So Far Gone by Lois Fogg Woohoo!! I’m finished! I bet you guys never believed that I’d actually do it, huh? I bet you all believed that I’d never get it done and you’d forever be wondering what happened (well, those of you wonderful people who read it, anyway). A couple notes about this final chapter: don’t ask me where Chibiusa is, I don’t know. I honestly tried to fit her in but it didn’t work at all and my muse was conspicuously absent. So forget about her, I never particularly liked the girl anyway. So, please email me about this story and I can tell how it went over, now that it is finally finished. Well, next week or the week after I will have a surprise for you people, I mean it, you will *never* guess what I have in store. Well, that’s all I have to say, and thanks to those of you who emailed me about chapter four. I obviously have nothing to do with Sailor Moon beyond my strange obsession with it, so I doubt suing me will do any good. Bon Appetite. ************** Usagi had no time for surprise as a blast of cold air knocked her down in the snow. She struggled to get up, but the wind forced her down again, and she struggled in the huge drifts of snow, her bare skin rapidly freezing. She wondered where she was and what she was doing here, but those were really only secondary concerns. At the moment she only could focus on one thing: survival. Squinting her eyes against the driving snow, she struggled to stand once more, bracing her legs against the wind. As she collapsed into a snowdrift an idea occurred to her, and she cursed herself for stupid that she hadn’t thought of it earlier. Taking out her transformation wand, she became Sailor Moon. With the added strength, she was finally able to stand upright and trudge through the snow, shivering in fear as well as in pain. A particularly large gust of wind blew he down into the snow again, and resolutely she stood up again, trying to find a place for her to go that would not kill her quite so quickly as she was sure that this would. She felt like crying, but did not dare do so: the tears would freeze on her face. The monotony of her trek through the snow quickly allowed her brain to focus on other matters. She wondered, almost hysterically, what the hell had happened to her. One minute she had been discussing how to switch Endymion and Mamo-chan back and the next she had been here, stuck in a snow storm in temperatures that would kill her within the hour unless she managed to find some place sheltered from the deathly wind. Who would do this to her? She had killed Demando, after all. Unless…Usagi gasped as the pieces fell into place. It had to be the Wise Man. He was their only enemy left, the only one with enough power to send her to this wasteland to die. She just didn’t understand why he didn’t kill her outright. Usagi stopped suddenly when she thought she saw some figure move just ahead of her. She shook he head as if to clear it; she highly doubted that anything lived on this planet. Unless it was the Wise Man? He stomach knotted in irrational fear until she realized that the figure ahead of her was struggling through the snow just as she was. The wise man could fly, so that couldn’t be him. Finally, her curiosity got the better of her and she tried to call out. The wind snatched her voice away from her throat, and she quickly realized the futility of shouting. Gritting her teeth, Usagi walked on, trying to catch up with the person ahead of her. The wind died down slightly, and with it the snow stopped blowing into her eyes. With her renewed vision, she recognized the shape ahead of her. "Mamo-chan!" She cried, not remembering that her voice could not be heard over the wind. Somehow, though, he must have heard it, for he turned around hesitatingly. "Mamo-chan!" She screamed again, falling down in the snow in her haste to try and reach him. In her joy she didn’t even think to wonder why or how he was in the same place that she was. It was enough that he was there. He had changed to Tuxedo Mask, she saw, as he ran towards her, but his mask and hat had been blown away by the wind. Usagi struggled up from the snow yet another time, gritting her teeth against the biting pain of the cold. And then, she didn’t think of cold, or hot or of anything of the material world. Usagi clung to Mamorou as her lifeline. For a time, passion ruled and life took a conspicuous seat on the back burner. *************** The group stared at the empty space where Usagi had recently been with silent horror. With a sudden angry gesture, Rei turned to Endymion. "Did you do this!" She screamed, releasing the full force of her anger and fear. He recoiled a couple steps and then shook his head. "No, Rei, of course not. I have no idea what happened here?" "Then *what the hell happened to her?