So Far Gone Chapter Two E-mail: SireneCall@hotmail.com Lois Fogg Hello everyone!! Well, I managed to get this one out in a week (yay me!) and, as you have probably noticed, it is considerably longer than chapter one. Just a warning: I got a little carried away, I know I said there would be a twist, but it got a little extreme. However, I really like the way it turned out, so don’t run away! Thanks to all the people who e-mailed me about the last one, it warmed the cockles of my heart (pardon the cliché). To answer some people’s questions: Anything that doesn’t sound familiar probably isn’t. I’ve made up a lot of stuff in this fanfic, and all things that sound really strange are probably products of my slightly deranged (but admittedly interesting) imagination. Oh, and about Chibiusa/Rini. I’ve kind of taken poetic license with her role in the story. Basically, she’s NOT and has never been the black lady. Also, even though Mamorou and Usagi know they are King Endymion and Neo Queen Serenity, they don’t know Chibiusa is their daughter. Just imagine she wasn’t around when they found out, and nobody told them. Finally, please e-mail me!! If you have any questions about this one, comments, suggestions, I like those too, because, as I said before, I tend to get kind of carried away. Anyway, I forgot this last time: I don’t own Sailor Moon, please don’t sue me, blah, blah, blah. However, I do own this story, so if (for some unfathomable reason) you want to use it, just drop me a line, ok? All right, enough with the idle (and for the most part, pointless) chatter. Enjoy! ***************** Groggily, Usagi looked up as the sound of pounding feet grew too loud to be ignored. Still gripping Mamorou possessively, she made out Motoki’s confused face and the worried ones of the rest of the senshi. He gulped audibly as he took in the scene before him. "Usagi?" He asked her uncertainly, and she knew the other scouts must have explained the basics to him on the way there, for he had never recognized her before. She simply nodded her head. For his part, Motoki shook his head in amazement and quickly sat down by Mamorou. Reluctantly, Usagi allowed herself to be moved from his body by Ami, who knew that Motoki couldn’t have any distractions. The five friends stared in frightened silence as Motoki did what he could for Mamorou. When he stopped they all held their breaths, not daring so much as a whisper. Well, all except Usagi. She had sunk again to the floor, softly crying, but looked up when Motoki gently picked up his friend. "We’ll have to take him back to my place. I don’t know if he’s going to make it, but we have to get there soon, or he won’t." "Motoki-chan," Ami cried in desperation, "Your flat is too far away!" He looked at her, the same hopeless desperation in his eyes as well. Mamorou was his best friend, a fact that had not been changed by the sudden revelation that he led a rather intense private life. All in the group looked down however, when a mumble grew audible from the ground. "What is it Usagi!" Rei snapped; her already short temper made shorter by the situation. "Sa-uh tel-a-pah " She mumbled again, marginally more audible. "See you, telepath?" Makoto said uncertainly. "No! You dufus!" Rei exclaimed, understanding dawning in her eyes. "Sailor Teleport!" Ami had a light in her eyes that always appeared when she was doing her favorite thing: solving problems. "Luna," She asked, turning to the cat. "Is it possible for us to take to people with us?" "I don’t see why not." Luna, who had been curiously silent up to this point, said. "It will drain you more, and I wouldn’t recommend it during battle, but now…" She trailed off, the meaning clear. At this point, a very confused Motoki interjected. "What are you guys talking about?" He said, exasperated. The girls, startled, looked at him. Ironically, they (besides Usagi) had practically forgotten that he was there. "Forget it." Minako said tersely, "Just get in the center of the circle we form." "We have to hurry!" He said, feeling Mamorou slip away from him as he spoke. The sailors were all joining hands to form a circle before they realized what was missing. "For God’s sake, Usagi!" Rei thundered. "Do you WANT him to die! Get off your BUTT and get over here NOW!" Rei’s unabashed anger seemed to have the desired effect; it jolted Usagi back into reality. Realizing the situation, she quickly scrambled up from her position on the grass and, heedless of the tears still streaming from her face, forced every ounce of power she possessed into the pool of energy required for the senshi to transport themselves along with two other people. "Sailor Teleport!" They shouted in unison, when the energy was great enough. In a shimmer of light, they disappeared. In an area that had been witness to so much passion and activity just moments before, almost nothing remained. Anyone, who happened to pass by that exact spot at 3:27 am on a Saturday morning, would probably have noticed nothing. However, if they were perceptive, they might have noticed two cats, one night black and the other white, streaking through the darkness. ****************** Neo Queen Serenity still lay in her bed among the crystals, despite King Endymion’s greatest efforts to free her. He was at a loss—it seemed there was nothing in his powers he could do to help his truest love. So close, yet so far gone, he thought despondently. She looked beautiful, just like she was sleeping. He half-expected her to rise with that goofy, sleep-fogged expression he loved so much and kiss him before she was awake enough to know what she was doing—as she had done so many mornings of their