Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ Sailor X ❯ SX10: Quest for the Orb ( Chapter 10 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Sailor X #10 The Quest for the Orb

By: John Brengman

Edited by: Thomas Schell

High Security Lab #1

The Luna Foundation

The thin, nearly bald man arose from his workbench and the nearly
disassembled cyborg that covered the table.

"I've managed to activate this cyborg's internal circuits," Dr.
Nicholas Oren said as he turned to Sandra and some of the other Scouts
who had gathered there.

"What did you find?" Sandra asked as she leaned on a nearby table.

"Plenty," Oren replied as he brushed aside a lock of blue-like hair
and attached a wire to a socket behind the cyborg's left ear. "This
cyborg identified itself as Cybermercury, and it has a great deal of
information

on the technical aspects of her design, her mission, and various
information on her home dimension, a place

we'll dub "Cyberworld."

The doctor hooked the wire he attached to the cyborg into a computer
and keyed sine instructions into the terminal.

"What do you want to hear first?" The doctor asked.

==> * SM * <==

The Throne Room

The Luna Foundation

Neo-Queen Serenity propped herself on the bed that had been moved to
the throne room for her benefit. In fact, the entire throne room was a
smaller version of the main throne room in the ruins of the castle,

which was in the process of being rebuilt. Sandra, the other Sailors
and the cat guardians had gathered around Serenity and Dr. Oren.

"Let me get this straight," the queen said. "Cyberworld is a parallel
universe to our own?"

"Yes," Oren replied. "According to the records we were able to
salvage, unlike the Negaverse, which is more of a demiplane than a
real universe, Cyberworld is a replica of this universe, with the same
galaxies, stars, and planets..."

"And another Earth?" Cass quipped.

"Yes," Oren confirmed. "That is where Cybermercury and her comrades
came from?"

"Wait a minute," Cass growled. "That can't be! That's where we are
from!"

"Normally, I'd agree," Oren replied as he readied a projector that he
had brought with him. He activated a computer terminal and made sure
the connection between it and the projector were sound. "However, in
this case," Oren paused for added emphasis. "In Cyberworld, the
Sailors as we know them, indeed the Moon Kingdom itself, never
existed...." With that, the lights dimmed, and the show began...

==> * SM * <==

Dr. Oren, Narrator

"The Earth of Cyberworld has gradually grown into a vastly different
place than our own world. I won't bore you with the details of
centuries of Cyberworld history. Suffice it to say that from their
early history, they have held deep-rooted suspicions of magic, and
those who seemed to be able to channel energy, call upon spirits, or
anything else that the people did not understand.

In Cyberworld, as in our own world, the 1300s were dominated by the
Black Death, which was brought to Europe over the spice routes from
the East. In Cyberworld however, the people were so paranoid about the
evil forces of magic that the amnesty that felines got in our world at
that time did not happen. The rats too, were blamed for a disease that
brought Europe to the brink of depopulation.

When coupled with the Inquisition, which served the dual purpose of
finding both heretics and magicians,

this hatred of magic flourished from this momentum well into the 17^th
Century.

A lot of history flowed without the anti-magic taint. The Age of
Exploration began during the Renaissance, just as it did here, though
in Cyberworld, it was hailed as the true rebirth of a humanity that
had been driven to the brink of extinction. Soon, the great powers of
the times had established colonies in the newly discovered lands.

Although it lost much of its fervor as the 18^th Century progressed,
the United States was initially founded as much as a haven for mages
as it was a shelter for those seeking freedom from religious
persecution. As the Industrial Revolution progressed, scientists
celebrated their triumph over magic. Those who practiced the magical
arts were forced underground, and secret societies began to form. The
triumph of science continued through the 1940s.

The rise of Germany through the late 1920s and most of the 1930s
brought about a second world war. the Nazis of Cyberworld were just as
psychopathic and dysfunctional as they were in our past, but in some
cases, the motives for some of their atrocities was different. One of
the secret programs carried out by the Germans was the extermination
of large portions of the captive populations of the areas they
overran. One of the tests conducted on the victims of these policies
was a test to detect mage abilities.

The Western powers discovered this, and yet another reason was found
to hate and despise mages, who were not seen as victims of the Nazis,
but as potential weapons.

The Cold War was a struggle of science against magery as much as it
was a struggle between the two superpowers. Both sides used covert
mages to compromise the security of the other. One of the conspiracy
theories of the time was one that said that a mage killed John F.
Kennedy from the grassy knoll, then used magery to mask his presence.
Later, the deaths of Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy were
unofficially blamed on mages.

