Auston Jade Hey guys! Here's more to our story for any of you who are interested in reading it. If you do then please write Auston or myself at either of our addresses up above. By the way, this chapter is very long because it is almost like two chapters in one. Auston and myself don't want this story to have *too* many chapters. We're trying to keep the number to 11 or 12, but I doubt we'll be able to have it at that. We'll try to be more consistent with the length in later chapters. Hope you enjoy this! Sayonora! ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The scouts and Tuxedo Mask all stared up at Serena, the former leader of the scouts, in astonishment. Serena, in a generals uniform? Impossible! Never in all their lives had any of them ever seen such a shocking sight! It was just so... unreal. As though all of this were a dream, or rather, a nightmare. Serena just sorta floated there in thin air. And idiotically, the thoughts that were going through the scouts heads were something like, instead of wondering if she'd really turned traitor on them, which should have been their first thought. "What's happened to you?" Venus asked her, her voice shaking as Serena turned her cold gaze from all the scouts in general to Sailor Venus alone. She had to shout in order for Serena to hear her. "It's more like what's happend to her?" Serena remarked, pointing down to where Sailor Mercury lay, hidden in Tuxedo Masks arms. Serena noticed this and felt a flare of hatred and jealousy in her heart. She thought, fighting to keep her face from showing how she felt, fighting to keep her voice calm and neutral as she floated down to their level, on solid ground and walked towards Tuxedo Mask and Mercury. Tuxedo Mask looked up at Serena as she approached and felt his nerves go cold as she stared at him, nothing but hate and contempt in her eyes. If he'd have bothered to look closer he would have seen the love, and the jealousy, but he didn't. He couldn't. He didn't want to. "Why?" He whispered, looking away, not wanting to look into her intense blue eyes anymore. "Why?" Serena's eyes changed then, changed so much that had he bothered to look up at all, he would have seen pity in her eyes, and love. Her eyes hardened then. She had a mission to complete and there was no way she'd be able to if she showed any weakness what so ever to the scouts. "That is for my concern alone!" She said fiercely and Tuxedo Mask looked up again, from his crouched position, to see only her stone cold blue eyes burning into his own. Sailor Mars, seeing that Serena had truely betrayed them, grabbed her by the arm with such force that it would have knocked down the *normal* Serena easily, but this Serena, it did not. If anything her stance only became firmer. Serena glared at Sailor Mars contemptuously and slowly allowed her power to enter her mind and eyes, and Sailor Mars was given a first hand view of Serena's new powers as the new general, soon to be known to all as Crystal, began to power-up, using massive amounts of dark energy. Mars slowly began to back off, but kept her grip on Serena's arm. "Let me go......" Serena snarled at the red uniformed girl as she didn't release her hold, and with an abrupt motion she yanked her arm away and at the same time threw a dark energy globe of crackling black energy at the scouts. They screamed and barely dodged in time. Serena smiled evily at this and prepared a black lightning bolt in her hands, strengthening it as the scouts all crouched and also began to power up. The battle was on. ____________________________ "She's having a hard time isn't she?" Kunzite asked Zoizite, looking down at the scouts and new general as they fought. They were on top of a high building that was near them, but far enough away for them to remain safely out of sight. They had observed the scouts earlier actions towards the new general and they were pleased at her lack of reaction to them at all. Or at least, Kunzite was. "Yes...... I think she is." Zoisite responded, something like glee and hesitation warring in his cat-like green eyes. Kunzite took no notice, his attention fixated on the golden haired general as she used her new powers easily and skillfully. "Don't you think someone ought to go down and help her?" Kunzite asked, his eyes still on Serena, Crystal to him, as she dodged a low powered attack from Sailor Mars easily. "Yes.... I'll go, you stay here." Zoisite said and before Kunzite could protest or say anything he telported down to Crystals aid. Or was it the scouts? Who knew. ____________________________ As Zoisite appeared in the midst of the escalting miny battle between Crystal and the scouts, the four sailor uniformed heroin's were destracted, sighting an enemy they could actually attack and Crystal took advantage of their sudden lack of attacks in *her* direction. They all screamed, Venus and Mercury especially, them taking the brunt of the attack, as white hot lightning bolts of pain hit them from all angles. She had thrown a red orb of energy at them, and red orbs were the worst, because they drained the person they attacked as well as causing them serious pain and damage, but not enough to kill them, just enough to shut them up and incapacitate them. All of them were thrown clear