--Peripeteia*--
*Greek word denoting the point or scene in which a piece of drama
becomes suddenly and heavily complicated, the point at which
circumstances become too convoluted for a return to the original
state, a "point of no return."


She thrashed in her sleep, pushing the warm blankets away from her
body, scattering pillows about the room. The monsters once more
invaded her dreams but now they chased the shadowy form of her
mother, who, rather than running away, simply watched the hordes of
creatures overwhelm her before a silver haired man swooped down to
yank her mother through a black portal.

"NO!"

"Shush, a stóirín, you’re safe. No one can hurt you here, ‘twas naught
but a dream..." Gentle hands stroked the child’s sweaty face,
pushing back damp hair, and unclenched tiny fists where they lay on
the bed beside her.

"Sorcha?"

"Is ea, a stóirín. I’m here." [Yes, darling.]

"Where’s my Mama?"

"She’s safe, Chibi-Usa. I promise you that."

"Are you sure?"

In reply, the older girl called the crystal to her silently. It hovered,
glowing slightly in recognition of the child before her.

"That’s Mama’s crystal! Why do you have it?" Curiosity shone from
red eyes.

"She gave it to me, Little One, so I could protect you." For the first
time, Chibi-Usa saw Serena smile without it reaching her eyes. Those
blank, silver orbs frightened her.

"Sorcha?"

"She just had to go away for a little bit, a stóirín. She’ll return to you
before you know it."

Silence fell for a few moments as Serena continued to soothe the
child lying in her bed.

"Sorcha? I’m...I’m sorry...about tonight..."

"Little One." Serena’s voice was firm but strangely gentle...//just like
Mama’s voice when she tells me something important...// The child
stared up at the silver-haired girl.

"You’ve nothing to be sorry for tonight. It wasn’t your fault."

"But...I ran away...and you got hurt...I really didn’t mean to..."
Serena allowed the child to stutter out her feelings until slow tears
began to drip from red eyes. Sweeping the girl up in her arms,
Serena cuddled her against her chest.

"I want to tell you something, a stóirín, and I want you to listen well,
okay?" Her voice was low and reassuring. "What happened tonight is
not your fault. None of it was." She looked down at the child in her
arms, tilting the little tear-streaked face up to look at her. "You could
never make me get hurt, Little One."

//But I ran away...and you had to fight those monsters ‘cause I didn’t
stay in bed like I should have.// She didn’t mean for Serena to hear
her self-accusatory thoughts.

//Why did you run away, Little One?//

Chibi-Usa gaped. She remembered her mother and father speaking
to her this way to "strengthen her talent," but she’d never heard
anyone else in her head. //I had nightmares,// and images of droids
and a broken city flashed into Serena’s mind. //And when I woke
up...//

//I’d left you all alone.// Serena’ sighed quietly, hugging the girl 
closer,
attempting to ease the residual fright from the nightmares. //It’s I who
should be apologizing to you.//

Chibi-Usa shook her head. "But..."

"Little One." Once more the girl heard her mother’s voice issue from
Serena’s mouth. "I want you to listen and believe me. Bad things
happen to the best people in the world, and even Sailor Moon can’t
stop from tripping over her feet as often as not." Now the smile
almost reached her silver eyes.

"You’re good, a stóirín. Never forget that. Your Mama and Daddy
and your friends love you because you’re a wonderful person, and
their lives would be much emptier without you. I know that, because I
love you and I KNOW you’re good."

Their gazes met. //I’m telling you true, Little One.// Red eyes blinked.

"Thank you, Sorcha," she replied in a small voice. "I love you too."

With a heartwrenchingly soft smile, Serena kissed Chibi-Usa’s
forhead. "Thank you, dearest. Now don’t you think you should try to
get some sleep?"

"Mmhmmm." She yawned. "G’night, Sorcha."