In 1969, the Apollo missions began. One of these missions made an
orbit around the moon and discovered the ruins of a lost civilization.
These findings were never disclosed to the general public.

Within this atmosphere of secrecy, the Luna Foundation was formed. It
had international jurisdiction, and its mission was to track down and
eliminate all traces of magery. By 1985, the Board of Directors of the
Luna Foundation would include the CEOs of the top six computer or
technology companies of the world.

The Luna Foundation bought the space shuttle Atlantis and used it to
explore the lunar ruins. They found a treasure trove of
technology...which they immediately started using in their primary
mission. By 1990, all of the satellites in orbit had been modified
with "Lucifer Chips", which scanned people for traces of magical
energy. Microchips were implanted deep within the tissues of people
during surgery to further enhance this search.

In 1992, the barriers between Cyberworld and our dimension weakened
enough for a ship to cross over. That scout recorded events of that
time and recorded them for evaluation at a later date. Of the items
recorded, few were more remarkable than the battles of the Sailors
against the forces of the Negaverse.

In late 1992, a young computer student, Naoko Takeuchi, broke into the
Foundation's database and discovered the information on Earth. The
information on the Sailors became the basis for a comic that was
circulated through the underground economy. The series was entitled:
`Beautiful Savior Sailor Moon.'

Unfortunately, Naoko was soon caught by the authorities and charged
with treason and crimes against humanity. She was executed.

The Luna Foundation decided to use the information it had from our
universe to develop its ultimate weapon in the fight against magic.
They kidnapped all of the girls who matched the biotype of the Sailors
and had them cloned. The clones were then used to design cybernetic
soldiers who would act as the supreme weapon in law enforcement when
it came to mages and magical energies. The majority of the powers of
our elder Sailors were copied and given to each of the Cyberscouts.

The primary mission of the Cyberscouts is to hunt down and destroy
magical items and the people who use them."

"Is that what they were doing here?" Melissa asked as the video
recording faded and the lights of the throne room brightened.

"According to the records we discovered from Cybermercury," Oren
replied. "Cybermoon, Cybervenus, Cybermercury, and Cybermars were all
sent to track down a magical artifact called the Orb of Continuity.
Our observatory tracked it into the mountains of Nepal."

"What does this Orb do?" Cass inquired.

"I am not sure," Oren said. "Cybermercury didn't have any information
on that."

"It makes no difference," Sandra said. "These people almost make the
Nageverse look like a bunch of Sunday-school children. If they want
the Orb, we have to be sure they don't get it."

==> * SM * <==

Drabesh Palace

The Dark Moon of the Negaverse

A solitary female cyborg silently drifted down the hallways of the
castle, shifting from on shadow to the next. Only a pale light from
the lamps mounted along the hallway illuminated the black translucent
floor, and the pale marble-like walls.

Cybermoon used its eye scope and scanned the vicinity for life signs.
It had been summoned, and curiosity overwhelmed anger or
self-preservation. The cyborg had to know who had summoned it, and
why. The answers to these questions were behind the next door,
according to its readings.

The doors that the cyborg approached looked like they were constructed
from heavy oak; their dark color and smooth texture seemed to melt
into the rafters of the hallway. The light was very dim near these
doors. The nearest lamps were some distance off...as though the
occupants of the castle were hiding something behind these doors...

If a human stood before these doors, in this darkness, some
reconsidering might have occurred. This was after all, a door deep in
the heart of a castle in the Negaverse, and obviously whoever
inhabited this castle would not be pleased at intrusions into inner
sanctums or vaults or whatever might be behind these doors.

Cybermoon was not quite human however, and was not affected by what it
would certainly consider to be the human flaws of uncertainty and
fear. Someone had kidnapped a law enforcement officer, and the rule of
law required that a response be made.

The doors parted, and the lone figure entered into a dimly lit room.
Light filtered down from chandeliers high above. The floor was
carpeted with a short-fiber royal blue carpeting that made the throne
dais appear as if it was floating upon a deep blue ocean. Thick Greek
columns were spaced evenly along both walls and they looked as though
they could hold the weight of a world. Similar columns flanked the
throne.

The throne itself was large and made out of back crystal fragments
that had been melded together and burnished to a smooth translucent
appearance. The back of the throne was encrusted with diamonds that
shimmered out from the murky depths of the throne.

