Disclaimer: The Scouts and their counterparts, Luna and Artemis, Darrien / Tuxedo Mask, Beryl, and Diamond? None of them belong to me, but you knew that already. However, Ahna and her alter-ego, Terra, Taliment, Haiya, Harvok, and Gehen DO belong to me. So there. If you'd like to see a picture of Ahna's alter-ego, drop me a line at [email protected] Enjoy!

***

Mars stood on the platform, looking around uncomfortably. Gehen was watching her in disgust, but Harvok was smiling. "Although you are one of my mortal enemies," he was saying, "you are quite lovely."

"Thank you," said Mars.

"You could make quite a nice edition to this palace. I might let you and the rest of your friends live if you help me," said Harvok. Mars said nothing. "I know you work for the Empress," he continued. "Tell me how I can find her, and I'll let you all go free. It's as simple as that."

"And if I won't?" said Mars archly.

"Then your friends will die first thing tomorrow," said Harvok, "and you shall watch them. Afterwards… well, I'd hate to have to destroy such a beautiful thing as you. You, my lovely friend, shall join the Empress, frozen for all eternity so I may enjoy you."

Mars blinked. "I don't understand," she lied.

Harvok's smile widened as he took her arm again. He led her away from the platform to a door set in the far right wall of the room, which he opened and took her through. It opened into a large room with a shiny floor, black as obsidian. Sitting in its center was the body of Empress Haiya, frozen in a long, rectangular block of ice. Her eyes were wide open in an expression of dead horror. Sailor Mars gasped and looked away. "So," whispered Harvok into her ear, "what do you say?"

She looked back up and forced herself to look at the ice. "No." She noticed a long black pipe that led from the ceiling to the surface of the ice, and wondered what it was, but decided not to ask.

"I'll let you think about your answer," said Harvok, dismissing her negation. With startling violence, he threw her up against the wall and pinned her arms above her head, and fastened them there with a beam of energy that came from a small black box right next to Mars' wrists. There was a similar box next to her ankles that bound them to the wall as well. "I'll be back for you shortly." With that he left.

Mars struggled in vain against her bindings. "What am I going to do?" she asked herself.

"Stay calm," said a familiar voice.

Mars looked around. "Luna?"

"I'm right here," said Luna from a shadow in the corner. "I'm lucky he didn't see me when I doubled back. I'll find a way for you to get out, don't worry."

"I don't believe it," said another voice, this one hushed and somewhat angry.

"Empress?" asked Mars.

"He has me displayed here like… like a trophy!" Her voice had gone from somewhat angry to enraged. "I wonder how many times a day he comes in here to gawk at me." She paused, and when she spoke again her voice was more controlled. "I'll see what I can do to help," she said.

***

"I've found something," said Mercury. Everyone looked at her. "Sailor Venus, there is a flaw in the top right-hand corner of your cell. It's a hole about three inches in diameter where the energy is weakest. If you aim correctly, you may be able to disable the generator."

"Oh, man," said Venus. "I'll try." She studied the corner intently, backed up, took aim and intoned, "Venus love chain encircle!"

The chain shot through the hole and wrapped itself around the box, and Venus gave it a firm tug. At first it looked like it was firmly fixed in place, but as Venus pulled harder it wrenched free and the glowing walls collapsed. Venus let go of the chain and tumbled backwards, but Jupiter caught her and lifted her into a huge hug. "You did it!"

Venus smiled shyly. "Oh, well, it was nothing."

"Good work, Sailor Venus," said Artemis. "Now, how are we going to get out of here? Do any of you know how to get back to where we were?"

"If you Scouts can dispatch with the guards outside," said Taliment, "we should be able to get into the crawlspace in the ceiling. I know my way from there."

"No problem," said Jupiter with a smile.

"Don't hurt them too badly," said Taliment warningly. "We don't want to have even more guards on our hands."

"Sailor Mercury?" said Terra, looking at her.

"You've got it," said Mercury.

Taliment strolled to the door and threw it open. The guards peered in, confused, and when they saw the group standing there they charged forward. "How did you-"

"Mercury bubbles blast!"

