Minna, I need help! So far I have had Usagi 'write' 3 postcards to her family. She has 'written' from Australia, Canada, and (now) France. I need ideas for upcoming postcards. If you would like to help, send me an e-mail with 'Postcard Help' written in the subject line. I will need your name, your e-mail address, the country where the postcard will be from, a description of what Usagi could've 'seen' and 'done' there to 'write' home about (language spoken in country would be helpful too). Please: no countries that have already been used. Each postcard is to come from a different country. What you will get: if your idea is used, you will be given credit in that episode under the Special Thanks section at the bottom. Domo arigato! Standard Questionably Useful Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and all related characters were created by Naoko Takeuchi; and are copyright to Naoko Takeuchi, Kodansha, Toei, DIC and whoever else. This fanfic is intended solely for entertainment purposes and no violation of said copyrights is intended or implied. If you want to put my fanfic on your site, please e-mail me asking for permission first. This story and all new characters (including attacks) are MINE (copyright 2000)!! Author's Notes: Rated PG-13 for mild language My series begins where Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon Sailor Stars ends I use the Japanese names, last name first Nagesya = Dark Empress = Empress Eban = young warrior Bomani = warrior youma = monster fuku = skirt chan - used for babies, small children, close friends Senshi Avatars Episode 12 - A Call to Arms Written by Eridanus (Eridanus2000@go.com) Sailor Eridanus gazed at the three planets thoughtfully, wondering if her friends needed help. Just as she was about to descend upon the planets to find out, she saw a being break through the thermosphere of one of the planets. Sailor Eridanus swore under her breath as the being neared, realizing that it wasn?t one of the Starlights. "Who are you and what have you done with my friends?" Sailor Eridanus demanded angrily, blaming herself for having put the Starlights in danger. "You mean you don?t recognize me?" Mintaka scoffed, pretending to be offended. Confusion flickered in Sailor Eridanus? eyes, replacing her anger. "And you are...?" Sailor Eridanus began, hoping the newcomer would introduce himself. "I am the Orion Warrior Mintaka at your service," Mintaka replied smoothly and bowed. Sailor Eridanus noticed the twinkle in his eye and the smile tugging at his lips, and she finally realized that it was Seiya. Her face flushed, but her emotions quickly changed from embarrassment to anger. "How dare you make me needlessly worry about your safety!" Sailor Eridanus snapped, causing Mintaka to grin broadly. "I was about to blast you with one of my attacks because I thought you were an enemy. You can be such an idiot!" "I?m happy to see you too," Mintaka laughed, and probably would have gotten punched if another newcomer hadn?t stepped in. "I see you?re up to your old tricks again," Alnitak said as he glared at Mintaka. "And which of my dear brothers are you?" Mintaka teased. Alnitak opened his mouth to throw back a much-deserved retort when the final warrior joined their group. "Aw, and I was hoping to beat you two," Alnilam complained loudly, causing the group to laugh. "Look who finally decides to show up," Mintaka joked. "I?d like to see you attempt that planet?s challenge and see how long you would last," Alnilam spat. "It wasn?t that bad, was it?" Sailor Eridanus asked, causing all three of the warriors to sigh. "It?s a long story," Alnitak replied, while Mintaka and Alnilam nodded in agreement. Each took their turn explaining the dangers they faced and the three beings that gave them their powers. "And that?s about it," Alnilam said once he?d completed his tale. "It seems all three of you were perfect choices," Sailor Eridanus remarked. "And now I think it?s about time we head for Earth." All three warriors agreed, and they joined hands to teleport. The black portal appeared and they all stepped through, crossing light-years in mere seconds. All of a sudden the group hit turbulence, and the portal dropped them in deep space. "General Bomani report," Lady Tyriah commanded. "I am here, my Lady," Bomani replied. "I?ll be blunt, General. I don?t trust you," Tyriah said, her cold eyes flashing. "For some reason I do not believe your ?story? about General Eban?s death. This matter *will* be looked into, General. Of that, you can be assured." Bomani began to fidget under Tyriah?s gaze, nervously shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "However," Tyriah continued, "I will allow you to keep your post, but you will be under careful observation." Tyriah?s eyes narrowed, and her icy tone bit into the unsuspecting general. "You have been warned." Bomani stood frozen to the spot, even as Tyriah waved him away. This is not going the way I planned, he thought. She wasn?t ever supposed to suspect me so soon...Tyriah glanced at him sharply when she noticed he had not taken his leave. He hastily bowed and made a quick exit. I had better watch myself from now on... Tyriah smirked as she watched Bomani?s hasty departure. She had known she might have trouble keeping him under control, and this scare-tactic seemed the easiest way to do just that. Still...he had looked pretty nervous for someone who had nothing to hide. Maybe she really *should* have the incident looked into... "What happened?" Mintaka hissed. "I don?t know," Sailor Eridanus replied. "The teleport was interrupted by a strange surge of power." "A power surge in deep space?" Mintaka asked skeptically. "Not electrical power," Sailor Eridanus explained. "Pure energy, but whether it was a friend or an enemy I could not say." "What friends do you have outside of the Earth? It must be an enemy," Mintaka reasoned. "There are lots of beings in the universe that are not associated with the Darkness. I would think that during your travels you would have realized there are greater beings..." she broke off and turned away. "Greater beings?" Mintaka repeated, with a confused expression on his face. "Just forget it. Let?s search for the others," Sailor Eridanus suggested, successfully changing the subject. Mintaka wasn?t ready to hear about the beings of Light, at least not yet. Maybe one day she could explain to everyone about her hidden past, about what truly happened on the Moon, and why it was her fault that the universe was now in danger. "Stay alert in case it was an enemy that sidetracked us," Mintaka cautioned, and Sailor Eridanus sighed. "Whatever it was, it can?t hurt us. The teleport hurt whoever it was, and it?s our duty to find them and help them in any way we can," she stated firmly. "But we don?t know if..." Mintaka began, but was silenced by one look from Sailor Eridanus. "No buts. Now I?m going to perform an energy scan so we can find the others," Sailor Eridanus explained. Her eyes widened in surprise after a few minutes, but she remained silent. "Well, what is it?" Mintaka asked, his curiosity getting the better of him. "I found Alnitak and Alnilam, but I also discovered a being not far from us that has a dangerously low energy level," she replied in a whisper. "Let me guess," Mintaka began sarcastically. "You want to go and help, right?" Sailor Eridanus glared at Mintaka and then set off. "If you?re afraid that it?s an enemy you can stay here. I?m going with or without you!" Sailor Eridanus exclaimed, and Mintaka sighed before following her. "And leave you alone? I don?t think so," Mintaka replied quietly, so she would not hear. "Where are we?" Alnilam asked, looking at Alnitak inquiringly. "I think we hit turbulence during the teleport and we ended up having our trip cut short," Alnitak replied. "But I have no idea how far from Earth we are, or where the others are." "They have to be somewhere around here, don?t they?" Alnilam asked in alarm. "Well, reason would deduce that the teleport would have thrown us out relatively near each other, but when traveling at such a high speed, we could be separated by several billion miles," Alnitak responded and Alnilam groaned. "You aren?t helping any," Alnilam complained. "You?re supposed to know everything!" "Calm down Alnilam, they will find us," Alnitak said assuredly. "How can you be so sure?" Alnilam asked. "Because I know Sailor Eridanus, and she would never abandon any of her friends," Alnitak replied. "Minako-chan!" Makoto called, running to catch up with her friend as they walked to school. "Hey, Mako-chan. What?s up?" Minako asked. "Nothing much...Minako-chan..." Makoto began and then stopped. "What?" Minako asked, wondering what was bothering her friend. "You *do* believe she?s coming back, don?t you?" Makoto asked, looking at Minako hopefully. Minako gasped and her eyes widened. "Of course I do! She isn?t going to abandon us!" Minako fairly shouted. Makoto sighed in relief. "I?ve just been so worried...I don?t know why..." she trailed off. "Have you head anything from Haruka-san and Michiru-san lately?" Minako shook her head sadly and lowered her eyes. "I am afraid they might know something...hiding information from us..." Minako said quietly, while Makoto?s