Downfall of the Silver Millennium

[neovaihlo]

ok, these characters are not all mine, i will give the credit of all characters to author Lady Mars (different site) except the ones i specify as my own. in this chapter, Llander, Robin, Leah & Koaru are my own characters. enjoy.

Chapter 1: A Tragic Beginning

This story starts seven months before the birth of Princess Serena. As we all know, a planet was destroyed, and is now an asteroid belt; that planet is where this story starts. Tritus: Location, 2 light years away from Pluto. It has its own sun and moon, and ruled by King Llander and Queen Robin. The heir to the throne is their year old son, Koaru. That is all the info you get, now read the story.

"Aw, it is great to be home." King Llander sighed as he walked into the throne room. "Well, Queen Serenity is finally with child." his wife, Queen Robin, said as she entered behind him. As they sat down, a maid walked toward the Queen. "My Lady," she said, "the Prince is sleeping like an angel." Robin sighed, "Good. Please keep an eye on him, will you?" The maid bowed and left. Llander laughed, "Robin, you worry about that son of ours way too much." Robin shrugged, "He's only 13 months old, I can't help it."

Outside of the castle a man approached the front gate. A soldier approached the man, spear leveled. "Please state your name and business." The man reached into his cloak. "My business," he said, "is revenge." The man whipped his hand out of his cloak, and the soldier was sliced in half. A soldier on top of the wall gasped as he watched his comrade fall to the ground, then the rest of him hit the ground. He turned toward the soldiers resting inside the first wall. "We're under attack! Get your asses in gear!" No sooner had he given the order when the entire wall section he was standing on glowed white, then exploded like a giant cherry bomb. As the soldiers ran and tried to organize themselves, the man walked through the hole in the wall. "Yomas, ATTACK!" a large group of demons rushed into the confused battalion and ripped them to pieces. The man then continued through towards the palace.

"What the hell is going on out there!" Llander roared as the sound of an explosion echoed through the walls. A general rushed into the throne room. "We're being attacked!" Llander drew his sword. "Get the army assembled, and prepare to strike back!" Robin stood and picked up her spear. "God, whoever that is, they picked a bad day." she said, drawing energy into the spearhead, causing it to glow a light blue. The general rushed out of the room, only to fly back in as a burnt and mangled corpse.

"Did I come at a bad time?" asked the man wearing the cloak as he stepped into the throne room. Llander stepped forward. "Who are you, and tell us what you want." The man in the cloak started to laugh, an evil, blood-curdling laugh that caused Llander, Robin and their Royal Guards to shiver. "How could you forget me," the man said, pulling back his hood, "after all, you were the last to see me...brother."

Llander's heart skipped a beat. "You! How?" The man approached, and Robin turned and saw the maid in the doorway. "My lady, what is happening?" Robin knew what to do instantly. "Leah! Get Koaru and get away from here, NOW!" The maid hesitated for a moment, then ran back out. The man smiled, "So, you two did have a kid, eh? Guess I'll have to kill him too." Llander had had enough. "You will not touch my son!" he shouted as he charged, sword trailing behind him. The man drew his own sword, a black blade with a red handle. As their blades clashed, Yomas swarmed into the room, tons of them. The Queen leveled her spear, then spun it, arcing it over head, point first. She then hurled it, shouting, "Tritus Celestial Impact!" The spot where the spear hit suddenly became a wall of blood and guts. But more demons charged forward, and the Queen drew her short swords and charged to greet them.

"Quickly now, quickly." The maid Leah was hurriedly wrapping the infant Prince in his blanket and grabbing her own little dagger that was given to her by the Queen. She had just finished when two Yoma demons stepped into the nursery. Leah shifted Koaru into her left arm and held the dagger in her right, standing with the baby further from the two. The first leapt at her, and she ducked, thrust, and plunged the blade into the demons neck. It clawed at her for a moment, then collapsed beside her. She turned as the second demon lunged at her. She pulled the dagger from the others throat, but lost her balance as she turned and fell to her knees. The demon was six feet from her when it collapsed, its back full of arrows. She looked past its body, and saw that there were eight, no, ten soldiers standing in the hall. Two of them rushed in and helped her to her feet. "We've been ordered to get you and the Prince to the Moon." the one told

her as they rushed her towards the door. "Alright," Leah responded, " but the child is my responsibility." The soldier nodded, and the guards formed a circle around her as they ran to the portal.

"Black Quake Strike!" the man plunged his sword into the floor, and the ground beneath Llander exploded. Llander landed roughly, and was slow getting back to his feet. That was his downfall. As he stood, the man rushed forward and thrust his sword into Llander's chest. He let out a sharp exhale, then a cry of pain. His sword dropped, and with a loud clang, struck the ground. Robin turned, and saw the man withdraw his sword from her husbands chest. "Llander, No!" she cried as she rushed forward, grabbing her spear as she passed it. She threw it straight at the man, who caught it and tossed it aside. She then leveled her blades and continued her attack. The remainder of the Royal Guard finished the Yoma and rushed to her aid.

Llander struggled to keep his eyes open, but the harder he tried, the harder it was. He could make out the faint outlines of soldiers, his brother, and..."Robin..." he whispered and, with great effort, pushed himself up and raised his sword.

Robin slashed wildly, overcome with rage, and oblivious to the others around her. Suddenly, she tripped over the body of a fallen soldier, and landed face down at the man's feet. She heard a grunt, and heard the swish of his sword drawing close to her, but it never hit. She looked up ad saw that Llander had tackled the man and they were having a close range struggle over the man's sword. Robin pulled her skirt up, and drew from a pouch attached to her upper leg, six long needles. "Llander, move!" she yelled as she threw the needles at their assailant. She then heard a crash behind her, turned, and saw Leah and the guards she had ordered to protect her.

Leah's heart stopped at the of the throne room. "Leah!" the Queen yelled, "get Koaru away from here, NOW!" Leah paused, then made up her mind. She turned to seven of the soldiers, "You all help the King and Queen," she turned to the last three. "You all come with me." The guards nodded, then rushed into the battle.

Robin looked at Leah with a feeling of security, knowing that she would protect her child. Then she felt the pain, the feeling of cold steel striking her in the back. She turned and saw that the man had stopped her needles, and thrown them back at her. His eyes glowed red, then the needles in her back exploded. She fell to the ground, blood gushing from her back, dripping from her mouth, and she saw Leah turn and look at her. She heard her scream, and the blanket she carried unwrapped, and she saw her little boy, squirming in discomfort, then open his beautiful, sparkly brown eyes. "Koaru..." she whispered as her life left the world.

"NNOOOOOOO!" Leah screamed as she watched the Queen die, helpless, unable to do a thing. Then she heard Koaru start to cry. She looked down at the baby, reaching for his mother, tears flowing down his little face. One of the guards grabbed her arm. "We need to go, now!" he yelled, pulling her away from the throne room. Leah shook her head, got a hold of herself, and started to run towards the portal chamber, her guards a few paces behind her.

