Souls of Fire #7: Broken Sword Ranma 1/2 VS Sailor Moon Written by Razorclaw X (spiceoflife@NYChotmail.com) http://www.crosswinds.net/~slythe/sm/index.html Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and characters belong to Naoko Takeuchi. Ranma 1/2 and characters belong to Rumiko Takahashi. Proper licenses belong to respective properties and characters. The manga has precedence over material in the anime. This file can be freely distributed so long as it appears in its complete form and proper credit. No part may be reproduced for monetary gain without permission from the author. ---------------------------------------------------- Observatory, Palace of Solitude To the creature humans knew as Sypha Blade, the whole of her existence can be summed up in one word: revenge. The captive population of Crystal Tokyo, magically transplanted on Nemesis, in the capitol city of Darkhold, the home of their former enemies, knew not of even that from the black sorcerer. Very few, outside a small circle of trusted allies, knew the truth behind the human-shape kami. For well over a thousand years, before the coming of the crystal civilization, Sypha was stranded on the plane of ancestry, on the planet Earth. Cut off from her homeland she studied Earth's magic system to become strong, and research a method by which she could return to the so-called Kami Plane, the artificial demi-plane that served as a mirror of Earth on a different level of existence. To that end she clashed endlessly with the guardians of the Gate of Heaven, protected by the Four Gods in order to keep the two populations apart and prevent mutual annihilation of each other. It was somewhat ironic that she found herself allied with the last of their Order, the priestess Shizuka. Shizuka herself was too naive and young to think Sypha an enemy, and despite her hatred of her Order and a thousand years of jaded views on humanity in general the sorcerer could not help but like her. Her soul was very un-humanlike in a sense, and perhaps that was a reason she became a trusted ally, even back in the warring days. However, the warring days are long gone. In replacement came a so-called Age of Peace, one which its ruler, Neo Queen Serenity, openly admitted that she was the one who wiped out the kami civilizations by collapsing the demi-plane onto this one. This not only restored the plane whole but destroyed the void between the planes, which sealed the Mekani in nothingness for what was believed to be for all time. It was an unthinkable action, and at the same time it was a desperate one; the humans screwed-up and tried to make up for their mistake by sacrificing billions of another world. It was unforgivable. For Sypha, her Celestial home was destroyed by an Order-inspired magical crystal that shielded Earth's locales from being supplanted by locales existing in the same place in the Kami Plane. All of Earth would not have known about the kami at all had the crystal stopped the collapsing plane in the underworld. They were called the Infernals, the kami who lived in the underworld, and to which Cinder belonged. His people, the salamanders, and many others, were considered hellspawn in ancient myths and legends, and perhaps that was why Neo Queen Serenity waged a war to annihilate every last one of them. All save Cinder, who, crippled as he was, was living on Earth in exile. In effect, it produced an unthinkable alliance between the sky-dwelling Celestial and a world-dwelling Infernal. Everything she worked for was gone before she could grasp it. She could no longer gaze upon the Celestial Palace again, nor share her findings while living amongst the humans for over a thousand years. She could not meet her love any longer, one who she was certain was waiting those same years along with her, no matter how much apart they were. Damned to live the rest of her immortal existence with the humans as the last of her kind, the only motive Sypha had left in life was to get revenge on those who took everything. No, it wasn't simply enough to get revenge; Cinder was in agreement in this as well. They had to humiliate them first. In the humiliation part the last kami did splendid, as, in a spur-of-the-moment plan, they managed to embarrass the Sailor Senshi in front of their captive Crystal Tokyo people. Realizing the two Sailor Senshi had no idea who was in Darkhold, Sypha made it a point to prevent them from learning until it was too late. She had no doubt they were smart enough to figure it out, if only she let them. Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune destroyed two of Darkhold's five black towers, which regulated the inherent magical energies of Nemesis as usable power in the city. Although on paper cutting off the power was a mere annoyance, the true outcome paid in spades. For one, those people close to the towers when they exploded were injured, and thus could lay good blame on the Sailor Senshi. Two, it brought support for the Crystal Tokyo defenders down a notch. And three, the reckless energy usage weakened the two senshi enough that it was a simple matter to capture them, leaving them alive to both bear humiliation and open up to future torture. Shackled in the deepest cells of the Palace of Solitude Uranus and Neptune were bound in cells set apart by a long hall, each held down with magical chains Sypha designed herself. The two could expend as much energy as they wish, but, as a Chinese finger trap puzzle, if one pulled on them enough the bonds would get stronger. There was no better way to fuel the chains than with the prisoner's own energy, and centuries of unmarred use alone made them very reliable. Now that they fulfilled what the Wiseman asked, Sypha was free to do as she chose, but the old man implied that she must remain on Nemesis to keep watch. She had no problems with that, save for the fact that she could not see the results of her plans when they unfold on the rest of the Sailor Senshi on Earth. It would be a pain, but her work would have to be carried out by proxy. --- R&D, Mishima Heavy Industries None of the techs were particularly interested in Ami despite the fact that she wasn't technically allowed to come into the research block. It took a little time to hack a new passcode through the system as Shion had changed the passwords after her previous stunt. She was under the impression that the mercenary was attempting to install something far more secure, but if he was doing it the progress was slow. Her eyes scanned for Chief Engineer Taydome, and Ami found him in the lounge, having a bite at his meager breakfast-- a toaster waffle-- and reading a progress report or something to similar effect. There was nothing impressive about the skinny man, save that, unlike many surrounding him he was from America. That did not stop him from rising to the position with the big hat, however. "Hello?" Even a simple greeting caught Taydome by surprise, as he jumped in his seat, throwing up his report into the air. "Cripes, don't do that!" "Sorry," she apologized quickly. "Chief Engineer Taydome?" "That's me," he answered. Holding his waffle by the teeth Taydome reached to gather his scattered papers. "You're Ami Mizuno, correct?" Ami nodded. "I'm sorry we haven't met until now." "Don't be," he insisted. "I spend almost all of my time down in restriction land anyway. I hardly know anyone outside this block other than Ms. Mishima and a couple others." "Then you don't have many friends, I suppose." It was a rather logical conclusion, but it would help to put the man off-guard for what she was planning to do. "Nope!" Taydome said, seemingly proud of the fact. He paused to swallow the last of his breakfast. "For some it's having fun which makes life enjoyable, but for me it's the scientific pursuit in engineering robotics." He made a gesture in the air with one hand. "After all, Ms. Mishima is using my prime robots now." "You created those?" "Mmmhmm. Pretty dumb, but I plan on installing better AI routines in the next batch. That is, after we complete upgrading the weapons on our existing units." He shook his head. "We keep running out of bullets, especially after the shield attack." "Bullets?" Ami said, surprised. "I thought they were illegal." "They are. We had to manufacture our own, but Management decided it wasn't very effective, as the raw materials could be used to make more robots instead of bullets. We're going for energy weapons now." This was it, Ami decided. If the Mishima robots were upgraded with the new energy weapons, they could pummel the energy shield until their batteries ran dry. In other words, ammunition was going to become a non-issue when the techs were through. But she had to keep him talking... at the very least, long enough for her computer to alter the security schematics enough to allow her complete access to every room. "Why did you join in with these people?" "Eh?" "Why did you join?" "Oh." Taydome laughed to himself. "A fortune cookie told me." Ami merely blinked. "No, I'm not kidding. When President Mishima offered to cryo-freeze me for a future generation, he gave me time to think it over. Me and a couple of others went out to a Chinese restaurant, and I opened up my fortune cookie. It said, 'You will receive a great project in the future.'" "Needless to say," he continued, recalling the moment in his mind, "I was thrilled. Any doubts about my existence were