The End of the Millennium: Guardian's Return A Xian Shade Production Author's Note: Many people are gonna start asking questions about this fic, and many already have. Firstly, this story has NOTHING to do with Phantasy Star Online... but it may one day. Its original intention was to show the similarities between the earlier games (Phantasy Star for the old sega master system, and PS 2, 3, and 4 for the Genesis) and Sailor Moon. The ones who know the games should recognize the name Noah, and Zio. Secondly, I wanted to point out the name of Zio's god is very similar to that of the being Beryl worshipped... in fact they were too similar not to point out. DarkForce:NegaForce. Both were huge and powerful creatures of darkness. Both are considered planetary destroyers. Only differences? Name, and slightly different physical form. Aight, enough explanations. On with the story! Ok, I lied... I still gotta put up the disclaimer. Disclaimer: I don't own any aspects of Sailor Moon or Phantasy Star. If I did, this would be animated or a manga or both and you wouldn't be reading it right now. Thanatos and any other characters are © Xian Shade, and may not be used without my permission. People failing to follow this rule have broken Xian's Law #849, paragraph 3, line 2: Don't fuck with my shit. Guardian's Return, Chapter 5: "No..." It was inconceivable. Mamoru Chiba, Prince Endymion, Tuxedo Mask... the prince and original guardian of Earth, now lay prone on the solid concrete of the temple grounds, ambushed by the very creature he attempted to stall. Blood began to seep from the open wound through his right lung area. "NO! Mamo-chan!" Sailor Moon screamed, covering the body of the man she loved with her own, shielding him from further harm. "How quaint." Zio grinned, still holding the rose he'd caught. He squeezed the magical flower by the stem and it began to wither, its petals drying and its stem thinning, before the would-be weapon turned to ash in his palm. He sighed, dusting off his hand, which bore no scratch or wound from squeezing its thorns. "While this heartbreaking scene simply makes my day, I'm afraid that time is not on our side." "Mamo-chan... please... you have to get up... get out of here..." Sailor Moon sobbed, trying to move the profusely bleeding man off the battlefield. He remained motionless aside from his labored breathing. "Great Dark Force, kill them both if you will. I'll handle the other four." Zio turned his attention to the remaining scouts and a column of fire came between them and their princess. They'd tried to step between during the distraction, to serve at least as a shield until they could find a way to retaliate. But how could they? "I'm afraid you four will be entertaining me, and those two will please the Dark Force for now... so what do you say? Shall we start again...?" But something was wrong: There were only three scouts before him. The blonde beauty that attacked him first was nowhere to be seen. The Dark Force opened its gaping maw, and its mouth grew swimmingly dark with energies that gathered. With another soul-splitting shriek, it opened its mouth even wider to Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask, and released the dark energy. "NOW!" Mercury shouted. Purplish energy formed a protective wall in front of Sailor Moon, repelling the foul energy that forced against it from the dark nimbus. "What the... AGHK!" Venus' chain whipped about Zio's neck from behind and pulled him back off his feet. He tugged at the chain, trying to regain his footing. "You think this will stop me?! KILL THEM!" he forced in a choked voice. The Dark Force backed up in the sky, horriffic amounts of lightning lightning forming within the depths of its body, threatening to swallow half the city, when three blasts launched from the nearby trees, and the Dark Force's head erupted in an explosion of dust, and dissipated from the attack, its dark-cloud body soon to follow, reverting to a simple stormcloud. The four outers came out of hiding and stepped onto the battlefield, Venus never breaking the choking hold of her love chain. Saturn stepped over to Tuxedo Mask and poured her energies into healing the open wound. Satisfied all would be well, Sailor Moon stood and faced their new enemy. "All right. Who are you working for? Who sent you? Why are you after us?" Usagi hardly ever showed a threatening feature to anyone, and this move came as quite a bit of a shock to the others. She hadn't had a chance to be threatening to Galaxia, because she had no desire to hurt a fellow sailor scout, and was too paralyzed by grief and compassion. But now she'd seen Mamoru attacked by this man, and she had two years of steeling her emotional resolve, so she wasn't going to have it. She jabbed her tier threateningly under Zio's