"She looks a little lonely, doesn't she?" Seisui looked toward Kazeko; she could practically see Kazeko shaking. Kazeko hadn't even brought anything to eat, and she stared down at her feet as though they were the one thing that wasn't in danger of disappearing.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Tokimo replied, walking toward her.

"Haven't we already put Kazeko in enough danger by talking to her to begin with?" Seisui shook her head. "I shouldn't have brought her to the office. Erik was right. She'll never hear the end of it."

"Oh, com'on Seisui! If we just leave her there, she'll be lonely. Sure, maybe people will make fun of her, but hey, at least she's not sitting there lookin' at her feet. I mean, her feet aren't gonna give her any conversation. At least..." Tokimo paused, a disturbed look crossing her face. "I hope not."

"You go on ahead, Tokimo. They don't hate you as much as me."

"I'm going, Seisui, and I'm not going alone!" Tokimo grabbed Seisui's hand and pulled her upward. Seisui sighed in resignation as she grabbed her lunch-box, half-heartedly following Tokimo's enthused gait. She shouldn't have mentioned Kazeko to begin with. Maybe Tokimo wouldn't have noticed her.

"Hey!" Tokimo shouted, approaching Kazeko. She was seated in the corner of a cement planter, still concentrating deeply. "Something wrong with your feet?"

"Huh...my...feet?" Kazeko replied, a look of confusion crossing her face.

"Yeah. You're looking down at your feet, like there's something there."

"N-no...I'm not...the ground. That's where I'm looking."

"Oh," Tokimo said. "The ground." Tokimo joined her for a moment, but seeing nothing there but grass, she decided that Kazeko must be especially bored.

"You don't have any lunch...want us to share?" Seisui held out her lunch. She blushed a little as she realized she was just sharing white rice, but rice, she reasoned, was better than nothing at all.

"N-no! That's all right. I'll be fine. I forgot to bring it...that's all. I'll bring some t-tomorrow."

"Com'on...you should eat something, anyway," Tokimo urged her, poking her gently in the shoulder. Kazeko cringed a little at her touch. "It's bad for you to starve."

"Just one day," Kazeko insisted. "I'll be fine."

"Please eat a little, Kazeko," Seisui asked sweetly, moving her lunch closer. "It's okay."

Kazeko looked at the lunch a little uncertainly. Kazeko wasn't sure if she should refuse a Tuatha De Dannann or not. Was it okay to eat their food?

Kazeko took the lunch box and looked guiltily down at it. "O-okay," She finally said.

Seisui and Tokimo sat down next to her; Tokimo handed Seisui a couple of sandwich slices to make up for her loss. Kazeko continued to stare down at the food, sticking the chopsticks clumsily in the rice and just sitting there, looking at them. Her guilty look seemed to turn to one of puzzlement. Tokimo and Seisui shared an odd glance.

"Go ahead," Seisui told her.

Kazeko looked back at her like a child lost in the woods. "How do I eat it?"

"Psst," Tokimo nudged Seisui, her voice a loud whisper. "I don't think she knows how to use chopsticks."

"Oh!" Seisui blushed. "Umm...I think I have a fork in my lunchbox set..." Seisui grabbed a plastic case out of her lunch box and pulled out a tiny plastic fork. "Here."

Kazeko took the fork gently, her hand trembling.

"Are you okay?" Seisui asked. "Is something wrong...?"

"She tried to kill Queen Serenity," the woman told her. "Two time. She is Sailor Soldier..."

"Who...are you...?" Kazeko murmured as she took the fork.

"Huh?" Tokimo looked incredulous. "What do you mean--"

The sound of half-mad shrieking interrupted her. A group of students were quickly clumping together around the screams; teachers soon joined the mass, sending the students scattering with words of admonishment.

"What's going on?" Seisui asked, getting up and craning her head to see.

"Someone call the hospital!" a teacher shouted. "This woman needs help!"

Several students fled to the door; others, still intrigued by the spectacle, stood by close enough to see and far enough to escape admonishment.

"I'm going to check it out," Tokimo told them.

