Rising Darkness

By Sillabub

Chapter Two - Rampage

*****

"But after all this peace . . . why now?" -Chiba Usagi 

*****

Usagi’s stomach felt like it had butterflies in it.

She walked down the street, a hand resting over her abdomen and a dazed expression on her face, and 
her heart hammered away in her chest as she thought about the results of her doctor’s appointment. 
Although she and Mamoru had been married for four years, they hadn’t really planned on having children 
yet . . . and here she was, pregnant.

The word flitted through her head again, and Usagi found herself stopping on the sidewalk.

Pregnant.

She had a new life inside of her body at that moment, and that thought thrilled, terrified, and excited Usagi 
all at once. Was she really ready to be a mother? She was still clumsy, immature, and irresponsible as ever; 
she couldn’t even get to a doctor’s appointment on time. And yet when she thought of the possibility of 
seeing her little Chibi-Usa again, all those doubts seemed to leave her, and Usagi was left with 
unadulterated happiness and an excitement that she couldn’t remember ever feeling before.

“Chibi-Usa . . .” she whispered, and a slow smile began to spread over her face.

She couldn’t wait to tell Mamoru.

Suddenly, from across the street, she heard people shouting in terror. Dread seized Usagi at once; it had 
been peaceful for so long, surely it couldn’t be . . .

Crowds of people were streaming out of Juuban Park, some of them yelling, some of them frantically 
calling out for others, some of them doing nothing but running, their faces pale and frightened. A gentleman
in a business suit ran across the street toward her, and Usagi called out to him, trying to keep her voice 
steady.

“Excuse me, sir, what’s going on?”

The man turned to her, pale and wide-eyed, and he swallowed heavily before replying shakily, “There’s 
been an attack . . . in the park . . . a woman . . . with wings . . . throwing black lightning . . .”

That was all Usagi needed to hear. Thanking him, she dashed into a nearby alley, raised her arm high, and 
cried, “Moon Eternal, Make Up!”

It had been so long since she last needed to henshin that it took Usagi a moment to adapt to the rush of 
energy that overtook her as she transformed. The glow of the Ginzuishou covered her, filled her, and 
warmed her with a power that was both foreign and familiar to her at the same time. A second later, she 
stood in the garb of Eternal Sailor Moon, her head reeling and her stomach lurching, but she pushed away 
her feelings and ran out onto the street.

People dashed past her, screaming, and someone knocked into her so hard that Sailor Moon was sent 
reeling to the ground. Throwing an arm out to stop her fall, she sat up and looked around, trying to figure 
out where the source of the panic was coming from. Everyone seemed to be running away from the center 
of the park, so she got to her feet and dashed toward the area, her heart hammering away in her chest and 
her conscience screaming at her to be extra careful. She stopped a moment later as she spotted a figure 
with wings hovering above a half-destroyed playground, and her blood ran cold in her veins.

The woman was very, very thin and tall, red hair falling like liquid fire down to feet, and her skin was so 
pale that it appeared white. Her long, black gown whipped around her even though there was no wind, 
and sprouting from her back were two enormous, black, leathery wings that flapped lazily as she floated in 
the air, her back facing Usagi.

Sailor Moon’s knees wobbled slightly as she forced herself forward towards the woman, but she had barely 
taken three steps when suddenly, from the woman’s clawed, long-fingered hand, a ball of black energy 
appeared.

“I know you’re there, Princess Serenity,” came the woman’s voice. It was cold and deep and chilling to 
the sound, and Sailor Moon stared up at her, pale-faced. The woman hadn’t even turned around to face 
her.

“Who are you?” demanded Sailor Moon loudly, trying to ignore the feeling that she somehow recognized 
the woman.

The hand in which the black energy crackled twitched, as if in irritation, but still the woman did not turn to 
face her. “I have waited a thousand years for this,” she said slowly, “being face to face with the beloved 
Moon Princess . . .”

A chill passed down Usagi’s spine as she looked up at her. “What do you want from me?” she called, 
trying her hardest to sound calm and in control. “How do you know who I am?”

There was silence for a very long time. Sailor Moon dared not move; her pulse was rushing and dread was 
clutching at her heart, making it difficult to breathe. She did not know what to do.

Suddenly, with a shriek of “SERENITY!”, the woman spun around to face Sailor Moon, throwing the blast 
of black lightning at her.