life together. "Serenity…Usako." He whispered, and pressed his hands on the crystal. He rarely showed emotion outside the presence of his wife, but there were times he could rein his emotions in no longer. It had been over a year…a year of healing, yet of nearly existential disappointment. With the successes the senshi of the past had taken over the black moon, the attacks on the future had subsided to a level where life once again became a possibility. He had been healed, yet she had not. She was not truly hurt, after all. Only locked in a sleep which he had begun to believe was doomed to be eternal. The senshi who had originally placed her among the crystals to protect her, had no more of an idea than he did of how to free her. He knew, as well, that there was no way they could win this battle without her power. "We need you…I need you." He whispered again, somewhat brokenly, then froze. His mask once again was placed over his face. He had a small sense of what occurred in the past—and he could always tell when something was happening that was endangering the future. Suddenly, a vision confronted him with such force that he fell back. He saw the figure of Prince Demando, whose face he knew so well from when he had attacked his beloved Serenity. The familiar rush of anger welled up in him and he readied his powers almost involuntarily before he remembered it wasn’t real. He saw the magnitude of the force leveled at Sailor Moon and his own—well, Tuxedo Kamen’s—last minute move to save her. As Endymion saw the blow rack Tuxedo Kamen’s body, it seemed it tortured his own as well. His eyes grew wide with horror as he heard Usako’s loud cry fade into the night. Abruptly the vision cut off. Leaning against the crystal, Endymion found he was breathing hard, and it was certainly not due to exhaustion. What he had seen was horrific, but he had no doubt that it was true. At least Demando was dead, he thought…but then the truth hit him. He had felt the force of the blow: Tuxedo Kamen was as good as dead, unless he could be brought to the future. And if Tuxedo Kamen was as good as dead, he was too. The confusing matters of the space-time continuum were best if left alone, he felt. However, he knew that not all that was happening to his past self had happened to him—as he remembered it. Endymion had no memories of anything like that ever occurring; but of course he didn’t, he realized suddenly. If he did, he wouldn’t be alive. The black moon was close to triumphing, and it would if he didn’t find away to bring Mamorou to the future. Painfully conscious of how his past self was hanging onto life by a thread, Endymion ran down the halls of the palace—racing against time to find the only person who could possibly help him: the enigmatic Sailor Pluto. ***************** Everything was a blur for Usagi. Already exhausted from her fight with Demando, the energy required for the Sailor Teleport had drained her to the breaking point. She was vaguely aware of the bustle around her—but the center of her focus was continually Mamorou. She watched as they placed him on Motoki’s bed and he took out his medical supplies. Slowly she rose from her position on the floor (how had she gotten down there anyway?) and walked unsteadily towards him. Realizing there was no need for her Sailor Moon form, she de- transformed. Unfortunately, that was a mistake, at least from her point of view. Without the sustaining power she received as Sailor Moon, her exhaustion took over and she sunk to the floor with an audible thud and an accompanying gasp from the similarly de-transformed Minako. Mamo-chan, Usagi thought achingly. Don’t leave me. She sunk into oblivion. Everyone in the room (excepting Motoki, intent on Mamorou) turned around at the noise. Minako, the closest, knelt by the exhausted Usagi and felt her pulse. "She’s fine." She announced to the others, and all audibly relaxed. "Guess she just overloaded." Rei nodded. "Yeah. I guess it’s better she’s not awake…if anything happens…" She didn’t finish her sentence. She couldn’t. The others understood her though, they always understood each other when it counted. "Come on." Makoto said, with a sigh. "Let’s get her on the couch." Ami closed the door behind them, with a worried glance at Motoki’s bent figure. She turned around to see that Makoto had laid Usagi out on the couch and the others had either pulled up chairs or had taken positions on the floor, utterly exhausted. Quietly, Ami folded her legs under her and sat down. For a while, they stared at each other in silence, shock setting in when the comfort of action was missing. Ami looked up to see Makoto, of all people, was crying. "Mako-chan?" She asked, concerned. "What’s wrong?" It was a silly question. As she looked around the circle, she realized they were all crying. The tears splotched all over her pajama bottoms (which she had been wearing before she had transformed) were evidence she had succumbed as well. Still, Makoto answered. "What are we going to do?" She said quietly. "I know Usagi’s in love with him, but he means a lot to all of us…I can’t imagine it." Ami noticed, with those words, Rei began to sob harder. Why? She wondered, and then realized. It was an obvious answer. Rei still loved Darien—she had given him up for Usagi, but that still didn’t stop the way she felt. Ami found a profound sympathy in her heart for Rei, who was so often overlooked, even by them, as one who had no emotions other than annoyance and anger. Tentatively, she moved closer to Rei, and touched her shoulder, offering what comfort she could. The four girls, weeping quietly, waited for the verdict they knew would