Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Her Battle ❯ Fateful Night under the Stars Act II ( Chapter 32 )

It's been exactly one month since my last update, so thankfully this chapter didn't take as long as recent ones. I had fun writing this chapter and hope everyone who reads this enjoys it as well.

 

~~~~******~~~~

 

Chapter 32 - Fateful Night under the Stars Act II

 

~~~~******~~~~

 

“Did it work?” Saturn asked as she squinted her eyes due to the blinding light, trying to make out what Rei's condition was.

 

Eternal Sailor Moon fell to her knees and dropped her Eternal Tier, when the item hit the ground her eternal transformation began fading away. Everything that had changed from her transformation changed back and she was no longer Eternal Sailor Moon but rather Super Sailor Moon once again. The light began to fade even quicker and both Sailor Moon and Sailor Saturn looked hopefully in the direction of where Mars knelt earlier. As everything becomes visible again, they see Mars kneeling in the same spot. Any hope that they'd succeeded quickly faded when they saw her. Nothing changed, Mars was exactly the same, Sailor Moon had no effect what so ever. The only noticeable effect was that she seemed to be weakened, but the same was true of Sailor Moon as well.

 

`I don't understand? It should have worked! Eternal Sailor Moon has the power to free Mars, why didn't it work!?' Saturn glanced over to the girl beside her; she was currently staring at Mars. Moon looked to be on the verge of tears, `This wasn't how it was supposed to happen.' She looked back at Mars and gripped her Silence Glaive tighter as she thought about what to do.

 

“I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I wasn't strong enough.” Sailor Moon cried, almost inaudibly.

 

Saturn looked back at Sailor Moon and shook her head, “No, you're wrong. You were strong enough. I must have missed something, something that caused you to be unsuccessful.”

 

“How can I help Rei now? That was our only chance and I failed her.”

 

“You haven't failed her yet. She's still here and so are you. But most of all, I know you can save her. Everything I've seen tells me you can save her.”

 

“But how?” Moon asked again, looking up at the dark haired girl pleadingly.

 

Saturn silently thought about that, `There had to be an alternative way to reach Rei…' After a few moments an idea struck the girl, though she didn't know if this idea would be anymore successful, but it was worth a shot. “Sailor Moon, just try speaking to her, but don't use your powers this time. I'll aid Tuxedo Kamen.” Saturn said and ran off to join Tuxedo Kamen.

 

Sailor Moon looked back to Mars, `Try talking to her…' There was really only one thing she wanted to talk with her about, but how could she do that now?

 

~~~~******~~~~

 

“Chronos Typhoon!”

 

A large wave of light purple energy flew out of Pluto's talisman straight at Kei. The energy hit the surprised woman solidly in the chest and sent her backwards several feet before colliding roughly with the ground, back first.

 

Pluto continued to hold her staff toward the other woman even as she lay motionless on the ground. She advanced closer to Kei, but still kept a small distance between them. Pluto stayed focused on the woman on the ground, the thought of attacking again occurred to her, but she disregarded it. The senshi of time held her staff tighter when she saw a little movement from the other woman. It was only a few more seconds before she finally spoke again.

 

“I don't believe I'm familiar with that attack.” Kei said and sat up slowly. Her hood fell back as she reached a seated position. Her black hair mostly rested on her back, expect for two tight braids that fell over the front of each shoulder. She wore a thin silver band across her forehead. It had a small star the same color of band that rested in the center of her forehead.

 

She looked over to Pluto and allowed her lips to curl into half a smile, “You really put a lot of effort into that one…didn't you?”

 

“I already told you that I won't allow you to harm the Princess.”

 

“If you wanted to kill me, you should have continued to attack me as I lay down.” Kei said and dusted off the front of her cloak with her hands. When she was done, she stood up and looked down at her clothes; the front of the dark fabric was scorched badly and had a few rips in it that weren't there before. “It's ruined now.” She muttered to herself and shook her head. She reached up and pulled on a string that hung around the collar causing the front of cloak to open. She then proceeded to take the black coverings off and throw it to the ground afterwards. “I guess it's not very honorable to attack someone when they're down though, is it?”

 

“You've modified your uniform since I last saw you.” Pluto commented, ignoring the question.

 

“I don't serve anyone anymore, so I saw no need to continue wearing the same uniform.” Kei replied and held out her arms, as though she were displaying her armor.

 

She wore black armor, in the same fashion of the one Mars currently wore. Her dark armor stood out even more against her plain skin, a clear sign she didn't venture into the light very often. Her appearance was only vaguely similar to the girl she knew from the Silver Millennium.

 

Kei began to walk toward Pluto, but paused for a moment as she looked at something. Her eyes traveled past Pluto as she said, “It appears the Princess wasn't successful.”

 

Pluto glanced over her shoulder where Sailor Moon and Sailor Mars were and on the surface it appeared that she was right. The senshi of time sighed, `So, this is the path that must be taken…' She closed her eyes for few seconds before opening them and turning back to Kei, `So be it.'

 

“You obviously don't know the Princess like I do.” Pluto stated.

 

“We'll just have to see about that won't we?” Kei said and smiled. `I guess you still have something up your sleeve, but so do I…'

 

~~~~******~~~~

 

A loud explosion resonated through out the area as the Sailor Senshi's attacks struck the first line of youma. The youma that were hit were completely disintegrated, but the second line charged onward regardless, seemingly unbothered by the deaths of their companions. Even though a number of them were eliminated with their combined attack, a large number remained and they seemed hell-bent on putting up a fight.

 

“It looks like we're going have to do this the hard way.” Jupiter said and entered her fighting stance.

 

“Spread out! But remember, none of them can make it past us.” Venus ordered.

 

Immediately each of the girls leapt to one side. Jupiter and Mercury, who were on Venus' left both leapt to the left. Uranus and Neptune, who were on Venus' right leapt to the right. Venus however, remained in the same spot, in the center of the group. There was now a good distance between each girl, giving them enough room to fight, but they were still close enough to support each other if the need arose.

