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Chapter Ten

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"Just imagine you have a really deep pocket behind your back."

"Okay..."

"Now, concentrate on putting it in that pocket."

Shingo closed his eyes and put his naginata, which had been dubbed the Grave Lance, behind his back, silently willing it to disappear. When he brought his hand back to his side the weapon was gone. He blinked. "Sugee..."

"Good work, Shingo-kun!" Hotaru said, applauding. She hugged him, making him blush slightly. "Later on, we'll work on more advanced stuff." She paused. "First though, we need to talk."

"Yeah." An uncomfortable silence followed. "Ummm...are you sure you're okay with all this? What Serenity did, I mean?"

Hotaru nodded. "Of course I am. Are you, though?"

"Of course!" Shingo said. "I'd do anything for you, Hotaru-chan. For us." He took her hands.

Hotaru smiled. "I'm glad," she said. She sighed. "I'm very lucky to have you, Shingo-kun."

"I'm the one who's lucky, Hotaru-chan," Shingo said, leaning forward and cupping her chin in his hand. The two teens shared a long, deep kiss.

Watching unseen from above, Mimas silently changed Shingo's status to 'suite occupant', before deciding that perhaps it would be a good idea to shut down for a while.

As Kaori slept, still being heavily monitored, she began to dream. Her dreams were filled with disturbing and confusing images, as well as shadows of memories.

Two women stood beside her bed, watching her. "So, she has near-total amnesia?" the younger of the two asked.

"Hai," the elder answered. "It's not surprising, considering how badly she was injured. There wasn't a single part of her body that wasn't damaged when she arrived here."

"And nobody knows anything about her?" the younger asked.

"She's been here for three years, Ami-chan. In all that time nobody has come looking for her, and nobody has been able to find any information about her whatsoever," Mizuno-sensei said.

"Hmmm..." Ami rubbed her chin thoughtfully, brow furrowed.

Her mother looked at her askance. "What is it, dear?"

"It's...it's nothing, Okaasan," Ami said.

"Are you sure?"

Ami nodded. "Yeah. Just thinking."

The monitors began beeping, and Kaori's eyes snapped open. She screamed.

As various hospital staff began flooding the room, Mizuno-sensei rushed to the side of the bed and asked, "Kaori-san? What's wrong?"

Kaori looked around frantically, then let out a whooshing breath, her frame shuddering. "N—nothing, sensei. Just a bad dream."

"A dream?" the doctor asked. "Can you remember? It might be important."

"I...I think I was falling," Kaori said. "Yes, I was falling...off some kind of tower..."

Ami blinked, and had to struggle to keep her composure. *Falling off a tower...so. It really is her...*

"Well, you're alright now, Kaori-san. Why don't you relax, and try to go back to sleep," Mizuno-sensei said.

"H-hai," Kaori said, laying back on her pillow.

"Okaasan...excuse me," Ami said. "I have to take care of something." She waved. "It was nice meeting you, Kaori-san."

The redhead smiled, and waved. "It was nice meeting you also. Visit again soon, alright?"

"Count on it," Ami said, as she departed.

As Jadeite flew over ice-riddled waters, he reflected, as best as he was able, on the things he had thought and remembered during his time in the Eternal Sleep.

His first thought was disbelief, that he had ever served such an idiot as Beryl. The foolish bitch should have known better than to seal him in Eternal Sleep, knowing that it leaves the mind awake and aware. After all, was not his greatest weapon his telekinesis? Surely Beryl should have known that he would, in time, find a way to drain the very crystal which imprisoned him.

After months of endless, seething rage and frustration directed at Beryl, the Sailor Senshi, and the world in general, some sort of dam broke. Jadeite suddenly began remembering things from the distant past, memories which had been sealed away when he was taken into the Dark Kingdom. He remembered his service under Prince Endymion, during the days of the Silver Millenium. At first, the memories were almost fond, but as he continued to siphon the infinite energy of the prison crystal, he began to look upon those times with hatred and loathing. Endymion had found a beautiful princess, an eternal love. What had he found? A brief fling with that bitch Mars, an utter lack of respect by his peers, and finally...the Dark Kingdom. His chance to get even with Endymion for everything the stuck-up prince had that he didn't.

Why, after all, should such a pathetic man be given a free ride in life? Without his advisors, Endymion was next to useless. Jadeite knew he could kill the little shit by spitting on him if he wanted to. Surely, shouldn't such rewards go to the powerful, to the strong, and to those most worthy?