*" Makoto said menacingly, walking up to Endymion. He looked around evasively, even Ami was beginning to look angry at him. He put up his hands in a gesture of peace. "I swear, you all. I don’t know. I was just walking her back here, and she disappeared. Setsuna, though. She *must* have something to do with this." He mused. The girls stared at him in confusion. "Who?" Minako asked. "Setsuna. Sailor Pluto." "Yes. We must talk to her." Ami reaffirmed, with more than a touch of fear in her voice. Almost on cue, wind whipped their hair and an odd greenish light appeared in their mist. They all gasped as one, their minds practically unable to handle another dose of surprise. When the light was nearly blinding, the wind stopped and the light went out. Sailor Pluto stood before them, to Endymion looking unexpectedly flustered. She turned immediately to him, and spoke urgently. "Mamorou has disappeared. I can not tell from where. Whatever power displaced him, it has blocked my own. I cannot reach him." The others heard, but could not think of anything to say. The situation had grown to bizarre for any of them to handle at the moment. "Well, that’s great Pluto." He said sarcastically. Part of the edge to his voice was fear. He had not felt the pull of his former self when he had been abducted. If whoever did it had been able to disguise it from him, he must be powerful indeed. "What are you talking about!" Pluto’s pitch rose ominously. "Aren’t you aware of what this means?" "Of course I do. It’s just that you don’t." "What do you mean?" She asked quietly. "Usagi is missing too." Setsuna closed her eyes for a few moments her hands clenching and unclenching unconsciously. When she opened them again they were all startled at the sad certainty within them. "He can hide his doings from my powers, but not his existence. I know who has done this, and why, of course." "Who?" Endymion whispered hoarsely. "The Wise Man." It was all too expected. ******************** The Wise Man complacently eyed his handiwork. Although he could not view them in the land of Eido, he know that they were there, and he knew well enough what a climate like that would do to a paltry human. His mortal enemies had been effectively dispatched. Now he had time to do what he had been planning for the past millenium. The death phantom had given him the power to easily dominate the universe, and certainly the paltry planet of earth. His insubstantial hands itched with glee over the imminent prospect of world domination. The other sailor scouts would be no match for these powers. He was supreme, and he had not violated the curse. Now he had to wait for the final signal from the death phantom. In a matter of a few minutes the death phantom would send word for him to begin the final process. His carefully laid plans would explode with their full potential, bringing the world into his maelstrom of destruction. Somehow, the wait of these few minutes made him more impatient than he had ever been for the past few centuries. He forced himself to calm down. All would come in due time, he knew. There was no need to force himself. The victory was inevitable, the method had been planned out. He had seen the ultimate destruction so much in his own mind that the task would probably seem familiar to him. He knew that the barriers had come down. Even the queen and the king, without their younger counterparts were no match for him. Surprised, the Wise Man suddenly stopped his line of thought. Why was he focusing so much on his ineffectual enemies? Did he somehow still perceive them as a threat? Why was he continually reassuring himself of their impotence? He knew that they were. He must leave it at that. With great peace of mind, the Wise Man waited for the signal. Eventually, it came. **************** Usagi began to tremble violently with cold, and Mamorou released her, a worried expression on his face. "We have to find some place sheltered." He screamed into the wind. Usagi nodded silently, still shaking from the cold. Mamorou wrapped his arm around her, hoping that his body heat would take away the worst bite of cold. She gave him a tentative smile of thanks, and they plodded through the snow silently, Mamorou scanning the area for caves in the cliffs or a shelter of any kind while Usagi focused on walking. She considered changing from Sailor Moon back into her normal clothes, since she had been wearing pants, but decided not to. If she did that, she knew, the little extra strength she had would disappear and she would probably collapse within a matter of minutes. After what seemed like an eternity, Mamorou pointed to a high cliff in the distance. "There may be someplace in there." He shouted. Usagi tried to nod, but she was shaking too violently. Mamorou looked at her with an expression of intense fear in his eyes, and wrapped his arm tighter around her shoulders. "Come on, Usako, we’ll make it through this, we just have to make it to the cliff." Usagi perked up when he used his name for her. It had been such a long time since he called her that. At the very least, even if she died, she would