Chapter 1

* Tokyo *

Megimi exited the bathroom murmuring a song, wrapped in a silver towel. "What I need now is a good snack," she thought, playing with one of her green curls, still wet. She saw the door of Nadakai's bedroom half-opened and heard a noise she could not identify, at first. She glanced in and smiled. "Nada-chan," Megimi said, entering. "I thought you were out with Hayasi-chan and Yuki-chan."
Nadakai tuned her head to smile at Megimi, and then turned back to her computer screen. "I preferred to stay at home and finish something..."
Megimi approached her and bent down to read the words on the screen. "It seems interesting," she commented.
Nadakai smiled. "It is!" she ensured proudly.
Megimi waited a few minutes, then asked, "And what's this?"
Nadakai paused writing, astonished. "You say 'interesting', but you don't know what I'm doing?" she asked sarcastically. She puffed, then she started to digitize again. "It's a database."
"About what?" Megimi sat on Nadakai's bed.
"Well, legends and prophecies from the Silver Millennium. I'm sure it will be useful to Neo-Queen Serenity in the future."
"Are you sure?" Megimi asked thoughtfully.
Nadakai turned to her completely, looking not very reassuring. "Hey killjoy, listen..." she began in a threatening way.
Megimi quickly waved her hands before her face, giggling nervously. "As I've not talked, sorry Nada-chan!" Then she stood up, "I was just going to have a snack, do you want to eat something with me?"
Nadakai nodded. "Yeah... But I'll excuse you, only if you give me ALL your Chinese crackers!"
"All of them?!?" Megimi exclaimed.
"Okay, you can have one, Megi-san..." Nadakai smiled, then they walked to the kitchen.

"Hota-chan! You're *so* pretty!" Yuki exclaimed. Hotaru had just come out of a cabin with a cute lovely white and purple dress.
"Do you really think so?" Hotaru asked, blushing.
"Of course! What do you think of her, Hayasi-chan?"
Hayasi smiled, nodding. "That color matches very well with your eyes!" she ensured.
"What about me?" Setsuna, too, came out of another cabin wearing a long elegant dress. All the girls remained speechless.
"WOW!" Hotaru finally said. "Setsuna-san, you are beautiful!"
Setsuna smiled, watching herself in the full mirror hanging on the wall. A clap of a thunder made them all to look out the shop-window, towards the cloudy sky.
"Dash it! It's going to rain..." Yuki said, upset.
"We'd better return home immediately," Hayasi murmured.
Setsuna gave a glance to the sky and felt a shiver on her back. "This sky..." she thought, "seems so unnatural..."

««MEANWHILE, AND FOUR YEARS BEFORE««

* Hamburg *

A pair of wooden-eyelids sprung open, showing two eyes made of glass, two disturbing spheres... The toy-maker looked up immediately from the doll he was making to the sexy blonde who had just entered his toy-shop. He smiled, cocking his head to the left. "Guten Abend, Fräulein," the man said, clapping his hands together once.
The woman swept a strand of golden hair away from her eyes, and smiled back at him. "You are ridiculous, every time you do it" she mocked him.
The man's face did not lose its happy expression, but his voice changed notably, becoming emotionless, when he added, "You're late. And Lady Armoryca HATES people who are always late."
"Oh come on, Nussknacker. I don't have time to waste with you!" The woman quickly turned the notice on the glass-and-wood door of the toy-shop so that it said GESCHLOSSEN (closed).
The toy-maker tuned around to a cuckoo clock, and knocked on the little cuckoo's door. The wall before him slid to the right, revealing a secret passage.
"Follow me." The toy-maker began to walk down a staircase, immediately followed by the woman. A few seconds later, they entered a big hall, half-filled by a sort of giant puppet theatre. The toy-maker walked towards it, and as he approached it, he crossed a shady stain and transformed into a wooden puppet. Nussknacker, with mechanical movements, slowly opened the curtains. "Milady..." he murmured, leaping. In the middle of the stage there was a little chair, hidden in the obscurity. The blonde one bowed deeply, and when she stood up, she too had transformed. She wore a top hat, ornamented with a pair of white rabbit ears, and a bodysuit similar to a tuxedo, with a rabbit's tail. Simultaneously, on her sides, in the half-dark two masculine figures appeared.
"We are ready to act in agreement to your orders, Lady Armoryca," the three said in chorus.
"Very well," a little girl's voice, absolutely blood-curdling, replied. "Sidiesis," the blonde one, stepped forward. "I hope you've come up with a search strategy."
"Sure, Milady," she replied.
"Then go, and don't fail. I expect great things from you." Quickly, Nussknacker closed the curtains, and the four figures disappeared into the darkness.

