Hello, all! ^_^

Sorry for the long delay on this chapter - hopefully it was worth the wait. 
Unfortunately, I was delayed by a number of RL events that should hopefully 
not be recurring, so the next one should be out much sooner. Do me a favour, 
and let me know what you think, okay? I always love some good C&C.

Anyway, on with the fic!

**********

REVAMPED LEGAL DISCLAIMER: the Sailor Senshi belong to Kodansha and
Cloverway, and the Samurai Troopers are the legal property of Sunrise and
Bandai Entertainment. I am only borrowing them for a few chapters, and I
intend no harm.


                      RONIN SUMMER: CONVERGENCE

  A Bishoujou Senshi Sailor Moon / Yoroiden Samurai Troopers cross-over

                          by Morgan Hudson

"Convergence (n) - the approach of an infinite series to a finite limit."

Chapter 8: Distraction and Destruction

	Radanthus the Unconquered did not sit in the throne room of the
Crimson Nadir: he *brooded* in it. Brooding had become a second nature to
him, recently, and one that he was loathe to give up easily. He had spent
years planning his ultimate takeover of the Dark Kingdom; gathering his
troops from the farthest corners of the world and consolidating his
already considerable power until there was nobody willing to oppose him
openly. For months, he had plotted the doom of the Sailor Senshi - not out
of any personal malice, but merely because their deaths would prove his
natural superiority to the rest of the realm beyond any question. He had
been most careful: never revealing himself, always watching them
carefully from the shadows as they had busied themselves with their
battles against that foolish Queen Neherenia and her pathetic Dead Moon
Circus. He had learned about the Sailor Senshi, and he had been taught
about the Samurai Troopers by those who knew them. Their destruction
should have been easy.

	It was, instead, proving very difficult, and this was what had
his teeth grinding in frustration. Radanthus had been prepared for his
first plan to fail: such things were to be expected when encountering an
enemy on open ground for the first time. Nise Suiko's assault on Sailor
Mars had been meant as a feint; merely a chance to see if the Moon
Princess would respond as expected. Shin Mouri was not supposed to have
gotten involved. The Samurai Troopers were supposed to be completely
unaware that anything was going on at all, not actively trying to help the
Senshi make a mess of everything. Now, with Suiko no Shin so fixated on
finding his evil double, Radanthus had lost the ability to use Nise Suiko
in the Earth Realm at all. There was no telling when those two would get
wind of each other and start fighting again - it had already cost him
Vepres and his entire operation at Nango Beach.

	Such things happened. He had recovered as best as possible, and
started working on his second plan: Jadeite. If he could not destroy the
Sailor Senshi suddenly or unexpectedly, then he would have to make sure
that he had a proper scapegoat set up in case they decided to fight back.
There was no point in taking on any of those girls in single combat if he
could find an old relic like Jadeite to do it on his behalf. If he was
especially lucky, they might even manage to kill the former Shittenou, and
he would be able to slay them in revenge. There was nothing like righteous
fury over the death of a comrade to win over the troops, especially those
who had liked the fallen comrade much more than the one who was doing the
avenging. In the meantime, Jadeite would serve as a powerful attraction to
any youma warriors who might have still been weighing their options before
choosing who to support.

	That plan would have been perfect, if Badamon had just been able
to get Jadeite from one room of the castle to another without losing him.
The twisted old priest had been making a lot of convenient mistakes like
that lately, and Radanthus was beginning to seriously doubt their
accidental nature. The more he thought about it, the better an idea it
seemed for him to just eat Badamon at the earliest possible opportunity
and save himself the headache of dealing with the vile little creature. It
wasn't as though Radanthus was stupid enough to think this his head priest
was in any way loyal to him, but the fact remained that Badamon and his
Ankoku Priests were simply too useful for him to destroy. If the priest
was to be believed, they were already working on a way to weaken Sailor
Moon's connection to the ginzuisho, and that was a goal too important for
him to interfere with.

	Even if the disgusting little toad really *did* need to be eaten.

	Radanthus sighed deeply, a sound that caused the entire room to
tremble. Speaking of people who ate things, he had rather expected that
Xiang Yao would have managed to fit at least one or two of the Senshi
down her gullet by now. He just could not understand why so many of his
troops were having trouble beating those girls. There were only five of
them, after all, unless one counted Tuxedo Kamen.

	He knew that Xiang Yao had not killed Tuxedo Kamen, despite her
own insistence to the contrary. If something were to happen to that man,
Radanthus would have felt it reverberating through his bones. As it was,
he knew that Tuxedo Kamen lived in the same way that he knew his arms
were both attached. Even now, he was sure that the young prince was
hurrying to his princess' side, to defend her from whatever evil might be
trying to cause her harm. It was the same thing that Tuxedo Kamen -that
Prince Endymion- had always done, even back when Radanthus had known him.
That meant Radanthus would need to work quickly, if he wanted to strike at
the Senshi before their protector could reach them.

	Rising from his seat, Radanthus waved one shadowy arm and the wall
in front of him rippled like a pool of water. The rock and crystal melted
and reformed, shimmering slightly as they parted to reveal the swirling
blankness of the void. It had not been easy to learn all the tricks of
this ancient castle, but Radanthus had been particularly inspired. With a
slight twist of his clawed fingers, he began the task of keying the portal
to the appropriate realm. Once, Radnathus' father had used this portal to
keep in touch with his masters back on Earth - now Radanthus had taken
control of it to make sure none of his minions could escape his grasp.

	"Fei Lian," he said, focusing his will until the portal took on
that particular shade of azure that he had always associated with the
inside of his loyal servant's head. "Your master speaks, Fei Lian. Allow
me to see through your eyes."

	The twisting and pulsing threads of blue parted, and slowly
the face of Xiang Yao came into focus. The purple-haired woman was
kneeling over Fei Lian, with a look of bordeom reflected in her crimson
eyes as she idly raised a wicked-looking dagger over her head and prepared
to slip it into the youma exposed throat. Radanthus gestured, and Fei
Lian's hand shot up to grab her wrist before she could strike.

	"Oh, you've recovered," she said flatly. "I was about to finish
you off so you'd stop slowing me down."

	"Do so," Radanthus said through Fei Lian's mouth, "and I would be
most disappointed in you, Xiang Yao. The conditions of your release were
very specific. Should you wish to change those conditions, this is not the
way to do it."

	"Yeah, but if I'd gotten away with it, that damned box would be at
the bottom of the ocean by now, and you'd have nothing left to threaten
me with," Xiang Yao argued with a shrug of her shoulders. "You can't blame
a girl for trying."

	"Putting you back in that box is the least that I could do to
you," Radanthus reminded her. "You were ordered to protect Fei Lian until
he had recovered!"

	"He was taking too long," Xiang Yao explained, slithering out of
his grasp and retreating to the other side of the small room to nurse her
injured wrist. They were in some kind of domicile, Radanthus noted, as he
glanced about through his servant's eyes. Aside from the bed that Fei
Lian's body was lying on, the only other things in the room were a wooden
table with a number of knives and bottles stacked on it and a mirror that
was mounted in the ceiling for some reason, reflecting the light of a
score of small candles that littered the floor. Red light streamed in
through the cracked and dirty window, casting Xiang Yao in a hellish
glow as she stared at him petulantly.

	"Fei Lian may take as long as he wishes," Radanthus decreed,
giving the woman a stern glare. "He has earned that right. Do not forget
that it was he who freed you, Xiang Yao, and he who trapped both Sailor
Jupiter and Touma Hashiba in the Castle of Eternal Regret. You are to
leave him as he is, do you understand?"

	"Yes, of course," Xiang Yao sighed, walking over to the table and
fitting a cigarette into her ebony holder. Picking up one of the nearby
candles, she held the flamt to it until it lit. The serpentine tattoo
that crawled across her face shifted and moved slightly as she drew in a
mouthful of smoke and allowed it to trickle from the corner of her lips.
"It really is rather boring here, though - I haven't had the chance to
kill anyone in at least a day or so. I even had to pay for those medical
supplies, instead of just knifing the shopkeeper and taking whatever I
wanted. Do you have any idea how degrading that was for me?"

	"You have been most patient," Radanthus admitted, nodding Fei
Lian's head sagely, "and now I think the time has come to reward that
patience. I have a mission for you, Xiang Yao: alone."

	"Keep talking," she said, taking another pull from her cigarette
and trying to look uninterested, but Radanthus could tell from the way her
eyes had gleamed at the word 'alone' that he had her where he wanted her.
Xiang Yao was the sort who would chafe under any kind of supervision, no
matter how inobtrusive. Handled properly, her own desire to be unfettered
would provide him with a very useful way to keep her firmly under his
control.

	"You know the Sailor Senshi are in Yokohama," he said, and she
nodded in silent reply. "I want you to go there, alone, and deal with
them."

	"Okay," Xiang Yao said, after a moment's silence. Leaning back in
the window frame, she contemplated the curlicules of smoke rising from her
cigarette. "I'll do it. Consider them dead."

	"I have one condition, though," Radanthus warned her. "Do whatever
you like to Sailor Mars and Sailor Mercury, but the Moon Princess is not
to be harmed. She is too powerful for us to confront directly at this
time."

	"If you insist," Xiang Yao sighed, carefully examining her nails.
The ones on the left hand were laquered a bilous green colour, and seemed
to glisten wetly in the throbbing crimson light that filtered through the
window.

	"You will need to move quickly," Radanthus continued, scowling at
her demeanour. He was accustomed to at least a little bit of subdued
terror in his presence, even if it was filtered through a subordinate.
"Sailor Venus is probably already on her way to assist them - as is
Tuxedo Kamen."

	"Found an antidote, did he?" she mused, with a cheerful smile.
"Well, good: I was afraid this might be getting too easy."

	"Do not underestimate those two," Radanthus said. "Sailor Venus is
the most experienced of the Sailor Senshi, and Tuxedo Kamen has long been
a thorn in the Dark Kingdom's side. They will no doubt seek to confront
us again."

	"I tremble with anticipation," Xiang Yao sighed, as she began to
examine the nails on her other hand. "Powerful or not, oh high and
mightily concerned, Sailor Venus and Tuxedo Kamen can do nothing if they
cannot get to Yokohama. I think I can find a way to slow them down."

	"What are you going to do, Xiang Yao?"

	"I'm going to have some fun," Xiang Yao replied, as she gently
flicked her thumb against the tip of her right index finger. With a
metallic noise, the purple fingernail on that finger suddenly lengthened
into a six-inch long spike of gleaming violet crystal. "It's been a while
since I've been able to play with any of my pets...."

