Slowly, the sun flared through the cracks in the blind that covered the window. Small, pinpoint beams of the warm energy invaded the dark cocoon the room had been draped in, luimunating all that they touched.
 One of these things was Matt.
 Matt groaned softly as the slight beams of light splashed across his face and eyes. He squinted tightly as the warm light ripped him from the somber depths of sleep he was enjoying  only a few moments before. As he struggled to awaken, he was overcome with a sense of dread. Yet, in his sleepy state, he could not think of a reason why he would feel like that. As Matt slowly struggled to open his heavy eyelids, flashes of remembrances flew across his mind. Joshua leaving...  learning Ami was better... learning that Ami had forgiven Joshua, and possibly more... the dream... Serena...
 His mind suddenly froze on the word "Serena". With a realization so profound, he could have sworn that a light had appeared over his head, he bolted upright and opened his eyes wide in horror.
 The kiss.
 How could have been such a fool? He had allowed his confused thoughts to blind him, and had given in to his feelings for Serena.  For someone as deciplined as he thought himself to be, he quite easily gave in to the temptations that begged at him.
 "I'm so weak! Serena probably thinks I don't care about her. And now that I got myself into a position where I had to push her away...  I probably ruined what precious relationship I already did have with her! She probably hates me now... I'm such a fool." Matt thought sullenly as he dejectedly stood up and stretched out. He sighed, shook his head in disgust, and began to dress.
 He was in Sammy's room now. Since Joshua had recovered from his coma, and the arrival of Philly, Matt had moved to Sammy's unoccupied room. Philly took up the guest bedroom that he had originally used, and Joshua remained in Serena's parent's room. The question of the whereabouts of Serena's parents was still a mystery, but it was not a total mystery. Several days previous, in a discussion of the very matter of Serena's parents, Philly had suddenly blurted out that she knew where they were.
 The news had stunned the entire group. They began to question her, but Philly silenced them all quickly with a gesture with her hand. Matt had never seen her take such a forceful manner, and realized that she was upset.
 "All I know is that Sailor Pluto is involved. I've already explained to you though that I could not tell you anything. In fact, I might have already done something by just telling you what I have told you already. Please.... I wish I could ease your concerns... but I can't say anymore! I'm sorry!"
 The force of her words had quickly finished all talk of Serena's parents. And from that point, the subject had not been mentioned since, though Matt could tell that most of Serena's dread had been replaced with simple curiosity. He knew that Philly had been more help than she thought.
 Matt moved to the closet and withdrew some clothes. But the clothes he withdrew were not his own. The fact was that Matt had only one outfit of his own... the black shirt, pants, and cloak he wore when he had awakened on that hill outside the city, a little more than a month previous. Because of that, Matt had had to find other clothes. So, in a purposely quick trip to Darien's apartment, Matt and Serena packed up some of Darien's old clothes, hoping they would fit Matt. Ironically, it turned out Darien's clothes fit Matt perfectly. Matt was a little hesitant to wear Darien's clothes, for obvious reasons, but he gave up perusing the matter when he realized he needed somekind of clothes, and like it or not, Darien's worked. So he wore them.
 Matt grabbed one of Darien's black turtle necks, a pair of pants, and Darien's green tweed jacket. He got dressed and chanced a quick look in the mirror as he opened the door to the room and went out.
 Matt had no way of knowing, but besides the difference in hair and the slight difference in the face...
  Matt looked identical to Darien.
 Matt gingerly stepped into the hall and shut his door with a gentle click. He paused in the darkened hallway and looked from side to side. He decided to try a little mental exercise Rei had shown him. He slowly closed his eyes and began to take deep breaths. After a moment of pause, he slowly reached out with his mind like Rei showed him, and touched the minds of everyone in the house with a light probe. Anything deeper would be an invasion of privacy, and it would assuredly awaken everyone. One by one, Matt scanned the house...
 Serena's slow brain activity showed that she was still asleep. Of course, Rei would have said it wasn't because she was sleeping...
 Matt still could not sense anything from Philly, which continued to puzzle him. He knew Rei was having the same troubles, but she could not explain it. Matt just passed it off with all the other mysteries of Philly, like where she came from, and how she knew Sailor Pluto. Matt had been told about how Sailor Pluto guarded the Tunnel of Time for all eternity, and how the scouts had met Pluto by Luna.
 Luna's light thoughts also showed that she was asleep...
 Finally, Joshua's thoughts told...
 Matt suddenly stopped scanning and stared at the opposite wall of the hallway in puzzlement. He scanned for Joshua again, and confirmed what he had felt the first time was no mistake.
 Joshua was not there.
 Matt stood still for a moment, and could only utter one thing in response to what he felt.
 "Not again!"
  He suddenly bolted for Joshua's/Serena's parent's room at the end of the hall. He threw the door open and saw that Joshua was not there, and his bed had not been slept in. Matt reflexively looked around as he stood in the doorway, and suddenly took off back back down the hall in the direction that he came from. He passed each room without stopping, and made his way to the stairway. A strange, sickening sense of deja vu had come over him. Without stopping, he raced down the stairs and into the foyer. He quickly searched the first floor, finally returning to the foyer. His fears had now been confirmed.
 Joshua had never come home after taking Ami back.

    ****

 "What? What do you mean? Are you sure he didn't come back? Oh no..."
 The voice was Ami's, coming over Serena's communicator with some light static. Matt gripped the communicator tightly as Philly, Serena, and Luna looked on.
 "Yes, Ami, I'm positive. His bed is untouched, and there's no sign of him anywhere. Ami, listen... I have called the other scouts. They are on their way over here... " said Matt, speaking into the communicator. He tried to keep the worry from his voice as he talked. He didn't want to frighten Ami, not after what she had just gotten over. Matt doubted that he succeeded. As he talked more and more, Ami's face grew colder and more disturbed. She looked to be on the verge of crying. Even Serena, Philly, and Luna could see that, even from their poor vantage points in the living room. Matt was standing near the door, holding the communicator as his back faced the group. Serena had taken to the couch, while Philly and Luna sat down in the armchair next to the couch.
 "Ami, don't worry. Everything is going to be alright. If something bad had really happened to Joshua, don't you think we would have some notice by now? And since we haven't that probably means he's still out there, Ami. And there could be a million reasons why he hasn't come home by now..."
 Matt paused and took a breath, knowing that nothing he was going to say would help. Both Ami and him knew what the other was thinking.
 Traquen.
 Matt continued again, his voice no more then a whisper.
 "We'll find him, Ami... alive and well... I promise you! Remember, this isn't the first time he has disappeared on us. But, I think you should stay home until--" Matt's voice was silenced by Ami's, as she suddenly cut in with a fierce resolve.
 "No, Matt! I want to help... I HAVE to help. Please let me come there... I want to help Joshua. Please!"
 Matt did not stand a chance against the pleading, soft voice of Ami. He understood her feelings, and he knew he would never be able to be cruel enough to force her to stay behind while Joshua's life might be in danger.
 "Alright Ami. I understand. We would be glad for all help you can provide... we'll be waiting for you, ok?"
 "Thank you, Matt. I'm on my way."
 Serena's communicator went dark as Ami turned off her end. Matt held it for a moment in the same position, then sighed and turned toward the group. He slowly walked over to the couch and sat next to Serena quietly. He sighed aloud as he handed Serena the communicator. Matt had awaken everyone as soon as he knew for sure that Joshua was gone. A little while later he had used Serena's communicator to inform the others.
 "Now we wait. I think you should know something, though. I have a very bad feeling about all this. Worse than the last time..."
 "I do too, Matt." Serena softly whispered as she glanced around the room.
 Everyone held the same look of despair.