The man looked around the throne room, took in all the destruction he had caused, then started to laugh. "You see," he said holding Llander by the throat beside him, "I told I would kill you for imprisoning me." He then threw his brother down beside his wife's body. "I'll grant you the right to say goodbye." Llander crawled over her and, with great effort, turned her over, looking into her once life-filled eyes, now dark and empty. "That’s enough." the man said, and Llander felt cold steel, then joined his wife on the next plain of existence.

Outside of the portal chamber, Leah saw that the Yoma had expected that they would attempt to escape, because there were a good dozen of the little bastards guarding the entrance when they arrived. Now there were only two, and she was all alone, her guards slain trying to open a path for her. Suddenly she felt the air behind her grow hot, and she ran towards the demons, then around the corner, just a stream of fire shot through the hall she had just been in. The fire struck the demons and blasted a new hole where the door used to be. Leah ran into the chamber, cried "The Moon" to the destination locator, and ran to the portal as it started to glow a watery blue. She watched as out of the blue, an image of the Moon appeared. She started to walk into the portal when a blade struck through her lower torso. She gasped, stumbled, and pushed the baby through the portal. The man grabbed her by the hair, withdrew his blade, and looked directly at her. "You witch." he growled, starring into her eyes, watching the life leave them. "They...will ge-g-get you...now...you...bastard." Leah stuttered as the last of her time ran out, and her spirit departed to the Higher Plain.

The man dropped the maid's body, staring at the image of the Moon on the surface on the portal. He then smiled to himself. "Well, he gets, older, he'll get stronger. Maybe I can use him someday...at least he will make things fun for now." He then left the chamber, and addressed the remainder of his army. "I leave for this planets moon, you all are to destroy this planet after i move the castle." The demons looked at him strangely. "It's a good castle, and the armory is still intact." With these words, he and castle vanished, then the destruction of Tritus began.

On the moon of Tritus, the man looked at the small sun that had kept the planet alive. He then raised his hands and, using all of his power, crushed the sun into a pile of dust. "I don't need a sun to live," he said, now starring at the sun that kept all of the Inner Planets alive. "Soon," he said, "soon I will have my revenge."

[neovaihlo]

ok. i have had a few views, thank you. now i assume that new chapters are placed behind other chapters, so if i am wrong, let me know. now, Chapter 2!

Chapter 2: The New Arrivals

The pair of Moon Soldiers guarding the Portal Chamber were rolling dice when they noticed that the portal was open to receive a traveler. "Was anyone coming today?" the first guard asked his partner. "Not that I know of." the second guard replied. They leveled their spears as the portal glowed white, then dimmed back to a watery blue. They looked at each other, confused, since after the white glow is when the traveler arrived. Then the one noticed the bundle of blankets on the floor near the portal. He slowly approached the bundle, and, using the blunt end of his spear, slowly unfolded the blankets. "What is it?" his partner asked, tightening his grip on his spear. "I don't know." the first replied as he continued to shift the blanket. Then he saw a little head poke out of the blankets. "Jesus," he said, "it's a baby." His partner relaxed his grip on his spear. "So what, some parents didn't want their baby so they shove it through the Portal and send it here?" Suddenly the baby's forehead glowed a dark black color, then an upside-down pentagram with an eye in the middle appeared. "Sweet Jesus!" the guard gasped, "It's the Prince of Tritus!"

After seven months, Queen Serenity, Queen of the Moon, gave birth to a beautiful daughter. During those seven months however, a great loss had struck the Moon. A week after Koaru had arrived on the Moon, the King of the Moon, King Jonathon, had led an attack to Tritus. Only two soldiers returned from the battle, reporting that Tritus was now an asteroid belt in the middle of no where. After that, they found a portal that led to the moon of Tritus, only it was now home of an evil that had been sealed away long ago, the Negaverse. The power of the Negaverse had multiplied ten-fold, and their army was slaughtered like lambs. After this news, all portals were sealed against Tritus and the Black Moon.

"We need to think about the future, more then ever now." Queen Serenity said as she carried her baby onto a balcony. "Yes, with the Negaverse free, it is more important then ever." came a reply from the Queen's military advisor, Artemis. The young solider was a brilliant tactical administrator, and was one of the surviving soldiers from the Black Moon. A young lady stepped out onto the balcony behind the other two. "Luna," the Queen asked, "is there a chance for peace?" The lady shook her head slowly, then stared at the infant in the Queen's arms. "She is beautiful." she said, a smile creeping across her face. All eyes were on the infant girl, Princess Serenity. The silence was broken by the sound of soft footsteps and the lone word, "Looma." Luna turned and picked up Koaru, whom she had adopted as a son since his arrival. Queen Serenity smile as she watched Luna hold the boy. "He is a prince, don't forget." she said, a tone of worry in her voice. "He will be expected to be a Prince of the Moon now that he lives here." Luna shook her head. "No," she said, "he will reclaim the throne of Tritus, I can tell by his eyes." Artemis stepped forward. "With all due respect," he began, "Tritus is gone. The only throne that the boy will ever claim is either that of the Moon, or of the Black Moon." Serenity looked into Koaru's eyes. "He has the eyes of an avenger." she said. "Luna," Luna looked up at the Queen, "you are never to tell him of how he came to be here, understand?" Luna hesitated, then nodded her head. "I'll take him to bed." she said, and walked off. Artemis sighed, "That boy gives me the chills, and he's not even two." Queen Serenity looked at him, "Koaru will learn of his tragedy someday, and he will try to avenge his parents. Therefore I want you," she looked straight into Artemis' eyes, "to train him as soon as he can handle it." Artemis thought for a moment, then nodded his head. "As you wish." With that said, he too left.

Serenity looked down once again at her daughter. "This daughter of mine shall suffer unlike any has ever suffered." she thought to herself. She then looked down at Earth, their closest neighbor. "I shall speak to King Titan in the morning." she thought, then she turned and walked off the balcony, ready to get some sleep before her daughter needed to eat.

[The Godess of Destruction]

oh i really like this please update soon the story.

[neovaihlo]

yeah! i have a fan! i finished this story last month, so expect updates around to 1-3 times a day. here, enjoy.

Chapter 3: The New Generation

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!" Princess Serenity screamed as a bucket of ice-cold water was dumped on her and her friends as they passed under a large willow tree in the Palace grounds. Out of the tree fell the bucket, and a black figure zipped out of the tree and towards the Palace entrance. The five girls gave chase to the figure, whom they all knew. "Koaru!" Princess Raye of Mars yelled, "When I get a hold of you, I'm gonna hurt you so bad!"