erased with such a golden promise. It turned out that the cookie was right, and I've accomplished several great projects within a month alone! It's certainly a great time to be alive." With that notion Ami had to agree. --- Ami's Quarters, Mishima Heavy Industries She was glad to be back in the privacy of her allocated quarters, but there was no time to rest. Taking a quick glance in the direction of her desk she found her palm computer finished its work. Now that her program was done there was no need to fear about getting caught in the act. Sitting down Ami ran a quick check of the current status of the compound, stopping the automatic scrolling when a personnel list passed by. Backing up a bit she realized she hit a gold mine: it was the complete roster of all seventeen members of the Fenril Knights, along with their recruits and technicians. Scanning the list Ami saw it was updated yesterday, as there was a status listed next to each name. It was likely a bookkeeping device, she thought. She read the list aloud: "Ayame Mishima: on leave. Shion Kagami: on leave. Kanna Rajura: on leave, don't bother me." She laughed to herself quietly, realizing that Kanna was probably the one compiling the list. Strangely enough, that also meant the Triumvirate was gone, and not watching her. "Ranma Saotome: MIA. Ryoga Hibiki: AWOL. Shizuka Minazuki: unavailable. Tatewaki Kuno: KIA. Kodachi Kuno: Standby." Well, that put at least one person on her list to deal with, if this one was even looking. "Shampoo: unavailable. Mousse: Standby. Miranda Kusao: on assignment. Ukyo Kuonji: on assignment. Cinder: on assignment. Sypha Blade: on assignment. Higure Furui: Standby. Pantyhose Taro: AWOL. Hokuto Takemasa: unknown." 'Unknown?' Ami thought back into her mind, and could not recall actually meeting the one the others called a recluse. The list went on, listing Taydome and the rest of the technical staff. She paused at her name at the end of the list, and blinked when she saw the status next to it: "Unreliable." "I don't understand," Ami said aloud. "Why would Kanna put something like that there and then leave?" "She knows something, that's for sure; she wanted me to find it. Maybe she wants me to become uneasy and panic. But there is no use second-guessing myself while Kanna is nowhere to be found. For that matter, most of the Fenril Knights are not even in the compound... and the window of opportunity may be quite small." The time to act is now. It was too good to resist destroying the entire Mishima robot army while the three heads of the hydra were looking away. But, almost certainly, it had to be a clever trap. Or could it be an honest mistake? From what Ami gathered Kanna was supposed to be the most brilliant tactician, but she is still human. At least the search produced the names of all seventeen Fenril Knights, a list that may prove key to the rest of this pointless war. --- Inner Sanctum, Crystal Palace It was a pain in the ass for Ranma to figure out how to beat the Sailor Senshi. Snooping around early she resolved to find out what gave the girls their special powers; only by harnessing those powers herself could she hope to match them. She did manage to find each of their quarters, but there seemed to be an extra room, one with no occupants, and with the sign of Mercury. Ranma had no idea what that meant, but it hardly stopped her from learning about the Sailor Senshi. Using her innocent curiosity guise Ranma made small talk with three Sailor Senshi, trying to pull as much information as possible without drawing suspicion. Of course, when posed with the 'source of power' question they answered, "From our hearts." It was the lamest thing she ever heard, but on some level it probably made sense to them, considering all three of them gave almost the same answer. Ranma concluded that it must have to do with the Silver Crystal thingy the queen keeps in her private quarters. For some reason the way to the inner sanctum was unguarded... it was likely laziness on the part of Neo Queen Serenity. Too much confidence in their shield generator... Ranma reminded herself to find where that device could be before leaving. She stopped in her tracks, hearing footsteps echo from down the hall. Ranma ran back to the nearest corner and hid, creeping her eyes around to see Neo Queen Serenity walk by, talking about something to Sailor Venus. She guessed they were leaving the place where the crystal was. Counting several heartbeats Ranma decided it was a good time to sneak in, dashing down the hall with all haste. She spotted a large set of double doors, shut closed, and smiled to herself. Looking around to make sure no one was watching, Ranma pushed herself in. Disappointment mounted on her ego. The pedestal for the Silver Crystal was certainly there, but the crystal itself was not. "She has it," Ranma realized, although she couldn't think of a reason why the queen would want to take it anywhere. --- "Death Phantom is forcing my hand," Neo Queen Serenity told Venus as they walked through the halls, the Silver Crystal resting in the brooch on her dress. "There is no longer a choice; I must fight him as well." "Are you sure?" asked Venus, even though she knew her words could never dissuade the queen. She nodded. "The Child of Chaos appears to be working openly; he wishes to goad this world into fighting, and in this recent attack he is succeeding. I once said that disputes can be solved by talking, and Death Phantom attempted to show me that talking is useless last night." "So now we're stooping to his level," Venus noted. "We must protect the peace we worked so hard to build, and I cannot allow my friends to do that alone. I must do something about it." "What about the Silver Crystal?" Neo Queen Serenity shook her head. "If there is indeed a threat of Mekani invasion, we need to save its power for them. The Fenril Knights and Death Phantom would only drain its energy too much. I am responsible for an entire world; I cannot use this power recklessly." "Oh yeah," Venus interrupted. "The expedition you wanted to send out? I just heard back from them... apparently people are gathered outside the city, so they didn't have to go very far." "And?" "Every time someone tries to go in or out a bunch of machines appear and shoot everybody." She quickly added, "No fatalities so far, but everyone's keeping their distance. The robots are apparently also cutting any communication wires we try to run over the border." "That might explain why our computers cannot reach beyond the city limits," Serenity thought. "Yeah, but I doubt the Fenril would cut themselves like that, too. There's got to be a way they're keeping tabs on us like that. We've got to do something about the robots." "So far it is a standoff," the queen reasoned. "If the Fenril only wishes to keep everyone out of the city and us in, then we must play by their rules for the moment. I doubt the Peacekeepers can offer us much aid anyway. Any word from my husband?" Venus shook her head. "Want me to send another expedition out?" "No," she replied with a sigh. "It appears we are on our own in this one." --- Palace Gates, Crystal Palace Shampoo paced the front gates like a caged animal, waiting to strike. She eyed the clear path to the front gate, unguarded as it was, with a certain patience. The only reason she remained outside was due to the fact that an energy barrier was preventing her from getting inside. Behind her, Mousse watched, running his hand up and down his face, both tired and flabbergasted at the sudden change in Shampoo's attitude. His eyes followed her predatorial pace, hypnotized by the spectacle, or rather, by the events which lead to their current situation. He had no idea what she was going through at the moment, but the weapons master knew it had something to do with her brief possession by Deathclaw, the ghost dragon now inhabiting the comatose Shizuka. Mousse was there to witness first-hand the rage of Deathclaw when he attacked the palace, as he was nearly blown away from the energy shockwaves from him pounding on the energy shield a lot. There was no way for him to know what it felt to be trapped in a void space without the means to die, but Mousse was certain that Shampoo understood completely, and that was what's driving her over the edge. "Shampoo," he said, gathering himself slowly. "I don't think there's a point to be out here... not with the shield up and all." "There has to be a way inside," Shampoo replied. "But not that way," the weapons master added. "It's either this or nothing," she insisted. "All I need is a way to bleed off all the energy from the shield and I can finish Sailor Moon myself." "You mean before Kodachi gets her?" Mousse sighed, knowing that the other insane girl was busy at the other end of the palace trying to get in as well. While she vocally affirmed that she was after Venus, Shampoo still looked to her as a rival to her goals. In any case he knew Kodachi was being more productive, as she had a small group of GAIAs working on the shield with their retrofitted energy busters. He wondered why Venus so cowardly refused to accept Kodachi's challenge; that would at least make Shampoo relax a bit more. "Maybe we're going about this the wrong way," he suggested. "What?" Shampoo flashed him an angry look. He raised his arms, and took several steps back. "No, wait! Hear me out. I mean, think about