     ****

 "You have got to be kidding! Are you sure this is where Joshua is?"
 Matt slowly turned to face Serena as she finished the remark. The cold night air sliced at the skin on his face. He flinched slightly from it, then looked at Serena again.
 "I'm positive. Joshua Derimond is in that building..." Matt stated loudly, making his voice heard over the pounding wind. As he talked, he pointed to the building the group was standing in front of.
 It had been several hours since the meeting at Serena's had come to an end. It had come to an end rather quickly when Matt and Rei had been struck down by the sudden appearance of Joshua's presence. They had been in the middle of pondering what they should do to find him, when Matt and Rei's senses flared with his presence. The force of his essence literally had knocked Matt off of his feet. It had taken all of his focus just to block out the overwhelming feeling. It was like Joshua had been keeping himself hidden from Matt and Rei, and then suddenly wanted his presence to be known to them. Whatever the reason, Matt had quickly regained his composure, had explained what happened, and set out to home-in on Joshua using what he and Rei remembered of the force of Joshua's presence. What Rei and him had left out in the explanation was that the essence of Joshua was shadowed by a heavy, dark aura. Both Rei and Matt knew that their fears had finally been answered. The realization was not a happy one.
 Traquen had finally return.
 Without either mentioning that part, to protect Ami and the others, the group had shortly began to scower the city. Night had set before Matt had been able to track down the exact location of Joshua. He and Rei had both taken different paths as they had began searching for Joshua, using the blast of feeling they had received. Matt, Serena, Philly, Lita and Luna had taken to the northern part of the city, while Rei, Mina, Artemis, and Ami had began to explore the southern part of the city. Because of the sheer size of Tokyo, it had taken virtually all day before one of them finally found the spot Joshua was at.
 Matt's group had found it first.
 It had turned out, for reasons unknown, that Joshua was at a place called the "TrIRCe Bar". It was a small establishment of even smaller reputation in the north-west part of the city. Nothing special stood out about it, which raised even more questions. What was Joshua/Traquen doing there, and what did he want? Matt didn't have the answers, but he knew of one way to get them.
 "Well... it's looks like we are going to have to go in after him..." Matt spoke softly as he shivered underneath Darien's green jacket. Once night had set, the air had quickly grown cold. Even though the entire group had not spoken more than a couple sentences the whole day, each deep in their own thoughts, it was apparent to all that everyone in the group was severely uncomfortable in the cold night air. Thoughts of hot tea, and lying in a warm, cozy bed had run rampant through Serena's head since dusk. She had almost said that it was getting too late and cold to keep searching, but she knew that she was just thinking of herself. And her recent experiences had taught her to fight those urges... for the most part. The very fate of them all could depend on what happened that night, and she didn't want Matt thinking she was weak. So she kept her mouth shut.
 "Shouldn't we wait for the others? I'm sure they will be here soon..." Serena questioned as she looked up at the dark building. A neon sign with the name of the place was glowing above the entrance. It and the dim streetlights were the only objects that gave the area the group was in any illumination.
 "What good would it do? Out of all of us, only two people would be able to get into the bar anyways..." spoke Matt, his gaze resting on Serena, "And those two people are here right now. Philly and me. Philly and I are the oldest, and probably the only ones who could get in. Plus, the only way we are going to get in there, and not be spotted by Joshua immediately, is if we use the Luna Pen. Trust me. Right now, I don't want Joshua knowing I am there. It's taking all of my concentration as it is just to keep us hidden from him even now. If I wasn't, he would have picked up on us immediately..."
 "But... but why would you not want Joshua to know--"
 Serena was suddenly cut off by Matt's cold gaze. She took a step back as he began to speak in a harsh tone.
 "Serena..." he hissed, "there is more to this situation then you realize! You are just going to have to trust me on this. All we worked for so far might be for nothing if we don't do this right. The closer we get to Joshua, the harder it is for me to shield us all. That's why only a few of us can go in. And Philly and I are the two people it would be easiest for. I can't explain any better right now! Your just going to have to trust me!"
 Serena stood shivering for a moment. She lowered her head away from Matt and spoke softly.
 "Ok, Matt. I'm sorry for questioning you." Serena whispered, pain filling her voice. She was trying to hold back her tears. She paused, and looked up into Matt's eyes. Her own were red and tear-filled. She whispered again, "Just... just don't be mad at me, ok? I-I'm sorry... for making you angry. But, you can't be angry at me... not now..."
 Matt's hardened face grew soft as he listen to her broken voice. He realized that the stress of the situation was getting to him, and he was taking it out on Serena. He watched her for a second, then suddenly moved up beside of her. Serena didn't realize he had moved until he was right next to her. She gave a small start as she looked up to see him. As she did, he softly laid his hands onto her arms, and looked at her with sorrow in his eyes.
 "I'm sorry, Serena.... I didn't mean to upset you. It's just... if you knew all of what was going on, you'd understand why I am so nervous and edgy." He paused to gaze at her small, beautiful face. A small smile of warmth appeared on his face he continued. "I am the one that should be asking forgiveness. Your question was a perfectly honest one... and there is an answer. But I don't want to say it until I know for sure. Unfortunately, I think your going to find out soon enough. But until then... please don't be upset at me... I am only trying to protect you. You'll never know how much it hurts me when you are angry at me."
 Matt's sentence was stopped short. Serena already knew what he was going to say. Instead of allowing him to finish, Serena suddenly pushed up against him, and hugged him tightly as tears began to roll down her eyes. Matt wrapped his arms around her and smiled.
 Matt and Serena held the embrace a moment longer, then slowly pulled away from each other's arms. Matt's serene look was slowly replaced by a look of hard determination. He looked back at Serena, who had turned her head away and had begun to blush. Matt took a step toward her, reached out and softly touched her face with his hand. As she turned to look at him, he whispered something to her and smiled. He turned back toward the silent Philly, Lita, and Luna. Lita noticed he was holding something in his hand.
 The Luna Pen.
 "Are you ready Philly?" Matt spoke calmly as he approached her.
 "I'm ready. Let's go get him."
 Matt nodded slightly and threw his arm upward, thrusting the pen into the air. He shouted in a loud, clear voice:
 "DISGUISE POWER...."

