Title: Sailor Moon X - the Next Generation
By: Chris Sifniotis
Rated: PG-13
Fandom: Sailor Moon
Pairing: Chibiusa Tsukino/Original Character [To Be Revealed]
Notes: This story was developed to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Sailor Moon franchise.
Story Summary: After Sailor Moon and the rest of the scouts defeat Sailor Galaxia the world was made safe, over time as no new evil encroached the scouts decided to disband and live out their lives. Now, nearly 25 years later a new threat looms over the Earth and it's a race against time to find and activate the new Sailor Scouts all over the world and defend against this new evil.
Comments allowed: Yes please.

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Prologue

25 years had passed since Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon had regained her memories from 1000 years before and began her quest to defend the Earth from the forces of evil. During that time Sailor Moon defeated the forces of the Dark Kingdom, including their leader Queen Beryl, the Makaiju Aliens and Tree, the entire Black Moon Clan whose efforts to destroy the future spilled into their past and thereby compelling the Sailor Scouts to intervene, the Death Busters, the Dead Moon Circus, Queen Nehellenia and, in quite possibly her most dangerous and daring feat of her strength and power, Sailor Galaxia by blocking her quest for ultimate power.

They were indeed the most trying five years of Sailor Moon's life and career, however upon destroying all these the Sailor Scouts achieved a total defence for the Earth and spread peace throughout the world with their acts of bravery and defiance to the evils of other worlds. Yet, as time passed and the demand of their powers diminished to non-existent the Sailor Scouts decided to disband and live out their lives as normal and pursue their desires. This was 15 years ago.

Today the world is a much different place; the peace the Sailor Scouts ensured was broken and the world quickly descended into protectionism, the heroism of the Scouts is long forgotten by the next generation and the audacity of their acts no longer looked up to. The world was left at a better place than that which it evolved into today, and to make matters worse the forces of evil were well aware of this turn of events. In secret and at the moment in hiding a new evil had been biding its time, waiting for the right moment to strike.

This is setting for the new Sailor Scouts to protect the Earth once again.

Chapter 1 - Consequences

It was a cold winter's day in Hinode. Found within the town at the west of Tokyo a modest yet large house sat along the main street. It was a large house compared to the rest of the neighbourhood, a creamy white exterior lined with flower beds, a second story room above the main entrance with a chimney beside it, and a gravel driveway leading into a garage. The front yard was ornate; a beautifully arranged garden dotted with Sakura and enclosing a Zen garden, complete with a fountain and a bench for quiet contemplation. Just before the doorstep and along the threshold of the garden the porch offered a view of the scene, a simple wooden deck looking out over the garden and the Sakura. Sometimes in a rare day in summer, the sun would rise through the trees and shine its golden light into the house, illuminating the garden in a rich haze.

Today however the day was bitterly cold, the sun hid behind an overcast sky and at the top of the mountains snow had begun to grow. A man exited the house, layered in a navy blue jumper and scarf, white woollen mittens and a black beanie. Clearly he was dressed for the weather. "Oh." the man uttered, "It's awfully cold." Briskly the man left, closing the door behind him, and rushed over to the letterbox. Running up the gravel he opened the box and promptly removed the letters before returning back. The letterbox read '18. Tsukino-Chiba.'

Inside the house was very much a modern structure; a large, open lounge space with a fireplace, a small yet open kitchen leading into the dining room, a hallway leading to the guest room and a study, and a staircase leading up to the bedroom. The man quickly entered the house to announce the mail. "Luna?" The man heard noise in the kitchen, frying and chopping. He walked across the lounge and into the kitchen to find Luna in her human form; Luna wore a full suit - white button shirt, frilled at the collar and the sleeves, business pants and jacket with a yellow orchid pinned to her left breast. Luna was preparing breakfast, a half English breakfast - bacon and eggs, tomatoes cooked and sliced, a couple of slices of toast, and a steaming hot green tea. "How's our patient?" The man asked.
"She's recovering." Luna replied as she cut the tomato. "She's not up and about but her energy is coming back." Luna then placed the tomatoes into the frying pan and eggs onto the plate. "I'd say her cold has one day left."
"That's great." he said. "You have a letter from Chibiusa." He places the letter on the marble counter and heads for the staircase to pay her a visit. Luna sighed as she continued to prepare the food.

Upstairs in the bedroom, under the thick covers and in flannelette pyjamas, an ailing woman sleeps. Her blonde hair long and flowing over the pillow, she slept comfortably, wrapped in her warmth. The man entered the room quietly, making sure he didn't wake her up. She was clearly having a pleasant dream, she was visibly smiling. Slowly he made his way to her side, stroking his hand over her neck. She let out a slight moan reacting to the touch, shifting her head to feel his warm hand. Then he knelt down to kiss her, the couple enjoying a moment of bliss in winter. The pair embraced each other as they continued to kiss. They let go of each other's lips and the man finally spoke. "Morning, Princess."
She giggled as she opened her eyes. "Morning Mamoru." She yawned and began to stretch her arms and legs. "What's the mail?"
"Not much." Mamoru walked around to the other side of the bed. "A couple of bills. Luna has a letter from Chibiusa."
The woman sat up. "Oh. I haven't heard from her in a long time."
"I know. I wonder how her art is going." The couple gaze into each other; Mamoru bathed in the light of the window behind him, the woman lit by the warm light of the room. "Even when you're sick you're still the most beautiful woman in the world Usagi."
Usagi giggled again. "Yeah right." The two chuckle some more for a while.
"How are you feeling?" Mamoru asked "Can you get up?"
Usagi took a moment to assess herself. "I think so." After a second she gets up and out of the bed. "I shouldn't do anything but I can come downstairs."
"I wouldn't worry about that now. Come back to bed, Luna's cooking up a big breakfast for you."
"Oh yum!" Usagi went right back to bed and again wrapped herself in the covers.
Mamoru laughed "Are you going to fake a cough?"
Immediately Usagi responded, feigning a couple of coughs. "Thanks for the idea."
Mamoru laughed some more and got up from the bed, walking out of the room and patting her hip as he passed by. The sound of Mamoru walking down the stairs was followed by another walking up.
"Breakfast is ready." Luna entered the bedroom with a loaded tray full of food and drink.
Continuing to feign a worse illness, Usagi coughed some more as she sat up for the meal. "Thanks Luna." She smelled the alluring fragrance. "Ooohhh, bacon and eggs."
"Indeed." Luna itemizes her creation. "Eggs and bacon with sliced tomatoes, cut toast and Green Tea with a spoonful of honey."
"Yum!" Usagi exclaimed as she tucked into her breakfast. "Luna, did you know you're such a good cook?"
"Considering I only learned how to cook ten years ago yes I think I've done quite well." Luna chuckled for a moment as Usagi ate.
"Can I ask you something Luna?" Usagi asked. Luna nodded in reply. "I know I've asked this before but are you sure you're not put out being my servant?"
Luna laughed a single "Ha! Not at all. I really don't mind. I will always be by your side Usagi, and it gives me something to do as a human."
Usagi cut up one of her fried eggs. "Really? You wouldn't prefer a job like a scientist or a designer?" She paused to eat some more egg. "Or a chef?"
"I do consider a change from time to time, but then I remember all that you've done for me and for everyone, and I feel a great sense of warmth simply by knowing you." Luna pauses to walk up to Usagi's side and smile. "Never mind helping you."
Usagi stopped eating, feeling a bit flustered. "I didn't know you felt that way Luna."
Luna sat down beside Usagi. "Of course I do. You found a way for me to transform into my human form, you've extended and enriched my life considerably. I can't thank you enough for that." Luna paused to rest her hand on Usagi leg. "You've given me a life Usagi. I can never repay that kind of gift, but I can always provide you with help and advice like I used to do before, and like what I'd like to provide to you in the future."
Usagi smiled back at Luna, understanding the gravity of her friendship. "You're welcome Luna."
Luna patted her leg and got back up. "Now. You better eat and get your strength up if you want to beat your cold." As she ate Usagi stuck up her thumb, approving of Luna. Luna then began to leave. "I'll see you in an hour to check up."
"See you Luna." Usagi spoke with a mouthful of food as Luna left the room and went downstairs. With her food eaten she began to drink her tea, thinking about Luna and her past. For the time she knew her Luna was a sprightly young cat with an attitude and an acumen for hostile situations, as time went on Luna became a loyal house pet and a good friend to Usagi and the scouts. Then as Luna began to age Usagi used her powers to transform and fix Luna into her human form and while she retained her attitude it seems Luna hid within her a great sense of appreciation, and that motivated her to become a better friend to Usagi. "Wow!" Usagi uttered "Fifteen years of gratitude." She continued to drink her tea, feeling a greater warmth inside her, the knowledge that she has a true friend in Luna.

Usagi wouldn't know about it now but her locket, still attached to her senshi uniform in the wardrobe, had begun to flash, and it required her attention.

---

Later that day the house was still very much active; Luna was done in the kitchen and was now tiding Usagi's room, straightening up the bed and picking up her clothes. Usagi herself was busy behind the locked door of the ensuite, taking a shower to warm up and refresh herself to start her day. Mamoru was out, taking the time to do the shopping for the house while Usagi was still recovering from her cold. Luna sighed at a pile of shirts. "Oh dear. You'd think by now Usagi as a 39 year old would be more responsible with her clothes." As the shirts lived in a dresser Luna completely overlooked the wardrobe, the locket still blinking a white light and still, even now, casting a pulsing white light inside the cupboard. "There." Luna sighed again. "Done." She also noticed that the sound of water raining down in the shower had stopped. "I better go. Don't want to catch her naked." Luna rushed out of the room and closed the door behind her.

For a brief moment the room was empty; the bed, covered in white sheets and a thick white cover, was tidy. Beside it two bedside chests flanked the bed, each with a lamp and Usagi's side piled with old magazines for light reading. The work desk was placed beside the large window overlooking the neighbourhood, complete with books and a laptop. The wardrobe and dresser were beside each other and opposite the bed; the dresser featured a large mirror with a decorative edge full of stained glass that was crafted by Michiru when she was still in Japan. After a rattling from the ensuite door Usagi opened it and in a cloud of steam she entered the bedroom in just white lase underwear and a pink towel wrapped around the top of her head. She made straight for the dresser and pulled out a fresh set of pink flannelette pyjamas. After a moment of fitting and adjusting herself, giving her hair a final rub, taking the towel back to the ensuite and tying her hair in front of the dresser into her signature dumplings she decided to get her robe for extra warmth and went to the wardrobe.

She opened the wardrobe and initially payed no attention at all to the light, she reached for the robe and was about to close it again before simply looking at her old senshi uniform and noticing the light source. The light was neither bright nor directly facing her but Usagi saw the light and paused to examine it further. "What the?" she uttered; now reaching for the uniform. Taking it out the sight of the clothes instantly brought back memories of the past, her teenage years in the metropolis, discovering Luna the cat, becoming Sailor Moon and the constant, constant fighting. And of course meeting Mamoru for the first time, nurturing their love for each other. For a second Usagi smiled, reminiscing about the past and forgetting why she putted out the uniform in the first place, but then she looked at the locket and the blinking light snapped her out of her daze. "What the?" Usagi repeated herself. She turned to her bed and laid the uniform down onto the bed as she put on her red robe thinking to herself. What could this be? What does it mean? Maybe Luna knows what this is. After she finished tying her robe she removed the locket from the uniform and decided to find Luna and bring it up.

Downstairs Luna was sitting on the couch, patiently waiting for Usagi to dress up and exit the bedroom, reading a book on Greek mythology. Ever since Usagi transformed Luna into a human Luna became very interested in reading, mostly history and fantasy. She is most interested in how the Earthlings viewed the Moon and the Moon Kingdom; as it turns out there isn't anything on the latter subject before the turn of the century. "Luna." Usagi climbed down the stairs to find Luna.
"Yes?" Luna replied while still reading.
"I have a question to ask about my locket." Usagi walked over to the lounge, finding Luna wrapped in her book.
"Which locket?" Luna asked and then turned to Usagi, seeing the Crystal Star and the crescent moon flashing a pure white light.
Luna immediately knew what that was, but strangely she decided to hide that fact. "Hm, I'm not sure." Luna marked her place in the book and got up to examine it further. Usagi handed Luna the brooch and Luna feigned observation. "I've never seen the locket do that." Luna then opened the locket to pretend to look the Silver Crystal. "It's not the crystal."
"Luna." Usagi tried to snap Luna out of her rouse. After a moment of non-compliance she repeated herself. "Luna!" Luna, clearly panicked and visibly sweaty from stress, looked at Usagi, unamused at the display. Luna's expression turned to disappointment as Usagi continued. "You're a terrible liar Luna. How about you tell me what's happening?"
Desperate Luna continued the deception. "I don't know what you're talking about Usagi."
"Please don't Luna." Usagi raised her hand in front of Luna. "Earlier today you told me about how much I mean to you. Please tell me you haven't forgotten about that."
After a second of silence Luna took a deep sigh and surrendered. "Alright. I'll tell you Usagi." Luna paused to walk to the couch and gestured to Usagi. "Please, take a seat." Usagi obliged and went around Luna to sit beside her on the faux leather couch.

Another moment of silence descended over them, Usagi and Luna looked straight at each other for a couple of seconds without talking. Then Luna began to explain herself. "It's an indicator. It receives information onto it about any new evil activity anywhere in the universe and directly informs you as Sailor Moon about it."
Looking directly into her eyes Usagi didn't find a lie in Luna's explanation. "Okay. So how do I access it?"
"You don't." Luna took a second to phrase the new sentence carefully. "What that actually is is an indicator for Sailor Moon - you - to reactivate the Sailor Scouts."
As she heard this Usagi's jaw slowly dropped. "Reactivate?!" Luna slowly nodded, visibly concerned at the information. "Luna, you realize we can't do that, right?"
Luna nodded quicker. "Oh, I'm well aware of that."
"It's been two decades since our last attack. That and most of the scouts aren't even here anymore! They've all moved on with their lives."
Luna nodded furiously. "Yes yes, I know. It's just you, Rei, Makoto, Setsuna and Chibiusa."
Usagi paused and leaned back into the couch. "Don't bring Chibiusa into this."
Luna tilted her head slightly. "We may have to." Usagi looked off to the side and sighed, visibly upset at the statement. "Chibiusa is 33 now; she's in a much better position than you right now to fight the new threat."
"She shouldn't have to fight."
A slight frown appeared on Luna's face. "That's not up to you to decide for her."
"I'm her mother!" Usagi snapped back at Luna whose is now somewhat distraught. "My decision is based on protecting her."
"Usagi." Luna paused to reach over to Usagi. "She's a grown woman now. She can take care of herself." Hearing that Usagi looked away from Luna again. "Chibiusa has proven to be a strong and powerful fighter both in and out of her uniform. Do you genuinely expect me, or any one of us for that matter, to believe that she cannot protect herself?"
After a pause a single tear ran down Usagi's cheek, she turned back to Luna again and explained herself as she began to sniffle. "No matter how old she is, she will always be my child Luna. No self-respecting mother stops worrying about their child."

Luna simply nodded for a moment; she feels that she understands how Usagi feels. Luna stood and walked right up to Usagi. "I can understand that you want to protect Chibiusa from harm. In this case however I think that not only is Chibiusa capable of assuming the role of a full Sailor Scout, I do in fact believe she can be the new Sailor Moon."
Usagi looked up, a bit confused at the last statement. "What do you mean 'new'?"
Luna reached out to Usagi, pulling her up from the couch. "It's something I never really thought I would need to tell you, seeing as Chibiusa is already a Sailor Scout of sorts, but the power of the scouts is hereditary."
"Hereditary?" Usagi asked, still confused.
"Yes. It means the power passes down from generation to generation. Your children have the power of the scouts, Ami's children, Rei's children, Makoto's, every member of the senshi can pass the power of the scouts down into their kin."
"Wow!" Usagi exclaimed, but was still confused. "Wait, hang on. How does it pass down?"
Luna's eyes widen. Did she really just ask that question; she thought. "I'm sorry?"
"How can the power of the scouts be passed down? Isn't that in our blood?"
"Oh. Not exactly." Luna sighed in relief. "It's in our DNA, which means that when you..." Luna took a moment to carefully phrase the rest of the sentence. "Uh...become romantic...with a pers-"
"I know what you mean Luna, keep going." Usagi nods along with Luna.
Luna chuckles embarrassingly. "Yes; your child will have the power of the scouts in them as part of their DNA."
"Is it affected by gender?"
"Yes, it can only be found in women and girls." The two paused for a while; Usagi began to think about how the scouts could be reformed, Luna already doing so herself.

"Okay." Usagi began "We cannot form the original Sailor Scouts; me and more or less everyone else is now too old to fight. I know I'm in no condition to do it again. But what we can do is call everyone and spread the word, see if they can help."
Luna nodded along with Usagi. "My thoughts exactly. We can contact everyone in Japan right now."
"Yes we can." Usagi interjected. "But I don't have everyone's contact details. I can only talk to Ami in Germany and Michiru in Australia."
"I've thought of that." Luna replied. "Ami and Michiru are enough; Ami can relay the message to Minako and Hotaru in Europe and Michiru can contact Haruka in America."
Usagi paused for a moment. "Is that everyone?" Luna nodded, smiling.
Usagi then thought of another person. "What about Yuuichirou? He'd need to know."
Luna hadn't considered him. "Oh. Yes, you're right. We should tell Michiru to relay the message to him as well." The two women were finally in agreement and before long they both heard a car pull into the garage. It was Mamoru returning from the shops. "I'll help Mamoru with the shopping, how do you feel about sending messages to the senshi?"
"Sure!" Usagi exclaimed. "I'll go back to bed to and use the computer. Can you tell him about this?"
"Of course." Luna walked over to open the door and carry Mamoru's bags, Usagi went back upstairs to start emailing and messaging all her friends.

However, on the other side of the universe the evil watched with its invisible eye, scouting the solar system and its inhabitants, determining the best way to conquer this new corner of space.

Chapter 2 - the Grand Plan

Deep, deep into the furthest reaches of space, the vast expanse of pitch black nothingness, a strange galaxy can be found - a strange spiral galaxy bathed in purple light, coloured with blue and maroon nebulae. It is here, in this corner of the universe, where the Negaverse reside. For thousands of years the Negaverse had expanded beyond their galactic boundaries, conquering new sections of space and ruling over billions of men, women and aliens from every galaxy they encounter. Today the Purple Serpent would visit the Solar System once again - at nearly the same time the Dark Kingdom began its attack on the Earth in 1992 the Negaverse had sent out a spy drone to analyse the system. The events that took place - the attacks in Tokyo, the rise of Sailor Moon and the destruction of the Dark Kingdom - provided invaluable information about the Earth and the Sailor Scouts. Using this knowledge the drone fled the system at hyper-light speed, orders of thousands of times faster than the speed of light. Today, 25 years hence, a far more advanced drone returned to the system, hidden deep within the Kuiper Belt and transmitting information across the known universe.

Within a tall crystalline structure on an alien world, as the sun was setting and causing the sky to turn a vivid violet, a lone man stood in front of a large screen. It was a polished crystal surface displaying telemetry from the spy drone. The entire space was lined with polished crystalline features; shining, transparent surfaces, straight and solid. The only light in the room was from the screen as the man continued to scan the data, the only sounds were the beeping and tones from the data.

Then footsteps approached. "General. The Council has summoned you." A young man stood behind the General; navy hair and wearing the full military uniform for a Captain. The General just stood there, constantly reviewing the data, and simply responded with a grunt. The young man called out again. "General?"
"Are you aware of the first sighting of System 2416 Captain?" The General asked.
"Somewhat." The Captain walked up beside the General. "I understand a war was playing out. The inhabitants of 2416-3 fought to defend their home-world from the forces of 3515-5. That ultimately led to the capitulation of the 3515 empire."
The General turned to the Captain. "They have names Zoad. Earth, Darklings, the Dark Kingdom." He turned back to the screen. "It'll serve you well to know these. Learning about their culture, their beliefs, their way of life. This is the vital information we need to undermine a race."
Captain Zoad replied "I'll stick to numbers and co-ordinates. No sense in validating inferiors."
The General slightly shook his head. "There's more to this world than all that." He reached over to a picture of the Earth. "This area for instance," pointing at Japan "The entire war was fought in this region. Nowhere else in the entire planet do the Darklings wage a battle. Not here," pointing at Europe "Where the majority of the land is divided by ancient nations with checkered pasts and buried resentments, or here," pointing at America "A nation so devout to the ideals of 'freedom' that it openly contradicts itself and engages in violent and deadly protest." The General recoils. "It's amazing that such a country even exists! It's a melting pot of ideas that occasionally erupts into violence. No, they wage their war there," pointing at Japan again "A stable nation with technological advancement. An ill-considered choice on their part." The General turns to the Captain. "This campaign is actually an extremely rare case, as far as I know it's never happened before. An inferior race defeating a superior race."

