Small Lady sat in the back of the command room her feel propped up on the arm of another chair, watching as the battle out side just got more and more vicious. She watched as Jupiter and Venus dodged attacks and sent their own back with ease. Even Mercury seemed to be at home on the battle field for all her studying. She should be out there fighting to protect her friends and family, but she understood the reason she was held here. She just didn't like it. They had all fought together before in the past but that was then, and these guys weren't playing around. She kept an eye on the door the only way she knew of in or out of the room and waited. 'Stay Safe out there girls.' She thought.

Luna along with Rei called enemy positions to the others through the communicators. From where they were she and Rei had the best vantage points for all of them. If the only help they could give was to tell the others where the enemy was, then that's what they would do, Luna most of all. She was used to being support, since she didn't have any powers of her own other than to become human and she was weak in her human form. She sat as small black cat, she she felt a hand on her back. Turning she looked over her shoulder at the owner of the hand. Usagi had a forced smiled. She smiled up at the queen and went back to her work. If Usagi felt better with a hand on her then let her.

Small Lady watched and wondered about her mother's actions. It was like her to seek comfort in others, but this seemed different to her. With out thinking the young senshi stood and walked over to her mother, and placed a hand on her shoulder. Looking up at her, the queen placed a hand on her daughter's and they watched the battle for the relative safety of the command room.

OOC:

Venus kept moving, always at the ready. Her eyes scanned the area all around them, waiting for any sign of the airships beginning their attack. Her whole body was tense, waiting to spring into action at a moment's notice.

The air seemed to vibrate at the sound of the airships readying their guns. It would have been easy to think that they were the ones with the advantage, since the sound of the guns was so distinct and easily recognizable. But Venus knew that even though she and her comrades were ready for the attack, that did not mean that this would be easy by any means.

Those tiny bullets of dark energy could tear through a person within a few seconds.

Then, the sound stopped, leaving everything still and calm. The beating of her heart raced against her chest.

The sharp sound of Mercury's order cut through the silence and Venus instantly reacted, sending her Love and Beauty Shock attack in a wide-spread area. The air exploded in a flash of gold and purple energy. There was another order, and she sent more golden hearts in that exact direction.

It was an odd thing, listening to Mercury's orders and simply listening and attacking as directed. Venus was not used to being on this side of the battle. She was a leader, not a follower. But her trust in Mercury made it feel simple and almost easy.

The air around them continued to be filled with the gold and emerald of both Venus and Jupiter's attacks, whilst the purple glowing remains of the destroyed bullets began to fall to the floor underneath them. They all worked in perfect harmony, trust and experience giving them an advantage.

The bullets were beginning to thin out as the guns ran out of ammo and needed to reset. When Mercury stopped directing their defense, Venus yelled to her friends, "Attack now!"

Energy already gathered in her hands, Venus sent out another burst of her Love and Beauty Shock attack at the nearest airship. Now was their chance to take out more of the airships, perhaps even enough to make them retreat back a bit. It was necessary to attack quickly, however.

Another barrage of bullets was soon imminent.

Small Lady's grip on her mother's shoulder had gotten tighter the long she watched the battle. She worried for her friends out there and offered her prayers to what ever god maybe watching them to keep them all safe. Small Lady watched in awe as Mercury, Venus, and Jupiter coordinated their attacks in line with Mercury's orders. They were amazing! How lucky was she to know them and have them as her teachers. Her heart beat faster each time an enemy attack came close to them, but years of working and fighting together paid off and they fought like a well oiled machine. Attacking and supporting each other as needed. Her heart swelled with pride in her teachers.

Her face displayed none of the emotions that were racing though her at the moment, as she watched the air littered with gold, emerald and sapphire. She was also watching them, ever learning, ever the student, the princess watched the battle unfold. Maybe she could see the weakness they couldn't any other way. So she watched her eyes hard on the screen and her hand tight on her mother's shoulder, more for the teen's own comfort than anything.


The paws of the small black cat on the controls flew with grace, ease and practice. Deep down Luna hated how easily and fast she worked the controls. This was supposed to be an era of peace, she shouldn't be this adept at handling the combat controls of the palace at this point.

Luna's eyes scanned the screens in front of her and she felt a swelling of pride in her senshi as the fought like the team they had become all those many years ago. A team that she wasn't sure would have made it this far at the beginning. These were her girls, they were her world and she would do all she could to keep them safe and sound. "Watch out, their getting ready to fire again!" She called into the mic, right into the inner's ear. Mercury and Luna always made a great team, they could coordinate anything between the two of them and there was little they couldn't learn given enough time. But that was it, wasn't? They didn't have enough time to find the weakness the so desperately needed to defeat this super powered black moon clan.

At this moment in time for both the princess and the guardian cat, their world was the screens in front of them and the people around them. Their eyes never leaving the monitors for a moment, their hearts with their friends, even if their strength wasn't. Luna wanted her girls back with her, and for a moment she wished they could go back to before they were awoken as Senshi all of them, so they could just be normal girls. Sighing lightly she watched the screens light up with the attacks of the Inners, and she hoped they were doing heavy damage.

Rei watched everything going on at the screens, trying to keep track of everyone and everything at once. Jupiter, Mercury, and Venus were making quick work of the air ships, and she actually felt pretty good about their odds. Three against many seemed like an impossibility, but these girls were powerful, and they meant business. She didn’t often get the chance to sit back and watch from the sidelines while everyone fought—to watch even Mercury be at the battlefront while she herself was not felt downright absurd. But it gave her the opportunity to appreciate her friends and comrades’ skills in a way that she never had before. Because she had never had the chance to stop and really look.

These girls were soldiers, and they were force to be reckoned with. Rei felt immense pride for them, even as she herself was starting to feel anxious about her own idleness. She didn’t deal well with sitting around doing nothing while everyone else was putting their lives on the line. But she knew that if she went out there, then Usagi might beg to go too… and the thought still gave her a terrible feeling. No, she would keep the queen inside the castle for as long as possible.

Luna was busy with the controls again, helping direct the girls on the roof, and Rei’s attention moved elsewhere. To the sounds of panicked citizens coming from another monitor, where most of them were being attacked by Rubeus, who was also making his way toward the palace but not without laying waste to the entire city. Venus had said they could deal with him later, but he was progressing quicker than Rei would have preferred. Plus, he was killing people. And there was no way she could just sit back and watch that.

Rei gasped in horror when she saw an entire group of bystander being rendered into ash. She felt coldness within her, the feeling that she had failed all these people. Because she was putting Usagi first, was she sacrificing everyone else’s life?

She wrestled with her thoughts for a moment, before finally deciding to do something. She couldn’t wait anymore. Turning toward the rest of the group, she wondered how best to do this. “Rubeus and his droids are killing people who are trying to evacuate to the palace. They’re moving rapidly and soon would be at our gates. I’m going to deal with him.” She couldn’t justify wasting her skills and power for much longer, not when people’s lives were at stake. The citizens of Crystal Tokyo trusted the royal family to protect them, and Rei wasn’t going to fail them.

“Small Lady, why don’t you come with me?” she asked gently. She knew the smaller soldier was already itching for action as well. She wondered if Usagi would agree to stay put with Luna, but if not, maybe she could keep an eye on her as long as the queen wasn’t fighting. Maybe it was best if Usagi came along so Rei could better watch for her anyway. “Luna, do you want to stay at the controls or…?” she asked of their guardian. This was not part of the plan, but she was unofficially the second-in-command anyway; she was sure Venus wouldn’t mind as long as she got the job done and kept everybody safe. Battlefields always changed, and they always had to improvise.

