-=Chapter Three: Darkening Skies=-
Flipping her braid over her shoulder, running her hands quickly through her bangs to get them to lie flat, Tora grabbed the ties to her apron and knotted them around her back. Smoothing the apron's front as she walked out of the employee area she headed up towards the front of the store, eyes distracted and inwardly focused. The attack a mere three days ago had been fruitless, the youma having gone slightly insane (according to Beryllium and Krisite) and the senshi easily able to defeat it. It seemed that Jedite hadn't taken the hint though, trying to lobby Pyrite to implement his latest plan of attack; the last she'd seen of that pair Jedite was ranting at Pyrite about how his plan of attack would work this time and Pyrite was sitting still and just letting him rant. Poor woman - Pyrite was running herself ragged and beyond and barely getting to do any of the fin things Tora knew the woman counted as her specialties.
"Tora-" Cassandra's voice drew her wandering attention, head snapping up and then looking around at the sound of her name. Cassandra was staring at her fellow employee intently, an air of somehow weighing her words present in the nuances of her posture. "Are you okay? After that monster appeared, you vanished." Her eyes focused on Tora at that moment, moving subtly to block any possible escape by the girl. There was something in the way Tora's eyes flashed when she asked for her attention, a bit of almost... confusion? It set her senses on edge, sense honed by years - lifetimes - in battles and watching others. Tora was making no move for an exit but she could still read a flight in her posture.
Adjusting her glasses Tora faked a slightly wobbling smile, effecting a rather convincing look of someone just a hair unsettled. "It's been quite a while since anything like that happened here - I panicked. When I saw the monster, I just took off running." Since that was a fairly common reaction to any monster's appearance in the city, she mentally crossed her fingers that her explanation would be enough. She'd vanished in the alley for a reason, one she couldn't exactly tell her coworker. Even if it had all been for naught... She gave a mental shake of her head, fingers nervously tucking strands of hair behind her ear and giving Cassie another one of those faked smiles.
"You didn't help me," Cassandra looked as if she was going to say something further and then stopped, shaking her head with a light smile playing across her lips. "I forget, you've been living here for some time, so you're a bit more..." How could she phrase the youma's attack without letting on that she knew more than an average human should?
"Worried by it," Tora supplied with a slight rush of words. "I just hope that the sailor senshi keep us safe." She knew it was what the normal people prayed for but some part of her being shuddered at having to say that phrase.
Smoothing her own apron, Cassandra fixed a warm smile on her face, even if it didn't reach her eyes. "I'm sure they will. They always do, don't they?" Moving quickly she linked her arm through Tora's, dragging them both to the front of the store. "Since you haven't been in the past two days, I haven't had time to fix the displays - let's get those done." With a laugh Cassandra set Tora to moving boxes of new books around, directing her with more smiles than airs of command. For someone who didn't own the store and was just senior to her on staff Cassie gave orders as if the very building was hers to direct, own, and remake and for once Tora didn't fight against the directions. Unlike how she would buck authority outside of the Black Ranks Tora had a secret smile on her lips as she started to move boxes unaware that a tinge of pink was growing on her cheeks.
It was purely human, the physical exhaustion of her body; moving boxes of replacement books around the store front, helping Cassie lift and take the broken bookcase out into the alley for disposal. She tied the apron around her waist as she waved a hand to Cassie, a jaunty "hai, hai," as she dug out the broom from the storage room and swept up glass. The whole interaction was entirely human, an alien experience to her and something warmed at having the chance to experience it. There was something... the words were just beyond her reach, like a cobweb-clad memory, so she was unable to describe the feeling. But it felt warm, uncertain, and precious all at the same time. Her blue eyes were warm when she greeted a wary customer, taking out a box of shards and wood chunks then helping them find the newly-moved fantasy section.
Blue eyes kept skipping over to Cassie, watching the woman, flushing when Cassie caught her looking. It's time to get back to work...