          ****

 Joshua quickly side-stepped the punch. As the fist plowed through the air were his head had been a moment ago, Joshua shot out his hand and clamped down on the arm of the assailant. Before the attacker could respond to the action, Joshua twisted the arm with inhuman strength. The attacker screamed in pain as Joshua snapped the attacker's outstretched arm from his elbow joint instantly. Joshua placed a swift kick into abdomen of the assailant, which brought him to his knees moaning in pain. Joshua smiled wickedly, and released the broken arm from his grip, allowing the attacker to drop completely to the ground.
 Joshua paused for a moment as he stared at the limp body of the attacker. The attacker was a local drunk who frequented the TrIRCe Bar. He had attacked Joshua, mumbling something intelligible about "Joshua's big mouth". Before the attack, Joshua was enjoying some of the "local pleasures" of the planet Earth. Basically, he had taken to the nearest bar after the "incident" on the street and had began to drink heavily. Because of his Iosion physiology, the alcohol had very little effect on him. Because of that, Joshua had sat drinking all night, only stopping when he had begun to draw perplexing stares at how much alcohol he was consuming. When that happened, Joshua would just smile slightly and step out for a few minutes to "clear his head". Joshua had continued the pattern for over 12 hours, never being questioned too much, since most customers would come and go within an hour. The barhands rotated on a frequent enough schedule that Joshua's actions were never perceived for any length by the employees.
 Joshua had continued the pattern, relaxing and enjoying the knowledge and power that only he knew he held, until the local drunk had decided he did not like Joshua's way of sitting and remaining silent. He had approached Joshua, tapped him on the back, made a few drunken comments about Joshua and his "big mouth", and threw a punch at Joshua. Joshua had instantly reacted and dropped the drunk effortlessly, giving him a broken arm for his troubles.
 "Fool." Joshua spoke softly, as he smiled wickedly again.
  He turned back to his bar stool, and began to take his seat again. Before he fully sat down, a sound caused him to glance at the other end of the bar. He turned his head just in time to see a figure leaping from the top of the wooden bar, straight toward Joshua. Joshua managed to stumble out of his chair backwards, causing it to fall over, before the figure connected with Joshua. The force of the impact caused Joshua and the figure to slam into the ground, with Joshua on bottom. With a quick body twist by Joshua, the figure was launched from the top of Joshua and sent sailing onto the ground, ten feet above of Joshua's head.
 Joshua took a deep breath, and flipped to his feet from his laying position. He quickly turned to see the figure rising to his feet. Joshua did not recognize the figure, though he looked much like the drunk that Joshua had just taken out. Joshua guessed that he was a friend of the drunk.
 "Now, it is my turn." Joshua whispered as he focused himself at the attacker. As he did, he noticed that all conversation in the bar had stopped, and all eyes were on him. Joshua took another large breath and let out a tremendous yell as he rushed the attacker.
 Joshua charged the attacker with an inhuman speed. As he sailed at the figure, his arm shot out and took up a barstool that passed him as he ran. Without missing a beat, Joshua swung the barstool behind his head with both his hands while he continued to run. The figure reacted instantly to nearing Joshua by throwing up his arms in front of himself in a vain attempt to block Joshua's attack. Joshua came within one foot of the figure and, with a groan of strain, threw all his weight backwards and into his arms as he swung the barstool at the figure. Joshua placed all his weight into the club-like swing as his forward momentum propelled him right next to the figure. Joshua connected the barstool with shoulder and head of the attacker with a loud crash.
 The force of Joshua's swing caused the barstool to break instantly as the swing connected. The figure screamed aloud as he was launched backwards by the barstool. He rapidly took several stumbling steps backwards as he gripped his face. He tripped finally and dropped to the floor screaming in agony, near where the first drunk had dropped. Joshua's own force caused him to spin in almost 180 degrees. He quickly turned back to face the figure and looked down. The figure was curled up into a fetal position on the floor. Even though his hands were covering most of his face, Joshua could see blood flowing fairly strongly from the spots the attacker didn't cover. By the time Joshua managed to look at the attacker, his hands were completely covered in blood. Joshua's gaze dropped from the figure to his own hands. In each hand, he gripped an end part of the legs of the stool he had used. He dropped the small pieces of wood onto the ground next to the rest of the pieces and looked back toward the figure.
 "There you go. Thank you for the entertainment." laughed Joshua. He smiled slightly, and turned around to face the rest of the room.
 The room itself consisted of the entrance in the opposite wall, beyond which laid a flight of stairs leading downward to the entrance to the building. On the left of the doorway was the bar, which traveled almost two-thirds of the left wall, and finally ended by wrapping into the wall itself. Beyond that stood three tables in the left corner, raised on a slight platform which covered the entire upper-left fourth of the large room. Joshua was standing near the back wall, about a meter away from the beginning of the platform. Right behind Joshua, against the wall stood a jukebox which was randomly picking current favorites, until someone paid for a selection. The second attacker was between Joshua and the back wall, and had missed falling onto the jukebox by a matter of inches.
 To the right of the entrance door, the entire right half of the room was sunk in about a half-foot lower than the bar and entrance way itself. The sunken area was split into two areas. The half near the front wall was an area made up of only tables, which several couples were sitting at. The half touching the back wall was made into a dance floor. No one was on the dance floor, but a flashing ball hung from the ceiling, providing part of the lighting in the room. The small, yellow ceiling lights above the bar, and the candles on the tables made up the remainder of the light. Joshua had realized as soon as he entered that the dark, drab outside of the building was not a representation of the quality of the establishment inside.
 Joshua looked around the room and stopped as his gaze shifted to the bar area in front of him. Seated at the bar had been a group of burly looking men that had come in about an hour before Joshua was attacked by the first drunk. Joshua had taken notice of their arrival simply because they came in as a group and that they didn't seem to fit the bar's atmosphere. Most of the people in the bar were people who were dining out, or coming just to see old friends. But the group of burly men seemed to belong more in a "biker" bar than in the TrIRCe Bar. Now, Joshua was almost forced to pay attention to them, since they were now standing and staring at him. The one nearest to him began to speak in a loud, mocking voice.
 "Hahaha... so the little man is impressed he can beat up drunks, is he? What's your name, little man?"
 "My name? My name is Derimond."
 The bikers paused for a moment, then bursted out laughing loudly. Joshua realized that all other conversation in the room had stopped. Almost every pair of eyes in the room was on the confrontation, except the one's that belonged to the people at the bar too drunk to lift their heads. As the bikers continued to laugh, Joshua gave a knowing smile. The confrontation was going to be interesting.
 "Hahaha... Derimond? What the hell kind of name is that? Hey guys, I think we have a funny man here." laughed another one of the bikers. He was one of the ones farthest away from Joshua. His head was completely bald, and he had a large ring protruding from his nose.
 "I think so too..." resumed the first biker. "Maybe we should show him what real fun is... how about it? Shall we give him a free lesson?"
 "Yes, please do. Someone who looks like you do is bound to be funny." Joshua smirked. His smile grew larger.
 The bikers suddenly stopped laughing and faced Joshua. The ones near the back walked around to the front, pushing and knocking tables out of their way, to make room. Joshua could see people slowly getting out of their seats and moving away from the bar area, terrified.
 "Hey... we don't want any trouble!"
 The voice came from the bartender, a guy a couple of the regulars had called "Prince". He moved to stop the biker who had first began talking to Joshua, the one who seemed to be the leader of the group. As the bartender tried to reach out toward him, two other bikers reached over the bar and grabbed him by his shirt and arms. Before he could act, he was thrown backwards into the wall. He slammed into the glass and mirrored shelves of liquor causing the entire area to come crashing down. The bartender and the bottles fell to the ground with a resounding crash. The bartender slumped forward, blood issuing from several parts of his back and head. A woman, who Joshua couldn't make out, screamed out loud. A second later, all the bikers turned their attention back toward Joshua, laughing.
 Joshua slowly took a step backwards as the bikers began to advance slowly toward him. Joshua could have fried them instantly, but in such a close area, he risked hurting himself. Especially since anything he used would need to be big enough to take out eight bikers. On the other hand, eight against one were not good-looking odds, even for someone like Joshua.
 Joshua's train of thought was suddenly cut short. As he looked at the grinning bikers advancing onto him, something flashed past his head and into the ground between him and the advancing bikers. The bikers and Joshua looked down simultaneously.
 A rose was sticking from the ground.