Two small fire pits had been constructed in front, but slightly to the
side of the throne. The bluish hue of the fires cast a pall over the
throne, and the diamonds glistened like pale stars.

A voice boomed from the shadows. "I am glad to see that you could join
me," Scaramanga said as he appeared in front of his throne. He smirked
at his own joke.

All business, Cybermoon stepped forward and asked, "Are you
responsible for bringing me here?"

Scaramanga descended the squat steps in front of the throne dais and
sauntered toward Cybermoon. "I channeled the energy used in that
parlor trick," he said, " so I guess the answer to your question is
`Yes'"

Hearing this, Cybermoon raised her left arm toward the villain, the
metal barrel of the gun implant gleaming. "Demonstrations of magic or
sorcery are forbidden by law." The cyborg stated bluntly. "You are
engaging in illegal activities and will submit to our authority. You
will not resist."

What happened next took place in the space of a little over a second.
Scaramanga, seeing that the cyborg was about to fire, raised his hand
and shouted "ZAI". The shell from Cybermoon's gun was evaporated by
the energy pulse that erupted from its target. The pulse slammed into
the cyborg and shorted out most of its circuits with an electrical
sizzle.

Cybermoon had been made well, and while the energy from the villainous
mage had severely damaged it, it was still standing. A quick
diagnostic confirmed: 12% functionality.

Scaramanga approached the stricken cyborg. "I assume you will be more
cooperative now..." he said, only to be interrupted with: "Resisting
arrest and assaulting a law enforcement officer are criminal acts

punishable by death. Preparing witness transcript for transmission
preparatory to carrying out the death

sentence...."

"...or not..." Scaramanga muttered as he backhanded the battered
cyborg who collapsed to the floor in a heap. He immediately wrung his
hand from the pain of hitting Cybermoon's face.

The Lord of the Negaverse stood over Cybermoon and looked down at it.
Then he ran his foot over a portion of the carpet where acrid smoke
still rose from where his energy had scorched it.

"That's going to be tough to get out..." He said under his breath.

Aboard Cybermoon's ship, an obscure screen in the control room lit up
and began displaying information...

Unit Cybermoon inactive ... presumed non-functional

Activating antenna 2a for transmission of mission data and outcome to

Operational center

==> * SM * <==

Cybermoon awakened to the sight of Scaramanga holding a scanning
device over her. When the villain noticed that the cyborg was
conscious, he smiled. "You will be happy to know that you are an
anatomically correct replica of a human being, give or take a few
`enhancements'" He laughed at his own joke.

When Cybermoon remained silent, the villain frowned. "Aren't you going
to thank me?"

"For what?" The cyborg queried.

"I repaired you," came the reply. "Surely that is worth some
gratitude."

Cybermoon ignored the remark and continued. "How long was I inactive?"

"Four days, six hours, 27 minutes, 37 seconds...shall I go on?"

"How was I repaired?" Cybermoon asked. "My systems are quite complex."

"That they are, my dear," Scaramanga said proudly. "However, you can
do a lot when you use magic."

Moments before, Cybermoon had attempted to arise from the table upon
which she laid, but discovered her movement blocked by rather thick
metal restraints. Still, protocol demanded: "Demonstrations of magic
or sorcery are forbidden by law. You are engaging in illegal
activities and will submit to our authority. You will not resist."

"You know," Scaramanga muttered as he walked toward the head of the
table, "I am REALLY getting tired of hearing that." He slammed his
hand onto the table mere inches from her head. "Let's get something
straight," he yelled. "You are in the Negaverse!" As long as you are
here, you will do as I say, or I will be using your head for a salad
bowl! Do I make myself clear?"

Self-preservation had not been programmed out of the Cybersailors.
"Yes," Cybermoon replied. "You have made yourself clear."

"Good!" Scaramanga said with a jovial smile. "Besides, I think we can
help each other."

"How?"

"In the past month, two things have happened on Earth which caught my
attention." Scaramanga stated. "The first was your appearance, and the
second was the rather short-lived and disappointing career of the
villain formerly known as Malik. Both of you have had encounters with
the Sailors, and you were the one who came away unscathed."

"While I was repairing you, I came across some interesting information
about your current mission. I believe I can siphon the energy from
this Orb that you are seeking, and you can take the remains back to
your world as proof of its destruction."