Zoad nodded along. "I understand. Knowledge of a planet's history can change the nature of its destiny."
"Almost. Knowledge of a planet's past can change the nature of its present in such a way that its future becomes predetermined. It is through a mastery of history that we can then use it to bend an entire people to our will."
"So then," Zoad began to ask "What does the great Second Rank General Tsajei have in mind for Earth?"
"Quite simply a series of attacks, here, here, here and here." Tsajei began to point at various regions of the Earth. "These superbeings were successful in combat in single locations. A true test of their metal will be if a vast quantity of attacks take place at the same time. Can they fight in multiple locations at once?"
Zoad continued to nod. "I see. Very interesting. However why target the superbeings?"
"Because Zoad, of all the superbeings I have ever encountered it is they, on that planet, who are the most dangerous in the universe. They are exceedingly powerful fighters, they can easily destroy us if they had a mind to, and they're power is amplified when grouped together. If we want to take over 2416-3 we must find a way to nullify these superbeings." Tsajei turned back to Zoad. "From there capitulation is simply a matter of total chaos of the planet."
"Genius!" Zoad exclaimed. The two agreed with each other for another second before Zoad reminded Tsajei. "The Council will be most pleased with this plan."
"We'll see about that." General Tsajei and Captain Zoad both left the room, leaving the screen on to continue processing the data.

As the two men left the structure Tsajei thought to himself, How can you defeat a being of such great power? Perhaps I don't need to.

Cool, I wanna know what kind of aliens these are. This is off to an interesting start.

This is great! I'm loving it so far!

This is a great story! I'm loving it!

Thank you all. I'll post Chapter 3 in a while, but in the meantime I am in fact happy to reveal the backstories of the original scouts because apart from Timelines chapters that solely focus on their backstories knowledge of their history doesn't affect or spoil a great deal of the story proper.

Chapter 4 has been slightly edited to meet with the PG-13 standard of Galaxy Cauldron, send me a PM if you like to see the original chapter elsewhere.

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Chapter 4 - the Complexities of Love

Later that night Usagi was pacing around in the bedroom, Mamoru was in bed reading a book while she was on the phone trying to convince Rei to join her on her trip. "Come on Rei. We need you to come with us." In between the pauses in conversation Mamoru occasionally looked up at Usagi, trying to work out why she's going through all the bother. "Because she's your daughter Rei. We need to find her and see if she is a Sailor Scout." Usagi's right-, Mamoru thought to himself, but Rei won't go. She hasn't gotten over her pain yet. "I know. I know." Usagi sighed as she scratched her forehead, thinking of a new plan of attack. "Look Rei you don't have to see him, we're just looking for Natsu now, that's all. Don't you want to see her?" Of course she does Usagi, but she just can't bear to be so close to Yuuichirou, not after what he did to her. "Okay fine, how about this; you don't have to come with us to Sydney, but we are going to go to Melbourne afterwards to find Michiru. How about instead of coming to Sydney, we will find Natsu and bring her with us to Melbourne and then you can see her with us there and not in Sydney. You don't have to be there." Wow, if she agrees to that that would be miraculous. "Of course we will Rei." Usagi began to smile. Huh, I wonder what that is. All of a sudden Usagi jumped in excitement "Oh wow really? Thank you Rei. I promise you won't regret this." Mamoru stopped reading, looking up at Usagi in almost disbelief. Really?! You pulled it off? "Goodnight Rei, we'll see you soon." Usagi sighed as she dialled off on her smartphone. She turned to Mamoru, still staring at her. "What?"
"Did you actually get Rei to come to Australia with us?"
Usagi sighed again "Sort of. She'll go to Melbourne directly but won't set foot in Sydney."

Usagi walked over to her side of the bed, putting her phone on her bedside chest of draws and climbing into bed. Mamoru continued to stare at her, still unable to fully comprehend. "But how? Rei has always hated going to Australia for years, ever since her troubles with Yuuichirou she wouldn't even consider going there."
"I guess it was more of a Yuuichirou thing rather than an Australia thing."
"That's my point." Mamoru shrugged "Even the thought of Natsu wasn't ever enough to return."
Usagi shrugged back at him "What can I say? Maybe she is finally getting over her anger."
"It's not just anger she needs to get over Usagi." Mamoru shook his head "It's her hatred. She hates Yuuichirou and anything to do with Yuuichirou. That includes Australia, that includes Natsu-" Mamoru sighed deeply "That includes herself."
Usagi just stared back at Mamoru. "Herself?"
"Yes. Haven't you noticed her self-loathing? She hates herself for ever having met him all those years ago."
"Hang on." Uasgi interrupted "You're not a psychologist. How do you know all this?"
"It's not that hard Usagi. You know I visit her shrine every month right?" Usagi nodded. "Well of course I catch up with her and the shrine. She puts on a brave face but I can tell that she's struggling every day." Usagi paused for a moment; she remembers her conversation with Rei earlier;

Quote :

"Yeah. It's been a busy month." -
"Well the help is getting us by. I have a new guy sweeping down the grounds, but with me, him and two others it's still a big job to keep it tidy and to keep it going." -
"Thanks Usagi, but I'll be fine." -
"Yeah, thanks Usagi. You know I kinda wish for the good old days. You know, when smartphones didn't ruin a lot of socialization. I actually think the iPhones and all that helped to reduce the number of visitors we used to get." -

Usagi remembers talking to Rei but now she remembers the look in her eyes - they seem darker, like the passion inside her had gone. "Huh. I don't know why I never noticed."
"I'm surprised too. Usually you're the one who notices things like that before I do." Mamoru went back to his reading but Usagi continued to stare for another second. Usagi is usually so in tune with everyone's mood and personality, but it seems she has neglected her relationship with Rei - and that is very unusual given that she visits her occasionally at the shrine. As a famous author working at home Usagi spends most of her time either typing on her laptop or visiting her friends in Tokyo. Every year she and Mamoru travel, Usagi has been to many places in Europe and Asia and has been to the US and Australia - often as a speaker for events, she has featured in two TEDtalks.

"I guess I haven't seen that much of Rei recently." Usagi lamented. "I'll visit her when we go to Downtown."
Mamoru nodded "I'll come with you."
"Great." Usagi began to unclip her buns and let her hair down. "Maybe I can talk to her about Yuuichirou and try to get them to reconcile."
"Wait what?!" Mamoru snapped back at Usagi "You want them to reconcile?"
"Well yeah. They were such good friends and I tho-"
"Until he cheated on her," Mamoru interjected "With a fan no less, and then when she caught him and called him out on it he struck her." Usagi couldn't keep going; she simply had nothing left to say. "You know, I get now why she's been upset this long. Yuuichirou let Rei chase him and his dreams in Sydney, marry him and father her child for a few years, and help him to become a successful musician, only to let the fame go to his head and sleep with someone else, and then divorce after hitting Rei and throwing her out of the house they lived in." Mamoru shook his head "If I were Rei I'd be furious too."
Usagi sighed "Yeah, you're right." She looked down, feeling stupid and ashamed for even thinking about the idea. "But I think I can help." Mamoru looked back at her not really knowing what to expect next. "Yeah, I get that he betrayed her and I'd be pretty upset too if y-"
"Just upset?" Mamoru interrupted, breaking Usagi's train of thought a second time. "You would only be upset if I did that? You wouldn't get mad if I slept with," He took a second to think of a person. "Rei? She used to have a crush on me years ago, you wouldn't be furious if I did that to you?"
Usagi kept staring at him the whole time. "Yes I would."
"There you go." Mamoru gestured his hand to emphasize his point before again returning to his book.
"But I wouldn't be like that for long." Usagi continued. Mamoru payed attention as he read on. "Yes, I would hate you a lot, and I would hate Rei even more if I'm honest. But I think that over time I would forgive both of you. I mean it will hurt for months, maybe years, but I believe in true love and if I see that in you and Rei then I would eventually get over my anger and hatred. I'd start remembering all the good times we did have, you and Rei both, and I'd be friends with you two again in time."
As she spoke Mamoru stopped reading, Usagi's words affected him more deeply than he thought. Wow! Such capacity for love. She could actually forgive the person who would cheat on her, and the other woman. Is that even possible? Usagi didn't see it but a single tear fell down Mamoru's cheek, his heart so full of warmth that he wept. He marked off his book, set it down on his bedside chest and reached out to Usagi, pulling her next to him, their eyes looking into each other. "You know Usako, there are many reasons why I love you so much; you're thoughtful, kind, confident," Mamoro chuckled a little "Very attractive." Usagi giggled with him. "But the thing I love about you most of all is your heart. You have this incredible ability to see the good in everything, even in the very worst of life." After a brief pause Mamoru kissed Usagi passionately, they held each other as they expressed their love.
Inflamed by his passion Usagi pulled back, wanting to speak. "Wait." Her heart pounding with adrenaline she was visibly trembling. "You haven't called me Usako in a while."
Mamoru laughed "That's what you wanted to say?"
"No I mea-" Before she could finish her thought Mamoru lent in to kiss her again with even more passion.

As the couple continued to kiss in the twilight a slither of moonlight crept though the gap in the certain. The light shone over a piece of paper with eight names written;
TOKYO
CHŌFU
SYDNEY
MELBOURNE
LOS ANGELES
PARIS LYONS
BERLIN
LONDON
These were the locations where Usagi had to go, to find the new Sailor Scouts.
Or at least that's all she thought she needed to go.

Just a quick note on the system of time for the Negaverse, it's easy to pick up most of the terms; a day is known as a 'cycle' - the cycle from day to night to day, an 'interval' takes six cycles and is the closest measure of time to a week, a month is known in fact as a 'season' as each of the months differ the weather patterns of the planet - each season is made up of five intervals with the exception of one month having a sixth, and a year is known as a 'revolution' for one complete orbit around the sun - a revolution has twelve seasons, with a total 61 intervals or 366 cycles.

---

Chapter 5 - the Council

Within a metropolis full of crystalline buildings a massive structure towers over all of them. Three massive crystals protrude from the ground, the middle crystal the tallest of the three and the others flank the middle at angles to its centre. As the sun passed behind the transparent structures the light of the sun could only be seen through the edges of the crystal giving off an eerie purple outline to the light blue structure. This was the capital building, the centre of the bureaucracy and the imperial empire that is the Negaverse. As far as the citizens and the scores of millions of slaves were concerned it was the centre of the universe itself. The location of the capital building was deliberate, the affect the sun gave it has its roots in the establishment of the empire thousands of years ago as an omen of the continual and unlimited prosperity of the empire - every day the sun would set behind the capital building and give the building its unusual glow. In this current cycle General Tsajei would be addressing the Council a second time this interval.

Inside the Council Chambers the room was similar in appearance to the General's office; very straight, very slick and polished, however while the walls of the room were crystalline the bench the five council members sat behind was not, it was a mineral that could be misconstrued as a black granite. The five council members arrived, lining up as each one took to their seats. They were all in dark robes, black cloth with no detail at all. The head at the center of the bench then announced "Alright, before we begin today's proceedings we must check the attendance of the Council. Councilman Geoa?"
The man at the far left of the bench called out "Present."
"Councilman Rhapan?"
The man seated next to Geoa was next "Here."
"Councillady Ua'qio?"
The only woman, seated beside the head replied "Here."
"Councilman Takaos?"
The final council member at the far right of the bench exclaimed "Here! Councilelder Ufano?"
The head of the council responded "Present. All members of the Council are present." All the council members relaxed a moment before the Councilelder declared "Bring in Second Rank General Tsajei u'Daroha to the chamber."
In the shadows General Tsajei entered into the dimly lit chamber, holding a piece of crystal. "Praise the Council." he said, greeting them with the traditional salute - his right arm extended with his hand open and upturned.
"Praise." Ufano simply said and Tsajei lowered his arm. "General, during the previous cycle you provided the Council an outline to your plan to conquer the planet designated 2416-3 and requesting more time to complete it. Has this extra time allowed you to do so?"
"To the best of my ability, yes."
Ufano raised his eyebrow "To the best of your ability?"
"I have greatly improved the finer details of my invasion strategy and used the invaluable information of our spy drone currently residing in the system now updating our information of the planet and its geopolitics. I am convinced that with the exception of one problem that still exists the success of our invasion is all but ensured."
Ua'qio tilted her head upward slightly "The lofty superbeings known as the Sailor Scouts?"
Tsajei smirked "Certainly not. That issue appears to have resolved itself. I refer to the toxic atmosphere of the planet." Tsajei tapped on his crystal and immediately a screen was lit up with an image of the planet Earth. "In the 25 revolutions since we first encountered the planet the atmosphere has changed slightly. The abundance of Carbon Dioxide in the air has indeed improved our lot and we have since then developed the technological and medical advancements to combat the Argon and Neon in the air, however we are no closer to actually setting foot onto the world as we still cannot combat the effects of Nitrogen Inhalation. Now there is a remedy to thi-"
"No masks!" Councilman Takaos boomed.
"Councilman I realize that it is uncommon to use-"
"This has nothing to do tradition or doctrine General." Takaos continued "They are face masks. These are fragile things that can be ripped off your face and can lead to your death in an instant."
"Councilman is right." Councilelder Ufano added "We must find a remedy that cannot be sabotaged so easily."
Tsajei sighed "We are simply not there yet."
"Then we are not there yet." Ua'qio replied. "We can afford you additional time if you choose to ask for it."
"You are prepared to wait another 25 revolutions on the chance that we might be able to breathe the atmosphere?"
"The Council will wait as long as it needs to ensure a successful conquest." Ufano answered.
Tsajei sighed a second time "Very well."

Ufano sighed himself "Let us proceed. Review your plan with us and all the amendments to your strategy."
"Of course." Tsajei tapped his crystal again and the image of the planet blew up into a very large map. "My plan remains largely unchanged given that the political states of the planet have not unified in the time we have been absent. Therefore the same strategy of conquering un-unified planets applies here; attack and destroy the military, scientific and industrial powers and then attack all neighbouring states on all fronts until the resistance is destroyed." As he spoke images begun to emerge from the map; places such as Germany, America, and Japan appeared. This attack was going to be both global and total.
"Interesting." Geoa uttered "Has your path been altered?"
"Slightly, yes." Tsajei then began to move around in the space. "The current political state of this land-" he pointed to Australia "Is notably unstable, the populace is dissatisfied with the state of the politics and as a result the governing bodies have become more extreme and unstable. An attack against the political institutions will throw the governing bodies into turmoil and we will secure a scientific stronghold." Tsajei saw many of the council members nodding in agreement. "This land here-" he reached for Japan "Is another scientific land we must conquer, however the government is very stable and is technologically advanced compared to the rest of the world. Seeing as many other states are both allies and viable targets themselves I propose we attack this land last to ensure that it does not receive any help."
"Agreed." Councilman Takaos nodded.
Tsajei walked over to just under Europe and pointed to it "This is a perfect cluster of states to attack here. Due to the history of most, if not all of these states we can finely tune our attack to whichever we decide to attack."
"Elaborate." Rhapan demanded.
"Well I can't be very specific right now, but many of the northern, central and western states are either industrious or scientific institutions and thus, while the aim is to take over all of them immediately, we can choose whichever starting points we believe is best and use political hostilities as a trigger to spark violent behaviour. The political landscape of this section of land in particular holds in its history a vast quantity of resentment and buried hatred, all of which can stir the violent nature of these Earthlings and compel them to destroy each other. Our meddling will cause a trickle effect where just one action can cause a major military conflict in this land, which in turn weakens the strength and the will of the entire land, ready for us to take."
"Genius." Rhapan replied.
"Thank you Councilman." Tsajei then walked to the other end of the map "But the jewel in the crown is this land." He pointed at the United States "This is the simplest of all the campaigns. This is a state that in effect is in a constant state of flux, they hold the ideals of freedom so highly that they often conflict with each other, and with the nature of the Earthlings to be violent the state is constantly on the brink of self-destruction."
"How do you intend to take over such a volatile land?" Councillady Ua'qio asked.
"The beauty of this plan is its elegance." Tsajei paused for a moment. "I intend to do absolutely nothing."
"Nothing?" Ufano inquired.
"Nothing." Tsajei smirked "This land is currently led by an ego-maniacal leader with no interest in committing to any long term strategy for the betterment of his people. The populace has become discontent with his rambling utterances and self-interested motivations and are protesting to eject him. Add to this the freedoms of the land allow for the procurement of military weapons of which thousands of recorded instances of death by man have appeared." Tsajei paused for another moment "I understand that a person there is killed in this manner every eleven twelfths of a cycle."
"Good grief!" Takaos exclaimed. "How is this state capable of functioning? At all?"
"That is a question I do not have an answer for. Suffice it to say the basic good nature and intelligence of the Earthlings, of which there is much in this inferior race, somehow manages to counteract this." Tsajei sighed "In any event the plan is to simply let the state become unstable, then simply exacerbate it to its extremity."
"Simple." Councilelder Ufano slightly shook his head, he simply could not conceive of a plan more basic and yet more elegant.

"There is one final matter General." Ua'qio said. "You mentioned that the superbeing problem has been resolved. How so?"
"Councillady the matter is resolved for one reason." Tsajei paused to take a moment and tap his crystal a third time, the image of the earth transformed into the images of Sailor Moon and all of the Inner Senshi. "The superbeings no longer protect the planet."
The council members murmured for a while. "Can you be certain of this?" Councilman Rhapan asked.
"Yes. Our drone has recounted the information of the past 25 revolutions and it has been known that the superbeings have dissolved some 15 revolutions ago. They still exist and while the possibility does exist that they still pose a grave threat to the invasion they have since dispersed and are no longer physically capable of defending against us."
"But you concede the possibility of failure does exist." Ufano pointed out.
Tsajei took a deep breath and sighed "Yes, that possibility does exist. However the assumption of chaos falls within the probability of victory. Additionally, while we cannot match their overwhelming power even now we can at least give ourselves a fighting chance to defend ourselves from the attack."
"Chance?" Takaos was getting angry. "Chance?! You want us to approve a battle plan based on chance?!"
"Calm down Councilman." Ufano interjected "Give the General his dues." Councilman Takaos struck the Councilelder a sinister look before folding his arms and turning back to Tsajei. "I'm afraid Councilman Takaos is right to raise this point. You cannot expect us to allow a plan with a variable as dangerous as this."
"I expect you to consider such things rationally Councilelder." Tsajei tried to curry favour in the Council. "I can never guarantee that the superbeings will not be a threat, which is why that plan requires these five to be destroyed at all cost, however doing so is now at least achievable. We can defend against their attacks now, and in doing so can inflict a counterattack. The key is implementing the exact attack at the exact time."
"Is the Purple Serpent that skilled?" Ufano asked.
"Indeed we are." A moment of silence descended over the chamber. The council members deliberated amongst each other. General Tsajei felt the tension in the air, his breathing became slightly heavier.
The council members finally reached a decision. "The Council has decided to approve your plan under a condition." Councilelder Ufano declared. "We have our most intelligent scientists and doctors working on counteracting the effects of Nitrogen Inhalation, they report that they are very close to achieving this goal. We will not launch your plan until we have an effective and foolproof measure of providing immunity to your men."
"I see." Tsajei raised his head; all of a sudden their cautious demeanour makes sense.
"We will reconvene with you, Second Rank General Tsajei u'Daroha, at the earliest possible moment when Nitrogen Inhalation has been counteracted." Councilelder Ufano gestured to the General for him to leave. The General gave one final salute before about-turning and exited the chamber.

Meanwhile, in another crystal building not far from the capital building, a male alien was in an almost empty room. Nothing was there except him and what appeared to be a mirror. Then a voice was heard over a speaker somewhere in the room, it was an alien dialect, almost indescribable in its sound. After just a second gas was heard hissing through vents in the room, the alien looked around to find where they were, he couldn't find anything. No crack, no vent, no visible fissure in what was an airtight, featureless space. The alien was starting to panic, after all Nitrogen gas is lethal to him too. The alien started to hyperventilate, trying desperately to take all of the available, breathable air left. After a few seconds the alien began lose to his balance and sputter, the sound of what could be considered as coughing. What was unmistakable was the next sound, rasping. The alien could not breath, his body unable to metabolize the gas. A minute passed and the alien was on the brink of death, slumped over and crawling on the ground he reached at the mirror, wheezing, desperately calling out for air. He took his last breath and fell, his body still reaching for the mirror.