        ****

 "What the hell--?"
 The leader of the bikers quickly turned his head to trace the path of the rose back to its source. It had come from the table/dining area. Joshua and the rest of the bikers looked also, but all they saw was a crowd of terrified people pushed against the wall. As they scanned the room for the source of the floral projectile, a voice suddenly called out from the crowd.
 "For those who would terrorize these innocent people and for those who would follow the path of darkness... I will punish you!"
 The voice came from the center of the crowd. As Joshua and the bikers looked on, the crowd slowly parted, revealing a man dressed in a business suit and hat. As the crowd parted, he slowly began to walk forward, stopping midway between the crowd and the bikers and Joshua.
 "Who the hell are you?" shouted the Leader. Joshua almost asked the same question. He knew of only one rose-throwing, moral-spouting person, but the person standing there had a different face. It was similar, but the hair was black, instead of brown, and it was not curly.
 "Wait a minute... your not--" Joshua began. His words was cut off by the figure.
 "No, Joshua. I am." shouted the figure as he reached into the lapel of his suit. From it, he drew a red rose. "MOOGLE LIGHT TRANSFORMATION!"
 With a quick flash of white light, the figure changed from a straight, black-haired business-suited man to a curly, brown-haired tuxedo-wearing man. A white eye mask and top hat also appeared on his head. Behind him trailed a long, flowing cape. As he transformed, the crowd behind him issued a single gasp of surprise in unison.
 "I am... Tuxedo Moogle!"
 "But--but how? How did you--?" Joshua spurted. This time he stopped himself. He suddenly realized how. The Luna Pen. The Scouts had told him about it, but this was the first time he had seen it in action.
 "Oh ho, another one! And this one looks like he is ready for a costume party! Hahaha!" the Leader laughed. "Watch this... I am going to hurt him good, too."
 The lead biker began to move away from Joshua and towards Tuxedo Moogle. He paused for a second, then rushed Moogle with a shout. He lunged at Tuxedo Moogle and took a huge swing with his burly fist. As he punched, Tuxedo Moogle gave a grunt, and leapt high into the air. He flipped over the Leader as he rushed past the spot where Moogle had been standing. Tuxedo Moogle dropped to his feet and swiveled to face the Leader, who was stopping his momentum and turning back towards Tuxedo Moogle.
 "What the--? All right. That's it."
 The Leader screamed deafeningly as he charged the still-calm Tuxedo Moogle. This time, he held a butterfly knife in his hand, which he produced from somewhere, as he lunged at Tuxedo Moogle. Moogle waited until the last possible moment, and quickly pulled a side-step and a quarter-turn. The Leader rushed past the front of Moogle, slashing at the spot were Moogle had been. As he slashed, Tuxedo Moogle swung his foot into the stomach of the Leader as he continued moving forward. The blow stopped the biker instantly, causing him to drop the knife he held, and to double-up in pain. Tuxedo Moogle paused for an instant, smiled, then leapt into the air again. This time he jumped just high enough to land on the Leader's back while he was doubled-over gripping his stomach. The instant he touched the Leader's back, leapt off into the air again and landed on a near-by table. Moogle quickly turned and watched the Leader straighten up painfully and turn toward Tuxedo Moogle.
 "Show-off..." Joshua whispered as he, the bikers, and the crowd watched in stunned silence.
 The Biker Leader charged again, this time with even more anger. As he ran toward the table, Tuxedo Moogle leapt again. This time he flipped over the Leader and landed next to the bar, behind the bikers. The Biker Leader's forward momentum propelled him into the table, catching him in the mid-section. He groaned in pain and slowly straightened up, screaming at the top of his lungs. He slammed his fist onto the surface of the table, causing some of the crowd to scream. The table splintered into two pieces under the impact of his blow. The Biker Leader shouted another scream and again charged Tuxedo Moogle again, as Moogle gave a mock look of being impressed by the Leader's strength. He smiled slightly as the Leader charged him.
 "I'm done playing. Let's end this." Tuxedo Moogle spoke softly as his smile disappeared.
 Just as the Biker Leader reached him, Tuxedo Moogle suddenly flipped up into a handstand on the bar's surface, kicking the Biker Leader sharply as he flipped upwards. The Leader took a step backwards in pain as Tuxedo Moogle completed the backflip handstand by pushing off the top of the bar. He landed behind the bar on his feet directly across from the stunned Biker Leader. Tuxedo Moogle spun on his heel in a full 180 degree turn, grabbing one of the few remaining, undamaged bottles behind him on the broken glass shelf.  He spun again, completing a circle by turning to face the Leader once again. As he came about, he swung the bottle straight into the side of the Biker Leader's head. The bottle shattered instantly as it connected, spraying liquid and glass everywhere. The Leader spasmed once, like he had been hit with an electric shock, and dropped to the ground in front of the bar unconscious.
 "It looked like you could have used a drink." Tuxedo Moogle said, turning to face the other bikers. "I guess I was wrong. Oh well."
 The other biker's quickly glanced at each other, then to their fallen leader, and then back to themselves. A second later they were rushing for the door, pushing each other to be the first one out. A moment later, they were gone. Tuxedo Moogle slowly turned to Joshua.
 "Hello again..." spoke Moogle, pausing, "Traquen."
 "Ah. Impressive, Light-man." said Traquen mockingly, "What lead you to believe I was Traquen? The way I snapped that drunk's arm in two? Or the way I smashed that other one's face with a stool?"
 "Does it really matter? All that matters is that your back somehow, so I'm here to help Joshua regain control and force you out."
 "Oh. If that is all you've come to do... your mission is accomplished then."
 "What? What do you mean?" Moogle spoke. He paused slightly as he leapt over the bar.
 "Do you not see, Light-man? Joshua is still in control."
 Tuxedo Moogle stopped short. Traquen's words caught him off-guard.
 "What do you mean? What trick are you trying to play this time?"
 "No trick, Light-man. It is quite simple, really. Joshua Thelios Derimond and Traquen are one person now." shouted Traquen, a sense of triumph in his voice, "There is no more Joshua Derimond, and there is no more Traquen. They have merged completely under one mind and one body. You may call me just plain old Derimond."
 Tuxedo Moogle suddenly took a step back in horror. That wasn't possible, was it? Traquen could be lying for some reason, but what would he gain?
 "It is finally over, light-man. I have finally beaten Joshua Derimond once and for all. Now... all that remains is me. Consider me Traquen... but with a personality you know so well." Derimond roared as he tilted his head back laughing. He slowly looked at Tuxedo Moogle again, the laugher gone from his face. "I hate to say it, Light-man, but you are no match for the combined powers of Traquen and Joshua. If give up now, though, I will give you a painless death."
 "Never... who ever you are! Spit forth easy answers, and change minor things all you like, but you will always be one thing. Evil. And I know that somewhere in there the goodness of Joshua rests. And I am going to find it, or die trying."
 "I could not have said that better myself. Since Joshua is, in fact, gone... it looks like you are going to die." screamed Derimond, as he trusted his hand upward. In it he held the Io Transformation Pen.
 "IO TRANSFORMATION POWER!"

      ****

 "Looks like a storm is coming."
 Serena turned away, and looked up. She also saw that the clear night sky had become covered in dark, foreboding clouds. She shivered slightly, and looked back at Lita.
 "Oooo... I hate storms."
 Lita smiled slightly and chuckled.
 "I know you do, Serena. But, think of it like this... if it is as cold as it feels, that might be a snow storm."
 "Really? You think? I love snow."
 Luna sighed hopelessly as Lita began to laugh softly again.
 "Boy, that's a mood swing if I ever saw one..." Luna spoke. Her fur was plumed outward, as far as possible. Even she was feeling the effects of the cold air.
 Lita slowly stopped laughing and grew serious. A small, sly smile appeared on her face.
 "So.. Serena... you want to talk about it?"
 "Talk about what?"
 "Oh...you know... You and Matt. you can't hide that there is something going on between you two from me!"
 Serena quickly looked away and began to blush. Luna saw it and smiled again, knowing she had hit something big. Serena turned her head back to Lita, and was about to answer, when something caught her eye. Lita saw Serena staring past her shoulder, and turned to look. Coming up the road at a quick jog was Rei, Mina, Artemis, and Ami. Lita could hear Mina's "We found them!" as they ran up to them. As they approached, Rei looked around and grew a worried look as she reached the others.
 "REI! Mina! Boy, I'm glad to see you! Where were you guys?" Serena questioned happily.
 "Where's Matt? And Philly?" spoke Rei, complete ignoring Serena's questions. Serena became slight agitated when she got no response.
 "What? No hello?" Serena asked in a hurt tone.
 "Not now Serena! Where are Matt and Philly?"
 "W-why? They're inside that building. We found Joshua, and they went in to get him. What's wrong, Rei?"
 "Oh no... they went in alone? How long ago did they go in?"
 "About 15 minutes ago... WHY? What's wrong, Rei?"
 "Matt didn't tell you, did he?"
 "Tell me what?"
 "Do you remember when we were hit with Joshua's presence? Well, it wasn't just Joshua's presence. I thought for sure that he would have told you by now. Serena, we also felt Traquen's presence."
 "Wha-what?! Traquen?"
 "Serena... Matt and Philly are in there with Traquen... alone."
 "Oh my god... We have to help them befo--"
 Serena's voice was suddenly cut off by the sound of an explosion. The entire group glanced up to the second floor of the building where the bar was. As the group looked up, every window on the second floor flashed and pulsated with a dark green light.
 "...before it's too late..."