Koaru smirked as he heard Raye's words. To him, three six and two seven year old girls were no threat. However, the man that turned the corner was a threat, and a major one at that.

Artemis watched as Koaru attempted to stop and run the other direction, but, he was running way to fast to do that, so he ended up in a crumpled heap at the soldier’s feet. Artemis looked down at him, hands crossed. "Koaru, what have I talked to you about?" he asked. The eight year old looked up at him, his eyes filled with fear. "Not to pick on Serena and her friends..." he mumbled, turning his gaze to the five girls, all who had just rounded the corner, puffing and gasping. Artemis smiled as he shook his head slowly. "What did you do this time?" he asked, figuring that he didn't need to from the look of the girls' dresses. "I splashed them with water from the lake." Koaru replied, then dashed out from under Artemis' feet and into the Palace.

Princess Serenity, or known better as Serena, which she preferred to be called, ran up to Artemis and started to rant. "Why didn't you grab him? He splashed me and my friends! Where's mommy?" Artemis held up and hand, and the young one fell silent. "Serenity," he began, "You know that he won't get far before Luna gets him." Serena giggled, remembering the time that Koaru had pushed her into a snow bank, and Luna then threw him into the same bank, only he went in so deep that only his feet remained unburied.

Koaru's punishment turned out to be the worst one yet, he thought, as Luna carried him over her shoulder, set him down beside Artemis, and looked at him, shaking her head. Then she turned him to face the girls. "Koaru, do you have something to say to these girls?" she asked him. Koaru looked at the ground, then mumbled, "Sorry." Artemis suddenly got an idea. He leaned over to Luna, whispered in her ear, and they both began to shake with silent laughter. Luna, attempting to keep a straight face, looked back at Koaru. "Koaru," she started, "in order to make sure that you never do that again, you have to kiss one of these girls." Koaru's breath caught in his chest, and he whipped his head around to look up at Luna with a look of complete horror. Artemis looked at the five princesses, and, trying to keep his voice even, asked, "Anyone want to volunteer?" The five girls were giggling, and all but Serena was blushing. After a moment, one of the five stepped away from the others.

Princess Amy of Mercury was only six, but she felt that if Koaru was this terrified about kissing a girl, which to her didn't seem that bad, then he should have to do it, and she wanted to do it as payback for the time he had caught her in a trap in the trees and left, leaving her dangling upside-down for over half-an-hour. A slight wind picked up, and her storm blue hair blew around her head and across her face as she approached the squirming boy.

Koaru felt like the galaxy hated him. Then he remembered, Luna said only a kiss, she didn't say how long it had to last. Therefore, he twisted out of Luna's grip, and ran towards the approaching girl.

Amy felt slightly disappointed when she saw Koaru escape Luna's clutches, but jumped when she saw him speed towards her. She then felt his lips gently brush against hers, then in a small fountain of dust and leaves; he vanished, leaving her breathless and red as a tomato.

Artemis and Luna stood side by side, both staring, bewildered at what Koaru had just done. "Guess that threat won't work anymore." Artemis said, feeling let down, since some of his best laughs had been from giving that threat to Koaru. Luna gulped, wait till the King and Queen of Mercury hear about this.

Amy returned to her friends, silent as a statue. It was Serena who broke the silence. "Amy! You kissed a boy!" The others erupted into laughter, and Amy blushed harder then ever. A short way away, Koaru was sitting in a tree, thinking about what he had done. "Why did I kinda like that?" he wondered, trying to get the image of Amy's face out of his mind, trying not to remember what her lips felt like on his. (he's 8, how would expect him to feel?)

That night, as Luna tucked Koaru into bed, he looked up at her and asked, "Why did kissing that girl feel ok?" Luna stared at Koaru, bewildered, then started the long explanation.

Over in Serena's room, Queen Serenity came to kiss her daughter goodnight. "What was all the shouting about today?" she asked as she sat down on the bed. Serena sat up, a big smile on her face. "Koaru kissed Amy!" she happily stated, then launched into the story of how it had happened. Afterwards, the Queen left the room, smiling. "I guess there is hope for this generation after all." she said, walking towards her own room.

[neovaihlo]

here. chapter 4. me been busy.

Chapter 4: The Birthday Begins

Five years later, little had changed. Serena was turning 12, and had developed an annoying habit to start crying the second she felt overpowered. Amy was 11, and had become extremely smart for her age, something that was strange, since her father detested the education of women. Raye, who had turned 12 a month earlier, had grown tired of Serena's whining, so the two often quarreled. Princess Mina of Venus, who looked quite a lot like Serena, was also 12, and was in a stage of royal Princess/tomboy. Princess Lita of Jupiter, who was 11, was the tough one in the group, in fact, even Koaru was scared of her. As for Prince Tritus, he was now 14, and was the best trained soldier on the Moon. We continue at Serena's 12 birthday party...

"I'm finally turning 12!" Serena shouted for the entire galaxy to hear, and causing those around her to flinch. Lita uncovered her ears, staring at Serena with a look of annoyance. "We heard you the first dozen times." she said, then continued to walk towards the Palace. When they reached the main entrance, they saw that Koaru was wearing a uniform and was greeting the guests as they arrived. Mina looked at the others, an evil grin in place. "Lets have some fun." she said, and the others agreed, silently departing from the crowd, and sneaking towards the bushes behind Koaru.

Koaru was torn in emotion. He was honored to be wearing a Moon Soldier uniform, but was pissed off at the fact that had to greet the guests as they arrived. He looked down at the uniform again, trying to feel better. The uniform consisted of a navy blue jacket with silver trimming, black pants, a standard army sword, and a red cape. However, unlike the other soldiers, he was wearing crown on his head, showing that he was important. But he didn't know what made him important. "Must be my good looks, strong body, and combat skill." he had figured.

Serena were six feet from Koaru, ready to tackle him and dump a bucket of mud on him; payback for all the times he had splashed them. As they prepared to attack, a man and his two sons were approaching Koaru. Just they were about to jump, Koaru, without even looking said "Don't even think about it."

The man looked at Koaru in a strange, then gasped and jumped backwards as five little girls erupted from the bush behind him. Koaru side stepped them, and they all fell in a tangled heap on the ground. Koaru looked at the man, cleared his throat, then stated, "May I introduce, Princess Serenity, Princess Amy, Princess Lita, Princess Mina, and Princess Raye." he indicated each with a wave of his hand.

"That go as we had planned." Lita said as she tried to untangle herself from the mass of bodies around her. "Raye! What the hell are you doing!??!" Raye looked up from under Amy, and saw her brother, Lance, running towards her. He grabbed her hands, pulled her out from under Amy, brushed her off, then led her into the Palace. "What a kill joy." Mina said, looking irritated. Koaru looked at them all, shook his head, and apologized to the man and his sons, who were still standing beside him. After they had entered as well, he looked at the girls. "You four should probably go clean up, and fast." Serena, Amy, Mina and Lita rushed in and Koaru sighed. "This is gonna be a long night." he thought, then he heard a trumpet, and entered the Palace.