across the way. Venus was thrown into a light pole, Tuxedo Mask wasn't hit by the attack, because he wasn't in the line of fire, and Mercury just happened to be in the way and was thrown head first into an old Oak tree. All of them fell without a word while Tuxedo Mask froze. "What are you doing here?" Crystal growled at the brown haired general, holding a hand to her shoulder, applying slight pressure as the wound there slowly bled. Venus had gotten her with a crescent beam once, and it wasn't all that surprising considering she seemed to be the most training of all the scouts. It also wasn't that surprising because of the fact that the only scout that appeared to be taking her betrayal of them really seriously, was Sailor Venus, and she was the only one using her most powerful attacks on Crystal, or to her, Serena. "I'm helping you." Zoisite shot back, barely glancing in her direction and almost smiling smugly when he noticed Crystal's wound. She wasn't as good as she thought she was. Little did Zoisite know that Crystal didn't even think of herself as an average general, much less a good one. "Oh." Crystal chewed on that for a bit, silently comanding her powers to act again, only this time differently, and to the dazed scouts shock, the wound on Crystal's shoulder suddenly disappeared and she was as good as new, and just as energized, while the scouts were beaten, drained, and hurting. This was most definetely not going to be a fair match. But Crystal and Zoisite didn't attack them, much to their relief, in fact, they just stood there, not speaking or looking at one another, the tension palpable in the air, until a third person appeared behind them. "Now, now, now. There's no need to fight you two." Kunzite's deep voice rang out over the small battle area and the scouts all cringed at it while Crystal and Zoisite both looked in the voices direction and seemed to brighten considerably. Tuxedo Mask didn't quite understand why that sent a jolt of jealousy and hatred through him, much like Serena had felt when she saw him taking care of the injured Mercury. "Well, Crystal," Kunzite commented, making Zoisite fume at not being addressed by him first, and making the scouts look up at the unfamiliar name, directed at the girl they had always known as Serena. "You did very well for a first try, but you still need some work." Crystal's only reply was a slight nod and a glance over in the scouts direction as they all attempted to get up, except for Sailor Mercury. Kunzite was pleased that she appeared to be ever on the alert and ready for anything. But Kunzite also saw what was going on, although Zoisite didn't because he was too busy looking at Kunzite, and when the scouts were all on their feet again Kunzite moved towards Zoisite and Crystal and said distinctly, "I think it's time we went. There's always another chance to beat the scouts later, when you're more properly trained." He finished, refering to Crystal. She nodded again, not taking the comment as an insult, as it was not meant to be, and without another word, disappeared into a dark portal, back to the Negaverse. The other two generals followed close behind her. The scouts were on their feet again, as they had been when Crystal and the other two disappeared, but now they all fell to their knees, both with the emotional drain, and the physical one. Serena was a traitor, pure and simple, and that in itself would have been able a deadly blow to anyone, even the strongest of warriors, because it was the last thing in the world anyone would ever expect from Serena, and because it was an impossible idea. *Had* been an impossible idea. "I think we'd better have a scout meeting." Venus said wearily, slowly getting to her feet again, limping on a hurt ankle and holding a hand to her head, which was bleeing from a small cut. The other scouts all nodded mutely and began to get to their feet as well, dragging their shocked and heavy hearts with them. Tuxedo Mask went over to the unconscious Sailor Mercury and picked her up as gently as a feather would fall on the ground. Out of all of them, Mercury was the one who had been injured the most. Tuxedo Mask had a few scratches on him and the rest were all bruised and had small heart aches that seemed to be the worst of all their injuries. Tuxedo Mask, carrying the poor scout followed the rest of the scouts in silence. They were all troubled and weary. It had been a long, long, long day for them and there was more yet to come. They had to tell Luna what had happened. They wondered if Luna already knew. Tuxedo Mask and Sailor Venus seemed to be the only ones of the five scouts and himself who were taking Sailor Moon's betrayal of them seriously. Though Tuxedo Mask did not know Sailor Moon well, he felt that they were connected somehow... in another life perhaps. And he knew her well enough in this life to care about her, and to care about what happened to her. He often wondered at his confused feelings for the girl. He couldn't understand why she would do something like this. The scouts were always good to her, or when he saw them together they were... of course, he didn't know what they were like in civilian form, but.. he knew that they were good to him, and to her, when they were in these forms. So, why? It