Senshi Kurai
Part 3: The Not-Too-Exciting Third Part
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.  1996 - Jackie Chiang


There was a silence.  The nine girls, three cats, and man sat in various
 places in front of Rei's temple.  The five Inner Senshi were sitting on
 different steps leading up to the front of the building.  Haruka was 
standing against a post, her arms crossed in front of her.  Setsuna was
 sitting next to Hotaru on the top step.  Michiru, wearing a thoughtful
 expression on her lovely face, was sitting near Haruka.

Finally Minako spoke up, interrupting the quiet.  "So what happens 
now?" she asked bluntly, voicing the question that they all were thinking.

"Well," Luna said, "we know that we have a new enemy and a new
 Sailor Senshi."

Minako, Usagi, Ami, and Makoto all nodded.  They were the only
ones who had seen both the enemy and the senshi.

"So this Ares girl looked like _me_?" Rei asked.  It was obvious that 
she had some trouble with that aspect.  Something in her tone implied
 offense that there should be another as pretty as she.

"Yes," Ami said, recalling their encounter with Ares.  "It was odd, since
 she looked exactly like you, with the exception of her fuku."

"She sure acted like you," Usagi murmured under her breath, glancing
 at Rei.  "Bossy as anything, with a laugh to wake the dead..."

"What did you say, Usagi?" Rei asked sweetly, an underlying tone to 
her voice.

"Nothing, Rei-chan," Usagi answered, forcing an equally sickeningly 
sweet smile to her lips.  They stared at each other.

"It's OK," Rei said, her smile twitching.  "Tell me what you said."

Oh, she's itching for a fight, Usagi thought.  "I _said_ I said nothing."

"Rei-chan, Usagi-chan," Luna sighed, twitching her tail around, "control
 yourselves.  This is serious."

"Sorry, Luna," Usagi said, making a face at Rei.  Rei stuck her tongue
 out at Usagi, and Usagi returned it, but one glance at Luna made them
 both restrain themselves.

The black cat sighed, giving her full attention back to the group.  "So
 how should we deal with this?"

Everyone looked at Usagi.  "What?" she asked, confused.

"You're the leader," Makoto pointed out reasonably.  "Think of something."

Rei snorted, crossing her arms.  She glanced at Usagi with a smirk on 
her face.  "Usagi thinking?  Now there's a scary thought!"

"Rei-chan..." Ami said warningly.  The black haired girl immediately
 closed her mouth.

"Luna," Haruka said thoughtfully at the cat, "do you remember a Sailor
 Earth?"

Luna and Artemis looked at each other.  They shook their heads 
simultaneously.

"We don't," Artemis said.  "I thought that we had found all the Sailor
 Senshi from the Moon Kingdom by now."

Luna looked at him.  "True, but then again, there might be exceptions. 
 We thought we had found all of the Senshi until we found the Outer
 Senshi."

The Inner Senshi nodded.

"But still," Michiru interjected, "she's the Senshi of the Earth, so she 
would most likely have come from the Moon Kingdom..."

"Setsuna-san," Usagi asked, "do you know of a Sailor Earth in the future?"

Setsuna smiled but shook her head.  "No.  I don't know any one by that
 name.  But then again," she pointed out, "as the guardian of the time 
gate, I didn't have much time for socializing."  Everyone grinned at 
that statement.

"Well," Hotaru said quietly, her voice reasonable, "it seems that all we
 can do is wait now."

"Hello?" a voice said.

The girls turned to look at a very pretty red haired girl standing in 
front of them.  Her hair was shoulder length, and she had green eyes.

Rei stood up, brushing off her robe.  "May I help you, miss?" she asked 
politely.  She walked down the steps, the other girls scooting out of her
 way, until she was next to Usagi.

The girl nodded.  "Yes, I'm looking for someone," she said.  "Does
 anyone know a Yukiru Terra?"

Rei shook her head.  "I don't know her.  But maybe my friends do,"
 she said, turning to look at them.  Ami, Mako, Usagi, and Minako
 all nodded.

"She's in our class," Usagi said, then bluntly adding: "What do you
 want with her?"

Rei gasped, turning and hitting Usagi on the head with the long 
stick she held in her hand.  She swerved back around, laughing 
nervously.  "I'm sorry," she said, amending for Usagi's rude 
behavior, "but my friend usually isn't so obnoxious..."

The girl laughed, the sound sweet, gentle, and soothing.  
But her eyes, Usagi thought as she rubbed her head...  They 
were odd...

"It's all right," the girl said.  "I'm her cousin and I need to find
 her so she can help me.  Oh, my name is Yaiko Miten."

Minako smiled in a friendly manner.  She went up to the girl
 and shook her hand.  "I'm Aino Minako," she greeted.  She 
introduced everyone else, who all acknowledged her in some way.

"Nice to meet you, Minako-sama," Miten said, smiling, her eyes
 fastened on Minako's, glowing in an eerie fashion.  Minako stood
 a minute staring at Miten, then Rei coughed.  Minako shook 
her head, her eyes refocusing.

Miten looked at Usagi.  "Have you seen Terra?  I go to another 
school, and I am transferring to Juuban High School.  I need 
to tell her, but she's not at her apartment..."

"We could help you look for her," Ami offered.

