Tempest

Morning came, and while I remembered the previous night's events clearly, they seemed distant, like a dream that hovers at the edge of your memory. Even so, I found myself paying a lot more attention to the Sailor Moon paraphenalia. The manga, the anime... anything I could find that might tell me more, I was snapping up from the tables. I spent the rest of my con money buying everything in sight and I planned my schedule around when Sailor Moon was on in the anime rooms. It's amazing how powerful of a motivator raw panic can be.

I'm sure it must have seemed unusual, because I got more than my share of funny looks when walking around with a big bag full of Sailor Moon stuff. Thankfully, none of my good friends saw me... I don't have the slightest idea how I would have explained that away. Finally, I got sick of the stares and took it all out to the car. It was there that I bumped into Sharon again.

"Hi, Jon!" she called out, running across the parking lot to meet me. She seemed her usual cheerful self, and I wondered why that would surprise me... after all, she'd gotten what she'd always wanted, hadn't she? When she got a little closer, though, I could see that there was something else in her eyes... concern... maybe fear? Once she was close enough for discreet conversation, she lowered her voice and asked, "How are you holding up?"

"Fine," I answered, giving a weak smile. At that, she hugged me suddenly, catching me off-guard. I froze for a moment in surprise, then recovered myself and hugged her back, whispering, "I'm fine, really. It just... well... I'm trying not to think about it, y'know?"

She smiled gently, pulling back a little. "Yeah... did you bring it with you?"

I nodded, patting my jacket where the wand was resting in an inside pocket. It was a little hot for a jacket, really... but I had needed a good place to conceal the wand, and at an anime convention who was going to notice someone being dressed a little funny? "Yeah, I brought it. Don't ask me why... but I don't feel quite right if I leave it behind."

"Me, too," she agreed. She paused, considering that for a moment, and added, "I've got a funny feeling about this, though..."

I shook my head. "Let's try not to think about that. I've got a funny feeling, too, but it's just telling me I need to get some food. Come on... one of my friends has some snacks in his room. Let's go."

Once we'd dropped in and snagged something to eat, we headed back down to the dealers' room again. There was still more Sailor Moon merchandise I wanted to look at, and the search was welcome distraction from more pressing thoughts. Something was still tugging at the back of my mind, leaving me ill at ease, and I couldn't quite place it. It would come to me eventually, I decided... probably right after I needed it.

Sharon seemed a little uneasy as well, but when I asked her about it she just shrugged and went back to her browsing. She was being unusually quiet; usually she was a very energetic, animated girl, but she'd hardly said a word since we'd met that morning... that told me more than anything she might say. Somehow I had this premonition that Murphy was about to strike. I was, of course, right.

We'd been in the dealers' room for most of an hour when the screaming started. There were people yelling, too, a stream of profanity and something about a monster. A loud crash followed, then another, the sounds coming from the art show room next door. My thoughts reeled as I tried to process what was happening... this couldn't be real... it couldn't be! Another scream tore through the now-silent room as everyone turned in horror. That one was definitely female... and young, I thought--and the sheer terror of the sound chilled me to the bone.

Sharon and I glanced at each other, needing no words to communicate our shared thought, and started to work our way through the crowd to the exits. I wasn't thinking then... I didn't have time to think, I just acted on instinct. Ducking into a side room, we closed the door behind us. I took a deep breath then, and I pulled the wand out of my pocket.

It was then, staring at this innocent-looking little trinket that the shock effect of hearing those screams abruptly died. My mind raced; if I did this, it meant that I was accepting what it made me... that I was choosing it willingly. Could I do this? Could I open Pandora's Box and take on this curse in exchange for the hope of power? Could I be what it asked... no, demanded that I be?

Another terrified scream sliced throgh my thoughts, melting my resistance like wax under a particle beam. There were *lives* on the line, and whether I could do it or not was irrelevant. There was no choice... only fate. Lifting the wand up over my head, I whispered the words that bound me to my destiny.

"Gemini Star Power, Make Up!"

Warm light washed over me as the magic took hold, working its will on me. If the change had seemed instantaneous before, this time that moment seemed to drag out into an eternity. I could *see* myself change this time, my body fading, turning translucent as it shifted into its new form. I could *feel* myself growing shorter, feel hard angles becoming soft curves, feel my chest expand, and other things shrink and disappear. It was both pleasant and sickening, this feeling, and no words I can give you could describe it fully. Then, finally, it was done, and an involuntary shudder passed through me. Forcing down a sudden wave of nausea, I took a few breaths to collect myself before glancing at Sharon.

