And getting a few more things done:

                      Sailor Moon: Strategy and Tactics
                                by Ken Arromdee

                                   Chapter 6

    Tsukino Usagi, secretly Sailor Moon, was soundly sleeping in her room,
dreaming of many things.

Usagi: (talking in her sleep) Mamo-chan.... hot tup of Jello... Ami... Sure,
can join.... Mako too?... Okay.... Rei? Right, you bitch... SNORE

 Sleep was a time for dreaming about nice things:

friends, guys (and guy friends), leisure time...  anything but school.  Or
the Dark Kingdom (recently destroyed, unknown to her).

    Meanwhile, two figures were sleeping, for far

think you can drop 'for'

longer and far more soundly,

safely inside their pod, as it hurtled through space at enormous speeds.

'enormous' makes me think of a large object rather than something
intangible. It could just be me, but the imagery is off. I think something
more along the lines of 'tremendous' or its like would be better.

Bugger. Two grammar comments to one humor one. I'm actually proving somewhat
useful.


 Ail

and Ann had fled their dead world, taking their world-tree with them, in
search of a new home somewhere in the cosmos.

    Of course, they needed energy.  And of course,

I'd drop the first 'of course'. The doubling up of it isn't working for me.
Starting with 'They' would be fine IMO.


though they could have

landed anywhere in the near-infinity of the cosmos, they landed on the

Earth,

in Juuban, a minute's walk away from where Tsukino Usagi was sleeping.

Ann: Our luck just plain sucks. I just know we're going to get out asses
kicked.

  Their

pod crashed into the ground, waking Usagi, who vaguely perceived its

landing

as thunder, but recognized enough of a difference that she dragged herself
over to the window and, eventually, out of the house and down the block to
gaze at what had fallen from the skies.

In her night clothes? Might want to clarify that, unless she did.

    Still yawning occasionally, Usagi rubbed her eyes and looked around

the

crowd for anyone she knew.  Ami was there, and Minako too.  Usagi waved

and

walked over to meet them.

    "Hi Ami, Minako.  I've never seen a meteor before!  Were either of you

here

when it fell down here?" asked Usagi.  "I completely missed it, it

it. It

    "What does that mean?" asked Usagi.

    "It means it's very strange."

Usagi: Oh, like my dreams. By the way, what are your feelings about sharing
a hot tub full of Jello with me and Mamo-chan?

    "Boy it is!"

Boy, it

exclaimed Minako.  "Look at the size of that thing!"

Heh. I hear that all the time as well.

I wish.

    "Hi Minako.

Hi, Minako

 >You quoted that correctly!" said Usagi, surprised.

Not much of a quote, actually.

    "I hope not", said Ami.  "I like school."

    Usagi and Minako looked at each other, bemused.

Hmm. I would think confounded or giving each other a helpless look would be
more appropriate, but it's a real minor nit. I just don't think of Usagi
'bemusing' anything, especially realted school.

                                *   *   *   *   *

    When the classes

'students' would be better since you use class later in the sentence.

This one is reading a bit rough. Did you post it quickly?

    "I know you like Seijuro", said Naru.  "I can tell...  he's really

good-

looking, you know."

    "Yeah" she replied.  "He's so dreamy...  I wonder what kind of girls

he

likes?  Do you think that if I just went to him and introduced myself he'd

talk

to me?"

    "I don't see why not... even if he has a girlfriend he

girlfriend, he (I think)

                                *   *   *   *   *

    A whole crowd of girls had gathered around Seijuro after school.

Seijuro

looked among them, each girl eager to attract the attention of the most
eligible boy in the school.  One of them would hit the jackpot.

Or if he tenticle capabilities, all of them would. :)

    They waited expectantly for Seijuro to say something.

Seijuro: I'm gay.

Usagi: Well, anything but that.

    "Oh, Seijuro", said Usagi.  "That's a wonderful song.  What's it

called?"

    "It's...  Galaxy Mysterious Improvisational Song...  Miracle of

Andromeda."

    "That sounds so...  American!" said Usagi, who had never been to

America.

Heh.