[The Godess of Destruction]

thanks

[neovaihlo]

ok this is late, so i will post the next two chapters after tyhis one.

Chapter 5: The Uninvited Guest

Inside the Palace Ball Room hung golden decorations, the diamond chandelier glowing with a radiant light, and guests were being served by waiters carrying trays of goodies. Koaru rushed up to his room, and changed into his 'appropriate' clothes, a black tuxedo with a bowtie. He looked around and, seeing no one, threw the bowtie out the window and left for the feast.

Serena, having changed into a different dress, was now staring around the Ball Room, excited as a bee in a flower. She ran around till Luna caught her and led her over to her mother, who was seated at a large table at one end of the room. Also seated there was Raye, Lita, Amy, Mina and the two boys she had seen outside with their father, who was talking to her mother. Her friends were also sitting with their parents, and, as she approached the table, Koaru came sliding into the room and took a seat at the far end of the table beside Artemis. Serena took her place beside her mother, who finished her conversation with the man, smiled at her, then stood, causing the room to grow silent.

Queen Serenity took a deep breathe, then, in a loud and clear voice, greeted the guests. "To all who have come to honor the twelfth birthday of my daughter, I say to you, welcome, and thank-you. I would like you all to be the first to know of a delightful arrangement that has just been made." she said, now trying to keep her voice even through her excitment. "My daughter, Princess Serenity, is betrothed to Prince Nicholas of Earth." The entire room erupted in applause, and Serena leaned over to Luna and asked, "What is 'betrothed'?" Luna smiled, and explained.

Outside of the Palace, a storm was brewing. Two soldiers stopped their patrol to
watch the swirling black clouds. "You here anything about a storm today?" the one asked. The other shook his head, "Naw, I din' hear a thang." The first soldier erupted into laughter hearing the others accent. "Hey, 'at's not noice. I can' help the way that I talk."

"Now that we have finished a delectable feast," Queen Serenity said as the last plate was removed from the room, "I would like to ask Prince Nicholas and my daughter to open the ball with a dance." Serena looked around, trying to see this 'Nicholas', and jumped slightly when the older of the two boys whom she had seen outside stood and walked over to her. If Serena had to guess, this boy was older then Koaru by a good 3 years at least. He offered her his hand, which she accepted, and together they walked onto the dance floor. The orchestra started to play, and they began to dance. Soon everyone in the room was dancing except for Koaru, Luna, Princess Amy, Artemis, and the other boy who had been with Nicholas. It was them who first noticed the storm.

Thunder was heard throughout the room, causing many of the dancers to pause slightly, then the doors burst open, and in the doorway stood a man, hidden by shadow. King Jupiter stepped forward, and, though an incantation, caused the storm to vanish. The man, however, remained. He walked into the room, and the guests closest to him back away. Koaru jumped to his feet and ran out onto the dance floor, staring the man down. "Who are you?" he asked, danger etched in his voice as the man continued to draw closer. The man looked up, and they saw his features. He had gray hair, dark green eyes, and hard face, and wore a greenish armor. If Koaru had to guess, he would place him between the age of 35 and 45. At the man's side was a huge sword with a red hilt. He looked at Koaru, then, smiling, responded. "I am in a hurry, so step aside boy." Koaru stood his ground. "I would like some more information." he said, starting to form a battle plan in his mind.

Queen Serenity was Growing nervous, knowing that she had seen this man long ago. She could tell by the dark energy that was rising off of him that had incredibly strong powers, and that made her worry even more.

The man was six feet away when Koaru made his move. He rushed forward, bent low, then aimed a kick straight up at the man's jaw. Just as the kick was about to connect, the man stepped back, grabbed Koaru's foot, and, with what seemed like no effort, threw him across the room.

[neovaihlo]

Chapter 6: A Memory of a Nightmare

Queen Serenity stared at the man, a mixture of fear and anger building up in her soul. He had defeated the best fighter in her kingdom, had disrupted her daughters birthday celebration, and she knew that she should know his name, but it just wouldn't come. Artemis stepped forward, and placed himself between the Queen and the man, his hand resting on the handle of his sword.

Koaru struggled back to his feet, trying to understand how this man had tossed him so easily, when suddenly his heart burned with pain, and he collapsed to his knees, screaming in pain, then he heard the cries of battle and death in his head, and seeing a king and queen fighting the man in the Ball Room, the queen's back exploding, and the king being sliced in half. Koaru didn't understand why, but tears formed in his eyes as he watched, then his world went black. Luna rushed over to Koaru, with Amy and Lita close behind her.

Artemis looked at the man, trying to figure out what he wanted, when he spoke. "Why are you all so hostile?" he asked, a tone of innocence in his voice. "I thought that you, of all people Serenity," he faced the Queen, "would have a warmer welcome for an old friend."

Queen Serenity’s blood chilled as those last two words sunk in. "Y-yo-you..." she said, her voice trembling with fear, "How is it that you are here?" The man shrugged his shoulders, then looked directly into her eyes, and a shiver shot up her spine as she remembered the last time she looked into his eyes, so long ago. "I got a lucky break, and now I have returned to keep my word."

Artemis drew his sword and set a battle stance, ready to silence the man who was causing more trouble then should be allowed. "State your business, then leave this kingdom." he said, anger etched in his voice. "Artemis!" Artemis turned to see the Queen staring him, fear written on her face. "Artemis, please, stand down." Artemis paused for a moment, then sheathed his sword and backed away from the man.

Luna crouched over Koaru, quickly checked for a pulse, and sighed in relief when she felt it. Lita and Amy skidded to a stop behind her, and both tried to help in reviving him. Lita ran to get a glass of water while Amy slapped Koaru's face repeatedly. Luna smiled slightly at their efforts, and stood back as Lita dumped a glass of water on Koaru's head. Amy was shocked, "Why didn't that work?" she asked Luna, trying to understand how he could sleep through that. Luna smiled, and leaned forward, explaining that Koaru wasn't sleeping, but that he was unconscious.

Queen Serenity called a servant forward, and asked him to take Serena to her room, but, when she touched his arm, she explained that Serena would refuse and run back into the room, while she did that, he was to go into the Queen's personal armory and bring her the weapon. The servant ran over to Serena, led her out of the room, and sure enough, she came running back in after forty-five seconds.

The man looked at Serenity, wondering what she was thinking, then he watched her daughter run back into the room, taking her place behind the prince she had been dancing with when he arrived. He looked back at the Queen, who had noticed where his gaze had been three seconds earlier. "What do you want," she asked, all fear gone, replaced by anger. "Why are you here, King Soul?" she asked, glaring at the man, who started to laugh. "So you do remember me Serenity." he said, feeling amused. He looked over at Serena again, who hid behind Nicholas. "I want to marry your daughter."