Rei just hoped her decision did not end badly.

When Mercury’s order came, Jupiter didn’t think. She didn’t blink. She just called out her power and sent it out toward the directions given. Leaves of oak coated with electricity shot out of her body like bullets themselves, countering each and every projectile one for one. She had gone into autopilot mode, just attacking where she was ordered and doing it well. This was what she did best, after all. She was content with being told what to do because it meant she could just focus on her strength—in both meanings of the word.

It felt almost surprising when the bullets stop coming and Mercury’s words ceased. But the silence did not last long. As the enemy ships reloaded their ammunition, Venus commanded for them to attack, and Jupiter smiled. Defending had been easy, but the real fun always lay in attacking. They could only hold on for so long without fighting back, after all.

Her body moving automatically now, Jupiter spun once more, sending yet even more of her Oak Evolution attack toward the now defenseless enemy ships. She put extra charge behind each leaf, feeling herself powering every single one of them with just that much more energy. The air crackled with electricity like barely contained power, and with each impact she watched the ships lose control of their navigation and engine systems, her current overloading and short-circuiting them.

She didn’t stop attacking until they began to fall, plummeting straight to the ground.

Small Lady's hand didn't leaver her mother's shoulder, could she go fight now like she wanted from the start with her mother so close and watching her? She wanted to fight the drive to protect her home and her loved ones was strong but she didn't want to leave her mother not just yet.

Luna's eyes never leaving the monitor in front of her spoke breaking though the fog of Small Lady's mind. "You go, protect and save as many as you can." Her voice rising in steady waves to the pink haired princess' ears. "Usa and I will stay here. We'll even lock the door." She said thawing a strange cat smile over her shoulder to the pair. "Now the people need you both." She said more for the princess."Go." She turned back to the monitor.

Small Lady gave her mother's shoulder one last squeeze before turning and leaving the room. She took a deep breath. Her heart was racing, her mind a maze of what if's and could be's. She gripped her locket to her chest before raising it above her head and calling her transformation phrase. As the light faded, where the princess stood was now Sailor Chibi Moon.

Turning to Rei, she tried a weak smile. "We have to protect them." She said, keeping a few tears at bay. Yes she meant the people but she meant her mother most of all.

(Rubeus) 


The bullets poured down like rain on the Crystal Palace. The sky was choked with black and smoky clouds as the ships would reload their guns. Several had been met with resistance and struck down, but their place would simply be filled with another. The massive size of their assault surprised even Rubeus himself.  

The warrior of Nemesis and his droids moved like a pack of predators. A once utopian city was falling fast. Rubeus' arms were tucked in by his side and he continued pumping his arms up and down to the rhythm of his legs. His vision had adjusted to the darkness that overtook the city. 

A smirk hung upon the features of his face, coming across what would be the last group of bystanders between him and the front gates of the palace. Their fear suggested that even they knew they would not reach safety this time.His running pace would drop as he lifted hands from his sides. Dark energy instantly flashing from his palms up into the air, only to come spiraling down on the center of the group. 
 
A large explosion of dust from the disintegrated corpses immediately followed. A fine layer of dust covered his skin and he would slowly came to a halt.

As he took in the details of the gates, he had almost forgot that he stopped running. He would study it for several seconds, oblivious to all the destruction taking place around him. Seconds later, a familiar feeling would return to him. It was one of the only feelings he had known. Hatred. Not just anger and rage, but pure and total hatred.

Flashbacks occurred in his mind, starting with Nemesis. How had he arrived at that place? How many years had he lived as a wild animal.Rubeus was uncertain of the number of years he had spent there.

His firey red eyes scanned back and forth over the enormous walls, sweeping over the streets as if he might find an answer. The frustration was like an itch, one that he could never scratch. Inside he knew he was no longer a man. He hadn't been in years. 

The source of all his hatred would finally be revealed.

The Crystal Palace.  

Once the walls were down, he would let his droids storm the castle. The senshi brought an opposition most would underestimate. However, the droids were merely disposable pawns to the crimson haired warrior, and would simply serve their purpose in his own plan.

Rubeus brought his hands together as his eyes narrowed. It would take a much stronger attack to tear down these walls. The dark energy gathered and began to swirl in a sphere as he prepared to fire his energy beam.

Despite her earlier protests, Rei saw the doubt in Chibiusa’s eyes, and she felt sympathy for the new senshi. Well, technically it had been thousands of years since Chibiusa was a new senshi, but her appearance always made it hard for Rei to remember that she was all grown up now. Soon, she would be taking her mother’s place. Usagi was no longer fighting now; the mantle of Sailor Moon was already in the process of being passed down. Would today be the moment it was made official? Rei was reminded again of her uneasy feeling about this battle, and she felt more anxious to take down their enemies as soon as they could.

Luna decisively told them to go and that she would take care of Usagi, and Rei felt a moment of respect for the guardian. Luna might not be a senshi, but she was a guardian of her own right, and Rei couldn’t think of someone better to entrust Usagi’s life to than the one person who’d been there to guide her from the start. Luna was the one who’d made Usagi Sailor Moon. Rei believed in her; in her wisdom, skills, and abilities. As Chibiusa turned to leave, Rei followed, and transformed mid-stride along with the junior senshi.

Sailor Mars turned to Chibi Moon and nodded at her words. “I know. And we will.” They were going to protect everyone. Not just the people of Crystal Tokyo, but also its queen. Mars gave one last look at Usagi and nodded at her, too, trying to convey everything she felt in that one simple gesture. It meant everything from ‘be back soon’ to ‘stay safe’ to ‘I believe in us’. With hesitation, she turned away, took a deep breath and started going toward the palace gates in a brisk stride. Every moment they delayed was every moment someone’s life was taken, and she couldn’t have more on her conscience.

Mars was positively running by the time she opened the doors of the palace and gazed at the destruction outside. For a second, as the entirety of what was unfolding in front of her hit her all at once, it took her breath away. Her heart plummeted and she felt cold all over. She had seen all this from the monitors, but seeing it with her own eyes made it one hundred percent real. It was even worse than she thought. Her city was burning. It had been turned from a beautiful utopia into a desolate city full of destruction. It was horrible what their enemies had done, and what they were capable of. She couldn’t deny it anymore; she had been letting people get murdered while she hid in the castle and stayed safe.

Angry at both the Black Moon Clan and herself, Mars zeroed in on Rubeus as he advanced ever closer to the palace. Even now he was gathering energy to try and blast the walls, and without hesitation Mars ran toward the gates. Right toward his attack. An arrow made purely out of flame was being formed in a flaming bow in her hand as she ran, and she aimed it straight at Rubeus. Everything else around him was his creation; they could be dealt with later if they didn’t immediately disappear once she killed him. Aiming while in motion was difficult, but she had had lots of practice and did not have time to lose. “Mars Flame Sniper!” she yelled as she let the arrow loose in an arcing motion, aiming for his heart.

She wasn’t letting him touch the walls of Crystal Tokyo.

The battle had taken an almost calm turn. As the ships hurried to refill their supply of bullets, Venus continued to lay waste to their structures, rendering some useless, whilst others blew up into tiny pieces. It was almost an easy thing, to fling golden energy at the large imposing airships.

If she had been anyone else, she might have become too optimistic. But she would not be distracted by the battle falling into their favor for these precious few minutes.

Those minutes were ticking by too fast.

They were running out of time.