    Meanwhile, nearby, Natsumi was surrounded by a similar crowd of boys,
who asked her about her favorite foods, her blood type, her life in

America,

and just about anything else.  One of them asked her to say something in
English, to which she only replied "Peraperapera".

That one went over my head, though.

    But then she noticed Seijuro's playing.  To Usagi, the notes were a

melody

of unearthly beauty... but to Seijuro's sister they must have been

something

else entirely.  Usagi watched her angrily tear herself away from the group

and

storm up to Seijuro and her.  Natsumi glared at the two, looking from one

to

the other as if not certain who to be angry at.  Finally, she grabbed

Seijuro's

arm and grilled him with a "What are you doing?"

Seijuro: Playing music. Chicks dig that. It gets them to open their legs
quicker. Shoot, I said that out loud instead of thinking it, didn't I?

    "Nothing", answered Seijuro.

    Natsumi pulled her 'brother' away and out of the room, leaving Usagi

and

the others behind.

    So much for boyfriends, thought Usagi.  At least instant boyfriends...

but

she could always see him later, right?  But something nagged at the back

of her

head.  It was just a little too strange.  A guy's sister shouldn't get

jealous

when he finds a girl he likes, should she?  Maybe they weren't really

brother

and sister.  Maybe they were fakes of some kind.

Naru: Could be they have an incestuous relationship.

Usagi: Does that mean I'd end up in a three way? Shoot. I hate those.

    In the branches of a tree dimensionally connected to a nearby

apartment

building, Ail and Ann, alias Seijuro and Natsumi, let their disguises

vanish,

revealing their yellowish skin and pointed ears.  Features that no human
being possessed.  Lying in the branches of their tree, they concentrated,
trying to draw some energy from it for sustenance.  But the tree was weak.

Ann: If you were Juraiain instead of just a plain elm, this wouldn't be
happening.

Tree; Sod off.

    "Go out, Cardian Vampiru", commanded Ail.  To Ann, he explained.  "It

will

be easy to get all the energy we need.  The people of Earth have never

seen

anything like this before."

Card Captor Sakura: Yeah, right.

                                *   *   *   *   *
    The conversation was suddenly interrupted by a loud, piercing, scream

from

beneath the window.  Naru leaned out the window and looked down at the

street.

Outside was a monstrous woman-thing, advancing towards its cowering

victim,

who Naru recognized as a neighbor from across the street.

But Naru hated the annoying bitch. She hoped the monster ate her.

    Into the phone, Naru yelled "Usagi!  It's not the last time!"

    "Yes it is!  I know, I was there!"

    "It's not, there's

not. There's

 a monster here.  It's right outside my window!  Sailor

Moon, please save me!"

    Attracted by the screaming, the monster turned towards Naru and flew

up to

the second floor,

Rather than eating the person in front of it. Usagi doesn't need strategy
and tatics in the face of that kind of stupidity. :)

    Sailor Moon ran upstairs and shoved the door open.  She faced the

silly-

looking monster, which was right there, and was still busy draining Naru.

She

had to do something fast to get it off of her friend...  ah, a speech

should

distract it.

Sadly, in this case it will probably work.

Monsters were dumb without anyone around to give them orders.

As long as she took care to keep moving around while making it...

    "You are the unluckiest Dark Kingdom monster alive!" she said.  The

monster

paused, looking at her.  "You attacked the only person out of billions of
people in the world who was talking to Sailor Moon at the time!

You know, she does have a point.

 I won't

forgive you for hurting my friend!  In the name of the moon, I'll punish

you!"

    The monster seemed to make a decision, dropping Naru and lashing out

at

Sailor Moon instead.  Sailor Moon watched the tentacles come through the
doorway and slammed the door on them as they were halfway through, making

the

monster scream...  well, that served it right, she thought!  Monster

tentacles

shouldn't just make innocent girls scream.

Actually, I think that's their purpose. :)

    Carefully timing her attack, Sailor Moon yelled "Moon Tiara Action!"

She

stretched out the last syllable, waiting, and waiting, until just the

moment

when the monster tore the door off of its hinges.  At that second, it was

wide

open to an attack.  Sailor Moon removed the tiara from her head and threw
it into the creature.  She scored a direct hit; the monster transformed

into a

card (something she had never seen a Dark Kingdom monster do before) and

then

fell apart into the usual pile of dust.

