Site hosted by Angelfire.com: Build your free website today!

Allegiance

Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon. Of all the Dark Kingdom generals, I liked Nephlite the best and thought it wrong when he died. So, I came up with this story. Enjoy.

Chapter One- Redemption

It hurt. Horribly. He was dead. There was no way out of it. He let his guard down and he was paying dearly for his sloppiness. He heard his friend (?) cry his name. He told her to run, to leave him. But she refused to leave. 'Poor girl. She doesn't realize that I'm as good as dead, anyway,' Nephlite thought.

Molly grabbed one of the thorns that had punched through Nephlite's chest and proceeded to try and remove it. The pain was overwhelming to both of them. But, Molly's efforts were having an effect as the thorns were slowly being pulled out.

Over Molly's shoulder, Nephlite saw one of Zoycite's henchmen lining up a shot that was aimed at the girl! He wouldn't let that happen! Not after all he had done to protect her! He tried to move to a position that would save Molly, but the pain was too great. He, instead, shouted a warning to her and hoped that was enough to save her.

Molly looked behind her and saw what Nephlite saw. Molly froze, unable to move. Nephlite watched in horror as a series of red balls shot out toward them.

"Mercury bubbles...blast!" A thick layer of mist covered the scene, causing the balls to fall to the ground harmlessly. The Sailor Scouts were here! He listened as the scouts went through their speech. The mist cleared, allowing him to see Sailor Moon and Mars couple their attacks.

"Mars, fire..."

"Moon Tiara..."

"Ignite!"

"Magic!"

The fire-covered tiara flew straight and true, dusting the three Negaverse villains. With the danger past, Molly went back to her efforts of saving Nephlite.

But Nephlite knew that he was past saving, beyond hope. "Uh, leave me, Molly. I'm done for."

"No," was the sobbing reply as the scouts approached. Sailor Mercury activated her VR visor, assessing the damage. 'If we act fast, we can save him,' she thought, a simple plan forming in her mind.

Turning her visor off, she said, "Nephlite fall on your back. The rest of us will remove the thorns."

Naturally, this prompted protests from Sailors Moon and Mars. Demands of why they should save an enemy.

"If...you help me, I'll join you...in your fight against the Negaverse."

"You promise?" Sailor Moon asked.

"You have my word."

"Good," Mercury said. "Then lay down and we'll get to work."

Nephlite fell backwards and realized that half of the girls' work had already been done. The four girls grabbed a hold of one thorn each and proceeded to pull, ignoring the searing pain. If anything, the pain pushed them to pull harder.

After several agonizing minutes, the cluster came out, leaving a gaping hole in Nephlite's chest and back, which was immediately covered up, using Nephlite uniform jacket. As Molly tied the final knot, Nephlite looked at the scouts. "Thanks to you, I will live. As I promised, I will join you in your fight against evil."

"Your help will be greatly needed. We trust you," Mercury said.

"Yeah, we'll walk you to...wherever you're going," Sailor Moon added.

After making sure Molly was on her way home, the scouts helped Nephlite home and telling him their true identities so he could contact them, if need be.

The next morning, Nephlite awoke to his first day as a Sailor Scout ally. Getting dressed in more human clothes, he opened the door and noticed a type of calculator with a note attached to it on the doorstep. Bending down, he picked it up and read the note.

Nephlite,

This is your own communicator to contact the scouts with when the Negaverse attacks. And thanks for deciding to help us.

Luna

'So, I have a communicator now. The scouts really do trust me. And I promise that I won't let them down.' Slipping the device into his pants' pocket, he climbed into his car and drove it into town.

Minutes later, he parked the car in front of the arcade, a place that he knew was a popular hangout of Serena's. Getting out, he noticed Serena and a brown-haired girl inside. Strolling through the automatic doors, he walked over to the blond girl. "Hello, Serena."

"Oh, hi. Lita, this is another friend of mine, Maxfield Stanton. Maxfield, this is my new friend, Lita."

