Ronin Warriors Fan Fiction / Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ New Friends and New Enemies ❯ Man of My Dreams ( Chapter 2 )

New Friends and New Enemies 2

Man of My Dreams

"How do you know us?" Sailor Venus inquired the man in the fire.

"Who are you?" Mercury asked.

"I am known as the Ancient One," he answered. "I have brought you here to help the Ronin Warriors."

The five scouts gasped. Sailor Moon stepped to the fire.

"So it was you who brought us here then!" she exclaimed. "And all this time I thought it was Beryl!"

"Yes." The Ancient nodded. "Your enemy has joined forces with theirs and therefore you must join with the Ronin warriors. Only then can you defeat Queen Beryl and Talpa."

"I knew it," said Venus. "Those five guys in armor--we're supposed to join with them." She looked at Sailor Moon, Mars and Mercury, "I told you!"

"Yeah," added Jupiter. "Let's go look for them. Where are they?"

"You will find them tomorrow," the Ancient explained. "In the places where their armor draws power."

"What are these five armors?" Mercury asked. "What do they mean?"

"Yeah, where did they come from?" Sailor Moon inquired.

"I made them," he replied.

"No way," she moaned. "Really?"

"It started a thousand years ago," the Ancient One went on, "Talpa came to this world from the Netherworld trying to destroy it. I was the only one able to stop him but it was not enough to keep him from coming back. I made nine separate suits of armor from the large armor Talpa had on his body and infused them with human attributes. Five draw power from the elements-the other four from the seasons."

"And the five powered by the elements are what the Ronin Warriors wear," Sailor Mercury said.

"Correct, Sailor Mercury."

Sailor Moon sat down on the ground cross-legged and looked up at him as if she were a little child during story time. The rest followed suit, listening intently to what the Ancient had to say. Perhaps they never met him before but they knew there was no point in fearing him. They knew that he was on their side and they ought to listen to what he had to say if they wanted to protect both their world and the world of the Ronin Warriors. Sailor Moon watched him closely, trying to look under his hat so she could see his eyes. There was something in his voice. It was echoing and powerful. She swore she heard something like it before and that staff-she saw it-but where? When?

"So that's why Talpa wants the armors," said Mars. "He's trying to piece himself together and become strong again."

"Ancient One, please, tell us," Sailor Jupiter said, "Can you tell us if we can stop Beryl alone?"

"You five can stop the Negaverse," the Ancient One replied, "but four of you will lose your lives in the process. Sailor Moon will be left to finish Queen Beryl by herself."

"What?" Sailor Moon demanded. "No!"

"You would be the first, Sailor Jupiter," Ancient One said, "as strong as you are."

"And that's why you brought us here," Sailor Jupiter mumbled. "You saved our lives."

"Yeah, if it weren't for you," Sailor Venus added, "we'd be dead."

"This Talpa sounds too powerful for us," Sailor Moon said. "I don't think we can stop him." She sat down in front of him like a child during story time and the four scouts did the same. They were listening closely to what he had to tell them, for this man had just saved their lives. The more the Ancient talked the more Sailor Moon felt she knew him.

"That is why you must join forces with the Ronin Warriors," the Ancient went on. "It is the only way for you both to win."

"Can we trust them?" Sailor Mercury asked softly.

"With your very lives," Ancient One replied.

"But we don't know anything about them," Mars insisted.

"The choice is yours," Ancient One said. "The best walked paths are the ones that are chosen."

"I think we need to think about this," said Sailor Moon. "I'm confused. None of this is making sense."

"No surprise there," Mars muttered under her breath.

"Then get some rest," Ancient One instructed. "You will need the energy if you choose to fight against Talpa. I will let you sleep on it. It will be a trying battle but I believe you can win." He held up his staff and they were washed in golden light, changing them into street clothes and making blankets and food appear with them. "Recover your energy. If you choose to fight with the Ronin warriors then you shall succeed. This is your path, make it a journey."

He started to fade out. Serena jumped to her feet and held her hand out.

"Please don't go!" she implored. "Wait!"

"I am with you," his voice echoed as the fire reached over his head and he was gone. Serena frowned and shook her head.

"Serena, are you okay?" Amy inquired.

"Something about him," she said.

"We were watching the way you were looking at him," Mina said, "Do you know him?"

"I don't know," Serena shrugged. "But it's strange. The way he talked…oh, it's nothing. Let's get some sleep. Maybe it will make more sense tomorrow."

"Yeah," Lita yawned, punching her pillow. "If this Talpa dude is as bad as the Ancient One says, then we'd need all the energy we can get."

