Fractured Loyalties by Contrail

Chapter 1 - A Darker Turn

Fractured Loyalties
Chapter 1: A Darker Turn

By Contrail

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon was created by Naoko Takeuchi, not me, and I'm using the characters and setting without her permission. I'm not making any money off of this.

Chronology Note: While the timeline this story takes place in branches off prior to the beginning of the Sailor Moon series, the events of the first two acts take place as shown in the manga because the changes don't directly affect those events. The first scene takes the place of the first scene of act three, then it jumps forward to the middle of act three, where events will diverge for good.

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Jadeite knelt before Queen Beryl, having just finished his report on what had happened at the Crystal Academy, including the awakening of another Senshi. The two other continental commanders of the Dark Kingdom were standing behind him, having come at his Queen's request to listen to his report first hand.

Silence pervaded the great hall for a time as Queen Beryl consider what he had told her. Finally, she spoke in a stern voice. "Jadeite. That's two failures in a row. You had best be prepared."

Jadeite bowed his head and closed his eyes. "Yes, your Majesty. I apologize."

Nephrite spoke up then, from where he was lounging against a wall behind him, a tumbler half full of wine dangling in one hand. "Your soldiers are puppets made of dirt, after all. That's why they're so fragile." Nephrite chuckled, and Jadeite felt a flash of irritation. His youma could handle any attack an ordinary human could produce. They just weren't designed to handle foes as strong as the Sailor Senshi.

Nephrite moved away from the wall and continued speaking with conviction. "Queen Beryl, entrust this task to me, Nephrite, in charge of the Dark Kingdom's North American division! I will efficiently gather energy for offering to our great ruler, and I will obtain the Phantom Silver Crystal without fail!"

"The Sailor Senshi must be searching for the Phantom Silver Crystal as well, if it is not already in their possession. It was one of the Moon's greatest treasures, they would not leave it in others' hands once they knew of its whereabouts," the third commander mused from where stood apart from the other two, light glinting off his short cap of straight silver hair and knowing pale green eyes. Jadeite always hated the way that man lorded his more extensive memories of their past lives over them, unwilling to just explain things but always dropping tidbits to remind him that he knew more than they did.

Nephrite scowled; He hated the mysterious and all-knowing act even more than Jadeite did. Turning to their Queen, Nephrite broached a question to her. "Queen Beryl, I ask that you tell us. Just what is this Phantom Silver Crystal...?"

Queen Beryl was silent for a few long moments before answering Nephrite's question. "As I understand it, the Phantom Silver Crystal is the stone that is the source of all energy, that carries unfathomable and unlimited power. And the one who obtains it can become ruler of the entire universe." Her voice took on a note of longing when she spoke of the crystal's power.

Her demeanor growing fierce once more, she continued, "There will be no mercy for those who stand in the way of our Dark Kingdom, no matter who they are. Jadeite, head of the Far Eastern division! For now you will postpone the search for the Phantom Silver Crystal! I am going to give you one last chance, Jadeite."

Jadeite knelt before Queen Beryl again, pressing his clenched fist to his heart. "Understood. By my hands, I will eliminate those eyesores, the Sailor Senshi!" He would come up with a plan to defeat them once and for all. He couldn't let a pair of teenage girls defeat him, no matter what powers they held!

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As Usagi walked back down the shrine steps back towards the bus stop with Luna in her arms, she couldn't help dwelling a bit on what she'd just seen. Those people, accusing Rei of causing the kidnappings, just because she didn't think her sixth sense would be able to find where the girls were taken. She could tell that Rei really was concerned about the kidnapped girl and hurt by the accusations. "Poor Rei-chan..." Usagi said to herself.

As if taking that as a signal to start talking, Luna mused aloud, "I can't get a read on the intentions of the enemy. If this is the enemy... They must be searching for the Phantom Silver Crystal, but I can't read their actions."

"The enemy's looking for this Phantom Silver Crystal thing, too?" Usagi asked.

