Continuing Tales

Dark Kingdom Renegades 1: Refugees

A Sailor Moon Story
by Mark Latus

Part 4 of 7

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Refugees

It was a pleasant Sunday morning and Cal and Mai were strolling through one of Juban's park. This was Cal's favorite park. After all it was where the renegades had landed following their escape from the Dark Kingdom. It had also been one of the first places he'd stumbled across after his first dimensional crossing. Pyrite's sensors were still buried in four of its trees. They'd never retrieved them.

Mai was clinging to him more than usual. She was still shaken by Jadeite's attack. It had shaken her skepticism to the core. It's hard to deny the existence of the supernatural after being attacked by a youma. She'd been afraid Cal would deny having seen anything but he obviously wasn't the stereotypical hardheaded westerner.

Of course Cal was neither a skeptic or a westerner having grown up in the Dark Kingdom. He'd seen a lot of strange things in his time. Like his sister showing up friday night in that Sailor Polaris costume. That certainly qualified as one of the strangest. He'd had a few words with about that yesterday. Hopefully that nonsense was over with, she'd been lucky not to get herself killed.

Not far away Titanite was standing in a line for a comic fair also thinking about Sailor Polaris. Saturday had passed without incident apart from being berated by her brother for stupidity. He'd taken pains to point out she had no combat experience and little idea how to effectively use her own powers. She'd pointed out having taken out Nephrite with one shot which he'd dismissed as beginners luck. He was convinced, as were Azurite and Pyrite, that this was the work of a single youma using different identities. So next time whoever it was showed up he (or she, or it) would know her capabilities. He'd have confiscated her (actually Azutite's) transmutation bracelet if Azurite hadn't stopped him. She'd pointed out that if circumstances required Titanite to use her powers it'd be better that she do it as Sailor Polaris rather than as Titania Hobbes.

Calcite had agreed. He'd even said that now she didn't have to stay confined she should be taught to use her powers for best effect. However that would have to wait until they could find a training site they could be sure the Sailor Warriors wouldn't stumble across. Ti had been eager to learn which was something of a reversal. In the Dark Kingdom she'd been extremely pacifistic and hadn't wanted to learn how to fight. Of course back then for her to fight would have been a last resort. As if she could beat anyone who could take out her guardians. While genetically she was potentially as powerful as her brother the key to unlocking those powers remained unknown. That was also before she became enamoured by those stupid cartoons.

Her eagerness had made her brother suspicious that she was planning another outing as Sailor Polaris. So Azurite had asked her to promise that she wouldn't use that identity or her powers except in self defense. She'd sworn she wouldn't and that had satisfied Azurite. Calcite had accepted it but had said he'd be keeping an eye on her. Azurite had told him that was unnecessary as Ti had never broken a promise to her.

It was fortunate, Titanite reflected, that Azurite didn't know the human convention that a promise made with your fingers crossed doesn't count. Her fingers toyed with the charm hanging from her bracelet. Without it she might not have been allowed out unescorted. Her brother seemed to think that the mystery youma might know her identity and attack her when she was alone. Pyrite had pointed out that while the enemy probably did know both siblings real natures it hadn't been targeting them. At least not directly. Besides it was impractical for the four of them to stick together constantly. So he'd unveiled his latest invention, disguised signallers to be used if they were attacked. It'd transmit a telepathic signal they could use as a teleport lock. They being Calcite and Azurite the two fighters of the group.

So she'd been allowed to come here alone which was fine by her. It was also fine with Cal since he didn't want to have to trail around after her all day. Now she just had to avoid blowing all her savings. Her interests were fairly eclectic though there were two subjects she avoided. Anything featuring catlike females tended to upset her brother if he saw it. She could understand that, she'd been fond of auntie Margrave. Despite the fact that Azurite couldn't stand her.

She also avoided the hentai material. All those tentacles brought back unpleasant memories of a youma who had tried to molest her (at the least) when she'd been nine years old. The memory came back. She'd snuck out of the house unnoticed. Back then she'd thought her brother had been exaggerating the dangers of the outside world. Until she'd met that youma. He'd been half preying mantis, half octopus. At least that's how she'd describe him now having seen both. She hadn't had much chance look before he was on her tearing at her clothing.

Then he'd screamed and released her, stumbling backwards with several knives sticking out of him. Calcite and Azurite had landed beside her and Azurite had made her cover her eyes. There had been a strange crackle and a bursting noise. Something wet had splashed her cheek but Azurite had brushed it away. They'd teleported her home and done what they could to ease her warp sickness. She'd had nightmares after this and asked Azurite if the youma would come after her again. Azurite had assured her that Calcite had made sure he wouldn't. At the time she hadn't understood just what Azurite meant. It had been about another year before she realized Calcite sometimes killed people to protect her.

It had scared her and she'd run to Azurite. Who'd told her not to judge her brother too harshly. "He does what he has too to keep you and the rest of us alive. But don't ever think it's easy for him or that he enjoys it. To survive we've all done things we're not proud of, and we'll have to do more of them in the future. It's a hard life but it's all we've got." She hadn't volunteered any more than that and Ti hadn't asked again.

That was why becoming Sailor Polaris had upset Cal so much. He'd spent years keeping her safe and now she was putting herself into danger. She could understand that but circumstances had changed. She was no longer in a place full of more powerful beings who'd rip her apart for being different. Or just for their own amusement. She didn't have to stay hidden anymore but she couldn't use her powers in public. At least not in her human identity. Now she had a way to fully express herself.

Besides it was fun having a secret identity and if she got to hang out with the Sailor Warriors that would be cool.