--

As everyone was asleep, Mia was looking up everything she could about the sailor scouts, finding only nothing. There wasn't a thing about the Moon Kingdom, the Silver Crystal, and Sailor Scouts on her grandfather's disks but she knew that she had heard something about them before. But when? And from whom?

Mia groaned and took out the third disk from the drive. "Nothing on that one either. Grandfather-did you tell me about these Sailor Scouts before? Is there anything about them on here?" Sighing, she poured herself some more coffee. It was three in the morning but she couldn't get to sleep with this weighing on her head. She had to find out about these Sailor Scouts. She took a swig and reached for another disk to check.

"Think, Mia," she told herself, scrolling down. "Could it be something you learned in school? Who told you? Come on, Mia…think…you idiot…"

She was finding nothing on these Sailor Scouts. After searching the rest of her grandfather's computer disks for information, her exhaustion took her over and she fell asleep in the chair.

The guys were sleeping soundly, dreaming about the Ancient One while they were wearing their armor. The Ancient One was there to give them advice but the strange thing was, so was the sailor scouts.

As Ryo approached the giant rock outside the volcano, he stopped and asked himself if he could cut through it.

"You can do it, Ryo!" shouted a voice.

"Huh?"

Ryo turned to see Sailor Mars standing behind him. "I believe in you, Ryo of the Wildfire!" she exclaimed, her brown eyes shining. "I'll help you."

"Hey-you're one of the--"

She walked closer to him. "I'll help you cut through the rock."

"How?"

Sailor Mars put her fingers together as if she were to fire a gun. "MARS FIRE IGNITE!"

To anyone else, a blast of fire would have burned someone to a crisp but with Ryo in his armor of the fire, it gave him the strength, the power to cut through the rock with power he never had before.

"FLARE UP NOW!"

"We make a great team," said Sailor Mars.

"Ryo of the Wildfire," The Ancient summoned, "That was not good enough."

"What do you mean?" Ryo demanded, shocked. "I was stronger than I'd ever been! And she helped me when she hit me with fire. She made me stronger."

"Was there something else we're supposed to do?" Sailor Mars inquired.

"You cannot defeat Talpa with only your power alone." The Ancient said. "Power against power will result in mutual destruction. See if you can cut through this."

The wilderness around them disappeared and they found themselves in darkness except for torches.

"Try to cut this flame," said the Ancient.

Ryo and Sailor Mars did as he told them to do and the fire continued to burn. Ryo held his sword through the flame and Sailor Mars closed her eyes and started to chant. "Fire. Air. Water. Earth. Rock. Light. Sun."

Rowen of the Strata was wearing his battle armor standing in a meadow. Sailor Moon was with him, watching.

"ARROW SHOCK WAVE!"

After he sent his shock wave into the sky, The Ancient appeared to him. "You must understand the limits of our power, Strata."

"I believe in you, Rowen," Sailor Moon whispered.

Sage was meditating in the woods and Sailor Jupiter was watching him. "I believe in you, Sage of the Halo," said Sailor Jupiter.

"THUNDERBOLT CUT!"

He jumped and performed his attack. Sailor Jupiter cheered for him. "I knew you could do it, Sage!"

The Ancient appeared to them. "Your spirit, Halo."

For Kento of the Hardrock and Sailor Venus, they were walking through the desert. A giant sand dune stood in their way, preventing them from going any further.

"I can get us through this," said Kento.

"I know you can, Kento," Sailor Venus beamed. "I believe in you. You can do it."

"IRON ROCK CRUSHER!"

He concentrated on the center of the dune and it was blasted apart. The Ancient came to them. "Your spirit. If you fight with your spirit, you can attack every center and vein in the sand."

"What does that mean?" Kento inquired Sailor Venus.

Sailor Venus was standing next to Cye in the water. A wave was heading toward the two soldiers of water and Cye held out his spear.

"SUPER WAVE SMASHER!"

His attack hit he wave and they both got splashed, but neither of them were complaining. They looked deep in thought.

"I believe in you, Cye," said Sailor Mercury.

"Train your mind, Torrent. Body, skill, spirit, there is no limit to training your spirit."

"I believe in you Ronin Warriors," the scouts whispered. "I believe in your spirit."

--

The Sailor Scouts turned in their sleep with dreams heavy in their own minds. Amy dreamed herself as Sailor Mercury swimming in water toward a whirlpool. Knowing the whirlpool was dangerous; she stopped and went to the surface for more air. "How I love to swim," she said with a smile. "Huh, what's this?"

She looked down in the water she saw Cye of the Torrent in his sub armor swimming toward the whirlpool.

"He's not going to swim into the whirlpool, is he?" she inquired. "That's dangerous!" Sailor Mercury gasped. "No! Get out of the water! Get out!"