"That's right," Luna confirmed. "But, Usagi-chan. Remember this. The Phantom Silver Crystal absolutely must not fall into the hands of the enemy."

Usagi checked the time on her watch as she continued walking down the street, noting absently that a bus was coming down the street towards them. "So it's getting to be six."

Luna gasped. "Usagi-chan! That bus!! It's odd! The destination sign is flashing red!!"

Taking a closer look at the bus, Usagi saw that Luna was right. As she continued to watch the bus, she spotted Rei through one of the windows, slumped against it and apparently asleep. Rei-chan!? No way! The bus continued on towards a wall, a disturbing looking black hole opening before it. A hole, a gaping hole in the wall!?

"Is this 'the devil's six o'clock bus'!?" Usagi exclaimed as everything came together in her mind. "I have to save Rei-chan!!" She tossed the Luna Pen up into the air, the jewel on the top of it sparkling in the light, and cried out, "Moon Power! Change into a stewardess!!" Light flashed around her and her clothing shifted into a stewardess's uniform.

"Usagi-chan!? Why a stewardess!?" Luna asked as Usagi dashed towards the bus.

"My mission is to ensure a safe and pleasant trip for the passengers!" Usagi replied, then leapt up to catch hold of an open window towards the end of the bus and start trying to pull herself up into it. Luna leapt up to cling to her legs, but Usagi's attempts to get into the bus involved a lot of thrashing of her legs, and Luna soon fell off with a soft cry.

Usagi looked back over her shoulder when she heard Luna's cry. "Luna!?" That moment of inattention is when her grip slipped and she lost her hold on the window, toppling backwards. "Aaaah!" Before she could hit the ground, familiar arms wrapped around her, strong and warm, easing her fall. Before her eyes, she saw the bus pass fully into the hole, the hole closing behind it. "Rei-chan..." she whispered, staring at the place where the bus vanished.

"Are you alright?" the man holding her asked, and she turned to look up into Tuxedo Mask's familiar features.

"Yes... No... I couldn't hold on," she said quietly.

"And what would you have been able to do to help the kidnapped girls if you had been able to stay with the bus?" he asked gently, but with an underlying intensity.

"I-," she started to answer before realizing that unlike the previous times she'd met Tuxedo Mask, she wasn't Sailor Moon, she was just using the power of the Luna Pen to disguise herself. "I'm sorry, but I can't tell you that. I really have to go now!" She pulled herself away from him abruptly, leaving him with a expression of surprise on his face and an arm reaching out towards her. Scooping up Luna, she dashed off, wondering exactly how much he'd seen and heard, if he'd figured out that she was Sailor Moon...

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Jadeite frowned as he drove the bus through the dark passageway that joined their castle to the Earth's surface. For a moment, just before the bus entered the portal, he thought he had sensed another presence on the bus but no, the sole passenger was the shrine maiden he'd... persuaded to board the bus. He would just have to continue on with the charade until he lead the Sailor Senshi to their doom.

As he reached the room where all of his previous victims were sleeping, he let the Phantom Bus dissipate and turned to examine his latest captive. Kneeling down beside her sleeping form, he reached out to stroke her glossy hair gently out of her face. "So beautiful," he whispered to himself. "I've been attracted to her since I first saw her, this girl." Letting his hand rest gently on her forehead, an unusual sense of heat began to follow up his hand. Clearing his mind and concentrating on feeling her presence, he began to sense a buried power within her, like a banked fire ready to blaze once more when given the right fuel.

Withdrawing his hand, he watched her with a considering gaze. She was almost certainly the carrier of the power of one of the planets, destined to become a Sailor Senshi and thus his enemy. But Queen Beryl had already proved that the hearts of the planetary guardians were not immune to her powers of dark persuasion, and she would undoubtedly be pleased to add a warrior to their own ranks while depriving their enemies of a potential ally.

