UsAgI iS dEaD uSaGi Is DeAd HiP hIp HiP hOoRaY
by DARK DAY FOR ANIME

Diclaimer - Sailormoon is owned by Takeuchi Naoko and Bandai, so
these characters really belong to them, except ones I made up.  You
know who they are!  They're the ones that run around doing bad 
things to the original cast.  ^_^  Well, most of them, anyway.

This chapter is dedicated to Chris Davies, whose constructive
criticism and dry wit are a credit to the world of Sailormoon
fanfic writing.  (*snort*)  ^_^


Part Sixteen
Under a Blood Red Sky


	Usako stared at the tendrils of the city as she raced for 
their enticing embrace.  Behind her, she could hear Aosagi's voice
beckoning her to stop.  But she could not, would not, stop.  The
City...  The place where she was born, beckoned to her to fulfill
a destiny that nobody would have thought possible when she rose
from the tanks back in the Production Plant.

	For the first time in her short life, she felt she had a
purpose.  She was NEEDED.  Those moments, alone and unwanted, they
were over now....



	Dr Mizuno smiled at the patient.  Yet another survivor of the
chaos that had befallen Tokyo.  Now, within this small local hospice
in the outlying regions of the city, she began to feel the weight of
time resting upon her shoulders.  She had been awake for altogether
too long.  There had been periods when she had spent somewhere in 
the region of two to three days, awake and working.  It wasn't good 
practice, but the demands of the medical profession were such that,
anyone who was even vaguely competent at their job quickly found 
themselves earning the overtime of a lifetime.

	It was different now.  She'd heard stories from her parents
about what it had been like during the war....  The air raids on
Tokyo.  She'd never thought she'd get to experience something of 
a similar nature.  But even worse than that....  Ami was missing.

	In her heart of hearts, she knew she was dead.  When she saw
Ami fall, and literally melt, into the pool, she knew she would
never see her daughter alive again.  All of the strange events that 
followed only cemented that belief in her mind....

	She stepped away from the patient as a nurse pulled the 
bedsheet higher over his form.  He had several broken ribs and a
fractured jaw...  Courtesy of climbing onto his roof to get a better
view of the dimensional breach and everything that went with it.  He
was one of the lucky ones.  She'd seen worse injuries that day.

	She entered the passageway that lead from the room.  JSDF 
soldiers nodded to her as she strode past.  Fortunately, the hospice
had been under the control of a more benign element within the 
military, when they had attempted to regain order in the streets.
She had been shipped from the inner-city hospital by them, along 
with everyone else there at the time, for their own protection.  
Roaming bands of extremists had attacked another hospital and tried
to use it as a stronghold, keeping staff and patients hostage for 
two hours.  Then that monster that had been rampaging through the
city took to the hospital....

	There were no reports of survivors.

	Since then, things had not quietened down.  She fell against a 
wall, along with the soldiers, when they heard a jet flying over,
with the explosive launching of missiles.  There were multiple
blasts, ringing through the air.  She got to her feet and continued
on her way.  Just another jet taking on the big blue-black things 
that were trying to level the city.  She wondered when the UN would
attempt an equally useless gesture....

	She arrived at the small office area at the other end, which
was empty.  She sighed....  Most of the staff had taken off when
things had started to get a little rough.  Now the hospice was full
of people, many whom streamed out into the carpark on stretchers 
which had been covered over with tarpaulins thanks to the efforts of
one of the JSDF's more competent divisions.

	She stared out of the office's window at those unfortunates
unlucky enough to have been injured late....  thus seeing them stuck
in such a place.  There were various doctors, nurses and trainees
working on them....  Mostly trainees.  If there was one clear thing
about the modern medical profession, very few of those who worked
within it had any voluntary goodwill.

	She must have stared out of that window for some time, she
didn't know how long....  The effects of sleep deprivation were 
starting to wear on her senses.  But the sky....  The red fluid glow
seemed to wash into her mind, drawing her deeper into its soporific
waves.

	"Okaasama..."  Said the soft voice behind her.  Slowly, she
managed to turn her head.  Her eyes felt tired as Ami paced across
the office floor towards her, stopping about seven feet from her.

	"Ami-chan...."  She mumbled.  Ami smiled at her, sweetly.
	"You look tired."
	"I am tired."  Her mother took a few steps forward, and only
then noticed that Ami was translucent.  She stopped, shaking on her
feet.  "Have you come... to say goodbye to me?"

	Ami shook her head.  "In life and death, it is never goodbye.
I came to warn you.  Soon we shall be together again."  Ami lowered
her face and looked aside.  "That's all I really have to say to you.
I'm sorry things turned out this way between us."
	"Ami..."
	"I guess some things had to be sacrificed for your career.  
And I know you were just like me when you were my age."  Ami's voice
began to crackle, as if it were becoming hard for her to talk.  "But
in the end, we all make our choices about who we shall live with, be
they good or bad.  If our souls ever achieve as close a relationship
as our past one, I hope it is more...."

	"What's up, Doctor Mizuno?"  Ami's mother turned to the young
army medic who had stepped into the office.  For a moment, she 
seemed annoyed, then turned back to Ami.  But her daughter was gone.

	She stared at the spot for several minutes, almost incapable
of standing on her feet any further.  Slowly, she slid to the floor,
the medic only just catching her before her head hit.




	The Tsukino family sat on the deck of the ship that was 
berthed on the wharves of Tokyo Bay, along with over five hundred
others.  For all intents and purposes, Ikuko felt that she had the
right to be an emotional wreck.  It was Kenji, however, who had
lost his nerve soon after the attack on the police station by the
monster.  Ikuko was left holding his head in her lap as they felt
the ship begin to rock, its engines starting up.

	Shingo, for his part, was excited about the events, although
the possibility of never again seeing his home, his big sister, or
even Mika, worried him.  He, nevertheless, had tried to remain as
stoic as possible, for fear of how he would be seen by his mother.

	Sitting next to them was DCI Rikai, who had helped them to
escape from the station when it was attacked.  He had returned to
his home with them in the car he'd swiped from the police yard,
in the hope of getting both the Tsukino's and his wife and children
out of the city.

	What he'd found was a crushed house, and the bodies of his
family.  Since then, it had been Ikuko making all the arrangements
for their flight from the city.

	She and Yuuichirou.  They had bumped into both he and Rei's
Grandfather on the docks.  All had been familiar with each other
through the rare moments they had been acquainted.  Ojiichan was
not feeling all that well, after having been made to leave the
devastated remains of the Hikawa Shrine, not knowing if Rei was
alive or dead.  Yuuichirou had managed to guide him to the docks,
where the old man had attempted to take his mind off things by 
praying for the souls of those wounded who had died before getting 
onto the various ships that were leaving.

	It reminded him of his youth....  His time as a trainee priest
during the war.  He'd managed to avoid service because of this, as
the head priest of the temple had died soon after the hostilities
had begun.  For the rest of the war, he was forced to serve as the
Hikawa Shrine's head priest...  A position he kept in the aftermath,
during the occupation.

	It was also in the war that he lost his first love.  For years
after that, he would chase young girls, almost in an effort to 
regain some sense of his youth, his past, and her love.  Eventually,
he married into a wealthy family.  But even then, the love he'd
received was not enough to settle the horrors of the war in his 
mind.

	And now, here it was again.  A different event, this time.
Less predictable than a war, but seemingly just as devastating.  Rei
was missing, probably dead....  The last light in his life....

	Yuuichirou wasn't in all that joyous a mood, himself.  Despite
the fact that both he and Rei had never really "got it together", so
to speak, the fact that she was probably dead made him feel....  He
didn't know WHAT to feel.  She had always been so standoffish, yet
there were times....  That time, when he was about to leave and was
attacked by that thing, that Daimon....

	Yuuichirou was the one who had found the Tsukino's on the 
dock.  Familiar faces in a crowd made them feel as if they'd all 
known each other like the best of friends.  They'd exchanged
stories, comforted each other, and patiently waited their turn to
get onto one of the ships, praying that the chaos that had swept the
city would not extend itself to the wharf.

	With a blast of the horn, the ship began to move out of the
harbour, following a traffic jam of hundreds of other such vehicles.




	Naru opened her eyes.

	Aoi looked down upon her.

	"Naiad-sama..."  She muttered to herself as she tried to sit
up.  Instantly, she knew she was back in the land of the living.  
One couldn't feel this bad in a fantasy realm.  Well, one could if
one tried...  But she wasn't trying.

	"N.. Naiad?"  Aoi stared at her for a few moments and she 
stared back.  "Wh...  Who is this Naiad-sama?"

	"Captain Kikotsuka?"  Naru frowned.  "The original?"

	"It would appear so."  Naru turned to the voice, to see a 
woman approaching from the other side of a large chamber.  The woman
was dressed in a gilden senshi uniform, with similarly couloured 
braids, sitting like a crown, around her head.  "Whatever has 
happened to Millenia's mind, it has chosen not to return to this
woman's body.  Not this body, anyway."

	Naru looked around the chamber, not entirely with wonderment.
She'd seen too much, recently, to look at it that way.  Galaxia
watched her quietly as Aoi slowly sank to the floor, sitting cross-
legged.

	"Ah, fascinated in the layout of this humble construction, are
we?  Interesting.  I helped in designing the architecture."

	"Where are we?"  Naru said simply, flatly even.  The question
struck her as being one would use against someone familiar, although
she had to think long and hard to work out just who this new arrival
might be.