Venus pushed even harder, attacked even faster. Faster and faster. She couldn't stop because if she did, she might have to catch her breath. And there wasn't time to stop and breathe easily. She had to destroy as many of these airships as possible, and she wouldn't stop until they were gone.

The weary never rest. Or something like that.

Her whole world became divided between the airships in front of her and the speed in which she could destroy them. Venus had a fleeting thought about Mercury and Jupiter, but she trusted in them and knew that they, too, would be attacking just as ferociously. They worked like a well-oiled machine.

Being so focused, it came as a surprise when there were no more airships to attack.

Venus stumbled forward, the sudden stop in momentum causing her to lose track of her footing.

She could see in the distance that some of the airships were retreating back away from the senshi, partially hidden amongst the thick smoke of their fallen brethren.

They had won.

Venus turned towards Jupiter and Mercury then, and flashed them a smile and turned her hand into a V for victory. "That wasn't too bad, was it?"

It had been kind of bad, of course. Her energy levels were lowered, and she could have gone for a nice nap. Taking out so many airships had been a much more tiring task than she had originally anticipated. Who could have guessed the enemy would have brought so many airships. It made Venus wonder what the Black Moon had in mind for this attack. It was beginning to seem more and more like they were pushing with everything they had.

That only reinforced the idea that there was still much to do. They couldn't wait, and there was no time to rest after this.

The others were waiting for them. Their battle was only partially won, and everyone was needed in order for them to win.

Explosions and the metallic ring of weapons seemed to echo around them.

But the screams, heart-wrenching and so full of pain, cut through everything else.

Venus let her hand fall to her side, the V symbol no longer feeling quite appropriate. Her attention was on the door leading back down to the rest of the castle.

Already making her way towards it, only two more words were necessary at the moment. "Let's go."

All of Jupiter’s feelings seemed to have disappeared without a trace. None of the trepidation or panic or worry existed anymore. All that mattered was the enemies in front of her that needed to be taken care of. Evade their bullets, fight back, take them down. The moves eventually became so systematic and emotionless that she only needed to rely on her instincts. She let her training guide her and keep her alive, and eventually she fell into some sort of tranquil state of chaos. Her entire body was moving, but her mind was calm. She was focused and precise, and she was winning.

They were winning.

When the enemy ships’ number gradually went down, so were Jupiter’s frantic movements, and suddenly there was nothing left to fire electricity at. The sky was clear once more as the ships began their retreat. It was only then that she realized she was breathing heavily, the task having exerted a high amount of energy even if she didn’t realize it. The adrenaline had kept her going, but now that it was over, she started to feel the weariness seep in. Her knees threatened to buckle and she caught a part of the roof to steady herself.

She was tired, but she wasn’t down. The enemy was.

Grinning at Venus and Mercury, Jupiter wished she could hug them and that she didn’t need to lean against the wall for support. “Not bad at all,” she replied, even as her body betrayed her words.

The thing with Jupiter was that sometimes she didn’t plan ahead as well as Venus or Mercury might. She was strong, but she wasn’t usually a marathon runner. She would put all her energy into a short burst of attacks that were devastating, but be completely out of more by the time it was over. Venus had advised her on how to reserve her strength properly during battle over the years, and yet in times like these, when it seemed like their defeat seemed too close for comfort, she couldn’t hold back and fell into her old ways again.

Despite the disappearance of the ships, Jupiter could still hear sounds of battle and screams of terror coming from below. She carefully peered over the edge of the roof and her heart plummeted at the sight of their citizens being turned into ash. Rubeus was very close to the castle gates now, and she could see Mars running toward him from the palace. The battle was not over yet, and Venus was already moving to where they were needed next.

Jupiter forced herself to stand up straight again and run behind her. She definitely needed to start practicing that energy conserving technique if she wanted to survive the day.

Chibi Moon stopped in her tracks at the gates. What she saw cut her deeper than any knife or blade every could. Her people scattered in the streets, dead and dying. Being a moody teen, the princess had paid little attention to the screens that showed the town, but instead focused on the screens that showed the enemy when she had stood behind her mother in the command center. How could she have missed this?

She thought back to the room. Had her mother's eyes been not on the advancing enemy but instead on the people in the streets she couldn't help? she wondered what her mother was thinking as she watched now, her only child frozen in shock and the enemy approaching on foot.

Snapping out of her daze as if she had heard her mother yelling at her, she moved with the trained and practiced reflexes of a senshi long drilled into her body. She called on her pink crystal and felt her own Tiare, identical to her mother's form in her hand. She felt the power flow into her from the object in her hand. She knew that she wasn't as powerful as she could be with her mother when they called upon the powers of their crystals. She ran to stand beside Mars and as soon as the fire Senshi let fly her arrows of fire, Chibi Moon called out, "Starlight Honeymoon Therapy Kiss!" She felt the power radiate out from her and in turn hit and injure or destroy the droids approaching the Palace.

The palace. Her home, her safe place. Everyone she loved and cared for was either inside it's crumbling walls or out here fighting to protect it. She felt that empower her attack causing it to grow in power and distance.

The power faded and her attack ended and she was left slightly winded. "That was easier to do with mother." She crocked, as she straightened to ready herself to fight again. Unlike her mother, Chibi Moon had learned to fight, and she could fend off the minor enemies that made their way towards her without using her power. She kicked and punched, at them knocking them back and some stayed down, other rose again and came towards her again.

The future queen stood her weapon in her hand again, the shaft covered in the liquid remains of the enemies she had taken down. They needed help and they needed it fast. She only hoped and she raised her eyes to the roof that the others would be on their way and arrive soon.

The trip back down the many flights of stairs went by in a silent blur. Venus pushed her body to go faster and faster. As the small group descended further, the sounds of the battle grew louder. Venus tried to blocked them out, ignoring them as best she could, but it was impossible.

Instead, she focused on them, turning the sounds in a kind of fuel. Once those sounds came to stop, then so could she. Until then, she and the other senshi were needed. They had to protect this castle so that Usagi would remain safe. In an almost passing thought, Venus thought of the lives of the civilians as well. Usagi would be upset if the civilians were harmed, and so Venus would do her best to keep them safe as well.

Reaching the bottom of the staircase, Venus ran to the nearest exit and went straight to where she knew the rest of the group would be. She could feel their energy.

Once there, Venus scanned the area, taking in all of the details before coming up with an analysis of everything worth noting. Chibimoon and Mars were fighting in the thick of the battle; that was the first thing she noticed, and it was the most important thing. The second was that she was uncertain where Usagi was in all of this. Mars and Chibimoon had been sent to stay with Usagi.

The battle must have gotten too close to the gates for comfort.

Well, they would have to do something about that, then.

As Venus made her way up to Mars's side, she noticed the incoming attack from Rubeus. Though his position was worrisome, Venus had no time to ponder about that right now. Mars looked to be the target, the destructive energy heading right for her.

"Venus Love-Me Chain!"

The golden chain wrapped around Mars, and with a flick of her wrist, Venus was able to pull her backwards until she was right in front of Venus herself.

Venus greeted the other senshi with a bright smile. "Howdy!" she said, followed by a small giggle at her own joke. "Get it? Because I lasso'd you! I should be a cowgirl."

As her Love-Me Chain faded, so did Venus's playfulness. Now that the group was together, it was time to get to business. "Everyone, let's defend the castle together!" And then Venus turned her attention onto Rubeus. As the leader of the ground forces, he was the person to target. Without him, the Black Clan troops would be more inclined to confusion and more easily defeated.

She took a step forward, eyes still focused on Rubeus as her hands began to glow with golden energy. "Rubeus, this is the end of the line for you. Call off your troops, or we'll destroy you all right here and now."

