Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Death and Rebirth ❯ Death and Rebirth 20 ( Chapter 20 )

Death and Rebirth

Chapter twenty:

Dark Feather Tower:

Kashaku, Phobos and Deimos watched in amazement as the gigantic structure shook, Luna and Artemis were seeing this from the rooftop of a nearby building.

"Caw! Don't take this the wrong way, Guardian Kashaku," Phobos commented, "But I'll take this as a sign that Karasu no shi is alive and well."

"I definitely agree. Caw?" The guardian's eyes widened in surprise. "I can feel them! Let's go!" He dove as fast as he could, so fast the Mars twins hesitated a bit.

The cats' position was a bit more precarious; the area of the compound extended beyond Poe's tower, so tremors could be felt all around, including the building they were on. The felines escaped quickly towards an open area, once there, Artemis covered Luna for as long as the explosions continued.

"Are you all right, love?" the white cat asked concernedly to his mate.

"Hai, domo arigato Artemis-kun," the black cat answered, "What the hell was Poe keeping in there?"

"No idea, but I'm glad it was destroyed. Who knows what he was planning to do with-Nani?" He saw one of the crows lurch and plummet. "Something's happened, follow me!"

"CAW! KASHAKU!" Deimos saw her friend fall and immediately dove at breakneck speed. She glimpsed the second they were at the same level and noticed that he'd fainted. She looked down, appraised how close the ground was and planned hastily. Kashaku was too heavy for her avian form, there was no way she could stop him, but she might be able to slow him down. The blue-eyed crow positioned herself directly underneath and opened her wings as wide as she could. The blow was tremendous but her plan succeeded, she was able to improvise a parachute with her body. Just as they were about to hit the ground, Deimos changed into a human and landed with Kashaku in her arms. Phobos was with them a second later and changed as well.

"Deimos-chan, are you all right? How is Guardian Kashaku?"

"I'm okay onee-chan, but I'm not so sure about Kashaku-kun." She tried to rouse him. "Kashaku-kun, Kashaku please say something." The bird groaned and awoke groggily.

"The warrior…Lady Saturn, Lady Venus, they…they're gone."

*****

The sewers:

Sailor Pluto stood with her hands against the rubble, reciting a mantra in order to calm herself. Mercury was beside her, scanning with her visor.

"Found anything yet?" the time senshi asked.

"Ie, I'm getting a lot of interference."

"Take your time, I don't want a rushed answer." Sailor Moon, Mars, Neptune and Uranus arrived a minute later.

"Mamo-chan!!" the Moon princess ran into the arms of her love, "When I heard the explosion I feared the worst," she said through sobs.

"There was no need to worry Usako," he replied tenderly, "But what about you? Your lives were endangered as well."

"But what happened?" Uranus interrupted before the blonde senshi could say anything, "What the hell happened to Hime-chan?"

"Chill out Uranus," Jupiter replied, "Mercury's looking into it right now." If I tell her about those fallen rocks, she's likely to use her World shaking and bury all of us. She sweat-dropped as she thought about this.

"They made it!" the water senshi announced with a big sigh of relief, "Venus-tachi managed to teleport in the nick of time, but I can't tell where to."

"Then we'll figure out the hard way," Pluto suggested, "We'll go back home and see if they're there."

"Tuxedo Kamen and I will check out Mina-chan's apartment, and they might also be at Hikawa temple."

"Or Karasu's nest," Mars added. The tunnels shook again. "We better get going, otherwise no one will be there to find them." Everybody agreed and hurried out of there.

*****

"My ladies, highnesses," Kashaku hopped onto Deimos' shoulder, "I'm glad to see the cataclysm didn't affect you."

"There's more good news Kashaku-kun," Jupiter added. She told the animals what Mercury had found out, the guardian wasn't relieved however.

"Kashaku-san told us a moment ago," Luna explained, "he can't feel their presences anywhere."

"They could be using the Silent shadow," Artemis suggested, "but that's very unlikely now that they've escaped."

"Hidden or not, we have to go look for them," Neptune said. Everyone left the place, the Earth prince and Moon princess took the cats away, the fire and water senshi stayed with the birds.

"Deimos-chan, Phobos-chan, would you mind going along with Kashaku-san to the nest while Mercury and I go to the temple?"

