Chapter 15: Scholar Sailor Moon vs. Ensign Uranus Hi-yeeee!! It's me again, Chibi-Mamoru Darien Chiba. Before I begin, I want to say that the world of Sailor Moon doesn't belong to me; I'm only using it for a while. This story, Scholar Sailor Moon, Griffith MacGrinrun, the Sailor Scouts' daughters, Cecelia's guardian golden eagle Umbriel, and the tournament judges are mine, though. Oh yeah, and "The Thundercats" and the events that take place on that show are the brainchildren of Rankin-Bass Entertainment and Lorimar Telepictures. On with the story!!! ************************************************************* *******Royal Palace: July 17, 2996, 6 am******* "Morning, Reenie," my dad King Endymion said to me as I stumble into the dining room. Over the last three days, I have undergone additional training with Clotilda and her mother Lita as my coaches. I have taken to calling myself Scholar Sailor Moon when I have transformed using the new compact that my mom Neo-Queen Serenity left for me. My new powers are astounding!!! When I was training with Clotilda, I felt like I could hear my grandmother Queen Serenity whispering in my ear when Clotilda was going to attack and how. My body also took the initiative to defend itself against the attack. Whenever I throw a punch or kick as Scholar Sailor Moon, I find that I can attack so fast that it's difficult to control how hard I hit. "Morning, Daddy," I told Endymion with a yawn. "I hear you have a tough fight ahead of you today, Reenie," Serenity said. "I don't know if I can beat Cecelia, Mommy," I whispered to Serenity. "Reenie, your new powers won't help you beat Cecelia unless you *firmly* believe that you will win," Serenity told me as she pounds the table to emphasize the word 'firmly.' "You CAN beat Cecelia, but you have to REALLY want to, Reenie." "Do you really think that I can, Mommy?" I asked Serenity in a small voice as I wipe away a small tear. Endymion picks me up and hugs me while I cry bitterly. "Shhhh shhh," Endymion whispered in my ear as he strokes my back and tries to still me. "Reenie, you are the daughter of the most powerful Sailor Scout in existence. I have faith that you'll take the wind out of Cecelia's sails." "I agree with your father, Reenie," Serenity said to me. "You can beat Cecelia, but you must see her defeat here," Serenity touches my head, "and you must want it from here," she then touches my heart, "or you won't succeed. Can you picture defeating Cecelia and her sister Irvette today, Reenie?" I stop crying a moment and try to picture myself standing victoriously over Ensigns Uranus and Neptune. *********************************************************** I see myself going at it with Ensign Uranus. She and I both fight fiercely, but soon after, Ensign Uranus gets the best of me. "Face it, Sailor Moon, you've lost!!!" Ensign Uranus laughs at me as she points Sailor Uranus's Space Sword at my heart. "I'll never join your court. I had a lot of fun fighting you. Pity, all good things must come to an end." NO!!!!!!!!! It can't end this way!!!! C'mon, Reenie, think!!! There has to be a way out of this!!! Helios!!! "TWINKLE YELL!!!!" I scream at the top of my lungs. Ensign Uranus pauses and gives me a blank look. "What the heck are you saying?" Ensign Uranus asks me. "Anyway, whatever you just said isn't going to help you." Ensign Uranus prepares to do me in, but before she could do anything, Helios comes flying at her and kicks her off of me. "That's MY future wife you're going to kill, young lady!!!" Helios neighed at Ensign Uranus as he rears up and deals her a few kicks in the chest. After that, Helios leaves and I defeat Ensign Uranus in a great duel. "I'm going to tell my mommy on you, Sailor Moon!!!" Ensign Uranus bawls as she runs away. *********************************************************** "Yes, Mommy, I can picture myself defeating Cecelia," I laughed to Serenity. "Cecelia had an accident on herself when I defeated her. If Helios hadn't shown up when he did, that tale would have had an unhappy ending." "Umm, Reenie, about the Twinkle Yell . . .," Serenity began uneasily. "Reenie will still be able to summon