----
Sitting at a back table, Kyo twisted her teacup with one hand, all of her attention riveted to the front doors. A gentle cling of a tiny bell, a pleasant little chime, heralded new customers to the place. Putting a bright smile on her face Kyo stood up from the table and waved her arm to grab their attention. "Over here! I've got us a table!" A few heads turned to look at Kyo but all they saw was a happy, if a bit rambunctious, college student.
Looking mortified at her friend's behavior, Shouka grabbed Tora by the arm and dragged them quickly towards Kyo's table. "You didn't have to make such a scene," she whispered, Tora grabbing a chair for herself while Shouka slid easily into a chair beside Kyo. "We would have been able to find you soon enough," she added, pale green eyes giving Kyo an accusing look.
Shrugging at her friend's stare Kyo grinned unrepentantly at them both. "What can I say? I wanted to make sure you two didn't get lost. With as many guys here as there are, who knows what devilish, sinister fiend might've waylaid you two." Lifting her teacup to her lips, she paused before taking a sip. "I had to make sure I got you both to myself."
Mouth agape Tora stared at Kyo disbelievingly, nearly sputtering as she tried to speak but couldn't find her voice. Shouka came to her rescue, stealing Kyo's teacup and lifting one elegant brow in the other woman's direction. "You're too much of a tease sometimes, Sana-san." Her eyes hardened, lips curving into a cruel smile that was distinctly out of place with her tender, frail appearance. "Let's get down to business, ladies.
"From my observations of the senshi at the last fight they're slowly developing the skills to defeat our weak youma. There's been no further evolution of the senshi's powers, even with the growing strength of our attacks." Tracing a lazy swirl on the table's surface, Shouka brushed floating strands of her hair from her face. "I suspect that the senshi will not evolve their powers to a new level, at this rate of apparent strength. From previous patterns, they showed new attacks or transformations at the beginning of a conflict; since they haven't done so yet, I think we can assume it's not going to happen." Fingers curled around the stolen teacup, a satisfied expression in her eyes. While Sailor Moon had the capactiy for growth still they believed (from their research into her ginzuishou), the rest of the senshi seemed to be far more limited in their powers and development. It would fit well into their ever-changing plans if they didn't need to account for a sudden boost of power like the senshi had undergone since the Dark Kingdom had been sealed.
"What about the problem Beryllium mentioned?" Kyo looked at Shouka measuringly while leaning into her chair, one arm resting over the back in a careless, haphazard manner. "He'd said that our pesky little interference had arrived in Tokyo, I believe." They'd all barely even been perturbed by the senshi's traveling presence and now, of all places to stop, they stopped and focused their operation on a city with not just one but nine senshi.
Shouka shrugged, sighing at the same time. "When I accompanied Beryllium, that senshi didn't show up. There's a chance she saw the two of us together and remained hidden, or she didn't know of the attack and never arrived. I doubt that Beryllium was mistaken in his report but until we see more of this nuisance it's hard to judge what is really going on." Pausing, Shouka looked steadily at Kyo. "What about the Queen?"
Tora looked at Kyo then, noting the deep grimace and pinched look that suddenly came over her companion. "Since you've not been around at Azabu much, I take it you were there for much of this time...?" At Kyo's nod Tora sighed, mimicking Kyo's pose as she leaned against her chair. "That's not a good sign." Even though they'd promised, as a group, to regularly report to their queen every two earth weeks or so Pyrite had been reporting to Tanzanite close to once every two earth days; reporting that often forced Pyrite to have little of her favored hands-on approach to the current operations, something that always made the woman sharp.
Worrying her lip, Kyo grabbed her teacup and slowly drained the cup. "I've been..." With a sigh she stopped, the two women with her exchanging a concerned glance out of the corners of their eyes.