"Not at all," the blue clad girl answered as she got to her feet, "We'll be there-Yaah!" She fell and clutched her ankle.

"Deimos!" Phobos knelt next to her sister, "What's wrong?"

"I think I hurt myself after that rough landing," the long-haired girl noticed how the male crow lowered his head with guilt, "It's not your fault, Guardian Kashaku, you'd be dead by now if I hadn't taken that risk." Everyone looked at her curiously as Mercury checked her wound.

"You won't be able to walk with this, and I believe landings will also be hard. I can make a temporary bandage while the ambulances arrive, but only if you remain in human form." She got up, "I'll stay with her, the rest of you go on."

"Right, please take good care of my sister Princess Mercury." The red-eyed girl changed and flew away along with Kashaku. Mars left for Hikawa.

"Princess Mercury, wouldn't it be easier if I transformed and you took me to a veterinarian?"

"Ie, I don't know anyone capable enough, and Rei-chan would take it out on me if your condition worsens," the azure-haired senshi gave an apologetic stare, "So I'm afraid you'll be grounded for a while." Deimos sighed and threw her head back.

"I guess it's true then, one crow alone means bad luck."

*****

And so began a wild goose chase, or crow chase, if you will. The senshi couldn't find their friends at each of their homes, so they looked at other places where Minako and Hotaru used to hang out. They searched the park, Crown game center, the café, the library; Kashaku led Phobos and the cats around Karasu's usual patrol routes. Uranus even went as far as searching castles Mazeran and Titan.

When the search had begun, there was still plenty of sunlight, and now, it was about 1:00 a.m. when Usagi and Mamoru came home to rest a little. The blonde girl dragged herself up to the couch and flopped.

"I swear, if those three are doing this on purpose, I'm going to kill them." The Earth prince chuckled as he sat down beside her, he started rubbing her back.

"There's one factor we haven't considered," Mamoru noted, "Karasu's zealousness. There's a chance that they haven't left the compound at all."

"I doubt it," Usagi replied, "Carlos-san's first priority would be to keep Hotaru-chan out of danger." The black-haired man nodded in agreement. The phone rang at that moment ant the blue-eyed girl answered. "Moshi, moshi."

"Usagi-chan, at last I'm able to reach one of you!"

"MINAKO!?" Usagi sat up with a start, knocking her husband off the couch, "Thank the Kami! What happened? Where are you?"

"We're all okay, we teleported in the nick of time. Only problem was that we didn't quite plan the destination and ended up in Mexico."

"Nani?" she raised an eyebrow, "That's Carlos-kun's home country, ne?"

"Hai, and we all ended up tired from the trip. You should've seen those two together while they slept. Haruka-kun would've made such a fit." There was a muffled sound. "Anyway, we're all going to rest and gather our strength for the trip back home. I'm at the hotel right now, Hotaru-chan and Carlos-kun are doing something. Maybe we'll arrive tomorrow night. Unless you guys want to come over and pick us up."

"Matte Mina-chan." Mamoru was signaling for the phone. "Mamo-chan wants to talk to you, I'll inform the others. Ja ne."

"Ja ne princess." Mamoru took the receiver while his wife went a distance away to use her communicator.

"Mina-chan?"

"Hello handsome, did you miss my voice?"

"Yep, you're okay," the Earth prince quipped as he rolled his eyes, "So you ended up in Mexico. Any idea why?"

"None. Well, Carlos-kun did contribute the most by lending us his power, and he did say that he was thinking of his family. Anyway, we're planning to return as soon as possible."

"Ie," Mamoru replied, he scratched his chin and thought a little, "you may have to stay a bit longer."

"Nani? What ever for?"

"I don't know what it is, but there must be a reason for you being there. Stay with Carlos-san and help him anyway you can."

"Yes sir, your highness. I better hang up now 'cause this call must be costing a fortune. Ja ne Mamoru-kun."

"Ja ne Mina-chan."

"Oh! One more thing, the outers are going to kill you for this."

"I'll be wary." He hung up the phone and looked up, Usagi stood there with her arms crossed, her head tilted and her finger tapping.

"Mamo-chan, are you sure of what you're saying?"

"Their being there is more than a coincidence, Usako," he explained, "Plus, now that this crisis is solved, other things weigh on my mind."