**********

	Deep within the bowels of the Crimson Nadir, Badamon smiled to
himself. It was a mirthless smile, the kind of grimace that was usually
found on bare skulls, and the light in his eyes was cold and hard as he
stroked his bony chin thoughtfully.

	"So," he said to himself, his fingers twisting and forming
themselves into the proper sigils to end his scying spells, "our master
Radanthus wishes to send Xiang Yao against the Senshi, as I had feared.
Clearly, this will not do."

	The shadows behind him shifted slightly, and the tattered old
wizard gave a dry chuckle. Nise Suiko could be surprisingly stealthy, for
one so lacking in subtlety, but Badamon could always tell when the youma
was near. If nothing else, he could rely on the faint musty aroma of
stagnant water, rotting fish, and algae that seemed to follow his servant
around as a sure sign of his presence. Nise Suiko carried the scent of
death on him: Badamon liked that in a subordinate.

	"Your timing is impeccable," he said, bobbing his head slightly
in recognition. Nise Suiko responded by stepping forward into the feeble
light cast by Badamon's crystal ball and staring impassively down at the
smaller robed figure. The youma was clad in his distinctive scarlet and
ebony yoroi, a leathery carapace of chitin and skin that rasped against
itself with every motion. Thin rivulets of crimson slime oozed out from
between the cracks between each plate of armour, trickling down his body
and pooling on the floor. Somewhere behind his impassive ivory faceplate,
twin points of ruby light sparkled as he gripped his trident and held it
at the ready.

	"Yeah, whatever," he said in a sepulchral tone. "What's the big
idea, dragging me back up here, old man? I thought we discussed this."

	"Xiang Yao will soon be interfering with our plans, Nise Suiko,"
Badamon explained, still staring into the depths of his own crystal ball
instead of bothering to face the armoured warrior. "I think it is time
that you went to Yokohama."

**********

	Seiji Date leaned back and rested his head against the cool glass
window of the subway car. Luckily for them, the subways were still up and
running without any trouble - ever since one of the trains on the
Yamanote line crashed a few days ago, JR East had been having a hard time
getting anything through. Nearly the entire Minato ward was caught in a
vicious snarl; some trains were being re-routed to new tracks, others
were being delayed, and still more were just plain not arriving. For a
company that prided itself on never being more than six seconds behind
schedule, it was proving to be a massive problem for Japan Railways. Seiji
made a mental note to contact the family accontant and have him start
buying up stock while people's confidence in the company was still low.
Concern over a late train or two might cause the price to waver, but in a
few weeks all anybody was going to remember was that JR East had managed
to have a train jump the rails and skid through downtown Mita without
any of the passengers getting anything worse than a sprained wrist.

	Assuming, of course, that nobody counted the passenger that had
never gotten off the train that night at all. Seiji was just guessing,
but the more he thought about it the more it seemed like his old partner
Touma had been on that train. There was no way that a train with more
than eleven cars would just hop off its tracks and do a backflip for no
good reason. According to the photos in the newspaper, the front car had
actually gone up and over the entire length of the train's body before
touching down again. Things that warped and crazy only happened to him and
four other people that he knew.

	Seiji hoped he was wrong. It wasn't like he could be sure: all he
had to go on was a cryptic phone call from Ryo about 'trouble' -which,
knowing Ryo, could mean anything from a flat tire to an invasion by the
armies of the Evil Dynasty- and a few vague reports about a blue streak
that had zipped through the train and carted everybody off to safety while
it was in mid-air. It wasn't making him any more happy that he had managed
to blunder into a battlefield within twenty minutes of coming to Jubaan,
but that didn't necessarily mean anything. According to the guy he had
patched up, they had random fights with the forces of evil every other
week around these parts.

	He shook his head and sighed. Logic be damned, he could tell that
this was going to end up involving him somehow before it was all over.
Something about the whole situation was giving him the same 'I am about to
be cosmically screwed' feeling he used to get every time Ryo told him that
things were "under control". It was like a sixth sense that warned him
when explosions were imminent. No, no matter how much he wanted to deny
it, Touma Hashiba was gone, and that had Seiji worried for a number of
reasons. First of all, Touma was the smartest human being that Seiji knew,
and exactly the kind of guy that you wanted to have around in a fight. If
someone had targeted him first, that meant they knew the Troopers far
better than Seiji wanted them to. With Touma missing, it also meant the
rest of them couldn't form the Kikoutei armour, and that left them
vulnerable. Seiji just hoped that the Sailor Senshi knew a trick or two
that would help them compensate.

	Opening one eye slightly, Seiji glanced over at the blonde girl
sitting six seats down from him. Now that he thought about it, maybe it
wouldn't be a bad idea for him to talk to her a little bit and try to get
a better idea about what the Sailor Senshi could offer against whoever
this new enemy was. Just comparing notes couldn't end too badly, right?
It wasn't like he was going to proposition her, or anything. He was just
trying to form a plan. Totally professional. He was sure that she would
understand.

	Rising from his seat, Seiji inched across the aisle of the gently
rocking subway and squeezed his way past some of the people standing in
his way with a muttered apology.  Aside from Mamoru Chiba and himself,
there were no other men in this section of the train - its windows bore
the distinctive pink seals of a 'lady's car', a car normally reserved for
women only in order to protect them from perverts. Another bad side effect
of the normal trains being down was that the subway was even more crowded
than usual, and there had been nowhere else for them to go. The last thing
he wanted any of these girls to do was think he might be some kind of
deviant. The trick was to keep his hands in sight and above his head at
all times, so that they knew he wouldn't be doing anything untowards.
Pushed off-balance by a stray elbow to his spine, Seiji deftly caught
himself on one of the thick leather straps that dangled from the ceiling
for just that purpose and smiled down at the target of his attentions.

	"Hi," he said, brushing the thick shag of blond hair out of his
eyes for a few seconds before his bangs stubbornly tumbled back over his
face as usual. "Sorry for the intrusion, but I was just thinking that
since we're going to working together for a while, maybe we should get to
know each other better."

	"Well," the girl mused, tapping her finger against her lips in a
thoughtful manner, "I don't *usually* go out on dates with random boys
when the world is in danger. On the other hand, since you did come all
the way over here, it's only fair of me to accept...."

	"What? NO!" Seiji shook his head frantically, as a chill ran down
his spine. Why did this always happen every time he spoke in front of a
girl? They always jumped to the wrong conclusion, and then he wound up
getting tackled. Panicking, he took a hasty step backwards and bumped into
the office lady standing behind him. He was completely surrounded by
women! Oh, God, there was nowhere to *run*!

	"Are you sure?" the girl asked, raising one eyebrow. "I mean, I am
willing to make an exception, here. It seems kind of rude to not ask a
girl out when she's already accepted. A lesser woman might think you were
uninterested."

	"Minako, stop teasing the poor boy!" a voice whispered from inside
her purse. "He looks like he's going to have a stroke!"

	"Well, if he *hasn't* been completely awestruck by my amazing good
looks and impeccable poise yet, then why did he come over here?" Minako
argued with her bag. "It's the only logical reason!"

	"I just thought we could, you know, discuss strategy, and such,"
Seiji stammered. "Compare powers, find out what our strengths are, that
kind of thing! I didn't want to- I mean, you're cute, but I'm not too
sure that we should be thinking about that sort of thing...."

	"That seems very sensible," the purse agreed. "You should try to
take things more seriously, too, Minako."

	"Luna, you should never interrupt a boy when he is talking about
how cute he thinks I am!" Minako said sternly. "That is no way to repay
me for smuggling you onto this train - at great personal expense to
myself, by the way."

	"You sealed me in your handbag!" the purse objected, hopping a few
inches off of the seat. "You'd never do this sort of thing to Artemis!"

	"Of course not," Minako admitted. "I'd just wear Artemis around my
neck and claim he was a scarf. You clashed with my blouse and wouldn't
stay still."

	"I am not a fashion accessory!" the purse shouted, and Minako
quickly clapped her hands over the clasp as a few of the nearby women
turned and gave her a curious look. Smiling innocently, the blonde girl
clutched her large red bag to her chest and batted her eyelashes at them
until they went back to minding their own business.

	"If this is a bad time, I can come back later," Seiji offered.

	"No!" Minako said quickly, reaching out and grabbing his wrist
with surprising strength. "I mean, I like your idea, Seiji. We really
should get to know each other better. Why don't you sit next to me for the
rest of the trip? We can talk about all sorts of stuff!"

	"Won't your talking purse object?" he asked, scratching his head.

	"Not if it knows what's good for it," she answered, shifting over
slightly and patting the cushion next to her. "Besides, it's not really
a talking purse: that would be crazy. It's actually a talking cat that's
hiding INSIDE my purse."

	"Oh," Seiji said, nodding wisely. "Well, that makes a lot more
sense." The disturbing thing was that it kind of did, to him. After all,
everybody who was anybody in the Sailor V fan club knew that she had a
talking cat who helped her solve all of her crimes. It wasn't too hard to
imagine that the other Sailor Senshi like Minako might have talking pets,
too....

	He was about to sit down when he felt it. Like a sudden jolt that
ran through his entire body, the familiar tingle of his armour's power
coursed through his veins. In the window, he could see a glowing kanji
flare to life on his forehead with an emerald light that flickered briefly
in his eyes before fading back into obscurity. There was something evil
nearby. He couldn't explain it, but somehow ever fibre of his being was
warning him that he was in danger.

	**Touma was attacked on a train...**

	Eyes narrowing, the young man turned and cast his gaze over the
crowd of women that filled the car. There were girls in school uniforms,
office ladies on their way home from work, mothers with groceries and the
usual blend of teens who were taking the 'gothic and lolita bible' way too
seriously, but no sign of any demons or Masho.

	"Are you okay?" Minako asked, giving Seiji a suspicious look.

	"Yeah," Seiji said cautiously, as he shook his head and tried to
ignore the sickening tingle he could feel in the base of his spine. Any
minute now, his armour was telling him, the roof was going to give way
and it was going to start *raining* Dynasty Soldiers, and they were all
going to be screwed.

	At the end of the car stood a young Chinese woman, dressed in a
dazzling red silk dress with golden scale patterns. Her long purple hair
stirred slightly in the breeze, and Seiji scowled as he realised that they
were both indoors. There was something about that woman that was setting
his armour off like a fire alarm, and mysterious breezes from nowhere
were not doing anything to make him more comfortable.