eyes widened. "They wouldn?t do that would they?" Makoto asked. "I mean, I know we haven?t always gotten along, but..." "Her mirror *had* to show her something!" Minako burst out, her eyes brimming with tears. "There just has to be a reason why she left!" Makoto winced at the anguish in Minako?s eyes, not knowing how to respond. Just then loud screaming could be heard from coming up ahead, and the two exchanged quick glances before turning down an alley. "Venus Crystal Power!" Minako cried, holding her transformation pen high in the air. "Jupiter Crystal Power!" Makoto shouted, closing her eyes as she transformed. "Let?s go!" Venus commanded and Jupiter ran by her side into the battle. "Hey, let go of that man!" Venus yelled at the youma who had its arms wrapped around an unconscious man. The youma smirked and tossed the man against a wall. "You?re gonna regret coming up against us now, pal!" Jupiter threatened as she powered up. "Jupiter Oak Evolution!" The youma easily dodged the attack, but was not expecting Venus too have already anticipated his move. "Venus Love and Beauty Shock!" she yelled, hitting the youma squarely in the back. It grunted under the assault, but amazingly enough held it?s ground, and lashed out at her. Venus was thrown back against a pole, her wrist striking it painfully. As the youma walked toward the fallen Venus, he left himself open for Jupiter?s attack. Jupiter ran forward and launched herself into the air, striking a powerful spin kick across the youma?s face. Venus struggled to her feet as Jupiter went one-on-one with the youma, holding her wrist against her body. It didn?t appear to be broken, so she jumped back into the fight. "Venus Love and Beauty Shock!" she screamed once more, and Jupiter added her power to double-team the youma. "Jupiter Oak Evolution!" The youma staggered back, but did not fall. It was now heavily bleeding, but it had a grin on its face that left the Senshi disconcerted. "Pitiful Sailor Senshi, you did exactly as I wanted you to," the youma spat out as it fell to its knees. "I was collecting information, statistics, power readings...your attacks will be useless against our force from now on," the youma gloated, its grin widening even as the last of its life-force drained away. The two Senshi stared at each other, silently mulling over this information. "Think he was telling the truth?" Jupiter asked. "I sure hope not, but it?s definitely something the others will need to know about, just in case," Venus replied with a sigh as she detransformed. Jupiter too detransformed and they went over to the man who was still sprawled on the ground. "Sir, are you all right?" Makoto asked as she gently shook the man?s shoulder. He slowly came to and stared at the two girls in surprise. "What happened?" he asked, unsuccessfully trying to sit up. "You were attacked by something," Makoto replied. "We had been hiding in the alley during the attack, but then the Sailor Senshi came and took care of the youma." "Sailor Senshi? They?re real?" the man asked surprised. Minako and Makoto face-vaulted. "Uh...if you?re all right now, we have to be getting to school. Bye!" Minako said as they took off. "The *nerve* of that guy..." she muttered underneath her breath. Makoto just chuckled. "How close are we?" Mintaka whispered, surprising Sailor Eridanus. "I thought you weren?t going to come," Sailor Eridanus replied dryly. "Someone has to protect you from the dangerous beasts of outer space," Mintaka replied, striking a gallant pose. Sailor Eridanus rolled her eyes and turned away. "And who?s going to protect me from you?" she muttered quietly enough so Mintaka would not hear. "So, I said how close are we?" Mintaka asked after a few more minutes of silence. Sailor Eridanus gave him a pointed look and continued her search. "We?re getting close, I?m sure of it," she whispered. "I just can?t seem to get a permanent fix on whoever is out here. Even though they are obviously injured and their energy level is almost nonexistent, they are managing to move at a fast enough pace to hide. I don?t see how that is possible, aside from having a strong sense of willpower." "If they want to keep hiding, maybe we should just leave," Mintaka suggested. "No!" Sailor Eridanus snapped loudly, causing Mintaka?s eyes to widen in alarm. "I know whoever it is isn?t evil! I am sworn to protect all Innocents, and that includes the one that is hiding from us. It?s more than likely thinking we are the enemy," she explained. "That?s why they are trying so hard to remain hidden." Mintaka gave in, wanting to prevent the argument from escalating. "Look! Over