The senshi rejoined at their leaders' apartment soon afterwards. Obviously, the outers arrived first, followed by Mars, four of the animals entered through the window, Ami and the still human Deimos came in last, Makoto was going to be delayed.

Deimos was in a very sour mood, not because of her foot, but for the fact that she had to walk on her way here. The bandage on her ankle was foreign and Ami didn't know whether it would go along with the shape shifting, therefore, the Coronis-born crow was ordered to keep her featherless guise.

Usagi made tea to help everyone relax while Mamoru gave the news, Setsuna gave a small prayer of thanks and went to the balcony, she needed some time to herself.

"That explains it," Kashaku said with visible relief, "the range of my senses can only go as far as a few miles."

"There's one thing I don't understand," Michiru pointed out, "Why not go get them now? We'll accomplish a lot more with Carlos-san being here to tell us what he knows. And what could be so important for him to stay there?"

"I don't know," Mamoru answered, "but I do know that we have something to do here. If Allen Poe is really the one behind the whirlpool gang and the drones, we must stop him before any more disasters occur."

"Let's do it then," Haruka said, clapping her fist eagerly, "let's go to what's left of the tower and give that creep what-four!"

"Use you head, Haruka-kun," Rei scolded, "After that explosion, security will be raised one hundred percent. Plus, with all of the money and resources he owns, if we attack now he's likely to twist the facts and make us look like terrorists. Kuso."

"And only Poe is our objective," Usagi added, "Hundreds of people work there, and I'm sure they knew nothing about their employer." The blonde girl buried her face in her hands. "Ara, the people in the tower, I never stopped to think about them."

"They're safe, Usagi-chan," the azure-haired girl informed, "While Deimos-chan and I were at the hospital, I took some time to check the incoming reports with the help of my computer. There were no serious injuries."

"Meanwhile," Deimos butted in, "I was abandoned at the waiting room to bore myself out of my mind."

"Come now," Phobos called from the window, "If it was anything like last time, you attracted more than enough guys to keep you busy." The blue twin merely huffed.

"Could we get back to the problem at hand?" Haruka asked, "We know what we're supposed to do, now let's figure out how to do it." A discussion began, one consisting of plans, suggestions and such.

Kashaku flew over to Setsuna, who was looking at the night sky deep in though. Artemis was there as well.

"You are worried about Ladies Saturn and Venus," the crow guessed.

"Obviously," the white cat replied, "just as you must be worried about Carlos-san."

"I am, that much is true. Not once had a warrior and his guardian become separate by such distance," Kashaku grumbled, "not to mention the sort of trouble his immaturity will get him into." He was not about to admit his true feelings out loud.

"They'll be all right," the emerald-haired woman spoke softly, "I know they will." She leaned down and rested her chin on the guardrail, "I understand Mamoru-san's suspicions, but how can I help not worrying? Hime-chan has never been on her own before, and I'm guessing neither has Carlos-san. Who knows what opponents she might face."

"Both the Warrior and Lady Saturn are capable fighters, no adversity should pose a serious threat to them."

"Hai, Sailor Saturn and Karasu no shi can fight, but I'm referring to Tomoe Hotaru and Navarro Carlos. Can two children be left to fend on their own?" Both animals nodded in agreement.

"You might be exaggerating, Setsuna-san," Artemis replied, "They're smart kids, and besides, they're not children anymore."

"Artemis-san, that's something else that worries me," the mocha-skinned woman stood up and tapped her fingers, "A boy and a girl, very fond of each other, far away and unsupervised." This time the animals gave big nods.

"Maybe we shouldn't worry about that either," the guardian reasoned, "they do have Lady Venus for a chaperone." Setsuna burst out laughing at that comment.

"Ha! Domo arigato Kashaku-san, I needed that."

"Umm," the crow just looked at her in confusion and then turned to the white cat, "Sir Artemis, was it something I said?"

"You need to get to know Mina-chan a little better."

"Attenzione tutti!"

The trio jumped when they heard Makoto and Shigeru barging in. They went inside to find out what all the commotion was about.

"Tune into the newscast," the brunette ordered, "now!" Usagi fumbled with the remote and turned on the set, Allen Poe appeared on the screen.

"We ignore whether this destruction is the result of an accident or sabotage, but I can assure you that we are now searching for whoever was responsible. Furthermore, and most importantly, I will personally grant financial aid to all the ones affected…"

"My, he does work fast," the blonde commented.