Serena heard the man's words, then fainted. The other boy who had been with Nicholas rushed forward, and carried her over to the wall, where a few soldiers joined him and formed a protective circle around the princess. Nicholas, however, drew his own sword and steeped towards King Soul. "Her hand is spoken for." he said, already protecting the girl he was to marry.

Queen Serenity was pleased to see the servant return carrying a cloth wrapped around the Impearium Silver Crystal. She took it, thanked the servant, and, unwrapping it, turned to face King Soul. "Soul," she said, feeding her energy into the Crystal, which began to glow, "leave now, or I will destroy you." Soul flinched at the sight of the Crystal, then smiled. "Very well, I will leave, but make no mistake, I will return."

The next day, Queen Serenity called Luna, Artemis, and Nicholas into the throne room. "We have a problem. " she said. "King Soul has returned, and is after power. Somehow, Serena is a part of his plan. But she is now twelve, and is supposed to go to the Crystal Moon Academy with the others to complete her education." She turned to face the three. "I want to teach my daughter how protect herself. The royal blood can wield magic and elemental energies. I want my daughter to learn these skills as soon as possible." Artemis and Nicholas stepped forward. "I will teach her." Artemis said, "As will I." Nicholas said. Luan stepped forward, a worried look on her face. "My Queen," she said, "don't you think that it could be dangerous to teach her these abilities at such a young age?" Serenity shook her head. "Koaru will be attending the Academy as well, so he will help in their training." Luna, Artemis and Nicholas looked at Serenity. "Their?" they asked. The Queen smiled, and Artemis and Nicholas feared what she was about to say. "You will also be teaching Amy, Raye, Lita and Mina." The two men groaned and collapsed to the floor, knowing that they had just been sentenced to hell.

[neovaihlo]

Chapter 7: Finally, a Name to his Face

Three days after Serena's party, Koaru awoke to find himself in his bed. Beside him he could smell flowers, candies and...perfume? He sat up and looked over to the side of his bed, where he saw Princess Amy, fast asleep in a chair, her head resting on her shoulder. He started to move off the bed, but he heard her soft, slow breathing, and he again stopped and watched the girl sleep, unable to look away. He watched her sleep for, he didn't know how long, but when he heard the door open, a sudden giggle, and looked up to see blonde hair whip out of sight, he knew he had to move, and fast. As pulled on some pants, he heard Amy start to wake. He quickly rushed out of the room and searched for Serena before she had a story spreading.

Queen Serenity looked up at the sound of her daughter's foot steps, and waited to hear what the girl had to say. Serena stopped in front of her mom, then looked up at her, arms crossed behind her back. "Guess what?" she said, looking at her mother with glee. Serenity sighed, knowing that this was some bit of gossip. "What is it?" she asked, trying to sound interested. Serena took a deep breathe, and started, "I saw Koar-mmmmph!"

Koaru slid his hand over Serena's mouth just in time. Queen Serenity looked at him, slightly startled. "How do you feel?" she asked. "Fine, just fine." Koaru said as he pulled Serena out of the room, "just need to discuss something with Serena." He then whipped around the doorway, pulling Serena along. Serenity sighed. "Kids..."

Outside, in the top braches of the tallest tree, Koaru was dangling Serena over the edge. "Promise you will never tell anyone about what you saw, ok?" Serena folded her arms and pouted, upset that Koaru had ruined her fun, and that she was about sixty feet off the ground. She sighed, "Fine, let me go!" Koaru smiled, and let her go.

Serena screamed with fear as she plummeted towards the ground, tears streaming from her eyes. As she fell, and black blur flashed past her, and she landed in Koaru's arms. "You said let go." he said, satisfied that she would keep quiet. Serena jumped up and down, clapping her hands and laughing. "Again! Again!" Koaru sighed and, in a small fountain of dust, vanished.

Three days later, Serena, Lita, Mina, Amy, Raye, Koaru, and the other boy whom had been with Nicholas, and Nicholas himself were standing outside a beautiful Palace-like building. In front stood Artemis and two other people, one old and wrinkly, the other in his 50's, but in fair shape. Artemis stepped forward, and looked at the little group. There were four twelve years olds, one eleven, one fourteen, one sixteen and one nineteen. He cleared his throat and welcomed them. "Welcome to the Crystal Moon Academy, where you all will continue your education and begin a new coarse: Combat Training. These men here" he motioned then the other two, " are also your teachers here." Artemis then did a double take. "Princess Mercury, I thought that your father didn't want you here." Amy looked back at him, smiling. "He changed his mind." Artemis looked back at the group, happy with the answer he received. "I will only be here for your mortal combat training, which is on Thursday. See you all later, and good luck."

After Artemis had left, the older of the two others stepped forward. His long gray hair fell past his shoulder, and he had on a pair of oval spectacles. He looked at the girls, then the men. "Now then," he said in a rough, throaty voice, " I am sorry, but could I get your names?" They went in order, left to right, but after Koaru, it was the boy whom they did not know. he opened his mouth to speak, but Nicholas cut him off. "this is Prince Eidymond, and I am Prince Nicholas." The boy shot Nicholas a sharp look. "Shut up! I hate that name!" He turned to the man. "You can call me Darien."

oh...i should ask. when i post a bunch like this, should i seperate them to make them easier to read as seperate chapters, or put them all in one large grouping (note* there are 33 chapters to this story) let me know so i can avoid any trouble. thnx.

[neovaihlo]

OK. now chapter 8.

Chapter 8: Warrior Princess, Sailor Moon

The first three days at the Academy were fairly uneventful, if you overlooked that on Monday Serena put pink dye in Amy's shampoo, and on Tuesday Koaru lost his temper on a Math problem and somehow caused the wall behind him to explode. So far, Wednesday had no incident...that was soon to change.

On Monday, Serena and Darien had had a fight about his brother. It soon turned into an insult match which included the following: "Meatball Head!" "Prince Idiot!" "Pampered Crybaby!" "Warrior Wannabe!" Soon after the incident, Raye took a strong liking to Darien, which Serena hadn't noticed. That was the problem.

Their school for the day was over, so Koaru, Amy, Serena and Lita were relaxing by the dorm's pool. Koaru was reading a Tai Jutsu manual he had borrowed from the library, and was learning some new attacks. Amy was reading her History book, learning of the circumstances that caused the powerful Senshi Kingdom to break contact with the Inner and Outer Planets. Lita was swimming in the water, and Serena was asleep in her chair, which was located under the balcony that led up to the dorm rooms. So she didn't notice Raye and Darien dump the gallon of paint on her from the balcony.