This chapter features music in the prose, when you reach a link please right click on it to open a new tab and let the music play as you read. Also the chapter has been slightly edited to met the PG-13 standard of the Galaxy Cauldron.

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Chapter 6 - Timelines: Makoto


Makoto was leaving K.O. University for the last time. She just finished her three year degree in Economics, a subject she chose for two reasons; because a) there were no classes for professional cooking and b) aspiring to own a restaurant in Tokyo she felt at the time it was a good idea to learn the subject. She stuck it out the full three years but she felt it was a waste of time. "Phew!" Makoto sighed, stepping out of the gates with her backpack hanging off her left shoulder. "I'm glad that's over." She immediately knelt down and dropped her backpack to open it, digging around she eventually pulled out her CD player, loaded with her favourite music. She switched it on and quickly pressed the Skip button, she loves to walk home listening to Gorillaz, but finishing university for good - today was a great day. "Aha!" Makoto selected track 17 and quickly put the headphones on. The track was 19-2000 (Soulchid Remix). The beat was fast but not quick, the rhythm up-tempo but not jaunty, perfect music for a brisk walk on a sunny Tokyo day. As the music began to start Makoto zipped up her bag and began to walk home. Occasionally when the lyric appeared Makoto would sing along with it in the best English she could. "Ge dakuu, ge dakuu shoshain. Ge dakuu, ge dakuu shoshain."

However this time on the way home Makoto past a person handing out flyers. She nearly past right by him but the man stuck out a sheet in her face and she nearly walking into it. "Would you like to join today miss?" he said.
"Hey, watch it!" Makoto snapped back at him. Frightened the man ran off, leaving a single piece of paper as he did. After regaining her composure Makoto saw the paper and picked it up to find out what the deal was. Reading it her eyes widened, it's as if lightning struck her body. She immediately began to run in the opposite direction trying to find this place. After about a few minutes of searching around blocks and up streets she found it; Juuban Culinary School. "YES!" Makoto shouted, she found a professional place to learn how to be a chef. University took up most of her time that she never really checked beforehand. She entered the building with the full intention to become a chef.


After nearly a year of basic training and hard work the time had come for Makoto to graduate. The test was simple enough, create a dish - any dish - perfectly, and without fault. It was no mean feat; never mind the sheer array of cuisines and dishes, cooking anything perfectly is very hard to do. Makoto decided to make a simple makimono dish, various sushis rolls. She just finished the last roll and carefully placed it on the plate, it was a collection of seven different makizushis - different meats in all of them, some wrapped in seaweed, others in perilla leaves, and one in an omelette. The dish was handed to the teacher; he examined the plate, observing the sushi and its appearance. Makoto just stood there sweating through her collar, it was not polite to leave or disrespect the head chef. After a moment the chef then began his meal, eating one roll, chewing and tasting it entirely, then eating another, chewing and tasting, chewing and tasting, chewing and tasting. He was taking such a long time she thought, does he have to be this thorough? A minute passes and the chef finally eats the last roll, chewing and tasting one last time. There was a brief pause; Makoto didn't really know what to do as the chef waited for some time to pass. "Kino." He finally spoke. Like a startled animal she was spooked by his sudden outburst. The head chef stood up from his desk and bowed to her. "You have graduated, Chef Kino."
"Yes!" Overcome with excitement Makoto jumped, she needed to release some of her energy. "Thank you Head Chef." She approached him and bowed to show her gratitude, the head chef then shook her hand and handed her a certificate. She was now a qualified chef and was ready to begin her career.

---

Working in a sushi bar was very hard for Makoto at the start. Straight out of culinary school Makoto went for every sushi bar she could find all across Tokyo to find a job, it wasn't long before a little no-name restaurant hired her and now, after a little less than a year she built a bit of a reputation as a very talented chef, albeit a little bit eccentric. She wasn't wild in her creativity or her technique; it's just that for some reason, every time she prepared the ingredients or cut the rolls she would do a dance. She would sway her hips to a beat, season food to a rhythm and cut and slice at the downbeat of whichever song that happens to be in her head at the time.
"Itsu dea!"
Very very occasionally uttering a lyric or two, apparently the music helped her to focus on the task at hand. All the other chefs, including the head chef, were amazed by this strange behaviour. Despite the small kitchen Makoto seemed to have enough space for the freedom to move about. The head chef came up to have as she was preparing a new roll. "Kino."
Her trance broken Makoto snapped back into a more professional attitude. "Yes Chef."
"You've received compliments from your last futomaki."
"Oh wow. Thank you Chef."
"Keep up the good work." The head chef walked back but turned around again. "And please mind your step."
"Yes Chef. Thank you Chef." Makoto went straight back to her dance.

Behind the bench Usagi, Mamoru and most of the other girls were seated in two tables, sharing each other's sushi. "I hope Mako got my compliments." Usagi said. "She makes some great sushi."
"She really does." Mamoru replied.
"Can you believe it?" Haruka projected from the other table. "Mako is a whiz in the kitchen. Now it's been proven by professionals."
Michiru poked Haruka in her side. "Don't be mean." Haruka laughed.
"How are you feeling Luna?" Minako asked. Luna had only just been a human for a week; apart from the experience of being a human she experienced sushi for the very first time.
"Sushi." Luna uttered, observing the roll with her chopsticks. "It's such a unique food."
Usagi chuckled for a moment. "You know you have to eat it right?"
"Well of course Usagi!" Luna snapped back at her. She quickly popped the roll in her mouth and ate it, just as quickly she tasted the unique flavours and shuddered at the experience. "Oh wow. I can really taste the vinegar and the fish."
"You can taste the vinegar?" Minako asked.
"Yeah. It's so sharp."
"I guess she's just not used to the taste of vinegar yet." Setsuna shouted from the other table.
"Yeah maybe." Usagi responded.

"It's Dare, oh"...




The head chef had left the sushi bar and thus the restaurant was closed while it looked to promote one of the remaining chefs to head chef. Everyone had the chance to create a dish by themselves for the owners as an example of their talent. Everyone was nervous, wanting the chance to become head chef, but Makoto was more so than the others - she has only been a chef for three years, now she has the chance to actually lead a kitchen. Eventually it was Makoto's turn in the kitchen and most of the chefs were especially scared now, just about all of them thought she would take the title. Once she entered the kitchen the first thing she did was reach into her pocket, she pulled out an iPod with portable speakers connected to it. It was pretty obvious what she was going to do next, it was just as obvious that playing music in the kitchen had developed into a habit of hers. As the music wound up and prepared to start so too did Makoto feel the energy in the kitchen crescendo up to the point. "Itsu dea." she sang, and in the very instant the song began she started her dish.
Watching from behind the bench the owner saw her in action, showing nothing on his face but felt mesmerized in the way she moved as she cooked. He was just far enough away to not be heard by Makoto or the others, so he felt the desire to vocalize his thoughts. "Impressive." He continued to watch as she prepared the ingredients. "Her movement is almost fluid." She was making Usuyaki-tamago for the wrapping of her sushi. "No, she is fluid." It would be a Karei Fukusazushi, a rather complex sushi with flatfish. Makoto was indeed displaying her talent; cooking the omelette, slicing the fish, preparing the condiments, all to the beat of Dare.

Finally, after preparing the ingredients, moulding the omelette and filling the sushi Makoto plated up. Six pieces of Karei Fukusazushi wrapped in Usuyaki-tamago on a simple black plate was served to the owner on his table. He began to eat Makoto's offering. She couldn't read his face; she had no idea if it was good or bad. The tension was thick and she was sweating from the stress. After the final roll was eaten the owner took a moment to assess his meal. This is it, she thought as she gulped. The owner stood up and smiled. "I don't know how you did it but you made one of th-" He made a mistake. "No. The best Fukusazushi I've ever had. And with a home-made omelette skin, I'm very impressed." He presented his hand. "Congratulations Head Chef Kino."
Makoto's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "Seriously?" The owner simply nodded and with great force Makoto shook hands with the owner. The rest of the chefs applauded Makoto and her effort. She can't believe it, from an amateur cook Makoto Kino became the head chef of Chottoshita Sushi - Little Bit of Sushi.

---

At the same time Makoto began a relationship with Ittou Asanuma, a mutual friend of Mamoru. They first met just before she was hired at Chottoshita Sushi and quickly became good friends; however it was at this time that their friendship developed into a love for each other. During her off hours Makoto would spend time with him in Azabu Garden, a modest square of green deep in Tokyo. Surrounded by evergreens and Sakura the garden features ornate flowerbeds lining walkways in and out of the grounds, a pond for ducks and other aquatic birds to glide over the water, and benches for people to relax and take in the serenity of the garden. Today the two were again visiting the garden, the second time this week. The sun was setting over the backdrop, the golden light shinning over the pond and blazing through the gaps of the trees. "It's so beautiful." Awestruck, Makoto was taken aback at the sight.
"It's amazing." Ittou replied. "Even the sky has turned golden." He took a moment to ponder. "I wonder why it does."
"Mm?" Makoto looked at him.
"Why does the sky change its colour?"
Makoto let out a single "Ha. I know a friend who could answer that, but she's in Germany now." She turned back to the sun.
"I think its jealousy."
Makoto looked back at Ittou again. "Huh?"
"I think the sky is jealous of the sun." He turned to Makoto to see the light reflect from her eyes and her earrings, the sight was almost divine. "You see, there's a legend that says the sky god and the sun god lived in the heavens to shine over the mortals. The sky god provides the world with colour and the sun god provides the world with light."
"Okay." It was all Makoto could think to say.
"The sky was always blue, no matter what the time was, and the sun was always in the sky, no matter where he went the sun never set. One day the sky god became jealous of the sun god and his light, so he decided to kill him."
Makoto gasped "That's awful!"
"It is." Ittou nodded "But that's not what happened, you see the gods are immortal and they can't be killed. He sent the sun all the way to the west where he tried to steal his light. The sky god succeeded and for a few minutes in the day the sky was golden, but the sun god discovered his light was taken and confronted the sky god to get it back."
"Did he?" Makoto asked.
"No. The gods attacked each other and the sky god stabbed the sun, turning the sky blood red, and the sun god fell onto the Earth." Makoto gasped again, covering her mouth, her eyes even began to well. "Don't worry, the story isn't over yet. You see even though the sun had fallen to Earth his spirit rose in the east - the Moon Goddess - searching for his body. The Ki-"
"Wait." Makoto interrupted. "The sun is a god, but his spirit is a goddess?"
Ittou laughed "Yeah, I don't really know why." The sky had changed its colour to a bright red. "Anyway, the King of the Gods banished the sky god from heaven for his crime, until the sun god would rise again. This made the sky pitch black, but all the gods and goddesses placed markers all across heaven - the stars - to show the spirit where to find him. She searched all across heaven until she saw him lying on the ground on Earth; she descended to his body and wept, despairing over her loss. She kissed him and her breath revived the sun god. The sun was reborn in the east and in so doing the sky god returned to heaven; and that's reason the sun and the sky change during the day and night." The couple looked deeply into each other; Ittou glowing the sun's light, his blonde hair waving about in the wind, his blue eyes glistening the golden light, Makoto shrouded in shadow, only her outlines shone light, her ponytail dancing in the wind. She lent in to kiss him and as the sun continued to set the couple's love had blossomed.

For months the couple were inseparable, they went everywhere together; the cinema, the mall, the garden, the arcade even, and to many restaurants for romantic dinners. Their love for each other grew fonder with each passing day, and at night they expressed their passion to each other through their intimacy. They would often spend the night with each other until the new sun had risen. It therefore didn't take long before eventually Ittou decided to take Makoto to the fanciest French restaurant they ever been to. This was different; it wasn't a typical eatery they usually go to. The building was exquisitely decorated; polished round tables covered in satin white cloth, crystal goblets and the finest china and silverware, chandeliers lighting the magnificent ceiling and ornate paintings all around the space. This is what a real, proper restaurant was; an experience of sight and sound as well as taste. And the experience was tortuously expensive, tens - maybe hundreds of thousands of yen, but it was all worth it for Ittou. Ittou finished his meal and drank the last of his champagne, waiting for Makoto to finish her meal; he rehearsed this about a million times in his head, just waiting for the right time. Makoto finished drinking the last of her soup. "Wow. I've never had such divine food before."
"Yes. It's Haute cuisine; it's a very meticulous type of French cuisine."
"I thought so. I learned a little bit about it in culinary school."
This is it, he thought. Ittou got up from his seat and walked over to Makoto, holding her hand. "Mako. When we first met you were such a good friend to me. I never really thought I would fall in love with you back then, but a part of me deep inside did, and as we kept hanging out I realized I became more and more attracted to you. Then the day we went to the gardens and kissed for the first time, I knew we were meant to be together." Staring into her eyes Ittou saw Makoto's shock and happiness, her eyes welled with tears and reflected the light of the chandeliers and the candles. "So Mako." Ittou knelt down on bent knee "Would you do me the great honour of becoming my wife and spending your life with me?"
Makoto was speechless; she knew she was being taken out on a special date, she even assumed he might propose to her, but even with all this in her mind she was still unable to process just what was happening, and in an instant a flood of emotions hit her with great force. "Oh my god." Makoto was on the threshold completely losing her composure. "Yes! Absolutely!" She immediately got up from her seat and knelt down to his level, kissing him passionately. Neighbouring tables applauded at the couple's nuptials and it was the perfect end to a perfect night, head chef of a restaurant and a proposal on the same night. No one could have planned that better.


The wedding was beautiful. It was held at the Juuban Church on a sunny Friday. Surrounded by her friends and his family the couple wed in the modest church. In a strange irony Usagi was the Maid of Honour and Mamoru was the Best Man, a married couple honouring a newly married couple. It was a simple ceremony, a small gathering of friends of family. The reception was just as beautiful, catered by Chottoshita Sushi the reception was at Azabu Garden, again the sun had set over the couple and again they kissed as the golden light shone over the gardens. As day turned to night the reception finished and everyone said their goodbyes, and Makoto and Ittou entered a limousine taking them to Ittou's home.
That was one month ago.
Today Makoto was locked in the bathroom at her apartment, she'd fallen ill and had to take the week off to recover, or at least so she thought. Ittou was in her kitchen, preparing a simple breakfast. He was concerned Makoto had developed a serious illness, Makoto knew better. The sound of her retching twisted his stomach into knots, he nearly convulsed himself. Then the sound of the toilet flushing indicated the end, Ittou sighed in relief. Slowly Makoto came out of the bathroom and as soon as he saw her Ittou went up to help her into her seat at the table. "Felling any better?"
"Yeah, I'll be okay for now." With his wife seated Ittou continued to prepare breakfast. Makoto smelled the food. "French Toast?"
"Yeah, I thought you'd like something different today."
"I'm not sure that's such a good idea."
Ittou looked back at her. "Why's that?"
"I just now took a test before I vomited." Makoto spoke with a frail tone but a smile began to creep around her face. "I'm pregnant."
Ittou stopped checking on the bread soaking in the milk. "You're pregnant?"
Makoto nodded "I'd like to check with a doctor, but my pregnancy test says I am."
He stopped what he was doing and ran back to Makoto. "You're kidding!"
Ittou came to embrace her tightly. "I'm not. Actually maybe you shouldn't hold on so tightly."
"Sorry Mako." The couple swayed to each other's rhythm. "I'm just so excited. I never thought we'd have a kid so soon."
"Yeah I know. You want to know something else?"
"What?"
"The bread's in fire." Makoto points to the French Toast on the stove, the bread was now smoking in the frying pan and excess milk was bubbling furiously around it.
"Oh no!" Ittou ran back to the stove and Makoto couldn't help but laugh as her husband was fanning the smoke and desperately tried to save breakfast.
"This is why I'm the cook here!" Makoto beamed, her radiant glow was now more noticeable. She stood up "I'm going to call the doctor, you can clean up and let me make breakfast this time."
"Yeah yeah." Ittou didn't appreciate the taunt, but it didn't matter anymore. Now with a baby on the way he knew he had to start taking a lot of care for Makoto, especially the first few months.

---

Waiting outside Gate 26 in Narita Airport Makoto was with Usagi, seated at the guest lounge. Usagi rested a sheet of paper on her lap which simply read 'Rei' in permanent marker while Makoto was reading a book. It was Usagi's autobiography; 'In the Name of the Moon: Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon'. "Is the plane still sitting on the runway?" Makoto asked.
"No, it's just about here." Usagi turned to Makoto "How's the book Mako?"
"It's really good. Did you really write this yourself?"
"Well I got some help from my publicist, he found someone who gave me some great advise on writing, but everything there is all me."
Makoto nodded, approving of her friend's work. "I'm impressed. I also like how you use our senshi names and don't reveal anyone else."
"Yeah, I know some of us are pretty sensitive about privacy so I thought it would be better."
Makoto continued to nod. "Great idea." She turned to Usagi "But one thing I don't understand is why you decided to reveal yourself and Mamoru in the first place."
Usagi sighed "Well I started to see the world kinda go backwards, to be honest not long after Nari was born." Makoto nodded "It was getting so desperate that I felt like I needed to remind the world that there is at least one person out there whose at least trying to make the world a bit less-" Usagi took a moment to find the right word. "Maddening." She turned to Makoto. "So I decided to ring a few news stations and told them I'd make a very important announcement that they needed to broadcast. At first they were a bit sceptical, but I promised them I'd give them real news. When they arrived I brought Mamo and Chibi with me and-" Usagi took a deep breath and sighed, looking back out to the gate. "Told them I was Sailor Moon." Makoto continued to stare at Usagi, understanding what it meant to be Sailor Moon for just one moment. "Call me impulsive but I think the world benefited from knowing that Sailor Moon was just a teenage girl back then, and she kicked butt."
Makoto chuckled "She definitely did!"
Usagi laughed with her "I guess I should have thought the celebrity would get a little out of control, but honestly I don't mind it. I mean I'm a beacon of hope now, girls and women look up to me as a kind of ray of hope in an otherwise-" She starts to shake her head "Truly bleak world."
Makoto slightly nodded again "Yeah." She then turned to the gate to see people walking out. "Oh hey. Can you see Rei?"
"Oh!" Usagi quickly took the paper and waved it about. "Not yet." After a few moments of people streaming from the entrance Rei slowly emerged into the baggage carousels, visibly distressed and already crying. "Rei!" The two quickly got up and rushed over to her, drawing the attention of passersby. Rei saw them running to her and just dropped her bags, now almost unable to stand up. They both reached her just in time before she might have fallen onto the ground or into someone. "Are you okay? What happened?"
"What's wrong Rei?"
Supported by Usagi and Makoto Rei was barely able to remain upright. "I just need to go home." Rei sobbed.
"Can you walk?" Makoto asked.
"Yeah, I just need some help." Usagi and Makoto both picked up Rei's bags and held onto her sides as the group quickly exited the airport.

