Michiru sat by the side of the pool in a lawn chair in her swimsuit with a pink button-down and holding a conch shell to her ear, lost in her own little world. Outside, the town of Juuban was painted with a gloomy shade of gray, the rain pouring down. Then, Haruka walked up, leaning over the chair's head and staring down at Michiru, which caused the girl to open her eyes.
"It's not fair," Haruka spoke quietly. "Going off into your own little world like this and leaving me behind."
Michiru smiled as she set her conch shell down. The two were silent for a while, and neither said a word.
At last, Michiru spoke. "A dream woke me up this morning," she said. "I've had a strange feeling ever since then. It's unlike anything I've ever felt before. I take it that you've picked up on it as well?"
"Of course. It's been quite clear," said Haruka. "There's no mistaking it. Today, for sure, a talisman will appear."
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Eudial was busy typing away on the computer in the lab, connecting a strange makeshift floppy disc made of some batteries and a can.
Tomoe then entered. "Eudial, what are you doing?" he asked. "And how long have you been here?"
"I've been here all night working on a new program," said Eudial. "If it works, it should allow me to pinpoint a pure heart that contains a talisman."
"You mean you'll be able to figure out exactly who has a talisman?" Tomoe asked with a hint of surprise. "That's a surprising way to spend your holiday. Are you sure it'll work?"
"I'm confident that it will, Tomoe," said Eudial, as she continued to type away. "Once I do, I'll finally be able to find our true targets and will finally gain an advantage on our enemies! And once we get them, we'll be that much closer to making our dreams a reality!"
As Tomoe came to inspect, Eudial finished typing, and the computer began showing various men and women on its screen, scanning if they were talisman holders.
"Well, for your sake, I hope this program of yours works," said Tomoe. "Master Pharoh 90 is growing impatient, so this might be your last chance."
"Don't worry, Tomoe. It will," reassured Eudial. "Unlike before, it's now scanning only the top possibilities. When it's finished, we should be able to pinpoint exactly whose heart holds a talisman."
Then, the computer let out a chime as it showed the image of their actual targets on display. When they saw who they were, Eudial and Tomoe were shocked.
"N-No way! They're the ones who have the talisman?!" Eudial exclaimed.
"What a surprise!" said Tomoe. "Well done, Eudial! If your program is correct, we may be able to obtain the talismans in no time!"
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The next day, Usagi and Harusuke walked around town, heading home. The two had just gotten out of school and went to the shop for pork buns. As usual, Usagi was happily munching away on them, enjoying their sweet taste.
"Man, these things are so delicious!" Usagi squealed in delight. "I can never get enough of these."
"Can you at least try to save some until after dinner?" Harusuke sighed. "I mean seriously, Sis. You're like a black hole."
"Come on, Harusuke. I'm a growing girl," Usagi grinned. "And a girl's gotta eat."
Harusuke wryly smiled as they continued walking. Then, as they turned around the corner to their street, Eudial suddenly appeared before them.
"Hello, Usagi and Harusuke Tsukino," greeted Eudial coolly. "I hope I'm not interrupting a precious moment between siblings."
The Tsukinos were surprised that they dropped their umbrellas and buns. "Eudial!" they cried.
"Surprised? Now that I know your secret identities, it was easy to find out where you lived," smirked Eudial. "And I also know your little friend Minako lives as well."
Usagi grasped her brooch, and Harusuke reached for his bracelet, preparing themselves to transform, but then Eudial held up her wand, aiming it down the street.
"Ah, ah, ah. Let's not be too hasty now," warned Eudial. "Otherwise, I might be so inclined to use your precious home as target practice for my Fire Buster."
The Tsukino scowled, knowing Eudial would make good on her threat, and lowered their hands.
"Come now. I wouldn't be so worried. I'm not here to fight you, at least not right now," went on Eudial. "I only came to tell you some surprising news."
"And what news would that be?" demanded Usagi.
"Quite impatient, aren't we?" Eudial teased. "Very well. I'll tell you. To come straight to the point, I've located someone who has a talisman this time."
Harusuke and Usagi's eyes went wide.
"Say what?!" exclaimed Usagi.
"You're bluffing!" Harusuke accused. "There's no way you could have!"
