Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Death and Rebirth ❯ Death and Rebirth 9 ( Chapter 9 )

Hotaru Tomoe. A freak accident and incomprehension from her peers ripped away her humanity. Fate was kind to her, giving her a new life, one with true friends and a real family. Grateful, Hotaru took all this and used it to forge herself a better destiny. She met a young boy named Carlos; one that she felt needed a true friend. When she learned that she was capable of being cruel herself, she made up her mind to become such a friend.

Carlos Navarro. Insanity and murder took away his family and life. Fate let him return so he could avenge his loved ones and correct his mistakes. Stupidly, he kept committing those same mistakes. He met a violet-eyed girl named Hotaru, a girl that made him feel almost human. Despite her attentions, he kept her away. When he realized how much he really needed her, he felt a new light of hope shine upon him.

Now, old enemies reappeared to threaten their lives. Trying to protect Hotaru, Carlos was left heart-broken, literally.

Death and Rebirth

Chapter nine:

Three senshi and two homicidal maniacs were witnessing something that could not be. Standing before them was a person that could not, should not be alive. And Chris was holding the proof of it.

No one could move, except for Chris. There was an eerie calmness in him. He just stared at Carlos while toying with his heart. "One way or another, you always end up surprising people, huh?"

Carlos chuckled, "It's a gift."

Chris eyed the organ, "Guess you'll want this back," he threw it back at its owner.

Carlos caught his heart with one hand, gave it a quick check and put it back in place, as if he did that sort of thing every day. Then he took his bloody fingers and touched his eyes. Tears came out, bloody tears. Crimson changed to black and flesh turned white. He glanced at Hotaru.

As a senshi, Hotaru had witnessed plenty of horrors. But seeing so many in a lapse of a few minutes had become too much, she fainted.

Karasu's head dropped, a murmur came from his lips, "So be it", his voice gained volume, "Carlos Navarro is dead", until it became a roar, "YO SOY KARASU NO SHI!"

Chris went into a fighting stance Blaze did the same, flames covering his fists. "Hey Chris, let me at the mime. We'll have BBQ wings for dinner."

Chris extended an arm, "Be my guest."

Blaze ran to Karasu with his fist up front in a ridiculous display, "Heeee-the undead warrior grabbed him by the wrist when he got close-wha?" For that show, Blaze received three jabs in the face, followed by an uppercut.

"Stick to the fireballs Blaze, 'cause you'll never make a good fighter." He turned around, the senshi were still there, "What are you waiting for? Get Hotaru out of here?"

Venus snapped out of it, "Right. Mars get the girl to a safe place. I'll help Karasu."

"But-"

"Go!"

Mars nodded. Someone needed to get Hotaru to a place where she could transform. On second thought, she seemed in no condition for a fight. She picked up the girl and went off.

Karasu in the meantime had begun fighting Chris. The latter had gotten a bit more speed and strength since their last encounter. So far he had landed five blows on the mime without being touched. Finally, the warrior was able to catch his fist.

"Help me with my memory Chris," he requested innocently, "I do believe I left you with only five finger nails when last we met."

Chris snickered, "I thought you'd never ask." He grabbed the sleeves of his jacket and ripped them off. Karasu displayed no emotion, but the revelation was quite shocking. There was no flesh on Chris' arms, only wire and metal. "A new hand, plus extras. Part of a great medical plan."

Karasu gave his enemy a sadistic leer. "Now I see why I didn't feel your presence. You've become nothing more than a soul-less machine."

Chris narrowed his eyes, "I don't care what I lose," he charged as he cried: "as long as I can kill!"

Meanwhile, Blaze had recovered from the previous attack. "I have a headache this big, and it's screaming for Excedrin," he mumbled. He saw the fight between Karasu and Chris, hey déjà vu. Only one thing different, this time Blaze could do something. He raised his hands and began to gather energy.

"Crescent beam!"

The blast bore into Blaze's side. He turned to his attacker, "Guess I got my own fight. And a blonde, it's déjà vu all over tonight." He shot a blast at Venus; she deflected it with a blast of her own.

"You may have power now. But it's nothing against experience! Crescent beam!" She placed more energy into that blast, hoping to render him unconscious. Instead, Blaze received the attack front first.

"You want experience? Listen to this:" his hands began to glow, "I can absorb power, and throw it back!" He shot two larger fireballs at the Senshi of love. She was barely able to avoid them.

Venus breathed heavily after that scare, and then she laughed, "Arigato baka, you just gave me a very good fighting tip." She jump-kicked Blaze.

"Oh crap."

In the meantime, cyborg and undead were busy beating the hell out of each other. Chris threw a kick and Karasu jumped over it. He summer-salted over the cyborg, landed behind him and kicked him from behind. "I have to admit it Chris, you have become a lot stronger and faster than before."

Chris laughed, "Does that fact scare you freak?"

Karasu snorted, "Not at all, all I have to do is turn up the heat a little," he rushed towards Chris. The thug had no time to react. He received countless punches on the stomach, chest, face, and was thrown away with a roundhouse kick.

Chris spit out a tooth, "How? When did you get so fast?"

"I didn't spend all this time sitting pretty on my nest. I have been working out, and I did it all by myself," Karasu mocked as he approached Chris and picked him up, "without going to Radio shack."

Chris sneered, "True, but you can't do this." He placed his hands on Karasu's shoulders. The warrior heard a faint crackling sound and felt his hair stand on end.