"Good night, a stóirín."

~~~

Darien slipped through the door of the empty café ten minutes before
noon. After an agonizing night, he’d finally come to some conclusions
and was now determined to find some answers. //Like it or not, she’s
the only one who knows who and where the princess is. If you want
to find the woman who once haunted your dreams, you need her.//

He stopped, peering into the dark interior. Before him, three roughly
matching tables had been pushed together and surrounded by stools;
oil lamps burned atop each table. But what drew his attention was the
soft, sorrowful harp music that filled the room, haunting the shadow-
filled corners, wailing and whispering around the furniture. It shook
his soul and made his eyes bright with long-unshed tears. //So much
sadness...//

He stepped forward towards the overstuffed chair before the fire from
which the haunting music emanated. He moved around a couch and
saw the player. Firelight reflected from a ghostly pale face, long silver
hair, and blankly staring silver eyes. Her back was straight, but her
legs had curled up under her, and her hands fairly flew over the harp’s
strings. She radiated agony.

//My gods...//

"Don’t disturb her, please."

Darien turned to see Mal striding over to him, barefoot. Drawing
Darien back to the tables by the door, the General gestured for the
Prince to sit. Z and Neph approached, bearing a full coffee pot and a
stack of mugs, which they set out, pouring full cups for themselves
and Darien, before seating themselves.

No one spoke; the eerie music swirled around them, making Darien
yearn for something--anything--to drown it out. //They must have
taken lessons in conversation from Sailor Moon.//

"No actually, she picked up that little trick from us. Well, some of us,"
Jed amended as he approached the table. "*I* never had a problem
starting a conversation."

"What’s wrong with her?" Darien couldn’t help but ask.

"Life hasn’t treated her well," Z answered softly, glancing towards the
fireplace.

//Right.// The black haired man snorted into his coffee. "Another sob
story...Forgive me if I restrain my tears."

"I don’t care what banphrionsa does to me. You never used to be this
much of a jackass!" Mal’s eyes flashed dangerously.

"Mal. Don’t," came a soft, toneless voice as the music slowed and
ceased. Setting the harp on the floor, Serena rose and walked to the
table, accepting a coffee mug from Neph.

"My thanks. Is she still asleep?"

"She was when I came down a moment ago, banphrionsa," Jed
answered her. "And she didn’t seem to be having a nightmare."

"Good."

The door opened once more, and the senshi filed in, looking around
quickly before taking seats at the tables. Serena remained standing,
her coffee forgotten as she stared once more into the fire.

"How’s..." Ami gestured to Serena’s back.

"It’s been healed, thank you."

"Where shall we begin," Luna asked as she leapt to the middle of the
table.

"What did Demando mean last night, about Serena killing her
parents?" Makoto asked immediately.

"Nothing like starting in the beginning of the story," Neph rumbled as
he poured himself more coffee.

"Yes, perhaps we should start a bit earlier..." Luna trailed off.

"He meant exactly what he said. I was responsible for the death of
my family." Her eyes never moved from the fire, and the hands
holding the coffee mug were calm.

"Sorcha..."

"Banphrionsa..."

Mars snapped, the tension not improving the hair-trigger temper
caused by lack of sleep. "What the HELL does that word mean?!?"

Mal turned without thinking and snapped right back, "Princess! It
means princess!"

The room stilled. The generals stiffened as the senshi and Darien
stared.

//She used the crystal--of course--I should have seen it.//

//SHE is the PRINCESS?//

//The princess killed her own family? How...//

//My life and dreams have been guided by...her?//

//Banphrionsa...//

Serena slowly set the coffee mug on the table and looked at each of
the senshi, resting her gaze on Darien last. "My apologies. I did not
mean for you to find out in this manner; I had hoped you would be
able to believe in the ideal of your innocent, pure princess for awhile
longer. I’m sorry to break your dreams."

Once more there was silence, but now it was broken by Luna, who
began to curse loudly in fluent Gaelic. The senshi were suddenly glad
they didn’t know the language.

"LUNA! You know Mama doesn’t like you to say those things!" The
sleepy voice from the stairs caused everyone to turn. "And why are
all the lights off..." Chibi-Usa’s eyes suddenly widened.

~~A well-lit breakfast nook crammed with a large round table loaded
with fruit, muffins and bagels, juice, milk and coffee. Her mother’s
friends and protectors sat arguing and laughing with her father’s
guards. Mama sat next to Daddy, their fingers intertwined as he she
popped a grape into her mouth and he sipped his coffee.

"Maidin mhaith, Little One. Did you sleep well?" Her mother smiled
as she pushed an errant lock of silver hair behind her ear. [Good
Morning]

"Yes Mama..."~~

The child looked at the scene before her. Her "uncles" sat around a
make-shift table drinking coffee with the girls, she now recognized as
the senshi. Two TALKING cats joined them. And Darien sat at the end
of the table, his deep blue eyes looking at her curiously.

"Daddy?" Darien started as the pink-haired girl threw herself onto his
lap.

Makoto quirked an eyebrow as he instinctively held Chibi-Usa in a
close embrace. "Daddy? Are you keeping secrets again Darien?"
He looked back at the tall brunette helplessly.

"Daddy?" Luna repeated and suddenly resumed cursing. "PLUTO!
WHEN I GET MY PAWS ON YOU..."

"LUNA! Mama REALLY doesn’t like that word!"

"Then your mother shouldn’t have taught it to her, Little One," Jed told
the gaping child, amused. He and his brothers were quicker to catch