Standing up stiffly Kyo grabbed her bag, hands clenching so tightly that her knuckles turned white. Without another word to the pair Kyo walked out of the cafe, ducking into a dark alleyway before her form shimmered, was engulfed in flames, and vanished. Looking at each other Shouka dug out a handful of yen, left them held down under Kyo's forgotten teacup, the pair walking out in a more controlled manner. Turning into the same alley that Kyo had walked into first Shouka vanished into a column of twisting water, Tora following suit shortly afterwards, a hail of stones clouding her form.
The marble floor was hard under their boots, Topaz's long hair settling behind her, bangs righted with a shake of her head. Krisite re-clasped the brooch on the upper right of her uniform, another tug at her gloves ensuring they were tucked up under the hem of her sleeves so that if someone from their division walked by she wouldn't be mistakenly out of uniform. Looking about Krisite judged their placement in the ever-changing Dark Kingdom by using the Palace as a frame of reference; she was slightly west now...
"I think Pyrite's gone to her manor," Krisite said eventually, hair slowly stirred by a magical wind. Neither Topaz nor Krisite turned to look at the new arrival, a soft click as another pair of boots made contact with the cold marble. "Beryllium, is Garnet close by?" Her lips turned up at the corners, a smirk making her pale eyes glow. Her ability to identify the other Commanders by their small trademarks helped her know how to best irk a fellow, when they trained together - only Pyrite could stump her. Even though she was obviously a fire-based user Pyrite had so few quirks (or so many that counting them all as a quirk was impossible) that she was an honest challenge.
Clearing his throat Beryllium shifted his stance, his long braid hitting the back of his knees with a soft whish. "Garnet was already on his way to Pyrite's manor when I arrived. I believe his intention was to find out where she kept her wines," his tone of voice hinted at a dry sense of humor. "The grounds are warded though, so Garnet should be cooling his heels outside of the doorway."
Topaz turned to look at Beryllium, a momentarily puzzled expression as she read anger from the lines on his face. "How would you know her place is warded already? Tried to go there earlier, did you?" Topaz kept her tone to a teasing pitch, slowly frowning as Beryllium did nothing but glare in her direction. This...strain on their relationships - it was growing. In ways that Topaz didn't like; it threatened to tear them apart. But even that couldn't account for a narrowed, almost murderous look in Beryllium's eyes.
"Never you mind that," he snarled suddenly, pushing past the two women to walk towards the distant building. Like all things in the Dark Kingdom, size and space fluctuated immensely - the far-off distance which seemed to be miles turned into nothing more than a brisk walk for the three as they headed towards the Gothic-inspired structure.
"I've already tried to get in," Garnet said in lieu of a greeting to the trio. His posture was stiff, a poor imitation of a relaxed lean against a pillar; Krisite and Beryllium looked at the uneasy Commander with a questioning frown, the pair exchanging a glance at Garnet's posture. "Now that we're all here she might let us in." His face turned grim, rich brown eyes looking at the door again as he seemed to wait.
Looking from one Commander to another Krisite pursed her lips before teleporting inside, latching onto Pyrite's magical signature to find her way into the study. Once she landed, the sound muffled in the thick carpeting Pyrite favored, the rest of the Black Rank Commanders followed suit. Studying them from a chair, tucked in a corner of the room beside a fireplace, Pyrite lifted a wineglass to the four in salute.
"Make yourselves at home," she offered. "We need to talk."
Krisite looked at Pyrite as the woman stood up from the chair, setting the wineglass down as she walked by a table. "About what?" Pyrite had an air of grim determination around her as she moved, eyes focused on something beyond her guests.
"The Queen," Pyrite replied, voice clipped and stiff as she turned to face them all.
----
Each of the Commanders were seated around the room, silence hanging over the assembly after Pyrite's short, disgusted report. Beryllium idly swirled his glass of wine before drinking the remainder down, setting the empty glass on the table next to his chair. "Are you sure?"
