Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ A Knight's Work Is Never Done ❯ Awakening ( Chapter 3 )

A Knight's Work Is Never Done

Chapter 3: Awakening

 

BY: GINSAN

 

 

"Are you sure he said that Hotaru?" The familiar voice of Ami asked. "You weren't hearing things?"

 

Hotaru shook her head. "No. I heard him clear enough. He knows, somehow. Another funny thing. Trista had a smug look on her face when I stopped by. And when I asked about last night, all she said was that I was right. She knows something, but she won't say what."

 

Ami thought as she absently nibbled on a pencil. She had been doing some homework when Hotaru had come over. The message that she gave her had startled her and left her feeling really confused. To the point where she could no longer do her work. How could Jordan know that she was the one that had saved him?

 

As she thought about it, she remembered the look that he had given her back at the scene. That momentary look that she had at first mistaken for startlement, had it been bewilderment instead? He had recognized her there. But how?

 

"... the others. What do you think?"

 

Ami snapped out of her reverie, and looked at Hotaru for a second. "Pardon? Oh, yes. I think it might be a good idea to talk to the others." She looked at her watch. "And, it is almost time for our meeting today anyway. Come on, I don't think the girls will mind if you sit in."

 

The two of them got up, and Ami put her homework away. Within a few minutes, they were out the door, and on their way to the Cherry Hill Temple.

 

* * *

 

The temple stood on a hill at the intersection of several roads. It was a popular tourist attraction, and made a killing in the Charms business. Selling everything from good luck charms, to love charms for bashful girls. The temple currently had three retainers. An elderly old man who owned and ran the place, his granddaughter who did most of the work, and a hanger on who kept the place clean.

 

Currently, the raven haired granddaughter was sweeping the courtyard up at the top of the steps to the temple. She stopped sweeping and waved, as she saw Ami and Hotaru approach.

 

"Hello Ami. Hey Hotaru."

 

"Hello Rae. Are any of the others here yet?"

 

The dark haired girl thought for a moment. "I think we're just waiting on Mina and Artimus. They should be here in a few minutes though. Everyone else is in my room. I'm going to wait out here for them, so go on in."

 

She went back to her work, as Ami and Hotaru headed for Rae's room. When they got there, they were greeted by Lita and Serena arguing. Apparently, Serena was trying to get a cookie but Lita wouldn't let her have one till everyone showed up.

 

"Hi Lita, Hi Serena. And hello to you too Luna."

 

Ami smiled down at the black cat, who was pointedly ignoring Serena's behavior. The cat sighed, and looked up at Ami, and Hotaru. "It was a good day. It'll be better when Mina gets here." She sighed again. "So Hotaru, why are you here? You don't usually come."

 

Hotaru smiled weakly. "I think it's best if I wait till Mina shows up. It's about Jordan."

 

Luna was silent for a minute. Lita and Serena stopped their little argument as soon as Hotaru mention Jordan. No one in the room really liked him, but after what had happened to him the other day, they did feel a little sorry for the guy.

 

Hotaru was about to say something else, but she was interrupted by the arrival of Mina and Artimus, followed by Rae. It took a few minutes for everyone to settle down, and to get the plate of cookies away from Serena before she ate all of them. Once everyone was finally settled, and Serena had eaten the rest of the cookies, they all turned to Hotaru to see what she had to say.

 

"First off, everyone knows that Jordan and his sister were attacked by some new type of Youma." Everyone nodded at this, so she continued. "He was hurt pretty badly, trying to protect his sister from it. He's been in a coma for a little over a week. He came out of it last night, while Trista was on watch. She had a brief conversation with him, but she won't divulge any details. This morning, I went with Morgan to visit him at the hospital. Jordan seemed to be OK, though he was pretty tired. We stayed for a bit, before the Doctor sent us away so he could get some sleep. As we were leaving, he called me back. He asked a couple of questions, one of which, was why Trista was so interested in him. After that, he gave me a message to give to Ami, which she thinks I should tell everyone else." She paused a moment, to make sure everyone was listening. "He said to thank her, for saving him and Morgan."

 

This last comment was met with surprised looks and exclamations from the other girls and the two cats.

 

Luna was the first to recover. She looked at Ami and then to Hotaru as she spoke. "Are you absolutely sure about this? He knows that Ami is Sailor Mercury? What about the rest of the girls? Does he know about the rest of you?"