"Nice to meet you," Nephlite held out his hand. Lita took it, but her eyes seemed to have glazed over. Nephlite surmised that Lita must be boy-crazy and was entranced by his looks.

"Lita?" Serena asked.

Lita snapped out of her trance and replied, "Nice to meet you too. I'm surprised that Serena knows someone like you."

"I'm still a little shocked about it myself. Can you excuse Serena and I for a minute?"

"Sure. I have to go home anyway. Good to meet you, Maxfield. See you in school, Serena." Lita waved and left the arcade.

"What's up, Nephlite?"

"I have a feeling that Zoycite's about to embark on a different mission than Jedite and I did."

"Really?"

"Yes. I'll let you and the others know if I find out anything more."

"Okay."

Nephlite nodded and left the arcade. As he passed an alley on the way to his car, he felt Negaverse powers at work. He peered into the alley he had just passed and saw Zoycite. And she was holding his star crystal! The crystal started to glow and for a moment, Nephlite feared that it was seeking him out, but what Zoycite said allayed his fear and peaked his interest.

"The first rainbow crystal carrier is nearby. The Imperium Silver Crystal will be ours in no time."

Nephlite turned from the alley and teleported back to his vehicle. Once there, he voiced his thoughts. "The rainbow crystals. Of course. The Seven Shadows were reborn in seven human beings. And Zoycite is on the move to find the first one. My feeling about her having a different mission was correct."

Driving home as fast as he could, he reached his home, went inside and stood in the main hall. Concentrating, he said, "Stars, help me. Who is the human that Zoycite is after?"

A beam of light shot from the constellations on the ceiling and struck Nephlite's forehead. The image of a boy and his name appeared in his mind. "Game Machine Joe. He's the one who's in danger. He's at the diner down the street from the arcade as are Serena and Lita. I must warn Serena!"

Chapter Two- Hello Sailor Jupiter

Teleporting to the diner, he saw the shattered window. He was too late! Zoycite found Joe first. He couldn't call the scouts now. He would have to save Joe himself. He caught sight of Zoycite's coppery blond hair and was about to go after her when he noticed Serena and Lita. He raced over to them and kneeled beside Lita as did Serena.

"Lita?" Serena inquired.

"She sprang a surprise attack on us." Lita' s voice sounded tight and tinged with anger.

"How are you feeling?"

"Angry!" Lita leaped up and took off after Zoycite.

Serena and Nephlite stood stunned for a moment before taking off after Lita. They stopped short, however, when Luna leaped in their path. Zoycite was just a few feet away.

"Serena! Transform yourself," Luna ordered.

"Right. Moon Prism Power!"

Nephlite watched as Serena quickly changed into Sailor Moon and appeared on the battlefield. But, she was too late. Zoycite had the first crystal and Joe was changing into Game Machine Man. He attacked Sailor Moon and just as he was about to finished the downed scout, Lita (who was already there) took action, and actually lifted the warrior above her head.

"New player up and you're heading for a fall!" she declared as a remarkable thing happened. A glowing green four appeared on her forehead!

"The Fourth Sign!" Luna exclaimed.

Nephlite looked at her, puzzled. "What?"

"Lita is the fourth scout, Sailor Jupiter." Luna leaped up and somersaulted in mid-air, creating a green stick with a gold circle and a green four in the circle. She picked up the changing wand and trotted up behind Lita and dropped it as Game Machine Man came out of the bushes Lita had thrown him in and he grapple-hooked Sailor Moon.

Nephlite leaped onto the field and blasted a sky blue energy ball at the warrior, freeing his captive. The ex-general helped the sailor scout to her feet.

"Thanks, Nephlite."

Before he could reply, there was tightness at his waist. Looking down, he saw that he had been hooked by Game Machine Man. There was a cry and he saw that Sailor Moon had been captured as well. It was over. The Negaverse warrior had won!

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning crashed into the hooks and freed them. Looking to his left, he saw a tall, brown-haired scout. It was Lita as Sailor Jupiter!

"Wow, you really got him," Sailor Moon commented.