"Hai, but that's not what we meant for you to see," Makoto gulped at the next image, "that is." The news was now reporting a different sort of disaster area, far from Dark Feather tower. The entire group could see large slashes on the walls and floor, and some of the stone seemed to be melted.

"The drones," Mamoru guessed as he got to his feet, "Ami-chan, can you find out where they're at?"

"Umm," the azure-haired girl tapped on her computer, "They're too disperse, it'll take a while to find and destroy-Matte!" she came up with new data, "The swarms seem to be forming around groceries and storage areas. They're looking for food!"

"That should make things a little simpler for us," Michiru commented, "But still, we only have one computer and several target areas."

"Lady Phobos and I can provide some aid in that area," Kashaku suggested, "We can search out the creatures and call you through telepathy."

"Good. Eternal Moon power!"

"Mercury/Mars crisis power!"

"Jupiter/Pluto crisis power!"

"Uranus/ Neptune crisis power, Make up!"

Shigeru had to shield his eyes a bit. Witnessing one or two senshi perform the henshin can be quite a spectacle, but seven at once is much too overwhelming. His sight however was directed towards his fiancée becoming Sailor Jupiter. No matter how many times he saw that, it always got to him.

"I'll stay here and look after Signorinas Deimos and Luna and Signor Artemis," the mousy-haired man stepped up to the thunder senshi and gave her a quick kiss and embrace, "You concentrate on taking care of yourself, okay?"

"I will, Andre-chan." In pairs, the senshi and Tuxedo Kamen went their separate ways, Kashaku immediately flew after them, but Phobos hesitated a moment.

"Onee-chan, the princesses and Guardian Kashaku are waiting for you. Hurry!"

"Hai, it's just that I…well-Caw!" the red-eyed crow ruffled her feathers and bolted away, leaving her sister a bit confused.

"She's worried about you, Deimos-chan," Luna said as she walked over to her friend and put a paw on her knee, "you know she always treats you as the little sister."

"Hai, I guess you're right, but it was more than worry," the blue-clad twin replied, "I could see it in her eyes." She leaned back on the couch and started petting the black cat. I always wondered why humans like to do this.

*****

Dark Feather Tower:

Hawkins bent his insect arms and put on a new lab-coat, being in charge of organizing many of Allen's affairs had kept him busy through the rest of the day and most of the night. What upset him the most was the fact that it would take the workers weeks to clear the compound, so he would not be able to find out what had happened until then. To a creature like Hawkins, not being able to perform research was worse than torture.

Poe and Kara entered the room at that moment, both of them with looks of concern. The warlock walked up and slammed his fist on his table.

"Damn it, everything was going so well! When I find out who caused this disaster I'll make go through one thousand hells."

"Now Allen, don't dramatize," his mocha-skinned lover warned, "You still have that spell and enough resources to cast it. Sure, the Karasu escaped, but you said that he's not necessary."

"Don't you understand how dangerous this situation is?" Poe asked angrily, "Now that he knows about my plans he's become a lot more dangerous. The spell can only be cast under certain conditions, until then, I'm at his mercy." Not to mention I need to experiment first before trying it on myself.

"Then I'll take care of you until then," Kara replied, "Or are you forgetting how I became famous for breaking the knees of five members of the secret service?"

"I didn't forget, nor that you did something else before the punishment."

"If I may say something," Hawkins interrupted, "There are other pressing issues. Number one: Chris will not be able to function any time soon; two: the senshi know about us as well; and three: all the drones that escaped. They are still unprogrammed an utterly uncontrollable. Luckily, they have a preference for sweet foods rather than flesh, so it should take some time before human casualties occur. But afterwards, we'll meet with a lot of difficulties when the drones are presented to the military."

"Hawkins, had I been worried about the drones becoming public, I never would've used them at the school. Before we introduce the drones, we must wait for genetics to advance, and that won't occur for another fifty years. Anyone who might recognize them by that time will be considered either senile or crazy, providing said person was able to see them and survive, which is quite unlikely. And as for the last two problems you mentioned, we can assume that they should be able to neutralize each other. The senshi would never leave a threat like the drones unattended." Poe started to feel lightheaded and leaned on his desk, Kara rushed to his aid.

