View source for Happy birthday, Sakura-chan

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<div class=Section1>

<p class=MsoNormal>Disclaimer: I don’t own the characters from Sailor Moon; and
I don’t own the characters</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>of Suburban Senshi, either. Archangel, however, is mine all
mine! :) </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>And with that out of the way...</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Happy
Birthday, Sakura-chan.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if 
!supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal>October 11, 2907 &#8211; Magellan Castle, orbiting Planet
Venus,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>20:50, Venusian Standard Time &#8211; Infirmary Room of the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Princess Venus</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
mood was tense. You could have been blind, deaf,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and mute, and still have noticed this.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
</span>And it had every good reason to be; it hadn’t been</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>more than a week since the disastrous King Jeruka</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>attack. Nobody had thought that such a thing could ever have</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>happened; the Ganymede station was thought to be safe,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>one of the most secure facilities in the sector &#8211; but the
horrific </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>creature had made a mockery of all those boasts, tearing its
</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>way into the place, intent on one thing &#8211; killing
Sakura</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Xadium Aino. And frankly, anyone that got in the way. That
this</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>attempt had been foiled cut no ice here; the level of
security</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was triple what it had been then. Discreet, but sending an</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>unmistakable message &#8211; it would not happen again. Not
here.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Magellan Castle had not been made as a fortress per se, but</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>today, it could 
have taken on an army of invaders with</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>ease. The newest inhabitant of the castle had yet to </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>arrive; until she was safely here, no person within</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the castle walls would think of sleeping. Not that anyone</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was at the moment.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Not
least within the castle’s refurbished</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>infirmary. There, all was activity and bustle; the </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>contractions were still far enough apart that things </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>weren’t at a crucial stage just yet, but even so, </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>seeing as whom the mother happened to be, nobody</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>wanted to look as if they had any idle time. Not with</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the mood 
she was in, at any rate.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“X-chaaan!”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
named Time Lord winced at the </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>volume, not to mention the timbre that Minako Xadium-Aino</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>(or Aino-Xadium, depending on whom you asked, and when)</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>could put into her voice. Her room, though large, was at</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the centre of a hive of activity; nurses, orderlies,</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>all buzzing around them, making sure that everything</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was in optimal readiness. And to ensure that there</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>were plenty of moving targets around. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Minako
had experienced, so far at least, a</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>relatively easy pregnancy. There had been fears that,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>due to the mixture of differing genetic materials,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>there would be complications unknown to a normal</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>human birth. Up until nine days ago, nothing out </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>of the ordinary had happened. “A freeze,” as the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>lady herself might have said. And then been</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>corrected. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>That
changed the night of October second. And</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>even now, as he moved closer to his wife’s side, Dr.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Xadium could see the fear hiding behind her</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>eyes. Even a normal human pregnancy had its</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>risks; there were all sort of things that could</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>go wrong, big things, little things, but this...</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>having a baby is a stressful occurrence at the </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>best of times, as anyone will tell you. Having</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a baby not ten days after a serious assassination</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>attempt is an exercise in managed stress that would </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>kill most people. But not Sailor Venus. She might not</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>be 
able to transform, but even with the fear, she was</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>determined to have as normal a birthing as she could;</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and for that, he could only admire her.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Yes,
dear?” he asked, looking quickly</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>at the large table next to her bed. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
</span>Minako had just about everything</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she needed at this point; drinks, food,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>magazines... the combined resources of the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>castle had come together to make sure that</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>their mistress had everything and anything to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>keep her happy, entertained, and most</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>importantly, occupied. In her condition,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>even if she was Princess here, there wasn’t much</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that she could do to help her own defence, a fact</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that annoyed her to no end; despite the fact that</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that along with her own security forces, she had</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the combined strength of the Outer Senshi, and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>as many of the Inners as could make the trip.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>The fact that any attempt to help would only</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>hurt the very life that they were all trying to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>protect made it that much worse. But most of</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the time, she hid it very well. Like now. Even</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>with the annoyed expression that she was</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>aiming at him, he could tell that she 
was making </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the best of things.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Mohh,
where were you?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Slightly
ducking his head in apology,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he replied, “Sorry. As I was coming back from the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>TARDIS, I ran into Sailor Mercury; the official</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>consensus is that everything is going </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>well. You’re making excellent progress...”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Swell...”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“...And
the latest security report is</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>in; we are at High Alert Status Level 3. The sensor</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sweeps are coming in a constant negative. We are,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>at the moment as sa-”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Shhh!!”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Shaking
her head at his confused look,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she replied, “Baka; you’ll jinx it.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Right;
sorry.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>A
smile replaced the frown. “You’re</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>forgiven, itoshi. Now, come sit.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Xadium
gladly complied; increased hormones</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>had made for mood swings, and some harsh words over</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the months, but never for long. And the ‘making up’</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>afterwards...well, every thorn had its rose, right?</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>He pulled up a chair, and sat next to her. And noticed</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>the empty spot amongst the clutter.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Did
you bring it?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