"Wait a second Tokimo! This isn't any of our--"

She was gone before Seisui finished.

suki ni michibikarete doko ni tadoritsuku to mada kangaete iru

Yasashige na lullaby kiite kako wo sukoshi dake omou
Machigai mo hiai mo ippai dakedo anata ga iru kara
Koukai-shinai

Pink-iro no tsuki no shita ni iru kedo
Motto tsuyoi nagusame ga iru no
Tatoe ayamachi dake shitemo
I love you tte itte ne

Though I hold a mysterious destiny,
I'm still wondering to where I will struggle on,
being led by the moon

Listening to a gentle lullaby, I think just a little of the past
It's full of mistakes and sorrow, but since
You are here, I won't regret it

Though I'm under the pink moon,
I need an even stronger comfort
Even if I make only mistakes,
Say, "I love you," okay?

Moon Senshi: Unmei no Kodomo

Episode Eleven:

"A Rise And Fall In Time"

"Hey, what happened here?" Tokimo asked. A teacher was kneeling by the woman's limp figure; as Tokimo leaned down toward her, she could see the sweat bead like dew on the teacher's forehead.

"What are you doing here?" the teacher told her urgently. "We can't have students here. This woman needs help, not a squad of high schoolers making a ring around her body!"

"Jeeez! Chill out. I thought I could help. I mean, shouldn't we find someone who knows--"

Tokimo mouth froze as the pale, limp woman sprung into life. The teacher let out an abrupt scream as two lily hands clenched around her throat; a "crick" sound accompanied the wringing of her neck, a brief snap like the slaughter of a fowl. The pale woman laughed like falling chains as the teacher flopped to the ground.

Tokimo looked nervously down at the now-conscious woman. She was dressed flagrantly; her dress was pinstriped and purple, with a gold-trimmed jumper. The thin veil hanging over her face seemed a bizarre contrast to her loud appearance. The female teacher's eyes, which had never closed, became vacant and dull as a dark smog gravitated and spun around the woman's hands.

Tokimo stood up only seconds before the awakened woman. The pallid woman put her smoke-ringed hands together and stretched out the smog like a wad of gum, pulling it into a string that turned a bright, cheerful red.

Tokimo backed away. "What the hell...?"

The woman smirked. She jumped off the ground and floated there, frozen in time.

Then she flew forward, her dress unfurling behind her. The string was taunt in her hands as she lunged toward Tokimo.

"Goodnight, fell creature," she told Tokimo. Tokimo's eyes widened as she hit the ground to avoid her attacker. The demon flew past.

"What the hell is going on?" Tokimo shouted in exasperation. "Who's the crazy lady?"

Seisui paused for a moment. Nemesis...oh, god, what monster had been unleashed by her banishment?

"Charon prism power!" Tokimo shouted, her figure blurring as she transformed.

"S-s-seisui!" Kazeko put her hand on Seisui's shoulder, a look of fear and wonder on her face. "This is Fomorii! B-be careful! They're--"

"Kazeko, you need to run away! Don't worry about me!" Seisui gently pushed her hand off her shoulder and raised her hand above her head. What did it matter, if she was seen now? Everyone knew the truth, save perhaps Kazeko, and she would find out eventually. "Titan prism power, make up!"

Kazeko watched Seisui as the rest of the school fled in panic; she had to know the truth about Seisui and her power.

Sailor Titan didn't waste any time.

"Black stream death!" Curls of black, viscous liquid wrapped around the woman's porcelain neck. She fell on her knees, trying to grab the slimy rope as it moved between her hands like water, falling into the cracks and materializing through the other side.

"Who are you?" Sailor Titan asked, looking down at her.

"Thisby," she said with difficulty, "the most beautiful woman in the world..."

"If you're the most beautiful woman," Titan continued, "why is your face hidden?"

"This face," she rasped, continuing to claw at the ooze, "is only for my love..."

"Your love?" Seisui asked incredulously. "Who is that?"

A clinking laugher rose. "That is not you."

Titan's shrill scream ripped the air as she fell suddenly backwards. She could feel a thin wire cutting into her ankles. Looking upward, she could see her Black Water unravel into her fingers as Thisby held the end of the string that tied her ankles together. The slack end of the string that hung from Thisby's other hand became suddenly stiff; It hung like a knitting needle on the end of a thread, swaying gently in her hands like a pendulum. She threw it up into the air and grabbed it with a fist, pointing it toward Titan like a dagger.