 

The youma seemed to divide themselves up into small groups as well, when the Sailor Senshi separated, showing that they were at least well coordinated. The four smaller groups advanced on one girl each. They seemed to understand that they'd have to get through them first before going any further and that charging past them was going to be too difficult.

 

“Let's make short work of these youma!” Uranus called to the group. As the youma finally reached them, she held her hand in the air and called forth her primary attack.

 

“World Shaking!”

 

She directed the glowing yellow ball of energy at the youma in the center of the group of five that approached her, he also happened to be the largest of them. The attack hit the youma square in the chest and threw him into the air, before he disintegrated. The remaining four continued unflinchingly at the tall warrior, forcing her to engage them in close combat.

 

At the same time each of the other Sailor Senshi were involved in their own battles as well….

 

Sailor Neptune stood patiently as the youma that were running at her, surrounded her. She snapped her fingers and a mirror appeared in her hands. She held the mirror out in front of herself, pointing it at two youma. After a moment she shouted her talisman's attack.

 

“Submarine Reflection!”

 

The mirror's surface immediately released a bright light upon Neptune saying those two words. In what couldn't have been more than a couple seconds the two youma that were covered in the light became dust. At the same time the youma that stood behind her as she attacked the two other youma, charged her from her blindside.

 

Venus wore a hard gaze as she watched the youma get closer to her. There were a total five among the group that looked to be heading at her, but she already knew none of them were very strong so their course of attack seemed obvious, they'd attack together. `I should reduce their numbers, before they get too close.' She thought and pointed her forefinger and middle finger at the youma furthest on the right.

 

“Crescent Beam!”

 

The concentrated energy beam shot out of her fingers at a high rate of speed and struck the youma in its right shoulder, sending him to the ground. `Am I losing my touch?' Venus sighed, she had intended for it to strike him in the chest and kill him instantly, now his death will be a lot more painful. Venus entered her fighting stance and prepared to engage the remaining youma.

 

Sailor Jupiter studied the five youma as they neared her. If they were running at full speed, none of them were very fast, but that could be because of their size, all of them expect one were on the larger side. `The big ones must be short range fighters. It wouldn't be good to have all of them surround me…'

 

“Sparkling Wide Pressure!”

 

A ball of electrical energy formed in her hand and she threw it at one of the large youma. The ball hit him solidly in the stomach area and blew straight threw him, destroying him on the spot. As with the other groups of youma, they continued onward unfazed by their comrade's death. Jupiter watched the youma get closer and as she expected the smaller one hung back a little, while the other three continue to charge her.

 

Mercury put away her mini super computer and pressed her earring, making her visor disappear as well. She watched the four youma; two were fire specialists and two were earth specialists, which meant two would be more apt in close combat, while the other two would likely be longer range fighters. She'd use what she knew about them to her advantage, she'd take away their visibility. While it was more of an advantage over long range fighters, it would help against either type.

 

“Shabon Spray!”

 

The misty water vapor filled the area, but Mercury was careful not to make the foggy area too large, so it wouldn't interfere with the girls. Mercury pressed her earring again as she too became surrounded by the fog and started out to search for the youma she trapped in the near zero visibility.

 

~~~~******~~~~

 

Ryuji wore a sick smiled as he approached Tuxedo Kamen as he still knelt on the ground. The tuxedo clad man hastily tried to get back up, he knew that if he didn't, he'd just be a punching bag for the youma and he had no intention of letting that happen. He grunted aloud as he forced himself to his feet.

 

“So you do have some fight left in you, eh?”

 

Tuxedo Kamen held his cane again as he stood. The object was in his left hand, though he normally holds it in his right, he realized when he was getting up that he couldn't form a tight fist with that hand. Blocking the youma's attack earlier must have done more damage than he hoped. He pointed the cane at the youma and said, “I can't be done in that easily.”

 

“Heh, I wouldn't boast simply because you are still able to breath.” Ryuji said, before again starting to walk towards the human.

 

The Prince of Earth watched the youma carefully; he needed to find some way to stall him a little more. He took one step back and cursed inwardly, there was no way he could defeat this guy without outside help, and that was unrealistic to expect at the moment. He took another step back as he continued to be stalked, he was in the bad situation of having to react and defend himself against whatever the monster he was facing had in mind.

 

“This is boring. If you're not going to do anything, I will.” The youma said and quickly rushed the man.

 

The youma moved so quickly that Tuxedo Kamen didn't even have time to react, though it was unlikely he could have staved off the furious attack. Ryuji gave him a quick uppercut to the chest area, lifting him off the ground, and quickly followed up with a flurry more before the man could even fall back to the ground. The youma finally stopped, though by that time the man he'd been hitting was several more feet off the ground. Without the force of the hits, the tuxedo clad man began fall back to the ground, but before he could the large youma grabbed him by the throat and brought the man closer to him.

 

“You're weak, human. I can't have any fun with someone so weak.” He said and threw him roughly unto the ground. He held his hand in the air and materialized his weapon to it. He started at the man for short time longer, almost expecting him to beg him or something, but he said nothing. “Good-bye.” The youma declared as he began to bring his weapon down on the man. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the glint of something shiny, coming down, at his head. Ryuji jumped back as the blade slammed into the ground between him and the tuxedo clad man. A small crater formed around where the blade struck the ground. The youma followed the pole up to its wielder. He couldn't help, but grin at his fortunes. It was the same girl that was with Sailor Moon just a short time ago, the same one he'd been warned about.

 

Sailor Saturn lifted her weapon back up from the ground and held it at her side as she looked at the youma, he didn't appear as though he was going to do anything…immediately anyway. She turned away from him and gazed down to the Prince of Earth, he was a mess. She didn't need her unique ability to see that. He was breathing awkwardly, he had his right arm protectively against his chest, and one side of his face had a large amount of blood. Saturn knelt beside Tuxedo Kamen and placed her Silence Glaive down beside her, “Are you all right?”

 

“What's your definition of `all right'?”

 

Saturn smiled a bit and said, “If you can joke, I'd say you aren't going to dying anytime soon.” She closed her eyes and put her hand over his chest afterwards. She was silent as she inspected his injuries. When she opened her eyes she spoke again, “You do have a few broken ribs and a mild fracture to your ulna in your right arm. You're lucky those broken ribs didn't puncture anything, they're pretty badly broken.”

 

Tuxedo Kamen nodded his head, “How did she do?”

 

The senshi of death and rebirth silently shook her head, “But she hasn't give up yet.” She smiled for a moment before becoming serious again, “Stay here and try not to move too much.” Saturn picked up her weapon and looked at the youma, who'd been silent since she intervened, “I'll take care of that youma.”

 

“Are you sure you can take him down by yourself?” Tuxedo Kamen asked.

 

Saturn stood up fully and turned away from the man she was talking, toward the youma. Her eyes quickly glanced over the other rest of the senshi, all of them had their hands full with their fights, “I don't have any other choice right now. I can't allow him to get near Sailor Moon.”

 

Tuxedo Kamen nodded his head in response, she had a point. She couldn't exactly tell the youma to wait for the other girls to finish before starting to attack. “Be careful Saturn, he's strong.”

 

She gave him a quick nod, “Yeah, I know. I've clashed with him once before, so I have an idea about what I'm dealing with. He on the other hand, doesn't know what I'm capable of. But here…I can use some of my power with out restraint.” She said before beginning to walk away him, and toward the large youma.

 

Ryuji smiled, he'd intended to go after her when this started, but the male among them interfered. He wished to test himself against this senshi since he was told about her, `She doesn't usually take any notice of any of the other girl, that girl had to be strong.' “Now, this is more like it.” Ryuji commented as he looked over the young senshi.

 

Saturn pointed her Silence Glaive at the youma, “As the solider of death, I will put an end to you and your evil ambitions.”

 