"Come along Allen you need some rest." She turned to the mutated scientist, "You better take a nap too Doc, I'm sure you have a lot of work as well, and you'll mess it up if you're too tired."

"I will Miss Matthews, right after I check some numbers." The black-haired woman nodded and led the warlock outside. The mad doctor took out a hand-held computer and pressed a few buttons. "Well, getting the cyborg to function will require time, but not much trouble. As for Mr. Paul, it seems that he'll soon accomplish his purpose."

*****

"Death scream!"

"Supreme thunder dragon!" The electrical beast seemed to swallow half a dozen drones. Luckily for the senshi, most of the rogue drones were skeletons and not fully mature yet. "The mighty Jupiter reduced to bug control. Is there a way to make this situation more humiliating?"

"Just be thankful that it's not more difficult," the long haired senshi replied, "If we weren't counting with Phobos-chan's help, we wouldn't have achieved this must progress." She looked up and searched for the female crow. They were organized the following way: this pair received aid from Phobos while Sailor Moon and Mars were assisted by Kashaku, Tuxedo Kamen and Mercury were using the latter's computer, and Neptune and Uranus were being guided through their communicators.

"It will take us more than one night if we don't find a way to stop Poe," the thunder senshi punched a hole in a wall, "I agree with Uranus, the best thing would be striking directly, now!"

"I know how you feel Jupiter," the time senshi said, "I had several meetings with Poe, and I soon labeled him as a decent man. I really want to get even for playing me for such a fool." She took a deep breath, "But we have no idea how powerful he is. Suppose we attack the tower and it turns out to be a virtual battle station."

"True, but what you just said gave me an idea," the brunette snapped her fingers, "The creep might still not know our secret identities, and that's something we can use to our advantage."

"Exactly!" Pluto exclaimed as her ruby eyes went wide, "Poe and Meioh Setsuna have been developing a close professional relationship. We just have to figure out how to use this fact." The expression on her face became a little somber.

"What is it?"

"Nothing, it's just…(sigh). Call me crazy but for a moment, I actually felt bad for Kara-san." Jupiter didn't reply right away.

"Hai, I guess he has a lot of people fooled."

"Caw, caw." Both senshi looked up.

"I guess Phobos-chan located another swarm," Jupiter noted.

"Hai, let's hurry before they start moving."

*****

Elsewhere, Tuxedo Kamen and Sailor Mercury dispatched another drone batch.

"It's a good thing Karasu figured out the drones' weak spot," the Earth prince said as he aimed towards the insects' eyes, "I'm saving a fortune on roses."

"Hai, I just hope the others are doing as well as we are." The water senshi looked around with her visor. "There are three more in that direction, the last ones in this area-Nani?"

"What is it? Did you find something?"

"Possibly," she tapped the buttons frantically, "The drones seem to be partially robotic. If I analyze this information, we'll be able to stop them much sooner than we thought."

"Will it take you long?" Tuxedo Kamen asked as he readied his cane, he heard a creeping noise heading towards them.

"No time at all, I just need to-" The three drones crashed through the wall and attacked! The Earth prince was expecting them to come through a door or window, so they were taken completely by surprise. Tuxedo Kamen parried a claw and was tossed away by the force of the blow, Mercury's first intention was to help him, but she immediately realized her best choice was to complete her own plan. She modified her communicator slightly.

"Voice register: Sailor Mercury. Drones-KYAA!" One of the bugs charged at the senshi and pinned her to the ground. When she opened her eyes, she saw the beast's mandibles ready to bite off her face.

*****

"Sailor Moon, are you sure this will work?" Sailor Mars asked. They followed Kashaku and had made their way to the docks, Neptune and Uranus had caught up with them a moment ago.

"I'm not really sure whether it will work or not," the Moon princess answered, "but it's the best plan I can come up with." The last place they fought at was a warehouse, one filled with tropical fruits, and Sailor Moon had an idea. The blonde piled a whole bunch out in the open so the drones would be enticed, all she needed was for all the senshi to be there so they could finish them in one blow, and fix a few details in her plan.

"This trap idea is quite a good one Princess," Uranus admitted as she tossed a papaya, "but it will only be effective if the bugs smell the bait. The city is too big, this pile is too small, and the wind is against our favor."

"Mars already told me that," Sailor Moon replied, "and for a moment I thought about forgetting all of this. But you guys showed up and I recalled a new technique Neptune told me about."