"What the hell?!?!?!??!!?" Serena shouted as the paint splashed on her, turning her blue. Koaru looked up and laughed, while Amy simply smiled and sighed. Lita paused and laughed, causing her to sink under the water. She resurfaced, coughing and gasping, but still laughing. Mina came running out of the change room wearing her swim suit, and slipped in the paint, and into the pool. Darin and Raye were laughing the hardest, needing to hold onto the balcony's rail in order to remain standing. Serena had gotten to her feet, grabbed her chair, and attempted to throw it up at them. It fell about four feet short, and crashed back onto the floor. Raye and Darien weren't done yet, though.

"This will piss her off even more." Darien said as he and Raye grabbed some of the water balloons they had brought along, and started to throw them down at Serena. Some went wild, and headed for the others. Lita and Mina dove under the water, but Amy didn't notice the one heading for her. Koaru grabbed the coaster from under his drink and threw it at the balloon, knocking it away. It landed three feet away, popped, and it's contents went into Mina's face, who had surfaced at the wrong place at the wrong time. Koaru did not have time to stop the one that hit him directly in the face. It burst, and he was soaked from the collar down. Amy looked up at him and burst out laughing. Koaru got his feet, ready to help Serena with a little payback.

Raye was the only one except Serena who laughed when Koaru was hit. "Darien," she said, "we had better run now." Darien looked at her like she was crazy. "Are you nuts? He's down there, 15 feet down. He isn't getting up here anytime soon. They both turned to watch Koaru run forward, slip slightly in the paint, then disappear in a small fountain of blue goop. Darien cursed, "Shit, where did he go?" He then heard Raye scream and looked over at her. She was free falling toward the pool and, with a big splash, hit the water. She resurfaced a few seconds later, and swam to the edge. Darien looked up at Koaru, ready to fight. Koaru wasn't in the mood.

On the floor, the girls were watching. Serena had finally calmed down, and was waiting to see what Koaru would do. She liked what happened more then candy...and she really loved her candy.

Koaru zipped past Darien like he was a statue, grabbed two of the remaining water balloons, and threw one of them at Darien's lower torso. It hit, burst, and Darien doubled over from the force and the cold water. Koaru then skillfully threw the second balloon, and it slipped into the small gap between Darien's waist and his belt, straight into his groin!

"HOLY FUC*ING SHIT!!!!!!!!" Darien shouted as the second balloon hit his...'area'...burst, and released it's ice cold contents in his underwear. On the ground, all five girls erupted into hysterics, rolling on the floor, banging it, or just falling down. "What the hell is going on?!?!?" Everyone stopped as Nicholas rushed into the room, looking thoroughly pissed off. He hurried over to Serena, and led her to her room. "You all need to change, we all have Combat Training next." The girls whispered amongst each other as they went to change, curious as to what the class would be like.

Meanwhile, back on the Moon, Queen Serenity and Luna were wondering how the children were doing. "They are probably having a blast." Luna said, trying to cheer up the Queen. Serenity looked at Luna, then asked, "What did they choose for the girls combat uniforms?" Luan fell silent, not wanting the Queen to hear that they chose...those... uniforms.

Amy raised her hand, the other placed in front of her lower body. Artemis, who was their instructor in this class, asked her, "What is it, Princess Amy?" Amy, who was blushing furiously, said in a shaky voice, "I still think that these skirts are too short." In the past, the girls had always worn skirts that reached their knees at least, but these ones just covered a quarter of the way down to their knees. Not much coverage to an eleven and four twelve year old girls. The others murmered in agreement, and even Koaru agreed. "They are supposed to be warriors, not hookers." A red high heeled shoe struck him square in the back of the head. Raye held her other shoe, ready to toss it as well. "Shut up Koaru! No one asked your opinion!" Their other instructor, the younger of the two who had greeted them earlier that week, stepped forward. "For today, you are only to get comfortable in the uniforms. Next week is when you will learn to fight."

Serena raised her hand. Koaru, who was helping instruct the class, addressed her. "Yes Serena?" he asked. Serena looked at the three instructors. "What are we called?" Artemis, the old man, and Koaru huddled. After a few minutes, they decided that since the uniforms looked a lot like sailor uniforms, they decided on the name. Koaru faced the girls. "You are to be known from this day forward, as the Sailor Senshi." Serena blinked. "What?" Artemis stepped forward. "Just say the Sailor Scouts." The five girls smiled, then cheered. Koaru sighed, "I did not order this life."

[The Godess of Destruction]

ah this is getting so good, keep the good work is a great story.

[neovaihlo]

Chapter 9: Power to the Planets

The next week went by with little incident, except for Koaru throwing Amy into the pool because she told him that he stunk after his workout. The following Thursday arrived, and the five princesses gathered outside. There they noticed Koaru and Nicholas were looking nervous, and that Artemis and Mr. Mokotai (the old guy) were not there. Darien came running out a few minutes later, zipping up his pants as he ran (don't ask).

Nicholas walked up to each girl and handed then a small wand, each the color of their respective planet. Serena didn't get a wand, but a pendant, which she looked at with glee. Koaru then stepped forward, looking nervous and curious at the same time. "Ok," he said, "those items you all received allow you to change into the uniforms you wore last week. So, start by calling out the name of your planet, then add the word 'Power' behind it." There was a confused shouting match, followed by a flash of blue, gold, red, green, and white. After the flash faded, the Scouts were covering themselves again. Darien then stepped forward, and Nicholas ran inside. "Alright, today you will learn your basic attacks." he said, eyeing each girl around him. "Koaru will be helping to control what happens, so he is staying as well." Darien said as Koaru started to sneak inside as well.

"Ok, Princess Amy," Darien said, "You will be called Sailor Mercury, and you all," he indicated the other four, "will be known as Sailor-then your planet. Ok, now, Sailor Mercury, you attack is used to blind and confuse the enemy. It is called Mercury Ice Bubbles Blast." Amy nodded her head, closed her eyes, the shouted, "Mercury Ice Bubbles...Blast!" Instantly the area was covered in fog, an no one could se shit. Darien cleared his throat. "Ok, that is good, but remember that your team mates should be able to see as well.

"Next, Sailor Venus." Mina stepped forward, her knee length blonde hair catching the wind as she walked. "Your attack is a light based laser. The attack command is Venus Crescent Beam Smash. Yes, a bit of a mouthful." Mina looked over at the trees, selected the thickest one, pointed her index finger at it, then shouted, "Venus Crescent Beam Smash!" The laser like beam sliced the tree fifty/fifty, then the two halves exploded. "Wow!" Mina cried as she watched the slivers fall to the ground.