it... why should we let them sit in there, drink tea or whatever, and laugh at us, while we're still standing out here waiting for a blue moon? Why not make them come outside?" Shampoo raised an eyebrow. "You know, Mousse, that is the smartest thing you said yet," she said in a low tone. "Killing a few bystanders should get their attention quickly...." Mousse suddenly realized she was talking about him. "Okay, okay! We don't need to do it my way...!" "Then shut up, go away, and stop trying to baby-sit me!" she hissed. "Find yourself a new girl to latch onto, because from here someone is going to die. I prefer it to be Sailor Moon first." He blinked in surprise. "You don't plan on coming back, one way or another. Why are you throwing your life away?" "Understand this, Mousse," she replied. "I refuse to live, knowing the atrocities done here. I refuse to have anything to do with humanity, if it can be as cruel as to thrust me into a cold void. I reject immortality. If you value your life, you will leave now." Mousse wanted to continue reasoning with her, convince her there was another way, but saw the futility in it; Deathclaw did more than enough damage to her in his killing rage. There was too much hurt in her eyes; too much horror to simply forget. Too much pain. Shampoo was already dead, and she knew it; it was all a matter of convincing the rest of her body the same. For a moment, he wondered how Shizuka planned on surviving such a terrible beast. --- Ranko's Quarters, Crystal Palace Ranma sighed to herself, throwing herself onto the bed she was given for the duration of her stay in the palace. Staring at the ceiling, the martial artist wondered how long she could keep up the charade before somebody realized that she was cursed. "No Silver Crystal," she said to the air. "Their source of power gives them an edge over us that we haven't been able to beat. The answer has to be in front of me...." She produced the three black crystal shards she collected over her stay, and held each of them up to the light. "These things are kinda worthless, but couldn't I use these as my own source of power?" Could that even be done? Each of the prism shards glowed softly, and Ranma found that if she drew them closer together the glow became much brighter. The magic was working with each other, certainly. In a flash she knew: it can be done. And yet she also felt that three crystals was not nearly enough; Ranma knew she had to get more of them, but getting more prisms while a prisoner in the palace could present a problem. --- Ami's Quarters, Mishima Heavy Industries She had her head buried in her arms while sitting at her desk, but she was stirred awake by the sound of a voice whispering in her ear. "Don't you want to help me?" Sitting up quickly, rousing herself from her nap, Ami quickly grabbed her computer from her desk and looked around. "Who's there?" Her eyes looked around, and saw.... Darkness, and nothing more. "I can help you," the voice whispered, seemingly coming from nowhere. Shizuka, she recognized. "We can call it an even trade," she offered quietly. "I don't know what you're talking about," Ami said, standing in her seat, looking for any obvious bugs she might have missed. She shook her head, deciding that it wasn't anything that simple. "Aren't you...?" "Yes." "Why can I hear you?" "Because I wanted to talk to you... before you made a terrible mistake." "If it's a trap, I'm prepared for that," Ami replied confidently. "Kanna knows already." "Then there's no hope for you to succeed." "I won't know unless I try." "I see... but you can still help me. Wake me up." "Wake you?" "Surely your magicks work flawlessly," Shizuka reasoned, her voice remaining at the same level. "Can it be that you can't do what I request?" "I don't have that kind of power." "I see." "Shizuka," she said, "I'm doing this to help everybody. I can't help you directly, now... but what I'm doing is for the good of...." "Of the greater whole," the priestess interrupted. "Of course; how typical of you, Mizuno." She didn't call me 'Mercury' this time. That was a good sign, at least. "When I leave I promise I'll ask Neo Queen Serenity to help you... to help all you people. The fighting must end." "I agree," Shizuka replied. "But not in the manner in which you intend to end it." "You don't have to understand now; it'll come in time." "I understand everything. I think you're making the wrong choice. It's not too late to convince Kanna you're not a traitor." "If I stay I betray my queen," Ami pointed out. "I knew this when I started this journey. I promised myself I wouldn't betray my friends." "In the end, none of us are your friends." There was bitterness in Shizuka's voice. "I trusted you." "That's not what I meant...." "Of course you did." Ami jumped in shock when the priestess materialized in front of her, anger in her expression. Her voice raised an octave. "Such is the nature of an infiltrator; they will betray the trust of someone. If you were otherwise you wouldn't have ever thought to infiltrate us in the first place." "Maybe, but I love this world too much to see it fall into ruin." "Then perhaps you need to put your priorities straight, Mizuno," Shizuka hissed. "In the guise of benefiting the many this world was designed to cater to the few. Your Sailor Senshi friends cater to the few-- that is, themselves-- by shaping the world to their liking, then forcing everyone else to conform to their views. Did they ask the world if they wished for Earth to be this way? No. Is this what the planet wishes out of humanity? No. The course of human evolution was altered to suit the petty wants of a handful." "There's no disease," she continued, pacing a circle around Ami. "There's no murder, war, fighting, famine, flood, or pollution. There's no room for human error or human expression, because avenues are closed off to make way for what the Sailor Senshi consider to be the high form of art. It disgusts me to think that everyone works toward the interest of Neo Queen Serenity, in the name of bettering the human race... in the name of love, justice, and goodness." It was obvious that those last words were held in contempt. She came to a stop, gazing Ami directly in the eye. "Tell me, Mizuno, when was the last time you encountered a big game hunter on this Earth? There are none. When was the last time you saw a horror movie? There are none. When was the last time you saw a simple bank robbery, even?" Shizuka shook her head. "I liked humanity much more when each knew what they wanted to do in life, and worked their lifestyle toward that goal. I like the selfish human race; I can trust it much more than a collective that selflessly gives their lives to each other... or to a dictator." Ami shook her head. "I'm sorry you think that way." "Then I can't persuade you," the priestess decided. "Know this, Mizuno: you made a mistake by thinking you can defeat us. We were not the first, nor are we the last, of humanity to challenge your queen. We will continue to fight until we are either wiped out, or the head of your queen is skewered on a pike in the garden. Enjoy your small victories while you can, Mizuno, because you'll never win." --- Ami burst awake at her desk, sweating profusely. She looked around, quickly snatched up her computer from the desk, and looked around. Silence, and nothing more. "Dream," she realized. "I must've fallen asleep." Perhaps that was a very dangerous thing to do from here on out, Ami decided, if Shizuka could easily rip her appart that way. There was a good chance that she was still in deep slumber, but the consequence was her dream reaper form... however she was doing it. For a moment she wondered if the other Fenril Knights were receiving such dreams. She checked her desk clock, and saw that it was well into the night already. Gathering her important belongings, Ami quickly freshened herself up, then gave the room one last glance. If all went well, she would never have to see it again. With silent determination, Ami set out to complete her mission. --- Palace Gates, Crystal Palace The moon had already reached its zenith for that day as Shampoo continued to pace in front of the shielded gate, no more tired or bored of herself than when Mousse parted hours ago. Kodachi, even, went home when the sun went down out of boredom. That pretty much left Sailor Moon all to herself. "There's much more productive ways to get inside," someone said from behind. Shampoo snatched up her bonbori from the ground and lunched at the speaker, but she hit only air. She felt a presence behind her, and took another swing. Again, there was nothing. "Come now, I can help you get in the shield," Hokuto Takemasa said, her form lifting from her own shadow on the ground. She threw open her cloak and held out her hand. "The shadow stream can bypass the shield." The Chinese Amazon's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Why should I trust you? How do I know you aren't after Sailor Moon too?" "That depends whether or not you know another way to get past the shield," the Shadow Weaver pointed out. "I didn't think so." Shampoo snarled. "I'll take that as an acceptance of my offer," she decided. --- R&D, Mishima Heavy Industries Mentally, she ran her plan through her head once again as Ami taped the explosives onto the support beam with duct tape, tearing off wide strips. She thought about running over to the