"Space-time blast!"

The crackling energy soon surrounded the woman. Her hands shook as the pointed thread slid through her now-sweating palms, becoming limp as it fell to the ground. Her stomach heaved unwillingly as she covered her face; blood oozed through her fingers.

"Hurry up!" Titan screamed, turning toward Charon. "My legs! My legs are still--"

"B-be quiet, please!" Kazeko whispered. Sailor Titan turned her head; Kazeko was kneeling on the ground next to her, her skirt covered in dirt. She held a small knife in her hand; she was working through the string, tearing ferociously through the stubborn wire.

"Kazeko, you have to get out of here! You don't have any way of defending yourself!"

"I am n-nothing..." Kazeko murmured. "Do not f-fear for me."

Sailor Titan breathed a sigh of relief as she heard a dull "snap" and the numbing pain loosen from her ankles. She stood up; looking down at her boots, she could see a rather unsightly tear in a ring around them, the blood seeping slowly into the cloth.

"We have to get out of here--come on!" Titan grabbed Kazeko's wrist and pulled her back from Thisby. Glancing backward, Titan could see Charon's bubble of energy slowly fading as Thisby pulled her hand away from her face and shakily made her way toward her broken string. As the distorted shield drifted apart, she clenched the two halves of her broken string together. The smog floated outwards once more and bridged the gap; she stood up again, her knees quaking slightly.

Sailor Charon cringed. The slight of her blood-stained veil and hand was pretty gross. What kind of weirdo puked up blood, anyway?

Charon clenched onto her Naginata, hoping to hit a soft spot if Thisby lunged again. The youma lifted her string and pulled it across her hands, smoothing it between her fingers.

Then Thisby turned around.

"Well...look at this," she said mockingly.

The Crimson Eagle stood before her. His Katana was clenched in his hands. He said nothing.

"The Crimson Eagle, is it?" she said mockingly. "Is that what you call yourself?"

"Yes," He said flatly. "Now leave."

"Leave where?"

"Here. Earth. The universe. Or if you don't leave, kindly cease this killing."

She smirked. "I can leave," she told him, "But you have to come with me."

He dropped his Katana. "Very well."

The smog closed around them and they disappeared.

"What the fuck?" Fubuki walked over toward the reddish patch on the ground, examining the spot where the Crimson Eagle and Thisby had disappeared. "That made a whole shitload of sense."

"So you hung around too, huh?" Charon turned toward Fubuki. "Thanks for the help."

"You two losers seemed to have things under control," Fubuki said with a shrug. "You and your little friend."

Kazeko backed a little farther away.

"What happened to the Crimson Eagle?" Yamiko walked toward the teacher, cringing slightly. Her head was cranked unnaturally at a 45 degree angle. Sailor Pinkmoon soon joined Yamiko; she, along with the Sailor Quartet, had not transformed fast enough to take part in the brief fray.

"Can you save her?" Sailor Ceres turned toward Pinkmoon, who was clutching the Pink Crystal between her hands.

"I think so," she replied, holding the crystal protectively to her chest, "but it will take a lot of energy. I don't want to do it if the youma might return right away. She might just be killed again."

"You two should transform," Sailor Charon warned Yamiko and Fubuki, sweeping her hand in their direction. "Me and Titan are gonna need your help! That nutter bar could come back!"

"The fuck? Why should I help you? It's none of my fucking business." Fubuki sat down on the edge of a raised flower bed, her coat scraping roughly against the glittering concrete. "I always hated that teacher, anyway."

"Disgusting," Sailor Vesta said with a cringe.

"You could get killed too, Fubuki," Titan reminded her. "It might be in your own best interest."

Fubuki shrugged. "I'll transform if I think she's coming back."

"What about you, Yamiko?" Titan turned toward her. "Will you fight?"

Yamiko backed away from the dead teacher. "I...don't know. I don't know." She shivered slightly. Her forehead felt damp.

"Still, it must really bite. I mean, you guys can't really leave until you know what happened to the fuckin' psycho, so you just have to sit here and jack off. At least you don't have to go to class..."

