(Remember, I used this ~ to indicate a dream sequence.)
In the city of Tokyo, Japan, inside the Cherry Hill Temple, Rae was preparing herself for one of her fire readings while Amy, Lita, Mina and her guardian cat, Artemis, were standing outside the entrance of the temple. Lita looked down at her watch. After letting out a sigh, she told the other girls, “She’s already twenty minutes late.” “That girl is always late,” Artemis replied. “But I did inform Serena about the fire reading session at the temple,” Amy said. “Perhaps I should call her again and remind her of the meeting.” She reached down her hand to turn on her wrist communicator, but Mina stopped her short.
“There’s no need for that, Amy,” she exclaimed. “Here she comes!” Amy and Lita looked in the direction she’s pointing and see that she’s right. There was Serena, followed by her guardian cat, Luna, running up the temple’s stairs, huffing and puffing all the way. “Come on, you lazy girl!” Luna shouted. “Move it!” When the two of them finally reached the top of the stairs, she bent down from exhaustion and took in several deep breaths of air. “Are you all right, Serena?” Lita shouted to her as she ran over to Serena’s side. “Y-yes... I’m fine... I just... need to catch... my breath,” Serena replied. As Lita helped her up, Amy, Mina and Artemis ran over to them. “Why were you late this time, Serena?” Mina asked. “Did you oversleep again?” “No, I didn’t oversleep, Mina,” Serena muttered. “I was on the phone and I lost track of time.” “Oh, really?” Lita asked. “Who were you talking to?”
Serena’s cheeks turn red as she replied; “I was talking to Darien.” She gave out a long giggle before she continued. “I’ve got great news. Darien told me that he’s been accepted into a major university. Unfortunately, the university’s in the United States.” Letting out a long sigh, with tears starting to well up in her eyes, she continued, “Darien also said that he was leaving today to check out this school.” With that, Serena started to wail, with tears flowing out endlessly. “I MISS HIM ALREADY!” she bawled with her friends at her side, trying desperately to calm her down.
“Will you cool it with the waterworks already, meatball head!” The four girls looked up at Rae, who was dressed in her traditional temple clothes. Serena wiped her eyes and yelled back angrily, “I told you not to call me meatball head!” “Well, I can’t help it, Serena, if you were acting like one,” Rae retorted back to her. “Please stop fighting, you two,” Luna pleaded. “Yeah, you guys. Don’t forget why we’re here,” Artemis reminded them. Reluctantly, Rae and Serena kept quiet, and Rae motioned for everyone to enter the temple.
The five girls and two cats entered a room with only a fire burning in the back and a few mats on the floor. Rae sat right in front of the fire, while the others took their seats behind her. Picking up a bamboo staff with silk draping from one end, Rae closed her eyes and started to sway it back and forth in front of the fire. “Oh, ancient spirits,” Rae said, “please tell us, are there any more dangers facing the Sailor Scouts in the future?”
All of a sudden, the flames grew and burned rapidly, taking Rae and the others by surprise. As they looked at the flames, a familiar image of a young woman in a sailor uniform holding a staff appeared. “It’s Sailor Pluto!” everyone exclaimed. “Sailor Scouts,” Sailor Pluto started, “your help is needed once again. A year has passed in the 30th century since the warriors of the Dark Moon have been defeated. But now, the remaining followers have attacked Crystal Tokyo. Their leaders are two new members of the Dark Moon royal family. Their names are unknown to us. As their warriors continue the attacks on Crystal Tokyo, the anonymous leaders have traveled back through time.”
“How far back in time have they gone?” Amy asked. “From your current time,” Sailor Pluto replied, “they have traveled back ten years.” “This is bad news, Scouts,” Amy said to the other girls. “They possibly plan to destroy us before we even become Sailor Scouts, when we’re still little kids.” “That is an excellent theory, Sailor Mercury,” Sailor Pluto responded, “but, I’m afraid that you’re wrong. Their destination is the city of Toyoma. They are after a group of five young warriors, like yourselves, with mystical armor who have a major influence not just on your present time, Sailor Scouts, but also on the future of Crystal Tokyo.”
“But, Sailor Pluto,” Rae asked, “how can we stop them?” “Do not worry, Sailor Mars,” she replied. “Small Lady will be arriving at the temple shortly with the Moon Crystal Key, which will allow you to travel back in time to help these warriors. For now, I must bid farewell to you all.” As her image began to disappear from the flames, Lita shouted, “Wait! Who are these warriors that we’re supposed to help?” “Small Lady will explain everything when she arrives, Sailor Jupiter.” With that, the image of Sailor Pluto disappeared completely, and the flames died down.
Everyone sat in silence for a while, pondering over what Sailor Pluto said to them. Finally, Luna and Artemis broke the silence. “What are we doing sitting around here for?” Luna exclaimed. “You heard what Sailor Pluto said.” “Rini will be here any minute,” Artemis added. “We should go outside and wait for her.” “Right!” the five girls chorused as they ran out of the room and left the temple, leaving Luna and Artemis behind. Knowing from past experience that Rini would fall from the sky, the girls split up to look for her.
Suddenly, a small swirl of yellow clouds appeared right above Serena’s head. “Look out, Serena!” the two cats shouted. However, the warning came too late. Serena looked up, but got knocked down by the little pink pig-tailed girl, followed by her hovering Luna Ball. “Rini,” Serena muttered through clenched teeth. “How nice it is to see you again.” “Nice to see you again, too,” Rini told her.
“Hi, Rini!” She looked up and saw Amy, Rae, Lita and Mina waving at her and smiling. She jumped off Serena’s back and ran towards the other girls, giving them each a big hug. “Wow, Rini,” Lita exclaimed, “you sure have grown since the last time we saw you.” “Yeah,” Mina said, “I remember you being this small.” She bent down to indicate how small Rini used to be. “Well, I am one year older,” Rini said, “but now’s not the time to chit-chat. We need to help the Ronin Warriors before it’s too late!” “Before we leave, Rini,” Amy asked, “could you tell us more about these Ronin Warriors?” “Of course I will,” Rini said. At this time, Serena got up and joined the others as Rini began to tell them about the Ronin Warriors...