storage facility where the Mekani void-ripper was being kept, but it was still attached to the cubic engine-- a fusion bomb waiting to explode if it detonated due to the lingering energies from the heart crystals. It was fortunate that the Fenril thought to keep it locked up when not in use. She found these explosives in the armory, likely the same explosives that Kanna used to blow up her friend's house earlier. Each detonated on a remote control, with a link option that allowed one explosive in a sequence to detonate with a press of a single button. Or she could blow them up all at once. She planned on being clear from the R&D block by the time she pressed the button. She wanted to make sure it all went at once. Ami found an ideal escape tunnel in the schematics provided in her computer search. She had no plans to utilize the black prism shard given to her, as she had the idea that the Fenril could easily track her while she was carrying it. The escape tunnel was simply a small car shot through a pipe at high velocity, ultimately ending out in the sea. It was designed such that, if it were ever used, the tunnel would collapse behind it, so no one could use it to enter the hidden base. That was another thing that bothered Ami. While she suspected that the underground base was under the Mishima building, nothing in the records even pointed that way. It was likely that it wasn't directly under the building, but at least in that area. Or... it was entirely possible that the base was mobile. She strapped on the last of the explosives, wiping her forehead and discarding the spent roll of duct tape. Ami reached for the remote control in her pocket, and extended the antenna while keeping the cover over the large square, red button. Time to leave, she decided. "Hold it right there," she heard a man say from behind. The command was followed by a telltale click of a removed safety. Philip Taydome pointed his gun toward the back of Ami's head. "Now I want you to stand, slowly." Link option it is, Ami decided, flipping one switch before pressing the red button. The explosion rocked the entire block, the blast rebounding off the wall opposite it and creating a larger cloud of destruction. Taydome was knocked off his feet, and that gave Ami enough time to spin and deck him with her foot. The gun was sent scattering across the floor, well away from the chief engineer. All around the room inert GAIAs sprung to life, their hunting eyes scanning for Ami. She cursed silently to herself, realizing that Taydome wasn't the only one who was on to her. Quickly, she pressed the button again, and this time the blast caught her would-be attackers in the back. Already chunks of ceiling began to fall, and when Ami turned to the sound of Taydome's scream he already disappeared under debris. Surveying the wreckage quickly Ami decided that the man couldn't possibly have survived, and headed toward the exit as more of the Mishima robots climbed over their fallen brethren to continue the pursuit. Leaving the block, Ami slammed her fist into the control box near the door, sealing it shut. Raising her hand and the remote control, she pressed the trigger several more times before retreating down the hall. A door slid open down the hall, and the barrel of a weapon poked out. Ami stopped in her tracks as its owner stepped into the hall, and knew this was the one who was trying to activate the robots to stop her. Aiming the Fire Buster Mark III squarely at her head, Shion Kagami said, "I thought you were smarter than this." Ami detected a tinge of disappointment in his voice. "How long have you known?" "A long, long time ago," Shion answered. "I've known Kanna for most of my life, and she's almost never wrong." He snorted. "I'm just too trusting, then. Drop the box." Slowly, Ami held out her arm, and dropped the remote control, allowing it to clatter on the ground. "Where's Dr. Taydome?" he demanded. "He's dead." "Then there's a life on your head. I can't even get a decent vacation because of you, Ami. I trusted you, and this is how you repay me?" "I'm sorry," she offered sincerely, but knew the mercenary would never accept it. "'Sorry' doesn't cut it." He tapped the buster's trigger anxiously. "How can I trust a world that betrays me at every turn? How can I believe in a bright future for this Earth with people like you running it?" "It's not too late," she began to say. "It is for you," he replied simply. "Traitor." The moment Shion squeezed the trigger, Ami threw her arm into the air, shouting, "Mercury Crystal Power, Make-Up!" Flames deflected and jetted around her, and Shion was forced to step back and shield his eyes as the transformation protected her from the flame. "Sailor Mercury," he hissed, anger boiling. "It was you...." Clamping onto the fire buster much tighter, Shion screamed, "IT WAS YOU!!!" "Shabon Spray!" Mercury shouted, throwing a thick mist into the hall. Flames erupted in the space she once occupied, and Mercury hoped the mist would distract Shion long enough for her to make her escape. She slipped past the mercenary quickly while he was still focused on his forward direction. But the flame would evaporate the mist quickly, and there wasn't much time. --- Throwing off his steamed glasses, Shion breathed heavily as he stared at where Sailor Mercury was supposed to be, and found nothing. Angrily, he tossed the fire buster on the floor, and reached for a transmitter in his jacket pocket. "Initiate Priority One Emergency Lockdown sequence!" All around him the lights dimmed and turned red in hue as sirens blared on speakers. All doors slammed shut and incremental barriers fell on the hallway as Shion collapsed to his knees, defeated. Slamming his knuckles into the ground, he wanted to cry, but there were no tears to shed. Endgame begins now. "I'll kill you," he vowed in a low tone. "Even if it's the last thing I do, I'll rip you apart, Sailor Mercury!" --- For each barrier that got in her way Sailor Mercury destroyed them quickly, wondering what effect Shion's lockdown would have on the escape vehicle. She found it easily, and the bullet-shaped car looked untouched by the emergency lockdown. Mercury slipped into the car and sealed it shut behind her, then pulled out her palm computer and plugged it into the system. With a few keystrokes she override the system and the care was on its way. "I trusted you," Shizuka had said, strangely echoing the sentiments of Shion. "How can I believe in a bright future for this Earth with people like you running it?" Shion had said, the words echoing in Mercury's mind as the car made its escape. In the end, she concluded, they had no reason to stop fighting, and it was her fault. "Enjoy your small victories while you can," Shizuka also said, "because you'll never win." --- The debris burying Philip Taydome, the late chief engineer of Mishima Heavy Industries' R&D, disappeared into nothingness as Wiseman waved his hand. The body of the crushed man, while having imperfections here and there, was reasonably intact. And just in time, he added, reaching into his hood and throwing his lower jaw at a wall. The crystal ball levitated away from Wiseman, hovering over Taydome's body. A dark bolt of lightning lanced downward, engulfing the body in darkness. The cloaked form of Wiseman clattered to the ground lifelessly. Taydome's fingers began to twitch, and his eyes were thrown open suddenly. The spirit of the former gone, Wiseman rose from the dead once again. --- Ranko's Quarters, Crystal Palace Ranma stared up at the ceiling, lying on her bed with her arms folded behind her head. Sleep was not easy to come each night, and she wished her mind was at peace. Yet, something nagging in the back of her mind kept the martial artist awake each night. It was either the exhilarating thought of being caught, or anxiousness from doing nothing, she decided. However, that situation seemed to change in an instant. Despite the lights being out Ranma detected a movement in the shadows, against the dimness of the light. She made out a silhouette that rose out of the shadow, one of a vaguely familiar shape. And very close. "Yaaahh!!" she screamed, the Shadow Weaver Hokuto emerging seemingly from nowhere. "I'm glad I found you," she said quietly. To Ranma's ears Hokuto sounded like her usual, bored self, one resigned to whatever Fate had in store for her. It was a stupid way to live, but no one could convince her otherwise, much less change her mannerisms quick enough. At least she was trying to change. And yet she was uncomfortably close. "Hokuto... how the hell did you get in?!" Ranma demanded. From beneath the folds of her traveling cloak Hokuto produced her black crystal prism, and held it out for Ranma to take. "I'm certain you'll need this; I require it no longer, now that a rift exists to the outer planes." "Shadow skills," Ranma decided. "So it really did work, huh?" she asked, accepting the prism. Hokuto nodded. "All that is required is a link, no matter how miniscule, to the pure element domains, the building blocks of the universe. A quick shortcut through that which links shadow together is all that is required to bypass the impassible shield." "Great, so now you can get me out of here?" She shook her head. "That's not why I'm here. For one, I want to make sure you complete the new black crystal you're assembling." "How'd you know about that?" Ranma asked, startled