And after a while, he realized that Tuxedo Kamen, the interfering bastard he destroyed during his last encounter with the Sailor Senshi, had in fact been Endymion. That thought filled him with a cold, dark satisfaction. He had avenged himself against the little brat that walked all over him, flaunting everything he had that his advisors didn't. How could those other idiots stand it? Couldn't they see what an insufferable little turd Endymion was?

But he had been denied his revenge against Beryl. He could only assume that Endymion's tramp and the Sailor Senshi had been responsible for that. He swore that if he ever broke out of Eternal Sleep, he would hunt them down and destroy them, slowly and painfully.

He had paid a price for the energy he collected from the crystal prison. Unfortunately, he was hard-pressed to recall what exactly that price had been. It didn't matter, though. All that mattered was the power.

However, that drain had proved to be far too slow to be useful...under normal circumstances, it would have taken him at least a hundred years to siphon enough power to free himself. He was fortunate that some fool had taken care of that for him...

Now, he was free, and more powerful than ever. Chuckling darkly, he increased his flight speed. He hungered for revenge.

"I will kill all of you, slowly," he vowed. "I will cut your hearts from your pretty chests and devour them. And then I will reduce your pretty carcasses to smoldering cinders." He paused, a thoughtful expression on his face. "Or perhaps I'll rape your pretty carcasses and then reduce them to smoldering cinders..." He cackled as he sped toward his goal.

Sailor Mercury arrived in the throne room, and blinked. "Where is Serenity-sama?" she asked Luna.

"Her Majesty is resting," the feline said. "Earlier, she detected powerful dark energy someplace far from here."

Mercury blinked. "From where? From what?"

"We're not sure. She couldn't identify it, or locate it," Luna replied, shaking her head. "All we know is it was powerful enough for the Ginzuishou to detect it from a distance."

Mercury cursed. "It keeps getting worse and worse," she muttered.

Luna nodded. "Hai...an enemy we don't know, that's got something to do with the Black Moon and the Dark Kingdom, some unidentified source of dark energy..."

"And something else, as well," Mercury said.

Luna blinked. "What is it?"

Mercury looked pensive for a moment. "Well...there's a patient at my mother's hospital who just woke up from a long coma..." She paused. "It's...it's Kaolinite."

The black cat's eyes widened. "Are you sure?"

Mercury nodded. "I hoped I was wrong, but...I don't have any doubt. She's lost her memory, and she doesn't seem to be dangerous right now, but...it's definitely her."

Luna sighed. "It figures."

Anger. Hatred. Hatred of humanity. The desire to destroy everything.

Mission. Searching. Seeking that which would bring about the end.

Interference. Failure. Hatred. The desire to destroy those who interfered with the mission.

Death. Shock. How could it be possible? The interlopers won the battle...

Rebirth. Surprise. The mission has changed.

Betrayal. Death, again.

Sleep. Awakening. Confusion...

Kaori awoke, the last flickering images of her dreams laughing at her as they fled her consciousness. And yet, something remained...she knew, somehow, that these were not mere dreams...they were memories, tormenting her with fleeting glimpses of her life.

"Who...who am I?" she asked the empty room, clutching at her head.

Endymion held his wife gently, gazing at her with deep concern. "How do you feel now, Usako?"

Serenity smiled weakly. "Better...it's still there, but the shock has worn off...I think it was the shock that made it hurt so much..."

Endymion nodded. "So, you're still feeling this dark power?"

The young queen nodded. "Un...I still can't tell exactly where it is, or what it is, but it's moving. It's getting closer." She paused. "Mamo-chan...I'm scared. Whatever's coming...it's strong. The power...it's terrifying, even from this distance."

Endymion smiled reassuringly. "Serenity...please, don't worry too much. The Sailor Senshi are all here, you've reached your full power, as have I, and we have the Crystal Palace. Whatever's coming, we can deal with it." He brushed a lock of hair from her face, and kissed her gently upon her brow. "No matter what happens, we have always endured, ne?"

Serenity glanced towards the door of the bedchamber. "Except for the one time, in our past..."

Endymion sighed. "In another life, yes. In this life, you...Neo-Queen Serenity...Sailor Moon...have always surpassed every evil that has challenged you."

Serenity smiled. "Perhaps you're right...we'll be fine, just like always." She sighed. "Still..."

Venus had spent some time after her mother recovered telling her parents everything. Everyone was now relaxed, and chatting amicably, with Venus sharing an anecdote about a time she had to pretend to be Sailor Moon. Suddenly, Artemis let out a curse, and sat up, alert. Minako's parents blinked, not completely used to the idea of talking cats yet.