"Uh-oh-YEARGH!" he felt five thousand volts run through his body. When the surge ended he staggered and fell, his flesh smoking.

Chris wasted no time; he knew his opponent would recover soon. He unleashed a barrage of kicks on the fallen body, taunting him every now and then. "How does it feel big man? How does it FEEL?"

Back at the theater, Blaze had a hard time fighting Minako. Ironically, the powered up Blaze was having a harder time facing Venus now. He placed an energy field around his body so she would burn when touching him. Plus, he was using his fire fists. But like Venus said, experience is what matters.

"What's wrong match? Didn't you want to play with a blonde?" Venus taunted.

Blaze spat a bit of blood; it sizzled when it hit the ground. "I did, but on second thought," he reached for her face "I'll experiment with a bald girl!"

Venus quickly placed her foot on Blaze's stomach and grabbed his arms. The energy field hurt her a little but she could take it. She rolled back and threw Blaze away. Too easy, she thought.

Blaze got up and came up with a strategy, it worked before. When Venus approached him, he turned and made a 'T' sign. "Time out."

Venus growled when she heard that. Ignoring the pain, she pressed him down from the shoulders and threw her knee up like a cannon. Blaze's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. The force field flickered and disappeared. "How'd that feel, you little hentai creep?"

"Not so bad" -(thud).

Venus gave out a satisfied smile, she got her revenge. Now she had to help Karasu, she prayed that was the right decision.

Chris kept kicking and punching, giving no chance for Karasu to regenerate. Finally he was tired of this game. He rolled him over and stomped on his chest. "You can live without a heart, right? I wonder if it's the same goes for your brains." He raised his hands and made a double fist, ready to crush his opponent's skull.

"Venus love link chain!"

The golden chain wrapped around Chris' arm. Venus gave one powerful yank and the cyborg was pulled off his feet and was slammed to the ground, landing face first next to his partner. Venus ran up to Karasu "Are you okay?"

"Sí," he grunted as his bones got into place, "thanks for the save." They stiffened when they heard a metallic snap. Both turned to look at Chris, whose arm was raised and his hand had opened by the middle. Karasu heard a gun cock. He immediately grabbed Venus and covered her as best as he could. And not a moment too soon. Chris pulled the trigger and fired who knows how many shots. The sting of each bullet drove Karasu crazy, but he obtained his goal, the girl was safe.

Venus couldn't help but gulp, "Did that hurt?"

Karasu grunted, "Not as much as he's going to." He drew out his own gun and fired. He got Chris right on his chest, but the bullets bounced off with a metallic ping.

Chris chuckled, "They fixed up more than my arms birdie. So what are you going to do now?"

Slowly, Karasu got up. He replied: "I just pull a bigger gun," and took out a .45. He fired again. This time, the shot bore a hole clean through. Chris shook for a while, but kept on his feet.

"Face it freak, you're fighting an equal."

"Well, from here, I notice that you can't fix yourself like I regenerate. So I must disagree," he snickered as Chris smile disappeared, "Adios pendejo."

"Tin man, out of the way!" Everyone looked.

"Ara!"

"Ay güey!"

"Blaze?"

Indeed it was blaze and he was holding an energy ball the size of a bowling ball and it was still growing! Chris paid heed to his friend's warning and moved a healthy distance away. Blaze was literally burning up with anger, "Okay crow and chick. Prepare to fry!"

Venus held Karasu and pushed him forward, "Do your worst! We can take it, ne?" she boasted. She sweat-dropped when she heard Karasu gulp, "Ne?"

Karasu fired at the powered-up redhead like crazy. The bullets melted as soon as they neared Blaze, falling upon him like harmless raindrops. Only one bullet left, better save it. "Any ideas?" he asked Venus.

"Besides panicking? Ie."

With a war dry, Blaze unleashed the fireball. This was it!

"Silence wall!" The attack crashed into the barrier with a great display of light and noise, but doing no harm. Next thing you know Sailor Saturn arrives, spinning her Silence glaive and thirsty for blood.

Karasu sighed with relief, "Gracias Señorita," he saw Mars catch up, "The girl I was with, where is she?"

Saturn was the one to answer, "Don't worry about her Car-err-Karasu, she's somewhere safe."

Karasu nodded and directed his attention to his enemies. Blaze was breathing heavily; the effort had been too much for him. And Chris seemed to have no idea on what to do. A cold grin formed on his lips, "As a token of gratitude, you can have Blaze and ask him whatever you want," Slowly, he stepped forward while drawing his katana out of its hiding place, "Robo-crap, is mine."

"Ie!" Mars held him back, "Don't kill them, it won't do you any good."

"Maybe so, but it will make me feel better."

"Indeed it will," Saturn added. The other two senshi were chilled by the coldness in her voice, and the anger her eyes now displayed.

Chris took a step back, "Blaze, can you manage another shot?"

"Sorry pal," he wheezed, "I can barely keep up on my feet."

Growling, Chris raised his arm to fire, it blew up when a bullet hit. When he opened his eyes, he saw that his limb now ended in a mess of twisted metal and wires.

Karasu was holding up his gun, the barrel smoking. "It's always the same," he mocked complained, "I get my hands on a new toy and its busted in ten seconds."