nodded, feeling a little bit of his</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>good mood slip away, as he brought back to mind</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>why exactly he’d gone to his vehicle in the first</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>place. Reaching into one of the many pockets in his</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>photographer’s vest, he pulled it out, and gently</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>handed it over. For a moment, neither one said </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>anything, and Minako simply looked at it, her eyes and</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>face etched in sadness.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
picture was very old by now; some nine</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>centuries, if you stopped to think about it. On two</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sides of the shot, two groups stood &#8211; Haruka, Jedite,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Michiru, Chibi-Usa, and Dr. Tomoe on the left; on the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>right, herself, Xadium, Hotaru, and...her. Standing </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>there next to them, her robes bright and pristine,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she looked every inch what she’d been in life; strong,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>silent, an implacable warrior against the dark forces...</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a true miko, and a damn good friend. All right, back in the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>day, she’d been as sarcastic, 
disruptive and destructive</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>as anyone, in her own understated way. Even at her worst,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she’d never lost the steadfast qualities that had made her a</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>good person. Here, though, dedication came at the highest</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>price; King Jeruka was gone, but so was rei.bot, and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>‘second version’ or no, she still felt the loss.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
extra weight on the bed made her look up. Xadium</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sat beside her, ignoring the dirty looks of the medical</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>staff. He put his arm around her, and gently squeezed.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>“Those were good times.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Yeah;
good ol’ Ten’Aino House. Always something...”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Her voice choked off, and she closed her eyes; for a </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>long silent moment, husband and wife, each in their</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>different way, gave thanks for the life and </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sacrifice that had kept them alive in the darkest</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>of hours. Until she was returned, rei.bot would be</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>remembered.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>That
much, at least, she was owed.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:3'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Magellan
Castle Security Control, 20:55</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Here
was a level of activity no less</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>than the infirmary; there were just more guns around.</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>Ranks of men and women manned huge banks of high-</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>resolution monitors; every scan on multiple frequencies,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>multiple angles, random patterns &#8211; no mistakes.
Period.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>And with no less than Sailor Saturn leading the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>operation, there wouldn’t be &#8211; nice woman that she
was,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>but nobody wanted to see her angry.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>It
was not a pretty sight.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Hotaru
watched the monitors unblinkingly,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>quietly leaning on her 
glaive. She’d stood like that,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>never moving, and watched, for three hours now; and </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she was perfectly capable of doing so for another</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>three, another five, another ten if need be. She </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>would watch every monitor, one by one, again and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>again, unceasingly, until she’d found what she</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was looking for.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Because
something was wrong; badly wrong. She</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>hadn’t said anything yet, but she *knew* it. Some</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>small thing, some tiny detail, was off, somewhere;</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a camera not pointing quite the right way, a patrol</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>route not fully mapped-out &#8211; 
something. Close, far,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she couldn’t tell; but the feeling was bone-deep,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and it wasn’t going away. Maybe it was just her</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>paranoiac side reacting to the situation as of late,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>but with so very much riding on what happened in the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>next few hours, she honestly didn’t care. Artemis,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>on seeing the look on her face, had immediately</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sent out the order to double the perimeter guard;</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he’d been with her long enough to read that</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>particular expression, know what it meant,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and trust in its accuracy implicitly. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style="mso-spacerun:
yes">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He was out there right now, with
Jedite</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>of all people, making another sweep of the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>western quadrant. The two didn’t get</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>along, but tonight, enmity was buried in</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>favour of pragmatism; Hotaru loved her </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>husband dearly, but she’d made it clear to all from</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the outset that she wanted total focus on the task</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>at hand &#8211; deviation from this would not be tolerated.
Haruka</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and Michiru were in the south, Setsuna and Chibi-Usa</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>were in the north, and what Inner Senshi that had come,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>other than Ami, were heading teams spread over the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>various points in between. With Setsuna, too, one</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>look was all she needed; the normally cryptic</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>woman had 
merely nodded, and gone to collect the younger</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>woman. With them on constant patrol, </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>with Ami heading the medical teams and in constant</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>contact with Minako, and with Xadium by his wife’s</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>side, most would consider things to be going well.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>And besides, it beat sitting around in a waiting</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>room, enduring yet another round of squabbling.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Factor
in nearly seven hundred troops, eight</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>thousand separate cameras, and three orbiting</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>security satellites (two of whom seemed to be having</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>constant technical difficulties, though) on different</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>orbital tracks, and even a cautious person might</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>venture that the net was foolproof. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>She
would not. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>They’d
thought themselves safe on the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Ganymede Platform, with its three hundred security</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>personnel, plethora of cameras, and elaborate sensor</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>suite, whose coverage extended four hundred</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>square kilometres into space. Ganymede had fallen.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Magellan Castle would not, could not. Far too much</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>depended on the line being held, here. Their most</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>powerful ally had fallen in their defence; and in her</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>honour alone, to say nothing of her love and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>respect for Sakura and her sempai, the Senshi of</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Ruin could do no less than to be a guardian of the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>same calibre, the cost be damned.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>But
she still couldn’t see it.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:3'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Castle
Library &#8211; 21:00</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
