both Tolaris and Darian's pulses
to increase.  "I've seduced more people than I can count, and I've killed 
with
my kiss before.  I enjoy doing both, and will do so again."
     "Susan...." Luna said quietly in a warning tone as she edged away.
     The succubus laughed quietly.  "I am only making them aware of what I 
am,
Luna," she said as she gave the cat a gentle smile.  She turned her back to
them and reverted to her human form, putting the blouse back on as soon as 
her
wings were fully absorbed.
     "Jesus," Darian muttered as he sat down and tried to calm himself.
     Tolaris grunted softly as he checked his pulse.  "Now I know how people
felt about Shar-Tei's power," he said quietly as he tried to slow his heart
down before something went wrong.
     Darian avoided looking at Susan for a moment.  "You never did tell us 
what
sort of powers she had," he said as he made an effort to control his 
breathing.
     "She generated an almost irresistable sex appeal," Tolaris explained.
"She could either increase or decrease the effect as she desired, but 
couldn't
turn it off completely, which occasionally led to more than a few problems.
Thing was, however, it was induced by telepathy and never worked on me 
because
I'm psi-mute."
     "Succubi are supposed to be sexually appealing," Susan said as she
finished buttoning her blouse.  "Makes it easier to lull our victims into a
state of mind where they can be easily taken advantage of."
     "You scare me," Darian said bluntly.
     Susan blinked.  "I do?"
     "I'll have to admit I'm not too comfortable with the prospect of having
a sexual predator around," Tolaris said.  "Even if you are a Sailor Scout.  
As
I said, Shar-Tei's power caused a fair amount of trouble, the nature of 
which
I have no desire to ever have to deal with again."
     Susan blinked again and slowly sat down on the edge of the bed, making
sure she didn't startle Darian.  "There is so much that you don't 
understand,"
she said quietly.  "Unlike the other Sailor Scouts, my duty is to Lord Hades
and the Underworld.  It was at his direction that I served the throne of the
Moon Kingdom after my mother died, but with the understanding that my higher
loyalty would always remain with him, and in case a conflict ever arose I 
was
to obey his wishes first.
     "Because I am have demonic blood in my veins, I am eternal.  I am 
mortal
in the sense that I can die, but my body continuously regenerates itself on 
a
low-level.  I'm pretty much immune to sickness or disease, and it's 
impossible
for me to die of old age.  I may look like I'm in my late twenties, but the
fact is I'm about the same age as Tolaris."
     She waited until the surprise wore off before she continued.  "I have 
been
the Queen's Chancellor for over six hundred years.  I have been in 
attendence
for the birth of every Princess and every single Sailor Scout since then, 
and
with the exception of the invasion of the Moon Kingdom, I have been there 
for
the death of all but three of them.  I helped raise each of them to be 
Sailor
Scouts.  In the absence of the Queen, I was in charge of running the 
day-to-day
affairs of the Kingdom.  Some ministers have even said that I was the 
throne,
having been in my position for generations."
     She paused for a moment to sigh.  "You should not fear me, your 
Highness,
but you should respect my demonic nature.  Biology requires that I and the
other succubi release our sexual tensions on a regular basis, lest that 
tension
drive out all intellect and reason until it is satisfied.  It is an instinct
that cannot be controlled, only reworked into a more positive experience.  
Sex
is almost a religion for us, and we frequently seek to indulge in it as one
indulges a favorite hobby.  That is why I like seducing people, viewing it 
as
a challenge with a very beneficial reward.  However, I have always taken the
utmost care to ensure that such.... diversions, if you will, do not have any
effect on my duties or responsibilities."
     "Sounds like Maze," Darian muttered beneath his breath, drawing a very
unamused look from Tolaris.
     "And the killing?" the Dragoon asked flatly.
     Susan looked away.  "Most of the time it is at the direction of Hades 
or
one of the other avatars who monitor the souls of the living.  In that case, 
a
soul has been deemed to have done enough for one life and is 'recalled' to 
the
Underworld.  I merely carry out my lord's wishes on the matter as I and the
other succubi were born to do."
     She sighed quietly to herself.  "And sometimes, although rarely, I kill
just for the sake of doing so.  Usually I seduce them quite thoroughly first
to enjoy the mood, and then draw their soul out.  I can't explain it, but 
there
are times where it feels so wonderful to have a life in your hands, where 
you
can feel it pulse beneath your lips as it is slowly drawn out."
     "And that is why you scare me," Darian said quietly.
     Susan gave him a faint smile.  "I never kill friends," she said.  "I 
may
seduce them from time to time, depending on my mood and the overall 
situation,
but that's only if they want it."
     Tolaris sighed and rubbed his temples.  "Is this going to pose any sort
of hazard to us, Luna?" he asked tiredly.
     Luna blinked, caught off-guard by the question.  "Well, no," she said.
"I can't remember of any problems with her back in the Moon Kingdom, aside 
from
the occasional tendency to seduce a Royal Guard now and then.  But even then
she was very discreet about it," she said with a feline shrug.
     "Unlike some others I could name," Susan said lightly.  She got a 
slightly
confused look in response and she smiled.  "At least I never made enough 
noise
to wake anyone up at odd hours in the morning."
     Luna muttered something decidedly impolite beneath her breath.  Tolaris
was the only one who heard what she said and he wisely decided to ignore it,
instead sighing quietly.  "Susan, let me just say this much.... You and the
others are welcome to stay here for the time being, provided you don't cause
us any trouble.  I'm not going to pretend to understand half of what you 
said
about your biology, nor do I think I care to know.  Just as long as we have 
an
understanding of things."
     Susan nodded.  "That we do, Commander."
     "Do the others know about this?" Tolaris asked as he stood up.
     "Seeing how I just found out, I doubt it," Darian replied.
     The Dragoon grunted quietly.  "Tomorrow should be very interesting 
then,"
he said as he headed for the door.  "I think I'm going to go to bed now.  
I'll
give you three a tour of the cathedral in the morning, and I would 
appreciate
it if you don't do any poking around until then.  All we need is for the 
alarm
on the vault to be tripped or the reactor controls messed with."
     "Understood," Susan replied.  "Sleep well."  Tolaris muttered something
cryptic in his native language that Darian couldn't translate and quietly 
left
the room.
     "I'll go see how the steaks are doing," Darian said as he stood up.
     "Darian, please sit for a moment," Susan said softly.  She waited until
he slowly sat back down before she gave him a slightly concerned look.  "You
truly are afraid of me, aren't you?"
     Darian sighed quietly.  "I'll admit I'm a little.... discomforted by 
the
idea of another specialized hunter in the house, as it were."
     Susan tilted her head.  "Are you referring to Ami?" she asked softly.
     "You said you observed us in the past," he said slowly.  "How much do 
you
know about her?"
     "I know what she has become, but I don't know at what price," she 
replied.
"If I had to guess, I would say that her soul is now as dark as mine.  It 
might
even be darker.  However, I haven't been able to use my own senses to 
discern
what her aura looks like.  All I've seen is what was recorded through the
gemstones, and they can't see beyond the physical, although they have 
captured
some rather.... interesting developments," she added.
     "Such as?" he asked warily.
     She smiled as she stood up and walked over to the desk.  "That's 
something
that she and I will have to privately discuss," she said as she picked up 
Myst
and scratched her ears.  "I am more than a little distressed at the 
discovery
of her vampirism, but I must confess that at the same time I find the 
daughter
of my best friend has become.... a kindrid spirit, " she said quietly.  She
paused for a moment and sniffed the air.  "Mmm, those steaks do smell good.
Perhaps I'll give them a try after all," she said as she walked out the door
and down the hallway.
     Darian and Luna looked at each other, silently contemplating the whole
situation.  He sighed softly and rose to his feet, crossing over to the desk
to pick up Luna.  "Well?" he asked softly as he stroked her fur.
     "I need to talk to Artemis," Luna replied.  "I think being frozen in
suspended animation for so long has damaged my memories, and I'd like to see
how much he remembers about the past.  Her words trigger so many memories, 
and
I wonder what else I know about her but forgotten while in stasis.  Tolaris 
was
right, tomorrow is definitely going to be interesting."
     Darian nodded and headed for the door.  "No kidding, but I'm starting 
to
wonder.... what happens when you put a vampire, a priestess, a 
vampire-hunter,
a succubus, a demonic cat, a half-denizen princess, a weaver, an avian, two
lunar cats, three denizens, and four other humans all into the same room?"
     "One way to find out," Luna muttered sourly.