"Without a doubt," Pyrite replied, a hand running through her bangs in marked frustration. "Our attack focus is supposed to shift to the senshi, she wants more involvement with our plans, and the signs are growing more obvious; the markings are spreading even as her decisions become less rational. She's becoming as temperamental as Beryl was, and as stu-" Pyrite broke off suddenly, jaw clenching as beads of sweat rolled down the sides of her face.
The four Commanders looked aside as Pyrite used the back of her hand to mop her brow, again running her fingers through her hair and taking a deep breath. "The Oath is becoming more restrictive as well," she said slowly, forcing the words out. "Things which were once allowed-" here she paused, the meaning clearly known to the five but left unsaid for obvious reasons, "-are shifting, becoming less and less. Pale versions of what we once were allowed." Her pride was thankful that in that moment of extreme weakness her fellows had given her a modicum of privacy but it should never have been needed; that was what worried them all.
"What are our remaining options?" Topaz wove her fingers together and resting her chin on them, elbows propped on the arm rests of her seat.
"Protecting Tanzanite, of course." Garnet's eyes glowed, expression uninviting and as cryptic as his remarks. "It's all we can do, after all. It's all we've got left to do, now that we're in this mess." Shoving himself out of his seat Garnet grabbed Pyrite by the top of her uniform, dragging her out of her seat. "This is your fault, Pyro - your fault."
Eyes narrowing with anger, Pyrite reach a hand to wrap around Garnet's wrist, flames forming directly on her hand until her released her with a stifled cry. "Don't lay the blame on me Garnet. Tanzanite was a big girl," her voice danced in mocking tones, "and made her own choices. Wasn't it you who started that discussion after the Moon attack, joking how nice it'd be if one of us were in charge? Didn't you tell Tanzanite that she'd make a great queen, trying to get into her trousers?"
Hand clenched tightly, time seemed to slow as he drew his arm back and rammed his fist into Pyrite's jaw. "You should have stopped her that day. You were with her, you should have stopped her. We didn't need a queen again - and if you'd said one damned word to her, she wouldn't have gone in there."
The force of the punch had sent Pyrite back against the chair, knees nearly buckling and dropping her back down into the seat. Using the back of her hand to wipe the blood from her split lip, Pyrite turned back to face Garnet. "I could bring you up on charges," she informed him coldly, every word clearly enunciated. "Attacking a ranking officer... you'd be stripped of your rank, tossed back to the common grunts." Again wiping another trickle of blood from her mouth, Pyrite looked the man over. "Try that again and I'll take care of your punishment myself. Stand down, Garnet."
A tense silence held until Garnet, wiping every trace of emotion from his face with practice, sketched a rough sort of half-bow. "My apologies, Commander Pyrite - I allowed emotions to rule my temper." His jaw was clenched tight, his words stilted and rough; there wasn't a Commander present who believed for even a moment that Garnet meant his apology in truth but it still had been offered.
"Apology accepted, see that it doesn't happen again." Her posture shifted, relaxing, the rest of the Commanders taking their cues from her and letting the tension drain from their forms; the Commanders had rarely had a problem within their numbers before Tanzanite had risen to the ranks of Queen but her change in status had slowly been unbalancing the steady trust, cooperation, and dedication the Black Ranks had given to each other. They still looked to Pyrite for leadership but their old second was now calling the shots; it had sounded like a good idea, initially, but as Pyrite once quipped, the execution was leaving a taste in their mouths.
I hate to stand on formality...but appearances have to be kept... "Dismissed - return to earth and set up the next attack. Leave that idiot out if it and let's increase the casualties we cause." Her words carried the bark of command and an edge to them, the weight of the ever-pressing Oath hinting just how much their Queen approved of the plan. Attack and attack, throwing their forces around carelessly? She'd already tried to have a talk with Tanzanite about it but that had gone as well as she'd expected. Which meant, Pyrite recalling, that it ended with the first time Tanzanite had dared to raise her hand (and magic) against her old friend. That had smarted in more ways than one though at least that audience had been in the Queen's Room behind the throne.