"Yeah, I guess I did," Jupiter agreed.

"Not really, scouts," Luna interjected. "The only way to defeat him is to turn him human again."

"And how are we supposed to do that?" Sailor Moon demanded.

Nephlite was also curious as to how they were going to turn the warrior back into Joe.

Game Machine Man came back out of the bushes he had landed in for the second time. And he was raring to go. "He's going to attack again, " Jupiter warned.

"No, he won't." Luna performed that graceful back flip-somersault once more. This time, a crescent moon attached to a pink stick appeared and landed in the blond sailor's hands.

"Wow, what's this, Luna?"

"It's the Crescent Moon Wand. Use it and say, 'Moon Healing Activation'. It will break the spell."

Sailor Moon followed Luna's instruction and Game Machine Man became Joe again. Nephlite was impressed by the wand's power. Not to mention Sailor Jupiter. Apparently, Luna was also impressed and said so to Jupiter who gave her thanks. It was then that Jupiter noticed Nephlite. Jupiter appeared panicky when she realized that she had transformed in front of him.

Nephlite smiled reassuringly at her. "It's all right. Maxfield isn't really my name. I'm Nephlite. I used to work for the Negaverse until the other sailor scouts save my life. Now I fight on their side."

"And they're led by Sailor Moon," Luna added.

"I'm no leader," Sailor Moon protested.

"You have possession of the wand. You must hold on to it until we find the Princess of the Moon."

&&&&

'Over the last few days, two more crystals have been found,' Nephlite reflected, days after the discovery of Sailor Jupiter. 'One went to Tuxedo Mask and, the other to Sailor Moon.' Nephlite stood in an art gallery. Just the day before, a boy named Greg had been discovered to hold a rainbow crystal. The gallery Nephlite was in was hold an exhibit of work by someone called Lani Lanei and he was curious about the show and decided to investigate. He wasn't sure why he felt the need to check the work out, but he did all the same.

Glancing at one, he was about to continue on when he paused and did a double take. He stared at the painting. The artist was talented, no doubt about that. But, the images were the real surprise.

"That's Molly...and me!" Nephlite whispered to himself. Was the artist there when this scene happened? No, he reflected. Molly and he had been alone. A Rainbow Crystal carrier, perhaps? Possibly. It would certainly explain the other painting after the one of Molly and him. They all looked like Serena, or Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask.

&&&&

Nephlite had met up with Serena later in the day and learned that she and Darien had modeled for an artist called Peggy Jones who was the artist, Lani! Or rather Lani was an alias that Peggy had created. Turns out that Peggy couldn't sell any painting, but as Lani she could.

&&&&

Night had fallen many hours ago and the action was in high gear. Sailor Moon was in a construction site facing off against Zoycite and another Shadow Warrior who had been Peggy earlier. Zoycite teleported onto the metal frame of the building, leaving the warrior to finish off Sailor Moon before they returned to the Negaverse.

But Nephlite wouldn’t allow that. Since Sailor Moon was holding up well against the warrior, he would take on Zoycite. Teleporting onto the building frame, he faced his enemy. Zoycite looked at him and gasped.

“Nephlite! But you’re dead!”

“I assure you, I’m very much alive. And you’re not getting away with that crystal.” Nephlite fired an energy ball at Zoycite who deflected it with an ice crystal.

“So, you’ve defected to the Sailor Scouts.”

“I owed them for saving my life. A debt that’s rewarded me by giving me the chance to defeat you.” Nephlite charged at Zoycite who easily sidestepped him. He impacted with the metal beam. Zoycite went over and placed a boot on his back.

“A chance, maybe. But I’m going to kill you. Permanently.”

Before Zoycite could kill her adversary, a red rose sliced through the air and landed beside the trapped general. Tuxedo Mask had arrived. As Zoycite turned to meet her other foe, Nephlite swept his leg and knocked her flat on her back. But, she got right back up and teleported behind Tuxedo Mask. And ice crystal appeared in her hand.