chin, and he chuckled like a madman, unfazed, but the chuckles were slightly choked due to the chain. "Hmhmhmhmm... I was sent by our queen. She calls out to all of us, you know. I'm not the first, and I won't be the last." His form phased out, and then back in a few yards away. "You believe the mighty Dark Force beaten? HA! I only summon its essence! You may send it away, but I may always bring it back!" His hands caught fire once more, and were quickly extinguished, his spell reassembling the monster above, the cloud's shapes reforming the grotesque creature. "You were lucky and had your chance, but you blew it!" The Dark Force regained its features and fists formed, which suddenly raised and lowered, pounding the ground, sending a shockwave along with its screech, sending the scouts into a weakened state that knocked them off their feet. "I must admit you're more resourceful than I gave you credit for. It was a pleasure doing battle with you. Farewell..." he commanded the Dark Force with his hand, but instead of acting, a shrill screech ensued, much different from when it attacked. Zio and the scouts looked up to see the beasts eyes being gouged by two weapons, attached to two strangers. A flaming red entity with an even brighter red sword had plunged it into the right eye of the monster. The second was a shrouded creature, a more unconventional weapon buried in the monster's left eye: a scythe. The Dark Force dissipated once more, and the dark clouds that made the monster vanished this time. The duo above turned their heads to Zio, who stood dumbfounded at the new arrivals. Definitely beings to report. Without another word, Zio phased out, and the normal warm energies of earth reappeared. The scouts regained their balance, and the saviors from above lowered to the ground, speaking in mere glances, their features hidden respectively behind a white mask and a red helmet. Mercury and Saturn spotted the blackened stranger. "YOU!" they both simultaneously said, pointing to him. He remained silent and moved beside Saturn, over to the unconscious form of Tuxedo Mask. "No! He's fine! You don't have to take him! I still have to finish healing him!" "You can't..." its voice was doubled over. "His wound is incurable. He is infected with the black wave." He moved to touch the fallen prince. And his neck lay open to Uranus' sword as it moved between him and Tuxedo Mask. "I don't know what you're gonna do, but I suggest you back away slow." Uranus made the ghostly image of the reaper rise once more. "I'm glad you and your friend were able to bail us out of that battle, but from what Saturn just said about you taking him, well... you're not taking him anywhere." Jade eyes flared beneath the white mask and his hand swept out and passed into Uranus' chest, then back out with no wound, but he held clasping something, and she seemed quite unable to stop herself from screaming in tortured pain as she dropped her talisman. "Would you rather that I take you, then?" the voice churned. Uranus thrashed as he held what appeared to be a thin line of gauze not from her uniform, but attached to her all the same. Saturn held her glaive up to the shrouded face, and the others all charged their respective powers, ready to take this new menace in a savior's guise. "I won't let you take her, or him, like you took my father... release her soul NOW." Saturn hissed, angry tears burning her face. He leg go of the gauze that he held Uranus by, which snapped back into her chest, and she collapsed, regaining her breathing, vision, and other bodily functions, though writhing on the ground in pain. "This THING in front of us is an abomination, even on my planet. I don't know why you helped us, or why you're doing this now, but we want you to leave." Saturn was usually more quiet than Pluto, who never showed emotion. "Death has no place amongst life." He nodded. "So you remember me. I don't wish to harm any of you. You are all vital to the survival of everything, but..." the black one spoke, while the red blade of the other figure appeared at the stomach of Sailor Moon, and his hand clapped over her mouth to prevent protest. "...you will cease your attack now, or we WILL become enemies." The scouts turned their attention to their leader and princess, who was being threatened. In that moment of hesitation, the black figure grabbed Tuxedo mask and phased out of existence. "Mission accomplished..." the red figure spoke finally, and disappeared as well in a burst of flame, leaving a freaked out Sailor Moon to fall backward and try to pat out flames that weren't there. Rei blinked as tears welled up at the sound of the voice the red being eminated. It was impossible, but it was true. It was Ares himself. ------------------------------------------------------------------ TBC.