Each of the officers tendered Pyrite a salute before they vanished; Beryllium, Topaz, and Krisite left until the only ones that remained in the room were Pyrite and Garnet. "I suspect you have something further to discuss with me, Garnet," Pyrite said darkly, eyes narrowed with suspicions.
Clearing his throat Garnet slowly pulled his gloves off, tucking them in his belt. "Set up wards, Pyrite - this needs to be private."
There was a flash of fire around the manor, the ground scorching in a burst of flames that faded into the ever-present darkness of the kingdom.
Nothing entered the manor until the flames flashed again, hours later.
----
"Moving right along, senshi," Usagi interjected, breaking up the fifth argument about Sun Heart that had happened since Usagi had called the meeting to order, "it's fact time. Ami-chan, what did we learn last battle?" While she asked her blue-haired friend she batted long bangs from her eyes, re-adjusting the bun of her ponytail and tightening it. The senshi looked at their leader who seemed disturbed by something, though none of them knew what was putting the strained look in their princess' eyes.
Pulling out her computer again Ami tapped on the keyboard, the mini computer beeping as it processed her commands. "Well, the little demonstration of her taking off her bracelets was, according to my readings, useless. When I analyzed the power from them it was enough that taking them off for a short period of time - like Galaxia's bracelets - would not be effective. In fact I suspect that there co-" The puzzle had clearly been taking a bit of a toll on the girl, her lip worried and looking just a hair ragged.
"Uh, Ami...?" Usagi waited until she had the girl's attention then she sighed as Rei opened her mouth, the large intake of breath enough warning for Minako to clamp a hand over the priestess' mouth. "About the enemy?" Sometimes, Usagi reflected silently, the senshi were more of a handful than she was; she might throw tempers but when Rei found a subject she wanted to go off on she never shut up... Rei's current favorite subject, since she'd stopped filching her manga during meetings, was Sun Heart. And the supposed "Dark Kingdom" that Luna refused to believe in. Of course the sheer impossibility of the Dark Kingdom having survived her ginzuishou's purification led credence (and what would Ami think of her knowing what that word meant?) to Luna's belief that Sun Heart was lying to them a-
"Usagi?" Minako was right in front of her fellow blonde, dark blue eyes peering into the fogged-with-thought ones of her Princess.
"AH!" Usagi scrambled back a few steps in (even for her) record time, giving the other blonde a glare as she regained her composure. "Minako! I was thinking!"
It was a sign from above that their respect for her as a leader had grown because the only derisive sound came from a tiny snort from Rei and even that earned the black-haired girl a stern look from Luna. She didn't say anything else though and that left a pregnant pause in the room before Usagi (who looked surprised at the lack of an outburst from the expected corner) regained her poise.
Straightening her hair and re-twisting one of her buns Usagi sat down regally on the cushion vacated by Luna, the cat jumping onto the low table. "All right, so it's a bit odd. But hear me out - my memories of the first battles we fought are very vague." Uneasiness flitted into her eyes and hovered just around the edges as she continued. "Actually my memories of a lot of that year are a bit vague, especially around the end. Luna I remember using the ginzuishou and shattering it in the battle against Beryl but is it possible that I didn't destroy the Dark Kingdom?" It had begun to nag at the back of her mind as soon as Sun Heart had said the Dark Kingdom was back. If she'd destroyed it wouldn't she have destroyed her friends too? And Mamoru, he was trapped inside of Beryl's throne room - if she'd destroyed the Kingdom how had he been returned to life? It didn't add up convincingly. "Maybe, instead of destroying I did what Serenity had done?" She chewed a hangnail as she talked, looking at the adviser cat as she posed that question.