Curiously Sailor Polaris was on the minds of two other nonhumans. They'd been debating the question and going in circles since Friday night. Luna looked at Artemis and again said, "I still say there was never any such person as Sailor Polaris!"

Again Artemis shrugged and said, "I don't remember her either but a green haired Sailor Warrior seems right somehow. And I definitely remember there being more than five Sailor Warriors. I can't quite remember who the others were but there are, or were, others." Something else occurred to him, "Of course having five Sailor Warriors was wrong all along but we didn't notice."

Luna was puzzled, "What do you mean?"

Artemis collected his thoughts, "I mean the whole Sailor Moon thing slipped by both of us. Back in the old days of Silver Millenium there never was a Sailor Moon. Yet when Usagi manifested that identity it never occurred to either of us that anything unusual had happened. Neither of us drew any connection between her and the moon princess."

Luna looked uncertain. "I'll admit it's strange that neither of us caught that but the point is ... errr ..."

"The point is that neither of us can trust their memory 100%. Maybe suspended animation causes memory loss but I can't see both of us forgetting exactly the same things. At least not without assistance."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning our memories were tampered with. There's only one person who could have done it."

"You mean?

"Yep, her majesty Queen Serenity."

"But why?"

"I don't know Luna. Why she wanted her daughter reborn as a Sailor Warrior is a mystery. Maybe it's some sort of training to make her fit to rule. Let's face it, Usagi has a long way to go before I'd trust her running a household let alone a monarchy."

"But what is she supposed to rule? Silver Millenium was destroyed thousands of years ago and I can't see how you'd reestablish it on Earth."

"Errrr ..." It occurred to Artemis maybe he hadn't considereed this issue as well as he'd thought. "Maybe she has to carve out her own kingdom, queendom I mean."

"You mean conquer territory? Use the Silver Crystal to take over Japan, maybe the whole world?"

"Ha! Usagi? Come on Luna, can you seriously imagine Usagi as Gengis Kahn?"

Luna chuckled, "You're right I'm being silly. Besides Queen Serenity would never have planned something like that." She paused then added, "For now her majesty's motives in altering our memories must remain a mystery. Like this whole Sailor Polaris/Dark Kingdom comeback thing. Until we have a bit more information all we can do is speculate wildly."

"I suppose so. By the way where'd our Sailor Warriors get too?"

"They said that since we didn't know where or when Jadeite or Nephrite would reappear they might as well get some icecream and go boy watching. Sometimes I wonder why we bother."

"Well regardless of how flaky they get they've always come through. Besides they already died for the Silver Crystal twice. They've proven their dedication."

"True. We're lucky they weren't completely traumatised. If they weren't so ... adolescent I wonder if they could cope? Anyway let's drop this whole Usagi the conqueror idea."

Artemis nodded but privately he wondered just how had Silver Millenium been established in the first place? In the real old days before the peace and love era he'd been born into.

Meanwhile back in the park Cal could sense Mai loosening up a bit. That was good but for some reason he had a definite feeling of foreboding. He couldn't shake the idea that something was about to happen. But what? There hadn't been a sign of Nephrite since Friday night. Jadeite hadn't been spotted since Wednesday ... Wednesday, Friday, and today was Sunday. Could there been a pattern of a general appearing every other day? No that was ridiculous, two incidents does not make a pattern.

He was chiding himself for his foolishness when he sensed a youma aura. It felt shielded meaning he was close to the source. But inadequately so if he could sense this much leakage. Where was it? Mai felt him tense.

"What's wrong Calvin?"

He was about to answer when a somewhat effeminate young man emerged from behind a tree. He stepped into the path of a couple of nearby tourists. Calcite heard him ask them, "Excuse me, could you help a fellow American who's down on his luck?"

The voice had acquired an American accent but he recognised it and the the speaker's face. Damnit, not again! He began steering Mai away as unobtrusively as possible.

"What do you want pretty boy?" The older of the two Americans sounded more than a bit belligerant. Evidently he didn't care for Zoisite's appearance. This didn't seem to both Zoisite who simply said, "Your energy!" He held his left palm upwards and a softball sized sphere of light appeared. Two glowing tendrils snapped out of the ball and struck them in their chests. Both froze in place joined to the ball by the light. Zoisite gestured with his right hand and dozens of tendrils exploded out of the ball. Everyone they hit became paralysed and started to look weaker. A panicked exodus began among the parkgoers. People were snared as they ran, immobilized and knocked over by those fleeing.

Mai had been having nightmares about this since she emerged from her coma. About devils that looked human eating away at her from the inside. She couldn't stop looking back as Calvin hustled her away. A tendril surged towards them and she screamed. It charged towards her heart then bounced away about a half a metre before impact. Bouncing off the green pane of light that emenated from Calvin's hand. She stared at him and opened her mouth to speak. He pushed a red walnut sized crystal into her hands and said, "This'll protect you long enough to get clear of the park. Now get out of here!" She just stared at him, a million questions forming. He pushed her away and shouted, "MOVE DAMNIT!" Half a dozen tendrils flickered towards them and she turned and ran, her eyes closed. She was lucky and didn't trip over anything or anyone nor run into anything stationary. She also didn't see the tendrils that approached her bounce away as if they'd hit an invisible wall.

"Not the smartest thing I've ever done", Calcite thought as he glanced around. His luck held, no other conscious witnesses in sight. Zoisite seemed to be waiting for him, best not to disappoint. He triggered his transmuter and felt his clothing shift into Gray's battlesuit. As he did he altered his glamour, shifting his haircolor from long and blond to short and grey.