was going to be a long time before he got over this. If he ever did. Sailor Venus looked at the ground, not paying too much attention to the other scouts or anything else around her as she thought very hard on what had just occured with a deep, worried frown on her face. She had so many question running through her head that she was beginning to get a headache. And with that thought echoing in her head she stopped thinking at all and concentrated on moving one foot in front of the other, just as all the other scouts and Tuxedo Mask were trying to do. ______________________ Crystal reappeared in Kunzite and Zoisite's room, the two other generals appearing beside her scant moments later, looking thoughtful and slightly annoyed. Although they didn't say it, Crystal could feel the question in their gazes as they looked at her. They knew she had the power, the potential skills, the magic, to defeat the scouts without even a battle, and they wanted to know why she hadn't used it all to full extent and destroyed the scouts before they even had a chance to fight back. Zoisite was the one to eventually voice the question aloud. "Why didn't you destroy them?" He asked and accused at the same time. This was an opertunity he just couldn't pass up. He had seen the way Crystal had looked at the scouts, and how she tried to avoid their attacks and strike back but without really hurting them. She still cared about them, and she wasn't as cold hearted as she had made them believe. But Serena wasn't the least bit fazed at his accusation. Her facial expression was calm, neautral, and her voice was level and unconcerned, not even the slightest bit angry or nervous. She should have been, because even though he didn't voice it, Zoisite was accusing Crystal of coming onto their side as a spy, and if that were so, then she would die instantly and without hesitation. She would be given no time to say last words as so many other enemies were given in tales of old, or in movies. Crystal shrugged, nonchalantly, waving away the question with a graceful move of her hand. "Why should I destory them now? I'll always have another chance, as Kunzite pointed out, and besides, they are good adversaries to practice on. And," Now she paused and to Kunzite and Zoisite her eyes seemed to lose their light as she said softly, "One should never destroy something, or someone, unless they are forced to. Otherwise it is simply, cold blooded murder." Zoisite seemed unmoved by her words, but they had a profound impact on Kunzite. Her words struck home with him. He had destroyed many enemies before, often Youma who did not wish to follow him, or call him 'lord' even though he ruled over them. And each time he killed one some part of him seemed to grow darker and darker, pushing his soul further and closer to the very heart of the Nega-verse, to the very heart of evil, and destruction. Right into Hell. He realized that Crystal was speaking again. "....be in the training room." She finished and he only caught that tail end of her words, but it was enough to bring him out of his own thoughts. "I'll go with you." He said immediately, and Zoisite scowled at him darkly, telling him with his eyes and look to stay put and shut-up. But when Kunzite ignored the look he was giving him and began to walk out of the room with Crystal, this time heading to a training room where time was set at a normal pace, Zoisite followed them and said, "I'll go to." His only response was their echoing footsteps. Crystal said nothing as they walked, their shoes making eerie noises on the cold stone floor, and the two generals found it impossible to make any sort of conversation with her, especially Kunzite. She seemed to be closing herself off from them, from everybody, and talking to her right now was like talking to a brick wall; it only talked back if you were nuts, or if there was magic in the air. When they finally did reach the training room, all of them relieved to be out of those hallways, Crystal's cold silence ended, to a point. Although she was talking now, even smiling once or twice, the smile never reached her eyes, and Zoisite and Kunzite still got the impression of a brick wall. "I suppose since my magic abilities are pretty good right now, we should start with the physical stuff again, right?" Kunzite and Zoisite just stared at her a moment before the silver haired general managed to slowly nodd his head yes, still staring at Crystal incredulously. The girl was not only being modest when she said her magical skills were 'pretty good', she was being ridiculous. Her magical skills could probably put Queen Matallia to shame. She was a natural when it came to using the dark powers, and Zoisite and Kunzite had to wonder if she'd really been born a scout or if she'd been born into the evil side. But despite himself, Kunzite couldn't believe for a second that Crystal could ever be born into evil. She may have chosen it now, as a way of life, but her heart was far too pure, far too innocent, far too... good to be created from evil. The only explanation was that she had to have been born a Lunar in her past life. They were always so pure, always so untouched by evil, they were such... do-gooders. It was almost sickening. Shaking off his thoughts Kunzite