 

Hotaru shook her head. "No. From the way he said it, I don't think he knows about the rest of us, just Ami." She paused for a moment, as she thought. "One more thing. When I mentioned this part to Trista, she just smiled at me and told me to go on over to Ami's. She knows something, but she won't spill. It might be a good thing, but I'm not sure."

 

The room was silent again, as everyone thought about this new situation. Whether or not this was good news, didn't matter. Someone knew their secret, and from the way he had treated most of them, they couldn't be sure if he would keep it.

 

Artimus looked over at Luna before speaking. "I don't think we have any choice here. Some of us are going to have to go talk to Jordan and see just how much he knows. With luck, it was all just delirium caused by the pain killers, and he really doesn't know a thing."

 

Silence again, as the girls looked at each other.

 

Finally, Ami spoke up. "I'll go. Because of Mom, I can get in after visiting hours, and I won't be questioned walking around. I also think that Hotaru should come with me, since Jordan seems to like her. I think I might be able to sneak you in Luna."

 

Luna thought it over before nodding her head. "Alright. Let's do it. Tonight. It's the weekend, so hopefully there will be a lot of people in and out of the hospital to keep the nurses from being nosy."

 

They finalized their plans for later then got on to other things. Around nine o'clock, Ami and Hotaru got ready to leave and they went over their plans for a few more minutes.

 

Just as they were about to walk out, Ami turned to Serena. "I'll bring Luna home after we finish. Leave your window open so she can sneak in. Wish us luck."

 

With that, the three left for the hospital.

 

* * *

 

The three arrived at the Hospital just as the nurses were managing to get the last of the day's visitors out. Ami and Hotaru slipped in, Luna hidden in Hotaru's large back-pack. They made their way up to Jordan's room, evading the few nurses they saw. Looking around quickly to make sure it was clear, they opened the door, and slipped into Jordan's room.

 

"I could have sworn that visiting hours were over. So why are you two sneaking into my room so late at night,?"

 

Jordan's question caught Hotaru and Ami off-guard for a moment. They didn't think he'd be awake. He laughed at the startled expressions on their faces as they stood in the open doorway.

 

"Are you two going to come in, or are you going to stand there till the nurse catches you?"

 

This last question finally jolted the two into action, and they quickly came in and closed the door. Hotaru walked over and sat in the seat she had been in earlier in the day, while Ami sat in the one that Morgan had occupied earlier.

 

After the two had sat there for a few minutes in silence, not knowing what to say, Jordan decided to get them going. "So? Are you going to tell me why you two are here so late? I appreciate the visit, but I really could use some sleep."

 

Ami smiled nervously at this, while Hotaru snickered softly. She prodded Ami in the side, to get her going.

 

"Well, I wanted to ask you something. Why did you tell Hotaru to thank me?"

 

Jordan rolled his eyes. "Gee, I don't know. Maybe it's because you saved my life? Not to mention my sister's. Is there something wrong with that, or would you rather I give the corny old bit about having things under control until you butted in?"

 

Ami was silent for a minute, as she thought that one over. "Sorry. It's just that, how do you know that it was me that saved you?"

 

Jordan laughed, and pointed at her hair with his right arm. "You're the only person I've seen in Tokyo with that hair. And somehow, I don't think anyone else in the world has it."

 

Ami went silent again. While she thought his comment over, Jordan laid back and closed his eyes. She hesitated a moment as she came to a conclusion, but wasn't sure if he was still awake.

 

"I'm awake. Though I'm starting to wish I wasn't." Jordan's statement was delivered with a little sting to it, reminding them that they were keeping him awake.

 

"There is no possible way that you could have recognized me."

 

Jordan laughed again, and opened his eyes to look at her. "Well I did, so it is possible. Any other questions?"

 

Jordan looked at both of them, and noticed Hotaru looking at something on a table next to his bed.

 

"Can I see that?" She looked back at him for a second, as she pointed at whatever it was she was looking at.

 

He followed her gaze, and rolled his eyes when he saw what it was. "Sure, you can look at it if you want to. I found it the day we moved here. I thought it might be a good luck charm. But after what happened, I'm not so sure. I was wearing it when that thing attacked. And, I don't think ending up in a hospital counts as good luck."

 

The item in question, was a small crystal pendant on a silver rope-chain. The crystal was about the size of a bottle cap. It was a milky, almost silvery white color. It was smooth and dome shaped, being flat on the bottom. It shone faintly in the light of the room. Hotaru reached over, and picked it up. After looking at it for a minute, she gave it to Ami to look at, and whispered something to her.