Meanwhile, ten years from then, in the city of Toyama, Japan...
~Ryo was wandering around in a thick fog, wearing his red and white sub-armor. He took a look around, cupped his hands over his mouth, and shouted out, “Hello! Sage! Cye! Kento! Rowen! Can anybody hear me?” The echoes from his pleas seem to come from everywhere. He was extremely frustrated and was just about ready to give up when suddenly; the fog parted to reveal the silhouette of a girl from the back, who was holding a staff in her left hand. Ryo was on his guard. “Who are you?” he shouted to the intruder. “What do you want?”
The figure turned around and was revealed as a young woman with dark green hair down to her waist, and wearing a sailor dress with a black skirt, black boots, long white gloves, and a gold tiara. “There is no need to fear me, Ryo of Wildfire,” she told him. A bit startled, Ryo asked, “How did you know my name?” “I know everything about the Ronin Warriors, Ryo of Wildfire.” “Who are you?” he asked the young woman. “I am Sailor Pluto, Guardian of Time. I have come to warn you of two dangerous beings from the future. You will recognize them by the black crescent moons that appear on their foreheads. They may prove too formidable a foe for you and the other Ronin Warriors. But do not worry, Ryo of Wildfire. Help will arrive soon.”
She turned quickly to her side, revealing the silhouettes of five young girls, one small child holding a ball, and two cats. Ryo couldn’t see any faces or details of any of the figures in the distance. He did notice this: one of the young girls and the child had strange-looking pigtails; one girl had her hair up in a ponytail and was taller than the rest; another girl had a large bow in her hair, and the two cats had golden crescent moons on their foreheads. Ryo turned towards Sailor Pluto and asked, “Who are they, and how can they help us?” “They are the Sailor Scouts, warriors of the future. Accompanied by Small Lady and the guardian cats of the Moon Kingdom, they will arrive to assist you in defeating these enemies of the future.”
The silhouettes of the Sailor Scouts disappeared, and Sailor Pluto started to take leave. "Wait, Sailor Pluto!” Ryo cried out to her. “Can you tell me who the Sailor Scouts are?” The mysterious Sailor Pluto turned toward Ryo and said, “Do not worry, Ryo of Wildfire, you and the other Ronin Warriors will encounter the Sailor Scouts in time. When that happens, I will appear to you all. Until then, farewell, Ryo of Wildfire.” She continued to walk into the dense fog. Ryo tried to follow her, but he lost her in the thick, gathering mist. “NOOOOO!!!”~
Ryo suddenly jerked up from his bed in a cold sweat. His sudden movements woke up White Blaze, who was lying right next to his bed. “It’s okay, White Blaze,” Ryo whispered as he petted his white tiger, “I was just having a dream, that’s all.” As though he understood Ryo, White Blaze yawned and went back to sleep. But Ryo couldn’t go back to sleep as easily. He turned his head towards the window and stared at the crescent moon shining through. “I wonder,” he thought to himself, “if that was just a dream or a warning. Maybe it’s a premonition, like the ones I had before. I better tell the guys about this tomorrow. We should look around the city and see if we can find these Sailor Scouts before it’s too late.” With that last thought in mind, Ryo fell back to sleep...
In the meantime, back in Tokyo...
Rini was waiting patiently at the docks, along with Luna and Artemis, for the five young heroines to arrive. She told the girls that they would be gone for a few days, so they all went back home to pack some clothes and agreed to meet Rini at the docks. She was pacing slowly back and forth when Luna interrupted her. “Rini, the girls are here now.” She looked up and saw Serena, Rae, Amy, Lita, and Mina racing towards her, each with a backpack in her hand. She smiled as they came to a halt and caught their breath. “Are you ready to go to the past?” she asked them. “You bet we are!” they replied simultaneously. “Great, let’s go!”
Rini took the key from the chain around her neck, held it up in the air, and yelled, “MOON CRYSTAL KEY! Take us back in time ten years from now to the city of Toyoma, so we can help the Ronin Warriors!” As she was saying this, the wind started to pick up from a gentle breeze to a roaring gust. Suddenly, a beam of yellow light shone on the group and they vanished into thin air.
The beam of light reappeared again up in the clouds. Serena emerged from the light, which disappeared as soon as she left it. “Hello!” she cried out. “Where is everybody?” She couldn’t see anything because of a thick haze surrounding her. As she walked through the haze, Serena arrives at a pair of large doors engraved with the different phases of the moon. “The Gate of Time!” she whispered to herself. She started to walk towards the door when a familiar voice shouted out, “Don’t move, trespasser!” Serena managed to avoid the staff being swung at her, although it resulted in her falling down. “No, wait! I can explain…” she started to say to the familiar figure. “Too late, trespasser!” she said to Serena. As she brought down her staff to finish off Serena, a voice yelled, “No, Luna P, stop!” When the haze parted, it revealed Sailor Pluto and Rini. As she got up, Serena noticed the other girls standing behind her.
“Small Lady,” Sailor Pluto said to Rini, “please explain.” “These are the Sailor Scouts, Luna P,” Rini started. After glancing toward the five girls, she continued. “I thought it would be best if we traveled through the time portal like this because if anyone saw them as Sailor Scouts, they would ask too many questions.” “That sounds like an excellent plan, Small Lady,” Sailor Pluto said, “I’m very proud of you. And now, for the rest of you,” she addressed to the young girls, “I must apologize. I have mistaken you for intruders, although I didn’t recognize you without your sailor uniforms. And you, Sailor Moon,” she said to Serena, “please accept my most humble apologies for attacking you. I hope you will forgive me.”
Sailor Pluto turned her attention to the Gate of Time. “Now the time has come for you to continue your journey. Beyond this gate is a void, and beyond that void is the Cosmic Time Warp!” She lifted her staff above her head, and the Gate of Time opened up to reveal a massive blue glow. She turned towards the group and said, “Remember, the Cosmic Time Warp is very powerful and very dangerous. You must hold hands and concentrate hard on your final destination: ten years in the past to the city of Toyoma.” While she was speaking, the six girls joined hands, and Luna and Artemis held on to Serena and Mina’s shoulders.