With a huge grin on his face, Scaramanga finished. "What do ya say,"
he said. "Deal?"

The cyborg nodded its agreement.

==> * SM * <==

From SX6...

The orb streaked away from its pursuer and slipped into Earth's
atmosphere over the Mexican state of Veracruz. As it descended, the
orb took on a halo of fire from the friction...it fell toward the blue
of the Pacific Ocean, then somehow leveled its descent and screamed
across the ocean at an almost unimaginable speed.

Three minutes later, the orb ripped across Japan, its shock wave
obliterating everything for miles around. Having cut a swath across
the southern end of the islands, the orb slashed into Asia. As it
traveled it actually gained speed...

The primitive buildings that proliferated throughout the interior of
China were no match for this fiery "demon". Thatch hovels were ripped
to shards and blown at deadly speed in the wake of the orb, and yet it
continued to travel faster...

The orb left China and entered the mountainous regions of Nepal at
several times the speed of sound. It slammed into a mountain,
shattering it. The rubble cascaded down and buried the orb deep within
meters of heavy rock...

...light spewed from the Orb and its magic quickly carved out a large
cavern. The snow and ice that had fallen into the mountain when the
Orb impacted melted and the water streamed into a pool which
surrounded a patch of rock under the Orb which was floating in the
middle of the cavern.

The light from the Orb flashed red and scoured the new walls,
solidifying them. The light then poured down from the Orb to the rocks
below and molded a chalice-like holder for the Orb, which slowly
floated down and settled into its new resting place...

==> * SM * <==

Shuttle Pad 2

The Luna Foundation

"So," Melissa said as she boarded the shuttle along with Sandra,
Brandy, and Mariah. "This Orb that Cyberworld is after, what does it
do?"

Dr. Oren stepped aboard last and pulled the shuttle door closed.
"Outside of being a powerful magical artifact, this particular Orb
exerts control over the others." He paused. "Cyberworld has not
recovered any of the Orbs."

"And I don't like the idea of them getting their hands on this one,"
Sandra replied. "There's too much we don't know about them."

Sandra nodded to Mariah, and the shuttle lifted off from its pad and
silently shot away toward Earth...

==> * SM * <==

The Mountains of Nepal

"Ah yes," Scaramanga said, his face glowing with the light of the Orb
which sat in its holder.

"The Orb of Continuity," Cybermoon said quietly as if the radiance of
the Orb was awe-inspiring, even to it.

"And it's ours..." Scaramanga replied. He reached out for it and found
the cyborg's gun pointed at it.

"Excuse me," he said. "You can blast it to bits after I have absorbed
its energy, not before..."

"The Orb of Continuity is a magical artifact, and must be destroyed,"
Cybermoon growled and centered her gun on the Orb.

With a sigh, Scaramanga reached to his belt and pressed a button
hidden there. Cybermoon froze as an electrical charge jolted through
it. The villain turned to the cyborg and said, "That charge will last
for twenty seconds. I'd suggest you use that time to reacquaint
yourself with our deal. If you back out, I'll make sure you never
function again."

Scaramanga reached over to pick up the Orb, looking over toward the
pursuit ship, which was sitting patiently in a tunnel that had been
carved with the onboard lasers. Suddenly a voice rang out from behind
him.

"And now for today's weather...mostly cloudy with a good chance for
moondust!"

"Ah yes," Scaramanga growled turning toward this new intrusion. "More
interruptions!"

"I am Sailor Moon," the lady-warrior said calmly, "I don't know what
you plan to do with that Orb, but we're here to stop you. In the name
of the Moon, I will punish you!"

"And I will punish you in the name of the planet Venus!"

"And I for the planet Neptune!"

Sailor Jupiter never got the chance to chime in because Scaramanga
chose that opportunity to attack. Darkforce bolts slammed into the
roof of the cavern near where the Scouts stood. Rock and dust spilled
down into the tunnel that the Sailors had used to enter the chamber.
More darkforce bolts spilled more debris and soon the tunnel was
completely plugged.

"Are you okay?" Sailor Moon asked Sailor Jupiter as she and the rest
worked to remove the rubble that had caught Sailor Jupiter's leg.

"Yes," Jupiter replied with a chuckle. "I'm almost more ticked that I
didn't get to tell that jerk I was going to punish him."

"You'll get your chance," Neptune said.

Sailor Moon nodded her agreement as the last of the rock was removed
from atop Jupiter's leg. "Can you walk?" She asked.