The knowledge of the pain the process of conversion would undoubtedly cause the girl almost made him hesitate, but the prospect of having her fight by his side and watching her blossom under his tutelage into something beautiful and deadly was too enticing to pass up. The pain would pass quickly enough, after all, and then she would be one of them.

Gently gathering the girl into his arms, he made his way through the shadowy hallways of the Dark Kingdom towards Queen Beryl's throne room. Part of the way towards his destination, Nephrite emerged from a side corridor and fell into step next to him. After a few moments of silence while Nephrite examined what Jadeite was carrying, he finally asked in a sardonic tone of voice, "So this is your choice for a match to my little apprentice?"

Jadeite looked at the other man through narrowed eyes. "Perhaps. She does hold potential for great power within her." Jadeite quickened his pace, and Nephrite allowed himself to be left behind the other commander, knowing that further prodding wouldn't get him anywhere at the present time. He had his own duties to attend to as well.

Finally reaching Queen Beryl's throne room, he found her seated on her throne, apparently waiting for him. "What brings you before me when I have not summoned you, Jadeite? Have you perhaps fulfilled your task already?" Her gaze rested levelly on what Jadeite was carrying in his arms.

Kneeling before her despite the awkwardness caused by his hold on the shrine maiden, Jadeite respectfully replied, "The Sailor Senshi still live, your Majesty, although I am certain they will be drawn into my trap soon. But I do bring an unexpected gift to you. I believe if you examine this girl, you will find the power of one of the guardian planets sleeping within her."

Queen Beryl arched one elegant eyebrow at him, before rising from her throne. "We shall see." Gliding to where Jadeite was holding the girl before him, she reached down and placed one fingertip on her forehead and channeled a weak amount of dark energy into the girl. She moaned a little in her sleep, and the planetary sigil of Mars flickered with red light on her brow for a few instants. Drawing back, Queen Beryl said, "You have done well, for once, in bringing her to me, Jadeite. Once I am done with her she will be quite an asset to our cause." A cold smile graced her features before she turned, gesturing sharply for him to follow her.

Queen Beryl left the throne room and led him downwards, deeper into the earth, until they entered a chamber he didn't remember having been in before. It was quite bare except for the rectangular slab of stone in the center of it, which had pieces of rope attached to its surface, obviously intended to be used to keep someone laying on the surface immobilized.

"Strap her down," Queen Beryl ordered, waving a hand imperiously at the stone slab. "I don't want her thrashing to disrupt my concentration."

Jadeite did as his Queen bid, making sure the shrine maiden was securely fastened to the surface. He backed away as Queen Beryl took up a position at the head of the stone slab, resting her long fingers on the girl's face. Dark energy flowed from those fingers into her, seeking for weaknesses in her heart that would allow Queen Beryl to twist her mind and memory, to mold her into a warrior that would serve the Queen's dark cause. The shrine maiden's body attempted to twist and turn, struggling to get away from the darkness, although she couldn't move much in her bonds. Her head was the only thing that remained still, locked into place by the touch of the Queen's hands. The only sign of struggle there was the red sigil of Mars that blazed brightly on her forehead.

The shadows deepened around Queen Beryl as she intensified her efforts to remake the girl before her into what she wished her to be. The sigil of Mars began to flicker and dim, a sign that the shrine maiden was weakening. As he watched Queen Beryl pour yet more energy into completing the girl's transformation, a small part of Jadeite wondered if this could have been done to him as well. He couldn't remember not serving Queen Beryl, of course, but from what he'd seen of the other girl that didn't necessarily mean anything... With a mental growl, he pushed the stray disloyal thought to the back of his mind. Serving his Queen was the reason he had been born and given the powers he held. That's all there was to him, and all that had ever been.

Shadows finally drifted across the girl's forehead and consumed the sigil until it turned completely black. A flare of dark power rippled down her body, transforming the shrine maiden's outfit she wore into something more... appropriate for a warrior of the Dark Kingdom. The Queen pulled herself away from the girl and Jadeite barely waited for her to motion him forward before approaching the slab and beginning to remove the ropes that held the girl to the table.