"Hai," the ocean senshi agreed, "We haven't quite perfected it yet, but it should help us fan out the smell."

"Or make one hell of a salad," the sand-blonde joked, "well, here goes nothing." The outer senshi took their positions side by side and gathered their energy. Amber and aqua light entwined and the inner senshi felt their hair being raised by the growing breeze.

"Grand tempest!" they shouted in unison. A miniature storm, one with the strength of a thousand normal sized ones, shredded and blew the fruit up into the air until it became liquid and then a reddish cloud. The magical gusts they created sent it on its way.

"Very good," Pluto praised, "last time you tried that the garden became a horrendous mess." While Neptune and Uranus were busy, Mars had called the rest of the senshi.

"Where are Mamo-chan and Mercury?" Sailor Moon asked worriedly, "Mars, didn't they answer when you called?"

"I just called everyone over, I wasn't expecting replies," the fire senshi said, "And I don't think there's time enough to call again." The buzzing sound told them that the drones were coming, a lot sooner than expected.

"This is it guys," Jupiter announced, "We can and them in either one swoop or one big brawl. And I'm feeling very tired, so let's go for the first option."

"Everyone into position," their blonde leader ordered. The six heroines formed a circle and started gathering their power, the drones sensed the energy increase and realized this was a threat to them. The food could wait, the creatures readied their claws and sped up, they would have no chance though.

"Senshi planet attack!" A luminous orb was fired towards the drones, the insects shrieked for a second as their entire bodies were disintegrated by the awesome attack, not one escaped.

"And were done!" Mars exclaimed after taking a deep breath, "I'm telling you, I don't want to see another bug the rest of my life." She looked up. "Sailor Moon, where are you going?"

"To find Tuxedo Kamen and Mercury. It's not over for me until I find them."

"We're all right!" the Earth prince's voice called. Sailor Moon ran to her husband and nearly knocked him off his feet.

"We have to stop scaring each other like this."

"I definitely agree."

"Gomen nasai," the water senshi apologized, "But we had to approach on foot, there was no way we could teleport over without scaring you."

"Scaring us how?" Uranus wondered, Mercury winked as spoke into her communicator.

"Approach." Three drones flew out from behind a wall and landed next to her. "Stand by."

"Easy!" Tuxedo Kamen said as he stood between the bugs and the senshi, who were about to attack, "they're completely under control."

"Nani, how?"

"I discovered a transmitter implanted into the drones' brains," Mercury began explaining, "With a little more investigation I found out they're preprogrammed with certain commands, all I needed was to register my voice into their memories. I still have to figure out all the keywords, but for the most part, these three are completely under control."

"I'm more than impressed," Sailor Moon admitted as she approached warily, "Are you sure we're going to be safe with these things around?"

"I wouldn't be here if I wasn't," the azure-haired girl replied, "But just as long as we keep them away from Poe, surely he'll have a failsafe command that will recover them."

"Is that so?" Pluto wondered as she stepped up to the insects.

"Careful!" Tuxedo Kamen warned, "Their behavior is still unpredictable."

"I trust Mercury's ability," the time senshi answered. She stood right in front of one of the drones, even went as far as touching its forehead, it simply chirped. Pluto was paying special attention on the whirlpool tatoo, she recalled seeing that same symbol on the warlock's medallion while he held Sailor Moon and the others captive. "Minna-san, now I know how we're going to stop Poe," she announced with her Monalisa grin.

*****

Dark Feather tower, the following day:

Setsuna was right in assuming that Poe would call her. Once again she was sitting in the waiting room looking out the window, the only difference was that now she was a lot more disturbed and for different reasons.

"Poe-sama will see you now," the secretary announced.

"Domo arigato." The mocha-skinned woman entered the dark office nervously, maybe she should have paid heed to Rei and brought someone along. She saw Allen Poe at his desk and gulped a little, this time, keeping her straight face was going to be hard.

"Ah, Miss Meioh, I'm so glad we're able to meet again," the dark-haired man greeted, "and so sorry it's under such unfortunate circumstances." He got up and headed for a side-door, "Walk with me." They went outside to the patio on top of the tower. Poe didn't seem to have any intention of starting conversation, therefore, Setsuna was the one to do so.

