Title: Sailor Moon: Light and Darkness, Volume I: The Chosen, Part 3: Choice
Author: David Kogan, 74367.2552@compuserve.com 
Editor: Albert Lee Vest,  vest.1@osu.edu

First, disclaimers:

Sailor Moon and all associated symbols, characters, etc.. are owned, trademarked,
and heavily merchandised by large companies which I do not want to sue me for copyright
infringements.  :-) This is a piece of fan fiction, and all Sailor Moon stuff is not mine.  Anything else I might have accidentally (or purposefully) stolen from anyone is also not mine.

Where was I? Oh, yes, this story, however, was written by me, David Kogan, and
is mine, mine, mine, and mine alone. You are welcome to distribute it in printed form to friends (or, if you don't like it, enemies) as much as you want. Also, if you want to post this on the net anywhere let me know 74367.2552@compuserve.com before you do it.

Once more, this is a piece of fiction.  All characters are fictional , which means
that any resemblance to real people is accidental, (or is purposeful but then not necessarily
true).

I have taken somewhat of a poetic license on the Sailor Moon stroy line, and I do not guarantee (in fact, I doubt) that I will ever return to it.  This story takes over after the Alan/Ann episodes and changes well..... everything, basically, from there.  Basically, though I suppose you could just read this without any knowledge of Sailor Moon, I would not recommend it.  Also, this is the third part in the series, the Chosen, which is why it is named Part 3: Choice. :-)  I would not recommend reading it without reading the first part, Part 1: Questions, or the second part, Part 2: Clash, which you can find at http://pages.prodigy.com/vbaa85a.  Or you can mail me.  It is also the first volume of Sailor Moon: Light and Darkness, but the next part is still in the early part of construction, so you don't really have to worry about that.

This story has been edited slightly from the previous version, hopefully the last of the mistakes have been eliminated. I could not have done it without the person who edited this behemoth. His name is Albert Lee Vest, and if you like the way the story flows without errors, you can let him know at vest.1@osu.edu and I'm sure he will apreciate it.
Well, I guess I'm going to stop babbling now and let you enjoy (hey, who laughed?) the story:


The Chosen
by David N Kogan

*Prologue*
(yes, another one)

The dark plain stretched in every direction, never changing its texture, a
desert underneath an alien sky. No horizon was visible, a blackness darker than
the worst night concealing everything beyond a small distance, blending the sky
and the ground into one darkness.  A harsh wind beat against the ground,
stirring up clouds of gray dust, twirling it, making dust devils that danced
temporarily.  The wind had scrupulously ground every single feature from the
ground, leaving it flat for as far as anyone could see.

Above, the winds were darker, harsher, changing into black clouds that floated
over the landscape, casting harsh shadows over it.  Mere suggestions of light
broke through the thick dark cover, momentarily illuminating the ground, then
vanished as quickly as they came.

Nevertheless, the plain was not completely dark, or completely featureless.

One part of the desert was lit up by a glow that came from a strange source.
It illuminated a strip of land in a wavering, slightly bluish light, spreading
its shine over a small area before the darkness swallowed it up once more to
either side.

The source of the light was obvious, standing out, the only feature in a land
without any.  A row of crystals perhaps eight feet tall each stretched out in a
strip, spread evenly in the center of the glow.  They emitted a light from
within, the strange watery blue that illuminated the ground so strangely, a
glow that came from the power inside them.

For in each crystal was trapped a single creature, imprisoned for all
eternity.

It was the final resting place for all those unfortunate enough to be placed in
the Eternal Sleep by Queen Beryl, former Queen of the Negaverse.

The crystals stood in their row, unmoving, not wavering against the wind,
untouched by the harsh environment.  Despite centuries of keeping those who
failed Beryl prisoner and despite her subsequent death, they still stood, as
impossible to move or alter as mountains.

The creatures inside were diverse in the extreme.  They came from the every
range of possibilities.  Some were humanoid, so similar to a normal person they
could not be told from one.  Others were as alien as the crystals in which they
now rested, as if someone twisted a natural being into a warped form.  Almost
all held some expression of pain in their features, from the process of being
encased in their prison, but not all.  A few, a very few, seemed relaxed,
resigned to their fate.

The crystals held all of them, melding around their limbs, bonding them to the
transparent substance.  The crystals did not care who was inside, and almost
every crystal was the same, a slightly glowing obelisk of glass.

But not all of them.

The last two were different.

The one next to the last was not really that different at first glance, but the
changes were obvious.  While the other crystals around it emitted the wavering
blue glow, this one was dark.  Inside, a blond man stared out, completely
relaxed against his bonds, not moving, but also obviously not trying to move.
Several cuts on his body spilled orange-red blood over him, some of the blood
diffusing into the crystal around him like a cloud, hiding the details of his
appearance.  But one thing was obvious to anyone. 

He was dead.

A single cut in his chest had gone all the way through before his being encased
in the Eternal Sleep, an obviously mortal wound.  Of all the creatures trapped
forever in the line of crystals, he was only who was able to rest.

But despite that, his was not the crystal that really stood out from the rest.
It was the last crystal that was really different.

Unlike some of the others,  it was obvious that the creature inside this one
was not resigned to his fate.  His limbs strained with an almost visible
effort, the arms striving against his prison.  In one hand, a sword flashed
malevolently as he forced it into the transparent material.  A look of hate and
determination on his face spoke of only one thing.  The need to be free.  And
the muscles twisted in that anger, flowed with its power, and ground themselves
against the glass.

And the crystal's light flickered, for it was not meant to withstand that kind
of force, never created to deal with the kind of creature that was inside it.
A myriad of tiny cracks covered it, flashing bright blue against the
transparent background of the glass.  Had anyone been there to observe it, that
person would have noticed the cracks growing larger, expanding, ever so
slowly.

But there was no one to witness but the howling wind, tearing at the outside of
the glass prison as if trying to help the person within.

Time passed slowly, for there was nothing to measure it by.  The wind continued
to blow, the crystals pulsed, the clouds glided overhead.

And the creature filled with hate continued to strive for freedom.

Then a certain point was reached, the crystal's cracks expanding.  One of them
suddenly widened, creaking, almost screaming in a human way, then another
followed.

The crystal suddenly let out a shrill scream, then the light in it died.  The
eyes of the creature inside seemed to flash in satisfaction, as he forced
himself to thrust once more.

And the crystal shattered, splinters of its material littering the ground
around his feet.  
Each shard that fell pulsed once with a gloomy dark blue light, then began to
evaporate, the combined streams of vapor obscuring the one in the center for a
few moments.

Then he stepped out, a black figure that cut through the fog, extinguishing
it.

He stopped at the edge of the vapor, obviously disoriented, his eyes pulsing
unevenly. Almost without warning, he collapsed, the wind whipping dust around
his body as the last of the crystal shards behind him disappeared into the air.
For a long time he lay still, his hand clutching at his chest, then got up, one
hand still clutching the sword.  Energy seemed to flow from the malevolent
blade into him, giving him the power to move.  Slowly, as if each motion caused
him pain, he stepped forward, walking down the line of crystals.  He paused for
a few moments in front of the darkened prison next to his, then shook his
head.

"You always were weak, Jadeite." The first words came harshly out of his throat
as he addressed them to the dead warrior.  The general's eyes seemed to look at
him reproachfully as the other continued down the line.

At the end of the row, he halted, staring at one figure.  For a long time he
stood there, continuing to look, then he did something strange.

Staring at the crystal so similar to his own prison, he began to laugh, a
hollow echoing sound that reverberated through the dusty desert.  Hefting his
sword, the creature prepared to strike the crystalline cube.

Out of the prison, a figure clad from head to toe in gray armor seemed to stare
through a metal face shield at the stranger, one metal clad arm clutching a
heavy mace as if about to bring it down on the other's head.

As he prepared to strike with the sword, the Dark Lord continued to laugh, the
sound echoing louder and louder, consuming all other sounds, until even the
wind was still.



*Part III: Choice*


"Mars Fire IGNITE!"  In the giant black room, a perfect cube, the shout echoed
back and forth.

A lance of flames sped forward after the black figure as he ducked a little,
crouching to the featureless floor.  It seemed about to hit, when he suddenly
straightened out, keeping the momentum of his sprint, launching himself at the
wall in front of him.  The fire slammed into the floor, flaring for a moment,
then extinguished itself against the smooth panels.

The man in black, at the same time, changed his orientation in midair, hitting
the wall feet first, then collapsing himself into a crouch, sideways on the
wall.  For a split moment, he seemed to stick there, defying the laws of
gravity, but it was over far too fast to really be sure.

Then a bolt of lightning flashed toward him, Sailor Jupiter getting close
enough that she thought she couldn't miss.  But instead of launching himself up
from the wall, as everyone expected him to do, he used the energy stored in his
legs to thrust himself down, the blast of lightning flashing over his head.

He hit the floor hard, but immediately tucked himself into a roll, coming up
without pause and jumping straight for the first scout if front of him.

Sailor Jupiter had no time at all to react, no time to launch another attack,
as he slammed into her, avoiding a feeble blow and knocking her to the ground.
Drawing his sword, he slashed once at her throat and she collapsed.

"Mars Firebird STRIKE!!!"  The red scout launched a bird made entirely out of
flames at the man as he sheathed his sword and sprang to one side.  A second
later, he reversed the motion, again surprising the scouts, heading directly
toward the flying attack.  At the last moment, when the red of the flames
reflected off the slight layer of perspiration on his face, he dodged to one
side, smoothly avoiding the bird, letting it pass by.

Mars smiled as her attack, possessing a mind of its own, turned in midair,
pursuing the man who continued to run toward Rei.  He was fast, very fast, but
he could not run away from her firebird.