OOC:

Neo Queen Serenity 

She felt numb. The command center loomed around her, empty now of all her friends except Luna--busy relaying information to the sailor soldiers fighting in the city below. She could see it on the screen, but it felt distant and surreal. Pale hands gripped the fabric of her white dress as it pooled over her lap, twisting it between her fingers.

"I should be out there... I should be fighting alongside them. How can I wait here while they are in danger?"

Her blue eyes looked muted and dull, devoid of the typical sparkle of light. When she was first awakened to her powers as Sailor Moon, there had been nothing Usagi wanted more than to be a normal girl again. She hated the first few fights, always wanting to run away... if it hadn't been for the people she was trying to protect. Yet now, here she was, queen of the known world... sitting and waiting for other people to protect her. It felt wrong.

What if they were injured? Or... oh no, or killed? What would she do without them? How could she face a world without her best friends alongside her? Her eyes clouded with tears, remembering the battle with Galaxia so many millennia ago. It had been so hard to go on, alone. That was what she feared most--that aching emptiness of loss.

On the screen, Sailor Chibi Moon summoned an attack, then launched a physical assault. Watching her pink-haired daughter battle seemed to tighten a vise around Neo Queen Serenity's heart, wringing it painfully. That bratty little kid had grown up... and more than just that, their relationship had changed in so many ways. When Chibi Usa first descended from the sky in the 20th century, she was like an obnoxious, yet adorable little sister. Protecting her against the Black Moon Clan that first time made Usagi understand what it felt like to truly put someone else's needs before your own. As they continued to live and fight together, Chibi Usa became a confidant and beloved friend. Now, in Crystal Tokyo, she had those memories combined with a mother's love. She could still remember, all these years layer, the joy that filled her heart when she first learned that she was pregnant with her daughter. The overflowing of love that first time she held the infant princess in her arms would never cease. The terror of losing Sailor Chibi Moon in battle so many years ago was nothing compared to her fears for her daughter now.

She didn't feel any more at ease about her friends. Rei. Makoto. Minako. Ami. She needed those precious people with her. Rei's teasing. Makoto's protection. Minako's cheerfulness. Ami's gentleness. Her life was best with her friends at her side.

She looked down at her hands.

Did they know that her power was fading? Is that why she was not allowed to accompany them? The Silver Crystal seemed dimmer lately when she summoned its power. She didn't feel it coursing through her the way it had when she had lifted the world from that first disaster and established Crystal Tokyo. It had faded somehow through the years--and it felt even less powerful since the Black Moon Clan had attacked. Could it be the poison crystals, their dark magic sapping her strength? Usagi didn't know what to do about it. She felt ashamed to tell anyone--ashamed to admit that she felt less of the legendary warrior than she was renowned to be.

It had been Usagi's duty as Neo Queen Serenity to continue to smile and put on a cheerful facade. She couldn't let her friends see her falter. She had always been a beacon of light and love for them, and if that was all she could do for them now, she couldn't stop. But... but she feared that this time, her light would not be enough to guide them through this darkness...

Mars was grateful to have Chibi Moon beside her, giving backup and taking care of the droids she was largely ignoring for now. As her attention was focused solely on Rubeus, she needed someone to have her back. Chibi Moon’s powers had grown, too, she realized. She hadn’t noticed it but now the princess was more than capable of fighting on her own, without her mother by her side. Mars couldn’t help but feel pride for her even if she wasn’t her own daughter.

“You’re doing great,” she assured even as Chibi Moon claimed that it was easier to do it with her mother. Eventually it wouldn’t take a toll on her anymore, Mars was sure of it. She had to force herself to take her eye off the smaller soldier, fighting valiantly with only physical means against the rising tide of enemies.

For a second, Mars thought her attack was going to kill Rubeus. It seemed too easy, and yet she had caught him off guard. However, when her arrow hit and exploded, once the dust settled, the red-haired soldier was still there, merely knocked off his feet. Mars blinked, wondering what she had hit instead. Then the movement caught her eye; a woman who looked bruised and battered soon lay lifeless after uttering her last words. It was one of the Ayakashi sisters. The youngest, if she wasn’t mistaken. For a second, Mars felt an irrational sympathy for her; she had sacrificed her life so bravely for the one she clearly cared for, but she doubted it was a worthy sacrifice.

Still, she had taken out an enemy, even if it wasn’t the intended one. That still counted as victory, right?

Unfortunately, when you don’t manage to kill someone, you usually make them angrier. She caught Rubeus’ murderous glare at her before he disappeared, and she looked around frantically for where he might reappear. She didn’t find him until she heard his angry shriek before attacking.

Bad idea, she thought even as she spun and wondered if she had time to defend against his attack. The wave of dark energy heading straight toward her seemed to be moving with lightning speed, but the next second Mars felt a powerful yank that took the breath out of her. Next thing she knew, she was flying backwards, before landing to a stop in front of a golden-haired senshi.

Staring in disbelief at Venus and her lighthearted greeting, Mars’ jaw dropped and she shook her head. “Venus, I swear to god… sometimes I worry about your sanity.” She suppressed a smile and watched how Venus was already flipping back into business mode. It was amazing—and scary—how she could do that; like there was an on-off switch inside her, or as if she had two different personalities warring for control all the time.

But that was what made Venus so dangerous and capable, and she was just glad to not be on the enemy’s side right now. “Thanks,” she muttered, shaking off the moment of playfulness herself. She couldn’t switch back and forth as quickly as Venus did, but then again, who could, really.

As her friend rallied her troops, Mars stood beside her, looking up at Rubeus. She thought it was very gallant of Venus to offer him a chance to surrender—not that she thought for a second he would take it. “I vote we destroy them anyway,” she chimed in.

Chibi Moon watched her friends for a moment, glad to have someone like Venus on their side. She was so quick and sure of herself. Chibi Moon wanted to be more like her. She couldn't stop for long as she started back to regroup with the others. "I second that." She said when Mars suggested destroying them anyway. The princess wasn't exactly happy about the death that they brought with them. In her mind they needed to go, either by choice or destruction, she wasn't sure she really cared. The pink haired teen leaned on her Tiare, resting for the briefest of moments before the fight was sure to start again. She knew she needed to catch her breath now or she might not have a chance to do so later.


Back in the command room, Luna still sat in her small black cat form working the controls but no longer calling commands or warnings into the microphone. She watched with blue eyes wide as the fighting found a calm one that she knew wouldn't last. The guardian looked over her shoulder at her friend and queen. "Usa," She started. Suddenly she didn't know what to say. She couldn't tell her that she had to let her only child fight or that she had to let her best friends in the world risk their lives while she sat safe here, but she had to say something, that would maybe give the stubborn girl pause before she ran to their aid. "Come help me with the commands. Maybe hearing your voice will help moral." She smiled at her friend. To Luna Usagi had been something of a daughter, and friend, but she was still someone that even with all her power, Luna felt she needed to protect. "Besides, I can't do this all myself." She tried to be light and upbeat about it, but she couldn't really hide the bone deep weariness, she felt. The small black moon cat wondered at this point where her daughter and husband where, but pushed thoughts of their safety to the side, she had to keep the girls alive. She and her mind had to be here now.

Venus smirked when she hear Sailor Mars' vote to simply destroy their enemies without hesitation, and her smirk only widened when Chibimoon agreed.

It was amusing to hear the younger girl so full of confidence and power. She took after her Auntie Rei a lot in that regard.