moved forward and took hold of one of the swords that had been set in a case on a shelf near the wall. Pulling it out of it's case he turned and pointed it at Crystal, it was their normal beginning position. Crystal nodded at his choice of weapon and then lifted her hand, a slow smile curling her lips that did reach her eyes this time, as a dark glow surrounded her slim fingers. She obviously had a trick up her sleeve. A crystal sword that appeared to be made of fine crystal appeared in her hands and Kunzite stared at it in facination. It was not clear, not made of ice, as Zoisite's were, but rather, it was black. Pure black, far darker than night, and this one was smooth, no jagged edges existed on it anywhere except at the end, which was sharpened so much it could have been a spear. The handle for the sword was not like any hilt Kunzite had ever seen on any sword in his life. It was silver, a stark contrast to the black of the crystal blade, and set in it were tiny gems that sparkled at him as Crystal's hand passed over him. They had been created by *pure* magic, not dark, and that in itself was surprising. Crystal must have had some practice with magic before she came to them after all. All and all, it was a very interesting sword. Kunzite's fingers were itching to examine it. He told himself and waited for Crystal to touch the tip of her blade to his so they could begin, they always started a swords length away from each other. And Crystal was just lifting her sword to do so when a loud and authoritive voice rang out over the training room, making Crystal pause. But the voice did not speak to her. "Zoisite!" It boomed and Crystal recognized it as belonging to Queen Beryl. "Come to the throne room at once! I have something I need to discuss with you!" Zoisite paled at the idea, his face seeming to drain of all color, but then forced himself to straighten and gave a stiff nod in Kunzite and Crystal's direction, although he didn't look at them. He was gone without another word and his hand very nearly shook as he raised it to teleport away. Queen Beryl was not one to make house calls like this, and when she did, you never kept her waiting. *Never*. "Well," Crystal said at last as she and Kunzite stood in silence for two or three long minutes after Zoisite's departure. "That was.... unusual." She'd been about to say interesting, but decided against it. Interesting was not the word one used when reffering to a summoning by Queen Beryl. It was more like... terrifying. "Yes.... it was." Kunzite answered, attempting to shake off the feeling of foreboding that had filled him the moment he heard Beryl's voice speak Zoisite's name. He had only ever been summoned himself, by Beryl, once in this manner, and one time in a lifetime was enough. "Well," He said finally, turning his eyes once again to Crystal, and away from where Zoisite had just stood minutes before with effort. "Let us begin." Crystal stared at him for a moment, her eyes as blank and as dispassionate as he had ever seen any humans eyes. But then, just for a moment, just as she touched the end of her sword to his, they softened and her walls went down, and for the briefest of instants Kunzite got a direct look into Crystal's soul. A *direct* look. And he saw a lot, although not everything. She was pure, she was innocent, she was strong, noble, and as kind hearted as they come, and she was a lunar. But she was also suffering, it may not show in her eyes, but her soul bore traces of an emotional struggle and for the first time in his life, Kunzite experienced the human emotion known as: sympathy. But the instant had to end, and before Kunzite could even blink an eye Crystal was upon him. She was fast, and well trained with the sword, but Kunzite had had years more experience than her and he dodged easily, well perhaps not easily, but gracefully. She turned and came at him again, but he had been expecting this move and he easily side stepped. He brought his sword down quickly in a move that would have easily caught Crystal when she had *first* begun her practice with a sword, but now she dodged it as easily as he dodged hers. Kunzite took the initiative this time and came at her for a second round. For a moment the move appeared to surprise Crystal, but in reality it was all an act. She had in fact, been expecting him to come at her like this, and just before the swords blade would have hit her arm Crystal ducked and stretched out the blade just below his calfs in a move intended to knock him down. It didn't work out the way she'd planned. He teleported, startling Crystal, and as he appeared behind her she was thrown off balance and to the floor when he knocked her over, but she managed to avoid landing on her back, thereby staying in the fight. She was on her feet in an instant, breathing a little more heavily than when they had begun, and Kunzite mocked her for it. "Getting tired, Crystal?" He asked, smiling faintly as her beautiful face reddened at the slight. Now she was becoming angry, and anger often makes people do things they later regret or don't mean to. Crystal lunged for Kunzite again, this time taking her sword and bringing it into a swinging arc that was meant to hit Kunzite on the shoulder, but Kunzite teleported again, and