"Trust Cye of the Torrent," she heard the Ancient say. "Put your trust in him. He can take it for his power comes from water."

She bit her lip, took a deep breath and submerged in the water again. Cye was swimming freely in the whirlpool. When he saw Sailor Mercury in the water, he swam out toward her, took her by the hand and led her through the whirlpool. She tried to swim away but he pulled her into the fast moving current.

'I love to swim,' Sailor Mercury thought, her eyes closed tightly, 'but there is no way I can swim through this!'

While she was thinking how dangerous it was to swim in this current, she didn't realize that nothing was happening to her. Cye was bringing her safely through the whirlpool, giving her the ride of her life. She slowly opened her eyes and Cye smiled at her. He brought her to the surface so they could get a breath.

"Do you trust me?" Cye asked her.

"I-," Sailor Mercury began. "I-I think so." She saw the kanji of trust glowing on her forehead. She focused on the symbol. 'I know what that means!'

"Trust me," Cye said. "You have to trust me if we are to get through this. Trust the wave. Trust me."

Mercury nodded. Could she trust them now? Time was running out for her to decide. She had to let the current just take her for the ride so she could find out for herself.

--

Sailor Jupiter was walking in a dark prison of a cave. She couldn't see her hand in front of her face, let alone any stalagmites she could bump in, fall on or stalactites that she could walk in or that could fall on her. If she wasn't careful, she could get hurt but she had to find the way out.

"There's got to be way out of here," she said, feeling around with her hands. She got impatient and decided to use her power of thunder to show her the way. "JUPITER THUNDER CRUSH!"

Her ball of lightning went down the eerie passageway and it lit up her path. However, it disrupted sleeping bats hanging from the ceiling and they went flying to her face. Sailor Jupiter screamed, trying to fend them off and she fell down the side.

"Oh no!" she gasped, grabbing on the ledge for something to slow her down. Nevertheless, she continued to fall and she had a very hard landing on the stone floor. Groaning in pain from the bruises and cuts she gained on the way down, she tried to push herself up. She saw light out of the corner of her eye.

"Light!" she cried hopefully. "Finally, have I found the way out?" She lifted herself up and heard a very loud pop in her ankle and felt it snap. She screamed in pain. "Augh! My ankle. I think I broke it on the way down."

She limped to the light. "I'm almost there."

But once she got to the light, she saw that it was not the exit. It was the armor of Halo in a block of ice. Sailor Jupiter put her hand to it.

"Wait a minute," she said. "There's someone in there. He's trapped!" She hit the ice with her fist. "Hey-hey, can you hear me?"

"Protect the light, Sailor Jupiter," said the Ancient. "And the light will set you free."

"Huh?" she asked, turning around.

The Ancient pointed to the ice behind her. "Protect the light. The light will sow you the way."

Sailor Jupiter turned back to the ice, "He's the light? If I let him out of there, he'll help me out of this pitch black cave?"

"Yes."

"Works for me," Sailor Jupiter grinned. "JUPITER THUNDER CRUSH!"

Her attack of thunder split the ice in the shape of a cross and many green beams of light burst through the cracks. Sailor Jupiter shielded her eyes as the ice went flying, cutting her skin and uniform. She screamed and hit the ground to cover herself.

The ceiling began to tremble and one by one, stalactites came falling toward Sailor Jupiter. She threw her arms over her body, waiting for them to impale her.

Then she felt someone standing over her and the stalactites were cut into pieces. She pulled her arms away and there stood Sage of the Halo, bright as the sun.

"Whoa," she breathed, "he's so gorgeous. He's like an angel." Sailor Jupiter struggled to get up.

"Don't move," Sage insisted quickly, "you're hurt. Let me get you out of here." He bent down, picked her up and put her over his shoulder. She went unconscious as he carried her out of the cave and he set her down on the soft grass. Sailor Jupiter blinked and smiled when she saw the sky.

"I'm finally out of the cave," she whispered. "You saved my life."

"I'll heal your wounds," Sage said, holding out his sword. The sun's rays reflected off his sword and touched Jupiter's broken ankle, bruises and cuts. She was healed head to toe. "How do you feel?"

"Great," she answered, getting to her feet. Her ankle was a hundred times better. "Thanks. I could just kiss you!"

Sage blushed and cleared his throat.

--

Sailor Venus was walking around a mountain and she came across a giant stone. "That's a big rock," she said, coming closer to it. She touched the stone and she felt energy inside it. "I wonder what's inside." She stepped back.

"VENUS CRESCENT BEAM SMASH!"

The orange beam zoomed toward the giant stone, making a hole. It wasn't enough to break the stone.

"Try again," she told herself. "You can do this, Venus. VENUS CRESCENT BEAM SMASH!"

