CHANGED
by Rose





PART 7




	
	Usagi woke up, so to speak. She got one 
reality check, by the dream that had been given to 
her by the mysterious senshi, but it had only 
pulled her half-way to the surface.
	Now, she knew that this could not simply be a 
game, as it had been for her.
	No, this was all-out, black vs white, World 
War II, arrmongeddom war. Soon, when their 
identites were revealed, and oh, she knew 
eventually one of them would slip, it would be hard 
core battle.
	So, she trained. And trained. For a month 
straight, they did nothing but train, only going 
out to bust up the occasional raid. Killing the 
youma became easier and easier. 
	Usagi trained with a mysterious man, who's 
name was Hin. She alone knew who he really was, and 
his presence was kept a secret by her from the rest 
of the senshi.
	Her strength grew. And grew. Until it seemed 
that she could defeat Beryl easily. 
	Usagi knew that wasn't right, even though Hi 
told her she could probably walk up to Beryl and 
knock her flat on her back. Beryl didn't get to 
such a position unless she had a catch.
	They just didn't know what. 
	Usagi was forbidden to leave the house, under 
any circumstances, because it was her life that the 
world hung upon.
	This time, she didn't argue, but they did 
allow her to, every so often, go check on her 
parents, and leave a rose for her mother.
	Sometimes it was red, sometimes pink, and 
once, a white rose.
	Usagi liked stealing in.
	It was Ikuko's way of knowing her daughter 
was okay. Sometimes there was two, maybe three 
roses a week. Sometimes there was only one, or 
none.


*****************





	Kenji was concerned about his wife. Shingo 
thought Usagi's absence was great at first but soon 
missed his sister. 
	Ikuko never missed her daily trip up the 
stairs.
	"Iku-chan." Kenji said at last, one day as 
Ikuko began to climb the stairs.
	"What is it?" She asked, eager to see if a 
rose was left that day.
	"You've been going up there every night... 
you will not tell me where my own daughter is... 
not even if she's alive. I'm worried,  not only 
about Usagi-chan, but about you." He said, trying 
to get her to look at him.
	"Ken-chan, please... you know I can't. Not 
until she says so." Ikuko mumbled, immediatly 
knowing she had said the wrong thing. 
	She didn't know why she wouldn't tell her 
husband or son about Usagi. There was just 
something inside her that said, No! You can't! 
Lately, Ikuko had noticed that the gut feeling was 
sometimes right.
	Why chance it?
	She knew Kenji worked with the government, 
but they'd never discussed it, so Kenji could very 
well be loyal to Beryl. If she told him, and if it 
was so, he might tell Beryl, and Usagi had told her 
that it was absolutely nessessary no one was gone.
	"Fine, Kenji. I'll tell you. Usagi's at a 
camp with her friends. She asked me not to tell you 
about it because you might make her come home. It's 
an Arts and Humanities camp." Ikuko hated lying, 
but Beryl was ruthless.
	Kenji relaxed.
	"Make her come home? Why? As long as she's 
having a good time." Kenji began to read the paper 
again and Ikuko stole up the stairs.
	The first thing her eyes saw was the rose.
	The second thing was...
      A knife, covered in blood, a note attached.


***************************



	"Minna, we need to attack. Go on offensive. 
I'm sick of waiting in the dark, until they decide 
to attack." Usagi said, bored. They were gathered 
around the dinner table, eating.
	Ami's fork dropped to the plate with a 
clatter.
	"I'm hearing things," Rei muttered. "because 
I swear I just heard Usagi say--"
	"I mean, flat out, insane-o, brutal, gruella 
warfair." Usagi interrupted.
	"Okay. Usagi, just how much asprin did you 
take?" Makoto asked gently.
	"No, she's right." Haruka and Luna said at 
the same time.
	"Wha?!" Michiru squeaked.
	"Yes. A straight out attack would catch them 
off guard." Luna explained, to the shocked senshi. 
"They expect us at raids, so they are prepared to 
fight. But if we go into one of *their* places, and 
catch them where they think they're safest, we'll 
get more and send out a bigger threat."
	"So it will work?" Minako asked doubtfully.
	"Minako, Minako, Minako." Usagi shook her 
head. "Of course. I'm going to kick nega-butt."
	"Aren't we confident, Ms. I-can't-even-kick-
butt-in training." Rei smirked.
	Usagi smiled to herself. In order to throw 
them off, she'd been doing awful in practice with 
the senshi.
	None of them noticed how well she fought the 
youma.
	Well, except Luna.