As they stepped up to the open door, Serena turned her head towards Sailor Pluto and said, “Are you sure you can’t come with us? We don’t even know what the Ronin Warriors look like.” “Do not worry, Sailor Moon,” she replied. “When you find the Ronin Warriors, you will know who they are. When the time comes, I will appear to you all. Until then, farewell and a safe journey to you all.” With that, Sailor Pluto turned around, walked towards the gathering mist, and disappeared. The girls jumped through the open doors and reached the Cosmic Time Warp. A huge gust of wind nearly knocked them down, but they kept their ground and continued walking. Unbeknownst to them, someone was watching them...
A young man with wild carrot-orange hair, wearing a dark red-orange vest jacket, dark brown pants, and dark brown boots, was gazing through a crystal ball mounted on a large golden staff. In the crystal, he saw the images of Rini, Serena, Rae, Amy, Lita, and Mina slowly, but surely, walking through the time warp. “Intruders in the Cosmic Time Warp,” he muttered to himself. “I must inform Amethyst of this.” He left the room and entered another with a black throne in the center. Sitting there was a young woman holding a wineglass in her hand, with long wavy lilac hair and deep violet eyes. She was wearing a short-sleeved purple dress, with matching gloves, which matched her eyes. Both had black crescent moons on their foreheads.
The young woman turned towards him as he entered the room. “Well, Topaz,” she stated, “what news do you have for me?” “I have spotted intruders in the Cosmic Time Warp,” Topaz replied. “How many?” she inquired. “There are eight of them: five young girls, two cats, and a little girl whom I believe is Small Lady.” Amethyst responded by dropping her glass, which shattered into several pieces on the floor. “If Small Lady is with them,” she started, “then those five girls must be the Sailor Scouts.”
She rose from her throne and paced around, in silent thought. Her concentration was interrupted by Topaz. “If they are indeed the Sailor Scouts, they will interfere with our plans.” “Then, we should execute our plan sooner than expected, brother,” Amethyst told him. “You know what to do, Topaz.” “Yes, sister,” he said, bowing to her, “I’ll go right away.” With that, he turned away and disappeared. Amethyst sat back down, picked up the locket she was wearing, and opened it. Inside the locket was a picture of her three brothers; Diamond, Sapphire, and Rubeus; and her sister, Emerald. “Do not worry, Prince Diamond,” she said to the picture, “we will finish the dream that you started: to take over Crystal Tokyo and destroy the Sailor Scouts once and for all!” As she gave out a wicked laugh, she closed her locket, got up from her throne, and walked toward a large window. She looked down at the city of Toyoma and whispered to herself, “The Ronin Warriors are down there somewhere, and my brother and I won’t rest until they’re destroyed.”
Meanwhile, in the busy streets of Toyama, Ryo, Sage, Cye, Kento and Rowen are walking down the streets, looking closely at everyone they see. “Remember, guys,” Ryo reminded them, “we’re looking for a group of five young girls, so keep your eyes open.” A few seconds later, Rowen asked, “What about them?” Ryo looked up and saw the group of five women, possibly in their thirties, walk past them. “No,” Ryo muttered, “they’re too old to be the Sailor Scouts.” “Are you sure that it was a vision you had last night?” Sage asked him. “Yeah,” Cye replied. “Are you positive it wasn’t just a bizarre dream you had?” “I’m sure it wasn’t a dream, Cye,” Ryo replied. “But, if we don’t see anyone that resemble the Sailor Scouts, we’ll go to the park and kick back, OK?” The others nodded in agreement as they continued walking...
Meanwhile, in an abandoned alleyway not far away, a pair of large doors mysteriously vaporized through the dead-end wall. The doors slowly opened to reveal a massive glowing blue void. Approaching the open doors were Serena, Rae, Amy, Lita, Mina, Rini, Luna and Artemis. As soon as they all entered the alley, the doors closed and disappeared. They quickly turned around and noticed their dilemma. “Oh no!” Serena wailed as she fell to her knees. “Now how are we suppose to go back home?” “Calm down, Serena,” Rini told her. “I still have my Moon Crystal Key, so we’ll still be able to go home.” “Don’t worry about it,” Rae told her. “We have to concentrate on finding the Ronin Warriors.”
Serena nodded in agreement and got up. “All right then, let’s go!” she announced with determination in her voice. The girls left the alleyway, followed by Luna and Artemis, and started their search by walking down the street and watching for groups of five guys. As they turned right and walked into the busiest part of Toyoma, Mina cried out, “This is hopeless!” “It’s like looking for a needle in a haystack!” Artemis replied. “I have an idea,” Amy suggested. “Why don’t we ask Rini if she can help us?” They looked around, but Rini was nowhere in sight. “Oh no!” Lita shouted. “We lost Rini!” “Stay here, you guys,” Serena said. “I’ll retrace our steps and see if I can find her.” With that, Serena ran back in the direction they came. She looked down the street they were on, but there was no sign of Rini or her Luna Sphere. She walked back to the alleyway they came out of, and she gave out a sigh of relief.
There was Rini, still in the alleyway, attempting to tip over a trashcan full of garbage. “Rini, what are you doing?” She turned around and saw Serena standing there with her hands on her hips, tapping her foot like an impatient mother. “I dropped my key,” she explained, “and it landed in this trash can. Can you help me turn it over, please?” Serena ran over to the trashcan and, with Rini’s help, managed to tip it over. “Eww, gross!” Serena shouted as garbage fell all over the place. Rini picked up a banana peel and there was the key, safe and sound. She picked it up and put it back around her neck. “Come on, Rini,” Serena said, “the others are waiting.” With that, she grabbed Rini’s arm and dragged her back to where the others were, followed by the Luna Sphere...