there," Mintaka pointed out a form floating in space. Sailor Eridanus instantly flew over to the form, and Mintaka gasped as he neared. The form was actually a badly wounded and unconscious Senshi, blood seeping out of her numerous cuts staining her tattered uniform. She wore only one torn glove, and her hair was matted to her head. "Who is she and will she be all right?" Mintaka asked quietly. "I don?t know who she is. Galaxia once told me there were Senshi throughout all the galaxies but I haven?t encountered any in my travels," Sailor Eridanus replied. "But we aren?t even any where near a planet!" Mintaka yelled. "Where did she come from?" "Obviously from a battle," Sailor Eridanus replied sardonically. "Her wounds must be tended to immediately or she might die," she choked out, tears stinging her eyes. Even though this young Senshi was not one of her friends, she was still a Senshi. "Your brothers are only a little bit away from here. We?ll need their help, so go and bring them back," Sailor Eridanus instructed. "With the four of us together, we just might be able to heal her." Mintaka left without a word, sensing the urgency of the situation. After traveling at top speed for several minutes, he finally found them. "Alnitak! Alnilam!" Mintaka yelled, greeting his two brothers and explaining the situation. "We have to get back to try and help her," Mintaka cried. The brothers nodded in agreement and quickly joined hands. Since Sailor Eridanus was not there with them they could not open a portal, but by joining hands they were able to tap into each other?s power and increase their speed. The trio arrived at the fallen Senshi?s side within a matter of minutes, and Alnitak noticed that Sailor Eridanus was already administering to the wounds. She had created a subspace orb around herself and the wounded Senshi which. Several strips of cloth that had been ripped off of her fuku were temporarily used as dressings for the wounds. Alnitak fell to his knees and applied pressure to the deepest wounds. Sailor Eridanus momentarily glanced up in surprise, noticing the warriors for the first time. "With no antibiotics and sterile equipment, she won?t last very much longer. Her immune system appears to be almost nonexistent, and she has a very high temperature. Her only hope is if we complete an energy transfer and partial heal. Are you three up for it?" Sailor Eridanus inquired. "Of course we are! We can?t just let her die," Alnilam replied heatedly. "A little energy drain isn?t going to hurt us any." The other two quickly agreed, and Sailor Eridanus smiled her gratitude. "Okay, this is what we are going to do," Sailor Eridanus began. "We must all join hands and call upon our guardian planets to give us power. Then each of us must offer up whatever energy we can spare to the Senshi," she explained. "The energy should heal her and increase her own power reserves." The quartet joined hands and bowed their heads, clearing their minds of all thought. "Essence of Eridanus, Make Up!" Sailor Eridanus cried, streams of water spiraling around the Senshi. "Essence of Mintaka, Make Up!" Mintaka yelled, a ball of fire forming above the girl in the center of their circle. "Essence of Alnitak!" Alnitak called, swirls of ice settling on the unmoving body. "Essence of Alnilam!" Alnilam shouted, a bright burst of light enveloping her. All four powers twisted together above the girl, creating a miniature cyclone of water, fire, ice, and light. The odd energy mixture seeped into the unconscious girl, color slowly returning to her pale face and blue lips. The Orion Warriors staggered while Sailor Eridanus kneeled before the girl and checked her wounds. The girl began to moan as she struggled to regain consciousness, and Sailor Eridanus placed a cooling hand on the girl?s forehead. "Easy now Senshi. You are going to be all right. How do you feel?" Sailor Eridanus asked gently. The Senshi struggled to open her eyes, and their brilliant chartreuse color instantly captivated the Orion Warriors. Her maroon hair fell naturally into place as she slowly sat up, wincing at the pain her action caused her. "You are among friends. What is your name?" Sailor Eridanus tried once more. "I...I am Sailor Alshain..." the girl whispered hoarsely, struggling to comprehend the current situation. "Please...you must help Sailor Altair before all is lost!" she cried. Special thanks: To Naoko Takeuchi for creating this wonderful series. To Sarah Anderson, editor and friend, who gave me great advice and helped me through hard times. All the fanfic authors I have ever read: couldn't have done this without all of you!