die knowing that he loved her. She smiled and continued on, an inner warmth keeping out the cold for a time. The pair hiked on silently, trudging through the deep snow. Gradually the cliff faces drew closer, and she was able to see them clearly. She hoped there were caves at the bottom, at this distance she still couldn’t make out any features. The ground ahead of them grew harder to walk on, though. Some parts of the ice had crumbled in, though the depressions were hidden by the torrential snow fall. By this time, the cold was making Usagi feel like crying. She had no idea what was happening to either of them, but she knew that she was likely to die if they did not find shelter soon. The only thing that stopped her tears was the knowledge that her tears would freeze on her face. She gripped tighter to Mamorou as the terrain grew harder. She slipped and fell several times, only able to get up when Mamorou helped her. His perseverance surprised her, and she felt awe at his stamina. If it hadn’t been for him, she knew, she would be lying in the snow now, half dead. Even so, when she fell again, she found that she lacked the strength to stand up again. She was shivering so badly that she couldn’t make her legs work. Mamorou crouched in front of her an urgent fear on his face. "Usako, please, you have to get up!" She started crying against her will, shaking her head vehemently. "I…can’t" She said through chattering teeth. "I’m to weak. Just go on without me Mamo-chan…I’m just a burden. One of us should live." She felt like she was on a roller coaster, she shook so badly. Mamoru shook his head vehemently. "Usako, please. Try, at least!" His voice was desperate. "Do it for me. If you don’t make it, you know that I wont, one of us can’t survive without the other, you know that as well as I do!" He gripped her head in his hands, and stared into her watery blue eyes. He wiped away the quickly freezing tears. "I love you, Usako. I’m sorry I did that to you for so long, because I want you to know that there’s no one else that I can love. If I have to go another day without you there to love me I don’t think I can live, Usako." He smiled gently. "So you see…you’re saving my life." Usagi’s eyes widened and she stared at him in wonder. Quietly he embraced and kissed her. After, he wrapped his arm around her and they continued on their way. With renewed determination, Usagi trudged onward. **************** "I knew he wouldn’t leave us alone after Demando." Rei said soberly. "No," said Ami. "It wouldn’t make sense for him to. Now we know why he got rid of Mamorou-san and Usagi-chan. They must have been threats to him." "We have to get him, then. We have to find him and kill him." Said Makoto angrily. Setsuna shook her head. "Yes, we do have to defeat him. But I doubt we have to find him." Everyone remained silent as she closed her eyes again. They supposed she was using her powers. When she opened them they were alarmed. "He has attacked sooner than I would have expected. Quickly, transform! He has attacked crystal Tokyo." "Jupiter Star Power!" "Mars Star Power!" "Venus Star Power!" "Mercury Star Power!" "Make Up!" After all the surprises of the past few days, a battle came as a relief. Without further invitation, Sailor Pluto used her powers to transport them to Crystal Tokyo. ****************** They were close to the cliff. Mamorou pointed out an indentation that was most likely a cave, although the snow obscured their vision. The ground was harder to walk on as well, with sections that tended to crumble underneath them, but they had managed so far. Every time Usagi felt like quitting, she renewed her determination when she remembered what Mamorou had told her earlier. The snow stretched before her like an endless sheet. Even when it went up and down, it seemed monotonous to her. She was so tired, she felt that if she ever survived this she would have to sleep for a year. For some reason she could not stop her violent shivering although she was so numb now she barely felt the cold. She could tell that Mamorou was tiring as well. He had begun to shiver although his arm around her never faltered. Her heart swelled with love every time she looked at him and her strength seemed renewed until she was forced to look at the show again to see where she was going. Then, suddenly, the ground evened out. They turned around to look at the seemingly endless expanse of mounds that they had just crossed. "Look!" Mamorou said, pointing at a hole in the cliff face. "There is a cave over there. It will only be a little while now." Usagi smiled but could not work up much enthusiasm because she was so tired. Now that the land was smooth, Usagi clung tighter to Mamorou, barely able to keep her eyes open. He sensed her exhaustion and urged her onward, even as she realized that he must be nearly as exhausted as she was. It seemed like they had been walking forever. Suddenly, Usagi felt the ground beneath her