 

She nodded, and pulled out her little mini-computer. Jordan watched them, as Ami examined it with her computer.

 

He was about to tell them to put it back, when Ami spoke out. "Oh my. Luna, I think you should look at this."

 

Jordan was puzzled for a moment, especially when a small, black cat came out of Hotaru's back-pack and then jumped up into Ami's lap. He was even more surprised, when the cat looked at the mini-computer, at the stone, at Jordan, and then to Ami. And then it spoke.

 

"Ami, I need to talk to Artimus and Trista right away. They have to see this." She turned to look at Jordan again. "Please don't go anywhere, I'll be right back."

 

Jordan laughed at this, as Luna grabbed Ami's computer in her mouth, and went over to a corner away from Jordan, Ami, and Hotaru.

 

Jordan looked at Ami, and Hotaru, all pretense of playing nice, gone. "Will one of you explain to me what the Hell is going on? Why do you dress up as a Superhero, what the Hell is the cat talking about over there, and most importantly, how can a damned cat talk in the first place?!"

 

Jordan was nearly frantic now, and was even more creped out than when he had met Trista the night before. He was looking from Ami, to Hotaru, to the cat, then back again, waiting for an answer. When one wasn't coming, he started laughing.

 

"I'm going nuts, that's the only explanation. I've finally cracked. Ami's not a Superhero. Heck, that whole monster thing's all in my head anyway. And the cat's not talking. Real cats don't talk. It's all a bad dream, just like the one I've been having. Soon, I'll wake up, and be back in my bed, like nothing happened."

 

Jordan descended into gibberish, while Ami and Hotaru looked at each other, afraid that the commotion would draw attention to the room, and bring a nurse in to see what was going on. He kept going on and on, saying something about bizarre dreams, and hallucinations.

 

Luna came back over after a few minutes and stabbed Jordan with a claw, getting his attention. He yelled, and Ami was certain that a nurse would show up any minute to see what was going on.

 

Jordan glared at the cat. "Do it again cat, and we'll see how you like being stabbed."

 

Luna sighed, and looked him in the eyes. "We don't have time for this. Listen to me. All three of you. Jordan, everything I'm about to tell you is true, and none of it can leave this room." After receiving nothing more than a continued glare and a few mutters under his breath, she resumed. "Ami is a kind of Superhero, called a Sailor Scout. Sailor Mercury to be exact. Hotaru is one too, though she is called Sailor Saturn. Most of Ami's other friends are Sailor Scouts as well. They have saved this planet many times.

 

"You were attacked by a monster last week. You are laying in a hospital bed, recovering from injuries you received while trying to fight it on your own. We haven't know what that monster was until just now, when I finally got Trista to tell me. They're called Soul Devourers."

 

Luna kept talking, but Ami noticed the look of recognition that quickly passed over Jordan's face. It was there and gone so fast, that she thought that she might have imagined it.

 

"They seem to like stealing the Soul Gems of people, and absorbing them. So far, only a few people have fallen victim. Victims usually seem okay at first, but they loose all focus on life and go about with no interest in anything anymore. Your sister would have been one of them, but you distracted it long enough for Sailor Mercury to arrive and chase it off."

 

Jordan stared at Luna, as she paused. His glare was gone, but he now had a slightly puzzled look on his face. He seemed like was going to say something, but at the last second remained quiet.

 

Luna continued. "Ami's computer scanned your crystal. I have to say, I don't like what it came up with. It's giving off energy patters very similar to the few Soul Devourers we've been able to scan. I personally would like to destroy it, but Trista said not to. All she will tell me, is that I should let you keep it, and not to worry. Personally, that doesn't reassure me. But since Trista is rarely wrong, I'll do what she said. But that still doesn't mean that I trust you."

 

Jordan startled the three, as he started laughing. "This is just great. A talking cat saying that it doesn't trust me. I must have hurt my head worse than the Doctor said. Tell you what cat. I won't trust you, and you can go on not trusting me. Now, if you three are quite done, I need to get some sleep. And if you come back cat, I'll make sure the nurse calls pest control. You three have five minutes to leave, before I call the nurse."

 

Jordan laid back in the bed, after snatching the pendant back from Ami. He started to count slowly. The three got up, and left quickly, especially when Jordan started reaching for the call button.

 

They exited the room, and walked towards the elevator. There, they stopped as they waited for it to arrive. They now had a bit more information, but none of them were happy about the way things had turned out. One thing they were sure of though, was that the accident hadn't affected Jordan much, if at all. They hoped that for now, he'd keep his mouth shut, but there was no way to tell for sure.

