Usagi saw stars. Little yellow and black spots danced in front of her eyes and obscured her vision. She realized in shock that she was about to pass out.

  Then Rubeus dropped her, and sweet oxygen flooded into her lungs. She coughed as she sucked in breath after breath.

  Rubeus chuckled.

  “Well, this is no fun at all, princess. I had hoped you’d put up a bit more of a fight.”

  Usagi struggled to her feet and took on a fighting stance. Rubeus laughed.

  “Oh, there she is! Princess Serenity!” His tone took on a dark edge. “Transform for me, princess. Show me what you can do.”

  Usagi knew she could not fight him as she was. She had no choice. Her hand sprung up into the air and she called down her transformation.

  “Moon Light Powers! Make Up!”

  The light engulfed her and wrapped her in its embrace. Ribbons of pure energy coalesced around her like a cocoon. When the light faded, she was no longer Usagi Tsukino. She was Sailor Moon.

  There was no hesitation. Sailor Moon charged at Rubeus and unleashed a flurry of punches and kicks. Rubeus dodged them all with superhuman speed. Every time she was certain she would land a direct hit, he had already moved out of the way.

  “This is a sad display, princess. I heard you had become a formidable warrior. What a joke.”

  He backhanded her across the face and sent her sailing across the room.

  She jumped up, determined. Her hand moved to her chest and her harp sword appeared in a flash of light.

  Rubeus smiled and removed one of his black crystal earrings. Dark energy crackled around the crystal as it grew in his hand until it was the length of a katana.

  “Care to cross swords, Sailor Moon?”

  His mocking tone was starting to irritate her. She charged at him once more. Their blades collided in a spark of light and dark energy. As they swung their swords at each other, Sailor Moon wondered if she could defeat him.

  As it stood, she was alone. Her Guardians were still powerless. If Rubeus beat her, then she would die.

  ***

  Makoto’s ears still rang when she came back to her senses. She pushed herself off the floor and glanced to the left. Naru was lying beside her, unconscious. Her chest was rising and falling in a steady rhythm. Good. She was alive.

  If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  Makoto turned her head and saw Sailor Moon engaged in a sword fight with a red-haired man dressed in black. The black crescent moon on his forehead told her everything she needed to know.

  The red-haired man used his free hand to punch Sailor Moon twice. She stumbled backwards, her guard down. He took advantage of the moment and rammed his black sword into her shoulder. She cried out in pain and sank to her knees, dazed.

  Makoto cried out in fear for her friend.

  “Usagi!”

  The man ignored her. He stared down at Sailor Moon, a wicked smile on his lips.

  “I guess without the Silver Crystal, you’re not so tough, after all. Oh Serenity, I’ve waited so long for my chance to kill you.”

  He raised his black sword high into the air, ready to strike.

  Makoto had seen enough. She picked up the old cash register from the nearby counter and threw it with all her might. It caught Rubeus by surprise. The register collided with his face and knocked him to the ground.

  He stood back up. Anger had replaced his arrogant smirk.

  “Who dares…?!”

  His eyes landed on Makoto.

  “Jupiter?”

  Makoto’s blood ran cold. He knew her. There was a connection between their new enemy and their past lives, after all.

  The man kicked the still-kneeling Sailor Moon hard. She crumbled to the floor. Then he turned his attention to Makoto.

  “You’re going to regret that.”

  Makoto had to think quick. She needed to buy time for Usagi to recover.

  “Put down your sword, you wimp. Fight me fair. Let’s find out who’s the better fighter…or are you afraid?”

  It was a gamble, but from what she had seen, his actions reeked of overconfidence. He looked at her for a moment, then grinned.

  “Oh, this is going to be fun. I’m going to enjoy hurting you.”

  Makoto brought up her fists in a defensive posture. He was strong and fast, and she had no powers. It didn’t matter. She was a Sailor Guardian.

  For Usagi. For the Princess.

  She stood still and waited for him to make the first move. There was anger in his posture, in his face. She had hurt him, even just a little. He would make mistakes.

  He charged toward Makoto and swung his fist at her face. Rather than dodge or step back, she stepped toward him and closed the distance between them. Before his wild swing could compensate, she brought up her palm in an uppercut against his jaw.

  His mouth clattered shut, his feet lifted off the ground, and he stumbled backwards. His eyes widened. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

  Makoto beckoned to him with a wave.

  “Come and get me.”

  He charged at her once more. Again, Makoto did the unexpected. She waited for him to come into range, then struck at his knee with her heel. He tumbled forward. His momentum carried him straight into a headbutt. He collapsed to the ground.

  The red-haired man crawled away from her, then pulled himself up next to the counter. His face was a mask of fury.

  “You! Have! No! Powers!”

  She smiled at him to stoke his anger further.

  “I don’t need powers for a punk like you.”

  For a moment, she thought his head might explode. Then he seemed to regain control of himself. He grinned at her.

  “And I don’t need to ‘fight fair’.”

  A dark energy crackled around his hand. He stretched it out toward Makoto. Before she could dodge, it shot out and struck her square in the chest.

  Makoto felt herself lifted off her feet and thrown against a wall before falling back to the ground. Something inside of her felt…broken. The dark energy continued to crackle around her body.

  The man stood over her now, an evil twinkle in his eye.

  “You shouldn’t have challenged me, Jupiter.”

  He started kicking her, again and again. Her back, her chest, her head. She cried out in pain, cried out for him to stop, but he continued his assault. She tried to hold on, hoping that Sailor Moon would come to her rescue.

  Instead, the darkness took her.