~~~~******~~~~

 

Sailor Moon got to her feet and started walking unsteadily towards Mars. With each step she felt as though the ground was shaking beneath her. Mars wasn't far from where she was before, but her shaky balance made it very difficult to get closer to her and if possible, she wanted to be close enough to touch the other girl. She'd forgotten how draining a new transformation was the first few times she used it, this was a glaring reminder. She had no intention of faltering before she could reach Rei. It felt like an eternity of walking, but finally she could see Rei just in front of her.

 

“Rei…are you okay?” Moon asked and dropped to her knees in front of the already kneeling Mars. She didn't answer. Instead the dark haired girl hunched over slightly, she was breathing heavily, and had beads of sweat on her forehead. “I'm sorry; I didn't mean for you to be hurt.” Moon said extending her hand out to touch Mars' cheek, but Mars recoiled from Sailor Moon's touch.

 

“Don't touch me!” Mars yelled disgustedly causing Moon to retract her hand. “And I've already told you before, I'm not Rei…I'm Diana!”

 

“No, you're Rei. Our enemy did something to you to make you forget who you are, she did something to you!” Moon said pointing to the person was currently engaged with Sailor Pluto.

 

Mars looked where the blonde girl in front of her was pointing and back to her, shaking her head, “You're wrong. I'm Diana, warrior and princess of Mars.” Mars said.

 

“No, that's not who you are…you're Rei and I want her back! I want my Rei-chan back.” Sailor Moon pleaded.

 

Mars looked utterly confused, `This girl is speaking honestly. I can sense no dishonesty in her words. My memories can't be false, can they?' She couldn't figure out what to believe, in front of her sat a girl who spoke so emotionally and honestly it almost made her want to believe that she does know her. Then there was what she knew, that these Sailor Senshi are her enemies and she was to eliminate them. Suddenly a word popped into her head, `Usagi', she had no idea where the name came from, she didn't know it before and yet…it seemed so familiar. Mars' eyes flickered briefly to a familiar amethyst color as she spoke, “Usa…gi”

 

Moon's eyes lit up as she gave Mars a huge smile. Sailor Moon move forward and wrapped her arms around her senshi, embracing her tightly. Sailor Moon opened her mouth to say something when Mars tensed in her arms; Sailor Moon pulled back a little to see what was wrong. Mars reached up and held her head, like she was having a bad headache.

 

“Rei, what's wrong?” Moon asked concernedly.

 

`What the hell are you doing Diana? Kill her already!' the voice said.

 

`No! I don't want to kill her.' Mars responded mentally.

 

`Are you disobeying me?' the voice asked.

 

`No, I mean, yes…if you are asking me to kill her.' Mars answered.

 

`I'm not asking you. I'm ordering you, kill her! Do what a solider does and follow your orders!' the voice commanded.

 

`Why?! Why do I have to kill her? I don't want to kill her; I don't want to hurt her.' Mars said.

 

`How dare you question me? Just do it!' the voice commanded again.

 

`No!' Mars responded. “Get the Hell out of my head!” Mars screamed looking up at the star-filled sky.