Driving back from the airport the three women were all headed to Hikawa Shrine. Makoto drove everyone in her silver NISSAN Pulsar, while Usagi kept Rei company in the back of the car. "He cheated on you?!" Usagi asked.
Rei continued to cry, but at least now she was more composed and ready to unload. "Yes. Yuuichirou slept with some other woman and now we've split up." Rei cried into her hands, her voice muffled. "That mongrel cheated on me and then-" Rei's voice broke "He struck me. He slapped me across my face."
"He what?!" Usagi's jaw dropped, she knew Yuuichirou to be a generally decent guy, if a little self-centred, but she never once believed he was capable of this - actual violence.
"Okay, now I'm angry." Makoto replied, pressing her foot hard on the accelerator.
Usagi felt the sudden acceleration and turned to Makoto. "Hey Mako, slow down." She turned back to Rei, still crying into her hands. "Can I see?"
"Why?!" Rei yelled.
"Please Rei. I need to see it." After Rei finished sobbing she let go of her head and as the passing streetlights whizzed by revealed a large red bruise over most of her left cheek. The bruise was so large it amazed Usagi she missed it in the airport. "Oh my god! Should we go to the hospital?"
"What?!" Makoto asked.
"No, no. The swelling has gone down, just take me home." Rei cried.
"He's dead! I'm gonna kill him!" Makoto could only see flashes of anger welling in her very soul as she pulled over into a side street just before the shrine. Quickly Makoto got out of the car and went around helping Rei out of the car. "Okay Usagi, push Rei towards me and I'll pull her out." She opened the door and reached in to grab Rei; Usagi lifted her and passed her over to Makoto. "I got you Rei, I got you." Makoto pulled Rei out of the car. Rei wasn't so injured to the point of disability, but she had no energy, no strength, no will, her spirit was completely broken, her passion vanished, her very soul was empty. "Okay Usagi, grab a hold of her." The two women continued to carry Rei up to the shrine and slowly up the steps, each step more laborious than the last, until they reached the nearest structure. "Just sit down here Rei. Usagi can you find Grandpa?"
"Sure." Usagi ran out to find Grandpa Hino and alert him of the current events.
Under the light of the lanterns Makoto kept Rei company. "Do you need anything right now?"
Having cried for more than six hours Rei was exhausted. "I just need to sleep right now."
"Are you sure? It's only 7 o-clock."
"Yeah, I've been crying for so long I've used up all my energy." Rei slumped over into Makoto's lap, barely conscience now.
"Hey, wake up Rei." Makoto lifted her head and gently slapped her cheeks to rouse Rei. "Come on Rei."
"I'm okay Mako." Rei replied weakly.
"No you're not." Makoto snapped back.
Usagi and Grandpa Hino quickly made it back to the women, Grandpa carrying a tray of food for Rei. "Rei, you need to eat. Get your strength back up." Grandpa advised. He brought over biscuits and finger foods for Rei to eat one by one. "Usagi, Makoto I think you two can go, I'll nurse my Rei back to health from here."
"I'm not leaving!" Usagi declared.
Makoto however needed to go. "Are you going to be fine Rei?" She helped push Rei back up and sit upright.
"Yeah, thank you Mako."
Makoto got up "I'm sorry Rei but I do need to go, but I promise I'll be right back here as soon as I can." Makoto turned and quickly ran down the stairs and out of the shrine. She ran down to her car and entered it, but for a few moments she just sat there. All she could feel was a blinding rage against Yuuichirou, all she could hear was her own heavy, laboured breathing. In an instant she threw a punch straight at the steering wheel. "WHY?!" she screamed. She too began to break down and cry, slumped over the wheel. This came at the worst possible time; three weeks ago Makoto bought a cafe in downtown Tokyo and decided to convert it into a restaurant, her own restaurant - her greatest dream was about to become a reality. But now with just a week left before opening she was in no mood to cook, never mind design a menu or hire staff. "Why am I thinking about this now?" She uttered "One of my best friends just been beaten." She couldn't help it, whenever she gets inspiration to create a recipe it immediately takes over her thoughts. Makoto remembered the finger foods Grandpa Hino delivered to Rei and the fire in the lanterns. She had a stroke of inspiration in all the devastation. Makoto started her car and switched on the radio, of all the songs of all music to play Clint Eastwood starts up. "Huh, appropriate." As Makoto began to drive back home she sang along to the chorus.

"I ain't happy, I'm feelin' glad. I got sunshine, in a bag. I'm useless, but not for long. The future, is comin' on."
"I eint happei, I'm feelin glad. I got sunshain, ina bag. Aim yusless, but not forlong. The fyutur, is kaming on." Makoto's English was improving.

Returning home Makoto immediately went straight to the kitchen and took a look at all the stock she had; plenty of fish, lots of rice, just enough seaweed and a full spice rack. Perfect! she thought, but before she started she had to feed Nari, it was 7:30 and she was very hungry. Makoto whipped up a quick spaghetti Bolognese for her daughter. "Nari, Mummy is going to be in the kitchen for a long time. Do you want to play on the computer?" Nari giggled and nodded. "Okay, finish your dinner and I'll help you play." Makoto cuddled Nari and left her to start her work. In the kitchen she began by testing out all the combinations of fish and spice; cutting thin slices of the meats a seasoning each with random spices, some were bad, most were okay or at least palatable, but a few of these combinations were great and she wrote them down on a paper beside her.
Then she started to think about how she wanted to build her dish, flicking her pen around her hand, before Nari entered the room. "Mummy, I've finished."
Makoto stared off into the night sky for a second. "Okay." She turned to her daughter. "I'll help you set it up." The two left the kitchen for just a moment. What was written on the paper were a circle with eight smaller circles inside it, and the words;
Burning Mandala
Spicy Makizushi, Eight Ways
This was her dish; it wasn't just Modern Japanese cuisine, it was Makoto pouring her soul into dedicating Rei and her anguish.


Makoto was at the work site, the kitchen and the gas was being installed and most of the tables and seats for the patrons were placed and set. Makoto was with two of her new staff; the restaurateur who helped to secure the financial investment, and the maître d' for the eatery. Makoto brought along Tupperware full of her spicy sushi and a plate from home to present her new dish. The three were all seated at a table far away from the kitchen. "Do you have a name for this place yet?" the restaurateur asked.
"I've thought about it since the last couple of days, I think Dansushefu is a good name."
"Really?" the maître d' inquired "Dance Chef?"
"No, the Dancing Chef. I used to be called that when I was working in Chottoshita Sushi, and to be honest I still kinda do that now. Even making my dish last night I danced, so it makes sense to me."
"Interesting." the restaurateur nodded slightly "I like it, but I think Danshingu Shefu would make more sense don't you think?"
Makoto thought about it for a moment and nodded "You know what? That is better."
"Excellent!" the restaurateur clapped his hands and began to write down the name.
The maître d' asked "You said you made a dish yesterday, do you have it here?"
"Yes." Makoto pulled out her plate and the Tupperware container. "Since I'm making this place a Modern Japanese restaurant I made sushi with a twist." Laying the plate on the table she opened the container and placed each of the sushi rolls in a very specific order around the plate. "This is Moeru Mandara." Placing the last roll she removed the Tupperware. "Burning Mandala; Spicy Makizushi made eight ways. Each of the sushi rolls are made traditionally with traditional fishes and ingredients, however each of the pieces of fish or the sushi roll itself has been seasoned with a spice. Eight different fishes for eight different spices."
"Intriguing." they both said. Then the restaurateur asked "But where are the chopsticks?"
"There isn't any. It's finger food!"
"Oh my!" the maître d' exclaimed.
They all picked out a roll and began to eat when Makoto continued her description. "The starch in the rice dampens the burning sensation, but even so each piece is both a unique taste and varies in spiciness because of the presence of the spice."
They both hiss, breathing in air to cool down their tongues, the restaurateur drinks his glass of water. "Chef Asanuma, this is truly inspired. How did you come up with the idea to add spice to sushi?" the maître d' asked.
"Well I know a maiden who lives in a shrine in Tokyo, last night I went to her shrine and I just had a sudden wave of inspiration." Makoto decided to conceal the true nature of the dish, not with a lie but rather the omission of certain information.
"Interesting." the restaurateur got up from his seat. "This here is a signature dish Asanuma. We'll add this to the menu immediately." He then offered his hand to Makoto "We're just about ready to open your restaurant."
"Thank you." She shook his hand, and with this dish Makoto would begin a trend in her own life to continue to create new and unique flavours to traditional Japanese dishes. The Burning Mandala would become the dish she would be famous for.

---

It was a bright sunny day in Tokyo. Makoto took time off today, managing and cooking in her own restaurant was taking its toll on her body so she decided to take the week off and spend time with her daughter Nari. She was 9 years old and wanted to explore the city, how could she say no to that face? She decided to bring Usagi and Chibiusa along with them and spend the day visiting places around the city. Right now they were heading to Tokyo's Sea Life Park, ever since Nari began to start eating some of her mother's creations she began to take an interest in marine life and the sea in general. Makoto drove everyone down to aquarium "Are you excited about your first aquarium Nari?"
"Oh yes, I want to see all the fishes and the turtles."
"You can't pet anything there Nari. We'll just be walking around and looking at them."
"Aawww." Nari pouted "That's okay."
Usagi laughed "Don't worry Nari, it'll be fun. There are lots of different sea creatures. Do you know about the seahorse?"
"Sea...horse?" Nari was confused.
"Yeah, it's a horsey that can swim underwater and eats fish." Usagi giggled.
"Oh wow!" Nari absolutely wanted to see that.
Makoto pokes Usagi's side. "Don't confuse her."
Chibiusa joined in the deception "Yeah, and you can ride on them and swim underwater with them."
"Hey, stop it!" Makoto snapped at Chibiusa. "Don't be mean guys." Usagi and Chibiusa both laughed at each other and Nari who now fully anticipated the idea of riding a horse in the water.
"Sorry Mako." Usagi said "But that was fun."
"I wanna ride the sea-horse!" Nari beamed, bobbing in her seat.
"Oh now you've done it." Makoto became increasingly upset.
Chibiusa laughed some more "Aw, I'm sorry Nari but we were just joking around."
"Aaawwwww!" Nari pouted some more as the car finally pulled into the carpark.
"Wow, this place is full today." Makoto said, trying to find a space to park. "Must be a lot of families here." Eventually she found a space and drove into it. "Okay guys, we're here." They all got out of the car and began to walk towards the entrance.
As they did another family came up to them. "Excuse me." The mother said to Usagi "But aren't you the Sailor Moon girl?"
Usagi sighed "Yes, that's me."
"Oh wow, thank you so much for saving us." The mother shook her hand.
Usagi chuckled "You're welcome."
"Enjoy your day!" the family walked past them and everyone else began to move again, but Makoto paused for just a moment.
"I can't take you anywhere anymore you know!"
"Sorry Mako." Usagi apologized again "That's what happens when you're a celebrity."
"Yeah yeah." Makoto caught up to the group as they all entered the aquarium.

Inside the rooms were all dark, back-lit by the light of the sun cast into the water. The aquarium was like going to another world; schools of fish swim across the length of the displays, large exotic fish moved slowly and seemed to look around all the time, constantly aware of their surroundings. Occasionally a stingray appeared, frightening Nari, she hugged her mother as they walked past the displays. Another display featured sharks. Nari saw many types of sharks, a Hammerhead, a Great White, lots of baby sharks; she was scared of all of them. Nari squeezed her mother's hips tightly. "Nari, are you afraid?" Nari nodded, too afraid to speak. Makoto smiled and hugged her daughter. "Don't worry, the glass protects us from them and they don't want to hurt you." At that moment a large Great White Shark swam right beside them and Nari yelped in fear. Makoto looked up to see the shark and chuckled. "Aw, just stay close to me okay?" Nari nodded more furiously, anything to make the scary shark go away. They kept walking now into a new display full of exotic fishes and creatures; strange rare fish, turtles, seahorses - not the ones Nari wanted to see, starfish, octopi and jellyfish. At the same time Nari felt awed, cheerful, frightened and curious at all the sea life. But it was Makoto who had the most profound affect, she too saw all the marine life with a degree of awe and curiosity, but as a jellyfish swam into her view all of a sudden a thought entered her mind. She looked right at the jellyfish and studied its features; its curved bauble head, the tentacles and stinger arms, its opacity; Makoto noted everything about its appearance. "Come Nari, we've reached the end."
"Aw, really?" Nari asked.
"Sorry, but yes." Nari put her hand into the glass; she wanted to feel the touch of a starfish at the bottom of the display. Makoto let out a slight "Mm. Come on now." They all walked out and talked about their experiences. "I loved the exotic creatures. All those weird things like jellyfish and starfish."
"I liked the sharks." Chibiusa admitted "I don't really know why but something about them, maybe there size."
"How about you Nari, what did you like?"
"I liked all the weird fishes." She meant the jellyfish and starfish. "The star ones were so cool."
"Guys." Makoto decided to change today's plans a bit. "I actually want to go home; you guys can come and play with Nari if you like."
"Home?" Usagi asked "Why?"
Makoto sighed. "I kinda want to create a new dish."
"Oh wow, really?" Usagi had Makoto's Burning Mandala before and was eager to see the great Chef Makoto Asanuma at work.
"Yeah sure, I'll actually enjoy the company. Usually I'm by myself or it's me and Nari and I'd have to find something to babysit her. You don't mind do you?"
"Of course not." Chibiusa said "We love playing with Nari."
"Okay then." The group returned to her car and prepared to go.

Makoto's home was a modest house. She moved out of her apartment years ago and with Ittou they bought their own house in Setagaya, a small two story home with a large lounge area, a dining hall and kitchen, and stairs leading into everyone's rooms. Really the house was a simple dwelling, except for one room - Makoto insisted that the kitchen be fitted with a stereo system so that when she felt the need to create a new dish she could play her music and dance to its rhythm as she had always done. Tonight Makoto was in full swing, she was flash cooking thin strips of fish as well as adding stock to the gelatine to give it flavour. Superfast Jellyfish was blasting through the speakers in her kitchen as everyone else was playing video games in the lounge. "Come on, come on, come on." Usagi was trying so hard to beat Nari in the game, but Nari was too good.
TIME! The game said. "I think I won Aunty Usagi." Nari taunted.
"Well I know I beat Chibi." Usagi replied.
"Honestly I don't think so." Chibiusa said
THE WINNER IS, the game announced, SAMAS! "Yay!" Nari jumped up. "Mummy, I won!"
"Again?" Makoto yelled over all the noise "Well done Nari."
Nari feel back down into her seat. "Uncle Mamoru makes fun games doesn't he?"
"Yes he does." Usagi replied. Mamoru works as a programmer and game designer for HAL Laboratories, amongst others Mamoru helped to build at this point Super Smash Bros. Brawl, the Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword and many Sailor Moon games for Nintendo.
"Aunty Usagi, why don't you play as Sailor Moon?"
"Oh, I don't like fighting as myself." Usagi said while selecting a new fighter. "I just don't like fighting." PIT!
"Well if you won't I will" Chibiusa declared. SAILOR MOON!
"Actually since you mention me, I got an email from this animator a week ago. She wants me to work with her to make my story into an anime."
"No way!" Chibiusa and Nari both exclaimed.
"Oh yeah, didn't I tell you?" They both shook their heads. "Well I decided to do it. Why not make the kids of today wonder about us?"
"Oh wow." The two spoke in unison.
"It's no big deal." Usagi shrugged.
"It's a huge deal." Chibiusa pointed out. "You're going to take our story and turn it into a cartoon. I think it's a great idea." Nari selected a stage and the game was about to start. "You know anime is huge in America right?"
"No it isn't!" Usagi exclaimed, not at all aware of how wrong she was.
"Hey guys, how's everything out there?" Makoto yelled out from the kitchen.
"We're good. Just started a new game." Usagi called out back.
"Okay make it the last one my new dish is ready."
"Okay." Usagi replied "You heard your mother, this is the last one."
"Okay." Nari said pressing buttons as she kept on dominating the game.

After the gaming session all four of them were at the dining table, waiting to see and taste Makoto's newest dish. "It's smells great Mako." Usagi said "Is it seafood?"
"Yep." Makoto replied as she took two plates to the table. "Get a load of this!" She put a plate in front of Usagi and she nearly jumped out of her chair screaming. "AAAAHHH! What's that?" It looked almost exactly like the jellyfish they all saw in the aquarium.
"It's a jellyfish." Makoto smiled at them, placing the second plate for Chibiusa. They were all a bit creeped out by its appearance. "It's not a real jellyfish! It's just looks like one."
"Oh." They all said as Makoto went to get the other two plates.
"I used gelatine to make the shapes and bend them so they all look like the parts of a jellyfish and the innards are actually thin slices of cooked fish." Makoto came out with the other plates and laying Nari's on the table. Nari simply had a look of horror, no matter how much her mother will tell her otherwise it looked like she just butchered one of her favourite animals. "Don't worry Nari, it's not real."
"It isn't?"
"No, it's fine." Makoto started to eat her dish and then, incentivized by Makoto, everyone cut the jellyfish and began to eat it.
Immediately they began to taste just how good it was. "Wow Mako. This tastes great." Usagi said.
"Thanks, I used the stock from the salmon to flavour the gelatine."
"This is fantastic!" Chibiusa exclaimed. "What are going to call it?"
"Honestly?" Makoto asked. She paused to lean into the table a little. "Sūpāfasutokurage."
"Huh?" they all asked.
"Superfast Jellyfish."
"Oh." Usagi uttered "Wouldn't calling it Chō Hayai Kurage make more sense?"
"Yeah, but I want to keep the English sounding name."
"Huh. Okay." Usagi shrugged and just kept on eating the dish. They all continued to eat Makoto's newest creation and revelled in the unique creativity in the design and the taste. Along with Burning Mandala, Superfast Jellyfish would eventually solidify Makoto as a rising and preeminent Tokyo chef in the Modern Japanese cuisine.

---

A car entered the driveway of Makoto's house, an old NISSAN Pulsar - the very same car Makoto had now for more than ten years. She parked her car and got out to enter her home. She chauffeured the other women back to their homes and now was just glad to return home and rest. Her keys jingled and she opened the front door. Immediately she heard the sound of the stereo in the lounge room on, she knew what that meant. "Oh, Empire Ants. I love this track."
"Yeah, I've got it on repeat." Nari was sitting on the couch reading her mother's book, Usagi's autobiography.
"I'm going to take a nap; I'll be in my room." Makoto began to walk up the stairs. "See you soon."
"Good night." Nari said. Upstairs, Makoto entered her bedroom and walked up to her dresser. She undid her hair tie and let down her hair, unwinding from today's revelations. Then her gaze turned to an object she hadn't really looked at in a long time, she reached out and picked it up - her Star Power Stick. Just like Usagi did before Makoto began to reminisce about her time as Sailor Jupiter and the warmth she received from Usagi and the group of friends she forged all that time ago. Then she began to think about what Usagi said earlier today;

Quote :

"I'm afraid she is. The Sailor Scouts need to reform." -
"Noone is asking you to become Sailor Scouts again. In fact I'm asking you to find your daughters and see if they are Sailor Scouts." -

She stopped thinking about the past and started to think about the future, the very idea of Nari being a Sailor Scout filled her with mixed emotions; excitement, joy, worry, fear, confusion, a great sense of ambivalence churned her stomach. Makoto continued to stare at the stick for a while longer, working out exactly how she felt about all this. She gripped the stick tighter, she reached a decision. Makoto placed the stick in her breast pocket and left her room to return back downstairs.

Walking downstairs she looked at Nari reading her book, almost as if she was preparing to become a Sailor Scout already. At the bottom of the stairs Makoto leaned against the railing, staring at Nari. Feeling increasingly tired Makoto closed her eyes and began to dream, the music was influencing her vision. "JUPITER STAR POWER, MAKE UP!" The build-up of energy was electric. Makoto saw a vision of a transformation taking place, she was transforming into Sailor Jupiter, or so she thought. At the end of the transformation she looked at the result and it wasn't who she thought it was; everything was as she remembered, the laced boots, the green skirt and collar, the pink bows, the tiara, but one significant difference was apparent - it wasn't Makoto. It was a different girl, with long blonde hair down to her waist, bangs that frame her eyes down to her ears, and aquamarine eyes - a mix of blue and bright green. When the girl struck her final pose - Makoto's own pose - Makoto realized who it was, it was Nari.

"Little memories, marching on your little feet, working the machine.




Makoto began to appropriate her daughter into her memories, watching her fight the very minions and villains she herself did nearly 25 years ago. Watching Nari perform attacks - Supreme Thunder, Sparkling Wide Pressure, Jupiter Oak Evolution - Makoto saw her daughter as powerful and strong-willed. Even though she was just aware enough to know she was really just remembering her past and putting Nari in her memories, she began to feel a growing sense calm; her fears began to melt away at the prospect of Nari as a Sailor Scout. Then she began to remember about the times she had with Usagi and the rest of the scouts. Makoto always felt warm and welcome around Usagi, she had a connection with all the girls that made them smile, Usagi's pure heart had always brought out the absolute best in everyone she came across, and none more so than the Inner Senshi - the four girls she discovered first and made into her best friends. Makoto began to feel a sense of warmth in her heart, thinking that the same thing may happen to her daughter.