"Ugh, how I wish to eat some Ramen!" a feminine man, with long black hair, whimpered.
"Well, be grateful for this!" Sidiesis yelled, giving him würsts and sauerkraut. "With our salary, it's already a miracle that we can eat these things!"
"But it's so fatty and oily!" the man continued desperately. "I'll get a bunch of cellulite! I'll lose my slender and beautiful body!" He winked as he approached Sidiesis. "And you too, deary. Beware... beware!"
Sidiesis growled and squeezed her roll, toasting it.
"If you don't want it," a muscled man, with short spiky violet hair chewed. "I'm more than willing to eat it!"
"Idiots! I want to know WHY I've got to work with such IDIOTS!" Sidiesis started to munch her 'toast' ravenously.
"By the way," the muscle-man said, drinking a Coke, "you said you'd come up with a plan. What do you want to do, Sidiesis?"
The blonde one cleared her mouth in an elegant manner, then replied, "I have no idea."
"You have no idea?!" the feminine-man asked, amazed. He pulled a paper fan with the Japanese flag painted on it out of nowhere, and started to shake it, nervously.
The muscle-man grabbed another roll and stuffed his mouth, chewed it then swallowed it. "So, how will you act?" he asked. "You know what would happen to you if Milady becomes angry..."
"Ohlordohlordohlord, I'm SOOOOOOO SCARED!" the feminine-man whimpered, swooning.
Suddenly, Sidiesis walked away with decision.
"Where are you going? Do you have a plan?" the muscle-man asked.
Sidiesis tuned back to him with a serious look. "No!" she smiled immediately after. "I only need a toilet!" and she ran away. The two men sobbed desperately.

«««««

Karin stifled a yawn and glanced around the small bedroom. Erika was sound asleep with her head on her book, and Trina had long ago been distracted by the new Sailormoon manga that Erika had gotten. Cynthia was curled up in a tight ball on Erika's bed, sound asleep - occasionally, she would jerk her head up, blink sleepily at the girls and then go back to sleep. Karin looked down at her own homework and realized that she had accomplished very little in the last hour. For some reason, Dante's The Inferno wasn't interesting to her tonight, and the questions she was supposed to answer were just plain dull. So much for their Senshi meeting...
Deciding it was time for a change of pace, Karin picked up the heavy hardback anthology from her lap, shut it, and then dropped it as hard as she could onto the hardwood floor. Startled from her sleep, Erika jumped up and swore at the same time, and Trina let out a small squeal as she dropped the manga. Cynthia's head shot up again, but this time her eyes were as wide as tennis balls.
"Good lord, Karin!!! What'd you do that for!?" Erika protested, her heart still racing.
Karin smiled smugly. "I'm bored," she replied.
"Finally," Trina breathed. "I was beginning to wonder if we'd ever do anything besides study."
"Not that it matters to you," Karin jibed the youngest teammate.
"Well, should we get out of here, then?" Erika asked, standing up to stretch. Cynthia also stood up on the bed, and stretched luxuriously.
"Where are we going to go?" Trina asked.
"Anywhere but here," Karin replied. "I just need some fresh air."
"But, everything's closed," Trina pointed out.
Karin and Erika's faces fell, but Cynthia jumped down from Erika's bed and trotted toward the door purposefully. "That usually doesn't stop something from happening, anyway," she stated.
"You know, I could really go for a würst right now," Erika mumbled.
"At this time of night!?" Karin regarded her friend in shock. "Won't that make you sick?"
"It's only 9:30," Erika replied, glancing at her clock. "Besides, I know of a little place that's open late. What do you say?"
Karin and Trina both stared at Erika like she'd just sprouted antennae. "Well... um... okay," Trina finally agreed. "Maybe they have Eis, too." (Eis, pronounced "ice" = Italian Ice (kinda like ice cream)).
Karin shook her head in mock pity. "You know, if it wasn't for all of the running that we do, and the training that I coach you two in, you'd be fat!"
Erika grinned back at Karin. "Ah, the good life," she giggled.
Trina fished around in her bag for some change. "Okay, well, if we're going to go, then let's go. I'm craving Eis now," she grinned.