"But Usagi," Luna began, her tail flicking to show that she was debating her words carefully, "If that was the case then the seal wouldn't have broken so soon. Queen Serenity, your mother on the Moon, sealed the Dark Kingdom for a thousand years. It hasn't even been five yet, how could the seal break so easily?" Half-remembered memories tugged at Usagi's mind - those same repeating memories that had driven her to find her prince, that had driven Endymion, Mamoru, to hunt down the mysterious Princess. It was gone in a flash and Usagi felt... bereft, for the first time, trying to pull them back to her conscious mind. She knew there was something important in those memories of the Silver Millennium that would be useful now but it always faded away before she could grasp it leaving Usagi frustrated; those memories were hers as much as they were the Princess'.
"I think," Minako began slowly, looking from cat to Princess, "that we need more information, yet again. If the Dark Kingdom is back how does it fit? And how does Sun Heart know that in the first place? Why didn't she show up earlier? Why has she picked her appearances now that we know she's there?" Sun Heart's vanishing act reminded her of the Starlights except she wasn't as flashy. Maybe, like them - and like the Outers, before they found out Usagi's true history - she had another mission and this was just overlap?
"If we want more information," Ami began, "then we need to have her stay long enough to answer more questions. I believe our hostility to her," Ami's eyes slid meaningfully to Rei, the fire-tempered priestess pursing her lips and not looking the least bit repentant, "may cause us some problems. She might not be forthcoming to us now." She let her words sink in, waiting for the inevitable confusion from Usagi and looking at her princess in mild shock when she caught her simply nodding agreement.
"Well then it looks like I'll talk to her. Alone." She held up a hand as her four friends (not to mention cat) started to all talk, trying to drown her words out with protests. "I didn't try to hurt her, out of everyone here. I think if any of us have a shot at getting her to tell us what's going on I have it." And besides, she thought, I can ask her questions that Luna seems unable - or unwilling - to answer. She might know why the seal broke. Something was telling her heart that Sun Heart knew what was going on and how it happened, the little nagging sense she attributed to her crystal. It was that same kind of feeling when she knew she could heal someone with it, a certainty that it was the correct thing (and maybe the only thing) she could do.
It was also a feeling that Usagi had found, time and time again, absolutely impossible to relate to her senshi. She exchanged a look with Luna, the black cat eventually bowing her head to her princess' will.
"Girls, let's let Usagi do what she thinks is best." Luna was as torn as the rest of the senshi but this was an important step, one she didn't want to trample over with objections. And she would follow Usagi herself, just to make sure that Sun Heart didn't try anything on the sly. "When, Usagi?"
Usagi's blue eyes lost their sharp focus as she mulled it over, shrugging her shoulders. "I don't know. The next time we see her, I guess? It's not like we know who she is and can just find her home or apartment." She huffed, folding her arms and looking pleased. Her senshi were listening to her, she'd come up with a plan, and the coming battles didn't seem nearly so dreadful anymore.
"Now then," Artemis said while giving Minako a playful bat of his tail as he walked past , "How about some tea?"
----
Streetlamps bathed the park in a warm, night-time glow; the air smelled like a curious mix of city and forest, wet earth and too many people too close to nature. The park was deserted after hours so the gathered group was undisturbed which suited the five fine - it meant no one would accidentally stumble in on their discussion.
Around the five senshi silence stretched uncomfortably, the soft city sounds somehow diminished in the tense atmosphere that encompassed the group. Weapons were drawn defensively, a soft glow of magic as each senshi's aura flared, a bright crackle of shifting reds and yellows as in the center a single senshi lit by fire waited. The four had encirlced the fire-wielding warrior who seemed to regard this as some sort of joke if her loose stance was anything to go by. Silence stretched and then snapped as one broke it.
"Give us your name, intruder," a senshi in a blue and yellow fuku spat, tone cold and unpleasant, sword held across her chest in an aggressive position. Wind whipped around her, teasing sandy blonde hair like sylphs were swimming in the strands, a rich gold aura surrounding the senshi of wind and speed.