Kazeko slowly walked toward where the Youma and the Crimson Eagle disappeared, clutching her three-pointed pendant as though it anchored her to the ground. She knelt down and laid on palm on the ground; the grass stuck through the cracks between her fingers.

"What the hell are you doing?" Fubuki asked, looking skeptical.

"Talking," Kazeko told her bluntly. Fubuki opened her mouth to say something but thought better of it. That was just too fucked up to answer.

Kazeko could hear the grass screaming. She cringed as she felt deeping sense of dread and a heavy tugging below her palm. This was undoubtably Fomorii, and something was sucking the air into the netherworld...

"What are you doing, Kazeko?"

Kazeko looked up suddenly; the energy melted away from her. It was Sailor Titan.

"The Fomorii's energies are still here," she told her. "But she's in a portal above here; a sort of entrance to the netherworld." Kazeko turned back to the grass. "The grass will be dead before nightfall. Maybe even the tree..."

"Did you hear that, Charon?" Titan turned around toward her; Charon readied her Naginata for combat.

"Uh-huh. You two might wanna transform, too," Charon warned them. She motioned her Naginata a little threateningly toward Fubuki; Fubuki just shrugged and chewed on her lip.

"How do you know all of this?" Yamiko watched as Kazeko backed away from the grass again. "You're not one of the Sailor Senshi, are you?"

Kazeko blushed a little. "N-n-no! I'm not Dannann."

"Leave her alone," Titan warned Yamiko. "It's none of our business."

"She just told us all this weird stuff--all she did was touch the ground! don't you think that's a little odd? Normal people can't do that, you know! How do you know she wasn't making it up?" Yamiko looked angrily at Titan.

"I-I-I l-learned it," Kazeko interrupted.

"Kazeko...how did you know about the youma? And what was that word you used--Fomouli?" Titan asked.

"Fomorii..." Kazeko repeated. "I...I..."

I have to run away.

No one must know.

I must find a place where no one will ever find me--

"I don't know--" she stuttered, clasping her necklace even tighter. She could feel the sweat gather in the wrinkles of her palms. "I-I-I don't k-know."

"It's okay, Titan," Charon said authoritatively. "I trust Kazeko. Besides, the Shinto priestesses can use powers of intuition. And what about those crazy pet psychics on TV? I bet Kazeko's like a pet psychic!"

Yamiko sighed. "I don't think this is quite the same as--"

"Hey Kazeko, if you can talk to pets, maybe you can figure out what's wrong with Yamiko! Wouldn't that be great?"

"Anyway," Titan interrupted, "It's probably better if we wait here. Charon and I can't keep you two here, but what goes around comes around."

"What about fuckin' Barbie over there?" Fubuki motioned toward Sailor Pinkmoon. "She gonna help you? You gonna be pussies together?"

Titan narrowed her eyes.

"We'll deal with Usako later," Charon said authoritatively. "After we kill the youma."

Sailor Titan looked tentatively toward Pinkmoon. She smiled; a puppy that returns after you kick it. Certainly, she had a chance before the youma returned...but that would mean the death of the teacher.

No, she thought. Better to wait until after the fight--when Usako was weakened.

Darkness closed around him.

"Where is this?" He exclaimed. There was darkness on every side; below him, above him, everywhere.

"Nowhere of importance," Thisby replied, appearing in front of him. "So, essentially, nowhere at all."

"Are you dead?" he asked. "I agreed to your terms so that you might cease fighting."

"Neither of us are dead," she told him, straightening the veil around her head and clawing irritably at the blood stains. "I've merely brought us somewhere else."

"Forever, then?"

Thisby laughed. "Forever? What a waste of time. I can't die here; I have someone to return to."

"That wasn't our deal!" he shouted, holding up a fist. "You said you would leave!"

"I said I would leave," she said coyly, ruffling her skirt. "I didn't say I wouldn't return."

The Crimson Eagle lunged toward her, his fist toward her face. Thisby pulled her red string from the empty space around them and wrapped it nonchalantly around his hands.

"It's your own fault," she shrugged. "You should have been paying attention."