   ****

 Tuxedo Moogle flung himself over the bar and onto the floor behind it, just as the dark blast of energy slammed into the front of the bar, blowing a hole straight through it. Matt covered his head as pieces of wood from the bar rained down on him.
 "Hahahaha... nice moving, Light-man. But, how long do you think you can avoid me? I know your scared, Light-man, but this is very unbecoming of you."
 Tuxedo Moogle suddenly jumped to his feet and leapt on top of the mostly-destroyed bar. With a lunge, he jumped off and launched himself with a shout straight at Sailor Io, who was standing the middle of the room. Behind him stood the horrified crowd of people.
 Sailor Io threw out his arms toward Moogle, and fired a beam of dark green energy again. This time, the beam struck Tuxedo Moogle as he flew toward Sailor Io. The force of the beam launched Moogle upwards higher into the air, almost to the ceiling, and straight over the head of Sailor Io.  Sailor Io watched with a smile as Moogle's momentum carried him straight into the top of the back wall. He slammed into the wall with a resounding 'thud', and dropped to the ground, into the middle of the crowd. His hat and eye mask fell off from the force of the landing, as he rolled over and looked dazedly up into the crowd, which had formed a circle around him to avoid him when he fell.
 "P-P-Philly..." Moogle whispered, his own voice hurting his throat. His eyes slowly rolled into the back of his head, and he passed out.
 "Hahahaha... well, I must give you credit. That was most brave of you to charge me. Perhaps a little dim-witted... but definately brave." spoke Sailor Io, dark energy crackling around him. His gaze shifted from Tuxedo Moogle to the crowd around him. "If you do not move away from him, I will kill all of you."
 Fearing their own lives, every person in the crowd moved away from Tuxedo Moogle's prone body and back against the far walls. Sailor Io continued laughed as they moved, then focused his attention on Tuxedo Moogle.
 "No one is going to save you now. Not your friends on the street, for one. Oh yes, I know about them, and I have already taken measures to stop them. While you were dealing with those thugs, I set up a force field that will prevent anyone from entering. But, I will be able to leave freely once I finally destroy you. That is the beauty of it. You can get out, but you can't get in. I will have so much fun watching your friends horrified faces as I walk right up to them, and kill each one with my bear hands."
 Sailor Io slowly stopped laughing. His demeanor and voice grew cold as he continued:
 "You have cost me alot of time and effort, Light-man. But, as I have always told you, you cannot win in the end. It was just a matter of time before I beat you. And now, I can finish what I started, and take over this insignificant world! But first... I have some unfinished business to take care of..." Sailor Io paused, as a wicked smile grew on his face. "Like showing that little moon-child just what I can do to people. Just like I showed your precious Sailor Mercury..."
 Without warning, a scream pierced the air, silencing Traquen's shouting at the unconscious Tuxedo Moogle.
 "DAMN YOU! I'll kill you for what you did to her!!"
 Sailor Io realized the voice was coming from behind him, by the bar. He turned his head just in time to see a bolt of blue lighting careening towards him. He threw up his arms in a feeble defense as the bolt struck him. Sailor Io was instantly blasted into the air backwards, toward the limp body of Tuxedo Moogle. Sailor Io slammed into the ground and began to uncontrollably roll. When he finally came to a stop, he lifted his head up and looked at the bar to see a woman from the crowd standing on the bar, blue lightning swirling around her hands. Sailor Io realized who it was.
 "Philly! How--?"
 "Easy... I was here the whole time. Remember, the Luna Pen? Now, you Hell-spawn, get up off the ground. I am going to kill you where you stand!" screamed Philly as loud as she could, her voice an unnatural wail. Her hair was being blown by a wind only she could feel. Around her a blue aura of energy crackled and pulsed. Her hands and eyes flared with a dark blue energy.
 Sailor Io had never seen Philly angry, or wielding that kind of power. He wished that it could have stayed that way. Slowly, he rose to his feet, every part of his body feeling like it was barbecued. He looked up at her and slightly convulsed.
 "Philly, why do not talk to me first? Tell me... why does Mercury's situation disturb you so?"
 Philly suddenly leapt off of the bar into the air. To Sailor Io's surprise, and everyone else's, she began to float.
 "No! No more talk, Traquen!"
 Philly shot her hands forward and shouted again. As she did, a large bolt of blue lightning flashed from her hands and straight at Sailor Io. He took the entire brunt of the blast and dropped to his knees groaning in pain. As he knelt, whitering, under Philly's lightning attack, Philly turned her head toward the two small crowds of people on either side of the bar.
 "GO! NOW! Get out of here!!"
 The people didn't need to be told twice. Within ten seconds, the only people left in the bar were Philly, Sailor Io, Tuxedo Moogle, and the two unconscious drunks. Philly continued to blast Sailor Io with her blue lightning. As she did, he managed to scream out in one breath:
 "If you kill me, you will Joshua!"
 Philly suddenly halted her attack. She quickly dropped to the ground, in front of the kneeling Sailor Io. Her face held a mixed look of absolute horror and fearful anger. She continued to stand and stare as Sailor Io rose to his feet slowly, coughing.
 "If you destroy me... you will destroy Joshua also. Our body and minds are connected. When the one goes, so does the other. It is a sad situation is it not? You can not hurt me, because of your devotion to Joshua Derimond."
 To his horror, Philly suddenly reached out and grabbed him by his neck. She slowly raised him off of his feet. Sailor Io gagged in surprise as he wiggled in her iron grip.
 "I want him back! I want him back now! I swear, if you don't bring back Joshua... I'll kill you right now."
 Sailor Io gagged, then spoke in a choked voice.
 "I-I told you... Philly... I-I am... I am Joshua!"
 Philly suddenly closed her eyes and dropped Sailor Io. He dropped to his knees and began rubbing his neck. Philly turned away slightly, and began to cry.
 "N-no... that's not right. It can't be..." Philly sobbed as Sailor Io rose to his feet again. As soon as he straightened out, Philly twirled around, her eyes flaring a dark blue.
 "YOUR LYING!" screamed Philly as she closed her eyes and screamed. She slammed her open palms onto Sailor Io's chest and screamed again. Sailor Io didn't have a chance to react before blue lightning exploded off of Philly's hands, and straight into his chest.
 Sailor Io screamed in horror as he exploded away from Philly's hands, and into the air backwards. The force of the blast shot him back against the far wall. Unfortunately, there wasn't a wall where Sailor Io struck.
 There was a window.