Eudial cackled. "I did, and I wanted to share some of my good fortunes with the two of you," she went on. "Verily, I thought that you two would join me since we're both searching for the same thing. In case the two of you are still suspicious, this isn't a trap or anything, and I haven't revealed your secret identities to my superiors."
Eudial then took out a piece of paper from her top and threw it towards the two, and Harusuke caught it.
"If you're both interested in checking it out, come to the location designated on the map," said Eudial. "I'll be so glad if you both came. Bye-bye."
And in a flash of dark energy, Eudial was gone. As Harusuke and Usagi stood there in the rain, speechless and grim, they didn't see that two girls were watching nearby and had heard and seen everything.
"So, what do you think?" asked Michiru. "I get the feeling that she was telling the truth this time."
"Yeah, me too," said Haruka. "That would explain the feeling we've been getting. So I guess it's finally time for us to strike, which means..."
Haruka then looked at her hand, now looking more emotionless than before and knowing what she and Michiru were about to do.
"My hands got dirty a long time ago," Haruka thought to herself. "There's no turning back now. I'll do whatever I have to do to get that talisman."
Then, Haruka felt the warm touch of someone's hand touch her own, causing her to look up. That hand belonged to Michiru, who wore a face filled with sadness. At first, she held it, but she started playing with her fingers, interlocking them with her own every so often.
"What's the matter, Michiru?" asked Haruka.
Michiru then looked into Haruka's eyes and smiled, her face now filled with longing and meaning. "Haruka, it'll be all right," she said quietly. "No matter what happens, I'll always love your hands."
Haruka couldn't speak as the rain continued to fall.
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The Tsukinos hurried home as fast as they could, and when they made it, they told Luna what had happened and showed her the map Eudial gave them.
"So Eudial's finally located a talisman," said Luna. "And according to the map, it seems to be located at the Marine Cathedral that was still under construction. That seems too good to be true to me. I don't like this."
"No kidding," agreed Harusuke. "This whole thing reeks like a trap."
"But what if it isn't?" questioned Usagi. "If Eudial has found a talisman, that means another innocent life is at risk. We can't take any chances. We have to go and stop her."
"Normally, I don't like the idea of you two rushing in without a plan, but I agree," said Luna. "I better get into contact with the other Guardians. We're going to need everyone on this. And watch out for Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune. Once they find out about this, they will want to claim the talisman for themselves. In the meantime, you two head over to Hikawa Shrine to meet up with the others."
The Tsukinos nodded in response, and the two took off, leaving the house. The rain had finally stopped as the clouds had begun to break apart. The two barely ran a few blocks down and were turned around the corner when two shadows barred their way in the darkness. However, as the clouds moved across the sky, a ray of sunshine broke through, illuminating the two shadows revealing who they were. They were Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune, both having icy stares as if they were cats that cornered their prey.
"Sailor Uranus! Sailor Neptune!" gasped Usagi. "What are you two doing here?!"
"Don't worry, we won't be long," said Sailor Uranus. "No, that's not right; this will be the last time you will ever see us again, Sailor Moon and Solaris."
The Tsukinos tensed up upon hearing their names.
"You see, word on the grapevine is that Eudial has finally located a talisman and has given you both the map of where it is," said Sailor Neptune. "If you know what's good for you, you'll hand over that map and stay out of our way."
"There's no way we're doing that!" objected Harusuke.
"Please, Uranus and Neptune. We're all Guardians!" begged Usagi. "Can't we work together to find the talismans? If you give us a chance we-"
"We won't allow your opinions of how we should be fighting to get in our way any longer," Sailor Uranus spoke firmly. "If you won't hand over the map, then you leave us no choice."
Sailor Uranus then suddenly shot forward, appearing in front of Usagi, and grabbed onto her Transformation Brooch, trying to rip it off her. Usagi struggled as she tried to pry her off, but she couldn't. Finally, Sailor Uranus ripped the brooch off, pushing Usagi to the ground in the process.
"Hey! You leave her alone!" Harusuke yelled as he rushed in to save his sister.
But then, Sailor Neptune cut him off and, using her speed, appeared just in front of him and gave him a hard punch to his stomach, knocking the wind out of him.
"Please, forgive me," Sailor Neptune whispered. "I didn't want things to come to this."
Harusuke could only let out a rasp of agony as he crumpled to the ground. Sailor Neptune then unfastened his bracelet, taking it off, and took out the paper containing the map in his pocket. As Usagi recovered, she saw her brother on the ground rushing over to help him while Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune held up their transformation items.