chimes were striking as the six-man</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>team wrapped up their sweep of the library. It had</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>been only their third of the day; the castle complex</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was extensive, and seeing as how Lady Saturn had</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>insisted on randomly rotating patrols and routes,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the teams had covered a lot of ground. Not that the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>library was small, either; nearly 40,000 volumes,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>spread in a concise way, but in a large area. Add to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that the various tables shelves, mirrors, and about a</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>million other furnishings, all of which needed to be</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>checked, and you had a two-story ‘room’ that took a </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>good hour to search, and that was at a clip. Which was</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>what they had to do to make up time.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Then
the clocks had struck &#8211; all four of them</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>together, discreetly, but still a pretty distracting</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>noise. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Of
the team beyond this point, no footage</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>exists.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:3'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Minako’s
Room, Castle Infirmary &#8211; 21:10</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Husband
and wife sat side by side,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>their moment of remembrance for rei.bot over </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>for now. Minako’s contractions were getting</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>closer together, but Sakura wasn’t quite ready</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to make an appearance yet. So they waited; and the wait</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was getting to be difficult &#8211; if anything, the cordon</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>around, and even inside, 
the large room had increased.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>The report they’d just got back from Hotaru had not been</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>good; an entire security team apparently vanished into </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>thin air, in front of at least two different cameras &#8211;
</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>so someone was here uninvited. Hotaru had redoubled the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>patrols, but so far, zilch.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Xadium
was just finishing a joke about a Dalek, an</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Auton, and George W. Bush, when his communicator</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>went off. Excusing himself, got up from the bed.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Yes?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Yo,
X; Haruka here. How’s it going?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Hello
Haruka; so far, everything’s fine.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Any news?” </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Nothing
at the moment. ‘Taru-chan still can’t </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>find that team, and she’s had us looking </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>every-[BLEEP]n’-where.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“I
see; no movement otherwise?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Nah;
zippo. Me and Michi are just</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>finishing a look in the main hall, and &#8211; whuh?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Faintly,
Xadium could hear Michiru’s voice,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>calling. Haruka asked him to stand by, and after</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a silent moment, the Senshi of Uranus came back</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>on.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Uh,
X, Michi just checked the front door,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and I think she’s found something.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Xadium
glanced over at Minako, who continued</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to flip through a magazine. “What is it?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>More
silence.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Uh,
well, you’re not going to like it.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
sighed. “Haruka, please, just tell me</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>what it is. I’m not in the mood for any surprises </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>today.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“...Yeah.
Listen, could you meet us at</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Security Central? I think you’re gonna want to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>see this thing personally.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Very
well. I’m on my way. Out.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“X-chan?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:3'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
</span>Minako
looked up at him, the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>magazine forgotten. “What did Haruka find?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“She
didn’t say; but she thinks it’s serious,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>whatever it is. I’m just going to have a look; I’m</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sure it’s nothing much. A glitch.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>She
just looked at him.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“...but
I’ll have them turn on the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>vid link, so you can see it as well. Rest</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>assured, 
dear, you won’t be kept out of the loop.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>She
motioned for him to lower his head, and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>rewarded him with a kiss. “Thanks, love; I know I can’t</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>fight, but not knowing what’s happening is the real</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>pain in the mutt.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
smiled, and kissed her softly on the lips.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>“I’ll be right back.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>As
he closed the door behind him, Minako </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>frowned. No doubt about it; the situation </p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>sucked. People had disappeared, there were</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>guards everywhere, and worst of all, she couldn’t</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>help. And it was getting to X-chan, too; they were </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>both trying not to let it show, but he had to be</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>really tense to not correct her. And she was</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>worried about him; he wasn’t a fighter, but she</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>knew he felt as helpless as she did, and if </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>what Haruka had found turned out to be </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>significant, he’d want to help &#8211; but since</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>his horrific run-in with the Goddess Venus</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>(not her; she could never have done that to </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>him), things were different. He only had the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>one life, and despite having ‘fulfilled 
his</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>biological function’, she wanted him to stick</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>around, to be the loving husband and father that</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Sakura herself had implied, and that she knew,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he’d be. The future wasn’t set in concrete, and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>as much as she loved him, she didn’t want to </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>lose the man she loved the most just because</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he wanted to play the hero &#8211; even if it was</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>with the best of intentions.<span style="mso-spacerun:
yes">&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:3'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Security
Control, conference room &#8211; 21:20</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>It
was a simple card; the scans told </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the assembled Suburban Senshi so. No magic, no</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>holograms, no flashy voice messages. Just a simple</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>business card, plain white, left on the special</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>little shelf in the entrance hall like so many</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>others. What was causing the problem were the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>things written on it.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Three
symbols; a yellow circle, slightly</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>flattened and turned on its side. Just below it,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a matching pair of folded birds’ wings &#8211; black. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Nothing else. But they all, even Minako, who’d only</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>ever seen it once before, knew what it meant. Their</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>‘visitor’ had a name.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
</span>“Archangel.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