          ****

 "What the--?"
 The scouts watched as the door to the TrIRCe Bar swung open, revealing a mass of people running in terror from the building, apparently unaffected by the forcefield. The scouts, Luna, and Artemis looked at each other in surprise as the flood of people pushed past them and into the street, where the group promptly scattered, each person heading their own way.
 "The shield must be down! LET'S MOVE!" shouted Artemis, as the realization dawned on him. The group had been blocked from entering the bar by some-kind forcefield when they tried to get inside after Rei explained what was going on. They all had transformed and attempted to bring the field down by force, but none of them had met with success until, somehow, the invisible shield dropped and out poured what had appeared to be everyone in the bar, minus Matt, Philly, and Joshua.
 "RIGHT!" shouted the scouts in unison as they charged the doorway. None of them had managed to get more then a couple feet, when the sound of an explosion coming from the side of the building rocked the area. The group instantly stopped and looked around.
 "What was that?!" questioned Sailor Moon.
 "I don't know... but it came from the right side of the building. What should we do?" answered Sailor Venus. The group remained silent for a moment, when suddenly Luna spoke up.
 "Listen... Sailor Mars, Jupiter, and Venus should head around to the side of the building and check out the explosion. Sailor Moon, Sailor Mercury, Artemis and I will head inside and see what's going on. ok?"
 "OK!" shouted Jupiter, as she, Mars, and Venus took off toward the side of the building. Within moments, Sailor Moon, Sailor Mercury, Luna, and Artemis were alone.
 "Hurry up, Sailor Moon! We have to get inside!" shouted Mercury as she flashed a quick look up toward the second floor. Sailor Moon, Luna, Artemis, and her quickly raced into the first floor landing, completely unrestricted by the forcefield that once was there.
 "Your right, it is gone." gasped Sailor Moon, as she paused and began to race up the stairs to the bar area. She noticed that since the explosion she had not heard a single sound come from the bar, including the jukebox. She quickly jumped the last step and came to a stop in the doorway to the bar. A second later Mercury, Luna, and Artemis were at her side.
 The first thing that the group saw was the fact that the bar was all but completely destroyed. The bar was blown-apart, the tables had been flipped and destroyed, wood from stools and chairs was scattered across the floor, and a window along the right wall had been broken. The second thing that group caught at first glance was that several bodies were strewn about the floor.
 One of these was Tuxedo Moogle, with Philly kneeling over him.
 "Oh no!" cried Sailor Moon as she bolted into the room, dodging tables and chairs. She quickly made her way over to Tuxedo Moogle, as Sailor Mercury, Luna, and Artemis quickly followed.
 "Oh my... is he.. is he...?" stammered Sailor Moon as she came to a stop standing over the kneeling Philly. Philly quickly turned her head upward toward Sailor Moon in surprise. She regained her composure and stood, turning to face Sailor Moon.
 "No... it's alright. He's just unconscious..." whispered Philly, placing a soothing hand on Sailor Moon's shoulder.
 "Oh... thank heaven..." cried Sailor Moon, as she suddenly knelt down and scooped up Tuxedo Moogle's head gently into her arms. She sat cradling his head trying to hold back her tears as Philly moved away and joined Sailor Mercury, Luna, and Artemis.
 "But he did take some nasty blows... He tried to take down Joshua, but Joshua surprised him with an energy blast."
 Ami suddenly turned and looked at Philly with an intense gaze.
 "Joshua! Where is he?"
 "It's a long story." replied Philly, trying to speak in her most calming voice, "But..."
 Instead of continuing, Philly slowly tilted her head toward the broken window. Ami stood motionless for a second, realization dawning on her. She suddenly gasped, and brought her hand to her mouth as a look of horror came over her.
 "You don't mean... oh my god... is he alright? What happened?" cried Mercury, her words coming out almost too fast for Philly to understand.
 "While he was distracted with taunting Matt, I surprise attacked him. I blasted him out of the window. After that, I ran over to Matt to check to make sure he wasn't..." said Philly, hesitating to say the word "die" in front of Sailor Moon, "...and then you showed up."
 "Wait. Joshua went through that window?" spoke up Luna, a serious look on her face, "Then that means the explosion we heard... oh no! Sailor Mercury! You have to warn the the other scouts! They're going to run into Traquen!"
 Sailor Mercury gave a quick nod and reached for her communicator. But as she did, another, larger explosion suddenly rocked the entire building. Sailor Moon let out a shout as the entire room shook violently, and suddenly plunged into darkness.
 "The power's died!" shouted Philly as she reached for support from a table she remembered being right next to her. The shaking slowly subsided, leaving the group in total darkness, and total silence.
 "We've got problems. The blast came from the street below!" shouted Mercury from the darkness.
 "But... that's where the other scouts are!" replied Philly, looking toward the night sky showing through the broken window.

