Thanks for being patient. =) Heres Chapter: 6 Sailor Moon ain't mine. ================================================================ Fall From Grace By: Emporess ================================================================ "Don't be a fool for the devil darling!" I snarled. "Unless he treats you a damn sight better then the Almighty!" -Spoken by Lestat Anne Rice The Vampire Lestat Chapter: 6 The Righteous and the Wrong The Senshi were lucky that their enemy had left when they did. Nearly all of them were out or in some state of shock which would have made them utterly useless. Mercury had been on her knees, panting from the excersion of trying to destroy the phantasms. Venus was trying to get to her feet, clutching the wound at her head. Mars and Sailor Moon had bent over Tuxedo Kamen worriedly, while Uranus had gently woken her partner. Jupiter knelt beside the Outers, clutching her side a bit and making sure they were all right. It seemed like things were ok, no one seriously injured. Until a golden light broke over Tuxedo Kamen and their Sensei. The hood had fallen off her face during the battle, revealing her bronzed skin, her high cheekbones, thick purple hair. Her eyes were closed, and her face seemed relaxed, peaceful as the light gathered in her chest and pulsated. Tuxedo Kamen, in contrast, looked like he was having a seizure. His body began to convulse, each limb shaking. The glow had gathered in his chest as well, and got lighter as hers got darker. As they watched in horror, his mouth and eyes sprang open, light pouring out of them as he tried to scream, no sound escaping his lips. "MAMO-CHAN?!" squealed Sailor Moon, as she fought off Mars trying to hold her back. When she touched him she jerked back, as if shocked by an electrical current. The other wary Senshi crowded around, not sure of what to do as they restrained the blonde from trying to touch him again. Mercury had taken out her computer, tapping on it incessantly, trying to figure out what was happening. All she could tell was what was obvious to the naked eye: Whatever that power that flooded Mamoru was, it came from Sensei, and it HURT. The scan showed no signs of internal rupture, or even an evil intent in the energy. It was just searing, all encompassing, relentless. And really really fast. The glow died in Sensei, and she didn't look a bit different, that serene expression still on her. Mamoru was still burning brightly, almost like he was on fire. The Senshi each began talking at once on what they should do, while trying to comfort a hysterical Usagi. No one noticed Sensei. It was total chaos. The perfect opening for Pluto. "I can't believe we missed them!" hissed Chibi-Moon as she sped through Tokyo. Saturn was at her right, 4 extremely embarrassed Asteroid Senshi trailing her. "'One little backrub' you said. 'Try and relax' you said. Damnit, their probably in danger because of us!" "Gomen," the 4 said at once, red blush heating their cheeks, especially Ceres. They really felt bad now. Chibi-Moon sighed. "Its all right, minna. Its my fault too. I pushed this whole 'duty' thing way to far. We should have relaxed before now." She tossed them a weak smile. "Hotaru-chan will fix this, ne?" Her companion nodded, a serious look in her violet eyes. "Hai. Setsuna-mama is at the park, with the others. I felt her appear. She can't hide it well from me. Something must be going on." Hotaru took in Chibi-Moon. "What will we do?" "Whats right." Chibi-Moon would not move her gaze from ahead of her. The time staff glowed a dull pink as she watched the Senshi through a portal. The Golden Crystal had finally transferred to Endymion. They were all in a panic. It was time to move in, to finish it. Her hands trembled. 'Iie.' She told herself, trying to regain control. 'It must be done.' If she did it fast enough, they probably wouldn't even know it was her. Maybe the Outers would, but they would understand, wouldn't they? Sacrifices, it was all about sacrifices. "Celeste" her voice was a whisper as she stared at the woman who lay on the ground, forgotten and unprotected. As she had always been. Pluto wanted to wait a moment more, to see the woman's eyes open, so she could look into that blue again, and be reminded of what once was, and would never be again. "I didn't ask for this," she said softly, raising a hand to the image that floated in front of her, appearing to caress the bronzed cheek. "Ne, I broke all the rules. I thought I would do things differently, thought I *was* the Mistress of Time. But there is no one who controls Time. It ravages all of us, all-" and she choked up there, unable to continue. The pain