Zoisite looked a little disapproving. "Dear, dear. You looked so much better with the ponytail. Tell me did you wear it in honour of me?"

"Just keeping it out of the way. I've never felt any desire to emulate you." His opponent had stopped masking his aura, it stood out like a beacon for anyone who knew how to sense it. Like the other times the aura was a perfect match for the appearance. This wasn't an appearance masking glamour spell. Somehow, incredible as it seemed, that was Zoisite. How this was possible Calcite didn't know. His normal glamour disguised his hair and blood color. At least in his presence. As Gray his hair appeared shorter but that was just an illusion, the actual length remained the same. But the Zoisite lookalike ... could he be facing a real shapeshifter?

The one good part about this was that since his opponent already knew who he really was there was no need to limit himself. He could use all his powers instead of just the ones designated for Gray's use. Or at least he could have before he suddenly sensed familiar presences approaching fast.

"How dare you come back from the dead to interrupt peoples day of leisure. Ghosts should respect the livings desire for relaxation since you don't have to work anymore. So on behalf of the Moon ..."

"And Mars!"

"And Jupiter!"

"And Venus!"

"And Mercury!"

"...We will punish you!"

As the Sailor Warriors did their (somewhat questionable) "Strike terror into the hearts of evildoers" pose Calcite wondered if they were familiar with the concept of surprise attacks.

A few minutes earlier they'd been strolling along the street in their everyday identities acting according to their natures. Minako and Makoto were checking out guys, Rei and Usagi were squabbling and Ami was fretting about taking time off from her studying. Then Rei had suddenly shut up and spun around 90 degrees. At almost the same instant they'd heard the screams in the distance. Rei had whispered, "Youma!" and they'd headed for the nearest shady spot to transform. As they did Rei had told them she'd again sensed a familiar evil presence. Another old enemy had returned.

Once his attack had begun Zoisite made no effort to hide his presence. You'd have had to be out of sensing range or psychically blind to miss it. Titanite wasn't either which was why she pushed her way out of the comic fair and looked for a place to change.

Azurite and Pyrite were out of range but Zoisite was standing in the middle of Pyrite's sensor array. So was Calcite. Pyrite swore as he realized his cousin was going up against one of the general's alone. "What the <long expletive deleted> is Cal doing?"

"He was with Mai remember? You know Cal he's doing it to protect her. Besides this probably isn't a real general."

"Maybe, but whoever or whatever it is has the power to do a good impression. I think he's in over his head."

Azurite had slipped on a new bracelet. "Which is why he needs backup. You're sure no one can detect teleports in and out of the house?"

He nodded. Before he could try talking her out of it she grabbed him, kissed him, stepped back and vanished. Pyrite ran a finger over his lips and wondered if that was a kiss before dying. He'd never even asked what she'd programmed the bracelet to do. All he could do was watch the scanner and hope for the best. His crystal ball showed the Sailor Warriors arrive. Good, maybe they could deal with this and Azure and Cal could stay out of it. Then he swore again as the sensors picked up Titanite about to arrive.

Back in the park Zoisite was surveying his adversaries with no sign of concern. "My, my. Six against one doesn't seem fair. Still we're missing someone. Where's the handsome fellow in the tuxedo? I was so hoping to meet him again."

"Hey you keep your hands off Mam ... Tuxedo Mask!"

"Calm down Sailor Moon. He's just trying to provoke you."

"Yes that's right Sailor Jupiter, keep a tight reign on your friend. After all we both know you can't face me without her."

"What!"

"Remember our first encounter? If Sailor Moon hadn't been there to back you up I'd have slaughtered you. A hulk like you beat someone as graceful as me? No wonder you can't get a boyfriend. Still it's hardly surprising that someone as big and lumbering as you would ..." Jupiter launched herself at Zoisite, ignoring her friends telling her to wait. She was going to mangle the smug little creep. She'd nearly wrecked him without powers the first time they'd met. As she'd expected Zoisite dodged her first strike. It was a feint and her fist cannoned into his face. At least it should have except his free hand blocked her punch and closed around her fist. Makoto felt crushing pressure and let out an involuntary yell.

"JUPITER!" The Sailor Warriors readied their attacks trying to aim past Makoto. Zoisite raised his left hand and there was a flicker of color through the tendrils. All the frozen people twitched and Zoisite smiled.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. Those people are linked to this. If I tell it to make them drop dead this park gets full of corpses. When I get threatened I get edgy." The four Sailor Warriors froze. Jupiter kept trying to pull her hand free and aimed a kick at Zoisite. Despite her closeness he dodged it. Then Gray's voice cut in.

"He's bluffing. All those tendrils can do is paralyse people and drain lifeforce. Right now that sphere's at its limit. It can't absorb anymore energy. Take him out and it's all over!"

"Are they going to take your word for that? Oh and if you throw those knives I'll use Jupiter as a shield."

Calcite checked his motion. This guy was good. The real Zoisite would not have noticed his muscles shifting. He'd always avoided hand to hand combat as being vulgar. Calcite needed a distraction. Then he saw one about to to arrive behind Zoisite. The Sailor Warriors hadn't noticed, they were looking for a way to hit Zoisite without blasting Jupiter or taking out any of the immobilized victims. He had to keep Zoisite occupied. "So what's it like being dead?"

"Very, very dull. But you'll find out for yourself very soon."

"That a fact?"

"Oh yes. So do you think I should hang on to Jupiter as a hostage or break her in half and use the shock to take out the other Warriors?"

