Sheesh. My first fic post in nearly four years and it's behind schedule. So 
much for my rep as a fast authour. :(

Then again, I guess a four year gap would pretty nicely have wiped out that 
rep anyway, so who cares? I was planning to have this ready for Tuesday, but 
I wound up spending a whole day helping my sister dig her car out of a 
snowbank and it put me behind schedule.

So, yeah - this is my fic. Is it not nifty? (with apologies to Sluggy 
Freelance) For anyone who missed my explanation earlier, this is both the 
Ronin Summer you may remember and an entirely animal at the same time. 
Basically, it's been so long since I posted anything, I wanted to let people 
take a read without having to slog through sixty-plus chapters of old 
material to catch up. I mean, it's a fic, not a homework assignment. ^_^

What I've done instead is start over. This is a whole new beginning for 
Ronin Summer, so feel free to hop on even if you missed me the first time 
around. C&C is always appreciated (and practically begged for - I'm sure I'm 
as rusty as an anchor chain), and I try to get back to everybody who writes 
me. Sometimes it even gets my brain whirring in new directions that make the 
story go in odd and disturbing directions, but there will be time to talk 
about Jun Yamano later. :)

For all you old friends coming back, don't feel bad about the new start. 
Just think of this as like the anime version when you've read the manga, or 
the live-action version after you've seen the anime. Besides, you will get 
to act all wise and knowing when I foreshadow stuff you remember, and all 
surprised and dismayed when something goes different. ;)

Without further ado, I present you with Ronin Summer. I hope you all enjoy!



-- Attached file included as plaintext by Ecartis --
-- File: Convergence1.txt

REVAMPED LEGAL DISCLAIMER: Whatever else may have changed in this story
of mine, trust me - the Sailor Senshi still belong to Kodansha and
Cloverway, and the Samurai Troopers are the legal property of Sunrise and
Bandai Entertainment. So are all of their related friends and associates.
I am only borrowing them for a few chapters, and I intend no harm. So
let's all remind ourselves that it's just a fanfiction and we really
should relax...

CONTINUITY NOTE: For those who are curious, this chapter is taking place
shortly after the end of "Sailor Moon SuperS", and shortly before "Sailor
Moon Stars" as far as the Senshi are concerned. From the Troopers' point
of view, it is almost a year after the "YST: Gaiden" OAV, and a little
bit before the "YST: Kikoutei Densetsu" OAV. Both of the casts are
somewhere between the ages of sixteen and seventeen, and it is the third
Monday in July (since it is Marine Day) in the middle of some year in
the early twenty-first century.


                      RONIN SUMMER: CONVERGENCE

  A Bishoujou Senshi Sailor Moon / Yoroiden Samurai Troopers cross-over

                          by Morgan Hudson

"Convergence (n) - the approach of an infinite series to a finite limit."



Chapter One: Revenge in Shades Of Red

	It was nearly ten o' clock, and as usual, everybody else was late.
Rei Hino sighed and blew an errant lock of raven hair out of her eyes as
she tried to pick a familiar face out of the bustling crowds. Even in a
place as jammed with pedestrians as Shibuya, she would have thought that
Ami's blue hair would have helped her stick out at least a little.
Apparently she had been wrong in that assumption - the only thing Rei
could see was a giant mass of shifting people, squeezing and working
around each other as cars waited patiently on all four sides of the
intersection. Checking her watch, Rei leaned back against the large dog
statue that graced the front of the Toyoku station. Hachiko, the loyal
dog who had waited every day for his master to arrive. At the moment,
Rei could empathize.
	"You know something?" she asked the statue. "Waiting is really
overrated. How the heck did you do this for eleven years? I'm going
crazy after eleven minutes." For example, she added silently, she was
starting to talk to dog statues.
	"Rei!" A voice cried out over the din of the people, and Rei
glanced over to see a slim arm waving frantically over the heads of the
other pedestrians. A moment later, a pair of bobbing blonde hair buns
began jiggling towards her like a knife sawing up and down through the
crowd.
	Rei shook her head and snorted. Even in Shibuya, there was only
one person who could possibly pull off that hairstyle. Raising her hand,
she waved back to Usagi and deliberately pointed at her watch. The blonde
girl grinned sheepishly and lifted a gigantic bundle of shopping bags and
other packages in silent explanation.
	"Wow, Shibuya sure has a lot of stuff!" Usagi clutched her
packages to herself and jogged across the short distance between herself
and Rei. "Sorry I'm late, Rei, but I just wanted to pick up some souvenirs
for Makoto, and Minako, and Mamoru, and..."
	"And everybody, I get it." Rei brushed it off with a wave of her
hand. "I just hope you remembered to save some of your money for the
actual trip this time, Usagi. I'm not going to spend my summer vacation
paying for your meals again."
	Usagi grinned and nodded feverishly. "I know, I'll be good! You
won't even know it's me, I'll be so good!" Fishing around in one of her
packages, the girl produced a small box wrapped in a bow and offered it to
her friend. "Happy Marine Day, Rei! Thanks for inviting me!"
	"For me?" Rei blinked and gingerly accepted the gift as if it
might explode at any minute. She hadn't really expected any kind of
present for Marine Day - Marine Day wasn't even really a holiday so much
as it was an excuse to leave school a day early. "Thanks, Usagi. I didn't
get you anything..."
	"That's okay: you can just find some way to pay me back when we
make it to Minato Mirai 21!" Usagi giggled and clapped her hands. "This
is going to be so cool! Nobody but you and me and Ami, just like in the
old days!"
	"I would hardly call it the old days," Ami interjected, as she
finally wormed her way out of the crowd and joined her friends. Like
Usagi, the blue-haired girl was carrying a large bundle of packages.
Unlike Usagi, Ami's package was making the occasional beep and whir.
Smiling nervously, Ami tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and hugged
her package to her chest. "But I will admit it's going to be a little
strange not having Makoto or Minako around."
	"Can't blame Minako," Rei said with a shrug. "Artemis got sick
just yesterday."
	"Artemis shouldn't have eaten an entire package of cookies," Usagi
argued, nodding sagely. "Luna's still mad at him for making her play
nursemaid instead of letting her come to Yokohama with the rest of us."
	"I wonder why Makoto couldn't make it," Ami pondered, tapping her
lips with her finger. "Did she even give you a reason?"
	Rei shrugged again. "Just said that she already had plans, and we
should go without her this time. Seemed like some kind of big secret."
	"Smells like a boyfriend to me!" Usagi said, with a wicked twinkle
in her eyes. "I'll bet you anything she's got her sights set on some poor
guy right now. He'll be lucky if he ever finds out what hit him."
	A chime rang out, and Rei glanced down at her watch with a groan
of frustration. "Oh, great - that's our train! Come on you two, or we'll
never get to Yokohama!"