"I should have known better than to accept the word of a monster!" he snapped, struggling with the string.

"A monster?" Thisby repeated in disgust. "My name is Thisby. And I'm a woman!"

"You're dead. You're reanimated flesh!"

"I am not! Pale skin is a sign of elegance!"

"Even if you're not a monster, you're still a puppet. What demon are you taking orders from? Who is it this time, the new child of Chaos?"

"I am no puppet," she snapped, pulling the string that held his wrists together. A thin line of blood appeared where they held him, cutting through his leather gloves. "And my master is not a demon, nor is he a child!"

"Whoever he is, he has you right where he wants you. Do you think he'll care if you're dead tomorrow?"

Thisby pulled the string again, and blood dripped from the Crimson Eagle's wrists. The floor absorbed it slowly, like a sponge.

"He loves me," Thisby hissed. "He loves me."

The Crimson Eagle did not reply this time.

"This is about you, understand?" she spat. "Not me. I want to talk about you."

"There's nothing to talk about," the Crimson Eagle said.

"Oh really? Well, how about your mother?" She drew her face close to his mask. Erik could still discern the acrid scent of regurgitated blood.

"What about my mother?" He said it slowly, as though he were talking to a child. "She bore me. What of it?"

"Is that really all?"

"Why does it matter? She was my mother. She took care of me. I loved her."

"Did you always listen to your mother? Were you a good child?"

"Shut up!" he hissed. He dove forward, hauling his weight into her stomach. She fell to the ground, the string sliding out of her hands as it tightened a little more around the Crimson Eagle's wrists. "My mother is my mother! She loved me, I was a good child. This matter has no import!"

Thisby got up shakily, straightening her veil. "You were a good child, Erik, but not a good Knight. You killed the Moon Senshi."

"Erik?" the Crimson Eagle repeated. "I've heard this name before. But I'm not Erik. Erik is someone else, someone who was once confused for me."

"Yes, Erik, Erik is the Crimson Eagle, and Erik is a bad knight--and an even worse councilor!"

"What are you talking about? I was never a councilor!"

"You weren't but you were, weren't you? After all, you are Erik vonDarkmoor!"

"I don't know what you're talking about!" The Crimson Eagle moved toward her, hoping to slam her into the floor.

Thibsy grabbed his shoulder armor in her hands--still holding onto the string--and held it there, holding him back as he struggled to move forward. The Crimson Eagle jerked backwards and threw her hand aside.

"So typical," she told him, backing away slightly. "The Crimson Eagle can handle one tragic past, but two--two is two too many!"

She laughed mockingly, the string unraveling off of his wrists and returning to her hand.

"I only have one past!" he shouted. He ran toward her, his fist aimed for her face; she grabbed onto it and pulled him toward her, sending him onto the ground. Before he could stand, the string was wrapped around him again--this time, it was around his arms and torso. Thisby pulled it tightly; he cringed.

"You lie." she whispered hoarsely. "You have two pasts. But each part of you has forgotten the other. Erik vonDarkmoor."

"I'm not Erik vonDarkmoor!"

"It was a lovely funeral, wasn't it? I especially liked the auction afterward."

"What are you doing?!"

"Paying off your parents' debt, of course. It was such a tragedy...I wanted to give you their things, but it has to be paid..." his face had a look of profound regret. Erik scowled.

"My parents never had a debt! These are my things! My memories!"

"Why Erik...these are only things, as you say. Your memories of your parents are in your heart, of course," he said, his voice consoling. "It's too bad their things will have to be sold, but--"

"Where is my music box?"

"It's in the auction, with everything else."

"That was my mother's! Give it back, you bastard!"

The audience had stared at him. A few onlookers backed away nervously.

"Erik! The inheritance of your family must go! The debts have to be paid!"

Erik threw him to the ground.

"You liar!" he screamed. "My mother's brother, and this! You demon!"

"What?" the Crimson Eagle put his hands on his mask. Cold Iron.... "What is...?"

"I've heard that the vonDarkmoor family is peddling fast lead."

"The newspapers are giving 'em some serious shit for that one..."

"That's a lie..." he murmured, clinging onto his mask. "It's a lie..."