foot crumble. In blind panic, she reached for Mamorou, but her movement made the ground crumble completely. "Usako!" Mamorou screamed and rushed to her, reaching out his hand for her to grab before she fell. Usagi reached and even touched his fingers. "Mamo-chan!" For a second she held on. Her hands, frozen, were unable to grip his tightly. As he tried to pull her from the hole, her hand of its own accord slipped from his. In the instant before she fell through the seemingly endless abyss, their eyes locked. Blue met blue in an icy fire appropriate for that frozen world. Then she fell. She heard his scream and her own distantly. She landed on ice. The last sensation she felt before she blacked out was intense, excruciating pain ripping through her right leg. Mamo-chan…she thought vaguely. ************** The senshi gazed in horror at the scene surrounding them. A dark rain fell from the sky and seared the city, aided in destruction by a legion of small creatures that devoured every thing in sight. "Damn things don’t let up!" Makoto complained, fending the strange biting creatures off. "I know. We’re never going to be able to fight if we have to do this all the time." Said Rei, kicking a couple away from her viciously. Ami turned to Endymion and Pluto, surprised to find that the mites had left them alone. "How—" Pluto, smiling enigmatically surprised Ami. "Just pretend they’re not there." Endymion said impatiently. Ami’s eyes widened. "Oh." She said quietly. Closing her eyes for a few seconds, she opened them again, unsurprised to find the mites gone and the sky clear and blue. She nearly laughed when she saw the three remaining scouts swatting viciously at air. She did laugh out loud when Makoto performed a Karate move on an invisible pest. They turned around at the sound of her laughter, annoyed. "What are you laughing at?" Minako demanded, absently kicking away invisible mites. "Hey, why aren’t they attacking you?" Rei asked angrily. "Damn things…" Makoto muttered under her breath. Ami had to take a deep breath before she could explain the solution to them. After the mites had stopped attacking all of them, Minako asked: "What if we stop pretending?" "Once you’ve convinced they’re not there, they’re convinced you’re not. It won’t happen." Pluto said. "What if something worse comes to attack us? Do we have to ignore that separately?" Makoto asked. Pluto looked disturbed. "In theory, with this type of power, yes. But…there are some things that you can’t ignore." They remained silent for a while, contemplating their next few moments. "All right," Endymion said decisively. "We must go to the palace." Pluto nodded. When they were walking Minako looked around her expectantly and then with alarm. "Hey, do any of you guys know where Artemis and Luna are?" Everyone shook their heads as they realized the same thing—they had left them behind. The sense of dread grew. "Why are we going here?" Ami asked as they walked towards it. "Somehow…we have to wake my wife." ************** The plan was working perfectly. The Wise Man felt the power of the destruction through his veins, the fruit of all his labors. He became aware of a presence. He smiled complacently. He had been wondering when they would finally come. Now, they posed no threat to his destruction. Their paltry power was no match for him. As he monitored the progress of the destruction, he decided against attacking the group immediately. He would wait them out, he decided. He would make them feel safe, and then attack. Besides, if he waited, their destruction would give him greater pleasure. So, the Wise Man watched. And destroyed. ************** For a moment of sheer horror, Mamorou stared at her limp figure lying on the ice below him. When his glazed eyes saw the steady rise and fall of her chest, it seemed as if the noose around his throat loosened a little. Realizing how badly he needed to act, he tried to figure out a way to get her out. She had landed on an area raised above the other part of the hole, which should make it easier for him to reach her. Tentatively, he swung himself over the side, trying to find hand and toe holds in the ice. She had not landed very far below the surface. He crawled down the side and rushed beside her, trying to find out what had happened to her. He had been cursing himself this entire time for not realizing that she wouldn’t be able to hold on to his hand. It was all his fault, and he had had the audacity to claim that he loved her. She had trusted him. When he saw what had caused her to pass out, he felt like pond scum. Her right leg was twisted underneath her in an unnatural position, and he could see it darkening purple. It was probably broken. Understanding that he had take her to the cave immediately, he picked her up gently. She groaned but did not wake up, and his heart wrenched mercilessly at the sound. "I’m sorry, Usako…" he whispered brokenly. With steely determination he climbed back