As he undid the bonds that held her, he examined the girl's new attire. Her fitted jacket was not that dissimilar to his own, although pure black instead of gray like his. It has no epaulettes and the high collar was replaced by a sailor-style one. An ornate brooch held the jacket closed at her right shoulder, while two smaller jeweled buttons fastened it at the waist. The jewels were a dark red that matched the piping and collar of the jacket. The pleated mid-thigh length skirt was dark red as well, and the high heeled shoes on her feet. Other than the footwear and accent color, it was almost identical to the outfit the other girl wore.

As he removed the last of the ropes binding her, she began to stir. Slowly she sat up, swinging her legs off the side of the table and holding a hand to her head. Her eyes were open but unfocused, seeming not to be taking in her surroundings. The sound of Queen Beryl's voice seemed to cut through the haze left by her experience, causing the girl to straighten herself and her eyes to focus on Queen Beryl's face.

"Who are you?" Queen Beryl questioned her. "And who do you serve?"

The girl rose to her feet and took a few steps towards Queen Beryl before sinking to one knee before her, although she did not lower her gaze. "I am the Dark Senshi of Mars, who wields the destructive fury of the flames, and I serve you, my Queen," Mars replied. "What tasks do you have to set before me?" she continued, her violet eyes glinting with anticipation.

Queen Beryl smiled with cold satisfaction before she began giving her instructions.

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After Usagi was sure that Tuxedo Mask hadn't followed her, she slowed down and found a place where she could contact Ami over their new watches. Usagi and Luna explained what had happened with the Phantom Bus to Ami. They decided that, because of the method of transportation the Dark Kingdom was using, the only way for them to find out where the kidnapped girls were being taken and rescue them was to have Ami and Usagi ride the Phantom Bus and have Luna track them. Wanting to rescue the kidnapped girls as soon as possible, they agreed to meet in front of the Hikawa Shrine the next evening shortly before the Phantom Bus would be making its rounds again.

School felt even longer and more boring than usual to Usagi the next day, and she had trouble concentrating on playing the video games at the Crown Arcade Parlor while she was killing time before heading over to the Shrine with Luna. Worries about what could be happening to Rei kept on intruding. Usagi eventually just gave up and made her way to the Shrine, arriving there early. She sat down at the bottom of the steps leading up to the Shrine to wait for Ami, petting Luna idly.

Usagi didn't have to wait too long for Ami to arrive. Luna set up a computer and put on a headset; Usagi had to stifle giggles at the odd sight of a cat wearing a headset. "Okay, with this equipment I'll be able to keep track of you and contact you on your communicator watches," Luna said. "Please be careful, girls. We don't know where the portal will lead to or if the enemy will have laid a trap for you. Be ready to transform at a moment's notice."

Ami nodded, and Usagi said, "We'll be careful." Then they turned and walked over to the bus stop to wait for the Phantom Bus to show up. Usagi fidgeted as they stood there waiting, nervousness about what they might have to face creeping up on her. When the bus pulled up, its sign saying 'Red 66: Via Sendai Hill', Usagi took a deep breath and got on the bus, Ami following behind her. After paying their fares under the watchful eye of the woman driving the bus, they took seats towards the middle of the bus.

As the bus pulled away from the curb and down the street, Ami and Usagi felt sleepiness start to creep up on them. Knowing that the sudden urge to fall asleep had to be some trick of the enemy, they resisted the feeling, shifting around in their sleep and even pinching themselves to keep themselves awake. The feelings of sleepiness faded soon after they started resisting it, but by that time the bus had reached the dark portal and was passing into it. They entered into a dark tunnel lit only by small pinpoints of light, the bus continuing to move forward even though there no longer seemed to be anything solid under the wheels.