that someone knew what she was planning. "I read your dream." "Well, then... stop doing it, you creep." "It's difficult when thoughts wander so freely," the Shadow Weaver offered in explanation. "It's so bad I have to close my mind to the world to hear my own thoughts." "Great." "Incidentally," Hokuto offered, "there are now two more crystal shards to be gained while you're still in here. One you can find easily, if only you can find Tatewaki Kuno's body." "I thought Kuno didn't have it on his body," Ranma pointed out. "It's not on his body, but you might be interested to know why his wooden sword is heavy on one end," she added. "It rests with the one who wielded it." "Kuno stuck it in his sword?!" the martial artist realized. "No wonder he didn't make it...." She paused in her thought. "Wait a minute, what about the other?" "Shampoo's body, although your window of opportunity is small," Hokuto answered. "Or rather, her body will be made available shortly. Even now, I imagine she's getting killed by the Sailor Senshi." Ranma grabbed Hokuto by the shoulders. "You let Shampoo in, too?! Are you out of your mind?!" "I'm doing her a favor," the Shadow Weaver said, trying to justify her actions. "Deathclaw already killed her, it's only a matter of discarding the flesh." Despite wishing to get up and do something, Ranma found she could not get off her bed. Staring down, she saw that Hokuto's shadow was sprouting black claws, each clamping the martial artist down tightly. "Your turn will come when you complete the black crystal ball," Hokuto said, leaning closer. Much to Ranma's surprise, disgust, and protest, the Shadow Weaver held her head tight, and gave her a deep, passionate kiss. --- Inner Sanctum, Crystal Palace Shampoo had plenty of time to hate Hokuto Takemasa for dropping her in the middle of a Sailor convention, as she appeared from the shadow of the rectangular table dominating the meeting room. Four enemies were present, but her numerical disadvantage hardly registered in her rotting mind as she waved her two bonbori expertly, keeping the Sailor Senshi at a distance. The Chinese Amazon claimed the high ground, standing defiantly on top of the table, knocking over the hanging crystal chandelier in the process. She saw Queen Serenity at the long end, grasping her brooch, trying to think of what to do. To the left and right were Mars and Venus respectively, and Shampoo knew that Jupiter was directly behind her. It was no consequence; they wouldn't dare use their special powers in this close quarters... unless they really were fools. "What do you want?" demanded Sailor Venus. "And how'd you get in here, anyway?" demanded Mars, coming off as much more forceful. Shampoo's lips curved into a smile. "Information that goes to the grave!" She made her strike, lunging with both her bonbori, one with Mars as a target, the other with the queen in mind. However, it seemed that the two were expecting this, and took care to move out of the way. Venus took advantage of Shampoo's momentary opening, throwing a chain that threatened to bind the Chinese Amazon. But Shampoo was too strong for such trivial magicks, as she burst them apart easily by flexing her arm muscles. She threw out her left leg in Venus's direction as if to kick her, but instead it triggered a mechanism on her leg that threw a concealed dagger. She had no idea if the weapon hit its mark, as Jupiter tackled her from behind, using her full body weight to try and pin her down. Shampoo pushed against the ground and inadvertently threw off her enemy. Almost as an afterthought, Shampoo tossed her left bonbori over her shoulder, and was rewarded with the telltale cry from Sailor Mars getting hit. She glanced in Venus's direction, and saw that the dagger only grazed her arm... she then threw the right bonbori at her, and nailed the girl square in the chest. Seemingly weaponless, Shampoo nonetheless stared down Queen Serenity, who was backing against the wall. "What's the matter?" she taunted. "Why don't you use that wand of yours and destroy me?" Neo Queen Serenity shook her head, obviously still shocked at how quick everything seemed to happen. "Why are you doing this?" "Put up a fighting chance," Shampoo demanded. "Maybe I can get some satisfaction before I die." She saw that the queen was staring down her eyes, and the Chinese Amazon could see the reflection of herself in her eyes. She saw the feelings, the fears, and the scattered thoughts, racing for an answer that simply did not exist. "Deathclaw..." she whispered. It was always handy to carry a backup weapon, Shampoo thought, as she pulled a knife from her belt. "Pity you wouldn't even allow me to feel satisfaction, either." She raised the knife high. And caved in her stomach painfully. Shampoo stared down at her chest, and saw that a blade was sticking through it-- the one from her leg. "That was pitiful, you know," Shampoo said flatly, craning her head around to see that it was Jupiter who attacked her. The enemy ducked as she made a downward slash. "Still kickin'," Jupiter muttered. "Geez you're tough!" And yet the distraction proved to be enough, as a bright flash of light blinded Shampoo's eyes. She knew what happened; the precious few seconds she was distracted from killing the defenseless queen was all the time she needed to transform into her Sailor Moon form. Perfect. "Now we dance!" Shampoo declared, charging at Moon, who stood with her magic wand ready. All her senses dulled in a moment, but still the Chinese Amazon rushed toward the light. Everything around her seemed to transform into darkness, further illuminating the one bright light ahead, as if at the end of a long tunnel. Distance seemed to warp around her as she ran, as Shampoo felt she could never make it to the end. But she would, she knew. The light was waiting for her to come. --- Control Center, Mishima Heavy Industries Ayame Mishima was in no mood for this crap. Standing in her usual position at the center of the bowl, she stared down Kanna Rajura coldly. "I want to know what the hell you've done, and you'd better explain quickly." "We needed a way to get rid of her," Kanna said. "I gave Ami all the incentive she needed to blow her cover and retreat. Now we no longer have a mole within our organization. All of our problem people are gone, and they think they left of their own volition." "At the cost of what?" "Fifty-two robots," the Crystal Spider answered, "plus Shion's pride. Taydome's reported dead, but we can't seem to find his body anywhere. In this case I outwitted Ami Mizuno quite handily, because that's not even a fraction of our standing force." Ayame nodded. "It's a terrible gamble, but it worked." Kanna shrugged. "Oh yeah... I got a note from Hokuto. It seems that Miranda's dead; the Sailor Senshi got her, I wager. They have her body, at least." That news stung Ayame more than it should have, and she knew it. "Shampoo might not be back, Mousse says. He thinks she's already dead or something. In the meantime, our standing army is poised to take over the world from hidden installations in every country. The people should be cake to take care of." "So now we're at endgame," the leader realized. "I want you personally to supervise the army, you understand? I don't want to see your face again until you come back with the world." Kanna smiled. It was the perks of handling the Geneva project personally that made her happy. "With pleasure." Ayame stood her ground as her advisor got up and left, the double doors sliding shut behind her. She stood there for several heartbeats before turning to leave herself, her face stone and silent. Tatewaki, Miranda, Taydome, Shampoo... all gone, because of terrible leadership. Ryoga, Taro, Ami... all traitors, because of terrible leadership. And one sadistic tactician, who shall remain nameless, because of terrible leadership. She walked through the now-empty and quiet halls back to her quarters, sealing the door shut. Immediately Ayame headed straight for the shower, stepping in without taking off her clothes, and turning it on cold all the way. She leaned against the wall opposite the shower head, and slid all the way to the floor, and, without any witness, broke down and cried. --- Inner Sanctum, Crystal Palace Sailor Moon stared down at the collapsed husk that was her attacker... Shampoo, as she recalled. It had been weeks since she last saw this Fenril Knight in action, but it seemed that time did little to improve on her health. It had something to do with the fact that when Deathclaw bonded with Shizuka, Shampoo's body was discarded by the ghost dragon. There was no other reason why her attack could kill Shampoo so quickly. Or even why it could kill her at all. "She was Deathclaw's pawn," she realized, "sent by proxy in order to kill me. This girl was already dead by the time she made it in here." "Yeah, but how'd she get in?" wondered Jupiter, prodding the lifeless body with her foot. "The energy shield's still up, isn't it?" "Yeah," confirmed Venus. "We'd know if it'd gone down." "Then they're using an entirely different means to get inside the palace," Mars said. "From what we've seen if the Fenril Knights had the power to do that with their weapons they'd be better off taking down the shield than filtering people in like this." "I agree," Moon said. "It must mean that their rift is still open. They're using extra-planar