on.

"Where’d Mama go?" They looked around, but Serena had vanished.
Jed ran for the door leading to the stairs while Neph dashed into the
kitchen.

"Daddy, where’s Mama?" She pushed away from Darien’s chest to
look at him seriously.

"Uh..."

She leapt from his lap, stalking over to her uncles. "Where is she?!?"

Z picked her up as the other two generals returned, shaking their
heads. //Mal?//

//She’s blocked me.//

"I think she went off to be alone for a bit, Little One." At the child’s
worried look, he sighed. "I’m sure she’ll be back..." //I hope and pray
to all the gods she’ll be back...//

Minako blinked. "I think someone should start from the beginning.
And no glossing over details this time."

Mal nodded as Z looked at the child in his lap. "Little One, we need to
have a rather long talk. Would you mind playing upstairs for a bit? I
think Sorcha has some books of fairytales on her shelves..."

Chibi-Usa nodded solemnly and hopped down from his lap, heading
for the stairs. At the door, she turned. "If Mama comes back, tell her
to come talk to me, please."

"Of course, Little One."

"Now, I think the easiest, quickest method of answering most of your
questions is for me to unearth your memories. It will be disorienting,
confusing, and possibly painful, but you will understand the current
situation much better than if we simply told you the story." Luna’s
voice was serious as she regarded each of the senshi with piercing
eyes.

They looked at each other and nodded hesitantly. "Brace
yourselves," Luna advised and closed her eyes before five silver
beams of light issued from her crescent moon mark to impact the
foreheads of each of the senshi and Darien.

//I pity all the Trekkies who don’t know that the only mind meld in the
universe can only be performed by a talking cat.//

//Jed...//

//Oh calm down, Mal, like they’d believe me even IF I told them.//

//They’re Trekkies...they’d WANT to believe you.//

//Don’t encourage him, Neph.//

The beams had disappeared, but the senshi and Darien remained
rigid in their chairs, long-hidden memories playing out before them.
Luna lay down next to Artemis, who gazed at his charges. "We could
be here for a bit."

"Indeed."

The silence lasted slightly more than a quarter of an hour.
Unsurprisingly, of all the senshi, Ami assimilated her new memories
most quickly. She looked up and caught Z’s eye and promptly
blushed a deep red.

"I’m tempted to resurrect Metallia for the express purpose of sending
her to hell several more times," Makoto growled as she too emerged
from her trance.

"I’d almost agree with you, Mako," Ami said getting herself under
control once more.

"Her own sister?"

"Yes, Minako, her own sister," Mal assured her gravely.*

"Darien?" Rei sounded worried.

Her voice brought him partially out of his trance. Luna had awakened
his memories, but what he couldn’t have predicted was the unlocking
of his heart and soul that followed. His limbs tingled madly with the
energy of the earth that had always flowed through his veins, and
suddenly, he noticed the fact that he wasn’t wearing armor. //Oh
gods...//

The four generals stood before him and bowed.

"Don’t do that," he snapped and was surprised when they laughed at
his bewilderment.

"Some things never change," Jed remarked caustically.

~~He was a solemn ten year old, standing before the courtiers at
morning court, watching the four short figures approach. They bowed
deeply before him--not his mother, not his father, but HIM.

"Don’t do that," he said softly, and their heads raised to look at their
new master curiously.

"As you command, your highness," quipped the one with short, bright
blonde hair impishly.

He was going to like his new guards.~~

Darien blinked. "Oh dear gods..."

"Don’t think about it," Neph advised, sitting back down and shoving a
fresh cup of coffee towards the dazed man in front of him. "Just let
the memories settle into your mind without you churning them up.
You’ll have time to sort them through later."

"While I’m glad to have my memories back," Minako began as Darien
accepted the coffee, "they tell me nothing about...Serena’s family’s
death."

The dark cat turned to look at Mal. "I think it’d be best if you showed
them."

He nodded. "You’ll excuse me, but we decided last night this would
be the best way to tell you the story. Please relax and allow me to
place some images into your minds."

The senshi looked rather dubious, and Rei seemed about to protest.

//Don’t worry Priestess. I’ve no intention of invading anyone’s privacy.
But there are some things you need to SEE.//

She nodded and sat back in her chair once more closing her eyes.
The senshi and Darien mimicked her position.

Mal sighed, closed his eyes and began, simultaneously speaking and
projecting images into the minds of the senshi and the newly
awakened Prince of the Earth. "You must understand what
banphrionsa was like before her family died." They saw images of a
laughing blonde whose hair mimicked Sailor Moon’s distinctive
hairstyle. Her deep blue eyes were filled with happiness, and she
always seemed to be moving and smiling.

"She was happy. She always smiled, and even when she was doing
her hated homework, she had a content light in her eye. She was
constantly moving, climbing trees, chasing her younger brother Sean,
riding her father’s prized thoroughbreds bareback. I’ve never seen
anyone else able to simply frolic in the woods. Jed once teased her
that she was energy incarnate, and she may very well have been
exactly that."

As he spoke, the girls and Darien saw the blonde Serena doing
exactly what Mal described: scrambling into trees, tearing after a
nine-year-old redheaded boy, sneaking into a pasture and talking to
horses. Silvery laughter floated through their minds, and her glowing
eyes left them feeling peaceful.