Helios if she needs him, won't she, Serenity?" Endymion asked, hoping the answer is yes. "I have some good news and I have some bad news," Serenity sighed. "Reenie, when I enhanced your powers, I had to make a trade-off. The good news is that you can still summon Helios in the form of Scholar Sailor Moon. The bad news is that if Helios sees the black in your costume, he'll go wild and turn on you. However, there is a way you can get around that. Saying 'Scholar Shutdown' will revert you back down to using your old powers, but doing so will leave you at the mercy of Ensign Uranus. So the trade-off is this: as Scholar Sailor Moon, you'll be a match for Ensign Uranus, but if you summon Helios in that form, you risk being attacked; as just plain old Sailor Moon, you're safe from Helios attacking you, but you'll have a hard time defeating Ensign Uranus. I can't tell you which form of Sailor Moon you should fight in; *you* WILL have to make that judgment call, Reenie." "Will I be able to go back to Scholar Sailor Moon?" I asked Serenity as Endymion puts me down. "Yes, you will, Reenie," Serenity replied as she kneels down to my eye level. "Just say 'Student Startup.'" "So let me get this straight, Mommy," I wanted to confirm. "Saying 'Scholar Shutdown' powers me down to plain old Sailor Moon and enables me to call Helios safely, right?" "Right," Serenity told me. "Saying 'Student Startup' powers me back up to Scholar Sailor Moon and gives me a fair shot against Ensign Uranus, right?" I wanted to confirm again. "Right," Serenity told me. "Of course, Ensign Uranus is not your only opponent, Reenie. You still have Ensigns Neptune, Pluto, and Saturn to deal with as well. There's no telling what they're like." Serenity pauses to look over her shoulder and see the servants bringing in the breakfast. "But we'll cross those bridges when we come to them. Why don't we have some breakfast now?" *******Crystal Tokyo UltraDome: July 17, 2996, 8:15 am******* "Welcome, one and all, to the Quasar Quarrels!!" Sandra announced. "Boy, we sure have a treat for you today. Today, our well-known and beloved princess, Reenie Chiba, will face off against Cecelia Ten'oh-MacGrinrun and Irvette Kai'oh-MacGrinrun, otherwise known as Ensigns Uranus and Neptune, respectively. Be ready to cheer her Royal Highness on to victory!!!" The audience goes wild. "Will Reenie Chiba and Cecelia Ten'oh-MacGrinrun please report to the center of the arena?" Shelly announced. I walk towards the center. On the eastern side of the arena, Cecelia's parents Alexandria Haruka Ten'oh and Griffith MacGrinrun had told Cecelia to report as called. I arrive at the center and hand over my transformation compact to Shelly and Cecelia arrives a few seconds later and hands Shelly her transformation ring. Shelly then places the items at our feet. "All right, girls; face me!!" Shelly belted out from the north. Cecelia and I do as we are told. "Bow." We bow to Shelly and she returns our bow. "Now face me!!" Sandra declared from the south. "Bow." With a voice like that, Cecelia couldn't help but to do as she is told. After Cecelia and I bow to Sandra, he then bows back and says, "Face your parents!! Bow." I bow to my parents and Cecelia bows to hers. "Face each other!!" Shelly barked. "Bow." Cecelia and I bow to each other. "Out of the inner rectangle." Cecelia and I walk to our respective ends of the inner rectangle, the western end for me and the eastern end for Cecelia . "Yohi?" Shelly asks Sandra. Sandra sets his watch for one hour and nods after he and Shelly back away from us. Shelly sets hers and cries out, "HAJIME!!!" "I'll crush you under the vastness of the heavens, Reenie!!!" Cecelia growled as she charges towards her transformation ring. "I'd like to see you try it!!!" I shot back at Cecelia as I run toward my transformation compact. I dive for my compact, but Cecelia kicks it away out of my reach. "Uranus quasar power, blast off!!!" Cecelia cried out. While this transformation is taking place, I grab my compact and hold it up unsure of the words that begin the transformation. What were those words!?!?!? Come on, Reenie; think!!! "Say 'Moon quasar