 

~~~~******~~~~

 

Pluto looked over her shoulder to the girl who'd just yelled. She hadn't expected such a loud outburst from either of them. `What just happened?' Her eyes widen for a moment, `How could I have forgotten?' she asked her. She turned forward once again and stared angrily at the woman in front of her, “Stay out of it.”

 

“No.” She said.

 

The simple statement seemed to anger the senshi of time further. She clenched her free hand into a fist and quickly closed the distance between her and Kei. Pluto reared back and prepared to hit the other woman. Kei merely stood there, she didn't attempt to dodge or anything. She was rarely a physical fighter, but she could fight that way if she needed to, so she knew how to throw a punch and that was exactly what she did. Her fist struck the side of Kei's face and she stumbled in the direction the Pluto's fist took her, but she didn't fall. “You don't have any right to interfere with them further. Usagi has a right to say her piece and once she does, she will without a doubt break your spell.”

 

Kei tilted her head to the side and spit on the ground, her saliva had a little red mixed with it. She laughed a little and turned back to Pluto, “I'm just trying to make good on my investment. You would do the same…am I wrong?” She asked and looked at Pluto for her reaction. Her grin only grew wider as she looked at the senshi time, “You have done the same.” She laughed hysterically at her deduction.

 

“My actions were never driven by the desire for the death of another.” Pluto stated.

 

“So that makes it better?”

 

“It doesn't. But your actions are rooted in your desire to hurt two people and they are both my friends, one of them I've sworn an oath to protect.”

Kei waved her hand dismissively, “You'll get over it.”

 

“And there you go again, telling me what my feelings are. I know exactly what my feelings are. You're still nothing more than a child when I look at you, can you not understand that?”

 

“Shut up!” Kei yelled and quickly swung her hand at the other woman. She caught the senshi of time off-guard, allowing the back of her hand to connect with the side of her face. Kei stared at Pluto; she kept her head turned away from her, where the force of blow took it. It wasn't as though the hit was particularly painful, she just wasn't expecting it, hence her lack of movement afterward. Kei clenched her hand into a fist at her side, “Do you see what you made me do?!” She shouted, but shook her hand a few seconds later. “Don't you see why I have to end this? I'm doing this because of them!”

 

Pluto looked back to Kei and shook her head, “You put yourself in this position, and no one else is responsible. I made my beliefs very clear all those years ago. Killing the Princess could never change my mind, not then and not now.” She said and paused to take a deep breath, “You don't have a chance of succeeding. The Princess wasn't successful on the first attempt, but…”

 

Kei spoke up quickly, interrupting the other woman, “You didn't seriously think she could undo my spell that easily did you? She did seem to generate quite a bit of power there, but she can't break my spell like that. No matter what she's trying now, she won't succeed.”

 

“Say what you will but you seem to have your own doubts; otherwise you wouldn't continue to interfere with them. No matter how powerful the spell, it will most certainly crumble under what she can give.”

 

“And what's that?”

 

“Something you can't understand.” Pluto said and looked back to the two girls behind her. `I lied, Usagi. There is another way to break the spell on Rei. It's something you had to come to on you own; it's something that only you would be able to do. However, you couldn't simply be told to say it, it has to be real, it had to be true. Otherwise, the words are meaningless and they'd hold no worth. It's up to you to understand what that is. I'll keep Kei from interfering again if you hold your resolve to bring Rei back at all costs.'

 

The senshi of time finally turned back to Kei, “Your interference with them ends now.” She said and walked over to her.

 

“Is that…” Kei started to say, but was cut off mid-sentence. Her eyes traveled over to Pluto, she had her hand on her arm. Her eyes widened for a moment, “When did you…?”

 

“You didn't forget you taught you all those techniques, did you?” Pluto asked.

 

“I thought it was forbidden to use them.” Kei shot back.

 

“This is an exception and it will also be the last time I do this.” Pluto said and turned away from Kei to look over to Sailor Moon and Sailor Mars. “Now you can just sit back and watch as the Princess frees Mars.”

 

~~~~******~~~~

 

“What's wrong Rei? Who's doing this to you?” Moon said and enveloped Mars in another tender embrace. “It's going to be ok Rei, I'm here.” Moon whispered into Mars' ear.

 

The raven haired girl stiffened in the other girl's arms, she didn't need her pity. She pushed the other girl away and tried to get up, but failed miserably, her body was still too weak. She cursed silently at her own lack of strength.

 

“Please Rei…” She said and looked at her with pleading eyes.

 

“No.” Mars said and pointed her hand at the blonde's face.

 

“You won't.” Sailor Moon said simply and reached her hand toward the other girl's.

 

Mars was surprised she merely disregarded the heat she knew her hand was emitting. She was even more surprised when the girl interlaced her fingers with her own. Somewhere inside though, she knew the girl was right, she couldn't attack her, not like that. She did want to put some space between her and the blonde haired girl, but even that was impossible for her.

 

Moon squeezed her hand, “You don't need to strong anymore, please…let me be strong for you. I want to bare your pain with you. I promise you won't have to be alone ever again. I know she's twisted your mind and she might have a stronghold on it, but she doesn't have all of you. She doesn't have your heart. She can't possibly have your heart, because I won't let her have it.” Sailor Moon let go of Mars' hand for the time being. She took off her gloves and dropped them on the ground. “Please, I need you to come back to me. I-I have to tell you something and I'm not sure you'll understand if I tell you right now.” She paused and looked down, “Do you understand? I need you…”

 

The raven haired girl shook her head in confusion, “Why do I feel so strange around you? I don't understand it.” she said and looked down.

 

“Look at me.” Sailor Moon said gently and put her hand softly under the other girl's chin. She made Mars look at her, “No matter how much she's done to convince you otherwise, she can't completely take you away from me. I've seen it in your eyes. She can't taint your soul no matter what; it's too beautiful to be overtaken by her lies.” She smiled at the confused looked she received. “I can see it even if you can't, it's still the same soul that I…I…” She bit her lower lip softly and looked down for a moment. She looked back at the other girl and took a deep breath. She slowly moved her hand from Mars' chin to her cheek. Her thumb stroked the soft skin beneath it, but that caused the other girl to start to move away, prompting Moon to speak again, “Please…give me a moment.”