	"The revival room within the Keep, of course."  The woman said
with a slight smile.

	"And you would be....  Galaxia?"  Naru was genuinely surprised
when the woman laughed.

	"Who else would I be?"  She turned, smiled and walked away.
Naru sighed and shook her head, only then realising that she was 
stark naked.  She threw her hands over vital parts of her body and
let out a short cry.

	"Iyaaa!  Galaxia no ecchi!"

	Both Galaxia and Aoi facefaulted.


	IASFU OA FWSS IASFU OA FWSS GOO JUA GOO JIPEST
	and again
	IASFU OA FWSS IASFU OA FWSS GOO JUA GOO JIPEST
	Motto Motto Radical Fight


	The two Usagi clones wandered the streets, aimlessly.  Both
of them wondering where they were and how they had got here.

	They'd both been flung into what looked like a rubbish tip,
and appeared the worse for wear.  Ushayla-Ushayla was still picking
bits and pieces from her red minidress and hair.

	"Look at this!  Look!  I'm absolutely FILTHY.  I'm gonna fix
whoever did this to me, well and truly!"  She snorted.  She knew
EXACTLY who did this to her.

	"Hah!  Even though we may be filthy, we yet live.  Now I can
continue my eternal search for that traitorous Lina Tsukiverse!"  
Ushayla's companion began to laugh THAT laugh.  The laugh with the
power to level entire armies.  Ushayla put her hands over her ears,
cowering from its sinister tones.  "Yes, Lina.  I, Unagi the 
Serpent,  Unagi the White Snake, shall bring your felony to light!"

	Well, thought Ushayla, she certainly had enough chest with
which to generate that laugh.  Still, the sound...  It was just SO
horrible.  As was Unagi's choice in clothing....  Which was but the
merest slip of black to cover important areas, completed with a
simple black cape.  Along with the black hair, she certainly looked 
the part of an evil sorceress.

	A truck came trundling up the road behind them, and they spun
to see a strange white-haired man, with glasses, at the steering 
wheel.  They stood aside as the truck came to a stop.  In the back
of the truck sat close to thirty other Usagi clones, all of which
looked down at their likenesses standing on the side of the road.

	The driver's window rolled down, and the man stared at them.
"Would you two ladies like a lift somewhere?"
	"Who are you?"  Asked Unagi snobbishly.  The man raised his
eyebrows.
	"My name is Tomoe Souichi, as if that is of any concern to 
you."  He huffed.  "Well, would you like a lift or not?  I've been
told by certain interested parties that armageddon is upon us, and
to find as safe a place as possible for as many of you...  Umm...
Usagis."  He smiled.  "Good thing I'm a mad scientist.  I have a 
nice safe basement in which we can shelter."  He chuckled, all too
knowingly.

	Ushayla smiled.  "Of course I shall appreciate a lift, if
things are going to be that bad."  She stepped forward.  Unagi,
however just huffed.
	"I have someone I must find first.  I'm afraid I must reject
your offer.  I'm not the kind to skulk within darkened dens when
danger is at hand."  Unagi tossed her hair, and walked away, watched
by the Professor, Ushayla and all the other Usagis on the truck.

	"Oh, one thing....  Before you go..."  The Professor shouted
out to her.  Unagi paused and looked over her shoulder.  "Have you
seen a young girl, about fourteen years of age, with medium-length
straight black hair and pale skin.  She's a Sailorsenshi, too."

	"You mean Saturn, do you not?"  Unagi sneered at him.
	"Uh yeah..."
	"I have not had the misfortune of crossing that monster's
sinister path.  But I can assure you, if I were to do so, I would
smite her with all the power I have vested within me."  She threw
her head back, once more performing the almighty laugh of doom.
Everyone in or around the truck were thankful as she disappeared
from sight around the street corner.

	"That is one seriously twisted Usagi."  The Professor shook
his head.  He turned to Ushayla.  "And you?  Have you seen Saturn?"
	"I saw her....  But not here."
	"Where then?"  The Professor frowned, eager for news of his
daughter's whereabouts.  Ushayla simply pointed up, at the sky.  He
involuntarily followed her point's direction, and stared at the
cracking surface of the world up there.  "Oh Kami, I most certainly
hope she isn't STILL there."



	"I see...  So Mercury is...."  Galaxia pondered this
revelation for several moments.  Naru, who was now dressed in a 
loose-flowing ceremonial cloak, standing in the centre of the small 
chamber, watching as bodies glided past, along a kind of conveyor 
from behind a crystal partition, nodded mutely.

	The pair stood grimly, in silence, trying to get their 
thoughts together.  Aoi sat on the opposite side of the chamber,
looking strung out.  Naru turned to her, sadly.

	"What happened to her?  From what I was able to ascertain, she
was supposed to be the vessel for Naiad."
	"Naiad...  Millenia, as I know her, planted a seed of her 
conciousness in the mind of the woman upon her conception.  In 
truth, her soul is a portion of Millenia, but one that has gained 
self-awareness....  When the core spirit isn't thugging on her, of 
course."
	"And that is what happened before....  Naia...  Millenia's
spirit took control of what was nothing more than an aspect of it?"
	"As I said, the conciousness of the woman has grown as a
separate entity.  And, I think, having realised this, Millenia has
chosen to leave her alone.  She may be a lot of things, but Millenia
is not cruel.  Well, not THAT cruel."  Galaxia sighed.
	"But I thought you said she was your enemy...."  Naru raised a
questioning eyebrow.  Galaxia looked at her for a moment, blankly,
then smiled.
	"Ah....  Well, an enemy in that we have often played off each
other.  We are both....  Empresses....  Of an Empire that stretches
almost from one side of this universe to the other.  With the kind
of ambition required to run such a beast, one has to expect a clash
of egos."  Galaxia's eyes went distant, something that seemed, to 
Naru, to be natural for her....  But then, Galaxia's great age and 
single life mitigated against the dissolution of memory....

	"You know..."  Galaxia muttered, quietly.  "...It wasn't 
always this way....  I used to be envious of her.  Before the 
harnessing of the Home System's elemental energies....  There were
four of us....  Graduates of the first Academy to be set up.  We 
were students of the four main faculties.  Fire, Earth, Air and Water.  
That was myself, Gaea, Ascentia and Millenia....  In those
days, control of the elements were sporadic and dangerous, so anyone
who showed even the slightest competence were admitted into the 
Academy."

	"What happened....  To those other two?  Did they die?"

	"No.  Well, not what you would strictly call 'death'.  You 
see, we had formed a group within the campus...  A kind of society, 
really, that was dedicated to finding the source of all existence.  
This had been known as the Cauldron....  A kind of intergalactic 
womb of life and conciousness."

	"I... seem to have memories pertaining to the Cauldron...."

	"Well, that shouldn't be surprising.  Anyone who had spent a
past life as part of the Empire's establishment would have heard of
it."  She rubbed her chin, thoughtfully.  "After leaving the 
Academy, we set up a foundation that gathered money and resources,
towards the readings of ancient texts, to unlock the codes as to the
location of the Cauldron itself.  It was during this time that we
discovered the possibilities of Harnessing the elements of a system.
And so we went ahead, holus bolus, with the process and ceremony of
harnessing the energies of this one, against the will of the
powerbrokers of the day."

	"And both Millenia and yourself became the wielders of these
energies?"  Naru frowned.
	"Ah yes, we did.  At the cost of Gaea and Ascentia.  All four
of us had hoped to gain control of the four main elements through
the harnessing ceremony.  I succeeded in gaining control of the
element of fire....  The bright energies of the day.  And Millenia,
she gained control of water, the dark energies of night.  But for
Gaea and Ascentia...."  Galaxia went silent for a few moments.  "For
them...  Four of us stepped onto the ceremonial platform that day.
Only two stepped off."
	"They failed?"
	"They were missing.  They'd vanished into thin air the very
moment the ceremony had reached its peak.  And the strangest thing
of all is that the elements of earth and air HAD been harnessed.  By
whom, I don't know...  Maybe they did succeed, wherever they had 
found themselves.  But at no stage, if they were alive, did they use 
their powers.  I mean, use them in an obvious manner."

	"Have you ever tried to find out what happened to them?"

	"Oh, in later years, I did find traces of their existences.  I
traced them to various locations across the universe.  But by the 
time either Millenia or myself would get there, they were gone.  It
was like a cat and mouse game.  One that the cats kept losing."

	"So they were being reborn...."  Naru mused.  Galaxia nodded.

	"Yes.  From world to world, they were reborn as senshi, or 
miko, or even courtesans... The shogunate, so to speak....  I 
eventually gave up looking for them.  But Millenia... she was a
different one in MANY respects."

	Galaxia stepped away from the partition and beckoned to Naru.
"Come with me for a few moments."  Naru nodded.  The two stepped
from the chamber, leaving the catatonic Aoi to her mindlessness.  

	Naru felt strange, like walking in this body was more an 
acrobatic feat than a natural, unconcious act.  She was a good foot 
or so taller than she had been before, which gave her quite a tall 
figure for a woman.  Certainly, she was now looking down on the 
long-suffering Aoi.  She rather liked the sense of height, the 
capacity to look down on others.  Except when it came to tangling up 
legs and feet due to a mind that hadn't been calibrated with the 
body.  Still, she wondered why this had happened.  Every time she
had seen her reflection, she saw Tranquility staring back....

	She followed Galaxia through the huge cavern that contained
the millions of sleeping senshi, miko etc....  The red lighting 
giving the store a kind of apocalyptic feel.  Off to one side was
another doorway, that they stepped through.  