**********

	Shin Mouri shouldered his bags and inched his way deeper into
the station, weaving around the thin white pillars that broke small
pockets of space into the mass of people. Shading his eyes with one hand,
the young man squinted up at the large grey sign handing from the exposed
girders in the ceiling. The word "Shibuya" was displayed prominently in
white letters, marked in both Japanese and English. Beneath a red and
white stripe were further instructions as to which platform they should
be heading for, and an arrow pointing to the right. Nodding to himself,
Shin looked over his shoulder and waved his friend over.
	"Come on, Ryo! The Toyoko line should be over this way. Shuu's
gone through seven kinds of trouble getting his parents to let us stay at
his place over the break: the least we can do is be on time!"
	Ryo smiled as he pushed his way through the crowd, his baggage
strapped securely to his back and clanking slightly as the dangling pots
swung against each other with each step. "Yeah, old Shuu really pulled
through for us, didn't he? Too bad they don't let animals on the train -
Byakuen was really looking forward to seeing you guys again."
	Shin smiled back, and not merely from the mental image of sharing
a train seat with Ryo's pet tiger. Ever since he had told Ryo about Shuu's
offer, the other boy had been practically bouncing with every step. It was
nice to see his leader back to what passed for normal - which was rather
the point of the entire trip. Judging from some of the sketches he had
been doing lately, Ryo was beginning to obsess about Luna again, and that
was never healthy for him. The anniversary of her death was coming up in
a few months, and it didn't take a genius like Touma to guess that their
friend was starting to gear himself up for another lovely little ride
through the worlds of self-pity and guilt.
	Enter Shin, Shuu, and the lottery they had won last year that
still had their bank accounts bulging at the seams. A few well-placed
words in the right ears, and Shin and Ryo were on their way to lovely
Yokohama to spend the summer in scenic Chinatown. The basic plan was to
make sure Ryo was so busy with amusement parks, fireworks displays and
crowded beaches that he might forget that he was supposed to be bumming
everybody out. So far, the excitement of the trip combined with the rush
of seeing Shuu again after almost seven months had been more than enough
to distract Ryo from his doldrums.
	The black-haired youth seemed to be almost radiating energy, as
if the mere act of having to stand still was slowly driving him crazy.
Ryo didn't move, he snapped: sudden, jerking moves that seemed to
almost teleport him from one position to the next without any actual
steps in between. His head was in constant motion, his head bobbing and
nodding like a curious sparrow as his wide blue eyes tried to take in
everything at once. There was something in those eyes, a constant gleam
that combined with the confident smirk he habitually wore to convince
people that he was about to do something dangerous. From experience, Shin
could attest that he usually was. Ryo mixed with crowds badly; he was one
of those people who needed a lot of space and adult supervision if at all
possible.
	By contrast, Shin was so smooth and mellow that he had sometimes
been accused of falling asleep. He tended to take his time, and moved with
slow and certain purpose. While Ryo jammed his hands in his pockets and
bounced up and down in his shoes, Shin stood calmly and looked down at his
watch as though he had all the time in the world to get where he was
going. He wore a constant look that was best defined as 'politely
interested' no matter how hectic or chaotic his surroundings. In a packed
train station like Shibuya's, it made him a single pillar of calm in the
surging mass of commuters.
	"Hey, Shin! Sounds like something's up." Ryo tapped his friend on
the shoulder and pointed over at the gates, where a blonde girl with twin
ponytails was competing with the alert sirens for volume as she wailed
in panic. The gates were firmly locked shut on either side of her, and
the poor girl was nearly in tears. Shin groaned as he recognised that
particular gate as the one he and Ryo needed to get through in the next
five minutes.
	"Calm down, Usagi," another girl ordered as she dug through her
purse. "We'll have you out in a second, okay?" She was dressed in a short
black skirt and long crimson knee socks with buckled ankle boots and a
black denim jacket over what appeared to be a sleeveless red turtleneck.
Her sable hair hung down her back until it nearly brushed her calves, and
had been tied back loosely by a red (surprise) ribbon. The whole look was
somewhat monochromatic, Shin thought as he walked over, but it worked.
	"Excuse me," he said politely, "but is something the matter?"
	"No, we're fine," the girl replied without looking up, "my friend
just got stuck in the security gate. We'll be out of the way as soon as I
find some change..."
	"I'm so sorry, Rei!" The blonde girl -Usagi, Shin assumed- cried
from inside the security gate. "I forgot to check my pass!"
	"It's for the wrong rail system, you..." Rei growled and bit her
lower lip as she continued rummaging through her purse. "Just give me a
second and I'll dig up some money so we can get you a ticket, okay?"
	Shin glanced over at the approaching security guards and deftly
popped his own ticket into the turnstile. With a cheerful buzz, the gates
lifted and Usagi leapt out onto the platform on the other side like a
freed gazelle.
	"There you go," he said, running his hand through his thick shag
of mousey brown hair. "Enjoy the trip."
	"Thanks," Rei said solemnly, actually looking at the strange
fellow for the first time. He wasn't so bad, she thought idly - dressed a
little frumpy in that beige blazer and white dress shirt, to say nothing
of the grey slacks, but his face was cute enough in a puppyish kind of
way. He just looked so darned eager, as if the world was about to hand him
a candy, or something. She had almost thought he was a kid at first, but
on closer inspection he might be a little older than she was. "That was
really nice of you, uh..."
	"Shin. Shin Mouri. Please, don't worry about it; I'll just buy a
cheap ticket and make up the difference when I get there." Shin bowed
slightly and gestured for Rei to go through the gate. "Ladies first?"
	"Rei!" Usagi called from the other side of the turnstile. "We're
going to miss the train! Stop flirting!"
	"I am not flirting, you meatball-brained-" Rei clenched her fists
and visibly shuddered before turning back to Shin and giving him her most
dazzling smile. "I'm so sorry," she said sweetly, "but I have to go. Thank
you again for all your help."
	"You're welcome," Shin said, as the dark-haired girl brushed past
him and quickly swept through the security gates before chasing after her
friend. She seemed like a nice girl.

**********

	"Usagi, if you ever do that to me again, I will murder you," Rei
hissed angrily as she pinched her friend by the elbow and dragged her a
safe distance away from the gates. "Do you understand me? I will find a
place where nobody will ever find your body, and I will have you disposed
of!"
	"Are you blushing?" Usagi asked teasingly, tilting her entire body
to one side and looking up at Rei's downturned face. "Hey, neat! You are
blushing! Well, my job here is done!"
	"Shut up," Rei grumbled, as she pulled her turtleneck up to the
tip of her nose and wrapped her arms around herself. "I am not."
	"Oh, relax, Rei. I think he looked pretty hot - you should totally
go for him."
	"Even if they search for years," Rei growled, "they will never
find your body..."
	Usagi merely giggled as the two girls made their way over to the
edge of the platform where Ami stood waiting by their packages. Glancing
over at her friends, Ami noticed the impish look on Usagi's face and the
tomato-like color of Rei's. Raising one eyebrow slightly, the blue-haired
girl simply sighed happily and smiled to herself. It was nice to see that
her friends were getting along like usual: as long as Usagi Tsukino was
still able to get on Rei Hino's nerves, all had to be well in the world.
	"So," Ami asked carefully, "are we all ready to go?"
	"You bet, Ami!" Usagi chirped. "All present and accounted for!
Next stop, Yokohama and the best Marine Day ever! I'm going to eat cotton
candy and ride roller coasters 'till I'm sick!"
	"Oh, THAT will be a fun ride back to the hotel," Rei groused,
covering her eyes with one hand. "Did Makoto have plans before or after
you shared your goals for this trip with her?"
	"Roller coasters?" Ami drummed her fingers on the handle of her
suitcase trolley, biting her lip and looking a bit nervous. "I was rather
hoping we could stop by the Yokohama museum of Art, or the Maritime
Museum - did you know that they have a genuine trading ship from 1930
docked there? It's full of all sorts of wonderful exhibits."
	"Unless any of them involve me, candy, and things that spin
really fast, no deal," Usagi interjected bluntly. "It's Cosmo World all
the way!"
	"Maybe the Doll Musuem?" Ami asked, squirming slightly.
	"They have a log flume, Ami! If museums want to compete with that,
they need either more logs, or more flumes." Usagi smacked her fist into
her open palm emphatically. "By golly, if our government wants to build
a gigantic Ferris wheel, it is our patriotic duty to ride it until we can
stand no more!"
	Rei scratched the back of her head and rolled her eyes. "Well,"
she drawled, "I would hate to seem unpatriotic... and they DO say it's
pretty big... I may have to go with Usagi on this."
	"Oh, Rei," Ami moaned, and sighed dejectedly.
	"Although, we will be there for a few weeks," Rei quickly added.
"There's no reason we can't do a little bit of everything, right? I'm
sure at least one of those museums will be near Cosmo World, so we could
hit it on our way there..."
	"Fair enough," Usagi agreed, "but I stand by my right to gorge
myself on sugary treats and go in circles until I get dizzy."
	"And how," Rei asked sarcastically, "is that different from every
other day we've known you?"
	"This time," Usagi explained as the train pulled in, "I'm going to
do it in Yokohama."