“Farewell Nephlite, Cape Boy.” She hurled the crystal at the two men. It didn’t get a chance to hit its mark because it turned to dust courtesy of Sailor Moon. Zoycite teleported back to the Negaverse with the crystal and news of Nephlite’s survival.

Chapter Three- Sailor Venus Arrives

“What! Nephlite’s alive!?”

“Yes, my queen. And working with the Sailor Scouts to boot.”

“I’ll remedy that. As you know, Zoycite, everyone in the Negaverse has a bond with the Negaforce, save the Shadow Warriors. I can cast a spell on Nephlite’s bond that will kill him.” Beryl cackled and Zoycite soon joined her.

&&&&

“The Negaverse has the majority of the rainbow crystals. We must locate the last three before they do,” Luna stated the next day. A scout meeting had been called at Raye’s temple after school. Nephlite, being an ally, was also at the meeting.

“And with my help, you’ll find those crystals with no problem,” Nephlite declared.

“Really? How’s that?” Amy asked.

Nephlite was about to answer when he started to shake slightly. But, it passed quickly.

“Nephlite, you okay?” Lita questioned.

“Yes, I-I’m fine. Just fine.”

“So, what’s this idea you had about finding the crystals before the Negaverse does?”

“It’s simple. All I have to do is-,” Nephlite groaned in pain, which quickly became a scream.

“Nephlite!” all the girls cried.

As Nephlite stayed crouched on the ground, he heard Beryl’s evil cackle in his head. Hearing the laugh triggered a memory that explained what was happening:

FLASHBACK

Jedite, Zoycite, Malachite, and he stood before Queen Beryl. “Now that you are Negaverse warriors, your life is bonded to the Negaforce. The force manipulates your lives and grants you new powers. Betray the force and your bond will betray you!”

END FLASHBACK

‘Queen Beryl’s using my bond to kill me. She knows I’m alive and against her. I have only one hope.’

“Uh, Serena. Use the wand. Break my bond to the Negaforce.”

“It might kill you,” Serena protested.

“Actually, it might heal him by expelling any negative energy left. Do it, Serena,” Luna interjected.

“All right. Moon Healing….Activation!”

A warm sensation enveloped Nephlite. He felt at peace with himself. He fancied that he could hear the bond of the Negaforce breaking, never to be formed again. When the healing was over, he was still the same.

“Nothing happened,” Serena stated.

“Actually, it did work. I am no longer bonded to the Negaforce.”

&&&&

‘The balance of power for control of the crystals has shifted dramatically over the last few days. When the dust had settled, the Negaverse has five and Tuxedo Mask has two.’ Nephlite and the scouts had no idea how to get the seven crystals safely in their hands. Especially with five of them in the hands of their enemies.

The sound of ropes snapping drew Nephlite out of his thoughts. Looking up, he saw a window washer clinging to the ropes. He caught sight of an ice crystal slicing one of the three remaining ropes. Someone was deliberately cutting the ropes!

The rope the washer was holding snapped and he started to fall. Before he hit the ground, a figure swung down on a rope and saved the man. The two landed on a store’s fabric awning.

Nephlite gasped. It was Sailor Moon! He blinked and then frowned. That wasn’t Sailor Moon. For one thing, the ribbon and boots were purple, not red. And second of all, Serena and Lita were to his left a few feet away.

&&&&

Nighttime. Nephlite and the four girls were around a construction site near the docks looking for that fake Sailor Moon. It wasn’t long before they found her tied to a crane with a man standing on a nearby roof. A man with long white hair. The sight of the man angered Nephlite.

“Malachite!” he hissed.

“Who?” Serena asked.

“Malachite. He’s the fourth general of the Negaverse. But, what’s he doing here?”

“It could be a trick,” Luna suggested. “Transform yourselves.”

The four girls transformed into the Sailor Scouts. Nephlite switched to his old Negaverse uniform but it was outlined in blue instead. The five of them appeared in the open. The scouts went through their speeches. Malachite looked at them with slight disinterest until he noticed Nephlite.