group ignored the level of venom</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>in Xadium’s voice. Since their initial meeting on</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>twentieth-century Earth, the two men had totally failed</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to get along. Archangel blamed Xadium for persecuting </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>him, while Xadium held the white-haired Time Lord in </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>high contempt, considering him no better than his</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>criminal father, the Master. The two had finally</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>parted company, on particularly bad terms, </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>when Xadium had lifted Archangel’s</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>travel ban in the 2150’s. ‘AA’ had 
sworn never</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to have anything to do with Xadium, or his kin, </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>friends, or associates, and hadn’t been seen</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>since. That he was here, now...</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“But
I don’t get it.” Minako took the </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>floor.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>She’d
been shown Archangel’s ‘calling card’,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and hadn’t reacted that much &#8211; on the surface of
things,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she supported her husband, but bluntly, as she’d never</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>had that great an issue with the other man, it was </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Xadium’s feud, not hers. If he wanted to pursue 
it,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that was up to him. Underneath, she was as worried</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>as anyone; she’d seen the hate in Archangel’s eyes</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the day he’d left, and if he’d nursed that kind</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>of feeling for as long a time as seven hundred years,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>they might have to kill him to get him to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>stop. Even so, something didn’t seem to add up. She </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>continued.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Why
would he be here? I mean, if he really </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>wanted to...start a fight with X-chan,” she said,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the slight pause showing her concern, “Aren’t there</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>better places and times than this? He must know how</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>much security we’ve got around. Trying to attack</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>now would be suicide; crazy.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Hotaru
nodded, her face grave. “I agree. But</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sempai, you have to concede that he might not actually</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>care about that &#8211; ‘crazy’ may be a very apt</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>description.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Haruka
piped up. “ ‘Taru’s right, neko. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Suicide run or not, if he wants a piece of X</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>or any of us that badly, he’s not gonna care</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>about odds. But you’re right; he can travel</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>all over time, so 
why now? Something stinks</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>here.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Xadium
looked at the blonde woman, an</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>eyebrow raised.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp;
</span>“Oh? How so?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Well,
even though when he left, he said that</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he never wanted to see us again, he didn’t mention</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Sakura. Seems to me that out of any of us here,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she’s the only one he gives any kind of a damn</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>about, right? I mean, she is still his godchild,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>right?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Minako
nodded, pretending not to notice</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Xadium flinch. Haruka continued.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“He
knows that this is where and when she</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>gets born &#8211; so he also knows that if he tries</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to start something, here and now, she could</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>end up hurt.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Jedite
shifted slightly, and spoke</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>up. “Agreed. He may hate the parents, but he’d</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>never lay a finger on the child, directly </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>or not.”</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“That
still doesn’t answer the question”,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Setsuna interjected. “His feelings notwithstanding,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he is here. The question now becomes, what do we</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>do with him?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>They
took a moment to consider this. As tense</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>as things were then, more bloodshed was the last</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>resort &#8211; enough lives had been lost already. Michiru</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>broke the silence. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“I
say that we organize a search for him, 
and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>once found, we detain him. This is neither the time</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>nor the place for overwrought, childish games. With</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>him out of the way, we can concentrate on any other</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>threats.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>This
met with murmurs of assent from </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>everyone; far better to contain him for now, and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>deal with him later. Minako decided to make it </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>official.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Okay
then; those are the orders; teams, led</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>by us, are to concentrate...itai...on finding and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>detaining the 
individual known as “Archangel”, until</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>such time as the all clear’s been given. Simultaneous</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sweeps inside and outside the building. Are we</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>agreed?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
group voiced their agreements; Minako</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>technically wasn’t ‘on duty’, but she was Princess</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>here, and so far, everyone had treated her as their</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>nominal boss. As they began to make their</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>way out, Artemis voiced the last concern.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“I
have a question.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Everyone
paused.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“What’s
our policy if things get...ugly? If he</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>won’t come quietly?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Haruka’s
eyes widened in disbelief at the </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>question, but Xadium’s answer cut dead any riposte</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that she was opening her mouth to give.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“He’s
an animal; we put him down like one.”</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>With
that, the Time Lord stalked out</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>of the room.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:3'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>So
very nearly time. All the preparations</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>completed, and the guests invited. All was in</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>perfect readiness. But there needed to be one</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>more arrival before the show could truly begin.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Because
without the star, a show is </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>nothing at all.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:3'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Interrogation
Room 5 &#8211; 1, 21:55</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>And
then, he was just there. Twenty</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>minutes of intensive searching and scans come</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to nothing, and then there he is, just</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a-walkn’ down the corridor, in his his</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>neat suit and tie, with his gentleman’s</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>cane; Gallifrey’s Bertie Wooster, just out</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>for a stroll. With a wrapped, elegantly</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>gift-wrapped, package under his 
arm. He</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>didn’t so much as raise an eyebrow when Artemis’</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>team confronted him; he simply handed over package</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and cane with polite grace, nodded a greeting to its</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>leader, and politely inquired after the health of</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the castle’s mistress. Even when the incensed Mauian</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>backhanded him, he made no effort to fight back. He</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>just nodded, mostly to himself, and had wordlessly</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>held out his wrists to be handcuffed. And they’d</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>gone, him cuffed and shackled, multiple weapons</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>trained on him as the team met up with Jedite’s,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>down to the detention level. The tension so</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>thick that you could choke, and still, not a</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>word, a gesture, a look; he was the epitome</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>of the model prisoner. And it was</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>driving them all to distraction.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>This