A little while later, the three girls (and cat) were walking along the street, not too far from Gottlieb Gymnasium. The small shop that Erika had mentioned had provided the würst and the ice, and both Erika and Trina were munching happily. Their meanderings were taking them through some of the merchant areas, and the three of them would stop every so often to gaze into the shop windows.
"Oh wow. Look at this," Karin stopped at one particular window and gazed at the display intently. Inside the shop window, a large assortment of handmade toys were carefully arranged and posed, and looked very much like they could move at any time. A delicate wooden ballerina was perched on her toes, and several different nutcrackers (Santa Claus, soldiers and even a magician) regarded each other sternly. There were even wooden animals and puppets. But the center piece was what attracted Karin to the window. A beautiful wooden fairy with delicate wings held a harp in her hands. A small motor somewhere in the base must have caused her to move, because her head nodded up and down, and her fingers gently plucked the silent harp strings.
The two other girls followed Karin to the window, and gazed at the beautiful creation. Cynthia jumped up on the small ledge to see, too.
"That must have taken someone a lifetime to do," Erika whispered.
"That's so incredible," Trina added.
"Where are we?" Karin wondered out loud, and stepped back to see the name of the shop. Her brow wrinkled in confusion, though, when she couldn't read the sign. "I don't remember seeing this shop before."
"Oh, I do," Erika answered. "It's been here for a long time. But I've never been inside, and I've haven't heard much about the toy maker."
Cynthia jumped down from the window ledge and walked around the back of the girls. The doll was impressive, but being a cat, she didn't care much beyond that. Besides, something was bothering her...
"I wonder how expensive it is," Trina added to the conversation above Cynthia. The three girls continued to chat about the doll, but the small feline was beginning to feel less and less at ease. Something was wrong. She glanced back up at the trio for a second just to make sure everything was alright, but out of the corner of her eye, she caught a movement. Her full attention suddenly snapped to the shadowy doorway just across the street. She studied it intently, waiting for the next hint of movement to come from the shadows. Something... or was it someone? The three girls continued to chatter benignly. Cynthia crouched down to try to get a better look at the doorway, but it didn't help. So, as best she could, she began to stalk the doorway.
Finally tiring of the shop window, Trina started to look around. Noticing the small cat in the middle of the cobblestone street, she tapped Erika on the shoulder. "What's Cynthia doing?" she half-whispered.
Erika turned from the window and looked back. Cynthia crawled a few paces and then crouched again. "I don't know," she answered.
"What?" Karin asked.
"Look at Cynthia," Erika nodded in the direction of the street.
Karin glanced back, and felt her face twist with confusion. "She's the strangest cat I've ever seen," she mumbled. "Hey Cynthia! What are you doing?"
Cynthia was crushed. She was so close to finding out what was in the shadows, and now Karin had to ruin it. She sat up and turned around, glaring at the girls.
"Let's go," Erika announced. "Come on, Cynthia. We're going home."
The cat shot one last glance at the shadows, tempted to run over and see anyway. Instead, she turned, held her tail high and trotted after the girls.

The three figures in the shadowy doorway let out an audible sigh of relief.

"Oh god, I think I'm going to faint," the feminine man, Hetanchou, fluttered his fan in front of his face, breathing hard. "That was so awful."
"Shut up," Sidiesis growled. "We were lucky. But we almost got caught, no thanks to YOU!" she shoved G-Natural down the three steps and out into the street. "What were you thinking!?
The well-muscled man flailed as he tried to regain his balance. "Me!? I was trying to get Hetanchou's ridiculous fan out of my face!
"Oh!" Hetanchou let out a squeal from the doorway, and started to flutter his fan even harder.
"And you!" Sidiesis spun around and pointed at Hetanchou. "Put that ridiculous fan away! We're not in Japan!"
Hetanchou pouted for a moment, and then reluctantly tucked his fan away to... who knows where. "But I'd rather be in Japan," he whined.
"Well, we're not," Sidiesis seethed. "We're here, so get used to it. Or at least get a fan with a German flag on it." Hetanchou stared at her like she'd just slapped him across the face. Sidiesis ignored him. "Now let's get out of this night air," she ordered, stalking toward the toy shop intently. Gradually, the two men pulled themselves together and followed her. The last thing they wanted was to be yelled at again.

«««««

Megimi yawned, deciding it was time to get dressed, she left Nadakai before the television, and walked towards her bedroom. In that moment, the bell rang furiously. Nadakai took her last Chinese cracker, then slowly went to open the door.
"AHA! Nada-chan, let us in!!" Hayasi, gently pushing her friend aside, ran in immediately followed by Hotaru, Setsuna and Yuki, completely wet.
It started to rain, suddenly," Yuki gasped, sitting on the enter step, and slipping her shoes off.
Megimi appeared just in that moment. She smiled, waving. "Setsuna-san, Hotaru-chan, welcome!! Oh, but you're completely wet. Just a minute..." She turned back toward the bathroom.
"I said this morning to bring the umbrella with you!" Nadakai said sarcastically to Yuki. "It serves you right!"
Setsuna smiled. She heard Yuki reply, and Nadakai got angry. Hayasi interposed to stop the argument.
"Here you are." Megimi was back, with a towel for everybody.
"Thank you, Megi-san!", Hayasi smiled, thankfully.
"You are *SO* different from Nada-san..." Yuki added, whimpering.
"WHAT do you MEAN?!" Nadakai shouted, narrowing her eyes. Yuki stuck her tongue out.
At that moment, they were all in harmony, like they were a sole person. Suddenly Setsuna felt something - it was as if the Space around her was shrinking and modifying... It was like receiving a punch in the middle of her stomach... She blanked - that bad feeling again! Something terrible is going to happen! It's happening! And, at the same time, it already happened! Setsuna rubbed her index fingers on her temples.
"Setsuna..." Hotaru murmured, worried. "What's going on?" She put her hands on the woman's shoulders, shaking her. "Setsuna, say something!" Hotaru exclaimed, desperately. Suddenly, Setsuna's body spouted a very powerful black aura, which hurled Hotaru into Yuki's arms.
"What the DEVIL is happening?!?" Nadakai exclaimed, shading her eyes.
"AAAHH!!" Hayasi screamed.
"Be READY!" Megimi said, gaining her on-guard position.