Sailor Moon screamed as the energy exploded, crackling, at her feet, and she toppled to the ground, rolling 
over with her hand protectively over her stomach. Just as she sat up, a very cold hand closed over her 
throat and lifted her off her feet and high into the air; the woman was there right in front of her, holding her 
by the neck and squeezing so hard that Usagi could barely breathe. Grunting, she opened her eyes and 
stared straight into the face of the woman.

A glowing red stone adorned with silver snakes and a silver skull sat upon her pale forehead, and her fiery, 
red eyes burned with pure hatred. “Serenity . . .” she growled, her red lips parting to reveal glistening white 
fangs, “ . . . die.”

“Let her go!” a voice shouted.

The hand around Usagi’s throat was cutting off her air supply, and her vision was beginning to grow blurry, 
but still her heart leaped in her chest at the sound of Tuxedo Kamen’s voice. The woman looked down at 
him in fury, eyes blazing.

“And Prince Endymion,” she hissed. “Of course you would come to her rescue.”

“Let her go!” repeated Tuxedo Kamen, his voice harsh.

The woman glowered at him.

A flaming arrow of fire suddenly shot past the evil woman’s head, making her drop Sailor Moon, who 
screamed until she was caught in the arms of Tuxedo Kamen. Angrily, the winged woman glared down at 
the shooter of the arrow.

Fire danced in the eyes of Sailor Mars as she pulled back the string on her flaming bow, another blazing 
arrow already poised to shoot. Sailor Mercury stood next to her, her kind face grim and pale as Mars 
carefully aimed her bow.

“I don’t know who you are,” Mars said evenly, “but I won’t miss next time.”

To their surprise, the winged woman smirked at her. “How cocky you are, Princess Mars.”
Rei's resolve slipped for a moment at that title, her eyes widening as the arms supporting her weapon 
lowered slightly.

“Who are you?” she asked carefully.

The woman only smirked.

The sound of footsteps announced the arrival of Venus and Jupiter, who took battle stances beside Mars 
and Mercury and looked up at the winged woman floating above them. Looking amused, she turned to 
them and grinned, her red lips parting in a sadistic smile.

“Perfect,” she said, her leathery black wings flapping slowly. “You’re all here.”

“Who are you?” repeated Mars lowly, once again raising her weapon.

“My name is not important,” was the simple reply.

Rei grit her teeth. “Don’t make me say it again,” she growled. “Tell us who you are and what you want.”

The woman stared down at her, her expression impassive, and it looked as if she was going to refuse to 
answer the question once again. But then those fearsome, red eyes shifted from Sailor Mars to Sailor 
Moon, and the woman’s face darkened into a look of intense loathing. “Hecate,” she said, her eyes 
narrowing. “I’m here to kill that insolent creature.”

Venus stepped forward with a glare. “You’ll have to kill us first.”

Hecate smirked down at her as if she was something mildly interesting, then she held out a hand lazily. A 
ball of black energy immediately generated from her outstretched fingertips. “Very well.”

But before she could launch the energy at them, Mars and Jupiter attacked. Mars released her arrow of 
fire and Jupiter threw a ball of crackling lightning, both of which sped toward Hecate with deadly accuracy.

Hecate’s lips parted in a bone-chilling smile.

Fire and lightning exploded together, and Hecate’s body was vaporized. Everyone stared up in the air 
where she had been hovering seconds before, ash floating down from the sky and settling around their feet.

“She’s gone,” said Tuxedo Kamen, sounding troubled.

“Is she . . . dead?” asked Mercury hesitantly.

Mars looked doubtfully around them. “Do you think so?”

Scowling, Jupiter kicked at some of the ash that had gathered on the ground. “It shouldn’t have been so 
easy.”

Venus was staring at Usagi, who was quivering where she stood beside her husband. “Sailor Moon?” she 
asked softly, taking a step toward her. “You look pale.”

Then Sailor Moon crumpled to the ground, crying. The senshi looked at her in alarm as Tuxedo Kamen 
knelt beside her and took her in his arms.

“It’s okay, Usako,” he said soothingly as she sniffled against his shirt. “We’re all okay. Don’t worry.”

“B-but after all this peace,” she whispered through her tears, “why now?” She put a hand over her 
stomach; during all the chaos she had forgotten the results of her doctor’s appointment. “Oh, God,” 
she breathed, pressing a fist over her mouth as she began to sob. “God . . . why now?”