The Scouts slipped through the fog and Taliment took out one of the ceiling panels in the hallway outside. They climbed up into the space and put the panel back, and started crawling. "This may take awhile," whispered Taliment. "We're far from the throne room."

"We need to get there as fast as we can," said Sailor Moon softly. "Sailor Mars may be in trouble."

"I heartily agree," said Taliment, and began to crawl faster.

Terra mewed softly. "I was paying good attention as we were walking. Artemis and I can fit better through this space – we can get there faster. Come on, Artemis. We'll meet you all there." With that, the cats took off running through the crawlspace.

Taliment was right – it took what seemed like a very long time to get to where they were going. Once they did, they peered through a crack in the ceiling at the throne room. Harvok and Gehen were still sitting there, talking quietly enough so that the Scouts couldn't hear what they were saying. All of a sudden, Taliment felt a cold nose touch his, and he gasped, startled.

It was Terra. "Sorry," she said. "We've found Mars and the Empress. Keep going, just a little farther." She led them to a spot where the ceiling panel had been removed already ("Hard to do without thumbs," Terra admitted, but there was a hint of pride in her voice).

"Now the question is, how do we get down?" asked Taliment. "The ceiling is too high for us to jump."

Polaris made her way forward, slithering on her belly, and fell through the hole. Just before she landed she used her staff to vault gently to the ground. Tuxedo Mask elongated his cane and did the same. "Jump!" they called softly. "We'll catch you!"

Everyone froze. "Anyone… want to go first?" asked Sailor Moon nervously.

Jupiter shrugged. "Sure," she said, and slipped through the hole. Tuxedo Mask caught her easily. "Thanks!" she said.

"Do you mind, Jupiter?" asked Sailor Moon hotly.

"Sorry," said Jupiter sheepishly, and allowed herself to be put down.

Soon enough, all the Scouts were down (and the cats too, which was a little more difficult to accomplish). "Uh, you guys," said Mars a trifle impatiently, "it's sure nice to see all of you, but could you get me out of here?"

"Sorry," said Venus. She was about to launch her attack again, but Polaris restrained her.

"No, Sailor Venus," she said. "It might make too much noise and alert Gehen and Harvok that we're here."

The Scouts studied each other for a minute, and then looked at Tuxedo Mask. "Well," said Jupiter jovially, "it certainly seems to be your day for this kind of thing."

Tuxedo Mask shrugged and took out the boxes with roses. Mars crashed to her knees as her bonds disappeared, and she immediately began to shake her hands vigorously. "All the blood drained out of them," she explained, standing up.

"Now what, Taliment?" asked Venus. There was no answer. The Scouts turned to see the red-haired man standing by the block of ice in the center of the room and staring at it. He suddenly looked very small and sad.

"This is her," he said. "Isn't she lovely?"

After a moment, Mercury stepped forward and peered down into the ice. "Yes, she is," she said. She put her hand on the ice and frowned. "This is covered with glass." Her eyes followed the pipe to the ceiling. "This probably keeps it from melting. Ingenius."

"Mercury!" exclaimed Sailor Moon.

Mercury colored a bit. "I meant it was an intriguing design. I'm not condoning anything."

"Should we do it?" asked Polaris. "We don't want to linger in here. Who knows when Harvok and Gehen could come in here?"

"Anytime," said a voice from the doorway.

The Scouts whirled. Harvok and Gehen stood just inside the door, the former holding a formidable looking weapon in his hands. "I suppose, Sailor Mars, that you haven't reconsidered?" asked Harvok.

"No," said Mars.

"Very well," said Harvok, and fired the weapon at the Scout standing closest, which was Venus. She jumped out of the way and the beam of blue energy it shot out smashed against the wall, sending out chunks of debris and a puff of dust. Not put off, Harvok fired again, this time at Polaris. She tried to avoid it, but the beam clipped her arm and she fell to the ground.

"Sailor Polaris!" exclaimed Sailor Moon in alarm.

"Don't mind me!" Polaris said through clenched teeth. She clutched her arm and hissed in pain, her face pale and strained.