Chris was outnumbered and out powered. He hated to run but had no choice. He raised his left arm, his hand opened and a swarm of micro-drones flew out. The senshi and warrior were surrounded. Lucky for them, these drones have a life span of a few seconds. However, they had served their function, Chris and Blaze had escaped.

Karasu slammed his fist against the floor, "No! Every time I get close they always get away. Why?" Kashaku landed on his shoulder, "Any trace of them?"

Guardian shook his head, "None. As you said, Chris has no soul to trace and Blaze has utterly drained his life force. It is too faint to follow."

Venus shook her hands through her hair, "Damn it! I'll be washing off gnats for weeks," she caught a glimpse of the undead teen, "Are you feeling okay?"

Karasu's head hung with sorrow, he'd lost too much tonight: his targets, his identity, his humanity and he'd lost… Hotaru. The faint sound of footsteps caught his attention. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Sailor Saturn approach. "Are you sure that Hotaru is unharmed?" he asked with his back towards her.

Saturn bit her lip, "She umm, she seemed okay physically. I can tell that much."

Mars approached cautiously, "I could take you to her later on," she winked at Saturn, "then you can make sure for yourself."

Karasu put his hand over his face, but then took it away shaking his head. No, no more Carlos. "No, I'm not going near her again. You make sure that she doesn't search for Carlos Navarro either." He sheathed his katana and began to walk away.

"Matte," Saturn called out, "Where are you going?"

"To where I should have been in the first place," he replied sadly, "solitude."

The trio watched as Karasu walked out of view.

Mars sighed, "Well, I guess he doesn't know who we are after all," she snorted, "We got all jittery over nothing."

"Hai," Venus replied, "Guess we should tell Tuxedo Kamen and the rest of the outers that their part of the job is done. Then maybe they can help us investigate the whirlpool gang."

"Don't say anything," Saturn's voice was barely over a whisper.

"Nani?"

"Don't say anything," she repeated, "You will not reveal Karasu's identity, not to Mamoru-san, not to anybody."

Venus blinked perplexed, "But Saturn, you know Usagi-chan wants to help him, we all do," she placed her hand on the youngest senshi's shoulder, "If we plan to succeed, then everyone must know."

"You must keep it a secret!" Saturn pleaded, "You know how Haruka-papa's going to react when she finds out. She'll take that sword of hers and blast him without a second thought!" She noticed that her voice was cracking up and took a deep breath to calm down. "I said that I would help Carlos-san, I will not back out of my word just because of who or what he is," she looked at the other two senshi straight in the eye, "Promise me, you will let me decide when the time is right to tell the others. In the meantime, I will deal with Karasu my way."

Mars and Venus looked at each other for a while. "We don't think that is the best option," the former answered at last, "but we will let you choose it." She put her hand on Saturn's cheek, "But please, be careful."

"Hai," Saturn said, she pressed Mars' hand closer to her face, "Arigato."

"Let's take you home know," Venus said with a tender smile, "You've had a full day."

*****

Elsewhere, Chris and Blaze were trying to stay out of sight as they made their way to one of the compound entrances.

"Quit stalling Blaze! We've got to find a manhole quickly, there are still too many people on the streets."

"I'm sure I'd go a lot faster if you'd agree to carry me," the redhead retorted, "You're just banged up, not tired." He rubbed his crotch, "That bimbo is going to pay me back with interests."

Chris said nothing; he had a lot to thing about. They didn't capture Karasu as they have been ordered, but they did manage to identify his alter-ego and he managed to get a pretty good view of the girl that was with him. With that little bit of information, Poe would surely be able to use his sources to track down the kid. Then maybe, he wouldn't be too angry to hear they failed.

"Chris look," Blaze had found an entrance to the sewers. They waited for the coast to clear and made a run for it. Once underground, Blaze took a deep breath, "Ah, home sweet home."

*****

Ami was looking at the video of Hotaru for the umpteenth time. Luna, who was draped over her shoulder, also watched. The azure-haired girl wrote something into her computer and awaited results. The display read:

"Inconclusive," Ami leaned back on her seat, "I've used every resource available and I still haven't gone past square one." She looked at the now dismantled machine she'd found in the hospital, "I hate to admit it, but whoever invented that thing is a genius."

"Hai," Luna hopped to the desk and faced Ami, "And you have no idea of what is ailing Hotaru-chan? If it is an ailment."

"None. I asked Rei-chan for help, but she can't do much without Hotaru-chan being there personally." She sighed and rested her head on her hand, "Shouldn't we let Setsuna-tachi know about this? I don't feel it's right to keep this a secret from them."

"Neither do I," the black cat replied, "But we all have to much work to do at the moment. Furthermore, I've talked with Setsuna-san on another occasion. She's already worried about Hotaru-chan's behavior. This would only worry her more and she doesn't need that." She saw the black cloud displayed on the screen, "Ie, we have to wait until we learn more, then we'll tell them."

Ami stretched her arms, "OK then, I'll call Rei, tell her to meet me tomorrow and we'll see what we can find out."

Luna jumped over to Ami's bed. She picked up an envelope and went back to her friend. "Doesn't the invitation Setsuna-san sent you say that the party is for tomorrow? You already said you would attend."

"I'll call back and say that I can't go after all, not with all this work to do." She started a bit when Luna jumped onto her lap.