Several minutes passed as they moved through the darkness, before stone walls and arches appeared around them and they could hear the sound of the bus's wheels driving over stone tiles. The bus came to a halt, and Ami and Usagi had just stood up when the bus just disintegrated around them. They landed on their feet with some difficulty, and the noise caused the bus driver to turn around and face them. "You didn't fall asleep?" she asked rhetorically. "Odd, but I guess I'll just have to drain you into unconsciousness instead." She smiled cruelly as her features became inhuman and her fingers sharpened into claws.

Since they had seen this kind of strange transformation before, the girls wasted no time calling out their transformation phrases.

"Moon Prism Power, Make-Up!"
"Mercury Power, Make-Up!"

In a swirl of lights and ribbons, the pair of girls became Sailor Moon and Sailor Mercury. Sailor Moon posed and shouted, "I can't allow you to lock up innocent people in a place like this!! I am Sailor Moon, and in the name of the moon, I'll punish you!"

Placing one hand on her tiara, Sailor Moon pulled it off her forehead, causing it to transform into a flat ring that was ideal for being thrown. "Moon Tiara Boomerang!" The tiara sliced through the air after she threw it, carving its way through the youma, which started to dissolve into dust, before returning to Sailor Moon's hand and being returned to her forehead.

"Yay!" Sailor Moon cheered. "I think we're getting better at this, that was a lot easier than the previous ones."

"Maybe," Mercury replied. "Or maybe that one wasn't intended to be difficult to defeat and there is stronger opposition lurking here."

"Oh." Sailor Moon's face fell, but only for a few moments before her usual smile reasserted itself. "Let's hurry up and find the kidnapped girls and have Luna get us all out of here, then."

They both started looking around for the kidnapped girls, quickly spotting where their sleeping forms were all huddled together. Sailor Moon didn't see Rei in among them, though, and continued to look around until she noticed another form sprawled on the stone floor a short distance from the rest of the girls, dark hair fanning out around her like a pool of silk. "Rei-chan!" Sailor Moon cried out and starting rushing towards her.

"Wait, Sailor Moon! Something doesn't seem right about what she's wearing...!" Sailor Mercury's cautionary words flowed past Sailor Moon without them registering. Sailor Moon reached where Rei was lying and bent down to gently shake her shoulder in an attempt to wake her.

The instant Sailor Moon's gloved hand touched her, Rei's violet eyes snapped open and she raised one hand towards Sailor Moon, then cried out, "Dark Flames!" A torrent of purple-black fire shot out of her hand, scorching through the space that Sailor Moon had occupied just moments before. Rei's sudden motion had caused Sailor Moon to step back in surprise, tripping in the process and landing on her butt, causing Rei's attack to miss.

Sailor Mercury quickly called out, "Mercury Aqua Mist!!" Fog spread from her hands to cloak the area in mist, blocking Rei's view of Sailor Moon. Sailor Moon scrambled to her feet and backed away from Rei, heading roughly in the direction that she remembered Sailor Mercury to be in. The temperature in the area began rising, and the fog evaporated to reveal Rei standing with her hands on her hips, a nimbus of dark flame surrounding her.

The flames around her dissipated and Rei smirked maliciously, making a shiver run down Sailor Moon's spine. "Cute trick, but nothing I couldn't handle. Care to try again?" A sinking feeling in her stomach joined the shiver when she finally noticed Rei's different - and altogether more sinister looking - outfit.

"Why are you acting like this, Rei-chan? What did they do to you?!" Sailor Moon felt her eyes begin to burn with tears. If only she hadn't lost her grip on the bus yesterday...!

Rei's eyes narrowed. "The name Hino Rei no longer holds any meaning for me. I am the Dark Senshi of Mars, and I will destroy you!" She flung another jet of dark flames from her hand toward Sailor Moon, forcing Sailor Moon to dodge out of its way.