"Erik, stop this useless fighting....People are happier now than they used to be. There's no death, no wars..." His mother stared at him from the other end of the table. It was a silent supper.

"People are suffering, mother! I can't stand back when people are suffering."

"Mother...?" Erik cringed as the black mask thudded softly onto the floor of a floorless void. He stared down in wonder. Usually the mask would disappear, but it remained.

"Arutha..." Tears fell down her face. "Arutha, don't do this. This isn't necessary. The code is useless...."

"I am a Knight. Those men who have sailor crystals must uphold their code."

"There are no answers to this problem, Arutha! You won't find anything...."

"I am the Crimson Eagle. I have to go now. I will find answers."

"You couldn't find any answers, Arutha." Thisby smiled.

"What...?" He looked down at the mask.

Thisby smiled. A silver fountain came streaming out of the murky floor; it dripped and spun and spiraled into a disk. Erik could see a man in the reflection of the disk--a sweeping cloak, dark armor, an iron mask.

"What are you afraid of? Of me? Of course...you would want to forget, wouldn't you...?"

Erik's heart froze as he looked at his reflection.

"Hey, I just had a thought," Yamiko said suddenly.

"What?" Natsuko asked.

"If Kazeko can tell that the youma can make some kind of weird, alternate space, might she be able to get rid of it? Or at least get you inside of it?"

"Why the fuck do you care? You're the one chickening out in the corner there." Fubuki smirked.

Yamiko glared. "I'm not chickening out. It's too early to make reckless decisions. What if that youma were only a woman who was possessed?"

"From the way she's clothed and the bizarre circumstances of her appearance, my guess is that she's not a normal human that's been possessed," Haruko told her. "Youma don't usually bother dressing up before they attack if they've taken over someone's body."

"Regardless, it's more important to figure out what happened to Thisby and the Crimson Eagle," Sailor Titan reminded them.

"Since when do you care about that fucker?" Fubuki asked.

"I'm not really interested in killing anyone but the royal family Why should I let innocent people die?"

Sailor Pinkmoon put a forceful hand on Vesta's arm as she heard Titan's words. Vesta began to move forward, ready to attack.

"So, Kaze," Charon asked, turning toward her, "Can you open up the weirdo dimension thing?"

"No," Kazeko repiled. "I can't. Since the portal is composed of negative energies, you might be able to reverse the magic by infusing the area with the same amount of positive energies, but the amount--"

"Twinkle yell!"

The Sailor Quartet looked more than a little shocked as Sailor Pinkmoon held the glass bell above her head.

A blaze of blinding light appeared. The blurry form of Helios appeared against the glowing brightness; his cheeks were scarlet, his hands clasped. As the light disappeared, he looked mournfully up at Pinkmoon.

"You called me?" His hands spread apart and he stood; Sailor Pinkmoon looked away.

"I'm sorry, Helios," she murmured. "I didn't mean to...I just...I know you were worried about me, but I--"

"It's okay," he said, hugging her. "I shouldn't have betrayed your trust like that."

"Helios..." she whimpered, hugging him back. "I'm so sorry..."

"This is so fuckin' pathetic," Fubuki swore. "I think I'm gonna retch."

Helios shot a glare at Fubuki but decided not to press the matter. He could see patch of wilted grass and the limp figure of a woman; signs of a fight. "What's going on? It looks like you're been fighting, but there's no one here."

"It's terrible, Helios..." Pinkmoon turned and stared at the teacher's limp figure. "A youma appeared."

Helios looked a little shocked. "Is it from Nemesis?"

"We don't know," Pinkmoon replied. "It was some kind of odd woman. The Crimson Eagle appeared, told her to leave, and she did--and brought him with her."

"Yeah. And according to the amazing plant psychic Kazeko, the way to get him back is to, er, add lots of positive energy," Charon said.

"Where the grass is wilted, there's supposed to be an alternate space. That's where the Crimson Eagle is. Supposedly, if you add enough positive energy, it could neutralize the field...at least, that's what Kazeko told us," Pinkmoon explained, motioning toward Kazeko.

"Kazeko?" Helios repeated. "Who are you?"

Kazeko backed away awkwardly.