"How about C, none of the above?" Titanite had aimed herself perfectly and landed on Zoisite's wrist. Cal couldn't be sure it had hurt him but it definitely startled him. His hand opened and released Jupiter. Titanite hit the ground, grabbed Jupiter and jumped clear. Calcite's blades and a wide range of energy based attacks ripped towards Zoisite.

Who flickered and was gone before they reached him. Almost everyone spun around watching for Zoisite to reappear next to them. The only exceptions were Sailors Jupiter and Polaris. Jupiter massaged the hand Zoisite had almost broken and muttered, "Thanks Sailor Polaris. It was stupid of me to attack singlehanded."

"Well live and learn. Now where is Zoisite?" There was a cry and Sailor Moon hit the ground, Zoisite vanished again. Calcite swore, he should have anticipated that. She was the most powerful so he was bound to take her out first. He stepped over one of Zoisite's victims. When Zoisite disappeared he'd taken the energy sphere with him. The tendrils had winked out and everyone caught by them had collapsed. He heard Zoisite's voice echo through the park.

"My this is fun. Queen Beryl should have had me hunting Sailor Warriors and draining energy all along. Instead she had me hunting for those seven ridiculous crystals. The seven great demons indeed ... those losers, what was so great about them?" It was impossible to trace the source of the voice. "Oh look an audience."

The park was built into the side of a hill. Meaning one side ended in a wall with steps up to street level. At the top of this wall a growing group of otaku was gazing down. While Titanite hadn't been spotted becoming Sailor Polaris she'd been sighted afterwards leaving the convention site. Due to her inability to teleport without sideffects she'd had to proceed on foot. The sight of a previously unknown Sailor Warrior had brought the fans trailing after her.

Calcite didn't know that. He just knew that Zoisite had just spotted some more potential hostages. Wherever he was. Another cry and he was standing over the unconscious Sailor Mercury. Zoisite picked her up and tossed her on top of Sailor Moon. Which left him standing in a clear spot without any hostages. Sailor Mars smiled. "Big mistake FIRE SOUL BIRD!" The construct ripped towards Zoisite then slowed. Its' outlines blurred and it broke into a mass of fire. Which danced around Zoisite's hand.

He smiled at the shocked Rei and asked, "Did you think you were the only one who knew how to play with fire?" Then his hand glowed and a force blast slammed her back into a tree. Rei dropped and the fans were heard to boo. This evidently amused Zoisite as he was laughing when he disappeared along with the flames.

Three down, Jupiter injured, no sign of Tuxedo Mask and Polaris an unknown quantity. To Sailor Venus things were looking bad. This was the third time they'd been fighting someone who picked them off one by one. They really had to improve their strategy, do some training exercises. If they were still alive tomorrow.

Polaris was watching over the injured Jupiter which left her and Gray. She crossed the distance between them and stood behind him. "I watch your back you watch mine."

"Good thinking." He began edging them towards the unconscious and defenseless threesome. As he did he added, "Just like old times!"

"Yes." Except now she wondered if those old times had been a sham. Was Lord Calcite ever a serious threat or just a decoy? Just what had happened and what was going on now?

There was a thud and she turned her head in time to see Makoto collapse unconscious. Polaris was trying to blast Zoisite., "POLARIS AHHHHHHH!" A force blast slammed her into a bench. She slumped and Zoisite aimed a second bolt to finish the job.

"NO!" She heard Gray's cry and then somehow he was between Zoisite and Polaris. This blast was far stronger than the first. For a moment Gray seemed rooted in place. For a moment. Then he was thrown backwards, cannoned into Polaris and both were flung over the bench into the bodies of Moon, Mars and Mercury.

Zoisite grimaced. Several of Gray's blades were sticking out of him. He looked hurt but not incapacitated. Venus had seen Gray make his knives detonate at will or electrocute the stabbed person. Unfortunately Gray was out for the count so that wasn't going to happen. Fortunately she now had a clear shot at Zoisite.

"CRESENT BEAM SHOWER!" Her most recent attack surged towards Zoisite. Just before impact it hit an unseen something and ricocheted away. It barely missed Makoto's head when it splashed into the ground by the sprawled Sailor Warrior. "JUPITER!" Minako was distracted for a moment. Just a moment but that was long enough. She sensed something behind her and spun to confront it. Then the world went black.

The flames continue dancing around Zoisite's left hand. With his right he picked up Jupiter and tossed her towards his heaped up enemies. He'd tossed Venus over there a moment ago. Overhead he could hear fans either weeping over the fallen or taking photographs to preserve the moment for posterity. Why disappoint them? He let the flames build in intensity. Time for cooking with Sailor Warriors! He could sense Gray had regained enough consciousness to wrap his forceshield around his sister. Good, it was far too early to remove them from the board. Pity he'd hoped the Warriors would survive until the grande finale. But the nature of the game required removing them if nothing was present to stop him.

Suddenly the still air was broken by a rising wind. It howled through the park then suddenly the stillness returned. From atop a lightpost came a new voice. "Takes a tough guy to burn unconscious people alive. Why not face me if you've got the guts?"

Fans looked towards the post but as they were looking into the sun they couldn't make out any details. Zoisite smiled and said, "Why not come down here and we'll discuss it?"

"My pleasure!" There was a blur of motion and the figure landed near Zoisite. A lot of otaku gasped and those with cameras started taking photos. The dazed Sailor Mars heard Gray mutter, "Oh not again! What the hell is she doing?"

The mystery figure was dressed in Sailor Warrior style but filled it a lot better. She looked to be early twenties, the body of a swimsuit model, neon blue hair and a somewhat menacing look. While it was a basic Sailor Warrior outfit the color was a bit different. Instead of white the leotard and gloves were a bright red. The rest of the outfit was black, black leather to be precise. From the stiletto heeled lace up boots, to the mini skirt, to the bow across the well filled chest. The domino mask across her red eyes was also leather as was the spiked coller around her throat. A variety of fantasies began rippling across fanboy brains.