"You better respond quickly, Rubeus, or I might just give in to my friends' wishes," Venus said aloud. She shrugged, and added, "It doesn't matter to me one way or the other. I'm just giving you an option to pull out while there's still a chance."

It was perhaps a risky move, and even somewhat pointless. The senshi seemed to have the upper hand right now, and it wouldn't take much effort for them to all attack Rubeus at once.

But she had to wonder if it would be enough. Would they be able to kill Rubeus quickly enough, would they be able to fight against all of his gathered troops on top of it. What if Rubeus got away?

What if he somehow got inside the castle?

No. Venus was not going to write off one of Black Moon's generals so easily. She knew he was far more powerful, and more cunning, then most gave him credit for. And he had a large amount of foot soldiers to back him up.

It seemed a better plan to allow him retreat now, taking all of those soldiers with him, and minimizing the chance that the senshi might fail in their defense. It would be better to fight in a place of their own choosing, where they had the upper hand, and not in walking distance of the very castle they were trying to protect.

Although she was definitely not against attacking Rubeus here and now, if the man would not cooperate. A part of her wondered if she was being overly cautious, but there was no time to backtrack on her plans now.

"Time is running out, Rubeus," Venus called out, her voice high pitched in an almost sing-song way. The golden energy in her hands pulsed, threatening and bright. "We won't wait much longer."

Disappointment shown clearly in the features of his face as his attack had failed. His fiery eyes, the window to his soul, remained a symbol of hatred and malice. Nemesis had captured it years ago. He watched their every movement carefully. By midday his frustration was at its peak. The nightfall approaching had a way of evaporating ones securities.  It was here his terror could be released.

Silent steps in his black boots made him pace back and forth, releasing a cackle as he listened to her words. He shot a quick glance to where Koan had last stood.

Whatever happens, it's their fate, not yours, He reminded himself. Friendship had a way weakening a warrior and carried too many responsibilities. His desires were most ambitious.

His hawk like gaze rested upon the senshi with blond hair. "And why would I simply go away after traveling all this way to see you," he questioned. His voice was cool and calm, but his features would suggest otherwise.  He flicked his gaze past her for a second, waiting for the air assault to return. He had hoped to catch them off guard, and waited for his cue. The calm before the storm, death would be knocking on the back door.

The tone of her voice irritated him, just like everything else here. Concealing his true colors became a struggle and soon the mask from his face disappeared, revealing his intentions. "You're foolish if you think we would simply turn away afte waiting all of these years. Attack!"

As he screamed his command, the army of youma began to storm the walls furiously, the three remaining Ayakashi sisters leading the charge. The ships were emerging back through the clouds to attack from behind. The grin grew wider, hoping he would be able to witness their destruction before taking part in it once more.

It was all or nothing now.
(Sorry for the day ><)

Neo Queen Serenity 

Usagi understood that Luna, always her trusted advisor and companion, was worried about her and wanted to distract her. She faked a smile and moved forward to the microphone to assist the feline as best she could. Even as Neo Queen Serenity, Usagi had never been the brains of the battle; she fought with her heart, not with rational analysis. Giving commands and warnings was not her strong suit, and she did not show improvement with this attempt. She tried to be strong, but her voice faltered just pronouncing their names. Watching them on the battlefield was too much for Usagi--they weren't tokens on a game board, they were her beloved friends and family risking their lives.

Still, she struggled to cooperate and continue, even as Rubeus' barrage increased. The sounds of battle rang in her ears, drowning out the memories of happier, idyllic times that fluttered tauntingly through her memory. Usagi could not quit and sulk--she would help somehow, and if this was it, so be it. Luna was just as weary as the rest of them, and Usagi knew, and hated herself, for making the feline feel worse by worrying about her.

"Please," she prayed silently, "Please keep them safe."

Jupiter followed Venus down the stairs, Mercury right on her heels. The closer they were to the ground, the louder the sounds of chaos echoed all around her. When Jupiter realized what punctuated the noises of explosions and crashes, she nearly stopped cold. There were screams—screams of people in pain. Screams of people dying. She’d been so focused with the enemy up on the roof, away and completely detached from everyone else below that she had completely forgotten that them being there meant no one was defending the civilians below. When she stepped outside, she raised her hand to her mouth to prevent a gasp.

Remains of people littered the streets. Some had been reduced to ash completely, others still bleeding and yet more were gravely injured. Beside her, Mercury’s face looked ashen, and without saying anything, she ran to help them. Jupiter hoped she could save as many as possible, even as she knew that too many of them were beyond help. Her heart broke for them, for the people she had failed.

But she didn’t have time to linger on these thoughts because Venus had sprung into action again. Right in front of them Mars and Chibi Moon were fighting Rubeus, and Venus had pulled the senshi of flame to safety just in time before she, too, became a casualty of this war. Hearing her rallying call, Jupiter tried to gather her energy and focus all her anguish into anger that she channeled directly toward the Black Moon Clan. The heartless people who were wreaking havoc in their beautiful city, taking so many lives.

She was surprised that Venus gave Rubeus the chance to surrender at all. Jupiter knew that Neo Queen Serenity would want this. She would give anyone—absolutely anyone—a chance to atone themselves, no matter their crime. But she wasn’t so selfless. She wanted Rubeus to give her a reason to kill him. It was only Usagi who could stop her from taking his life after everything she’d seen. She was secretly glad Mars agreed.

Thankfully, Rubeus, true to his character, delivered.

As he yelled for his troops to attack, Jupiter did not wait for Venus’ command. She, too, launched an attack—this time aiming precisely for the people who were clearly in charge instead of the many replaceable droids and low level creatures. Targeting the Ayakashi sister in green, Petz, she culminated almost her entire energy on one very powerful attack. “Sparkling Wide Pressure!!” she yelled, throwing the barely suppressed amount of electricity gathered in her hand toward her, sizzling deadly and hurtling with unimaginable speed.

As the world exploded back into battle, Venus could only shrug at Rubeus's ignorance. He might think that he had the upperhand, especially since he did have greater numbers than the senshi, but his biggest mistake was that he underestimated them.

Well, she had tried to end this quickly and swiftly, as her Queen would have wanted. She had to try that option so that she could tell Usagi that Rubeus could not be reasoned with. She had not been confident that it would work, Rubeus was well known for his blood thirsty and somewhat arrogant ways, but she figured it didn't hurt to try. Live and let burn, right?

And now that the attempt had failed, it was time to beat up some bad guys.

Jupiter was the first to go for the attack, but Venus was not far behind her. The energy of her Love and Beauty Shock had been gathered for a while now, so it took no effort at all to fling the golden hearts towards the nearest group of enemies. They impacted against armor and flesh, cutting and slicing.

She did not target any one enemy in particular, going more for a wide range in an effort to push back the mass of soldiers. As soon as the energy dissipated from her hands and was soaring towards the hoards of the Black Moon Clan, she was already gathering more of that same energy in her hands.

Another attack, and another. It took more effort for her to continuously use one of her strongest attacks, and she knew that she couldn't hold up too much longer without taking a break or switching to a lesser attack, already having spent a lot of energy back on the roof battle, but she had to put everything into this battle.

The front line of Black Moon soldiers were faltering as more of their own comrades fell to the senshi attacks. As soon as she saw them begin to waver, she instantly switched her focus to target Rubeus himself. He had his Ayakashi sisters to protect him, but she relied on Jupiter and the others to get rid of them, to keep them occupied while she attacked their beloved Rubeus. If she could get rid of the ground troops leader, then that would create chaos in the Black Moon ranks. It would be easier to kill off the rest.