When the five young boys turned the corner, Ryo noticed a young girl emerging from an alleyway, dragging a much smaller and younger girl by the arm. He especially noticed their hair: the two girls both wore their hair up in these strange-looking pigtails. Ryo recognized them from his vision. As he attempted to catch up with them, a heavy crowd heading the opposite direction stopped him dead in his tracks. Never noticing Ryo, Serena and Rini managed to catch up with the other girls, and they left together. Later on the crowd thinned out a bit, and Ryo managed to squeeze through and ran down the street he saw the girls turned into. Ryo stopped dead in his tracks. There was no sign of the two girls he spotted earlier.
“Hey, Ryo!” he heard Kento yell. “Wait for us!” He turned toward his four friends. “Why did you run off like that, Ryo?” Sage asked him. “I’m sorry about that, guys,” Ryo explained, “but I recognized two girls from my vision.” “Did you find them?” Cye asked. “No, I lost them in the crowd.” “Don’t worry about it, Ryo,” Rowen said. “I’m sure they’ll turn up again. It’s almost three o’clock. What do say we head on down to the park and play some ball?” “Yeah, let’s go,” Kento shouted, “I’m starving.” “But, Kento,” Cye retorted, “you just ate half an hour ago and you’re still hungry?” “You bet I am!” His stomach agreed with him by letting out a loud growl. They all laughed as they headed toward the park...
Meanwhile, outside the city, Mia Coji just finished washing the dishes when there was a knock at the door. “Hold on, I’m coming,” she called out as she walked toward the front door. Expecting the callers to be Ryo and the others, she didn’t bother to look through the peephole. She opened the door, revealing the caller to be a young man with orange hair, wearing jeans and a T-shirt. “Excuse me, miss,” he started, “but would it be all right with you if I use your phone to call a tow truck? My car broke down, and your house was the closest.”
“Of course you may use the phone,” Mia replied. “It’s in the kitchen. Follow me, please.” As she turned around, the stranger grabbed her in a choker-hold. She tried to break free from his hold, but he was too strong. He took one hand and touched her forehead, which caused Mia to pass out. He gave out an evil chuckle as his clothes disappeared, revealing himself as Topaz. “Time to wake up and serve your new master!” he commanded. Mia woke up, but her eyes were glazed over like she was in a trance. “What do you wish from me, sire?” she asked. “I need you to retrieve the Jewel of Life. Go get it and bring it back to me.” “Yes, sire,” she replied as she walked upstairs.
While she was upstairs, Topaz pulled a hand-held communicator out of his pocket and turned it on. “This is Topaz. I have the Ronin Warriors’ ally under my control, and she is retrieving the Jewel of Life as we speak. Phase One of our plan is nearly complete.” “Excellent,” Amethyst responded through the communicator. “As soon as the Jewel of Life is in your possession, use the girl to create a distraction for the Ronin Warriors, while I continue with Phase Two.” “Yes, my lady,” Topaz said. “Consider it done.” He looked up to see Mia walking down the stairs, holding the jewel in her hand. As she handed it over to Topaz, she asked, “Can I be of any further service, sire?” “Yes, I do have one more task for you. But first,” he said as a small flask containing a strange-looking liquid appeared in his hand, “you must drink this.” He handed her the flask, and she willingly drank the contents. When she finished, she dropped the flask, which shattered into pieces. Mia fell down to her knees and held her hands to her throat. She was changing into a hideous creature...
Meanwhile, the six girls and their feline companions have searched over half of the city, but their efforts were fruitless. They were now walking into the Toyama City Park. “I’m exhausted,” Serena complained to her friends, “Can we stop and rest for awhile?” The others agreed without protest, and they dropped simultaneously onto the grass. Luna and Artemis, however, were not as exhausted as the girls. “Serena,” Luna called out to her. “Artemis and I are going to take a quick look around the park for anything suspicious. We should be back in a few minutes.” “Okay, Luna, see you later,” she said as the two cats ran off into the brush.
Luna and Artemis found a worn dirt path and decided to follow it. After five minutes of walking down that path, Artemis stopped and pricked up his ears. “Is there something wrong, Artemis?” Luna asked him. “I heard something from behind those bushes,” Artemis said, gesturing toward a wall of tall hedges. “Let’s check it out,” Luna said as she ran to the hedges and started to crawl underneath them, with Artemis right behind her. As she reached the other side of the hedge, Luna slowed down her crawling, not wanting to reveal herself just yet. Artemis caught up to her and crawled to her left side. Together, they peered out from underneath the shelter of the brush.
It turned out to be just five boys playing a game of catch. “Artemis,” Luna whispered, “perhaps they are the ones we’ve been looking for! We better tell the Scouts about this.” As they started to turn around, they heard a large growl from behind. The two cats turned around and received the shock of their nine lives: the growl came from a huge white tiger! Luna and Artemis yowled in fright as they scrambled out from under that bush as fast as their paws could carry them. But the massive tiger hurdled over the hedge and chased after them...
After catching the ball that Sage threw to him, Ryo looked up and noticed White Blaze sniffing underneath the hedges nearby. Thinking nothing of it, he threw the ball to Kento. A growl from White Blaze caused them to look up. They heard a couple of yowls and rustling noises from underneath the bushes. Apparently, that was what White Blaze was waiting for, since he jumped over the hedge. “White Blaze!” Ryo yelled as he and the other guys ran after the white tiger...
“Quick, Luna, this way!” Luna noticed Artemis climbing up a tree. “Are you crazy!” she yelled. “Tigers can climb trees, too!” “I know that,” he retorted, “but this tree’s too small to support his weight, so I don’t think he’ll try to climb it.” Luna jumped up to the first limb of the tree to join Artemis, but now they were in a bit of a predicament. The tiger was pacing around the base of the tree, so they had no way of getting down.
The five boys found White Blaze pacing underneath a small tree. Perched up on the bottom limb were two frightened cats: one white and one black. Ryo managed to pull the massive tiger away from the tree, allowing Sage and Rowen to get the cats. Sage pulled himself up on a limb next to the cats. “It’s okay,” he said to the cats, “we’re not going to hurt you.” He picked up the white cat first, and handed him down to Rowen’s outstretched arms. Then, he picked up the black cat and leapt off the limb, landing safely on the ground. Rowen and Sage took a closer look at the cats, to make sure that they weren’t injured, and they both noticed something very strange. “Hey, Ryo,” Sage called out to him, “I think you better take a look at this.” “Keep an eye on White Blaze,” Ryo told Kento and Cye as he made his way toward the other two. They held the cats up so Ryo could see what they just saw.