Meanwhile at ground level the new Sailor Warrior was saying, "My star burns with the light of justice and brings me to this place. On behalf of the red star Sailor Arcturus will punish you!"

Zoisite paused a moment to look over her outfit again then said, "There's probably a lot of men in this town who'd rather enjoy that. But I'm not one of them. So I'm going to have to kill you!" As he said this he flung the massive fireball he'd formed at her.

It surged forward then slowed and stopped. Winds rippled around Sailor Arcturus and the fireball circulating in front of her. It began compacting. Azurite's air vortex generation powers were not to be taken lightly. As anyone who'd met one of her highly focused hurricanes could tell you (those who survived). Zoisite scowled and raised his hands for another shock blast. Gray slid free from his tangle with Sailor Polaris and slipped behind Zoisite. He created two handfuls of knives and got ready to strike. Filling Zoisite's back with stabwounds wasn't going to do much for his hero reputation but needs must ...

He didn't get the chance. He heard Azurite shout "BURNING WHIRLWIND" had a second to figure it out and then jumped clear. The swirling vortex of superheated plasma struck the path he'd been lying on and the asphalt bubbled. Calcite dodged, Zoisite wasn't so fortunate. There was a shriek that hurt the ears. Then the fire and the smoke cleared and Zoisite became visible again. He looked singed but largely unhurt. He staggered over to a wall and said, "Screw this" and vanished in his characteristic swirl of lights.

Eight blades punched into the wall where he'd been standing. Gray swore and limped over to the punctured bricks. As he'd half expected there were the calling card rocks again. Four of them this time. He slipped three out of sight and carried the fourth back to the reviving Sailor Warriors.

Sailor Arcturus had checked the Sailor Warriors weren't seriously hurt and had been keeping watch. Seeing the signature rock in Calcite's hand she relaxed a bit. Those only got left when the perpetrator departed for places unknown. Hearing the click of cameras she decided to strike a few poses. The clicking intensified. Sailor Polaris was watching her with awe. "Wow, big sister Arcturus that was incredible!"

"Naturally. I'm the best at what I do!" When creating this identity Azurite had decided to try for a bad girl personna. It promised to be a lot of fun. From overhead she heard various expressions of admiration, offers to buy her underwear and a variety of requests for retribution for naughtiness. The recovering Sailor Warriors were also watching her. In some cases with expressions of envy. Calcite, still in his Gray personna, limped over.

"I'd like a word with you Sailor Arcturus!"

"No need to thank me Gray."

"Thank you! For nearly barbecueing me?"

"Nearly only counts in horseshoes and handgrenades. Anyway it wasn't too shaby for my Japanese debut." Gray muttered something unintelligible and limped over to Sailor Mercury with the rock. Azurite hid her concern, Cal was upset by something more than her presence. Maybe it was just Ti but she had the feeling there was more to it than that.

Mercury studied the rock and announced that it was zoisite. No big surprise. Sailor Moon said a pattern seemed to be developing and Sailor Mars made a snide comment about how long it had taken her to figure it out. Around them Zoisite's victims began stirring. They'd be weak for several days but it wasn't critical. Mercury was using her scanning vizor and said much the same thing

Gray limped back to Sailors Polaris and Arcturus. They were still the main focus of otaku attention though a few seemed to be studying him. Polaris turned to him and gushed, "This is going to be great. The three of us and the Sailor Warriors against the enemy. It'll be fun."

Calcite exploded, he had his reasons. "SURE THING IT'LL BE GREAT. THROW YOUR LIFE AWAY FIGHTING THE DARK KINGDOM. WHY SHOULD I CARE!"

Arcturus looked at him, "Gray you really need to cut down on the caffine."

"So it's OK then?" Polaris asked. Calcite thought of explaining about sarcasm but instead just sighed and massaged his forehead. Polaris took that as a yes. "Great, thanks big brother. But now we need a name."

"What?" He hoped the Sailor Warriors didn't take that big brother part literally. He was going to have to remind Titanite what secret identities meant.

"A name for our group. How about ... the nifty three?" From the look Cal gave her that was not even close. "Ok well how about ..." Nothing came to mind.

Arcturus looked over the innocent looking Ti, Calcite's grimmer than usual Gray and considered her own image. She smiled and said, "I've got the perfect name for our little threesome. How about, 'The good, the bad and the surly'?"

Gray glanced at her. "Don't give up your day job."

Meanwhile Sailor Venus had felt her head clear enough to remember what she'd wanted to talk to Gray about. She'd been too dazed to mention it after Nephrite's attack. Gray was still talking to the new Sailor Warriors. Makoto and Rei were studying Arcturus and muttering how they'd look a lot better than that in a few years. Maybe she could get a few answers. "Gray!"

Gray looked relieved to drop whtever he'd been discussing with his partners, sidekicks, whoever. "Yes Sailor Venus?"

"I know why you're in Japan."

"You do?" He sounded puzzled.

"It's because of Calcite isn't it?" Gray and Arcturus tensed slightly, Polaris looked astonished.

"Calcite?"

"I know he's in town. He phoned me a few days ago."

"He did?" Polaris looked like she was about to say something but Arcturus silenced her. Gray was silent for a moment then said, "I'm not ready to discuss my reasons for being here yet. Calcite is small fry, nothing to worry about." He turned to his companions, "The enemy's gone so there's no reason to remain. We're leaving."