As the music began to fade away Makoto's consciousness slowly returned and she woke up to find Nari, still reading her book. Makoto took a deep breath and sighed, her fears and illusions dispersed. She sighed so loudly that Nari turned to find her mother at the stairwell. "Mother?" Makoto looked up and a little flustered. "Are you okay?"
Makoto smiled "Yes. I'm just daydreaming."
"Coming up with a new recipe?"
She shook her head. "No, just dreaming."
"Heh. Okay." Nari returned to her reading, but Makoto continued to stare for a moment longer.
"Nari." Nari turned back to her mother. "I need to talk to you, can you come upstairs to my room?"
Nari was a bit surprised "Sounds serious."
Makoto nodded slightly to that response. "It is serious." After a brief pause Nari marked off her book and set it down on the couch before getting up to follow her mother up the stairs. Makoto opened the door to her room and let Nari in. "Have a seat on the bed." Nari did so and Makoto sat next to her. "Nari. There's something I need to tell you. It's something I've had to keep a secret for-" she sighed "twenty-five years now. It's something no one really knows." Makoto paused "Not even your father knows about this." Nari raised her head slightly; it seemed that she was being serious. Makoto decided to change her tact a bit. "Tomorrow Aunty Usagi is going to visit you."
"Oh yay." Nari interrupted "I love hanging out with Aunty Usagi, she always makes me smile."
Makoto smiled at the last statement. "You know what? She tells me you make her smile too." Nari loved to hear that, she smiled back at her mother. "Anyway, Usagi is going to visit you tomorrow, not me."
"Oh." Nari uttered "Why is that?"
"Well she wants to get to know you better. She's going to ask some questions and I'd like you to be honest with her, okay?"
Nari was getting confused "Uh, okay."
Makoto sighed and continued. "The reason Usagi is coming to visit is because she wants to know-" she took a moment to phrase the next sentence properly. "If you are a Sailor Scout."
"Huh?" Nari was now very confused "Why? Why me? I'm not part of the royal family, and I don't know anyone who is a Sailor Scout. How could I be a Sailor Scout?"
Makoto nodded along with her. "Yes, you're not part of the royal family. That's just Usagi, Uncle Mamoru and Chibiusa."
"Right."
"Nari." Makoto leaned in towards her daughter. "You do know a Sailor Scout."
At that moment Nari gasped, everything started to click into place. Her mother's secret, Usagi's visit. If she's not a Moon Princess then. "You're a Sailor Scout?" she asked.
Makoto nodded slightly, just enough to be noticed. Nari gasped again as her mother reached into her breast pocket and revealed her Star Power Stick to Nari. "I was Sailor Jupiter." For several moments there was silence; Nari had no idea what to think. All her life she knew her mother as this creative, passionate, unique person who mentored her and certainly entertained her as she grew up into the fourteen year old she is today. Even though she knew that her mother knew Usagi and that Usagi was Sailor Moon, it never occurred to her at all that her mother might have been a Sailor Scout. It's not unreasonable to assume that, but she didn't even do that, she literally never entertained the idea. This new discovery will change the way she sees her mother; no longer just creative and passionate, now as she read in her book she starts to see things in Sailor Jupiter in her mother - strength and nobility. Makoto on the other hand was trying to read her daughter's expression; she could see the shock and confusion on her daughter face, but she tried to imagine just what was running through her mind. Maybe the thought of leading a double life as a super heroine, maybe the thought of keeping this secret for so long, maybe the thought of fighting wave after wave of bad guys. In truth Makoto could never really understand what her daughter could be thinking, as a teenager she was always difficult to understand; Nari had such a unique way of thinking that it is sometimes confusing to even talk to her, but Makoto also knew that that came from her own unique vision. Nari was also a bit of a wall flower, she has a lot of trouble being social with her friends at school and Makoto always tries to help her whenever time becomes available, which really isn't that often.

Finally Nari asked the question. "Am I a Sailor Scout mother?"
Makoto smiled "That's what Usagi wants to find out tomorrow." Still holding the Star Power Stick Makoto then realized she could find out right now. "Actually we don't need to wait." She opened her hand and passed the stick to Nari. "Take the Star Power Stick." Nari was nervous, visibly trembling at the very thought that she might actually be a Sailor Scout. "Don't worry Nari." Tentatively Nari reached out to grab the stick and as soon as she touched it a green light began to shine through her forehead. Makoto could not believe her eyes, her daughter bore the symbol of Jupiter, the very same that she herself possessed.
Nari could feel warmth from her head and began to cover it. "What's happening mother?"
Makoto's eyes began to water, the light glistening off her tears. "Nari, have a look in the mirror." She then leaned back to reveal the mirror on the dresser. Nari was gobsmacked. Her eyes widened as far as eyes could be widened, she saw the light from her forehead and couldn't believe what she saw. "You are Sailor Jupiter." Makoto added, she leaned back up and then hugged Nari, crying as she did. Nari began to cry as well, she simply can't find any other way to handle the situation. The two women continued to cry for a moment as they each tried to come to terms with what each other was and is. Makoto was the first to regain her composure and pulled away from her daughter. "Nari, I have never been more proud of you than right now." She said while trying to wipe away her tears.
"Mummy." Nari hasn't used that name since she was five. "I'm scared."
Still teary eyed Makoto hugged Nari again. "I know exactly how you feel Nari." She sniffled some more before releasing her embrace and looking back at her, holding her shoulders. "I was just like you when I became Sailor Jupiter. I was fourteen in fact when it happened, and back then I was a bit of an outcast. People were too afraid to come near me because I put people off with my aggression. Then I met Usagi in school and she helped me open up, and that's when I became Sailor Jupiter. I was a tough young girl, but I remember being afraid almost all the time, fighting so many enemies for so long. I'd put on a brave face but I was terrified." Makoto paused, seeing her daughter so distraught and frightened nearly unnerved her again. "True courage does not come from fearlessness. Meeting your deepest fears and overcoming them, that's genuine courage." Nari stopped crying, it dawned on her that this side of her mother had always been there, it was never in full display all the time but she realized that it always appeared in the darkest moments of her life - being bullied in school, rejected by boys she liked, and her terrible introversion. "And I see that in you. You are such a courageous young girl." Her mother always told her to meet her fears and to find a way to overcome them. Nari leapt into her mother arms and hugged her again tightly. Makoto started to cry again "You'll make a great Sailor Scout Nari, I know it."

The two women continued to hug each other, mother comforting daughter, daughter comforting mother.

The original nature of Chapter 7 is very mature and does not meet the PG-13 criteria of the forum, it has therefore been heavily censored and edited to within these standards with the advice of moderators. Also the prose features music, in this case a music video bridges between the two sections, replacing the offensive material.

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Chapter 7 - Star Crossed Love

Makoto and Nari both spent much of the rest of the day bonding with each other, it's a very rare thing to discover your daughter to be a heroine. They both spent the day talking about each other, Sailor Jupiter's experiences and Makoto's past life, Makoto even encouraged her daughter to keep reading Usagi's autobiography, she told Nari that the book was excellent and could teach her a lot about the possible situations she might expect as a Sailor Scout, both as a scout and as a civilian.

Later that night everyone was preparing for bed, Nari was already asleep and the couple were in their room - Ittou finished changing into his pyjamas and walked over to his side of the bed while Makoto was already in bed sending a message on her phone;

Code:

To Usagi-chan
Usagi i have incredible news. Nari is a sailor scout! It's so amazing we've totally bonded over this. Talk to you soon,

Ittou climbed into bed, noticing his wife playing on her phone. "Hey, what are you doing?"
"I'm just sending Usagi a message." Makoto finished typing and sent the message.
"Seriously?" Ittou couldn't believe it "You talked to her all day didn't you?"
Makoto chuckled "Actually no." She put her phone onto the dresser. "I spent the morning talking to Usagi and actually I spent the rest of the day with Nari."
Sitting up Ittou leaned back onto his pillow and the wall. "Really?"
"Yes." Makoto's smile dropped as she realized she needed to talk to Ittou about Sailor Jupiter. "Actually we need to talk about Nari, but to do that we need to talk about me."
Confused Ittou raised his eyebrow. "Huh? Why?"
Makoto sat up onto the bed and met his eye level. "Ittou." She paused for a few seconds, trying to find the right way to tell her husband. Seeing the curiosity in his eyes she just blurted it out. "I'm Sailor Jupiter."
Ittou was stunned; he could not believe what Makoto just said. "You're Sailor Jupiter?!"
"Oh." Makoto looked away for a second, she just realized her mistake. "No, I mean I was Sailor Jupiter."
Ittou's jaw dropped, his wife just admitted that she used to be a heroine? No, he thought, this can't be true. "No Mako." He finally said "You weren't Sailor Jupiter."
"Huh?" Makoto was shocked at his remark "What do you mean?"
"Mako." Ittou reached over to her, stroking her hair and brushing her cheek. "I know you. You're a creative, passionate woman; and I remember Sailor Jupiter as a strong and noble fighter. I'm sorry but I don't see that in you."
"But I was Sailor Jupiter!" Makoto protested. She doesn't understand why Ittou doesn't believe her, she never lied to him before and of course he knows about Usagi and Mamoru - Mamoru introduced him to her! "Hang on!" Makoto quickly turned back to the dresser; she decided to reveal her stick. "This should prove it." She grabbed it and turned back to Ittou, showing him her Star Power Stick. "Here."
Her hand outstretched Ittou examined the stick in her hand. "What is that?"
"My transformation stick. I used it to become Sailor Jupiter back in the day." Ittou picked up the stick and it immediately felt different to what he thought. He was expecting some sort of plastic toy one would find in a toy store with bright colours and metallic paint. This was nothing like that; the stick was heavier than he thought, the stick was metal - possibly steel. The golden details looked like gold; they even felt like they were gold. Finally the details were ornate and delicate, the golden crown, the golden ball bearings around the gold star. If this is a hoax, he thought, Makoto certainly did a great job hiding it. It felt so real, maybe it is real.
Ittou twitched and handed back the stick. "I'm sorry Mako but I need more than that."
Makoto couldn't believe it. "Seriously?!" He must have felt the metal, she thought, he has to know that isn't a toy. "What can I do to prove to you that I'm Sailor Jupiter?" Makoto raised her voice, exasperated at his disbelief.
"Honestly?" Ittou replied and Makoto nodded back. "If what you say is true and that is a transformation stick, then please, transform."
Makoto just stared back at him. "What?"
"Transform for me. If you really were Sailor Jupiter you should still be able to transform into her, right?"
"Okay, first of all it's 10 PM. Second of all it's very cold. Do you remember those uniforms? They're pretty short."
"I thought so." Ittou concluded she was just trying to be more interesting. He sunk back under the covers and into bed, lying down to fall asleep, but Makoto wouldn't have a bar of it. She can't simply let alone.
Makoto took a very deep breath and sighed deeply at what she was about to do. "Fine." Ittou turned back to Makoto, reacting to her utterance. "If it will prove to you who I am, I'll transform into Sailor Jupiter." Makoto then pulled off the covers and got out of bed, looking for a good place to stand. Ittou wasn't sure what was happening, is she really going to try to transform?, he thought.

After a few moments of moving around the bedroom Makoto found just enough space to transform. She held her stick aloft, raising her right hand over her and preparing to transform, but then a thought crossed her mind. "Hey, if Nari wakes up you're a dead man." Ittou chuckled and Makoto returned to her pose. She took one more deep breath before shouting "JUPITER STAR POWER, MAKE UP!" The stick built up energy for just a second before discharging; electricity arced from the stick to all across her body, a swirling vortex of lightning. The storm began to encircle her; Makoto stretched her left hand out to push the storm away from her as she had always done. Ittou sat back in awe, eyes wide open and jaw dropped, his assumption was entirely disproven. The electricity was now entirely around her, the storm surged all around her and then CRACK! Thunder struck. The electricity dispersed, in its place was Sailor Jupiter's uniform; green laced boots, a short green shirt with a pink back bow, her pure white leotard with a large pink bow, a green sailors collar, held together by a polished green brooch, her long white gloves with green collar trims, her shining rose studs, the green balls of her hair tie and a golden tiara with an emerald jewel in its centre. At the end of the transformation Sailor Jupiter stretched out her left hand and held back her right, striking her traditional pose. She was finally revealed, Makoto was Sailor Jupiter, glowing in the light of the bed lamp. Makoto then turned to Ittou and gestured to him to see her. "Proof?"
"Oh my god!" Ittou still couldn't believe it, but least now that was just a figure of speech. Makoto was indeed Sailor Jupiter. All of a sudden Ittou felt a strange sensation take over his body, it was a feeling he had not felt in years. He pulled off the covers of the bed, stood up and immediately walked up to Makoto, unable to control his thoughts. "I can't believe it. You really are Sailor Jupiter."
Makoto just stood there, staring at Ittou. "Yep." She smiled back at him.
Ittou stood in front of his wife in her uniform; his right hand reached out to her left arm and held onto her, still in a trance. "Mako, you have no idea what this means to me." His breathing was noticeably heavier. "I used to try to find Sailor Jupiter so long ago; I tried to follow her a few times whenever I knew a fight was near me." Makoto flustered a little, she never knew about this before. "Mako." Ittou moved closer to her. "I tried to find her because I fell in love with her." Makoto gasped, her eyes began to water, the light shimmering off her eyes. "She was such a strong fighter and noble friend; I wanted to find her and to be with her the whole time." He sighed "But then she saved the world and the Sailor Scouts broke apart. I'm not proud to admit that I cried myself to sleep a number of times." A stream of tears began to fall down Makoto's cheek. "Mamoru saw me one day and decided to introduce me to a girl he knew." Ittou began to smile. "You." With her mouth wide open Makoto gasped again. "Seeing you here, now, like this. It all makes sense now. Do you remember when I proposed to you? I said that a part of me fell in love with you at the start?" Makoto nodded back, too distraught to speak. "I guess I must have always thought you were Sailor Jupiter. That deep love I had must have been my subconscious or something. Whatever it was it was telling me that you were who I was looking for the whole time." Ittou reached in to kiss her and the two felt a strange new sensation surge. Ittou broke away from Makoto. "Mako, I love you so much."
"Please Ittou." Makoto gestured to the bed. "Just sit down; we still need to talk about Nari." Makoto slowly sat onto the bed, Ittou sat beside her. "Okay." Makoto sighed. "Now that you know I'm Sailor Jupiter we can talk about Nari." She rested her hand on his knee and began to smile again. "Ittou, our daughter is the next Sailor Jupiter."
Still in shock Ittou appeared unaffected, he was in a permanent state of shock. "Really?!" Makoto nodded slightly. Ittou could not believe what was happening, my wife was the original Sailor Jupiter, he thought, now Nari is Sailor Jupiter? This is incredible! All of a sudden a thought just occurred to him. "Wait. Does that mean she's going to fight?"
Makoto sighed "Yes, probably. Usagi told us that a new threat seems to be looming, so chances are she'll be fighting someone." Makoto could see the grief on her husband's face; she tried to comfort him. "Don't worry Ittou. Nari will be fine, she has an inner strength that will come out, and I know it." Ittou saw the affirmation in his wife's eyes, somehow she allayed his fears.

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"I understand it now." Makoto declared "I finally get it." Makoto kissed Ittou instantly on the lips and pulled back just as quickly.
"Get what?" Ittou asked.
Makoto took a moment to breathe easier. "You said you followed Sailor Jupiter right? The whole time?"
"Yes."
"Well then you must know that I never had a lasting relationship with anyone while I was a Sailor Scout, right?"
Ittou bobbed his head "More or less. You've had a couple of boyfriends but they never lasted."
Still smiling Makoto sighed "Everyone else had someone by the time we split up; you know Usagi and Mamoru." He nodded back in reply. "Rei had been dating Yuuichirou for so long they got married by that time, Ami reunited with her long distance boyfriend Ryo and also married, and Minako was starting her relationship with Lee." Despite herself Makoto was still smiling. "I was the only one who never found true love as a Sailor Scout. I was starting to get depressed over that. Then we disbanded, and then Mamoru introduced us to each other." She paused for a moment to let Ittou work it out, but he was just too confused. Makoto sighed, clearly he didn't understand. "You idiot!" She kissed him again as briefly as before. "You are my true love!" She was grinning for ear to ear. "You were the one I was meant to find back then. You fell in love with me and tried to find me the whole time. You were always meant to be for me." That's when it hit Ittou; he wasn't the only one to rediscover his lover. Ittou saw Sailor Jupiter in his wife; Makoto saw her true love in her husband. They both regressed to when they were teenagers, seeing each other in a totally different light than what they used to before and they both discovered each other once again. Then Makoto hugged Ittou tightly. "Ittou."
"Mm?" Ittou grunted, looking back at her.
"Don't leave me." She whispered, falling asleep next to him.
Ittou smiled. "Leave you?" He wrapped his arms around her, providing the security she desperately wanted. "Never." They both sighed and began to fall asleep. "Thank you for loving me Sailor Jupiter." Ittou said softly.
Makoto was just conscious enough to reply back. "Thank you for finding me Ittou." Ittou switched off the desk lamp and fell asleep with his wife in his arms.

At the time this chapter is posted to the Galaxy Cauldron there will be a slowdown in posting new chapters as this is now the most recently proofread chapter. New chapters are likely to be posted in the next three to four weeks as I continue to write my two stories in tandem. Also this chapter features music in the prose, when you reach a link please right click on it to open a new tab and let the music play as you read.

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Chapter 8 - Nari Asanuma: Sailor Jupiter

Chapter 9 - Proving Ground

The sun was setting at the Hikawa Shrine and everyone from Makoto's house drove down to visit Rei at the shrine, although she wasn't at all pleased with what they were planning. "What do you mean 'you want to make this place a training ground?!'"
"Look Rei." Usagi explained "We're going to need somewhere for the new scouts to train, so I thought the shrine was the perfect place to train up and teach them."
"Well yeah I don't mind that, but how are we going to fit everyone in here?"
"What do you mean?" Chibiusa asked
"Well, with all of the old Sailor Scouts - that's ten, add the new Sailor Scouts - another eight, plus two Tuxedo Masks - that's another two. So that's-" Rei took a moment to add up. "AH! Twenty people! I haven't had so many people in a long time!"
"No Rei it will just be us;" Usagi continued to explain the plan "You, me and Chibiusa, Mako with Nari, and then Setsuna with whoever the next scout is." Usagi had a hunch one of Setsuna's twin daughters will end up being Sailor Pluto - maybe even Puruto herself; the new Sailor Moon is Usagi's daughter, the new Sailor Jupiter is Makoto's daughter, the logic fits perfectly, but with Nari as this entirely new Sailor Scout no one really knows what to expect anymore. "That's all." Rei sighed, she was thinking about Natsu and her prospect as a Sailor Scout. Rei's entire demeanour had started to change, up until now she was broken by her divorce with Yuuichirou and the death of Grandpa Hino, the foundations of her life had been disintegrated by betrayal and violence. However today she was noticeably chatty and Usagi distinctly saw a smile from her at one point. Something must have happened to Rei, Usagi thought; she seems to be more confident now.
Eventually Rei responded "Okay, that seems fine to me." She even smiled again.
Usagi smiled back at her. "Great! Thanks for letting us use your shrine Rei." Something has definitely changed Rei for the better, Usagi continued to think.

At the back of the shrine Makoto and Nari were strolling in the garden, taking in the pristine scenery - the setting sun washing the sky in a golden haze in a forest of Saruka. Nari breathed in the fresh air deeply and sighed. "This shrine is so peaceful. Did you really go here a lot?"
"Yeah." Makoto looked off into the distance. "I know the shrine maiden and she's a really nice person, well most of the time. Anyway she was Sailor Mars years ago too."
"Oh wow. Does she have a daughter too?"
"Yeah, but she lives abroad so Usagi needs to find her again."
Nari was surprised hearing this. "Oh. Why is she not here?"
Makoto sighed "Well, it's a long story. And a sad one." Makoto looked at her daughter and Nari looked back to her mother. "I don't want to make you sad today. You are a Sailor Scout now, enjoy your youth." Makoto smiled at Nari and began to stroke her blonde hair.
Nari looked back at the trees and the golden air. "I love it here; I'll come to this shrine after school."
Makoto laughed "That's good to hear, this shrine always helped me calm down after a long day, I think this place will do you some good." The two reached the end of the garden and came back around to meet Luna who waiting for them, sitting on a bench between buildings. Luna left Makoto with her daughter to give them the opportunity to bond some more. The tranquillity of the shrine and the colours of the sky compelled Luna to meditate for a while and calm herself, perhaps to make her less timid and shy. Luna was just sitting be herself, being, as Makoto and Nari walked up and joined her. "Hi Luna." For a second nothing happened, Luna continued to stare into the middle distance and observe the trees rustling in the wind, Makoto and Nari were both looking at Luna spacing out.
"Huh." Luna finally noticed the two girls and turned to them. "Oh hi." Luna smiled.
"Wow Luna, it really looked like you were zoning out there." Makoto said.
"Oh yes, I thought I'd try to mediate a little." Luna turned back to watch the trees again. "It's been such a long time since I was here, and the garden is really peaceful. It's so easy to just sit and be."
Luna started to mediate again but Makoto wanted to spend some time with her. "Hey Nari, go join the others at the front of the shrine."
"Okay. See you Luna." Nari said as she waved goodbye and ran off.
"Bye Nari." Luna waved back and smiled as she passed by. As Makoto walked over to sit beside her Luna sighed. "You really do have a lovely daughter Mako. Someday I'd like to have a son or a daughter of my own."
"Yeah." Makoto smiled at Nari in the distance. "She's a great kid." She sighed "I just wish she was more confident around boys."
"Oh?"
Makoto turned to Luna "She's a bright young girl, top in her class in mathematics and science, and she has friends, but I wish she could open up some more, especially around guys."
"Hm." Luna took a moment to think. She really wasn't the best person to talk to about confidence, she herself had to meditate because of all the embarrassment she suffered earlier today, but Luna shares Usagi's desire to help wherever she can. "Can I ask how did she meet her friends?"
"Oh, well she met them in class. They were study friends and when they did assignments together they finish it quickly and spend the rest of the day chatting, and they became friends. Nari has a few study friends now and they all hang out and have fun together."
"Hm. Maybe she needs to find a boy who can challenge her academically." Luna suggested.
Makoto sighed "I've tried that. Nari is just too shy, she gets very flustered around boys she likes, and there are a lot of them."
"Hm." Luna grunted "Well I'm not really sure what to tell you Mako." She then leaned over to see Nari in the distance with the others. "But I think with Nari being a Sailor Scout she may open up much more. I recall you had a similar problem before you were Sailor Jupiter."
Makoto nodded along to Luna's observation. "Yes, you're right." She then stood up "Come on, let's meet up with the others." Luna stood up and the two women walked off to join the rest of the group.