	"Xiang Yao," Mamoru Chiba hissed, emerging from the crowd like a
shadow. The dark-haired young man was dressed almost entirely in black,
with a dull olive jacket his only concession to colour; a suit that helped
him blend into his surroundings much better than the tuxedo and domino
mask that Tuxedo Kamen usually wore in battle. Judging from the look on
his face, he was probably going to change into his evening wear at any
moment.

	"THAT'S Xiang Yao?" Seiji asked, taking another look at the woman.
Their eyes met, and he locked gazes with her boiling crimson irises as she
smiled wickedly and bobbed her head in greeting. Seiji had seen eyes like
that before, and they had never been on anybody who had wished him well.

	"I'm honoured you remember me," Xiang Yao replied with a demure
smile as she bowed slightly. "Racing to the rescue, are we? How heroically
disgusting of you. In case you haven't figured it out, my employer frowns
on last minute reinforcements. They cramp his style, and more importantly,
mine."

	"How did you find us?" Mamoru asked, edging forward slightly.
Seiji stepped aside to keep a bit of space between them, in case Xiang Yao
tried to use some kind of projectile attack, and bumped into one of the
other girls on the train. She rocked slightly on their heels, then toppled
over sideways like a felled log, completely stiff and immobile. Some kind
of hypnosis, possibly - they were the only ones on the train still able to
move.

	"That's not the question you ought to be asking," Xiang Yao
replied, as the nails on her right hand flashed purple and extended into
long spikes of gleaming crystal. Within each razor-edged claw, a shadowy
form moved and swirled like a jungle cat pacing the length of its cage.
"The real question here is: what am I going to do with you?"

	Scowling, Mamoru reached into his jacket and began to step
forward, only to stop when Minako reached out and grabbed his wrist.

	"Train full of innocent people, remember?" she muttered under
her breath. After a moment, Mamoru nodded reluctantly and slowly eased his
hand back out into plain sight, a long-stemmed rose dangling loosely from
his fingers.

	"Well, since none of you are going to give me an excuse, I guess
I'll have to just handle this on my own," Xiang Yao said with a smirk. She
gestured emphatically, and one of her purple talons flew down the length
of the train. Quickly intercepting himself in front of Mamoru and Minako,
Seiji crossed his arms in front of his face and braced himself. Whatever
was in that thing, his armour made him the best able to deal with it....

	Halfway to them, the crystal shattered into a coruscating ball of
energy that grew in size until it was almost filling the cabin. Seiji
flinched back slightly as a giant pair of clawed hands burst out of the
oncoming wall of purple fire and slammed into his chest. Gasping for
breath, the young man was hurled backwards with violet flames trailing
after him like the tail of an angry comet. The rear wall of the train gave
like tinfoil, and he hurtled into the cool damp air of the subway tunnel
head first.

	A pair of eyes gleamed at him from the depths of the fireball, and
he heard a thunderous growl as a shape began to take form from the massive
swirl of eldritch flame. Glancing over his shoulder, Seiji saw the cold
gleam of the steel rails flashing past beneath them and growing ever
closer. He hit the ground in a flurry of sparks, skipping back into the
air and slamming back down again with the squealing sound of metal on
metal. The two of them skidded back down the tunnel for several feet
before the friction of Seiji's body scraping against the tracks finally
brought him to a shuddering halt and the crushing weight of his attacker
was hurled free of him. The young man lay where he had fallen, smoke
curling around his body as it rose from the ground beneath him.

	After a moment, Seiji coughed and sat up, his cream-coloured shirt
falling away from his back in long tatters of silk to reveal the emerald
green plates underneath. Looking down at the smoldering and filthy rags
that *used* to be one of his nicest outfits, he sighed in disgust and
shook his head. Tearing the rest of the suit off with a sharp tug, Seiji
tossed it over his shoulder and turned to face his opponent, clad in
sleek green and white armour that he had not been wearing a few minutes
ago.

	"Great," he spat, flipping his hair out of the way with a jerk of
his head and dropping into a defensive stance. "Now I'm going to have to
buy a new shirt. I hope you're happy, you tin-plated...."

	The youma emerged from the shadows, its tail lashing angrily
behind it as its growled. It stood almost twice as tall as Seiji did, with
a thick mane of golden hair that swirled about its heavy skull and a large
horn of purple crystal jutting from its brow. Despite himself, Seiji
recoiled in surprise. He had been expecting some kind of armoured demon,
like Saranbou, or a spectral wraith like the Ankoku Priests. This thing
looked like some kind of sick blend between a lion and a man, with massive
sabre-like fangs in its maw and giant clawed paws instead of hands. It was
*drooling*.

	"Wow," Seiji said, as he struggled to regain his composure,
"you're even ugly in the dark, aren't you? Arago must have thrown you out
of the Dynasty on general principles."

	The beast let out a roar that shook loose a rain of dirt from the
ceiling and charged, swiping at the smaller boy with a massive paw.
Ducking under its extended arm, Seiji darted forward and drove his knee
into the monster's stomach. Before it could react, he had already punched
it twice in the ribs, circling around it and giving it a parting kick to
the spine as he leapt clear and landed in a crouch several feet away.
Gasping, the boy staggered and fell to his knees as pain jolted from
his heel all the way to his thigh. Looking down, Seiji ran his fingers
along the side of his metal greave and watched in surprise as the
enchanted steel cracked and crumbled away at his touch. As the youma
turned to face him and slowly rose to its full height, he lifted his fists
and noticed for the first time that his gauntlets were equally twisted
and broken from striking the creature. Blood flowed weakly from between
the cracked metal, dripping onto the concrete floor.

	With a deep chortle, the youma began to advance slowly towards
Seiji, closing the distance between them as it casually cracked each one
of its knuckles in sequence and rolled its shoulders as if limbering up
for a bit of light exercise. Seiji groaned and grabbed onto the pipes that
lined the side of the tunnel, painfully dragging himself to his feet as
it drew closer.

	"BUSSO, KORIN!" he called out, raising one hand above his head as
the monster neared and feeling the power of his armour surge inside of
him as it responded to his cry.

	The lights in the ceiling burst with a stacatto of loud pops,
showering sparks and broken glass upon the two combatants and plunging the
tunnel into a darkness broken only by the eerie glow of writhing
electricity rising from the rails like a web of blue lightning. The youma
roared angrily as the tracks flared into life, their power surging in
thick arcs that streaked through the air and met directly in front of him.
The air sizzled, and there was a sudden flash of light like burning
magnesium, casting the entire tunnel into sharp relief as Seiji Date's
body absorbed the surging current. There was a rush of wind as the
crackling ball of energy surrounding the boy imploded and left him clad
in his full armour.

	It stood nearly half a foot taller than Seiji had alone, sheated
from head to toe in overlapping plates of emerald and black steel that
glowed softly in the shadows of the tunnel. A jagged no-dachi jutted from
the ground between him and the youma, its shuriken-shaped hilt level to
his eyes as he stepped forward and drew it out of the concrete. Despite
its immense size, the armoured figure lifted the sword with one hand as
though it were a rapier.

	"Now, let's try that again," Korin no Seiji said quietly, his
voice echoing slightly from behind the scuplted silver mask that covered
his face.

	The beast was on top of him before he could blink, driving him to
the ground with its immense weight and striking him in the face. Its claws
screeched against his mask, and Seiji's head was rocked back by the force
of the blow. The youma's fangs closed on Seiji's neck, the metal of his
throat guard squealing and buckling under the pressure of its powerful
jaws as he drove the spiked pommel of his sword into its stomach and tried
to lever it off of him. All he needed was to get enough distance between
them to swing his sword, and it would all be over.

	Seeming to have the same idea, the youma growled menacingly and
wrapped its paw around the young samurai's wrist, twisting and wrenching
at his arm until his fingers opened of their own accord and the no dachi
tumbled to the ground nearby. Gritting his teeth, Seiji brought his knees
up to his chest and kicked upwards, planting his feet in the monster's
abdomen and launching it off of him. Rolling onto his stomach, he
scrambled towards the place where sword lay glistening on the subway
rails.

	Plunging its claws into the side of the tunnel in mid-flight, the
youma nimbly pivoted its body and reversed direction, soaring back towards
Seiji and bounding off of the opposite wall before catching him by one of
the metal spurs that hung from his heels. With a single tug, the beast
hauled Seiji into the air and quickly spun him around with both hands
before throwing him down the length of the tunnel like a hammer. Flipping
head over heels, the armoured boy thrust his hand against the floor,
digging a broken trench in the concrete with his fingers as he skidded to
a halt and landed in a crouch. More than thirty feet back the way he had
come, the youma snorted derisively and made a beckoning gesture.

	"Don't let it go to your head, fuzzy," Seiji said with a grim
smile. "You may be strong, but smell isn't everything!" Racing up the
tracks with superhuman speed, the boy vaulted over his enemy's head,
wrapping his arms securely around its neck as he landed behind it and
drove its head into the ground. There was a crack that echoed through the
cavernous tunnel like a gunshot as the concrete broke from the impact, and
Seiji took advantage of the opportunity to dive for his sword. Grabbing
the Korin Ken, he rolled to his feet and turned to face the monster just
as it shook the last of the debris out of its mane and regained its
footing. In the distance, a faint light began to filter through the
tunnel and the metal rails started to hum softly as they vibrated in their
moorings. Seiji's blade erupted in a thick cloud of azure energy, trailing
a swirling stream of electricity behind him as he raised the sword above
his head and the world seemed to flicker in and out of focus.

	"THUNDERBOLT CUT!" he yelled, his voice nearly drowned out by the
howling of the wind that rushed past them both as he snapped his sword
down and sent a wavering arc of energy flying from the edge of the blade
towards the youma. The beast staggered back, reeling from the force of the
blast, and hurled a piece of broken concrete in return, catching Seiji in
the head and knocking him sprawling across the tracks.

	The howling grew louder as Seiji sat up and tried to get the
ringing out of his ears. Spitting out a gobbet of blood, the young samurai
retracted his silver facemask into the beak of his helmet and wiped his
mouth on the back of his armoured gauntlet. A blinding light flooded the
tunnel, and Seiji looked up to see the rumbling mass of an oncoming train.
Its brakes screeched hopelessly as it hurtled towards him like a wall of
steel, and Seiji braced himself for the inevitable impact.

	"VENUS LOVE-ME CHAIN!"

	A loop of glittering hearts fluttered around the armoured boy,
gleaming and tightening around his torso even as they changed into links
of golden chain. There was a sudden tug, and Seiji found himself flying
through the air as the train thundered past beaneath him in a blur of
silver and orange. He watched as it disappeared into the distance,
rounding the corner and vanishing into the shadows as he landed heavily
on his side and rolled over.