 

The three got on the elevator, Hotaru sticking Luna back into her bag. They left the hospital as quickly as they could.

 

 

 

Ami dropped Hotaru off at home, before making her way to Serena's house to drop off Luna. As they walked, Luna filled Ami in, as much as she could. It wasn't much, but it was enough to send chills down Ami's spine.

 

Apparently, Soul Devourers had actually been around back during the Silver Millennium. Though back then, they hadn't been quite as powerful as these ones seemed to be. Also, as far as Trista could tell them, there had never been a successful way of restoring someone's Soul Gem. They were doomed to trudge through life forever without any more emotions, or enthusiasm. Literally, a living zombie. It was the last part, that really got to Ami.

 

* * *

 

Jordan lay back in his bed, looking up at the ceiling. After the girls, and the cat had left, he found that he couldn't go to sleep. Now that he knew there was some kind of meaning to his dream, he didn't want to go back to it. He knew he should have tried to get a bit more information from the cat, but now, all he could think about was that he wasn't going crazy because of those dreams. And, that his sister had almost fallen victim to one of those things.

 

He had to get better and get out of this place so he could make sure she was alright. If something happened to her, he'd never be able to forgive himself. Especially since he knew that it would just be him, and Mom who would really miss her. Dad certainly wouldn't. One less mouth to feed after all.

 

After a few minutes ruminating in his thoughts, he looked over at the strange pendant he had found. He picked it up and held it close for a better look. He could have had a decent visit tonight, but this thing had once again caused problems. He didn't know what the big fuss was about it. To him, it looked just like a crystal. Albeit, a cut and polished one. One that glowed slightly in the dark. But still nothing more than a crystal.

 

"What the?"

 

As he continued looking at it, he noticed that it was indeed glowing in the dark. Not by much, but enough to notice. Something it definitely hadn't done before. The longer he looked at it, the brighter it got. After a few minutes, it was about as bright as a weak flashlight. As he looked at it a little more closely, he noticed that the glow wasn't actually from the crystal, but from something inside of it.

 

It looked almost like a letter, but the longer he looked at it, the more he thought of it as a symbol. It was too elaborate for a letter. It looked like two U's stuck together, base to base. The tips of the U's had little arrow heads. Running down the middle of the U's, was a small line that started about halfway on the top U, and stopped halfway on the bottom U. At the top, and bottom of the little line, were little circles.

 

He didn't know what it might mean if it was a symbol, but something about it was familiar. Like he'd seen it in a book a long time ago. He shook his head to clear it, disregarding the thought as nonsense. If he had read about it in a book, he would have remembered it.

 

"This is ridiculous. It's just a stupid crystal, probably not even real, with that light inside."

 

He was about to toss it onto the small table next to the bed, when it flashed. A bright, yellow-green color that nearly blinded him.

 

* * *

 

He blinked his eyes to clear them, but the bright light didn't go away. Slowly though, it dimmed a bit and he could see normally again. What he saw, he didn't like.

 

He was standing in the middle of a very large room. There were people dressed up in strange clothing everywhere. Directly in front of him was a large throne, seemingly made of pure silver.

 

Upon the throne sat a woman, somewhere in her mid twenties, maybe early thirties. As soon as the thought crossed his mind though, he knew it was wrong. She was closer to a hundred, not thirty. She was dressed in an elaborate, and yet simple, dress of white. It billowed around her like clouds. Her hair was a bright silver color. It was done up in so that it came out of two small 'buns' on the sides of her head, and flowed down to drape across the back of the throne. She had a gentle face, and gave off an aura of great kindness.

 

She seemed familiar, but before he could rack his mind for an answer why, the Lady upon the throne began speaking. What he started to hear, chilled him to the bones. It was his dream. Only this time, there were pictures, and he knew now, more than ever before, that they were memories, not a dream. And this time, it looked like it would be the whole thing, not just the Cliffnotes.

 

"Jorowyn. I am so happy that you could finally join us. I know I have kept you busy as of late, but it is good that you could come."

 

Jordan found himself bowing slightly to the Queen, for that was exactly what she was, a Queen. Queen of what, he couldn't remember just yet, but he knew that she ruled a vast kingdom. A kingdom that spanned the entire solar system. After the bow, he found himself replying to the Queen, yet it wasn't a conscious response, more like he was along as an observer and someone else was in control.