On the foreheads of both cats were golden crescent moons. Ryo gasped at the sight of this. He recognized them as the two cats from his vision. The two cats looked at each other with puzzled looks in their eyes. “Artemis,” Luna said to him telepathically, “I have a feeling that these are the ones that we’ve been searching for.” “I think you’re right, Luna,” Artemis replied telepathically. “What should we do?” “Why don’t we lead them towards the girls and see if anything happens?” Luna asked telepathically. “Great, let’s go!” Artemis cried out, realizing too late that he spoke right in front of the boys. “Was I hearing things,” Rowen asked, “or did this cat just talk?” Luna jumped out of Sage’s arms and made a run for it. Artemis managed to squeeze out of Rowen’s grasp and ran after her. The five guys stood there bewildered for a moment, until Ryo broke the silence with “What are we doing standing around here for? We got to catch up with those cats. I have a feeling they’ll lead us to the Sailor Scouts.”
They ran in the direction Luna and Artemis headed, with White Blaze in the lead. Artemis managed to catch up with Luna, who was fuming. “You imbecile!” she yelled at him. “What if they’re not the Ronin Warriors, hmm? They’re going to ask too many questions about us.” Luna stopped running for a moment to catch her breath. “Don’t worry about it, Luna,” Artemis said, stopping right next to her. “We probably lost them, anyway.” Luna looked behind him and gasped, “That’s what you think!” Artemis looked in the same direction and saw the white tiger running towards them, followed by the five young boys. They screamed and ran away as fast as their paws could carry them.
Meanwhile, the six girls were all stretched out on the grass, looking up at the clouds. Mina sat up and muttered out loud, “Luna and Artemis have been gone for a while. Do you think we should go look for them?” “Aww,” Serena moaned. “Do we have to get up right now?” The other girls groaned as they helped Serena up to her feet. When they were all up on their feet, the girls felt a quick gust of wind. As soon as they felt it, it was gone, just like that. “That was strange,” Amy replied. “A gust of wind couldn’t possibly move that fast.” Suddenly, they heard two familiar screams coming from nearby. “That sounded like Luna and Artemis,” Rini shouted. “Come on,” Lita yelled out to the others. “Let’s help them!” They started to head towards the direction of the screams, when Luna and Artemis emerged from the bushes, completely exhausted. “Luna! Artemis! What’s going on?” Serena asked with concern in her voice.
Before the two could respond, the tiger that had been following the two cats jumped over the bush and landed right behind the girls. They turned around, took one look at the massive feline, and screamed to their heart’s content. At that moment, on the other side of the bush, Ryo and his friends heard the girls’ screams. “Sounds like White Blaze found the Sailor Scouts for us,” Kento mentioned jokingly. “We have to make sure of it,” Ryo said. “Listen, I’ll go first to see if I recognize any of them. Wait a few minutes, then follow me.” With that, he ran over to the other side, while the others watched through a small opening in the bushes.
Meanwhile, the girls started to calm down a bit when they realized that the tiger wasn’t going to attack them, except for Serena. “WAHHH!!!” she bawled hysterically. “I don’t want to be eaten by a tiger!” Immediately, a young man emerged from behind the bushes and ran toward the white tiger. While he was calming the beast down, Luna whispered to the girls, “Keep a close eye on him. He’s the one who owns that tiger.” They nodded and looked in the direction of the boy, who had apparently calmed down the tiger. He appeared to be sixteen years old, with long black hair and tiger-blue eyes...
Ryo ran toward White Blaze, who looked like he was ready to pounce onto the girls. “Easy, White Blaze,” he whispered as he stroked the cat’s head. “It’s okay.” He turned around to face the girls, who appeared to be holding a private conversation. They quickly turned around, staring at him for a moment, and stood up. He recognized the two from earlier in the day, but the four girls with them were a bit familiar to him from his vision. “They’ve got to be the Sailor Scouts,” Ryo thought to himself, “but if they are the Sailor Scouts, then why didn’t Sailor Pluto appear like she said she would?” He took a few steps towards them and said, “Hey, I’m sorry if my tiger, White Blaze, scared you.” “He’s your tiger?” asked the tallest of the six, with her auburn hair tied up in a ponytail on top of her head. “Well, yeah,” Ryo replied. The same girl stepped up to him and nailed him in the chin with a left hook. As he fell to the ground, Ryo heard the other girls yell, “Lita! What did you do that for?”
Meanwhile, on the other side of the bushes, Ryo’s friends bore witness to the whole fiasco. “That’s got to hurt,” Rowen whispered to the guys. “Yeah, but you got to admit,” Kento whispered back to him, “the girl’s got a mean left hook!” “Well,” Cye said, “what are we doing sitting around here for?” “Yeah, we better help Ryo,” Sage said, “before he gets hammered.” The foursome got up and headed around the bushes to help out their fallen friend. Rowen and Kento helped a staggered Ryo up to his feet while Sage and Cye kept an eye on the six girls, particularly the one who slugged their friend.
As soon as Ryo was back on his feet, the entire group was nearly blinded by a white light. When their vision returned to them, they noticed the image of a young woman in a sailor dress holding a staff, who was recognized by the six girls and Ryo. “It’s Sailor Pluto!” Serena and Ryo said simultaneously then looked at each other in bewilderment. “How did he know who Sailor Pluto is?” Serena thought. “Unless...” Ryo thought.
Before the two leaders could finish their thoughts, Sailor Pluto held her staff up in the air. From it, ten small beams of light emerged. The individual beams shone directly onto the foreheads of the five young girls and the five young boys. A symbol appeared on each forehead: a crescent moon (Serena), the symbol of Mars (Rae), the symbol of Mercury (Amy), the symbol of Jupiter (Lita), the symbol of Venus (Mina), and the Japanese symbols of Virtue, Wisdom, Trust, Justice, and Life. The ten young heroes stared up at Sailor Pluto as though they were in a trance.