Jupiter stood up and tested her leg. "Yep," she replied.

"Good," Sailor Moon replied. "Did you get a good look at that cavern?
Can you get us to the other side?"

"Yes," Jupiter replied. The Sailors joined hands and Sailor Jupiter
shouted "JUPITER TELEPORTATION MAGIC!" The Sailors faded into
nothingness under the power of Jupiter's magic...

...and reappeared in front of Scaramanga as he was carrying the Orb
across the stone catwalk spanning the space between the ledge where
the pursuit ship sat and the platform where the Orb had sat.

"We don't like being interrupted," Sailor Moon growled.

"Neither do I," the villain replied as he blasted more darkforce bolts
at the Sailors, who retreated back to the ledge. This gave Scaramanga
and Cybermoon enough space to get to the pursuit ship.

Battered under the barrage of darkforce, Sailor Venus gritted her
teeth and muttered, "VENUS ... LOVE CHAIN.... ENCRICLE!"

The bright energy bolt released by the Sailor bounced down from her
and skittered along the floor toward the door of the pursuit ship.
Once the bolt found its target, it pulverized the door, fusing it with
the hull of the ship.

Sailor Moon stood up as the darkforce attack subsided. "You're not
getting out that way," she said.

"You're not leaving at all, Sailor Moon!" Scaramanga shouted. "I'm
sure you know my friend!" With that, he stepped aside to reveal
Cybermoon who fired a pulse of energy at the Sailors, hitting Sailor
Neptune, who was dropped to a knee.

"MOON STAFF!" Sailor Moon shouted as she started to rush toward the
villain. The artifact glowed a dull yellow as it appeared in her
hands. She wielded the staff like a bat and charged toward Scaramanga.

Cybermoon saw this and stepped forward. As Sailor Moon approached, the
cyborg slammed the barrel of its gun heavily into her shoulder with an
audible smashing of bones. Waves of white-hot pain roared through
Sailor Moon and she tried unsuccessfully to stifle her scream. She
fell to the ground and the staff spun harmlessly away. Only a small
outcropping of rocks prevented the staff from rolling off the edge of
the precipice.

"Sailor Moon!" Venus shouted.

"She's out!" Scaramanga yelled. "And the rest of you will be joining
her!" With that, he released another darkforce attack.

The Sailors stood their ground under the darkforce assault. Venus
looked toward the others. "You keep them occupied," she ordered. "I'll
get Sailor Moon."

The other Sailors worked quickly. "JUPITER THUNDER CRASH!" Sailor
Jupiter yelled, and a shrieking whirl of lighting surged forth to
envelop Scaramanga. Sailor Neptune meanwhile unleashed a DEEP SUBMERGE
attack on Cybermoon. Neither of these attacks did much damage, but
they bought Sailor Venus enough time to get to her fallen leader.

Spotting the shoulder damage immediately, Sailor Venus put a hand on
Sailor Moon's stomach and nudged her gently. "Sailor Moon," she said
with a mix of hope and concern. The only response she got was a
whispered, "Moon ....zero..." before Sailor Moon faded back into
unconsciousness.

Meanwhile Scaramanga had pinned Jupiter to the wall of the cavern with
a sustained darkforce attack, and Cybermoon shot two more energy
pulses from her arm rifle that pounded Sailor Neptune and drove

her to the ground.

"This can't be!" Venus shouted within herself. "We are about to be
defeated, and Scaramanga will get away with the Orb and do
who-knows-what with it!" She felt a wave of anger welling up inside
her. "With Sailor Moon and the Moon Staff, we might pull this off, but
without her..." She glanced at the Moon Staff. While she could use the
Moon Wand and call upon its powers if Sailor Moon was incapable of
doing so, the Moon Staff was possibly another story altogether.
Besides, in both cases, Sailor Moon would have to consent to the use
of the artifacts.

At that point, a bolt from Cybermoon blasted Venus away from the prone
form of Sailor Moon as Scaramanga continued to gloat. "Hah! With this
victory, I will be that much closer to ruling this universe and making
the dreams of the Negaverse come true!"