"You ok, Jon?" she asked anxiously, resting a hand on my shoulder.

I shook my head, trying to clear it, then whispered, "No... but there's no time for that. Let's get this over with." She nodded, and we ran for the art show room. The situation when we arrived was total chaos. The double doors had been torn off their hinges, and part of the wall around them was buckled as well... whatever had done this was strong. There were people out in the hall... a couple of girls huddled up in a corner, scared out of their wits, some guy dressed up as a Dragonball character standing there babbling about hentai demons. I stepped past them into the doorway... and stopped dead in my tracks.

I won't even try to describe the... thing that I saw there, except to say that it was straight out of the worst of tentacle anime. It was making a wreck out of the art show, smashing displays and the like, but that was the least of our concerns. It had taken two girls--one of them couldn't be older than sixteen--and was terrorizing them, toying with them. Its intentions were obvious... their clothes were shredded, hanging in tatters and not realy covering anything anymore. We had arrived just in time... the monster was still playing games, but it looked like it was about to get serious.

I didn't think; I just acted. Words, spoken in my voice, echoed through the room as I called upon the power given to me. How I knew them, and where they came from, I may never know... but the moment I remember very clearly.

"Gemini Division Blade!" I called out, extending my hands to unleash a spinning blade of solid air. Guided by my subconscious will, it slashed through the air, neatly slicing off the most offending of the beast's appendages before dissipating. The monster recoiled with a hideous roar, black blood spilling from the severed tentacles Then, dropping its playthings in a heap, it turned to stare at me...

...and suddenly, in that single, terrifying instant, I realized that I didn't have the slightest clue how my powers worked. I shot a quick glance at Sharon, sho shrugged back at me, and I felt a chill run down my spine as the monster started to advance on me. If I didn't think of something quick, I was going to end up like those other two girls... and so would Sharon. I couldn't let that happen. I had to stall it somehow... had to remember what little I knew about Sailor Moon.

"Sorry, ugly," I said as it moved toward me. "But I just can't let you do that. No means no, after all." I was fighting not to tremble, but a spark of anger had been lit in my soul, and I was not about to back down. I narrowed my eyes, dropping into a fighting stance, and a feral grin displaced the anxiety on my face. I could do this. After all... it was my power. My weak girl-voice changed as I spoke again, finding an edge I didn't know it could have. "Unfortunately for both of us," I said threateningly, feeling a surge of confidence with the words, "I'm the lovely soldier Sailor Gemini... and for making me wear this ridiculous costume, I'm gonna kick your ass!"

It paused, evidently as surprised by the sudden change in my tone as I was. Where the boldness had come from, I still don't know. Maybe it was the anger. Maybe it was some force, like the powers, that I'll never understand. Maybe it was that I just couldn't stand there and let something like what I'd just seen go unpunished. Whatever it was, the beast seemed to respect it, granting me a few precious seconds before it decided to charge.

When finally it did attack, I was ready. The knowledge (or was it memory?) of how to use my powers was coming back to me, and I knew what I had to do. The monster rushed straight at me, surprisingly quick for a creature of its size, but in this body I was faster and stronger than I had ever thought possible. Leaping upward, I flipped over its "head" and kicked it hard from behind. It pitched forward, slamming into the wall where it had sought to pin me, and I slipped back out of its grasp as it turned.

This time it shot a mass of tentacles at me, trying to ensnare me in the typical H-monster fashion. I dodged, scarcely managing to evade the slimy appendages, and kicked it hard again. This time, though, it reacted more quickly, capturing my ankle and pulling me off my feet. I hit the floor with a thud, scrambling to escape as it started to pull me in.

"Soul Shield!" I heard Sharon's voice call out, seemingly distant, and a gold aura momentarily flickered to life around me. Two more of the monster's tentacles reached for me, only to be stopped short by the energy shield, and finally I was able to kick free of the one which grasped my ankle. I stumbled backwards, leaning on a wrecked table to get back to my feet.

A shudder of revulsion passed through me as the monster laughed and advanced on me again. After all, I was a girl now, too... and based on what I'd already seen, I had a pretty good guess what this... this... *thing* had in mind. "Not today," I whispered, meeting its devilish gaze. I knew now... it had all come back to me. Raising my arms above my head, I called out, "TWIN IMAGE!"