"We'll hang on to these for now," said Sailor Uranus.
"We'll give them back after we've obtained the talismans," added Sailor Neptune.
And the two turned to leave.
"Please, wait! You've got to stop taking pure hearts from people!" Usagi cried.
"Don't you care about what happens to them at all?!" Harusuke choked out while holding his stomach. "Are you two seriously that heartless?!"
"That's enough!" barked Sailor Uranus. "We already told you our goal! We're searching for three talismans sealed away in pure hearts. If we don't gather all three of them, the Holy Grail will never appear."
"The Silence is coming to this world, and everything we know and love will die unless the Messiah has the Holy Grail," Sailor Neptune spoke grimly. It's the only one who can use its power to save us. Our mission is our business, not yours, and if you two even think of interfering, you'll both die, too."
And before Usagi and Harusuke could say anything more, the two Guardians took to the skies, shooting into the air, disappearing into the clouds.
"Damn it, they got us this time," grunted Harusuke. "And they took our transformation items."
"We have to stop them!" said Usagi as she helped her brother to his feet. "If we don't, someone's going to die!"
"Then it looks like you two could use a little bit of help," said a voice.
The Tsukino looked up and saw a figure wearing a coat and hat and recognized them.
"It's Specter!" gasped Usagi.
"Seriously? That's Specter?" coughed Harusuke.
"My, oh, my. It seems that Uranus and Neptune have jumped the gun this time," mused Specter. "I have to say; it's pretty bold even for them." They tipped their hat. "They're heading towards a pretty dangerous battle, one predetermined by their destiny. Tell me, do you two want to save them? If so, then I can take you to Eudial's location."
"You can?!" exclaimed the Tsukinos.
"I can," said Specter. "But just to warn you, you two will be put in even more danger, considering you two can't transform right now. Do you still wish to go?"
"We don't care!" Harusuke spoke firmly. "If you can get us there, then please take us!"
"Yes! We want to help them, so please Specter!" begged Usagi. "Help us!"
Specter chuckled as they pulled their hat down slightly. "Now that's what I want to see. You kids got guts. Then again, I'd expect nothing less from you two."
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Meanwhile, Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune were soaring across the ocean, following the map they took from the Tsukinos. And it wasn't too long before they could see a large structure up ahead of them. The building did indeed look like a church, but it also had strange shapes and designs. Soon, the two stood outside the church's doors, ready to venture inside.
"So this is the Marine Cathedral. It looks like it's still under construction," said Sailor Uranus. "And I guess the person with the talisman must be somewhere inside already."
Sailor Neptune then reached for her partner's hand, squeezing it tightly. "Uranus, you understand what we have to do, right?" she spoke tentatively. "We're going to take that talisman no matter what. If one of us were to fall, the other would have to continue alone."
Sailor Uranus gave a mirthless smile without looking. "Do you have to remind me?" she spoke with confidence. "As if you needed to remind me."
Sailor Neptune also smiled, letting go of her hand. "Just making sure," she said quietly.
The two of them opened the doors and went inside. It was very dark and quiet as they walked in, entering a lined corridor with red stone panels with pictures of cupid on them that seemed endless.
"Geez. Talk about rude," huffed Sailor Uranus. "Did Eudial invite the Tsukinos just to play hide and seek?"
Then, Sailor Neptune stopped and looked back, her gaze particularly fixed on a panel to their left. At first, Sailor Uranus wondered what was going on, but then suddenly, the panel popped out, shooting out from its place and into the middle of the corridor. Next, several other boards popped out and formed a long line from both sides, trapping the two guardians in the middle.
"Damn it. So it was a trap after all," Sailor Uranus murmured. "I should have known."
Then all of the panels suddenly came to life, shooting straight towards the two, forcing them to go on the defensive. Sailor Uranus and Neptune dodged and weaved, trying to avoid getting crushed.
Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune then went on the attack.
"URANUS WORLD SHAKING!"
"NEPTUNE DEEP SUBMERGE!"
Both guardians fired her signature attacks at their commands, destroying one stone panel after the other, shattering them into rubble until they were all destroyed.
Sailor Uranus smirked with triumph. "How was Eudial?" she grinned. "Is that all you got?"