The enemy... They must have brainwashed Rei-chan into following them! "I can't fight Rei-chan like this, Luna! Oh, this is all my fault!" Sailor Moon sniffled, trying to keep the tears welling in eyes from spilling over and running down her cheeks.

Luna's voice crackled from the watch communicator Sailor Moon wore. "Don't cry! If you cry and emit your supersonic waves, the world you're in will destabilize! You won't be able to rescue everyone!"

Sailor Moon pushed back her tears with effort. "What should I do, Luna?"

"Attack with your tiara, Usagi-chan!"

"Moon Tiara Boomerang!" Pulling off her tiara once more, she threw it at Dark Mars, but her reluctance to hurt Rei must have affected her aim, causing it to miss Dark Mars by inches. One of Dark Mars's hands shot out as the tiara went by and grabbed it.

"Such a weak little toy," Dark Mars sneered.

"She fell into the trap!" Luna's voice came through the communicator once more as the tiara slipped out of Dark Mars's hand and wrapped itself around Dark Mars's torso, thicken to trap her arms at her sides.

"Quickly, Usagi-chan!" Luna ordered through the communicator. "Assemble everyone in one place! The tiara won't hold her forever and the longer you fight, the more likely the dimension is to collapse!"

"Gotcha, Luna!" Sailor Moon and Sailor Mercury ran over to where all the unconscious girls were, while Dark Mars maneuvered her hands so she could touch the tiara and generated flames around them to melt her way through the metal. Sailor Moon double-checked to make sure they had everyone, then said to Luna over the communicator, "We've got everyone, so get us out of here!"

The sound of metal fragments announced Dark Mars's escape from Sailor Moon's tiara, but before Dark Mars could do more than raise a hand towards them, the Sailor Senshi and the unconscious girls disappeared in a flash of light. Dark Mars snarled in frustration at their escape, before dashing away from the slowly collapsing dimension tunnel and into the Dark Kingdom proper. Queen Beryl would be most upset with her, and Jadeite-sama would be disappointed in her. She wasn't sure which bothered her more.

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A while later, Luna, Ami, and Usagi were gathered together in the living room of Ami's house to discuss what had happened. After Luna had safely brought them all back to the Sendai Hill bus stop, the unconscious girls started waking up with no memories of what had happened after they got on the Phantom Bus. They had explained to the girls who had been kidnapped what had happened, then quickly left before awkward questions could be asked or the cops could show up. Luna had insisted on holding a planning session immediately, so after the girls had transformed back into their normal selves they'd gone to Ami's house because Ami's mother was working an evening shift at the hospital and wouldn't be home until late that night.

The living room of Ami's house was decorated in a modern and elegant minimalist style. It was kept quite spotless as well, and Usagi briefly wondered how Ami's mom could keep it so clean when she appeared to work so much, before it occurred to her that Ami's mom made enough money that she could hire someone to keep things clean. Usagi was curled up in one corner of the couch, hugging a pillow to her chest, while Ami sat towards the other end and described what she'd seen after they passed through the portal.

Once Ami was finished with her tale, Luna asked, "Do either of you remember seeing any sort of symbol on Dark Mars's forehead."

Usagi shook her head; She'd been too busy trying to dodge the attacks to have noticed if there was anything on Dark Mars's forehead. But Ami nodded. "She had the symbol of Mars on her forehead. It was black, but it didn't really look like a tattoo, it was more like some sort of strange birthmark."

Luna nodded. "That corresponds with the reading I was getting on her attacks. Her attacks drew on the energy of the planet Mars, which only the Sailor Senshi of Mars would be able to do, but there was something else... something tainting that power. She must be the true Sailor Mars, and the enemy must have taken advantage of her power not having been awakened yet to twist her into... into that dark mockery of a Sailor Senshi." Luna managed to look both disgusted and furious at the same time, quite a feat for a cat.

"Luna?" Ami asked in a quiet voice. "Could... Could they do that to one of us?" Usagi turned to look at Luna with her breath caught in her throat, waiting for Luna to answer, a sudden fear gripping her heart.