“How can you still be alive, Nephlite? Beryl spell bounded your bond.”

“That bond no longer exists.”

“Oh, well,” Malachite shrugged. “Dark energy, electrify.”

A black dome appeared over the five defenders of Earth, trapping them. Malachite then proceeded to shrink the dome. Mars and Jupiter both used their attacks, but the dome was unaffected.

“My turn,” Nephlite declared. “Dazzling Star Light!” A series of bright star-shaped bursts sprang out of Nephlite’s outstretched palm and struck the dome, shattering it.

“How did you do that? Your bond was broken,” Sailor Moon asked.

“My power comes from the stars not the Negaverse. They give me my new powers.”

“Impressive, Nephlite,” Malachite remarked. “But it won’t help you. Dark energy electrify and intensify!”

Another dome sprang into existence. Nephlite cried, “Dazzling Star Light!” Once again, star-shaped bursts struck the dome, but nothing happened! The dome had become much stronger!

“Dark energy, shrink to fit!” The dome began to shrink, causing the occupants to stand back-to-back. About two minutes later, a familiar figure appeared next to the white-haired general. “Malachite, I have bad news,” the figure said.

“Ooo, it’s that witch, Zoycite,” Sailor Moon growled.

“I had Tuxedo Mask cornered, but then another Sailor Scout attacked me.”

“Impossible. You can see all of the scouts and Nephlite are inside the dome.” Malachite stressed Nephlite’s name in order to attract Zoycite’s attention.

“Yeah. That’s what I thought,” Zoycite murmured. At that point, Malachite’s stressing reached her brain. She jerked her heard up, eyes narrowing at her long-time enemy. “Nephlite. Still alive? Well, we’ll have to fix that.”

“You should know by now that I’m not so easily disposed of.” That was all Nephlite got to say because the energy from the dome was overwhelming. He could barely stay on his feet. All around him, the scouts were falling to their knees, trying the fight the evil power. He followed them suite, his eyes closed tightly. Everything afterwards was only heard.

He heard Zoycite taunting Tuxedo Mask to come out of hiding. He heard Tuxedo Mask saying he’ll give them the crystals, followed by Zoycite telling him to hurry up and hand them over. Suddenly, a new voice rang out, “He’s not giving you anything, Nega creep!”

Fighting the pain, Nephlite opened his eyes and saw a blond scout with an orange skirt. She leaped to the ground and announced herself as Sailor Venus. Then, she performed an attack called Venus Crescent Beam. The beam smashed across Malachite’s hands and shattered the dome, freeing the occupants from their pain. The scouts and Nephlite got to their feet and faced Sailor Venus and her guardian, Artemis who was a male white cat with a crescent moon on his forehead. Just like Luna.

Earth’s six defenders faced the two Negaverse generals, prepared to fight. Suddenly, Beryl’ voice called over the field. “Malachite, Zoycite. Return at once!”

“We don’t have the crystals, Queen Beryl,” Malachite said.

“I know that. Leave them be for now. It’s too risky.”

“We can win,” Zoycite added.

“Zoycite, NEVER QUESTION ME!”

“We better hit it,” Malachite sighed.

“We’re in for an earful,” Zoycite added.

Both generals looked at their enemies. “You were lucky this time. But everyone’s luck runs out sometime,” Malachite said. With those parting words, the generals disappeared.

With their enemies defeated and Tuxedo Mask gone, Nephlite and the scouts turned to their rescuer, Sailor Venus. There was the usual “great to see you” and “great to be here’s”. Sailor Moon asked Venus if she was the Moon Princess they were looking for. Naturally, Venus didn’t know if that was so.

Chapter Four- Ice Princess

A whole day passed since Venus’s arrival and Nephlite had some time to think about Molly. Even though he was alive, Molly ended up falling for a classmate called Melvin. He was hurt when Molly confessed her love of Melvin to him, but his heart was slowly mending. But, the loss still hurt.

Looking ahead, he saw Serena heading his way, her head hanging. Increasing his pace, he headed toward her. Something was wrong and he wanted to know what it was.