"Ami-chan, I've always admired your dedication. But, forgive me for saying this, at times you act like a plain workaholic," there was sincere concern in the feline's voice, "Go to the party, relax, have fun. You don't want to end up buried in your work and neglect your friends, ne?"

Ami frowned slightly at the cat, but her gaze quickly softened as she petted her, "You're right Luna-chan." She turned off the computer and went to the phone, "I'll call Usagi-chan instead, and we can go shopping tomorrow. She can help me pick out a new dress, she's got great taste when choosing."

Luna sweat-dropped, "Er, Ami-chan, I want you relaxed, but not that relaxed."

*****

'Dark Feather' tower:

Allen Poe sat at his desk, staring into nothingness. There was a knock on the door, "Come."

The metal door slid open. Chris and Blaze stood in the threshold then stepped inside reluctantly. If Poe's office was dark during the day, you couldn't even imagine how it looked at night.

"I guess you already know Allen," Chris was determined no to show any fear, "we didn't get the mime."

"So I've heard," his leader replied. Allen was smiling, this made the situation a lot more frightening. "Don't worry, I saw this coming. You guys' succeeding in your very first field test was too much to hope for."

"We did manage to get something useful boss," Blaze said overenthusiastically, "We saw the Karasu in civilian clothes. Plus, there was a girl with him, I'll bet she's his girlfriend."

"Blaze, I wanted you two to bring the Karasu here alive. I am not interested at all in his social 'unlife'. Now tell me. Did he seem stronger?" he got an affirmative nod, "Good. Did he seem angry?" another nod, "That is useful information, so I guess we did gain something from this little mishap." Chris and Blaze sighed with relief. "However," Poe added as his smile became even crueler, "You did fail on your mission." Slowly, he reached out and pressed a button on his desk.

Chris lurched; his entire body began to roar in pain. Sparks flew out of his destroyed hand. Blaze fell to his knees, breathing rapidly and heavily. He felt as if his insides were melting. Both were in too much pain to even scream. Lucky for them, the torture only lasted a few seconds.

"This was only a light reprimand," Poe stated, "fail me again and I'll devise more severe forms of punishment." He turned away from the pair, "Go meet with Hawkins and have him fix you up. I'll give you further orders later on." Chris and Blaze left quickly, not daring to reply.

Once he was alone, Poe shifted his attention to his computer and pressed a button. On the screen there appeared a pair of teenagers. He had no interest in the girl, just the boy. A few moments later, he became Karasu. "Yo soy Karasu no shi!" He watched the whole fight. Indeed, he moved with surprising speed. Allen had some idea of what this could mean, and how he could make sure. An idea came to his mind. Now we pause, raise the volume, play the recording again and see what we find.

"Carlos Navarro is dead." Poe stopped the video.

"Well now, looks like its time to dust off the archives."

*****

Outers' Manor:

Hotaru stood just outside the door trying to keep her nerves in check. She was determined not to let her parents suspect there was something wrong. Minako offered her help, but she refused it politely, Hotaru wanted to do this all by herself. She wiped her eyes in case there were some fugitive tears and put on a cheerful smile, not too cheerful, otherwise Michiru-mama would smell something fishy. She took a deep breath and went inside.

"Tadaima."

"Hime-chan?" Setsuna put down the book she was reading, "Where have you been all day? This morning you said you were just going to take a short walk."

"I was expecting it to be just a walk," Hotaru explained, "Only I wasn't expecting to find, or rather, be found by someone," she amused herself a while watching Setsuna's puzzled visage, "Carlos-san."

"You found Navarro-san?" Michiru asked and she bounded out of the kitchen, "Did everything go okay? Did you two talk it out?" Haruka followed closely, she didn't share Michiru's enthusiasm at all. In fact, she wanted to say a thing or two about Hotaru being cautious. But she kept quiet, she didn't want things to get more difficult between herself and her ocean princess.

"Everything started out as well as I could hope for," Hotaru said as she sat down, "Both of us apologized for what we said yesterday. It was a bit silly, since none of us could see the reasons the other had to do so. We spent the entire day strolling about and talking to each other. He told me the reason why he always acted so angry, how a lifetime of moving had left him with almost no friends and he decided to give up friendship entirely. I told him how I almost had given up myself before I met Chibi Usa," she looked up at the three women, giving them a warm grin, "and you guys. Everyone else smiled back at the teenager. Michiru and Haruka instinctively edged closer to each other.

"Don't leave us in suspense Hime-chan," the aqua-haired woman begged, "What happened afterwards?"

Hotaru chuckled at Michiru's impatience, "I tried convincing him not to become a hermit and offered to become her friend…" her voice drifted away. She wrapped her arms around herself as she remembered how Carlos-san had responded. A soft smile came to her lips as she fully recalled the warmth shared between their embrace, and the sweetness with which he whispered his gratitude.

Haruka tapped her finger on her forearm during what seemed to her like an eternity of quiet. "Are you sure that you're planning your relationship with Navarro-san to be 'just friends'?" she finally said. The mild tease roused Hotaru from her reverie; she felt her face flush when she noticed the stares she was receiving and Haruka's malicious grin.

"Ahem! Yes well, we kept talking the rest of the day and had a bite to eat at the Crown café," her face went serious suddenly, "But when we gave each other our good byes, things ceased to go well."

Setsuna sat up, "Why? What happened?" she asked with eager concern.