rolled over her, the resentment, the pity. It fell, gently, like rain drops to leak from her eyes and splatter her cheeks. Not a sound escaped her, the silent, remorseful Pluto. She allowed a preview of the grief then, before the actual event occurred. Words came to her mind, bitter thoughts of someone else she longed to hold. "So mote it be." She muttered. The staff brightened as she stepped through the portal. Makoto wasn't sure what made her turn her attention away from her friends. Sailor Moon's grief upset her as much as the others. She would have done anything to help them, to stop whatever was hurting Mamoru so badly. Yet she felt something warm on her neck, a vibration. She shifted her body to the right, wincing at the pain it caused in her side, taking in Sensei's form as her eyes opened. Dark blue eyes, indigo eyes stared at a shift in the air in front of her, as if waiting. Without the normal light or fan fare, Pluto appeared. The black fuku and shining green hair were unmistakable. She was moving fast, one arm snaking forward to hit Celeste in the stomach, causing her to bend forward. Even as she clutched at her stomach, Pluto sent another fist her way, smacking her in the jaw so hard it made a loud "THWACK" as she toppled over. "SENSEI!" screeched Makoto, the only one to have seen. Her side ached as she ran towards the battle. Behind her she could feel other fast movements, Uranus having followed. They both hit the wall of force Pluto had thrown up, falling backwards into the grass. "Stop, Pluto! You don't understand who she is!" Uranus called out to her fellow Senshi. "It is you who does not understand." The always calm and level voice answered her. She advanced on the woman. "U-Usakooo..." a weak voice registered to Sailor Moon, making her tear her eyes away from Pluto and stare at the man cradled in her lap. "She h-h-has to live...." Golden light still shined wildly around him, though it was fading. "Shhh," she said tensely, thinking he meant her. "I'm here Mamo-chan. I'm fine." She couldn't leave him like this, but she had to help Celeste. Pluto was ignoring anyone who called her, even Uranus taking out her Talisman and slashing it across the force field. Celeste was leaning against a tree, her hand still clutching at her stomach, seeming calm. Her lips even seemed to be turning upward into a small smile. She looked ahead expectantly, not even trying to defend herself as Pluto raised her time staff above her head. Even as Makoto beat at the barrier with her fists, she couldn't help noticing Plutos face. Expressionless, but her eyes. Pluto had her eyes clenched tightly shut, not looking at her target. As if she couldn't bare to look. And it was like a voice opened up from the heavens then. A beautiful melody from behind them, in the woods. No words, no real recognizable language, but still it came out. Something sang. That 'something' froze the Senshi of Time where she stood. Their approach had taken forever. Even with enhanced speed, they still had to pick their way through the underbrush. Michael could have moved faster, but he would have lost Aradia. Leaving her behind would have defeated the purpose all together. She stopped dead in her tracks, refusing to move. They were so close to them now. "Nani?!" he asked her, hissing through clenched teeth. Every second they wasted was a second too long. "Pain." A simple word, almost a plea. "So much pain." Her eyes were watering as she looked at him. "Surely you feel it?" He felt nothing. Anxiety, frustration, a little fear, these were all HIS feelings, his alone. No other thoughts were being picked up, not from anyone. The other Senshi were silence to him. Realization seemed to dawn on her then and she brought a hand to her lips. "Oh Kami-sama-" "Na-" He began, then was unable to finish the words. The bare inkling she had received thundered over him, like a shockwave, tearing, trying to decimate who he was, his core self. The cause. He knew who the cause was. She had bottled up the energy, the ravishing beast that had tore at her, but the apprentice knew not how to do that. Endymion was clueless about his new burden. And he was expressing it to the world. Latent psychics would feel it, beings like Aradia might guess the cause, but intimates, people linked to the royal blood could not escape the side effects. He was brought to his knees. "Just over these few trees," Michael heard her pleading through his haze. "Not far, not really. Come on Mikel." She tried to prop him up, to get him to stand. 