"Her family was close-knit and more loving than any I’ve seen since."
A tall, dark-haired man smiling wryly as he held the hand of the impish
looking redheaded boy. Beside them stood a petite strawberry
blonde, grinning widely. "Seamus, her father, bred and sold
racehorses--not many, and not the best in Ireland, but enough to let
him shower his children with gifts. He was protective, of his land, his
horses, and especially his family."

"Cara, Sorcha’s mother, was an amazing woman. She taught at a
university, over an hour’s drive from the village in which they lived,
and because she didn’t want to see her children forced to travel at
least that far for schooling unavailable in the village, she taught them
at night." Mal grinned though no one was looking at him. "That’s why
Sorcha is so bad in math and science. Cara taught languages and
literature; neither of them could multiply to save their lives."

"When Luna awakened Sailor Moon, Cara found out almost
immediately. Whether it was a vestigial mental talent or just a very
strong maternal instinct, she caught Sorcha sneaking back into the
house after her second fight. After the explanations, she agreed not
to tell her husband--who’d just worry himself to death anyway--and
not to interfere. But each time Sorcha went out to battle, she’d return
to find her mother sitting up at the kitchen table--usually grading
papers--with a mug of hot tea ready and soup or stew warming on
the stove."

Mal paused and Jed spoke, surprisingly softly. "I remember the night
banphrionsa healed me. We showed up at the front door, both
injured, both too drained to stand on our own, and Cara opened the
door. She KNEW I was one of her daughter’s opponents--she’d seen
me attack the village. But she simply looked at me, looked at Sorcha,
and said ‘I’ll be putting on some more soup, then’ before helping us to
the table and producing a rather extensive first aid kit." He paused.
"Princess Serenity may have been one of the most caring and self-
sacrificing women of the Silver Millennium, but Sorcha inherited and
learned HER compassion from Cara."

After a short silence, Mal took up the narration once more. "We’ve
told you how banphrionsa healed us--we left nothing out other than
the fact that Sorcha was revealed as the princess, something that
surprised even us. Apparently a thousand years of Dark energy had
weakened our memories."

"Once Beryl and Metallia were defeated, she used the power of the
crystal to bring you back to life--as normal teenagers, and she
returned to the village WITH all of her memories intact. I think she
realized that Beryl and Metallia would not be the last enemies she’d
have to face. We became Cara’s long, lost American cousins and
took up residence at the other end of the village. Neph started
planning a restaurant and Z enrolled in the university. He looked off
into the fire. "It was that peaceful for nearly a year."

The picture of a smoky, firelit room--with an uncanny resemblance to
Mad Javas--filled with laughing, singing Irishmen and women froze
as Mal sipped at his now-cool coffee. The girls could feel his longing
for that peaceful time, and Darien was entranced by the image of a
Sorcha he’d never known standing before the singing crowd, laughing
gaily and openly.

"After the first droid attacked, we began to train seriously again. It
was several weeks before we knew exactly what was going on. One
night, we were battling four droids and the general who controlled
them, when Demando appeared. He disposed of the general who
had ‘failed him’ and offered to leave the village--and the world--in
peace if Sailor Moon would turn over the princess to him."

"We somehow managed to keep her from giving herself up then and
there, throwing insults and challenges at Demando until he
disappeared. Later that night, as we discussed the situation, Sailor
Pluto put in her first appearance."

"She told us exactly what we told you: that the Dark Moon family was
an evil force from the future that was besieging and defeating Crystal
Tokyo--the home of our, and your, future selves. She warned us that
under no circumstances were we to let Sorcha step through one of
those portals as that would disrupt the time stream and send the
future plummeting into chaos."

"She seemed quite adamant about that being a bad thing, too."

"Jed..." Z warned.

"So we continued to fight, facing off against yet another general who
eventually went the way of the first. Then came Rubeus."

"A slimier bastard there never was."

"Exactly Neph. Rubeus was ruthless--insanely so. He’d attack
anything, and he rarely used less than two droids. Despite his
madness, or perhaps because of it, he was a master at manipulation.
He’d pound us for a week with four droid attacks per night before
easing up for two or three days, leaving us jumping at the least sound
and not sleeping at all for fear of missing a sign of impending battle.
His attacks followed no discernable pattern--he was as likely to strike
at noon as at midnight--and the entire village became wary, fearful."

Mal’s voice suddenly became toneless. "One afternoon, we felt the
opening of a portal on the edge of the village. The four of us and
Sailor Moon defeated the entirely average droid just as another one
descended. We fought three altogether that afternoon, but by the
time we’d finished, we were about two miles from the village and too
drained to teleport."

The images took over.

~~"You four get some rest. I KNOW how late you were at the pub last
night!" She grinned at them impishly as they approached the village.

"Because you were there yourself, banphrionsa," Neph accused.

"Of course, where else would I have been? Off to bed with you! I’m
headed home to do the same. See you tonight for dinner, yes?"

"Wouldn’t miss Cara’s roast beef for the world, banphrionsa!"

"Good. Slán, a dheartháireacha." [Good-bye, brothers.]