The pain of the energy bolt coursing through Sailor Venus only added
to the anger building inside her. She fought the pain of the cyborg's
blast and slowly got to her feet. Once she was standing, Sailor Venus
let out a fierce yell as she threw her arms straight out from her
body, then shouted "VENUS CRUCIS MAGIC!" A dull-yellow glow in the
shape of a crucifix appeared within the form that was Sailor Venus. As
she held her arms steady and her hair waved around her head, the cross
seemed to glower angrily. Suddenly, it shot out from Sailor Venus in a
spiral and went directly toward Cybermoon. The cyborg tried shooting
at the incoming attack, to no avail. Too late, Cybermoon turned and
tried to run away. The glowing crucible hit the cyborg and waves of
energy coursed over it, fusing components and melting circuitry. Wisps
of white smoke snaked from its eyes and it opened its mouth as if to
say something. Before it could utter a word, it expired and fell to
the floor.

An evil laugh erupted from the lone remaining villain. "Well, thank
you Sailor Venus," Scaramanga said. "You have just relieved me of a
rather annoying partner and an agreement that I would have probably
have had to break anyway." He paused as if sensing the moment. "It's
almost enough to make me want to spare you..." With that, he raised
his free hand toward Sailor Venus, "...but not quite!"

The darkforce bolt slammed into Sailor Venus' left shoulder and she
dropped in a heap to the ground, weakened by her expenditure of
energy. She barely had the strength to look up toward the villain, but
when she did, she saw that another energy bolt was forming in his
hand...and in her weakened state, survival was questionable.

"I have had enough of you!" came a scream from somewhere off to Venus'
left. Apparently, Sailor Jupiter had also been conserving her energy
during the attacks thrown on her, and now she was ready to wade back
into the battle and take names in a big way.

"JUPITER GRAVITON POWER!" A pulse of gravity blasted out from Jupiter,
rippling along the walls of the cavern menacingly. The cone of
gravitic energy expanded slowly as it went until the ground around
Scaramanga was shaking violently. Cracks formed under the torture of
the Sailor's attack as Scaramanga lost his footing and fell. The Orb
remained floating in the air, the gravitic waves seemingly harmless to
it.

The gravity pulse shredded the far end of the ledge and ripped pieces
of hull from the pursuit ship. Scaramanga gave a frightened yell as
the ledge fell out from beneath him, then suddenly the villain, the
pursuit ship, and a good portion of the far side of what remained of
the ledge collapsed into the bottom of the cavern.

Fighting through the dust that all of that moving debris had caused,
Sailor Jupiter rushed to Sailor Venus. "Get the others," Jupiter said
as she looked worriedly at the walls. "I think that attack may have
messed up the entire area." Sailor Venus nodded and went to retrieve
Sailor Moon and the Moon Staff. As she picked up the limp form of her
close friend, Sailor Venus saw the pale glow of the Orb. It pulsed
gently, as if it were pleading, "Take me with you..." With a quick
nod, Venus hoisted herself to he feet with Sailor Moon over her left
shoulder. She grabbed the Orb with her other hand and hurried to where
Jupiter stood with Sailor Neptune draped over her shoulder.

The nearby rumbling confirmed Jupiter's prediction. "It's time for us
to be leaving," Venus murmured. Jupiter nodded her agreement, then
shouted, "JUPITER TELEPORTATION POWER!"

The Sailors vanished as the first rocks began to fall on the ledge.

==> * SM * <==

Sailor Venus came into the cockpit of the shuttle after seeing that
her friends were comfortably tucked into the beds in the shuttle's
rear compartment. Dr. Oren contented himself in the mid compartment by
examining the Orb, which had to be coaxed away from Sailor Venus.

"I think it likes you," Jupiter said as she piloted the shuttle away
from the shattered mountain.

"I guess so," Venus replied thoughtfully. Jupiter heard an unspoken
question in her friends' voice.

"What's bothering you?" She asked.

"I was just wondering if Scaramanga survived that fall," Venus
replied.

"Well," Jupiter said as she put the shuttle into a slow and steady
climb that would take them out of the atmosphere, "That was a lot of
rock and metal that landed on him...and there was even more after we
left." Jupiter paused for a moment. "I'd say it is not likely, but I
wouldn't bet on that either."

"Me either," Venus replied.

The shuttle flew off toward the silvery-white disk that the Sailors
called home.

==> * SM * <==

EPILOGUE

The Return of Tuxedo Mask

"For I'm no hero ... though I wish I could be..."