                *               *               *               *

     Alex and Michelle stood just outside the kitchen and stared as Whisper
moved about at a fairly rapid pace.  It wasn't her constant state of motion
that captivated them, but the display of her psycho-kinetic powers as 
various
objects floated around at her mental direction.
     "That's scary," Alex said quietly.
      Whisper telepathed as 
she
unwrapped the steaks.  Behind her, a mid-sized frying pan hovered patiently 
in
place as a concrete pan slowly migrated from the stove to the sink.  

     "Like we understood all that," Alex muttered.
     Whisper shot her an amused look.  
     "Ahh, no," Alex said as she made a face at the idea.
      Whisper telepathed as the jar of cinnamon floated back
into the cabinet.  
     "Do you have something with a light pepper content?" Michelle asked.
      Whisper admitted.  
     "Ooooooh," Alex said as she winced in sympathy.  "That stuff isn't what
you'd call gentle.  Hell, I like some spicy foods, but too much of that will
tear me up."
     "Let me see what's in here," Michelle said as she carefully stepped 
into
the kitchen.  She paused to let the airspace clear a path for her before she
moved over to the cabinet and started sorting through the jars of spice.
     
     Alex grunted.  "You mean like a dimension shift and a molecular 
teleport?"
     
     "We've noticed," Michelle said sourly as she held out a small red jar 
of
a multi-purpose spice.  "Here, this should work well enough."  She blinked 
and
took a step back as an unseen force lifted the jar from her hand and moved 
it
across the kitchen.
      Whisper telepathed as
her skin took on a noticably blue cast.  She snatched a meat tenderizer out 
of
the array of utensils hovering around her and started pounding the oratu 
steaks
with it, occasionally adding a dash of the spice.
     Michelle cast a concerned glance at Alex and the blonde frowned.  "I 
don't
mean to be rude, Whisper, but what do you keep calling Michelle?" she asked
with a very faint edge to her voice.
     Whisper sighed quietly and flipped the steaks over to tenderize the 
other
side.   she telepathed, her mental voice sounding 
quiet
and weary.  
     Alex heard a sound behind her and turned around just as Maze came 
around
the corner holding a bottle.  "Question.... the Man'du clan operates from 
the
Western Forests, right?"
     "I think so, but you'd have to ask Ra'vel about the specifics of each 
of
the clans," Whisper replied.
     Maze shrugged.  "Well, their wine isn't the greatest, but I thought 
that
it would make a good compliment for oratu," he said as he held up the bottle
of pale pink liquid.
     Whisper raised an eyebrow.  "You picked a wine made by a tribe of 
avians
living in a region where flowers grow as a compliment to a creature who 
lives
its life roaming the Central Plains and wouldn't know what to do with a 
flower
if it ever ran across one?"
     Maze shrugged again.  "We've needed to restock our cellar for awhile 
now.
The only pale ones we have left are things made from the Western Forests and
a couple bottles made in the Southern Flatlands, and you know those only go
well with seafood."
     The telepath grumbled something inarticulate in her native dialect and
Maze smirked.  "Yeah, but tell that to Tolaris," he said as he handed the
bottle to Alex.  "You three go ahead and enjoy that, and I'll talk to you in
the morning."  He paused to listen to the voice in his mind and sighed.  
"Yeah,
you could say that.  I'm not as young as I used to be."
     "There's something I never thought I'd hear you say," Whisper 
commented.
     "I'm almost five hundred," Maze grumped.  "It's taken awhile, but I 
think
all that field duty is starting to catch up to me."  He waited as he heard 
the
voice in his mind again and chuckled.  "Yeah, well, gotta keep my exercise
program going somehow."
     "Get out," Whisper grumbled as she tossed the steaks into the frying 
pan
and ignited the burner.
     "Yes, ma'am.  Night, ladies," the Dragoon said to Alex and Michelle 
before
he turned around and walked down the hall towards his bedroom.
     "Uh huh," Alex said quietly as she studied the bottle she was now 
holding.
"I take it this is your written language?"
     
     "Barbecue that bad boy," Alex said with a grin.
     "She means cooked all the way through," Michelle explained.
     
     Michelle nodded.  "Exactly."
     Alex set the bottle on the counter and leaned against the refrigerator.
"So tell us more about your...."
      Whisper telepathed quickly as she shot the blonde
a dark look.  She sighed and returned to her task of cooking the steaks.  

     Both Alex and Michelle blinked.  "He.... didn't have anything to do 
with
it, did he?" Alex asked carefully.
     The telepath chuckled.  
     Whisper looked up as she felt Michelle's hand on her shoulder.   she telepathed as she steadied herself.  
     "Something happened, didn't it?" Michelle asked very softly.
     
     "Hey, easy there," Alex said as she tried to comfort Whisper as a wave 
of
mental pain and anguish washed over her.
     Whisper took a deep breath and backed away from the sizzling steaks.  

     "Oh, my god...." Michelle breathed softly, severely shaken.
     