He changed directions again in the same liquid-like manner, flowing from one
heading to another, now going directly at Mercury.  The blue scout, startled
out of her reverie, suddenly remembered her objective.

Without thinking very much, something rare for her, Ami closed her eyes.
"Mercury Ice Bubbles... Freeze!"

As the freezing front of fog launched toward him, the man seemed to almost
smile.  The two attacks closed in on him, and at the last moment, as he dodged
to one side, Mercury suddenly realized her mistake.

With a smooth move, he circled around the unguided blast of cold air, placing
it between him and the firebird.  Mars's attack had some intelligence, but not
that much. Without thinking, it plowed into the freezing area.

Then it warped, hissing as the two collided, and within a moment, it dissipated
as the cold front continued on, severely diminished.

Meanwhile, the man slammed into Sailor Mercury, slashing her throat with his
sword in the same way as he did with Jupiter, then he turned to Rei, pivoting
on one foot effortlessly.  Dodging a hasty beam of fire, he feinted with his
sword, then came under one arm and drew the blade across her neck as well.

To one side, Sailor Moon and Sailor Venus gaped, too far to help their friends,
as a wave of cold air hit them.  Mercury's attack had not been designed to work
against her allies, but this far from the source it was uncontrollable.  Though
weak, it did slow down the response of the two scouts a little, allowing the
man to close in, a slight smile on his face.
"Venus Crescent Beam..."  For some reason, the orange scout hesitated as she
pointed at the man, and Sailor Moon glanced at her in surprise.  

Lifting the scepter, the princess concentrated. "Moon Scepter-"  It was too
late, the man arriving with unstoppable swiftness, knocking Mina to one side
with a careful blow, then putting his sword against the skin of Serena's neck.
With his other hand, he grasped at the center of her chest, his fingers
wrapping around the object there, then pulled.  The locket came away with a
sharp ripping sound as Serena transformed back into her ordinary self.  The man
stepped back, hefting the crystal, looking around.

Three scouts lay dead on the field, two were completely neutralized, and he had
the Crystal in his possession.

He sighed, putting the sword away into the harness across his back, next to its
twin, and shook his head.  For the first time, he opened his mouth. "Time?"
His voice was completely relaxed.

"Time is two minutes after start," answered a melodious voice that seemed to
come from everywhere.

"End simulation," he ordered, bending down.  With one hand, he gave Serena back
the crystal while lifting her with the other.  The rest of the scouts stirred,
rising from their positions from the floor.

Lita groaned, rubbing one gloved finger along the hairline cut to her throat.
"You have got to find an easier way of declaring us beaten, " she spoke
ruefully.  The other grinned, then shook his head, looking around.  The scouts
had gotten away with mostly bruises, plus the three cuts to the throat.  His
suit was slightly scorched from the flames of the firebird, and his nerves had
been shocked by one of Lita's lightning bolts.

But otherwise, he was unharmed, the suit stopping the minor energies that
reached easily.
Another figure dressed in black came into the large arena, two small shapes to
either side.
"What do you think?" Nakiad tossed over his shoulder at Darian and the two
guardians.

"Well, they are getting better," the prince answered with a smile.

"They *have* improved a lot with the practice," Luna agreed with a sigh,
exchanging a glance with Artemis.

"Yes," the Chosen agreed, "but they still do not work as a real team.  Each
attacks alone, unsupported by the others."  He raised his voice, making sure
the scouts could hear "If I had been from the Negaverse, you would all be dead,
and the crystal would be mine."
Tuxedo Mask shook his head. "What's the last monster you met that could fight
like you," he asked frivolously.  The other looked at him darkly until the
prince frowned. "Oh."  The Dark Lord, who was bound to get free.

"'Oh', indeed."  He shook his head, his face suddenly tired and his voice
softened as he turned toward the individual scouts. "Lita.." He paused for a
moment. "You did all right, but you were not ready for me going after you as I
did, you were dependent on you attack to stop me.  And you separated from the
rest of the scouts, away from their protection."  He stared at her until she
sighed and looked away, then he turned to Mars and Mercury. "Ami, Rei," he
shook his head. "You actually did all right, but I was actually surprised that
you," he looked at the blue scout, "would make the kind of tactical mistake you
did.  You, Rei, did well, except that you did not expect the firebird to be
extinguished by Mercury."

He sighed once more, then turned to Sailor Moon, ignoring Mina for a moment.
"Serena... You are too dependent on the Scepter, without it you were completely
helpless."

The girl frowned, protesting. "But it is the source of my power, what I use to
attack others."

Nakiad seemed to hang his head. "No, Serena," he said softly. "You have
inherited the power of the Moon, not by the scepter, or even the crystal.
*You* are the source of the power, not some silly looking stick."  The
princess shook her head, obviously not understanding, and he sighed once more.
"I suppose you are not ready for that yet," he murmured to himself. "I just
fear you may have to believe in that sooner than you wish.  There is another
thing, though," he turned to the rest of the scouts. "I know I've been saying
this pretty often, but you have to get used to your powers being part of you.
The reason you lose is because you wield the attacks like weapons, letting them
separate from yourself, and then can not handle it when they miss.  You have to
be able to use the strikes as if they were an extension of your fighting
skills, a different way of punching or kicking.  Only then will you truly be
unbeatable."

He looked at each in turn. "That is why I want you to try this over the next
week or so.  I want you to try attacking with your powers without saying the
words to the strikes.  Try concentrating on the power, internalizing it, then
releasing it. At first, the attacks might be much weaker than normal, but in
the end, you will benefit from it."

The scouts looked at him as if he was asking the impossible, but did not
object.
For a few moments, he remained there, silent, then raised his head.  "I think
we should call it a day.  Anyone for a shower?"  The question was rhetorical,
as everyone followed him through the room, towards a door that blended in
perfectly with the walls.

On the way, he paused, hanging back a little, until he was walking next to
Mina. "You hesitated again," he told her calmly, sadly.

The girl sighed as she leaned on him and closed her eyes. "I know," she
answered softly.
"You can not live your whole life based on one mistake."  For a moment, he was
silent, his eyes looking somewhere far away. "Believe, me, I know," he finished
softly.

The scout did not answer, but the look she gave him told him enough.

He shook his head. "It was more my fault than yours, and no one was hurt in the
end.  It does not matter."

"It is hard for me-" she began as they came up to the exit.

"I know." It is hard for me as well, he agreed silently as they stepped out
into the corridor.

Outside, Lita closed her eyes a little as she went out into the giant corridor,
and remembered the first time they had been at Nakiad's house.

*	*	*

"I have done some research into portals, quite a lot of it, but so far, the
scientific solution has not worked as well as the... magical, you would call
it."  Nakiad was driving the car, Mina sitting next to him.

Lita shook her head, looking around the vehicle.  When she had first seen it,
it had seemed like an ordinary minivan, like the kind that were always seen on
the streets.  The only thing missing was the symbol of the company that
manufactured it, there was nowhere a name or a trademark type.  From the front
to the rear, the car was completely black, with no writing of any kind, nothing
marring the smooth surface.  The other thing that was strange on the outside of
the car was the lisence plate.  Actually, the green scout frowned a little,
there was nothing really strange about it, except that she couldn't remember
the license plate number, although she distinctly remembered examining it.

Still, she might have just been surprised by the inside of the car, and the
number might have slipped her mind.  On the inside, the van seemed a lot larger
than one would expect in a normal car its size.  Although it still looked
almost ordinary, some things were just a little off.  Such as the control panel
in front of the driver, one that reminded Lita of the photo she had once seen
of a space center, or the way the steering wheel seemed capable of moving up
and down.

Sighing, the green scout refocused on the conversation about portals.

"So how far have you gotten?"  Ami looked up from her seat next to Lita, her
curiosity naturally aroused.

"I've been able to make a one-way portal, but the equipment necessary to create
it is too bulky to transport.  And, it has a few side effects," he added
ruefully, rubbing his forehead for a moment. "Nothing dangerous, but rather
unpleasant.  I try to avoid using it whenever possible."

The others did not reply as the minivan continued down the winding road.  As he
had promised, he was taking them to see his house for the first time, which it
turned out was pretty close to Tokyo.  They had been driving for half an hour,
the scouts getting a bit cramped in the minivan that seemed to be designed to
sit seven people comfortably.  Now it was carrying those seven exactly, but
apparently Nakiad had not thought he would be carrying teenagers.  By an
unfortunate coincidence Rei and Serena ended up next to each other, which
didn't turn out too well, and they had to be separated.  Several other battles
ensued when the scouts tried to decide who would get the front seat, and who
would get to sit on the slightly larger back seat.

Darian sighed slightly.  He had been taking the commotion as well as he could,
ignoring the various limbs that were jammed into him.  Several times, he had
glanced at Nakiad with envy, the man apparently unmoved by what was happening
around him.  Finally, the prince had ended up sitting next to Serena on the
middle seat, something that would have suited him all right except for the fact
that his true love could not seem to sit still.

"Look Darian, did you see that?" She suddenly yelled in his ear, suddenly
enough to make him jump, and he sighed once more, turning to look at whatever
it was she had seen.

The vehicle was definitely not designed to carry people this active, especially
not along with two rather disgruntled cats, one of which was prone towards car
sickness.

"Relax, Artemis," Nakiad glanced over at the cat, whose fur was temporarily
taking on a greenish tint, "we are almost there."  The Chosen turned off the
main road into a smaller one.