- KISS, "Just a Boy" (Music from the Elder, 1981)

Noruma District

Yotochib Megacity

Sailor Mercury quickly surveyed the area from the top of a
sullen-looking building through the VR goggles. The device was set to
scan the infrared spectrum, so the majority if the buildings and
whatever was inside them, and whatever objects happened to be
cluttered around them in a deep blue. The goggles compensated for the
sunlight, so even areas in the direct path of the sun's rays appeared
as merely a slightly lighter shade of dark blue.

Mercury grinned in satisfaction. Luna and Artemis had found her in the
training room fighting with a holographic projection of Zoycite, evil
laugh and all. That wasn't what had attracted the ire of the feline
guardians. The fact that Mercury had disabled the protocols that the
central computer used to ensure that no serious harm came to someone
who was using the training room had caused both cats to figuratively
"hit the roof".

So Mercury had boarded a shuttle to Earth. Once there, she figured,
she could train, engage in her hobby of bashing druggies, and test out
the capabilities of her new and improved VR equipment. She made a
mental note to thank Amy for the work.

Satisfied that all was well on this particular block, Sailor Mercury
stood and surveyed the next building over. She backed up slightly, got
a running start, and leaped off the building. Her arms out from her
body, she quickly tucked herself into a flip. The street whirled by
quickly, then she was standing on solid ground looking back at the
building she had just came from.

"Perfect!" She thought as she reactivated her goggles and started
surveying the nearby buildings. "The crowd goes wild..."

Mercury got to the far corner of the building and was about finished
scanning the area when she noticed a group of heat sources that looked
suspicious. Checking the computer, she saw that the heat sources were
in a long alleyway that ended in a cul-de-sac. While the first two
buildings flanking the alley were two stories or higher, the ones
surrounding the cul-de-sac were all one story. Some sort of metal
plating formed an awning of sorts that covered the last few feet of
the alley.

Then Sailor Mercury frowned when the words: "Incomplete Scan. Jamming
Signal Detected."

"Well," Mercury said aloud to herself, "nothing proves guilt in my
book like a big electronic `Keep Out' sign." She quickly and quietly
jumped down to the street

Entering the alley, Sailor Mercury was surprised at how little light
filtered down, even up ahead where the buildings were shorter. "THAT's
why they have that metal covering," she thought. She had just reminded
herself to move silently when her foot tapped an aluminum can and set
it rolling noisily to a nearby garbage can, where it collided with a
loud TING!

"Doh!" Mercury shouted to herself.

"Well," a voice hissed from the darkness ahead. "What have we got
here?"

"A pretty new customer?" Another voice asked.

"Or someone who will be very sorry she found us..."

"Neither," Mercury said angrily. "You deal in things which destroy the
lives of everyone they touch. I'm here to stop you!"

A nearly collective "Oh yeah?" arose from the darkness as about ten
nasty-looking forms emerged from the shadows. Mercury heard shuffling
above her and looked up at the roof. More druggies scowled down at
her.

"Damn it Merc," she said to herself. "I hate it when this happens. She
backed up until she got enough distance, then: "MERCURY ICE WALL!" A
freezing mist erupted from her and poured into the space between the
buildings. When it was done, the mist had solidified into a wall of
ice that cut off their escape from the alley. That was, until a HUGE
thug with a mean looking bald head and wearing nothing but jeans and
shoes started ramming himself into it

Mercury turned and started to leave, but she saw that her escape route
was cut off by druggies who were climbing down to the ground using the
nearby telephone poles.

"MERCURY SHARD!" Once the ice shard formed, Mercury threw it and
dropped one thug, but she realized that neither her shard or javelin
attacks would take out more than one of the druggies each, and while
it might be desirable to kill them all, she did not have enough
control over her death dome to use it effectively in this case.

On his third attempt, the huge thug shattered the ice wall, and the
gang of thugs came through the remains of the barrier. Sailor Mercury
attempted to fight her way out of the situation, but it was no use.
While her metal hand added several broken bones to the list of
tortures these thugs had done to themselves, there were simply too
many of them. In the end, she found herself pinned to the ground, with
thugs at each shoulder, each arm, and atop her legs.

"Let's see," the huge thug said calmly...he appeared to be the leader.
"The question we asked was, are you a pretty new customer, or someone
who will be very sorry she found us..." With that, he knelt down near
Mercury's head and opened his fist so she could see its
contents...five gelcaps filled with a deep blue liquid.

"...or how about C, all of the above?"

"Skye..." Mercury muttered.

"Yep," the druggie replied. "And with chem labs all over the district
pumping this stuff out, I can sell to school kids for about as much as
their lunch."