     Whisper fell silent as she struggled to compose herself, absently 
making
sure the steaks were cooked properly.  
     She suddenly turned and placed a hand on Michelle's cheek.  "You look 
so
much like her," she said softly as tears started to form at the corners of 
her
eyes.  "When I first saw you, it was like she had come back to me.... And 
after
my husband was killed, I.... I...."
     Alex watched silently as Michelle gave Whisper a hug and the telepath
seemed to break down, holding her tightly as tears streamed down her face.
She felt more than heard a presence behind her and glanced over her 
shoulder,
nearly leaping out of her skin at the sight of Susan standing only a few 
inches
away from her with Myst cradled in her arms.
     "Dammit, Sue, don't do that," she said quietly as she rubbed her chest.
     "Will she be alright?" Susan asked softly as she observed Whisper and
Michelle, neither currently aware of her presence.
     "I think so," Alex said after a moment.  "We just got a crash-course in
the realities of life in the Negaverse from a deeply personal standpoint."
     It was several moments before Susan replied.  "Not something you'd 
expect
to hear about given what we know about their culture, wouldn't you say?" she
said softly as she lightly stroked Myst's fur.
     The blonde grunted silently.  "Yeah, I was just thinking about that.  
Sue,
just what did you see in the past?"
     "More than enough to know that the Negaverse as a whole isn't our 
enemy,"
Susan replied.  "Just a select few individuals who have the power to 
misguide
a world into seeing things their way."
     "And the rest?"
     "They're just like us," Susan replied quietly.  "They think, feel, 
laugh,
cry, live, and love just like us humans do in our lives.  The only 
difference
is their genetic structure is more complicated than yours or even mine."
     "You trust them?" Alex asked as she jerked her chin in the direction of
the residential wing.
     "One of them is giving Michelle a hug, but you're not going ballistic,"
Susan observed quietly.  "I think I'm not the only one who's having a change
of heart about our so-called enemies."
     The blonde said nothing as Whisper finally released Michelle and took a
step back, wiping the tears from her eyes.  The telepath quickly regained 
her
composure and glanced towards the steaks, hastily flipping them over to 
reveal
a slightly charred surface.  "Oops...." she said quietly.
     "Relax, a little carbon never hurt," Alex said in her normal tone.  
"And
if it's burnt-burnt, Susan'll still eat it."
     "What's burnt?" Darian said as he came up behind Alex and Susan.
     Whisper shot them a mild look.  "It's not burnt, just lightly toasted."
     "You're not taking after Mina, are you?" Darian joked.
     The telepath glared him him icily.  "Go set the table before I give you 
a
headache," she suggested evenly.
     Alex frowned.  "Do I want to ask?" she said carefully as Darian set 
Luna
on the floor and quickly sorted through the dish cabinet.
     "You've obviously never dealt with an irritated telepath before," 
Darian
muttered as he darted from the kitchen carrying several plates and utensils.
     Whisper shrugged.  "I had to smack Maze one day and used a low-power 
psi
spike to do it.  Darian got curious what happened and asked me about it.  I 
was
still in a bit of an evil mood, so I spiked him as well."
     "So now would be a bad time to be curious, eh?" Alex asked warily.
     "No, no, go ahead and ask," Darian said from the dining room.  "It's 
only
excruciating when it lingers for awhile and tylenol doesn't seem to do much 
of
anything about it."
     "What's tylenol?" Alex whispered to Susan.
     "A generic name for a mild pain suppressant," Susan replied.  "Things 
like
acetophenetidin, acetylsalicylic acid, and ibuprofen."
     "Yeah, whatever," the blonde replied as she rolled her eyes.  She 
blinked
and slowly inhaled as the scent of cooked steak wafted past her.  "Oh, man,
will you get a whiff of that...."
     Susan nodded.  "I could smell it from down the hall."
     "Mmm, I just hope it tastes as good as it smells," Alex said as she 
cast
a slightly ravenous glance at the frying pan.
     "It should," Whisper replied as she picked up a knife and made a few 
cuts
in the steaks.  "Michelle, this look okay to you?"
     Michelle peered at the steaks and nodded.  "Oh, definitely."
     Whisper turned off the stove burner and took a step back.  "Well, in 
that
case, all we need now are the wine glasses," she said as the steaks floated 
up
into the air and onto a large plate.  "You two might want to move," she 
advised
Susan and Alex as various items began to migrate into the sink.
     Susan merely raised and eyebrow and took a step back, intently watching
the psycho-kinetic display.  The freezer door opened by itself and five very
cold glasses floated out, forming a wedge shape.  Alex nearly jumped as the
bottle of wine began to move next to her, rising into the air and joining 
the
flight of glasses.
     "That's still spooky," Alex said as they made their way into the dining
room.  Darian had finished setting the table and was seated at one end, idly
watching the aerial procession of steaks and wine.
     "You get used to it," Darian replied with a shrug.  "What sort of wine
did Maze pick?"
     "Something Ra'vel would probably approve of," Whisper said as she 
guided
everything into place on the table.  There was a series of very soft thunks 
as
the steaks suddenly leapt off of the large plate and landed in the center of
the dinner plates.  The glasses all touched down next to a plate while the
bottle gently landed in front of Darian.  "It's not a good idea to try to 
use
kinetic force on something that's been bottled in a partial vacuum," she 
said
as he gave her a questioning look.
     "Ahh, I see," he said as he unwrapped the bottle's cork while everyone
else sat down.
     "I believe the expression Leda uses is 'dig in'," Whisper said to Alex.
     Alex chuckled.  "Nice to see some things don't change," she said as she
picked up her knife and fork.  She then promptly began to slice into the 
oratu
steak with a vengeance.
     "Try to remember your manners," Susan said gently with a faint smile as
she put Myst down in the empty chair next to her.  Luna hopped up onto the
corner of the table next to Darian and sat down, making sure she didn't come
close enough to accidentally shed any hair near him.
     "Yes, mother," Alex said reflexively before she took a bite of the 
steak.
"Mmm.... Doesn't taste like a cow, but it's still good.  Thanks, Whisper."
     There was a muffled explosion as Darian worked the cork free from the
bottle.  "Umm, is is supposed to pop like that?" he asked carefully as he
poured a small amount of the pale wine into his frosted glass.  He set the
bottle down and watched as it was promptly lifted into the air by Whisper's
psycho-kinetic powers.
     "Actually, yes," the telepath replied as she began to pour everyone a
glass.  "The avians have made it a habit of bottling their wines under very
low pressure to ensure the cork can't work it's way loose."
     "So that was a vacuum pop and not an over-pressure pop?" Darian 
inquired.
     "Exactly," Whisper said as the bottle floated over to her and filled 
her
wine glass.  "That way, you don't have to worry about a sudden decompression
launching a projectile into the air."
     "This is good," Michelle said as she chewed on a piece of her steak.
     "Mmm hmm," Alex hummed as she continued to attack her steak with open
enthusiasm.
     Susan waited until the wine bottle had filled her glass and landed back
down on the table before gingerly picking up her glass.  She did her best to
ignore the tingling in her fingertips caused by the extreme temperature of 
the
chilled glass and inhaled the faint scent of the wine.
     "It works best if you drink it instead of snort it," Alex said around a
mouthful of slightly charred oratu.
     Susan shot her a reproving look.  "Don't talk with your mouth full," 
she
chided the blonde as she sniffed the wine again.  She could only detect a 
tiny
amount of alcohol in it and found the faint flowery smell rather pleasing.
Taking a small sip, she let the flavor roll around her tongue briefly before
swallowing.  "This is.... definitely unique," she said after a moment.
     Whisper shrugged.  "As Maze said, it's not the best choice for oratu, 
but
it goes well enough with it."  She took a bite of her steak and made a 
slight
face as she chewed.  She swallowed and took a rather large sip of her wine.
"Although I don't think it was intended to go along with a spiced steak."
     "You going to be alright?" Darian asked as he cut a small piece of 
steak
and held it out to Luna.  There was a quick flash of motion and he blinked,
giving her an odd look.  She gave him a slightly abashed look as she not 
quite
discreetly munched on the piece of steak.
     "The spicing isn't too heavy, so I should be fine, or at least until 
the
morning," Whisper replied.  "But it does taste good."
     Darian chuckled as he sipped at his wine.  "Just as long as you don't 
have
the same type of reaction Maze had to that loaf of garlic bread he ate."
     "Should we ask?" Alex said as both Luna and Whisper made sour faces.
     "Mina almost made him pitch a tent outside until he was finished," 
Darian
replied with a shrug.  "Sad thing was, he was probably in some rather 
serious
pain at the time, too."
     "It's not fair," Whisper said with a quiet grunt.  "Most denizen foods
can be eaten by humans with little or no harm.... well, except the ones that
would usually hurt us as well.... but we can't eat half of the same stuff 
that
you routinely eat without having to worry about truly odd side-effects."
     "Like what?" Alex asked.
     Susan sighed.  "Perhaps we should finish eating first," she suggested.
     The blonde smirked and set her utensils down on her empty plate.  
"Already
did," she said as she picked up her wineglass and sat back.  "Dinner was 
very
good, Whisper, and not just because I was starving.  Thanks," she said, just
before she had to stifle a soft belch.
     Susan muttered something cryptic to herself about the upbringing of 
Alex's
immediate ancestors and wondered where she went wrong before sighing 
quietly.
"Then perhaps you should relax until the rest of us are finished?" she said
pointedly.
      Whisper's voice echoed in their 
minds.