For a moment he paused, turning to look at the scouts, smiling, then looked
back.
They passed a gate, to either side of which stretched a wire fence three yards
high.  As they passed the entrance, Nakiad closed his eyes as if speaking to
someone in his mind, then continued on through.  For a few minutes they
continued through a wooded area until they came to a clearing, the car slowly
pulling up to a halt.

He turned once more. "Welcome to my humble abode, ladies and gentlemen.  And
cats," he added with a smile, glancing at the two guardians.

Outside, a green field surrounded a house that was surprisingly ordinary.  Only
one story high, it seemed strangely in place with the surroundings.  Large
windows were surrounded by walls that looked like they were made out of wood
and stone.  To one side a path covered with irregularly shaped stones led off
into the woods  Other than for the size of the driveway, and the territory that
surrounded them, the house might have been found just about anywhere.

Artemis came up to Nakiad, having jumped out of the car as soon as Mina opened
the door.  The cat looked at the house, his legs still slightly shaky from the
ride. "I thought you had said the place would be impressive."

The Chosen looked down at his former tutor. "I didn't exactly want the
government or the military on my case every time I did something-" He paused,
smiling a little. "Something interesting, yes.  Mostly, everything's
underground."

They went in slowly, the scouts looking around the strange countryside.  Many
of the trees growing around the house did not look as if they belonged there,
some resembling something that might have been found in a tropical rain forest.
On their way, Lita remembered Ami telling her that at least half of the trees
were not of a variety native to Japan.

Inside, the house was still amazingly ordinary, furnished in a modern style,
nothing that one might not find in a Tokyo suburb.

"This part's for the tourists, though I spend a lot of my time living here."
Nakiad answered their silent question with a slightly sad smile.  Come to think
of it, Lita thought, he never completely smiled, as if there was always
something worrying him.

Then the Chosen stretched out his hand, placing it palm down on a small coffee
table.  To one side, Lita saw movement, and turned, amazed, as a wall slid
silently into the floor, revealing a large passageway angling down.

"*This* is the interesting part."

*	*	*

Lita shook her head, opening her eyes.  Nakiad had been telling the truth, they
had been impressed.  The green scout had no clue as to the portion of the house
she had seen, but what she knew of was gigantic. They had walked for several
minutes through the first hallway before they came to anything at all, and
after that, there seemed to be an infinite number of branchings.  The place was
like an enormous three dimensional maze, in which the people were the rats
scrambling along glass walls.  On the other hand, it did make for good
exercise, trotting from place to place all the time, the green scout added with
a smile.  The place was large enough that it took a long time to go just to the
places she knew of. And Lita had a hunch that what she did not know about was
even larger.

The place was an amazing jumble of the ultra modern and the antique.  A person
walking down a hallway might walk through a clean, bare white corridor with no
decorations whatsoever on the walls, then enter a dimly lit hallway made out
stones, that seemed to have come right out of the middle ages.

Still, no matter how ancient a particular piece of the complex was, there would
always be technology near by, in the form of light, conveniences, screens, the
ever present computer.  
 
But the most impressive thing, in Lita's view, was not the technology, which
seemed advanced in some places and slightly retarded in others.  No, the most
superb thing was the range of training facilities that existed, both
underground in rooms like the one they just left, and in the training area to
which the path through the woods led.

And even as the green scout thought that there could not be another way to
train, he led them to yet another place, a different way of studying every
time, as if he could read her mind and knew when she was getting used to
something.

Then Lita shook her head, suddenly angry.  In almost every single area, he had
been able to beat them, no matter how hard they tried.  She had gotten used to
thinking of the scouts as the best, able to defeat any foe.  And yet Nakiad,
with almost all the powers of the Chosen gone, managed to defeat them
constantly.

For the first time Lita wondered if they were not ready for any threat the
Negaverse might send after them.

*	*	*

Nakiad sighed, settling down to watch the scouts fight yet another group of
monsters, almost acting as a team.  This time, Tuxedo Mask was with them,
aiding them in the destruction of three large reptiles that breathed a
poisonous vapor.

The Chosen smiled a little, continuing to watch the fight via his electronic
position.  Because of the danger of injury, the combat was not real, but took
place inside a computer generated simulation.  The scouts along with the prince
were stuffed into gyroscope like spheres, with adjustments that changed their
position to correspond with the fight they were seeing.  The technology was far
from perfect, but it was a considerable improvement on the best available
outside his home.  It allowed the training, both mental and physical, without
much threat to the person being tested.

Nakiad was in a similar suit, though he was not feeling it at the moment,
inside the simulation with everyone but the two cats.  He smiled, remembering
his chagrin when he thought about the two guardians.  He had been prepared for
the possibility of the scouts undergoing training, but not Luna and Artemis.
The two cats were considerably annoyed at not being able to participate.

A lance of poisonous gas lanced into Sailor Mars and she went down, coughing
and clutching her chest.  Two scouts carried her away while two others covered
them, and Nakiad almost smiled with satisfaction at the group effort.  On the
other hand, they were not winning, which was not good.

Then the Chosen blinked.  At least his simulation did.

A strange feeling was going through him, flooding his systems.  It was almost
as if- impossible, he told himself.

Guardian suddenly appeared a foot or so away from his face. <Do you feel
it?>

For a moment, Nakiad looked at the other, feeling that something was not right
about his protector talking to him. Then he figured it out. "How can you be
inside a simulation?"
Guardian seemed to laugh. <I'm not.  You only think I am.>

The Chosen shook his head, then replied to the original question.  "Yes, I feel
something."  He got up, preparing to go somewhere, then remembered that he was
still inside the computer.  With a twitch of his mind, he ended it, the scene
around him blurring and refocusing a second later into the front of his visor.
With another thought, Nakiad activated the mental release, the suit
disengaging, dropping him to the floor.

Artemis came up to him. "What's wrong?"

What *is* wrong? Nakiad asked himself the question angrily.  The other
scouts were still inside their suits, obviously not noticing his absence.  So
they did not feel anything, it was only him.  The man closed his eyes, quickly
scanning his system, not finding anything.  He did it again as Guardian
appeared, shining silently in midair.

"Something is wrong, but I don't know what."  He shook his head, not used to
being helpless before a problem.

Then something hit him, something in his scans that he did not notice because
it was so subtle it escaped his attention.  He had simply noted it and went on
with the rest of the scan, the discrepancy never making it to his conscious
mind.

He looked within himself again, narrowing it down.

And he found it.

It was so subtle that it was almost impossible to feel, coming from deep
within.  From somewhere inside, energy gathered, coursing through his veins,
gathering ever so slowly.  With horror, Nakiad realized that he was becoming
more powerful.

Cursing to himself he opened his eyes.
<What is it?>  Guardian's voice suggested that he already knew.
Nakiad shook his head, suddenly tired. "*He* is free."
A silence descended on the room, even the scouts halting their battle for a
moment, thought they could not possibly hear him.  Still, the amount of emotion
he had released with those three words might be that Mina or Rei, at least, had
felt it. The rest of the scouts might well follow the other's example.

After a minute, the man suddenly sat down on a chair, then addressed the
computer. "End simulation," he stated, his voice barren of any emotion.  

*	*	*

Mina slipped in the green river of blood coming from the first monster, the
reptile not moving.  The orange scout almost lost her balance, a strand of the
poisonous vapor passing close to her, blown away by a fortuitous gust of wind.
She rejoined the other scouts, facing the two remaining creatures.

The first one had been almost impossible to destroy, taking a direct hit from
the Scepter without dying, a second hit required to finish it.  The other two
creatures did not even seem to be tired, though each had scarred portions on
their hide and dozens of roses embedded all over their bodies.  Still, they
raged, regrouping and attacking, making it very difficult to escape their
attention for the time needed for the scouts to attack.

"He isn't making this easy," Rei gasped, holding her side, referring to Nakiad.
She was mostly recovered from her encounter with the gas, the breath she took
having been a small one.

"It wouldn't be of any use to us if it was," Tuxedo Mask retorted, throwing
another rose only to have it glance off one of the tougher portions of his
target creature's hide.

Ami frowned, tapping a command on her computer, then looked at the man. "Try
going for their eyes again."

Darian shrugged and threw another rose.  As before, the creature merely moved
its head fractionally, letting the sharp tip bounce off the ridge of bone under
its eyelid. "It's no use."

"Mars Fire.."  Rei began, then everyone had to scatter as the creatures pounced
on them, and the scout's attack was interrupted.

"It's taking too much time to strike," Ami yelled at Mina from across the
ground held by the two reptiles. "They seem to know when we are powering up."
Then the blue scout had to dive out of the way of another breath of poison.

Panting, Mina closed her eyes.  Nakiad had told them many times that their
power came from within, that words were only there for their benefit.  The
orange scout thought deep within herself, concentrating on a beam of energy.
She felt something begin to form, then her insides wavered and she felt a bit
of pain in her hand.

Then she felt something strange, an emotion that seemed to be coming in from
outside.

Opening her eyes, the girl looked around to find that the outside was also
changing, melting and disappearing.  She suddenly remembered that she was
inside a simulation, just in time for her to feel the metal of the suit.  As it
released her, dropping her to the floor, she managed to land on her feet.
A yelp from her right told her that she was lucky in that respect.  Serena
picked herself up from the ground, rubbing one side with an angry expression.
Behind her, Darian was also frowning and seemed to be favoring one ankle, but
he did not seem to be overly angry.  Instead, he seemed puzzled, staring at
some point behind Mina.

She whirled in place, finding the object of Darian's attention to be a black
figure sitting on a chair with a strange expression on his face.  Mina's feet
automatically took her to him, sitting down on a chair facing his.

"What is it?"  The other scouts gathered around, some sitting down as well.
"We have a problem," he answered with a dark sigh.