	On the other end of the chain, Sailor Venus smiled and gave him
a jaunty salute with her index and middle fingers before forming them
into a 'V' shape and winking. Standing slightly behind her with his back
turned, Tuxedo Kamen glanced over his shoulder and tipped the brim of his
top hat in greeting.

	"Venus, check on Seiji and make sure he's alright," the masked
man said, striding forwards and drawing his cane like a sword. "I'll keep
our furry youma friend busy."

	"Sorry it took us so long to get here," Venus said apologetically,
as she quickly knelt beside Seiji and began to examine him, "but Xiang Yao
sicced all her zombies on us. She gave us the slip while we were fighting
them off, so we figured we should head over here and see if you needed any
help. Good thing we did, huh?"

	"Very good," Seiji agreed, struggling slightly. "Would you mind
untying me?"

	"A little," Minako admitted with a smile, as she began to loosen
the chain wrapped around him. In the distance, Tuxedo Kamen parried the
youma's claws with a twirl of his cane and flicked the rose off of his
lapel into its face. There was an explosion of crimson light, and when
the smoke cleared the beast was completely unharmed. Roaring, it swiped
at the masked man, who backpeddaled frantically to avoid its razor-sharp
talons.

	"So, any ideas why Xiang Yao would just toss a youma at us and
run?" Minako asked, watching as Tuxedo Kamen ducked under its claws and
thrust his cane into its knee, only to have the ornate walking stick
splinter harmlessly. "I mean, she could have stayed and fought us
herself, after all. Kinda seems like that would be more her style."

	"I think it's obvious," Seiji groaned, as he clambered back to
his feet. "Thanks to her, we just missed our train. She must be up to
something in Yokohama, and she didn't want us wrecking her fun. Wherever
our friends are right now, they're probably in a lot of trouble."

**********

	"I'm telling you, man, this is the perfect plan!" Shuu Rei Fuan
gushed, draping his arm around his friend's shoulders. The stocky Chinese
boy was dressed in a baggy pair of dark brown overalls and a porkpie hat
that struggled to cover as much of his shaggy head as possible. A pair of
cheap plastic sunglasses that lay rakishly across the bridge of his nose
was his one concession to the brilliant sunshine that streamed down upon
them as they sauntered down the crowded street.

	"Isn't that what you said about your plan to make popcorn in the
industrial rice cooker?" Shin Mouri asked, with a note of concern in his
voice. Unlike his friend, who had refused to allow the weather to cramp
his own unique sense of style, Shin had been more than willing to pack
away his usual collection of sweaters in favour of a pair of light khaki
pants and a short-sleeved silk shirt with swirling patterns of blue and
white covering it. He frowned and ran one hand through his auburn hair
self-consciously. "I seem to recall spending rather a lot of time picking
caramel out of my hair after that incident...."

	"Hey, that was a total fluke," Shuu argued, waving his hand as if
to brush away the other boy's concerns with it. "Touma spent all day
trying to overclock that thing, and he was as surprised as we were when
it blew. Nobody could have predicted that was going to happen."

	"I would still feel better if Ryo were with us," Shin argued.
Somewhere in the back of his head, he could tell that there was a voice
trying to remind him of all the other times he had listened to Shuu Rei
Fuan and gotten in trouble. Unfortunately, the cursed thing never seemed
to be loud enough to overwhelm Shuu's own natural exuberance.

	"Ryo is still sleeping off his date with Ami Mizuno," Shuu
reminded him with a slight frown. "Besides, that boy has had enough fun to
last him for a while. He is on fun rationing until we can catch up."

	"I don't want to catch up with Ryo," Shin said plaintively. "I
want to find Nise Suiko and get to the bottom of all this! Come on, Shuu;
can't we just nip back to the house and go over those charts one more
time? I'm sure we must be overlooking something-"

	"NO!" Shuu replied sternly, nudging down his sunglasses and
glaring at Shin over the colourful plastic rims. "No more charts, no more
tactics, and no more obsessing over Nise Suiko! I'm not going to let my
best buddy wreck his whole summer vacation with studying when we could be
out having some fun. Look at us, man! There is no reason that two guys as
cool, rich, and handsome as us should be forced to spend this much time
together. We should have steady girlfriends, or at least a string of
meaningless physical relationships! We're standing in the middle of
Yokohama, the babe capital of Japan, and all you can think about is your
evil twin? That's just sick, dude: sick and wrong."

	"Well, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to take a *little* break," Shin
admitted, shoulders slumping in defeat as Shuu gave him a cheerful slap
on the back.

	"That's more like it! Now, the Yokohama Stadium is just around
this corner, and the Baystars game should be starting in a couple of
minutes. They're playing the Hanshin Tigers, and you know how crazy Touma
is for those guys, so we'll buy some souvenirs and try to get him an
autograph. That should make him feel better - last time I talked to him
he was still kind of upset about how I sold him to some girl over the
internet." Shuu rolled his eyes and made a face. "Some guys, huh? Go
figure. Anyway, I figure after we catch the game we can walk around the
city and see if we can't find some babes. It'll be great!"

	"Are you sure about all this?" Shin asked, raising one eyebrow
dubiously.

	"Yeah, why not? Worst case, at least we got out of the house and
saw a decent ball game. Ryo can hold down the fort while we're gone, and
it's not like we're going to miss anything important." Shuu shrugged and
grinned widely, ruffling Shin's hair. "Just relax, man. I'll go get the
tickets; you stay here and keep an eye out for any cute girls, okay?"

	"Will do," Shin promised, giving a mocking salute as his friend
disappeared into the crowd. Thrusting his hands into his pockets, the
young man rocked back on forth on his heels as he hummed quietly to
himself and watched the crowd rushing past him. Back home in Yamaguchi,
a chap would be lucky if he saw this many people all day, let alone in one
place. How did anyone manage to get anything done in the middle of so much
chaos?

	His slightly bemused smile faded before it even had the chance to
fully appear. At least if he was still back home, he would have had the
advantage of knowing the terrain. There would have been a lot fewer places
to hide, too, if Nise Suiko had tried to attack him in the heart of his
clan's territory. In this huge metropolis, Shin was almost literally a
fish out of water. Hagi City was hardly a rural little suburb, but
Yokohama made him feel like he had just fallen off of a passing turnip
truck. It was too big, too noisy, and too fast for his tastes. In a crowd
like this, he could walk right past Nise Suiko and not even see the
blackguard until it was too late. He was hunting for a monster that wanted
him dead, and for all the luck he was having, he might as well be trapped
in an alien dimension.

**********

	"This sucks," Ann groused, as she clambered down a jagged pile
of debris that had been left behind in a recent landslide. Her dark
maroon jumpsuit was sticking to her skin, and her usually untamed pink
hair hung limply around her shoulders as she panted for breath. There were
several rips and tears in her clothes, revealing patches of pale green
skin, and her entire body was smeared with dust and grime. "It's hot, and
muggy, we're probably surrounded by things that want to eat us, and
worst of all, everything in this stupid dimension smells like eggs! This
is the worst secret mission ever!"

	"If you're not careful, it's going to be the *shortest* secret
mission ever," her partner admonished her, as he nimbly dropped to the
ground next to her. Much to Ann's annoyance, her male counterpart was
still in pristine condition, with barely even a blue hair out of place.
"Elios warned us about this Radanthus guy - he's got spies everywhere. If
we want to convince him we're on his side, you might not want to be going
on about how we're on a secret mission. Just a suggestion."

	"Oh, what are you so worried about, Ail?" Ann asked, sitting on a
nearby boulder and beginning to massage her sore foot with both hands.
"Elios said that Radanthus wasn't watching us, remember? That's the whole
reason he sent us out here in the first place."

	"That was before we walked into his backyard," Ail said, casting
a worried glance over his shoulder. "Just because he wasn't watching us
before doesn't mean he isn't watching us right now."

	Ann snorted and made a face. "Ooh, listen to the big, fancy,
secret... mission-taking... guy."

	"Agent," Ail reminded her.

	"Whatever," she said, with a dismissive gesture. "The point is,
I'm hot and tired and I want to go home. This whole thing was a bad idea
from the start."

	"Well, if you thought so, why didn't you say something?"

	"I DID! I very specifically dragged you off by your pointy little
ears and told you that this was the stupidest idea ever and we shouldn't
go along with it."

	"Oh, yeah." Ail rubbed the pointed tip of his left ear, wincing
slightly at the memory. "Well, in that case, why did you come?"

	"Because you're completely hopeless without me, and you know it,"
Ann explained, as she began to rub her other foot. "You couldn't pick a
cardian to save your life."

	"I could so," Ail argued, placing his hands on his hips and
frowning slightly. "I've been working very hard at it, lately. I've
practically got one or two of them willing to listen to me."

	"Right," Ann said, giving her partner a disbelieving look. "So, if
we got attacked by an army of youma right now, what cardian would you
summon?"

	"That's easy," Ail scoffed, reaching into his vest and drawing a
large white card. "I'd go with Nixeen."

	"Nixeen?" Ann laughed. "Nixeen can't fight at all! She's a healing
cardian! The only thing Nixeen could do after the fight is heal your
wounds by kissing-" Stopping in mid-sentence, the girl narrowed her eyes
and glared at her partner.

	"What?" he asked, blinking at her in confusion.

	"Give me the card, Ail."

	"I don't think I should," Ail said cautiously, tucking the card
back inside his vest and taking a step further away from the girl.

	"The card, Ail. Right now." Extending her hand, Ann gestured for
him to place it in her open palm. With her other hand, she generated a
small web of crackling energy to remind him why he should be listening to
her.

	"But it's my favourite," Ail complained, even as he pulled it out
and offered it to her.

	"I noticed," she said sourly, as she snatched the card away from
him and tucked it away inside her own vest. "Why don't we leave Little
Miss Kiss-and-Tell with me, hmm? I'd hate for you to get distracted."

	"There you go again," Ail moaned, sitting on the other side of
the same boulder and resting his chin on his fist. "Honestly, Ann, how
can you be so insecure? You're the only female in our whole species!"

	"Maybe I'd be more secure," Ann said, smacking her partner on the
back of the head, "if you weren't always off trying to flirt with every
other girl in the universe!"

	"That's barely even halfway true!" Ail argued. "I didn't try to
flirt with the leaders of that Amazon tribe on Femax, remember? And they
were definitely coming on to me."

	"They were trying to kill you, moron."

	"In a very sensual manner! Besides, they didn't really want to
hurt me. It was clear that their hearts were conflicted."