scholar power', Reenie!!!!" Serenity shouted from the box. I notice that Cecelia had finished her transformation to Ensign Uranus and is about to attack. "Moon quasar scholar . . . POWER!!!!" I screamed. "World Shaking -- double five!!!" Ensign Uranus cried. The first three are deflected away harmlessly by my transformation and when I finish my transformation to Scholar Sailor Moon, I successfully parry #4 and 5, but #6 gets me and sends me flying against the western wall. I dodge #7 and 8 but get pounded by #9 and 10. Groaning and straining, I get to my feet. Queen Serenity, where are you!?! Queen Serenity appears right next to me and apologizes for her tardiness before healing the damage I took from that last attack. I think things are looking up now!!! "Is that the BEST you can do!?!?" I taunted Ensign Uranus as I charge toward her and deal her a front kick in the chest, driving her back a little. "Nope," Ensign Uranus answered me as she rises into the air. I throw a jumping front kick but to no avail. "Uranus Sky Comet, clash!!!" Ensign Uranus cries as she launches a flaming comet at me. I dodge it by jumping away. Queen Serenity tells me to go up there after her at which I reply that I cannot fly. Nevertheless, I grab a little bit of the sand off the floor that has been moisted by the Uranus Sky Comet and try to fly up there. Wheeeee!!!! I can't believe I'm flying!!! "I see that you can fly as well," Ensign Uranus notes arrogantly. "So before I destroy you, what do I call you?" "The name's Scholar Sailor Moon!!" I cried as I throw the wet sand in Ensign Uranus's eyes. While she's getting it out, I sail in with a lunge punch to the chest and a right roundhouse kick which connect. I fly up and over Ensign Uranus and kiss her lower back with a left back-heel kick. "You'll pay for that, Scholar Sailor Moon!!" Ensign Uranus cried when she finally gets the sand out of her eyes. "I'm at my most dangerous when I'm in my natural turf!!!" "Your arrogance will be your downfall!!!" I shouted at Ensign Uranus as I charge forward and deliver a lunge punch followed by a knee kick. I summon the Adaptation Sceptre and assume the Venus battle mode. "Venus Love Chain, encircle!!!!" I yell as I fly below Ensign Uranus and pull her to the ground so I can deal with her safely. I pull as hard as I can but find that it's no use unless I have some help. My eyes fall on Clotilda, but she shakes her head and lips to me that she cannot help me because that would be cheating. I dig in my feet as hard as I can to keep from being dragged. Dang, no good!!! I need more weight!!! I look around the arena for something that I can use as an anchor. Queen Serenity is in shock to see me struggling futilely to ground the airborne Ensign Uranus and tells me to let go. Before I can, the Venus Love Chain breaks and I go flying backwards into the northern spectator's box where my parents were sitting with a loud splat . . . ******************************************************** ******************************************************** "Reenie!!! What happened to you!?!?" a shocked Queen Serenity asks. "Grandma, it's no use," I sigh. "I can't stand up to that kind of power!!" "Reenie, I will not have you talking like that!!!" Serenity tells me firmly. I crawl up into Serenity's lap and break down crying. "That's just a schoolyard bully you're fighting. That's all Ensign Uranus is. Your fear of Ensign Uranus is what has defeated you, Reenie. If you show no fear, you'll find this an easy victory." "Really?" I ask Serenity. "Really!!!" Serenity answers. "Now, Reenie, think back to your fights with your other court members." I think back to the decisive defeats of Hermione, Cara, and Clotilda and the iffy stalemate I had with Ariadne. "I am thinking back to the fights I've had with my other court members, Grandma," I tell Serenity. "Did you get a good look at their costumes before the fighting began, Reenie?" Serenity asks. "I noticed that the knot of the bows on their chests were highly emphasized," I tell Serenity. "They had symbols on them. Ensign Uranus had one, too!!! That must be a power source of some kind!!!!" "It is, Reenie," Serenity