**********

	Very far away from Shibuya, a complex and intricate universe
revolved around itself in an interesting and endless loop. It did not
necessarily obey all of the same laws that governed Japan, or even the
Milky Way in general. Much of its nature was made up of the sheer will of
its inhabitants, and there was little more annoying than having to live in
a place where stuff ceased to exist the second anybody stopped thinking
about it. It was a harsh world, with little beauty: as desolate and alien
as the dark side of the Moon, and glimpsed only in the depths of the worst
nightmare. All who even guessed at its existence knew it to be an evil
place, a hard and merciless land where monsters and demons squabbled
constantly amongst each other for position. Might did not make right in
this realm only because might preferred to rule alone.
	It was a realm known by many names - most who discovered it were
convinced that they were the first ones to do so, and usually went mad or
died before they had a chance to compare notes. In ancient texts it was
known as Carcosa, and then later dubbed Tartarus. Even its own inhabitants
did not know its true name, for it had been ruled for so long by the same
harsh masters that they called it only what their rulers had claimed it
to be.
	Arago, the Demon Lord Emperor, was a vile titan of strength and
power, existing only to conquer and raze everything that his cruel eye
beheld. His lands became known as the Evil Dynasty, and spread beneath
the light of a thousand suns as his shadow fell upon countless worlds.
His borders had stopped only twice: once upon brushing against the realm
of Earth, and once when meeting with the holdings of his nearest equal.
	Queen Beryl had been a simple woman of Earth until the powers of
this twisted realm had reshaped her in its own dark visage. Her mastery of
black sorcery and legions of monstrous youma had grown large enough to
eclipse even the legendary Moon Kingdom, and her ambition had brought its
downfall. Her Dark Kingdom had held its borders firm even in the time of
her long slumber, pitting their forces against the massed ranks of Arago
as they waited for the proper alignment to break the curse that the Moon
Queen had placed them under. Over millennia, the monsters and beasts of
these twin nations had fought and slaughtered each other in a war that
had seemed endless; the minions battling at the will of masters so far
removed from them that most never even knew what they looked like.
	This world of blood and shadow was quiet, now. The most powerful
of their followers had faded into legend, and both Beryl and Arago were
mouldering in their crypts - dead at the hands of their ancient enemies on
Earth. Without the will of their leaders, the lands of the Dark Kingdom
and the Evil Dynasty crumbled and withered to ash. Thoughts of war and
glory were far from most of the monsters who still lived amongst the
shattered wastes; only survival mattered. It was a time of confusion, of
chaos.
	There could be opportunity in chaos, Radanthus knew. After all,
the Dark Kingdom had no leader at all, and the child empress Kayura was
little more than a joke to anybody other than her Masho. A dangerous
opponent, perhaps, but she ruled only the land upon which she stood, and
her kinder, gentler teachings had earned her many enemies among the
people of the Dynasty. Both lands were ripe to be conquered anew by
somebody strong, somebody who could infuse them with the energy and the
vitality they so painfully lacked. With Arago and Beryl safely disposed
of, there were no youma or demons he knew that could hope to match his
power - in his time he had stood against both of those legendary rulers
and bellowed his defiance into the skies. He was Radanthus the
Unconquered, the sole creature in both realms who had maintained his
neutrality through centuries of conflict. It had been beneath him; he had
always known that the true destiny of both empires was to be joined under
his own rule.
	There was, however, much more to claiming a throne than merely
walking into the empty room and sitting on it. Radanthus had not waited
for thousands of years to have his reign cut short by the same heroes who
had been so violently opposed to Arago and Beryl's rule. No, before he
made his move, those disgustingly ethical and pushy mortals needed to be
safely out of his way. With their interference cut short, and the heads
of the Sailor Senshi to bear as trophies to his power, however, his reign
would be almost assured. After all, who in the Dark Kingdom would dare to
oppose the slayer of their greatest enemies?
	A tattered figure in ragged black robes drifted out of the shadows
with a sound like the tinkling of small glass chimes. Startled from his
reverie, Radanthus jerked his head up and glared at the comparatively
diminutive priest.
	"Badamon," he growled, his deep voice causing the very rocks to
quiver despite his hushed tone.
	The priest preened and smoothed his wispy beard with one skeletal
hand as he allowed his filthy and tattered robes to form some semblance
of their funeral garb. "I am at your eternal service, oh great and
powerful master whose wrath shall shake the very firmament."
	"Tell me of the Sailor Senshi, Badamon. Are our troops ready?"
	"Nearly, oh great one, nearly." Badamon looked all too pleased
with himself as he stroked his drooping moustache. The cadaverous priest
gestured behind him, his needle-like fingernails clicking softly against
each other. "Even now, our agents are scouring the depths of space to
locate your sacrificial lamb, wondrous one. As you have ordered, we shall
endeavour to convince the Senshi that this... Jadeite... is the one behind
everything, leaving you free of their suspicion."
	"Excellent," Radanthus crooned, leaning back slightly in his seat.
"With the Senshi convinced that they are facing an old opponent, we will
be able to control their responses to us. Have you selected our first
agent to enter their world?"
	"Yes, oh surprisingly intelligent one," Badamon assured him, "I
have personally chosen this one to meet all our requirements. He should
be most capable of handling the Sailor Senshi." And more importantly,
Badamon reflected, drawing the attention of the Samurai Troopers.
Radanthus the Unconquered might be correct in his assertion that the Evil
Dynasty and Dark Kingdom needed to be united under a single fist, but his
designs on who that ruler should be left much to be desired. Badamon had
far more interesting plans in mind - plans that required the presence of
Ryo Sanada and his merry band of mystical samurai. Badamon had not crawled
his way back from the brink of death just to take revenge on a couple of
girls in sailor fuku and help a self-important would-be tyrant gain the
throne that belonged to his true master.
	Yes, Nise Suiko would serve quite well for both Radanthus' purpose
and Badamon's. When the dark priest had seen one of the Senshi so close to
Shin Mouri, he had known the time was perfect to strike. Nise Suiko would
make it personal. He would guarantee that Shin and the rest of the
Troopers would chase him straight into their trap.
	Then Ryo Sanada would be theirs, and step one would be complete.

**********

	Rei Hino made it roughly twelve feet into the station at Minato
Murai 21 before it hit her. She had never been able to accurately describe
what 'it' was - all jokes aside, the closest she had gotten was to quote
that old movie about millions of voices screaming out and then getting
silenced. It was that, and worse; it was that creepy feeling you get in
the shower when you know you're alone and you hear a noise outside the
bathroom door. It was the sensation you got when you looked at an angry
dog and knew, just KNEW, that it was going to bite you and there was
nothing you could do about it. It was the cold chill of dread in your
heart when your boyfriend is about to break up with you and you suddenly
know what he is going to say before he even opens his mouth. It was all
of those things, but on a cosmic, planetary level.
	Usually, Rei just called it 'bad vibes'. Generally, she only got
it when somebody nearby was actively hurting the universe. Pressing her
fingers against her temples, the raven-haired girl winced and shook her
head in an attempt to clear it. She was not in Yokohama to track down
forces of evil. She was here to have fun with her friends and act like a
normal girl who didn't have creepy magical powers for once. Judging from
the intensity of the feeling she was getting, whatever was out there
hadn't done anything yet: this was just the residual lingering aura of
evil that pervaded anyplace a youma was hiding in.
	"Rei? Are you okay?" Ami looked over, placing her hand on Rei's
shoulder. From the look on her face, Rei could tell that what Ami was
really asking was 'Rei? Do we need to find a quiet place where we can
transform and go fighting monsters?'
	"It's okay," Rei lied, shaking her head a final time and forcing a
smile onto her face for Ami's benefit. "I'm fine. Just a little tired from
sitting on that train for half an hour, I guess. Got a little overheated
in that crowd."
	Ami looked skeptical. "If you're sure..."
	"I'm sure," Rei reassured her, patting the other girl's hand.
"It's getting pretty close to lunch. Maybe we should grab some food at
the hotel before we hit Cosmo World?"
	"Sure!" Usagi chimed in. "I was wondering if we were ever going
to get anything to eat around here - I'm starving!"
	"Our hotel should just be a few blocks from here," Rei said,
looking around to get her bearings. "We could drop off our bags and
check in, too. There's no point carrying this stuff with us everywhere
we go."
	"Hey, look, Rei! It's that guy you saw earlier!" Usagi pointed,
and Rei followed her friend's finger to see a young man in the crowd.
His hair was flaming red, and he seemed to have changed clothes, but
Usagi was right: it did look almost exactly like the boy they had met
at Shibuya. He noticed them looking at him, and smiled at them, and Rei
felt the feeling in the pit of her stomach worsen. Was it him? Was he the
source of the evil that was filling the air here? He had seemed so nice
earlier...
	Rei looked back at her friends for a moment, and bit her lip.
Just a few seconds, she promised herself. She'd check it out, find out if
it was something they needed to worry about, and then come right back. No
need to worry Usagi over nothing - having to deal with yet another case
of youma possession was the last thing Sailor Moon needed to do.
	"I think I better go talk to that guy," she said, handing Ami her
purse and palming her transformation wand as she did so. "I mean, he was
nice enough to give Usagi his ticket. The least I can do is lend him some
money to pay the difference at the counter, right?"
	Ami noticed the wand halfway up Rei's sleeve and nodded slowly.
"Of course, Rei. Usagi and I will be right here if you need us."
	"Oh, I'll just be a second; you guys go ahead." Rei smiled and
eased her way into the crowd. She didn't worry about keeping her eye on
the boy with the crimson hair as she tried to work her way towards an
abandoned corner - now that she knew he was the source of the feeling in
her stomach, she would be able to track him back down soon enough. What
was a little more important at the moment was getting somewhere she could
transform into Sailor Mars without drawing too much attention to herself.