In their minds, however, it appeared that the ten of them were standing up in the clouds. They all looked around with puzzled looks on their faces. Suddenly, a voice called out to them, and with each name called, the person responded by turning around to face the person hidden within the clouds. “Sailor Moon, Sailor Mars, Sailor Mercury, Sailor Jupiter, Sailor Venus, Ryo of Wildfire, Sage of Halo, Cye of Torrent, Kento of Hardrock, Rowen of Strata.” As the clouds parted, the speaker was revealed to be Sailor Pluto. “The negative forces of the Dark Moon are closing in on your world. You all must put your differences aside and form an alliance in order to defeat the Dark Moon family once and for all. Although you are strong on your own, you will be an unstoppable team when you work together. Before I go, I must ask a favor of all of you.” “What is it?” Ryo asked. “Please watch over Small Lady.” “Right,” everyone responded in agreement. The image of Sailor Pluto disappeared and everything faded into darkness.
Meanwhile, Luna, Artemis and Rini were doing everything they could to wake up the Sailor Scouts from their trance. “Come on, Serena,” Rini wailed, pulling on her skirt, “please wake up!” While they were trying without success, White Blaze was also attempting to wake up Ryo. First, he rubbed hard against Ryo’s legs, and then he nudged Ryo with his head. Nothing seemed to work on the young heroes. “This is hopeless,” Luna yelled in frustration. “As long as they’re in a trance, we won’t be able to wake them up.” Suddenly, the beams of light vanished and the symbols disappeared from the foreheads of the ten heroes in a brilliant flash of light. Luna, Artemis, White Blaze and Rini shielded their eyes from the light.
When they opened their eyes, Rini was relieved to see the Sailor Scouts awake. “Serena!” she shouted as she embraced the leader of the Sailor Scouts. Serena looked down at the little girl and smiled at her. She looked up to the five young boys, who they now knew as the Ronin Warriors. Their leader, who they now knew as Ryo, said to them, “You know our names now. I think it would be fair if you tell us your names.” “Oh, of course,” Serena exclaimed. “I’m Serena, and these are my friends Rae, Amy, Lita, and Mina. This one here is Rini,” she said pointing to the little girl standing next to her, “and those are our cats, Luna and Artemis.” Luna ran to Serena and said half-whispering, “Serena, what are you doing?” “Don’t worry, Luna,” Serena replied. “They’re the Ronin Warriors.” “But, how do you know?” “I’ll explain later.”
“So, Ryo,” Serena asked the leader of the Ronin Warriors, “how did you know who Sailor Pluto was?” “Last night, I had a vision,” Ryo explained. “Sailor Pluto was in it, and she warned me about the Dark Moon. She also told me that the Sailor Scouts,” he pointed to them, “would come and help us defeat them.” Everyone was silent for a moment. “So, can you tell us,” Rowen asked, “who are these people from the Dark Moon?”
The girls never had the chance to respond. “Don’t bother, Sailor Scouts,” a man’s voice replied. “We can introduce ourselves,” a woman’s voice added. Everyone looked up at the two people floating in the air, with visible black crescent moons on their foreheads. “Who are you,” Ryo asked, “and what do you want?” “I am Amethyst,” the woman replied, “and this is my brother, Topaz. We are here for one reason only.” “And that is to destroy you,” Topaz boasted, pointing down at the Ronin Warriors, “and these interfering Sailor brats!” “We’ll just see about that!” Kento yelled up to them. With that, the Ronin Warriors changed into their sub-armor, and stood ready for battle. “Very impressive, I must say,” Amethyst said, lightly clapping her hands, “but it’s going to take more than that to defeat us.”
Topaz snapped his fingers, and a monster appeared instantly, floating in midair. “Rubella,” he ordered the creature, “destroy the Ronin Warriors!” “Yes, sire,” she said as Amethyst and Topaz disappeared. She was a hideous sight with dark blue hair and black eyes. She was wearing a sleeveless charcoal-gray top with matching pants, a transparent black skirt, and black boots. On her forehead was the symbol of the Dark Moon clan. Although they had never seen this creature before, the Ronin Warriors had a strange feeling about her, as though they met before. “Don’t worry, guys,” Serena boldly shouted out to the Ronins. “We’ll back you up, right, girls?” “Right!” the others agreed as they reached into their pockets and pulled out...absolutely nothing!?! They looked at each other with confused looks on their faces.
“Missing something, Sailor failures?” Rubella asked as she reached into a black bag attached to her black belt. The five girls gasped. In her hand were the Sailor Scouts’ transformation wands. “That’s right,” she said, “that ‘gust of wind’ you felt was me stealing your transformation wands!” “Give those back, ugly!” Lita yelled. “If you want them so badly,” Rubella replied as she placed the wands back in her bag, “you’ll have to get them from me.” “Don’t worry,” Ryo said to the girls, “we’ll get those wands of yours back. Armor of Wildfire! DAO JIN!” “Armor of Halo! DAO CHI!” “Armor of Torrent! DAO SHIN!” “Armor of Hardrock! DAO GI!” “Armor of Strata! DAO INOCHI!” Instantly, the Ronin Warriors were transformed into their full armor and ready to battle Rubella, who had just landed on the ground...
Meanwhile, the six girls and the two cats ducked behind a bush. Watching the battle, Rae said to the others, “What are we going to do? Without our transformation wands, we won’t be able to help the Ronin Warriors.” “Serena, why are you here with us?” Luna asked her, “You’ve got to help them!” “But how can I help them?” Serena whimpered. “Because you still have your locket, duh!” Luna retorted. Serena looked down and saw that Luna was right: she was still wearing the locket. “You’re right, Luna,” she admitted, “but how am I going to get those wands back by myself?” “Don’t worry,” Luna said. “I have a plan.” “Well, you better hurry,” Mina replied, looking toward the Ronins, “because they could really use our help right about now.” “Okay, Serena,” Luna whispered. “Listen carefully. This is what we’re going to do...”