agrees. "It's actually a jewel that gathers energy from a quasar along with your fear. Each of your court members has a jewel that gathers energy for her attacks. Ensign Uranus's must feed off your fear of her. The more afraid of her you are, the stronger she gets. Anyway, your strategy of getting Ensign Uranus grounded was a good one, but you went about it the wrong way. You have to find a way to cut off Ensign Uranus's energy if you are to have any chance of scoring any decisive blows. Remember, Reenie, decisiveness is the strength of the weak . . ." *********************************************************** *********************************************************** *******Crystal Tokyo UltraDome Infirmary: July 24, 2996, 8:45 am******* "Reenie?" a concerned masculine voice asked. "Reenie, wake up." I know that voice: it's King Endymion's. I wake up to find Endymion and my mom Neo- Queen Serenity standing over me with worried looks on their faces. "I was worried about you, kiddo. You kept talking to yourself in your sleep." Endymion takes my small hand in his big hands. "Where am I?" I asked Endymion and Serenity as I sit up. "Don't worry, Reenie; you're in good hands," Amy said as she gets out her computer and points it at me. "I don't think that's necessary," I told Amy as I push the computer away. "I'm okay. There's really no need." "I'll be the judge of that, Small Lady," Amy declared in a superior tone of voice as she gives me a glare that freezes my blood cold in my veins along with any argument I was going to come up with next and moves in with the computer again. "Hold still." With that, Amy begins her scan. "I'll decimate that arrogant bully Cecelia Ten'oh- MacGrinrun!!!" I growled to myself. "I've got to!!! I'm destined to!!!" "Reenie!!! Listen to what you're saying!!!" Lita yelled. "That's not you talking. You're obsessed with beating Cecelia!!!" When I look down and see Cara and Ariadne cuddle close to their mothers for comfort, I realize that I went too far. "Oh, God!!! I'm starting to become like Cecelia," I groaned as I flop back down on my back. "Not really," Mina disagreed with me as she picks up Cara. "It's understandable to be angry after a defeat and especially one like that." "But remember, Reenie," Raye says as she picks up Ariadne and hugs her, "defeat is supposed to make you better, not bitter." "I was talking with Queen Serenity and she helped me realize that Ensign Uranus and the rest of the Sailor Scouts' daughters each have a jewel that gathers the energy produced by a quasar which in turn is used to provide energy for their attacks," I said. "If I am to beat Ensign Uranus, I have to find a way to cut off her energy flow long enough to weaken her so that I can score some decisive blows." "There's another Queen Serenity?" Hermione asked. "Yes, Hermione, there was another Queen Serenity, but she died a long time ago," Amy replied as she finishes scanning me. "Everything seems to be in working order, Reenie." "Tell me about her, Amy," Hermione squealed excitedly. "I will later," Amy promised Hermione. "I want to know now," Hermione protested with a pout. This earns her a nasty glare from Amy. "So how can you talk to Queen Serenity?" Raye asked me. "My enhanced powers allow me to do that, Raye," I said as I reach on my chest for my transformation compact to find it GONE!!! "Oh, shit!!! Where's my compact!?!?" "Reenie Chiba!!!" Lita scolded. I know what's going to come next: a lecture on how I'm supposed to be a perfect example on how a child should behave toward her parents and other adults and children. At times like this, I wish I were not the princess of Crystal Tokyo. "Sorry, Lita," I apologized. "But I still want to know where my compact is." "I have it here, Reenie," Serenity said as she hands it to Raye. "Uh, Mommy, that's my compact," I told Serenity. "It's hard to figure out how this thing works," Raye said after a while with her eyes shut. After opening her eyes, Raye continues, "It is clear, though, that Reenie can summon and seek counsel from *any* military or government leader with the help of this compact including our Silver Millennium fathers who