	"Really? Because their axes and spears all seemed to agree." Ann
scowled and shook her head. "I still can't believe Fiore convinced me to
save you that time."

	"Heh. Yeah." Ail chuckled at the memory. "Remember how surprised
their queen looked when you kicked her in the head? I've never seen
somebody that big go down so quickly."

	"You know, I'm technically still their ruler," Ann reminded him.
"I could always take back that pardon I gave you."

	"Maybe," Ail admitted with a smirk, "but if I wasn't around, you'd
be stuck hanging out with Fiore all day, and he'd drive you nuts."

	"That's the exact same argument he used back on Femax to make me
save you in the first place," Ann admitted with a smile of her own.
Cautiously she let her hand drape over her partner's, giving his fingers
a gentle squeeze of reassurance. It hadn't been easy, after they had left
Earth that last time. They had wandered the cosmos for years with their
tree, looking for any place that they could belong. It had been a miracle
that they had managed to stumble across little Fiore when they had - the
poor child had been nearly as lost as they were.

	"I hope he's all right," Ann sighed. As hot and miserable and
uncomfortable as it might be in the Dark Kingdom, she could only imagine
how lonely it had to be for Fiore, guarding their tree in the depths of
space. He had wanted to come along with them so badly.

	"He'll be fine," Ail assured her, patting her hand reassuringly.
"I keep telling you, Ann, you're too protective of him. Fiore is a lot
tougher -and more powerful- than he looks. If anybody tries to hurt the
Makaiju, he'll be able to handle them."

	"He's just a child, Ail! What do you expect him to do, *garden*
people to death?"

	"Something like that, yes," Ail said, looking a bit uncomfortable
as he adjusted the embroided gold collar of his dark blue jumpsuit. "Fiore
can take care of himself just fine, Ann - we need to focus on what we're
doing here and now if we want to get anywhere. The others are depending
on us."

	Ann nodded. Ail was right - that nerdy doctor with the swirly
glasses had made it pretty clear to them that his whole plan revolved
around them making it into the Crimson Nadir and scouting out the place
before Petz and Kaolinite showed up. The problem was, Petz and Kaolinite
might have already found a portal in the Arctic, and she and Ail had just
spent that last two days climbing first up and then down one of the
worst, most treacherous mountains she had ever seen. It felt like they
were just as far away from Radanthus and his castle as they had been
when they started.

	A rock clacked loudly, clattering off of its felows as it bounced
down the slope of the massive slide behind them and Ann's sensitive ears
pricked up noticeably. It wasn't so much the falling rock that was causing
her blood to run cold in her veins - rocks shifted and fell all the time
in places like this. It was more the fact that under the sound of the
rock, she had heard someone hissing under their breath a few dozen feet
above them. Ail had been right; they were being followed.

	A shadowy form billowed up from the ground, its dark cloak
swirling around it as it rose into the air in front of them. The youma was
garbed in a dark green uniform with gleaming silver armour plates covering
its torso and shins that looked for all the world like overlapping razors.
Its head was concealed behind a silver helmet, featureless except for the
small fans of needles on either side where the ears would be on a human,
and an angrily glowing red visor that ran over its eyes.

	Ann rose to her feet, clenching her fists in anticipation, when
she felt Ail's hand on her shoulder. Turning, she looked to see two
identical women emerging from the rocks behind them. The two female youma
were dressed in pale tan leotards, marked with jagged slashes of chocolate
brown fabric and what appeared to be large circular saws rising from
their shoulders like epaulets of jagged steel. The only way to tell that
they were not clones was that one had her rust-coloured hair hanging over
her left eye, and the other preferred to cover her right.

	"Okay," Ann said, slowly unclenching her fists and forcing herself
to relax slightly. "So... what's with all the metal? Is this some kind of
strange new fashion thing? Because it's really not working for me."

	"As if you look any better," one of the twins growled angrily.
"Who wears a leotard with a vest, anyway? What are you two, one of those
couples who always have to dress alike?"

	"Like you're one to talk," Ann snapped back. "Seriously, look at
the two of you! At least cape boy over here bothered to come up with his
own outfit. What, did you two lose a bet?"

	"I told you these costumes made us look stupid," the shorter of
the two twins muttered under her breath, then flinched back slightly as
her sister cast her an evil glare.

	"You have intruded upon our training grounds," the cloaked youma
said, hissing menacingly as the cables running from the back of his helm
twitched and moved like a nest of snakes. "Worse, you are not known to
us. Our master does not approve of spies."

	"I say we take them out," the older twin suggested, the blades
on her shoulders whirring to life for a moment before they slowly returned
to a stop. "Let's show the master what we're really capable of!"

	"Wait," the cloaked youma said warningly. "It was blind ambition
that led to our last defeat. First, let me test their power. Hold back
until you have seen enough."

	"Whatever you say, Kamisori," the girls chorused, taking a step
back as their leader drifted to the ground to face Ail and Ann. His cape
pooled around him, trailing out in all directions and shrouding his
entire body in overlapping folds of black leather.

	"Ann," Ail said cautiously, as he stepped behind his partner and
held her in front of him protectively, "I think this nice youma wants to
have a few words with you."

	"Oh, thank you, Ail," Ann muttered, as she rolled her eyes. "My
hero. How dashing of you, placing my safety above your own."

	"Don't mind me," Ail said with a wide smile as he waved at the
youma present and wandered over to the boulder that he and Ann had been
sitting on. "I can keep myself busy. You all have your own fun - I'll just
be over here playing solitaire."

	"Your mate is quite timid," Kamisori noted coldly.

	"Oh, he does this all the time," Ann assured her opponent, as she
crouched low to the ground and let the eldritch energy of her power start
to build around her in a crackling aura of living shadow. "Don't worry
about it: I'll keep you entertained."

	"I certainly hope that you do," Kamisori said. "Our master wishes
us to improve for him, and there is always room for more practice."

	"Practice is over," Ann spat, and lunged towards the youma on all
fours like a cat. Her nails flashed, trailing streamers of black lightning
as they tore through the air. Bending and folding backwards, the cloaked
youma leaned aside as her strike soared past him and shattered against
the other side of the canyon in an explosion of dust and rock fragments.
Swinging his entire body around at the ankles, Kamisori weaved under Ann
and rose, knocking the breath from her as his helmet smashed into her
stomach and threw off of her feet. The elfin girl hit the ground hard and
rolled to her feet in a single fluid motion, lashing out with a searing
whip of living darkness.

	Kamisori lurched into motion, leaning impossibly far forward and
twisting his entire body like a serpent to evade the crakling and popping
coil of energy that flicked out at him from her hands. His leather cloak
fluttered around him as the youma shot past her and glided in a wide arc
that circled back around to face her.

	Ann smiled. "Nice try, youma, but I think you need a little more
training."

	"I don't," Kamisori replied, and Ann's eyes widened as a sudden
torrent of blood sprayed forth from her lips. The world shivered and lost
colour as she dropped to one knee, clutching her abdomen. She was
bleeding, she noted numbly. He had... cut her? She hadn't even seen a
blade. It didn't even hurt.

	How could he have cut her?

	Rising to his full height, Kamisori let his cloak fall open
slightly as a four-foot long blade as thin as a scapel swung easily into
view. With a disdainful flick, he cast her blood off of the slickly
glimmering razor. Ann bit her lip and dug her fingers into the ground.
The bastard was using his cloak to conceal all of his movements - she had
no way of knowing where that cursed blade was going to come from next. She
couldn't even tell how many of them he had.

	Seated comfortably several feet away, Ail looked up from the deck
of cards that he was shuffling. The skin tightened slightly around his
mouth as his gaze met Ann's, and there was a dangerous light in his eyes
as he turned over his first card and laid it down on the boulder in front
of him.

	Ail was not a fighter - he never had been. He could still get
angry, though, and Ann knew that he had his own ways of striking out at
their enemies. She shook her head slightly, and he relaxed. It wasn't
time yet. Besides, if this youma thought that he was going to slow her
down with wounds that didn't even hurt he clearly had no idea who he was
dealing with.

	"I am prepared to accept your surrender," Kamisori offered.

	Ann replied with a feral scream, launching herself at the youma.
Her feet left the ground as she hurtled at him, her eyes wide and glowing
and her fingers twisting into wicked claws. Kamisori scuttled backwards,
bobbing and weaving frantically as Ann's fists flashed past his head and
swiped through the air where he had been seconds earlier. He snaked away
from one jabbing hand, and there was a thunderous crack as her right cross
smashed into his faceplate. Red glass filled the air like crystallised
blood as Ann thrust her foot into the centre of his torso and slammed
him into the side of the canyon. Leaping back, she deftly avoided his
seeking blade and then hurled herself into his stomach, driving him harder
against the stone. The blade flashed again, and Ann threw herself out of
the way as it flicked past her eyes.

	Pressing his advantage, Kamisori moved forward and swiped at her
face with the razor again. Ann flinched back, and dropped onto all fours,
sweeping her leg along the ground in an attempt to trip the youma. Her
leg passed through the cloak effortlessly, and Kamisori didn't so much as
falter.

	"What the-?" Ann stammered, looking up at the caped figure as it
looked over her.

	Kamisori chuckled and let his cloak drape open. The youma was not
standing at all, but seated in the lotus position as he floated within
the safety of his cape. The long razor shone in the afternoon light, and
Ann realised that it was attached to one of his toes. There was a soft
racheting sound, and another of the blades swung into position on his
other foot as well. A matching pair of blades slipped into place on each
of his hands, as the youma brandished all four before letting his leather
cloak conceal his form once more. Behind the cracked remains of his visor,
a trio of thin, glowing red eyes narrowed even further.

	Kamisori lunged, and Ann threw herself beneath him, passing
through his cloak as easily as her trip had earlier. Wind whistled past
her ears as she dove under the youma, and thick locks of pink hair
drifted lazily through the air between them as she rolled to her feet and
he spun to face her again.

	"You're slowing down," Kamisori noted clinically. "With every
breath you take, more precious blood spills from your wound. My cuts are
as deep as they are long, young one. Surrender to us now, and there may
yet be time to preserve your life."

	Ann glanced down as something sparkled on the ground. Two small
golden hoops, lying in a pool of blood. Shakily, she raised her hand to
her ear, where she used to have the most adorable earrings.... Pulling
her hand away, she looked at the blood coating her fingers with a sense
of disbelief.

	"You... sliced my ear," she said numbly, as blood began to pour
down her cheek, the almost invisible wound that ran the length of her
face opening wider as she spoke. "You cut my face."

	"You cannot hope to prevail," Kamisori said coldly.

