Disclaimer: Rally doesn't own Sailor Moon or any of its characters. Naoko Takeuchi, TOEI, Kodansha & Pioneer do. Rally also doesn't own Sailor Ra\Reina Makobi. Reina is a creation of Ladybug Oblivion (used with permission). Rally also (also) doesn't own Kia Toshi. He's a product of Bubby (also used with permission). Rally does own (finally) Tomo, Nightshade, Hemlock, Belladonna, Tia Cleonia, Osaka and the whole concept of MISQ.
Note: Based loosely on a game that my sisters and brother played through. Hence all the do-not-belong-to-Rally OCs.
The rest of the occupants of the room were unaffected by the restraint of the moonlight. They were quite a lot on their own. Known as the Neo Queen's Moon Intelligence and Security Quintet (MISQ) or Misc. they were the most secretive of the Moon Kingdom's organizations. Never had Floribunda managed to infiltrate Misc.
The only member of Misc Tomo ever talked about was the Princess Usagi, who currently had her right hand covering her face in a pitiful attempt to control her rising anger.
"Are you ready to speak, yet?" the princess grinded.
Nightshade tore her eyes away from her cute little toes to focus on the pink haired, five and a half foot interrogator. "Nightshade. General First Class of the Floribunda Army of Collections. Identification Tea Rose 914."
"That's all she's said for the last six hours!" cried the shortest member of Misc. She was around 5'3" but slouching against the wall she dropped almost half a foot.
The princess held up her hand for silence. "Where is Kumada Tomo?"
It was getting really old. "Nightshade. General First Class of the Floribunda Army of Collections. Identification Tea Rose 914."
The hand went back over the princess' face.
The little one pushed lightly off of the wall to stare Nightshade in the face. The girl's gaze seemed to go through Nightshade for a moment, before the girl cast a look of pity.
"Who is it you're trying to protect? Yourself? Your King? Your country?" What kind of questions were those? "Or is it Tomo?"
Nightshade's stomach leached. Tomo? Why would she think that? A small pain pierced her chest.
"It IS Tomo, isn't it?... Why?"
It's NOT true.
"You're not going to get anything out of her that way." Princess Usagi buckled down a new strategy. "Help us, help you. Tell us."
Half a dozen little whirlwinds had taken up residence in Nightshade's head; too little sunshine and too many subject changes. "Oh, like I haven't used that one before!" Okay, she let something slip. She could fix this.
"Ah! The mute can speak!" came the smart-ass reply.
"When I choose to." This whole thing had to end sometime.
Like a lioness closing in on her weakened prey, Princess Usagi pounced. "Good. Choose to. Now, where is Kumada Tomo?"
Nightshade would have rolled her eyes at the childish display, but the whirlwinds were picking up speed. Can't be tough when you're unconscious. "Far away if he's smart."
"Why do you say that?"
Was this a pleasant little television interview? "Oh, let's think about this for a moment, little princess. Tomo is a traitor to the crown. In most places that's a death sentence."
"The Moon Kingdom isn't 'most places,'" she spat back.
"Oh, really? And your queen has NEVER killed anyone for marching against her throne?"
"No!"
Nightshade nodded. "Does the name Queen Beryl mean anything to you?" Usagi's jaw dropped. "What about a visionary calling himself the Death Phantom? Kunzite? Rubeus? Is that enough or shall I continue?"
"That... was different?"
"Different? How? They ALL marched against your queen and they were all destroyed by her!"
A member of Misc who had been silent up until then piped in. "For one thing, they were never a part of the Moon Kingdom. For another, they gave our Queen no other choice. You would know that if you'd met her."
The spies were right about the Neo Queen. She had her people so bent on worshipping her that they couldn't see the truth if it was shoved in their faces. "I'm sure I would," she said in her most condescending tone.
"I'm sure you would," the princess echoed. "Para Para, go find out what's keeping the meeting."
Para Para turned out to be the little one with the piercing gaze. She bobbed out a sliding panel in the wall.
"Jun Jun, refrisk her for weapons and bring me that thing on her arm."
"Aye aye! Cap'n Usa!" Jun Jun was about as fragile as a steel door and had an expression to match. She cautiously inspected Meinohana, never actually touching it until she was sure it was safe. "So, what's this thing for anyway?"
"Purely cosmetic."
"Uh, huh. That would explain the tremendous amount of plant energy it's giving off." She dared a touch and when there was no reaction she pulled the vine from Nightshade's hand. Meinohana convulsed hard enough to force an "oof!" from Nightshade.
"Ves Ves, some help?"