Time seemed to stop, as somehow I had known it would. Warm light flooded my surroundings, as it had with the change. Numbness first, followed by a strange tingling, seemed to wash over my body, until every nerve was afire with the sensation. I looked down to see myself divide, splitting into two exact and identical copies. The lights started to fade, and feeling came back to me... and to me. It was an odd sensation being in two places, in two bodies at once. I saw through two sets of eyes, heard through two sets of ears... the amount of information I was taking in was staggering, and my mind automatically devoted a section of my thoughts to managing the input.

Suddenly I was aware of both Sharon and the monster staring at me. The shock didn't last very long, though, and soon the creature was upon me again. My double and I dove in opposite directions as the monster smashed through the partition behind us, crashing in a heap on the other side. A chorus of screams quickly followed from that room, and I shot a quick glance at Sharon.

"The dealers' room," Sharon breathed, her eyes widening.

"We've got trouble," I answered. "Try to protect the bystanders; I'll..." I glanced at my double and smiled. "I mean *we'll* take it out." She nodded, and the two of me leapt through the wrecked partition and back into the fray.

Evidently these monsters have short memories, because it had forgotten about us already. The trail of destruction it left behind stretched halfway across the room, and it had managed to capture yet another girl in its slimy clutches. "Division Blade!" i called out, this time forming a knife in my hands and slashing my way through to the demon's body. My double, following my subconscious wish, grabbed the would-be victim as I cut her free, pulling her away while I struggled to finish the fight.

The monster lashed out with everything it had left, catching my right wrist and left ankle and lifting me into the air. I grimaced in pain as it started to pull, my shoulder and hip screaming in painful protest as a third tentacle wrapped itself around my thigh. I shuddered violently with disgust, knowing what would come next, and gripped the air-knife tightly in my left hand. I would have only one shot at this. It lifted me up toward its mouth, thinking me helpless, and I drove the blade into its head. The beast roared hideously in pain, then seemed to flicker... and suddenly vanished, dropping me in a heap on the floor. Where it had been, there now lay only an unconscious otaku in a red baseball cap. I let the knife dissipate, pulling myself up to one knee to look him over... he seemed all right, no hint of wounds... what the hell had happened? Whatever it was, it was over now. I shivered once, then closed my eyes, willing my double image to rejoin.

Sharon walked up to me, moving with a weariness that belied her seemingly small involvement in the fight. "You ok, Gem?" she asked. I looked up, startled by the nickname, then nodded. Of course... she couldn't call me by my real name in this body. She smiled at me, and a flash of unreadable emotion flickered momentarily in her sapphire eyes. She placed a hand on my shoulder, whispering a single word. "Lifestream."

I was bathed in a soft light then, and I felt a little of my energy return. At the same time, though, Sharon seemed to weaken slightly, leaning now on my shoulder. "Are *you* all right?" I asked, concerned.

"I'm fine," she smiled weakly. "My powers... seem to drain from my own energy, and I had to help a few people who were hurt. It'll replenish itself in a while, though... it's just tiring." Glancing down at the young man laid out on the floor before us, she asked, "What do we do about him?"

I shook my head. "No idea. I don't think that monster was really him, but..."

Sharon... no, Sailor Cancer, I reminded myself--I had to start thinking of her that way--sighed. "At any rate, we should get him out of here. If he does go ballistic again, we can keep him under control. If not, it'll save him some embarrassment when he wakes up."

"Yeah, you're right," I agreed, leaning down to pick him up. He seemed surprisingly light, especially considering how tired I was; I assumed that meant I was just stronger in my Senshi form... there was irony... I turn into a girl and get tougher, stronger, and faster. Just what I always wanted.

It took some doing, but we managed to get him out of there. Luckily for him, pretty much everyone had fled the scene. Nobody but us had seen him change back, so we just convinced anyone on the scene that the monster was gone, and that the otaku in question was just an innocent bystander that had been knocked out during the scuffle. At any rate, we finally got him up to my friend's room, where we laid him out on the bed and sat down to decide what to do with him.

Sailor Cancer slumped down into one of the chairs wearily, pushing a few loose strands of her golden hair from her eyes. The sapphire-blue of those eyes shimmered with magic in her Senshi form, almost hiding the weariness that lay behind them. She really was beautiful, something in the back of my mind told me, even as exhausted as she was, and I quietly wondered for a few moments why I had never noticed it before. Still, this wasn't the time for such thoughts... there was too much else going on. I dropped into the other chair,
gazing at her a few moments longer before tearing my eyes away to glance at our unconscious guest.