 

"It would hardly do you justice, if I did not come at your request. You know I am your most loyal servant. Pray tell, what is it that has caused you to call me off my current assignment? Does it concern what is taking place upon the Earth?"

 

The Queen smiled, as she nodded her head. "Indeed. The events on Earth do concern me. But I am afraid that until they grow to threaten the other planets, there is naught I can do. I would also speak with you, to find out the current status of your mission. Yours is very important at a critical time such as this. We cannot afford to have the Kingdom weakened from within, while we are besieged by enemies from without."

 

Jordan felt himself smile, as his body replied to the Queen. "Highness, I will have the situation resolved within the month. We have tracked down the last of the Soul Devourers to an isolated section of Jupiter. It should not take us long to find it, and neutralize it."

 

The Queen frowned slightly, but nodded. "Very well Jorowyn. Make sure you all come home to me soon. I would be terribly upset, if you three missed the Royal Ball."

 

At this, Jordan noticed that there were two more people standing beside him, but neither one offered much in the way of conversation. They stood quietly, in what he took to be their formal wear, since something in his head said that the one to his right rarely wore such an elaborate outfit.

 

As he thought that over, he felt himself laugh. "We would not miss the Ball for anything your Highness. With your leave."

 

The Queen nodded her permission, as the three bowed again, and turned to leave the room. Before they left though, the Queen had something more to say. "Please be careful out there. And return to us quickly. Good hunting."

 

The three left, exiting the palace. They approached what looked like a rather large archway, carved with the symbol for the planet Jupiter at the top. Near by were several similar archways, all of them bearing the various symbols for the planets. Between the one that stood for Mars, and the one for Jupiter, was a pile of stone ruble. Obviously, it had at one time been an arch like the others, but for some reason had been destroyed. At the top of the pile, was the stone with it's symbol upon it. A symbol that once again chilled Jordan. It was the same symbol that he had seen inside the crystal. And the stone itself was cracked in a half dozen places.

 

They stood a few moments, before the Jupiter archway's symbol began to glow. A shimmering light filled the gap inside the archway, and eventually settled into a picture of a large city. As soon as it stabilized, the three stepped through. Almost immediately, the image dissolved and the three were gone.

 

* * *

 

He blinked his eyes again and found himself back in his hospital bed, holding the amulet which was no longer glowing. He couldn't even see the little symbol in it anymore. He held it a moment more, before tossing it onto the table and staring at it. He stared for a while, before shaking his head and looking away.

 

"I think I am going nuts. There's no way that just happened."

 

But even as he said it to himself out loud, he knew that it had indeed happened. At least the events that he had seen. He knew that they were memories of somebody, but who he didn't know, though there was a nagging voice in the back of his head telling him that he did. He just didn't want to believe it.

 

The longer he thought on it, the more he started to feel sleepy, and before he knew it, he had fallen asleep.

 

* * *

 

Almost instantly, he found himself back inside of Jorowyn. He recognized the surroundings almost immediately, though he had never actually seen them. He realized that he must be continuing the dream from a little after where it had stopped before.

 

He was running through a forest of trees, with his two companions from before running behind him. Apparently, they had changed out of their formal wear. They were now in outfits that were very similar to what he had seen Ami wearing when she had rescued him a few days ago. He couldn't see what he was wearing, but he was sure that he too had changed clothing, since his movements felt heavy and restricted now. Most likely, he was wearing some type of armor.

 

"Where is it?" Jorowyn's voice rang out through the trees, as the three came to a stop in a small clearing. "I can barely find it's tracks. It has to be around here somewhere."

 

The three spread out, looking through the small trees and bushes that surrounded the clearing. They spent several minutes searching, but to no avail.

 

Finally, the three came back to the middle of the clearing.

 

The one with aqua colored hair spoke first. "It must have escaped. How could it have gotten out of the grid? It's not supposed to be smart enough to do something like that."

 

"I agree Neptune. This one doesn't seem to be following any of the patterns the previous ones have. There's something different about it." Jorowyn's voice was full of frustration as he spoke. He has obviously not been having a very good day and from what Jordan can hear of his thoughts, it's been like that for weeks, possibly years.

 

Neptune smiled, but before she could say something to try and cheer Jorowyn up, a horrible thought occurred to her. A look of horror crossed her face, as she gasped. "By the Queen. Jorowyn, I just remembered that there's a village less than a hour away in that direction. If it gets to it before we do..."