"Chris and Blaze appeared, the pair that attacked Mina-san and Saori-san that night at the theater. They started killing and blasting everyone in sight, calling out for Karasu."

"Another drone attack?" Haruka inquired, in the middle of the city?"

"Ie, they didn't use drones this time, they alone were powerful enough," Hotaru linked her hands and rested her chin upon them, "Something or someone had changed them, made them more powerful. One of them now has the ability to emit energy blasts and the other had turned into a," she shivered, "a cyborg."

"Ara," Setsuna's eyes widened, "Did you get the chance to transform into Sailor Saturn?"

"Hai, Carlos-san sent me off on one direction while he ran the other acting as a decoy," she paused. Okay, here comes the hard part. "I hated doing so, but I ran towards a hiding place and changed. By the time I returned to the battlefield, Mars and Venus had arrived and so did Karasu." Hotaru's eyebrows crooked, "I don't know how I failed to notice it before, but he seemed a bit faster and stronger than yesterday."

"Oh, that's good news," Haruka quipped, "Any idea how that happened?"

Hotaru hummed, "Well, se seemed to be angry, closer to furious. That must be where he got his strength, he is a warrior of vengeance you know," the other three nodded in agreement. The young girl stretched her neck, "Anyway, to make a long story short, we managed to defeat the thugs, but they escaped by blinding us with a swarm of gnats," she scratched her head when she remembered that part, "I then found Carlos-san behind a wrecked car, he was unconscious but unharmed. I tried to get him to let Minako take him home, but he declined. I didn't insist, after all, I know how though he really is," she shot Haruka a glance as she said that. The sand-blonde gave one back in agreement.

"I guess things ended up well enough," Michiru commented, she gave Hotaru a teasing gaze, "So, are you and Carlos-san meeting again?"

Hotaru nearly choked on her own words, hiding her feelings was a lot harder than she expected. "He, umm, he's not really fond of making plans. He just likes to take a chance and see if he'll run into your path. Maybe I'll get lucky and find him again tomorrow." Please, please, please let me find him again.

"Have you forgotten Hime-chan?" Setsuna asked, "That's when Gumpei-san's reunion is going to take place." Kobayashi Gumpei, Setsuna's colleague at the observatory. He had discovered a new comet a few days ago and decided to throw a party to celebrate. He invited Setsuna of course, and told her to bring along all of her friends. Setsuna noticed that her daughter was a bit troubled, "Hime-chan, if you're still feel uneasy after what happened at Seirryu, I understand."

"Ie, it's not that," Hotaru responded swiftly, "I said I would attend and will, besides, it won't do me any good to stay cooped up."

"I agree," Michiru added, "Well, I'm done at the kitchen, better go up and practice on my violin for tomorrow night."

Hotaru got up from her seat, "And I'm heading for the furo, I can still feel those bugs crawling over my skin." As she went upstairs, she passed beside a window and looked outside, the sky was cloudy and starless. Despite that fact, she made a wish of hope for her newfound friend. I'm your friend Carlos-san and I'll always be with you, no matter what.

*****

Whirlpool compound:

Allen walked down the aisle towards his chambers. He ran into someone along the way. "Paul, what are you doing here?"

"Oh, sorry sir. I was just heading to…umm…the library," the black man replied as he petted his pigeon nervously, "There's this book I've been reading and I haven't given myself the time to finish it."

Allen arched an eyebrow, "Well Paul it's going to take you longer than you think to conclude that novel, given the fact that both your room and the library are on the other side of the compound."

"Er, yes, I must still be a bit nervous about this whole Karasu business," he excused, "Now, if I may sir, I must go," nervously he rushed off.

Allen just stood there for a while then shrugged and went on his way. Once he got to his room, he noticed a quaint aroma. Someone had plans for the evening. My insatiable Kara, no matter how many trysts you may have, you always come to me at the end.

He headed for the file cabinet. As he flipped through the meticulously arranged folders and computer disks, he shook his head. "Tsk, tsk Paul, you are an adept lock-pick, but you must still learn to leave things in their place." He pulled out a diskette and went to the computer. It didn't take long for him to find the desired information. Well Señor Navarro, I do believe you will have company tonight.

"Oh Allen," a seductively melodious voice called from the bathroom. Allen turned and saw Kara in her most revealing and tempting lingerie item, a nearly transparent black satin chemise with a neck opening that went all the way down to her navel. Behind her, the mocha-skinned seductress had lit some incense. The smoke coiled around her like serpents.

Allen raised an eyebrow. Let's make that, tomorrow night.

*****

Tokyo Tower, sunset:

The janitor gave the floor one last sweep, "There, that should do it, until a new batch of tourist passes by tomorrow that is." He looked out the window, no matter how many times he contemplated it, it was a breathtaking sight. Something black and feathered flew upwards and caught his attention, a crow. He shuddered when he thought of what its presence could mean. "Nah, we wouldn't come here. There's no reason for him to do so."

Kashaku kept flying, up to the highest point of the tower. His ward was there, in the same position as he had been for the last twenty hours: perched like a bird of prey, his eyes closed and his hair and coat tossed around by the wind. The bird landed on Karasu's shoulder and faced the same direction as he did, westward. He observed patiently as the sun slowly sank. When the last beams of light vanished, the warrior opened his eyes and the guardian spoke:

"Have you made your decision warrior?" Karasu slowly nodded, "Are you sure this is what you want to do?"