means." "Rift?" Mars blinked. "Wouldn't we know if there was one still existing?" "We didn't even detect the first rift which that ghost dragon came through," Venus pointed out. "It might be because of their jamming field." "So it could be anywhere," Jupiter realized. "We don't have time to track down a rift in a city this big." "We'll have to deal with it later," decided Moon. Her eyes passed to Shampoo's corpse. "Right now...." She sighed wearily, wondering when the killing would end. --- Control Center, Mishima Heavy Industries Ayame was not surprised to see that Shion was busy at his workstation when she reentered the control center, having the sense to at least change to dryer clothes before walking out of her room. She kept her soaking hair down, and knew it was likely a dead giveaway on her current mood, but Ayame didn't care at this point. "What're you doing?" she asked, her feet echoing against the metal grate stairs as she descended into the bowl. The mercenary did not look away from his monitor. "I finished inventory, and it seems that our dear friend Ami left us that which can get us past the energy shield." "Really," the leader said, unimpressed. "The void-ripper is still functional; it hasn't been touched at all," Shion explained. "We know that Hokuto found a way in and out of the shield, and I think it's because of her shadow powers." "So?" "So we tear open a hole from one end of the shield to the inside," he told her. "If Hokuto can bypass the shield using extra-planar means, why can't we?" Ayame's eyes brightened. "You know, that's the best thing you've come up with yet, Shion." "Of course," Shion added, "the trick is we've got to make two rifts, and that requires us actually moving the void-ripper into the empty space outside this plane. That requires a pretty big hole, considering the size of the engine." "Is it really necessary to thrust the whole engine into the rift?" asked Ayame. "The void-ripper itself isn't that big; can't we just run a cable into the first rift, then use it that way?" Shion turned in his seat, pausing to consider the suggestion. "Maybe... I guess it's worth a shot, eh?" "How many robots can we divert from other projects to send through the rifts?" "Considering we're out of droids because of what Sypha and Cinder did with them, and Kanna blew up fifty-two of the ones held here, and everybody wants all our resources anyway..." he held up his fingers and counted down. "I think we can pull three groups back without any major repercussions, plus the mole group, if you're through with them." "Pull back just the mole group," Ayame said. After all, it was a waste of time trying to bore a hole under the shield if the shield extended under the ground as well. "Set primary objective: destroy the shield generator. Get them into position by dawn." --- Ranko's Quarters, Crystal Palace Even at the lateness of the night, Ranma could not shake the thought of Hokuto from her mind. "I'll be waiting," she promised, just before disappearing hours earlier. It took all of her self-control to keep from slugging the Shadow Weaver good. Can't that girl see that I'm a girl, too? No, it probably didn't make much difference to her warped mind. Hokuto knows very well who I am and what I am... and unlike most people external appearance was not likely why she fell in love with Ranma Saotome. What she saw in a cursed guy like her was a mystery to Ranma, and a subject Hokuto was reluctant to elaborate on. Why did she have to be the one to find the time to spend on romantic ventures? Ranma wondered. She slipped quietly out of her room, keeping in mind that, the sooner she assembled the crystal, the sooner she could ditch Hokuto's unwanted advances. Ranma paused for a second, wondering where the Sailor Senshi would keep the bodies of their enemies. Was there a some type of mini-morgue in the palace? No, not in the palace... under it. The basement.... For the life of her Ranma had no idea how to get to the stairs down. As far as she could tell there wasn't any. Okay, Ranma, think. Where would you put the stairs to the basement? The answer, of course, was 'over there.' Certainly, in any arbitrary direction that Ranma could easily see. Well, she decided, I guess it wouldn't hurt to peek around a bit.... --- Docks, Crystal Tokyo Sailor Mercury never felt more cold or tired in her entire life as the escape craft finally puttered its way to shore. In her haste to escape she failed to note that the escape vehicle was an old Mishima model-- the type of machinery that possessed an inherent flaw in its design somewhere, something the Mishima Heavy Industries of old was known for until they replaced the chief engineer. It would have been nice to notice that the craft did not possess its own motive force; it forced Mercury to paddle the craft back to shore with a simple makeshift rudder machine. Every turn of the paddles, every step of the way, Mercury's thoughts were hammered by Shizuka's words. Betrayal, friendship, trust, priority, obligation, honor, justice... all were themes of the mental attacks, and although Shizuka had not communicated since she was last napping Mercury could feel the repercussions nonetheless. Each word was driven precisely and expertly like knives, each piercing her mind from different angles. There was no regret for what she did; Mercury knew what she was getting into, and knew the risks involved well... which was why she never asked any of the others to do the job in her stead. The problem was she allowed herself to sympathize with their cause, and Mercury wondered if it had something to do with her constant exposure to the black crystal shard she left behind. She wondered if Death Phantom was only pretending to forget who she was, and he did something to her during that time. Mercury shook her head, sighing wearily. She glanced off toward the direction of the Crystal Palace, now surrounded by a shimmering, rainbow-hued energy shield. There wasn't much time left, she knew, but now her problem was getting past the shield herself. --- Control Center, Mishima Heavy Industries, The Next Day Shion punched in more keys on his console as he did not like what he was seeing on the monitor. He blinked and rubbed his eyes, even stared closer, but it would not go away. It had absolutely nothing to do with his apparent lack of sleep. Instantly he was on the horn, grabbing his headset and turning on the microphone. He patched himself through to whoever it was that answered the call down at the hanger bay. "Hello?" he heard from a squeaky technician. "Tell me the Metal Smasher's there," Shion said, although his tone suggested that he already knew the answer. A slight pause. "Nope, sir, it's gone." "What do you mean, 'gone?'" the mercenary demanded, instantly drawing Ayame's attention. He heard her approach, and felt her overbearing presence over his shoulder. "It left a little while ago," the technician explained. "Ms. Mishima asked me to install the Mekani device onto it, and...." "Wait a minute," Shion ordered, spinning around in his seat. He eyed Ayame carefully. "What are you up to?" he asked, momentarily cutting off the microphone. "What?" the leader said, sounding surprised. "The guy down there says you gave the order to install the void-ripper onto the Metal Smasher, and now it's gone." He pointed to the monitor. "According to this, you're the one who checked it out, and yet you're still standing here in front of me." He stood up in his seat and stared the girl down. "Who are you?" Ayame offered a weak smile, and then exploded into soft, white feathers. In the blink of an eye Shion saw her height change, her features melt into new, yet recognizable, features. The old man waving the feather fan replaced the girl. "You," Shion said, recognizing the old man Higure. "It is too late," he said. "Ayame made her decision, and there is no reason to stop her." It all made sense now. "Ayame's going to try and finish the fight all by herself." "She is personally leading her machines out to battle," added Higure. "We estimate that, if we power on the void-ripper ahead of time, it would have sufficient charge to function for five hours, or around three Metal Smasher-sized rifts, whichever comes first. Therefore, there is no reason to take the heavy engine, too." "That idiot," the mercenary hissed, "what does she think she's doing?" --- Palace Gates, Crystal Palace The mechanical monstrosity was easily twice the size of the Mishima robots, and it resembled a cockpit mounted on two chicken legs. On each side of the vehicle was a modified buster weapon, replacing the old gattling cannons due to lack of ammunition. The cockpit window was opaque from the outside, and merely tinted on the inside against the sunlight. Ayame sat alone in the cramped cockpit, her hands firmly clamped on the driving levers as she stared at the energy shield. The flower-like void-ripper was jury-rigged to the front of the cockpit, a hasty assembly that was rather fragile, but would do the job just as well. The radio to her left crackled to life, and the leader knew who it was already. "Ayame!" she heard Shion yell, as predicted. He was so predictable at times. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!" "What does it look like?" she replied, slipping her hand over the radio toggle. Ayame felt it was a wasted effort now that her soaked clothing was plastered to the chair. At least Master Higure did his part in distracting the jerk. "Why?" he demanded. "Think about it, Shion," Ayame explained. "Four peoples' deaths are on my head, three people betrayed us, and I don't want to be responsible for any more of it. I'm through being leader." "Don't give me that bullshit!" the mercenary yelled angrily. "Don't you run away!" "I never asked to be leader," she continued. "I don't care which of you wants it, you can have it. I can't stand it anymore, so to make up for it I'm going to finish endgame all by myself." "You can't!" Shion pleaded. "Not by yourself! I'll get Kodachi, or Mousse, or...." "Leave them out of it!" Ayame snapped. "They're free to do as they please; it doesn't matter. I won't take responsibility for others anymore, you understand?" "Ayame, wait...!!!" She had no inclination to hear whatever it was Shion was trying to say, cutting off the transmission. No 'good-byes' were necessary. Not one of them would miss such a screw-up as Ayame Mishima. --- Inner Sanctum, Crystal Palace To Ranma, this was the least obvious place to put dead bodies. In one of the adjoining rooms near the center of the palace, obviously within an easy distance for the queen to get to, three bodies were laid out on crystal slabs, each resting with their arms crossed over their chests, their wounds cleaned and dressed, such that each of them looked to be in mere slumber. She checked each and every one of the notes hanging at the foot of the slabs. "Tatewaki Kuno. Cause of death: heart crystal removed. Miranda Kusao. Cause of death: heart crystal removed. Shampoo. Cause of death: heart crystal removed." Of course... all of them died in the exact same way, if the circumstances were different. The bastard queen was stealing their souls. It hardly took long for Ranma to find Kuno's bokken, as it was resting to the body's left. Picking it up the martial artist found that it was indeed heavier at the handle. She found that the end was a screw cap, and quickly undid it to reveal the black crystal shard. Holding it up to the light Ranma saw that it was undamaged... for the most part. It was riddled with minor scratches, obviously a consequence of having it hidden inside a swinging weapon. Ranma pocketed the shard and headed for Shampoo. Despite the best works to mask her pain and torment Shampoo looked as if she were burned alive, even though her expression was as serene as the other two. Ranma winced, and suddenly the idea of pilfering dead bodies was revolting to her. Where would she keep it, anyway? There was no sign of the shard in her pockets, nor in her shoes, sleeves, hair, or any other place Ranma could think of without violating the body. And somehow she knew that Shampoo wouldn't be so sneaky as to hide the shard; it simply wasn't her style. Taking in a deep gulp, Ranma reached her hand down Shampoo's shirt. "What're you doing?!" she heard a man shout. It was too late, however, as Ranma found it dangling from a necklace inside Shampoo's shirt. She turned toward the man, who was obviously some kind of doctor, or even a mortician, ripping the necklace off the Chinese Amazon's corpse in the process. "I've no time for you!" she cried, pulling off Shampoo's left shoe and throwing it at the man. Her attack found its mark, as the shoe clocked the doctor in the head, taking him out for the count. Quickly Ranma was at his side, and dragged him inside before anyone else could see the downed man. Several seconds later Ranma was already on her way back to her quarters, having obtained six black crystal shards all by herself. It doesn't matter if they find out I did that, she decided. It'll be over real soon. --- Internal Security, Crystal Palace "Oh, that's just great," Venus muttered, watching the main viewscreen as a planar rift opened on the inside of the shield. "They're coming through!" The rift grew quickly, and as Fenril robots entered through the rift on the outside they instantly appeared on the inside, each ready for battle. The only good count on the side of the palace's defenders was the fact that these robot models were armed with heavy drills rather than projectile weapons, meaning they were designed for boring rather than fighting. On the other hand, if she knew the Fenril Knights, those machines could fight just as well even if they were armed with only drills. "Tell everybody what's going on," she told the nearest technician. "I'm going down there." --- One after another Ayame watched the URANOS boring robots enter the rift, and she could barely make out their work on the inside of the shield. Spinning their drill bits madly the robots began to tear away at the crystal walls that made up the palace. The goal was simple and effective; a building with no legs to stand on collapsed on itself, taking out anything unfortunate enough to be under it. She counted to twenty, allowing the last URANOS through before sitting up in her chair. Now it was her turn to enter. --- Mercury watched the Mishima command vehicle enter the rift after the last of the robots, and she was certain that was the void-ripper attached to it. So they figured out a way in, she thought. I should have taken out the Mekani device while I had the chance. On the other hand, this offered her a perfectly good way to get inside without lowering the shield. --- By the time Ayame entered the confines of the energy shield she saw that the Sailor Senshi were already at work tearing the URANOS pack apart. She maneuvered the cockpit and aimed its side-mounted busters at the nearest enemy, and squeezed the trigger. Liquid ice spewed out of the weapons inspired by the Fire Buster Mark III, and the target, Sailor Venus, had the sense to get out of the way, allowing the URANOS she was attacking to get iced. Ayame chuckled to herself as the hulk, frozen solid, fell over and crashed against the wall it was boring, shattering into a million pieces. She wondered how long it would take for the Sailor Senshi to destroy all the robots... and knew that no matter how quick they did it at least one wall would fall from the palace. The cockpit recoiled from a blow, and Ayame saw that Sailor Jupiter was sending lightning bolts her way. The electrical energy dissipated harmlessly, and Ayame was thankful the engineer who designed the Metal Smasher had the foresight to include a grounding mechanism. She brought the busters to bear and fired more ice shots, but none found their target. "Neo Queen Serenity," she shouted, picking up her radio and broadcasting outside the Metal Smasher, "come out and we'll deal with this like women!" "You there!" she heard, the voice filtered back through into the cockpit. Ayame spied another Sailor Senshi, one she did not recognize. "Who're you?" "I am Sailor Moon!" she declared. "Champion of love and justice!" She waved her hands around in some kind of funny gesture. "On behalf of the moon, I'll punish you!" "Punish this!" Ayame cried, aiming her sights on the offending girl. Sailor Moon dodged the buster blasts, and Ayame wished that the weapons fired faster. Setting the Smasher into gear the heavy legs trampled over the palace's lawn after Moon, firing all the way. Despite the fact that the target was evading every attack, she was clearly running out of running space. And then Sailor Moon had the bright idea of running under the Metal Smasher, and Ayame cursed her luck. She quickly swiveled the cockpit around, just in time to see a spray of light wash over the window, blinding her. Shielding her eyes with one hand Ayame reached down and fired off more random shots, hoping one of them would plug the more maneuverable warrior. No such luck, however, as the Metal Smasher lurched forward, then to the side, then from the other side, and then from behind. Ayame knew her robots were through, and now she was getting hammered on all sides by the four Sailor Senshi. Blinking her eyes back to normal levels, she saw that Sailor Moon was directly ahead, holding out her wand, ready to blast. Well, we'll see about that, Ayame thought, reaching for the makeshift control of the Mekani flower device. --- The moment Mercury stepped through the rift, she knew the void-ripper was getting ready to fire. Violet lightning danced across the petals, collecting at the center, with Sailor Moon as the intended target. In an instant she knew what the Fenril was up to; instead of simply tearing a hole in the dimensional fabric the pilot was attempting to use the void-ripper as a miniature black hole generator. Her mind raced back to the Mekani War, and she knew at this point the rift to vacuum would devastate the palace and everyone else within the shield. Which also meant the pilot had a death wish. She wanted to shout a warning to Sailor Moon, but knew she would not stop the void-ripper in time. It happened in an instant. Sparks burst from the Mekani device, having suddenly lost its power concentration. In the blink of an eye the device exploded, forcing Mercury to shield her eyes from the intense heat. Her ears deafened to the blast as it roared and ricocheted off the interior of the energy shield many times. Blinking her eyes back to normal levels she barely caught sight of an individual, dressed in black, run into her. Mercury lost her balance as the unknown person passed by, disappearing into the rift. The fleeing individual pushed out of her mind, Mercury saw the Fenril machine had crashed into the side of