The night, SunHeart reflected, had begun quite badly; first she'd actually been hit by one of the youma a Commander had set loose on the city, the wound a cut along her ribs which she was thankful that the darkness obscured. While setting the creature afire (since the Moon senshi were quiet useless at answering a telepathic summons, not that she had the ability, but still she had tried) and then using a sharp edge of the whip's hilt to end its life, she'd found herself with company. The company had beautiful weapons, which she admired in a detached way, and such determination but absolutely no manners...
Spinning her whip in a sudden circle she created a contained ball of fire to ward off the planet-shaped burst of energy that one of the four had thrown at her. It didn't do to let her attention wander in the middle of a confrontation, she reminded herself sternly, refocusing her concentration on the imminent battle. They'd helpfully posed with their pretty speeches when they'd caught up with her so she knew their names (even if their attacks didn't contain them), deflecting Neptune's attack into a park bench; the bench exploded in a surge of water which lost momentum as it faded into the trees behind the bench. "That wasn't nice," she commented softly, the tone the same kind she'd use to remark on a front of dark clouds heading her way.
"Your name," the blonde ground out again, watching as the red-headed senshi lifted an imperious brow and then circled, keeping her whip out and at the ready.
"Sailor SunHeart," she replied at last, her tone somewhere between amused and bored, seeming to flit between the two. "Didn't your Princess tell you that already, Sailor Uranus?" Now she was simply teasing them, wondering how a group of senshi could have not known of her presence in the city. She'd had two official meetings with the leader of the White Moon senshi already - any smart leader knew that the best way to help prepare was to spread your intelligence around so that everyone had the same information. Sailor Moon had seemed... well,m smart enough to have figured that out, at least.
"Stay away from the Princess," Saturn commanded softly, her glaive tucked easily under one arm belying the weight of the weapon. The Starlights had been a harsh lesson to them all as had Galaxia; the Outers trusted each other again but outsiders, no matter who they were, would never be trusted so quickly again. And Sun Heart's appearance, the gold bracelets flashing in the fire of the enemy's own weapon, had caught all of their attention. "You will never take her light - we, the Outer senshi, will protect the Princess from intruders."
Her words carried a weight of conviction that SunHeart admired in one so apparently young, head tilting back as she seemed to take Saturn's warning in. Warning or not though she'd already decided that the White Moon senshi fit into her plans. Alone she couldn't take on the Dark Kingdom, not if she wanted to win (and more importantly survive the conflict). Alone she couldn't stand up against the budding strength of Chaos that she knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, had awoken inside the White Moon's old foe. Alone she would die trying to achieve her aim and death wasn't in her plans. With the Dark Kingdom having at last moved the fight to the streets of Tokyo she could muster up a source of help which had fought the enemy before. "I'm not here to take anything from your Princess - or from you," she added with a shrug, moving so that she could keep the four senshi in her sights. "And I'm not an intruder," she bit out, folding her arms at her waist while the fire of her whip flared with suppressed anger.
The butt of a staff thudded against the ground, drawing her attention away from the aggressive Uranus and towards the dark and soft-spoken Pluto. "While that is true," she said at last, her three companions turning to stare at the senshi in shock, "you cannot say that you belong here."
"Pluto," Neptune said when the older woman didn't continue, mirror held close to her chest, "What exactly do you mean?" She looked at Sun Heart carefully, wariness keeping her close to her lover.
"It's simple, isn't it, Sailor SunHeart?" Pluto had her entire attention focused on the senshi in the midst, staff glowing a faint magenta as she watched the woman extinguish the flames of her whip and return the spike to her headpiece. "You do indeed hail from the sun of this system so you are not an intruder. But you do not belong." Her words were strong and edged with anger that seemed out of place suddenly. "You are an anomaly.
"You," she pointed a gloved finger at the senshi, her voice carrying a weight as she tipped her Orb towards the senshi's direction as she repeated the word, "are out of your place in Time."
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Next: Chapter Four - Forgotten History
Previously: Chapter Two- Pieces in Play
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