	"You," she seethed, "cut my FACE!"

	"I am faster and more skilled than you. Continuing to fight will
only lead to your own destruction."

	"YOU CUT MY FACE!" Scourges of dark energy flew from Ann's hands,
unfurling in mid-air and splitting into nine-tailed horrors of searing
force. With an inhuman shriek, Ann flew towards the youma, each lash
seeming to move of its own accord. The whips cracked and popped all
around Kamisori as the youma desperately ducked and dodged the writhing
net of energy that undulated around him like the deadly arms of a raging
and ravenous squid. "I WANT YOU TO DIE!"

	Wielding all four of his wicked blades, Kamisori spun and rotated
in place, sparks flying as he parried each barbed tail of living shadow
and deflected it back the way that it had come. Blades and whips flashed
and hummed through the air, moving faster and faster until they were
barely more than blurs of motion followed by pops and starbursts of
sparks.

	One of the twin youma whistled softly. "She's good."

	"You have no idea," Ail said in clipped tones as he drew another
card and laid it with its fellows on the boulder. Six of the white
rectangles lay in perfect line with each other, splayed out like a giant
asterisk. Tucking the rest of the deck away, Ail stood and dusted his
hands off on his pants. "Well, that was fun."

	"What, you're finished?"

	"Oh, yes," Ail said with a disarming grin. "I never was very good
at card games. One must keep in practice, though. Is it alright if I play
my flute over here for a while? I promise, I won't try to run away."

	"Yeah, I guess so," the older of the two girls said with a
disgruntled snort. "Too bad you had to be such a wimp, though. I was kind
of hoping Kamisori wouldn't be the only one who got some real practice
in today."

	"Sorry," Ail said with a shrug. "That's just never been the way I
work. Don't worry, though: I'm sure that you'll find something to keep
you busy very soon. Is this too far away? I wouldn't want you to think
that I was planning to flee."

	"Yeah, yeah," the younger sister said with a dismissive wave, not
even bothering to look away from the combat long enough to notice just
how far from them Ail was actually standing. "Play your heart out."

	"Thank you," Ail said, all trace of humour gone from his face.
Raising the intricately carved flute to his lips, he began to play.

	Unnoticed by any of the youma, Ail's carefully laid out cards
began to glow. As he played on, his haunting tune floating across the
canyon, each of the six cards lifting from its place and slowly began
to rotate, moving in time with his music. The glow stengthened, and each
card started to writhe and bubble, their auras growing and changing into
eerie, monstrous forms.

	On the battlefield below, one of Kamisori's blades caught home
and tore open Ann's vest, ripping fabric and flesh alike as it swung back
in a deadly arc. Falling backwards, Ann coughed another gout of blood and
landed heavily on the ground, tatters of her uniform falling around her
like crimson and maroon snowflakes. A glowing card tumbled out from
beneath the remnants of her top, landing on the ground next to her.

	There was an explosion of white light, and a regal figure in
flowing robes of pale blue spiralled up from the confines of her card.
Her blonde hair flowing around her head like a golden halo, the cardian
glanced first at Ail, and then down at the fallen girl. Kneeling beside
her, Nixeen gently placed her lips against Ann's own, a sparkling flush of
power flowing from their mouths and racing to every inch of the girl's
body as her cuts began to shrink and fade. Startled, Kamisori staggered
back and then turned to look past the other youma. After a moment, he
slowly lowered his head and sank to the ground, genuflecting deeply on
the jagged rocks.

	"What's he doing?" the elder twin asked curiously, scratching her
head. "He's still got the edge - he could take both of them, easy!"

	The other girl gently tugged on her sister's arm, drawing the
taller youma's attention. With a single, shivering finger, she pointed in
Ail's direction.

	Standing atop a spire of rock, the slender youth frowned sternly
and folded his arms across his chest. Crouched between him and the youma
were six more cardians, their fangs glistening and claws itching for the
chance to tear into somebody's flesh.

	"Man, first Nise Suiko kicks our butts and now this," the younger
twin sighed dejectedly, her bladed shoulders slumping in defeat. "Is it
too late to just admit that Dad was right about us not being cut out for
this and go home?"

**********

	Rei Hino sighed and gazed down at her reflection in the cup of
coffee she held cradled in her hands. All things considered, it looked as
though this had the makings of a beautiful day - the sun was shining,
the birds were chirping, and there was barely a cloud in the sky. Every
single person who had come into the small shop where she sat nursing her
drink had seemed to have an almost irritating bounce in their step, and
all anybody seemed able to discuss was how wonderful the weather was
turning out. She was sure that more than one of them had cast a glance in
her direction, wondering who the strange girl with the long dark hair and
the sullen expression was. Probably wondering what her problem was, that
she was the only one so completely unaffected by the nature of the day
outside.

	Why did she even bother arguing with Usagi anymore? It seemed like
all it ever ended with these days was her sitting alone in a coffee shop
and feeling like an idiot. The fact was, Usagi had been right - Ami had
been perfectly fine the entire time that Rei had been worrying herself
into a nervous tizzy. The truth was, her friend had just been on a date
with Ryo Sanada, and had been perfectly safe. Still, could anybody really
blame her for not guessing that? It wasn't like Ami was the sort who got
out much. Then, as if that wasn't bad enough, to have Usagi of all people
talking about setting her up... as if she needed the help!

	Rei sighed again and tucked her hair behind one ear. The sad thing
was, she was starting to think she might. It wasn't like she had needed
her friends to draw attention to the fact she hadn't been getting out that
much, either. The number of love letters in her shoe locker at school had
slowed to a trickle over the past few months, and even Yuuchirou had been
seeming a little more distant lately. She had never wanted to seem like
she was encouraging any of the boys who followed her around, but it was a
bit of a shock to realise how much she missed some of them now that they
had stopped trailing after her. She hadn't had a proper date with anybody
since, well... Mamoru. And *that* had been so long ago that she could
barely remember it. Maybe Usagi was right; maybe she *was* in danger of
becoming a spinster. The boys weren't exactly lining up to spend time
with her.

	"Lord, that line was atrocious!" a boy commented, as he eased
through the door and held it open for his friend. "I'm almost glad that
we got kicked out, if there was much more of that to look forward to."

	"I still say that it wasn't my fault!" the other boy replied
defensively. "If those players don't want people bugging them, then what
are they doing walking past us on their way to the stadium? The classy
thing to do would have been for them to sign my balls and get it over
with."

	"Perhaps if you hadn't put it in quite those terms, though...."

	"Ah, they knew what I meant! If they want to get all weird about
it, that's none of my business. Hey, cool! They got those little moon
cakes here! I love those things. You want one, man?"

	"No thanks, Shuu. I think I'll just wander over here for a tick.
Be a chap and order me a breakfast set with some American blend, would
you? Fresh."

	A shadow fell over her table, and Rei looked up into the beaming
face of Shin Mouri. As usual, the boy had an almost expectant look that
filled her with a strange urge to check her purse and find some
peppermints for him. His mop of shaggy brown hair was even more tousled
than usual, and there were the beginnings of a nasty bruise under one
eye.

	"Hello, Miss Hino!" he said cheerily. "Fancy running into you
here. Mind if Shuu and I sit with you? The rest of the shop is dreadfully
full."

	"Sure, I guess," Rei admitted, and took her purse off of the chair
across from her. Great - this was exactly what she needed. More of the
Samurai Troopers, popping in to ruin her day. It was bad enough that one
of them had to be flagrantly dating Ami, now she had to put up with them
interrupting her angst.

	"Much obliged," Shin said thankfully, as he slipped into the seat
next to her and rested his chin on his folded hands. "So, what's causing
a frown to cross that lovely face of yours on such a wonderful day?
Anything that Shuu and I might deliver a solid thrashing to?"

	"Not unless you feel like beating up your stupid leader," Rei
said with a snort as she turned to look out the window.

	"Who, Ryo? Oh, I'd never do that."

	"Why? Are you afraid of him?"

	"No, it just never works. The dear boy takes it as encouragement."
Shin laced his fingers behind his head and leaned back in his chair,
casting a glance over at her. "Come on, now, what could Ryo have possibly
done this time? He didn't blow you up again, did he? Because we've talked
to him about that, and he promised to be more careful."

	"It's not that," Rei said waspishly, glaring at his reflection in
the glass as he gave her a curious look. "It's not anything. Leave it
alone, okay?"

	"It's not because he went out with Ami, is it?" Shin asked,
raising an eyebrow. "Why would something like that bother you?"

	"Could you please just leave it alone?"

	"Sadly, I can't. It's like a sickness with me." Shin shrugged
helplessly and began to rock back on the hind legs of his chair. After a
short pause, he gave her a sideways glance and cleared his throat
slightly. "You're not interested in Ryo, are you?"

	"What?" Rei turned and stared at Shin in astonishment. "God, no!
What would even make you think something like that?"

	"Nothing!" Shin assured her, with a relieved grin. "It just seemed
like the worst possible outcome of this whole affair. I mean, you seemed
a little upset about him dating your friend, so I just assumed-"

	"Well, it's not that, so don't," Rei snapped. "Why would anyone
assume that was what's bothering me? I'm not jealous, or anything, it's
just... other stuff."

	"Let me guess," Shin said, sliding his hands into his pockets as
he continued rocking back and forth on his chair. "One of your friends is
looking like she might have a steady boyfriend, and it's making you
realise that you haven't been in a serious relationship in your whole
life. You start wondering if maybe you're always going to be alone, and
you worry that all of your friends will find love and no longer have any
time to spend with you. Even though it's never bothered you until now,
you're starting to think that maybe you've somehow missed your chance.
At this point in your life, you're thinking that you should definitely
have *some* kind of significant other...."

	"Or at least a string of meaningless physical relationships," Rei
admitted glumly.

	"Tell me about it," Shin agreed with a chuckle. "I wouldn't worry
about it, if I were you, Rei. You should be happy for your friend, because
you'll feel like a proper twit afterwards if you weren't. Odds are this
whole thing will blow over in a few months, and everything will go back
to normal. And if it doesn't, then you'll probably have to get used to it
eventually. May as well start now, right?"

	"How can you be so blase about this whole thing?" Rei asked.
"Aren't you even a little bit bothered by any of it?"

	"Not really," Shin said. "But then again, I've got an evil demon
twin running around trying to destroy me, so I've been a bit distracted
lately. Can I refill that coffee for you?"

