Senshi Kurai
Part 14: The Awakened
Jackie Chiang
http://sailorneptune.simplenet.com

Quick Copyright notes: This is a fanfic based on Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon,
 an anime/manga created by Takeuchi Naoko.  Characters belong to her and
 all others associated with rights [Toei, Bandai, Kodansha, etc], but the storyline,
 ideas, and any other characters are created by me.  1997 - Jackie Chiang


Terra awoke, groggily.  Her head spun.  Groaning, she winced at the 
sharp pain in her body.  She slowly opened her eyes.

"Good, you're awake," a voice said.

Terra blinked.  "Nani?" she gasped.  She involuntarily scooted away
 from the four girls surrounding her, who all looked like her.  "This
 is some sort of dream!"

"No," the girl in the white robe said gently.  "This isn't a dream, Terra."

"Who are you?" she demanded angrily, scared.  She looked around 
the room, noting its grey, cold appearance and seeing a man on the
 ground.  "Why am I here?"

The fading, blurred girl gave her a look.  "We are you, Terra."

Terra started, recognizing the voice.  "God, it's you," she whispered, 
horrified.  "You're the one who's always haunting me...  You're the
 one who caused everyone to think I'm crazy!  You're that damn 
voice in my head!"

The girl in the odd, yellow outfit sighed.  "Terra, please calm down.  
We don't have much time... _You_ don't have much time."

The girl gave a hysterical, high pitched laugh.  "Calm down?  You're 
telling me to _calm down_?  I'm here with a bunch of people who look
 exactly like me, one of whom is the one who wrecked my life?  That's
 funny, really, it is."

The little girl shook her head.  "Terra-san, please listen to us.  You 
don't understand."

"You're right," Terra snapped.  "I _don't_ understand.  I'm crazy, 
remember?  The crazy girl who sees and hears things!  The one who 
everyone always avoids, the one who no one likes."

"Except for Usagi and her friends," the robed girl interjected softly.

That gave her pause.  "Usagi-chan..." she whispered.  She smiled gently.
  "She was my friend...  She and minna always invited me places...  
They came to my house..."

"Terra," the fuzzy girl said commandingly.  "We don't have time for
 this.  Athena, just do it."

"Demo-" the little girl said.

"She's right," the girl in yellow said.  "We have no choice.  Whether
 she likes it or not, she's a Sailor Senshi."

"Hai," Athena agreed.  Staring at the confused Terra, she lifted up her
 Crystal Staff, pointed it at her, and said, "Crystal Remembrance..."

It all came back in a flash.  Every single memory of her past she had
 ever denied, every thought she had every hidden, every feeling she
 had ever blocked away flooded into her mind and soul in an instant,
 leaving her stunned and silent.

"I... I remember everything," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
  "Endymion, Chikyuu, the Moon, the Earth...  My parents, my true 
parents...  and my adopted parents..."  Her hands went to the crystal 
rose necklace that she wore even as Gaia.

Gaia...  Her eyes flooded with tears as she recalled her deception, her
 treachery to her friends.  "I betrayed them..." she murmured.

"Terra," Earth said quietly, kneeling down next to the girl, "we are all
 a part of you, for better or worse, for all of time...  Don't push us away
 again...  Your friends need you."

"What happened wasn't your fault," Chibi Terra added solemnly.  "But
 if you want to make up, make-up and do it."

This joke took a tiny giggle from Terra.  She stared at the four girls 
around her, each a different section of her.

"Terra..." Athena said, "please do what you want.  We don't want to 
force you to do what you know you can't."

Silence.

Finally: "I think...  I want to be whole again.  I want to start over... 
with my friends this time."

The memory sighed with relief, and the others smiled.

"Arigato," Earth murmured, her form dissolving into mist.  The others
 vaporized as well, except for the memory, which was already misty, 
and reemerged together, forming the sign of Earth.  The symbol glowed,
 vanished, and reappeared on Terra's forehead.