up the wall. Carrying her all the way, and trying to avoid areas he may fall into, Mamorou made it to the cave. He entered warily, unsure of what he would find there. When nothing menacing presented itself, he moved deeper inside. He followed the tunnel of rock until it opened into a large room…inexplicably heated and lighted as well. Mamorou looked for a light anywhere, but he could find none. At first he didn’t want to go in, but he realized that he had no right to be picky. He just hoped that wherever they were wasn’t dangerous. He laid Usagi down with extreme gentleness on the warm floor. Some of her color returned as her body absorbed the heat. Still refusing to allow himself to give into his exhaustion and guilt, he examined her leg again. It was definitely broken. With a sense of despair, he wondered what his idiocy had led them to. It seemed that there was no escape. Not only did he have no idea of how to leave, but even if he did, Usagi was hurt. When he saw the expression of pain on her face, he gripped her hand, unable to do more. Her face relaxed, to his relief. When she began to shiver again he lay down next to her. He fell asleep beside her, dreaming of when they had loved each other in peace. *************** Luna and Artemis padded back to Usagi’s house, both recently groomed. Luna felt calmer than she had for the past two days until they leapt up on Usagi’s porch. "Where are they?" Artemis asked, alarmed. Luna shook her head. "I don’t know. But there’s been great power used here. Something has happened." Artemis sighed. "Something would, wouldn’t it? Do we ever get a break?" Luna shook her head sadly. "But where are they?" he said, staring at the disturbingly empty area. "We have to find them." "Wherever they are…I doubt they’re on this world. I have a feeling something great is happening." "Perhaps…do you think we should use our powers?" Artemis looked surprised as well as scared. Luna thought for a while and then nodded. "There’s nothing else for it. We must be there, you know. We have to find them. Whatever this is, I have a feeling it will need everything we have." "Right." The two cats laid their heads together, the white and the black contrasting. A light began to shimmer around them, growing until its brightness rivaled the sun. Within the mist the images of a medium sized girl with black hair and a tall man with white hair shimmered for an instant and then both cats and phantoms disappeared, leaving the area as silent as before. **************** They stared at the queen encased in crystal for a moment in silence. "Now how, exactly," Rei said with an edge to her voice. "Do you propose to wake her up?" Endymion refused to get angry. "I don’t know. I just know that we have to or we’re all doomed. She’s the only one with the crystal, since Usako’s not here." Ami stepped in before Rei could comment again. "All right, I can analyze the material with my computer and see if there is any way to break it." She didn’t wait for anyone’s approval and whipped out her super computer. "Is there any way we can talk to our future senshi selves and figure out how they did this?" Makoto asked. Endymion shook his head. "They’re in a trance guarding the heart of the city. If we wake them out of it we might as well be giving the Wise Man his victory." Makoto sighed in frustration. Ami looked up from her computer. "The material is impervious to all magical attacks." She said dolefully. Everyone stared in surprise as Makoto screamed Karate style and tried to smash the crystal with her foot. They couldn’t help but laugh as she sat on the floor nursing her foot, the crystal quite in tact. "You obviously meant to say physical attacks, too." Makoto muttered in annoyance. "Come on, Mako-chan." Minako laughed, "This isn’t going to be that easy." "You call that easy!" "You always were one to act first and think later." Rei goaded. Makoto shook her fist menacingly. "Do you want me to do to you what I did to that crystal?" She warned. Rei looked at the perfect crystal haughtily. "It didn’t seem to mind very much." "I’ll have you know—" "Girls!" Pluto interrupted loudly. "Have you forgotten what we are doing here?" All, especially Ami, turned beet red. They were silent for a moment, trying to come up with actual ideas to wake up the literal sleeping beauty. "I can do it." Pluto said finally, as if she had known all along but had been reluctant to say it. Endymion rounded on her angrily. "What do you mean!" he exploded. "You told me this entire year that you could do nothing, and here you are saying that you can!" Pluto looked at the floor, unwilling to meet his gaze. "I could not then. In fact, at this moment I still can not. I will only be able to get the power to release her when the Wise Man comes. If he comes inside this room I will be able to release her. But when I do it I will be totally vulnerable to attack, so I have to manage not to get killed before I gather the power. You