 

Mars stopped, but didn't immediately do anything else. After a little thought she moved back to same spot she was. Sailor Moon smiled, “Thank you.” She said and took a few more seconds to think of what to say. Once she finally settled on what to say, she began. “I don't know what I have to do to return you to normal.” She admitted with a sigh, “What I do know is what I decided on, on my own. I wished to tell you, after you were yourself again, but it looks like I can't wait.” She paused for a moment a shook her head, “Actually, I don't want to wait any longer. I just hope you understanding what I'm saying…”

 

Sailor Moon let her right hand slip behind Mars' head. Her fingers weaved through black hair until she felt the back of her head beneath the thick tresses. She held her head in place as she let her other hand leave the girl's cheek. Without breaking eye contact with the dark haired girl, Moon found the other girl's right hand resting on her thigh. She placed her hand on top of the other girl's and squeezed it gently. Moon gently brought Mars' head closer, inching hers closer as moved the other girl's. Soon there was virtually no space between the two girl's faces. “I hope you believe me when I tell you this…” She whispered, without breaking eye contact. She stared deeply into the dark haired girl's eyes, seemingly searching for something, for what felt like an eternity, though in reality it couldn't have been more than a few seconds. For her part, Mars felt compelled to hear what the other girl had to say, for some reason. Finally breaking eye contact, Sailor Moon moved her head so that her lips were then close to Mars' left ear.

 

“You mean so much to me. I don't think I understood exactly how much until you weren't with me anymore. I can't explain it except to say that at some point, I felt as though I was missing a part of myself. It took me a long time to figure out why that was, but I think I can say that I have now. I know why and now that I know, it feels like I should have known all along for some reason. What I'm trying to say is that…” Sailor Moon paused for a moment and took a deep breath. “I love you.”

 

She positioned herself in front of Mars again. She looked into her eyes for some kind of reaction to what she just said, but she couldn't find anything. `Actions speak louder than words, don't they?' she thought before moving forward and capturing her lips, hesitantly at first. Her lips barely brushed against the other girl's, almost as though she was afraid of the other girl's reaction. She seemed surprised because she immediately tensed up at the contact, but it wasn't an altogether negative response like she'd feared. Sailor Moon took that opportunity to then make the kiss more meaningful by fully capturing her lips.

 

The dark haired girl's eyes widen at the blonde's brazen actions. She wasn't forceful or demanding though and she found herself giving in to her, allowing her to do as she wished. It wasn't too long before she was returning the kiss. There was something about the sensation of the other girl's lips against her own, but couldn't figure out what it was. After a few seconds, she could feel her cheeks were wet, but she couldn't understand why. She was crying and she couldn't understand why, the tears just fell of their own accord. The other girl broke away from her and wiped away the wetness with her hands, before moving forward and resting her forehead against the other girl's.

 

“Please come back to me, Rei.” The blonde whispered and closed her eyes.

 

“Kiss me again.” The dark haired girl said out of the blue. Moon looked her curiously, but Mars answered her before she could say anything, “I need to know what I felt before.”

 

Sailor Moon nodded her head and leaned forward again, pressing her lips against the Mars'. The raven haired girl closed her eyes and focused solely on what the feeling was that the kiss invoked in her. She parted her lips slightly and pushed her tongue past the opening. She brushed her tongue across the other girl's lips, seeking entrance. She could tell the blonde was surprised, but she knew that she needed this. There was some hesitation from the other girl, making Mars believe she'd never been kissed like this, but she finally gave in and parted her lips. She didn't want to be forceful with her, so she slipped her tongue into the other girl's mouth slowly and with equal slowness, she explored her mouth. After only a few seconds, she realized what the sensation was that she felt when she kissed her before…recognition.

 

`I remember this feeling.' Mars pulled slightly away from the other girl and opened her eyes. `I remember…' she thought to herself. She lifted up her hand and touched the blonde's lips with her gloved hand. `I remember these lips, their softness, their warmth, their taste…' Mars quickly leaned forward, this time surprising the other girl when she was on the receiving end of a passionate kiss. Mars started to separate herself from Moon, but instead of completely parting, she caught the Moon Princess' lower lip with her mouth. She sucked on her lower lip for a few seconds before breaking apart completely. The sensation sent a shiver down Moon's spine.

 

She couldn't think of anything to say, she hadn't expected the other girl to do that. Her hand unconsciously went up to her lips and a small smile formed, `Rei, kissed me…' After a moment though, her smile fell somewhat, `Was it really Rei?' She looked to the dark haired girl for some confirmation.

 

Mars stared back at her companion with misty eyes, “I love you, Serenity.” At those words, Sailor Moon's compact opened, revealing the object within it. The crystal shone brightly; as it did the night before, but this time it didn't hurt her…it was different. “So warm…” Mars whispered and closed her eyes. Afterwards the light seemed in engulf both her and Sailor Moon. Suddenly long forgotten memories and some not so long ago flooded into Mars' mind. `I am Diana…no…I was Diana. Diana died in the Silver Millennium defending her princess, Princess Serenity, against the Dark Kingdom's attack. I was reborn on Earth as Hino Rei, a shrine maiden, but I was also Sailor Mars again. Everyone else was reborn too, even Serenity, but she's not Serenity in this time either, is she? No, in this time she's Tsukino Usagi, Sailor Moon.' Mars thought and memories from her time on Earth fill her mind, from all the battles, her second death, her grandfather, and just daily interactions with friends. She felt overwhelmed by everything, it was more than one person should have to process at one time and she began to feel light headed, but she knew she had to do something before her body could give out.

 

Rei opened her eyes slowly and focused her gaze at Sailor Moon, she smiled as bright as she could for the other girl, “I love you, Usagi…” After wards, her eyes closed once more.