~~~

"Well, Jed we wouldn’t be late had SOMEONE remembered to set the
alarm."

"Ah Jaysus, calm down."

"Stop with the bad accent already."

"I’m just surprised banphrionsa wasn’t knocking at our door to rag on
us about being late."

"I suppose Cara had her helping in the kitchen."

"Yeah or she was chasing horses again..."

"Wait a minute, why is their door open?"

The four suddenly cautious men approached the door.

"Sorcha, Cara, Seamus, Sean?"

The door swung open revealing a cozy sitting room with a cheery fire.
As usual, the pictures were slightly crooked and there were books--
mostly leather-bound--scattered about the room. But not two steps in
front of them knelt Sorcha, looking for all the world as if she’d simply
collapsed there upon coming into the house four hours ago. She
stared blankly at something near the fireplace.

"Oh my dear gods..."~~

"Cara was curled around Sean and Seamus was in front of both of
them, trying to put himself between them and danger. Not that it
mattered with Rubeus. He killed them without a second thought."
Mal’s hands were clenched fists, his lips compressed into a tight line.
"Sorcha was in a shock-trance state that lasted for three days, and
when she arose that first morning and showed up at the breakfast
table, she was exactly as she is now: silver hair, sad silver eyes, and
mind shields even I couldn’t break."

"She blames herself completely," Z remarked softly. "I don’t know
what Rubeus said to her before he left her alone that afternoon, but
whatever it was went straight to her soul. Like any teenage girl, she
wasn’t perfect. In fact, she was something of a klutz and never on
time for anything. She was generally very responsible when it came
to being Sailor Moon, but even as the warrior for justice, she was
clumsy sometimes. Rubeus knew exactly how to play on those
insecurities and I’ve no doubt that he did."

The senshi were silent, horrified. "And we’ve..." Makoto began
regretfully only to be cut of by Mal.

"Don’t you start! You’ve reacted the way anyone in your situation
would react. For whatever twisted reason, she’s never attempted to
explain herself. She never gave any of you a reason to trust her."

"We definitely didn’t help," Rei pointed out.

"I don’t think, at this point, that anything or anyone will ever convince
her that she didn’t kill her family," Neph said quietly. "The trauma was
too deep, and since then, Rubeus and Demando have driven it home
with every meeting."

"So what do we do? What CAN we do?" Ami asked softly, tears in
her eyes.

Mal sighed. "I don’t know. I was hoping that meeting and fighting
alongside the other senshi and her soul mate would get her to open
up. But she’s determined not to let anyone in."

Darien suddenly found himself the object of everyone’s attention, and
he could only shrug helplessly. "You know my dreams about the
princess stopped a while ago."

"How long has it been?" Neph inquired.

"About sixth weeks ago or so."

"DAMN!"