	This lead to a small but light passage, made to look green 
because of the colour of the lighting.  She couldn't say much for 
the tastes of the interior designers of this place....  Soon, they 
found themselves facing a very simple set of ornamental doors that 
ended the passageway.  Naru had trouble finding the hinges on either 
side.

	Galaxia was about to touch one of the door handles, but 
paused, looking back at Naru for a few moments.

	"You know, Millenia never did anything without some kind of
reason.  Even before the Harnessing, she was a manipulative sort.
But she didn't have anywhere near the power she has now."  Naru
frowned at Galaxia, not following her train of thought.  "Naru...
Tranquility...  Would you like to open these doors?"
	"Umm...  If you insist..."  Galaxia stepped aside and allowed
Naru to stand before the doors.  Naru reached down, slowly, and 
touched the door handle.  She could feel the energies within the
metal, running through her like some kind of security check.  There
was a soft chime, and the doors swung open.

	Not just open....  For the doors were nowhere near as small as
they appeared from the passageway.  Naru peered through the opening
and saw the doors swinging hundreds of meters away from the 
entrance.  On the other side, the doors were literally walls....

	Then Naru registered the light.  What appeared to be a beacon
sitting in the middle of the vast, darkened chamber.  She studied 
it, trying to make out its distance.

	"What is that?"  She asked softly as she registered the path 
leading to it actually disappeared into a thin line in the distance.  
Whatever it was had to have been pretty bright, because they were a 
good half an hour's walk from it.  When Naru didn't receive a 
response from her companion, she turned.

	Galaxia was staring at her in a manner that suggested both
curiosity and wonderment...  Mixed in with a little sadness.  She
shook herself from her reverie.  "Ahh, this...  This is...  Well.  I
suggest we have a look at it for ourselves.  It is most 
interesting."
	"What is it?"  Naru repeated the question, sounding rather 
more tired than she'd intended.

	Galaxia's lips quivered, slightly.  "Its...  The Cauldron
itself."  Naru's eyes widened and she turned back to look at the 
distant light.
	"NO WAY!"  She gasped.
	"Indeed."  Galaxia stepped forward, proudly.  "This is the
reason why we call this construction the Keep of the Cauldron.  Its 
where we keep the thing."  Galaxia chuckled to herself.
	"How did you ever find it...?"  She thought for a few seconds.  
"A power source such as this....  Virtually unguarded..."
	"No, not entirely unguarded.  There is the Corps of the 
Originals....  A group of those who are purebred Homeworlders,
dedicated to guarding the Keep.  I have sent them away for the time
being...."  Galaxia smiled.  "But then, they are only here to guard
the sleepers, anyway.  This room has its own defences, powered by
the elemental energies of the system."

	"So how was I able to just open the door like that?  I'm not
even a senshi of this world...."
	"How indeed.  There are only four people capable of opening
these doors.  Myself, Millenia, Ascentia... and Gaea."  Galaxia
underlined the last name.

	Naru stared at her, quietly.  The meaning of her words only
slowly starting to sink in.  "Perhaps...  You should tell me more
about this Gaea, and her relationship with Millenia."

	They started forward.  Naru felt a little nervous as the path
to the beacon was a sheer edge, dropping into a darkened pit of
indeterminate depth.  As they walked, Galaxia spoke.

	"Gaea was Millenia's lover.  In a way.  In those days, 
homosexual relationships were... fairly illicit and frowned upon.
They weren't discouraged, but there was an element of social 
disapproval.  All the same, they were both top students of the 
Academy, and the daughters of rich families."
	"Sounds like Tranquility and Naiad."  Naru almost cringed
when she said that, especially as Galaxia seemed to agree with the
idea so strongly.
	"But there had been a triangle between them and Ascentia, who
was male.  Perhaps both Gaea and Millenia were bisexual, I don't 
know.  They would both play a relationship with Ascentia off each 
other.  There were times when it was quite embarassing to watch
the three making fools of themselves."

	"What were they like?  Personally, I mean?"
	"They lived up to their elemental aspects.  Gaea was very 
simple and basic in her wants and needs.  She was emotional and 
creative, but also very conservative and practical.  Millenia, on
the other hand, was a VERY different creature.  She, too, was 
emotional and creative.  Perhaps moreso than Gaea, for reasons that
she was NOT conservative in her attitudes and views.  Her personal
needs were very complex.  She was attractive...  Extremely so.  I
was often envious of her wasted beauty..."
	"Yes, you said you used to envy her..."
	"Hmm....  She was a gorgeously exotic woman....  Not the 
figure you saw in that dreamworld created when you were fused with
the water element....  That was what she became after a few thousand
years.  No, in her heyday she was more loved, and more highly 
respected, than the rest of us put together....  I guess there is an
attraction to the dark and mysterious.  Millenia became an 
attractive representative of those aspects of human nature."

	"The attraction to evil."

	"Not evil, as such, but the antithesis.  I don't think you 
could ever use the term evil when referring to Millenia."  Galaxia
bit her lower lip.  "Then there was Ascentia.  He was particularly
strange.  Not in an unlikeable way.  In fact, he was the most 
sociable of all of us.  He just had his moments where he seemed to
be more interested in intellectual pursuits....  At the expense of
his social life.  It would come and go.  I don't think I ever quite
grasped who the real Ascentia was...."

	"A private individual."

	"A flittering intellectual would be the term.  I'd hate to
think what would happen to him if he were born into a body that was
less than perfect....  Because he was a most beautiful man.  Long
white hair, clear skin, steel grey eyes....  He had the capacity to
hypnotise with those eyes."

	Naru shivered.  And that sounds exactly like Astute, she 
thought to herself.  Exactly, said a little voice in her head.  She
looked at Galaxia, who was smiling at her.  You bloody cow, she 
thought.  Stop reading my mind.  Why?  Said the voice.  Does it
frighten you that your mind is so open to my probings?  Just get
out!

	"I'm out of there."  Galaxia said, eventually.  "You have a 
nice mind, you know.  So clear and uncomplicated.  Except for the
fact you willingly participated in the murder of someone who used to
be your friend."

	"Who said that was willing.  I was the victim of suggestions
planted in my mind in a manner not unlike what you did just now."

	"And what about that makes you a victim?  You have more than
enough power within you to defend yourself against the ministrations
of someone versed in mind manipulation through biochemical 
interface."

	"Well, I didn't know then how to use it.  And I'm not entirely
versed with it now, either."

	Galaxia sighed.  "Oh well, at least I detected within you a 
concern for those you have left behind on your home planet.  Mostly
for one who goes by the name of Umino Gurio."

	Umino....  Naru stopped in her tracks, and Galaxia followed 
suit.  Her face fell and she began to shiver.

	"Did you love this man?  This Umino Gurio?"
	"Yes."
	"So why did you leave him behind when Pluto came to you that 
day?  The day she told you the truth about everything?"
	"I didn't leave him.  I just....  I shunned him.  No, that's
not the right word.  I knew what they had been involved with was
dangerous, and I didn't want him to get hurt."
	"You did hurt him, though.  From what I've been able to 
collect in your mind, he was particularly upset.  Was he not?"

	Naru began to tremble even more.

	"But the one who was hurt the most was you, in having to tell
him to keep out of your life.  For a while, anyway."
	"He's so fragile.  He's always been that way.  Because of the
way he looks, and the way he acts around others, he hurts inside.
But that's just him.  And I left him behind, the only girl he'd ever
been able to get that close to.  Jeez, I'm a rampant idiot, 
sometimes."
	"Yes, you are."
	"Don't show me any sympathy, why don't you."
	"Okay.  I won't.  Would you like to see how things are back on
your world as we continue on our walk?"

	"Ano..."  Naru turned and looked over the side of the walkway.
"How does one achieve this?"
	"I implant the images into your mind as we walk along."
	"Uh, things are hard enough as they are.  And besides, I don't
exactly feel like walking over the side."
	"The Cauldron protects all of its visitors from harm.  You 
have nothing to fear."

	Naru stared at her in total silence, eventually nodding.  They
continued walking.


	Jadeite arrived at the scene of what appeared to be nothing 
short of a small nuclear blast.  In the epicentre of the now-dead
explosion, sitting on a rock, was the Youma Usagi.  She held a lead,
which was tied around the neck of a moderately injured Mars, who was 
on the ground on all fours.  Moderately, if you discounted the fact 
that she no longer had her sight.  The Youma was now wearing a short 
dress.  Jadeite was damned if he knew where she'd got the thing 
from.  She also appeared none the worse for wear after her brush 
with being roasted.

	"What is going on here?"  Naru asked.  "Is that Usagi?"
	"Not really."  Galaxia sniffed.  "That, for all that it 
appears, is a Youma....  A beast of the Dark Kingdom.  The negative
forces that exist within that system.  Although, that can only be
said to be partly true.  She DOES contain the spirit of Serenity,
the positive forces...."
	"So if she does, why is she doing that to Sailormars...  
Treating her in such a manner...."
	"What would you do to someone you knew had killed you, if 
you'd had every form of social morality removed?"
	"I'd probably be doing what she is doing now."
	"Precisely."
	"Can I ask a question?"
	"Yes?"
	"Why am I being so calm about this?"
	"Why indeed?  Perhaps you suddenly feel you no longer belong
simply to the constricting demands of that world."