"What's wrong, Artemis?" Venus asked. "I didn't tell the story that badly, did I?"

"Venus," he said, his tone dead serious. "I sense..."

"You sense what?" Venus asked.

Artemis shook his head. "No...it's not possible. It must be the confusion over the new enemy. It's getting to me. I can't have sensed..."

"What?" Venus asked again, brow furrowed.

Artemis looked down. "Nevermind. I didn't sense anything."

Venus shot him a wary glance, but decided not to press the issue.

"Tomoe-sensei," Mercury called as she approached the silent man.

Tomoe looked up, and smiled. "Greetings, Lady Mercury," he said.

"Sensei...I need to ask you something. I'm afraid this isn't going to be very pleasant..."

Tomoe frowned. "Alright..."

Mercury sat down beside him, drawing her knees up to her chest. "Tell me about Kaolinite."

The white-haired man raised an eyebrow. "Mercury...no offense, but why do you want to drag up something like that?"

"Gomen nasai, Sensei," Mercury said, "but it's important. If it wasn't, I wouldn't ask."

Tomoe was silent for a moment, his gaze locked intently upon the Sailor Senshi's countenance. After a moment, he looked off into the distance, his expression unreadable. "She's turned up alive again, hasn't she?"

Mercury nodded.

Tomoe sighed. "I can't say it surprises me. Is she looking for ways to cause trouble?"

Mercury shook her head. "She's been in a coma ever since...ever since Mistress Nine," she said, grimacing at the professor's noticeable wince. "She has complete amnesia."

Tomoe shook his head slightly. "It won't last. All we can hope is she doesn't ally herself with the new enemy when she recovers her memory."

Mercury blinked. "Ally herself? But...she was one of the Death Busters, wasn't she?"

Tomoe shook his head. "Not quite...it's complicated." He sighed. "Kaolinite came to me after I...well, after the incident...long after I had begun growing the daimon for use in finding the Talismans. She had learned of our existence somehow, and wanted to assist us in achieving our mission."

Mercury blinked. "She what?"

The sensei nodded. "That's right. She said that she had been waiting a very long time for a chance to wipe out humanity."

The blue-haired Senshi gasped. "What—what kind of creature is she?"

Tomoe shrugged. "I never found out. The most I can gather is that she's human...and yet, not human. She was rather enigmatic about herself, and..." he chuckled bitterly, "and during that time, I was too unhinged to truly care at any rate." He turned to gaze at Mercury. "There is one thing I can tell you. If what Kaolinite once told me is true, there's no way to kill her."

Mercury's eyes widened. Then, she nodded. "That would definitely explain how she could be lying in a hospital nearby, after what happened to her..."

"What is she like, without her memory?" Tomoe asked.

"She's...peaceful. Friendly, even," Mercury replied.

Tomoe nodded, then placed a hand on the Senshi's shoulder. "Lady Mercury...you must befriend Kaolinite. Do whatever you can to keep her friendly. Even when she recovers her memory, there's a chance that, if you form a friendship with her, she may be changed by that friendship."

Mercury nodded, then rubbed her chin. "Couldn't we have Serenity-sama use the Ginzuishou—"

"No," Tomoe said. "I've heard of how Sailor Moon healed the Ayakashi Sisters, but it would not work on Kaolinite. She isn't possessed or infused with dark energy." He sighed. "Her hatred of humanity is simply part of her nature."

"Then all I can do is hope to change her nature, before she remembers what her nature is," Mercury said. She stood. "Arigatou, Sensei."

Tomoe nodded. "Ganbatte, Lady Mercury."

At a small Storm Prediction Center in Hokkaido, the long-range scope began beeping insistently.

The man on duty sighed, abandoning his attempt to coax a can of tea from the uncooperative vending machine in the tiny lounge, and headed over to the monitors. "Another day, another squall," he said, peering at the scope. He blinked. "Wh—what the HELL!?" Picking up the direct line to the station's parent base, he shouted, "Are you guys seeing this? My scope is reading something that looks like a miniature typhoon, and it's hauling serious ass." He paused to do a quick check of his equipment. "No...this thing's working okay...there's definitely something out there..."

On the screen, an angry, flashing scarlet blob zoomed from the northeast, on a trajectory that would take it less than three kilometers east of the station. As the blob neared the center of the scope, the air was torn by a deafening thunderclap, and the radar suddenly died.