**********

	If Rei had been paying a little more attention to her surroundings
as she slipped off to change, she might have been very confused to see
Shin Mouri, sans red hair and still in his original clothes, leaving the
train on the other side of the platform. Ryo was only a few steps behind
him, eagerly scanning the crowd for a familiar face and finding-
	"Shuu!"
	The stocky Chinese boy in the crowd beamed even wider and began
jumping up and down, waving his homemade sign over his head. It was crude,
but clearly read 'Here to save the day' with some cartoon drawings of all
three of them. There were also a number of exclamation points and some
colorful starbursts, for emphasis.
	Despite the long and exhausting journey, Shin could feel a grin
tugging at the corners of his mouth. Good old Shuu had pulled through for
them again. Somehow, there was something about his friend's exuberance
that seemed to make everybody around him feel that much more energetic.
	"Hey, Ryo! Yo, Shin! Check it out! It's ME!" Shuu laughed and
lowered the sign, pointing first at the cartoon, and then at himself as
though to make the connection clearer. "My little sister drew it for us.
See? I'm in the back, eating a picnic!"
	"Wow," Ryo replied with a smirk, "she must really know you well,
huh, Shuu?" Clapping his friend on the shoulder, Ryo quickly slid off his
gigantic backpack and tossed it into Shuu's waiting arms. While the burden
had been more than enough to wear down on Ryo, Shuu easily caught the
bag with one hand and flipped it over his shoulder as though it weighed
nothing at all. His prodigious appetite aside, very little of Shuu Rei
Fuan's bulk was fat: Shin had seen the wrestling trophies that lined his
friend's room.
	"Hello, Shuu," he said, passing over his bags as well. It was
easier to just surrender them now than have them forcibly taken from him;
Shuu did not believe in making his guests do anything for themselves. If
they weren't careful, he might try to carry them both back to his house to
spare their feet the walk. "So what's with the bruise? Did Yokohama's
most promising tighthead prop finally meet his match?"
	"Hey, you should see the other guy," Shuu responded, chuckling as
he rubbed the large bruise covering his left cheek with the fingers of his
free hand. "I may have caught his elbow, but I also got the ball. Besides,
it was the last rugby match before summer break! You don't really think
I'd let some blindsiding thug push me around, do you?"
	"I don't think you'd let a sumo wrestler push you around," Ryo
interjected, popping back into the conversation with a familiar sparkle
in his blue eyes. "Anybody else hungry? I'm famished. Let's hit Chinatown
and grab some grub!"
	"You two go ahead," Shin said, making a face as he looked down at
his ticket. "I need to pay off this stupid ticket."
	"You got a cheap seat?" Shuu looked as if Shin had just told him
that, for safety reasons, they were going to have to shoot his dog. "Shin,
man, if I knew you were hurting this month I would have lent you some
money..."
	"Hurting? The schmuck bought two tickets!" Ryo interjected. "He
gave one of them away to some random girl he met!"
	"Was she hot?" Shuu asked, curious.
	"Does it matter?" Shin asked back, jamming the ticket in his
pocket. "The point is, I've got to get in that bloody great line over
there and pay off the rest of my fare or they'll never let me ride this
train again!"
	"Or worse: they might make you pay it next time," Ryo added.
	"Come on, Ryo," Shuu said, draping his arm around the other boy's
shoulders. "You and me can go grab some takoyaki off that cart I saw
outside while Shin pays his ticket. We'll hit my parents' place as soon as
he's done."
	"I guess that'll be okay," Ryo agreed. "I mean, it's not like he's
in the middle of the Evil Dynasty, or anything. What kind of trouble
could a guy like Shin get into in a crowded train station?"