He sat down brooding, then remembered that he was being watched, and looked
up.
Straight into Mina's eyes, and he forced himself to keep from flinching.  They
were so innocent, unmindful of worries, caring about him in a way he never
thought anyone would again.  And yet she loved him, despite his first failure,
and somehow, he knew she would love him even when he had to fight the Shadow
once more.

He sighed, thinking, still looking into her eyes. <The innocent are always
the first to die.>
<'In *war*, the *brave* are always the first to die', >Guardian
corrected the quote, and Nakiad cursed the others ability to see his thoughts.
<And this is not war.>

<Isn't it?>  Nakiad asked the question bitterly, then focused back
outside.

"What is wrong?"  Mina was asking him again, and he forced himself to look
away.
He tried to think of an easy way to say it, but couldn't think of one.  Then a
white cat hopped on the control console to his side and answered for him. "The
Dark Lord is free," Artemis said calmly.  Nakiad looked at him, thanking him
the best he could with his eyes.

The scouts immediately focused on the cat. "How do you know?," Rei asked almost
immediately. "I haven't felt anything."

Nakiad looked at her, smiling gently. "I know."  He forced his voice to remain
calm, his face expressionless. "When the Dark Lord was defeated and imprisoned
in Eternal Sleep by Nephlyte," he began, his hand going up to his chest where
the wound was. Had it been only a month, he wondered silently?  It seemed like
an eternity.  And yet, it was soon, far sooner than even Guardian's worst
projections.  He wondered where the Dark Lord could have gotten the strength,
and had to admit to himself that he really did not know the Shadow's abilities.
Nakiad remembered what he was saying, continuing. "His power was trapped
within.  The Eternal Sleep ordinarily keeps everything constant, but it seems
that he was able to heal inside, for I have healed and we are joined
together.

"After his imprisonment, I felt the strength given to me as the Chosen
disappear.  Now, I am no more than what I was before I ever had the post.
Other than physical abilities and my ability to drain things, I can not do
much.  And even in that, I am diminished."

He raised his head, keeping his voice level. "And that is good, for that was
how I knew the Dark Lord was imprisoned.  My power corresponds to his, as long
as I have none, he is helpless as well."

For a few moments, there was silence, then Ami looked up. "You said, you
*knew*, past tense."  The question was in every scouts' face.

"Yes," Nakiad sighed. "I feel my strength returning.  Slowly, almost impossible
to notice, but it is coming back.  It will take another millennium for it to
accumulate back to its full strength, but its presence makes one fact clear."

"He is free," Mina answered for him, whispering.

"Yes," he agreed, a wealth of understatement in that one word.

For what seemed like a long time, the room was silent.

Finally, Luna sighed, shaking her head. "All right. He is free.  This isn't
exactly unexpected."

Nakiad nodded. "Early, yes, unexpected, no."

The black cat looked at him. "So exactly how bad is this?"

The man sighed, looking around the room. "I truly don't know.  Theoretically,
his strength is generally equal to my own, so he will be capable of the same
things I am.  Right now, I am pretty weak, and, like I said, it will take a
long time for me to get back to full strength."

"So what can he do?"  Lita asked the question, looking directly at the
Chosen.

He sighed, shaking his head. "You want to know if he can travel between
universes."   Nakiad paused, thinking. "I don't think so.  It will take a long,
long time for him to get the strength necessary to do that.  If you recall, I
needed to drain energy from the power lines leading to Tokyo in order to make
it, and that was an effort.  I could not have done it without that extra
strength, or if I did, I would have been too weak to fight him."

For a moment, the scouts looked at him, then Rei frowned. "Wait, what you are
saying is that he cannot get to the Universe?"

Nakiad nodded slowly. "I do not think so."

"Then what is the problem?  If he cannot get here, he can't cause any harm."  A
ripple of relief spread through the scouts.

But Nakiad still looked sad. "You do not know him like I do.  I have fought him
twice, I have seen what he is."  For a moment, the Chosen stared into space.
"Perhaps you are right, maybe it does not change anything."

He got up suddenly. "Still, I would feel better if we returned to Tokyo
tonight, and cut the training session short."  He smiled to himself, seeing the
hopeful look of the scouts.  The training *is* rather painful, he reminded
himself.  And doing it every weekend is pretty tough, though not as much so as
doing it every day.  At least until you get used to it, he remembered, after
that you can hardly live without it.

Mina looked at him hopefully. "You said 'we', not 'you'."

"Yes, I think I should come with you this time.   Rei, you want me to stay at
the temple again?"  Or do you trust me, he added mentally with a slight
smile.

The red scout nodded. "If you want to, but I'm sure Darian will be glad to put
you up for a day or two."  Tuxedo Mask nodded as well.

"All right, then it's settled.  And I think we should take the portal," Nakiad
added, ignoring the collective groans.  "I'll shut down over here while you
change."

The scouts along with Darian and the two guardians filed out the door while he
turned to the console, shutting down the power to the gyroscope-like
simulators.

Guardian appeared behind him. <This is bad.>

<Perhaps the scouts are right, perhaps he is helpless there.>  Nakiad did
not turn around, a red light on the console attracting his attention.

<Perhaps>, Guardian said with a sigh, then disappeared.

The man punched a few keys on the console, then turned to one of the suits.
Slowly, he came up to the gyroscope like structure holding it. With a strange
expression on his face, he looked at the fingertips of the gloves closely.

The covering over the right index finger was charred.

It was Mina's suit, Nakiad remembered, and frowned, wondering.

*	*	*

He breathed in deeply, savoring the air.  Usually, Tokyo was as lacking of
fresh smells as any other major city, but tonight was different.  A fairly
strong wind gusted from the direction of the bay, brining in the smell of the
sea, clearing the sky.  As the city darkened gradually, the stars came out of
their hiding behind the veil of the sun, and the city glittered with beauty.

But Nakiad paid little attention to all of this after breathing out, he had
more important business at hand.  He had told Darian, at whose place he was
staying for a few days, that he wanted to go look around the city, but that was
not exactly true.  Or at least, it was not the whole truth.

He sighed, a black shape against the background of the buildings and lights,
standing on a roof in the middle of the city.  It was not the first time he had
to lie, or slightly alter the truth, but he never enjoyed it.  He knew how
expensive a lie could be, when you had to live with it.  Forever.

But something strange was happening, something Nakiad could not quite explain.
The logical part of him insisted that the Dark Lord could do nothing, trapped
in the Negaverse, nothing dangerous.  But another part of him, the primordial
subconscious that joined with the Shadow twice in their battles, whispered
otherwise.  It was an insistent voice, always in the background, telling him to
watch out, to be on alert.  And that voice brought him to this alley, in the
middle of the city, and told him to wait.  A strange feeling passed through him
for a moment, like a cold breeze making him shiver, but the wind coming from
the sea was warm.  The chill that took him was more than just physical, an
emotional stirring that promised dark things to come.

Without thinking, Nakiad reached for one of the pouches around his waist, his
hand grasping something there, then paused.  The chill increased through his
bones, his body remaining still.  Only his eyes moved, focusing on a single
spot in the middle of the alley, a place on the pavement that looked no
different than any other.  But it was not the same, for an emotional cold
gathered in its center, and focused, changing, altering the fabric of the
air.

For a moment, nothing happened, then a black figure formed in the center of the
point, a figure that radiated malevolence in the same way that the sun radiated
light.

Nakiad kept himself from flinching physically even as his insides jerked, then
the figure finished forming.  A part of him sighed in relief for it was
definitely not the Shadow.  The figure was gray and seemed to be clad in armor
that covered its whole body.  A heavy mace rested easily in one arm, a mace
that should have been impossible for a person to lift so easily.

Then the figure turned, and looked up, directly at the Chosen, and his feeling
of relief vanished, replaced by another feeling, just as powerful.

The feeling was dread.

"No," Nakiad whispered quietly as the figure stared up at him.

*	*	*

The flame flickered suddenly for a strange reason, and Rei opened her eyes,
awakened from her meditation.  Something, somewhere in the city, was not right,
a force of evil invading the scout's mind.  The evil intensified, growing in
force until it was unmistakable, then stabilized.  For a few moments Rei did
not move then she looked into the flames, preparing to ask.

She did not get a chance, as her communicator beeped, awakening her to reality.
With one hand, she pulled it out of her pocket, looking at the screen.

It was Nakiad, and his usually calm face was creased with lines of worry. "We
have a problem," he said, his voice wavering a bit as he looked at something
behind him, then the screen went blank.

Shaking her head in confusion, Rei punched the button for Serena, knowing the
girl would be hardest to awaken.



Ami put the communicator back on the table next to her bed as she got up, her
hand grasping for the transforming stick.  As she grasped the smooth surface
she remembered suddenly the time she would never forget, when the pen spoke
with the power of her planet, keeping them from interfering with Nakiad.  The
fingers closed around the shape, keeping it tight. For a moment before she
changed, the scout wondered how Nakiad cut into the scout communication grid,
then she spoke the words that changed her.  Blue energy bands encircled her as
her mind thought frantically.



"Rei has no respect for sleep," Serena muttered sleepily as she reached for the
locket.
"It is Nakiad who called first," Luna told her with annoyance, "he is the one
who needs help."
"All right, all right."



With a smooth motion, Nakiad put the communicator back in its pouch, having
done all he could to alert the scouts.  The armored figure continued to stare
up at him for a few moments, as if thinking.  Then a surge of power seemed to
go through it, and the massive arm holding the mace thrust into motion,
directly against the side of the building on which Nakiad stood.

As the end of the weapon turned into a blur, the building shook with the
impact.  A portion of it began to collapse, a large piece almost directly under
the Chosen's feet turning to rubble.