"But ..." Polaris had been hoping to hang out with the real Sailor Warriors. Still she'd learned when her brother wouldn't stand being crossed and this was one of those times. Somewhat resignedly she said, "OK big brother."

Gray looked at Arcturus, "If you're finished posing we'll get out of here."

She shrugged, "Fine by me. I imagine there's no shortage of pictures of me after this."

"Right. Let's move Polaris. You too Dominatrix Arcturus."

"That's Sailor Arcturus."

"Whichever."

The three of them headed away in a series of superhuman leaps. The crowd began breaking up. Mars and Jupiter tried doing their signature poses but no one seemed really interested. Venus heard Rei muttering something about how it had to be silicon. Usagi was saying that she'd wanted to talk to Polaris again. She'd thought she recognised a kindred spirit. Minako stopped herself from saying something negative. One thing she did know from their reactions. Somehow Calcite was involved with their presence and Gray didn't want anyone interfering.

Ami was gazing in the direction the trio had disappeared and said, "I wonder how hard it is keeping all that leather clean." She became aware she'd spoken out loud and that everyone was looking at her. Ami blushed a brilliant crimson and muttered something about oxidation.

Jupiter looked at Mars. "It's always the quiet ones."

Mars nodded, "Absolutely. Guess she's going to give her SM initials a whole new meaning."

The extremely embarrassed Ami was rather glad when this teasing was interrupted by the belated arrival of Tuxedo Mask. "Sorry I'm late Sailor Moon. So what happened?"

As Usagi began filling him in Minako felt a tap on her shoulder. This guy looked like a reporter. "Excuse me Sailor ... Jupiter?"

"I'm Sailor Venus!"

"Sorry. Mind telling me who the new guys were?"

Well why not? Publicising Gray and the others might scare Calcite into the open. Where she'd be waiting for him. "Sure. The man was an English superhero by the name of Gray ..."

Meanwhile some distance away the trio had ducked into an alley. Calcite had cast a new glamour spell so it would appear empty to the average passerby. He studied Azurite's outfit again and asked, "No whip?"

"I thought that would be a bit over the top."

"First Ti now you! I credited you with a bit more sense than this. Low profile, remember?"

"That was when we thought we were getting caught up in an attack on the Sailor Warriors. But it's time to face facts. We are getting targetted. To be more specific you are. Unless you think it's coincidence that you've been at all three of the attack sights."

Calcite sighed, "I'm afraid you're right and I could certainly use some backup. But when we discussed the possibility we were talking about a Gray spinoff not another Sailor Warrior."

Azurite shrugged, "I thought about it but I decided that calling myself Lady Jane Gray or whatever and wrapping myself in all over body armour wasn't me. If you've got it flaunt it as they say so I decided the Sailor Warrior outfit would look better. With a few touches to make it unique."

"I'd say you succeeded."

"I'm a model remember. I often wear a lot less than this in public. Anyway that's not what's really bothering you."

"You're right. But it can wait till we get home."

Azurite reached for the bow on her chest and removed one of Pyrite's crystals. "I'll need to switch this off first. Which reminds me of our next problem." At Calcite's puzzled look she continued, "Did you wonder why I was so sure Zoisite wouldn't warp away from my attack?"

"No. I thought maybe you'd got lucky and he'd exhausted his precision jumping power again."

"This is Pyr's latest invention. When activated it prevents teleporting in its vicinity. Which is why I joined the party so late. I arrived at the wrong end of the park and activated it. Which meant searching for you on foot."

"Pity you didn't arrive sooner. Whoever's behind this uses precision teleports devestatingly." Something occurred to him. "But Zoisite escaped by teleporting. Is it still working?"

"Yes. Try a short range jump to the other end of the alley."

Calcite focussed on the destination and felt his mind fill with static. He almost lost his balance, leaned against the wall and shut down his teleporting power. After taking a deep breath he said, "Certainly seems effective."

Azurite nodded, "It'll block us but it couldn't block Zoisite. Don't ask me why."

"I'll ask Pyrite. Shut it down and let's get out of here." Azurite nodded. Titanite, who'd been sulking since getting dragged away from the park, suddenly looked apprehensive.

"Uhm couldn't we just change back to normal then walk home?"

"Sorry. The senshi might have traced us to this alley. So a mysterious exit is in order. Let's link." Both Azurite and Pyrite took one of Ti's arms. Their teleporting powers linked, so they'd all arrive at the same destination. Azurite sensed Calcite's selected arrival point in her mind. It wasn't much of a surprise. Calcite detonated the smoke grenade and let the alley fill with a grey cloud. There was a flare of light and they were gone.

They rematerialized in the bathroom. As before Ti was hit with severe nauseau. However once that subsided she looked healthier than before. Still very pale but still able to stand upright without help. Calcite deactivated the Gray costume but didn't restore his glamour. Titanite just removed her mask, Azurite didn't even bother doing that. They all trooped down to Pyrite's workroom.

After admiring Azurite's costume Pyrite got down to business. "Glad you're all safe, things looked bad on the crystal ball for a while." He waved a hand at the glass globe. It showed the park filled with paramedics picking up the drained people and carrying them to the waiting ambulances. "I'll have to design personal communicators. It was terrible seeing what was going on but being unable to warn you."

"Just what did happen? How'd Zoisite keep disappearing?"

"Glad you asked cousin. Watch this." Pyrite did something to the globe and the image shifted backward. In the ball Zoisite disappeared after Sailor Polaris broke Sailor Jupiter free. Pyrite must have focussed it on Zoisite's aura because the image shifted to a sprawled victim on the ground. A victim who looked nothing like Zoisite but hadn't been there a moment ago. Sailor Moon stepped over him as she circled around looking for Zoisite. In the instant her back was turned the figure stood up, became Zoisite and struck her down. Pyrite froze the picture.