"So..." I asked. "What do we do when he wakes up?"

She shrugged. "Maybe we should change back... if he was possessed, he might not remember anything, and waking up to the two of us might be a disturbing experience."

I shook my head vehemently. "Uh-uh. He might not remember, but if he does, he *might* figure out who we are, and I am *not* taking that chance." I saw the look on her face, and added, "Just because nobody ever recognized the Senshi in the anime doesn't mean we can assume that we have the same protection. This is the real world... and people are not that stupid."

"True," she sighed, though the look in her eyes said she might be inclined to challenge that last part. "Besides, he might go nuts on us again, and then we'd have to change right in front of him. Better to avoid that."

"Right," I agreed, trying to think of something else to say. A few moments passed in silence, my thoughts running in circles. There were things to be said... plenty of them... but before I could put anything into a coherent thought I was distracted by a soft groan from the bed. "Sounds like he's coming around," I observed.

He groaned again, then mumbled, "What a dream." Stirring slightly, he opened his eyes. He slowly sat up, stretching a little as though from a long nap... then he looked in our direction and nearly fell off the bed. "Oh, shit," he breathed, trembling violently at the sight of us. "Tell me I'm still dreaming..."

"'Fraid not," I answered, shaking my head. He shivered again at my tone, and I almost... almost... felt sorry for him then. But not quite. "You weren't dreaming before, either."

"This isn't real," he insisted, stubbornly clinging to his denial. "This is some sort of joke... maybe I'm hallucinating. Yeah, that's it." He cast his eyes downward, unwilling to meet my gaze, laughing nervously. "I've been watching too much hentai."

I leaned forward to glare at him, and that was when I realized exactly where his gaze had traveled. I was a guy, regardless of how I might have looked at the moment... and sitting properly in a skirt was something that nobody had ever bothered to teach me. My cheeks burned with embarrassment and rage as I abruptly snapped my legs together, cutting off his view. "You slime," I snarled. "I'm just about ready to believe that you did all that on purpose."

His head shot back up, a look of abject terror in his eyes. "Don't hurt me!" he pleaded fearfully. "I didn't know... I thought it was a dream, really!" He pushed himself backward across the bed, trying to put some distance between us. I stood up, still glaring at him, and suddenly Sharon was on her feet, holding out her arm in front of me.

"Don't, Gem," she whispered so that only I could hear her. "He didn't know. I can tell." I looked at her questioningly, and she relaxed a little. "I'll explain later. Let him go... you've scared him enough already, and he's not going to do any more harm."

I paused a moment, then sighed, the anger draining away in the face of Sharon's pleading gaze. I couldn't refuse her when she was like that... all compassion and convicton and certainty about what was right. "All right, I trust you." I said softly. Not bothering to look at our perverted guest, I raised my voice again and said, "You can go now, but if I catch you looking at me that way again I'll kick your ass twice as hard as last time. Clear?"

"C-clear," he stammered, and I heard him stumble his way to the door. It opened, then slammed loudly, and I looked to be sure he was gone.

"Damn him," I muttered, turning back to Sharon. She pulled me into a hug, and while I didn't return it I felt the last of my anger drain away. For a few moments she held me there, leaving me wondering how it was that she could have such an affect on me, and when she finally released me she stepped back to meet my gaze.

"Thank you for trusting me," she said quietly.

I sighed, dropping back into my chair. "If I don't trust you, who can I trust?" Not wanting to seem like a total pushover, I asked, "Now... you were going to explain?"

She found her own chair, and clasped her hands in her lap. "Yeah, I don't know how... but I can sense things about people in this form... like I can see into their souls or something. What I sensed in him... he's sick, no doubt there... but he wasn't *evil* like that thing we fought with."

I looked at her doubtfully, but found that I couldn't disbelieve her. "Ok... I'll take your word for it. You think he was possessed, then?"

"I guess so, yeah," she answered. For a few moments, neither of us spoke, and I leaned back wearily in my chair. The events of the last hour had left me stunned... I guess I should have known that where there were Senshi there would be monsters... but I hadn't really had that much time to think about it. Now I did... and the thought was disturbing.

"We're going to have to train."

She nodded. "And look for others. In the anime, there's a Senshi for each planet... do we have one for each sign? And if we do, how will we find them?"