The hole enlarged into a crack.

"Third try's a charm. VENUS CRESCENT BEAM SMASH!"

The crack went all the way up and down the stone. Sailor Venus walked closer to the rock and a pair of orange and white armored hands reached out of the crack and pushed it apart. She watched closely as Kento of Hardrock walked out of his resting place.

"You-you were sleeping in there?" she inquired.

Kento nodded. "Yeah. My armor feels stronger now. Let's say we get out of here, okay?"

"All right then," Venus smiled.

--

For Raye, she was having a series of dreams. She dreamed of what would happen if they weren't to join sides with the Ronin Warriors. The Sailor Scouts would not get as close as the Netherworld. They would die trying to get to the castle. There were troops of dynasty and Negaverse soldiers everywhere. Even Sailor Moon wouldn't have a chance with her crystal.

Next, Raye dreamed what were to happen if they did side with the Ronin Warriors. It would be a dangerous and trying battle but it would be quite an adventure. The Ronin Warriors helped them get to the Netherrealm and stop Beryl and Talpa together and they would become very close friends in the process. She dreamed that she was with Ryo of the Wildfire and he was going to slice through a large rock in his path. When she hit him with her fire attack, it gave his armor the energy to cut through it.

"We make a good team, don't we?" Sailor Mars asked.

Ryo nodded, "I'd say so. Come with me."

He led her to a volcano and he began to climb down it.

"Are you crazy?" she demanded, grabbing his arm. "You can get hurt!"

"My armor can take the heat," he said shortly. "It gets its power from heat."

He climbed down inside the volcano and Mars crouched down on the edge, covering her eyes from the smoke. "How can anyone survive down there?"

Seconds later, Ryo jumped out of the volcano, armor steaming from the power the volcano gave him.

"Wow," said Sailor Mars, "his armor can take it. That's amazing!"

--

Serena was dreaming of her as Sailor Moon standing among the ruins of her home, the Moon Kingdom. "My home-all gone-because of Beryl." When she picked up a piece of rubble, she something blue out of the corner of her eye. "What's that?" She stood up and shielded her eyes.

Rowen of the Strata was floating in a dark blue sphere toward the moon. She heard the voice of The Ancient speaking to her.

"Life is the most important thing in the universe," he said. "Your home may be in ruins but remember you still have your life."

Rowen landed on the moon and she walked to him. He held out his hand.

"There is life all around us," said Rowen. "Your home is Earth now."

Sailor Moon paused and took his hand. The bubble went around them and they were carried to Earth.

Another dream quickly followed but it did not have Rowen. Sailor Moon was on Earth, walking inside a building. It was empty but she heard someone talking. It sounded like a poem.

"Torch of Spirit sought through five,

Drinking strength from immortal fire.

Darkest prison sheds the light.

Churning beneath a swirl of salt.

Burning within a throne of rock.

Floating amongst the eyes of the ages.

Unmoored in the stream of the sky."

"Hello?" Sailor Moon called, "anyone here?"

She followed the voice and came to a room. The ancient was sitting cross-legged with his faithful tiger sitting beside him.

"Ancient One," she whispered.

The tiger got up and greeted her by rubbing his head against her.

"White Blaze," said the Ancient. "Come."

"White Blaze," Sailor Moon whispered. "Why does that sound so familiar?"

She walked closer to the ancient and her sailor scout uniform changed and she was dressed like the Ancient. She sat across from him. She ducked, trying to look at his eyes.

"Ancient One, why do you cover your eyes?" she inquired.

"Listen to what I have to tell you, Serena," he said.

"How do you know my name?" Serena asked.

"It is very important," he continued, ignoring her question. "I will show you the armors I made. I created them from Talpa's body."

"Yes, I know that," she said impatiently. "But-how-why is that-that I know you?"

"Virtue. Wisdom. Trust. Justice. Life. Loyalty. Serenity. Piety. Obedience."

The doors behind him to show the nine armors he created. Serena stood up and walked to them. The Ancient turned around but remained sitting. She went to the first one.

"Wildfire," said the Ancient.

"Element of fire?" Serena guessed.

"Yes. Its symbol is virtue."

She looked at the second one. "And this?"

"Halo. Symbol is wisdom." He replied. "Can you guess its element?"

She looked at it and then the others. "Light?"

"That is right, Serena."

Serena walked to the light blue armor. "Torrent. Its element is water," she said quickly.

"You're catching on, my child," the Ancient nodded. "What is its symbol?"

"Trust?"

"Yes. It is trust."

Excited, she walked to the next one. "Armor of Hardrock. Its symbol is justice. Powered by earth and Strata!" she got in front of the next armor and stopped. "It's powered by air and sky."