"It's not whether I want to or not, it's what I have to do."

"It doesn't have to be this way," Kashaku insisted, "Your secret was not revealed the way you expected, but we've both seen what an understanding being Hotaru is. I'm sure that if you searched her out-"

"I'd only endanger more," Karasu claimed, "You were right Kashaku, things have gotten too dangerous. Whoever turned Chris and Blaze into what they are now is not a foe to trifle with. The less involved Hotaru is with me the better."

"Doing this will not guarantee her safety."

"She'll be safer."

"You might just lose her prematurely."

"I was going to lose her anyway," Karasu insisted, "Quit it Kashaku, whatever you say won't change my mind."

Kashaku sighed sadly and said nothing more. He knew the warrior was making a mistake, but he also knew he wasn't allowed to do something about it. He opened his wings, "Let's get it over with then."

*****

Mamoru Chiba stepped out of the car and held the door open for Usagi and Ami. "It's too bad that Makoto-chan and Shigeru-san couldn't make it," he commented, "I know Kobayashi-sensei from college, and he really knows how to host a reunion."

"It's their first month anniversary since their betrothal," Usagi replied, "To them it's a more important celebration," the faint sound of violin music came to their ears, "It seems that Michiru-san and the others are already here."

"Then what are we waiting for," Ami said at last, "let's go in."

The trio came in, Gumpei rushed over to welcome them, "Ah Chiba-san, I'm so glad you could make it. And that you managed to bring along your lovely wife," he turned to look at Ami, "you look beautiful also Mizuno-chan." The azure-haired girl blushed and tried to hide herself, Usagi elbowed her.

"See? I told you that dress would look good on you," she scanned the room, the decorations were simple but enhanced the joyous mood in the air, "Look at this place! You must have really been glad to have found that star Kobayashi-sensei."

"It was a comet," Gumpei corrected, "It's not really a big deal, new comets are discovered by amateurs all the time. But this is the first one that I have found." He led them all to the refreshments, "In truth, I would've never managed it if it wasn't for the sizable contribution we received from 'Dark Feather'."

"I know what you mean," Ami said, "The aid they provided to the hospital not only helped the rebuilding, but we could also buy much necessary equipment for the E. R. and the children's wing"

"I heard he's making a contribution to rebuild Hotaru-chan's school," Usagi added, "Poe-san is a very generous human being. I wish there was a way we could all thank him." Everyone nodded in agreement.

"There might be a way to make that wish come true Usagi-chan," Setsuna said as she approached her friends and colleague, "Konbanwa minna-san."

"Greetings to you too Setsuna-san," Mamoru responded, "What do you mean by that statement?"

"I received a phone-call from Poe-san inviting me to the tenth anniversary of 'Dark Feather' enterprises. He clearly stated that I can bring along any number of people I desire. Would you like to attend?"

"Would we ever!" Usagi beamed, "Since I've laid eyes on that tower, I've been dying to know what the view is like from up there."

"Two reunions in less than a week," Ami observed as she tapped her chin, "Setsuna-san, your agenda seems to be getting fuller by the minute."

"By the second," the emerald hair woman corrected, "I met Poe-san's girlfriend, Matthews Kara as I was leaving his office the other day. We chatted a bit, and somewhere along the line I mentioned my interests in becoming a designer," she shook her head, "I don't know if she had anything to do with it," (yes she did), "but I've been getting calls from catalogues all over the world. You wouldn't how often my phones been ringing recently."

"If you want my advice, you should take some of those calls into consideration," Mamoru quipped, "Maybe you'll end up with your own face on every fashion magazine cover."

"Oh no!" Setsuna put up her arms defensively, "Having two celebrities in the house is more than enough." Everyone laughed a while. The music stopped, Gumpei went over to his CD player and everyone else turned to look at Michiru. Haruka offered her hand to help her down from the improvised stage. The aqua musician accepted it politely, but coldly to the eyes of knowing people.

"I take it things are still touchy between those two," Usagi said glumly.

Setsuna nodded, "Hai, but its starting to look better. Ever since Hime-chan told us how she spent yesterday with Carlos-san." Usagi leaned on her Mamo-chan. She knew it was a naïve wish, but she hoped that she would never be such trouble among them.

Ami glanced around the room, "Speaking of whom, where is Hotaru-chan?"

"Last I saw her she was standing over there by the window," Setsuna signaled.

"I'll go talk to her, see you guys later."

Hotaru stared out the open window, she was hoping that Carlos would show up all of a sudden, even in the guise of Karasu he would be a welcome sight. She shook her head. You're hoping for too much Hotaru. Nevertheless, she kept vigil.

"Hey you're missing the party," Ami called out. Hotaru acknowledged her with a melancholic smile. "What's on your mind?"

"Nothing, I'm just, thinking."

"About Carlos-san? Rei-chan told me about you two this afternoon," Hotaru gulped but Ami didn't notice, "I think you're doing a great thing by helping him out of his sadness. Shigeru-san is right, Setsuna-san and the others have done a great job raising you."

"It's nothing really I just…I just feel like helping him, I don't know why."

"I have developed a little theory about that," the young girl looked up curiously, "Remember back when we compared you to a shadow and Chibi-Usa becoming your ray of light?" Ami got a nod for a reply, "Well, I believe you feel you owe something to Chibi-Usa, to become the light for someone else who was lost in the dark. And you found such a person in Carlos-san."