Harvok pointed the weapon at her again, but all of a sudden his face took on a look of almost comical surprise. He flailed his arms around and dropped the weapon, where it clattered to the ground. "What's happening?" he roared.

Haiya's voice sounded, growing from a yell of indignace to a shriek of fury. "You… stole… my… body!"

Gehen grabbed the weapon from the floor and fumbled with it clumsily for a minute. Polaris skittered out of the way, blood seeping through her fingers onto the floor and staining her gloves a bright crimson. Jupiter seized the moment. "Jupiter thunderclap zap!" The electricity shot through the air and knocked the weapon, sizzling, from Gehen's hands.

Tuxedo Mask knelt beside his sister. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," she said. "Just get the Empress."

"You're losing a lot of blood," he said in concern.

"I told you I was fine," said Polaris, staggering to her feet. With a scream of effort and pain, she threw her staff like a javelin at the glass case that had been serving as the Empress' casket for many years. The glass shattered and fell over the floor. "Do it, Sailor Mars! We have to do this fast!"

Mars faced the casket and intoned, "Mars… celestial… fire… surround!" At the same time, Gehen, finding himself without defenses, lunged at Tuxedo Mask. The two began to tussle, the latter on the losing end. Seeing a marvelous opportunity, Jupiter joined in the fracas, and soon the situation was reversed.

A gush of water rushed from the center of the room, soaking everyone's feet in a freezing tide. The room was suddenly half-filled with steam, and the Empress' body lay unprotected and soaking in its middle. Taliment picked it up and yelled, "We have to get out of here quickly! We haven't much time before we lose the chance to save her!"

"Take the Empress," said Sailor Moon. "We'll get her body back to the ship!" She took the body from him and put it gently on the floor, and grabbed Venus' hand. "We have to teleport. Luna, Artemis, Terra! Let's move!"

Taliment disappeared, and freed from his attacker, Harvok grabbed the weapon, and then Polaris. He pointed the weapon at Polaris' temple and said, "I advise you not to move, young woman. Or the rest of you."

"Sailor Polaris!" cried Mercury, half turning around.

"Go!" she shouted. "I can take care of myself."

"We won't leave you!" exclaimed Venus.

"You have no choice!"

Tuxedo Mask whipped his head around. "Get moving! I'll stay with her and we'll get back to the ship as soon as we can!"

Sailor Moon nodded reluctantly, tears in her eyes. The Scouts positioned themselves around Haiya's body and teleported away.

After they had gone, Tuxedo Mask turned to Harvok and Gehen. "Let her go," he said softly. "You can take me instead, but let her free."

"I have no intention of releasing her until someone brings back Empress Haiya's body," said Harvok. "So it seems that we are at an impasse. What do you plan to do?"

"This!" said Polaris, and bucked her hips backward, knocking Harvok momentarily off balance. The weapon fired and hit the ceiling, causing a cascade of more debris. Polaris and Tuxedo Mask faced Harvok and Gehen, nobody moving. "Oh, forget it," sighed Harvok, and fired at Polaris.

She dodged, but the beam hit her shoulder this time and she fell to the ground. "Darrien," she gasped. "Brother… help me…"

Tuxedo Mask removed his mask and knelt behind her, putting his hands on her shoulders. "Polaris… cyclone… spin!" she called weakly, and brought her hands together.

For a moment, nothing happened. But as a slow smile spread across Harvok's triumphant face, a soft breeze blew through the room and Darrien felt a pulsing heat suddenly begin near his heart. In confusion, he brought the rose pendant out from under his shirt, and saw that it was glowing with an unearthly radiance. Polaris collapsed backwards into Darrien's arms, and he saw that she was beginning to glow, too. The aura engulfed both of them.

A cyclone rose in front of Harvok and Gehen, and it grew. As Darrien and Polaris disappeared, consumed by the aura and transported away, it grew… and grew… and grew. They turned and started to run, but were soon sucked into the whirling vortex. The cyclone continued to grow until it was larger than any tornado this world had ever seen.

Taliment worked frantically, flipping on this machine and that in his desperate attempt to reunite the Empress' mind with her body. The Scouts stood nearby worriedly, Sailor Moon wringing her hands. "I hope they get out all right," she said.