"Right," shouted the redhead. She slid in next to Jun Jun, taking a hold of the top of Meinohana.
The whirlwinds in Nightshade's head finally took over, sending the world into blackness.
When Nightshade came to, Meinohana was in the possession of Misc and the little blue messenger had returned and was whispering something in the princess' ear.
Princess Usagi's eyes narrowed. "My mother's a bit of a boogeyman in Floribunda, isn't she?"
"Boogeyman?"
"A monster."
Monster? Sort of. Who could trust someone so sun devoid and cold-crystally? "You'd know more than I."
"Well, you're about to meet her."
Meet the queen?
Meet the QUEEN!?!
How could they be so stupid? It was a simple matter of death. No queen, no Moon Kingdom. Floribunda's rule would be ensured.
Princess Usagi took a moment to patronize her prisoner by smiling and saying in a honey-laden voice, "I know what you're thinking and it won't work. My mother's that good."
Quite the little mama's girl, wasn't she?
"Ami-chan!" she shouted into the air.
"I'm on my way," came a voice from out of nowhere.
Impressive comm. system.
A few seconds later, a woman with short black hair slipped in holding a small crystal-based device. She bowed to the princess. Nightshade remembered her face from the numerous training holos she'd had to watch through her childhood. The woman was Mizuno Ami, more commonly known as Sailor Mercury.
"Will it work just like the last time?" the princess asked.
"Of course, but this one is less touchy and much stronger."
"We'll need it with this one," supplied Ves Ves, from Nightshade's left.
"Thank you, Ami-chan." The princess dismissed the elder woman and turned to her captive. She smiled. Nightshade realized she hated the girl's smile. "Time to meet Neo Queen Serenity, Ruler of the Universe." She ran her fingers over the crystal device. The moonlight restraint dissolved, slowly lowering the Floribundan to the icy stone floor.
Nightshade flexed her arms, legs and fingers to work out confinement cramps. Shackles of solid silver moonlight clamped around her wrists, cutting her off in mid stretch. "You are quite the tyrant, aren't you, little princess."
Princess Usagi shrugged and then began spitting out orders. Jun Jun and Ves Ves were to escort Nightshade to the throne room where the Queen was waiting. Cere Cere was to take Meinohana to "The Lab" and Para Para was with the Princess.
Regardless of all Nightshade's hopes and dreams her guards were extremely competent. They never exchanged a word and supported Nightshade in her failing strength.
As expected the throne room was on the upper level of the palace near the center of the building. The doors were made of a white substance, probably some form of moonstone, with intricate friezes of the processions of ancient gods. A line of a carved little flower Nightshade didn't recognize separated each level of the frieze. The door opened to reveal a chamber the Floribundan general would never have expected.
The throne room was VAST. It could easily encase a quarter of the Floribundan Royal Palace. The ceiling was a clear crystal dome, opening onto the vastness of space and a segment of the blue planet below. Columns rose to circle the center of the chamber, with no other purpose than to look exquisite. They too were covered with the beautiful flower carving.
At the opposite end of the perfectly circular room, past the columns, were the Queen's Warriors. A group of Senshi that large could cause a heart attack in anyone softer than the Heave Big Floribundan General. Either that or they would automatically flow to the Neo Queen's side, giving up their own values in the process. People were not individuals in the Moon Kingdom. They were merely the Queen's automatons.
Nightshade quickly counted the Senshi and Knights. There were only six people missing of ALL the Queen's Warriors; King Endymion, Princess Usagi (Sailor Moon), Sailor Pluto, Sailor Saturn and of course Raven Knight. Something seemed to burn the back of her neck at the thought of Tomo. He had to be all right. Hemlock would have found him and taken him to safety.
She brushed the thought away, concentrating on batting away another blackout spell, while keeping her chin high, eyes forward. Her foot landed on something softer than the moonstone floor. It was a white carpet that led straight through the center of the gathered Warriors to where the throne had to be waiting. The Warriors parted to reveal what was at the end of the carpet way. There was no throne, just a short young woman dressed in white and gold. Her hair was silvery white and done up nearly identical to the princess'. She wore a gold crown on her head, but Nightshade had NEVER heard of the Neo Queen having any more than one daughter, who was fifteen.
Nightshade was led right up to the girl, each of her guards nodding respect to the girl.
The girl bowed to Nightshade. "Welcome to my home," she said sweetly. "I am Neo Queen Serenity."
Yeah, right! And the Nureen Fighting Fish could fly! "No offense," Nightshade began unable to control the sarcasm in her voice, "but I thought you'd be bigger."
The "queen" smiled. "I get that a lot."