 

Nothing more was said, as the three took off in the direction of the village.

 

Almost on hour of hard running found the three standing at the gates of the decimated village. Several people were walking around the remains of buildings and houses, their Soul Gems obviously missing as they wondered aimlessly. Here and there, a few people were laying on the ground, some seemingly awake but inert. However, quite a few had several wicked looking needles sticking out of their bodies.

 

"No. We're too late. It's beaten us here." Jorowyn's voice sounded strained, and a few thoughts that Jordan picked up told him that the guy was feeling like he was completely to blame for it. Most of the people were obviously dead. The positions of their bodies too excruciatingly painful to even be able to look comfortable.

 

After a few minutes of looking over the carnage, Jorowyn finally entered the village. Jordan's stomach was starting to heave, at some of the things he saw as they walked. The other two finally started following Jorowyn into the village, and along the path of carnage.

 

They were almost out the other side of the village when they found her. A little girl, probably no more than three or four, her body was covered with needles.

 

"Oh, Uranus..." Neptune turned away from the little girl, and buried her face in the shoulder of Uranus, as she wrapped a consoling arm around her shoulders.

 

Jorowyn knelt down next to the body, and remained there for several moments, before looking off into the forest, where the beast that caused all this went.

 

"I should have planned for it. It's all my fault. All my fault. All these innocent people. It's all my fault." From his vantage point, Jordan can tell that the guy about to snap.

 

"You're right, it is your fault. You and your damned Father. If he hadn't destroyed Phaeton, the Soul Devourers never would have gotten free." Uranus' harsh tone brought Jorowyn back around. "But that isn't getting us anywhere right now, and that thing is still free. Snap out of it. We have to stop this thing, before any more people fall victim to it. You couldn't have possibly known that it would get this far."

 

He stared, looking up at Uranus. Anger quickly rose inside of him, but it faded just as quickly, as Neptune stepped between the two.

 

"Come on Jorowyn. We have to go. Now." She tried to lighten the mood a bit, and hopefully keep the two from killing each other. "Besides, the Queen will be expecting us back for the ball tomorrow."

 

Jorowyn turned from the two, and started off in the direction the Soul Devourer had gone. At this point, he didn't seem to care if the other two followed or not. But they did eventually follow, and within another hour, they had cornered the beast in a clearing. They managed to surrounded it on three sides. Jordan was repulsed by the thing. If the one that had attacked him was ugly, this thing was down right repulsive.

 

It was shaped somewhat like a leopard, or maybe a panther. Its fur was spiky looking, and had a poisonous yellow tinge to it. All down its back, were hundreds of those wicked looking needles that he had seen back in the village. Its tail was tipped by several large spines. It hunched down in the middle of the clearing, hissing at them.

 

"You're mine beast!" Uranus yelled, as a small sphere of golden light shot from her hand. It skipped across the ground and slammed into the Soul Devourer, detonating in a blinding flash.

 

When the smoke cleared, instead of finding it disoriented, they found it about to unleash several needles at them. They barely managed to dodge out of the way, as dozens of needles buzzed by. They were back into attack positions again, almost instantly, though now they were a little more on guard this time.

 

"I don't think the usual tactics will work on this thing. I'll draw it's attention, while you two keep attacking it. With luck, we'll wear it out before it wears us out. As it is, I don't think I can get it's Soul Gem right now anyway." Jorowyn feinted and attack towards the Devourer, and as it launched more needles at him, Jordan was starting to think the guy had finally snapped. At the last second though, the needles were intercepted by a blue wall of energy, and fell harmlessly to the ground.

 

Jorowyn jumped back, just as the distracted devourer was hit simultaneously by Uranus's World Shaking and Neptune's Deep Submerge attacks. The thing screamed out as it slumped to the ground, severely injured and finally down for the count.

 

"Finally. How could that thing be so strong? For a second there, I thought it was immune to our attacks." Neptune seemed exhausted, as she approached the Devourer.

 

Uranus approached as well, followed by Jorowyn.

 

"I don't know. Let's get its Soul Gem, and get back to the Queen. I have a feeling that something bad is happening in our absence. The sooner we get back, and see that nothing is wrong, the better I will feel." Uranus sounded slightly agitated, as she stood there waiting.

 

Jorowyn bent down, and reached his hand towards the Soul Devourer's body. It disappeared into it as the body slowly started to dissolve into glittering dust and leaving Jorowyn holding a small crystal. It glowed slightly, and seemed to be perfectly formed, except for several tiny cracks.

