| A Warrior�s Spirit Hey, welcome to my second posted fanfiction! Let me know what format you like better, downloading, or a text file. As always, comments and criticism are welcome, please post them in my guestbook. I�d rate this story PG for violence and tense situations. It doesn�t necessarily go along with my other stories or the real Sailormoon, and is just sort of my take on how something might have happened. Anyway, thanks for reading, hope you enjoy it. Send comments and criticism to [email protected] Disclaimer: Sailormoon is copyright Naoko Takeuchi, Kodansha Ltd., Toei Animation, the English adaptation is copyright DiC and Cloverway. Ami Mizuno tried her hardest to be logical. Normally, this wasn�t a problem, as her IQ was well above genius level, but in this respect she had nagging doubts. She was sitting in her room, decorated in quiet blue and cream, with her dark cherry desk. She loved that desk. She remembered coloring some of her first pictures in kindergarten on the shiny surface, and studying for her high school exams in the same place. Right now, she was doodling. Her picture was a rough sketch of herself as Sailor Mercury, and the rest of the Senshi, Inner and Outer, battling around her. Each one was using an offensive attack against the shadowy youma drawn in the corner, while she stood there. Ami sighed. She was the weakest Senshi, and she knew it. Every single other had powerful, damaging offensive attacks. Sailor Neptune had powers similar to hers, but at least twice as powerful. Sometimes she wondered why she was even reborn. It wasn�t like she did anything particularly useful to the Senshi. Ami set her chin in her folded hands. Everyone else always seemed to outshine her. She yawned, and her blue eyes slowly closed. It was two weeks before Princess Serenity�s 18th birthday, and the Moon Kingdom was in an uproar. It seemed everyone was waiting for her official designation as the next Queen. Of course, she wouldn�t take the office for quite a long time, they all prayed, but this insured the line of succession. Inside the Queen�s Council Chamber, however, the mood was entirely different. Her personal generals, Kyran, Ulissia, Brithar, and Jikaria were meeting to discuss the matters on Earth. Sailor Mercury had chosen to attend the meeting as she was the informal liaison between the Senshi and the Generals. Kyran, the Elite General, was currently speaking. "The Princess� Coming of Age must be postponed! This is the perfect opportunity for attack!� Ulissia, the most hot-tempered of the Undergenerals, snorted. "Yes, that�s it! We�ll tell her to just not turn eighteen for a couple of weeks!� Sailor Mercury sighed. Nothing at all was going to be accomplished. Kyran, the Elite, was relatively young for his post, and he and Ulissia fought constantly. Brithar was too shy to interrupt, and Jikaria was too intimidated by Kyran. She stood. "Esteemed Generals, I realize that there is a threat, but the Coming of Age must go on as planned. If it is postponed, there will most likely be great unrest and possible rioting among the populace.� Kyran snorted. "Maybe you can just throw a bucket of water at them or whatever it is that you �magical soldiers� do, but as for the rest of us, an attack can be serious business. We need time to recruit for the Forces, and as I always said, the best defense is a good offense. We should attack them first.� Mercury felt her patience growing short. "Sir, first of all, myself and the rest of the Senshi are an adequate defense for most attacks. The Forces are at a 500 year high, and we�ve always had a well-trained army. As for attacking them, how would that look to the other planets? As Princess of Mercury as well as a Senshi, I cannot condone such an action. Attacking someone who has made no clear offensive action against us? Shameful.� she shook her head. Surprisingly, the gentle Brithar spoke. His light blue eyes and long brown hair gave him an almost effeminate look, but they were deceiving. Brithar was one of the best swordsmen the solar system had ever known. "I agree with Sailor Mercury. Right now, we must be extremely wary, but we are also forced to wait.� he glanced at Jikaria, who cleared her throat. The third Undergeneral had aspirations of becoming the first female Elite in 100 years, and as the Elites are always appointed by the rest of the Generals, she was reluctant to offend anyone. As a superb tactician, she was extremely valuable to the Moon Defense Forces. "I suggest posting around half of the MDF in plainclothes with hidden weapons in the party. The Senshi can power down and be Princesses for the night, but stay in close communication with each other and all the Generals present in this room. Queen Serenity will be informed of this, and her power will be with us as well. Really, what type of force could Earth possibly have that would overpower us?� Kyran nodded, showing the wisdom that caused him to be elected Elite. "Though I really would prefer to attack, Undergeneral Jikaria�s plan is a wise one. I suggest we go with it.� Ulissia completely lost her temper. "Are you all insane? We need to attack them now!� Kyran glared at her. "The vote is 4 to 1. You have lost. Accept it with the dignity befitting an Undergeneral of the Moon.