With a smooth motion, he jumped down the five story building, landing easily,
facing the creature.  For a moment, it hesitated, then thrust into motion once
more.

The massive mace seemed to whistle in parting the air as the figure brought it
through the air directly at Nakiad's head.  The sharp studs on the sphere of
metal reflected the light of the city ominously as it approached.

At the last moment, two swords seemed to appear as if by magic in Nakiad's
hands, as he shifted into a lower stance.  The two thin blades seemed pitifully
inadequate against the sheer power of the mace as they intersected the other
weapon's path.

But the swords of the Chosen were made of no ordinary metal, but of Maraki, one
of the strongest materials in existence.  And the strength of the Chosen went
into the blades, hardening them, making them almost indestructible.

And so when the mace smashed into the swords, they did not shatter as the
armored figure might have thought they would, but held.  Nakiad's stance flexed
a little as he absorbed the blow, then he twisted the mace aside, slamming it
into the ground.  While one sword kept it down, the other whistled in an arc
and slammed into the armored shoulder.

Nakiad frowned at the resulting shock, not surprised.  Any ordinary material
should have been at least damaged from the blow, but the figure emerged
unscathed.  Unfortunately, that only confirmed the man's fears as to what the
figure was.

Another surge of strength rippled through the creature as it brought the mace
up from the ground, thrusting Nakiad's sword upward almost negligently.  The
man did not flinch, merely returning to a combat stance, ready for the other's
attack.

The armored figure did not think for long.  The mace went back, behind the
creature's head, the arm holding it tensing like a wound spring.  Then the
weapon launched forward, directly down at Nakiad's head once more.

This time, the man chose a more promising tactic, stepping aside smoothly from
the point of impact, letting the mace pass by him and slam into the pavement,
without trying to stop it directly.

It was a mistake.

The weapon slammed into the concrete with a thunderclap, jarring the Chosen,
then continued through the covering.  All around the impact, the pavement
exploded upward in a circle, the ground rippling like a wave.

As the ripples reached the Chosen, the pavement left his feet for a moment,
then came back up, slamming against the soles of his thin shoes.  For a split
moment, he came off balance, his stance flickering a bit.

In that instant, the figure came forward again, the mace whistling sideways
this time, not leaving the Chosen any place to escape.  He was only able to
save himself by rolling backward on the cracked pavement, coming up to a
somewhat unsteady stance.

Though the creature's face was completely hidden, the figure's stance seemed to
speak of amusement as it raised its mace once more.  This time, it slammed
directly into the pavement between the creature and Nakiad.

The cracked pavement did not withstand the abuse.  This time it collapsed in a
line going directly at the man, though Nakiad was ready for it and got out of
the way.  After a moment, he regained his balance, and was able to strike at
the knight once more, with no effect.

They continued fighting, the figure unable to get in a hit on the Chosen, but
the man's hits completely worthless against the strange armor.

Nakiad began to get tired.



Ami rushed through the street toward the location of the Chosen according to
her computer.  Next to her, Serena was puffing from the run, a black cat pacing
the two girls.
"How," Serena breathed heavily, "much further do we have to go?"

Ami tapped a few keys on her computer and frowned. "The disturbance is a fair
distance away, it will take us several more minutes."  Another key showed the
probable location of the other scouts, and a tentative placement for Tuxedo
Mask.  None of the scouts would reach the Chosen soon, but the one there first
would be Sailor Venus.



Nakiad blocked yet another blow, his arms absorbing the force of the impact,
turning the mace aside.  He cursed his inability to do anything about the
figure, then brought his swords up.  If he did nothing, he would not be able to
survive for much longer, as the knight had been methodically wearing him out.
Even the strength of a thousand years of training could not cope with the
seemingly infinite power of this creature.

Dodging another blow, the man thought quickly, remembering what he once knew
about this knight.

He made a decision.

The knight swung his mace again, the metal end whistling through the air bare
inches away from Nakiad's face.

But the man did not dodge aside like he usually did.  Instead, in that moment,
he concentrated on his hands, half closing his eyes, then looked straight
ahead, launching himself forward.  While the figure swung the heavy mace
around, the blades blurred in Nakiad's hands, seeming to vanish because of the
speed of their being put away.  The Chosen's hands, now bare, reached out as
the man almost hit the knight, and grappled for the armor.  Both palms made
contact, and for a moment, seemed to still.  In that instant, the temperature
of the shoulder joint of the armor dropped drastically, to a point where any
ordinary material would have shattered.

As Nakiad had suspected it would, the covering held, and he spun away as the
mace whooshed through the air where he had been.

It's not over yet, the Chosen thought grimly, drawing his swords again,
blocking another strike, then slipping it past himself.  Then he concentrated
once more, hoping the figure would not have enough time to strike.

In the instant between one heartbeat and the next, all the energy in his body
shifted.  It flowed, generated, energizing his legs and arms, flowing into the
two blades in his hand.
With a harsh mental cry, Nakiad launched himself, forward, two blades ready,
then twisted in the middle of his leap.   The two blades, charged with the
power of his being, unstoppable, blurred in the air.

And smashed against the frozen patch of armor with a deafening thunderclap!

Nothing, no metal in the Universe could resist that blow, nothing could stop or
avert the energy of the impact.  The two swords smashed and continued moving,
impossible to stop.  And the metal had already been weakened by the tremendous
draining of energy, a cold so extreme that the slightest hit should have
shattered it.

But the armor of the figure held, withstood the impact.  And the blow slammed
through Nakiad's arms, numbing them, almost shocking the swords out of his
hands.  And as the energy of the impact flared, the blades tensed, shrieking,
then shattered!

In an instant, the two turned from gray lengths of Maraki to pieces of shrapnel
flying out over the concrete.

The blades of the Chosen are more than mere weapons, than mere swords.  The
staff of the Chosen, of which the blades are an alternate form, is the one
weapon capable of destroying the Shadow.  And the link between the swords and
Nakiad had been there for a thousand years, getting stronger, more solid.
After a millennium of using the blades as if they were part of him, they became
part of the Chosen, their energy intertwined as if they were part of the same
person, until the swords were effectively a piece of Nakiad, a part he thought
to be indestructible.

And as the blades shattered, a lance of pain thrust through the center of the
Chosen's chest, overloading his nerves, slamming into his mind.  The world
seemed to turn into a sheet of white fire, enveloping him, burning his senses.
He collapsed to the cracked pavement, the pain overloading his mind, destroying
his ability to fight.

The armored figure stepped forward, the metal clad feet crunching as they
stopped on shards of metal.  The creature raised his mace, preparing to bring
it down on the man's head.

Nakiad continued to lie, not moving, unconscious.

And the mace shrieked down at his head.



She almost screamed suddenly, her hands going up to her head, a blow of pain
that was almost physical slamming into her.  For a moment, Mina stood still,
trying to shake off the effects, finding nothing wrong with herself.

As she continued running, her mind wondered where the shock of pain could have
come from, and found only one answer.

The orange scout was linked to Nakiad through the bond of true love, the same
bond that allowed Darian to sense when Serena was in danger.  And so if the
pain was not hers, then it had to be the Chosen's, and if it was this powerful
in its echo- Mina finished the thought, getting rapidly more worried.

She sped up, going as fast as she could.

But she would not be in time.



The heavy weapon slammed down through the air, approaching Nakiad's face at an
unstoppable speed.  He was unconscious, helpless before the blow, and no one
could regenerate from an impact like the one that was about to smash his
head.

But a thousand years of training embedded instincts in his body, a will to
survive that could not be broken easily.  While his mind tried to deal with the
pain, a portion of him, some reflex learned over a millennium took over.  At
the last moment, his body spasmed, and flipped itself to the side, the mace
smashing into the concrete, sending waves of stone to all directions.

The armored figure looked at the Chosen, wondering what happened, then stepped
forward once more.  One foot came down on the leg of the man, then pressed
down, holding him there.  The mace cocked once more, ready to smash down.

This time, there was nowhere for Nakiad to go, his body as immobile and
impotent as his mind.

The mace whistled through the air once more.

"Venus Crescent Beam SMASH!"  The cry rang out in the cool air, reverberating
from the buildings.

And a beam of energy slammed into the mace, carrying it away from its target.
Once more, the heavy spike-studded end smashed into the pavement, and the
creature seemed to glare up at the orange scout that stood on top of a nearby
building.

Then it stood up straight once more and made a motion with both hands.

And was gone.

It vanished into thin air, a feeling of cold the only reminder of its
presence.



He tried to blink away the veil of pain that obscured his sight,
unsuccessfully.  Someone seemed to be over him, saying something, but he could
not hear.

His swords.

They were.. another spasm of pain went through him, then the haze that covered
the world around him seemed to begin to lift.  Slowly, the blurry figure began
to come into focus, as did the words the person was saying.

"Are you all right?"  The image abruptly focused into Mina's face as his body
fought to break out of the paralyzed state, and he tried to answer.  The effort
sent him back into darkness for a period of time the length of which he could
not guess.  After it, the world seemed to focus around him better, and he began
to distinguish general shapes.

This time, there were several figures over him, the scouts talking among
themselves.  After a few moments, the words became recognizable, though it was
still difficult to tell which scout was talking when.

"What happened?"  Good question, he thought.

Another voice came from behind him, and his head shifted as if the speaker was
holding it. "I'm not sure.  When I came, there was this figure standing over
him, and he was unconscious."  He could feel Mina - for that was who the
speaker was - hesitate, then continue. "When I was on my way, I felt something,
and I think it was through the mental link between us.  It was.. I'm not sure
where it came from, but it was pain."