this time, not wanting to fall for the same trick twice, Crystal teleported as well, but materialized in mid air. She didn't know where Kunzite was going to be when he reappeared, and not knowing where your enemy is, is often a fatal mistake. However, Kunzite rematarialized again right beside her, and Crystal gave a cry of surprise as he tapped her on the shoulder to show that he was there. Her cry momentarily broke the spell that held her afloat and Crystal tumbled the twenty or so feet to the ground. She lay there for a moment or two, gasping and trying to catch her breath as the fall had knocked it from her, while all the while Kunzite floated above her, laughing. He drifted down to her level and began to stride towards her again, lowering his sword to his side while Crystal got to her feet quickly and held hers out in front of her. "You know," Kunzite said at last, even while talking, still admiring her lovely, flushed features and long golden hair. "This is becoming dull. Why don't you just give up and we can call it a day, or work on something else, hmm?" Crystal froze, and because Kunzite didn't know who Crystal, the former Sailor Moon, *really* was, he didn't see his mistake with those words, which he really hadn't meant at all. Give up? Give up?.... No! She would never give up again, not ever, if only to show Raye and the other that she was no quitter, that she was nothing like what they thought she was. Serena had been called a quitter and a goof off all her life, and now that she was starting a new life she was going to make sure no one saw her that the way. The way Kunzite.... thought of her. He had seen her, watched her, *witnessed* her, betray her friends and yet he still thought of her as a coward, as someone who gave up without a fight, and to know that he thought of her that way made her angry. *Very* angry... actually, worse than that... She was furious. Without another word, without hesitation, warning, or delay Crystal struck Kunzite with everything she had. And at the end of this battle it would be Crystal laughing and not Kunzite. Kunzite was an exerienced, and very accomplished swordsman, but he was not, in any way, prepared to have to fight off an enraged general that was just as strong as he was with a crystal sword that could easily slice a man into mince meat. Within minutes of attacking him Crystal had him on the ground and pinned there with her sword to his neck and her face inches from his. "Now who's going to have to give up?" She asked, and Kunzite could hear the glee, and well as the anger in her soft voice. A voice that sounded as though it belonged to an angle. Kunzite didn't answer, but stared up at Crystal blankly, his eyes twitching in annoyance at himself for being caught by her so easily. He should have known better than to anger her. Because Kunzite had the feeling that if Crystal was ever truely angry, she could pulverize him and this whole Nega- verse, in an instant. But that was just being silly. Wasn't it? He wasn't so sure he knew the answer to that question now. Above him Crystal was beginning to calm and her eyes, the liquid blue of them like that of the daytime sky, lightened at the absence of anymore fury. And suddenly, they both became acutely aware of just how close they were to each other. Kunzite stiffened abruptly, swallowing once to keep his wits about him, and his eyes and body went completely and absolutely still as Crystals did the same. And that is the way they stayed for a few long, seemingly endless moments as they both stared into each others eyes deeply, one pair, hard and silver colored, and the other, sharp and guarded, soft blue ones. Both of them felt as though they were drowning in each others gazes and, almost unconsciously, Crystal slowly moved her head down slightly. The tip of her blade was still pressed to Kunzite's neck and he couldn't move either to stop her or quicken her, which one he would have done he did not know, but either way she continued to slowly, ever so slowly, move her head closer, and closer, and closer, and closer.... And then the moment of blissful peace ended and Crystal leapt to her feet suddenly, as though she'd been burned. "I'm... I'm.. I'm sorry, Kunzite. I.. I didn't mean to.." She paused, her hands grasping the handle of her crystal knife so tightly that one of the stones on the hilt that was somewhat sharp left an impression in her palm. She took a few moments to collect her wits, and her thoughts before she slowly let out a deep breath and said evenly, "I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable Kunzite, it won't happen again." And it wouldn't. Crystal would be sure of that. She had to be, for reasons that were all to clear to her. Without waiting for him to answer or respond to her words Crystal turned on her heel abruptly and left the training room for her own quarters, leaving Kunzite to himself and his own thoughts as he still lay on the floor, staring after the golden haired girl he had once known as a sailor scout and who he now knew as a fellow general. He didn't know which one he prefered. The new, brave, angry, and shielded general, or the whiny, clutsy, cowardly sailor scout. Somehow though, Kunzite found himself wishing she was neither. TO BE CONTINUED.....