Calcite nodded. "So he teleported somewhere out of line of sight, became one of his own victims and took out the first person to give him an opening."

"Looks that way. Shapeshifting in mid warp ... incredible."

"We'll worry about that later. Any ideas how Zoisite beat your jammer?"

"Not yet. He must use a new kind of warp signature. Lucky for us he did it in the middle of my sensor net. I'll have to review the readings. So any other problems?"

"Two." Calcite tossed three chunks of rock on the table. "This is the minor one. Name those stones."

"Well the white one's calcite, this is titanite and this last one ... deep blue crystals ... azurite right?" Calcite nodded. "Very pretty, it suits you." Azurite took the chunk and studied it. The first time she'd seen her namesake. Not a bad stone to share your name with.

Calcite sighed and said, "Now we come to the big problem. When Zoisite attacked I shielded Mai." Azurite groaned. "It was an instinctive response! But it leaves us with a problem."

Titanite looked at her brother. "You're going to mess with her mind?"

"Maybe. Problem is the Jadeite incident caused a trauma and Zoisite's attack was close enough to associate with it. So it might be deeply buried in her mind. Which means if I try to block it ..."

"... You risk scrambling who knows how many memories. Terrific." Azurite didn't look happy. "So what's the plan boss?"

"Boss?"

"You do run our merry little group."

"Funny I don't recall asking you to come up with a secret identity out of some specialist catalog."

"I like it", Pyrite contributed.

Azurite shrugged and said, "You didn't say not too. Besides you needed backup so I tried to anticipate your orders."

Calcite smiled, "I'm the leader but all my followers are anarchists. OK getting serious I'll try to defuse Mai by telling her some of the truth."

"Which is?"

"That I'm secretly the superhero Gray and it's my job to protect people, especially her, from lifeforce draining demons."

"That might work. Of course she might want to know what your connection is to Sailor Arcturus." Pyrite spread his hands. "Just something to think about."

Azurite nodded. "It's worth a try Cal. So what now?"

"Well the current pattern seems to indicate we're getting a general every other day. I expect Kunzite to show up on tuesday. Very possibly in my vicinity since I've been at the sight of every attack."

Pyrite shook his head. "Not quite. You went to the site of Jadeite's second attack. He didn't come to you. In fact so far only Jadeite's appeared more than once. Which is interesting."

"You think maybe it really is Jadeite behind a series of masks?" Pyrite nodded and Calcite added, "But Jadeite wasn't a shapeshifter. At least I never heard anything along those lines."

Azurite nodded, "All I can say is that was Zoisite out there today. I met the little creep back in the Dark Kingdom and I recognised the aura. It wasn't just a glamour."

Pyrite shrugged, "I don't have all the answers."

Calcite said, "Regardless whoever's behind this knows we're around and is trying to involve us in his battles with the Sailor Warriors. Including getting Sailor Venus to hunt for a fake Calcite. Whoever our impersonator is he's obviously been doing me. Or rather the Lord Calcite identity I used. Worse if he phoned Venus that means he also knows her real identity."

"So what's the plan big brother?" Titanite was looking solemn.

"Since we're involved we'll try going on the offensive. On tuesday we'll attempt to trap Kunzite. Hopefully by then you'll have got the bugs out of your jammer Pyr. We pick an ambush site, wait for him to appear near me and then ..."

"And then Sailor Polaris, Sailor Arcturus and Gray take him out right?" Titanite felt excited. Until she noticed the others didn't share her enthusiasm.

Calcite looked her in the eye and said, "We consists of Azurite and I with Pyrite providing technical backup. You will be nowhere near the place." She started to object but Calcite cut her off. "You don't know how to use your powers effectively so you'd be in the way and just give Kunzite an easy target. You've been lucky twice but your luck ran out today. You'd have been killed if I hadn't blocked Zoisite's second shock blast."

Ti looked to Azurite for support and saw her shake her head. "Cal's right. Until you know what you're doing you'd be a liability not an asset. Today proved that."

"But ..."

"I let you keep the transmuter bracelet so you could defend yourself without compromising Titania Hobbes identity. Not so you could go out and look for trouble which is what you did today."

Ti felt shocked. They were banning her from being Sailor Polaris. She was about to protest when she caught her brother's expression. She subsided with poor grace.

Calcite turned to Pyrite, "Think you can get on with making an effective jammer."

He nodded, "Sure I'll start studying the data." He paused then added "Things'll go quicker if Azure helps me."

She leaned over and asked, "Want me to keep the costume on?"

"For a little while."

Calcite took his sister's arm and steered her out of the basement. "Right, let's go. I'll see you both later."

"But ..."

Before Titanite could say anything else Cal said, "The two of us are going to discuss the concepts of self defense vs going out looking for trouble. I advise you to listen closely."

Calcite closed the door behind them. Rebelliously Titanite was thinking that this wasn't over with. She didn't care what the adults thought, Sailor Polaris would be back.

That night all four of them were grouped around the television watching the news. Cal was looking depressed, he hadn't been able to find Mai. If she was home she was neither answering the phone or the door. He'd tried tracing her by the shielding crystal he'd given her but it had exhausted its charge and couldn't be detected.

Behind the local newsanchor an artists conception of the five Sailor Warriors appeared. He said cheerfully, "Another sighting of the mysterious Sailor Warriors. As always they couldn't be accurately described by witnesses and all the photos of them are blurry. However a new group who could be photographed have shown up." The picture was replaced by a photo of Sailors Polaris and Arcturus talking to Gray.