     Darian tried to suppress a laugh and failed, momentarily spraying Luna
with a mouthful of wine.  He quickly grabbed a napkin and held it out to 
her,
trying to look apologetic while still fighting a case of the chuckles.
     "Thank you," the black cat said acidly as she grabbed the napkin with a
paw and tried to clean herself off.
     "Could be worse," Alex said with a grin.  "You could have wound up 
being
doused in bright red fruit punch like Artemis that one day."
     Luna smirked.  "That one I remember."
     Darian finally managed to swallow the wine and gasped for air.  "Yeah,
but you weren't here for the purple cat incident."
     "Mina gave Artemis a bath and apparently grabbed a bottle of dye 
instead
of the bottle of shampoo," Luna said with a giggle.
     "Oooh," Whisper said with a sympathetic wince.
     "I say we dye him green next time we have a party," Alex said to 
Michelle.
     "Shame on you," Michelle replied with a faint blush.
     "Actually, I think he'd look better if we gave him black polka-dots,"
Darian said only half-jokingly.  "You know, give him that dalmation effect."
     "Hmmmmm," Alex said slowly as she narrowed her eyes, trying to conjure 
up
the appropriate mental image.  "Now that you mention it...."
     Susan just sighed.  "I see that getting repeatedly clawed by lunar cats
in response to such practical jokes has done absolutely nothing to deter you
from harassing them."
     Alex shot her a dark look.  "I don't harass them, Sue."
     "Too often," Michelle muttered very softly into her wine.
     The blonde nearly fell out of her chair.  "What the hell?" she demanded
as she whirled around.  "Mich, who's side are you on, anyway?"
     Michelle gave her a hurt look and Whisper coughed lightly.  "Dessert,
anyone?" she offered.  "I don't know if you'd like it, but we still have 
some
le'un pudding in the refrigerator."
     "That's the bluish-purple stuff with the consistency of whipped cream?"
Darian asked as everyone else gave the telepath a blank look.  Whisper 
nodded
and Darian sat back in his chair.  "The density is kinda light for most 
human
tastes, but I think it'd go well enough with the wine and all."
     Alex frowned slighty.  "What kind of pudding did you say it was?"
     "Le'un berries are grown in the Negaverse," Darian explained as empty
plates and silverware started to rise into the air and hover.  "They make an
okay dessert, but it's awfully light and airy.  Kinda like trying to eat a
fruity cloud."
      said a slightly offended voice in his mind as the
fleet of airborne plates and utensils slowly migrated into the kitchen sink.
     "Hey, I'm not saying it's bad," Darian protested.  "In fact, it tastes
rather good.  But it's so wispy that the taste is all you're getting."
      Whisper telepathed back as 
she
turned around to keep an eye on the airspace in the kitchen.  
     "We manage," Alex said as she patted her stomach.  She chuckled and 
added,
"And some people more than others.  I can't recall ever seeing the Princess
turn down something sugary, even after a full banquet."
     Susan shook her head.  "Which has resulted in her fair share of stomach
aches at odd hours in the morning," she replied.  "I think the only reason 
the
Lady Mercury didn't forbid her all those sweets was because I was usually 
the
one who gave the Princess something in the middle of the night instead of 
her.
I think Amelia would only have put up with being roused out of bed once or
twice before she decided to have a word with the Queen."
     Alex gave her an incredulous look.  "You were the one always giving her
that stuff?  The very same Chancellor who once had a quiet but public debate
with the Queen about how the Princess was being overly spoiled?"
     Susan shot her a withering look.  "The only reason I was the one giving
her the medicine was because I was pretty much the only person awake at 
those
hours who knew enough about herbs to properly treat her.  And I assure you 
the
Princess got a lecture every time."
     "But I'll bet she still overdosed on the sweets," Darian ventured.
     "Every chance that cropped up," Susan muttered sourly.  "An event that
more than a few people took pains to ensure wasn't all that frequent."
     "A slow learner?" Luna muttered.  "That can't possibly be our Serena."
     Her ill-timed sarcasm drew another laugh from Darian as he was 
finishing
off his glass of wine, and the resulting explosion of mirth had the same
unfortunate effect as before.
     Whisper shook her head.  "I can get you a bowl if you want to have your
own share of wine, Luna," she said lightly as Darian hastily tried to clean
off Luna's soaked fur.
     "No, no, I think I've had more than enough," Luna said calmly while 
giving
Darian a glare that cast his future health into question.
     Darian coughed lightly.  "I don't suppose offering to give you a bath
would help matters, would it?" he said cautiously.  "I mean one with a 
really
thorough scrubbing in warm water, not the thirty-second job that Mina gave
Artemis that one day."
     Luna sat back and tried to preen her whiskers.  "I'm surprised that she
healed without scars," she muttered to herself.
     "Well, tell us what happened," Alex said, then blinked as a small bowl
filled with purple froth floated down in front of her.  "What's this?"
     "Their idea of pudding," Darian replied, drawing a mild look from 
Whisper.
"Anyway, Mina needed to give Artemis a bath for one reason or another, but 
he
apparently wasn't in the mood and threw a fit, so after a rather loud and
protracted argument she dunked him in the toilet and flushed."
     Alex immediately clamped her hand over her mouth before her sudden 
burst
of laughter could spew pudding everywhere.  Her free hand pounded the table
until she could control herself long enough to swallow before erupting into
peals of laughter.
     "Are you alright, Susan?" Whisper asked curiously.
     Susan just shook her head.  "I don't understand.... her mother was a 
very
polite and refined lady," she sighed.  "I simply have no idea what happened 
to
her daughter's upbringing."
     "Who, Mina or Alex?" Darian asked.
     "Both, actually," Susan said wearily.
     Michelle quickly leaned forward and clamped her hand down on Alex's 
wrist
just as the blonde dug the tip of her spoon into the mass of le'un pudding 
and
prepared to flick it at Susan.  Alex shot her a dark look and Michelle 
turned
pale, slowly shaking her head.
     "Don't," she said softly.  "It's not worth it."
     Alex gave her a soft kiss before gently prying her fingers off of her
wrist.  She then licked most of the pudding off of the spoon, leaving only a
very tiny amount clinging to the tip, before casually flicking it at Susan.
"You'd be surprised, love," she said smugly as she looked at Susan.  "Oh, 
good,
it didn't hit her hair.  That would really have sucked."
     "I assure you, having it 'suck' is going to be the very least of your
immediate concerns," Susan said with a discernible edge to her voice as she
picked up a napkin and brushed away the flecks of purple on her cheek.
      said the voice in her mind.
     "Perhaps you should wait on your admiration," Susan suggested calmly as
she finished the rest of her wine.  She set her empty glass down and stood 
up,
slowly pacing the room as she opened the top button of her blouse.  "The 
night
is not yet over."
     "Yeah, you need a bath," Darian said hastily as he scooped up Luna and
discreetly kept a finger over her lips.  "The wine is starting to stain your
fur.  Thank you for dinner, Captain, and if you ladies will excuse me, I 
will
see you all in the morning."
     Alex blinked and watched Darian make a somewhat rapid exit from the 
room.
"Huh.... what was his hurry?" she wondered.
      Whisper telepathed as she slowly 
rose
to her feet.  
     Susan turned her back to them as she removed her blouse, exposing the
dark scars on her back.  "You have interesting aim, Alex," she said evenly 
as
she wiped up the glob nestled between her breasts.  "I'm not quite sure how
you got pudding into my blouse without any of it hitting the fabric."
     "Oops," Alex said with a faint blush.  "I don't think this is the first
time you've had to clean out the inside of your shirt like that, though, 
since
we know you like.... OW!  Ow ow ow ow OW!" she yelped as she clutched at her
head and whimpered.
      Whisper telepathed.
     "Ow, goddamn, what the hell was that?" Alex moaned as she leaned 
forward
and rested her elbows on her knees, still holding her head with both hands.
She felt Michelle's comforting hand gently rubbing her back and she sighed.
     "Psi spike?" Susan inquired as she finished her task and rebuttoned her
blouse.  She received a nod and let a faint smirk tug on the corners of her
lips.  "I think you just saved me the trouble of having to try to discipline
her.  Thank you."
     