were killed in battle, Lita." "Kind of like how Lion-O summons and seeks help from his mentor Jaga, Raye?" Clotilda asked. Raye gives Clotilda a blank look. "Yes, Clotilda," Lita replied for Raye. "C'mon, Raye; snap out of it!!!" "How did you come up with that analogy?" Raye asked Clotilda. "She and I watch "The Thundercats" together," Lita replied. "Anyway, so you can call on your grandmother for advice while you're fighting Cecelia and she appears as a ghost only you can see and hear. Is that right, Reenie?" "Yeah, Lita," I confirmed. Amy whips out her computer, points it at my compact, and types in something. "Amy, what are you doing?" "Just doing a quick scan, Reenie," Amy replied. "Okay, here come the results. Raye, it seems that you are correct about this compact being able to summon the spirit of any government or military leader so that Reenie can get advice. However, Lita, you are mistaken about Reenie being the only one who can see and hear the spirit of a leader summoned this way. The computer reports that who can see and hear these spirits is at Reenie's sole discretion, a power Small Lady *had* BETTER NOT abuse." Amy is looking directly at me when she says this. I gulp. Raye gives me back my compact and Amy says, "Well, Reenie's okay and so if there's nothing else . . ." *******Crystal Tokyo UltraDome battle arena: July 24, 2996, 9 am******* "So you're back for more punishment, huh, flamingo head?" Ensign Uranus greeted me as she arrogantly brushes her front bangs out of her face to reveal the most hateful dark yellow eyes I have ever seen. Disregarding that, I ignore her. My fighting will do the talking. "Moon quasar scholar power!!!!" I cried. Okay, Ensign Uranus, let's rock and roll!!! "At this time, Ensign Uranus has one point," Sandra declared to the crowd. At the news, Ensign Uranus sneers conceitedly at me. Yeah, just keep smiling, Ensign Uranus; you're going to pay dearly for that point and your arrogance!!!! "All right, girls, to your lines." We go to the center of the arena and assume our positions, the west end for me and the eastern end for Ensign Uranus. "Yohi?" Shelly asked Sandra. Sandra nods and he and Shelly then step back. Shelly hesitates for a while, then says, "HAJIME!!!!" Before I could do anything, Ensign Uranus lashes out at me with a knife hand strike to my left collar bone followed by a palm-up ridge hand to my right armpit and then a left forward backfist to my xiphoid process. "Surrender, Scholar Sailor Moon!!!" Ensign Uranus laughed confidently. "I'll never join your court!!!" Still reeling from that last attack, I take off into the air to think about what my next move should be. I have to find a way to cut off Ensign Uranus's energy supply or this will continue to be a massacre. Uh oh, Ensign Uranus is coming up here after me!!! "Uranus Sky Comet, clash!!!" Ensign Uranus cried. I calmly dodge the comet. Unfortunately, this move also pins me up against the roof. "Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!! There's no escape, Scholar Sailor Moon!!! This will be your first decisive defeat, so you may have a last request before I add you to the big teacher's gradebook in the sky." I begin to get an idea. "Tell me about the solar wind," I said. "The solar wind is a stream of charged particles, mainly protons and electrons, that is ejected from the Sun and heads out in all directions that has the annoying habit of jamming radio waves," Ensign Uranus told me. Ensign Uranus doesn't know that I did some research on quasars and found out that a quasar's radio waves provide most of the power for my court members' powers. Ensign Jupiter's Jupiter Thunder may be just what I need to cut off Ensign Uranus's energy supply. While Ensign Uranus rambles on, I summon the Adaptation Sceptre and change to the Jupiter battle mode. "Of course, this won't do you any good since I'm about to score a checkmate," Ensign Uranus laughs at me as she brushes her tawny blond front bangs out of her eyes. "I have three words for you," I told Ensign Uranus as I whip out the Adaptation Sceptre from behind my back and point it right at her power jewel, "Jupiter Thunder, crash!!!" The