Sakura: No fair! Now she's stealing my gimmick.

    "Okay."  Sailor Moon tried to help Naru get to her feet.  She already
seemed to be recovering well.  "Naru?" she asked.  "Are you all right?"

    "I'm fine, Sailor Moon", replied Usagi's friend.  "Like you told Mom.

I

Mom, I (I think)

don't feel so good but I'm really just tired.

    Sailor Moon led Naru down the stairs to where Naru's mother was

Awkward. Since she doesn't seem to have a real name, how about calling her
Mrs. (whatever Naru's last name is)

    Two people floated down the stairs, a boy and a girl.  They were about
Usagi's age.  Their skin was yellow, and they didn't quite look human.

Earlier you described them as decidely non-human in this form. I'd drop
'quite' to 'the least bit' or something

    "I know you were controlling the monster!" said Usagi.

    "Just a little entertainment for you"

you,

said Ail.

    "Get real!" said Usagi.  "Nobody works for the Dark Kingdom just

because

they're trying to have a little fun.

Dark Kingdom Jester: Not true. I do.

 What are you really up to?"

    "Dark Kingdom?" said Ail.  "I know of no such thing.

Ail: Unless you mean Disneyland. Now there's an abyss that will suck the
intelligence from you, as well as your money.

    "But you'll track them down", said Sailor Jupiter.  "Right, Sailor

Moon?"

    "I hope so.  I've always managed to do it so far, somehow."

After Usagi saw the new Spider Man movie, she incorperatred into her
tactics, 'Sailor Trackers' in tune with her 'Sailor Sense' to tag the bad
guys with so she could track them down to their lairs and attack when they
least expected it

                                *   *   *   *   *

    During the next day, Usagi was a bit worried about just what was going

on

with the Dark Kingdom.  Those enemies had said they weren't from the Dark
Kingdom, and they seemed to mean it.  Yet if they had nothing to do with

the

Dark Kingdom, why did they have monsters that looked just like Dark

Kingdom

monsters?

Taskmaster also trains monsterous minions as well as more standard, human
evil henchmen?

    "Don't worry Usagi",

worry, Usagi

    "Trouble?"

    "Yes.  Natsumi was alone there with Mamoru and I just had to get him

away

from her!  And then we were arguing and he just walked away...  he was
pretending to be annoyed with us for some reason.  It was so awful!"

    "Say, Rei, do you think she might be from outer space?"

Rei: If it means killing that bitch for sticking her nose in where it
doesn't belong, then yes, I think so

    "It's so much fun hearing you talk like that!" said Usagi.  It was,

too,

even though it was a little overblown.  Okay, a lot.  "Is that how people

talk

in America?"

    "No, Usagi, it's just me.  I'm not upsetting you, am I?"

    Him?  Upset her?  "Of course not.  I was just curious as to what it's

like

in America."

    "It's, er...  nothing like you'd expect.

Seijuro: They were berets, act like snobs, and worship Jerry Lewis

Usagi: Um, that's France, not America.

Seijuro: Shoot. I hate it when I get those two confused.

    "I bet you must be close to your sister", said Usagi, pausing to spoon

some

sherbet into her mouth.  "She was worried about you."

    "Pay her no mind", said Seijuro.  "She may be beautiful, but forget

about

her for now."

    "Beautiful?  That's strange, my brother Shingo never calls me

'beautiful'."

Shingo: That's because I keep my incestuous feelings under wraps better.

    Usagi giggled from amusement.  Haruka giggled too, but at Seijuro.

"Your

lines..." she said.  "Your lines..."

Usagi: Only someone as vacuous as Minako would fall for them.

    "Luna, I'm not transforming here.  What if someone sees me?  For all I

know

maybe someone's looking out their window right now, and they'll know I

have a

transformation pen.  I know I told Naru and Natsuna, but I don't want

everyone

in the whole world to know who I am.  What if someone's looking out the

window

at me?  They'd see me naked for a moment

Luna; Only a pedophile would be interested in your nude body.

Mamoru: Hey!