     "I've got a suggestion for you," Alex said as she lifted her head up 
and
glared at the telepath.  She blinked hard as Michelle suddenly wrapped 
herself
around her, clamping both hands over her mouth.
     "We've had a rough day and she's getting tired," Michelle said quickly.
Alex said something to her that was almost completely muffled and she turned
a bright shade of red.
     "That's quite understandable," Susan replied, pointedly ignoring the 
dark
look she was getting from the blonde.  "You should take her to bed and try 
to
get some sleep.  Tomorrow should be just as interesting as today is, so get
some rest.  Or at least try to," she added, giving Michelle a knowing look.
She blushed even harder and whispered something in Alex's ear before she 
stood
up and slowly released her mouth.
     "Let's go, love," Alex muttered darkly as she stood up and gently took
Michelle's hand.
     "Do I want to ask?" Whisper said quietly as she watched them make their
way down the hall towards their bedroom.
     Susan shrugged.  "Best of friends since they bumped heads while 
learning
how to crawl.  I'm not sure when they became lovers, but that's not really 
my
concern.  Michelle keeps Alex out of a fair amount of trouble, and Alex 
gives
her the exact type of emotional support she needs.  An interesting balance, 
but
it works for them."
     Whisper nodded.  "I understand now.  And you're awfully quiet."
     Susan blinked and was about to reply when she realized that she had 
been
looking at Myst when she said it.  "Indeed," she said quietly.
     "You people are strange," Myst said as she carefully sniffed at Susan's
untouched bowl of le'un pudding.
     "We're not that hard to get used to," Whisper replied.  "I mean, look 
at
dinner.  A few hours ago, Alex looked ready to slit my throat.  Now we just
got finished sharing a meal and a few jokes."
     Myst sat back and gave her a weary look.  "I resurrected Susan from a 
mere
ember of a soul, which in itself is unheard of.  Since then, I've nearly 
been
eaten, had my molecules torn apart and reassembled three times, been hunted 
and
chased half-way across The Dark, catapulted through a wormhole into a 
strange
land, nearly drowned in a lake, been repeatedly held in crushing grips by 
upset
humans, petted like a toy, I'm still trying to figure out not only what you
people keep talking about every ten minutes but why I was brought along in 
the
first place, and you say you humans are not hard to get used to?"
     "Somebody needs a nap," Susan observed with a faint smile.
     Whisper shot her a mild look.  "I'm not sure what to tell you, Myst.  
I'm
a denizen, not a human, and I can't speak about what you went through 
earlier.
All I'm asking is that you give us some time to get to know each other 
first.
And if it's any consolation, I still get confused by humans as well.  Umm, 
no
offense, Susan," she added hastily.
     "None taken.  I'm only half-human, after all," Susan replied.
     Whisper frowned lightly as she began to clear the dinner table.  "Yes, 
I
heard you say that earlier in the hallway.  May I ask what the other half 
is?"
     "Demon, although judging from Tolaris' reaction, that probably doesn't
mean anything to you," Susan said.
     "No, it doesn't," the telepath replied with a shrug.
     "I'll explain tomorrow when the others are here," Susan said as she sat
down and examined her bowl of denizen pudding.  "It's a fairly short story 
in
itself, but the associated background and explanations require a long time 
to
spell out.  What is this again?"
     "Le'un pudding.  The berries only grow in remote parts of the Western
Forests, and they make wonderful desserts.  The berries can also be 
fermented
into a rather potent alcohol.  Can I ask you a personal question?"
     Susan raised a slender eyebrow.  "I can't guarantee an answer."
     "How old are you?" Whisper asked as she stepped to one side to allow a
flock of dessert bowls to fly into the kitchen and stack themselves in the
sink.  "If you were a human I'd put your age at twenty-five or so, but since
you said you were only half-human, I'm just curious about the effect on your
lifespan."
     "What would you think if I was a denizen?" Susan said before she took a
small taste of the pudding.  Darian wasn't kidding about the density, she
thought with a slight mental shrug.
     Whisper tilted her head to one side.  "I'd put it at a quite a bit 
younger
than Maze.  Call it.... oh, three hundred even."
     "I can't tell you my exact age for several reasons," Susan said slowly,
"But I guess you could put me in the same age bracket as Tolaris."
     There was a sharp clattering noise from the kitchen as the last of the
flying silverware suddenly plummeted into the sink.  "You're seven hundred
years old?" Whisper said in mild disbelief.
     "Give or take a few decades, yes," Susan replied.  "My demonic heritage
has given me an eternal lifespan."
     The telepath blinked hard and slowly sat down.  "Wait.... that means 
you
can be killed, but not of old age, right?"  She received a somewhat 
suspicious
look and a slow nod in response, and she sighed to herself.  "That.... might
not be a bad thing, you know.  Did you talk to Tolaris about Ami yet?"
     Susan sighed.  "I know she's a denizen breed of vampire, but that's 
about
all I know.  I take it she's discovered she has an eternal lifespan as 
well?"
     "Yes, and the poor dear was quite devistated by the news," Whisper 
said.
"Apparently she has both low- and high-level regeneration abilities, and 
that
the low-level regeneration is bringing her growth rate to a halt.  While 
that
in itself is upsetting to her, as is the fact that she'll outlive all her
friends and family unless something goes wrong, she still has an occasional
crying fit when she thinks about what it's doing to her cycle."
     Susan blinked.  "I don't quite understand what you mean."
      Whisper telepathed.  
     Susan's eyes went wide as the telepath's words registered on her mind.
"But.... she has to have a child," she said, sputtering momentarily in her
state of shock.  "They all do.  Their powers as Sailor Scouts can only be 
used
while their bodies are still young.  Once they reach a certain biological 
age
they won't be able to use their powers anymore.  Their powers will weaken 
and
fade away unless it is passed down to a new generation, and we've already 
lost
one bloodline."
     Whisper shook her head in sympathy.  
     Susan pushed her bowl of pudding away and leaned forward to put her 
head
down on her arms.  "The first part is easy to deal with," she said.  "If the
Imperium Silver Crystal can do it once, it can do it again."
      Whisper observed.  
     Susan stood up and stretched.  "Very few people know the truth about 
the
Crystal," she said with a faint smile.  "Yes, you do need royal blood to be
able to command it, and mercy upon the souls of those who dare try to 
command
it without being part of the bloodline, but anyone can simply ask it to do
something.  I don't think it would listen to someone who didn't belong to 
