Sailor Moon: Age of Innocence

Chapter 6
Chapter 5: Reflections

Chapter 5: Reflections

"All right, Luna, who the heck was that guy?" Serena asked. She,

Luna, and Artemis had worked their way into the woods to protect

themselves from prying eyes. Serena was worried. It was bad enough

that the other Scouts were missing but if their enemy had been telling

the truth, there was no way of knowing if they would be all right.

The black Lunar Cat hesitated a moment, as if dealing with some

internal struggle. She then said, "If I’m not mistaken, that man you

saw was Tencite. He was one of Queen Serenity’s Generals before

becoming one of Beryl’s."

"Another one? I thought we’d taken care of all the Dark Generals

when we destroyed Beryl," Sailor Moon complained.

"That is what I’d assumed too," Luna explained. "It’s difficult to

know, however. Your mother’s kingdom encompassed the entire solar

system. She had almost a hundred Generals and even more officers below

them. It’s impossible to know how many may have been turned. Tencite I

remember though."

"Why?" Artemis asked.

"For starters, he served in the Lunar Defense Force. In fact, for

much of Beryl’s invasion, he was considered a hero," Luna said.

"Hold on," Artemis spoke, "I think I know who you’re talking about.

Did he lead the `Darkside Offensive’?"

"Yes. As well as..."

"Hold on a minute!" Serena interrupted. "This doesn’t make any

sense. If he was a hero before being turned and Beryl’s dead now, then

why isn’t he on our side?"

Luna blinked, too shocked that Serena had reasoned that out on her

own to quickly respond. Finally, she said, "That’s because he wasn’t

turned. Just before Queen Serenity sacrificed her life to banish

Beryl’s troops, Tencite willingly defected."

"Huh? But why would he do that?" Serena asked.

"Isn’t it obvious?" Artemis said spitefully. "He knew we were lost

so he jumped to the winning side. Lousy traitor."

"That was the overall consensus," Luna agreed. "Many of his troops

jumped sides with him. They were more loyal to him than Queen Serenity

at that point."

Serena’s head spun a bit. "Mass defections? Troops no longer

loyal to my mother?" she thought. She’d never imagined anything like

that. Finally absorbing it all, she said, "Okay, fine, he’s a scary

character, I’ve got that. That doesn’t explain how he turned Mars and

Venus into babies though."

"When one is exposed to the Negaverse, there is no telling what

powers can be acquired. He can obviously cast lightning, it’s also

possible he gained an influence over time," Luna explained.

"I really don’t like the sound of that," Serena complained. "So,

how are we going to find him?"

Luna responded calmly, "I really don’t know, Serena. His attacks

so far have been aimed specifically at the other Scouts. It looks like

Lita and Raye were attacked in their own homes. I would assume then

that his next target is your house."

"Okay then, I’ll just wait on the roof until he appears," Sailor

Moon said forcefully.

"Uh, Serena, I don’t think you fully understand what that means,"

Artemis warned. "We have no idea when or if he’ll be coming and it’s

already late. Are you even sure you can stay awake that long?"

Before Serena could answer, Luna added, "Another thing too, he is

more than just a `scary character’. Tencite became more ruthless as the

war went on. He was known to slaughter Youma to the last. If the Moon

Kingdom hadn’t been so desperate, Serenity never would have left him

with his command. There is no telling how much worse he could have

become under Beryl."

For the first time in the conversation, Serena looked scared.

"What are you saying, Luna?"

The Lunar Cat paused again, seeing she had revealed too much.

Quietly, she added, "Just pray that the other Scouts are all right."

Serena went pale. Her friends were very important to her, even

Raye. She didn’t know what she’d do if she lost them again, as when

they’d fought Beryl. Then she’d endured the horror of feeling each of

them die. She hadn’t this time however, which gave her hope. They were

still alive, but for how long? A pit formed in her stomach as she

realized something.

Tears forming in her eyes, Serena asked, "Is it possible he was

only keeping them alive so I wouldn’t notice they were missing?"

"Oh Serena, no. I’m..."

An incessant beeping coming from Sailor Moon interrupted Luna’s

response. Serena gasped at the sound, immediately knowing what it was.

She then slowly pulled her communicator out and opened it. Grinning

back at her was the face of Tencite.

"Hello Serena. Looks like you’re about to cry. Splendid. You’ll

fit in with your friends nicely."

"Don’t you even touch them, you monster!" Serena angrily responded.

The communicator instantly went to static.

"What’s wrong with this thing?" Serena yelled frantically, fiddling

with the device. After a few seconds, Tencite’s face reappeared.

"Yell at me again and I won’t come back. Is that understood,

Princess?"

Barely composing herself, Serena shakily responded, "Yes."

"Good girl. Now, it’s this simple. Your friends are all right but

they won’t be for long. I want you more though. You were the one who

killed Beryl after all. So, meet me at midnight tomorrow at the Cherry

Hill Temple entrance. You and me, one on one. You win and the Scouts

go free. You lose, they’re mine."

"How do I know you’ll keep your word?" Serena asked.

"You don’t. See you later," Tencite spoke the last cheerfully.

As the screen returned to static, Serena closed her eyes and

breathed deeply. At least she knew her friends were okay, for now. She

truly hoped she could make sure they stayed that way.

Nancy walked behind Tencite after he said farewell to the Moon

Princess. He was seated in a leather office chair in front of a

computer desk. Eventually she asked, "Why’d you care that she was the

one who killed Beryl? I thought you hated Beryl."

Tencite smiled without turning his head. "I did, Nancy, but she

doesn’t know that. And when she puts that statement together with what

I told her a few minutes before, she and those Lunar Cats of hers will

assume that I’m bent on some kind of mission of revenge for the

Negaverse."

"Leaving the Rini girl defenseless," the Youma reasoned, a light

coming to her eyes. "Very clever. That’s my Tenny."

"Thank you. Now, my dear, if you’ll excuse me I have to make sure

the toy store is ready for my battle with Serena."

The Youma reached her lower two arms down to caress Tencite’s

chest, effectively holding him in place. "Tenny? Could that wait just

a little bit? The babies are all asleep and..."

Tencite grinned and turned the chair around to face Nancy. "I’m

sure I could postpone it an hour."

"Make it two," Nancy purred. With a free hand, she picked a remote

off the desk and shut the lights off.

 

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