Hotaru just blinked at what she had heard. "I never thought about it that way," she said finally, she grinned, "I really like that Ami-san, arigato." The music started once more.

"I'm going back to the others," Ami said, "Will you come along?"

"I'll be with you in a minute," Hotaru responded. Ami left and she looked out the window once more. You're missing all the fun Hotaru; you'll have more than enough time to find him later. She took a deep breath and walked towards her friends.

"Caw!"

"Kashaku?" Hotaru turned quickly and leaned outside. She saw a crow perched on a bough, hopefully the guardian. It flew downwards to some bushes a distance away. She knew she had to follow. Hotaru looked back to make sure no one was watching, everyone was busy with something else. For a while there she wondered whether she possessed a sort of power that diverted attention from her. Unseen and unheard, she exited through the window.

Kashaku waited for Hotaru to approach him, when she got near enough, he flew a few feet farther. The purple-haired girl was getting annoyed.

"Will you quit teasing me already?" Hotaru complained, "You're starting to act a lot like Carlos-san."

"Caw!"

"Now I know you're Kashaku, no other crow would've replied." Hotaru finally came up to a dead end. She looked around and found no one. She turned her head back; she had come a long way from the house. Angry, she kicked a stone away and called out, "If you're trying to pull a fast one on me Carlos-san, it isn't funny," she waited for a response, "Baka!" She headed back and bumped into what felt like a concrete wall. She looked up and saw a white face, black marks and cold black eyes. "Carlos-san?"

"Not Carlos," he replied, "Karasu." Swiftly he grabbed her by the neck and pinned her against the wall. Hotaru was barely able to speak, both from the shock and the chocking.

"Ca-Carlos-san...why?"

"I won't hurt you, I will just leave you unconscious," his voice sounded empty, "When you wake up, all memory of Carlos Navarro will have been stolen from you." Hotaru gave him a pleading glance. She couldn't forget about him, she, she didn't want to lose him! "But know this," a hint of sadness was heard, "I am grateful for your friendship, no matter how brief it was." Hotaru's eyes rolled back and she fainted, Karasu laid her on the ground gently. He paused a while as he stared at her face. There's still time you can still change your mind. He shook his head violently. No! I cannot, will not risk her! His hand hovered slowly to her face.

Something flew through the air and pierced Karasu's hand.

"YAAH!" Karasu fell back from the pain. The rose wouldn't do permanent damage, but it hurt a lot. He turned to find out who had thrown it and saw Uranus running towards him.

The senshi of the wind charged as fast as she could and delivered her fiercest kick to the undead warrior's face. She threw him several feet away from her daughter.

"I knew it. I knew you couldn't be trusted!"

"You have the wrong idea," Karasu replied in a calm but terrifying tone as he pulled the rose from his hand, "But I have no time to explain." He made a move towards Hotaru, Uranus took a fighting stance.

"You keep your filthy hands off her. You listening?" Karasu said nothing, in a blink of an eye he sprinted and came up an inch away from the outer senshi. He punched her three times in the stomach and slapped her out of the way. It took a while for her mind to register what had just happened. Hime-chan wasn't kidding, he has gotten faster.

The warrior set his attention back to Hotaru and saw Sailor Neptune kneeling beside her. "Are you going to interfere too? I know you're not as tough as Machete girl over there."

Neptune got up and summoned her Aqua mirror, "I don't have Uranus' speed or stamina, but I'm not someone to underestimate." Karasu snickered; he began to move slowly, taunting Neptune. She didn't know whether to attack and perhaps miss, or defend an attack and probably be knocked out.

"Shabon spray!"

Karasu felt the sprinkle of a hundred bubbles on his face and was surrounded by the thickest mist he'd ever seen. He tried to pry through it but all that he could see was a bluish white blur. Then he felt the presence of two people, too late to react he was held by both arms. The mist cleared and he found out the identity of his captors: Sailor Pluto and Tuxedo Kamen. He tried getting away but they were determined not to let go.

"I didn't want it to come to this," Eternal Sailor Moon called as she approached and the power tier extended, "but it's clear that your behavior has become irrational and dangerous." She held her weapon forward.

Karasu gulped, "Whoa, wait a sec. What are you gonna do?"

"This will sting a little," Sailor Moon explained, "When its over you won't be able to hurt Hotaru or anybody else."

"Hurt Hotaru?" Karasu's expression went blank. Slowly, it started depicting tremendous rage. "Imbéciles!" he roared, "Do you think I'd hurt the only person who has given me her kindness!?"

"Nani?" Pluto's eyes widened in realization. Her grip loosened for a second and Karasu flung her away. Using both hands, he took hold of Tuxedo Kamen and threw him towards Sailor Moon.

"Tuxedo Kamen-oomph!" Sailor Moon tried to catch her prince and ended up flattened.

"Are you alright?" the earth prince asked concerned.

"Mamo-chan," she muttered, "you are joining me on this diet." She shifted her attention to Karasu and became frozen, every part of his body emanated pure anger.

"Very well, have it your way! But hear this: If they link Hotaru back to me, if they hurt her in any way, each and every one of you will pay. IN SPADES!" He leapt up and into a treetop, Uranus ran towards it.

"World shaking!" The amber colored blast left the tree bare, and as everyone expected, Karasu was gone."