**********

	Whistling nonchalantly, Shin's red-haired double sauntered out of
the train station and began making his way down the street towards the
waterfront. As he walked, he spun a small black crystal on a silver chain
in a constant circle with his left hand. The right hand he kept safely in
his pants pocket, jingling his change as he eyed the various people on
the street with him as if daring them to rob him. The crystal glinted with
a soft violet light that seemed to grow brighter in shadow than in light,
as if the gem somehow reflected darkness instead of light. Few were
willing to keep their eyes on it -or its owner- for more than a few
seconds. Gradually, as the youth moved away from the center of the city,
the crowds began to thin. After several blocks, he was nearly alone.
	"So," he said, turning to look over his shoulder, "don't you think
you should come out now? I might get up to all sorts of things if you
don't hurry up and stop me." With a flip of his wrist, the rapidly
spinning crystal stopped in mid-air and fell limply into his open palm.
The wind moaned softly, and a stray tin can clattered across the street.
	"I don't know what you're doing here," Sailor Mars said sternly,
"But I'm not going to let you get away with it. Surrender now, and we
don't have to do this." Standing with her arms crossed over her chest
atop a nearby street sign, the Senshi was silhouetted from behind by the
glaring sun. Her shadow stretched across the empty street to envelop the
form of her enemy as her long cloak of raven hair stirred gently in the
breeze.
	"Now, how exactly do you intend to stop me," the red-haired man
asked curiously, "when you don't know what I'm doing? Maybe I'm doing it
right now."
	"I know that your mind is clouded by all sorts of dark and evil
thoughts-"
	"Lady," the youma interrupted, "you don't know the HALF of it."
	"But you don't have to give in those temptations!" Mars relaxed
slightly, lowering her hands and looking into the boy's eyes. There was
good in there: she knew that she had seen it earlier. "I know that you're
not like this. You're a generous and kind person!"
	"You seem to have me confused with somebody else," the youma
argued, placing the crystal around his neck and putting his hands on his
hips. "And if it's who I think it is, you are in for a very serious
whuppin'."
	"Listen to me, Shin-"
	Nise Suiko growled deep in his throat, a gurgling sound that
seemed to bubble up from his feet and made the nearby windows tremble.
"You just had to go and say that name, didn't you?" His hair ruffled and
rose from his scalp as his clothes rippled and flapped in an invisible
wind. The growling grew deeper, and crimson lightning flashed and crackled
around his slim form as his eyes turned into blank pools of swirling red
energy. "I was just going to rough you up, before, but now? You DARE to
compare me to that mother-hugging, nature-loving, sweater vest-wearing
little freak? ME?"
	Sailor Mars leapt off of the lamppost as it shattered into a
cloud of shrapnel and tucked into a ball as she fell to the concrete
below. Landing on all fours, the Senshi rose into a crouch and lifted her
right hand, fanning a handful of thin paper scrolls covered in writing.
Taking to the air again she snapped her arm and sent a swirling tornado
of ofuda spiraling towards the glowing youth.
	Nise Suiko bellowed, and the scrolls caught fire on their way
to him, fluttering away as they twisted and burned to ash. Crimson plates
of what seemed to be leathery chitin flashed into place over his body,
quickly sheathing him from head to foot in armour. A large crescent blade
jutted up from the crown of his helmet, and his face was sealed behind a
featureless visor of ivory. Thin trickles of dark red goo oozed from
between the plates as he moved, and there was an almost palpable emanation
coming from his body. Rei covered her mouth and gagged as her eyes began
to water: the sheer level of evil energy coming off of his aura was like a
festering boil on the face of the world.
	"This won't take nearly as long as you deserve," Nise Suiko
growled, and advanced towards her. With each step, the ashphalt cracked
and buckled under his armoured feet.
	Rei took a step back reflexively, then steeled herself. Clenching
her teeth, she raised her hands in front of her and clasped them together.
Heat poured from her body in waves as she focused her power, feeling it
grow and churn inside of her until there was a sudden rushing sensation
like a firework going off inside her mind, and a jet of flame gushed from
her extended fingers to wash over the armoured figure.
	Raising his arm, Nise Suiko snapped it down and the curtain of
raging fire flickered and died like a birthday candle in a hurricane. Rei
herself was blown back by the force of the wind, struggling to maintain
her footing as her hair and skirt flapped furiously in the gale. Losing
her balance, she cried out as the raging wind flung her back into the side
of a storefront. Glass shattered, and she bounced twice before landing
heavily amongst a pile of well-dressed mannequins.
	"You think this a game we're playing?" Nise Suiko boomed, his
voice a guttural snarl from within his armour shell. "You think a few
cheap tricks and a pathetic attack like that will be enough?"
	Rei pushed herself off of the ground, blood trickling down her
face. She must have cut herself going through the window, she realised,
and filed it away for future reference. Whoever this monster was, he was
no pushover: she should have known better than to rely on a weak attack
like the Fire Soul. Just because he might be a victim didn't mean she
could go easy on him, especially since he wasn't showing any sign of
showing her the same compassion.
	Glass crunched underfoot, and Rei froze. He was near the window,
his helmet moving left to right as he scanned the interior of the shop.
Her chest heaving, Sailor Mars slipped behind some of the fallen store
mannequins and tried to quiet her breathing. He couldn't see her, he
didn't know where she was: that gave her a chance. Reaching into her
glove, she pulled out a crumpled and smudged ofuda pinched between her
fingers. With a moment's thought, the battered scroll snapped straight
and clean as the day it had been made, standing stiffly at attention.
	"You think you can hide from me?" Nise Suiko called out, stepping
over the knee-high ledge and through the broken panel window into the
shop. "I don't have to know where you are to destroy you! I could bring
this whole building down on top of you!"
	"Akuryou taisan!" Rei shouted, and hurled the scroll with a
practiced flick of her fingers. The creature ducked and turned, gesturing
with his hand and disintegrating the scroll before realising that his real
target was somewhere else entirely. He turned back as Sailor Mars lunged
past him on the other side, smiling grimly as she blasted him in the face
with another gout of flame. Clawing at his eyes, Nise Suiko stumbled
forward into one of the mannequins, catching its sequined wedding gown and
gauzy veil ablaze. It fell to the carpet, its burning head setting the
carpet alight as the fire spread throughout the store.
	Rei tucked and rolled back through the window and started running
as soon as her high heels touched the street. It was a real shame about
the store, but she couldn't really bring herself to feel too guilty about
it when that creature had already told her he was planning to destroy it
anyway. What she needed now was some time to form a plan and maybe admit
that she needed some reinforcements.
	"I suppose you found that funny," an angry voice snarled beside
her, and Rei glanced over. Somehow, despite the weight of that armour, the
youma was keeping perfect pace alongside her as she ran. Great: it was
strong AND fast. His arm lashed out and she ducked, grabbing his wrist
for leverage as she swung her feet into his smoldering faceplate. Jolted
sideways, the two tumbled uncontrollably into a metal newspaper dispenser
and flattened it. Copies of the morning edition fluttered to the ground
like an early snow as the two combatants landed on their backs several
feet apart.
	Rei stared up at the sports page. With a sense of detachment,
she noticed that the Yokohama BayStars were going to be playing the
Hanshin Tigers in the next few days. Shame Makoto couldn't make it: they
might have been able to catch the game. Maybe they would catch it anyway,
and bring her back all kinds of souvenirs to make her jealous. That would
be awesome...
	"Hey, what's going out here?" The voice was oddly muffled by the
paper over her face, but Rei recognised the almost universal cry of the
innocent bystander. "You kids quit playing around out here - someone's
going to have to pick all this up!"
	Ripping the paper off of her face, Rei forced herself to her feet
and tackled the elderly gentleman. She cradled his head as they hit the
ground and Nise Suiko's attack roared over them, clearing the street of
paper and blowing her hair over them both like a black shroud.
	"Who... Wha..." The old man wheezed for breath, a shocked look
stuck on his face. Rei rolled smoothly to her feet and flipped her hair
back behind her in a single, fluid motion.
	"Get out of here!" she shouted, and pointed in the opposite
direction of the snarling Nise Suiko. Nodding eagerly, the old man
staggered to his feet and took off down the road as fast as he could run.
	"Turn your back on me, will you?" Nise Suiko snarled, and rammed
his knee into the base of Rei's spine. With a sharp cry, she arched her
back and fell forward, twisting out of the way as his armoured foot
crashed into the cement where her head had been lying moments earlier.
	Rei rose to her feet for what felt like the hundredth time since
the fight had begun, and rubbed her left shoulder. It felt like she must
have hit the dispenser with it - her entire arm was telling her that it
would really prefer to grab some Aspirin and lie down for a few hours in
their nice air-conditioned hotel room, and it was not being polite about
it, either.
	Nise Suiko glared at her, and Rei lifted her arms protectively,
flames licking at her fingertips and forming a cat's cradle in front of
her. Deep within the intricate web of flame, something began to stir, and
the youma jerked back instinctively.
	"Mars Fire Soul Bird!" Rei yelled, and a shrieking phoenix
composed entirely of fire leapt from her hands and soared across the
space between the two. Nise Suiko backpedaled furiously as the flaming
bird homed in on him like a cruise missile and exploded violently against
his torso with enough force to hurl him through a second-story window. Rei
pumped her fist victoriously and pulled her arms behind her to stretch
her back. Tilting and rolling her head, she felt the vertebrae in her
neck pop and crackle.
	"Okay," she groaned, "now we're getting warmed up."