can understand why I never mentioned the possibility before." Endymion still looked angry but did not say anything. "How will we get him in this room, then?" Rei asked, refusing to be shocked. "We won’t have to worry." Pluto said. "This much I can see: he will come, and soon." The prospect of waiting put them all on edge. When a light began to form in the center of the room, all except Pluto jumped in surprise and readied their defenses. However within the shimmering light they saw the shades of a figure of a woman and a man and two cats down below. Finally the light stopped and Artemis and Luna stood in the room looking rather annoyed. "Artemis! Luna!" Cried Minako, surprised, but not unduly so. "Thanks for remembering us." Luna said sarcastically. "It was an emergency." Makoto said, a little embarrassed. "How did you two get here anyway?" Rei asked suspiciously. Artemis coughed and avoided the question. "What emergency?" When they explained all that had happened Artemis and Luna looked even more upset than they had before. "You say the Wise Man is coming here?" Luna asked again. No gust of wind announced his presence, no menacing voice, not even a shadow. Simply his malevolent presence alerted them, and they all turned around as one. "He’s already here." Rei muttered under her breath. **************** The first thing Usagi was aware of when she woke up was Mamorou’s hand clutching hers and his head lying on her chest. The second thing she noticed was the intense throbbing of her right leg. She winced involuntarily, biting back a groan so that she wouldn’t wake him. Careful not to move much, she lifted her hand and stroked Mamorou’s hair gently, ecstatically happy to be so close to him again although in these desperate circumstances. It had been so long since she had been near him. It had been so long since she had loved him freely like this. Even if they didn’t live through this, she would always be grateful for this time with him. He looked so innocent in his sleep, Usagi decided. She was so used now to his face having that hard expression that hurt her so much. Now all of his emotions were unveiled, she could see his innate tenderness, his light smile, his peace. She hoped that nothing ever hurt him again. Gradually she became aware of her surroundings. The cave she was in was much warmer than it ought to be in such a cold place, and it had some light source. She wondered where they were, but she figured that it must be safe if nothing had happened yet. In his sleep Mamorou shifted, jarring her body slightly. Usagi gasped before she could stop it, and she realized regretfully that she had woken him up. "Usako…I’m sorry, did I hurt you?" He looked so upset, like he was blaming himself. Usagi was mad at herself for waking him up. "Of course not. Mamo-chan…you can lie down again if you want." She said with a smile. He shook his head. "No, I shouldn’t…I might hurt you again." Usagi understood why he was so upset. He blamed himself for her falling. Biting her tongue so she wouldn’t call out, Usagi reached for his hand and pulled his face towards hers, kissing him. "Don’t worry, I forgive you." She said smiling, and kissed him some more. Both stopped when they grew aware of something standing over them. Reluctantly coming apart, Mamorou kept hold of Usagi’s hand and looked up at the strange beast before them. It was primordial. Some creature of magic that had been born before the cogwheels of time had puttered to an ungraceful start. It resembled a giant white bear with powerful trunks of legs and smaller arms. This was of the beginning, the founding, and the creation. Usagi and Mamorou gasped in awe and respect at this being that had no birth or death, only life. It commanded power. "How have you come to my caves?" It asked. Neither of them saw its mouth move, it seemed to project its booming voice directly into their minds. "We came to this planet…we don’t know how…" Mamorou began, his voice shaking involuntarily. "So, you are the ones I felt. A great power sent you here. An evil power. One even greater than my own, for his master is one of the great masters of this universe." "Will you help us?" Mamorou asked quietly. "Yes. You must be a threat to this great one. Although I may do nothing to him directly, I may help his defeat." "Can you help her?" Mamorou asked again. The white head turned towards Usagi. She closed her eyes when he held his arm before her, but she realized that he wouldn’t hurt her. Suddenly she felt as if a great liquid had been washed through her skin, the perfect temperature, that erased all of her exhaustion, her pain, everything. She smiled seraphically. When she realized that it was over she opened her eyes and realized that the throbbing in her leg had gone. "They are all at the center." The beast said enigmatically. Mamorou gripped Usagi’s hand and said nothing. The beast raised its hand one more time and the couple disappeared from the confines of