"What is its symbol?"

"It's life," she whispered.

"Serena, you gave up your life one hundred years ago on the Moon Kingdom," the Ancient said. Serena whipped around.

"How did you know that?" she demanded. "You weren't there!"

"I know you weren't thinking about your life," the Ancient went on. "You killed yourself, Serena when the Negaverse killed your friends and your prince Darien. You did not run or fight back."

"Hold on a minute," Serena said. "How did you know I killed myself? Who told you? Are you reading my mind?"

"Why didn't you fight, Serena?" the Ancient inquired.

"I didn't know how!" she retorted. "The Moon Kingdom was living in peace until the Negaverse decided to ruin it. My friends died trying to stop her! How dare you mock my pain!"

"I wasn't mocking your pain, my child," the Ancient said softly.

"Where do you go off calling me child?" she demanded. "I'm not your child. Who do you think you are, my father?"

"Serena, you will need to fight this time," said the Ancient. "This is your only chance. You can win. You have to believe in yourself. Your mother is no longer here to give you a second chance, my dear."

"Why are you talking to me like this?" Serena questioned. "It's like you know me. But I swear I don't know you. Who are you?"

"You will find out in time," the Ancient replied. "Let's continue."

"Fine," she turned back around. The remaining four armors were different than the other five. "These four are the ones powered by the seasons?"

"Yes."

She looked the armor of cruelty over. "This one is spring?"

"Correct."

"Symbol is Loyalty."

"That is right."

She stepped to the second armor. "Summer. Is symbol is Serenity. That was my mother's name."

"Indeed."

Serena turned back around. "Did you know my mother?" she inquired. "Is that why you named this suit of armor after her?"

He nodded. "I knew Queen Serenity. We were very close."

"She never told me about you," said Serena. "Are you from the Moon Kingdom?"

"I didn't except her to say much about me after what happened," said Ancient One sadly.

"What happened?" Serena inquired.

"Our monastery was attacked," he replied. "Your mother could not stay here. She went back to her home."

"My mother used to be on Earth?" she gasped. "Was she-she a member of the Ancient Clan?"

"Something like that," he answered.

"Tell me more," she prompted.

"I cannot," he said. "It is too soon."

She frowned and went to the remaining two armors. "This armor represents the season of autumn. Its symbol is piety. And this one-winter-obedience. Strange, how do I know this? Why does this place feel so familiar? Have I been here before?"

"This used to be your home once, Serena," said the Ancient.

"My home?" she inquired.

He stood up and walked out of the room. Serena chased him. "Hey, wait! What's going on here? Nothing is making any sense. Why do I know about these armors? How come this place is so familiar? What do you mean this used to be my home? Why don't you look at me? Please, let me see your eyes!"

He stopped, turned around and lifted his hat. Serena craned her neck to see. "Serena," he said.

--

Serena felt the warmth of the sun on her face and it woke her up. She didn't get to finish her dream. The rest of the girls were still sleeping and she sat up.

"That was a weird dream," she said to herself. "Who was that guy?"

Serena stood up and walked away from the girls, taking in a deep breath of air and looking at the rising sun. Then she started speaking words she never spoke before, making symbols with her hands. The other four girls, hearing this, got up.

"What the heck is Serena doing?" Raye demanded.

"She's speaking in tongues," answered Mina. "But I don't know what she's saying."

"It is some ancient language," Amy told them.

"Hey, Serena!" Raye cried. "What are you doing?"

They walked to Serena and Lita shook her shoulder. "Serena, are you okay?"

Serena blinked and shook her head as if she came out of a trance. "What?"

"You were speaking in tongues," Amy said.

"I was?" she raised an eyebrow.

"You mean you don't remember?" Lita inquired. "You were just doing it. You were talking and doing weird things with your hands."

"Like you were going to cast a spell," said Raye.

"That's funny," Serena said. "I didn't know. I think it was from my dream last night. I had two dreams. First I was on the moon and one of the Ronin warriors came to me and the next dream I was talking to the Ancient One about the armors."

"So did I," added Raye, "I had many dreams. I dreamed about the Ronin Warrior with the fire elemental armor and what would happen if we didn't side with them. We wouldn't have a chance."

"So I guess that means we have to find them," Mina said. "But where can they be?"

"Maybe it had something to do with the dreams we had," Lita guessed. "In my dream I was walking around in a cave. I kept getting hurt and then I found the Ronin warrior of light. He took me out of the cave and he healed my wounds. What about you?"

"I dreamed I was swimming," Amy replied. "Then I met the Ronin Warrior with the water armor."

"I met the Ronin Warrior with the earth armor," Mina said. "We were on some kind of mountain."