 

Jorowyn stood up, and tried not to fall over from energy drain. He held the Gem for a moment as he caught his breath.

 

"Lets get out of here. I've got research to do now that we've caught the last one."

 

The three left, trudging wearily back towards the nearest Portal.

 

 

 

Several hours, and many grueling miles later, the three arrived at the Portal. They were too exhausted to notice the absence of people along the way, but it was blatantly obvious when they emerged from the Portal. Standing in the middle of Jupiter's capital city, there should have seen millions of people. Instead, it was deserted. There wasn't a single person in site. Not near the Portal they had just emerged from, nor around the Moon Portal.

 

The silence that greeted them sent waves of foreboding through their bodies. They quickly made their way to the Moon Portal. Even with no one around, they had to wait several moments before the Portal activated. The long wait did little to settle the nerves of the three, and they hurried through the Portal, dreading what they would find on the other side.

 

What the found when they emerged, was nearly enough to make even Jordan sick. There were signs everywhere that a sudden, and very brutal carnage had taken place. Jorowyn turned to look at the others and barely had time to erect a shield for the three of them, as the Portal exploded, sending debris everywhere. Looking around through the clearing smoke, he noticed that all the other Portals were in similar shape. Either broken, or all out destroyed. All except for the one to Earth. That one stood untouched.

 

As they started to recover, Jorowyn frowned before speaking. "What's happened? Who could have done this?" As he took in the rest of the landscape, he noticed the lack of bodies compared to the amount of blood. "Where. Where is everybody? The palace is in shambles."

 

It was Neptune, who found her voice next. "I don't know. We should look around."

 

The three agreed and split up to search the palace. After an hour of fruitless searching, Jorowyn met up with Neptune and Uranus before the doors to the Inner Sanctum.

 

"I take it that you two didn't find anything either?"

 

The two shook their heads, as he sighed. "This is the last place to search. The Queen's Sanctum. Maybe we can get some answers here."

 

Jorowyn stood before the two massive doors, and uttered a few silent words. Slowly, the doors opened inwards to reveal a sight that caused even Jordan's heart to ache, though he didn't know why.

 

The Queen's body lay on a fallen column. Signs of a massive amount of power being used were all over the room. The ceiling was no longer in place, and the Earth could clearly been seen in the sky. Most of the wall that faced the outside was missing, revealing a bleak landscape beyond. No more flowers, and no more trees.

 

From behind, he could hear Uranus weeping softly, and Neptune crying out. Jorowyn entered the room, and approached the Queen's body.

 

Almost immediately, a phantom image appeared between him and the Queen. Its form slowly settled into that of the Queen. She smiled weakly and with a touch of sadness at the three of them.

 

"If you three are seeing this, then I did not survive. It pains me to have to tell you what has happened during your absence, but you must know."

 

The three listened in silence, as the Queen revealed what had befallen their beautiful Kingdom.

 

The Prince of Earth had fled to the Moon during the Royal Ball, seeking help. His Prophetess, Beryl, had managed to subvert his four generals and had taken over the Earth with their help. Shortly after his arrival, Beryl and her forces attacked the Moon. It was violent, and brief. She had managed to kill the Prince, and Princess Serena almost before the Queen could get any defenses up. One by one, the other Sailor Scouts were defeated, each one killed by one of the Generals. When it looked like everything was lost, the Queen had made the ultimate sacrifice. She had performed a Sending, as well as a Banishing. She sent all the souls of the Kingdom that she could, forward into the future, where they would have the chance at a peaceful life. She had also sealed away Beryl and her minions, in hopes that no nothing like this would happen again.

 

After she finished telling the story, she turned to face Jorowyn. "Since I am no longer among the living, I ask you, Jorowyn, to contact Sailor Pluto. She will be able to send you all forward into the future so that you too can enjoy a chance at a peaceful life. You shall all be re-incarnated, with new lives and identities. And should a need arise for your powers, a way will be made for you to recover them. Farewell my faithful friends."

 

The Phantom image faded, and with it, so did the Queen's body. It slowly shimmered and then dissolved into moon dust, which promptly dissipated as though blown by a non existent wind.

 

Jorowyn remained silent for a moment, as Uranus turned on him. "This is all your fault! If your Father hadn't spread the Soul Devourers across the Kingdom, we would have been here to protect them!"