Calcite commented, "They must use some sort of magic that blurs their features in human minds and on film. No wonder they can not wear masks and still remain unknown."

The reporter described the incident and named the newcomers. Then the screen split and a 40ish man identified as "Mr. C. Inoue" the head of Juban modelworks appeared on the reporter's left. He explained that he was very excited by the appearance of these newcomers as he hoped it would revive the flagging Sailor Warrior model line. The picture changed to a photo of Sailor Arcturus. "Now we think she'll be the biggest seller. We already have a whole line of Arcturus merchandise on the drawing boards."

"Fast workers", Pyrite commented.

On the television the interviewers voice was asking what they were doing about the existing toy lines. The split screen showed Sailor Arcturus on the left and Sailor V (a still from the movie) on the right. Inoue's voice replied, "Well we're phasing out the Sailor V line to make room." The picture of Arcturus expanded pushing Sailor V of the screen. The screen changed back to the interviewer and Inoue. The latter continued, "Interest in Sailor V has really waned among the toy buying public. We'd hoped for a revival when the movie came out on video but it just didn't happen."

"Aren't there worries about promoting American Sailor Warriors over our homegrown ones?"

"That's far too provincial. Anyway Gray is English rather than American. We haven't established the nationality of the other two yet. We expect him to catch on with the boys since he's obviously more of a traditional hero than Tuxedo Mask."

Calcite chuckled, "Ah yes a traditional hero. Looks serious all the time, talks as little as possible, hates showing emotion and likes blowing holes in things."

"Hey you created the guy big brother." Ti seemed to have relaxed since Calcite's impassioned lecture. Maybe she'd got the message and had given up on Sailor Polaris.

She hadn't and hearing about getting her own toy line just increased her determination. Sailor Polaris would be back.

Back on the TV the interviewer was asking, "Isn't it tricky making toys based on real people rather than anime characters."

"Actually it's easier. Nobody knows who they are and they don't want to expose their identities. Which makes them public domain so we don't have to worry about license fees. It's a lot cheaper than using copyrighted characters."

The interviewer thanked him and went on to the next item. Azurite turned and asked, "Cal, you're in finance. Any way we can collect on those vultures exploiting our image?"

"Well we could set up a corporation to register and license our identities. The problem is how to collect funds from it without giving ourselves away. I'll give it some thought once the current crisis is over. Of course once we've taken out whoever's behind it we can retire our characters. So it's sort of irrelevant.

Titanite was thinking that she was nowhere near ready to retire Sailor Polaris.

Minako Aino was one of thousands who'd witnessed that broadcast. She was the only one currently stalking around her bedroom snarling. Artemis had got out of her way and was staying very quiet. "Phase out Sailor V, no one cares anymore, replace me with some leather wrapped bimbo! Where's the justice?"

Artemis found her glaring at him. Perhaps it wasn't a rhetorical question. He began saying, "Uhhh..."

"Exactly no justice! I'll show 'em. I'll switch back to Sailor V and ..."

"Then they'll wind up cancelling all the Sailor Venus stuff when she drops out of sight."

Minako hesitated, "Then I'll switch back and forth."

"That'll just confuse everyone. Besides you didn't become a Sailor Warrior for personal glory. Anyway you never got any royalties for that stuff anyway. Besides you got your own movie which is more that Mars, Moon, Mercury or Jupiter got."

"I suppose. I'm just being silly aren't I"

Artemis was smart enough not to answer that truthfully. "Not at all. I'd be unhappy if I was replaced by someone just because she's more beautiful, better built, a sexier dresser ..." He trailed off as he realized Minako didn't appreciate his assessment. He changed the subject fast. "So did you find anything out from Gray about Calcite?"

"No. He's still acting as mysterious as possible. Jerk."

"Pity we don't know who he is or we could track him down and try again."

Minako smiled, "You may not know who he is but I think I do."

"What?"

"I haven't told anyone this but I think I've deduced it." She had Artemis's undivided attention. "Remember the first attack at the school?" He nodded. "Well Ms. Saito's English boyfriend was there. Suddenly Gray, who retired because of the lack of paranormal threats, is back. Except for some reason he's in Juban rather than London. Also he's hunting Jadeite who just zapped Ms. Saito."

"Along with 29 others."

"None of whom had any connection to England, I checked. There's more."

"Oh?"

"He's got a sister who'd make a good match for Sailor Polaris. Except for the haircolor."

"Interesting. So who's Sailor Arcturus?"

Minako hesitated. "Well that I don't know. I'll have to investigate."

"Hopefully without giving away your own identity in the process.

"I'll be careful Artemis." Then she looked troubled. "But my identity isn't as secure as we thought. Calcite knows who I really am. We've got no idea who he's told or what he's planning."

Artemis sighed. "I know. We don't even know if that was the real Zoisite. Like Jadeite all we know is one day he went back to the Dark Kingdom and didn't return."

"Maybe. But I think Kunzite implied Zoisite was dead."

"I suppose we'll have to find out. In the meantime you should get some rest. There's no saying what tomorrow will bring."

Elsewhere Zoisite looked in a mirror and said, "Kunzite-sama I loved you" and closed his eyes. His features shifted, his hair shrank and turned white. Kunzite studied his reflection and said, "I will avenge your death Zoisite." Then he began to laugh. Just one more act and it would be time for the endgame. He could hardly wait.

Dark Kingdom Renegades 1: Refugees

A Sailor Moon Story
by Mark Latus

Part 4 of 7

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