Closing her eyes, Terra wrapped her arms around herself, kneeling on
 her knees.  A bright yellow light flooded around her, and her Gaia suit
 disintegrated once and for all, leaving her nude.  The Crystal Rose 
appeared in front of her face, and her yellow crystal appeared in front of
 her body as well, her right hand reaching up to grab it.  Opening her 
eyes suddenly, she stood up, throwing her right hand into the air.

"Wakusei Earth Power, Make-Up!" she yelled.

Yellow nail polish appeared on the hand in the air, and she twirled the
 crystal around herself.  Spinning around in a circle, yellow roses flew
 out from her crystal, circling her with their petals.  The petals formed
 around her body, creating her white body suit.  Spiraling downwards, 
the petals disappeared on her skin, her yellow high heels with the star 
charms forming on her feet.  Roses spun around her waist, and vanished
 leaving a double layered skirt, yellow on top, white underneath.  Her 
yellow sailor collar appeared at the same time as her yellow choker, 
which had the Earth symbol on it, and her shoulder pads were the triple
 flingy, transparent types.  Her yellow bow in front materialized along
 with a yellow Earth symbol, and her long trailing bow was in back.  The
 tiara with the another Earth sign appeared on her forehead.  Holding out
 her arms, petals wrapped themselves around them, forming her white 
gloves, with her Crystal Rose in hand.  The yellow rose petals dissolved 
as she landed, forming her cape.  At last when she was on the ground, 
her eyes opened, and her white mask finalized the henshin sequence 
while faint lipstick appeared on her lips.  "Sailor Wakusei Earth!"

Taking a moment to revel in her fuku, which she finally wore after 1000 years,
 she went to check on her brother, Chikyuu, who was still on the ground,
out cold.

She knelt down beside him.  Putting her hand on his forehead, she softly
 murmured, "Heal."

His blue eyes fluttered open.  He gazed at her for a moment.  "A- Athena?"
 he whispered, confusion and awe in his eyes that were empty of the
 cold malicious need for revenge.

Earth nodded, tears forming in her eyes.  "Hai," she answered quietly. 
 "Chikyuu... it's been a long time... but we're reunited."

She hugged him, and they held each other for a long time.


"Hecate!" Cynthia screamed, staring at horror next to Phoebe.  "Matte!"

They were in a huge, empty room, which wasn't really a room, more
 like emptiness... like the space outside the palace.  Hecate had her back
 to the two cats, her arms outstretched, forming a glowing ball of blackness.

Hecate turned her head around, her eyes red, laughing.  She smirked, 
her eyes dangerous slits.  "Hecate isn't here right now," she said with Beryl's voice.

"Beryl!" Phoebe hollered.  "Let Hecate go!"

Hecate turned around fully, the black ball growing larger and larger, 
suspended in air.  Sighing, she put her right hand on her chin, as if in 
exasperation.  "Really...  Why would I do that?  I'm perfectly comfortable
 with this body...  It's very useful.  Besides, you're only a pair of sniveling 
cats.  Are _you_ going to stop me?"

"No, but we will!" a female voice shouted, twenty figures appearing 
behind the cats.

Hecate's eyes narrowed.  "Princess Serenity," she hissed.

"And the Sailor Senshi," Uranus added.

"And the Magic Senshi," Aphrodite interjected.

"And in the name of the Moon," Wakusei Sailor Moon said.
"In the name of the ice planet Mercury," the Mercury twins said.
"In the name of the fire planet Mars," Mars and Ares said.
"In the name of the lightning planet Jupiter," Zeus and Jupiter said.
"In the name of the planet of love, Venus," the princesses from Venus
 announced.
"In the name of the planet of silence and death, Saturn," Saturn and
 Cronus said in union.
"In the name of the planet of time, Pluto," Pluto and her sister said.
"In the name of the planet of the oceans and seas, Neptune," Neptune
 and Poseidon said together.
"In the name of the planet of the heavens, Uranus," Uranus and 
Sunaru said arrogantly.
"In the name of the star of all life, the Sun," Sun said.
"And in the name of my sister, Earth," Tuxedo Kamen added, feeling
 he ought to add something in to make the episode longer.