 

~~~~******~~~~

 

Saturn ran at the large youma with her silence glaive in hand. The youma showed no signs of moving immediately, so Saturn swiped the blade at him. If she were successful, she'd cut the youma in half, but that was almost too much to hope for. The youma stabbed his weapon into the ground, so it would stand vertically and allowed the hard pole to take the force of the senshi's attack.

 

Ryuji struck the top of the pole with his arm, forcing the blade end out of the ground. He quickly grabbed the weapon and swung down at Saturn, who was now only about an arm's length away. The dark haired girl lunged to her left, just before the blade hit the ground. She quickly stabbed at the youma once she had her footing, but the youma reacted just as quickly and redirected the strike with his own weapon. Before the creature could counter-attack, Saturn back flipped away from him to try to think of a new strategy.

 

`He's a close-range fighter, but so am I.' She thought and stared at the youma and his weapon. `I'm sure my Silence Glaive is more powerful than his weapon though…' Before she could finish her thought, she could see the youma running at her with his blade in the air. She quickly did the same and swung her weapon down at the youma, who did the same at the same time.

 

Saturn's weapon struck the ground just in front of the youma harmlessly, but the same couldn't be said for the youma's weapon. She knew she'd been hit; it was just a matter of how bad it was. Her head turned to her right, roughly an inch and half of the youma's blade was imbedded in her shoulder. Ryuji smiled happily as he yanked his weapon back.

 

Saturn gasped out in pain and fell to one knee. She immediately applied pressure to the gash on her shoulder with her opposite hand, soaking her glove through with her blood. She had it timed right…yet he still cut her. Why? She watched as the youma rested his weapon over his shoulder. He seemed to be smiling even wider, but that only caused her to stare more angrily at the creature.

 

“How? You're wondering how.” He stated, but the young senshi only glared at him. “You don't need to say it, it's written all over your face.” He said and paused. “Well, I'll tell you. Reach. It's that simple. My arms are longer than yours. Our weapons are about the same length but that means nothing if I have a longer arm span than you.”

 

Saturn let the youma talk, she was more focused on healing herself, and a person can only lose so much blood. She knew she couldn't completely heal herself, it would take too much energy to do so anyway, but she could at least heal it enough to allow that arm to be functional.

 

Ryuji walked closer to the young senshi like a shark that smelled blood. “You're still just as fragile as all the other humans.” He said held his weapon high above his head. He held it there for a few seconds, but all he did was unwittingly give the senshi of death more time to recover, before swinging the weapon down. As he swung down his blade, Saturn raised hers above her head.

 

“Silence Wall!”

 

The youma's weapon stopped midway down, having connected with a black dome of energy. He pulled back his weapon; he'd already seen how much that shield could with stand when she fought with Mars, he knew there was no way he could cut through it. “So, you can regenerate.” Ryuji commented as he saw which hand held her weapon. “Interesting…so if I cut you up you'll just heal, eh? I guess I'll just have to chop off your head.” He said and grinned at the end.

 

Saturn stood up and still maintained her shield as she focused on the youma. She had a plan, but she knew she'd have to act quickly. She was sure he would try to attack her again while she kept her silence wall up, but she'd have to let down her shield in order to execute her plan. `I just need to be quicker than him.' She mentally counted to three before letting down her defensive attack and quickly reared back her weapon. Like she assumed the youma charged her as soon as her defenses were down, but she was a couple faster. She started to swing her weapon back around and call out her attack.

 

“Silence Glaive Surprise!”

 

Saturn swung her weapon at the youma, causing him to jump back. The blade wasn't the dangerous part of her attack though, because as the blade came near the youma, he was hit full force with a large amount of purple energy that erupted from the young girl's weapon. He was thrown back with the energy as it sailed threw the air. The youma was soon engulfed in a large explosion, which propelled him into the air and even further away from Sailor Saturn. It wasn't long before the youma found himself heading back to the ground once more.

 

When he crashed loudly into the surface Saturn ran to the area he landed. Saturn watched the youma cautiously. She'd caught him off-guard and her attack hit him solidly; taking all that into account she hoped the youma would be down for the count. Much to her disappointment, she could see movement from the monster; he looked to be standing back up. Saturn noticed that as he stood, something was falling off his body. Once he stood fully, the senshi of death was shocked at what she saw…he didn't have a scratch on him. `There's no way he can walk away from that unharmed' Saturn thought and tried to come up with come kind of explanation. Her eyes focused on whatever it was that she saw falling off him as he stood, the answer had to lie with that.

 

“It was time I shed that old skin anyway.” Ryuji said and stepped toward the young senshi. “But that sure was dangerous…it surely would have killed anyone else.” He said and cracked his neck to the side, “What do you say we begin round two?”

 

~~~~******~~~~

 

Mars' fuku shattered away from her body, giving off a sound resembling breaking glass, and also leaving her bare to the world. She slumped forward, but Sailor Moon caught her and cradled Rei against her body as she clung weakly to her Princess. She felt limp to Moon, but she could feel the slow rise and fall of her chest against her own, she might as well be sleeping. Moon held her tighter, seemingly ensuring there could be no space between them. They were in their own world as far as Sailor Moon was concerned, nothing could touch them. She continued to hold Rei silently, but the unwelcome sounds of battle reached her ears. She looked up, all of her friends were still fighting…their fight wasn't over. She realized Rei would have to get up; they weren't out of danger yet, if anything they were in more danger. Moon leaned next to Rei's ear and whispered, “Rei…Rei…wake up. Come on, wake up for me…please.” She rocked the dark haired girl back and forth as she still implored her to wake up.

 

Rei's eyes were closed as she tried to enjoy the warmth from the soft object she clung to. She felt so tired, she wanted to sleep, making that even more tempting, she felt so safe where she was that she never wanted to leave. Sleep was a formidable adversary for the raven haired girl at the moment. The desire to give in to it was strong, but she also felt the need to open her eyes. She struggled over which one she give into, but at the edge of her hearing someone was whispering encouraging words to her and telling her to wake up. Her body was telling to ignore the voice, but there was something about the pleading tone the voice had, she didn't think she could ignore it.