Mal sighed. "Calm down Jed, we expected this, remember?" He
turned to the senshi. "The soul bond connecting Prince Endymion
and Princess Serena survived the thousand year wait, and when they
were reborn, they continued to be connected, albeit tenuously. But
time and distance had weakened it. When she built those mental
shields, she snapped it."

"You can’t snap a soul bond like that," Minako frowned.

"No, but you can kill one," Mal countered. "In the same way that you
can let a muscle atrophy, if you block a soul bond off from one soul, it
will retreat to the other soul."

"But that would take time."

"How much time does it take for a delicate rose to die when it’s moved
from a hothouse to a blizzard?"

Silence reigned once more.

"Uncle Neph?" Again, a bleary-eyed Chibi-Usa stepped into the
common room from the stairwell. "I fell asleep again, but now I’m
kinda hungry."

With a start, they realized the sun had set, and they were all stiff from
sitting so long. "Well then, let’s fix everyone some dinner, then Little
One. Will you help me?" And the two disappeared into the kitchen.

Jed and Z rose to light more candles and oil lamps. "So where does
the kid fit into all of this," Rei asked.

Luna rose and stretched before answering. "Apparently, she is the
future daughter of Darien and Sorcha." To herself she added, "Pluto
WILL be explaining this, and soon."

"This is too much for me," Makoto acknowledged, leaning back and
rubbing her own tired eyes as Darien once more felt his mind start to
swirl with unfamiliar memories and uncomfortable feelings.

"We need to let all of this sink in, and then we all need to talk to
Serena."

"That may be easier said than done, Minako." Mal raised his voice to
be heard over the clatters, crashes and muffled giggles echoing in the
kitchen. "I’ll be surprised if she allows any of us to get near her."

"No matter," Ami spoke up quite firmly. "She has to know that we
understand and that we don’t blame her. We have to let her know we
trust her."

Mal nodded. "I just hope it helps."

~~~

The night air was cold, the breeze sharp. The stars were bright but
the moon had waned to no more than a sliver that shone faintly,
sorrowfully down upon her senshi. Sailor Moon hovered high above
the city, waiting. Her eyes were closed and her mind roved below,
watching intently for the slightest sign of danger.

Eleven portals opened simultaneously, nearly overwhelming the
unshielded portion of her mind. Dark energy nets trapped Darien,
Chibi-Usa, and each senshi and general as they were jerked from
sleep, just as a pair of long arms reached to grab Sailor Moon. She
threw herself forward, away from the black portal behind her, leaving
Demando to grasp at empty air.

"Ah, you’ve gotten faster, princess. Not fast enough, though." He
vanished into the portal, and she felt the other ten closing as well,
drawing their victims along with them.

//No.//

But before she could react, another portal opened over the park,
dropping a frightened Chibi-Usa, a disoriented Tuxedo Kamen, four
girls in the midst of senshi transformations and four generals
unceremoniously to the ground. Demando stepped onto the air above
them.

"Well, princess, will you at least duel for their lives?"

//Banphrionsa, stay away...//

But she appeared, also hovering above them, facing Demando.

"Ah yes. You’re getting better about that little punctuality problem."
He smiled evilly, circling her. "So beautiful. Though I do prefer you
with silver hair, more dignified, you understand."

Tuxedo Kamen loosed a blood red, steel-tipped rose at the hovering
"king," but Demando caught it without even looking. With a thought,
he withered it into a blackened, shriveled mass and sent it flying back
down to strike the ground at the masked man’s feet. It shattered,
showering the warriors with glass-like shards. "Don’t do that, little
boy."

"Leave them." She spoke for the first time, her voice icy calm and
hateful as she threw a shield of silver energy over the group on the
ground.

"And why should I princess? They are YOUR weakness, after all," his
smile never left, "that and your own, oh-so-predictable mind, of
course."

"You see, my princess," his voice dropped to a seductive murmur as
he circled her stiff body once more to hover behind her and speak
directly into her ear. "Ever since I first saw you--an event that
ironically won’t take place for another thousand years--I’ve desired
you. And I vowed to have you, but on my terms. I will break you,
princess.."

She didn’t move, didn’t speak, and he returned to his former position,
facing her. "But fighting a war in two different times is SO exhausting,
especially with that pesky senshi of time getting in the way. So
tonight, it ends," and he loosed a blast of Dark energy at her with no
warning.

With a deadly calm, she twirled her silver staff so fast it blurred,
forming a circular shield before her that forced the Dark energy away
from her body until it dissipated. "You want a duel, Demando?" She
ceased to move once more. "We shall duel. But by my rules."

"How quaint. You think you can dictate terms." A black dart flew
towards her head.

She disintegrated it with a burst of power from the crystal. "Battle
Sphere," she proposed calmly. "And no droids."

He stopped. "Interesting idea..."

"What...?"

//A Battle Sphere is a dueling device from the Silver Millennium. The
two opponents create a sphere of mixed energies. It can only be
taken down from the inside--by both of them working together or by
the survivor.// The senshi looked uneasily at Malachite’s clenched
fists as he glared at the pair above them, wishing he dared break
through the shield covering them.

Above them, two halves of a sphere--perhaps twenty feet in
diameter--began to form, one of Dark energy, one of silver light.
They joined and began to wash over one another, finally forming a
musty gray shield that rotated slowly around the again motionless
enemies.

Immediately, the knotwork shield over the group on the ground
vanished, and they scattered. Tuxedo Kamen cradled Chibi-Usa
against his body and leapt into a defensible tree, while the senshi and
generals ringed the clearing in a protective perimeter.

//Don’t do anything stupid, banphrionsa.//

//Come back to us, Serena.//

//I love you, Mama...//