Time twisted on itself, tangling and pulsing painfully... Time was no longer the same...

Setsuna closed her eyes tightly, stretched her arms forwards and gave a long scream. In a blinding flash, the Garnet Rod appeared, coming out of her chest, and flew into her hands. The fuchsia light that it was emitting, turned Setsuna into Supreme Sailor Pluto. Behind her shoulders, the house's door became a deformed image, then it was replaced by the Time Door. The Door's two wings opened revealing a deep gray sky, and a chilly gust of wind swept over Yuki, Hayasi, Nadakai and Megimi.
"Sailor Pluto!" Hotaru yelled, scared. "What are you doing?!"
The wind became wilder... There was a clap of a thunder in the distance...
"Moon Senshi..." Sailor Pluto croaked. "Help them! Help them!"
"Them, who?" Nadakai asked.
"Tell us, WHO do we need to help!?" urged Yuki. The wind scooped the four up and pushed them, with a terrific strength, through the Time Door.
"NOOOO!!" Hotaru flew toward the opened Door, but Sailor Pluto made the Time Staff appear in her hands, and stopped Hotaru before she could jump into the gray sky.
"No one," Sailor Pluto said, with a fierce look, so different from the one she had usually. "No one travels in Time without my consent!"
Hotaru gazed at her, disconcerted. The Time Door closed immediately with a loud bump, and the wind quit. Sailor Pluto fainted and fell into Hotaru's arms while, behind her, the Time Door was vanishing into nothing.

Through a cloudy and lead-like sky, flying between two planes of gray shattered by lightening, the four were suddenly shot down... They heard their screams becoming one with the wind's howling voice. Finally they impacted with a hard surface...
"Ouch, my head!" Nadakai murmured, glancing around.
"Where are we?" Megimi trembled, standing up first.
"It seems to be the roof of a house..." Yuki observed.
"Look around, WELL!" Hayasi exclaimed, disconcerted. She pointed at the sign of a shop just before them. It said BIBLIOTHEK (Library) "This is not Tokyo! It's not even Japan!!"
"I fear this thing is worse than you think..." Nadakai said, her voice reduced to a whisper. All the girls turned in her direction and she pointed to a huge digital clock hanging over the entrance of a building.
"Now..." Megimi's jaws dropped open, "is FOUR years AGO!"
The four girls exchanged a worried and puzzled look.
"W-Why are we here?" Yuki asked, about to cry. Hayasi hugged her and Nadakai put one hand on Yuki's shoulder.
"Don't be afraid, 'k?" she murmured. Yuki nodded slowly.
"Let's think about this carefully," Megimi said, finally. "Think of what has just happened - we passed the Time Door, and now, for some reason we don't know, we are here... Do you remember? Sailor Pluto said something..."
"Help them." Hayasi nodded, thoughtfully.
"Oh yeah, right," Nadakai grunted. "Help WHO? And WHO will help us, now??"
"First, I propose we get down from this roof," Megimi smiled.
"Remind me to give a black eye to Setsuna when we get back home," Nadakai murmured.
"If we EVER get back home..." Yuki sighed. The four attempted to reach the cobblestone street a few meters under them.