 

The longer it took for her to wake Rei, the more Sailor Moon got worried. `Why isn't she waking up?' She asked herself. She'd taken to stroking the other girl's hair as she urged her to wake up and join her in the world of the living. She felt like she was being selfish again, but she needed to see the other girl to open her eyes and say something. A few stray tears fell down her cheek on to Rei's cheek, causing the other girl to flinch slightly with each droplet, though it went unnoticed by the blonde.

 

Rei cracked open one eye and then a second one, she did wish to remain in dreamland, but when she looked up at the girl holding her, she realized it was just as good here too. Even though her body was still so weak, looking at Usagi she could see that she needed her more, her body could wait. She tried to shift a little, but she was being held too tightly for that, but she noticed one of her arms was free to do as she pleased. Carefully, Rei reached up with her right hand and wiped the wetness beneath Moon's left eye with her thumb. Sailor Moon looked down at the girl in her arms, with a somewhat surprised look. “Hey…Odango atama…” She said softly.

 

Moon's eyes filled with tears once more and she held Rei even tighter. She felt so worn out and Sailor Moon was holding her so tight it was becoming painful, but there wasn't anywhere in the universe she'd rather be. She just continued to let Sailor Moon do as she pleased. She was going to live in this moment for as long as she'd be allowed, moments such as this were fleeting after all. It wasn't much longer before the Moon Princess finally seemed to loosen the `death-grip' she had her companion in. She pulled back just enough to look into Rei's eyes, prompting the other girl to look up at her as well.

 

“…Rei?”

 

The dark haired girl took a deep breath before answering, “The one and only…”

 

Her voice still sounded weak to Sailor Moon's ears, but she could hear the cockiness in her voice as well and it brought a smile to her face, not to mention still more tears.

 

“Hey, no more tears…okay?”

 

Sailor Moon nodded her head, yet the tears didn't stop. Rei sighed, “I'm here Usagi and I'm not going anywhere, I promise. You saved me, Usa…I owe you everything.” Rei paused, this time it was her eyes that filled with tears. “I'm sorry. Oh, kami-sama, I'm so sorry. I hurt you, I couldn't stop my body. I swore to protect you and could have killed you.” Rei cried as her hand hovered over Sailor Moon neck.

 

Sailor Moon grabbed a hold of Rei's hand and forcibly closed the space between her neck and Rei's hand. The dark haired girl looked at Moon in surprise, but she simply smiled, “I don't want you to be afraid to touch me. I promise I'm not as fragile as you think I am.” She said and winked at the end.

 

“Usagi…” She began but had to force back more tears, with much effort, before continuing, “…I love you so much.” Rei said and placed her other hand on Moon's shoulder before slowly moving forward in an effort to close the distance between her and Sailor Moon.

 

~~~~******~~~~

 

“You failed.” Pluto announced. The words were so simple, yet they stabbed threw Kei as though she'd been physically struck.

 

Kei stared angrily at where Rei and Sailor Moon were, `It's not possible! My spell was flawless. There's no way I failed!'

 

“Do you see now? Do you see why your spell was broken? Their feelings are the same and what they feel for each other is strong enough to overcome any spell you could have come up with. I'm sure you understood you couldn't completely erase all of Mars' latent feelings for the Princess. However, I think what you failed to understand the most is the strength the Princess possesses.”

 

“Don't start preaching to me!” Kei snapped back.

 

Pluto looked down and shook her head slowly. After a moment she looked up and took a few steps toward the other woman. She waved her hand, causing her companion to stumble forward a little. “Can't you see this is over? Mars is beyond your reach, your forces are being decimated as we speak, and it's only a matter of time before you're the only one left. You can't hope to defeat all the senshi of this solar system. Do yourself a favor and give up. Ask for forgiveness.”

 

“Forgiveness? Who the hell are you trying to fool?”

 

Pluto sighed, “It's over. You can't accomplish your goal anymore. If you are wise, you'd do as I say.”

 

Kei stepped forward, toward Pluto, but her eyes focused on two other senshi. She stopped in front of the older woman and looked her, “I will bring an end to all of this.” Kei said and pushed Pluto aside. The senshi of time fell to the ground and stared in horror as the other woman raised her hand in the air and began to collect a large amount of energy.

 

“Ultimate Chaos Flare!”

 

~~~~******~~~~

 

Sailor Moon began to do the same as she moved toward the other girl as well, trying to meet her half-way. Just before their lips could touch, Rei stopped and pulled back a little, causing Usagi to stare at her curiously. Rei tensed up for a moment, something was coming at them and it was very dangerous. She let go of Sailor Moon and jumped to her feet. She was already transformed once she was standing fully. She looked where she felt the energy and her eyes widened at the massive amount of energy shooting towards them. Sailor Moon stood beside her in the same state of shock.

 

`It's too big, there's no way to avoid it!' Mars thought as she saw oncoming attack. Mars turned to Sailor Moon for a moment and tried to think of something, but only one thing came to mind. “Chikusho!” Mars cursed and ran in front of Sailor Moon to offer her at least some protection from the blast.

 

“Wh-What are you doing?” Moon asked.

 

“Just stay behind me!” Mars ordered.

 

“No! I just got you back and can't lose you again…not like this.” Moon pleaded and ran in front of her protector.

 

“Damn it, Usagi! If you're hit by that…” Mars started to say, only to be cut off by Sailor Moon.

 

“I'm not moving!” Moon said resolutely.

 

Mars hung her head slightly, “When did you become so stubborn?” Sailor Moon just smiled happily, despite the situation. Mars looked past the Moon Princess for a moment, they were out of time and she knew it. She wrapped her arms around the blonde and rested her chin on the other girl's shoulder before whispering in her ear, “I'm sorry…this is all I can do.”

 

“If I still had the power to transform into Eternal Moon, I'm sure I could stop this.” Moon commented.