was all a part of some game; they</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>all knew that. He’d revealed himself, on his own</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>terms, when and to whom he’d wished &#8211; so what</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was the game now? Distract them from an</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>accomplice? Put them off-guard, and somehow</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>escape? The possibility did exist. But would</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he?</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Jedite,
Artemis, Xadium, Setsuna and</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>Hotaru questioned him. Xadium was pacing like a</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>caged lion &#8211; the contractions were coming closer</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>together than ever, and Minako was dilating</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>quite a bit now; she still wanted to be in</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the loop, but frankly, she didn’t need to see</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>this. (And truth be told, she hadn’t fought</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the decision not to include her, because</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>if she had to be honest, she didn’t want to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>know.) He wanted to be there, to help</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>her. And the fact that he was here instead, trying</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to wrest details out of this devious, tight-lipped</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>bastard, (not, mind you, that he’d be able to </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>physically help in the actual fighting) 
had</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>driven him to his one last, ragged nerve. Fifteen</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>minutes of maddening silence, except for his</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>polite greetings as they’d entered the room. Question</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>after question, and it was like talking to a damn</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>waxwork. And then his patience went. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style="mso-spacerun:
yes">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He calmly walked around the table,
looked</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>down at Archangel for a moment, and without</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>any preamble, kicked at the back legs of the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>chair so hard, the other man slammed into</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the table chin-first, loosing a tooth. In almost</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the same second, he was being pinned to the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>back wall by his lapels &#8211; and 
looking</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>into the eyes of a *very* angry man.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Why
here.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Xadium’s
voice was low enough that Archangel</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>had to strain to hear, but the look on the man’s face </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>spoke in volumes that were easy to detect. Time to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>talk.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“To
mark such a happy occasion, my boy. Why</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>el- whuf!”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Xadium
didn’t even flinch as he drove his fist into</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the other man’s gut. He let Archangel drop, and bent</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>down to whisper in his ear.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Now’s
not the time to try my patience,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>*Acolyte*. They might hate my doing so,” he jerked</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>his head to indicate the others, “But they won’t </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>mourn your death &#8211; any of them.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Catching
his breath, Archangel chuckled,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>letting the insult pass. “Are we still jealous 
of</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that? My my; and yet you seemed so grateful when she</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>stabbed you in the hea-”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Hotaru
moved a little when he was kicked into the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>floor, face-first; but she could’ve just been adjusting</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>her chair. The others didn’t so much as twitch. He’d</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>asked for that one, frankly. Xadium was so tense about</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Sakura’s birth and Minako’s safety that it was </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>bringing out facets of his personality that</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>nobody wanted to see &#8211; away from Minako, he’d been</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>snappish, impatient, and on one occasion before this,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>very nearly violent; he needed an 
outlet. Archangel</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>had never brought out the best in him at the most</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>tranquil of times; only an idiot would provoke a </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>man in Xadium’s position &#8211; and they owed Archangel</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>nothing. So let him suffer.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Archangel
was slow in rising to his knees, but that</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>smile was still in place, though battered. He looked over</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>at Jedite. “Has he been taking lessons from you? That was</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>quite the hit.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
former dark general frowned impatiently. “Just</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>answer the 
man, insect; or do you enjoy him beating you</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>down?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Adjusting
his now battered glasses, the ‘insect’</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>replied, “My answer is this, Mr. Runway Stain; I’m here</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to present my compliments, give my gift, and witness the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>birth of my beautiful goddaughter. Why else would anyone</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>be here and now? The décor? Oh hello Mr. Fist-” And he hit</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the ground again, and before he could recover, Xadium had</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>picked up and slammed him face-first into the wall.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Don’t
you get it?” SLAM! “That 
isn’t</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>good enough!” SLAM! “You’re not welcome here!” SLAM!</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>“You are *never* welcome here!” SLAM! “You - ”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>SLAM! “will never - ” SLAM! “ Be welcome - ”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>SLAM! “As a part - ” SLAM! “Of my - ” SLAM! “Family - ” </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>SLAM! “You will never - ” SLAM! “Be part - ”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>As
he pulled back for the hardest blow yet, Setsuna</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>stood. “Stop!”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
eyes that turned themselves on her were not those</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>of a rational man &#8211; but the beating stopped. Setsuna
ignored</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the wild 
rage in Xadium’s face and calmly said, “You must </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>go.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“But
he hasn’t sa-”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“I
know. But the contractions are coming closer</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>together than ever now; if you don’t go *now*, Sakura will</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>be born without you.” She gestured to the unconscious man</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>in his grip. “And do you really want to miss something </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that important for *him*?<span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>After
a very taut moment, the rage seemed to subside,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and Xadium’s face took on a more civilised cast. As an</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>afterthought, he dropped Archangel to the floor, and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>smoothed his hair back into place.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Indeed;
he isn’t worth it. It’d be bad form to hold</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>my child with that *thing’s* blood on my hands.” He </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>turned to leave. “Very well; if I’m needed, I’ll be in the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>infirmary.” He glanced to the Senshi of Time. “And you
*will*</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>let me know if he says anything, correct?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Of