In the meantime, the Ronin Warriors are all down on their knees, completely exhausted. They had nearly thrown everything they had at Rubella, but she surprisingly avoided all of their attacks. “What is going on?” Ryo said. “It’s like she knows what we’re going to do before we do it,” Rowen replied. “If we can’t defeat her,” Cye asked, “how are we going to get back those wands?” “Too bad, Ronin Warriors,” Rubella said, hovering above them. “It looks like you’ve met your match. Enough toying around with you. The time has come to destroy you once and for all!”
“I don’t think so!” a voice yelled out from behind the creature. Rubella turned around, revealing Serena as the bold one, with Luna by her side. “You’re going down! Moon Crystal Power!” she cried out, holding her locket up in the air. In an instant, Serena was transformed into Sailor Moon. “So, you’re Sailor Moon,” Rubella replied. “You got that right!” she said. “In the name of the moon, I fight for love and justice, too! By the time I’m through with you, you’ll be moon dust!”
The Ronin Warriors were watching Serena with great interest When she transformed into Sailor Moon, Ryo replied, “She’s gone crazy! Even as Sailor Moon, she can’t defeat that creature on her own.” “But what can we do, Ryo?” Cye asked him. “We’re too weak to help her.” “No, you’re not!” The five warriors looked down at Luna as she continued. “Sailor Moon knows what she’s doing. Rowen,” she said to him, “do you think you can remove Rubella’s bag with one of your arrows?” “I’ll try,” he said as he stood up. He removed an arrow from his quiver, placed it in his bow, took careful aim, and fired.
Meanwhile, after Sailor Moon finished her speech, Rubella snickered. “Well, we’ll just see who’ll be dusted!” she cried as she went after the leader of the Sailor Scouts. Before she reached Sailor Moon, she felt something fly past her. Rubella caught the arrow and turned around to see who aimed it at her. It was Rowen, holding his bow up in the air. Rubella didn’t realize that her bag with the Sailor Scouts’ transformation wands was missing. She also didn’t realize that White Blaze was carrying the bag in his mouth toward the girls. She thought that Rowen attempted to destroy her, but missed. As she snapped the arrow in half with her hand, she looked down at Rowen and said, “You’re losing your edge, Strata.” She dropped the two broken pieces of arrow as she descended to the ground...
Meanwhile, the other girls almost cheered out loud when Rowen’s arrow cut off the creature’s black bag. Their little celebration was interrupted by the arrival of White Blaze, carrying the bag in his mouth. Rini cautiously walked up to the tiger. “Rini, please be careful!” Rae pleaded. “Don’t worry, Rae,” Rini assured her. “He’s not going to hurt me.” She was now face to face with White Blaze. Rini put out her hands, and the tiger willingly dropped the bag into her hands. She giggled as the massive cat licked her face. She patted him on the head, and said, “Good boy, White Blaze!” She turned around and gave the bag to the girls. As they pulled their wands out of the bag, Artemis said, “You better hurry! The others need your help!” “Right,” the girls agreed in sync as they raised their wands up in the air. “Mars Star Power!” “Mercury Star Power!” “Jupiter Star Power!” “Venus Star Power!”
In the meantime, Rubella was on the ground, ready to attack the Ronins. She was about to strike, when they heard a familiar voice shout out, “MERCURY ICE BUBBLES BLAST!” A thick fog appeared around Rubella, freezing her dead in her tracks. “Hurry, guys, get over here!” It was Sailor Mercury who saved the Ronin Warriors. “That ice won’t hold her for long!” she shouted. The five warriors quickly got up and joined the Sailor Scouts. “Do any of you have a plan to defeat Rubella?” Ryo asked the Sailor Scouts. “Yes, we do,” Sailor Mercury replied, “but first, I need to analyze the monster.” She reached up and touched her earring, and a visor appeared over her eyes. As she began to analyze Rubella, Rowen asked, “What was that?” “It’s Sailor Mercury’s visor,” Sailor Jupiter explained. “She uses it to analyze enemies for any weak spots.”
Sailor Mercury, who had finished her analysis, interrupted the conversation. “We’ve got a big problem here,” she said as she touched her earring again, causing the visor to disappear. “My analysis shows that Rubella doesn’t have any known vulnerabilities. There’s more. The analysis also showed that Rubella is human, or was human.” The Ronin Warriors gasped when they heard this news. “If that’s true,” Sage said, “then we can’t destroy her. How can we make her human again, Sailor Mercury?” “Don’t worry, Sage,” she replied. “The Sailor Scouts can change her back.” “But, how can you do that?” Cye asked. “No problem,” Sailor Moon replied. “I can heal Rubella with the Silver Emperium Crystal.” “Well, what are you waiting for?” Kento retorted. “It’s not that easy, Kento,” Sailor Mercury answered. “Rubella’s power levels are extremely high. It is necessary to drain away her powers first; otherwise the Silver Crystal won’t work on her.” “How are we going to do that?” Ryo asked.
Before anyone could answer his question, there was a sudden blast from behind them. When they turned around, they saw that Rubella had broken free from her ice cell. “Stay back, guys,” Sailor Mars instructed the Ronins. “We’ll handle this. MARS CELESTIAL FIRE SURROUND!” The rings of fire repeatedly struck Rubella, leaving her bruised and slightly drained of energy. “Let’s try a double team, Sailor Venus!” Sailor Jupiter said to her blonde ally. “Right!” “JUPITER THUNDERCLOUD ZAP!” “VENUS LOVE-CHAIN ENCIRCLE!” The blast of lightning, surrounded by an orange chain of hearts, struck the creature right n the stomach, knocking her down to her knees. “Sailor Moon,” Sailor Mercury shouted to their leader. “Now!” “Right!” she said as she held her locket up in the air. “MOON HEALING ACTIVATION!”
The Ronin Warriors, who were back in their sub-armor, watched in awe as Rubella was bathed in the white light emerging from the Silver Crystal. When the light disappeared, they were shocked to see their friend, Mia, standing where Rubella was. Weak in the knees, Mia started to sway. “Mia!” Ryo yelled as he ran toward her. He managed to catch Mia before she fell. As Ryo laid her head down gently, the Sailor Scouts and the other Ronin Warriors joined him. “Is she going to be all right?” he asked Sailor Jupiter, who was checking her pulse. “She’ll be fine,” she assured Ryo. “She’s just exhausted from all the changes she’s gone through. It’s nothing a little rest wouldn’t cure.” The Ronins gave out sighs of relief.