one
of the Houses, but the Crystal has been known to listen to reasonable 
requests
under most circumstances.  As long as you are polite and are acting in the 
best
interests of the throne, the Imperium Silver Crystal will usually do what 
you
ask of it."
      Whisper thought with a
mental chuckle.  
     "Agreed," Susan said with a weary sigh.  "Idle curiosity.... has any of
the others expressed an interest in children?"
     The telepath rubbed at a small ache at the base of her neck.  
     "Wonderful," Susan sighed again.  "I'm not sure which situation is 
worse,
Alex's resistance to the idea of having a child, or Michelle's desire for a
medical breakthrough that would let her conceive a daughter with Alex's 
DNA."
     Whisper shrugged.  "Well.... roughly three hundred years ago there was 
a
report of just such genetic fusions being performed.  There were only five
success stories out of a hundred, I think, and the inital reasearch looked
promising until the children reached puberty."
     Susan winced.  "The chaos factor?"
     "The conclusion was that natural selection knew which DNA fragments to
accept and which to reject when recombining at conception," Whisper said 
with
a quiet sigh.  "Even after thousands of years of research, we still know 
next
to nothing about the chaos genes, let alone what each individual sequence of
genetic code does.  With the forced fusion, it was pretty much randomized as 
to
which sequences would be included.  The end results were.... nightmarish, 
and
a royal ban placed on further fusion experiments."
     Susan sat in silence as she digested the information.  "Whisper," she 
said
quietly after a few minutes, "How many pairs of chromosomes do denizens 
have?"
     "Depends on the species," Whisper said after a moment.  "I think both
felinoids and avians have twenty-nine pairs, but the rest of us only possess
twenty-eight."
     "Interesting.... and how many are related to the chaos factor?"
     "We think only two, but we're not absolutely certain."
     Susan stood up and slowly began to pace the length of the dining room.
"I find this very odd and more than slightly disturbing.  Humans only 
possess
twenty-six pairs of chromosomes, and it seems that the two pairs they lack 
in
comparison to denizens is possibly related to the chaos factor.  I also find 
it
very odd how two unique species could have evolved in two completely 
different
environments but yet possess an almost identical physical structure.  What 
do
you think?"
     "The favorite pet theory is that both humans and denizens have a common
ancestral link, but one that might go back as far as the first multi-celluar
creatures in the oceans," Whisper said casually.  "Go back in time a billion
years and you'll find that our planet was more ocean than land, as yours 
still
is.  Very few denizens actually care, however, as we've had a complex 
society
thousands of years before your ancestors first got the idea of drawing on 
the
walls of your caves with burnt sticks."
     "Thank you for the charming comparison," the succubus said dryly.
     Whisper chuckled.  "Didn't mean to offend you."
     "Let me postulate a theory for a moment," Susan said slowly.  "If the
fusion experiments failed because of the chaos factor, then wouldn't they be
pretty much viable if a fusion took place between beings without the 
factor?"
     Whisper blinked hard as she considered it.  "I'm not a scientist, and I
only have a passing knowledge of the experiments, what went wrong, and why.
Your theory would hold true if the chaos factor was indeed the sole cause of
the failure, but you have to bear in mind there was an initial ninety-five
percent failure rate."
     Susan nodded.  "I know, I'm just thinking about the possibilities."
     The telepath raised an eyebrow. "For Alex and Michelle?"
     "No, they both need to have separate children first to pass on their
bloodline.  Once that's accomplished, there's no reason Michelle can't have
more children as only the first-born daughter will have the power.  But 
that's
not why I'm wondering.  If Ami and Tolaris want to have a child, they'll 
need
some form of intervention.  The same holds true for Mina and Maze, and quite
possibly Serena and Darian as well."
     Whisper blinked in surprise before she nodded.  "We keep forgetting 
that
Serena is half-denizen," she said.  "Although from dealing with her, you 
would
never have guessed it.  Oh, excuse me," she said as she suppressed a yawn.
     "I'm not keeping you up with this, am I?" Susan inquired lightly.
     "Not really," Whisper replied.  "I mean no offense to the others, but 
it
is nice to have an intelligent conversation with another adult human now and
then.  I think I've already talked with Ami and Darian about as many topics 
as
one can expect someone as young as they are to know about."
     Susan nodded.  "I know what you mean.  The only non-demon I've ever 
been
able to compare notes on long lifespans with was Raijen, and we didn't have 
a
lot of time to discuss it."  Whisper chuckled unexpectedly and Susan raised 
a
slender green eyebrow.  "Is there something amusing about that?"
     "I was just remembering the look on Tolaris' face when he was 
confronted
by Raijen's spirit," the telepath said, still chuckling quietly to herself.
"The Dragoons pretty much revere him as a religious icon.  They would 
probably
be in awe of you if you related your conversations with Raijen to them."
     "What about the collective Dragoon reaction to Serena's heritage?" 
Susan
asked carefully.
     Whisper sighed quietly to herself.  "We won't know for sure unless we 
can
arrange some sort of official meeting between her and the Legion.  Tolaris 
is
apparently giving serious thought to having K'tal call a mass-formation of 
all
the Dragoons that can possibly show up, then having us sneak the Sailor 
Scouts
in for a quiet presentation."
     "Inside the Negaverse," Susan said flatly.
     "We figure it's easier to move ten of us.... well, thirteen now, into 
the
Negaverse rather than try to relocate a small army over to Earth," the 
telepath
replied dryly.  "And even with as much sneaking around they do while 
gathering
information, I think they would still stick out like a vep'tera trying to 
hide
in a stand of weeds in the Southern Flatlands."
     Susan tilted her head to one side.  "I don't know how big a vep'tera 
is,
but I've seen some extremely tall weeds before."
     "You've never seen the Southern Flatlands.  There might be a total of 
four
patches of weeds in the entire region, none of which grows higher than 
Luna's
knees.  Oh, and your typical forest-dwelling vep'tera is probably just a bit
taller than you are."
     "Sounds like a charming place," Susan remarked somewhat dryly.
     Whisper shrugged.  "Tolaris calls it home, although I've seen worse.  
I'm
from the Outreaches, which is pretty much nothing but shallow swamps and 
rather
hazardous marshes.  How about you?"
     "I've spent most of my life in the Moon Kingdom, although I did spend a
significant amount of time in the Underworld.  It exists on three levels, 