That was the plan, anyway.

Gathering another burst of golden energy, she noted in an almost distant way that it took more effort to draw out her power than it had been before. But she drew upon her power anyway, and as soon as it was gathered in a physical form, Venus flung the attack straight to Rubeus. She could not stop. If she did, then the castle would be in danger. Usagi would be in danger. And she refused to let that happen.  

Rubeus could not be allowed to get through the castle gates.  

She and her fellow senshi would make sure that Usagi would remain safe, no matter what.

At some point in the conversation, Chibi Moon's hand and slid down her Tiare, building energies there to unleash in an attack. She knew that the Black Moon wouldn't give in and go home. They were here for blood and that was something that Chibi Moon would stop. She held on to her build up of energy, she only had at best one shot and with her attacks at only half strength since her mother wasn't fighting with her this time, she wasn't going to use her power till she had no other choice. 

Instead the pink hair princess swung, punched and kicked her way through a few droids. She knew that she was only really holding the final line and for once that seemed fine with her. She wasn't going to be much use out in the thick of battle but someone had to watch the gates make sure that none of these monsters go in. So she held the line. She heard her mother, but she didn't listen to what she said so much as just the lull and sound of her voice. She listened to a voice crack with worry and strain, they all felt, she listened to the voice shout warnings and give heads up, the same voice that used to sing her to sleep when nightmares haunted her. A voice that laughed often and was never meant to be used like this. For making her mother's voice so full of worry, pain and sorrow, Chibimoon wanted Rubeus' head. 


Back in the command room Luna could see the strain the girls were under and hated that there was so little she could do. She called out tactic changes as they were needed and she watched as they fought with all their strength. She felt a swell of pride in her girls then, they had been trained well, and in some part she was responsible for that, but Luna wondered where had she failed them? The battle was dragging on and on and the girls kept showing only slight signs that Luna noticed to their fatigue. "Come Ladies!! We can do this!" She called into the mic. " The enemy is thinning, the day could yet be ours." 

Chibimoon didn't stop to believe that they could really stop this till the streets held more death they ever should. The princess, looked around and decide that maybe she should use her power. She threw the last droid away from her, and thrust the end of the tiare into the things chest, and with all her strength she started forward. She knew that if she was going to do the most damage that she could she would have to be away from the gate. She knew the girls could hold it while she did this. She shot past Jupiter, then Mercury on her way to battle, one she wasn't sure she wanted. Mars' black hair fluttered by as the princess ran with all the speed she could, towards Venus, near the center of it all.  

She stumbled and feel, tripped over ruble in the street. Scrambling to her feet she knew that it was now or never. So with all her power behind her call and with all her strength that, even she knew would only be enough to destroy a few droids and maybe throw a few of the stronger enemies back a fews yards, she raised her tiare and called out. "STARLIGHT HONEYMOON THERAPY KISS!!" The pink haired senshi threw all she had into the attack hopping to do as much damage to their enemies as possible and she only hopped that she could stay awake after words. The blinding light erupted from the top of her tiare destroying the droids nearest her and knocking back the ones behind them. The light sped across the battlefield taking some of the weaker droids with it but not all were defeated. Chibimoon leaned heavily on her weapon and gave a cough of a laugh. She had at least done some damage and with any luck she might have hurt one of the Sisters or Rubeus. But Chibimoon doubted that she was that lucky.

Mars wasn’t as patient as Venus, and she had to practically restrain the urge to celebrate when Rubeus decided to be the predictable villain that he was and continued his assault instead of surrendering. As her friends around her launched into attacks, Mars took the time to survey the situation. Jupiter was targeting a specific high-level enemy. Venus was sending a general area attack to take care of the droids. However, it didn’t take long for her to zero in on Rubeus. Mars felt that she still owed him revenge for nearly killing her, but she trusted Venus to take care of him. He’d be just as sorry having to face her.

Meanwhile, Chibi Moon… Mars turned her head in surprise and panic when she couldn’t find the princess. A flash of pink hair caught her attention, breezing past quickly straight to the heart of the battle. “Chibi Moon…!” Her call was lost in the sea of explosions and attacks hitting their targets, screams of civilians and enemies alike as they fell. She watched in horror as the princess quickly went out of her reach, already imagining Usagi’s wrath if anything happened to her daughter. But as Mars made her way to her, she watched the pink-suited soldier raise her tiare above her head determinedly, and for a brief second Mars thought she was seeing Sailor Moon instead of Sailor Chibi Moon. Then she blinked and everything reverted into normal as Chibi Moon unleashed her attack.

The light that erupted from her was blinding and Mars had to shield her eyes. It swept away most of the droids and foot soldiers, but when it was all over she saw Chibi Moon slumping a bit. She darted toward the girl and put one hand on her shoulder. “Are you okay?” she asked, though she could see the pride shining in Chibi Moon’s eyes. She immediately realized that she was feeling the same thing, as warmth filled her chest and she almost teared up. The woman standing before her now was such a far cry from the little girl who fell from the sky hundreds of years ago.

“Keep at it but don’t push yourself, alright?” she said, squeezing her shoulder gently. “And don’t do anything silly. That’s your mother’s thing.” With that she turned back to the battlefield, knowing that she, too, needed to help. She stepped away a little bit from Chibi Moon and sent out a wide arc of Burning Mandala to sweep away the circle of droids pushing in on them. When the path was clear, she eyed the unengaged Ayakashi sisters. Calaveras and Berthier. The latter she’d seen have water powers which could probably deal with her fire easily. So she turned her attention on Calaveras, and once again summoned her bow of fire.

“Mars Flame Sniper!” she yelled as she let the arrow loose.

Though she was in the middle of her own attacks, Venus saw each and every thing that her fellow senshi did as well. When Chibimoon slumped, she was concerned but Mars was there in an instant, and Venus knew that the younger senshi was in good hands, so Venus turned her attention back onto the battle.

The senshi attacks were deadly, and bodies of the opposing force fell to the ground. The soldiers were beginning to falter, to be a little less sure about approaching the senshi, and their hesitation only gave the senshi more of an advantage.

Venus gathered more of her power in her hands, unleashing it in a bright wave of golden light. She looked for Rubeus then, and his generals. They were spread out, though there were two of them standing together. From the corner of her eye, Venus saw Mars begin to dock an arrow, and without needing to ask, Venus knew what Mars was planning.

So she drew upon more of her own golden energy, focusing it into the tip of her finger, aiming for the opposite target, before releasing it in a straight shot at the same time as Mars loosed her arrow. "Crescent Beam!"

It was an old attack, one she had first used so many years ago, but it had only grown stronger with her.

The two generals screamed their pain and fell back, hiding behind more and more of their faltering soldiers. Venus wasn't certain if they had died or not, but she knew that they would be out of the battle for a while now.

Her own body was beginning to shake from exhaustion, but Venus filed it away to be dealt with later. She would put just a little less power in her next attacks, that would be fine enough to give her a bit of rest.

Staying with her Crescent Beam, Venus attacked the front lines again and again, taking out individual enemies one at a time. But there were fewer and fewer enemies now, and she knew that the battle had been won. There were calls for retreat beginning to be yelled in the ranks of the Black Moon Clan.

Venus allowed her hand to fall to her side, though still she observed everything that was going on.

But it was easy to see that the Black Moon Clan no longer had much intention to push the fight. Only a few remained in the confusion as most scrambled to get away.

Venus didn't want to fully believe that the battle was over, her body was still on edge and it had been so many hours now since the beginning. But the evidence was right in front of her. The castle was safe, for one more day at least.