Luna shook her head. "It is nigh impossible to corrupt a Sailor Senshi who's awakened their powers against their will. The enemy would have to practically kill you to accomplish it. It would be much simpler for them to simply kill you."

Ami nodded and Usagi started breathing again, her fear easing somewhat knowing that neither she nor Ami would be mind-controlled into hurting people, not that the enemy trying to kill her instead was a particularly reassuring prospect.

"It does make it more imperative for us to locate and awaken the rest of the Sailor Senshi, however," Luna continued. "That will primarily be my responsibility, however, since there isn't much you two can do to help until I've narrowed down the potential candidates."

Ami looked thoughtful. "Luna, do you know of any way we could fix what the enemy did to Rei-chan?"

Luna frowned. "This isn't something I'd encountered in the past, so I can't say for certain what would be able to undo the brainwashing. The Phantom Silver Crystal would undoubtedly have enough power to undo it, and its power is well-suited to purifying evil influences. However, it can only be wielded to its full potential by the Princess."

"Then we'll just have to find the Princess and the crystal and have her fix Rei-chan with it," Usagi stated with a surprising amount of determination.

Luna blinked at Usagi, puzzled by her unusual demeanor, but before Luna could say anything, Ami asked, "Is there anything you can tell us about the Princess that might help our search, such as where she comes from?"

"I can't tell you very much about the Princess yet, unfortunately," Luna replied. "I think some sort of seal has been placed on her so she won't be recognized, however."

"A seal?" Ami asked. "Why would something like that be necessary?"

"There's a high probability that the Princess has the Phantom Silver Crystal. It's certain that everyone has their eyes on the holy stone, the Phantom Silver Crystal, and the unlimited power it carries. But if it's used for evil, we'll be in a terrible situation.

"When the time is right, the seal on the Princess's identity should break, but the enemy will know who she is then, as well. So we need to try to find her before that time if possible.

"Now, it's getting late and I think we've covered everything we can at this time. Usagi-chan needs to go home before her family gets too worried," Luna finished.

Usagi rolled her eyes. "You just have to boss me around all the time, don't you Luna?" she sighed, but picked up the cat and said her goodbyes to Ami, put her shoes back on, and started walking to the closest bus stop.

Several moments passed in silence save for the noises of the city around them and the sound of Usagi's shoes on the pavement. Finally, Luna asked softly, "Are you feeling alright, Usagi-chan? You've been quieter and more serious than usual this evening."

Usagi sighed, looking down at her feet sadly. "It's just... I feel like what's happened to Rei-chan's my fault, because my fingers slipped and I wasn't able to rescue her before the enemy had a chance to do whatever they did to her."

Luna butted her head against Usagi's chin in an affectionate gesture. "We don't know what would have happened if you'd followed them right away. It's obvious the enemy set up the whole thing as a way to try to trap you in their own territory. You might have been able to defeat who ever would have been waiting there and rescued the kidnapped girls, but you might have gotten yourself into more trouble than you could handle and I'm not sure I would have been able to contact Ami and get her there in time to help you. Things might have ended up working out better this way."

Usagi gave Luna a small smile, but her eyes were still sad. "Thank you for trying to cheer me up, Luna." The girl and the cat continued on their way home.

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Jadeite found himself kneeling before Queen Beryl again, this time with Dark Mars also kneeling, a little bit to his right and behind him, her long purple-black hair trailing over the floor.

"Your plan to get rid of the Sailor Senshi failed, Jadeite. What do you have to say for yourself?"

"Please forgive me, my Queen. They had not shown any ability to travel dimensionally before, so their means of escape was unanticipated. Prior to that, Dark Mars was faring quite well against them and the youma was never intended to be a serious threat, of course."