"Uranus, you could've killed him!" Sailor Moon scolded.

"I lowered my power to a minimum," Uranus protested, "besides, he was probably long gone already." She glanced towards Neptune and Hotaru, "How's Hime-chan?"

"She's fine," the senshi of the depths replied, "We should get out of here though."

"You do that," Pluto said as she powered down, "I'll go back and take care of loose ends." Setsuna left for the party. Everyone else went someplace else.

*****

Hotaru groaned and rubbed her neck, she felt as if she had been asleep for hours. She blinked a while before opening her eyes fully. She was lying on a park bench, her friends surrounded her and her head was resting on Michiru's lap. Her guardian gave a deep breath of relief.

"Hime-chan you have no idea how good it feels to see you wake up," Michiru said.

"Personally Michiru-mama, I don't feel so hot-" her eyes widened as she sat up with a start, "Carlos-san!" Ami rushed over to see what was wrong with her young friend, Hotaru calmed down quickly though, "Thank heavens, I can still remember him." she said relieved.

"Nani?" Ami couldn't figure out that statement, "Hotaru-chan, what are you talking about?"

"Carlos-san, he was, I mean, umm," Hotaru slapped her hand over her face, "Nothing Ami-san. My mind must not be working right."

"At any rate," Haruka spoke, "What I want to know is why Karasu attacked you all of a sudden."

"He didn't attack me!" Hotaru protested, "He just wanted to help me!"

"Help you?" the sand-blonde piped up, "Hime-chan, I saw him trying to strangle you!"

"You saw him and attacked!" Hotaru retorted angrily, "I bet he tried to explain and you wouldn't let him!"

"That's enough from you two!" Usagi snapped silencing both, "Hotaru-chan, I want you to take a deep breath, calm down and explain to us what happened. Why do you say Karasu was trying to help you?"

Hotaru took two deep breaths before speaking, "Karasu didn't mean to do me harm. It wasn't quite clear what he said, it was something like erasing my memories so that I could be safe," she looked down. I don't want to forget you Carlos-san. I don't want to fear you like everyone else does, I want to-

"Any idea what memory he was talking about?" Michiru asked. Hotaru snapped out of her thoughts and shook her head.

Usagi's head hung heavily with shame, she'd let rumors and fears dictate her actions. How was she going to be a queen if she let that happen? "We thought we were helping you Hotaru-chan, and him. Instead, I believe we made things worse." Hotaru questioned her with a gaze, "You're lucky you didn't see it, after our encounter he became extremely furious. I looked into his eyes, it was frightening."

"By the silence," Hotaru got up, "I've got to find him!" Mamoru held her in place.

"And do what?" he asked, "Right now, he is completely at odds with the senshi and Sailor Saturn isn't exactly his favorite." The violet-haired teen wanted to say something but kept quiet, she had spied Haruka from the corner of her eye. She was ready to cleave Karasu in half, if she knew that he was also Carlos… Mamoru continued speaking, "We better wait awhile before trying to find Karasu no shi. With any luck, the next time we run into him he'd have calmed down." All of the girls nodded.

Setsuna caught up with them after a while and was briefed on what was said.

"Maybe you witnessed something Hime-chan," the crimson-eyed woman observed, "Do you have any idea what it might be?"

"Ie Setsuna-mama, can't say I have," Hotaru answered naturally. She noticed a strange gleam in her 'mother's' eyes. Did she know?

"Well, it's no good to stand out here in the cold," Setsuna said, "Let's go back to the manor and review this more calmly, okay?" Everyone agreed and went to their respective vehicles.

"I really hate this onee-chan," the blue clad sprite complained, "Just watching and not do anything to help them."

"Me too Deimos-chan," Phobos replied, "But we can't interfere, you know that. We already took a great risk by helping guardian Kashaku."

"Hai," Deimos sat down on the branch they were standing on, "But I can't help feeling guilty. If we had diverted princess Uranus' attention away from princess Saturn, maybe everything would have turned out better."

"Or worse," her scarlet twin replied, "None of them realizes it yet, but you and I know the feelings those two have for each other." She stifled a yawn, "Let's go home now, I really need to get some sleep."

"Still not accustomed to those patrols Rei-san has assigned for us?" Deimos mocked, "I could fly to Okinawa and back."

Phobos narrowed her eyes at her sister, "Care to put your money where your beak is?" she shifted to crow form and darted away.

"Matte, I wasn't ready!" Deimos called out as she changed and flew off.

*****

"Make sure that you bring the best with you Takata-san, remember you're not dealing with something ordinary." Allen hung up the phone turned on the intercom; Hawkins' face appeared on the screen, "Hawkins, how are Chris and Blaze doing?"

"Chris is doing quite well Mr. Poe sir. He's even choosing his new implements. Blaze however will need a little more rest that expected, he shouldn't have attempted such a powerful blast."

"Good to know. Anyway, ready the silk-shots and prepare everything for our guest."

"Yes Mr. Poe. By the way, excuse me for asking but, if you are already sure where Karasu resides, why not capture him already and get this all over with?"

"Hawkins, I'm surprised at you. Every detail must check out perfectly." He beat on his chest, "I've already waited a long time, I can be patient. Keep working." He cut off communication and went into a coughing fit, when he pulled his hand away from his mouth; he noticed a few drops of blood. Allen Poe could wait, but he was beginning to doubt whether his body could.