Hetanchou yawned in a very feminine way. "It's bed time, G-chan!" he giggled.
G-Natural's face became pale. "Um, please Hetanchou, don't say those things," he swallowed, his brow breaking into a chilly sweat. "You make me feel bad. Then I have nightmares all night long, and I can't sleep at all..."
"Oh, my big boy!" Hetanchou pinched G-Natural's cheek. "I'll lull you in my arms! Uhohohuhoh!" he laughed dirty.
"Please, you two make me feel SO sick!" Sidiesis pushed the two away. "I'm quite tired," she yawned. "Let's go to sleep boys..."
"You can't," Hetanchou stopped her, pulling out a paper-fan (with the German flag on it this time). He cracked a little sardonical smile.
"Why not?" Sidiesis protested.
"Well, if Nussknacker knew that you didn't start your mission, yet..." G-Natural grumbled, twisting his brow. He knew that it had meant some consequence, but at the moment, he really couldn't remember which one. He started to scratch his chin, looking for the inspiration.
"But... But it's late!" Sidiesis whimpered. "I'm VERY sleepy! I want to go to bed!!"
Hetanchou fluttered his fan before his face, his eyes were very amused. "Ie ie (no no)!" he replied. G-Natural was still thinking intensely. "Honey, you can't. You need to work!" Then Hetanchou turned to the muscled man. "G-chan!" he yelled coarsely, "Let's go to bed!!"
"OH NO! Help!!" G-Natural screamed, racing away, straight towards the shop. Both of them disappeared, jumping into the darkness of the shop's door.
Sidiesis gazed them, sniffed and then started to cry a monsoon. "WwWwWuUuUaAaAaAAA!!! You are so nasty to MmMmMmmeEeEeEeEE!!" she choked. Then, calming down a little, she added "Nasty!" and sulked. She sniffed noisily again, then kicked a stone in the middle of the street. After a brief flight, the stone fell - with an hard knock - on the head of a man walking down the street.
"Oh, sky!" the man fell down with a loud groan.
Sidiesis approached him quickly "I'm so s-sorry Sir, are you alive??" she asked with a hysterical voice. After a few seconds of worrying silence, the man opened his eyes and sat up, slowly.
"What's happen...?" he asked, stunned.
"Oh... uhm... Oh..." Sidiesis started to stammer, in total confusion. Her eyes filled with tears "Ohuhohu... I'm SO SORRYYYY!!!" she cried out loud, "Don't be nasty with MmEeEe, please, Sir!"
The man gazed at her, then, against every prevision, smiled and stood up. "Oh, don't worry, pretty Fräulein. Nevermind this little accident." He made a little gesture with his hand, then began to walk down the street.
Sidiesis immediately stopped crying. She gazed at the man in amazement. "Incredible! He did not get angry!" her expression changed, becoming thoughtful. "He's a very good person..." she murmured, "and only good people like him could keep a Magic Note of the Soul inside of them..." She made her decision, slapping her left hand on her hip. "Okay, I have nothing to loose, after all. At the end of this, I'll be able to go bed in ten minutes. And no blah, blah, blah from Nussknacker!" Then she called, "Hey, sorry Sir! Wait a minute!!"
The man turned back to the woman "Yes? Can I do something for you?" he asked politely.
"Oh yes, you can!" On her head appeared her top hat. She smiled as she took it off and showed the man the inside. A bunch of colored paper streams shot out of the black hole at the man, and tied him tigthly.
"Hey, what are you doing?!?" the man yelled, falling back.
"Oh don't worry. I have nothing against you. I just want to go to bed," the woman smiled, as she approached him. Crossing the shadow of a tree, her clothes turned into the tuxedo-like suit. An evil grimace was plastered on her face. "Let me see your soul!" she shouted. She made her top hat spin on the point of her index finger (like a basketball player), and suddenly it stopped. A little golden Cupid doll jumped out and slowly turned around with a lovely carillon melody. Then it shot a little golden arrow in the middle of the man's chest.
"AHAHAHAHHAAAAAA!!" the man screamed. The bright figure of a red heart appeared on his forehead, glowed, and then blackened.
Sidiesis sighed. "His Soul was not a Note keeper," she whined. "Oh well, 'night!"