But the Guardian spoke way too soon, for a stone panel appeared and shot straight towards her, catching her by surprise.
"Uranus, look out!" Sailor Neptune yelled.
Sailor Uranus looked back to see Sailor Neptune push her out of the way as the panel slammed straight into her sending her flying and smacking her to another one back first. Stunned and dazed from the impact, Sailor Neptune began to fall forward, appearing to be unconscious, but the panel she had slammed into suddenly turned like a revolving door, sweeping the Guardian away as it closed up.
"Neptune!" Sailor Uranus cried.
Sailor Uranus desperately ran over to the panel, only to see it disappear into the wall, fading away. At that moment, an organ's song began to play in Toccata and Fugue's tune in D Minor. As the music played, Sailor Uranus also heard the sound of Eudial's triumphant laughter coming from a loudspeaker.
"Too bad for you, Sailor Uranus!" Eudial crowed. "I've taken the talisman holder!"
"What are you saying?!" demanded Sailor Uranus as she looked around for the source.
"You know, I felt completely fooled," went on Eudial's voice. "I'm willing to bet that not even you two never realized it."
"Answer me!" yelled Sailor Uranus, losing patience. "I said, what are you talking about?!"
"I'm saying that one of the talismans holders is someone that may surprise you," cackled Eudial. "It's none other than your partner, Sailor Neptune."
Sailor Uranus was shocked, not believing her ears. "Neptune's the talisman holder?!" she repeated. "Impossible!"
"That's right, and I'm going to go ahead and extract it from her now," giggled Eudial. "If you want to watch me do it, go to the chapel down at the end of the corridor."
Not wasting any time, Sailor Uranus ran down the corridor as fast as her legs would carry her and soon came to the chapel. When she got there, she saw a large organ at the other end of the room, which was the source of the music, and in front of it was a frightening and awful sight. Sailor Neptune hung up on a stone panel with red vines binding her legs and feet like crucified.
Upon seeing her, and without hesitation, Sailor Uranus rushed towards Neptune, desperate to save her. But then, the stone panels that lined the corridor all turned sideways, revealing several holes, all aimed at Uranus. Before the Guardian could react, every single one began rapidly firing at her at once like machine guns, unleashing powerful bullets made of energy. Uranus shrieked in pain as the shots assaulted her, the force of them knocking her to the floor flat on her back.
The music stopped, and Eudial appeared, walking up to Sailor Uranus' downed body.
"You fool. You completely fell for it," Eudial maliciously smirked. "If anyone other than me passes over this bridge, they'll be punished by God."
"D-Damn you, Eudial," Sailor Uranus winced. "Since when have you been a believer?"
"Just so you know, I haven't extracted the talisman from Neptune yet," said Eudial. "I've decided to extract the other talisman first."
"The other one?" Sailor Uranus gasped, now confused. "There are two of them here?!"
Eudial then summoned her gun and pointed it directly in the middle of Uranus' bosom. "That's right, and I'm looking right at its holder," she said. "Like the Death Busters and me, you and Neptune were willing to kill anyone to get the talismans when all you had to do was kill yourselves to get one. How ironic."
Sailor Uranus smirked bravely. "If that were true, then I doubt I have a talisman," she spat. "Talismans are inside pure hearts, and mine is anything but pure."
"We'll see soon enough," smiled Eudial. "Of course, once I shoot you with this gun, you'll die either way."
Then, Sailor Neptune opened her eyes, regaining consciousness, and when she saw Eudial about to shoot Uranus, something inside her snapped. Using whatever strength she had, she ripped herself free from the panel and ran across to the bridge, desperate to save her comrade. However, the panels activated again, setting their sights on the Guardian of Sea. They began to fire at once, bombarding Neptune with their powerful bullets. Sailor Neptune screamed as the attacks showered her with pain, knocking her to the ground hard. But rather than give up, Sailor Neptune got back up, every inch of her body hurting, as she struggled to walk.
"Wait, Neptune! Don't move!" Sailor Uranus shouted. "Stay away!"
"I-I won't," Sailor Neptune gasped defiantly. "I... I won't let you die, Uranus. I refuse to."