"Alright, Sailor Mars, if you would." Raye walked over, her equally long black hair sweeping behind her. "Your attack is called Mars Fire Ignite." Raye looked at him, "Ignite?" she asked. Amy piped up, "Ignite means to set or catch fire to something." Raye blinked, "Ok..." then also faced a tree. "Mars Fire...Ignite!" the resulting giant fireball flew at the tree, then turned, and headed for Koaru, who looked up, swore, and jumped out of the way. The fireball then crashed into a rose bush, which burned merrily. Raye looked at Darien, blushing as red as her uniform. Darien sweated, "Ok, that was good-" "Fu*k you!" came from Koaru- "but you need to focus on our target harder." Raye nodded her head, then walked over to the others.

"Sailor Jupiter, please." Lita walked over, her brown hair tied in a ponytail, a look of determination on her face. "I'll be blunt," Darien said, "the attack is called Jupiter Thunder Crash. Got it?" Lita nodded her head, and Darien retreated a few paces. Lita took a breathe, then from her tiara extended a golden antenna. "What the heck?" she asked, and Darien shrugged his shoulders. Lita refocused, then shouted, "Jupiter Thunder...Crash!" A sphere of electricity shot from the antenna, and straight Koaru! "What the hell is this?" he shouted as he jumped over the ball, which crashed into the lake beside the school. As they watched, several fish floated to the surface in the area that the ball hit. "I know, I know." Lita said as Darien opened his mouth. "Need to focus harder." Darien nodded his head, then turned to Serena.

"Sailor Moon, over here please." Serena walked over, her knee length blonde pigtails swaying as she approached. "Your attack is more weapon based," Darien said. "It is your tiara. You throw it, and say Moon Tiara Magic. Got it?" Serena nodded, and Koaru moved over to a tree, leaned against it, and dozed off. Serena picked off her tiara, which started to glow. Serena chose her target, a tree far from Koaru, then commanded, Moon...Tiara...Magic!" The tiara became a glowing disk as she threw it, which soared straight, then turned, and headed towards the other girls, who screamed and ran. It then flew at Darien, who cursed and ducked, then watched as it headed at Koaru's neck!

Koaru opened his eye, then both snapped open, and he ran backwards up the tree, did a front flip, and the Tiara struck the tree as he landed three feet away. Everyone started to shout at Serena, who yelled back at them "It is hard to throw!" Koaru, in response to this, pulled the tiara out of the tree, threw it at Serena, who screamed and flinched, and the tiara gently struck her forehead, exactly where it had been before she threw it. Serena glared at Koaru. "I hate you!" Koaru shrugged his shoulders, then went inside.

[neovaihlo]

Chapter 10: The Heir to Ultimate Power

The year flew by in a tornado of fun and trouble. Darien and Raye were very close friends, and were always causing Serena trouble. Koaru and Amy had had a fight, and were not speaking too much anymore. Lita had started to pay a lot of attention to Koaru after this, and he didn't mind to much. Amy had started to have private lessons with a Mercury knight named Greg, and it was always awkward to be around the two. Raye and Mina were searching for boys, and had a few in mind. Mina liked a knight from Saturn, Jedite, while Raye had eyes for a Mars soldier called Hondorus, but preferred his nick name, Glave, because of the giant spear with a sword he used in combat. Serena and Nicholas didn't see much of each other anymore because Nick was now fighting in the army. The story continues at Serena's 13th birthday... hang on.

Serena had made a small mistake on her birthday. Darien had placed a bet that he would humiliate her before the night was over, and she accepted. So as she approached the table, she kept her eyes on the Prince...she should have watched the cake. In the kitchen, Darien had snuck in and switched the sugar with salt...and had made the lemonade...'accidentally' forgetting the sugar. Serena took a bite of her cake, only start to choke and cough, and the other paused in eating their own pieces. Koaru took a sip of the beverage, his eyes snapped open, and spit it out and yelled "Serena! Don't drink the"- she took a large swig-"...lemonade...." he ended slowly, watching Serena pull the most amusing faces.

The rest of the meal passed without incident. As the dance started, Nicholas came running into the room, and walked over to his bride-to-be. "Sorry I'm late." he said, "The general was being an ass." Koaru laughed, and Darien ran out of the room. During the third dance, Koaru and Lita were doing a slow waltz, while Serena and Nick were 'cutting a rug'. Amy and Greg were visiting on a bench out on the balcony, and Raye and Glave had mysteriously vanished. Mina and Jedite were also dancing, but they were having difficulty. Suddenly the doors burst open, and King Soul walked in, causing everyone to run out of the room. Queen Serenity, who had been expecting this, pulled out the Silver Crystal, and soldiers came pouring into the room, while Koaru, Greg, Nicholas and Jedite drew their swords.

"I see that you still haven't given my request any thought." Soul said as the soldiers surrounded him. "Leave now." Serenity said. Soul smiled, "Ok, but allow me to take a parting gift." His right hand glowed a dark purple, then Serena vanished and appeared beside him. He then grabbed her wrist and ran outside.

Darien was trying on one of Koaru's tuxedos when he heard the scream from the window. He ran over and saw King Soul and Serena being perused by a group of soldiers. As he watched, Koaru accelerated, passed Soul, turned around, and swung his sword at his head. Soul Threw Serena aside and drew his own sword, blocking the attack. Darien then looked over and saw that Serena was trapped inside a bubble, and she was fighting to get out. He ran and grabbed his own sword, then headed to the window, but thought, "No, they think I left...I will stay that way." Looking around, he saw a horn rimmed mask, which he slapped on and then leapt out the window into the tree.

Koaru had been fighting for a while when Soul finally blasted him with a sphere of black energy, sending him into a tree. Nicholas then lunged, missed, and was kicked in the face. Greg and Jedite both attacked, and Soul blasted them both with energy spheres. He was about to return to Serena when a rose flew at him, slashed his wrist, and caused his to flinch. He then turned to see a man wearing a tuxedo standing in a nearby tree, holding a sword in one hand, and in the other, another rose.

Darien was all "What the hell am I doing?" in his head, but he was still ready to fight. "Who are you?" King Soul demanded. Darien thought a moment, then looked at what he was wearing. "I am...tuxedo"- remembered the mask- "mask. I am Tuxedo Mask!" Koaru got to his feet hearing this. "God, what a stupid name." he thought, then he charged again.

King Soul blocked Koaru's lunge, then slashed at him. Koaru ducked under the blade and struck again, and Soul blocked again. Then Koaru ducked down and kicked up at Soul's jaw, just like before, and this time he connected. King Soul was sent up into the air, where Koaru jumped up, kicking him in the back on the way up, and striking him with his heel to the chest on the way down. Soul staggered to his feet, then blasted Koaru with a gigantic energy sphere, which blew Koaru straight through a tree.