	"Hello Jade-chan."  The Youma grinned, pulling on the lead a
couple of times.  "Say hello to our guest, Rex."
	"Wan...  Wanwanwan."  Mars said deliriously.

	"Wh... What are you doing to her?"  Jadeite strode forward.  
"How did you unfuse her from her element?"
	"Oh, Jade-chan.  I AM Serenity.  I can do whatever I like with
the powers I have been given.  And ONE of those powers is the 
capacity to emulate everything my senshi are capable of.  It was
simplicity in itself.  Wasn't it, Rex?"
	"Wanwanwan!"

	"St...Stop that!  How could you degrade her that way?"
	"Easy.  Would you like to see a little bit more?"  The Youma
jumped from the rock and stepped up beside Mars, who flinched when
she sensed her presence.  "Now, doggy, play dead.  Roll over.  Beat
your head a couple of times against the ground..."
	"ENOUGH!"  Jadeite shrieked and the Youma stood, smiling.
	"Oh, really, Jade-chan.  This emotional attachment to this...
thing..."  She kicked Mars in the side a couple of times.  The 
senshi fell to the ground, clutching herself.

	"She used to be my lover...  In the old Kingdom....  Please...
I don't want to see her harmed..."
	"Oh YEAH?  So why did you give me this body, eh?"  She 
snorted.  "You knew what I was going to do with it.  And besides,
who said that memory, of her being your lover in the Silver 
Millenium, is even true?  Anyone can have their memories altered by
those with sufficient ability.  I'd say someone has had a field day
with you."
	"What are you trying to say?"
	The Youma dropped the lead, which, as if it had a life of its
own, wrapped itself around the arms and legs of Mars, bending her
back painfully.  "Stay!"  The Youma wagged a finger at the prone
Mars and slowly started to step forward, towards Jadeite.

	"Now, Jade-chan.  I suppose you want me to spare this girl's
pathetic little existence?  Well, that's all well and good, and as
things turn out, I'd rather kill her.  But I will consider it if you
give me one thing..."
	"And that would be?"

	The Youma giggled, continuing forward, swinging her hips 
slightly, a smile on her face.  He'd seen that look before.

	"Oh no...  I'm not going to do that."
	"Why, Jade-chan?  Aren't I good enough for you?"
	"Call it a habit of mine.  Never screw anyone who had a habit
of trying to kill you in the past."

	"Hey, who said you'd be doing any of the screwing?"  The Youma
stopped and laughed.  Then, her smile not dissipating, she reached
her hand forward.

	The hand shot out, like a bullet, grabbing Jadeite around the 
throat.  He threw his hands up to wrestle with it, but found himself 
dragged forward like a rag doll, the Youma's hand reeling back on 
thin strands of flesh like a sinker on a fishing line.

	The hand snapped back into place, and the Youma grabbed his
collar with the other, lifting him bodily from the ground.  He let
out a short cry as she licked her lips.

	"Now, Jade-chan...  I would seriously reconsider being very,
very co-operative with me.  Because I can either make this painful
or pleasureable.  How would you like me to do it?"

	"St...stop this!  Please."

	The Youma rolled her eyes.  "Your call then."  She threw him
on the ground, pinning his arms with her knees.  She grabbed his
shirt and tore it off viciously with one hand, punching him in his
already-wounded face with the other.  Blood flew from a reopened
wound, splattering on her fingers.  She stared at the blood and
licked it off lasciviously.  She then leaned down and kissed him
fully on the mouth.

	"Enough!"  Naru croaked.  "I don't want to see any more of
this!"  She shuddered.
	"Very well.  We shall move to other events."  Galaxia nodded.


	An old yellow bus was plowing through groups of hideously
wounded people, who were clawing at its sides like zombies.

	"What...  What the hell is this?"  Naru blinked in surprise.
	"This is what is happening right at this very moment.  Your
friend, Sailorvenus, lies in that bus, grievously wounded."
	"Mi...  Mina-chan?"
	"She is alright for the moment, but for how much longer, I
wonder...."
	"Who are those people, attacking the bus?"
	"They are no longer alive.  They are part of a collective
creature that is generally known across the universe as a Resonator.
Horrible creatures...  They are a kind of mind parasite, capable
of taking over not only the nervous system of others, but 
incorporating the bodies of their dead victims to increase their
own physical presence."
	"These don't look like they've been incorporated."
	"Indeed not.  The Resonator, stupid creature that it is, has
used up most of its energy reserves in showing off, laying waste
to a goodly portion of the city."
	A goodly portion?  Naru's head spun...  What about my parents?
What about my Guri-chan?

	"What the hell is going on?"  Maisagi said as she gritted her
teeth.  Lina and Meimi were holding onto the driver's seat as 
Maisagi swerved the bus through a corner, towards a section of the
city that was lined with skyscrapers.

	"What are they, anyway?  Why the hell are they attacking us?"
Sae said before lurching back from the window as one of the 
Resonator's victims smashed against it, shattering its head and 
chest.  Both VesVes and Minako could see the face of what used 
to be an old man, his mouth wide open, clawing at the glass.  His
hand was reaching for a hold on the window, trying to slide it.  But
before he managed to move the window, the bus ran along a 
streetlight, and he was scraped off, leaving a massive trail of 
blood along the side.

	"What do they want from us?  We haven't done anything wrong."
Usagika held Minako's hand tightly, clearly frightened as more 
bodies pounded against the front window.  Minako looked at her 
blearily, praying that her final moments of life didn't end in this
melee'.  She turned to VesVes, whose face had gone stern, and pale.

	"There is only one thing they want."  She said sadly.  "Its
the Resonator...."  Minako frowned.
	"The what?"  She croaked.
	"It said it would hunt us down, no matter where we went."  
VesVes bit her lower lip and looked at Minako.  "It doesn't want
you yet.  Just me."
	"W.. Wait!  What are you..."

	VesVes stood as the windscreen began to crack.  Maisagi, who
had managed to contain herself thus far, let out a small gasp.  
"Lina, prepare one of your fire spells."
	"B...  But this space is too confined."
	"Throw it OUT the front when these bastards finally smash
through it."
	"There won't be any need for that."  VesVes said simply, and
looked up at the hole in the roof.  Lina and Meimi looked back at 
her, and Maisagi glanced in the mirror.
	"What are you going to do?"
	"End this for sure."

	And with that, VesVes leapt through the roof of the bus.  She
landed heavily on a wall nearby.  "Hey!  HEY!  Over here, you 
freaks!"  Almost automatically, the animated cadavers turned to face
her, surging towards her and away from the bus.

	"VESTA ASTEROID POWER, MAKE UP!"  In seconds, VesVes's 
appearance changed.  Her lycra running gear turning into a red and
white sailorfuku, strangely similar but stylistically different to
Rei's.  Her long hair was now tied up in a long, expansive tail that
rose close to three feet.  Even as she finished transforming, the
cadavers were pushing each other up the wall.  Now, as Sailorvesta,
she leapt from the wall and onto the roof of a nearby building, 
smiling at her pursuers.

	Minako was up against the window, being held by Usagika.  
Somehow managing to find the energy.  Even as she felt that energy
beginning to subside, requiring Sae's assistance in holding her up,
she stared at Vesta, who smiled back and waved.  Minako closed her
eyes and shivered, and saw the body of a young, red-haired girl,
lying in the halls of the Palace of the Moon Kingdom.  A girl who
died for nothing.


	"Why did she do that?"  Naru frowned.
	"Because the Resonator would have had those bodies tear into
the bus and kill everyone inside, just to get to her."
	"Who is she, anyway?  I can't seem to remember a Sailorvesta
being mentioned anywhere...."
	"That's because the core group of the Senshi have never been
involved with the Asteroid Senshi.  There are three distinct groups
of senshi that surround the Queen.  The Inner Senshi, or the 
Personal Guard, the Outer Senshi, or the War Lords, and the Asteroid
Senshi, or the Shadow Boxers.  It wasn't often that the three groups
would intermingle in the past....  It was part of the Doctrine of 
the Separation of Powers....  As with the Miko, who represented the
spiritual aspect of the kingdom within their three groups of four."
	Naru's head spun with this information.  "Why three groups of
four?  What purpose did this serve?"
	"Hmm...  Don't know.  It was written within the ancient texts
of my world that this was the pattern to be used."


	Vesta raised high above the city, trying on her flight powers
for the first time in a long time, hoping to put as much air between
her and the writhing mass of bodies that were following her every
move.  She looked down and was surprised to see the bodies hadn't
fused together, like she expected...  Like they had before when the
Resonator had rampaged violently across the city.  That meant 
something had gone wrong, with the Resonator.  Either its powers
were low, or it was foxing her.

	Before she had time to think, a beam of energy flew from a
large distance and struck her square in the back.  Vesta let out a
short cry as blood flew from her mouth....


	Both Juno and Pallas stopped for a moment and stared at each
other, a look of shock crossing their faces.  Mamoru and Chibiusa
stopped and looked back at them as Pallas clenched her fist AND her
teeth.
	"What is it?  What happened?"  Mamoru inquired.  Somehow, he'd 
managed to convince them to go in pursuit of Usako with him.  The 
damned Usagi clone had run off to Kami knows where, with Aosagi 
taking off after her.  Both were now missing.  It was Usashin who 
said that the pair of them would be no match for anything that might 
befall them in the dangerous state the city was in now.  And so, 
Mamoru decided to go after them, using Usashin's uncanny ability to 
track anyone and anything as their guide.