Once again, a storm of bullets shot at Neptune, making her let out another shriek of agony and knocking her flat on her back. The woman's outfit was in tatters, and her skin had bruises and wounds all over, but despite it all, Sailor Neptune bravely got up, pressing on towards Sailor Uranus and Eudial. The panels aimed once more, preparing to fire, but this time, nothing happened, the only sound being a puff of smoke.
"Damn it! Out of ammo!" cursed Eudial.
Sailor Neptune then used whatever strength she had to charge at Eudial and grabbed hold of her gun, trying to wring it out of her hands. But in her haste, and due to being so surprised, Eudial accidentally pulled the trigger, shooting her gun directly into Sailor Neptune's chest, knocking the pure heart straight out of her.
"NEPTUNE!" Sailor Uranus cried in horror.
After a few seconds, Sailor Neptune's pure heart crystal emerged when she fell lifelessly to the floor. But unlike the other pure heart crystals before, it changed into another object, which was a hand mirror that was gold and green and had the symbol of Neptune on the back of it.
Eudial was amazed, while Sailor Uranus was shocked.
"So it's true," Sailor Uranus murmured. "The talismans were sealed inside of us this whole time." She looked up towards the ceiling. "Oh, Messiah. Is this the price we must pay for our actions? Is this the punishment you've given us?"
"So this... this is a talisman!" Eudial said with delight. "Finally! After all this time!" She then returned her attention to Sailor Uranus. "Now then, I believe I'll be taking yours next."
Just then, two voices shouted out while the stained glass on the ceiling began to shine.
"Hold it right there!"
Sailor Uranus and Eudial looked up and saw two people standing in front of the door. For a brief moment, Uranus saw a female with long beautiful hair with butterfly wings and a male with a pair of angel wings, but they turned out to be Usagi and Harusuke, who rushed over to the rescue. Both Tsukino charged together and tackled Eudial knocking the gun from her hands and sending her over the edge, making Eudial fall right on top of a crane's hook. Then, with a slight clang, it started to rapidly lower, taking Eudial down with it. Usagi and Harusuke rushed over to Sailor Neptune while her talisman still hovered over her body.
"Sailor Neptune! Wake up!" begged Usagi. "You got to pull yourself together!"
"It's no use," said Harusuke. "She's out cold. Not to mention, I'm willing to bet that mirror hovering over her is a talisman, and since it's got her symbol, it's most likely hers."
"Then we got to put it back inside of her somehow," said Usagi. "There's got to be some way."
"Stop, both of you," Sailor Uranus spoke. "Leave that alone right now."
The Tsukinos looked over at Sailor Uranus, who was now so expressionless; it was as if all the light she had in her eyes was gone entirely.
"It's fine. Our job was to find the talismans, and we succeeded," said Sailor Uranus quietly. "Therefore, our mission is finished. Guess I won't be needing these anymore."
Sailor Uranus dug into her pocket and threw two objects in front of the Tsukinos, Usagi's brooch and Harusuke's bracelet.
Sailor Uranus then looked across to Sailor Neptune's slumbering body. "It's not fair, going into your own little world like this," she said with a saddened smile. "And as for the two of you, don't go doing something so reckless without transforming."
Then, Sailor Uranus saw Eudial's gun and grabbed it, and knowing what she was going to do, Usagi and Harusuke tried to wring it out of her hand.
"No! Don't do it!" begged Usagi.
"There's no reason for you to shoot yourself!" Harusuke cried.
"Yes, there is!" snapped Sailor Uranus. "I've got a talisman inside of me, too!"
"But there has to be a way to save the world without the talismans!" Usagi objected.
"And how is that?!" Sailor Uranus demanded.
"We don't know yet, but we will find a way!" said Harusuke. "We swear to it! Just please don't take your own life like this!"
Sailor Uranus scowled, but it softened into a heartfelt smile. "It's weird. When you two say it despite everything that's happened, I can almost feel like you two could do it," she said quietly. "When you two showed up back there, I almost thought Usagi was the Messiah and Harusuke an angel, which is pretty ridiculous."
Usagi and Harusuke were puzzled, lessening their hold on the gun, only Sailor Uranus giving them both a hard shove and knocking them to the floor.
"Sailor Moon. Solaris. Make sure you two find the last talisman," Sailor Uranus said. "And save this world."
And before Usagi and Harusuke could stop her, Sailor Uranus pointed the gun to her chest and pulled the trigger, the bang echoing throughout the chapel.