lightning goes into Ensign Uranus's jewel and she drops like a hot rock to the floor 80 feet below us. When I descend to the floor, Sandra had already completed his countdown over the unconscious Ensign Uranus and I had returned to using my normal powers. "Point: Scholar Sailor Moon!!!!" Shelly declared. "Sandra, are you having any luck reviving our friend?" Ensign Uranus, or should I say, Cecelia lies on the ground unconscious. Alex and Griffith run over. "Is she . . . going to make it?" Alex asked Griffith. Sandra listens to Cecelia for breathing and checks for her pulse and nods his head. "Cecelia honey, wake up," Alex quietly encouraged as she runs her fingers in Cecelia's tawny blond hair and down her face. Cecelia grunts and shakes her head from side to side as she opens her eyes. "You!!!" Cecelia growled at me as she sits up suddenly and tries to attack me. Thank goodness Griffith and Alex are holding down their daughter. I look into Cecelia's eyes and they are the brightest yellow I have ever seen. I think I'll go elsewhere and wait for Cecelia to simmer down. I fly up to where my court is. "Do I know you?" Ariadne asked me. "You look different," Cara remarked to me. "Guys, it's me, Reenie," I said as I detransform. "See?" "Aww, I knew it was Reenie all along," Clotilda bragged. "You sure put the hurt on Cecelia!!" Hermione said. "Where did you get the idea to use the Jupiter Thunder on the jewel on her chest? Did Queen Serenity suggest that?" I look Hermione in her dark gray eyes. "I think that she did." "Cecelia is going to be madder than ever at you when it comes time to do battle again, Reenie," Clotilda predicted. "You've got to be ready with another decisive attack. What would really help you against the Outers' kids is if you could win the best two out of three like in Mortal Kombat instead of the first one to three points." "That won't help me now, Clotilda," I sighed. "If I lost the next fight and that system were in play, I'd surely lose to Ensign Uranus." "Just let me at Ensign Uranus!!!" Hermione growled. "If I were a good six feet tall, I'd show her!!!" "If we could go in there with Reenie, we could all show Cecelia," Ariadne agreed with Hermione. "I thought that you and Cecelia had a deal, Clotilda," I said angrily. "I think Cecelia has defaulted on her end," Cara scowled. "I say let's go in there and wipe the floor with her!!!" I look down into the arena to see that Cecelia has finished her transformation to Ensign Uranus and know that it's time to go back to battle. "Hey, guys, I have to run," I tell my court. "Moon quasar scholar power!!!!" Transformation to Scholar Sailor Moon complete, I leap down into the arena to meet Ensign Uranus in battle. "You will never defeat me!!!" Ensign Uranus declared. "I'd be worried if you had the muscle to back up all that hot air you're spraying into the environment," I replied back. "Just wait until Shelly says 'hajime,' Scholar Sailor Moon," Ensign Uranus threatened me, "and I'll show you REAL muscle!!!!" "Yohi?" Shelly asked as she and Sandra get out of the way. "HAJIME!!!!" This time, I open up the fight with a fast spear hand strike right to Ensign Uranus's solar plexus!!! Not waiting for a reaction, I immediately couple this with a thrust kick to the abdomen. "You really think that you can stop me, don't you?" Ensign Uranus gasped at me as she coughs up blood. "I don't think that I can stop you; I know that I can!!!" I declared to Ensign Uranus as I sail in with a double kick to her chest. Ensign Uranus reels backwards under the force of my attack for a while and then tries to compose herself. "I'll fight your induction even if it kills me!!!" Ensign Uranus cried out as she takes flight and locks herself on a collision course with me. "Uranus Sky . . . (cough) Comet . . . (spits out blood) Celerity!!!" With that, Ensign Uranus becomes a comet and streaks toward me. I leap skywards, but the comet gets me anyway and pushes me down to the ground. "Gravity Crunch!!!" Ensign Uranus cries as she reverts from a comet and lands on top of me pinning me to the ground completely unable to move. I look into Ensign Uranus's eyes and they