'How funny she calls me by that' he thought ruefully. Maybe he said it aloud. Gold fireworks bloomed on his closed eyelids, like staring into a lightbulb for too long, and then closing your eyes. The pain didn't really deter the other feelings he had, the onrushing sensation of flight, of being airborne, when he could still feel the ground underneath him. It was as if he was climbing the clouds, to heaven. But he was bringing heaven down to earth, to the mortals, who deserved some of it. 'Challenge God on equal terms. Let the devil have his say as well. We'll hold a debate, with all the power flowing.' he thought to himself. 'All this power.' Aradia caught a few of the images he was sending. Images that meant nothing. "The eternal battle? Mikel, I thought you'd put such foolishness aside. This was rubbish in our time." He was drunk on it in away the Prince could not be. She tugged futily at his arm one final time. "We make our own justice, our own Gods and Devils." She left him there, continuing on without him. When the trees finally let her pass, and she was near the edge of the foliage, she paused and took in the scene. The shattered thoughts of the people around her. They were all familiar, yes, in some terrifying way she knew them all. Makoto was there, sobbing. The woman was there, placid about her coming death, as they had expected. Seta-chan was- She was there. She was breathing and alive and it was *her*. It was Seta. Pluto. Not a facsimile with her face, but her. Doing the impossible. Killing- The pictures of heaven that Mikel had wished to paint came to her mind. Angels, floating on wings, carved of marble like the blonde who held the Prince in her arms. Like the warriors, who protested around her. Like the one about to break divine laws. Aradia's mouth opened. Her eyes stared at the beauty, the ageless wonder that was the woman in the black fuku. And she sang. Familiar. Inviting. Delicate. Inspiring. A 1000 interpretations came to those who were listening to the siren's call. They were all wrong. Pluto actually heard it, could *hear* the words, the words interwoven in the monosyllables coming out of the woman's mouth, the accusations. They flowed like bitter acid through her ears, where try as she might, she couldn't tune them out, couldn't stop translaighting them. *Why do this now? Why repeat the same mistakes for a cause you don't believe in?* The other Senshi would not have noticed a change. Perhaps a pause in her swing. Most likely they were too enraptured to even know. To even look. But inside she felt old scabs tear off, wounds never completely healed now bleed freely again. *Haven't you had enough betrayal, told enough lies?* It was the word betrayal that got her, that made her whole being want to retch. But there was still this one thing to do, this one thing. Time to fall later. Time for grief later. Yes there was *always* more time. No matter what, there would be more time. But her limbs still didn't move. Refused to answer. *Don't you feel lonely? Isn't there a better way?* On and on her accusations would continue, and still she did not step out of that wood. She did not come with in the distance of an attack. If she could even throw one. If she would. Her eyes finally opened, determined to bring down the staff, determined to end this. She would not break in front of the other Senshi, she would not go back on her duties. This was the end. It had to be. Even as the staff came down with blinding speed she heard the song break. The voice that haunted her dreams some nights rang out in clarity, for all to hear. "YOUR AGE! TELL THEM YOUR AGE! TELL THEM ABOUT THE OTHER LIES! THERE WILL BE NO GOING BACK FROM THIS!" Warnings, screamed warnings far too late. Purple blur, darting ahead, faster then anything, couldn't even follow it, no, couldn't be- "SILENCE WALL!" The glaive twisting around and up even as the small body landed. Taking all the sounds of the park, of the watchers, of everything and laying a blanket of quiet over them. The CLANG as the staff was stopped was even muted by the blockage. Pluto had no choice but to look down and see her Hotaru staring at her with sad eyes. But she didn't have to look behind her. Shouldn't have. Someone else heard the song. Someone else knew what it meant. Someone with deep blue eyes, and dusty skin, like her own. "Mother." Celeste mouthed, though that too was lost in the attack. And no scab could hold the torrent back. No control, no self discipline could keep the emotions in. The outside she remained as she was, her eyes simply closing. But inside she was just a mad scream, echoing back at her. If it got lose, she wouldn't be able to stop. As always, her guardian, her talisman sprang to life. The rays encompassed her, basking her in its