 

Mars pulled back a little to look at Moon and stared straight into her eyes, “Hey, if this is the way it's going to be, I'm happy just as long as I was able to look upon you again with my true eyes. You gave that back to me.” The darker haired of the two started to drop to her knees, bringing the girl she held with her. She hazarded one more look, before quickly looking back to Sailor Moon; she wanted more time with her…they hadn't even started. She made a silent prayer at that moment for them to survive this…somehow. “Close your eyes.” Mars did the same and they both anticipated the inevitable.

 

………….

………

…...

 

Sailor Moon and Sailor Mars blinked together, everything was silent. There was no noise whatsoever. There were no sounds of battle, there was nothing, save for an eerie silence. Mars let go of Moon a little, as they tried to determine what exactly just happened. Suddenly a voice far-away sounding voice startled the two girls…

 

“I'm sorry for the role I played in all of this.” Pluto said as she looked down at Moon and Mars.

 

“What's going on?” Moon asks.

 

“I've used my Time Stop ability. It's a forbidden action that will allow the two of you to escape the blast.” Pluto stated.

 

“What do you mean `forbidden'? What will happen to you?” Mars inquired as she got up and stepped toward the senshi of time.

 

“I will die.” Pluto said without emotion.

 

“NO! You can't!” Moon cried from a kneeling position.

 

“This is my fate, it was one of the possible outcomes and I accept that. I've committed a sin against the laws of nature and I must pay the price for my actions. Please don't be upset Princess; you have a lot to live for. I hope you understand that I've always had your best interests in mind.” Pluto said remorsefully.

 

“Why would you just give up your life like this?” Mars questioned.

 

Pluto look at Mars sadly, “I am most sorry for all that you had to go through, Rei. Not all paths are a straight line, some take dangerous turns and those aren't the easiest to maneuver. Unfortunately your path back to Usagi was a most difficult path, but you over came it. I'm sure you understand how long and difficult it was as you are now. I'm sorry everything played out like it did and for my part in it.”

 

“Baka…you're giving up your life for the two of us, and you're apologizing to me, baka!” Mars yelled.

 

Pluto smiled down at Mars and looked at the crying Moon Princess, “Please get away from here. I can't stop time for much longer and if the two of you were still caught up in this; that would make my efforts worthless.”

 

“Why?! I don't want to lose any of my important friends!” Moon cried.

 

“Don't be sad, Princess. I already told you this is my decision and besides there is no turning back now. So please leave, it is far past time you should have gotten away from here.” Pluto said firmly.

 

Mars leaned down to Sailor Moon and pulled her up off the ground, “Usagi…” she said anxiously.

 

“But…” Moon started to say when she turned around to look at Mars' face. She could see that her eyes were swimming in unshed tears, `She must be fighting so hard with herself not to cry.'

 

“There's nothing more we can do.” Mars said sadly and took Sailor Moon's hand in her own, “Let's do like Setsuna says and get away from here.” The blonde haired girl nodded her head slowly. Sailor Moon tightened her grip on the other girl's hand and Mars in turn did the same thing, before the two senshi sprinted off away from the senshi of time.

 

`Good they're finally getting out of harm's way; I can't freeze time for much longer. Maybe some day we will meet again, but until that time, good-bye my friends…' Pluto thought as she released the spell and closed her eyes as she accepted her fate.

 

As suddenly as the noise was silenced, the roar of battle filled the ears of the senshi of flames and the Moon Princess once more. Sailor Moon stopped immediately when she heard the noises of battle again, forcing Mars to do the same. Both girls looked back where they'd just come from. Moon's eyes filled with tears once again as she watched the attack run its course, straight through where they left Pluto. She felt her hand being squeezed gently and closed her eyes, allowing a few tears to escape. Without a word she ran into Mars' arms and buried her face in the other girl's shoulder. She was mumbling something but Mars couldn't make out what it was, so she just comforted her as best she could.

 

Even as she soothed her crying princess, her eyes found themselves focused on where the attack from a few moments ago came from. The battle wasn't over yet…

 

End Ch. 32

 

~~~~******~~~~

 

This was a long time coming! I glad I can finally write Rei as she is normally! Was this chapter worth it? I took so long getting to this point that I'm sure I could live up to the build-up; I hope I did for the most part.

 

Pluto…I'm sorry everyone out there that is a fan of her. There needed to be sacrifice, and as I got closer to this chapter (even in this chapter), I did drop hints that she knew she was going to have to sacrifice herself. Of course, this will be important through out the rest of this story.

 

Just about all the key plot points I planned are out in the open now, expect for a bit about the past (that I'm sure most people have already guessed anyway), which will be addressed in the next chapter. Oh, and if anyone is wondering about the use of Saturn's attack, I'm really think the anime messed up her attack. “Silence Glaive Surprise!” is not an attack that would kill her (in exchange for killing her opponent) at least in the manga it isn't, which I'm using in this case. `Silence Glaive Surprise', is just a normal attack, though I do make it more destructive than it is in the manga. If Saturn does have an attack that could kill her opponent in exchange for her life, it's more likely to be `Death Reborn Revolution!' I do have to make a correction from my comments at the end of the last chapter, `Death Reborn Revolution' is not her attack the ends everything, that attack (the one that destroys everything) doesn't have a name.

 

Next chapter - “Battle's End” (Part1) Maybe? It all depends on how much I draw out the fights, Mars/Moon versus Kei will be epic though, I promise. The rest of the senshi's battles were originally going to be in this chapter, but as I wrote them out, I wasn't satisfied with them at all, so rather than delay this chapter because of that (they're to be rewritten), I cut them out completely and decided to add them in the next chapter as well. Also, I wouldn't expect the next chapter as quickly as this one came out, mostly because I'm going to be a lot busier with work. :(

 

Thanks to everyone who's been keeping up with my inconsistent updates and dropping me a review if you have any comments. Until next time, bye.