the cave. ************** The Wise Man was still for a moment and they had the impression that he smiled deep beneath the folds of his cloak. Then the Wise Man laughed. It was a chilling sound with no mirth in it, only evil. The group recoiled. "Is this all? I would have thought, Pluto, that you would have managed to come up with a better defense than these." Endymion was the first to recognize the necessity to distract his attention from Sailor Pluto. "We will put up a fight, Wise Man. You won’t get us easily." "I’m sure I will." "Shabon Spray!" Mercury called out, and there was quickly an impenetrable fog surrounding them. Taking advantage, Venus shouted: "Venus Love-Me Chain!" She held him for an instant before he broke free of it, sending power down the line that slammed her against the back wall. Jupiter and Mars struck at the same time, angry for their friend. He did not deflect their jolts as easily, although they could not tell precisely how much damage they may have caused. All of them knew that this would not win the war. They just had to keep him busy until Pluto finished what she was doing. None dared glance at her for fear he would take his attention off of them. Endymion, for his part, used his powers to crumble the energy of the Wise Man, but the attempt failed. We need Sailor Moon, Rei thought, surprising herself. Shaking off the thought she readied her self to use her firebird, which would keep his attention on them for a while as well. As the mist cleared he slammed all of them against the walls, toying with them. Through a haze Rei looked up and struggled to attack the man again. Instead of the Wise Man, however, she saw a beam coming from somewhere near the ceiling. A wave of pure power was felt by everyone, and disappeared as unexpectedly as it had come. In the center of the room stood Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask. Rei wanted to run up and hug her, but decided that it wouldn’t be that great of an idea considering the circumstances. ************** The Wise Man stared in horror at the pair before him. He had made sure that they would never come back, he had sent them to a certain death in a parallel dimension. How were they here? How had they come back to destroy him when he had taken every precaution? He began to feel an acute sense of dread as he contemplated his situation. Somehow the only people in the world who could defeat him were standing in front of him. He was so preoccupied that he didn’t notice until it was nearly too late. "Moon Princess Halation!" He deflected the attack, but it was considerably stronger than the others he had encountered. But, he may yet be able to defeat her. There was nothing in either of their powers that he could not defeat. His confidence returned. Yes, he would defeat them. His plans would not fail. ************** Sailor Moon grew desperate when she realized that her attack had failed. Why had the Wise Man considered them a threat? How was she supposed to defeat him. She looked around for Tuxedo Mask but found instead his rose, aimed at the Wise Man’s crystal ball. It shattered the glass and it fell powerless to the floor. He screamed in rage and directed a blast of sheer energy where Tuxedo Mask had been, but it missed. They all sensed him readying another blast of power and on cue Venus and Jupiter coordinated their attacks, forcing the wise man to retreat once more. All of the Senshi slumped in exhaustion before Sailor Moon made another try with her moon scepter. She did not know why they were all exerting themselves for apparently no reason. The others prayed that Pluto would finish what she had to do quickly. ************** Luna and Artemis had hid behind the fighting when the Wise Man appeared. They stared at the raging battle in horror as they realized the danger the senshi were placing themselves in order to protect Pluto. "When will she finish?" Artemis whispered to Luna. "I don’t know. Soon, I think. I hope." "Look!" Artemis gasped. Pluto had fainted. Neo-Queen Serenity was free of the crystal. ************** Endymion felt her presence tug at his heart. He turned towards her, and as he saw her sit up he began to run. He had needed her for so long. Finally she was here, with him. "Serenity…" he reached her and held her close to him "Endymion." There was an element of a question in the name as well. "Watch out!" Venus screamed as she threw a chain at the Wise Man to pull him off course. His bolt of pure power sizzled on the wall beside their heads. Endymion quickly turned around and readied himself for the battle. Now they had a chance to defeat him. ************** Usagi turned around to see who Venus had saved. She gasped in shock when she saw Neo-Queen Serenity, the adult version of herself. Usagi turned her attention to the wise man when he leveled a number of blows at them, many of which she avoided, but a few hit her. She lay gasping on the floor, wondering where Tuxedo Mask was. Now