~~~

"Now, this is an interesting strategy," the silver-haired king smiled at
Sailor Moon. "I can still open portals and drop an army of droids on
Tokyo, but you can’t shield your friends. How utterly silly of you."

She didn’t respond, and he waved his hand to open a portal just
outside the sphere. Nothing happened.

She finally spoke. "A little modification to the spell."

"Cheating? My, I’ve managed to corrupt your soul more than I’d
hoped. Perhaps this won’t be such an arduous task after all." A
dozen black darts targeted Sailor Moon from every direction, forcing
her to duck and dodge, throwing her body from side to side violently.

She rolled away from where a cluster of three had nearly decapitated
her and reached for her tiara. Evading the darts on sheer instinct, she
sent the golden disk spinning about Demando’s head. Though it
couldn’t do him serious damage, it could and did sting, forcing him to
concentrate on blocking it rather than controlling his darts. One by
one, the missiles impacted on the inside of the shield or were
destroyed by a blast from the crystal. She stood straight once more,
blood dripping from a half-dozen small cuts, just as a breathless
Demando met her tiara with a blast of sheer Dark energy; it
disappeared and returned to her forehead, still warm from its
extended use.

//Round One: Draw.//

"Is that good?" Mercury whispered. Though she sensed she’d been
heard, Malachite made no response.

"Enough with the games!" Demando was enraged. First, she’d had
the temerity to deny him the chance to rid himself of the others while
they battled. Now she was surviving his attacks. He began to gather
a ball of Dark energy in his hand, allowing it to grow until it surpassed
anything the other warriors had ever seen.

"The bigger they are..." breathed Venus hopefully.

//The more they hurt in the morning.//

//This really isn’t the time, Jaedite.//

Further conversation was cut off as Demando cast the energy--now
easily the size of Chibi-Usa--at Sailor Moon. She didn’t move.

"What are you doing?" Rei demanded angrily, unsure if the warrior
could hear her.

Sailor Moon stood her ground, whispering to the crystal. With but a
moment to spare, a white sphere leapt into existence surrounding
Sailor Moon, incorporating the Dark energy as it impacted. For a
second, it seemed a second mixed energy shield would be formed,
but the crystal pulsed and gray became a blinding silver within the
space of a single breath.

The light coalesced in Sailor Moon’s gloved palm into a smaller but
more intense sphere and she cast it at Demando. He promptly
disappeared, only to reappear behind her, lunging towards her back
with a short blade of Dark energy. He was stopped short by the butt
of the staff connecting with his stomach.

She vaulted away from his hunched over form, reaching out in time to
catch the sphere of energy she’d cast before it could impact the wall.
Turning, she cocked her arm above her shoulder, ready to loose the
sphere onto the slowly straightening Demando. She froze.

He raised his head, chuckling mockingly. "What’s wrong, princess?"
he hissed. "You fried Rubeus without a second thought, but you’re
too soft-hearted to kill the mastermind behind your family’s death?"
As he spoke, drawing her attention, another black dart was forming
behind her back. It shot forward and she turned, catching it with the
sphere in her hand. With a small explosion, both vanished and
Demando shot forward to grab her.

"Now, princess, you’ll release your half of the shield and come with
me." As he whispered in her ear, he tightened one large hand around
her delicate throat.

//Banphrionsa!//

//Sorcha!//

"Sailor Moon!"