come. Looking at the scene objectively--one girl lying prostrate on a couch, the others in a circle weeping as if their hearts were broken-- the reaction of Artemis was understandable, perhaps even predictable. "Did he die?" The white cat asked quietly, scared of the answer. Minako practically jumped out of her seat at the sound of the voice, before she realized it was Artemis. She broke into a half-hearted smile as she realized what they must look like to him. "No…not yet, anyway. Motoki’s still in there, we don’t know what will happen." Her moment of amusement subsided. She sat down again, absentmindedly stroking her cat that snuggled closer in to her for warmth and comfort. It was Makoto who realized who was missing. "Artemis, where’s Luna?" She asked, an alarmed expression on her face. "Oh…she had to go somewhere." He said, and did not deign to elaborate. **************** Luna walked quietly through the familiar halls of the Tsukino residence. She and Artemis had decided to part company moments before, when they realized Chibiusa had yet to be informed of the situation. She knew the girl must know—she had formed a strong attachment to Mamorou, and did not deserve to be kept in the dark about what was happening. Luna just dreaded telling her, not only because of how much she obviously adored Mamorou, but also because of something that she strongly suspected. Luna had never told anyone, but the discovery that Neo Queen Serenity and Usagi were one and the same a year ago had placed the seeds of the idea in her mind. Though Chibiusa had never been to the future with the others, her descriptions of her mother rang true with Luna’s memories of Neo Queen Serenity. She could also assume King Endymion, Mamorou, was her father. Luna had wondered sometimes, specifically after one of Usagi’s crying bouts, if this knowledge would have made the man so obviously in love with Usagi stop avoiding her. Now she cursed herself a thousand fools for not going to him earlier: now it might be too late, and they would never be together. She was fairly sure she was right—it had been stupid for her not to tell him. It doesn’t matter, Luna thought doggedly. If I messed up before, I won’t this time. I swear I’ll tell them if we get through this. There will be no more heartache. She reached Usagi’s room, and silently wedged herself through the door. She was slightly alarmed when she saw Usagi’s bed empty of the familiar pink head, but was relieved to see her sitting on the windowsill. Sounds of crying could be heard from her direction. "Chibiusa?" Luna asked tentatively, and the child quickly spun around in her direction, startled. In a lithe movement, Luna jumped onto the windowsill with her. "What’s wrong?" She asked, afraid she already knew the answer. "Something’s happening to my daddy." ************ King Endymion’s mad dash through the Crystal Palace ended in front of two huge doors, inlaid with gold, which were—to everyone else’s knowledge—always locked. Only he and Serenity knew the truth: that the mysterious doors were the physical embodiment of the gateway into the world outside of time—in which only Sailor Pluto was ever at home. Calming his racing heart, Endymion slowly mouthed the word that called upon the powers to open the gate. The urgency still gripped him as hard as it had before, but he was aware that to hurry now could certify his death—which he was precisely trying to avoid. He felt the power channeled through him and into the door; he was distantly aware that the gold-inlay was glowing faintly. Gradually the door opened. Coming out of his trance, Endymion took a deep breath and stepped across the threshold, wincing inwardly as the doors slammed shut behind him. He looked around at the smoky void, hoping he would see the one he had to talk to. Oh well, nothing is ever really easy, is it? Endymion thought, a bit cynically. "Sailor Pluto!" Endymion called into the mist, not really expecting a response. To his evident surprise, a sailor-suited figure with long green hair and a large staff materialized before him, with an impatient air. He stared at her silently for a moment, then launched into a quick explanation. Maybe things are easier than I thought…. ************* Usagi was floating—drifting happily through unfeeling mists. It felt marvelous to be content again. She had been so upset for so long, it had practically become a facet of her personality—not the happy go lucky Usagi, which she so longed to be. The reality of the matter was that she simply could never and would never be that person again—not unless Mamorou decided to love her. Yet, beautifully, magnificently, those musings were unimportant in this world of clouded indifference. She could float in them indefinitely, she felt, basking in the absolute lack of emotions. She had always been one to feel too strongly about anyone and anything—especially in the past year. Drifting serenely in oblivion, Usagi grew aware of some odd movement around her. Curiously, she willed the mists to part before her, and surprisingly, they did. What she saw startled her. The figure facing her was that of Prince Endymion, and she could only assume that the sailor with the long green hair and the staff with her back to her was Sailor Pluto. Emotions, which she so recently had enjoyed the absence of, began to return with force as she stared into the face of her love. Well, not precisely the face—there were differences that perhaps only she could appreciate. The experiences Mamorou would have in the future would affect his personality as well. She knew that his older self was quite another person from the Mamorou she knew. However the