**********

	Xiang Yao strode confidently out of the train station, flipping
up the collar of her jacket as though to ward off a chill as she moved
past the turnstiles. Nobody really remembered her getting on board, but
she had been careful to blend in with the rest of the dazed and confused
women filing off of the damaged car at the end of the train. Naturally,
none of the concerned officials had been so uncompassionate as to ask
any questions of someone so obviously in shock after such a horrible
accident. The worst she had gotten was the occasional odd stare at her
facial tattoo, and that was something she had long ago come to accept as
her due. A few strange looks meant nothing to her - she had people to
kill.

	All she had to do was find a Sailor Senshi in a city that was
almost twice the size of anything that had existed during the Moon
Kingdom. There was a time that Xiang Yao might have found such a task
daunting, but after her last two encounters with them, she was beginning
to lose her respect for the Senshi. Maybe her old age was getting to her,
but she had distinctly recalled them being tougher opponents the last time
she fought them. Perhaps the intervening centuries had made them soft.

	'Soft' was not a word that anybody would apply to Xiang Yao, no
matter what century she was in. At her peak, she had been more than a
match for any of the Senshi, and her time in the Castle of Eternal Regret
had done very little to dull her reflexes. There was not a single ounce
of fat on her whipcord frame, and her glittering crimson eyes were devoid
of any trace of mercy or compassion. She had honed her entire being for
the sole purpose of bringing death to her master's enemies, and in his
absence she would gladly settle for slaying in the name of Radanthus. A
girl did need to keep in practice, after all.

	As soon as she was safely away from any prying eyes, she ducked
into a convenient alley and dug her claws into the brick as easily as if
she were plunging her fingers into soft butter. Scaling the side of the
building with inhuman speed, Xiang Yao gracefully perched atop the chain
link fence that ran along the edge of the rooftop and sniffed the air,
her tongue flicking in and out instinctively as she moved her head from
side to side and scanned the terrain. According to Radanthus, the Senshi
were supposed to be staying in that big hotel across the street.

	With a shrug, the woman slid out of her coat and hung it on the
top of a nearby television antenna. Letting out a deep breath, she rolled
her shoulders and stretched her arms experimentally. After taking a
moment to gauge the distance, she flung herself through the air and
caught the overhanging metal spar of a traffic light that dangled over
the crowded street. With an expert kick, she carried herself through the
full rotation and released the bar, somersaulting across the road and
grabbing onto a convenient flagpole before swinging around the corner of
the building and landing on a fire escape. Carefully sweeping back her
long purple hair and adjusting her sunglasses, Xiang Yao forced open the
window and stepped into the room.

	Her first instinct was to think that someone might have beaten
her to the Senshi. The place was a mess, with open luggage littering the
floor and clothes strewn haphazardly about the room. There was a scorch
mark on the ceiling, and a soot-streaked trash can lay on its side in the
vanity sink, water dripping from its lip to splash softly on the tiled
floor. Someone had scattered what looked like a small mountain of note
paper on one of the tables, and a few pages were drifting idly on the
breeze from the open window. Xiang Yao snatched one as it floated past
and took a quick glance at it. Math equations, she noted with disgust.
No doubt some of Sailor Mercury's work. Frowning, she crumpled it into
a ball and tossed it in the general direction of the water-filled trash
can. She had missed them. They must have known she was coming - judging
from the condition of the room, they had clearly left in a hurry.

	For a moment, she considered hiding in the closet and waiting for
them to come back, but laying in wait had never really been her style.
Besides which, there was no way she could be sure that the Sailor Senshi
would even bother coming back to this place, or how long it would be
until they did. Radanthus was probably going to want results from her
soon, and he was not the type to be patient when it came to something
like this.

	Swatting a stuffed rabbit out of the way, Xiang Yao sat on the
edge of one of the beds and hummed thoughtfully to herself. There had to
be some way of figuring out where the Senshi had gone. Some kind of clue,
some tiny scrap of evidence she could use to ferret out their location,
if only she could manage to find it in all this mess.

	"It's just so boring," she sighed, laying back on the bed. "I hate
when people try to play hard to get - it's just delaying the inevitable.
I wish someone would just tell me where they're going and save me the
trouble." Yawning, she stretched out her arms and slipped one hand under
the pillow.

	Something crinkled under her fingers, and Xiang Yao blinked in
surprise. Sitting back up, she lifted the pillow and pulled a folded
denim jacket out from beneath it. Inside the pocket was a folded piece
of paper. Xiang Yao gently eased it out and unfolded it, smoothing it out
on the mattress next to her as she examined it. On one side were a bunch
of math equations, but on the other was something far more interesting.

	"Usagi Tsukino's Romantic Master Plan, Day One," Xiang Yao read
out loud, raising one eyebrow. "Seven o'clock, breakfast in the dining
room. Eight o'clock, clothes shopping with Ami-chan at Renga Park. Note
to self, don't let her buy anything nerdy. Twelve o'clock, lunch...."

	Lowering the paper, Xiang Yao grinned. It was starting to look
like it was going to be a good day, after all.

**********

	"You're going to have to come out of there eventually, Ami,"
Usagi said, leaning against the changing room door and filing her nails.
The blonde girl was standing next to a pile of shopping bags which were
stacked nearly as tall as she was, and had a bored expression on her
face.

	"I don't think I can wear this," her friend's voice replied,
muffled slightly by the wooden door that seperated them. "It seems a bit
indecent."

	"Oh, come on! What's the big deal? So it shows off your shoulders
a little bit."

	"It's not my shoulders I'm worried about showing off," Ami
whispered back. "I'm scared to breathe in this thing, Usagi! And this
skirt is much too short for my liking. I've never worn something as short
as this before."

	"What are you talking about? You wear a skirt that short all the
time! Heck, you were wearing one when you met him, remember?"

	"That was different," Ami whimpered. "I was in uniform. That
skirt was official. This one's just.... short."

	Usagi groaned. "You have great legs, Ami. You need him to notice
them! How else can he become blind with passion for you? I thought you
said you wanted my help with this."

	There was a long pause, as Usagi calmly slid her file back into
the pocket of her denim shorts and polished her nails on the back of her
sleeve. It wasn't that she liked being so rough with her friend, but Ami
would dress in a burlap sack if she thought she could get away with it.
That was the whole reason that they had both agreed to let Usagi pick out
all the clothing on this trip, so that Ami could have some outfits that
would help make sure a certain Samurai Trooper didn't forget that she
existed. The only problem was that Ami could barely bring herself to let
Usagi see her in any of the outfits in question, let alone anybody else.
It had been a constant uphill battle just to get her to try them on.

	"Can I at least wear a different shirt?" Ami asked quietly. "One
with sleeves? And shoulders?"

	"Okay," Usagi agreed. "Try the cute black one with the sequins,
that one should look totally awesome with that skirt."

	There was another pause, and the sound of shifting cloth, before
Ami spoke again.

	"Usagi? I think there's something wrong with this shirt."

	"Really?" Usagi asked, feigning innocence as she crossed her
fingers behind her back. "Why would you say that, Ami-chan?"

	"There, uh, seems to be a... hole... in the front of it..."

	"It's not a big hole," Usagi said quickly. She had been waiting
for this one to come up. "I think it's kind of cute, actually. It's
shaped like a heart, see?"

	"But I don't think-"

	"Good, glad we agree! Don't think, just put it on. That's the way
to do this, Ami! Full speed ahead, and pay no attention to the people
screaming in the back!" Usagi grinned and pumped her fist emphatically.
"We'll get you a boyfriend if I have to drag you kicking and screaming
every inch of the way!"

	"Thanks, Usagi. I appreciate it." The door swung open, and Ami
stepped tentatively out into the store. With a nervous smile, the
girl smoothed out the short ice blue skirt and gave Usagi a worried look.
She had changed out of her usual sneakers in favour of a pair of high
heeled shoes with small bows on the front that laced up her ankles like
ballet slippers, and she was wobbling a bit unsteadily on them, but they
were doing a good job of adding a few inches to her height. Considering
that Ryo was taller than she was, Usagi had decreed that those extra
inches were vital for making sure he would be looking at her face, instead
of the top of her head. Her black top hugged her curves, and the metallic
blue sequins splayed across the front glittered slightly as she moved,
drawing attention to the small heart-shaped hole that just barely hinted
at her cleavage without being overt.

	"So, how do I look?" Ami asked, trying to tug the skirt down a
little bit and blushing furiously.

	"Well," Usagi said, tapping her chin, "I think if he doesn't
notice you like this, we'll have to declare him legally dead. Give me a
little spin, could you? I want to make sure that skirt's not too short,
after all."

	"Do you really think he'll want to ask me out?" Ami asked, turning
around and letting Usagi see the back as well as the front.

	"Are you kidding? In that outfit? I'M starting to want to ask
you out," Usagi assured her friend, placing her hands on her hips and
smiling broadly. "Mission accomplished, Ami! Now we just need to find
about six more things like this, and you'll be ready for phase two."

	Ami stopped turning so abruptly she almost fell over. "There's a
phase TWO, now?"

	"Oh, there was always a phase two," Usagi said blithely. "I just
like to keep that sort of thing on a need-to-know basis. You don't need
to know about it, yet. Now get back in there and try on the rest of them!"

	"All right," Ami agreed hesitantly, "but I'm still opposed to that
one top...."

	"That's okay," Usagi assured her friend, "I only threw that one
in to make some of the other stuff look better by comparison. Now, scoot!"

	With an exasperated sigh, the blue-haired girl stomped back into
the changing room and slammed the door behind her as Usagi stifled a
gleeful chortle. At the rate they were going, they might actually get Ami
a decent dating wardrobe by the end of the day. Luckily, Usagi had seeded
a number of blatantly inappropriate things in with the actual good stuff,
so her friend could at least maintain the illusion of having a say in some
of it. It was all a matter of knowing how to manipulate people - for their
own good, of course. And occasionally one's own amusement.

	Usagi grinned again and went back to picking through some of the
clothes that had passed initial inspection. If Ryo Sanada did not sweep
Ami off her feet the second he saw her in one of these ensembles, Usagi
was going to punch him right in the back of the head. If dealing with
Mamoru had taught her one thing, it was that boys were utterly clueless
when it came to the hearts of women. You just had to keep chiselling away
at the brick until one day you actually managed to get them to realise how
they already felt about you. Which reminded her: she might want to pick
up some coloured markers, in case Ryo proved especially dense. Phase four
involved diagrams.

	A panicked scream pierced the air, and Usagi felt every muscle in
her body tense. Dropping into a crouch, the blonde girl quickly scanned
the area to see what all the commotion was about. Maybe somebody just saw
a mouse, or something...