With an effort, Nakiad shifted his position, showing that he was awake.  His
throat opened on the second try and a dry croak emerged.  After a moment, he
managed to get a modicum of control. "I know," he whispered, and the scouts
bent toward him.

Then another shape appeared, a black one. "I think we had better leave."
Suddenly the sound of sirens infringed on Nakiad's consciousness and he became
aware that the police had been approaching for some time. "Come on, Mina,"
Darian continued, "I'll help you carry him.  I think we should go to my place,
there'd be a lot fewer awkward questions."
The other scouts seemed to agree, because someone lifted him to his feet.

Suddenly angry, Nakiad shook off their support, then started to collapse.
Catching himself, he forced strength to his legs, straightening, then looked
around. "Swords," he whispered, remembering.

Around him, the pavement was completely wrecked.  The hilts of two swords lay
nearby, with lots of shards scattered, mixed in with the rubble.  With several
unsteady steps, he approached the ends of the swords, picking them up, then
looked around.

The sirens stopped, very close, and the sounds of doors opening and closing
reached him.  He felt a touch on his shoulder, Ami was behind him. "I don't
think we need an encounter with the police right now," she whispered
urgently.

His mind protested violently, his body wishing he could get all the pieces.
But Ami was right, the police could be awkward.  Clutching the two hilts like
talismans, he turned, following the scouts up a fire escape, shaking off any
helping hands.

Several policemen arrived a minute or two later, missing the exit of the
group.

For a moment, the first stood still, looking at the alley, then turned to his
partner.

"Er," was all he managed to say, looking at the wrecked pavement and damaged
buildings surrounding.

*	*	*

"I did not see it," Nakiad whispered quietly.  He seemed to have recovered from
whatever it was that happened to him, but Mina was still worried.

Darian suddenly held up one hand, and everyone quieted as he turned up the
sound on the TV.

"... And in other news, a strange occurrence baffled police today, when a woman
phoned in about a fight going on outside her apartment window.  When the police
arrived at the scene, there was no one there, but the alley was completely
wrecked.."  The TV screen jumped, showing the alley for a few moments, then a
policeman blocked the camera's view, obviously telling the reporter to get out
of there. "..The police are not saying much, but rumor is that they have found
a strange metal at the scene which is now being analyzed."  the commentator
paused, shaking his head in bafflement, then smiled. "And in happier news, the
project to demolish the park in downtown Tokyo has been.."

Darian pressed the power switch on the remote, the picture disappearing, and
turned to Nakiad as he rested on the couch. "So what happened?"

"So stupid!"  He did not seem to be talking to Darian or the scouts, but to
himself.

Mina, sitting next to him, tried to take his hand, and almost cut herself on
the jagged edge of the sword he was still holding.  Looking down at his hands,
he smiled crookedly, putting the two ends on the floor.

"All right," he answered, "all right."  He grasped his forehead for a moment as
if still in pain, then dropped his hands. "I was stupid.  It was right there in
front of me, and I did not even *see* it!"  For a moment, he was silent,
then looked up.  "You don't see it, do you?"
He calmed down suddenly, turning to Darian. "Do you remember the attack on the
Earth  The first one, I mean?"

The prince's face became serious as he sat down in an armchair. "Vaguely..  I
remember it was sudden, and no one was expecting it.  Then.."  His voice
faltered.

"It's OK, Darian, that's what I wanted to hear anyway.  The attack was
unexpected.  Do any of you remember *why* that was so?"  He nodded as the
scouts shook their heads.  "I thought so."  He sighed. "I am not sure about
this, but this is what I know from the time after the first battle, when I was
a spirit, and from what Guardian told me.  I was able to piece together what
happened."

"The main army of the Negaverse, the one that was commanded by Beryl and,
hopefully, is now under Kaneth, was not the same during the Silver Millennium.
It was under the command of several generals, each having an equal share of
power.  It was not the most stable of ways of rule, but it worked.  For a
time."

"Then Queen Beryl came, as one of the lesser warriors.  She had one great
asset, however, she knew the secret of Eternal Sleep.  And that allowed her to
rise through the ranks, until finally, she was admitted to the highest council,
the council of the generals."

"It was a mistake.  Beryl turned on the other generals, destroying the balance
of power they had, despite their agreements.  She did not have the strength to
destroy them, but she had the power of Eternal Sleep.  And it was enough.  The
generals disappeared, and Beryl was left to take charge of the enormous power
of the army."

"As you know, she did not hesitate.  She attacked in a very short time.  And
the people of the Silver Millennium were not ready for that onslaught, prepared
for the strategies of the more moderate generals, they were unable to take a
direct assault like the one the evil Queen commanded.  And so they lost,
because of Queen Beryl.."  Nakiad paused, and Mina wondered if he still felt
guilt for that loss.

"And ever since then, that is the way in which she held power, far longer than
any single creature ever did, other than the Dark Lord.  When a general got too
much strength, or when she could no longer trust someone, or when someone
failed her, she trapped that person in the prison of crystal, sending them away
to another dimension, forever imprisoned."

"And that is the same place where Nephlyte sent the Dark Lord, to the place
where all the strongest creatures of the Negaverse had been trapped."

The room stayed silent for a few moments, then Darian buried his face in his
hands. "You mean," he began, then fell silent.

"Yes."  There was no emotion in that confirmation, the tone was calm.  But
Nakiad's eyes wavered with an emotion that resembled failure. "The Shadow does
not have the power to cross between dimensions, but those creatures do.  And he
knows the way to release them, as he is doing."

Lita raised her head. "Could you be wrong?  I mean, could this creature be sent
by the Negaverse after all?  Kaneth did say we were his enemies, and you told
us that he was probably in control now."

Nakiad shook his head. "No," he answered, his voice dark, "I'm not wrong.
Kaneth would not send another creature to attack at random.  In him, you may
have found the best enemy you have ever had.  Even if he does strike, and I'm
not sure he will, he will do so honorably, challenging you directly."  He shook
his head again. "No, everything points to one thing, and one thing only.  The
Shadow is free, and he can launch as many creatures after us as he wants."

Again, the room was silent, then Mina raised her head. "Then what is that
creature?"

Nakiad seemed to shiver, and one hand twitched toward the remains of the
swords. "There are legends-" he began, then fell silent. "One of the generals,
the ones of the original council before Queen Beryl came was rumored to be a
creature clad in impenetrable armor."  Again, the hand twitched. "He was a
warrior of great intelligence, and no mercy, one of the mightiest fighters
ever.  But that is not his true strength."

"His armor," he began, the arm twitching once more, "is of a metal stronger
than Maraki, stronger than my swords.  Stronger than the staff.  It is of the
ancient metals, lost forever over time, and it is almost impossible to destroy.
My swords-"  His hand flicked toward them again as he sighed.

Serena looked at him, her eyes wide open. "How are we supposed to defeat
something you can't?  You are the Chosen, aren't you, the mightiest warrior in
the Universe?  How can the scouts destroy someone who could do *that* to
you swords."

He shook his head violently, then winced in pain, ruefully rubbing his head.
"You don't understand."  He sighed. "I was a fool for fighting him, and I knew
it.  Somehow, deep inside, I did not believe the legends, I thought I could
destroy him if I weakened his armor by draining it."

Mina laid a hand on his arm, looking at him. "But you were not strong enough,"
she finished for him.

He frowned, shaking his head. "You still don't get it.  Even if I had the
*full* power of the Chosen, I *still* would have been defeated by
him."  Before the scouts could protest, he raised his voice slightly. "Because
it is not for me to fight him."  He paused, looking at Rei. "It is the same
reason for which I could not help you against Queen Beryl, and because of which
you can not help me directly against the Dark Lord.  We have our fights.  Yours
is against the Negaverse as a whole, whatever minions they spawn, such as the
knight."  He sighed suddenly. "Mine is against the Dark Lord."

The scouts exchanged several puzzled glances, until finally Ami spoke up. "If
we are the ones who are supposed to fight this knight, then that means we have
the power to destroy him."

It was somewhere between a question and a statement, so Nakiad nodded. "In
theory, yes, the crystal should work against him."

For a moment, Serena looked puzzled, then a look of joy washed over her. "Then
we ought to be able to moondust him and that's that. Yay!"  She yelled, leaping
into the air and almost knocking her head against the ceiling.  On her way
down, she managed to land next to Darian, remaining there.

The Chosen sighed. "Just because you *can* destroy him does not mean it's
going to be easy," he began in a tired tone.

*	*	*

He looked at the knight, anger charging through him.  The other seemed to be
staring at him through the metal visor, and thoughts came to the Dark Lord.

The black figure sighed in frustration. "All right, so I forgot to tell you
that the scouts are here.  That is not something you should be worried about.
They are not the old ones, but just kids, new to their powers.  They do not
represent a threat to you."

The Dark Lord seemed to listen again while the knight continued staring.  Then
he sighed, answering. "No, I do not think the Princess is here," he lied, "she
was destroyed by Beryl, remember."  At the mention of the queen, the armored
figure flinched slightly, then seemed to glare at the Shadow.  For a moment, he
was still, then the Dark Lord seemed to get angry. "That is *enough*!  I
am your master, and I command you to return and destroy the Chosen, or harm him
as much as possible.  The scouts are not your concern, deal with them only if
you have to.  If they get in your way, kill them."  The knight did not move,
and the black figure seemed to sigh again. "All right, whenever you have enough
power, go."
The armored figure turned away, walking to one side while the Shadow turned
around.  The Dark Lord made sure he could not be seen by his minion, then
allowed a slight smile of victory to cross his lips. So, he thought with
satisfaction, the swords of the Chosen are destroyed.  It does not matter any
more, he said silently to his enemy, nothing but this matters. 