"Umm, was anyone affected by the explosions? The descriptions I heard in the news were quite graphic."

"They exaggerated as usual," the warlock replied, "but I will suffer a few setbacks; I'll have to be blunt and let you know the two reasons I called you for. The financial aid I granted the observatory, I'm afraid it will be reduced by a slight margin."

"That'll be quite all right, as I said before, the money you offered us surpassed our wildest expectations." The emerald-haired woman crossed her arms, "But you mentioned a second reason, which is…"

"The disaster also retarded a very important and personal project of mine, I have almost everything I need except for one small thing. After much thought, I realized that that you are to only one who can provide me with my requirement," he paused, "Pluto."

"I'll be glad to help, but first you must tell me…" her ruby eyes widened, "Nani? What did you call me?" Poe chuckled evilly, he raised his hand and bonds of dark energy constricted Setsuna. "KYAA!"

"It's only fair that I explain. In a moment of fury, young Hotaru stupidly revealed her identity, it didn't take long to figure out who the rest of you are."

"Don't you dare speak ill of my daughter!" the mocha-skinned woman exclaimed angrily, "And what do you want from me?"

"Your power, the spell I need requires a lot of energy. I had some stored in the compound, but now its inaccessible, so I'm going to take yours."

"In other words, I lose my life so you can have more," she struggled against her bonds, "Seems that I have no escape, if I didn't had a trump up my sleeve."

"The rest of the senshi? Even if they manage to get here on time, they can't stand against me."

"I didn't mean my friends," Setsuna replied with her grin, "Drones attack!"

"What?" The three drones Ami had reprogrammed flew out from behind the wall and made a beeline towards Poe. "Decease!" he shouted, and the insects' life functions ceased utterly. The black-haired man needed a few seconds to recover, he'd forgotten to go through his rejuvenation routine. "You surprised me, I'll admit it, I wasn't expecting you to gain control over these creatures."

"But you acted the way we expected you to."

"What?" Eternal Sailor Moon, her wings extended, landed next to Setsuna. She used the ginzuishou to release her friend, who immediately performed the henshin. "Mercury recorded what you did, you stopping the drones."

"Blackmail," Poe guessed, "unless I do as you say, that image goes to every network in the world."

"It's not the most honorable method but you left us with little choice," the blonde said, "I'll cut to the chase, I can grant you and Kara a normal life, one where you can live in bliss." The warlock raised an eyebrow. "But there are conditions: Give up all of this, your plots, projects, weapons and blood-money, everything!" the warlock grumbled and turned away.

"Give up what I've been reaping for a lifetime you mean, abandon the empire I worked so hard for."

"The Princess is offering you more than you deserve!" the time senshi spat, "Your empire is built over a foundation of corpses, be thankful you're receiving such mercy!" Poe just stood silently, tense minutes passed until he finally spoke.

"The final seconds, that's when everything turns out, one can plan for years but the end is always unpredictable. (sigh) So be it." He reached into his pocket, pulled out a small item and pushed a button. Fire erupted from various spots on the floor, one flame was much too close to the senshi. Wings grew out of Pluto's back and they both took off just as the floor caved in. Sailor Moon made a U-turn and headed for her foe.

"Poe, give me your hand!" she screamed. The warlock was on his knees, his hair all white, he looked up at the girl and stared with an evil as great as his true age.

"All this death is your doing," he managed to say before disappearing amongst the fire.

"Ara," was all Mercury could say as her friends approached. The Moon princess stopped in midair and witnessed the towering inferno with horror, she could even hear the agonic screams of the people inside.

"BAKA!!" She screamed with a mixture of rage and sadness, "IT DIDN'T HAVE TO END THIS WAY, NO ONE HAD TO DIE!!" She watched helplessly as tears flowed out her blue eyes, "Why?"

*****

Sunset, the coast:

A Pyrrhic victory, that's what it was. The outers watched the sea from their favorite spot, but it did nothing to help them.

"Why?" Setsuna repeated, "That's a question that will never have an answer."

"This wasn't a victory at all," Haruka commented, "We won nothing and lost too much. Even Navarro had his vengeance ripped away from him."

"He obtained our friendship," Michiru said, "at a greater level from Hime-chan, we must keep those small facts into account." The aqua-haired woman took a deep breath as she opened the car door, "Let's go home now, I'm dead tired of all this."