«««««

"...So, that's how a star collapses in on itself," Erika finished, her face beaming. Karin and Trina both looked at each other, bored to death. All Trina had said was that she wondered how a collapsed star could give off so much energy (**see Karin and Trina's histories for an explanation**), and suddenly Erika had launched into a long drawn-out Physics lecture. She had even stopped them at a corner streetlamp so she could use props from a nearby garbage can. Cynthia was now perched on the garbage can, determined not to let Erika get anything else out of it.
"Fascinating," Karin grumbled.
"Can we go home now?" Trina asked, cautiously.
Erika's face fell with disappointment at the others' lack of enthusiasm. "Hey, you asked," she started.
"Yes, but not for a lecture," Cynthia quipped from atop the trash.
"Sorry," Erika shrugged. "I just thought-"
"AHAHAHAHHAAAAAA!!"
"What on earth-?" Erika spun around to the direction the scream had come from.
"Everyone, henshin yo!!" Cynthia called, leaping from the trash can. She started sprinting down the street, but stopped as she realized no one was following her. She turned around to see the three girls gaping at her, completely confused.
"What?" Karin asked, staring at the cat.
"Something yo," Trina scratched her head.
"You've been e-mailing Luna again, haven't you?" Erika smirked.
If a cat could blush, Cynthia would have been bright red. As it was, her fur-covered face was just extremely hot. "It means 'transform'," she groaned as she hung her head.
"Oh. Well, let's do it!" Karin shot her right hand into the air, her dark-orange jewel glimmering. "Pulsar Flash Power!!!"
Erika followed suit. "Quasar Light Power!!!"
Trina watched the other two for a split second before imitating them. "Neutron Star Power!!!"
Seconds later, the three senshi were sprinting back in the direction they had just come from, with Cynthia in hot pursuit. Sailor Pulsar (Karin) was naturally in the lead since her legs were longer than the others, and she was the first to round the corner by the toy shop. She skidded to a halt at the sight before her. A man lay on the ground with a black scorch mark on his forehead. A few meters away, a woman in a very strange looking tuxedo outfit was shouting something. Pulsar heard Sailor Quasar (Erika) stop next to her, but just about fell on her face as Sailor Neutron (Trina) barreled into the back of her.
"Oh, sorry! I didn't know you'd stopped," Neutron gasped.
Before Pulsar could make a smart remark, though, Quasar had rushed to the man lying on the ground. "What did you do to him!?" she gasped, turning to face the oddly-dressed woman.
Sidiesis jumped, startled by the voice behind her. Panic filled her as she realized she'd been caught. She did a double-take, though, as she realized who had caught her - teenage girls? A sly grin replaced the surprise on her face, and she took a step toward them. "Me?" she asked, innocently. "I didn't do anything." She paused for a moment. "But I know who did."
"Who?" Pulsar demanded, approaching her.
"Two men. They ran off in that direction," she pointed toward a dark alley at the other end of the narrow street - where Hetanchou and G-Natural had disappeared.
"Neutron, go check it out, see if you can spot anyone," Quasar glanced up at the youngest senshi.
"I'll go with you," Pulsar volunteered, and the two ran toward the end of the street.
"Did you see what happened?" Quasar asked the woman standing in front of her. She studied the scorch mark on the man's forehead intently. The man was alive, but just barely.
"Yes, actually, I did," Sidiesis grinned to herself. She had a strong feeling that this girl was every bit as compassionate as the man had been. And now she was all alone. "They said," she paused as she stepped back and removed her top hat. "Let me see your soul!!!" Colorful streamers once again poured out from the hole, wrapping Sailor Quasar up tightly.
"Pulsar, Neutron!!!" Quasar screamed, as she realized what was happening.
Sidiesis laughed smugly since this would all be over before the other two could come back. Her hat began to spin on the tip of her finger.
"Quasar!!" Neutron called from the end of the street, she and Pulsar sprinting as fast as they could. But she already knew that they would be too late...