Tuxedo Kamen rubbed her back gently, not really understanding as he murmured, “It’s okay. We’re all 
safe. She’s gone now.”

She only sobbed bitterly, burying her face into his chest.

No one spoke for a few long minutes, afraid to disturb Sailor Moon in the state she was in. But eventually 
her cries subsided, leaving her sniffling in her husband’s arms. Her hunched back straightened, and Tuxedo 
Kamen stood to his feet and took her by the hands, helping her to stand. Usagi bit her lip hard for a 
moment, then she hesitantly turned her red-rimmed eyes up to Tuxedo Kamen.

“I have something to tell you,” she said quietly, swallowing hard and clenching the hand that lay over her 
stomach into a fist.

Then the unthinkable happened.

The surface of the ground upon which Usagi stood quivered, as if it had suddenly become liquid. Only 
Sailor Jupiter noticed it.

“Usagi-chan!” she shouted, darting toward the blonde. “Move!”

Sailor Moon turned to look at her just as the tall woman’s solid body collided with her and sent her 
tumbling to the side. At that very instant, just as Sailor Moon rolled over and sat up, holding her stomach 
protectively and looking in confusion at her friend, a pale, clawed hand followed by a thin, bony arm jutted 
out of the quivering spot of asphalt, long nails extended.

Jupiter screamed as the claws jabbed viciously through her back, and Sailor Moon’s mind went numb. 
She stared, frozen in horror, not even moving as the claws tore out of Jupiter’s back and, with a low groan 
from Makoto, a warm shower of blood sprayed out of the wounds and onto Usagi. Still she sat and 
stared, her eyes wide and glassy as red liquid dripped down her face.

“No!” screamed Venus, hurrying forward as Makoto de-transformed and collapsed.

“Mako-chan!” shouted Mars.

Usagi could only stare straight ahead as the others gathered around the fallen Makoto. A pool of blood 
was growing steadily under her still form, and the tall woman’s skin seemed to grow paler and paler as she 
lay there.

Mercury was checking Makoto’s pulse, eyes wide in panic. “She’s still alive,” she said anxiously, “but not 
for long if we don’t do something quickly. She’s already lost an alarming amount of blood . . .”

The world around Sailor Moon became a blur as Mercury and the others tried their best to aid the 
wounded Makoto. But Usagi was unaware of any of this; her head throbbed in time with her rapidly 
beating heart, and the image of Sailor Jupiter being clawed through the back played in her head as 
distantly, Ami’s gentle voice said over and over, “She’s still alive, but not for long . . . She’s still alive, 
but not for long . . .”

Finally, it became too much for Sailor Moon to bear, and she fainted.

*****

It was late, Taiki noted as he walked out of Kinmoku Palace. Two of the planet’s three moons shone gently 
overhead, turning the courtyard a deep blue, and dew glistened on the grass as he tread through it. At this 
time of night Taiki didn’t expect to see anyone else about in the courtyard, but he noticed with surprise a 
small figure hunched beside a tree, packing up what appeared to be photography equipment. Taiki 
approached the area, eyebrows raised.

“You’re out late, Yaten.”

The silver-haired Light looked over his shoulder at Taiki, blinking for a moment before shrugging and 
turning back to his camera. “Just finishing up,” he said. “What are you doing?”

Taiki shrugged. “I needed some air.”

“There’s none inside?” asked Yaten wryly.

Rolling his eyes, Taiki sighed and shook his head. “Very funny.” He glanced up at the sky for a moment 
before turning back to Yaten, raising an eyebrow.

“You were terrorizing Seiya earlier, weren’t you?” he asked.

Yaten snorted. “Yeah, so?”

“You really shouldn’t do that.”

Yaten scowled. “What did you want me to do? That sunset needed to be captured on film before it 
disappeared, and our resident idiot was too much of a bother for me to take the picture in peace.”

Taiki sighed. “Well, thanks to you, I was stuck with our ‘resident idiot’ for a good two hours while I was 
trying to do important research,” he said with a pointed look at his smaller friend. Yaten looked mildly 
sheepish.

“Yeah, I thought he might have gone to bother you after I chased him off, but I didn’t know for sure if 
he did.”

“Well, he did,” said Taiki flatly, crouching down and removing something from his pocket.

“Sorry about that.”

After a few moments, Yaten finished packing up his photography equipment and stood to his feet, yawning. 
Taiki had gone silent, which interested him, so he turned to blink down at his brown-haired companion.