are the deepest yellow I have ever seen. "I may be hurt, but I'm taking you with me," Ensign Uranus vows. "You may . . . crush my body," I wheezed to Ensign Uranus, "but . . . you'll NEVER . . . crush . . . my . . . SPIRIT!!!" I then find myself lifting Ensign Uranus off of me as easily as if I were lifting a bag full of books. When I stand up, I have Ensign Uranus over my head although she weighs a lot more than I do. "What is happening!?!?" Ensign Uranus demanded. "You . . . you escaped my Gravity Crunch!!!!" I throw Ensign Uranus to the opposite side of the stadium screaming all the while. Sandra walks over to the fallen Ensign Uranus and does his countdown. Just when I thought she was down for the count, Ensign Uranus gets up when Sandra is between 3 and 2. What does it take to stop Ensign Uranus!??!? "I . . . NEVER lose!!!" Ensign Uranus declares as she clasps her hands together and goes into a spin. When she finishes, Ensign Uranus has a sword in her hand that looks a lot like Sailor Uranus's Space Sword. Uh oh. This is not good. Although it's no match for a sword, I summon the Adaptation Sceptre. "Give it up, Ensign Uranus!!!" I shouted. "It's over!! You've lost!!!" Instead of answering me, Ensign Uranus zooms at me and scores a bloody slash across my stomach. She doubles back for another pass. "Shelly, this is getting out of hand!!!" Sandra shouted as he runs out into the fighting. Meanwhile, I was bleeding profusely and going into shock when Ensign Uranus is getting lined up to use her Uranus Sky Comet Celerity. "Uranus Sky Comet Celerity!!!!" Ensign Uranus screamed. Mommy, Daddy, I love you very much. I brace myself for the end when two very unexpected things happen. The first is Sandra rescuing me from being run through. The second: "World Shaking!!!!" When I peek out, I see that Sailor Uranus has just used her World Shaking and is powering up another and Ensign Uranus struggling to get to her feet and looking at Sailor Uranus in shock that mirrors my own. "You . . . you . . . you attacked me!!!!" Ensign Uranus stutters to Sailor Uranus. "Yes, I did attack you, you blind sky princess," Sailor Uranus admitted, "and I'll do it again in a heartbeat if you do not surrender." "But, Mom, the battle isn't over," Ensign Uranus protested as she shakily tries to stay on her feet but collapses. "I can still defeat the Princess if given more time!!!" This incenses Endymion. "Drop it, Cecelia!!!" Endymion snarled as he rests his sword against Ensign Uranus's carotid artery. Ensign Uranus discards the Space Sword and Endymion covers her as Sailor Uranus snatches it up and retires it to storage. I run to Endymion who is scabbarding his sword and hug him. "Reenie, it's all right. You're safe now. Cecelia won't get out of control like that again. Will you, Cecelia?!?!" Ensign Uranus rapidly shakes her head. "You had an adequate chance to fight against my daughter before joining her court and you lost." "But I thought I had the choice of whether or not to join Reenie's court," Ensign Uranus told Endymion as she and Sailor Uranus detransform, eyes a pale yellow. "From what I remember, there was no line in the letter the king sent out that ever gave you that choice, young lady," Alex coldly told Cecelia as she turns to leave the arena. "Now I'll leave you to finish this . . . and there had *better* NOT be any tricks out of you." "I now declare Reenie Chiba the winner!!!" Sandra yelled as he and Shelly assume their positions and Cecelia and I assume ours. "All right, girls; face me!!" Shelly belted out from the north. Cecelia and I do as we are told. "Bow." We bow to Shelly and she returns our bow. "Now face me!!" Sandra declared from the south. "Bow." Again, Cecelia and I do as we are told. Sandra then bows back and says, "Face your parents!! Bow." I bow to my parents and Cecelia bows to hers. "Face each other!!" Shelly barked at Cecelia and me. "Bow." Cecelia and I bow to each other. "Good job, ladies. You are both dismissed." *******An observation deck: July 24, 2996, 11:30 am******* "You did better than expected, Reenie," Clotilda said. "I bet that Cecelia is wetting her pants and crying her eyes