          ****

 Sailor Jupiter stopped dead in her tracks as she rounded the corner of the building.
 "Look!" whispered Jupiter, pointing. Mars and Venus rounded the corner, stopped, and looked in the direction that Jupiter was pointing. In he middle of the street that stretched out before them, laid a body in the middle of a pool of light, cast by a nearby streetlight.
 The body was Joshua Derimond's.
 Without saying another word, the group slowly began to advance toward the prone body, cautious of any trickery. They all stopped just beyond the circle of light which Joshua's unmoving body was lying face up in. His eyes were close and his chest was not moving.
 "I think he's dead..." whispered Mars as she slowly moved away from Jupiter and Venus and drew closer to the body. She stopped next to the body and knelt down next to it, never taking her eyes from the face of Joshua.
 "I'm not getting a pulse..." spoke Mars as she placed her fingers slowly onto Joshua's neck, "But with Iosion physiology, I'm not even sure if he even has a pulse."
 Sailor Mars was about to stand up again and declare Joshua truly dead, when she suddenly gasped in horror.
 Joshua's eyes flew open.
 "Your right, Mars. I do not have a pulse!" shouted Joshua as his eyes turned up to look at Sailor Mars. Before she could react, his hand shot up and clamped down on the wrist of her hand that was still touching his neck.
 "Surprise!" shouted Joshua as a smile appeared on his face. His eyes suddenly shot down to Sailor Mars's wrist. A second later, his hand ignited with a dark green flame which instantly raced up the arm of Sailor Mars, and onto the material of her outfit. She let out a scream of pain and stumbled backwards onto the ground, gripping her flaming arm as Joshua let go of her wrist. He instantly flipped to his feet, never losing his evil grin.
 "VENUS CRESENT BEAM SMASH!"
 "JUPITER THUNDER CRASH!"
 Instantly, a beam of yellow energy and a bolt of lightning shot out from the darkness beyond the ring of light.
 "DARK ENERGY SHIELD... ENERGIZE!!!" shouted Joshua as he threw his hands forward. As he did, both blasts slammed into an energy shield which suddenly appeared around Joshua. The blasts were instantly absorbed by the shield, which winked out of existence the second the blasts disappeared.
 "Damn! He blocked it!" shouted Jupiter as she dived away from Joshua. Sailor Venus ran over to Sailor Mars, who was screaming in agony. The flame had gone out, but Mars's arm was burnt slightly.
 "Aw, running away? But we have only just begun playing!" screamed Joshua, thrusting his hands into the air. Instantly, the Staff of Io appeared in his right hand. His face and voice grew extremely calm and low.
 "Io... fire... storm..." whispered Joshua, pausing. He thrusted the staff forward violently as his voice suddenly exploded with volume and anger.
 "ANNIHALATE!!"
 Instantly, the entire area exploded into dark green flame and energy. The scouts were instantly blasted into the air and out into the street in front of the bar by the wall of energy. Mars, Venus, and Jupiter's screams were drowned out by the sound of the energy as it rushed past them. Over the sound of the explosion could be heard the sound of windows and powerlines exploding under the intense blast. A moment later, the blast pasted the scouts, who dropped to the ground instantly, their bodies burnt and blasted.
 "Well, Scouts... it is late, and I have to run. I hope you die well!" shouted Joshua has he heaved the Staff of Io above his head again.
 "DARK... SOLAR...WI--"
 "MOON TIARA MAGIC!"
 "What?" shouted Joshua, looking up in time to see a spinning disk of energy careening toward him from the second story window of the bar. Before he could react, the disk slammed into his raised staff, slicing it cleanly in half.
 "NO!!" Joshua managed to shout as he looked up at his decapitated staff with a look of horror.
 He looked up in time to see the severed staff explode in his hands.
 The explosion knocked Joshua backwards several yards. He dropped to the cold pavement completely stunned. He slowly shook off the numbness and looked up in time to see a darkened figure standing over him.
 "For one who would burn my friends with your dark power..." called the figure from the darkness.  Joshua recognized the voice as Sailor Moon's. "In the name of the Moon... I will punish you!"
 "I doubt that!" shouted Joshua as he suddenly threw himself into a roll just as a blast from Sailor Moon's Scepter slammed into the ground where he had been.
 "IO TELEPORT!" screamed Joshua, disappearing in a flash of dark green light.
 "Huh? Where did he go?"
 Joshua reappeared an instant later on top of the roof of the TrIRCe Bar. He quickly stood and shook himself off.
 "Now, Moon-brat. Your are mine!" whispered Joshua as he ran to the edge of the roof and looked down. He saw below him the figure of Sailor Moon looking for him in the darkness.
 "Death should not be this easy... or fun." whisper Joshua, smiling coldly to himself. He slowly raised his hand outward and pointed it toward Sailor Moon.
 "Shouldn't you deal with me first, Joshua?" called a voice from behind Joshua. He quickly whirled to see Sailor Mercury standing in the middle of the roof.
 "Hello, Mercury. I wondered what happened to the rest of the Scouts." spoke Joshua, shaking off his surprise. "How did you find me?"
 "I didn't." replied Mercury, her voice completely calm, "I have been here the whole time. I figured out that this would be the most likely place for you to go if you needed an escape route. And here you are..."
 "They always said that you were quite intelligent. But, did you also figure out that now that you are here, I am going to kill you?" said Joshua as he took a step towards Mercury, a evil grin appearing on his face.
 "I don't think you can kill me."
 Joshua stopped short. He thought his ears had betrayed him.
 "And just what do you think makes you so special that I will not kill you like I am going to kill the others?" Joshua shouted across the space between them. As he did, Traquen's claymore appeared in his hand.
 "Because." calmly spoke Mercury, pausing, "You care to much for me. You said that yourself."
 "What?" roared Joshua, laughing. "Do not be ridiculous! I did not care for you when I raped you, and I do not care for you now."
 Mercury lost some of her composure when Joshua mentioned the past, but she continued on, fighting to keep her emotion from her voice.
 "No. That wasn't you. That was Traquen. Joshua would never do something like that."
 "I am not Joshua."
 "No. You are Joshua! I can feel it. Joshua is in you, and I know as long as he's part of whatever you say you've become, he won't bring himself to kill me."
 "Foolish girl. I have all but killed that idiotic Tuxedo Moogle, and I am about to kill your friends. Do you really think I have any reservations about killing you, too?"
 "Well... you haven't killed me yet. And I don't think you will." spoke Mercury, slowly relaxing her body and closing her eyes. "And I'm willing to bet my life on it."
 "Then you will lose it just as quickly!" Joshua screamed, charging the unmoving Mercury head on.
 Sailor Mercury held her position and waited for the blow from Joshua's claymore to come, as Joshua rushed forward.
 It never did.
 Sailor Mercury continued to wait for what seemed an eternity, but the blow never came. She finally risked opening her eyes to see what had happened. When she did, she received the greatest surprise of her life.
 Joshua Derimond was gone.