course.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Xadium
left, Artemis not far behind. The others</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>relaxed, and waited for their ‘guest’ to find consciousness</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>again.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:4'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
</span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Operating
Room, Magellan Infirmary &#8211; 22:05 VST</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>It
was time; ready or not, here comes Sakura</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Xadium-Aino.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
room was the usual birthing chaos; nurses relayed</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>information, instructions, and encouragement, 
lights
flashed,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>machines went bleep, (someone was in the corner filming it</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>all), and the centre of attention, the mommy-to-be, was</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>making very clear to her beloved partner, through the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>intimacy of a gripping hand, exactly how she felt about
trying</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to squeeze what felt like a bowling ball out of a very small</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and tender space. So really, business as usual. And everyone
had </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>long since tuned out what she was saying &#8211; except for
Xadium,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>who was quietly hoping that when she saw the baby, she’d
forget</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the threats about what she’d do to him if she ended up like
this</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>again in the future. Not that she’d have any idea where to
find</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>that many sporks &#8211; or the beaver and the outboard
motor, either.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>But still...</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Cliché
though the phrase is, most of the actual birth *was*</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a blur; voices, colours, words. Ami was the centre of the
storm,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>barking orders to those around her, and softly instructing</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Minako. Xadium himself did what he could (although those Le</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Mahz classes felt like they’d been eons ago), and hoped. In
a</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sense, he knew the outcome, but there’s no true father
anywhere</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>in the universe at a time like that who doesn’t worry. So he
did.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>They’d hoped for a T-section, a delivery by 
matter
transportation;</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>but with the stresses of the recent days, nature had
bypassed</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that option; and there were two things that husband and wife
had</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>agreed upon &#8211; one, that they’d tell Sakura, when she
was old</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>enough, that it had been a T-section. They had no illusions
that</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she was going to be a precocious child, and her knowing that
an</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>attack on her parents had been an indirect cause of her
birth would</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>not sit well, whether she learned the fact at two or at
twenty. The</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>other was that the next time they found themselves in a
delivery room, they</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>*would* have a T-section. And the second motion was one that
both</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>were more than happy to 
ratify.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style="mso-spacerun:
yes">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>So many possibilities,
all swirling around this very moment...</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>death, life, pain, pleasure, all together...the chaos began
to </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>rise to a peak, then slow, and stop. And that wonderful
first </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sound &#8211; lusty young lungs testing the air, the baby’s
first</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>cry. And then mother and daughter meeting; soft brown eyes</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>met ocean blue for the first time, and the bond was forged. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Minako’s voice jarred him out of the spell, and he moved</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>closer, putting his arm around his new family. Minako </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>shifted the precious bundle slightly, and father and
daughter</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>shared their first 
look. And what he’d ‘known’ before became</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>definitive; there would be nothing &#8211; no risk, no
price,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>effort or barrier that he would not overcome for her. Now, </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he had *two* important women in his life.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>It
felt good. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:4'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if 
!supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Cell
5110, Security Wing &#8211; 22:15 VST</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He’d
missed it; he was lying in some</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>mass-produced, faceless box of a cell, and the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>one thing he’d wanted to see, the one event in the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>life of that family that he’d ever want to witness,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that held any kind of meaning for him at all...and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>they were there, and he was not. </p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal><span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
</span>The scene formed itself in his mind before</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he could stop it; the whole group, crowded around</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the bed, watching the child in its mother’s arms,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>all wanting to see the precious new </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>life. She’d be asleep, perhaps, or quietly</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>looking around, trying to process all the new</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sights, sounds, colours of life outside the womb. Maybe</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the poor dear was crying her little eyes out, not wanting</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to be the centre of attention just yet. Not that she’d have</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>much choice in the matter, mind; of the two parents, Minako</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was the one he could at least stomach, but her old career as</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>an idol, and now as Princess of Venus, meant she wasn’t</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>adverse to a little positive PR &#8211; and what better
source</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was there than a new child? After such a rough few weeks,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Sakura’s arrival, and healthy existence, would be just </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>what the spin doctors ordered. So they’d publish and be </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>damned. They couldn’t believe that a man like him could</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>approach a situation like this without some kind of agenda,
but they’d</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>happily slap their firstborn in front of a billion-strong</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>tri-d audience just to help their popularity figures.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Laying on the bed, his features twisted into a scowl;</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>damn them and their vacuous, smiling hypocrisy. But 
there</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>wasn’t that much force to the hate.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>His
thoughts were still brooding on that, ten minutes</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>later when the door quietly opened; he didn’t look over,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>but he knew who it’d be &#8211; so he greeted said person</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>appropriately.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“All
hail the Goddess of the Ages.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Setsuna
didn’t so much as blink. “I don’t</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>remember you calling 
me that before. Or anyone else,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>for that matter.” She looked around the room; the bare,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>beige walls, no window, a moulded combination sink/toilet,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and a bed built into the wall, with its lone occupant</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>staring at the ceiling. “Enjoying the accommodations?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Yes;
very much to my taste &#8211; quite Spartan. Please</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>pass along my thanks to the proprietress.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>No
reply. Archangel continued.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“I
take it the happy occasion went without</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>incident?” </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“You
presume correctly; Sakura Xadium Aino was </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>born via natural delivery, 22:10 VST, weighing</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>approximately 7 lbs. 8 oz. Mother *and* child are</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>well.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Good.