 

With that, she gave Jorowyn a sharp right hook and sent him sprawling to the floor. He looked up at her, knowing that she was right, but at the same time angry about it. It had been his fault, or at least partially. If he hadn't been so slow in tracking that last Soul Devourer, they could have been here. They could have made a difference. But even as those thoughts occurred to him, he knew they weren't true. If they had been here, they would have died just the same. He knew about the Seven Shadows. Their power was nearly unimaginable, especially when they were all together. One on one, he could handle them easily, but as a group even he didn't stand a chance.

 

As he remained lost in his thoughts, Neptune get between Uranus, and Jorowyn, holding her back from killing him on the spot. "Uranus! What are you doing? Jorowyn isn't responsible for this. We've known for a while that there was trouble on the Earth, but we all just ignored it, hoping that it would go away. Besides, if you kill him, how will we contact Sailor Pluto? Until now, I didn't even know that she was real."

 

She turned to Jorowyn, and helped him to his feet.

 

She waited a few minutes, before asking tentively. "Jorowyn, does Sailor Pluto really exist? Could she do what the Queen said?"

 

He nodded his head slowly, as he held up his amulet. Seeing it, Jordan realized now, what it was that he had found in the present. Trouble. Lots, and lots of trouble. Jorowyn concentrated, and slowly, the amulet began to glow. After a few minutes, it stopped and Jorowyn dropped it.

 

"Now, all we can do is wait. She'll come, and based on what has happened here, it should be soon."

 

True to his words, a mist started settling across the room. It came from the center of the room, and began to spread outwards. After a few more minutes, a large set of metal doors appeared within it. As soon as they settled into reality, they opened, and a new Sailor Scout emerged.

 

She had long, green-black hair, and she held in her hands a large staff. Jordan recognized it instantly as the Time Key, though he didn't know how he knew what it was. And with that, came another realization. Sailor Pluto, was Trista! No wonder she gave him the creeps.

 

Jorowyn bowed slightly to the new comer, as Uranus and Neptune looked at her with a touch of awe. "Greetings cousin. I'm sorry that it took such sad events had to bring us together again."

 

Pluto nodded to him, a look of deep regret on her face. "As am I. I saw this coming, but there was nothing I could do, restrained as I am by my duties." She turned to face Neptune, and Uranus, and nodded to them. "An honor to meet you, Sailor Neptune. Sailor Uranus. I know what it is that you have called upon me for, and indeed, I can send you forward." This was said as she turned back to Jorowyn. "However, there are certain conditions to this, and none of you may like them. Your Transformation items must be taken from you, though you will receive them again, when there is need. And in your case Jorowyn, I'm afraid that this means that Soul Devourers will begin to emerge again, and they will flourish, with no one to stop them. As a balance, you will manage to find their end in the future. Can you accept these terms, knowing the consequences?"

 

Jorowyn was silent a moment, as he thought it over. Uranus, and Neptune watched him nervously. This was all up to him it seemed. It didn't seem to take him long to reach his decision.

 

"Yes. But only because it means I will have a chance to end my Family's shame, I'll do what ever it takes."

 

* * *

 

Jordan snapped awake, eyes staring up at the ceiling. It took him a moment to figure out that he was back in his hospital room and not back in the past, stuck in that fruitcake's head. Jorowyn seemed like a nice guy, but a few of the thoughts he had picked up labeled him as unstable to say the least. He turned his gaze from the ceiling, over to the amulet laying on the table. After staring at it for a few minutes, a sudden thought occurred to him.

 

"Damn it!"

 

He was that Jorowyn fruitcake. He was the present re-incarnation of Jorowyn the loony. There was no way of denying it now. Especially as he put two, and two together. Trista's visit, Ami, and her friends being Sailor Scouts. Even that talking cat.

 

"Great. Guess that means I'm a damn Superhero as well."

 

He closed his eyes, and sighed. So much for trying to milk this hospital thing. He opened his eyes, and grabbed the amulet. As soon as he touched it, he felt a jolt of energy, and several very important memories surfaced. Most important of which, made him smile. He could heal himself faster than he could naturally, through the use of a healing sleep. Grinning, he closed his eyes and tried to drift off to sleep again. With luck, he'd be able to get out of this hospital by the time he woke up again.

 

While he was asleep, a few more memories and some past events came to him, though none where anywhere near as intense, or draining as the previous dreams. Life was going to be a bit more interesting from now on. Especially since he doubted, that Ami and her friends had memories as intact as his. After all, he hadn't been slaughtered back then. Maybe being a Superhero wouldn't be that bad.

* * *