"You're sick!" Mercury shouted.

"Nope," the druggie said. "I am a rich bastard, which is why I can
afford to sell to kids...."

Reaching to a bottle in his coat pocket, the druggie growled, "Now for
your sample... " With that, he poured the contents of the bottle into
his hand. When he was done, about twenty gelcaps glistened darkly in
his hand.

"Do you know what this much Skye will do to you?" The druggie asked.
When he got no answer, he continued, "It will burn out your entire
nervous system. You'll feel like you are on fire...for a very long
time... Then when the brain is screwed up enough, you'll die..."

"Don't..." Mercury muttered.

"Well, you should have thought of that before you came down here," the
thug said simply as he forced the first gelcap into her mouth. He then
smacked her across the face with such force that she gasped...and
swallowed the gelcap.

"See," the druggie said. "That wasn't so bad."

Sailor Mercury frantically tried to think of a way out of this mess,
but no options appeared. She was outnumbered, pinned to the ground by
a bunch of thugs who were already too close for comfort. She hated to
think what they would do to her while she was delirious. One man was
already dangerously close to her skirt, leering at her...

The leader removed another gelcap from his hand and placed it in
Mercury's mouth and prepared to slap her again when she heard
something hit the ground nearby with a crash and a tremendous flash of
light. People screamed in pain and dropped to the ground pawing at
their faces. Sailor Mercury was overloaded by the flash and lost
consciousness....

A gentle buzzing noise brought Mercury back to consciousness. When she
opened her eyes, a man wearing a top hat, a mask, a black tuxedo and a
cape was knelt over her with a concerned look on his face. "Good," he
said gently. "You're awake. There's only so much I can do without
touching you, and I didn't want to do anything without your
permission."

A glimmer of recognition flashed through Sailor Mercury. "King
Endymion?"

"You kept saying `Endymion' while you were out," the man said. "I am
not him. I am merely a medical and engineering student who has gotten
a little too bored with life at the university."

"But you're Tuxedo Mask!"

"Yes, I am," Tuxedo Mask said simply. He reached over and pulled a
small device from Mercury's forehead. It stopped its whirring. Mercury
recognized the device from having hung around Amy as being a neural
stimulator.

"I remember the stories of the Sailors and Tuxedo Mask from a while
ago. I remembered how they were always companions in their battles
against the Negaverse..."

"Most of the time," Mercury corrected.

"Tuxedo Mask smiled. "Yes...most of the time. Anyway, I decided that I
wanted to help the Sailors, especially after I learned that they still
existed."

"How did you find this out?"
"Some of the battles the Sailors have been in haven't exactly been
where no one could see them. I was at Dreamland on the night that the
Sailors had a battle there. Once I saw that, I knew that I could help,
even if it is in a small way..."

"Do you have magic?" Mercury asked.

"Nope," Tuxedo Mask replied. "Everything I do is designed, built, and
tested by yours truly. There is nothing magical about me."

"So," Mercury said as she stood up. "How am I?"

"Nothing too major in the bumps and bruises department," came the
response. "If you are going to leave, I would do so before the effects
of Skye begins. I was able to keep you from swallowing the second
caplet, but there is nothing I can do about the first. Luckily, one
caplet is not dangerous if no others are taken within twelve hours."

"I won't be going near the stuff," Mercury said with a smile.

"May I ask you a favor?"

"Sure."

"Next time you come down here, can you call me," Tuxedo Mask said,
handing Mercury a card. "The pushers around here have started
gathering in bigger groups since you and the police started this
anti-drug crusade. Its no longer safe to go after these people by
yourself, as you can tell now..."

Mercury thought about it momentarily. A partner.... and a cute one at
that...

"Sounds good," she said.

"Excellent," he said. "Now I must go." Tuxedo Mask took Sailor
Mercury's hand and kissed it gently. "Until we meet again." With that,
he vanished.

As the sun began to set over the mountains to the west, Mercury made
her way toward the starport, where she would catch the evening shuttle
home.

FINI

Fanfic ©1999 - John Brengman and Artemis Publishing

Sailor X series inspired by Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon,

© 1992 by Toei Animation Co Ltd. and based on Kodansha's

manga production of "Sailor Moon", written by Naoko Takeuchi

This fanfic is freely distributed. Release date: February 16, 1999

Release: 3^rd Edition. Released on: January 22, 2001