When can I expect to be released? There is</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a small matter of a gift to be delivered.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“When
the time comes-”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Oh
how droll.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“-
you will be charged with gross breach of security,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>trespass on private property, conspiracy to commit assault,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and attempted murder.” A small smile graced her lips.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>“You’re going to be ‘enjoying’ Venusian hospitality for</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>quite some time to come.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
continued to stare at the ceiling. “I thought</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>as much. He’s in quite the vindictive mood today, isn’t</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he? Gave me chills.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
smile remained. “*He* had nothing to with</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>it. It was the Princess’ decision, and hers alone.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“I
doubt that.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Doubt
what you want; her hand 
signed the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>warrant.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
raised a finger. “But whose hand guided hers?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Touche.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:3'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Thank
you.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Silence.
He broke it.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“And
yet you remain here, my lady. Why?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
smile soured. “You still presume to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>control the situation? How...presumptuous.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
raised his head to look at her; now, the smile</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was his. “But I don’t *presume* at all, dear lady &#8211; </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>I know.” He flopped back down on the bed. “And judging</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>by the look on your lovely face, so do you.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Another
presumption.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
popped up again, and grinned. “It’s been</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>on your mind since the second I was picked up, don’t deny</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>it. That nasty little doubt, eating away at things &#8211;
‘What</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>if, just this once, it isn’t him? What if we’ve got the
wrong</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>man?’ ”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Silence
again; her face was a mask. He pressed the </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>advantage. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“It’s
only natural, of course; part and parcel of</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>what makes you ‘good’ &#8211; being able to give someone the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>benefit of the doubt. Quite touching, if it wasn’t so soft.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Her
voice was strained, but still commanding. “Be very</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>careful; it could still be a very long stay.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Archangel
went on as if she hadn’t spoken. “But</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>something’s happened, hasn’t it? Some incident, while</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>I’ve been in here. Or you’ve seen something, 
something</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that’s going to happen &#8211; and you realise, I might just
be</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>useful after all. I can be your conduit, so you don’t have</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to get your sainted hands dirty. Your way of keeping the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>‘balance’ intact. Keeping things on the ‘path’.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
</span>Never mind that it might involve the lives</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>of hundreds, maybe thousands on occasion. Never mind </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that it could result in pain, misery, and squalid </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>death. Your ‘path’ is clear; everyone has their place</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and use, and for now, I’m convenient for you. You can’t </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>do this thing yourself, that much is clear; if you</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>could, we wouldn’t be 
having this conversation. But</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>this thing still has to happen, and like it or not,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>you can’t leave it alone. You need a tool. I can</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>do what you don’t have the stomach for; and if I happen</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to die in the attempt, well, what does it matter?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
smile dropped off his face. “Correct?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Even
saying nothing was an admission. After</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a moment of silent staring, she bowed her head and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>whispered, “Damn you.” </p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
huffed, the anger he’d built up during his</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>short speech shunted aside. “Already done, my dear.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Or do you think you’re the only one who’s seen things</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that cannot be altered?” </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Setsuna
ignored this. “The camera footage of this</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>cell is on a loop for the next five minutes. Hotaru and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>most of the others are visiting the baby, but they won’t be
there</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>much longer; you’re going to have a very small window</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>of opportunity to get out and disappear again before they</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>get back to their posts, and if you’re caught, don’t expect</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>assistance &#8211; you must be seen to be acting alone.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Archangel
nodded, and sat up fully, swinging his</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>legs over the side of the bed and straightening his</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>tie. “Understood. My cane?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Will
be waiting for you, just outside of </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>this room.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
stood. “Where, and when?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“I’m
not completely sure where, but </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>it’ll be within the next thirty to forty</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>minutes.” Her face hardened. “Do not fail.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Archangel
turned back to her, an eyebrow</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>raised. “And if, for some reason, I decide to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>decline your most generous offer?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Now,
her smile was grim. “You won’t get</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>far enough to breathe free air.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
chuckled, and slipped through the now</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>open door.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>“I
think that sounds like a </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>challenge...don’t you?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>She
let the door re-seal without a word. After</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>another moment, the room was empty. Only her last</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>words still hung in the air. Along with a cryptic</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>little smile.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“You’re
welcome, you sentimental fool.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if 
!supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:3'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Choose
your cliché. The pieces, in their</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>right places. The actors, ready for their cues. The</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>hall rented, the musicians engaged.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>They’d
all be right; with the arrival of Sakura,</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>and with the last minor impediment now dealt with, the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>plan was on. The only questions left were time, and </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>location &#8211; where would be the best place to strike</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the blow? And when? What would best send the message</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that his client, Euidal, was to be feared? With the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>child in her mother’s arms, or all alone, behind a </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>glass wall?</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
fun, of course, would be deciding.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Security
Control, 22:25 VST.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Hotaru
was enraged. Being as she was, a </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>shy and reserved woman by nature, this was </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>impressive; that she was also a woman that’d </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>undergone 