//Mama!!!//

"Will you idiots SHUT UP?" Demando yelled, exasperated. Using his
spit-second’s distraction, Sailor Moon wrenched herself away from his
grasp, leaving her neck red and raw from his grip. "Now look what
you made me do!" Forgetting for a moment that he didn’t wish to kill
her, Demando raised his hand to blast her with everything at his
disposal.

Though she blocked most of it with her staff, the sheer force of the
Dark energy sent her hurtling into the wall of the sphere. "Hmmm.
Perhaps I ought to have done that sooner," he remarked, calming
noticeably as she dragged herself to her feet to face him once more.

"When will you give up?" he mused, watching her. She returned his
gaze, without expression.

"As you like." He raised his hand once more to deliver the final blow,
but she dodged with surprising agility, dashing around the blow to
attack. This time, however, she followed the jab to his stomach with a
whispered "Crystal Moon Destruction!"

White light flared and faded, leaving Demando on his knees, shaking,
barely able to remain in the air. He yanked his head up, a feral gleam
in his eyes, a beam of Dark energy bursting forth from the upside-
down crescent moon sigil on his forehead.

She jumped, but the beam raked down her right leg, leaving a bloody
gash and shredded flesh behind. The pain broke her concentration
and she crashed down--right onto Demando, sending them both to
the floor of the sphere. Gathering her concentration in mid-fall, she
smacked him on the side of the head with the end of her sphere. He
fought the blackness that encroached on his vision, but when they
smashed into the bottom of the sphere, she was able to regain her
feet more quickly.

She stood above him, the crystal end of the staff pointed at his throat
as he sprawled on his back.

No one spoke for a long moment. The park, indeed, the whole city fell
silent as the moon sank beneath the horizon to prepare for the dawn.
In the last and darkest hour of the night, nine warriors and a child
watched the battle within the sphere cease, and the battle within a
soul begin.

A harsh, gasping laugh sounded from the floor of the sphere. "You’re
too weak, Sailor Moon! You can’t do it," Demando sneered. "You’ll
let me live, and in return for that little favor, I’ll continue killing off 
your
friends, one by one, forcing you to watch as I reduce them to dust."

"Tell me, princess, how will it feel watching me blast them to hell or fill
their bodies with so much Dark energy that their souls die and they
become evil automatons? How will it feel watching me run a sword
through your precious Tuxedo Kamen? How will it feel watching me
slit your precious, pink-haired brat’s throat?" His voice lowered to a
malignant hiss. "How will it feel, princess, to know that you caused it
all?"

Her silver eyes no longer saw the man before her.

~~Her brother’s face was pressed against her mother’s shoulder,
Cara’s upturned countenance reflected nothing but fear. Her father’s
face was twisted into a mask of rage.

They were dead.

Rubeus was laughing. "A bit late, aren’t we? Did you really think that
I couldn’t tell who you were? It’s not like you made it hard, with that
hair..."

~~~

I see you haven’t solved that tardiness problem. You should really be
more careful, someone could get hurt.

~~~

"SAILOR MOON! Tell them...you were..."
"Late."~~

Her eyes refocused on Demando, who continued to sneer. "Tell me,
princess, will you sacrifice your soul and kill me while I’m injured and
defenseless, or will you wait until it’s too late once more?"

//It’s already too late.//

//My soul died when I killed my family.//

"I’ve corrupted your soul, Sailor Moon. You hate...and you hate so
deliciously." He licked his lips sensually. "What do you think drew me
to you? That unparalleled potential to hate," he all but purred.

She shifted her weight, leaning down to speak softly to him without
easing the pressure of the staff on his throat. "Yes, Demando. You
made me hate. You made me hate so thoroughly and so passionately
that I killed someone in cold blood." His eyes narrowed at her tone:
cold and even, not the sorrow or anger he’d expected.

"But Demando, you made a mistake." Her empty eyes bore into his.
"You made me hate Rubeus. You made me hate you. But you made
me hate someone else with an intensity I cannot begin to describe."
She stood up straight once more, her eyes never leaving his. He felt
a quick flash of fear as he took in her still body and dead eyes.

"Myself."

The inside of the sphere exploded with white light. The Dark energy
of the outer sphere burned away and the firestorm within incorporated
the Battle Sphere. For a long moment the ten people on the ground
were overwhelmed by the intense illumination and the sudden roar of
the crystal’s song.

Then, as suddenly as it began, it ceased. For a single moment, Sailor
Moon remained suspended above the clearing, then she plummeted
to the ground, her staff falling beside her, the clearing coated in the finest layer of black dust.