**********

	Several blocks away, Shin Mouri was standing in line. He had been
standing in line for nearly twenty minutes, and it had to be the single
most boring thing that he had ever done. Despite himself, he rolled his
eyes and checked his watch for the twelfth time. For a moment, he was
afraid that Shuu and Ryo might have gotten tired of waiting and left
without him. After a moment, he shook his head and chuckled at the idea:
knowing Shuu, they would still be eating when he got out. No matter when
that was.
	The person in front of him was counting out exact change, sorting
through the coins on the counter in front of them with one finger and
squinting as if they were doing advanced calculus. Every few seconds,
Shin would shudder at the sound of another coin slowly scraping across
the hard surface of the counter and fight the urge to scream at every
single person in the line. He was as patient as the next guy, but for the
love of Pete, it was a train ticket, not brain surgery! You paid your
blinking money and you got the blazes out of the way so the next person
could go! How hard was this?
	Another coin scraped slowly across the counter, and Shin felt his
eye twitch. This fellow, he thought to himself, was in line in front of
me for twenty minutes. Why did he wait until now to count his change?
Was this something he needed to do in front of the ticket master for some
reason? Was it a compulsion? And what ever happened to carrying paper
money? Shin carried paper money: it was not only convenient but also
didn't drive people mad with constant scraping.
	Sighing noisily, the boy looked around the station in desperate
search of something to keep him from bashing the man in front of him
with the nearest blunt object out of sheer frustration. Hanging above
the terminal, he saw a large screen of televisions. Looked like some kind
of local news show - the weather girl was giving a report on location at
Yamashita Park. Shin exhaled and tried to relax as he focused on the
colorful display of flowers behind the weather girl. It was sunny and
warm in Yamashita Park, just a few blocks away from this dreadful station
and its crowded lines. He could use a chance to get away from all these
people for a bit; after that cramped ride on the train and the constant
bustle of both Shibuya and Yokohama, he was really on edge.
	Something moved in the background behind the cheerful weather girl
as she bantered with the anchorman in tones too quiet for Shin to hear
anything over the constant drone of the crowd. Tilting his head to one
side, Shin squinted at the blurry image. There was something familiar
about that form, something that was filling him with a sense of unease.
	The crimson figure noticed the camera and stormed towards the
reporter, grabbing her by the shoulder and shoving her roughly into the
cameraman with enough force to knock them both down. The frame jiggled and
rattled out of focus before settling down to a shot of the brick pathway
and a stampede of retreating feet. Shin felt his eyes widen as he
recognised the man in red. It was impossible, but there were only two
people who had armour like that, and Shin was one of them. As for the
other...
	Shin scowled. Some people clearly needed to learn when to stay
dead. He for one had gotten quite enough of Nise Suiko the last time that
imposter had shown up.
	The television went blank and began displaying something about
'technical difficulties', but Shin had already seen enough to know what
he needed to. Shouldering the man ahead of him out of the way, he jammed
his hand into his pocket and threw his ticket stub in the general
direction of the ticket master and followed it with a fistful of money
that was probably enough to pay for everybody's ticket in the whole line.
By the time the cashier could respond, the brown-haired youth had already
melted into the crowd and begun pushing his way towards the door.
	Yamashita Park was only a few blocks away; he could be there
in minutes. No need to warn Ryo or Shuu - they'd only slow him down. Nise
Suiko was something that Shin needed to handle alone.