the palace, and a moment later the rest of the wall collapsed on top of it, having its supports weakened, likely by the drilling robots. For a moment she wondered who the pilot was, and if he or she was alright. Not that they'd want her concern, after what she did to them. Quickly she rushed to Sailor Moon's side, as she stood her ground, staring at the rubble that claimed the Fenril machine. "Sailor Mercury!" she exclaimed. "Sorry I'm late," Mercury said. "I wish I'd made it here sooner." Changing the subject, she added, "We have to seal the rifts, before more of them get through." Sailor Moon nodded, grasping her wand tighter, and turned do her work. Mercury glanced back at the rubble, and saw that the others were busy trying to get the debris off the toppled machine's cockpit. "Well, here goes," she told herself, joining her friends. --- Control Center, Mishima Heavy Industries "Why did you let her go?" demanded Shion, staring up at Higure angrily. "Well?" "I took responsibility for Ami Mizuno's actions, since I brought her in," the old man replied. "When I submitted myself to Ayame she asked me to keep you busy until morning as punishment. As you can see, she did not wish for anyone else to get hurt in her stead." "She's a freakin' idiot, that's what," the mercenary snapped. "Who the hell does she think she is, running off like that without telling anyone?" "She is our leader." "Damn straight." Turning around in his seat, Shion leaned back against his chair, and sighed. "Shall I bring Kanna back from her mission?" asked Higure. "No, don't bother," he replied. "Kanna'll get the job done much sooner than lead us. Does that make me leader by default, or are we leaderless?" "Do you want an answer to that?" Shion offered a weak smile. "No." --- Palace Gates, Crystal Palace When the cockpit window was finally opened, Mercury was the only one surprised to find that Ayame Mishima was the one inside, as she was the only one who knew what she looked like. "Ayame," Mercury gasped. "Pff, Mizuno," Ayame said, lying back in her seat, apparently unharmed by the collapse of wall. "How'd I know it'd be you I see when the sunlight comes in?" "You know her?" asked Jupiter. Mercury nodded. "She's the leader of the Fenril Knights." At the mention of that, the girl started laughing, in a low, eerie tone. "What's so funny?" demanded Mars. "You haven't a clue," Ayame replied. --- Inner Sanctum, Crystal Palace "We've got Ayame in a cell for now," Venus informed Sailor Moon, as all five Sailor Senshi gathered in the council room for the first time in a while. "That girl creeps me out, the way she's laughing." "What about the metal beast?" asked Moon. "It's going to be hard to move without any of the right equipment," answered Jupiter, "so I think we're going to have to live with that thing lying there for a while." "Something disrupted the power flow of that Mekani device attached to the armor," Mercury added. "I went ahead and tried to piece together what happened to it already, and it may have something to do with our black-caped friend that ran through the rift before we closed it off." "Black-caped friend?" Moon blinked. "Don't you think that's a little conspicuous in a closed-off place like this?" asked Mars. "He may have come in the same time as the Fenril did," offered the soldier of water. "I think he did it because I found this in the wreckage of the Mekani device." She held up a burnt rose for all to see. "Tuxedo Kamen?" Sailor Moon said in surprise. "Or a copycat," Mars pointed out. "We know the real King Endymion is in Geneva... right?" Mercury shook her head. "We can't know for certain, so long as the Fenril are cutting off all ties outside the city." "Then that's the next item on the agenda," Venus declared. "We need to get out of here." --- Prison, Crystal Palace Many would ask what was so amusing to Ayame as she lay in the single cot of the ten-by-ten cell. She stared up at the ceiling, still finding amusement that the turncoat Mizuno thought she was still the leader of the Sailor Senshi's enemy. "Why did you do it?" Ayame did not have to sit up to see the owner of the voice. "Don't you see? I'm completely worthless to the cause. It's much better off if I died; maybe everyone else could be spared the same fate." "Fate," Hokuto repeated, folding her arms within her traveling cloak as she stared down at the fallen leader. "You know nothing about Fate." "A cruel twist that none of us can take out Neo Queen Serenity in the process." "Neo Queen Serenity is Sailor Moon." "That's plain as day, Shadow Weaver. Any idiot knows that." Hokuto nodded. "The Metal Smasher can still function, even if the void-ripper is gone. You're fortunate that machine was built extremely well, otherwise you'd really be dead." "Who cares if I'm alive or not?" she asked honestly. "I spurned my parents, and let down the people that believed in me, whether they were pretending or not." "The others do care; the problem is, your cold airs routine backfired on you. You think you're alone in your position, but trust me, the others share the same sentiments as you do." "No they don't." "You have no idea what it is to be alone," Hokuto countered. "Before I met all you people, I was a wanderer; whenever something went wrong I'd run away. I never made friends, nor had family that cared about me, because I always kept to myself. That was before I met all of you." "You, Ayame Mishima, genuinely care about the people around you enough that you put your own, personal stakes aside to make it all work. The difference between you and me from then is that caring aspect. Did you not weep because you lost more lives, or because you take personal responsibility for Miranda's death?" Ayame refused to answer, and her need to laugh died with it. "Don't believe that nobody cares," Hokuto said in assurance. "Trust me, when word spreads that the leader of the Fenril Knights is defeated an in captivity, it won't end the war. They will come after you because you're their leader." --- Ranko's Quarters, Crystal Palace Anything that drew attention away from her actions was a good thing in Ranma's book, she decided. She lay the six shards of black crystal on the desk before her, wringing her hands in anticipation of a power that could match that of the Sailor Senshi. Finally, we'll be able to fight on more even terms. On the other hand, now that she had the shards, Ranma had no idea what to do with them. Picking up two of the shards Ranma tried touching their points together, but saw that nothing was happening. Anger rising she grabbed a third one and tried to arrange them in a tripod formation, but that didn't seem to work, either. Grabbing a fourth she built a log cabin formation. Still nothing happened. "What the hell did I go through all this trouble for if you stinkin' baubles don't cooperate?!" the martial artist wanted to know. "You need another one." Ranma jumped in surprise, despite the fact that she should've been used to Hokuto's comings and goings by now. "Will you stop doing that already?!" "Sorry," she replied, sounding quite sincere. "You need the seventh one to trigger the fusion process. In that respect, you have to break one, and the other six will fuse to form the whole crystal." "And where the hell am I getting another one?!" Ranma shouted angrily. "Wait until someone else dies?" "No, the solution just dropped right into your lap," the Shadow Weaver replied calmly. "Come with me and I'll show you." Ranma knew that wasn't a request, realizing she was sinking into Hokuto's extended shadow. --- Palace of Solitude, Nemesis Sypha could not believe her day could get any better as she entered the cell which served as the new home of Sailor Uranus. The Sailor Senshi was hanging limp from her shackles, obviously out of energy from trying ot aggressively pull her way out. It was a pity that all that energy went to waste; Sypha could think of much more constructive things to do than struggle all night. "I hope you're at least conscious," the sorcerer said. Uranus made no move to respond. "It has come to my attention that there are three objects of power being held by you Sailor Senshi, ones that are traditionally known as the three sacred treasures of Japan." Still she made no reply. "How fortunate it was that you happened to be one of the bearers of said artifacts," Sypha said, her voice purring in delight. "With artifacts of their power Neo Queen Serenity's Silver Crystal would be no match for us. The trick is, of course, extracting said artifacts out of your persons. I imagine you and Neptune would not give them to us willingly, but we have ways around that." "I predict a bleak future for you," she continued, finally forcing a response out of Uranus when she raised her head. "You see, I've tortured many who thought they could defy me, and thus I've learned the science of inflicting pain. I imagine the process is going to be long, hard, and ultimately, fatal." "You can't win," the soldier spat defiantly. Sypha seized Uranus's head in her claws. "And I'm going to enjoy every second of it, Destroyer of Worlds. You think you're the will of Heaven? I AM Heaven!! You haven't had the benefit to know the wrath a Celestial can bring upon their enemy." ---------------------------------------------------- Author's Notes Stay tuned for more. --Razorclaw X (spiceoflife@NOhotmailSPAM.com) http://www.crosswinds.net/~slythe/index.html