DISCLAIMERS:
All canon characters are (C) 1992 - whatever year it is Naoko Takeuchi and all other related parties. The Shadow senshi are (C) Wild Nature 2006 - 2007. This is a fanfic based upon the anime version and all written work that this consists of is (C) 2006 - 2007 Wild Nature.

Chapter Five: Trials of Time and Love

Sailor Venus was the first to become aware of the world. Made completely of glass and seemingly hollow, she was quite nervous to move.

“Where.. are we?” Toki looked around. “This feels so strange.”

Sailor Venus blinked. “Where is Pomona?”

Pomona had landed very far from them, nearly surrounded by glass mirrors, her self reflected jaggedly no matter where she turned.

‘I shouldn’t be here..’ She thought darkly. ‘I don’t belong...’

She held open her hand, the cold gem shining brilliant in the cold reflection of light. “How often I dreamt we would meet. It would be a momentous moment, where we would reunite.”

Her fingers tightened, her knuckles turning white. “Why did you chose me? You didn’t bother to get to know me! You gave in to your own needs! You never even bothered...”

“Of course she wouldn’t..” The voice was her own, echoing around her as the mirror selves all turned toward her. “Why bother when she would have had a sniffling, whiny girl for a sister?”

“I mean, come on,” The one directly behind her spoke. “You’ve been lying to yourself from the beginning. That gem is what you really want!”

Pomona flipped around. “I never wanted this! I wanted my sister!”

“Oh yes,” the one from her right snickered. “And you wanted to share Papa and Mama? You’re the most selfish creature to exist!”

Pomona’s eyes watered, staring at the gem. ‘Maybe they’re right..’

“But just once.. just once, I wanted to see you smile..” She whispered, her eyes closing tightly. “Oh, Kira, how I longed to find you. Why did you chose me? You never even bothered to listen to me! Were you so lonely, so lifeless that you had to leave me again?”

‘What if she never left?’ A softer voice, her own but gentle came from a lone glass mirror. She moved toward it, the other mirrors emptying of the other selves the closer she got to the lone mirror.

Pomona knelt down on her knees, looking up. “But where is she?”

The mirror smiled and pointed to her chest.

“That’s what’s always said,” Pomona looked up. “What if I’m not the right choice? What if I do her dishonor?”

‘Being chosen is her love...’

Pomona’s eyes widened, the tears having gathered spilling.

‘She never knew consistently that she had someone. Another life, a new time, she was only alone but her heart said otherwise. She chose you not because you would be best but because she was telling you..’

‘It’s all right, sister.. I know you’re here and lonely. But the others are there for you and you will be a wonderful and beautiful person. I will watch you from above and give you my blessing in the powers of love. For your heart knows only such and only you can make the world smile.’

Pomona smiled, looking at the mirror. “Are you sure.. you’re not making it up?” She asked, her voice wavering.

‘The heart knows what to say and it knows not lies but the truth. Love is a tool to be molded, to save. Pomona! You are the new Shadow of Venus! Wear it with pride, a brimming heart of love and she will live on forever within you, spread across the stars!’ The mirror’s voice echoed warmly, gaining in strength and volume until the other mirrors around crashed and shattered, one by one as Pomona stood up slowly.

“I will love.. I will fight..” Her voice came out stronger the more she spoke. “My sister, my family, my people, my Queen, my friends, for myself! I am a Shadow born of the love, I am Shadow Venus!” She shouted as the mirror in front of her cracked and crumbled. The world above was alit in sunlight, blinding for a moment before she smiled and raised her hand to shout.

“Nepheline Holy Love, Make Up!”

She felt her heart fill within her. Her fuku formed as she breathed in with surprise. Her tiara was a yellow band with a oversized orange orb in its center, and shoes were the same as in her circus form. Her choker was double black threads, a round orange orb in its center, the sign of Venus attached at the bottom. Her collar was orange outlined in yellow on its back edge. Her bodice was the same but her brooch was a round orange orb, a set of four arrow pointed crystals on each side, a set of four small points jutting out from in between each larger point. The top edge of the bodice was lined in a yellow metal bar that curled in at the meeting between the point of where the black piece would tie together.

She had a thin yellow metal band wrapped around the tops of her gloves, much like an outlined armband. Her gloves were yellow orange and meshed fabric, a orange orb still on the backs of her hands. Her shirt was double layered, the top being orange and the bottom transparent yellow orange mesh. Her waistband was the same save that the yellow strap was metal and the midsection connected with four looped beads. The slender tails trailed down to the backs of her knees.