“So,” Sailor Moon started, “you know this girl?” The Ronins nodded yes, and Ryo said, “This is Mia Coji. She was a big help to us during the battle with Talpa and the evil Dynasty.” “How did she help you guys out?” Sailor Mercury asked. “Well, you see,” Rowen started, “she studied Japanese mythology with her grandfather, Dr. Coji, who was a college professor. They both were especially interested in the legend of the five Ronin armors, which is obviously not a legend anymore. Mia helped us out by giving us information about our armor that we didn’t even know about before.”
Mia started moving around a bit. “Look, she’s waking up,” Ryo exclaimed as she opened her eyes. “Ryo,” she said, “what’s going on?” “That’s kind of a long story,” he replied. “Where are we?” she asked as Ryo helped her up. “You’re in the park with the rest of us,” Rowen responded. Mia looked around and saw for herself that Rowen was right: they were in the park. “Do you remember anything, Mia?” Sage asked her. “I remember, I had a visitor at my home. He said he needed to use the phone, so I let him in. After that, everything else is just a blur.” She looked up and saw the Sailor Scouts standing there. “Hmm… who are they?” she asked. The Ronins hesitated, not knowing whether the Sailor Scouts wanted their identities revealed to a strange girl they didn’t even know. “It’s okay, guys,” Sailor Moon said, “you can tell her.” “All right,” Ryo replied. “Mia, these are the Sailor Scouts: Sailor Moon, Sailor Mars, Sailor Mercury, Sailor Jupiter, and Sailor Venus...”
In the meantime, Amethyst and Topaz were watching the events occurring through the crystal ball. “What are we going to do now, Amethyst?” he asked his sister bluntly. “Those meddling Scouts made the girl human again.” “That is not a problem, Topaz,” she replied, facing him as she spoke. “Her services were no longer needed, anyway. The time has come to move on to Phase Three of our plan.” With that, Amethyst left the room, with her brother closely behind her.
She approached a wall and rapped her knuckles against it three times. A door opened, and they walked through it. Inside was a cylinder-shaped stand, with five shining glass orbs resting on top. “How are these glass paper weights going to help us conquer Crystal Tokyo?” Topaz asked his sister as she approached the display. “These are not mere glass paper weights, brother dear,” she replied. “Each stone contains a fragment of the Dark Crystal. In time, the crystals will grow, and from each stone will emerge a powerful creature, obedient to us. When all five creatures emerge from their Celestial Stones, they will merge into the ultimate monster, capable of destroying Crystal Tokyo!” Amethyst chuckled as she picked up one of the orbs and dropped it down a hollow glass tube. She did the same with the remaining four orbs. When all of the Celestial Stones were in place, she pressed a button, and the stones went down the tube...
Meanwhile, Rini was watching from behind the bushes, with Luna, Artemis and White Blaze keeping her company. Suddenly, White Blaze pricked up his ears and looked up at the sky. “What’s wrong, White Blaze?” Rini said. “He probably heard something,” Luna replied, looking up to see what was troubling the tiger. Unexpectedly, five beams of colored light appeared in the air and as soon as they appeared, they separated and were gone in the blink of an eye. “What the heck was that?” Artemis replied. “The Celestial Stones,” Rini thought to herself. “Could they be real?”
“…And, now, we’re here to help the Ronin Warriors by teaming up to defeat those nasty people from the Dark Moon,” Serena finished. By this time, both the Ronin Warriors and the Sailor Scouts were back into their normal clothes. They were so busy talking to Mia that they never noticed the strange lights that appeared in the sky. “So, how long are you staying here?” Mia asked the five girls. “As long as it takes,” Lita responded. “Do you have a place to stay until then?” Her second question was met with silence. “Well, don’t worry about it. You can stay with me for as long as you need to.” “Well, I don’t know, Mia,” Rae replied. “We wouldn’t want to be a burden to anyone.” “Nonsense,” Mia said. After a bit of talking, Mia finally convinced the girls to stay with her. They were all ready to go, but then Serena and Ryo realized who was missing...
Meanwhile, Luna was curious as to why Rini was still looking up at the sky where the lights first appeared. “Rini,” she said to the little girl, “Rini! Snap out of it!” She looked down at the cat and said, “I’m sorry, Luna. What did you say?” Before Luna could respond, a shrill whistle pierced the silence. “White Blaze!” they heard Ryo yell. “Time to go!” White Blaze understood and ran over to Rini. He laid down right next to her. “Do you want me to get on you and ride you like a horse?” Rini asked the tiger, who responded by giving a low roar. “I’ll take that as a ‘yes!’ ” Picking up Luna and Artemis, Rini got on White Blaze’s back and nearly fell off when he stood up. She held on tightly as White Blaze took off the direction of Ryo’s voice.
The group watched as White Blaze came running toward them, with Rini, Luna and Artemis on his back. He came to a stop at Ryo’s side. “Good boy,” Ryo said as he petted the tiger on the head. “That was fun!” Rini exclaimed as she got off the tiger with Ryo’s help. “Can I ride him again?” she asked Ryo. “Sure, if it’s okay with your friends,” he said, looking toward the five girls. “Mia,” Serena said to their new friend, “this is Rini, Luna and Artemis.” “Nice to meet you,” Mia said. “We better get moving. The sun will set in a few hours, and it’s a long walk back to the house.” Serena felt a hard tug on her arm. “What is it, Rini?” she asked. “Can I ride White Blaze to the house? Please!” Rini pleaded. “Well, all right,” Serena obliged as Rini cheered. “But if White Blaze gets tired of carrying you, you’ll walk with the rest of us. Deal?” “Deal,” Rini agreed. The group of eleven left the park and headed for Mia’s house, followed by Rini on White Blaze, and Luna and Artemis...
Go to Part 2
Go Back to the Author's Note
Go Back to the Ronin Warriors Fanfiction
Go Back to the Main Page