"Don't ask her that," Titan warned him. "She's had enough questions."

"Won't you try praying, Helios?" Pinkmoon asked him. "It could make a difference."

"I suppose we haven't got anything to lose." Helios kneeled down by the wilted patch. He clasped his hands together and spoke strange words; as he did so, light gathered in front of him and spiraled into the wilting patch of grass.

Soon the grass was displaced by a pool of brilliant light; slowly, a small black oval drew out of the pool, expanding like a balloon. The light drew itself into the oval, and the darkness turned a murky gray.

"Ah, fuck," Fubuki hissed. "I better transform. Miranda prism power, make up!" She held her hand above her head and transformed in a flurry of snow.

Helios could feel himself weakening as the light began to burst through the sphere, leaving pinpoints all over its surface. Soon the light expanded further; Helios squinted his eyes in pain.

And then, it burst outwards.

The disk of silver shattered without warning; Erik had a sense of himself once more.

The darkness around him was sinking into a pool of light. The murky floor was turning biege; the biege flowed to an intense white. Thisby pulled her string back in and tried to summon her smog once more, but the light overwhelmed her and her smog vanished.

Soon the entire room he had entered was overwhelmed by the intense whiteness. Tiny cracks like antique china covered the room, and soon, it shattered.

The schoolyard appeared; a man, clothed in white, stared at him for a moment before collapsing on the ground, his robes fluttering behind him. Erik turned; Thisby was kneeling on the ground, staring viciously at the prostrate form of the man.

"Arctic blades!" Miranda screamed.

Thisby's eyes widened as the sparkling disks flew toward her. She lifted one leg up to run, but before she could react, the blades cut her straight in two, grotesquely spraying blood over the grass, Erik's face, and the body of the teacher nearby.

"Yummy," Miranda smirked. Titan cringed; the Sailor Quartet held firmly onto Sailor Pinkmoon, who appeared in danger of fainting.

Mercifully, the body soon evaporated away into red mist. As the last of her disappeared, a small, light-colored square thudded onto the quickly recovering grass.

Erik put a hand on his head. A dull thudding resounded through his skull; he could not remember a more painful headache. He walked over to the small square and, picking it up, realized it was a painting in miniature. It was a picture of the woman who had taunted him in the darkness, but she was smiling brightly, healthy and full of color.

"What is it?" Titan asked, walking toward him. "Let me see."

Erik handed her the portrait. Sailor Titan looked at it quizzically for a moment. "That's odd," she mumbled.

"Erik," Sailor Charon shouted, pointing squarely at his face. "There's no more hiding it! We know you're the Crimson Eagle!"

Erik took his hand off his throbbing head. "I don't know what you're talking about," he replied, cringing. "I don't know who the Crimson Eagle is." Yes you do, some part of him screamed. You know. You know you're the Crimson Eagle.

"No I don't! I don't know who the Crimson Eagle is!" he said aloud, returning his hand to his forehead.

"Wow," Sailor Charon replied. "You answered my question twice. Once would have been okay, though...."

"Who are you kidding, Erik?" Akiko stepped forward, raising an eyebrow. "The Crimson Eagle disappears. You appear. You're both tall and imposing. And we know that the Crimson Eagle can't be too far away, since he appears on time whenever something goes wrong. You're the Crimson Eagle, and we all know it."

"I don't know," he repeated. "I don't remember. I don't feel well."

Of course...you would want to forget, wouldn't you...?

"I think I'd better go home," he murmured, walking away.

"Hey!" Charon shouted after him. "If you're the Crimson Eagle, we gotta talk! Y'know, Senshi stuff!"

"Just drop it," he shouted back at her. "I don't even know myself yet."

Kazeko jumped a little. She turned to the sky above her. There was a falcon flying overhead.

Why was there a falcon in the middle of the city?

"Sailor Pinkmoon," Helios said gently, "you should heal that woman."

Salior Pinkmoon nodded and held her crystal above her head. "Moon healing escalation!" A pink glow permeated around the teacher's body; she groaned in pain as she forced herself upwards. Sailor Pinkmoon smiled.