    "Natsumi, cats can't talk.  I bet on your planet you haven't even

heard

of cats and you don't know about them."

    "Well, on our planet we...  I mean...  there's no such thing as

another

planet!

Heh. I would like to have Usagi admit that she slipped that one out.

    "Yeah, Rei, we wait.  If I have to fight them, I'm not going to fight

them

alone.  I want us to all be here for it.  One part of my head says to get

it

over with so I can do something fun somewhere else, and another says that

if

I got us killed because we didn't have enough people, I'd have even less

fun."

Death: NOT FOR ME, IT ISN'T.

    "I must go"

go,

    The elevator door opened and they got in.  "Now for the transformation

so

they can let me in", said Sailor Moon.  She raised her moon pen into the

air.

Then she yelled out a command.  "Moon Power!  Turn me into someone who
they'll let inside their apartment!"  Ribbons of rainbow color enveloped

her as

her clothes changed and she lost several years of apparent age, instead of
gaining them as she usually did with that pen.  When the elevator finally
reached Seijuro and Natsumi's floor, what stepped out were four Sailor

Senshi,

two cats, and a ten year old blonde carrying several boxes.

I see. She's in a drug pusher disguise. Clever.

    Ann threw another bolt at Usagi, but this time she dodged it.  Then
Jupiter yelled "Supreme Thunder!" and her tiara gathered energy and flung
bolts of lightning Natsumi's way.  Natsumi might have been fast, but it

was

hard for even her to dodge lightning.  When the bolts hit her and she

screamed,

Sailor Jupiter tackled her.

    Meanwhile Mars, Mercury and Venus were trying to pummel Ail.  Ail

threw

a bolt of energy at them, but it seemed smaller weaker

smaller and weaker

    "You needed love from them, and you forgot to tell them?  You couldn't
even leave a note or something?  I know they can read."  And, thought

Sailor

Moon, people called *her* dumb?

Tree: It's not like I have hands to write anything with, stupid git.

    "I never needed energy in order to give them energy.  As long as they

love

me and the world, I will have all the energy they need."

    "Well, say what you mean!"

Tree: You're stupid.

Usagi: I mean besides that.

    "But *anyway*" said Usagi, changing the subject, "maybe you should

tell

everyone at school that you're aliens.  They'd all love you!"

    "Do you really think nobody would mind that we're a little different?"
asked Seijuro.

    "They might", interjected Minako.  "Sometimes if you're different, it

makes

people think they're better than you.  If you're anything other than

Japanese,

who knows what everyone else at school would think."

That they should be turned over to the government for dissection? :)

    "Minako..." said Usagi.  "I don't think it's like that."

    "Usagi", said Makoto.  "People hate me right now for being too tall

and

strong.

Luna; Ironically, once you hit eighteen or so, these attributes will enable
to you to get revenge by becoming a super model, and they'll hate you for
being something their not: more attractive than they can ever be.

    "I'll see you later, Seijuro, Natsumi!" said Usagi as she left.

    "Bye everyone"

Bye, everyone,"

 said Makoto, and left.

    "Bye"

Bye,

said Rei, then Ami, both leaving.

    "See you later"

later,

Got a whole streak of missed commas in dialogue there.

    "It's okay", said Usagi.  She hugged Minako, who seemed about to break
into tears.  "I don't think worse of you for it.  Please believe me."

    "You don't?  Really?"

Usagi: Yep, gaijin. Of course we're going to have you do all of our menial
tasks since that's all your kind is good for.

    If Sailor Moon had defeated Beryl without turning back time, things

were

even worse than Setsuna had thought.  Everything *could* still happen on
schedule, just a year early, with nobody noticing that a year wasn't

repeated.

Except for one big problem.  Setsuna had sent Small Lady a year into the
future, so she'd appear when Sailor Moon was fighting the Black Moon

family.

But now...  that was wrong.  If that repeated year never happened, the

Black

Moon would be happening fairly soon.  Small Lady should appear *now*.

Instead

of fixing time, Setsuna had ruined it further....

Well, nice to see some ill effects from Usagi's changes.

This one was a bit rough. Quite a few minor grammar errors spread
throughout, but overall it worked.

D.B. Sommer




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