	A police officer hurtled backwards through the front window of
the shop, spraying fragments of glass everywhere as he smashed into a
rack of designer jeans and fell to the ground. From outside, the screams
and yells grew louder, only to be drowned out by a monstrous roar as a
furry beast with claws and fangs stepped through the broken window and
looked down at the fallen man. Its eyes glowed bright orange as its lips
curled back to bare its sabre-like canines in a gruesome snarl.

	Usagi muttered something nasty under her breath. It was *never*
a mouse. Reaching into her pocket, she slid out the heart-shaped compact
with its small golden wings and held it in the palm of her hand. The
clasp snapped open almost of its own accord, trailing a sparking mist from
its glowing interior as she rose to her feet and raised it above her head.

	"MOON CRISIS, MAKE-UP!"

	The store filled with a sudden burst of light as a scintillating
tower of golden energy beams burst up from the floor and began to spin
around Usagi's glowing form. A flurry of crimson ribbons burst from the
compact on her chest, tightening around her body and forming a white and
blue sailor uniform as feathered pins appeared in her hair and a golden
tiara flashed across her forhead. Within seconds, the transformation was
over and Super Sailor Moon stood in the centre of a charred circle on
the floor, smiling impishly at the startled youma.

	"What," she joked, "you were expecting Cutey Honey? I don't know
what the law is like where you come from, but around here attacking a
police officer and destroying private property is a serious offence! The
Yokohama Police Department might forgive you, but I won't! I am the pretty
sailor-suited warrior Sailor Moon, and in the name of the Moon, I will
punish you!"

	"So, Sailor Moon," the youma growled, its pointed ears lying back
flat against its skull, "you finally decide to intervene! We have been
waiting for you to be drawn into our trap."

	"What do you mean 'finally'? I just got here!" Sailor Moon snapped
back, shaking her gloved fist at the creature. "Woah... wait a minute. Did
you just say something about a trap?"

	"Indeed," the dog-like monster said, with a dry chuckle. "Have you
not heard of the great power of Orthrus? Your doom is even now sealed,
foolish Senshi! Our master has waited eons for the chance to destroy you
and your kind, and now that day has finally arrived!"

	"Could we get back to the part about the trap? That sounded kind
of important...."

	"Ah," a second youma said, as it pressed its way past the first,
"I see you flushed one out, Orthrus. Good work."

	"Glad I could assist, Orthrus," the first youma answered with a
toothy grin. The pair were completely identical, from their short black
fur to their muscular builds and elongated fangs; right down to having
an identical scar running over each of their left eyes and a notch missing
from one ear. "Shall we have a little fun with her before we finish her
off?"

	"No," the second Orthrus said with a grin. "Let's just kill her
quickly and look for another. This one will take us no time at all."

	"Two against one is hardly fair," a voice called out, as the
lights in the store suddenly cut out. As they slowly flickered back to
life, a thick fog bank rolled across the floor and filled the store with
glimmering rainbows as the bright lights reflected off of the moisture in
the air. The door to the change rooms creaked open, and a shadowy form
strode forward through the advancing wall of mist, a glowing blue visor
the only thing visible until she stepped through the concealing blanket
of fog and took up a position next to Sailor Moon.

	 "I trust nobody will mind if I even the odds a little?" she
asked, as the turquoise on her tiara flashed briefly and the visor
retracted away from her eyes. "I am Sailor Mercury, the warrior of
balance, and in the name of the planet Mercury, I shall right wrongs and
triumph over evil! At the moment, that appears to be you."

	"Enough talk!" one of the two Orthrus barked, and the other
belched forth a torrent of flame that seared through the air and burned
its way through the back wall as both Senshi tumbled out of its path.
Darting behind a rack of skirts, Sailor Moon took cover as the first of
the monsters sent another jet of flame blasting over her head. The metal
racks gave way and toppled over, spilling burning clothes over the floor
as she rolled clear and pulled the tiara from her head.

	"MOON TIARA ACTION!" she cried, and hurled the glowing headpiece
towards the advancing youma. Lunging out of the way, the creature threw
himself out of the way as the gleaming disc screeched past him and
slammed his shoulder into the blonde girl's stomach. Carried backward by
the force of his charge, Sailor Moon's feet left the ground as he smashed
her against the wall of the shop in a flurry of falling jackets.

	"That was very stupid of you, girl," he growled, as he gripped
her face in one giant paw and began to press her head against the hard
concrete. "You just threw away your only useful weapon. What do you have
to say for yourself now?"

	"Moon," the girl said, her voice muffled by the hand crushing her
skull, "T-Tiara... BOOMERANG!"

	"What?" The youma turned and looked behind him, just in time for
the rapidly returning tiara to hit him directly on the tip of his chin.
His head snapped back and his body went limp, spining head-over-tail in
mid-air as Sailor Moon slipped from his grasp and scrambled to freedom
beneath him. Pivoting on her heel, the blonde Senshi plucked her tiara
from the air and spun it expertly on one finger before donning it again.

	"Sailor Mercury!" she called out anxiously. "How are you doing
over there?"

	"Well," the blue-haired Senshi said as she vaulted over a display
table moments before the other Orthrus smashed it in half with the
coatrack he was using like a giant hammer, "he doesn't seem to like the
muzzle I put on him...."

	The youma in question grumbled something indecipherable from
beneath the thick casing of ice that covered his mouth and swung the coat
rack in a wide circle, swiping it at Mercury's head as if he were trying
to score a home run. Yelping, the girl ducked under the steel pole as it
whistled past and began running in a new direction.

	"Fortunately," she added as she bolted past Sailor Moon, "he
doesn't seem to corner very well, either!"

	"Must be the dog legs," Sailor Moon noted wisely, and turned her
attention back to the fallen youma lying on the ground in front of her.

	"Okay," she said in the sternest voice she could manage, "now
you're going to start answering my questions, or I'm going to start
hitting you with my tiara again! Who are you working for? What do they
want with us? Where can we find them?"

	"Wait, please," the youma wheezed, rubbing his jaw gingerly. "I'll
answer your questons, I swear! The person I'm working for is-" Opening
his mouth, Orthrus let loose another torrent of flame, blasting the floor
at Sailor Moon's feet and melting away part of her boot as she barely
leapt out of the way. With a vicious howl, the youma pounced forward on
all fours and snapped his fangs mere inches from Sailor Moon's face as
she backpedalled frantically.

	"SAILOR MOON KICK!" she cried out, falling backwards as he foot
shot up from the ground and cracked into the youma's face hard enough to
knock him back a few steps. Shaking himself like a wet dog, the youma
brought its baleful gaze back to bear on Sailor Moon and released another
quavering howl before lumbering forward again. Moving quickly, the blonde
Senshi leapt onto a counter as the monster's jaws snapped through the
shelving below her like kindling. Gathering her legs under her, Sailor
Moon leapt over the beast and landed behind it, racing across the store
as fast as her legs could carry her.

	"Hey, Sailor Mercury!" she yelled, as the youma regained its
senses and took chase after her. "I don't think I like this one any more!
Wanna trade?"

	"Sure!" Sailor Mercury replied, dodging to the left as the steel
coat rack crashed into the ground at her feet hard enough to bend the
metal. "That sounds like a great idea to me, Sailor Moon! Just let me
know when you're ready!"

	"Now!" Sailor Moon yelped, hopping off of the ground as her
pursuer breathed a wave of fire at the back of her ankles.

	Responding to her signal, Sailor Mercury reached out and grabbed
her leader by the wrist. With a twist of her hips, she pivoted in place
and hurled Sailor Moon into the muzzled youma's face as hard as she could.
As the monster fell back, Sailor Moon landed beside it and tightened her
own grip on Mercury's arm, throwing her partner into the air and swinging
her out of the way of the stampeding Orthrus. Sailor Mercury twisted in
mid-air, kicking at the rising youma hard enough to shatter the ice
covering his snout and send him back to the floor before landing next
to Sailor Moon.

	"SHABON SPRAY!" she cried, and a swirling rush of bubbles flew
from her outstretched hands, filling the store with an impermeable fog
that engulfed both girls.

	"Come on," Sailor Moon said, tugging on Mercury's hand. "Those two
aren't going to stay down forever. Let's get the heck out of here, while
we still can!"

	"A tactical retreat would seem to be the wisest course of action,"
Sailor Mercury agreed breathlessly, and the two girls began to make their
way towards the shattered window at the front of the store.

	"Not leaving so soon, are we?" Xiang Yao asked, as she stepped
out of the mists and took an indolent drag from her cigarette. "My pets
weren't finished playing with you."

	Twin jets of flame pierced through the fog, boiling away the
pearly clouds of mist to reveal a single youma, standing half again as
tall as either of the Senshi, and with two snarling heads atop his broad
shoulders. Fire dripping from his lips like saliva, Ortrus hunched forward
and began to move towards them. The bent and twisted remains of a coat
rack dragged on the ground behind him, all but forgotten in his massive
fist.

	"We're done playing with these two," one head snarled, as its ears
flattened against its skull.

	"It's time to finish them!" the other head concluded, snapping its
fangs at the air as if trying to catch a passing fly.

	"Right," Sailor Mercury said, and quickly drew out her
communicator. Stepping forward, Orthrus swiped at the blue-haired girl
with his fist, catching her in the shoulder with his makeshift club and
knocking her sprawling onto the floor. With a snarl, he brought the
metal pole around and swung it down towards her head as if he were
planning to drive in a tent spike. There was a resounding clang, and
Orthrus blinked to notice the jewel-encrusted rod blocking his weapon.

	Sailor Moon swatted the club aside with a flick of her Kaleido
Moon Scope and stood between the youma and her friend, rod held in a
low fencing pose that left its tip circling a few inches below the youma's
sternum. Hissing in pain, Sailor Mercury slowly crawled back to her feet
and glared over her leader's shoulder at the beast, tendrils of mist
beginning to leak from between her fingers.

	"There," Xiang Yao said, as she took a seat next to the cash
register and idly snubbed out her cigarette againt the keypad before
lighting another one. "See? That's much better. As you were, ladies.
Orthrus, make it quick."

	The youma roared in response and exhaled a gout of fire from both
of his mouths, blasting the two girls out of the window and following
after them with an eager growl. Unnoticed by any of them, Sailor Mercury's
communicator lay where it had fallen.

	And, softly, it began to chime.

**********

To Be Continued...



             .---Anime/Manga Fanfiction Mailing List----.
             | Administrators - ffml-admins@anifics.com |
             | Unsubscribing - ffml-request@anifics.com |
             |     Put 'unsubscribe' in the subject     |
             `---- http://ffml.anifics.com/faq.txt -----'