"We'll punish you!" they said finally together.

"Minna..." Moon said after a moment, "did you have to take so long?"
  Everyone sweat dropped, including Hecate and the four cats.

"Minna!" Cynthia called, running up to them.  "We tried to stop her... 
but Beryl's too strong."

Hecate giggled.  "You're really too late, you know," she said in affirmation.
  "I've already summoned the armies led by my lord, Master Jade.  
They'll be here very very soon... and then we'll have this pitiful planet
 on its knees!"

"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!"
"Hermes Caduceus Freeze!"
"Mars Flame Sniper!"
"Ares Burning Whip!"
"Jupiter Oak Evolution!"
"Zeus Electric Javelin Strike!"
"Venus Love and Beauty Shock!" (Using her chain, as in the manga)
"Silence Glaive Surprise!" [*Note: Formerly "Silence Glaive Apply", 
when I was under the impression her attack was different]
"Tranquillity Spear Utilization!"
"Dead Scream..."
"Death Shriek..."
"Submarine Violin Tide!"
"Poseidon Tsunami Wave!"
"Space Turbulence!"
"Sunaru Heaven Fall!"
"Arashi Rings Flame!"
"Tuxedo Smoke Bomb!" [as in the manga]

The combined attack rammed itself towards Hecate, who watched with 
an amused smile.

"Matte!" Sailor Moon shrieked.  "Hecate!"

The others, remembering too late that Beryl occupied Hecate's body, 
could only stare horrified as the attack hit Hecate.  An intense explosion
 leveled the area.  When it was all over, Hecate was on the ground, 
unmoving.

"Hecate," Moon whispered.

Giggling.  The Senshi stared in disbelief.  It couldn't be...  Hecate, no Beryl,
 couldn't have survived the attacks?!  Could she?

Hecate slowly pulled herself up, giggling intensely.  Her eyes flashed 
mockingly as she stood arrogantly in front of the surprised senshi.  "See?
  You can't defeat me...  It's already been decided by Jade!  Foolish moon
 children!  Princess Serenity, Hecate, and Apollo...  The three sniveling
 little sisters will all die together!"

"Sun?" Moon said, looking at the girl.

"Nani?" Sun gasped, looking at the Moon's face that mirrored her shock.   
"I'm... your sister?!"

Hecate clucked her tongue, shaking her head.  Sarcastically, she said: 
"Didn't your precious mother bother to tell you of you heritage?  Princess 
Apollo, Princess of the Sun, heir to the throne, half-sister of the Princesses
 of the Moon, Serenity and Hecate.  Your _father_," she spat out father 
vehemently, "was King Sun." 

She sniffed, then smiled wickedly.  "Too bad his little, uh, accident killed
 only him.  You survived, you little brat.  I almost had the Sun within my
 control too!  The fates were kind... but they won't be again!"

"You killed my father..." Sun hissed, taking in the meaning of Beryl's words,
 clenching her fists together.  "And you killed my mother too..."

A rumbling sound shook the ground.  Hecate turned, her eyes rapaciously
 wide, holding out her arms as the large black energy ball turned into a 
portal. In the distance from the other side came the sound of long, vicious
 laughter pealing through the air.

"No!" Saturn screamed out.

"We can't let it get through!" Hermes cried.

"It's too late," Hecate said, smiling.  "Here is my lord, Master Jade!  
Come, Master!"

With a burst of black light, an eerie, black mass floated outwards, followed
 by a hoard of shifting, undefinable black things.  The force of their entry
 sent the Senshi and Tuxedo Kamen flying backwards, hitting the ground.

"Master Jade!" Hecate bowed immediately.