and
the one I usually inhabited was the one that was primarily a lake composed 
of
elemental fire," the succubus replied.
     "Oooh," the denizen said as she winced.  "I've seen a few active 
volcano
pits in the Northern Mountains, but nothing like that."
     "Home is where the heart is.  At least, where the Damned gets theirs 
cut
out on a regular basis," Susan said lightly.  She watched as Whisper's skin
took on a pale blue cast and she raised an eyebrow.  "I take it you aren't 
all
that familar with this world's spiritual realities?"
     Whisper shook her head.  "Not really, but something tells me I should 
wait
until I've had a lot of sleep before I ask you to tell me about it."
     "Mmm, sleep," Susan said quietly to herself before she looked up at the
gray kitten still silently observing them.  "Do you ever sleep, Myst?"
     "Rarely," Myst replied.  "I don't need it, but it does pass the time in 
a
somewhat unique way.  Dreams bother me, though, so I don't do it very 
often."
     Whisper blinked.  "Demons don't sleep?"
     "Not unless they want to," Susan replied.  "However, as I'm still 
partly
human, I have a few of their weaknesses, one of which is the need for sleep.
My constitution isn't nearly as frail as theirs is, though, so only a small 
nap
every other week is sufficient."
     Whisper rubbed her temples.  "No offense, Susan, but to borrow a human
phrase.... that has got to suck.  There have been days in which the only 
thing
that kept me going was the promise of a few hours of blissful sleep."
     "I don't have a problem with it," Susan replied.  "Usually I spend the
time doing something quiet like reading or painting, or even catching up on
the stack of paperwork that any administration seems to require.  I sense 
that
you're getting tired yourself," she added.
     The telepath sighed quietly before nodding slowly.  "I didn't want to 
be
rude by going to bed and leaving you out here by yourself."
     Susan smiled.  "Actually, a nap sounds good right about now.  Time 
travel
is only a small strain in itself, but with as much of that as I've been 
doing
these past.... well, four days in my perspective, but the effort is starting 
to
take it's toll."
     Whisper nodded in understanding.  "And if today wasn't a strain on 
one's
nerves, then tomorrow should be five times as bad."
     "Surely it can't be as bad as meeting us," Susan suggested carefully.
     "We never knew you before," Whisper replied slowly.  "I have a feeling
that most of tomorrow's problems will stem from the difference between how 
you
remember them to be and what they are today.  A lot can change in a thousand
years."
     Susan chuckled unexpectedly.  "Tell me about it," she said dryly.  
"When
I chose the spot for our arrival in this city, I was still thinking in a 
10th
century geographical context."
     Whisper blinked in confusion.  "And...?" she prompted.
     "And there wasn't a lake there a thousand years ago."
     "I think we all know the results," the telepath observed.
     "Unfortunately," grumbled Myst.
     Susan chuckled as she picked up the Shinma.  "You got dried out."
     "After my lungs were flooded with water," Myst replied.  "And I think I
ate something by accident.  All I remember is seeing a cloud of dark shapes
dart away as I hit the water, then tasted something slimy wriggling around."
     Susan shrugged.  "You probably swallowed a small fish, which is no 
major
concern since cats eat fish anyway and you would have had some reaction by 
now
if you were going to have one at all."
     "Remind me tomorrow and I'll check to see if we have any sort of 
denizen
fish available for dinner," Whisper said as she stretched.  "It would be a
good excuse as any to open one of those Southern Flatland bottles of wine."
     "Sounds fair enough.  Sleep well, Whisper," Susan said as she 
readjusted
the kitten's weight in her arms and started walking down the hallway towards
her bedroom.
     "Do you plan on sleeping?" Myst asked once Susan entered the bedroom 
and
closed the door behind her.
     "Actually, yes," Susan replied as she set the kitten down on the table.
"As I said, it's been a rather stressful four days for me."
     "I don't want to sleep," Myst blurted out suddenly.  "Dreams scare me."
     Susan paused only for a moment before she resumed undressing.  "Then 
don't
sleep," she admonished her.  "Just because I'm going to take a nap doesn't 
mean
you have to."
     The Shinma watched in silence as Susan finished undressing completely 
and
reverted to her demonic form.  The succubus then spent the next several 
minutes
stretching and relaxing various muscles, the faint moonlight from the open
window turning her wings almost transparent and casting her nude body in an
ethereal glow.
     "I don't want to be alone," Myst finally said quietly.
     Susan her demonic ally very carefully, remembering that she had almost
always been within arm's reach of her during the three days they spent in 
her
keep in the Border Ethereal dimension.  "Is your present form stable enough 
to
persist even if you fall asleep?" she asked after a moment's thought.
     Myst blinked at the unexpected question.  "It should be," she said 
slowly.
     "Good enough," the succubus replied as she walked over and picked her 
up.
She then moved over to the bed and laid down on her side, flexing her wings 
a
few times before folding them neatly against her back.  Drawing the sheet 
over
her nude body, she carefully cradled Myst against her chest and quickly made
herself comfortable.  "I'm not sure I wanted to be alone tonight, either,"
she replied quietly in the kitten's ear as her disciplined mind turned 
inward
and methodically shut itself down.
     Myst sighed quietly to herself as she listened to Susan's breathing and
pulse gradually even out and slow down.  She estimated a full minute hadn't
passed between Susan's words in her ear and when she slipped into the state 
of
neo-oblivion called sleep.  She fought to keep herself from shivering at the
thought of dreaming, the uncontrollable caphony of images and voices that is
unleashed by the subconscious when the conscious is completely idle.
     A long quiet night, she thought to herself as she squirmed slightly.  
She
was neatly wedged between Susan's breasts with her head almost directly 
above
her heart.  She flicked her ear down to listen to the slow, steady rhythm it
produced as it beat inside her chest.
     Such a fragile thing, life, she mused as she listened to the deep 
sound.
She knew that right now, she stood an excellent chance of being able to stop
the heartbeat if she chose to.  Such a strange hypnotic sound it makes, she
began to think.  Imagine, sounding like that, day after day after day, for
hundreds of thousands of days.  Over seven hundred years of steady rhythm.  
A
strong sound to a fragile existence.
     The gentle pulse of Susan's heartbeat against her cheek and the slow,
steady rhythm in her ear continued to comfort her long after she was lulled
into a timeless, dreamless world of sleep.