She raised her hands slowly, the twin daggers forming, brimming in orange energy. “Sister.. you gave me this and I will do everything... I will do everything for love..” She smiled before hearing a shout. She turned and saw the other two running toward her. She shouted back and took off to meet them halfway.

“Look!” She said proudly.

Sailor Venus blinked. “How did that happen?”

“I faced.. my inner demons and finally.. I finally let her go,” Pomona shifted, feeling a bit embarrassed by that simple admission.

“But you needn’t worry, Pomona. We’re never alone. All of our loved ones always exist in some form. We just can’t seem them sometimes,” Toki smiled as she sat down with a long sigh. “Phew, this place is stunning but I’m afraid the floor will crack and there will be nothing underneath.”

“I wonder how Usagi’s doing,” Sailor Venus fretted.

“Can’t you trust her?” Shadow Venus asked finally. “I mean, you guys are always worried about her. We let Eizou do as she wants.”

“But you shouldn’t do that,” Sailor Venus stared in surprise. “We must work as a team. But with Usagi, we need to protect her at all costs.”

“Why?”

“She is our Princess.”

“So being royalty makes her better than you?” Toki frowned. “Not a fair deal.”

“We are sworn to protect her but it’s goes further than that.. really!” Sailor Venus smiled at the two girls staring hard at her.

“She is a dear friend of mine, someone who saves not by power but by will, by heart,” Sailor Venus closed her eyes. “She gives a purpose to be who I am and who I am is Sailor Venus.”

“I am also Aino Minako as she is also Tsukino Usagi and she is one of my best and wonderful friends. She gives so much and I want to give to her.”

“I awoke first, did you know?” She smiled whimsically. “I hadn’t realized what my duty was till before they awoke and to be reunited with them, all of them, made me feel whole.”

“Feel whole..” Shadow Venus blinked. “I felt unbalanced since the loss of the Shadows. When I realized that I would be able to find them again, I felt such a joy... but then, I and the few others believed in them. We still do and would do anything for them.”

“But what do we do now?” Toki asked reasonably. “Sailor Venus has her princess, her friends. Surely we have friends but is friendship our goal? Our duty? Or is it for someone else?”

Toki blinked. “I keep having the same moment in my eyes..”

She closed her eyes, drifting into memory. “Familiar violet eyes, a warm smile.. Eizou keeps looking at me but I keep thinking it’s all of us and she’s become something I can’t grasp but I feel so wonderful..” She opened her gem.

“I became a Shadow when Pomona found us. I only had the wish to help her, to help those she said we needed. I never knew that not only is it a gift, it is a curse.”

“Everything will eventually tie into Eizou,” she said carefully, looking up. “Like you must protect your Sailor Moon, we must protect Shadow Moon until she is ready for whatever task is at hand for her.”

“We are the Shadows. We are those counterparts of the Stars but blessed by the elements anyways. I don’t have any doubts about what is in store with us.”

“Then how do you awaken your now dormant stone?” Shadow Venus asked quietly.

Toki stood up slowly, turning toward a glass mirror jutted halfway up. She knelt down and reached out to place palm first upon the reflection.

“We gave birth to a new land that will eventually call us back. A place of energies that control all others. Just like the Moon, like Elysian, it is a place for us, for us to find and return.”

She smiled at the reflections of both girls behind her. “We must save not just Earth, we must save our people..” Her fingers tightened. “The Dead Moon Realm.. we must save them and I will not falter in that decision..”

She stood up. “For we represent them. We do a poor job then they will not be accepted. If Usagi swears to help them, then so do I! For if a Princess not even from a place that was rumored to be night, then surely, I, that all of us, will be able to save them? We are not weak because we cannot transform, we are stronger because we are growing and transforming into those that our people do believe in!” Her voice vibrated with the passion she felt, deep within her soul just waiting to fill out the whole area.

“Toki..” Shadow Venus smiled wetly.

She smiled and gave a small nod before opening her hand to reveal a shining gem. “Nepheline Holy Time, Make Up!”

Her fuku formed, distinctly different. Her tiara, and shoes were the same but her choker was double black threads, a round silver orb in its center, the sign of Pluto attached at the bottom. Her collar was silver outlined in yellow on its back edge. Her bodice was the same but her brooch was a round silver orb, a set of four arrow pointed crystals on each side, a set of four small points jutting out from in between each larger point. The top edge of the bodice was lined in a yellow metal bar that curled in at the meeting between the point of where the black piece would tie together.