"Don't worry, Sailor Moon," said Venus. "I know they can beat those creeps."

A buzz began to hum through the room, emanating from the large machines and contraptions that were bolted to the walls. "I think it's working," said Taliment breathlessly. "Look!"

They did. The color was slowly seeping back into Haiya's cheeks and arms, and as the Scouts, cats, and Taliment looked on, the body raised itself off the table (unlike Ahna, Haiya had not been strapped down) and righted itself to a standing position. She was surrounded by a blue glow which grew too bright to look at, and it died as soon as it had begun. The buzz of the machines stopped. There was silence.

Taliment looked at the table. Haiya was lying down again, and her eyes flew open (Taliment had closed them out of respect). Her mouth floundered for a moment, and finally one harsh, whispered word came out. "C-c-cold."

Smiling hugely, Taliment threw his arms around the Empress' neck, then remembered himself and dropped to one knee. "Your Majesty," he said reverently.

"G-g-get up," said Haiya, grinning. She was shivering violently. Taliment obeyed.

"Your Majesty," he said, and his voice caught in his throat. "You're… you're here."

"I am," said the Empress. She looked at the Scouts, and even pale, drained, and still pretty damp, she was regal, elegant, and radiantly beautiful. "I th-thank you Scouts for h-helping me reg-gain my b-b-body." Now that the voice was in a vessel, it sounded deeper and more throaty… and much older.

"You're welcome, Your Majesty" said Mercury, and she bowed slightly from the waist. The other Scouts followed suit.

"Taliment!" The Scouts turned, and Tuxedo Mask (sans mask) ran into the room, carrying the injured Polaris. "She's hurt. Can you help her?"

Haiya jumped off the table and staggered, and Taliment supported her. "I guess I'll have to g-get used to this again," she said with a weak smile.

"What happened to her?" asked Venus, running over as Tuxedo Mask set Polaris on the table. "Will she be all right?"

"I'm no doctor," said Taliment, "but I'll see what I can do. We need to take off first, else we're all going to end up a lot like your friend here."

"I can do it," said Haiya, "if someone can assist me in getting to the control room. I've seen you fly this ship thousands of times, Taliment," she said, as if he had disputed her flying abilities, "I think I can do it."

Venus put an arm around the Empress' waist and guided her out of the room as Taliment looked over Polaris. "She's hurt pretty badly. Did she get hit by the weapon Harvok had?"

"Yes," said Tuxedo Mask.

Venus reentered the room and approached the table hesitantly. "Tuxedo Mask," she said quietly, "the Empress is trying as hard as she can to operate the ship, but… well, she's so cold she can hardly move. Can she borrow your cape?"

He removed it without a word and handed it to her. "Thanks," said Venus gratefully, and left again.

"I'd like to ask all of you to leave," said Taliment. "I don't think I can do this with all of you standing here. But Sailor Mercury, could I ask you to remain here and act as nurse, perhaps?"

"Of course," said Mercury. The Scouts and Darrien reluctantly left.

***

Sailor Moon sat on the floor, and an exhausted Darrien sat beside her. "I hope she's okay," he mumbled, and yawned hugely.

"I'm sure she'll be fine," said Sailor Moon a trifle doubtfully. "Taliment seems… pretty sure of what he's doing." Darrien put his head in her lap and she stroked his hair comfortingly. "Don't worry. Just sleep for now."

"I don't know if I can," said Darrien, but his voice was already far distant and waning. In a matter of minutes his breathing was deep and regular.

"How is he?" asked Jupiter, hunkering down in front of them.

"Tired," said Sailor Moon. "Worried. But I guess that's okay, I mean, that's his sister in there."

"I wonder how they got away," mused Jupiter.

"Yeah, that was major weird how they just showed up like that," said Sailor Moon. "How did they get here?"

"We'll have to ask when he wakes up," said Jupiter. She patted Darrien's arm briefly and stood up. "I'd say he has the right idea. I'm so tired!"

"So am I," said Venus, entering the conversation. "But it's a good tired. I feel like we really accomplished something today."

"Well, we did," pointed out Sailor Moon. "A big something."