A cold wind prickled at her skin, thick and heavy. There was silence now, when there had been chaos before. Venus shivered at the cold and the feeling of apprehension settling over her.

What was going on?

The wave of dark purple energy came too fast for her to see until the last possible moment, and by then it was too late to dodge. It struck her full in the chest, and the force of it drove her backwards, farther and father until she crashed into something behind her.

All of the air was driven from her lungs, and the pain took over everything, keeping her from thinking straight. But she could hear more energy impacting with objects that she could not see, and worry for her friends forced its way through everything else. Venus pushed the pain, and called out "Take cover!" as loud as she could, but she wasn't certain if it would be heard by the others.

She needed to get up. She needed to help them.

She coughed, struggled to sit up, and then realized that the blast had stained her front in a dark coating that glowed purple.

It was draining her energy and power.

Venus felt her body beginning to shake against the draining effects, even as she struggled even more to fight back, but it was too much.

The sounds of the energy being fired had stopped now, and that frightened her even more. Did that mean that all of her friends had been hit by this?

A low voice spoke in a whisper, though it was loud enough to be heard throughout the entire city. "I have come to finish this battle," it said. "Prepare to die, senshi." The voice brought up images of death and disease.

And when it began to laugh, it sounded as though it were stealing away all the joy in the world.

There was a reason Jupiter wasn’t sending as much arena-wide attacks anymore—she was getting close to her draining point. But the attacks she did make hit their targets, and with each enemy that fell her hope continued to build in her chest. They could win this war. Maybe not today, but tomorrow or the day after. Surely the enemy was getting tired, too? All of her friends were still standing, their queen safe in the castle and the gates hadn’t been breached. Sure, they had lost a lot of civilians, and she was sure a lot more were injured, but the Black Moon Clan wasn’t going to win Crystal Tokyo. Not today.

As more of them fell back and the line of enemy soldiers moved away, Jupiter took a moment to breathe. She couldn’t help but grin when she found less and less opposition and incoming attacks around her. Venus always said overconfidence was dangerous, but surely the enemy was retreating now. Their ranks looked pretty much destroyed.

She heard the commands to retreat and her hope was confirmed. Sighing in relief, she watched them go, wishing they were smart enough to just not try again. How many lives had been lost today? And to what end?

Everyone was scattering now, and the Black Moon clan was no longer the dangerous, terrifying organized force that they once were. Jupiter was glad she had kept up her optimism because against all odds, they did win. She was so looking forward to having a nice long bath and maybe a couple hours of rest. And tomorrow, she was willing to do it all over again if necessary.

Just as she started imagining the kinds of treat she would bake tonight, a chilling wind blew past her, making the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. She whipped her head around, trying to find its source. At first, there was nothing. But as she gazed from the burned city to the sky to the rest of her surroundings, something flashed at the corner of her eye.

Jupiter didn’t see it coming at all. She heard Venus’ cry, but by then it was too late. The powerful dark energy whipped her like a rag doll, slamming her straight into one of Crystal Tokyo’s crystal spires. Her body left a huge crack on the column and for a moment she couldn’t take a breath at all. Her chest and back ached and it felt like she’d just been crushed under something really heavy.

She couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. Everything hurt. And all the while, the power was draining what was left of her energy. The dark pulsing energy had stayed on her, feeding on her power. “No…” she cried out weakly, trying to look around and see what happened to everyone else. Chibi Moon was on this battlefield. The thought of this happening to her hurt her more than anything that had happened so far.

She tried to call—begged—her powers to come forth, mentally shouted to the planet she protected. She was the soldier of strength. She was not going to—she refused to go down like this. She could not die and leave Usagi unprotected. She could not fail their princess and their queen.

The voice that echoed throughout the now quiet city then sent chills up her spine. It was so unnatural, so… inhuman. So pure evil. She could not seem to think of a single happy thought as it blanketed her entire being.

Her consciousness was slowly leaving her, but Jupiter fought. She was not going to go down without a fight. She stubbornly tried to push herself up and tilted her head toward the creature above that was nothing more than darkness and plague.

She felt like she was looking death in the eye when she managed to say between gritted teeth, “Not today.”

Chibimoon smiled at Mars. "But Mama isn't here so some one has to do the silly thing." She said." I think I'm next in line for that anyway." She coughed a laugh and started to hand to hand fight her way though the droids near by, which were few. Her attack had taken out quite a few of them, that was a good thing, maybe the only good thing to come out of her weakness.

She fought with all her strength but she was running out of steam and she was slowing. She knew she was falling in the strength in her punches and her kicks where slowing and nearly clumsy. Then they retreated back. Something was off and she could feel it. "This doesn't feel right." She said more to herself and the others that might be near. Then She heard Venus yell to take cover but it was too late for her.

As she dived through the air towards the ground she was hit by the purple wave that swept through the area. Her eyes widened at the hit and she was forced into her civilian form the pink dress she wore fluttering around her ankles, her breath knocked from her body. She felt it first the warmth creeping from her heart around her, before she knew what was going on. Her Pink Moon Crystal was encasing her like the Silver Moon Crystal had done to her mother so many years ago. She was still upright and the crystal anchored to the ground forming more of a statue of softly glowing pink crystal with the moon princess inside. She barely had time to raise her head and speak only a short phrase before the crystal encase her completely, her knees bent her feet pointed toward the Earth, her hands at her chest as if protecting her own crystal heart, her face almost looking at any who might see her, her eyes only half open as if she is about to wake.

Her words before being encased. "I love you Mama." The Moon Princess was silence now, no longer able to move or breath it seemed. Encased in her crystal cocoon for the Moon only knows how long.

Neo Queen Serenity 

When the wave swept out from the newly-arrived evil, Usagi gasped and jolted up. First she watched Venus fall, golden hair arching out above the flutter of the orange sailor skirt and collar. She saw Jupiter suffer the same fate and knew that Mars and Mercury were next. For a moment she felt frozen in place, blue eyes filling with tears as they locked on the screen that slowly conveyed the suffering of her dearest friends.

When the energy curved towards her daughter, Usagi screamed. Her voice seemed like it came from another person, echoing with agony and terror. On the screen, the pink-haired teenager's body drifted through the air in utter silence, her uniform slowly replaced with the delicate rose folds of her gown. Those bright eyes closed, eyelashes fluttering. Thin hands raised towards Usagi's face, shaking, and the tears cascaded down her cheeks.

And with that, she ran. She thought she heard Luna cry out, but she would not be stopped. Her friends and comrades she could try to endure watching and waiting, letting them protect her in her weakness, but not her child. Not her precious and only daughter.

Neo Queen Serenity burst through the doors of the Crystal Palace, her white gown and pale hair floating around her body. The tears in her eyes and on her face sparkled like diamonds. Sapphire eyes glinted as she rushed into the fray, determined to defend her loved ones and citizens from this terrible menace.

"I will save them all," she thought. "As always, I will save them."

As the battle started to die down around her, Mars allowed herself to feel relieved. Just a tiny bit. But her hope had started to grow that all of them would live to see another day, and that maybe even win this war. Tomorrow they would have their energy renewed and be able to deal with whatever else the Black Moon Clan threw at them if they persisted in continuing their attempt to take Crystal Tokyo. At least that was what she wanted to believe. After all, today the odds had seemed against them, but they’d made it.