	"DAMMIT!  DAMMIT TO HELL!"  Pallas looked around her, as if
she were about to throw a tantrum and wanted a nice safe place to do
it.  Juno took her by the shoulders.
	"Settle down!  Everything's alright.  I can still feel her
signature."
	"SHE'S DYING!"  Pallas spat, shaking her head roughly.

	Behind the Asteroids, Neptune and Uranus, now having 
apparently switched bodies, gripped their shorter cousins roughly.

	"Are you two FINISHED?  We'll lose Usashin and Jupiter if we
just stand here..."  Neptune-Uranus said, angrily.  Pallas lashed
out at her, but Neptune-Uranus stopped her easily.  At first, Pallas
thought about punching the aqua-haired senshi, but realised the mind
running the body wasn't likely to take the hint.  Uranus did tend to
hold things against people that way.

	Instead, it was Juno who walloped them both, much to Pallas's
surprise.  "Get your FUCKING hands off us.  One of our friends is
mortally wounded, and we're feeling her death."

	"Wh.. who?"  Chibiusa looked at her as the two Outer Senshi
rubbed sore chins.  She spun on them.

	"VesVes...  She's dying...  You'll never understand...  You're
just a pathetic...  I mean..."  Juno was shivering.  Now it was 
Pallas's turn to try to calm her.

	Misagi stood at the rear of the group with Akunatsuka, 
sighing, and sat on the wall that lined the street.  She opened one 
of the beers from the sixpack she was carrying and began to scoff it 
down, looking up into the sky.

	It looked like the end of the world up there.  Well, there was
another world up there, but that was beside the point.  If it was 
the end of the world, the end of everything, she was going to go 
out, enjoying it.

	She heard Akunatsuka clearing his throat, his hand held out.
She sighed and handed him one of the cans.


	Jupiter looked back and noticed that their companions had been
left behind.  She came to a screeching stop, grabbing Usashin's arm
roughly.  This caused the pair to sprawl across the ground.  Both 
Luna and Artemis had to scatter to avoid being crushed.
	"What did you do that for?"  Usashin looked across at her, her
face a calm but enquiring mask.
	"Cos the others are gone.  We might lose them if we go any 
further."  Jupiter stood, helping up Usashin.  Just as they did so,
crackles of lightning-like energy spread across the sky, towards the
tendrils of the Eternal City.  They stared at it with wonder.

	"What's happening?"
	"It would appear the tear itself is now collapsing.  The 
physical laws of both dimensions are trying to meld."
	"That's bad, right?"
	Usashin sweatdropped.  "Uh, yeah, pretty much."

	Artemis sniffed after preening himself.  "I think we should go
back and see what has happened to them."
	"You mean WE should go.  We might have gotten a little ahead
of them, and they've lost their way."  Luna said haughtily.  She 
turned to Jupiter and Usashin.  "You two wait here.  We'll guide 
them to you."

	They nodded, and both cats took off in the direction from 
whence they came.


	"Is what she said true?  About the breach?"  Naru stared at 
Galaxia.
	"I'm afraid so."  Galaxia nodded grimly.  "And I'm afraid the
two dimensions shall not be able to meld."
	"What will happen, then?"
	"Total annhialation.  Everything will cease to exist in a 
matter of moments."
	"What?  This entire universe?"
	"Indeed."
	"How?  What kind of power does that other universe possess?"
	"The power of the Cauldron itself.  It was created through the
rubbish elements that were thrown off during the Harnessing of the
Sol System.  During the Harnessings, the power of the Cauldron is
utilised to bring the elements to heel.  Unfortunately, Sol didn't
want to be controlled, and still doesn't, so it took an 
extraordinary amount of power to do so."
	

	The Youma Usagi stood from Jadeite's bleeding and naked form
as the ex-Youma General groaned.  She looked down at him, pityingly.
"Well, you were as well built as the rumours said."  She chuckled.
"Unfortunately, you just don't have the stomach for my tastes.  Oh
well."  She snapped her fingers, and Mars was released from her 
bonds, then picked up her dress and put it back on.

	"I thought you'd do something like this."  The Youma turned
to see Sailorceres standing on the edge of the blast circle.  She
smiled, bowing.
	"Well, I don't want to disappoint an appreciative audience.
How long were you standing there?"
	"For most of it.  You're right, he is well built.  But I
prefer my men to be a bit more consensual in their lovemaking."

	The Youma chuckled.  "If only you've seen some of the things
some men have done to girls I've met during my travels....  So what
if I like to do it back to them?"

	"That's not how you treated Professor Tomoe."  Ceres put her
hands on her hips as the Youma gawked at her.
	"How do you know about the Professor and I?  That is..."
	"In the future, yes.  Time is nothing to me.  I already knew
what was going to happen here.  That's why I knew where to look."

	"So, you contain an element of time powers, do you?"
	"Hardly.  I'm merely precognitive.  And anyway, I only came
to collect these two.  Now if you will excuse me..."  Ceres began
forward.
	"Whoa...  Just what do you think you are doing?"
	"My job.  If I'm not able to pool the powerbase these two
contain, with the others, then we shall cease to exist in 
approximately twenty minutes."

	Flashes of lightning distracted the both of them for a few
moments, then the Youma giggled.

	"You can't frighten me like that.  I've seen the future."
	"Did you see the right future?"  Ceres looked at her 
unemotionally.  "The one where everything is eradicated?  And I mean
everything."

	The Youma sneered.  "So?  Why should I care?  I have greater
powers than the all of you put together."
	"Your powers will not be able to stop this, even combined with
the powers of every living being across the universe, once it 
starts."

	The Youma shivered.  "NO!  I came back for a reason.  To kill
these bastards.  If I am to die in the process, then so be it!"  The
Youma snapped her fingers and disappeared.  Ceres blinked a couple
of times, crossing her hands in front of her.  She slowly padded
down into the bowl of the blast, and knelt beside Jadeite as she 
watched Mars crawling towards her.

	"Usa....  Uasgi... chan..."

	Ceres shook her head, putting out a hand for the now-blind
senshi to grab.  As she dragged Mars towards her, she turned and
looked up at the sky.

	"Casual indifference won't get you anywhere, bitch."


	Luna and Artemis stopped at the corner and looked around, to
see....  Nobody.  Artemis sighed and hung his head.
	"We're lost."
	"We're not lost, we've just... taken a wrong turn, somewhere."
Luna sweatdropped as Artemis stared at her through dubious eyes.

	They heard an approaching truck, and were surprised to see a
vehicle, driven by Professor Tomoe, and full of all kinds of Usagi
variants, approaching them.

	From within the truck cabin, Ushayla had recounted everything
that had lead to the opening of the breach to the Professor, and was
about to go into a full, blow by blow description of what his 
daughter had done to cause the breach, when he hit the brakes.  
Ushayla's head was almost piled into the dashboard.

	"Hoi, what was that for?"  She looked at the Professor, who
was now leaning out of the window.  She followed his gaze, and saw
Luna and Artemis running towards them.  "Hey, its those cats."  She
sniffed.

	"I can see that."  Said the Professor as the two cats arrived
at the base of the truck.  "What are you two doing here?"

	"Umm..."  Luna stuttered.
	"We're lost, cos Ms Perfect here thought she knew the way back
to the others...."  Luna stared daggers at Artemis, who sniffed with
affected disinterest.
	"The others?"
	"Yes.  Chiba Mamoru....  Tuxedo Kamen, Chibiusa, Sailoruranus,
Sailorneptune and...  Umm...  Others."
	"What?  You've made contact with the Asteroid Senshi?"
	"How do you know about the Asteroid Senshi?"  Both Luna and
Artemis stared at him as he opened the door.
	"No time to explain.  Get in, if you both value your lives."
	"What do you mean, value our lives?"

	The Professor sighed.  "Because everything is about to go 
bang.  That's how I know the Asteroid Senshi...  They've been in
communication with me for a while, and they've told me this is to 
be the case."

	Luna and Artemis stared at each other.  Everything was about 
to go bang?  Surely not....  Unless...  What was it that Mamoru and 
Hotaru had said?  The two dimensions were incompatible.  When 
something solid, like the Eternal City touched down, a massive
cancellation would occur....  But the City couldn't make its way
down by itself...  It needed an avatar.

	Usako....


	Their reprieve had been all too brief.  Now, straggling 
numbers of the cadavers were beginning to attack the bus again as
they passed through a canyon of high towers.  And then the petrol
ran out.  Maisagi stared at the fuel gauge in disbelief.

	"Aww, shit!  You could have put money on it..."  She gritted
her teeth and brought the bus to a rolling stop when they were able
to clear their pursuers.  She opened the doors as Sae and Usagika
lifted Minako to her feet.  "I hope you have enough left in you to
run, Sailor V, cos we're going to have to."

	"Yes, Artemis, whatever you say..."  Minako mumbled.  Maisagi
scratched her head as something banged against the back of the bus.
That was enough of a signal for the six of them to get motoring.

	Maisagi leapt from the bus and flicked out a pair of razor-
edged fans, opening them dramatically with a twitch of her hands.
She stared back at the thirty-strong group of cadavers as they
shuffled along the street.  Lina was out next, gritting her teeth.

	"Lina, use your fireballs to take that lot out.  I'll deal
with those who get through."
	"Okay!"  Lina raised her hands and held them forward.  
"FIREBALL!"  she shouted, as several of the cadavers stepped out
from behind the bus.  They exploded in an incindiary blast that
felled everything up to 100 feet behind them.  As she was doing
this, Meimi peered from the doorway, then gestured to the other
three.