"I just hope Sailor Polaris is all right," said Venus. She was pacing.

"Yes," said Luna, who was curled up beside Sailor Moon. "Not only is she a valuable asset to this group, but she's a good friend and a good person. We can only hope that she'll recover fully."

"Oh, I think I'll survive," said a voice from the doorway.

It was Polaris. She was leaning heavily on Taliment, her face was pale, and she had a large bandage binding her injured arm to her body, but her eyes were bright and she looked relatively none the worse for wear. The Scouts ran forward to hug her, all except Sailor Moon, who was shaking Darrien awake. He opened his eyes, stood, and ran to greet his sister.

"You're alive," he said.

"Yep," said Polaris with a smile. "Thanks to you and Taliment."

Darrien hugged her tightly, being mindful of her arm, and smiled at Taliment. The red-haired man grinned back, blushing a little, looking happy with himself and indeed the whole situation at hand.

Empress Haiya appeared beside the group, the look on her face difficult to read. She was looking up at Polaris (for the Scout was quite taller than the Empress), and finally she smiled. "Sailor Polaris," she said, "it's good to know you're all right."

Polaris bowed deeply, wobbling but getting assistance from Darrien and Taliment. "The same of you, Empress."

There was silence for a moment, until Sailor Moon broached a question. "So what happens to you guys now? Are you going to stay with us on Earth?"

"I must return to my world," said Haiya immediately. "Now that I have my body back, I must rally my supporters and reclaim the throne from Gehen and Harvok."

"You don't have to worry about that," said Polaris softly. She quickly explained what she could remember of the final attack, and Darrien supplemented her story as best he could. Haiya smiled.

"They got what they deserved," she said. "Even so, I must get back. My people will be without a leader… perhaps I can turn them away from an evil way of life and help them to see new ways."

"If anyone could do it, it's you," said Taliment with a smile.

Haiya turned to him, smiling a little. "As for you, Taliment… you have proven yourself most praiseworthy in this difficult situation. If not for you, I doubt that any of this would have happened. I thank you most gratefully." She bowed deeply, casting her eyes to the floor, and Taliment colored.

"Oh, your Majesty, um…"

She straightened. "This may be a bit informal, but Taliment, I ask you this: will you take your place beside me, as Emporer?"

The Scouts, pleasantly surprised, looked from Haiya (her face betraying no emotion) to Taliment (who was a personification of the word "speechless"). The latter looked as if he were struggling with words, and when he found them, they were, "Yes, of course, your Majesty."

"Yay!" exclaimed Sailor Moon, jumping into the air and thus breaking the tension.

Taliment went to the controls, still blushing furiously, and ran a hand through his thick hair. "Um, I'm going to land us now. Hang on, everyone."

***

"Back to your land?" asked Jupiter a little wistfully.

"Yes," said Haiya, "and as quickly as possible. Who knows how soon it could erupt into chaos now that their leaders are gone?"

"Good point," said Venus, nodding. She bowed and the rest of the Scouts, Tuxedo Mask, and even the cats did the same. Taliment and Haiya returned the gesture, smiling.

"May we meet again someday," said Taliment, his fingers entwined with Haiya's.

"I hope to," said Polaris. She and the rest turned and descended the ramp of the vessel to the ground; it closed and the ship rose slowly into the air. They stood and watched it for a few moments.

"Wow," said Mars.

"That pretty much sums it up," agreed Venus. "Wow."

Mercury yawned hugely behind her hand. "I need to get some sleep. I have a huge test on Monday…" The Scouts groaned, but then Mercury smiled with a twinkle in her eyes. "But I don't know how I'll possibly be able to sleep after something like that."

"I do," said Sailor Moon, stretching. She leaned against Darrien and yawned. "I don't think I've ever been more tired in my whole life."

"Neither have I," said Polaris.

"I'm proud of us," said Venus suddenly. Everyone looked at her. "Well, I am."

"You have every right to be," said Terra. "You all did a magnificent job."

"Here here!" exclaimed Artemis.

The Scouts all looked pleased. "Come on, guys," said Jupiter. "Let's go home."

And they did.