“What are you doing, anyway?” he asked curiously, his green eyes focused on Taiki, who was crouched 
on the ground with his back facing him.

Taiki glanced over his shoulder at him. “What does it look like I’m doing?”

“Digging in the dirt,” Yaten replied, raising one eyebrow.

Taiki turned back to the ground. “Well, that’s precisely what I’m doing.”

Both eyebrows went up. “May I ask why?”

“You may,” Taiki said simply.

Yaten’s expression grew flat. “Will you answer me?”

“No.”

“I figured as much.”

There was a long moment of silence as Taiki capped a small vial of soil, labeled it, and tucked it away in 
his pocket, and it took a little while for Taiki to realize that there was a sudden tenseness in the air. He 
looked over at Yaten, who was staring off in the distance with wide, unfocused eyes and a troubled 
expression.

Taiki studied him for a moment before saying quietly, “Hey, are you okay?”

Yaten, looking dazed, glanced at him. “Huh?”

“You look really uneasy, and your skin’s all pale,” said Taiki, getting to his feet and dusting off his hands. 
“Is something wrong?”

Shrugging as if trying to shake off a bad feeling, Yaten frowned. “No, I just got really . . . cold all of the 
sudden.”

“Cold?” asked Taiki. “It’s the hottest time of the year. How could you be cold?”

Looking as if he had just woken from a nightmare and was still trying to recover, Yaten swallowed hard 
and muttered, “I don’t know.”

Nothing more was said.

***** 

“Usako?” a deep voice said urgently. “Usako?”

“Look, she’s waking up,” said another voice.

Her vision blurry as she slowly cracked her eyes open, Sailor Moon sat up and looked up at Tuxedo 
Kamen and Sailor Mars. It took her a moment to remember what had happened, but when she did, 
her entire body tensed up and dread seized her heart.

“Mako-chan,” she said immediately, staring at them. “Is she okay?”

Mars nodded and jerked her head to the left of them, where Makoto was lying on a park bench, her 
wounds surprisingly healed. But she was not alone; Sailor Moon noticed, with a jolt of relief and surprise, 
that she was being tended to by Sailor Saturn. Further off, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto were conversing 
quietly with Mercury and Venus, who seemed to be describing the events that occurred earlier.

A lump was suddenly in Sailor Moon’s throat as she croaked out, “Guys!”

Everyone stopped and turned to look at her as she rose to her feet and ran, shakily, to Makoto’s side, 
dropping to her knees and throwing her arms around her taller friend.

“I’m so glad you’re safe,” she sobbed.

Makoto grinned awkwardly. “Come on, you know it takes more than that to kill me off,” she said, patting 
Sailor Moon on the back. “Thank God Saturn showed up before it got too serious.”

Tear-filled blue eyes blinked over at Saturn, who was smiling gently. “It’s good to see you again, Sailor 
Moon,” she said.

Sailor Moon’s lower lip quivered for a moment before she let go of Makoto, and lunged at Saturn, 
trapping the skinny girl in a fierce embrace and crying. Saturn merely smiled serenely and returned the 
hug gently, and when the tears subsided a few minutes later, she took Sailor Moon’s chin in her hand and 
raised her head so she could look her in the face.

“Princess, darkness is rising,” she said softly. “You know this, don’t you?”

Sailor Moon trembled, but she still managed to nod. “Yes,” she whispered, her voice shaky. “Is that why 
you’re back?”

Pluto walked to Saturn’s side, her expression troubled as she looked down at Sailor Moon. “The future’s 
clouded, but the one thing that’s certain is you are in grave danger.”

Nodding, Sailor Moon frowned and subconsciously placed a trembling hand over her stomach. Pluto held 
her gaze for a long, tense moment, and there was an unmistakable glint of disappointment and confusion in 
her deep magenta eyes. Sailor Moon swallowed nervously.

“Princess,” Saturn said gently, drawing Sailor Moon’s attention away from Pluto, “please allow us to 
protect you once again.”

Sailor Moon glanced briefly at Pluto, whose strange expression hadn’t changed, and then she turned back 
to Saturn and nodded.

“Of course,” she said, trying her hardest to keep her voice steady. Her hand trembled briefly over her 
stomach before she let it drop back to her side. She paused for a moment, then, gently and tremulously, 
she turned to them and smiled.

“I’m glad you’re back.”

*****

End Chapter Two