	"The coast is clear for us, lets get."  She jumped from the
bus and helped Minako down the steps, followed by Sae and Usagika.
Meimi and Sae then dragged Minako in the opposite direction to the
approaching cadavers, only to come face to face with another group,
as if out of nowhere.  Sae panicked and almost dropped Minako.  It
was only Usagika that stopped this from happening.

	"Where?  Where do we go?"  Sae looked from left to right.  
Usagika pointed to the open doors of the nearest building.
	"That way.  We'll lose them in there."
	"Or get trapped."  Meimi looked dubious, but wasn't given any
choice as Sae dragged Minako towards the doors.  Usagika looked
back and watched as Maisagi slashed into the cadavers with her fans,
then stood still, placing her hands in a praying position, closing
he eyes.  Fire-like shadows of herself exploded outwards and 
consumed all those cadavers that strayed too close.

	"Maisagi, Lina, hurry!  They're coming from the other 
direction!"  Usagika began to back towards the doors as Maisagi 
heard her.  She turned to see the milling cadavers approaching from
the other direction with boggled eyes.

	"Jeez, this never ends!"  She turned to Lina, who was 
levelling a new group with another fireball.  "Hurry, or we'll be
swamped from both sides."  Maisagi made for the door as Usagika
disappeared inside.  Lina turned, seeing the opposing onslaught,
and made to follow them, when she was grabbed from behind.  Almost
as a reflex, a fireball flew out of her hands as she tried to free
herself from the two cadavers that had grabbed her.

	The fireball went straight up, then fell down again.  Lina
had just enough time to realise what was happening when she was
engulfed in the flame.  With a short scream, her body exploded,
releasing its immense fire powers.

	Maisagi had heard her scream and turned, just in time to be
blown through the windows that lined the door to the building,
landing on top of Usagika.  Sae, Meimi and Minako, who had made it
to the lift doors, were pressed against them by the hot wind.

	Maisagi looked back, to see half the street obliterated, and
the cadavers with them.  Slowly, she managed to lift herself from
Usagika, helping her up.

	"What happened?  Where's Lina?"  Usagika looked back.
	"They got her."  Maisagi said, grimly.  She took a few steps
forward and peered out of the shattered windows.  Much to her 
despair, those cadavers that had been obliterated in the blast were
being replaced by a whole new group.  She turned to her companions.

	"Hurry, we've got more company."

	"The lift isn't working!"  Sae said panickingly, hitting the
lift button repeatedly.
	"There isn't any power."  Meimi turned to the stairwell that 
ran just off to one side.  "The stairs!  Take the stairs!"  She
dragged Minako and Sae across to the stairwell as Usagika and 
Maisagi backed towards them.

	All thoughts of fighting the cadavers off, however, ended when
they saw the sheer numbers approaching the front of the building.  
Like the trio before them, they scattered for the stairwell.


	The sound of the explosion must have travelled far, because
it distracted Uranus and Neptune as they loomed over Juno 
threateningly.
	"What the hell was that?"  Uranus-Neptune muttered, looking
around.
	"Another bang.  What's so wrong with that?  There have been a
lot of them lately."  Juno sneered.
	"Hoi oi oi...  Settle down."  Pallas gripped her partner by
the shoulder and shook her.  "We have other things to think about,
okay?"  Juno shrugged her off.
	"I'm sick of hearing this pair crap on....  If they want to
fight and waste the last few precious minutes of our lives, then so
be it!"
	"Tch..."  Misagi spat contemptuously, and opened another beer.
	"Last minutes of life?"  Akunatsuka looked at Misagi, who
stared back, shrugging.  He downed the last of his can.  "Well, if
that's the case....  I'm outta here."  He ran, tossing the can
behind him.  Misagi watched him go cynically as Juno and Uranus-
Neptune stared each other out.

	Mamoru was about to intervene when Ceres appeared in a flash,
kneeling low to the ground with one hand resting on the bloodied and
near-naked form of Jadeite, and the other on the dazed-looking Mars.

	"CERES!"  Pallas jumped hopefully as her second partner stood.
"Did you feel it?  Vesta is in trouble!  We've got to help her...."

	Ceres looked at her for a few moments, then shook her head.
"Her destiny is different from ours.  We have a job to do."

	Chibiusa, who had been holding Mamoru's arm, felt him pull 
away from her.  Slowly, he began to pace towards Jadeite.  When
Chibiusa realised what was happening, it was too late.

	"Mamo-chan...  Stop!"

	"Jadeite, you BASTARD!"  Mamoru ran towards the man, who 
turned to him in dazed surprise.  Both Ceres and Pallas were 
caught off guard as he ran past them, virtually jumping on the
ex-General, gripping his hair.  Mars scuttled away in fear, hitting
a wall and collapsing, dazed.

	"WHAT DID YOU DO TO USAGI?!?"  Mamoru screamed splenetically.
Jadeite stared at him in fear.
	"I..  I did nothing... except save her life..."
	"LIAR!  YOU HURT HER, DIDN'T YOU, BASTARD!"

	"Mamo-chan!  Stop it!  Please!"  Chibiusa ran forward.  Then, 
she began to feel a numbness run through her, as if the body no 
longer wanted to obey her commands.  She stared at herself for a few 
moments as Ceres and Pallas remonstrated with Mamoru.

	Then Uranus's body glowed, followed by Juno's.  Their clothes
changed colour dramatically as Juno's turned into a double aqua blue 
minidress and Uranus's a green and white.  Uranus pointed at Juno,
laughing.

	"BWAHAHAHA!  Caught you off guard there!"

	"Michiru?"  Neptune-Uranus looked at her companion a moment.
Haruka's head turned, but it wasn't Michiru who was running the
show, now.  "JUNO?!?!"

	Uranus-Juno giggled.  "Who else, you LOSER.  Gonna hit me NOW,
eh?  Come on, just a punch, right here."  She pointed to her chin.
For a few moments, Neptune-Uranus looked like she was considering 
it.  Then she remembered it was her body, and likely to hurt if she
ever got back into it.

	Then Chibiusa let out a cry, her body surrounded by crackles
of energy.  This was enough to distract Mamoru in his attempts to
beat the living crappers out of Jadeite.

	"Chibiusa!"  He shouted as he let the General go, finally 
finding himself being pulled away by Ceres and Pallas.  He virtually
ran Pallas down in his efforts to get to Chibiusa, who had fallen to
her knees, head dropped.  The energy dissipated as Mamoru grabbed
her by the shoulders.  "Chibiusa?  Are you alright?  Chibiusa..."  
He shook her shoulders, trying to rouse her.  Slowly, she raised her
head and looked up at him.

	"Mamo-chan?"
	"Chibiusa, what happened just then?  Are you alright?"
	"Mamo-chan...  Where are we?"

	He stared at her for several moments and slowly realised, to
his surprise, that the eyes that stared back at him were not those 
of Chibiusa.


	The door to the Mizuno's fridge swung open, and Chibiusa fell
out.  She looked at her surroundings dazedly, and slowly got to her
feet, only then realising that she was no longer as tall as she had
been.  She stared at her small hands, her small legs, the closeness
of the ground....  She was no longer in the body of the 4P!  She 
shivered and stared around at the silent and dark kitchen.

	Slowly, she wandered from the kitchen into the front yard, 
staring at her surroundings without understanding their meaning.  
She sniffed and could smell something sickly sweet in the air.  She
turned to the pool and stepped towards it.

	The pool was filled with blood...  Slowly congealing.  She 
backed away, shaking her head, and ran into someone.  Slowly, she
looked up.

	"A... Ami-chan..."  She turned as the blue-haired girl smiled
at her.
	"Hello, Chibiusa."
	"You're alive!  I'm so glad..."  Chibiusa fell into Ami's arms
and hugged her tightly.  Ami looked down at the pink-haired girl,
shaking her head sadly.

	"Looks like the Eternal City has given up on you being its 
great avatar....  Probably why it chose to put you in the body of
the Eternal Sailormoon clone."  Ami turned her head slightly.  
Chibiusa frowned.

	"What do you mean?"

	"You've been a very naughty girl, Chibiusa."
	"Eh?"  Chibiusa looked up and backed away when she felt the 
numb sensation once more.  "Wh..  What's happening?"
	"Time is reasserting itself, Chibiusa.  You're being sent back
into Crystal Tokyo."
	Chibiusa stared at her.  "Why?"
	"When did you discover Usagi wasn't your real mother, 
Chibiusa?"  Ami stared down at her sternly, like a teacher would to
a mischievous pupil.  Chibiusa shrank from her.
	"How do you know...  About that..?"
	"I know everything, now.  Its amazing, the liberating 
qualities of death."  She took a breath.  "This is but a fleeting
moment of rebirth.  I need to know, so I can deal with this in my 
next life.  When did you discover that Usagi was not your real 
mother?"
	Chibiusa swallowed.  "She told me herself."

	For a few moments, Ami just stared at her, then laughed.  "Ah
yes, I should have seen that.  Of course she would.  She knew you
would go back to try and set things to rights...."  Ami raised an
eyebrow.  "And do you know who your real mother is?"

	Chibiusa was about to speak, when her body was surrounded by
flickering sparks of energy.  She faded into nothingness, leaving
Ami to sigh at the missed opportunity.

	She turned and looked up into the sky.  Not long now.

	She disappeared.