“Serena? What’s wrong?”

Serena looked up, saw Nephlite, and ran up to him. Her arms wrapped around his waist and she was sobbing uncontrollably. Taking firm hold of the crying girl, he pulled her to a bench and rubbed her back to slow the tears so she could talk.

“Oh, Nephlite! It’s so awful!”

“It can’t be all bad.”

“No. First of all, Zoycite’s dead.”

“Really? That’s great.”

“Yes. And we have the Silver Crystal. Plus, I’m the Moon Princess. Darien is a prince from Earth, my past love, and Tuxedo Mask. Oh, dear Darien!” Serena started to cry again.

Nephlite thought, ‘I should have known Serena was the princess.’ He now remembered a girl with Serena’s hairstyle who was the princess. “What happened to Darien?”

Serena sniffled. “The Negaverse got him. Now, I don’t know if he’s their prisoner or…” Serena trailed off and her tears started to fall again. Nephlite decided to take Serena to her home. Helping the girl to her feet, he walked her home, her tears tapering off about a block from home.

&&&&

Serena’s depression about Darien’s whereabouts lasted a short time. They soon learned that he had been brainwashed by the Negaverse and was on their side. Sailor Moon snapped out of her blues, declaring that she would free him from their control. Of course, she added that when she did, she was going to give him a piece of her mind. There was just no pleasing that girl sometimes!

At the present time, however, the six of them were at a new ice rink called Skater’s Palace. Oddly enough, it was offering free lesson to groups of six. Nephlite found it strange that free lesson were only being given to groups of six, but he really enjoyed ice skating, ever since his time in the Negaverse.

FLASHBACK

Zoycite had iced an entire area for the generals to skate on, just for some relaxation. They were currently trapped in the Negaverse and had no access to any other place. True that Queen Beryl was working on that, but so far no luck. Anyway, Nephlite stood near the ice’s edge, watching Zoycite and Malachite perform graceful moves together. Understand, Nephlite couldn’t stand Zoycite even back then and watching her filled him with a desire to do something embarrassing to her. An idea came to him and he got onto the ice and started to skate as fast as he could toward the couple.

The speed of his skating whooshed him past the two generals and Nephlite wheeled around in time to see the two of them crash to the ground. Nephlite laughed at their ungraceful tumble. Zoycite glared at him from her position before conjuring an ice crystal and flinging it at him. Nephlite avoided the attack and skated off, still laughing.

END FLASHBACK

Nephlite was pulled back to the present in time to see Serena land on her butt on the ice. This was interesting, seeing as how Luna and Artemis had said that Princess Serena had been a graceful skater. Had been were the key words. A thousand years had passed since then and it was entirely possible that Serena never took a skating lesson before and therefore didn’t know how to skate.

A tall brunette in a green skating outfit glided by. Nephlite looked as did Serena, Amy, Mina, and Raye and gaped. That girl was Lita! She was really good! As Nephlite stared, he couldn’t help but admire Lita’s form on the ice. She was confident and graceful. Nephlite also felt another emotion come over him. It felt like love, but he decided it was a strong crush. Yes, that was it. He had a very strong crush on Lita/Sailor Jupiter.

As Lita made another round around the rink, Nephlite couldn’t stay still any longer and pushed out onto the ice. He skated toward Lita and smoothly slid up behind her and took her hands. She looked up and back in surprise and then smiled when she saw who was behind her. Together the two of them moved across the ice, moving in perfect synchronization. Lita glanced up at Nephlite again and flashed another dazzling smile at him.

“You’re a great skater,” she commented.

“I was going to say the same thing about you,” he replied.

The duo continued to skate together as the other scouts came onto the ice along with the other people who came for lessons. Nephlite was enjoying Lita’s company immensely. They skated hand in hand for a few feet before separating into wide arcs that would have combined back into one path. They would have, if Lita hadn’t been taken from Nephlite by that gold medal skater, Misha.