"Beryl," the black mass hissed slowly.  It was the color of black jade,
 a rare, powerful stone only found on the other side...   Wherever 
that was.  "You have served me well."

"Hai, my lord," she said ecstatically.  "I have pleased your grace?"

"Hai..." it hissed.  "But unfortunately, you've failed to defeat the Sailor
 Senshi once again."

"Gomen," Hecate/Beryl murmured.

The black mass frowned.  "Sorry?  Sorry isn't good enough, I'm afraid.
  You've outlived your usefulness, Beryl."

Hecate gaped in disbelief.  "You can't mean that!  After all that I've 
done for you!  You can't destroy me!"  Beryl's form leaped out of Hecate,
 who fell to the ground, unmoving, and turned into a streak of red matter.

The black mass laughed, and as Beryl struck towards him, he turned 
into a man with a sword, and sliced through her.  Screaming in agony,
 Beryl, still the red matter, fell to the ground with a splat.  Drifting away
 into dust...  The final confrontation with Beryl was complete.

Jade sneered at the Sailor Senshi.  "You thought you could really stop me.
  That's so... amusing.  But as you can see, you are too late.  The 
Second Passing is coming!"

"Second Passing?" Pluto whispered, thinking frantically, her eyes 
narrowed.  "No...  It can't be...  It's too early!"

"Nani?" Mars demanded.  "What is the Second Passing?"

Before Pluto could answer, Jade's minions flew towards them attacking 
them.  They separated, each fighting two or three of the enemies.

"Jupiter Oak Evolution!" Jupiter shouted, spinning in a circle, the lightning 
mixing with the leaves that hit two of the black masses.

"Poseidon Tsunami Wave!" Poseidon held up her Tsunami Trident, a surge 
of water coming from its depths, the tsunami crushing more of the dark 
servants.

"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!" Mercury played her Mercury Harp, fingers 
drawing a stream of cold water from the strings, which swept over 
the masses.

"Dead Scream..."
"Death Shriek..."
Pluto and Hades combined their oddly silent, pink energy balls, which
 merged to strike five of the black things.

"Shimatta!" Uranus cried.  "There are too many of them!" Her Space
 Turbulence took care of more of the enemies.

"We have to seal off the portal!" Neptune shouted.

"Aah!" Mars fell to her knees after two flying enemies hit her in the
 back.

"Mars!" Ares said, then fell to on her side as other masses hit her in
 the stomach and side.

Mercury, Hermes, Venus, Aphrodite, Hades, Sunaru, Cronus, Zeus, 
Jupiter, and Pluto followed, all being beaten to the ground. 

Jade laughed at their weakness.  Throwing up his hands, his voice 
thundered through the room.  "You can't prevent the Second Passing,
 you weak mortals!  It's predestined..."

"Moon Rainbow Wakusei Blade!" Wakusei Moon shouted, slicing 
through several of the enemies that surrounded her and Tuxedo Kamen.

"Tuxedo Smoke Bomb!" Tuxedo Kamen said, a burst of smoke and fire
 flying from his hands.

"Arashi Rings Flame!" Sun cried out, her Solar Katanas letting loose 
flying rings.

"Silence Glaive Surprise!" Saturn said, destroying all the enemies in 
her path.

"Submarine Reflection!" The light from Neptune's Deep Aqua Mirror 
broke through the darkness of the masses.

Lord Jade narrowed his eyes.  "You Sailor Senshi are getting annoying.  
Let's just end this now."

He flipped his right hand, and black energy flew from it, knocking 
Saturn, Neptune, Sun, Tuxedo Kamen, and Moon down.

Moon's sword clattered away.  "No!" she whispered. She reached for it, 
but Jade stepped on top of the sword.  He smirked.

"Moon brat...  Can't defeat me...  The legendary power of the ginzuishou 
is going to end right now."

He drew out his sword.

"Sailor Moon!" the others cried out.

"Your future ends now!" he said, and he flung his sword downwards.

To be continued.