"Holy SHIT!" the attendant exclaimed into the phone, before dropping it and dashing to the window. In the distance, he could barely make out a spot of blackness flying to the south. Then, the rest of the area around him caught his attention.

The wooden poles of power lines for as far as he could see were burning, and the power lines themselves were nowhere to be found. Everything was without electricity.

"What in the hell was that?" he wondered breathlessly.

Artemis' head jerked up, and his eyes widened. "Masaka..."

Venus looked down. "Artemis? What's wrong?"

Artemis stood. "Venus...we need to go. Now."

Venus nodded, and turned to her parents. "I'll talk to you later."

Her mother nodded. "Be careful."

As they ran from the house, Venus asked, "Artemis, what's wrong? You sensed something, didn't you?"

Artemis' brow furrowed. "Hai. An incredible dark power, and it's headed here very quickly." He hopped down onto the sidewalk, landing in front of Venus, and stared up at her intently. "Venus, I hoped I was wrong, but at this range, there's no mistaking that energy. Whatever's coming this way, it's from the Dark Kingdom."

"Dark Kingdom? Are you certain?"

"There's no doubt."

Venus frowned. "We'd better teleport back to the palace, immediately."

Artemis hopped onto her shoulder, and the pair disappeared.

Jadeite scowled as another bolt leapt away from his body. His scowl turned into a cackle of delight as the bolt slammed into a ryokan, which exploded in a tremendous shower of flames. He could see the survivors and passersby fleeing in panic, and could almost hear their shrieks of terror. He laughed. "Foolish humans...once I have destroyed those sailor-suited whores, I'm going to have a lot of fun with these humans..."

A glint of light on the horizon caught his attention. "What's this?" he wondered, using his power to augment his sight. At this distance, only the sunlight gleaming off the object was visible, but it was obvious that whatever it was, it wasn't like anything the humans in this century were capable of building. Further than that, he felt a pull towards the object, a familiar energy...

Another dark bolt snaked forth from the black corona surrounding him, obliterating a passing train. He frowned. "Why is my glorious power acting of its own will?" Remembering his purpose, he continued his swift flight towards Tokyo.

Mercury was just about to teleport, when Venus and Artemis suddenly appeared near the center of the throne room. "We've got trouble!" Venus shouted. "BIG trouble!"

Luna padded over, frowning. "What sort of trouble?"

Artemis blinked. "Luna? Can't you sense it?"

"Sense what?" Luna asked, puzzled.

"Artemis sensed something heading this way," Venus said.

Mercury pulled out her computer, and began working furiously. Her eyes widened, and she gasped. "Impossible," she said.

Luna hopped onto her shoulder, and peered into the screen. Her jaw dropped. "How could I not sense something like that?"

"The Palace's natural defensive fields," Mercury said. "They're designed to prevent any type of evil energy from approaching the Palace...I suspect that as a side-effect, it has dampened your ability to sense the same evil energy."

Artemis' brow furrowed in concentration for a moment. "She's right," he said. "I can't sense it now, either."

"But I can," a soft voice spoke from the back of the room. Everyone present turned to see Serenity and Endymion striding into the throne room. Serenity looked very upset. "I want everyone without powers to go to the sub-levels, immediately. Petz, you and your sisters go with them, just in case. I believe this powerful evil is headed directly for the Crystal Palace."

Some sixth sense she hadn't figured out yet prompted Kaori to look out the window. Although it was too far away to see, she felt, somehow, something that was approaching the city with extreme velocity.

"All these strange sensations..." she mused. "I wish I could figure out what it all means..."

During the early evening hours, a state of emergency was declared for much of northern and east-central Japan as a malevolent, unidentifiable object streaked across the skies, occassionally striking out with bizarre, lethal bolts of black lightning. Entire power grids had been destroyed, trains blown to pieces, fuel stations turned into blossoming fireballs...the destruction was widespread, horrific, and costly in both property damage and loss of life.

As the sun began to dip beneath the horizon, the JSDF had confirmed the destination of the dark, angry, violent object. "Within two hours," an official news report stated, "this dangerous force will arrive in Juuban. Its precise destination appears to be the Nazo no Daizuishou. All residents are advised to evacuate the Juuban area immediately."

As Jadeite neared Tokyo, more and more of his power striking out despite his attempts to regain control, he got a better idea about the object he was approaching. More memories began unlocking, fueling his fury.

He knew, with little room for doubt, that this thing had to be the Crystal Palace, a joint engineering project of the ruling kingdom of Earth and the Moon Kingdom.

The existence of the Crystal Palace in Tokyo could only mean one thing.