"Silver Moon Sublime Prayer!!!"
Sidiesis watched in horror as her top hat was knocked from her finger, breaking the soul-violating spell. But she never had time to react because she was also surrounded by sparkling silver bubbles. Everything seemed to move in slow-motion as she watched the bubbles enter her body, and suddenly she felt completely at peace. She looked up to see four new figures standing above the man and girl, and was instantly filled with a desire for their friendship. Sidiesis fell to her knees. "Please forgive me!!" she cried. "I was forced to do this - I didn't want to!"
"What did she say?" Yuki whispered to Megimi, as the tuxedo-clad woman continued to babble.
Instead of answering, Megimi looked sternly at the woman. "Who are you?" she demanded. "And what are you doing to these people?"
Sidiesis stopped her babbling as she realized that the green-haired girl had spoken to her in Japanese. "You're from Japan?" she gasped.
"Answer the questions," Megimi demanded.
Just at that moment, Pulsar and Neutron came running up behind Sidiesis. Both of them stared open-mouthed at the four new senshi standing there. But neither of them could understand a word they were saying.
"Quasar! Are you alright?" Pulsar dove toward her colorfully bound friend, and began to try to set her free.
"Yes, I'm fine. But he's not," Quasar looked desperately at the man next to her, who was quickly becoming more and more pale. The two women continued to talk to each other in some strange language. "Do we have a way to heal him?"
Pulsar shook her head, and Neutron looked up at the other senshi desperately. "Excuse me!" she interrupted. "Your conversation sounds very important, but this man is dying. Do any of you have healing powers?"
Sidiesis looked down at Neutron pitifully, and then repeated the question back to the others in Japanese. She wanted them to accept her so badly...
"Hai!" one of the girls answered, and rushed to the man's side. In the dim light, Quasar couldn't really see what color her fuku was, but she was definitely a Sailor Senshi.
Hayasi knelt down beside the man, immediately aware that he was close to death. She moved her hands above his chest and summoned her attack as gently as she could. "Shiny Moon Curative Caress," she murmured. Her right hand glowed a deep red, and then thousands of tiny feathers surrounded the man's body, lifting him gently from the ground. As his body settled softly on the hard stones again, he took a deep breath and mumbled something. "He is asleep now," Hayasi looked back up at the other three Moon senshi. "He'll be fine," she smiled at Neutron.
Neutron smiled back at this strange girl, having no idea what she just said. But the color was returning to the man's face, and he looked like he was asleep instead of dead. "Danke," she nodded.
Sidiesis watched the whole thing as she knelt on the ground... and she soon realized that her knees hurt from sitting there. Why was she on her knees? And who were these people? And why were they speaking Japanese in the middle of Germany? "Nani?" she muttered to herself.
"Was?" Pulsar asked, looking up at Sidiesis. (pronounced "vahs" - it means "what")
"Nani?" the four new girls said all at once.
Quasar and Neutron looked at each other, completely confused.
"I have to get out of here," Sidiesis mumbled to herself in Japanese. The four girls she had wanted so badly to impress were now scaring her out of her mind.
"Iie!!" Megimi shouted. "I demand you tell me who you are and what you're doing here, or I will be forced to punish you!"
Sidiesis felt her eyes open wide with terror, and she struggled to her feet. "I am Sidiesis..." she started. Then her mission and purpose came flooding back to her, and her face twisted into an ugly smirk. "And you will not catch me." She threw her arms above her head in a dramatic gesture, and melted away before any of the senshi could react.
"Well, that was fun," Nadakai smirked.
"Will somebody get me out of this, please?" Quasar struggled, looking at Pulsar and Neutron for help.
"What language is that anyway?" Yuki grimaced. "It's not very pretty."
"I have no idea," Megimi shrugged.
Hayasi watched silently as the two groups tried to figure each other out. She wanted to make sure the man was okay, and he was beginning to stir a little.

Quasar breathed deeply as the last colorful ribbon was removed. "Thanks Karin," she grinned. "Now lets see if we can figure out who our new friends are." She slowly got to her feet, making sure that the woman's spell hadn't done anything else to her, and faced the four newcomers.
"Guten Abend. Ich bin Sailor Quasar. Sind Sie auch Sailor Senshi?" (Good evening, I am Sailor Quasar. Are you also Sailor Senshi?)
The four Moon Senshi exchanged confused glances as they all tried to figure out what the girl - obviously a Sailor Senshi - had just said to them. Megimi decided to try to reply. "Eh, konnichiwa..." was about all she managed, though.
Pulsar's face twisted into pure bewilderment. "Cynthia, get your furry butt over here!" she called.
Cynthia sauntered over from a dark doorway with her head and tail as high as they could be. She ignored Pulsar and sat down next to Quasar's feet, inspecting the four newcomers. "New Sailor Senshi," she breathed, her fur bristling with excitement.
"Yeah, and a big new problem," Pulsar tapped one booted foot impatiently. "We can't understand a word they say, and they can't understand us."
Cynthia shot a glare back at Pulsar, but seriously considered the problem. She looked back up at the group, and over at the one still next to the man. "Are you from Japan?" she finally asked, hoping against hope.
"Nani?" the leader of the group looked down at her.
"Um... uh..." Cynthia wracked her brain, trying to remember the word... "Uh... Nippon?"
The girl's face broke into a huge smile. "Hai!" she replied, nodding enthusiastically.
Cynthia sighed with relief.
"What did she say?" Quasar asked.
"They're from Japan," Cynthia answered. "Since that's where Sailormoon is from, I thought maybe that's where they're from too."
Megimi knelt down in front of the cat, hoping that she could get her to understand. "Where are we?" she asked, slowly.
Cynthia's ears twitched at the girl's question, and a faint memory stirred at the back of her mind. "I think I have a solution," she purred, looking up at Quasar.
"Well, get moving then!" Pulsar demanded, quickly becoming impatient.

The man moaned and his eyes fluttered open. Leaning over him was a young girl who couldn't be older than 17, and she was smiling at him.
"Are you alright?" Hayasi asked, as she helped the man sit up.
The man looked around and noticed that six other girls - all in very short skirts - were also standing around him. He looked back at Hayasi, wondering what she'd just said. One of the other girls knelt down next to him.
"Are you alright sir?" she asked, in his own language. "You have a rather nasty bump on your head."
"Yes, yes. I'll be fine. How long have I been here?" he asked, suddenly worried about the time.
"Only for a few minutes," Trina smiled.
Hayasi watched the man closely to make sure he was fully healed.
"Oh, thank you," he grinned. "I must be on my way then." He stood up and brushed off his trousers. "Thank you all," he said, smiling and nodding at all seven of them. "The youth of today are so different from when I was young," he mumbled to himself as he quickly resumed his journey. "Mini skirts at this time of night..."