**********

	Sailor Mars was beginning to wish that she hadn't come alone. She
had always been one of the more (okay, she admitted, one of the MOST)
aggressive of the Sailor Senshi, but the sheer physicality of this fight
was beginning to wear her down. It seemed like every time she tried to
grab a breath, there would be a knee to her stomach or an elbow to her
face to keep her busy. She had been giving as good as she had been
getting, but the simple fact remained that one of them was in armour and
one of them was not.
	How much tougher was she as Sailor Mars? It was a source of
concern for Rei as she ducked under yet another roundhouse kick and
punched up into her opponent's abdomen to knock him back a few steps. She
knew that she was far stronger and more resilient when she transformed,
but she also knew that even Sailor Mars had limits. How close was she to
those limits? Was she getting her second wind, or taking her last gasp?
	Nise Suiko charged forward and they fell to the ground, kicking
and clawing and gouging blindly at each other for a few frantic moments
before Rei managed to plant her foot against his stomach and thrust him
back off her again. Wearily, she lobbed her Fire Soul at him again and
felt a flicker of surprise when it actually struck him and knocked him
sprawling. Perhaps he was getting tired, too: she could see his armoured
shoulders heaving as he wheezed for breath.
	Rei dropped to one knee and dug her fingers into the soft earth of
the tulip bed she had landed in. She ached in places she hadn't known
existed, and it felt like a thousand small scratches and bruises were
crying out for attention. She fought to get up and finish the beast off
while he was down, but her trembling legs refused to obey her.
	On the other side of the large clearing, Nise Suiko clattered
noisily to his feet and wobbled over to a nearby cedar tree. Gripping the
thick foliage for support, he cast a murderous glare at Sailor Mars
through the translucent screen of his visor.
	"This is a temporary setback," he moaned, drawing the crystal he
wore around his neck out from under his cuirass and letting it dangle
freely. "I'll be killing you momentarily."
	"So you keep saying," Rei called back across the clearing. "Seems
to me you'd have done something by now if you could."
	"There you go," Nise Suiko said chidingly, "thinking you know
what I'm up to again. I keep trying to tell you there's more going on
here, but you just keep refusing to get it!"
	"There's nothing going on here that I haven't seen a dozen times
already," Rei spat, bracing her hand on her raised knee and pushing
herself upward. "It doesn't matter what you're up to: you're just another
bloody-minded psycopath with delusions of grandeur."
	"Perhaps," Nise Suiko admitted, and pushed away from the tree.
"But I am also done playing with you. Time for my toy." Snapping his hand
open, he extended his arm and slowly curled his fingers towards Rei as if
reaching for something she couldn't quite see. The aura around him
intensified, suddenly visible as a swirling nimbus of scarlet energy that
poured form his body and gathered in his open palm as Rei tensed herself
to leap out of the way of whatever was coming. With a flash of light and
a visceral tearing noise, a long and gleaming trident appeared in his
grasp. Its tines were curved, with long barbs and a serrated edge along
one side. Tiny bones dangled from the gleaming black shaft on leather
straps and clicked softly against each other as Nise Suiko spun the
weapon in a deliberate circle.
	Rei began to move, sidling to the left as Nise Suiko began to
circle to the right. They paced around each other slowly, the youma
steadily twirling the weapon in his one hand as if it were forming some
kind of physical shield. She could tell that it was a powerful talisman,
whatever it was; the evil that radiated from it was strong enough for her
to sense from across the clearing. Whatever he was planning to do with
that thing, she could already feel the power building up behind it. She
couldn't afford to let him unleash that much dark energy in one attack;
she would never be able to withstand it.
	Steeling herself, Mars began to draw on the last vestiges of her
strength. Her hair began to stir in the breeze as she turned and extended
her arm towards the armoured youma. Flames sparked and swirled around her
fingers, leaping from her hand to form the shape of a giant bow. Rei
shook her head sadly as she pinched the center of the bow and slowly
drew back an arrow of boiling plasma. She had been trying to hold back
from using this attack - she couldn't be sure that he would survive it,
and there was still a chance that there was an innocent boy somewhere
inside that cursed shell.
	"I don't want to hurt you," she said warningly.
	"That'll make this really one-sided," Nise Suiko replied, and
dropped the tines of his trident to face her. A glowing point of light
appeared nestled in the crook of the wicked blade, and grew quickly into
a throbbing orb of energy as the entire park filled with a deep and
threatening hum.
	"Let the fury of the oceans come forth at the command of its
true master!" the youma called out, as the undulating light of the energy
crackling at the tip of his trident filled the park with rippling waves of
azure blue. "Be doused in the merciless power of the tides, and repent!
SUPER WAVE SMASHER!"
	"MARS FLAME SNIPER!" Rei released her shot, a meteoric streak of
blazing fire that jetted from her hands and grew in intensity as it
streaked towards Nise Suiko. At the same moment, the surging energy at the
tip of her enemy's trident burst into a roaring torrent of water, gushing
forth with the power of a tidal wave and the precision of a fire hose.
	Rei screamed as the water enveloped her, lifting her off of her
feet and hurling her back as though she had been caught in the path of
a raging bullet train. Trees bent and concrete was torn from the ground in
her wake as she hurtled into the guardrail that protected visitors from
the canal and hit it hard enough to bow the steel around her body.
	A glimmering arrow of superheated plasma tore through the raging
waters in a cloud of hissing steam. Nise Suiko cursed violently and tried
to dodge as it slammed into his chest and exploded like a small nuclear
bomb. The youma flew back, shards of molten armour cascading off of his
body in a shower of crimson metal. He hit the ground and bounced three
times as he skidded across the park on his head, small fires still
burning merrily on the shattered mess of his armour. Thick smoke rose from
the mouth grille of his facemask, and curled around the edges of his
visor.
	The two warriors lay where they had fallen, as still and silent
as the grave itself. The only sounds were the hiss of sizzling flesh and
the soft tapping of water falling from the leaves of the toppled trees. A
bird sang out, its lonely cry echoing through the park.
	Rei coughed, and gagged, and tumbled forward onto her hands and
knees, vomiting out what felt like litres of brackish seawater. Her fuku
was soaked, her long black hair clinging to her body like a wet towel and
nearly blinding her as it stuck to her face. Pushing the slick black mass
out of the way with the back of her hand, she looked across the park. Nise
Suiko's gloved fingers twitched slightly, and his arm lifted to press
against the ragged wound in his chest.
	"Just for that," Nise Suiko wheezed, "I am going to turn you into
a decorative rug. You are getting really annoying."
	"Stick around," Rei said weakly. "I get better."
	Nise Suiko began to sit up, only to find the razor sharp tines of
a massive trident levelled at his throat. The bearer of the trident was
clad in a suit of blue and grey armour that perfectly matched Nise Suiko's
own crimson gear save for the color. The enamelled steel glinted wetly in
the afternoon sun, as though its wearer had only just emerged from a dip
in the nearby canal. Behind a featureless steel mask, Shin Mouri's eyes
narrowed dangerously.
	"Oh, goody," Nise Suiko said blandly, "here comes Suiko, to ruin
my vacation. Long time, no see, water lily. How's tricks?"
	"I should spit you like a frog," Shin said menacingly.
	"Yeah, but you won't." Nise Suiko spread his empty hands
expressively. "I am unarmed, not to mention clearly injured. Wouldn't be
very cricket of you to go stabbing a guy when he's down. I'd do it, but
then again I'm the EVIL twin. You've got rules and stuff."
	"Get up and get out of here," Shin answered after a moment's
hesitation. "Never let me see you or hear of you again, or I will show you
no further mercy."
	"Admit it - you were tempted to just finish me off and be done
with it, weren't you?" Nise Suiko chuckled, a nasty and gurgling sound
devoid of any real humour. "See, that's what I love about you, Suiko: you
have that aura of holier-than-thou with just a touch of hypocrisy to make
it all worthwhile. At least I've made peace with my demons. You just bury
yours under a pile of manners until they can't see the light."
	"I don't know how you came back from the dead, imposter-"
	"It's a pretty neat trick. Ask me nice, and maybe I'll let you try
it next time."
	"But," Shin continued as though he had not been interrupted, "if
you try my patience I swear I will find out where you came from and put
you back. Do you understand me?"
	"Yeah, yeah, go suck an egg. It's easy to make a bunch of empty
threats when that little chippy in the miniskirt's already done all your
work for you, isn't it?" Nise Suiko clucked his tongue disapprovingly.
"I mean honestly, letting a girl do your fighting? That's just bad form,
Suiko."
	"Girl?" Shin turned, looking over his shoulder at Sailor Mars,
who was trying to pull herself up the mangled railing. With a snarl,
Nise Suiko struck out, the bladed claws on his gauntlet sliding into place
with a metallic click as he used them to bat away the trident holding him
to the ground. Shin staggered back, and Nise Suiko rolled over to where
his own trident rested on the cracked and steaming ground. Snatching it
from where it lay, the youma drove its tines into his double's breastplate
with a vicious thrust. Shin gasped as the weapon sheared its way through
his mystical armour and dug into his flesh. Grabbing it by the shaft, he
jerked back with all his weight and shook Nise Suiko off like a dog trying
to rid itself of fleas.
	"That," Shin growled, "was the last chance you're going to
get, monster. Pity that you couldn't make it count." With a sharp tug, he
yanked his double's weapon free from his chest and broke it across his
knee.
	"Is it?" Moving with unnatural speed, the youma darted over to
where Sailor Mars was struggling to her feet and grabbed a fistful of her
hair. Jerking her head back with a fierce tug, Nise Suiko lifted his
clawed gauntlet and rested its bladed tips against her exposed throat.
Rei struck out at him, and he used his free hand to  twist her arm behind
her back and drag her in front of him. "When in doubt, go for a hostage,
I always say. This little piece of fluff's already given me enough trouble
today to make her worth it, Suiko: don't tempt me further."
	"Wait." Shin raised his hands, his faceplate retracting into the
beak of his helmet. "There's no reason to hurt her - she has nothing to
do with this."
	"She invited herself into this!" Nise Suiko snapped, jostling Rei
angrily as she tried to plant herself well enough to kick his legs out
from under him. "Besides, what do you know about this, anyway? My master
happens to be very interested in the heads of these Sailor Senshi. The
chance to draw you out from whatever rock you Samurai Troopers hide under
was just the icing on my cake."
	"Samurai... Troopers?" Rei's eyes fluttered open, staring about
in confusion before focusing on Shin's armoured form. She could almost
feel the tranquility flowing from his aura, a force of such pure good that
it smacked aganst her spiritual senses like a snowball to the face. Their
eyes met for a moment, and Rei suddenly felt as though she were plunging
into the crystal depths of a moutain stream, luxuriating in the steaming
waters of a hot spring, and sailing free across an endless landscape of
rolling waves all at the same time. Slowly, she could sense the strength
beginning to return to her, filling her limbs with renewed vigour.
	"Hey, wait a minute..." Nise Suiko looked down at the girl in his
arms as a flaming red symbol flared to life on her forehead. "You! You're
doing something to her, you son of a-" Pushing Sailor Mars forward, the
youma drew a long dagger from its scabbard on his back and hurled it at
Shin in the time most people take to blink. Shin cried out as the twisted
blade struck home, slamming into his shoulder with enough force to knock
him down and breaking his mental contact with the girl. He had been
hoping that if he sent her a portion of his power that it might help her
break free of his double's grasp. He clattered to the ground, clutching
at the knife handle jutting out of his body.
	Rei lashed out with her foot, striking the youma in the kneecap
and forcing his leg to buckle as she scrambled free. Hissing obscenities,
Nise Suiko grabbed for her ankle and dragged her back towards him. He
raised his claw, the sun glinting off of the curved steel as Rei scrabbled
in the dirt and strained to find a handhold to stop her backwards slide.
	"SHABON SPRAY!"
	Jerking back in surprise, Nise Suiko lost his hold on Mars' leg as
the park was suddenly enveloped in a thick bank of swirling fog. Despite
the heat of the day, his breath rose from his mask in steamy clouds that
melted quickly into the omnipresent mist. A shadowy figure darted past on
his left and he backpedaled, swinging wildly and doing little more than
fanning at the air.
	"You know, there's nothing more horrible than destroying such a
lovely park," a female voice cried out from the fog, ringing clearly
through the area. It was youthful, filled with a cocky arrogance and the
gentle touch of suppressed mirth. Nise Suiko had the nagging suspicion
that its owner was laughing at him. "In addition to being a place of
beauty and serenity, it's power of tourist attraction is vital to this
town's economy!"
	"What the hell kind of crap is-" he began to ask, only to have
the mysterious voice interrupt him.
	"Furthermore, it's clear to me that only a really despicable worm
would go out of his way to attack an innocent girl when she was just
trying to enjoy a vacation with her friends, AND cause everybody involved
to miss going to Cosmo World (even though some of us were promised candy)
when it was nickel day at the roller coasters!"
	"Listen, girl, I don't know who you think you are, but-"
	"I am the pretty soldier of love and justice!" The mist swirled
and parted to reveal a blonde girl posing dramatically with her feet
resting on two of the posts that supported the guard rail. Her short white
skirt fluttered slightly in the breeze, and a pair of red gems gleamed
softly in the twin buns of her hair. She wore a gold tiara with a shining
crescent moon in the centre, and there were a set of pins in her hair that
looked vaguely like feathers of the purest ivory. "I am the constant
defender of the solidarity and cherished friendship between all girls who
travel in search of fun and recreation!" A halo of light formed a
shimmering nimbus in the fog behind her as she struck another pose,
creating the illusion of a huge pair of butterfly wings unfolding from her
back. "I am Sailor Moon, and in the name of Emperor Meiji, Marine Day,
and the Kanagawa Board of Tourism, I will punish you!"
	"This has got to be some sort of sick joke," Nise Suiko groaned.
	Several feet away, Rei found herself being gently set down by a
familiar girl dressed in shades of white of blue. Sailor Mercury smiled
kindly as she patted her friend's face with one gloved hand.
	"It's all right, Rei," she said, "we're here now. Usagi and I can
take care of this monster - you rest."
	"Wait, Ami! There's two of them! You have to fight the red one,
got it? The red one!" Rei stretched out her hand to call her friend back,
but Sailor Mercury had already disappeared back into the fog she had
conjured.