I shook my head, trying not to let it all overwhelm me. Monsters, other Senshi... I really was stuck with this, wasn't I? "I don't know," I answered quietly, more to my own question than hers. "I really don't know."

Regardless of the insanity that my life was quickly becoming, there were certain priorities that remained unchanged. One of those was, of course, food. Whether or not McDonalds technically qualified, it was close to the hotel and I didn't feel like driving very far, so that was where we went. At any rate, I had a funny feeling from the moment I walked in the door.

I glanced at Sharon, and when she did not seem to notice anything unusual I decided it was probably just paranoia, and said nothing. Still, I kept my eyes open, and it was after we had gotten our food that I noticed the two girls sitting in a corner booth. One was a redhead, and even when she was seated I could tell she was tall. Her green eyes were dark and serious, and while her manner of dress was a bit on the provocative side, her expression was all business.

The girl sitting across from her, though, was the one who really drew my attention. Her medium-length brown hair fell loosely around her shoulders, framing soft features that wore an anxious expression. Her attire was both expensive and suggestive, a tight, low-cut red silk blouse and a black leather jacket and pants. She was twirling something nervously between her fingers, a small, pink cylindrical object that looked vaguely familiar. The tugging in the back of my mind intensified...

...and my train of thought was abruptly derailed when Sharon's elbow jabbed me in the ribs. "That's a transformation wand!" she hissed. "Look!"

"I see, I see," I answered under my breath. "Are you sure, though? I can't tell from here."

She nodded to me. "Pretty sure. Only one way to find out, though... let's go." Not waiting for my response, she walked over toward their table. I started to protest, but it was too late to stop her, so I just followed along behind. When she reached the table, she turned to the redhead and said, "There aren't any free tables... do you mind if we sit here?"

I sighed softly, trying not to let my embarrassment show as the girl in the booth looked us over. "I don't think that's a good idea," she said, seemingly irritated. The brunette looked up at me as well, and our gazes locked for a moment. My eyes moved to her hand, which had closed around the object, but enough of it stuck out for me to tell clearly... it was, indeed, a transformation wand.

Sharon evidently saw it as well, because she reached into her own pocket. "I think it is a good idea," she said softly, and yet her voice held an air of command I had never heard in it before. She drew the hand out, holding her own transformation wans out for the others to see. "I think we need to have a talk. Senshi to Senshi."

The redhead raised an eyebrow. "All right," she answered quietly. Her eyes moved to me then, and she added, "Why should he be here, though?"

I stiffened, irritated by her presumption. She was pushing hard, and she didn't have the right. You didn't hear what happened this afternoon, did you?"

She turned to me, her eyes narrowing as she studied me for a moment. "No..." she answered, her tone almost threatening. "I didn't."

I smirked slightly, hoping my mask of confidence would hold up. "There was a fight at the con today... in the dealers' room, no less. I would have thought you would have heard of it. Some kind of... creature... went on a rampage. It was brought down by a pair of girls in sailor suits."

"Meaning?" the redhead challenged. "I assume that your friend here was one of them... where is the other, and where do you come in?"

I sighed and reached into the inside pocket of my jacket. Drawing out the wand, I laid it on the table, pressing it beneath my fingertips. "Does this answer your question?" I asked coldly.

The brunette's eyes went wide, and while she said nothing the shock was clearly evident on her face. For a moment, she simply stared at me, before she realized she was gawking and looked away. The redhead, on the other hand, sighed deeply, leaning her forehead on her palm. "No... please tell me you're Tuxedo Kamen."

I shook my head miserably, looking down at the floor for a moment before I was able to meet her gaze. "If only," I sighed.

She groaned in dismay. "You've got to be kidding... but you're not, are you? When I went out looking for other Senshi, this is NOT what I expected to find."

"I'm sure," I answered with a wry smile. "But we don't always get what we want, do we? Believe me, I don't like it any more than you... but the power chooses us, not the other way around." I paused for a moment, letting the words sink in. "Now... I don't believe we've introduced ourselves. I'm Jonathan... Sailor Gemini, whether I like it or not. She's Sharon... Sailor Cancer. You?"

"Damn," she whispered. "All right. This is Cali," she indicated her companion. "She's Sailor Taurus. I'm Sailor Aries... my name's Ashley, but everyone calls me Ash." She sighed, and shook her head. "What a mess. I think... I think we'd better go somewhere more private to discuss this." Slipping out of the booth, she said, "Come on... let's go."