Nephlite came to a dead stop and stared in shock as his partner was whisked away from him. A jealously like nothing he had ever felt before consumed him. How dare that guy steal his girl from him. Wait a second…his girl? Lita wasn’t his girl, although he would like her to be. He swallowed hard. He came to the realization that his strong crush was developing into love right before his eyes. The questions remaining were, how was he going to tell Lita and did she feel the same about him?

&&&&

The skating lessons ended sooner than Nephlite expected. He had been hoping to skate with Lita some more. Clearly, he wasn’t going to be able to today. Perhaps, tomorrow. As he emerged from the changing room, he saw Serena slipping away from Amy, Raye, and Mina. Lita was getting a special class with Misha. Curious, Nephlite followed Serena and caught up with her in a hallway.

“And where do you think you’re going?” he asked.

“I’m not leaving until I get my lesson,” Serena stated.

“Ah. So that’s it. You know, I would be happy to give you a lesson myself.”

“You would? That would be so nice.”

Nephlite was about to respond, when a nearby door flew open and banged against the wall. Both scout and former general jumped at the noise and watched as Janelle, Misha’s partner came storming out and headed for the rink.

“What was that about?” Serena gasped as Nephlite looked into the room. What he saw didn’t surprise him all that much. The room was a surveillance room. Only one monitor was on and it showed Misha and Lita on the right side. The left side, however, showed a faceless figure of Sailor Jupiter!

‘This was another Negaverse plot to get the Silver Crystal! Lita’s in trouble! I have to save her!’

“Serena! This is another Negaverse plot. Transform yourself. I’ll warn Lita.”

“Right.” As Nephlite headed for the rink, he heard Serena speak her transformation phrase.

Nephlite arrived in time to see Misha and Janelle, now Negaverse monsters, heading for Lita with elbow blades aimed at her! Leaping down onto the ice, Nephlite’s boots gained blades, and he began speeding toward the stunned girl. He held out an arm, looped it around Lita’s waist, and carried her to safety.

“Nephlite!” Lita exclaimed in surprise.

“Are you all right?”

“Yes, but we have to help them!” Lita pointed at the transformed skaters.

“I know. Sailor Moon’s on her way.” No sooner had he said that then Sailor Moon appeared, going through one of her speeches. She too leaped down toward the ice, blades appearing on her boots. Unfortunately, she ended up landing on her butt again. Even as Sailor Moon, she still couldn’t skate.

“Nephlite, I’ll transform and you help Sailor Moon,” Lita said as she skated away to find a private place to change.

“Right,” he called back. He began to skate toward the battle. However, Misha and Janelle were really fast now and they were moving in to finish Sailor Moon off! There was no way Nephlite would get there in time!

He then saw a figure in black speed toward the downed scout and swept her out of Janelle’s weapon’s path. It was Tuxedo Mask! Nephlite stared in shock. Was this guy on their side or not? On one hand, he was working with the Negaverse to get the crystal and on the other hand, he would save Sailor Moon from getting killed. Couldn’t Tuxedo Mask make up his mind or was his mind trying to break Queen Beryl’s control? If it was the former, then he had divided loyalties, that was for sure.

Suddenly, the two of them went down from Misha and Janelle’s teamwork and the changed duo were moving in for the kill. He wouldn’t let that happen! Flinging out a hand at the enemies, he called, “Dazzling Star Light!” As he did so, he heard Sailor Jupiter call, “Jupiter Thunder…Crash!”

The two attacks combined into one and struck their targets. Misha and Janelle cried out in pain as Nephlite and Jupiter skated to Sailor Moon. “Thanks, guys,” she said as Nephlite helped her up and the other scouts arrived. Their happy reunion was cut short by Malachite’s appearance, high above the rink.

“Prince Darien,” he began. “if you had only minded your own business, we would already have the Silver Crystal. No matter.” He held up a hand at a black dome attached to the ceiling. It flared red and the freezing system activated, blowing an unbearable cold wind down on the rink’s occupants.