out right now," Cara laughed. "Yeah, Cara, pride goeth before a fall," Ariadne agreed. I look off in the distance and sigh deeply. "Reenie, what's the matter?" Hermione asked. "I thought you'd be happy after defeating Cecelia." "I am, Hermione," I replied, "but for a moment during the battle, I respected Cecelia. Seeing her get up and keep going after falling prey to almost all my moves again and again inspired me to keep fighting and fight harder. In a way, Cecelia did crush me under the weight of the heavens like she said she was going to do at the beginning of the battle. She freed my spirit from its prison and showed it a power bigger than all the heavens." Just then a 30-inch golden eagle swoops down. "Hiya, Umbriel," Clotilda greeted the eagle as she extends her left arm. We all look at Clotilda strangely as the eagle lights on her arm. "Oh, guys. This is Umbriel, Cecelia's guardian golden eagle. Cecelia introduced me to him a while back. He's real friendly as long as you keep your fingers away from his eyes and feet and under his tail." Cara walks over and tries to touch Umbriel. "Eeee EEEEEEEEEE!!!!" Umbriel squawked at Cara as he flaps his wings, sending feathers everywhere. "The very idea!!! I am not a cute cuddly plaything to be touched and stroked." "Umbriel, you did not have to yell at Cara like that," Clotilda scolded. "Why are you here anyway?" "I am here on business, Clotilda," Umbriel said. "I have a message for Princess Reenie. Now which one of you is she?" "I am Princess Reenie," I said. "Oh, so you are," Umbriel said as he turns to face me. "Cecelia says that she has great respect for you because no one has ever lasted as long in a fight against her as you have or found a way to escape from the Gravity Crunch. However, Irvette is going to face you later today and she has vowed to avenge her sister's defeat. Since the seas of Earth are not as vast as the heavens, the fighting will not be as intense as it was with Cecelia, but do not underestimate Irvette, Reenie. Like Cecelia, Irvette will prove to be a fierce and dedicated opponent, so be careful." Umbriel then flies off. "Tell Cecelia I have great respect for her too, Umbriel," I shouted up at the eagle. Umbriel promises me that he will. "If you had Cecelia's powers, Irvette and Claribel would be no problem to defeat," Hermione said. "Heck, you might even blow away Cleopatra, Reenie," Clotilda remarked. We all groan at Clotilda's pun even though she may have very well hit the nail on the head. I did score an extraordinary and unlikely victory over Cecelia today. Now all I have to do is find Cecelia and download her powers into the Adaptation Sceptre before the time to take my turn against Irvette rolls around. After suggesting to my court that we get some lunch, Irvette stops us cold. "So you're Reenie?" Irvette asked me. I nod. "Griffith MacGrinrun thanks you for putting my overconfident sister in her place. Finally Cecelia Ten'oh-MacGrinrun realizes that she is a human being just like the rest of us." "Did you see the way Cecelia kept going and going even after she was close to being defeated?" I asked Irvette. "Yes, I did," Irvette replied. "She had a very swelled head and a very exaggerated idea of her own capabilities. I know that you have decisively defeated all your court members except for Ariadne. You must be very proud of yourself which will change after I'm through with you. I wouldn't count too much on my daddy or the judges to save my hide if the going gets tough if I were you, Reenie." Irvette then turns and marches away. We all look at each other as if to ask what Irvette's problem is before heading inside to get some lunch. THE END Man, that was hard work!!! I didn't think that I made Scholar Sailor Moon's fight with Ensign Uranus fierce enough or that Ensign Uranus would say that she respects Scholar Sailor Moon. So what do you think of the Gravity Crunch? Do you think it was too easy or too hard to escape from? Why? How about Scholar Sailor Moon? Email address: CMDChiba@hotmail.com Please put the title of this fanfic in the subject line of your letter. Doing so will enable me to get back to you much faster.