**********

	Ami shook her head as she ran through the billowing mist. What was
that Rei had been shouting? Something about there being two of them. Well,
the Sailor Senshi had dealt with youma who worked in teams before, and
they could handle another one if they had to. It was no wonder that poor
Sailor Mars had gotten such a pounding, if she had been outnumbered - it
had been a long time since Ami had seen any of them get that badly beaten
just from fighting a common youma.
	The important thing was to get back to the fight before Sailor
Moon got outclassed. Usagi had been growing weaker again lately, and her
attacks were not exactly as robust as they used to be. With Pegasus safely
back in the realm of dreams, his blessings were not reaching her as well
as they used to - she could only remain Sailor Moon for a few minutes at
a time, and transforming was getting more and more difficult as the power
inside her waned. They had both agreed that it was most important for Ami
to get Rei to safety while Usagi distracted the monster, but if she wanted
to finish it off, she was going to need help.
	Sailor Mercury was not so foolish as to think she was the best
option as far as that help went. Obviously, if Sailor Jupiter or Sailor
Venus had been able to come, they would have been much better choices.
Sailor Mars would be the best of all, if she weren't already so tired.
If she were in charge of picking people for a fight Ami would very wisely
leave her own nerdy little bookworm butt on the bench.
	It didn't matter. She knew she wasn't the best choice, but she was
the only choice available. Sometimes she was still a little surprised at
how often that turned out to be the case for all kinds of things she would
usually be smart enough not to touch with a ten-foot pole.
	I didn't want to fight a monster today, she thought wistfully, I
wanted to go to the Doll Museum. But the best laid plans of a Sailor
Senshi could always be counted on to go horribly awry...
	A form appeared in the fog ahead, and Ami promptly skidded to a
halt. Reaching up to the side of her head she tapped her earring and a
transparent blue visor slid across her eyes. It was the youma, all right,
and according to the readings that were flashing angrily in the corner
of her vision, he was one of the strongest ones they had come across in
a while. Usagi was nearby, and her power levels were dropping rapidly.
This was no time to be subtle.
	Ami clenched her fist and concentrated as the mist congealed and
swirled around her hand. Within moments, the ribbons of water had taken
the shape of a small harp. Gauging the distance carefully, Ami plucked
the first 'string' of her weapon. He didn't seem to have noticed her
presence yet...
	"MERCURY AQUA RHAPSODY!" She spun, strumming the harp as a flurry
of water streams blasted from her hands and rocketed through the mist.
Turning at the sound of her attack, the crimson armoured figure raised
one hand to deflect her and grunted in surprise when the water splashing
against his bracer suddenly froze, encasing his arm in ice. He tried to
leap out of the way, but the spinning and whirling waterspouts were
everywhere, too numerous and covering too wide an area to avoid. Within
moments, Nise Suiko's feet were solidly frozen the ground, his entire
body encased in ice from the neck down. Straining, he jerked and threw
himself in one direction and then another, trying to break free.
	"Hurry, Sailor Moon! The ice is cracking!"
	"Right!" With a reassuring wink, Usagi reached down to her hip.
Cupping one hand around the nothing that was clearly there, she grasped
the air with her other hand and proceeded to draw out a long pink wand,
capped with a glittering ruby and studded with precious stones. It looked
like a sword, if a sword had two guards in the shape of a heart and a
pair of ivory wings in place of a hilt. The resemblance vanished soon
after realising that this particular weapon had no blade, or anything
else that would make it seem remotely threatening. It didn't even appear
to be particularly heavy. Judging from the confidence with which Sailor
Moon was wielding it, however, there was obviously more than met the eye
where this particular device was concerned.
	"MOON GORGEOUS MEDITATION!" She crouched, and the rod flashed and
glowed with the brilliance of a small white star in her hands. A great
rush of wind swept up, blasting away the fog and causing her twin
ponytails to flap like pennants in the breeze. Sailor Moon thrust the
sceptre forward, and the entire world seemed to twist and shift like the
colors of a kaleidoscope, buckling and warping as every color of the
rainbow flickered past in competition with each other.
	Nise Suiko had time to cry out, a single, wordless wail of despair
as he felt the universe shift and alter into a shape that had no room for
him within it. It wasn't supposed to happen like this, he thought
desperately, as the gem around his neck burned with the cold ferocity of
a winter gale. He was supposed to be victorious! It wasn't right, it
wasn't FAIR...
	There was a sudden explosion of light and sound and endless fury,
so forceful that Sailor Mercury and Sailor Moon had no choice but to
shield their eyes and turn away. As the sound faded to a chorus of echoes,
Ami was left with the haunting impression that there had been something
almost human about the noise, a tone of pure, mindless rage that had
carried the rumbling sound. It was almost as if, at the last moment, some
unknown force had awoken from slumber - something that had recognised
them, and hated them.
	"Ami? Little help, here?"
	"What? Oh!" Looking down at her friend, Sailor Mercury quickly
reached down and helped pull Usagi up out of her crouching pose. The
blonde girl's arms were trembling with the effort of holding onto her
weapon, and her face was drawn and peaked.
	"Usagi, that was fantastic! We'd better be careful, Rei said there
might be two of-"
	"Rei!" Usagi grabbed her friend, gripping the bow of the front of
Ami's chest tightly and looking up with pleading eyes. "Is she okay? She's
not hurt is she? You'd tell me if she was hurt, right?"
	"Relax, I'm fine." Wobbling slightly, Sailor Mars stepped shakily
into the clearing with a wan smile. "Out of breath, but not out of luck!
Thanks for the save, guys."
	"No problem," Usagi said generously, laughing with relief. "You
know me, I'm always up for some adventure - fighting evil by moonlight,
winning love by daylight, all that good stuff." She let go of Ami's bow
and waved nonchalantly, then yelped as she nearly tipped over. Ami,
thinking quickly, managed to grab their leader's arms before she could
flop onto the ground.
	"Okay," Usagi admitted weakly, "the legs need to be taught proper
respect. They are becoming impudent. Could someone find me a bench or
something? I need to sit."
	"You need to start taking it easy, Sailot Moon," Ami advised as
she helped Usagi back up. "You're not as strong as you used to be."
	"Which, by the way, majorly bites," Usagi complained. "How come I
have to be the team gimp? Everything's always hard on me, and you guys
always get to do whatever you want without anybody bossing you around!
And speaking of bossy, have you heard the way my cat's been talking to
me lately? Talk about a slave driver! Wash the dishes, clean your room,
don't waste your powers on punishing jaywalkers..."
	"Let's just get out of here and back into our normal clothes as
soon as possible," Rei said firmly, clapping her hand over Usagi's mouth
as the other girl continued to release a stream of muffled complaints.
"I really just want to get back to our hotel room and wash up for bed."
	"It is only two in the afternoon..." Ami said cautiously.
	"Yeah? Well, I've had a long day." From the look on Sailor Mars'
face, she was not going to brook any disagreement. "Besides, you know as
soon as she changes back and gets some food in her, Usagi's going to be
out like a light. And she snores like a buzzsaw, so I'm going to be
asleep before she is if it kills me."
	"I do NOT snore!" Usagi interjected, squirming free of Rei's hand.
"That is a filthy lie my enemies made up to get at me!
	"Although," she added thoughtfully, "I guess Cosmo World could
wait until tomorrow if it means we get to have room service. We can get
room service at the hotel, right, Rei?"
	"Sure," Rei agreed, "why not? We may as well have some fun today.
I'll order some movies on the television when we get there, and we'll
get room service. But first thing tomorrow we get to work finding out
what's going on here, okay?" Especially since there was no sign of that
strange young boy in the blue armour that she had seen earlier. No way it
was just a coincidence that he happened to look exactly like the monster
they were fighting. The youma had called him something... a Samurai
Trooper?
	It was all a mystery to Rei, but she had learned the hard way
not to sit around and wait for things to come to her. If there were any
Samurai Troopers or monsters hiding out in Yokohama, she was going to make
sure the Sailor Senshi tracked them down and stopped them cold.
	Rei sighed. Her vacation was going downhill a lot faster than she
had thought it would.

**********

To Be Continued...



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