Now, you are *mine*.

The Shadow looked toward one side of the field, where a slight glow illuminated
the ground.

It was not nearly finished yet, energy still flowing into the strange shape,
brightening and focusing it.  But it was already clear what it would become in
the end.

A portal.

*	*	*

"Um, Ami, could I talk to you for a moment?"  The girl turned around in the
doorway of Darian's apartment.  She had been leaving, the rest of the scouts
already ahead of her, and the voice stopped her just as she was about to close
the door.

"What is it, Nakiad?"  He seemed almost recovered from the fight, but something
in his eyes worried her.

"It's my swords.  According to the news guy, the police are holding the shards
of metal for experimentation with them.  I would just as soon that did not come
to be.  So could you sort of-" he looked embarrassed for a moment, but the
expression passed so quickly that Ami could have imagined it, "find out where
they are keeping it?"

Ami smiled slightly, putting a slightly astonished tone into her voice. "You
mean you want me to hack into a government computer, something clearly illegal,
and be a part of an illegal operation Involving the obstruction of justice and
the stealing of evidence?"

He seemed to consider that, then also smiled a little. "Basically."  Then his
face became somber. "Seriously, though, I could do it myself, I suppose, but
I'm staying here for the night.  Besides, the Mercury computer is something
else when it comes to.. well, anything."

Ami nodded. "Of course.  I'll see what I can do."

He smiled to himself as she closed the door, going outside.

Darian came up behind him, almost silently, and stood there for a moment as
Nakiad stared into space, directly ahead.

"What do you think our chances are against that knight?"

The Chosen remained still for a moment, then sighed, turning. "You don't want
to know," he answered ruefully.

Darian stared into the other's eyes for a moment, then hung his head. "Do you
really think Serena has the power to defeat this thing?"

Nakiad looked at his in surprise. "As the Moon Princess, she has almost
unlimited power. She had the strength, yes, but that rarely matters.  Many
people have strength of which they have no knowledge."  He shook his head. "It
is whether she has the ability to use the power that is the question.  And I'm
honestly not sure whether she does."

Darian stood there, then sighed. "I love her, you know."  The Chosen mentally
stopped himself from saying anything in answer to the obvious.  The man turned,
looking out through the windows, out into the city. "If she cannot defeat this
thing, then what will happen?"

"Darian."  He emphasized the name, making the other look at him. "She
*can* defeat the knight."  

The other's emotions seemed to lift a little, then he looked back.  "Then why
do you look so worried?"

Surprised, Nakiad focused on his face, forcing it to return to impassivity.
But it was too late, and he sighed. Because the knight is the least of our
problems, Darian, he did not say. Instead, he merely shook his head. "It is not
a problem you or the scouts will have to face," he answered indirectly.

For a few minutes, both men were silent, each thinking to himself, of different
things. Darian broke the silence first, looking at the other. "Mina offered to
stay for the night.  Why didn't you let her?"

Nakiad looked at him sadly. "For the same reasons that you would not Serena
sleep over.  Because she is too young."  Darian looked at him strangely, and
Nakiad sighed. "And because I'm too old."  Because in the end, I'm the Chosen.
And as long as I am that, I can not truly belong to her, nor she to me.

The prince seemed to accept what he said, then seemed to force whatever it was
he was thinking about out of his mind. "Do you want to sleep on the couch, or
the bed?"

Nakiad merely shook his head. "If you don't mind, I'd like to sleep on the
balcony."

Darian looked at him strangely again, but did not object.  "All right.  You
hungry?"  He began the trek to the kitchen.

It took a few moments for the other to respond, a second or so for him to break
out of his thoughts.

*	*	*

"What?"  The voice asking the question was barely audible, as if coming through
a pillow.

"Good morning, Serena," Ami said cheerfully into the communicator. 

The blonde girl merely groaned. "Is it time for school already?"

"Well, no," Luna said from beyond the range of the communicator's camera,
"today being Saturday and all."

"Saturday?"  Abruptly, Serena was wide awake. "Why didn't you tell me it was
Saturday, she spoke directly at Ami, the blue scout flinching only slightly
from the assault.

"Because otherwise, you would have never woken up.  Rei felt something strange
and she went to investigate.  The rest of the scouts have already been called,
and we need you as soon as possible."

"All right, I'm getting up," Serena began moving, getting up with a fair amount
of speed, "where do I go?"

Ami answered, turning off the communicator several seconds later, just in time
to avoid hitting a tree on her run.  Shaking her head at the near miss, she
continued down the street, already in her scout uniform.



The mace whooshed inches over Rei's head as the scout ducked, concentrating.
"Mars Fire Ignite!"  A lance of flames flew from her fingers, slamming into the
figure at close range, bathing the gray armor in red.

But the other merely ignored the attack, letting the fire wash over him, then
strode forward once more, swinging the mace at her side.  She dodged, then he
switched the direction of the swing, smashing the mace down against the
pavement.  The concrete exploded upward, throwing Rei off her feet and almost
into the path of the swinging mace.  The vicious spikes passed scant
millimeters away from her chest, the bow on the front of her uniform the only
casualty.  She stumbled back, sitting down hard on her hands, just barely
avoiding a completely prone position.

But the knight stayed on top of her, a heavy metal fist suddenly grasping one
of her arms, the other metal hand swinging a mace at her head.  The red scout
tried to twist free, but in vain against the immovable fingers.

"Jupiter Thunder CRASH!"  Suddenly, the crushing force of the monster's fingers
was wrenched away from her arm, and the gray shape no longer dominated her
view.  A moment later, three shapes landed next to Rei.  While the armored
figure backed off a bit, obviously startled by the appearance of two scouts,
they helped Rei up, and moved away a little.

"He isn't damaged at all," Ami said calmly, the blue visor covering her eyes.
"I think the only reason he is holding back is because he is unsure what to do
about us, like he does not know just what our abilities are."



Tuxedo Mask accelerated to keep up with Nakiad's unnatural speed as they ran
toward the direction from which Sailor Moon's stigma was coming.

Suddenly, the Chosen paused for a moment, holding up a hand to stop Darian.  He
closed his eyes for a moment, then glanced urgently at the other. "There is a
feeling of evil coming from that direction," he motioned to one side from their
path, "a feeling that matches the knight's. And Sailor Moon seems to be moving
that way."

Thinking along the same lines, they changed direction, running now toward the
other feeling, Darian annoyed at their having to guess the direction by such
means.  "There really ought to be an easier way of communicating, than by you
getting woken up every time Serena transforms."  

Darian startled, wondering if the other was reading his mind. "Actually, I
meant to ask Luna for a communicator, but somehow it slipped my mind.  Too many
other things going on at once, I guess."  

Nakiad smiled without slowing down. "I do have the ability to er.. hack into
the communication lines, but I forgot to tell the scouts how to do it vice
versa, how to call me.  Oh, well."  The other's voice suddenly became somber as
he looked at Darian. "You realize, of course that I can not help you in this
fight."

For a moment, he thought about that, then looked back at the other. "Can not,
or may not?"

The Chosen smiled grimly. "Both, but the second one can be bent, as it was when
I fought the knight the first time.  But as you saw, more bad came out of that
than good.  A lot more.  I have no weapons capable of harming him, no way to
fight him."  For a brief moment, a thoughtful expression crossed his face, then
disappeared.

Darian continued to run. "And we do."

"Serena does.  Her birthright gives her the power."

The prince puzzled over that for a moment, then shook his head. "You mean the
crystal."

Though Darian was not looking directly at Nakiad, the prince caught the
suggestion of a strange expression on the other's face.  But he agreed, in
slightly uncharacteristic tone. "Right."

Several people got out of their way as they continued down the nearly deserted
street and Darian concentrated on them for a few moments.  Then he remembered
something else.
"Wait.. you never told us what exactly happened back there.  I mean, we know
you broke the swords against the knight's armor-" suddenly Darian realized that
the other had not told them even that much, "but not why you were
unconscious."

A look of pain seemed to wash over the other's face for an instant, then it was
gone. "I suspect that you will have to wait for an answer.  We're here."
Surprised, Darian raised his head.

The four scouts, Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter were standing in a circle,
facing inward at the solitary figure at the center.  All of the scouts showed
signs of wear, a bow missing on Rei's uniform, several tears in the other
scouts' clothes.  The legs of the scouts were all scraped from the smashed
concrete sticking up underneath them.  But they were not giving up.

In the middle of the circle, like a juggernaut, stood the knight, one arm
raised with the mace held firmly in it, the other bent toward the ground.

Darian breathed out, shaking his head in surprise. "No wonder you couldn't hurt
him."  

The figure emanated a feeling of power that crossed the distance between them,
a sensation of complete impregnability.

Nakiad touched his arm. "Remember, though I will try to help, you are on your
own."  Darian nodded as the figure moved the mace through the air, then leapt
forward.

The knight spun around almost immediately toward him, seeming to size him up,
then raised the mace.  A dragon made of lightning suddenly smashed into his
back, only to be ignored as the mace continued down.

It smashed into the pavement, sending a tendril of exploding concrete at the
prince's face, then the knight sprung forward through the net of scouts.

Darian flicked a rose at the creature's face as he dodged aside, letting the
mace pass well away from his body.  The flower merely bounced off the metal
plates, embedding itself in the ground.

But rather than attacking again, the knight continued forward, past the prince,
never slowing.  Darian whirled in time to see Nakiad dodge out of the way of
the spiked mace, then he grasped for more roses.  A blast of light smashed into
the armored back, not affecting it as the creature pursued the black clad
Chosen.