feelings returned and grew even beyond the normal level she was used to. Usagi knew she would never be free of them. Perhaps she didn’t want to be. With a sigh, she turned towards the conversation. "…is going to die." Endymion was saying. "Demando and the Wise Man will win! Don’t you understand, you must help me—" Sailor Pluto interrupted him. "Why do you believe your life is so critical to the future?" Endymion looked surprised, however, he doggedly pursued his point. "Queen Serenity is key, I know. But if I don’t exist, Crystal Tokyo will never exist and the Wise Man will succeed! You know that can’t happen." "You are right," Sailor Pluto said, and Usagi had a strong suspicion she was smiling, even though she couldn’t see her face. "On both counts, actually. You must survive, and your past self will die if left there." Usagi’s head snapped up at the words. Past self…Endymion…that was Mamorou! Oh God, she thought, and slowly the mists began to face. "Mamorou!" She screamed, trying to claw her way back into consciousness. On the couch, Usagi’s eyes shot open. **************** Sailor Pluto looked around curiously at an odd sound she believed she had heard, but when nothing ensued, dismissed it as her imagination. Again she looked at King Endymion. "I will bring him into the future—it is possible, there will consequences…but I will take those. However, you must make a sacrifice." Endymion simply looked at her expectantly, no response was necessary, she knew perfectly well he was willing to meet whatever was demanded of him. "The past must not be without you…in some form." She continued. "You must return to the past and take on your old role as the protector of Sailor Moon. I do not know when or if I will be able to switch you back." She admitted. "That is the sacrifice you must make. It will save Crystal Tokyo—but you must not let it destroy you." Endymion contemplated what she had told him, still aware that time was running out. There was a possibility he would never see his Serenity again…but he would see Usako. It was so confusing to him, because he knew they were the same person, yet there were differences between the two as grave as those between himself and the past Mamorou. Still, he knew that such selfish considerations must not be considered. "I accept." He said solemnly, painfully aware of what he was giving himself to. Sailor Pluto looked on him pityingly. "Then God save you." ********* Usagi practically leapt out of the couch, to the evident surprise of her friends, who were momentarily kept speechless as she raced out of the room. Bursting through the door to Motoki’s bedroom, Usagi stood in the doorway, hoping for some indication that what she feared wasn’t true. She was barely aware that her friends had quickly regained their composure and followed her to the doorway. Motoki looked up from his position beside the bed. The expression in his eyes was all the confirmation Usagi needed, yet some sadistic part of herself still needed to hear it. "How is he?" She heard her weak voice ask. "He’s dying." Motoki said, his voice as quiet. "There’s nothing I can do." "Mamo-chan." Usagi whispered in a choked voice, grieved beyond words—without even tears available as an outlet. Slowly, steadily, she walked towards the bed. Motoki, understanding, quickly moved out of the way. In a jerky motion, she knelt down and took his hand between his. "I still love you, Mamo-chan." She whispered. "I always will. Somehow—" Her voice broke. Burying her head into his chest, her chest heaved with sobs, but the tears refused to leave her eyes. With a cry, Minako ran to her, unable to restrain herself. "We’ll get through this…" Usagi said, in a voice so raspy and low it was barely audible. Everybody heard her. Weakly, Mamorou began to open his eyes. Usagi let out a gasp, and simply stared at him—her eyes shimmering like the sea with unshed tears. "Usako…" He said weakly. He struggled to get the next words out, as if his hope of existence depended on it. In his eyes was all the love Usagi had ever prayed and hoped he would feel for her. In that instant she knew, somehow, some way, that he had loved her in the past year as much as she had loved him. She wished she had known earlier. "It’s ok Mamo-chan," She whispered, a smile warring with despair in her heart as the tears finally coursed down her cheeks. "I understand." He held her eyes with hers, and a smile broke out across his face. ******* Endymion stared with great trepidation at Sailor Pluto, but then steeled himself. He had to do this, he knew, there was nothing else for it. "I will attend the palace afterwards. One of the Outer Senshi can heal him." She was saying. No more words were necessary, she was just talking to ease his mind. In many ways, maturity had not reached him even in hundreds of years. Raising her staff swirls of light appeared around her and the mist parted. Her green hair rising around her like a halo of seaweed, she pointed the staff towards him. "Time Saturation!" The mists closed, filling the space where they king had just been. Sailor Pluto slowly vanished as well, and with her secrets unknown. ******* It came unexpectedly. But then, everything had that day. His eyes were last to vanish. It seemed to Usagi, before she again fainted dead away, that the blue still lingered in the air. Like fleeting moments of perfection, they faded from reality, and only in memory would survive. ********* Well, what did you think? I kind of liked it—left you on a cliffhanger, didn’t I? Sorry, about that, I know it’s annoying, it’s just it makes SO many more people want to read the story… Chapter Three will be out next week!