Queen Beryl considered his words for several long moments as sweat trickled down Jadeite's face. "I will not punish you for your failure this time, Jadeite, because you have helped me find another warrior for our cause." Her gaze flicked to where Dark Mars was kneeling for a moment before returning to Jadeite. "Although I hope she is more successful in the future. But I will give you a considerable amount of time to think about how you could have succeeded instead of failed before entrusting you with any further missions. Nephrite!"

Nephrite stepped forward from where he had been lounging against a wall again and saluted Queen Beryl with a fist over his heart. "Yes, my Queen?"

"I will grant your desire to take over the collecting of energy and the search for the Phantom Silver Crystal. But you had best be more successful than Jadeite has been." Jadeite grimaced, but didn't say anything.

"Of course, my Queen," Nephrite replied and turned to leave.

"One last thing, Nephrite." Nephrite turned back towards her. "I want to see what your young apprentice can do as well."

"As you say, my Queen."

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Late that night, in a secret basement below the Crown Arcade Parlor only accessible through the Sailor V game, Luna was using the computer systems there to consult with another about the latest developments. The video screen showed a white cat with a crescent moon on his forehead just like Luna's. Luna had just finished her account of the new information they'd found out and the conclusions they'd come to.

"What the enemy did to Mars worries me, Artemis," Luna said to the other cat she was talking to. "It's too reminiscent of what happened to the people of the Earth before the end of the Silver Millennium. What if the evil that destroyed the Silver Millennium has been revived? Even with the Phantom Silver Crystal, Queen Serenity wasn't able to do anything but seal it inside the Earth."

"Don't go borrowing trouble, Luna," Artemis replied in a softer tone than his words would suggest. "We don't know for certain that that is what has happened. As well, the Queen was despairing when that happened, the Princess will have a better chance against it."

Luna sighed. "I know. But whoever the enemy is, they've already turned one of the Sailor Senshi to their side. We don't know where Jupiter is or who she is, they could already have her working for them. We're not having any luck finding the Princess or the Phantom Silver Crystal, and we can't afford to have the enemy find them first. So pardon me for being a little pessimistic at the moment."

"We may just stumble across Jupiter like you did with Mercury and Mars. And the magic preventing us from locating the Princess easily will stymie the enemy just as much. We should prepare for what might go wrong, but we shouldn't give up hope yet. Not until the fat lady sings."

Luna shook her head and said, "You use the strangest Earth expressions, Artemis." But she had a slight smile on her face.

"I try my best, milady." Sobering, Artemis continued, "If things do continue to get worse, I can have the Sailor Senshi I've been training join yours to help them. I know you wanted to have them gain more experience first, but her help may be necessary if they end up facing two corrupted Sailor Senshi along with whatever other forces the enemy has."

Luna nodded. "Thank you for the offer, even though I hope taking you up on it won't be necessary."

"I hope so, too."

*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*---------*

Author's Notes

Manga dialogue is taken from Alex Glover's newer translations from the Japanese manga, but I've tweaked it slightly in a place or two. If some of the attack names used seem slightly odd, it's probably because of 1) the manga using different names for some attacks than the anime did, and 2) Alex Glover using the rereleased versions of the Japanese manga, which altered the name of Sailor Moon's tiara attack from 'Moon Frisbee' to 'Moon Tiara Boomerang' and gave names to attacks that had previously been nameless in the manga, like Mercury's mist-creating attack. Apparently the changes were made to correspond with the attack names used in the live-action version.

The mysterious third commander in this chapter isn't Zoisite or Kunzite, nor is he any kind of clone or duplicate of them. (Which isn't to say that he has absolutely no relation to either of those characters.) He's an original character, with a background in his Silver Millennium era past life that makes his current role as a commander of the Dark Kingdom quite appropriate.

Nephrite's apprentice, on the other hand, is a well-known character from the series, and who she is probably isn't that difficult to guess. She'll be showing up next chapter, in any case.

As for why Zoisite and Kunzite aren't part of the Dark Kingdom, you'll just have to keep reading to find out. ;^)

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