that Pluto had freed Neo-Queen Serenity, they had to figure out a way to defeat him. Suddenly, almost in slow motion, she noticed what was happening to her friends. Sailor Mercury and Sailor Venus had both passed out on the floor and the Wise Man was leveling more blows against Sailor Jupiter and Mars. Usagi realized that he was trying to pick them off one by one. Without warning, she knew what to do. She realized that this entire time she had held the key to his destruction. She only hoped Tuxedo Mask, Endymion and Neo-Queen Serenity understood what she was doing and would help her. Quickly she pulled her pin from her chest and held it towards the wise man, the ginzinishou facing him. "Moon Crystal Reclamation!" In her princess form, power radiated. It was not enough. Please understand, she pleaded. ************* Mamorou saw her take her princess form and use the crystal. When he realized that she was quickly losing power, he understood what she was doing. With the need to help her as the princess came a natural change to prince Endymion and he came to her, holding her and the crystal as well, lending his power. The Wise Man was held helpless, but it was still not enough. Mamorou prayed they would understand. ************* Neo-Queen Serenity and Prince Endymion watched their younger selves send power through the crystal to defeat the Wise Man. Through the link each had with their previous selves they felt that the power was draining, it was not enough. Soon the Wise Man would break through and destroy them all. And suddenly, they understood as well. ************ Artemis and Luna watched Neo-Queen Serenity and Prince Endymion walk to where Usagi and Mamorou stood with the crystal. With a feeling of disbelief she watched Serenity stand behind Usagi and Endymion stand behind Mamorou. Suddenly their forms shimmered and disappeared. The different times had melded, they were now as one. The power was enough. The Wise Man would not break free. ************ Sailor Pluto woke with a pounding headache to a strange sound. She realized that it was the hum of the Ginzinishou when she sat up. As she looked at Serenity and Endymion, her powers gave her warning that something strange had happened. She did not need to use her powers to see what it was. The two time periods had converged to allow Serenity and Endymion to merge with their former selves. She realized that they had gathered enough power to subdue the Wise Man. He would not break free. Someone else, however, had to deliver the Coup de Grace. All this she understood within a matter of moments. She also understood that she alone did not have the power to deliver it. The Senshi had exhausted themselves distracting the Wise Man while she woke Serenity. "Artemis and Luna. It is time you use your powers." She said softly, standing up. The cats said nothing, simply padded out from their hiding places and changed their forms. Before Sailor Pluto stood one medium sized girl with black hair and a tall man with white-gold hair. "You know what we have to do." She said. And, of course, they did. ************ Ami was the only Senshi who woke in time to see the end. She stared in awe as she watched the two strange Sailor Senshi with Sailor Pluto form a triumvirate. For one moment she had the impression that the two strangers were Artemis and Luna, but she dismissed the notion. She saw that Serenity and Endymion had used the Silver Crystal to immobilize the Wise Man. Within the triangle of the three senshi, Ami saw a glow of power start. The light coalesced. Ami was the only Senshi to hear the dying words of the Wise Man, for all the others who had defeated him fainted at once. "They knew." He whispered. Ami never told anyone. *********** Usagi sat on the beach at Sunset, dipping her toes in the warm water. Beside her, Mamorou held her hand and lay down on the sand, staring at the bright, angry streaks of red and purple scrawled across the sky. Usagi admired its beauty for a time as well, and then turned to him. Sitting up on his elbow, he kissed her hand intimately and she giggled. "Oh, Mamo-chan." She sighed happily. He smiled as well, both slightly amazed that they were actually spending some time together in peace. "I love you, Usako." He said, making sure he gets it out this time before something else happens to them. He supposed that romance becomes an occupational hazard sometimes, but he can’t stop loving her. "I love you too, Mamo-chan." The high tide came in with the moon. As the suns dying streaks faded across the sky and the moon shone with its glory the foamy waves caressed the two. Usagi leaned over and kissed Mamorou thoroughly on the lips, and he gripped onto her so tightly it seemed he would fall if he didn’t. They fell into each other, washed inward by a tide as insistent as that of the sea. So far gone that they could not tell where one ended and the other began. ************* Hope you enjoyed it! Email me! YEAH, I’m done!