Running over to Auntie Usagi Nari joined the other group of women at the front of the shrine. "Usagi!" She waved to her godmother to draw her attention.
Usagi and Rei were still chatting but Chibiusa heard her and reacted. "Hey Nari."
The others then did the same "Oh hi Nari, come join us." Usagi called her over. As soon as Nari joined the group Usagi introduced her to Rei. "Nari, this is Rei, she is the maiden to this shrine."
Nari saw Rei in her miko robes and was taken by her beauty. "Oh wow, you're so pretty." She chuckled.
Her comment made Rei blush and she smiled. "Aw, thank you." Nari actually made Rei giggle. "Hey, do you want to know a secret?"
"Okay."
Rei leaned into Nari's ear and whispered "I used to be Sailor Mars." She giggled some more and Nari gasped, even though she already knew that.
"Oh wow, you must have fought with my mother!" Nari blurted out.
Rei laughed and the others joined in after her. "Sure did. She did most of the fighting really."
"Mako was a pretty tough fighter back in the day." Usagi added "Very aggressive and really strong."
"Yeah, but Luna said you might be stronger." Chibiusa addressed Nari.
Usagi and Rei both turned to her and gasped. "Seriously?!" Usagi asked.
Chibiusa nodded "Luna said she is the Goddess of Lightning. That's a direct quote! Nari's power is unbeatable."
"No way!" Usagi couldn't believe it, this polite young girl is more powerful than her rough and tumble mother?
Nari was dumbfounded, she doesn't have an aggressive bone in her body, how can I be stronger than her mother, she thought. "I am?"
"That's what she told me." Chibiusa shrugged. "Apparently the stick you have is the origin of Sailor Jupiter's power. Nari, you possess the raw power of Jupiter."
Nari still couldn't believe it; she reached into the right side pocket of her coat to pull out the Lightning Power Stick. This small metal rod seems to be changing her destiny right before her eyes and in ways she simply cannot understand right now.
Makoto and Luna joined the group and they both noticed Nari with the Lightning Power Stick. "Hey guys. Nari, playing with your new toy already?" Makoto asked.
"Oh hi mother." Nari waved at the two "No, I'm just thinking about what this means for me, being a Sailor Scout and all."
"Oh yeah, one of the things you'll discover is that you'll actually have a lot alike with the other scouts. For example Usagi and I both love to romance guys with our cooking, even though I'm better at it."
"Hey!" Usagi whined as Makoto laughed and poked her side.
"Yeah, and me and Mako both have pretty aggressive personalities." Rei then started to laugh as well.
"But most of all Nari-" Usagi concluded "You'll find that you, Chibiusa and every other Sailor Scout will be good friends to each other and make each other happy." She then brought Rei and Makoto beside her and they all held each other. "We all have become great friends to each other and we wouldn't change a thing." They all smiled and exuded sheer delight by merely being with each other.
Nari smiled at the women and the friendship they cultivated with each other, but then I though run through her head. "Wait. Chibiusa? What do you mean?"
"Oh I'm sorry." Usagi explained "I completely forgot to tell you, Chibi is Sailor Moon. She's going to lead you and the scouts this time."
Nari turned to Chibiusa and Chibiusa waved back to her. "Heya!"
"Really? You're Sailor Moon this time?"
"Yep!" Chibiusa nodded and she pointed at her Crystal Star locket. "This was the locket mother used to transform into Sailor Moon, now I have the locket and I transform into Sailor Moon."
"Wow, that's so cool!" Nari beamed. Auntie Usagi was her favourite relative, but she had the most fun playing with Chibiusa, even though she was more than twice Nari's age. Whenever she had any free time in between artworks and exhibition openings Chibiusa would also visit Nari to have fun and play. Really Makoto's and Usagi's families are the most tightly knit amongst the scouts, others relationships like Ami's and Minako's families, and Ami's and Hotaru's families are close but nowhere near as friendly or tightly bonded than that of Makoto and Usagi.
Chibiusa sighed "I guess we better get started sooner or later. Come with me Nari, we need to start training you to fight." She gestured Nari to come to her and hesitantly Nari did so, walking past the old scouts to join Chibiusa and Luna into the courtyard. In the meantime the women decided to chat amongst themselves and move to inside on the buildings.

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Opening the door Rei invited Usagi and Makoto to a pot of tea. "Take a seat guys." By a traditional table Usagi, Makoto and Rei all knelt down onto cushions and drank their tea. "So Mako, your daughter is a Sailor Scout?"
"Yeah Rei." Makoto drank her tea in between chatting. "You should have seen it. She has her own uniform, and wow, her power stick is so much better than my crummy one." She drank even more tea. "I'm actually jealous of my own daughter!" Makoto chuckled.
"Wow that sounds really huge." Rei replied "I'm sorry I missed it."
"Hm." Usagi grunted, drinking her tea in the process. "Mako nearly did miss it herself; I got to see her transform. It was amazing! It was totally different to Mako's transformation."
"It was?" Makoto asked.
"Oh yeah. It was a lot more flamboyant, the lightning shot straight down over top of top of her and the electricity sparked all over her body. It was much more dramatic than yours Mako."
"Wow, I only saw her uniform." Makoto gasped "That's sounds amazing."
"It really was." Usagi continued to drink her tea, everyone else continued to do so, but then Usagi had a thought. "Rei, can I ask you something?"
"Sure."
"I've noticed you've been very happy today; you're smiling, chatting, even laughing now. I gotta ask, what's happened?"
Rei was surprised; she didn't realize just how much her attitude had changed. "Huh? What do you mean?"
"I mean you sound so much more positive than you usually are, honestly I haven't seen this side of you in years. Something must have happened yesterday, what was it?" Rei giggled to herself and Usagi pointed at her. "That right there! You giggled."
Rei drank another sip of tea before finally explaining herself. "Well, I just learned some pretty incredible news. I know you haven't left Japan yet Usagi, but I already know that my daughter happens to be Sailor Mars." Usagi and Makoto both gasped, they were dumbstruck; how could Rei possibly know that, they both thought. Rei saw them both and was confused herself. "What's wrong?"
"Rei, how do you know that?!" Makoto asked.
"I used the fires." Rei said quite bluntly. The other girls were still confused; they knew that ever since Rei discovered her own grandfather's death she swore off consulting the sacred fire, her faith had died the day Grandpa Hino had died. Hearing that Rei actually revived her practice was astounding.
"Wow, so you saw her in the fire?" Usagi asked.
Rei slowly nodded "Yes, I saw Natsu through the flames, and I saw her as Sailor Mars. The fire roared when I completed the prayer and there she was; this towering giant in the shrine." Rei sighed "I want to find my daughter Usagi. I want to see her and try to reconnect with her."
Usagi began to smile "Does that mean you'll come with me to Sydney?"
Rei gasped quickly at the question and immediately changed her demeanour to her usual stoic self. "No, I don't want to be anywhere near Yuuichirou. I'm not going to Sydney." She sighed "I will go to Melbourne and meet you there; if you can find Natsu and bring her with you I would be so happy."
Usagi nodded slowly herself "We will Rei." Then they all heard a loud crackling from outside, the ground even shook for a moment. They all held on the table. "What was that?!" Usagi asked. They all got up and quickly exited the room.

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Nari and Chibiusa both entered a large empty courtyard paved with stone; it was just an ordinary courtyard between buildings. They both faced each other in the middle of the courtyard, preparing to spar, while Luna climbed onto a wooden deck beside the courtyard along one of the buildings. Luna would adjudicate "Okay, let's start with some basic hand to hand combat."
Chibiusa assumed her fighting stance as she directed Nari. "Okay Nari, take off the coat and let's begin." Luna began to walk up to Nari as she took off the large grey trench coat she was given by her mother. Nari wore the coat because everyone, including Nari, thought it was best not to alert the public that the Sailor Scouts are coming back just yet. Taking off the coat she revealed her Sailor Scout uniform, handing Luna the coat she rummaged around a deep pocket to pull out her tiara and the Lightning Power Stick. In the time it took for everyone to arrive at the shrine they already discovered that the electrified blades were independently retractable, each blade could vanish into the hilt of the spear. Nari gave Luna the stick and she promptly returned to her position by the sidelines. Chibiusa stretched for a moment as Nari prepared herself, wearing her tiara. "Okay. Let's begin with some basic attacks." Chibiusa sighed "Go on, hit me with your best shot."
"What?" Nari uttered. Chibusa is one of her very best friends, now she’s asking her to hit her? Point blank?
Chibiusa relaxed for a moment and sighed "Nari, you're going to have to learn how to fight and for now that means you have to strike me, now please-" Chibusa resumed her stance. "Fight me." Nari needed to steel herself, she was about to do something she never thought she would ever do. Nari clinched her fist and wound up, throwing a right punch straight at Chibiusa's face. But Nari was too predictable, just as quickly did Nari throw her first punch Chibusa blocked the attack, Nari's fist locking into Chibiusa's palm. Nari and Chibiusa sighed; Nari was relieved she didn't get to hurt her dear friend, Chibiusa was just glad Nari finally tried to attack. "Okay. Well at least you understand how to throw a punch." Chibusa let go of Nari's fist and they both relaxed. "Now you just need to know how to throw a punch well. Relax for now." Chibiusa gestured at Nari to lower her stance and she did so. "What you want to do is as you lift your fist you pull back as well." She then demonstrated this by moving her right arm slowly and in a way that shows Nari how to move. "So by the time you have raised your arm your fist is ready to spring out instantly." Nari nodded along to Chibiusa's explanation. "Now then-" Again Chibiusa returned to her battle stance. "You try it." Nari also resumed her battle stance, she visualized herself repeating Chibiusa's movements, and then after just a few seconds Nari did so - she quickly lifted and pulled back her right arm and launched it straight at Chibiusa's head again. Again Chibiusa knew Nari would throw a right punch, after all she knows that Nari's right is her dominant side, so again she blocked the blow with her left palm, but this time she felt pain - real pain in her hand. She knew she felt the full force of Nari's power. "That's much better." She said, releasing her grip on Nari's hand. "Okay, now do a combo. Three consecutive blows." This was considerably more difficult for Nari, this required planning. Nari took a few seconds to work out exactly how she wanted to fight, again seeing her movements in her mind. Then she prepared to fight, in quick succession Nari threw a simple right-left, Chibiusa blocked each of the two punches easily, but then Nari pulled a right hook and caught Chibiusa completely by surprise. Nari was nanoseconds away from landing a blow, but Chibiusa's quick thinking changed her block and she was able to stop the punch from connecting to her head, however by blocking the punch the force was still enough for Nari to press Chibiusa's hand onto her cheek.
Nari could not believe how close she was to hitting her very best friend, her expression changed from the anger that fuelled her attack to grief at what she very nearly done. Nari shrieked in fear "Oh my god! Are you okay Chibi?!"
Chibiusa chuckled and relieved Nari's stress. "I'm fine Nari, you really didn't get me." She let go of Nari's fist and Nari quickly recoiled away from her, still in shock. "A hook! I didn't see that one coming." Chibiusa saw the concern in Nari's eyes and reassured her. "Nari, it's okay. Do you know what that means?" Nari shook her head. "It means you're finding your fight style, you're becoming less predictable right now." Chibusa smiled and after a few seconds of processing all that happened Nari decided to smile as well, she's just relieved she didn't hurt her friend. Chibiusa sighed "I think we can skip kicks for now." She turned and slowly walked up to Luna, presenting her hand. "The stick please."
"Really?" Luna asked "So soon?"
"She'll need to learn sooner rather than later." Chibiusa explained and Luna then handed her the Lightning Power Stick, Chibiusa pressed down on the golden lightning bolt and instantly the golden blades unsheathed from the hilt, once again glistening in the light from the electricity arcing all over the blades. Chibiusa then returned to Nari and handed her the spear. "Okay Nari, now we're going to work out your special attacks. These are the attacks you use with any of your weapons." She pointed at the spear and Nari looked at her golden spear, wondering how exactly to use it. "Just like the transformation phrase each of your special attacks requires a phrase to chant in order to use. Try it out."
Nari took a moment to work out what to do; a spear like this, she thought, with so much electricity running through it, it would need to discharge somehow. And a lot of energy would be needed to spark the discharge. It took her no time at all to work out she needed to slam the tip of the spear straight into the ground. But what to say, she continued. Many words and terms ran though her head; lightning, thunder, electric, shocking - after a while she held the spear as high as she could and shouted "SUPREME THUNDER." She went with the most obvious answer, mimicking her mother. She then slammed the spear down as she yelled "CRASH!" The spear cut through the stone and dug into the ground, but nothing else happened. No elaborate discharge nor electricity arcing anywhere in particular, nothing really happened. "Hm." Nari grunted, that wasn't it, she thought. So it has to be different. She thought intensely about what it could be; if it were about slamming the spear into the ground there would have to be a large area to disperse the electricity, that means the attack would cover a large area around me, that means the phrase would be something like-. She again raised her spear and shouted "SHOCK WAVE." and though the spear down into the ground. "CRASH!" Again nothing happened, but Nari knew exactly why. She quickly reset her stance and shouted "SHOCKING WAVE." This time the blades began to build up energy, sparking and fizzing all along the gold. JACKPOT, she thought. "CRASH!" As soon as she struck the ground a massive surge of electricity was sent into the earth and spread all along the ground, equidistant and constantly moving outward. It was a wave of electricity moving out to cover a field.
"JUMP CHIBI!" Luna screamed, but Chibiusa had other ideas, she quickly run out of the way of the ever encroaching band of electric energy. The shock wave was moving so fast Chibusa was barely able to stay ahead of it. The ring of electricity continued to push further out, becoming dangerously close to Luna and Chibiusa. Luna took no time when the sparks reached her; she jumped over and cleared the band as they crossed over the wooden deck. Still running Chibiusa finally realized she too could clear the ring of energy. She immediately stopped and using all the energy she would have used to run further Chibiusa instead jumped backwards as the ring of lightning travelled further out. Luna saw Chibiusa and inquired "Are you alright Chibi?"
Chibiusa sighed, wiping the sweat off her brows. "Yeah I'm fine, but how far does this thing travel?" They all watched as the ring continued onward for a few more seconds before finally disappearing into the ground. Everyone sighed and Chibiusa turned about to walk back to Nari.

Rei, Makoto and Usagi all leapt out of the room to find out what had happened, running up to the courtyard. By the time everyone had met the electricity disappeared and Chibiusa was walking back, they all reached Luna at the deck and Rei asked "What happened?"
"Are we under attack?" Makoto added.
Luna shook her head "No Mako, we're fine. In fact we just saw one of Nari's special attacks." Nari was still by the spear, still buried into the ground. She had the idea to attack this way but could never have predicted what happened next. Nari - a quiet, polite, young schoolgirl - just channelled the power of Jupiter to attack the very earth she stood upon and spread its tremendous power outwards. Nari was panting beside her spear, despite the great deal of effort she put into the attack she was still coursing with energy. "Shocking Wave-" Luna explained "A ring of electricity spreads over the ground. Anyone who touches it is paralysed and is dealt the full force of the power of Jupiter." Luna turned to the women beside her "At least that's what the legends say. I've never seen anyone do that before myself." Luna then looked directly at Makoto. "Mako, Nari is still trying to find her inner strength, but today Chibiusa and I just witnessed your daughter's true power for a brief moment." Makoto gasped as Luna continued. "Nari is going to be a fine Sailor Scout. She is well on the way to surpassing you." Makoto slowly began to smile at Luna, and then the smile turned into a grin. Makoto did worry about her little girl as a Sailor Scout; no right-minded mother would not want to protect their children. Makoto turned to see Nari, still beside the spear, still panting - still trying to transcend the experience. All of a sudden she wasn't worried anymore, Nari is absolutely the best one to be Sailor Jupiter, she thought. Makoto walked over to her daughter and just stood there for a second; she saw Nari's eyes shimmer in the light of the red sky, and she started to cry. Looking back at her mother Nari also began to cry, she let go of her spear and it feel straight onto the ground. The two hugged each other tightly and cried together, tears of joy, the comfort only a mother can truly provide.

Before I post the next chapter I'll be taking a haitus from the fanfiction for the moment. Because the fanfiction is currently breaking parts of the canon I do not want it to I'll be reviewing the current story and editing sections to realign the story back to where I want it in the canon. In the meantime I'll be working on my original story as well as adding some bonus content to the thread - namely screenshots from Universe Sandbox on the star system the Negaverse Empire centers around, and pictures showing the new Sailor Guardians using a doll maker.

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Chapter 10 - AN46I-5

Two cycles have passed in the Negaverse and inside the scientific building General Tsajei was inside a darkened room with a scientist, they were both observing another Nitrogen test on another alien, this time he was a free citizen of the Negaverse - a volunteer who was prepared to die for the greater good of the empire. Once again gas seeped through the invisible vents and unlike the slaves and aliens before him he was calm and ready. The gas continued to flood the room although this time, unlike any of the other test subjects there wasn't an immediate reaction; the man seemed unaffected by the gas. "Hm." Tsajei grunted, he saw for the first time the marvels of biological manipulation and smirked. "Perhaps there is a use for science in war." He heckled. The professor took no notice of the General's barb, focusing on the test subject and his reactions. The citizen was still sitting on his seat, thinking to himself he may be the first person in the Negaverse to overcome Nitrogen Inhalation.
Two minutes had passed before the subject coughed. The scientist slammed his fist onto the desk in front of them. "He's going to die!"
Tsajei was taken by surprise at the sudden and violent outburst. "Calm down, professor. We don't know that yet."
"Yes I do." the professor said. "Every test subject that coughs dies in the end." They could now both hear the citizen beginning to cough much more.
Tsajei turned back to the professor "Has anyone survived these tests?"
The professor's head was slumped over the desk, listening to the subject slowly losing his life, one strained cough at a time. "No. No one has survived our trials." He raised his head to see the test subject now coughing uncontrollably. "We're closing in on what we need to breathe in a Nitrogen rich atmosphere, but right now we can only do it for about half of one section." The professor began to shake his head "Not even close to half of a cycle, never mind a full cycle."
General Tsajei turned to face the professor directly. "You told the Council that you were close to defeating Nitrogen Inhalation."
"We are!" The scientist snapped back "Of all the tests we conducted he-" He pointed to the man currently beginning to choke on the gas. "Is the closest we have ever reached to that goal. We know that the drug AN46I-5 is close to the approximate formula we need to achieve this, we just need the time to develop it further."
Tsajei was unaffected; he took no interest in the plight of the scientists. "I don't much care for your obstinacy. We have a battle strategy that relies on your ability to overcome the toxic gas; we need to launch our invasion as soon as possible."
"And shouting will not speed up the process in the slightest!" The professor raised his voice; he too turned to the General and stood up straight, trying to match the General's posture. "You cannot speed up progress; you can only invest more into it."
Tsajei smirked "My my, someone finally grew a backbone." He took one small step to close the gap between the two men. "You will develop a drug that will combat Nitrogen Inhalation by the end of the next cycle in whic-"
"The next cycle?!" the professor shrieked.
"Yes. In which you will provide for the Purple Serpent enough dosage to immunize the entire army from Nitrogen gas. Do we have an understanding?"
"That's not possible." the professor explained "Our best projection by the end of that period is to synthesize a drug that may be able to counteract Nitrogen Inhalation by possibly a full cycle, but not immunize the body entirely."
The General sighed "I don't want to have to do this." He opened his jacket and revealed his hand pistol; a very futuristic looking devise, a laser sight, holographic cross hairs a mix of modern and almost steampunk appearance, straight lines and perfect curves intermixed with layered metals and intricate detail. It in itself was a masterpiece of design. Tsajei repeated himself "Do. We. Have. An. Understanding?"
The professor was frightened but put on a brave front. "You're threats will not hurry us along, if anything it will cause us to cower in fear and halt our work altogether. I fail to see how this will help you." For several seconds the two were in a standoff; Tsajei used his weapon to intimidate the scientist into yielding, but this trick had failed. The professor is at the mercy of the General, however he knows that if he dies so too does the plan to conquer Earth.
Tsajei knew he was going to lose; he lowered his weapon and placed it back into the holster inside his jacket. "You're a very lucky man professor; you have just bought yourself some time to continue your research."
General Tsajei then turned around to leave, but the professor had to ask. "General, I must ask a question."
Tsajei sighed "What is it now?"
"With respect sir, I must know why you push us? Why do you come here to harass us to complete our research?"
Again Tsajei sighed and he turned around. "The reason I come here is because there has been a change on 2416-3." He decided to return to the professor and explain what was happening on Earth. "I've made a terrible mistake and I need to launch our invasion as soon as possible."
"How so?"
"It would appear that a new brand of superbeings is beginning to emerge." Tsajei continued "So far only one seems to have surfaced, but it is only a matter of time before more begin to appear. We have to act while we still have the upper hand."
The professor raised his eyebrow "Just one? Do you think it's a little rash to fret over one superbeing?"
Tsajei looked down, shaking his head "Stupid scientists." He looked back up to the professor "We are military men; we don't stop to contemplate, we act on what we see. We enter a battlefield and determine how to defeat the enemy in it." Tsajei paused to emphasize his next point. "The battlefield is changing professor; we must change our strategy to neutralize the threat."
The professor nodded along "I cannot promise total immunity General. What I can promise is that by the end of the next cycle we do expect to be able to have a formula for AN46I-5 that can counteract the effect of Nitrogen Inhalation for at least half of a cycle. Should everything go to plan we will be able to provide the Purple Serpent with the necessary dosage and you then will be able to begin you plan for conquest."
Tsajei smirked "I knew we could count of you." He then turned again and once again left the room. The professor sighed, thinking about exactly how to pinpoint the right chemicals and the right dosage for this drug. Then he snapped, he remembered the test subject in the chamber, he looked back at the screen and saw him lying on the floor like so many others before him. He too was trying to reach the mirror to call for help, but alas, just a moment after the professor noticed him he also lost his life and his hand, outstretched in desperation, fell to the floor. The test subject thought has was prepared to die for the empire, but in truth no one is truly prepared - no one can ever say to themselves they are genuinely happy to end their life and then do so without a trace of a doubt lingering in the back of their minds, wondering what would happen if they continued to live. No one is ever truly prepared for death.