                *               *               *               *



                                     EPILOGUE

     General Rune quietly walked down the seemingly endless maze of 
corridors
and cargo bays of the underground storage facility.  Situated on the 
decidedly
hostile geographical border between the Eastern Frontier and the Outreaches,
the storage facility wasn't supposed to be underground, but a relatively 
minor
earthquake in the region shortly after it's construction turned the normally
hard-packed sandy ground into so much quicksand.  The end result had been 
the
sinking of the entire facility into thirty meters of sand with surpringly 
few
casualties.
     Publically the facility had been declared a total loss which led to the
resignation of the engineer in charge of the project.  However, the military
was able to secretly restore the facility to full operations as an annex to
the Eastern Division's array of military depots, not all of which were known
to exist by many.
     "Is everything ready?" Rune quietly asked over her shoulder as she came
to a halt in front of a pair of small but heavily reinforced doors.
     The imposing figure of Lieutenant General Ra'en grunted quietly from
behind her. "As you specified," he replied.
     Rune nodded and reached up for the door control.  She paused with her
fingertips halfway to the panel and cast a glance over her shoulder.  "Is 
there
something else, Ra'en?"
     Much to her surprise, the massive general shifted his feet nervously 
for
a moment.  "Do you have to do this, Rune?" he said softly in a voice she 
hadn't
heard from him in ages.  He looked up at her with an almost pleading look.  
"I
know we can use all the help we can get against Nop'tera, but...."
    "But...?" Rune prompted with a slight fealing of unease.
    "I'm worried what this might mean for the Negaverse," he replied slowly.
"And I'm also worried about you."
     Rune blinked with genuine surprise.  "Why Ra'en, I'm touched."
     The Eastern Division commander made a low-pitched huffing noise deep in
his throat.  "If this gets out of hand like I fear it might, then we're all
going to be touched, and I don't mean gently by a ex-lover."
     General Rune smiled wryly.  "Your concern is noted, General, but I've 
made
a decision on the matter and I expect your full support."
     "And you will have it," he replied instantly.  "However," he added as 
she
turned to touch the door panel again, "If you don't mind, Commander-General,
I'd rather not watch this."
     The silence seemed to stretch on for hours as Rune gazed at her 
ex-lover
and subordinate.  "Very well, then," she said softly.  "I suppose I can deal
with him myself.  Return to your headquarters and monitor the situation with
the carriers.  I will contact you later about the developments."
     Ra'en bowed to her and left, leaving her alone in the corridor with her
own dark thoughts and private doubts.  Sighing inaudibly to herself, she 
turned
back to the door panel and keyed it open.
     She stepped into the room and closed the door behind her, looking 
around
the room with a critical eye.  The room was furnished with the standard 
issue
given to all single senior-grade officers living in military quarters, 
complete
with the usual universally-despised color of towels hanging on the rack 
outside
the bathroom.  We really need to change that color, she thought to herself 
out
of pure reflex before her gaze settled on the one non-standard item in the
room: a large shard of crystal with a denizen trapped inside like a mosquito
frozen in amber.
     Making sure the door was securely locked behind her, she stepped 
forward
and placed a hand on the smooth surface of the crystal.  The chaos factor 
had
given her the power to create, destroy, and manipulate the molecular 
structure
of crystalline objects, and it was this power that let her form a picture in
her mind that was far more detailed than what she could have seen with 
either
her eyes or a scanning device.
     Rune stood perfectly still for several minutes as her powers wandered 
up
and down the crystal, mapping the way it was grown and testing its strength.
After almost missing it twice, she finally found what she was looking for: 
the
exact spot and frequency needed to shatter the crystal like glass and free 
its
entombted occupant.
     "I'll say this for Beryl," she muttered to herself as she turned her 
focus
inward and drew her powers together, "She knew how to create a crystal that
wasn't easy to break.....  Hah!" she gasped as she unleashed her powers on a
point on the crystal half the size of a pinhead.
     The crystal didn't so much crack as disintegrate, turning into a large
pile of molecular dust and tiny, dull-edged shards.  Freed from the 
crystalline
tomb, the man collapsed to the ground with a ragged moan that send a dark 
chill
down Rune's spine.
     "I imagine you're a little stiff after being frozen in crystal for such 
a
long time," she said to him.  "Try not to move just yet."
     Much to Rune's amazement, he managed to partially stand up before he
collapsed to his knees with another protracted moan.  "W.... wa...." he 
began
to say, his voice sounding as rough and dry as the minor standstorm 
currently
whipping around the terrain above the storage facility.
     Rune just shook her head and stepped into the bathroom to get a glass 
of
water.  "You really are one tough p'tai," she commented.  "Here, this should
help," she said as she handed him the glass.
     He almost spilled it before he was able to securely grab the glass and
down the contents in one gulp, gasping in pain as the water seared his raw
throat.  "Y.... you...." he panted slowly as his blue eyes slowly refocused
on the world around him.
     "Nice to see you too," she said as she reached out and brushed his 
blonde
hair out of his face.  "I don't mean to be cruel, but you look like hell."
     He snarled quietly as he jerked away from her and almost lost his 
balance.
The glass went flying out of his hand and shattered on the ground as he 
fought
a major internal battle to stand up straight.  He finally succeeded after 
Rune
grabbed his arm to help steady him.
     "Easy," she cautioned him.  "I've seen people who've been in far worse
condition than you after being frozen for half as long inside a normal 
stasis
crystal."
     "H.... have.... to.... re.... report.... to.... to Beryl...." he gasped
as he steadied himself, seeming to grow stronger and more aware with each
passing moment.
     Rune sighed and decided to let him have it.  "Beryl's dead, my friend.
Killed by the Sailor Scouts.  Now I'm in charge, but only if I can get your
help to keep Nop'tera off my back."
     The mention of the Sailor Scouts was enough to jolt him into 
near-perfect
consciousness.  "What?  The Sailor Scouts killed her?" he gasped.  "And you
said Nop'tera is back?"
     "And they said you weren't a quick learner," Rune said without rancor.
     "And you haven't changed," he said bitterly as he looked around the 
room.
"I suppose it's obvious that you freed me from Beryl's wrath, but do I want 
to
know why?"
     Rune's response was the last thing he expected of her.  Running her 
hand
along the side of his face, she leaned forward and melded her lips to his in 
a
fairly passionate kiss.  He was about to pass out from oxygen deprivation 
when
she pulled back, stared deep into his eyes, and murmured, "I need you."
     He paused and licked his lips, his mind still in a stasis-induced haze.
"That can be taken several different ways, Rune.  I'm listening."
     Rune wasted no time explaining.  "Nop'tera has returned and is trying 
to
take over the Negaverse.  I'm trying to stop her, but I can't do it alone.  
I
need someone like you to help me."
     He laughed quietly to himself.  "Ah, I knew it.  You've always had some
sort of ulterior motive to everything you do.  I guess I'd be insulted if 
you
didn't have some sort of reason for this, but...."
     Her eyes flashed an instant's anger at him.  "I'm not doing this just
because I need your help."
     "Oh?" he said as he leaned forward until they were almost nose-to-nose.
"Please, my dear Imperial Guard Captain, enlighten me."
     She sighed.  "You really can't see what's under your nose, can you?"
     His gaze was unwavering as he stared at her.  "Enlighten me," he 
repeated.
     The kiss she gave him lasted for quite some time, conveying with it the
not-so-subtle hint of what the immediate future might be like.  "Maybe I've
always wanted to do that," she said softly to him.
     "You've surprised me," he said after a few moments of silence.
     "It wouldn't be the first time."
     "True, very true.  And how serious are you about this?"
     She raised an eyebrow at him.  "Serious enough to thaw you out of what
most view as a justified punishment," she replied.  "I really do need your
help.... and for awhile, I really was curious what you were like in bed."
     He blinked at that.  "You've surprised me again, Rune.  I had no idea."
     She smiled at him.  "You were never the brightest."
     "I'm touched."
     "You're dirty, actually," she observed as she gazed at his general's
uniform.  "You need to take a shower.  The hot water will ease your stiff
muscles as well as clean you up."
     "And afterwards?"
     Rune smiled up at him.  "And afterwards we talk about why I freed you."
     He smiled for the first time since his entombment in crystal at the 
hands
of Queen Beryl.  "And which aspect might that be?" he asked lightly as he
looked at her for the first time in a new light.
     "First thing's first, Jedyt," she replied.  "Get out of those clothes 
and
take a shower.  Something tells me that tonight is going to be a surprise 
for
a lot of people, and not just you...."


                                  * THE END *

    Source: geocities.com/tokyo/Pagoda/4361