"Could we stop at the bakery first? I feel like some key-lime pie."

"Sure Hime-chan," the violinist answered, "Hime-chan!?"

"Konbanwa," Hotaru greeted, looking as innocent as ever. Within a second, she was smothered with greetings, questions, hugs and kisses.

"Hime-chan we were worried sick about you!" the sand-blonde exclaimed, "Where were you? How did you get here? Where are the others?"

"Over here," Carlos said into her ear.

"Yikes!" the racer jumped and spun around. She saw the Mexican boy sitting on her car chuckling. "Believe it or not," she said while clutching her chest, "I'm even glad to see you. Now where's Mina-chan, I'm only one surprise short of a heart-attack."

"Señorita Aino is getting the others," the undead teen said. He somersaulted over the outers and landed facing them. "And we better get going too, 'cause I'm sure everyone has a story to tell."

*****

Outers' Manor:

The return of Minako, Hotaru and Carlos was the spark of joy that everyone needed. They had a party right there and then, with gifts included. During their last day, Carmen treated her new friends with a trip to the market, it was the least she could do. Now, the loose-haired blonde was sorting these gifts among her friends; trinkets, figurines and sugar skulls. By the way, Paul's pigeon was left in the spiky-haired girl's care.

Each team related their respective adventures and assimilated the information. Carlos displayed nothing upon hearing about his enemy's demise.

"Carlos, won't you say something?" Hotaru asked. She was sitting on the armchair the dark-haired boy was leaning on.

"Aut Caesar, aut nihil," he quoted, "Frankly, I'm not surprised at what he did. I spoke with him, I could tell right away that he wouldn't settle for less than everything."

"That's the way it is with tyrants," Luna commented, "But one question remains. What are you going to do now, Carlos-kun?" All eyes were fixed upon the undead teen, now that the initial source of his anger was gone, there was no apparent reason for him to stay.

"I'm not going anywhere," he said as he put a hand on his girlfriend's shoulder, the amethyst-eyed girl took it with hers and looked at him lovingly. "I still have a lot to learn and a lot more to correct."

"It seems that you learned a thing or two during your travels, warrior," Kashaku assumed in a proud tone, "But I'll have you know that you are still too close to the beginning." The crow stretched his wings. "But that issue can be left for another day. All of us must be tired from these events."

"Very much, and tonight at least, we can rest easily," Usagi replied as she rose, she bowed before the outers, "Domo arigato, and good night to you."

Everyone went outside and boarded their respective rides. Rei looked up and giggled, Hotaru had healed Deimos' foot and the blue-eyed crow had done nothing but fly around the house.

"Deimos-chan," the maiden called, "you better not be too tired because were going home now." She turned to her guest, "I assume you'll vanish now and I'll meet you at the shrine."

"Actually, I'm going back to the nest. There's no reason for me to hide, and I've imposed myself upon you too long."

"Nani?" Hotaru had walked up to them to say good-bye to Carlos and had heard everything. The raven-haired girl looked at her younger friend, realized three's a crowd and left. "Carlos, after all we've been through, I can't understand why you still want to be alone."

"I need to, both of us. Too much has happened in too little time and I need to be with myself in order to assimilate it all."

"Hai, you're right. But if you start to feel too lonely, please-" He silenced her by caressing her sweet face.

"I'll call you when I need you." The pale girl smiled and reached behind his neck. They said good-bye to each other, not with words, with a kiss. Afterwards, Carlos left, he didn't use the Silent shadow, he just walked. Hotaru kept looking until he was out of sight, then she went inside.

"Good night everybody," she told her parents as she passed them by, the trio just stood there with blank stares.

"She can have anybody in the world," Haruka said as she bumped her head on the doorframe, "Why him?"

"I'm happy for Hime-chan, I really am," Michiru swore, "still, the mother side in me can't help feeling miserable."

"You feel bad?" Setsuna asked sarcastically, "I just felt my age. (sigh) Let's just be glad she found someone to love, deal?"

"Deal," the other two replied. They all went to bed, they were happy, they really were, as much as parents can be. Besides, Usagi was right, tonight they could rest.

*****

Among the deepest darkness, as small light appeared. It was a small multi-colored pearl, hovering over a pale and bony hand.

"It is far from over, Karasu no shi, far from over."