“Two minute warning and then you’re all getting iced,” Malachite said. “Then I’ll be right back for the Silver Crystal. So long, scouts. Nephlite, Prince Darien, can’t say I’ll miss you two.” With those words, Malachite vanished.

“Malachite,” Darien growled as everyone was forced to their knees by the blistering cold.

Nephlite managed to look up at the system’s source and knew that if it could be destroyed, the system would be shut down. He glanced over at Darien and saw him reaching inside his cape. Clearly, he was going for his cane and intended to use it to destroy the dome. He felt a need to show up the traitor and acted fast. He held up a hand and yelled, “Dazzling Star Light!” His attack came forth and struck the dome, shattering it, and ending the cold wind that had threatened to freeze them. With the source destroyed, Janelle and Misha were ready to attack again.

“Sailor Moon, that’s your cue,” Jupiter called.

“Right.” Bringing out the Crescent Moon Wand, she instantly healed the two skaters and returned them to human form. As the pair skated by in perfect unison, Nephlite saw Jupiter staring at them with a bummed expression in her eyes. Did she really love Misha? The mere thought of that almost broke Nephlite’s heart. As the group left the rink, Nephlite told himself not to give up on her.

Once outside, the scouts changed back to their secret identities. Lita stood off to one side, apparently lost in thought. Serena approached the girl as did Nephlite. “Lita, you gonna be okay?” Serena asked.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. I guess it just wasn’t meant to be. I’ll find another guy,” Lita replied, sounding like herself.

Serena flashed Nephlite a knowing look before stepping back. Somehow, Serena had noticed Nephlite looking at Lita with interest. Stepping closer to Lita, he wrapped an arm around her waist. She looked down at his arm and then up at his face. He smiled at her. “I don’t think you need to look for another guy.”

Lita gaped at Nephlite before stammering, “Y-y-you like me?”

“More like I love you.”

“I loved you the first day I saw you.”

“Say, would you like to get a couple of chocolate parfaits and talk?”

“I’d like that.”

As the couple walked away (to the other girls’ surprise), Lita said, “Hey, Nephlite?”

“Yeah, Lita?”

“You kind of remind of me of my old boyfriend.”

Chapter Five- The Final Battle

The war against the Negaverse was progressing to its climax. Nephlite proved his worth several times. Including a time when Prince Darien, brainwashed into a Negaverse warrior, was collecting the former Crystal Carriers. Sailor Moon had healed him, but the Negaverse took him back without the Crystal Carriers.

But now, the scouts were about to engage Queen Beryl. Malachite had died during the last battle. A victory Nephlite enjoyed, even though it was mean to enjoy someone’s death.

Luna, Artemis, and Nephlite stayed back from the scouts (at the Cherry Hill Temple) as they prepared for Sailor Teleport that would take them to the North Pole, the attack base of the Negaverse.

“Good luck, scouts,” Nephlite called.

“Thanks, Nephlite. We’ll try to bring Darien back with us,” Sailor Moon answered back as they began to teleport.

“Mercury Power!”

“Mars Power!”

“Jupiter Power!”

“Venus Power!”

“Moon Prism Power!”

“Sailor Teleport!” all five cried. In a flash of light, the scouts were gone, leaving the guardians and Nephlite alone to await their return. Hours passed and Nephlite grew worried. The scouts haven’t returned yet. He knew defeating Queen Beryl would not be easy and he should expect a lengthy fight, but still. Where were they? Were they okay? Was Sailor Jupiter okay? He would be crushed if anything happened to her.

“I hope they’re all right,” Nephlite said as he, Luna, and Artemis sat on the roof of Serena’s house.

“I’m sure they’re fine,” Luna replied.

“Look!” Artemis cried.

A bright pink flashing dome appeared on the horizon. As they stared at the dome, Nephlite whispered loudly, “Did we win?”

“Yes. Queen Beryl been blasted back to her Negaverse. Earth is saved,” Luna announced.

“See you tomorrow Luna, Artemis.” Nephlite bid farewell and teleported home. Earth was safe and he helped win the war. He and the Sailor Scouts.

The End