************************



	"In all the worlds, in all the galaxies, no 
race was ever so beautiful and powerful as the 
Jukans. 
	"They had the power of the stars. They 
learned to create wonderous objects that, concealed 
inside them, had energy, and power, beyond any.
	"Their planet, Juka, was gorgeous and 
flourishing. They were first in intelligence, 
grace, fighting, power, beauty, you name it. 
	"But, as they say, Power corupts itself. 
Finally, the downfall of the Planet Juka was 
inevitable. And did it *ever* fall. 
	"Think of a puddle. How it's water is like a 
sheet of magic, strong, placid.
	"Then someone throws a rock in it and 
everything's gone. That's what happened with Juka. 
No one knew exactly how it began. Slowly, just 
about everyone was taken by Dark Forces and turned 
to black beings.
	"The royal family, and a very few other who 
had not been corrupted, the first that carried the 
blood of Eternia, were able to escape, barely. With 
them they took several items, amungst them a Silver 
Crystal." Usagi was dreaming again, watching a 
beautiful stretch of starry universe, a galaxy. A 
voice, full of tears unshed, told a sad tale.
	"They came to this Solar System, that they 
called Juka II, because the planet Earth reminded 
them of their destroyed home. But the earthlings 
were afraid of the strange, beautiful people. 
	"But these were primatives, you see. Little 
more than apes. The Jukans realized this, and left. 
They instead, created a wonderful kingdom on the 
moon and the other planets, each person taking a 
planet for themselves. The Ary gave them power to 
create a race of people, and the Jukans were 
allowled to pick the traits of the people of their 
kingdoms.
	"Each of them were allowed to take some of 
the items saved.
	"Queen of Mercury decided to have her people 
quiet, intelligent, and peaceful. She chose a harp 
that controlled the forces of Ice and Water. She 
also took a computer. 
	"King of Venus was a vain man, and wished his 
people to be beautiful, shrewd, but beautiful. He 
took a wreath in the shape of a heart, and a chain 
of hearts. He took the Crescent Beam, although he 
had no use for it, and though The Crescent Beam was 
originally intended for the Moon Kingdom.
	"Queen of Mars wished her people to be gifted 
mages, or psychics. She took a bow and arrow, that 
had the power of fire. She also took the Celestial 
Rings, that controled the zodiac to a point. Also, 
a pheniox that could be summonded.
	"Queen of Jupiter loved nature, but also had 
a love for storms. She wanted her people to love 
the lightning, not to fear it. She took the Wreath 
of Laurel, and The Thunder Dragon. She had the most 
power of the inner planets.
	"King of Saturn was a pale, but smart man. 
Since he knew none of the others wanted to have 
control of such things, he took the Silence Glaive 
and the powers of Death. He knew that this would 
make him quite powerful, a thing he did not desire. 
So, he put a curse on the glaive, making the owner 
pay a lethal price when it's full extent was used. 
His people were mages, powerful and deadly. Not 
even Queen Mars's talents matched his in the gift 
of healing.
	"Queen of Neptune was a quiet beauty. She was 
smart, but not to the point of Queen Mercury. She 
loved the oceans, and wanted her people to be like 
them, as feisty and unpredictable as the sea. She 
took the Trident, as well as the Aqua Mirror, the 
Mirror of Truths.
	"Queen of Uranus was a strong woman, 
amazoness, if you will. She wanted her people, to 
be able to take whatever came their way, but to be 
good hearted too. She wanted them to be able to 
amke the ultimate sacrifice if needed, but should 
know the limits of kindness. She took the Space 
Sword, and said whatever else was needed they could 
figure for themselves. Her people were truely 
independant.
	"King of Pluto was a sad man, and took what 
was left, although it was more deadly than Saturn's 
powers of death and life.
	"He took Time. He took the Gates, and the 
Garnet Staff. He wished his people intelligent, but 
not book smarts, like Neptune and Mercury. He 
wanted them to realize how dangerous the little 
things were. He wanted them to know that all 
decisons have a huge influence, even if it's just 
what to wear that morning." The voice paused, 
searching for a way to word it. 
	"He wanted them to do the impossible. He 
wanted them to understand life."
	"I see." Usagi murmured.
	"The true blood of Eternia, King of the Moon, 
took the Silver Crystal, the Sword of Artemis, and 
many other things. He wanted his people to be 
everything and more. It was his people that would 
control everything. He wanted them to never be 
corrupted."
	"He is one of my ancestors?" Usagi inquired.
	"Yes, the first of the line of Serenity. His 
name was Etern, but he had a daughter, and named 
her Serenity. We called the bloodline Eternia, 
because it is Eternal. 
	"Ever since, the line of Eternia's first born 
was always a girl, and was named Serenity. Your 
mother was Serenity XXI, and recieved her title at 
the peak of the millenium." The voice said, 
emotionlessly.
	"So I would have been Serenity the twenty-
second?"
	"Yes. The line will always be true to the 
owner.... Princess.... you must live forever... and 
so you are blessed, or cursed, with a power that no 
one has ever been given. Not even the Mistress of 
Time.
	"The moment you picked up the locket, you 
were immortal."

************************



	Mamoru walked through the streets, head down, 
just walking, with no purpose or zest.
	Like his life.
	Lately, he;d been having dreams, of a girl in 
shaowd, telling him he must find her, to release 
her from her spell.
	And another dream, telling him of a battle, 
between senshi and evil, where the senshi lost.
	Whether this was past or future, he didn't 
know. He really didn't want to know, either. 
Because he couldn't bear it if it was future.
	He didn't want the truth. 	
	As long as he could be ignorant, so be it. As 
they say, Ignorance is bliss.
	Or was it?
	"Maybe if I followed the senshi..." He said 
to himself. Yes, then he could see who they were...
	No. Even he could see the unfairness in that. 
it wouldn't be fair to see their identities and 
them not know his, but he had no desire to tell 
them Tuxedo Kamen was a twenty year old doctor 
named Chiba Mamoru.
	He changed his thoughts to the surgery he had 
scheduled to tomorrow...
	He hadn't time to scream before a shadowy 
figure came out of the shadows and covered his 
mouth so his scream could not be heard.	

*************************

Hmm. A three way cliffhanger. 

-Rose