The professor sighed; his work condemned another soul to the underworld. He pressed a button and a large square vent appeared from the top, draining the room of all the toxic gas. It took just a few seconds for the room to be empty, just a vacuum with nothing but a chair and a corpse. The vent rose back up to the ceiling and then the room was pressurized with air. After the noise had subsided the door opened and a man in a laboratory coat picked up and dragged the poor soul out of the room. The professor then called over a microphone "Bring it the next test subject." An alien woman was sent into the chamber, the whole process would start all over again.

Okay, with the Galaxy Cauldron closing down I've decided to exclusively release the five remaining chapters that are currently on deviantArt right now here as well. Unfortunately, if you have read since the start, I haven't progressed very far into this before deciding to halt the fanfiction. Chapters 11 to 15 will raise more questions than they answer because that was the original set up for the story.
This chapter continues the motif of Timelines chapters that explain the lives of the guardians after the final battle with Galaxia. This follows Setsuna's life from university student to astrophysicist to lunar expert and a contributor for the New Horizons mission. The music that inspired this chapter is 'The Planets Soundtrack' by Jim Meacock. However, because there are no videos of the music on YouTube or anywhere else I have to use the SoundCloud link and then tell you the tracks to listen to in the text itself in parentheses. Jim Meacock's SoundCloud

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Chapter 11 - Timelines: Setsuna


The television blared in the background, Setsuna typed furiously on her computer, the keys clanked loudly. Behind her the television showed a documentary, an English documentary dubbed in Japanese - the Planets. As she worked on her thesis in Physics she was very much addicted to watching this documentary, in this case she was just about complete and the show started. She could hear the music begin to swell and the narrator started his speech. '1977-Nen 8 tsuki, boijā to yoba reru 2-ki no uchūsen ga shinji rarenai hodo no tabi o hajimemashita.' She frantically typed her closing paragraph as quickly as she could so she could focus all of her attention to the show. 'Karera ga nan jū oku-mairu mo no uchū kūkan no kiken kara ikinokoreba, karera wa tōkute kimyōna sekai ni tōtatsu shi, karera wa sōzō o yabutta -' She was so nearly done, a couple more lines. 'Gasu Kyojin.' It was an episode about the outer planets - the gas giants - and the story of Voyager II's quest to discover the great planets and their moons.
'Finished!' She exclaimed, she just completed her 200 page thesis on the Higgs Boson. She quickly scrolled up to the very top of her document and edited the title;
Higgusu Boson Ga Uchū No Mirai O Kaeru Hōhō, Setsuna Meiō
How the Higgs Boson Will Change the Future of the Universe, by Setsuna Meiou
She sighed, her two month long research into the theory of the Higgs Boson and its potential to change the way we see the universe was finally complete. It was her magnum opus, her defining publication, her thesis was the body of work where Setsuna would establish herself as the pioneer of astrophysics in Japan.

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Inside a club and seated by the bar, Setsuna drank a beer by herself. She drank straight from the bottle, it was her fourth tonight. She decided to get blind drunk. She emptied the bottle, slammed it down hard on the counter and called the bartender. 'Hey.' The barman turned to her. 'Another.'
He sighed and walked up to her. 'Are you sure Setsuna?' He knew her by name, she visited the bar at least twice a week, for a month now. 'I think I might need to cut you off.'
'I don't really care.' She sighed. 'I just need a drink.'
He grunted and pulled out a glass under a tap. 'I'm giving you water.' She grunted, she simply stopped caring. He placed the glass right in front of her and walked off. Setsuna took the glass and began to drink it, starting to sober up.

Just then a man walked up to a seat next to her, he called the bartender and asked for a beer. 'Barman. I've have a beer.' He did so, taking a glass from the shelf and pouring beer from the tap. The man paid for his drink.
The barman then took out a coaster and put the glass on top. He slid the drink to the man. 'There you are.' The man took the glass and began the drink, after a second he stopped and sighed from the drink. He turned to see her, drinking her water, clattering the bottles of Tiger Beer beside her.
He decided to chat to her. 'Evening.' She didn't really react, just an errand grunt in reply. He noticed the empty bottles next to her. 'Are we alright?'
She finished her water, dropped the glass onto the counter, and sighed. 'I'm okay. Just drinking my sorrow away.'
The man sighed. 'Well they are free for lecturers.' She grunted again, staring down at the empty glass. He took one more sip of his beer and sighed. 'What do you teach?'
She sighed again. 'Astronomy.' She paused for a second. 'I don't even specialize in anything. Just general, first-year Astronomy.'
The man stared at her, thinking about the anguish she must be feeling. 'What was your doctorate?'
Finally Setsuna worked up the courage to look at him. 'Astrophysics. I'd love to at least get a job in that, but there's nothing available right now and that post is already filled here.'
'I see.' The man nodded along with her. 'What was your thesis?'
She sighed once more. 'Oh, just a dead end, crackpot theory. The Higgs boson and what it could mean for the universe.'
He smiled, he found the right person. 'How the Higgs Boson Will Change the Future of the Universe?' She immediately reacted, this man memorized the title of her work. He relaxed back onto his chair. 'I've read your work Dr. Meiou, it's fantastic work.' Her eyes widened, despite getting her doctorate she received heavy criticism for basing her work on a theory rather than a provable, tangible concept, however now it seems someone has appreciated her research. 'Dr. Meiou, may I take you back to your home?' So smitten was she when the man offered to escort her home she stood up from her chair and stumbled a little, still rather uncoordinated from her drunkenness. The man chuckled a moment and got up as well. He reached for her hand to give her balance. Setsuna blushed, probably from all the alcohol. She got up and thanked the man. 'Thank you mister...'
'Doctor. Dr. Saburo Akemi.' Saburo shook the hand he was holding her up with. 'I work for ISAS; the Institute of Space and Aeronautical Science.'
'Oh my.' She gasped, it was the very institute she wanted to work in. It's the place where Japan's greatest astrophysicists and engineers end up to work on major space projects for the country. She so wanted to become one she applied for a position in ISAS, she was turned down. 'You work for ISAS?'
He laughed. 'Indeed!' He looked into her eyes and saw the light glisten off them. 'Let's go, I'll take you back to your room and we can discuss your work.' She nodded and the two left the club, Setsuna holding on to Saburo's arm.

The two walked along the campus grounds, Setsuna occasionally stumbled on the cobble stones and tripped over her high heels. Saburo held onto her and kept her balance as he chaperoned her to her accommodation. They laughed every time. 'My goodness Dr. Meiou, you've really gotten yourself quite drunk tonight!' He exclaimed. After Haruka and Michiru both left for Australia, Setsuna left Chibiusa with Hotaru at the old residence to move into, K.O. University. She acquired accommodation when she secured her job as a lecturer, the very place she did her learning. They continued onward and he still chatted to her. 'Why are you living with the students?'
With a slight slur in her speech she replied. 'I used to study here, I used to live with friends in another apartment but they moved out, so I found my old dormitory was empty and just took it.'
Saboru laughed. 'How convenient!' Setsuna laughed with him. They eventually reached the building where she lived and they both reached the steps leading to the door. 'Is this it?'
'Yep.' She nodded and turned to her carer. She stared into his eyes and thought about how this random man seemed to have appeared out of nowhere to guide her back to safety.
He walked up to her and held her by her shoulders. 'Dr. Meiou, the world of science is changing in Japan. There's no longer a focus on engineering and the applied sciences, more and more scientists and physicists are beginning to at least accept the possibility of the Higgs boson, and this movement has brought your work to the attention of ISAS.' He then let go of her to search the pocket on his pants, pulling out a card. 'I'd like to extend an invitation to you, I can provide for you a position in our Astrophysics division.' He handed her the card and she did take it but Setsuna didn't look at it, she was entranced by the alcohol still in her blood and the chivalry of the this strange man. She walked right up to him and grabbed his neck, she pulled him to her and kissed him. It was sloppy, drunken and not at all romantic but she still tried to convey her gratitude to this man with a kiss. After a second she pulled back, giving Saboru a moment to process the moment. He really did want to find her and give her a position in ISAS, but her bold impulse caught him off guard. Looking down on her he saw her beautiful smile; crimson lipstick, scarlet diamond earrings of garnet, her maroon eyes peering through the fringe of her emerald hair, wearing a slender red dress. With her face flushed from the kiss he grabbed her neck and leaned in to kiss her back. The two continued to exchange kisses that night and in so doing a new love had blossomed, Setsuna and Saboru would continue their love affair until the end of the year in which they got married.

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A dark blue Mitsubishi drove across Chōfu, the two doctors headed to their new workplace. Since the start of the year ISAS and the other national space agencies were in the middle of a restructure, overlapping policy and consecutive failures in launches motivated the government and the boards to centralize the organizations. Today was the first day of October, the day Japan would have a new space agency. The couple discussed this at length. 'What should we expect today?' Setsuna asked.
'I'm not really sure, probably nothing different. I guess we just need to be more familiar with NASDA and NAL.' Saburo replied. NASDA was the National Space Development Agency, the building responsible for constructing satellites and launch vehicles as well as tracking these. NAL was the National Aerospace Laboratory, the building responsible for general aeronautical transports such as rockets and aircraft.
'Hm, do you know anyone from there?'
'Not in particular no. I don't really work with the engineers." He chuckled. The car pulled into the entrance of this new building.
She looked out her window and got confused. 'What did you say it was called?'
'The National Research and Development Agency on Aerospace Research and Development.'
She points at the window. 'Then why does it say JAXA?'
Saboru looked at her window and laughed. 'Oh! Sorry! I gave you the official name. JAXA means the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.'
'Ah!' She nodded. 'I see.'

JAXA. The national space agency.
Setsuna's dream realized. She entered her new work as one of Japan's brightest stars in astrophysics. The car drove up to an empty space near the building's entrance, she and Saboru both exited the car and walked towards the doors. Very little of their old workplace had changed; apart from the big JAXA signage and new security gate really nothing had changed, the same old grey building. The doctors entered and their boss greeted them - Doctor Naoki Okumura. 'Ah, the Doctors Akemi. So good to see you today. How do you find the new facility?'
They both looked about and found absolutely nothing had changed in the reception. 'Familiar.' She declared.
'Indeed Dr. Okumura.' He added 'I don't really see much of a difference.'
'Well of course nothing has changed here.' Naoki interjected. 'It's still the reception area. The changes happen beyond.' He then gestured to the main hallway and the couple walked with Naoki along the hallway. 'Let me take you to your offices.' The group arrived at the elevator and after a moment the doors opened and they all entered, Naoki pressed for the fourth floor. During the ride Naoki made some small talk. 'How are the children?'
'Oh, they are a handful!' Setsuna exclaimed. 'Chiyo keeps running around the house every spare moment and I have to keep Kagami away from the walls, she keeps drawing on them.'
Saboru and Naoki laughed. 'Sounds like your house is falling down!' Naoki taunted. DING! The elevator opened and they all walked off onto the floor. Dark Matter Division. Saboru's specialty. They all walked down the main hall. They passed other doctors, they discussed their theories and research. Eventually they reached Saboru's office and Naoki opened the door for him. 'Dr. Saboru Akemi, you have access to the latest equipment in detecting and measuring dark matter. You can also work directly with engineers and physicists from NASDA.' His office was very ordinary; a simple desk with a computer, a window overlooking the outdoors, and a rows of shelves, all full of books. 'Get settled.' He gave Naoki a thumb up as he closed the door. 'Let's continue to your office Dr. Akemi.' They walked back the way they came and reached the elevator again. This time the elevator took a while to return to them so Naoki continued his banter. 'Do you think Kagami will grow up into an artist?'
'I hope so, if she learns how to draw she can turn her attention away from the walls.' He laughed again and shook his head. The elevator opened and they again entered it, this time he pressed for the fifth floor. After only a few seconds the elevator again dinged and opened its doors, the two doctors left it behind. Astrophysics Department. Again they walked down the hall, again passed other doctors, and again chatted to each other. Setsuna's office was much closer to the elevator and so after just a moment of walking Naoki opened the door to her office. Her office was similar to her husband's; another simple desk with another computer, another window overlooking a different view of the outdoors, and another row of shelves, all again full of books. 'Dr. Akemi, you also have access to the latest software, hardware and equipment at your disposal and personal authority and autonomy in the laboratories and work stations. You too have direct lines to work with the other two buildings.' As he spoke Setsuna walked into her new space. 'Get comfortable Doctor, this is your new office.' Naoki closed the door behind him, he left her to roam about the space. She sat down by the desk, the comfy swivel chair parked directly at the computer. She touched the desk, feeling the cold, sterile touch of the vinyl coating.
'Excellent.' She uttered and she began to logon to the computer and begin her work for JAXA. This really was the start of her career in science.

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Setsuna was in the office of the Dr. Okumura, fighting over the opportunity of a lifetime. 'But this is important! I want to go and help the team!'
'Dr. Akemi, I fail to see the urgency, or really the point for that matter in your involvement with this NASA group.'
'Eris was just discovered last week, that thing is much bigger than Pluto. There's a huge push to reclassify Pluto out of planetary status. I think JAXA needs to take a greater interest in this New Horizons probe and just what it will mean to the future exploration of Pluto and the Kuiper Belt.'
Naoki stood up from his chair. 'By sending one of our own to assist them?' His voice echoed within the walls of the office. A silence descended over them, this was the first time Setsuna ever expressed a great deal of passion in her work. So much so that she needed to fight for the chance to work on a project dear to her heart. He sighed. 'Dr. Akemi, I realize that you want to aid the Americans with their attempt to reach Pluto, but I honestly can't see how you can provide any tangible help. As far as I can see NASA is getting on fine.' He sat back down into his seat.
'For now.' She interrupted. 'For now the Americans are getting what they need, but I do not trust that position will remain so.' She approached his desk. 'Dr. Okumura, I need to help this group.' Naoki looked away for just a moment, thinking why on Earth Setsuna was being so aggressive about this.
He looked back at her. 'What can you provide to the Americans?'
'Telemetry. I can help program the probe and guide it to Pluto by way of Jupiter.'
He boomed a single 'HA! You want to code? Why not simply leave them to it?'
'Because it will take many thousand of calculations to guide the probe to specific points in the system, even for today's supercomputers.'
He leaned back into his seat and sighed. 'You're not going to take no for an answer, are you?'
Setsuna shook her head. 'Absolutely not.'
Naoki held his chin for a moment, he was still deep in thought. 'Fine. Go to America.' He sighed again. 'Besides, you need to take a vacation anyway.'
She smirked at this, she extended her hand. 'Thank you Dr. Okumura. You will not regret this.'
After a second he grabbed her hand and shook it. 'Just stay out of trouble there, it can get dangerous in America.' She simply nodded in reply, and with that she was going to embark on arguably her biggest project in her entire career, she would volunteer herself to work on the New Horizons probe.


The airport bustled with people going in and out. At the departure gate a chauffeur stood along a row of drivers, each with their own signage, waiting for very important people to arrive. The chauffeur had his own billboard. "Dr. Setsuna Akemi PhD." After a few moments of passengers leaving the gate Setsuna finally emerged with her luggage, she took in the surroundings of George Bush Intercontinental Airport. She was in America, Houston in fact. She knew a driver was waiting for her so she looked about and found her driver, unfortunately she never went to Usagi for lessons in speaking English and by now Minako was already abroad. She walked over to her driver, he looked Japanese to her so she asked him. 'Anata wa watashi no untenshudesu ka?'
'Uh-' The driver was Asian-American. 'Setsuna Akemi?'
'Hai.'
He knew enough Japanese to know what that meant. 'Okay, come with me.' The driver compelled her to follow him. They both walked across the vast airport and eventually exited, the driver occasionally checked behind him that she had not wondered off. The two walked along the footpath, passed the taxis and eventually to their car.
The chauffeur opened her door for her and she thanked him. 'Arigatō.' The driver bowed as she thanked him and entered the car. He closed the door and entered the driver's seat, closing behind him. The black Ford started up and left the airport, destined for the Johnson Space Center. Setsuna saw Houston pass by her. Strangely, the American skyline looked not very dissimilar to the Japanese skyline, lots of skyscrapers and modern buildings reaching high. She past many sites; the Convention Center, the Museum of Natural Science, Discovery Park, NRG Stadium, the Museum of Fine Arts. Eventually she saw it, the big blue circle - NASA's logo. She arrived at the space center, the driver entered the driveway and after a minute of looking for a space and parking he exited the car and once again opened her door. She got out and again bowed to thank him. 'Arigatōgozaimashita!'
He bowed and as she walked off he sighed. 'That wasn't a "Thank you".' He never heard the Japanese term for 'Thank you very much!'
She walked up to the foot of the entrance into the building, she looked directly up and sighed. NASA, every astronomer's dream. She was about to enter one of the oldest and most decorated institutions of space science and exploration in the world. She looked back down in front of her, took a deep breath and parted the doors. She entered the space center, and was surprised. The foyer was almost empty. She expected the sort of energy and bustle she was used to in JAXA. Apart from the receptionist two men were talking, Setsuna knew she was meant to find the team director - Sol Alan Stern, and she recognized him immediately.