Cynthia walked out to the middle of the cobblestone road after the man was out of earshot, and concentrated as hard as she could. That slippery memory just didn't want to- and then it was there. Purring to herself, she sprung into a practiced backflip. Four small packages, about the same size of peppermint drops, fell at her feet as she landed.
"Oh great," Pulsar mumbled. "Cynthia, we can't understand what they're saying, and unless those are nifty little Star Trek badges, it's still going to be a problem."
"Oh ye of little faith," Cynthia grumbled to herself as she picked up the small packages. She sauntered purposefully toward the four strange senshi, and dropped the packages at the leader's feet.
Megimi picked up the small items and inspected them closely. They looked like little candies wrapped in white paper. Curiously, she opened one - chocolate!! "It's chocolate!" she grinned, giving each of the others a piece.
"Um, great. But how's chocolate going to solve our problem?" Nadakai asked.
"I don't know," Megimi answered, as she chewed on the lucious piece.
"Here Erika, you get some too," Cynthia placed three packages at Quasar's feet.
Quasar handed the other two their pieces, and took a small bite. "Mmm, this is really good chocolate," she smiled.
"Chocolate?" Pulsar stared at the cat in disbelief.
"Just eat it!" Cynthia snapped.
"Mmm, now I want more," Megimi giggled as she finished her piece.
"That's really good," Yuki agreed.
"Maybe Cynthia has more of it stashed somewhere," Neutron answered. She looked up just in time to see six other faces turn to stare at her. "What?" she asked.
"You understood what I said?" Yuki asked her.
Neutron's eyes grew wide. "Yeah, I did."
"Are you speaking Japanese?" Megimi asked.
"No, I'm speaking German," Neutron answered. "Are you?"
"No, I'm speaking Japanese," Megimi replied. "But, that was some powerful chocolate if we can understand each other."
"An old recipe from way back when," Cynthia purred. "I'm glad to see it works."
"Well, since we all finally speak the same tongue," Sailor Magic Moon interrupted, sounding a little irritated, "would you please tell us WHO you are?"
Sailor Pulsar lifted one eyebrow critically. "Well, I was just going to ask you the same thing," she replied in the same tone of voice.
Megimi stepped forward before Nadakai and Pulsar could begin an argument. "Eternal Angel of the battle, I'm the one who turns the Moon to silver at nightfall. Crescent beam, Sailor Silver Moon!"
"Eternal Angel of the battle, I'm the one who makes golden the Moon in the darkness. Crescent beam, Sailor Gold Moon!" Yuki introduced herself with a smile.
"Eternal Angel of the battle, I'm the one who gives the magic side to the Moon in the lonely night. Crescent beam, Sailor Magic Moon!" Nadakai's eyes narrowed.
"Eternal Angel of the battle, I'm the one who lights up the Moon in the silent night. Crescent beam, Sailor Shiny Moon!" Hayasi concluded.
"We are the four faces of the Moon," they shouted all together. "We are the Moon Senshi!"
"So how long did you practice that before you got it perfect?" Karin smirked. Cynthia shot her a sharp look.
"Do you believe you can do better?" Nadakai snapped.
Hayasi elbowed her quickly. "Please!" she scolded her friend, under her breath. These two girls were definitely going to cause a lot of problems...
Erika moved a step toward Sailor Silver Moon, smiled gently, and introduced herself. "I'm Sailor Quasar, defender of the center of our Galaxy."
"I am Sailor Pulsar, guardian of the memories of my people, and protector of my friends and fellow Senshi," added Karin, crossing her arms.
The Moon Senshi turned to Sailor Neutron, waiting for her to give a speech like her teammates. But Trina just stared back at them and scratched her head, mumbling something in total confusion. "Ehm... I'm Sailor Neutron... er, ehm... and I'm... I'm... "
Cynthia shook her head, drawing the attention away from Trina. "And I'm Cynthia, their adviser. They are the Starlight Senshi."
"What a lovely kitty!" Sailor Gold Moon exclaimed, leaning over to scratch Cynthia under the chin.
"Hey, I haven't finished introducing myself, Cynthia!!" Trina protested loudly, but the cat ignored her, allowing Yuki to pet her.
Suddenly, Sailor Silver Moon was holding Sailor Quasar's hand and squeezing it enthusiastically. "I'm really happy to meet you, Starlight Senshi!" she beamed.
Erika, surprised, stared at their joined hands and then at the Megimi's face. "It's... It's nice to meet you too, Moon Senshi!" she finally replied, smiling back at Sailor Silver Moon.

To be continued...

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