      ****

 "I will take your head and place it in my throne room back on Io if I get you, Moon-child. Did you know that?"
 To her own amazement, as well as Joshua's, Sailor Moon blocked every attack Joshua made with his claymore. She looked down at Moon Scepter in her hand in bewilderment as she watched herself parry a thrust from Joshua, and swing the scepter straight into Joshua's mid-section. The look on Joshua's face as he stumbled back, breathless, was almost comical.
 "So... the little one has... has a back-bone after all! Then that is what... I'll have to take out of you first. DIE SAILOR MOON!" screamed Joshua as he charged her again. The last three words were almost the exact same words he used when he reappeared in front of her in a blast of dark green light moments before. His reappearance had caught Sailor Moon off guard, but she somehow miraculously managed to fend off his first barrage of attacks. She was doubtful she could do it again.
 "MOON SCEPTER ELEMINATION!"
 Incredibly, Joshua managed to place his sword in just the right position to deflect the blast of energy that Sailor Moon fired from her scepter. As the beam deflected past, Joshua raced in with inhuman speed toward Sailor Moon. Before she could react, Joshua slammed his claymore into the handle of the scepter, causing Sailor Moon to drop it instantly.  As he knocked her scepter away, he swept out his foot and connected with the back of Sailor Moon's calf, causing her to drop to her knees in pain. She could only look up as Joshua raised his sword above his head for the final blow.
 "Good night, Moon-child." whispered Joshua as he stood towering over Sailor Moon, his white hair whipping around in the cool night air. His eyes were glowing with a dark green fury. He glanced past Sailor Moon toward Sailor Mars, Venus, Jupiter, who were still all unconscious on the street.
 "Enjoy Hell for me!!" shouted Joshua, laughing dementedly as he brought his sword down.
 But as before, the blow never connected.
 Sailor Moon watched unflinchingly as a line of laser-red light flashed by her, and caused Joshua's sword to stop it's downward movement. Sailor Moon slowly raised her gaze from the tip of Joshua's sword up to his arm, where she saw what stopped his attack.
 A rose was sticking from his shoulder.
 "I hate it when he does that!" yelled Joshua as he watched as his dark red Iosion blood began to trickle from the rose stem.
 "You know, your right. That does seem to happen alot, doesn't it?" called a voice from above. Both Joshua and Sailor Moon looked up in time to see a dark figure drop to the ground near them from the sky.
 It was Tuxedo Moogle. A moment later, Philly dropped down next to him.
 "I thought I would at least rid myself of you until I finished off your friends. But, it looks like underestimated your power to recover from your own mistakes." spoke Joshua as he pulled the rose from his arm and threw it to the ground, crushing it under his heel.
 "Come on, Traquen! You know it's me you want..." called Tuxedo Moogle, still without his hat and mask. "Why don't you deal with me before you deal with them?"
 Joshua slowly glanced down to the kneeling Sailor Moon, then back to Tuxedo Moogle. He paused for a second, as if thinking, then suddenly shouted:
 "Just one thing, Light-man. I am not Traquen!!"
 Joshua flung his claymore high above his head and charged Tuxedo Moogle, screaming. Tuxedo Moogle took a receiving position as his long sword appeared in his hand in a flash of light.
 "Philly! Get Sailor Soon out of here! I'll deal with Joshua myself. We have some unfinished business." called Tuxedo Moogle as he brought his sword above his head and blocked Joshua's overhead swing.
 "Are you prepared to die, Light-man?" shouted Joshua, bringing his sword around for a thrust. As he did, Philly ran to Sailor Moon and helped her to stand and move away.
 "Where's Luna and Artemis?" whispered Sailor Moon to Philly as Philly carried her away.
 "They've gone to get help for the people in the bar. Don't ask how, but they have..." replied Philly as she turned to look at Moogle and Joshua.
 "I do not fear death, Traquen. Nor do I fear you!" replied Moogle, parrying Joshua's thrust.
 "Fear is relative, Light-man. Given enough time, I can make you fear my very name. But for now, I doubt you will be around long enough for that." countered Joshua, backflipping and dodging a slice by Tuxedo Moogle.
 "You've underestimated me in the past, Traquen. And I think you just did it again." shouted Tuxedo Moogle, releasing a volley of blows towards Joshua. Joshua skillfully deflected each one.
 As Joshua deflected the blows, Sailor Moon noticed that Joshua suddenly caused something to appear in his hand. It was a dagger.
 "TUXEDO MOOGLE! LOOK OUT!"
 Tuxedo Moogle saw the dagger in time. As Joshua pushed Moogle back with a blow, he suddenly lunged himself toward Moogle, the dagger pointed for Moogle's heart. Tuxedo Moogle suddenly shot out his hand, and grabbed Joshua's wrist with an inhuman strength in mid-lunge. Joshua watched, stunned, as Moogle disarmed him one-handed. The moment of surprise from Joshua was all Moogle needed to react. He suddenly leapt straight into the air and launched a sideways-kick that connected with the side of Joshua's head. Joshua stumbled back more in surprise than pain. As he stumbled backwards, Moogle quickly dropped to the ground and slashed at Joshua's claymore with all his strength. It was enough to knock the claymore from Joshua's grip and into the air. As the claymore flew onto the ground several feet from Joshua, Tuxedo Moogle launched another kick straight into the mid-section of Joshua. Again the kick connected, this time dropping the stunned Joshua to his knees. Seizing the opportunity, Tuxedo Moogle brought his sword up to the neck of Joshua.
 "Your beaten, Traquen! You've lost! And it's time you met the Hell you've been trying to create!" cried Tuxedo Moogle heaving the sword above his head, like Joshua had done to Sailor Moon. In the sky above him, a bolt of lightning flashed from the approaching storm.
 "NO! STOP!! If you kill him you will kill Joshua!! Joshua is in there! He's still there!"
 The voice rang out through air, causing everyone to look toward the source. The source was Sailor Mercury, who was running up the street from the front of the bar. She was running as fast she could to reach the group.
 "YOU CAN'T KILL HIM!! PLEASE! You have to heal him! Joshua is still there, and he needs our help!" shouted Sailor Mercury as she approached. Joshua suddenly looked back to Tuxedo Moogle, and realized that Moogle was distracted. Tuxedo Moogle instantly realized his mistake, but it was too late.
 Joshua's arm shot out and connected with Tuxedo Moogle's chest at full force. As soon as it touched, Joshua made his move.
 "DARK ENERGY... ELECTRIFY!" yelled Joshua. An instant later, a large bolt of dark energy fired from his hand and straight into the stunned Tuxedo Moogle. Moogle shouted in pain and dropped to his knees, dropping his long sword to the ground. Before anyone knew what was happening, Joshua was on his feet with Tuxedo Moogle's long sword in hand.
 "No, Light-man... you are wrong. You have lost. And now you can go to Hell in my place!"
 Joshua quickly brought the long sword back for a slash, but before he could move, another voice rang out.
 "MOON CRYSTAL HEALING ACTIVATION!!"
 The blast of pure energy struck the back-side of Joshua with full force. Tuxedo Moogle watched in amazement as Joshua suddenly stepped back and dropped the sword. He suddenly gripped the sides of his head and screamed in pain as his body bathed in a white light.
 "DAMN! I THOUGHT THIS WASN'T SUPPOSE TO HAPPEN!!" howled Joshua as he stumbled backwards. "ZEROMEUS!! NOOOOO! I...HAVE... TO... ESCAPE..."
 Philly loudly shouted as Joshua stumbled back:
 "Keep it up Sailor Moon! Your doing it! Just a little more!"
 "NOOOO! GOT... GOT TO ESCAPE... I... I... IO... IO TELE...TELE.... IO TELEPORT!" screamed Joshua. He suddenly flashed with dark energy and disappeared.
 "NOOO! We almost had him!" Sailor Mercury cried, dropping to her knees, looking on in disbelief. Sailor Moon ceased the beam and looked down, frowning.
 "We were so close. Now he could be anywhere."  sobbed Sailor Mercury as she pounded her fist into the ground.
 "No, not anywhere. I know where he's gone."
 Philly, Sailor Moon, and Sailor Mercury looked toward Tuxedo Moogle in unison. He was slowly rising from the ground, gripping his sides. Sailor Moon quickly ran over and helped him stand.
 "What do you mean? How do you know?" questioned Philly, a perplex look on her face and Mercury's.
 "It's... it's simple. If you... you were Joshua... where would... you go to recover?" wheezed Tuxedo Moogle, struggling to stand straight. He slowly managed the feat, with Sailor Moon at his arm, and looked up into the night sky.
 "There is only one place he feels truly safe. Joshua has gone back to Io."

     ****

 "Oh, Matt. Please reconsider! Surely we can wait until your healed!"
 "No, Serena." replied Matt, putting the final touches on his bandage wrappings around his ribs. "Now is the time! He's vulnerable now, and who knows what the healing did to him. Now is our best chance to get him back safely."
 "But--but, why can't one of us at least come with you?"
 "Because. Your all needed here. Mina, Rei, and Lita need to be looked after while they recover, and someone needs to be here to make sure everything is safe. All we need now is to leave the earth unprotected."
 Matt slowly stood up from the chair, and cringed in slight pain as he stretched. He slowly looked at all the eyes intently watching him. The group was back at Serena's, it had been about an hour since the events at the bar. Shortly after Joshua disappeared, an ambulance appeared saying they got an emergency call of a huge electrical fire at the TrIRCe Bar. Mina, Rei, and Lita were taken to the hospital for burn treatment and were told they would have to remain in the hospital for a day or two. Besides Rei trying to explain to her Grandpa what she was doing at a bar, almost everything was taken care of. When Matt, Serena, Philly, and Ami got to Serena's they discovered Luna and Artemis waiting for them. It turned out that it was them who placed the emergency call to the hospital. After filling them on what happened, Philly and Ami set about to tending Matt's wounds.
 "I just wish it didn't have to be this way! I'm scared! What if you don't come back?" whispered Serena, looking downwards.
 Matt slowly turned to face her, and took her face in his hand. He smiled warmly and looked into her eyes.
 "I promise you that I will return. I am not about to let you go on alone, again." whispered Matt softly. Serena stood looking at him for a moment, and slowly embraced him, not wanting to let go.
 "I have to go." Matt said with a tone of sadness, "Just remember why we do this. And also remember that I will be back. I am not going to go away. I will always be there, remember that."
 "I will."
 Matt paused for a moment, and slowly stepped out of the embrace. He quickly got dressed, wearing the outfit he appeared with, and made his way outside. The rest of the group followed him sullenly, all deep in their own thoughts about what was going to happen next.
 "I will return as soon as possible, and if all goes well, Joshua will be with me. So until I return, please stay well. All of you."
 "And you too, Matt. Good luck." whispered Ami.
 "Yes, good luck Matt." seconded Philly, equally quiet.
 Matt turned to look at Serena, who looked at him for a moment, then just turned her head away.
 "One more thing." said Matt, taking a deep breath. He slowly pulled out two roses, one white and one red. He slowly walked over and handed the white one to Serena, who looked up, startled.
 "A token of my promise." Matt whispered softly, "A promise that I will return."
 Serena looked at the rose for a moment, then slowly took it. She paused for a second, then suddenly leaned up and kissed Matt on the cheek. She quickly turned, and ran crying into the house, clutching the rose. Matt watched her go, then slowly turned to the rest of the group.
 "Well, here we go..." said Matt holding the rose above his head and taking a deep breath. "MOOGLE LIGHT TELEPORT!!"
 Instantly, Matt flashed with a bright white light. When the light disappeared, the Philly, Ami, Luna, and Artemis knew they could only wait now and hope.
 Matt was going to Io.

 *** To Be Continued ***

continue to Story 6, part 2
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