"But how does that help us find them?" Lita asked. "We don't have time to search every mountain and cave and water hole for these guys!"

Serena began to speak again but she didn't sound like she was in a trance. However, her voice sounded kind of ancient, like the voice of the Moon Princess.

"Torch of Spirit sought through five.

Drinking strength from immortal fire.

Darkest prison sheds the light.

Churning beneath a swirl of salt.

Burning within a throne of rock.

Floating amongst the eyes of ages.

Unmoored in the stream of the sky."

The others stared at her as if Serena had gone crazy. "What did you just say, Serena?" Raye questioned. "I think we'd better get some food, you're talking nonsense."

"Yeah," Mina grinned, "it must be a side effect from hunger."

"It's a poem you guys," Serena groaned. "I'm not talking nonsense because I'm hungry-even if I am-but this poem can help us find them! Listen closely." She repeated the poem and the scouts paid more attention this time.

"The torch of spirit sought through five is the Ronin warriors of the elements," she told them. "The second line about the fire is about the armor of Wildfire."

"Armor of Wildfire?" Raye inquired.

"You saw the Ronin wearing this armor, didn't you know?" Serena demanded.

"The Ancient didn't tell us the names," Lita said. "You mean to tell us you know what the armors are called, Serena?"

"Yeah," she replied. "I know what the Ancient called him and what attributes he tied them with. Wildfire. Halo. Torrent. Hardrock. Strata. Fire. Light. Water. Earth. Air. Virtue. Wisdom. Trust. Justice. Life."

"Serena, how do you know this?" Amy inquired.

"It was from my dream," she replied. "Amy, you dreamed about the Ronin Warrior of Torrent and his symbol of trust. You were wondering if we can trust the ronins and now you can because his attribute is trust. Raye, you dreamed about the warrior of wildfire, his attribute is virtue. Lita, you met the warrior of light and his attribute is wisdom. Mina, you saw the warrior of Hardrock, his is justice. I met the Ronin warrior of strata in space and his is life." She looked up at the sky and turned to the other girls. "Now, we have to split up and find the ronins we saw in our dreams by following this poem. They're going there to train their spirits."

"Their spirits?" Lita asked.

"Yeah. That is how they keep their armor from being corrupted. They have to train their spirits. We'll find them there." Serena looked at Amy. " Amy, could your computer help us?"

"I think so," she took out her computer and the girls circled around her. "What was the second line again?"

"Drinking strength from immortal fire," Serena replied. "Where were you when you were dreaming about him, Raye?"

"Near a volcano," Raye answered. "He jumped right in."

"Another name for immortal is Fuji," said Amy as she typed the line in. "Volcano-yeah-that's it," Amy pointed to Mt. Fuji. "That's where he is going to train his spirit. The next line was about light, right Serena?"

"Yeah, darkest prison sheds the light," Serena replied.

"I met the guy in a cave," Lita noted, "It was so dark I couldn't' see where I was going and it did remind me of a prison over there. But how will I know what caves he went to?"

"The Pinnacles," Amy said.

"Pinnacles? That's where he went?"

"In Akiyoshidai," Amy told her, "there are some caves there. There's a legend about it being a dark prison."

"I'm on it," Lita said.

"The next line was about water," Amy said, computing the line, "Churning beneath a swirl of salt. Where would I find a place with swirling salt?"

"Sounds like a whirlpool to me, Ames," said Lita.

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking," Amy noted, "two whirlpools. I remember dreaming about them when I met the Ronin warrior of torrent." She typed in whirlpools and salt and the waters of Naruto came up. "That's it! The Waters of Naruto. That's where I'll find the Ronin Warrior of Torrent. Mina, you saw the guy at a mountain, right?"

"Yeah," Mina nodded, "he came out of a big rock."

"Burning within a throne of rock," Amy whispered. "Let's see. Mt. Daitseu. My computer says there's a legend about gods and kings with this place."

"That's what the rock was-a throne of rock," Mina moaned.

"And Serena, yours--,"

"Space," Serena looked up. "I saw him in space while I was standing on the moon."

"You think that's where he went?" Raye inquired.

"That's what the last part of the poem meant. Unmoored by the stream of the sky."

"How would he get there?" Mina asked.

"I don't know," she said. "There could have been another place he went. I also dreamed we were in some kind of meadow together. That's probably where he went instead of back in space."

"Wait a second, Serena," Amy said quickly. "I think I found something."

"What?"

"Amonohashidate," she said.

"What?" she repeated, shocked.

"That's probably where he went," Amy said. "That's what my computer says."

"Okay," Serena nodded. "I'll check that place out. Now, let's go eat."

"Eat?" Raye gasped. "Serena, this is no time to stuff your face!"