She walked up to the men and they both saw her coming. 'Ah, Dr. Akemi.' Alan greeted her. 'Welcome to NASA. I am Dr. Alan Stern and this is Dr. Kenji Hisoka.'
The second man was a translator provided for her. 'Akemi hakase, NASA e yōkoso. Watashi wa Hiroshi Kenji oka hakasedesu. Kore wa Aran Stern hakasedesu.'
She bowed to both of them and they each bowed back to her. 'Attakai kangei arigatōgozaimashita.'
Kenji smiled and turned his college. 'She says thank you for the warm welcome.'
Alan nodded. 'Okay. You have volunteered to join us with programming telemetry for the New Horizons probe, correct?'
'Anata wa Nyū Horizo​​ns purōbu no teremetoripuroguramingu ni sanka suru tame ni borantia sanka shimashita ka?'
'Hai.' She nodded. 'Watashi wa, purōbu ga meiōsei ni tōtatsu suru michi o shiji suru tedasuke o shitai to omoimasu.'
He nodded along to her response. 'She wants to help with plotting the probe's trajectory in order to reach Pluto.'
'Fantastic!' Alan exclaimed. 'Then let's show her to probe itself.' Alan then walked off down the hallway.
Kenji quickly relayed the message. 'Purōbu sonomono o hyōji shimasu. Watashitachi to issho ni kuru.'
Her eyes widened. 'Hai!' They caught up to Alan down the hall and the three continued walking, it was a long walk down to the other end of the facility where the construction was taking place. Eventually they reached the large cargo bay doors and as they all stood by Alan opened them. And there it was, a small box of open circuitry with pieces of important components strewn about it, and a half complete satellite dish on the ground beside it. Most of it's components and instruments were still not completed but it was slowly coming together.
'There she is.' Alan sighed. 'That thing is going to Pluto.'
Kenji paraphrased his utterance for Setsuna into a question. 'Anata wa purōbu ga meiōsei ni iku to shinji raremasu ka?'
She shook her head. 'Īe. Jinrui ga tassei dekiru mono wa subarashīdesu. Sore wa chūmoku niataisuru!'
He chuckled as he translated for Alan. 'She thinks it's amazing what mankind can achieve.' He nodded his head to that reply. She was mesmerized by this small probe, it was destined to reach the very edge of the Solar System. She could not stop thinking about the future; where the probe was going to, what it was going to find, where will the probe go next. For the rest of the year Setsuna would spend her time in NASA's facilities, calculating the trajectory of the probe's launch and flight path through space.


At the Johnson Space Center the building was much more lively; astronomers, engineers, physicists and astronauts moved around, they talked and worked. In a secluded room in the center Setsuna worked hard, she had her laptop connected to the Cray Jaguar supercomputer at Oak Ridge, she had the authorization to use the supercomputer to calculate the probe's flight path. She had been working on the exact path for the entire time, using Jaguar she was able to pinpoint the exact angles the probe needed to travel to reach Jupiter and use the planet's gravity to increase its speed towards Pluto, it's taken her the last five months to pinpoint the exact angle the probe needed to eject from Jupiter. The software was working overtime, she calculated the exact angle precisely to within 1842 decimal places, the margin of error was now just a few hundred thousand kilometers. She inputted the latest numbers and run a simulator to demonstrate its path. Spinning circles along orbital paths span around the screen, a white line was drawn from the center. The line crossed the asteroid belt easily and reached the big orange circle - Jupiter. The white line then turned left and continued along the screen until it run into a small black circle - Pluto. The simulated probe crashed into Pluto. 'Eh?' Setsuna uttered, it actually hit the planet this time, she simply needed to make one minutely small change to the angle, just enough to clear Pluto and its gravity. She scrolled through the numbers, the screen flashing with digits for a brief moment. She simply added a 5 at the end of the chain and ran the simulation again. Once again the fake probe reached Jupiter and turned to Pluto, this time it past by it roughly twelve and a half thousand kilometers away. 'Sorede oshimai!' She exclaimed. She quickly placed the laptop on the ground and ran out of the room looking for her Japanese friend. 'Hisoka hakase!' She screamed past others around her. 'Kenji! Hisoka hakase!' She ran down the stairs and continued towards the hallway. 'Hisoka hakase!' She eventually found him with a couple of engineers. 'KENJI-SAN!' She yelled, she finally drew his attention. 'Yatta yo! Watashi wa meiōsei e no michi o purotto shimashita!'
'Eh?' Kenji uttered. 'Excuse me gentlemen.' He walked up to Setsuna and asked, 'Anata wa meiōsei e no hikō keiro o motte imasu ka?'
She nodded. 'Watashi wa chōdo yaku 12500-kiro hanareta meiōsei o tsūka suru purōbu de konpyūta-jō de seikō shita shimyurēshon o jikkō shimashita.'
His eyes widen. 'Shinken ni?'
'Hai!' She replied, she gestured to the stairs, compelling him to follow her. They both went back down the hall and up the stairs to where she was.
After a minute of hubbub and noise Kenji returned down the stairs and shouted. "EVERYONE, DOCTOR AKEMI HAS PLOTTED A SAFE FLIGHT PATH TO PLUTO!" Everyone cheered at the news, they were finally able to launch their probe, they knew that there was no real risk of losing it. The probe was still a month or so away from completion but now it was able to reach its target safely.

---

Space.
The final frontier.
A lone lander floated above the surface, it gently glided down to land. Three astronauts were about to land on one of the most unique landscapes imaginable. There was much chatter amongst themselves and to JAXA. 'Tokyo, we are just over the landing site.........now.'
Inside the Mission Control room a group of scientists and engineers were at their stations, they monitored the lander and its occupants. In amongst them was Setsuna, she lead the mission and directed the team. 'Gentlemen, you should start your decent now. Keep that thing steady.'
'Yes ma'am.' The lander hovered above the surface for a moment and then slowly descended. 'We're at 1000 feet.' The astronauts counted off the distance. '750 feet.' The speed was critical, it had to be a soft landing. '500 feet.'
'Decelerate a little.' She interrupted. 'You're too fast."
'Roger that, 300 feet.' The lander slowed down its fall. '200 feet.'
'That's good.' She interrupted again.
'100 feet.' The tension rose. 'Fifty feet.' She stopped breathing for a few seconds, she waited for a response. Anything. 'Touchdown. The lander is on the Moon.' Scattered claps came from Mission Control, a few men and women cheered at the safe landing.
'Alright gentlemen, you can release the airlock and exit the module. Remember that you have limited oxygen so don't stand around for too long.'
'Yes ma'am, we'll be prompt.'
'I mean it! If my assumption is correct you're going to see something you never thought was possible.' Setsuna tried her best to warn them of what they might encounter at the Sea of Tranquility. 'Just stick to the mission.'
An astronaut sighed over the radio. 'Yes ma'am. We'll be fine.' The airlock hissed open and the astronauts exited the lunar module. They made their way down the ladder. One by one the men reached the surface of the Moon, moon dust flying off the ground as each foot landed on the ancient, dusty landscape. They all started to look around, trying to find what it was they were after. Eventually one of them saw it and as his eyes widened fully to the magnificent sight all he could think to do was utter the phrase, 'Oh mai godu!' He saw it, the ruins of the Moon Kingdom.
'I take it you see the ruins.' She broke the moment.
'Yes Doctor. It's the most incredible sight!' The astronaut saw the crumbled remains of the palace, the entire structure was as grey and dusty as the Moon itself. Where the walls once fortified the castle was now a run down brick wall, cracked and damaged, with a hole breaching the wall every so often. Most of the actual structure was gone, most of the rooms and turrets were now just outlines, jagged peaks of bricks and moon dust. However, one structure in particular seemed to be mostly in tact, what appeared to be the main building, the palace itself. Apart from very large fissures along the roof, lengthy cracks reaching down to the very base of the building, and what were clearly turrets torn from the awnings, the palace was more or less safe and stable.
After a second she barked at the astronaut. 'We gave you cameras for a reason Dr. Sen. Use them!' The astronaut pulled his left arm close to his chest, his suit had a control panel on his left wrist. After typing a few buttons his helmet began to send a live feed of his view. At Mission Control the entire room waited with baited breath, Setsuna most of all. With Pluto's demotion and her no longer being a Sailor Guardian she wanted to hold on to the past, she even wears a badge at all times - a picture of an artist's rendition of Pluto with the phrase "Meiōsei wa wakuseidesu!" in bold white text over it. Pluto is a planet! After a moment the feed reached Mission Control and after a couple of seconds more there it was, clear as day. Dr. Sen's view of the Moon Kingdom. Everyone in Mission Control exploded in cheers and ruckus; Setsuna simply gasped at the sight, the old residence in such a state of disrepair. But she began to cry as well seeing it again. Beside her was her husband and Dr. Okumura, clapping at the images on the screen.
Saboru leaned over to her and shouted over the noise. 'Congratulations Setsuna! You've just discovered the Moon Kingdom.' She turned to him and tearfully she kissed him on the cheek. He blushed but he pulled her close to him.

Then Dr. Okumura interrupted. 'Do you realize what this mean Drs. Akemi?' The two turn to him and stare, waiting for a response. 'You, Setsuna, have just proven the existence of extra terrestrial life.' A thought suddenly occurred to her. She never considered the Moon Kingdom to be alien, or herself for that matter. 'This discovery doesn't just prove that aliens exist-' Naoki pointed to the screen. 'They are intelligent. They are capable of understanding complex concepts; masonry, construction, architecture. This clearly demonstrates that Selenic life was intelligent, intelligent enough to create a complex of structures designed for a specific purpose.' She looked back at the screen, the view was still of the ruins but now Dr. Sen was moving about the site.
'There seems to be a lot of structures around what looks like a palace.' Dr. Sen replied over the radio. 'Given the frequency and size I think these are shrine rooms.' Many of these rooms the astronaut discovered were no bigger than a small bedroom, just big enough for a person to enter the niche. However something else was there. 'What the?' The astronomer found a slate with alien writing chiseled into it, under it however was a language far more familiar. "Σελήνη." Greek. 'Can anyone read that?'
Greek that Sestuna knows. 'Oh. "Selene?" How did that get there?' She wondered how on Earth Greek managed to end up on the Moon.
'Selene?' Saboru asked
'The Greek Titaness of the Moon.' She answered. 'She watched over a mortal man known as Endymion and fell in love with him as he slept for all eternity.' The two other doctors nodded, drawing a number of similarities to their collected knowledge of Usagi's and Mamoru's own story. 'However, how on Earth did Greek end up here?'
She tried to work it out, but she was interrupted by Dr. Sen. 'Here's another one.' In the ruins of a different shrine room the astronaut found another slate with Selenic writing and kanji this time. "月読" 'Tsukuyomi?' Dr. Sen uttered. 'Why is this god's name here?'
'Keep searching doctor. I'm getting a feeling this is not a coincidence.' The astronaut continued to search for more slates. She leaned towards her husband. 'I think more lunar deities are going to surface here.'
'Here's another.' The astronaut picked up a new slate with again more alien text and this time hieroglyphs, ancient Egyptian.
She took a moment to read the glyphs, then she gasped. 'Khonsu?!'
Saboru turned to her. 'Khonsu? Who's Khonsu?'
Naoki also turned to her. 'You can read hieroglyphs?'
She was not so surprised. 'Yes Doctor, I can read hieroglyphs.' She then turned to Saboru. 'Khonsu is the Egyptian god of the Moon. He and Thoth represent the passage of time.'
Her boss was surprised. 'I had no idea you knew so much about mythology Setsuna.'
'Not mythology, just lunar deities.'
'Doctors, this is something you need to see.' Dr. Sen drew everyone's attention back to the screen, and no one believed it. It was a map, carved into the backside of the palace building.
Moreover, Setsuna recognized the map's basic shape. 'That's not possible!' She exclaimed, she stood up and walked to the big screen. 'This is ancient Greece!'
'Greece?!' Her husband exclaimed.
'Oh yes. I recognize the shape and the pattern of the islands.' However one in particular caught her eye. It looked more like a star than an island, almost like a symbol even. 'Doctor. Can you take a look at around north of Crete?'
'Where Doctor?' Dr. Sen doesn't travel at all.
She sighed. 'Above the lowest island. Focus on the bottom half of the map.' The view changed as the astronaut moved into position. 'I don't believe it.' The anomaly she saw was much clearer now and there was no doubt in her mind. She pointed to it on the screen, a star shape on the map with Greek writing next to it. "Θήρα" 'That's Thera!' She looked back at the doctors who were both confused at what they were meant to think. 'That's Thera! This is one of the possible locations of Atlantis. It's said that the island may have housed a highly advanced civilization compared to the Greeks, Plato certainly suggested that in his work.' She took a moment to reassess the map again. 'I can't be certain, but judging from this it seems possible that-' She gasped again. 'The Moon Kingdom has indeed been on the Earth, living in fact on Thera.' Audible gasps could be heard all over Mission Control, the doctors joining in.
'Is that even possible?' Naoki asked.
'Why isn't it?' She snapped back. 'It's clear from this map that Thera holds a certain significance to the Moon Kingdom. I can never be certain without testing, but judging purely from what's in front of me right now that seems to be the most likely reason for this.' He nodded in agreement. Setsuna turned back to the screen and realized the astronauts oxygen was getting quite low. 'Doctor, return to the module. You've been there long enough. Recall the others too.'
'Roger that.' Dr. Sen switched off the feed and called out to the others. 'Guys, let's head back to the module.' The three astronauts headed back to the lander and the mission to find the Moon Kingdom was complete, however so much more was discovered. It seems that some sort of cooperation took place and the possibility of cohabitation even began to surface. The Moon held so many secrets that it was only the beginning of a massive discovery.

---

Deep in space, a very small planet was about to be greeted by its second visitor in its lifetime. The first was a similar sized piece of rock that slammed into it very early in its history, the crash resulted in the creation of five moons around this planet. This was Pluto, and after nine and a half years of careful planning and steely navigation finally the New Horizons probe was about to pass it. The probe was already awake, it have been since December last year, but now it had reached the climax of its mission. The probe sent out its regular signal and it raced out at the speed of light - nearly three hundred thousand kilometers every second. This packet of data would take 4 hours, 25 minutes, 18 and a quarter seconds to reach Earth. It screamed past the ice giants, shot straight through the gas giants, pinged across the asteroid belt, raced past Mars and the Moon and reached Earth.


8:49 PM
At JAXA very little was happening, only a few doctors and scientists were working and the rest of the complex was empty. It approached 8:50 in the evening, and all that was left were the maintenance workers and a few night owls during research. In a modern observatory room a doctor was monitoring all the telemetry from the New Horizons probe, Setsuna knew that the probe was going to pass Pluto sometime today, so she asked one of the undergraduates to cover all the data when she was away and call her the second Pluto came into view. He was relaxing at the deck, leaning back onto the chair and drinking coffee, reviewing all the data. All of a sudden one the of monitors changed and the doctor turned to it, he saw a small white dot at the center of an almost purely black screen. The doctor looked up and saw "Camera" on the toolbar, this was the probe's camera and the dot in the middle of the screen was Pluto. Drinking his coffee the doctor spat it out again seeing the toolbar, spraying the monitor and the keyboard with coffee, he immediately put his mug down and grabbed his phone, quickly trying to find Dr. Setsuna Akemi's contract and calling her.
Ringing. Ringing. Ringing, then. 'Hi, you've reached Dr. Setauna Akemi. I can't come to the phone right now, please leave a message after the beep.'
Damnit! The doctor thought. 'Dr. Akemi, this is Dr. Taro, you asked me to call you as soon as Pluto could be seen.' He quickly looks back at the screen and saw the tiny white dot grow very very slightly. 'Well, I can see Pluto. You better get over here now as soon as you get this message.' He hang up and quickly turned to the other monitors to work out how much time she had to get to JAXA.
8:50 PM
Meanwhile in Setsuna's home she and Saboru were both fast asleep in their bed, they were worn out from the day's work. The lights off and the curtains drawn, the only light in the room was the red from the bedside clock, the couple bathed in the glow of the light. All of a sudden her mobile phone began to vibrate and light up, Dr. Taro was calling her. The phone continued to jump around the dresser for a few seconds before stopping, the doctor was leaving his voicemail. She moaned slightly, adjusting her body to relax some more. The phone then light up a second time, repeating the doctor's message;

Code:

Message from Dr. Taro
Dr. Akemi, this is Dr. Taro, you asked me to call you as soon as Pluto could be seen. Well, I can see Pluto. You better get over here now as soon as you get this message.

The phone died down again, and for the next half a minute everything was peaceful again. Then again the phone lit up a third time, Dr. Taro gave Setsuna forewarning;

Code:

Message from Dr. Taro
Dr. Akemi, when you get this message you have roughly 4 hours and 24 minutes before the probe sends full pictures of Pluto here.

12:46 AM
The bedroom was still dark and the couple were still sleeping, however Setsuna stirred. She groaned and rolled over the bed facing the dresser. She aimlessly reached over to the dresser for her phone, eventually finding it and pulling it to her. Still half asleep she checked to see if there was any news, there was. Slowly she was waking up to Dr. Taro's messages and as she read them her eyes widened and her heart began to race. "CRAP!" She yelled, she leapt out of bed, turned on the light and scrambled to get dressed as fast as she could. Saboru grunted, he woke up at the sound of her shriek. 'Setsuna, what are you doing?' He asked still asleep.
Running around in her underwear she grabbed a pair of jeans and put them on. 'I just now checked my phone, my probe is at Pluto now. I don't have a lot of time to get to JAXA.' With her jeans on she walked up to the wardrobe and pulled out a white button shirt to wear.
'I see.' He yawned. 'I'll see you in the morning then.'
Fully clothed she walked up to the bed and kissed him for just a moment. 'It's already morning dear. I'll see you there okay?' He nodded and then fell back asleep. She switched off the light and left the room, she didn't even do her hair.
12:51 AM
Setsuna left her modest home, entered their dark blue car and drove out of the driveway. She sped off towards JAXA. She knew she could make it there in about twenty minutes but she was going to cut it fine.


1:11 AM
Setsuna was just one road away, she passed the last set of traffic lights before she could see the building. She immediately pulled into the parking lot and quickly found a nice space just at the front of the entrance. She quickly got out of the car and checked her watch; 1:12:45 AM. She had just 150 seconds to reach her office on the fifth floor, as soon as she checked her watch she run straight for the doors and with one mighty heave she swung them open. The receptionist was surprised at the sudden jolt. 'Dr. Akemi! You startled me.'
'I don't have any time! I'll sign in in a few minutes!' She stormed off, bolting for the elevator at first but then she noticed the stairs beside them and opened the emergency door. In no time at all she rushed up all five flights of stairs. She huffed and puffed, but took no time to rest. She exited the fire escape route and returned to the main hallway of the fifth floor, checking to see where her office was. She saw Dr. Taro as he waited for her by the door, frantically he beckoned her. She quickly ran down the hall and he stepped aside. Setsuna burst through into her office. 'Report!'
He checked his watch. 'Dr. Akemi, you have about fifteen seconds to spare.' He gestured her to the monitors. 'This way. We're expecting the next image any moment now. The New Horizons probe has survived it's journey.'
'Anything else?' She asked.
'Nothing of note. The moons are too far away to get any real reading.' He replied. The two just sat there, they stared at the monitor and waited for the image to refresh. And then there it was, a full, clear image of the dwarf planet Pluto. It actually looked like a tanned version of the Moon itself, cratered and with shades of dark, earthy browns. Similar to the seas of the Moon. She gasped at the image, she never thought in her wildest dreams she would actually see Pluto. She began to cry, her entire life's work - her thesis, her career, her involvement with New Horizons - had all led to this moment, seeking out and finding Pluto. 'Dr. Akemi?' Dr. Taro saw her eyes welling up and became concerned. 'Are you alright?'
She tried to hold back her tears, and failed. 'I'm fine, I just never thought this would actually happen,-' She stretched out her hands at the monitor, she wants to hold Pluto. 'Actually seeing Pluto.' She sighed, she was finally content. After years of toil and fighting and self doubt over whether of not Pluto was even worthwhile Setsuna felt a great sense of satisfaction seeing this image, it was absolutely worth all the time and the trouble to see Pluto.

---

Inside Setsuna's house was a young girl sitting by the kitchen counter. She sketched in her art book, drawing another one of her latest creations. A heavy set, ironclad swordsman, cleanly slicing a man in half with his sword. Then she heard a rattling from the door, her mother returned home from work. 'Puruto?' Setsuna called out.
'Hello mother.' Puruto replied back.
'How was your day in school dear?' She walked up to her daughter.
'Great, I made a new friend today.'
'Oh, who is he?' Setsuna asked coyly.
She giggled. 'She is a brainiac, like you mother.'
'Don't call her names, Chiyo.' She whined and poked her daughter's side while she continued to laugh. They shared a moment for a while, but then she remembered about the day's revelations earlier, and compelled by worry she reached out to grab onto her shoulder. 'It's a good thing your father isn't here right now Chiyo. I don't think he'll want to hear what I have to say. But Chiyo, I have to tell you something about myself, something that as of right now only one other person knows about me.' She paused for just a moment. 'Do you know the celebrity, Usagi Tsukino-Chiba?'
She nodded. 'Yeah. She's like the writer chick who was a superhero years ago.'
She nodded along to her daughter's cloying description of the Moon Princess. 'Something like that yes. Well, I'm going to tell you my secret Chiyo, and I have no idea how you'll react to it.' Setsuna shook her head at the end of her statement, and she knew that however Chiyo was going to respond her life was about to turn upside down. Chiyo 'Puruto' Akemi was about to discover that her highly intelligent mother would reveal herself to be the superheroine Sailor Pluto, master of time.