	"Then who is her mother?"  Naru looked at Galaxia.  The woman
smiled, knowingly.
	"I wouldn't dare to suggest, just as yet.  It would seem that
the girl is being torn by time and destiny.  After all, she looked
like you at one stage, after Usagi was killed, only to revert to her
original form...."
	"So, in other words, both time and destiny rejected me as her
mother...."
	"It was never really likely to happen.  Mamoru...  Endymion
would not have accepted you.  Nor was he in this universe at the 
time.  He was trapped within the universe of the Eternal City."
	"But that still doesn't tell me who her mother is...."  Naru
stamped her feet in frustration.  Galaxia waved a finger at her.
	"Now now now, don't be petulant.  There are still many events
to occur, yet."


	Jupiter sat on the wall, staring at her feet.  She looked 
back, along the road, wondering just what the hell had happened to
those who were supposed to be following both herself and Usashin.
The samurai Usagi was leaning against the wall, her eyes closed,
obviously not anywhere near as concerned.  It frustrated her that
the Usagi couldn't take situations more seriously.

	"I'm going back, to see what has happened to them."  Jupiter
jumped from the wall as Usashin looked up at her.
	"Oro?"  Usashin scratched her head.  "Why bother, they'll be
be here in their own good time."
	"I don't think we have time to wait for them."  She looked
up at the sky, which had now gone from a light pinkish-red to a deep
blood red.  Even with the sun up, she found things were getting 
darker.  Usashin gave the sky a cursory glance.
	"Its best not to let such things distract you.  The world 
shall not be destroyed if we prevent the City from making contact
with the ground."
	"And how are we going to achieve that?"
	"There is one person who can, apparently, communicate with the
City."  She looked away.  Jupiter cursed and began to pace.
	"And she has run off to Kami knows where...."

	There was a flash behind them, on the other side of the wall,
and they heard some coughing as dust was thrown up.  Usashin stood
and watched as the Youma Usagi emerged, trying to wave the dust from
her face.

	"Bugger...  Still haven't got that down pat."  She looked up
at the sky.  "Whoo, now that's pretty, I must say."  She snorted and
looked down at her two acquaintances.  "Ah, Sailorjupiter, and yet
another version of me...."  She facefaulted.  "Oh come on, I wasn't
into Rurouni Kenshin that much.  Why couldn't you have based 
yourself on someone like Matsuura Yuu from Marmalade Boy or some 
other good-looking guy."
	"Because Matsuura Yuusagi would have been insulted."
	"What, you mean there WAS one?"  The Youma facefaulted again.
"Aww jeez, I was only joking."
	"So was I."  Usashin smiled sweetly.  "And you are the 
infamous Youma version of Tsukino Usagi, I take it?"
	"What makes you think that?"  She smiled.
	"Because you have a sign hanging around your neck that says 
so."  Usashin pointed to her chest and she looked down.  Lo and 
behold, there was a sign there.  And it said 'I am the Youma Usagi', 
no less!
	"That bloody Sailorceres!  She tricked me!  How the hell did
she get that there, anyway?"  She chuckled.  "Anyways, I guess you
already get the idea.  I'm death.  The grim reaper.  All that crap.
And I'm here to kill you.  So, if you wouldn't be so kind..."

	Jupiter had heard enough of this.  "Yeah, and I heard you 
killed all those people at that police station....  That must have
felt real good."
	The Youma looked at her.  "Do I know you?  Ah yes, 
Sailorjupiter!  The one who got BLIND DRUNK the night I was killed.
Yes, I remember now.  You were one of those who lead me to my 
death."
	"So?"  Jupiter laughed.  It annoyed the hell out of the Youma.
	"What do you mean, so?"
	"I mean, you aren't even the REAL Usagi, are you?  Just some
pathetic amalgam of her spirit, Serenity's spirit, a Youma body and
perhaps a little bit of Metallia mixed in."
	"Yeah, and proud of it."
	"Don't be.  We made a business out of thugging on Youmas.  
You're no different."
	"Oro..."  Usashin watched as Jupiter, who had a ball of energy
building up in her hand which she held behind her back, throw the
ball at the Youma.

	It struck the Youma, dead centre.  The sign frazzled as a hole
was blown straight through her chest..  It then bounced off the 
nearest building and levelled a row of houses.  Jupiter put a hand 
to her mouth.  "Oops."

	The Youma looked down at the space where her chest used to be,
somewhat annoyed that yet another set of clothing had bitten the 
dust.  She wanted to make a verbal comeback, but was reminded of the
fact that, to do that, one required lungs.  And she was in short 
supply of those right at this moment.

	So she opted for the direct approach.  Her eyes flashed, and
a wave of energy flowed from her, blowing both Jupiter and Usashin
back across the road.  Jupiter managed to skittle to her feet, but
Usashin was not so lucky.  She hit her head against the wall of the
opposing building and saw stars.

	Jupiter watched as the hole in the Youma's chest filled up and
became flesh once more.  the Youma laughed, shaking her head.  "I'm
sorry, Jupiter.  I'm afraid normal, physical attacks won't work on
me quite that way."
	"Normal physical attacks?"  Jupiter bit her lower lip.
	"Yes.  Venus tried it.  Now she's dead.  You just can't tell
some people."
	"Venus?  YOU KILLED MINAKO?"  Jupiter clenched her fists.
	"Yeah, well...  As I said, she just wouldn't listen to my 
directions.  That was your problem, you know.  You guys never 
bothered to listen to me.  Oh, and, of course, there was Mars.  But
I never got around to killing her.  That fool, Jadeite, wanted me to
spare her for some reason.  So I left her blinded.  Not a good 
enough fate for the little bitch."

	The Youma suddenly felt pain rip through her body, and several
points exploded into sprays of blood.  She let out a cry of pain,
surprised that she actually hurt!  Falling to her knees, she saw the
smile on Jupiter's face.
	"What... what did you do?"
	"Normal physical attacks don't hurt you, eh?"  Jupiter 
chuckled.  "So how about ones using telekinesis?"
	The Youma looked surprised.  "You can do that?  No fair!  I
didn't know!"  She clutched her side, which had been ripped open by
Jupiter's stealth TK attack.
	"Yeah, well...  I guess the others let their emotions get the
better of them.  You gave me time to think."  She smiled again, and
the Youma saw the crystal on her tiara flash.

	The pain occured again, this time worse.  Welts exploded over
the trunk of her body, and she screamed in agony....  Jupiter then
followed this up with an Oak Evolution.

	Bits and pieces of Youma scattered in every direction.  Not to
mention a large portion of the wall and garden behind it.


	Jadeite was now sitting up against the retaining wall, having
his wounds tended to by Juno-Neptune.  He stared at the green-haired
senshi dubiously, still not believing who she said she was.  
Neptune-Uranus, meanwhile, was still remonstrating with Uranus-Juno.
Mamoru was attempting to draw answers from the 4P, which had retaken
control of her body from Chibiusa.  Pallas and Ceres stood back as 
he shook the unfortunate Usagi clone's shoulders.

	"Where has she gone?  TELL ME!"
	"I don't know, Mamo-chan....  I can't...  I can't remember..."

	"Leave her along, Tuxedo Kamen.  There is no point."  Ceres
sniffed.  "She will remember nothing."  Ceres turned and looked away
as Mamoru looked back at her.  He was about to make a cutting 
comment, when he noticed she was counting down something, closing
her eyes and gritting her teeth.

	He heard a scream.  Usagi's scream.  They all heard it, and 
the first thing they did was look at Mamoru, except for Ceres, who
stared at him tiredly only after a few moments, and Misagi, who 
couldn't have given a stuff by now.

	"That's her!"  He let the 4P go.  "That's Usagi."  Memories of
her comatose body, having vanished from the loungeroom of Setsuna's
apartment, flashed through his mind.

	"It isn't her."  Ceres said, almost as if what was going to 
happen next was a fait accompli.
	"Yes, it is...  Somebody is hurting her!  I must save her!"
	"It isn't her, Tuxedo Kamen."  Ceres leaned against the wall,
shaking her head.  Despite her admittedly pathetic attempts to tell
him, a rose had appeared in his hand, and in seconds, he was Tuxedo
Kamen.  Everyone watched him as he leapt over the wall and 
disappeared behind a series of bushes.

	"Tuxedo Kamen-sama!"  Neptune-Uranus was about to go in chase,
when she felt her body crackling with energy.  In seconds, Uranus
found she was now staring at Neptune.  Neptune-Juno stared back.
	"Okay...  NOW go after him.  In your own body, no less."

	Uranus nodded and leapt the wall in pursuit.  The 4P looked
from Pallas to Ceres.  "Are you going to help them?"  She asked,
blearily.  Ceres shrugged.
	"What do you think, Pallas, Juno?"  She looked from one to the
other.  Pallas giggled.
	"Oh well, we're all dead anyway.  Might as well hammer the 
last nail in the coffin."
	Neptune-Juno smiled simply, and the body glowed, along with
that of Juno-Neptune.  In seconds, the pair were in their rightful
bodies.  "Hey you, Usagithing...  Look after this creep and his 
girlfriend, will you?"  She said to the 4P pointing to Jadeite and 
Mars.
	"You coming with us now, Neptune?"  Pallas stared at the Outer
Senshi, smiling.
	"Yes, she will."  Ceres said simply, and leapt over the wall.
Pallas shrugged and followed her, with Juno next.  Neptune looked
down on the frightened Usagi 4P and smiled.
	"Time to go, I suppose.  Wish I knew where Hotaru and Setsuna
had got to."  She leapt the wall, leaving just the four to sit and
stare at each other.  Except for Rei, who couldn't see anything 
anyway.