Endymion was not dead after all.

"Curse you, Endymion," Jadeite snarled, his rage burning hotter than the surface of the sun. "You've escaped your justified death for the last time, you bastard. This time...this time, you die."

Under the dim, purplish-blue twilight sky, the city of Tokyo raged with widespread panic.

Despite attempts by the JSDF and Tokyo Police to control the populace, it was impossible to rein in the chaotic, riotous crowds attempting to flee the city.

As the dark object entered the metropolis, widespread fires began to burn. Unlike the random, chaotic destruction seen earlier, the searing infernos were clearly methodical and deliberate. The malevolent invader was attempting to burn Tokyo to the ground.

As firefighting teams worked furiously to control the blazes, the evil object entered Juuban, and hovered a half kilometer from the 'Daizuishou'. Intense blackness swirled around the unknown invader. Within the half-kilometer radius around the crystalline structure, the fires did not burn, and on the fringes of that radius, the flames were weaker, easier to contain.

JSDF ground troops watched the floating object, waiting to see what it would do next, waiting for a signal to take offensive action.

"Where are the Sailor Senshi?" a young officer asked the major in charge. "What are they doing?"

"They'll be here," the major said. "I don't know what's keeping them, but they'll show."

A sharp crack of thunder ripped through the air, startling everyone on the ground. After several seconds of silence, a shout as loud as any thunder echoed across Juuban, filled with unmistakable fury.

"ENDYMION!"

The throne room suddenly darkened. Everyone tensed. "What's going on?" Shingo whispered to Sailor Saturn, who shrugged.

A ring of flames suddenly lined the walls of the crystalline chamber, casting a dark, angry red glow over everything. Several of the Senshi shifted into defensive postures, ready to call upon their powers. Mercury's visor flashed, its blue glow out of place amid the scarlet light of the flames. "It's a projection," Mercury said. "A hologram."

"ENDYMION!" a voice bellowed. Within the flames, a ring of identical, silhouetted faces wavered into existence. Piercing green eyes filled with dark rage glared at the assemblage. "SHOW YOURSELF, YOU INSUFFERABLE SNOT!"

Endymion glared at one of the faces. "Who are you?" he demanded.

Harsh laughter rumbled like thunder. "SURELY YOU CANNOT MEAN YOU HAVE FORGOTTEN ME? ESPECIALLY AFTER OUR BATTLE...A BATTLE IN WHICH YOU SHOULD HAVE PERISHED..." The silhouetted faces became more distinct, features filling in, topped by slightly wild blonde hair.

Serenity, Mercury, and Mars gasped. Endymion's face registered shock and surprise as he exclaimed, "Jadeite!?"

The countenance of Jadeite sneered. "HOW GOOD OF YOU TO REMEMBER...AND NOW, IT IS TIME FOR US TO FINISH CERTAIN BUSINESS." A pause. "TELL ME, SERENITY...OR SHOULD I SAY, SAILOR MOON? DO YOU REMEMBER OUR LAST BATTLE?" He paused. "THIS TIME, THE CITY BURNS, REGARDLESS OF MY CHALLENGE. IN FACT, TOKYO IS BEING REDUCED TO SMOLDERING RUBBLE AS WE SPEAK."

Everyone gasped. Serenity scowled. "Jadeite! So help me, if you've done what you claim to have done, you will regret it!"

"OH, I THINK NOT," Jadeite bellowed, his laughter mocking the young queen. "FOR YOU SEE...I HAVE COME HERE TO KILL ALL OF YOU. STARTING WITH ENDYMION...I FAILED TO FINISH YOU OFF THE LAST TIME WE FOUGHT. I ASSURE YOU, THIS TIME, YOU SHALL DIE."

"He's right outside," Mercury said. "And as he said, there are fires everywhere. We've got to stop him."

"I'M WAITING, YOU ANNOYING LITTLE PRICK," Jadeite said. "YOU, AND YOUR LITTLE MOON SLUT, AND ALL THE SAILOR WHORES...I'M WAITING..."

Endymion scowled. "You've gone too far, Jadeite. I'm going to rip you apart with my bare hands." Without further ado, Endymion vanished from the throne room.

"Minna...we've got to get out there and put an end to Jadeite," Serenity said. "We must hurry." In a flash of silver light, Serenity shifted to her new Senshi form, and vanished.

"Well, what's everyone standing around here for?" Uranus said. "We've got to protect Their Majesties!" There was no need for further discussion. Everyone remaining in the throne room teleported to the battlefield.

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