Serena was scared. She was trapped in a bubble, no one could beat King Soul, and there was a guy in a tuxedo and a mask in a tree, whom she was really thinking to be cute. Just then her friends came running out of the Palace, carrying their wands. The following is not in order, but it was like this: "Mars Power! Venus Power! Mercury Power! Jupiter Power!" The four Sailor Scouts ran at King Soul, and he turned to face them. Amy struck first, "Mercury Ice Bubbles...Blast!" King Soul stepped back as the fog surrounded him. Then he heard "Jupiter Thunder...Crash! Mars Fire...Ignite!" The two attacks flew and hit him dead on, sending him flying out of the fog and near Koaru, who was up and ready for round three.

Koaru ran at Soul, raised his sword, then slashed, cutting Soul's side. King Soul collapsed to his knees as blood poured out of the wound, and he then leapt forward, grabbed Koaru by the throat, and held him up, strangling him.

Koaru gagged and gasped, trying to break free of Soul’s grip, then felt a stabbing pain in his head, once again followed by voices and images of a king and queen.

King Soul watched the boy he held die, then gasped as a blinding light burst from his head. When the light faded, he saw the symbol of Tritus, and he realized who this boy was, and released him. "You..." he thought, "you have such power at such a young age...I can use this. You have so much untapped power...heh heh. You truly are the Heir to Ultimate Power." King Soul then picked Koaru up, and vanished.

"Where did he go?" Sailor Mercury asked as they ran to the spot where they last saw the two. "I don't know." Sailor Venus replied, looking around for a clue. The bubble Serena was trapped in vanished, and she fell to the ground, crying. Artemis and Serenity looked over at the scene. "Do you think he..." Artemis asked. Serenity shook her head. "Soul would want Koaru dead. I'm afraid we will never see him again." The Scouts heard this, and they all dissolved into tears, not of joy or sadness, but anger, anger at King Soul, anger at Koaru, and anger at their inability to do anything.

Koaru awoke with a start at the sound of footsteps. His eyes tried to focus, but it was pitch black. "Who is there?" he asked, tried to sit up, and discovered that his arms and legs were chained to the stone table he lay on. The footsteps stopped, and then a dim light appeared, and Koaru's blood ran cold. He was in a dark dungeon room filled with objects that were clearly used for torture. Beside him stood King Soul, his hand glowing a black/blue/silvery mist. He looked at Koaru, smiling. "You, you are the one I need to conquer this galaxy." he said, still smiling. Koaru spat on him. "I will never help you!" he shouted, and again strained against the chains. King Soul smiled more forcefully now, and, grabbing Koaru's left arm said "Oh, you will...you can bet your life on that." He then grabbed Koaru's left shoulder with his glowing hand, and Koaru's cries of pain were heard all throughout the castle, causing many Yomas to look up in interest, hoping for blood to be spilt.

man, this story is long...i forgot about this chapter. i need to read it more often. PS: i would apriciate some reviews for ideas for my future stories (i'm wrapping up the second one, need more ideas) thnx

[The Godess of Destruction]

i am so bad to give any advice about stories but i reallyl ike this one i hope you write more soon.

[neovaihlo]

Chapter 11: Reunion with Tears of Blood

It had been six months since Koaru was taken, and the search had been called off. The Scouts continued their training and studies, always wishing to hear Koaru piss off the teacher. Luna had become the most depressed, since she had treated the young prince as a son. Artemis had been comforting her constantly, always trying to cheer her up. Lita and Amy, both who had had feelings for Koaru, were spaced out most of the time, and it worried Greg. As a result, his constant worrying about Amy caused her to ask him to quit seeing her for a while (in English, they broke up).

"No, and that is final." Queen Serenity said as she sent Luna away again after another request that the search continue. Serenity sighed and sat back in her throne, depressed. She also missed the boy, but she couldn't waste power searching for him. Serena then came running into the room holding a card. "Mommy! Here! Read this." The Queen took and read it, a slight smile spreading across her face. It was a notice informing her that Serena was to be part of the year end celebration at the Crystal Moon Academy. "I'll come, honey." she said.

The day of the celebration arrived, and the Academy's stadium (think of the Roman Coliseum ) was packed full of people coming to watch what the five princesses had learned. Up in the Royal Box, Queen Serenity settled herself between King Jupiter and Queen Mercury. Jupiter leaned over to her. "So, do you think our children will entertain us?" Serenity smiled. "I know I will be entertained no matter what." Queen Mercury looked at the sky, puzzled. "Did either of you hear anything about a storm today?" The others shook their heads and also looked up.

In the center of the arena, Artemis walked out and shouted for attention (no microphones back then). "Ladies and Gentlemen, if I can have your attention please! You will now witness the powers and talents that our princesses have learned and mastered over the past year!" The stadium erupted with applause, and Artemis had to cover his ears before continuing. "Now, if you will all kindly welcome, the Sailor Scouts!" applause burst forth again, and the five girls entered the arena, ready to show what they had been practicing.

Sailor Mars (Raye) started the show by doing an ancient Mars summoning ritual. As she danced, a ring of fire ignited around her, and then a twelve point star of fire burst through the ring, with Sailor Mars in the center. Then all the flames gathered together into a large ball, with exploded, and a flaming phoenix flew out of it, and towards Sailor Mercury. Amy concentrated all her powers into a ring around herself, and then shot a gigantic jet of water at the phoenix, which after contact, turned to ice. Sailor Venus then used her Beam Smash to slice the ice into perfectly shaped hearts, which fell to the ground, point down. Sailor Jupiter gathered energy into her antenna, and shot three bolts of lightning at three of the hearts. The resulting angles of the hearts caused the lighting to ricocheted around the stadium, each time hitting another heart and bouncing in another direction. Then all three bolts hit the final heart, and they flew up to a center point in the sky, which was where Sailor Moon had just jumped to. She removed her tiara and gathered energy into it, then threw it away from the bolts. The result was that the three bolts merged together into one large bolt that chased the tiara around the stadium, directed by Sailor Moon's energy. After a while, all the energy dissipated, and that was the end. The stadium erupted with applause again, and the five girls took a bow. Then the lightning struck from the storm clouds.

King Jupiter stood up to get rid of the storm clouds, but after the first bolt struck, a second one flew straight at him, and struck him through the chest. He collapsed to the floor, dead, and everyone else ran for cover from the storm.

On the ground, the Scouts couldn't see what was happening, but they figured who it was. "King Soul." Sailor Venus said, gathering energy for battle. King Soul's voice then thundered from the clouds. "Congratulations, Princesses. I was trying to think of a gift that all five of you would like, and this was all that came to mind." Another lightning bolt shot out of the clouds, struck the ground, and in a flash, the storm vanished. The Scouts looked to where the bolt and struck the ground, and what they saw shocked them. Lita and Amy didn't know what to think.

Up in the stands, Luna ran to the edge to look down. The site that met her eyes filled them with tears. "Oh...Koaru!!!!"