When the new presence appeared, Mars was the first of the senshi to realize that something was wrong. She whipped her head around quickly as what little hope she’d been building suddenly got sucked out of her, and her entire body chilled. Thoughts of death and destruction coupled with the stench of evil so strong unlike any she’d ever encountered before made her tremble. The sudden silence around her was deafening. And yet she couldn’t pinpoint where it was coming from.

She sensed the incoming dark energy a split second before it hit her and instinctively moved away from it as fast as she could. It only hit her on the shoulder, but it was still powerful enough to knock her off her feet. She tried to scramble back to her feet as she heard her friends’ cries, Venus’ warning, and with horror realized that they’d all been struck down. Her friends looked as if they were dying, like their very life essence was being drained out of them. “Jupiter! Venus!” she yelled, her eyes darting all around trying to find all the people she cared about. Where was Chibi Moon?

The voice that echoed around her made her sick, the dark energy it was giving off practically overwhelming her psychic abilities. What is this? she wondered frantically. She had never sensed an evil like this before. It felt like it was sucking everything that was good right out of the world, put thoughts of despair in her mind that made her feel helpless.

She finally found Chibi Moon right as the energy struck the princess, as well, and Mars let out a painful scream as if it was her who’d been struck. She watched in horror as Chibi Moon lost her transformation and returned to her original form. At first, she felt hopeful when she saw the light of the Pink Moon Crystal emanating from her, no doubt to protect her. But then she saw the crystal encase Chibi Moon’s body, turning her into a beautiful glass statue right there in the battlefield. Mars had no idea if this was a good thing or not, but she didn’t like what she was seeing. Small Lady seemed to be losing her consciousness… she seemed as if she was being rendered inactive by the crystal itself.

“No!” she cried as the princess spoke her last words and turned into stone. She ran toward the crystal, slamming it with her hands even if she knew it would be futile. It might as well be made out of steel despite its fragile appearance. “Chibiusa! Wake up!” she yelled through the glass desperately. Why would the crystal do this to her? Why would it protect her by making her… half dead?

Usagi is going to kill me, was the one thought that kept going through her panicked mind. She had promised to protect the queen’s daughter. And now she had failed. She never broke her promises to Usagi. How would her friend ever forgive her?

As she slumped beside the crystal, Mars thought that the grief and guilt were the reason she felt so weak, but then she noticed the clump of dark energy that had hit her had stayed on her shoulder. It was pulsing with every beat of her heart, pumping her life out of her. Mars hadn’t even noticed it was still there. The adrenaline had kept her going, but now she was starting to feel faint.

A quick look around showed that practically all her friends had fallen. The Crystal Palace stood unprotected from this dangerous evil that had just made its presence known. All her thoughts were on Usagi as she struggled to stay conscious.

Then, as if she had summoned her, Mars watched, half wondering if she was delirious, as the beautiful and powerful form of Neo Queen Serenity burst through the doors, going straight into the heart of the battlefield. She looked determined. She looked angry, too.

Mars realized with a jolt that it was a look she had not seen in the queen’s face in a long time.

It was the face of Sailor Moon; the most powerful senshi in the universe.

It was a face that immediately gave her hope amid all the despair.

And yet her heart seized at the idea of losing both the queen and the princess on the same day. Leaving Crystal Tokyo with no one to lead it. Leaving her with the loss of two precious people.

Some part of her knew what she was seeing was real. Of course Usagi would come. Of course she couldn’t stay put despite what she promised to do… not after what she’d seen.

Guess they both broke a promise today.

It still didn’t stop Mars from yelling at her. Like so many times in the past, putting thousands of years’ worth of frustration, fear, love, and heartbreak. It was both a command and a plea at the same time.

“Usagi, no!”

Luna screamed after Usagi as she ran from the room. If there was one being in this battle that could imagine what she was going through right now it was her. She too had a daughter and the fact that her only child was as safe as could be inside a palace under attack it did little to calm her own fears of what could happen to her precious Diana.

"USAGI!" Luna yelled as she jumped from the consoles to follow after her friend and queen. She had to try and stop her. But even as a cat she wasn't fast enough to catch her to stop her as she made her way to the battlefield.

Shifting at the gates to her human form in a flash of light she stopped cold in her tracks. She had seen was the dark attack had done on her screens but actually seeing it made her blood boil. She rushed to Venus. "I couldn't stop her." She said her voice shaking as the cat in human form looked over the fallen warrior of love and beauty. " Not with what happened to Chibiusa." Luna fought back her emotions not letting them show on her face but her blue eyes showed the storm under the calm.


Chibiusa wanted to cry out to Mars, she tried over and over to find her voice but nothing would escape her lips. She couldn't move her limbs either, she was stuck. The Pink Moon Crystal had incased her in crystal like her mother's Silver Moon Crystal had so many thousands of years ago. The crystal that had caused her to travel back in time in the first place. Allowing her to meet the girls and find herself as a senshi.

'MARS!' she yelled out with her mind. She wanted her to know that while she felt like she was falling into a deep sleep she was ok, she would be ok. 'Please stop crying. Mama needs you to stand up and be strong.' She though at the fire senshi as hard and loud as she could, she couldn't know if Mars could hear her or not.

It was the streak of blonde and white that cause Chibiusa to try and fight the crystal protecting her. She had to break out of this rose quarts prison she needed to protect her mother. It was as if her nightmares were coming true and she was powerless to stop it as she had always been in her dreams.
' This is my fault.' She thought. 'If I hadn't insisted on fighting, Mama would still be safe.' Tears unshed gathered as she watched through half open eyes, as her greats nightmares unfolded in front of her.

Venus didn't want to believe what was going on around her. The senshi had fallen, unable to fight against the enemy. Their energy was being drained, keeping them out of the battle, and leaving the castle wide open for attack. This couldn't be the end. Venus refused to let it end like this.

But try as she might, she was unable to get free of the substance. Her limbs shook from the sheer effort, but still she could not stand.

Her eyes widened in shock as Chibimoon lost her transformation, and became simply Small Lady once again as the her Pink Crystal began to encase her in a protective shell. The waves of attacks that Wiseman sent her way were ineffective, but Venus couldn't look away from the young girl's face. Was she... dead? No, she couldn't believe that. Wouldn't believe it. Chibiusa was okay, she had to be.

But a part of her wondered if it were true.

Tears came to her eyes at the thought, but she had to first free herself from this substance before she could do anything to help. She let out a sound of frustration as she continued to struggle. Her thoughts were focused on getting to her friends, to help them and to defeat Wiseman.

It was Wiseman's laugh that caused her to pause in her movements. Venus’s heart stopped. But she saw Usagi just as Wiseman spoke. “So, the Queen has finally shown herself.”

Mars’s scream sent shivers down Venus’s spine. She could practically feel the emotion in those two words, and she felt the exact same way. Her mind raced at a million thoughts a minute, but they always came back to one singular thing: Usagi was in danger.

“Get out of here!” Venus yelled to her. “That’s an order!”

It wouldn’t matter. She knew Usagi, and knew that nothing would stop her now that her mind was set to save everyone. But somehow, she had to try.

Before she could begin to yell again, Wiseman moved forward, his cloak fluttering in the wind as he loomed over the senshi and their Queen.

“You are just the person I had hoped to see,” Wiseman said. “Now, prepare to die!”

He raised his hands, and a sphere of dark purple energy crackled between them. A moment later, the sphere became a beam, and it was heading straight for Neo Queen Serenity.

Venus struggled, feeling her muscles and bones ache at the effort. She had to help. She had to save her. Usagi was in trouble! But it was no use. She couldn’t do anything. A name was shrieked, barring on the edge of hysteria, anguish and frustration tinting the word. “Usagi!”