� The meeting was over. Two weeks later, Princess Serenity�s Coming of Age Day had finally come. The official Ceremony of Designation had gone off without a hitch, and the Princess of Mercury nodded in satisfaction. Everything was going as planned. Mercury smiled back at those who stared at her with wide eyes. Her dress was certainly drawing attention. It clasped around her neck, and had a swooping back and no sleeves. The dress hugged her upper body, but widened at the hips into thick layers of gauze presented almost like flower petals. The top of the dress was light blue that gradually faded into the color of the midnight sky by the bottom. The other Princesses had been quite taken with it. The party had just begun, and Princess Serenity was dancing with Prince Endymion of Earth. Mercury smiled. Only the Senshi and the Royals knew who the mysterious masked man was. Endymion had been forbidden from the Moon since the Earth conflict had begun. After it was over, Mercury knew that the two would be married. It seemed almost...fated, somehow. Just then, her communicator, disguised as a decorative bracelet, beeped twice. She picked up a goblet, and brought it to her mouth, pretending to drink as she spoke. "Yes?� "Mercury? This is Venus. Strange forces are nearing our surface. Transform immediately. What�s your take on tactics?� Mercury pursed her lips. "Ah...Inner Senshi assemble at the teleportation chamber, it�s the most likely place for them to appear. Outers keep the peace with the people, make sure everyone�s evacuated then join us. Wait until they�ve appeared to send the MDF.� "Affirmative.� came Venus� answer. Mercury picked up her henshin stick and transformed in a deserted room. It was time. In a time that was a blink of an eye to some and forever to others, the battle was over. Mercury he was the only one left. A tear rolled down well-defined tracks on the senshi�s face. Her ankle was broken, and she guessed a rib was too. Her fuku was torn, and her henshin stick was destroyed. Once her strength left her she would power down, and she would never be Sailor Mercury again. The Enemy, Queen Beryl, was more dangerous than any of them had guessed. "Ulissia was right!� she sobbed aloud. "We should have attacked!� Venus, Jupiter, Mars, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto....all dead. Princess Serenity, Prince Endymion, the entire population of the Moon Kingdom...dead. Her home...destroyed. She had nothing left. The enemy had won. Just then, Mercury heard a cry. "Senshi! Anyone!� a ragged voice yelled. Mercury ran, the pain from ankle feeling like a thousand needles every time her foot hit the ground. She skidded to a stop in surprise when she saw who had yelled. "Queen Serenity? Oh, my Queen, you are alive!� she almost started crying again in relief. Serenity shook her head. "Not for long, my dear child. I am sorry to ask you, but� please, help me. That Beryl creature will find me soon...I have a plan. I can send you all to the future, I can reincarnate you. I will give you back the lives you should have had.� Mercury was puzzled. "My Queen, how can I help? I don�t have any power left�� Serenity swallowed. "Mercury...if you use the last of your strength, you can impair Beryl�s power enough to allow me time to send you all ahead. But it will take all of your power, all of your life force.� A tear ran slowly down the Queen�s face. �Can you find it in yourself to sacrifice your life for your Princess, your fellow Senshi? I...understand if you cannot. But I beg of you, let my daughter have a new life.� At that moment, a horrendous voice cried out, in a tone like grating metal. "Serenity! At last, I have found you! The Ginzuishou, if you please!� Queen Beryl smiled evilly. "I�ve already won, you know, resistance is no use. I could crush you in a second�or take a little longer.� The red-haired Queen smirked. Mercury had ducked behind a collapsed pillar. She knew what she had to do. "MERCURY....DEATH....STRIKE!� The world exploded in blue. Beryl screamed, a horrible sound. Mercury felt a moment of satisfaction, and heard Serenity whisper �Thank you�� before she fell to the ground. Ami regained her self with a start, though still in her dreams. "Wha...where am I?� she cried, her voice echoing in the blackness. Slowly, the throne room of the Moon Palace took shape. "My dear child...� Queen Serenity said warmly, holding out her arms. Ami ran to her, sobbing into her shoulder. "It was real, wasn�t it? It didn�t happen like that?� Serenity ran a comforting hand through Ami�s hair. "Yes, Warrior of Water, it did...now, dry your tears, time is short and my words are long.� Ami sniffled. "I don�t understand...why do I regain this memory now?� Serenity smiled slightly. "Ami, you were convinced you were the weakest of the Senshi. In reality, you were capable of the strongest attack of them all.� "Were? I no longer have the power of a Death Strike?� "No, dear. I took that power away from all of you when you were reincarnated. I couldn�t have any of you with the burden. Your lack of offensive powers stems somewhat from the trauma of that last strike. Now, you plan. You are the Elite General of the Senshi, so to speak. Your intellect quite overshadows the rest of them, you know, even Neptune in many ways. I can�t have you sacrificing yourself again, now can I?� Serenity smiled through her tears. "I am so sorry...I asked you to do something beyond imagining, and my guilt will never leave me.� Ami looked down. "But...I saved everyone?� Serenity nodded. "Yes. Without you, all would have been lost. I could not have reincarnated anyone.� Ami smiled. "Then...it was all worth it.� Serenity smiled. �Whether or not you tell the others of this experience is your choice. You may choose to forget, but the choice is yours. Warrior of Water�Ami-chan�remember who you are, and realize that without you, the senshi would not be able to fight. You are the one who plans, you are the one who keeps them from arguing and hurting each other. I love you all like daughters, my dear. Now, return to your world.� The Queen smiled, and took Ami�s hand one more time, before releasing her back into the world she had given so much to have. |