"Hey, I could start talking in tongues if I don't get something," Serena said with a laugh and she talked like a zombie. "Serena need food."

All the girls laughed.

"Okay, let's go," said Lita. "Maybe we'll bump into these guys on the way so we won't have to go all the way to these odd places to find them."

--

"You parted a sand dune, Kento?" Yuli asked, interested.

"Yeah. I just concentrated in its center and that dune was gone!" Kento exclaimed. "The weird thing about it though, that girl was there."

"What girl?"

"That girl I thought was kidnapping you," Kento said.

"You mean Sailor Venus?" Yuli inquired.

"Whatever her name was," Kento shrugged.

"Dreaming about girls again, Kento?" Cye asked as he and the other guys came into the room.

"Huh?" Kento stood up.

"I had a vision of the Ancient," said Rowen. "We need to train our spirits."

"You guys are taking off?"

"Yeah."

"Maybe we'll see those sailor scouts again," Sage wondered out loud. "I dreamed about one of them last night."

"Yeah, so did I," nodded the others.

"I wonder what they had to do with this," Rowen said. "All the scout said was tell me she believed in my spirit."

"I think they want to help us," said Ryo. "The one with the power of fire helped me."

Coffee mug in hand, Mia walked into the room. "Good morning."

"Mia, can you do any research on these sailor scouts for us?" Kento asked.

"Don't you think I did that?" she snapped, making Kento cringe in his seat.

"Sorry," Kento whispered.

"Mia, are you all right?" Sage inquired.

Mia sighed and sat down. "Sorry about that. I searched every disk my grandfather had for information of these sailor scouts but I couldn't find a thing. I just got down browsing the last of the data."

"You were doing research the whole night?" Rowen asked.

"Mostly," she replied. "I'm sure I heard about these sailor scouts before but it's not in my grandfather's data. Someone told me about it but I just can't remember."

"Maybe you should get some rest, Mia," Ryo suggested.

"But I can't," she groaned, rubbing her head. "Not until I learn something about these sailor scouts."

"Well maybe you'll get lucky and the Ancient will tell you," Kento grinned.

"Let's go," Sage said and the guys walked outside.

"Hey, think we can stop for a bite before we leave?" Kento asked.

"Kento, you just ate!" Rowen cried.

"Yeah, but you didn't have anything," Kento grinned. "'Sides, I have to train my body before my spirit!"

--

While the girls were eating in a booth and talking about the plan, five guys stepped inside the diner and took the booth behind them and ordered their food.

"I'm going to Akiyoshidai. Where are you going, Rowen?" Sage asked.

"Amanohashidate," he replied. "That's the place I was dreaming about when the Ancient came to me."

"I hope you have money to pay for all this, Kento," Cye mumbled.

Mina gasped and dropped her fork.

"What's wrong, Mina?" Serena asked.

"Shh!" she said, pointing behind them. "Did you here what that guy called him?"

"Who?"

"The guy with the accent-called someone Kento-that's one of the ronins!"

"Are you sure?" Serena turned around and peaked over the seat to look at them and Mina pulled her down.

"Serena!" Mina cried.

"Well if they are really the ronins then we should introduce ourselves to them then," Serena said.

"We don't know if it's really them, Meatball Head," Raye groaned. "Now unless…"

"I'm going to Mt. Fuji," said Ryo.

"Fuji!" Raye breathed and she swirled around over the seat to peak for whoever said it.

"They'll see us," Amy whispered.

"I want to get a good look at them," said Lita, sitting up straight so she could see over the edge. "Raye, get down!"

Amy bent down under the table so no one could see her face reddening.

"I'm headed to the waters of Naruto," Cye told the others.

"You going there to train your sprit, Cye," Kento joked, "or you're going there for a swim?"

"Well, am I Cye of the Torrent or not?"

"Torrent!" Amy sat up straight.

"Huh?" Sage looked up to see five faces peaking over the seat behind Rowen, Ryo's and Kento's heads. "Uh, guys, we've got company." He pointed behind them and the three guys turned. All five girls blushed like mad.

"Uh, hi," Serena grinned, "haha-my name's Serena-uh-ah-are you going to eat that?" She pointed at Rowen's half eaten meal.

"Wow, the blond looks so much like my old boyfriend," Lita breathed, staring Sage's hair.

"Who are you?" Ryo demanded.

"I think we should get going now, please," Amy begged.

"Excuse me," Mina said, leaning over Kento, "your name is Kento, right?"

"Who told?" Kento asked.

"See, I told you!" Mina shouted at the others.

Amy jumped up and held up her hand. "CHECK PLEASE!" She made everyone fork over money to pay their bill and they stepped past the boy's table. Lita was still staring at Sage.