"You're safe now," she assured her. The woman looked back in confusion; seeing Sailor Titan, her look turned to one of fear and disgust. She stood up and sped toward the doors to the school. As she pulled open doors, they screamed on their hinges and flew open behind her. In a moment, she was gone.

Sailor Titan put the small portrait away and turned toward Charon.

"Now's our chance!" she shouted, motioning toward Usako. "Black stream death!"

"Amazoness jungle arrow!" the Sailor Quartet screamed.

A twirling vortex of vines and black water collided; they consumed each other, deteriorating into nothingness. Sailor Titan swore. Sailor Charon held her naginata up to attack, and moved hesitantly toward Sailor Pinkmoon

"Please don't fight," Helios pleaded. "Now that an enemy has appeared, we can't afford to waste our energy on each other!"

Sailor Charon paused.

"If you kill Sailor Pinkmoon," Sailor Ceres warned Charon, "and a Youma kills someone again, there will be no one to save them. They'll die."

Sailor Charon turned to Sailor Titan, whose look urged her forward. "Sailor Moon destroys more lives than she saves," Sailor Titan said, pointing toward her accusingly. "If Diana is resurrected, we'll have her to deal with her as well as youma!"

Sailor Charon thought for a moment. If Diana was resurrected, it would mean a second death for all of the Moon Senshi. But if Sailor Pinkmoon were killed, it could mean the death of everyone, as well. There was only one choice that Charon could see; let Sailor Pinkmoon live for now. Kill her when Nemesis was gotten rid of. They would just have to hope that Pinkmoon wasn't crazy enough to have a kid in the meantime. But Seisui...Seisui had wanted this so badly. It was too hard ask her to do this. But surely she would understand...

"We can't, Titan," Charon looked more than a little guilty, and even sorrier. "We can't. If another youma attacks, someone could die. We'll just have to kill her after we defeat Nemesis."

Titan paused for a moment. A look of complete betrayal covered her face. "We've come so far!" she told Charon. "You can't do this now! We're so close! Are you going to let all the times we fought together go to waste? Are you going to let my father have been purified for nothing? Are you going to let my near purification go?" Tears began to swell in Titan's eyes. "Don't tell me you're going back on me now, Tokimo...!"

An overwhelming sense of guilt filled Charon as Sailor Titan called her real name.

"It's okay, Seisui," Tokimo said cheerfully, "I don't care if your father didn't like the Queen. From what I've heard about Queen Diana, my respect for the royal family's gone down a lot, anyway. He probably had his reasons for criticizing her. Your father was on the council, after all; he probably knew what he was talking about."

"Let go of Seisui!" Or I'll kick your ass, Tokimo-style!"

"I can't stand people who just sit back and let others suffer. So don't thank me. Helping you out was only the natural thing to do."

"Don't be scared when you get to school," Tokimo reassured Seisui. "If anyone says anything, I'll beat 'em all up! The whole school, if I have to! Even Erik!"

"It's never all over. I'll still be your friend, no matter what!"

"No matter what..." Sailor Charon stuttered, "still friends, right? Even if we have to give up on your father for a while?"

"Tokimo..." Tears rolled down Sailor Titan's face. Her transformation dissolved around her. "We aren't going to give up now, are we? We're not going to give up, are we?"

"No!" Charon responded. "We aren't! We're just...backing off. For a while."

"Tokimo..." Seisui cringed. "I thought you'd never back down. You were the one who always told me to keep going--even when everyone else told me I was a murderer, a freak, a monster! When I was being beaten or treated like crap, you were there for me. You saved me on Nemesis! We can't give up now, can we? You can't do this to me, Tokimo...!"

Charon closed her eyes. She wasn't going to cry..."We're not giving up, Seisui! We just can't let innocent people get killed. It's not right!"

Seisui repressed a sob. "Innocent people? My father was innocent! My father was the one who was wrongfully killed! What about that innocent person, Tokimo!"

"The youma could kill many more people than the queen purified," Charon argued. "Seisui, think about this! Are you willing to kill Usako at the expense of the lives of people who aren't even involved?"

Seisui looked down at the ground. "I don't know..." she murmured, turning around. "I don't know!"

Seisui ran away.

Charon could feel a sob racking her lungs as her uniform dissolved.