	Slowly Misagi got to her feet and stumbled over to Jadeite and
Rei.  "Guess we'll have to die on our own then, eh?"



	Jupiter stared around at where the Youma had stood.  There
was, literally, tons of rubble.  An easy place to hide, if the
freak was still alive.  Not that she could see how it would survive,
considering she had, literally, been blown into a billion fragments.

	She climbed up the pile of stones and peered down into the pit
within.  Nothing there.  She expected as much.  She looked up and
around warily.  If the Youma was alive, then she might be circling 
her right now, awaiting her opportunity.

	Makoto felt the sensation of her head being pushed forward by 
something, like someone had prodded her.  There was no pain.  She 
tried to turn, but found herself becoming disoriented.  Eventually, 
she managed to look around.  The Youma stood some ten feet from her, 
naked, bloodied and smiling, her hand held outwards.  Slowly, she 
dragged her feet around, feeling nauseous.  She felt sweat running 
down her back and shoulders as she stared at her enemy.  Makoto 
wanted to charge her, but she found her legs refusing to move.  Her 
right arm had gone numb as well.

	"U...  Usa..."  She fell to her knees, not understanding why
she felt so weak and dizzy.  The Youma screwed up her nose.

	"Oops...  I did that a bit quickly.  Don't die or anything on
me just yet."  Makoto couldn't understand what she was saying.  She
put her left hand to her shoulder, to wipe off the sweat.  It felt
warm and sticky.  She lifted her hand away and stared at it.  It
wasn't sweat that was running down her back and shoulders....  The
Youma had shot out a beam of energy...  And hit her in the....

	The hand quivered as Makoto stared at it in horrified 
fascination, realising only then what it meant.  She looked up at
the Youma, who was sauntering forward slowly.  She fell onto her
front and tried to pull herself away with her one useful hand,
dragging her almost dead-weight body across the stony ground.  The
Youma shook her head.  Some people just didn't know when they were
dead!


	They had reached the roof of the building, having successfully
managed to fight off the hoarde of cadavers which tried to follow 
them up.  Maisagi and Usagika were exhausted, their powers almost
drained.

	Maisagi slammed the stairway door.  "Saw, use your powers to
seal this off!"  She shouted.  Sae nodded and handed Meimi the bulk
of Minako's weight.  Meimi dragged Minako across the ground and 
leant her up against the sidewall as Sae lifted up her wand.
	"Izadi aba mehinamu eto kafe nan!"  Sae said, closing her 
eyes.  The wand sparkled with energy, as did the door.  In seconds,
the door fused with its surrounds.  Saw puffed, as she placed her
wand back in a small sling which she used to carry her magical 
items.
	Maisagi backed away from the door.  "That should hold them off
for a while."  She sighed, collapsing to the ground, Usagika and Sae
doing the same.

	There was a cackling noise to their right, and they turned to
see Vesta, floating above the roof of the building, blood running
from her mouth.

	"Me said me get body... Get superior flesh... eeeheeheehee."
They stood quickly and stared at her.
	"You...  the Asteroid Senshi..."
	"Not so much Vesta anymore, now have superior flesh, me now
have new powers.  Me kill you and eat you."  Vesta licked her lips.

	Minako watched, dazedly, realising almost instantly, to her
horror, what had happened.

	The Resonator was now in control of Vesta.

	She wanted to shout a warning, but her energy reserves were
too low.  She wanted to stand and fight, knowing it might do the
same to her, but she couldn't.  All she could do was sit, and watch,
and remember that young red-headed girl in the Silver Millenium.

	Lysithea Manos.

	She watched as Maisagi tried to launch a fire spell at her, 
but was blown back in an instant, hitting the opposing wall heavily.
With Maisagi unconcious, the other three were almost defenseless.
Sae held out her wand and tried to get off a spell, but was too
slow.  She found herself thrown against the stairhut, sprawling
over the ground in a moaning heap.  Meimi used the creature's attack
as a distraction, a large hat appearing in her hand.  From out of
the hat appeared a mist that surrounded the Resonator-Vesta.  It
let out a cry of frustration as Usagika swirled her baton around,
launching an Angel Aid Bomb Beam.

	The effects on the creature were not exactly what Usagika had
envisioned.  The beam struck the creature, paused, then exploded
outwards in a blast of green flame.  Both Usagika and Meimi were
caught in the blast.  Even before they had a chance to scream, their
bodies were dust.  The blast petered out before it reached Minako,
but had managed to clear the air.

	The creature was untouched.  It stared at Sae, then Maisagi,
and finally Minako.  Slowly, it touched down on the roof and began
to walk towards her.
	Minako tried to back away, but all her energy reserves were
gone.  She just watched in horror as the sickeningly smiling face
of what used to be Vesta came closer and closer.

	"Aha, foul miscreant.  I see you must be punished in the name
of justice!  For I am UNAGI the SERPENT!"  Minako looked aside and
saw a floating figure of... yet ANOTHER Usagi.  only this one looked
a bit more like Maisagi's half-sister.  Certainly, the bust size and
taste in clothing matched.

	The Resonator-Vesta turned to her as the woman smiled smugly.
"So, you show no fear in my presence, eh?  You have not heard the
name of Unagi?"  The Resonator-Vesta hissed and looked as if it were
about to pounce on Unagi, when the woman lifted her head back 
and....

	LAUGHED.  The most horrible, frightening, terrifying laugh 
Minako had ever heard.  She tried to block it out, but the laugh was
just TOO much.  She stared over at Sae, who also had her hands over
her ears.  Even Maisagi was being roused into horrified wakefulness
by the sound.  But that was nothing to what the Resonator was doing.

	It had its hands over its ears, and was letting out little 
gasps of pain as it staggered back towards Venus.  It pressed back
against her, trying to stop itself from falling over the side.  Its
head quivered, and it let out a wave of energy.

	The wave struck Unagi, who fell to the ground, stunned.  How
could anyone...  Anything, defeat her laugh?  She stared at it as it
reared up for a fight.

	It was now or never, Minako thought.  To save Vesta from 
becoming part of this creature for good.  Its core, now entrapped
within the hapless senshi's body, the girl's death would also mean 
its own.  With every ounce of strength she could muster, Venus 
grabbed the Resonator, and tilted herself back over the side of the
roof wall.  She looked down at the pavement below, trying to ignore
her sudden, newfound fear of heights.

	The Resonator gasped, surprised by the action.  Sae and Unagi
watched in horror as Venus pulled back further and further, fighting
the Resonator's scrabbling attempts to hang on, until they reached
the point of no return....

	And beyond.

	They both fell off the side of the building.  Sae and Unagi 
got to their feet and ran to the wall, but were surprised to see,
hanging only ten feet away in mid-air, the Resonator, with Minako
holding on.

	Bummer, Minako thought, forgot it could fly.
	"Not for long..."  Said a voice.
	"Who is that?"  Minako looked around as the Resonator thrashed
about, trying to slash at her....
	"Its me, Vesta, you moron!"  Minako blinked.
	"But you're..."
	"Yeah yeah yeah, my body is in this ugly bastard's control.  
Now listen to me...  As long as I am trapped within this body, we 
are going to fly like birds, right."
	"Yeah, so?"
	"So do as I say, okay?"

	Unagi and Sae watched as the Resonator bucked and kicked, 
trying to throw Venus off, as if it knew what was coming.  Maisagi
staggered over beside them, and the trio watched as the colour of
both girl's senshi uniforms changed, Minako's turning a red and
white, VesVes's a gold and white.  For a few moments they continued
to hang into the air.

	"Ow...  You didn't say this body hurt so much."  Vesta said,
from Venus's mouth.  Suddenly, the Resonator went still and turned
to Venus-Vesta.
	"What did you think it felt like, stupid?  So what happens 
now?"
	"We die."  Venus-Vesta smiled.  And she cut off her flight
powers.

	The two bodies hung in the air for several moments, then 
plummeted to the ground.
	"In my next life, VesVes..."  Vesta-Venus muttered.  "I'm
gonna kill you for this."
	"I'll be waiting."  Venus-Vesta chuckled.

	And they hit the ground, their bodies shattering upon impact.
Huge wads of concrete and stone rose around them as they died.  And
then all their senshi powers were released all at once, and the
earth around them exploded in a vast ball of rising flame.  Unagi,
Maisagi and Sae stared in horror at the approaching blast.

	"Lets get outta here!"  Maisagi croaked.  Unagi floated into
the air immediately, followed by Sae on her broomstick, which she
had unhitched from her sling, with Maisagi riding pillion.  They
watched as the building below them crumbled, and were only JUST
capable of riding over the blast.

	They felt the spiritual energy rushing past them.  The deaths
of two senshi....

	IASFU OA FWSS IASFU OA FWSS GOO JUA GOO JIPEST
	and again
	IASFU OA FWSS IASFU OA FWSS GOO JUA GOO JIPEST

END OF PART 16


Notes

For anyone who is interested...  If you're trying to visualise what
Naiad/Millenia looks like, allow me to help you.

Naiad herself looks something like a cross between Setsuna and Karla
the Grey Witch, in Laylia's body, from Lodoss...  With blue hair, no
less!  Millenia looks more like Kanoe from X.  Also with blue hair,
albeit darker than Naiad's.

Next chapter... and hopefully the final one, "Visceral Demands".


DDFA ayanami@merlin.net.au
18th Feb 1998