"No!" the girl said, her voice loud and rushed.  The others stared
 at her oddly.  "I mean," she amended softly, "I wouldn't want to
 trouble you.  After all, you looked like you were discussing 
something important."

Makoto gave an uneasy smile.  "All right, if you insist," she said.

"Thank you for offering," Miten said, her smile relieved.  "If you
 go to my school, then I'll probably see you around some time."

"Right," Minako said cheerfully.  She waved to Miten as the girl 
left, oblivious to the tension around her.

Miten waved back, going down the steps that led to the street, 
smiling to herself.  She took out the dark crystal that hung around her 
neck, stroking it, her eyes glowing with a strange light.

Meanwhile, the girls continued talking.

"Miten seemed very nice," Minako said happily.  Her friends stared at 
her, stunned at her obtuseness.  "What?" the blonde asked, looking 
around.  "What did I say?"

Everyone around her sweat dropped.

"Minako-chan," Rei said slowly, "you're becoming worse than Usagi!"

Usagi declined to comment, as she was watching the area where Miten 
had just occupied.  "She acted so strangely..."

Setsuna frowned.  "I think _almost_ all of us felt something wrong 
about Miten..."  She looked pointedly at Minako.

Minako made a face.  "She seemed perfectly fine to me," she said, looking 
away.  Artemis sighed, dropping his head, obviously disappointed in 
his owner.

Haruka was on the verge of making a sarcastic comment, but Michiru
 cut her off.  Shaking her head, she studied Minako with narrowed eyes.

"Anyway," Haruka said, "we need to be on our guard at all times.  
Evidently this Ares has friends and power, or she wouldn't be able 
to almost defeat you."

"Right," the others agreed, but Minako was already jumping away 
after a butterfly.  Everyone face faulted again, sweat drops forming
 on their heads.


"Princess Hecate," the woman said, bowing,  "you requested reports
 from our spies?"

Hecate nodded, her dark eyes glowing.  She crossed her legs.  
"They may enter."

The woman nodded, and opened the door to the Princess's 
private throne room.  Two women entered and immediately knelt
 in respective stances.  The servant then left, closing the door 
softly on her way out.

"Princess Hecate," the first woman spoke, "I am Commander Eris,
 and at your will."  She wore a gray uniform, black boots, and
 a trailing cape.

"I am Commander Gaia," the second woman said, "and ready to
 do what you please."  Her uniform was new and yellow, her
 boots black, with no cape.

"Good," Hecate said, smiling brutally, looking her nails.  "Now, 
which one of you is our new edition?"

Gaia stepped forward.  "That would be, Your Majesty," she said.  
"I have been placed in four of the Sailor Senshi's class at their high
 school.  Everything is going according to plan."

The Princess nodded, examining her from head to foot.  "You 
have been observing them?"

Gaia nodded, pushing her black bangs out of her eyes.  "Yes."

"What do you plan to do about this Sailor Earth?"

"She will be exterminated at once," Gaia said curtly.  "I will 
not fail you, my Princess."

"Very well," Hecate responded, pleased with Gaia's attitude.  
"You are dismissed, Commander Gaia."

Gaia bowed and left.

Hecate turned to Eris.  "I want you to watch Gaia.  I wouldn't 
want to have to terminate her brainwashing spell comes into 
play.  Remind me to compliment Poseidon on her excellent
 mind controlling spell."

Eris replied affirmatively.  "Yes, my lady."

"Very well, give me your current reports."

Eris spoke, explaining how she had met the Senshi, while 
privately studying the Princess.  Beautiful, she thought 
privately, but with an edge.  Her long black hair had been 
styled into two odango shapes at the top of her head, and two
 ponytails from them drifted downwards.  Her blue eyes were cold, 
concealing an angry bitterness that everyone knew of.  Of course, she
 didn't know all of the details, just that the Sailor Senshi had wronged
 Hecate and the Senshi Kurai and therefore must be eliminated.  
She wore a dark black dress, with golden threads and pearls near the
 top of the dress.  It was long, reaching all the way down.  Next to 
her throne was her scepter, a long black stick with a shiny black 
crystal at top.  Around her neck was the black crystal that was 
rumored to be the source of the entire kingdom.  The Senshi Kurai
 each had one of corresponding color.

Hecate smiled at the conclusion of Eris's report.  "Well done.  You
 are dismissed," Hecate said, flipping her hand disinterestedly.

The commander left, leaving Hecate alone.  She snapped her fingers,
 and at once she was with her guardians and friends in another room.
  She took her place on the throne while the others watched.

"Everything is going well," Hecate announced.  "Our spies are doing
 an excellent job, Eris managing to meet with all of the Senshi and
 recruit Gaia."

"So when do we attack?" Zeus asked, leaning forward from her 
usual sitting position on the chair, her eyes glowing excitedly.

"Yes, Hecate," Aphrodite added, dropping her book to the floor 
with a thump, "we are all rather bored."

"Actually," Hermes said, "this has given me time to practice and 
study up on my magic skills."  Aphrodite subtly kicked her leg 
while Ares rolled her eyes.

"Soon," Hecate said.  "Very soon.  When we receive our next 
report, I will give you my orders to attack.  Our revenge is in our
 grasp, my friends."  She laughed, and her friends smiled, certain
 of their coming victory.

To be continued.