light. It would take her back to the dark, the cool place. The damage was far too much. How right her love had been. There would be no turning back. She would have to face them all. But as the shadows crept up on her, she didn't have to worry about any of that. All she had to do was scream. So she did. For she had all the time to do so. All that time. "Hotaru-chan?" whispered Uranus, dazed, they were all dazed. A melody floated inside Makoto's mind, tingling together till it was almost a full-fledged orchestra with sights and smells and remembered tastes. Where had she heard it? What the voice had sang. When? Red hair, vibrant came into view, kneeling down next to the Senshi of Silence. She watched the spot where Pluto had disappeared almost mournfully. "Aradia?" Makoto heard a voice ask, her voice, strained almost beyond recognition. "Hai." A simple reply to a multi-faceted question. "Chibi-Moon!" She turned to look at Sailor Moon, gaping at her daughter from the future. The shock hit her as well. The fact that she was here. And so much older! The girl bent over her future father, who had ceased glowing and now seemed asleep. She touched his forehead with concern, as if she would be able to discern something from it. Perhaps she could at that. Four Senshi stood from the direction in which she'd came, not moving forwards. It was all a bit too much to take in. "Can someone tell me what the hell is going on?!" Venus finally demanded, echoing the thoughts of the more coherent ones. A man crawled out of the woods then. As soon as he cleared the limbs and branches he slowly pulled himself to his feet, flinging his hat to the side. With it gone, his face was easy to distinguish. "Spar-san!" Again, Makoto was shocked. He gave no notice of her, pushing past the two Outer Senshi's reunion to take in the fallen form of Celeste. He watched her chest rise and fall for a few moments as if he couldn't believe it. Then he gave a sideways glance at Aradia, bending down to touch Celeste's hand. Aradia cleared her throat nervously. "I believe I can shed some light on this situation." She took in all of them, finally settling on Chibi-Moon, who stared back at her. "If her Highness will help me." In a way that was completely different then Usagi, but comparable to Mamoru at his worst, she gave a curt nod. Her eyes swam to her future Mother as she finally embraced her. "Daijobu, Sailor Moon. It'll all be all right." "Our own Gods." Michael whispered. Perhaps Makoto was the only one who heard him. ======================================================= What do ya know...I'm actually getting the fic in early this time! Yay! Sorry it took so long for this chapter...and I know, its a bit smaller then usual. This is how I SHOULD have ended chapter 5 I think. Mmm. Anyway, the next chapter is going to be VERY long, have lots of explanation, and is 1/3 of the way done so... hopefully I'll be posting next week =) To Miss J-chan: Hope your computers getting fixed! Hang in there girl! Might I suggest some other titles I've been reading lately: 'The Weakest Link' by Gradient is SOOOO good. I won't say anything else about it =) 'Believing in Forever' by Bethany. I really liked this story. Scott told me about it and I went and looked at it. Since I've been reading her other stories too. Their all good. Go read em' =) And if you REALLY can't wait for chapter: 7, you can go read my co-authored work with Scott "Cyclops" Summerton, 'When Plutos Attack'. We didn't get much mail about it the first week, (excluding Andrea of course, thanks =) and I would like some =) Oh, and mail for this too of course! I haven't been getting much e-mail for 'Fall From Grace' either. C'mon guys! Your reading it, mail me =) Last but not least, a very sweet webmistress has put my stories up on her page (or is in the process of doing it anyway. Dunno if their up yet =) Her work is though, its a Haruka and Michiru piece! (pardon me while I drool over Haruka a moment =) anyway heres the address: http://www.uvm.edu/~vlaporte/fanfiction.html. Oh! And a dear friend of mine made me a webpage for my fics. He knows nothing about Sailor Moon but he tried real hard (There is a NA dub episode list on there...hehehe poor Jeremy). Anyway, I'm sending him stuff to update it as time goes on. You can find my fanfics there, and hopefully I'll get a real episode list up soon and 'When Plutos Attack'. URL is: http://www.pimptite.com/anime.htm Wow. I think the Author notes are longer then the story =) Questions? Comments? Arrows? Angst88@aol.com -Age and treachery will always overcome youth and skill. ===============================================================