She had a thin yellow metal band wrapped around the tops of her gloves, much like an outlined armband. Her gloves were gray mesh fabric, a silver orb still on the backs of her hands. Her shirt was double layered, the top being silver and the bottom transparent gray mesh. Her waistband was the same save that the yellow strap was metal and the midsection connected with four looped beads. The slender tails trailed down to the backs of her knees.

There was a moment of silence before a single strip of crackling echoed in the distance.

“What was that?” The three turned and saw something erupt from the glass surface. It was a nearly black dragon, with fiery brick red hair and cold gold eyes. It was huge, at least as long as half a football field as it heaved into the air, the think, spiny wings fluttering momentarily before catching the gust it sought out.

“We should run,” Shadow Pluto said finally as it leered over them. “But then, where can we go?”

“From where it came from!” Sailor Venus smirked. “Let’s go!”

The three of them dove underneath the beast, as it howled and attempted a one eighty only to fumble over the huge wings.

“Quickly!” Sailor Venus jumped into the blackness underneath the glass, the others following in a heartbeat.

They landed on a soft, plush ground, the dust catching slightly in the air but quickly settling. “There’s a light down that way!” Shadow Venus pointed out.

“Got no other way to go..” The three came to a door, several people tall but light to the touch. It swung to reveal a well light cavern, a single pedestal standing upright.

“Pretty!” Shadow Pluto studied it. “For three hands. Who wants to go first?”

Shadow Venus placed her hand down. “I’m not chicken, see?”

Shadow Pluto took the other side, leaving the center print free. “I never said you were,” she pointed out teasingly.

“Oh, shush..”

Sailor Venus placed her hand down, momentarily distracted by outside noise signifying that the dragon was fast approaching.

She was then furthermore distracted as she felt two separate energies. Unlike the others that could be distinguished by elements, time and love were in forms of spiritual colored energy, red and blue vying for Sailor Venus. She watched a heart crystal form and turn a deep red before reverting to a familiar orange, the blue energy fading instantly.

“Venus Elemental Merge, Make Up!” Her fingers grasped the crystallized energy, watching it delve into her body as she felt her fuku change drastically.

Her hair bow was orange, with three frongs and longer tails. Around her head, starting on each sides was yellow beads attached in a necklace. Her sigma blazed upon her brow to radiate. Her earrings were dangling Venus symbols. Her choker was a yellow strap, with a blue heart in its center, the Venus symbol dangling from it. The collar was orange, with white frilled edges. Her brooch was white, heart shaped with a yellow outline and cross on the inside, the two top sections with two blue round gems. The bow was only half, the top portion with the edges divided into three frongs.

The bodice was chest and waist only. The breast plating was white, with the section starting underneath the breasts to end at the hips in a partial opening slit in the front center view, was yellow. The bottom edge was blue. In the center front view was a blue heart etched into the yellow fabric. From underneath ending of the waist, jutted out a orange dress with a white frilled edge.

Her sleeves began off the shoulder, with a transparent orange puff of fabric, the top and bottom edges wrapped in blue. The rest of the arm to the wrists was covered in white fabric, the ends frilled. The back bows were blue with three frongs and very long tails. Her orange high heeled boots were knee high with a blue heart in front view and on the top edge. From this blue heart came white additional fabric that wrapped around the top edge. At the ankles were additional white loose fabric.

“Whoa! That’s a funky look!” Shadow Venus pointed out.

“Oh, and we’re not Gothic?”

“What’s Gothic?”

“Look out!” The door to the cavern was blown out by a fiery shot, the black dragon dragging itself in, the wings folded inward as it lowered it’s head for an attack.

“Freezing Spacious!” Shadow Pluto raised her arm, a swirling of iciness forming into a orb that shot out in a wide diameter. The edges of the dragon’s wings, ears, and feet as well at tail turned to ice as it felt momentarily stuck.

“Lovely Strike!” Shadow Venus pulled out her twin daggers, brimming in orange auras that she unleashed as she slashed the air in a x pattern. It struck at the beast, causing wounds to form and begin to turn to dust.

“Sailor Venus!”

“Right on it!” Sailor Venus grasped her chest. “Elemental Heartthrob Envelop!” The energy gathered in her fist as she pulled it away from her chest formed into a blade that she ran with, picking up speed as she aimed and then struck out at the dragon’s chest. It glowed in hot red before it turned to dust and just as the three were about to cheer, the world around them swum to refocus into the place they had begun in.

They were about to move when Duchess Nerthus was heard. “Not yet, wait. There is one more trial yet.”

And then, all eyes turned to Eizou and Usagi, both who looked as if they were very, very far away.