"What?" Sage said finally.

"You just remind you of someone," said Raye.

"Nice cross," Lita blinked, looking at the silver cross around Sage's neck. "Where'd you get it?"

"It was a gift." He replied.

"I like your hair too," Lita cried. "Can I give you my phone number?"

"Let's go! They're staring!" Amy shouted, dragging the girls out of the diner. The five guys looked out the window and watched them argue.

"Did you notice anything about those girls?" Ryo asked.

"Yeah, they were cute," Kento grinned. "Say, that blond with the pigtails didn't finish her cake!" He reached for Serena's cake; Serena saw from outside and she ran in there, slapped his hand and came back outside with her cake.

"Ow!" Kento groaned.

--

"Amy, why did you pull us out of there?" Lita demanded. "I was so hitting things off with that hot guy with the hair!"

"Right," Mina sighed. "I think they're the Ronin warriors."

"What makes you say that?" Raye asked.

"One of them was named Kento!" she shouted.

"So?" Raye said. "Just because his name happened to be Kento, doesn't mean he's a Ronin warrior. I'm sure there are tons of guys named Kento out there."

"But weren't you listening to them, Raye?" she urged. "They were saying where they were going. They talked about the ancient. How can they not be the ronins if they know him?"

"Maybe we should just go to these places to meet the Ronin warriors," Serena said. "We can't let them know who we really are. We're just supposed to join with the Ronin warriors and stop Talpa and Beryl so we can go home. Then we'll forget all about them."

"I don't think I can after fighting beside them," said Lita. "Especially seeing that guy-he's so cute! I wonder how he got his hair to fall over his eye like that!"

"Listen, we're supposed to go to where their armor gets power," Amy said. "So let's just got there. Serena's right. We can't let them know our true identities unless we can really trust them."

"Amy, did you just forget the warrior you're supposed to find?" Lita asked.

"No. He's got the armor of torrent. I'll find him at the waters of Naruto," she answered.

"And you heard that British guy say that at the diner," Mina said. "What if it's the same guy?"

"And his attribute is trust," Lita said. "I'm sure you can trust him then."

"Maybe there's something else we need to learn at these places," Serena said. "So let's get going. Talpa and Beryl must be planning something now."

--

Just as Serena suspected, Talpa and Beryl were cooking up a plan. Talpa told his warlords and the rest of his minions he was going to join forces with Beryl. The warlords didn't like this but they obeyed him anyway. Perhaps this woman was stronger than they thought.

Sekhmet came to the doors of the throne room where Beryl and Talpa were sitting. "Who is it?" Talpa asked.

"Sekhmet, your warlord of venom, master," Sekhmet answered.

"Come forward," Talpa ordered.

Torch in hand, burning blue fire, the warlord of venom walked down to Talpa and Beryl. "You wanted to see me?" he said as he put the torch down, setting a fire to light up the room.

"The Ronin Warriors are planning to train their spirit," said Talpa, "and these sailor soldiers will be with them."

"I have a plan to catch Cye of the Torrent, master," said Sekhmet.

"Oh?" Beryl said, interested. "What is that, Sekhmet?"

Sekhmet threw the torch in the air and chopped it into pieces with his swords. Holding a sword over the broken torch, a drop of venom dripped onto the torch and a red duplicate of Torrent appeared.

"Armor of Torrent!" Talpa cried.

"Yes, it is the same as the armor of the torrent, master," said Sekhmet, "but watch closely. Do it, Torrent!" He held his hand to a large rock and the red torrent pulled up his weapon. "SUPER WAVE SMASHER!"

With energy ten times stronger than Cye's, the rock broke to pieces. Beryl smiled.

"Impressive, Sekhmet," she smiled.

"Thank you, my lady," Sekhmet said.

"Sailor Mercury may be found with this Cye of the Torrent," Beryl informed, "she is the most intellectual of the sailor soldiers. I will send you one of my followers to take care of her. Siren of the Gloom and Doom Girls."

Siren stepped out of the corner and nodded to Talpa, Beryl and then to Sekhmet. She looked like an evil version of Sailor Mercury with pinkish-purple skin, brown hair, red suit and red markings and insect like wings. "Greetings, Sekhmet."

"Siren," said Sekhmet.

"Go and get me the Cye of the Torrent," Talpa ordered.

"Yes, master," Sekhmet answered. "And what about this Sailor Mercury? What would you like me to do with her?"

"Bring her with Cye," Beryl replied. "I think she would like to see the dungeon. If I imprison all the sailor scouts, Sailor Moon will give up the crystal."

"Very well." Sekhmet said. "Shall we, Siren? Red Torrent?"

"Let's get ourselves a scout," Siren smiled.

To Be Continued