Catching him was obviously not as easy as it seemed at first. Nakiad seemed to
melt away from the other's grasp, avoiding him easily.  Meanwhile, blasts of
various energy impacted into the armor, and seemed to be bothering the
monster.

Because it stopped its chase.  For several seconds, it stood still, seemingly
in thought, then looked back at the scouts.

Then at Nakiad once more, standing just out of its reach.

The knight sprang into motion.

Directly at the scouts, reaching out with the free hand.

Whether it was by choice or luck, the scout he grabbed was Mina, who screamed
and shot an ineffective blast of light at him as the creature crushed her
against his side.  She tried in vain to twist free, as the knight's visor
turned toward Nakiad once more.  As he paused, the metal clad hand moved inward
a little and Sailor Venus gasped at the pressure.

Darian's thoughts whirled as he considered the situation.  Meanwhile, his body
reacted, a rose blurring through the air only to bounce off the other's visor.
Several others followed, with no more effect.  Tuxedo Mask thought frantically.
Both he and the scouts were helpless in the situation, doubly so because of
Mina.  Any widespread attack would stand a good chance of killing her without
hurting the knight.

Nakiad seemed to have already finished the thought process because he suddenly
dropped his head. "All right," he whispered brokenly.

"No!"  Mina yelled out, twisting futility against the bonds.  The armored hand
moved inward and the orange scout gasped in pain.

"All right!" Nakiad said angrily. "It's me *He* wants, obviously."  The
armored hand seemed to relax a little as the Chosen stepped forward.

Then the knight's head suddenly turned toward the top of a building as he
seemed to sense something.  A seemingly tiny and fragile figure stood there,
two long pigtails moved slowly by a slight breeze.

"Moon Scepter *ELIMINATION*!"

Time seemed to slow as the blast of energy descended onto the armored figure,
slamming into its side.  As the knight bent soundlessly away from the impact,
Mina managed to scramble free from he grasp, running over to the rest of the
scouts.

At the point of impact, the knight's armor glowed with the energy of the beam,
and he was slowly forced down toward the ground.  He moved back a little as the
metal of his side seemed to bend, the air around it distorting the image
because of the heat.

Then the beam ceased as the energy of the attack ran out, and the knight seemed
to shake the metal plates a little.  The whole right side of the figure was
black, but the creature straightened smoothly, hefting the mace in one hand.
It turned the helmeted head toward Sailor Moon, then seemed to look down.

As Serena prepared to attack again, a feeling of cold permeated everyone as the
knight disappeared, vanishing in front of all of them.

After a few silent moments, the princess leapt down from the building, landing
easily on the pavement.  Then she almost fell flat on her face as the abused
concrete buckled under her.

"Well, seems a good thing I came when I did, don't you think?" She inquired
brightly.

"Yeah," Rei answered darkly, "better late than never, Meatball Head!  Where
were you, at the arcade?"

Sailor Moon's eyes began to fill with tears as Luna came out of the alley,
shaking her head. "It wasn't-" the cat paused, then continued in a slightly
annoyed tone, "*entirely* her fault, Mars.  It is very difficult to sneak
by her parents, they are very light sleepers."  The red scout merely looked
around, and so did Luna, a worried expression crossing the cat's face. "Where's
Artemis?"

Everyone exchanged glances, then a moan came from one side.  A white cat
scrambled out from beneath a chunk of pavement, slightly bruised but not much
worse for wear.  Mina rushed gratefully up to him, but he was intent of the
black cat.

"I was *not*," Luna protested his look, suddenly realizing how worried her
voice had been, "I was just worried about Mina's feelings."

"Uh-huh," he nodded knowingly as several police sirens infringed on the
situation.

Nakiad stepped forward. "I guess it's my turn to remind you that we don't want
a scene with the police."

"I need to go back to my place before my folks wake up," Serena suddenly
remembered.  Several of the scouts agreed, realizing the time.

"All right," Nakiad answered. "I think I'll get back to my place, see if I can
help in some way."  He looked around at everyone. "You did good this time."

"Yeah, but not good enough," Lita answered darkly.  Nakiad did not reply, which
was an answer in and of itself.

"Regroup later today at my place?" Darian asked with a slight smile.  

Rei shook her head. "I'd rather it was at the temple.  I'm going to do a
reading on this creature, see if I can find something out.

The various parties nodded, leaping out of sight.

"Mind if I borrow your bike?"  Nakiad shrugged. "The portal only works one
way."

The prince turned around to a haggard looking Nakiad standing behind him, and
thought of the motorcycle in the parking lot of the apartment building.  "Of
course I don't mind," Darian answered.  Exchanging a glance, they began running
down the street.  As they saw several people in the distance, Darian
automatically transformed to his regular clothes, slowing his pace to a more
normal jog.  The other slowed down as well, though he remained in his black
gi.

"What if you are recognized?"

The other did not respond for a moment, then seemed to startle a little. "Oh."
He smiled a little. "I am the Chosen.  People only remember me if I want them
to."  As if that explained it, he switched to another topic. "That is not what
worries me."

For several minutes they continued in silence, then Darian asked. "What
does?"

Again, Nakiad seemed startled by the question, as if he was somewhere else.
Then he looked at the prince gravely. "I expected more damage from the scepter.
And we have not yet begun to face the real problem."

"Oh," Darian answered quietly, with a complete lack of understanding.

*	*	*

Once more, the warrior stood across from the Dark Lord, his mace put away on
his waist, his stance slightly subservient.  But at the same time, the way the
knight stood, the way the metal plates moved against each other suggested
anger.

"Then take care of it," the Shadow answered calmly. "Surely you are not going
to let yourself be stopped by a little girl wielding a power she does not
understand.  If I recall, she is still using tools to access the power in
herself.  Use that to your advantage."

Again, he listened, growing more impatient, but at the same time more satisfied
inside.
Perhaps, he thought silently, this Sailor Moon will take care of the knight as
well.  The warrior has done his job in destroying the swords of the Chosen, and
there was little further use in him.  He had proven to be a powerful fighter,
but he was more of a leader than a servant, having been in a position of power
with no superiors before his entrapment.  As such, he was not a good candidate
for a minion, though he did fight well.  At the same time, the more creatures I
can send, the more energy I can take away from the Chosen before the
confrontation, the better, the Dark Lord decided. "As soon as you have enough
energy, you will go back and destroy the Chosen, along with the measly team
called the sailor scouts."

The knight seemed to glare at him through the visor.

After a moment, the Dark Lord snarled. "I will not stand insubordination.
Remember, you can always be replaced," he added angrily, pointing to the line
of crystals.  Toward the crystal at the end of the line, the one that had been
next to the knights.  Parts of the transparent substance had been knocked off,
and the creature trapped within seemed to writhe, waiting for freedom.

The knight looked down, bowing slightly to his master, then turned away.

Satisfied, the Shadow turned as well, turning to the portal.  It was not yet
close to readiness, but a day would be enough to make it strong enough.  

Strong enough to take the Dark Lord to Earth.

And to victory.

*	*	*

Ami sighed in relief as the computer beeped, interrupting her frustrating
reading.

When she had arrived home, her mother had almost caught her, Ami having barely
enough time to sneak under the covers of her bed, in full clothing.  As it was,
the parent had been a little suspicious because Ami rarely stayed in bed until
so late.

Now she had been unable to concentrate on her book about the applications of
vector calculus at relativistic speeds.  The night before, her mind had been
focused on the subject, and the volume had seemed to be relatively easy.  Now,
with her mind occupied, the blue scout found herself reading the same page over
and over again, a situation that was very annoying.

Now, at least, she thought as she reached for the computer, I can think about
something else.  Earlier during the day, she had connected it to a phone line,
and set it to retrieve the location of the pieces of the Chosen's sword.  It
had been working for several hours, because the location seemed unreasonably
well guarded.

Ami scanned the screen quickly, then punched a few buttons to get more
information.  A small indicator inside the computer began flashing, detecting
an unauthorized entry through the phone line, but Ami did not see it.  The
virus, finding itself in hostile territory with various antiviral programs
running, settled quietly to the bottom of the RAM stack like any other piece of
information.

Meanwhile, the scout had gotten all of the needed data, and automatically
reached for the communicator to call Nakiad.

Then she hung her head, remembering that there was no way to access him through
the device, it having been designed only for the four scouts and the
princess.

On the other hand, Ami suddenly thought, the communicators were pretty ancient,
having been made before the scout was born in the Silver Millennium.  And
Nakiad had been able to call the scouts in some way, as he did during the
attack.  So perhaps- Ami took out the small communicator.

"Nakiad." She said the one word, waiting for an answer.  Nothing happened, the
screen remaining as dark as it was before.  Ami sighed, preparing to put the
device away, then another thought came.

"Chosen," she said, not really hoping.

The screen lit up, and several seconds later the man's face came on the
screen.

"Sailor Mercury, what is it?"  He looked a bit worried, she noticed, though it
was well hidden.  The fact that it showed at all made it plain that he was very
upset about something.

"I scanned the police network for the information you asked for."  He suddenly
looked interested, and Ami sighed again, preparing to give him the bad news.
"I'm afraid that the shards have been taken to a high security science lab.
For some reason, the pieces are attracting a lot of interest from the
authorities, it was almost impossible to trace them."  

She told him about the security measures of the lab, expecting him to be
disappointed.  As far as the scout herself could see, there would be no way to
get inside.

Nakiad's expression did not change. "Thanks Ami."  He smiled, though it looked
a little forced. "Don't worry, I can get them out.  Anything else?"

Ami shook her head and the screen dimmed.  Bemused, she turned back to the
book, starting at the top of the page once more.