the tender mercies of Ten’ou Haruka</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>as a father-figure, and yet seldomly, if ever,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>lost her temper at all, raised the term to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>‘awe-inspiring’ &#8211; and terrifying. This was someone</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that possessed the ultimate destructive power, and she</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was so incensed, she was literally shaking in anger. And</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she had good reason.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Two
security teams attacked since the night began &#8211; </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>one found fifteen minutes ago, throats torn out; the other,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>never found at all. The others, evaded as if they were</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>amateurs. The camera system, having been made so useless</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>in finding anything on its own, they might as well </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>have been staring at the wall &#8211; the entire security</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>net, in fact, having become a total failure in every</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>detail. And most galling of all; their best suspect,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>their *only* suspect, had just walked out of the most</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>secure cell in the entire castle, and vanished into</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>thin air. Even ChibiUsa, who would pick a fight with</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>her dark-haired friend at the most inopportune times,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was treading carefully &#8211; nobody wanted to get</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>noticed now. They were all leading search teams, eager</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to be outside the range of her wrath; even Artemis. Right</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>now, it was her on her 
own, surrounded by the evidence of </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the failed web she’d tried to weave to keep Sakura safe.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>And
then she caught it. Rage and self-pity were</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>abandoned in an instant; on a lone screen, on the edge of</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the swarm, was that little detail she’d been looking </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>for all night. A foot, sticking out of a mostly</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>closed closet door; she ordered the computer to look inside</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the room, and was instantly vindicated. The unconscious </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>body of a man, quickly identified as a male nurse, stripped</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>of his uniform and equipment. And then, minutes later,
another,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>this time a 
male doctor waylaid in a toilet. She smiled, and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>nobody left in the room could meet her gaze &#8211; it was
Death</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>herself, smiling in triumph. The assassins saw no reason to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>hide from her anymore &#8211; she’d make them pay for that.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>She
spoke one word, and stalked from the room, her</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>glaive appearing in her hand.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Endgame.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if 
!supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:3'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>And
she was right, too. It was ‘endgame’ for the </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>two figures, carefully disguised, making their ways</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to the infirmary; it was for the people who’d come</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>together to protect the infirmary’s contents, now</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>scrambling to draw the last line of defense; and it</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>definitely was for the new family, who despite </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>everything, were starting to hope that the worst</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was over &#8211; even though their instincts told them</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to prepare for the worst. But most surely, the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>‘endgame’ had begun; what happened next was beyond</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>prediction or strategy &#8211; it was the last move. High</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>stakes, no rules &#8211; one last hand.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>And
no silver medal for coming in second.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span><span
style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Minako’s
room, Magellan Infirmary, 22:30 VST.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>They
knew it was coming; they weren’t stupid.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Long before Archangel had shown up, they’d known that 
this</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>time would come; whoever had engineered the Ganymede attack</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was not the kind of person to stop at one attempt. They wanted
Sakura dead, </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and if they’d known enough to attack her in the womb, they
had the information to attack </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>her now that she was out of it - <span style="mso-spacerun:
yes">&nbsp;</span>that is, if there had been someone behind that </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>disaster at all. Minako and Xadium were both armed </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>now, as were several of the medical staff; Ami had
transformed, and stood</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>ready, a fact that would’ve stung to Minako, if she’d let</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>herself think about it. Right then, she had bigger things</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to think about. The pain and wonder of childbirth were
dreams</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>that she’d had to wake up from far too quickly &#8211;
because now,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she had to make sure that her baby lived. So she gripped the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>unfamiliar-feeling pistol tightly, and hoped that she didn’t</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>have to use it. But it wouldn’t be long now...</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Xadium
held his gun just as firmly, with a frown on his</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>face. He detested guns at the best of times, and to be
holding</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>one mere feet away from his newborn daughter rankled </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>especially. This was something no child should ever have to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>go through, yet there she was, fast asleep in her bassinet,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>not a care in the world &#8211; 
all these adults here,
trying to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>protect her, and she could end up covered in their blood.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>They could have run, his TARDIS wasn’t that far away &#8211;
and </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the room, the castle, was full of friends and employees
that’d</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sell their lives unbelievably dearly to make sure that they</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>got away safely. It could be done, even now.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>If
he could’ve lived with himself afterwards. Which he</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>couldn’t. He was a traveler, a scholar &#8211; not a coward.
He’d</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>let his own wife kill him again and again, just so he could</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>be forgiven of a crime &#8211; and if he had to give away
his last 
</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>life to keep her and Sakura safe, so be it. That was a death
</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he could live with. So to speak.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
looked over at Minako, who lay in bed, facing the door,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>face set and weapon in hand. Rassilon, if this was the last </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>time...a part of his mind knew that technically, there were</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>things after this. Sakura herself had come back from the </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>future, and shown them that they had a happy life together,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>raising their child, seeing the universe; all those stars</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>up close. But it wasn’t guaranteed; Miss Dream, the trip</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to the Silver Millenium...each in their own way 
had</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>demonstrated that even what had already occurred wasn’t</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>safe &#8211; the future could always be re-written, no
matter</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>when that future was.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>But
if this was the last time he could look at her, to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>see such beauty and know that she was his (as he was
hers)...</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>it wasn’t food, but it’d make a good last meal nonetheless.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>The call had come through five minutes ago; it wouldn’t be</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>long now...</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Sailor
Mercury kept her eyes glued to her visor; it </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>being 
plugged into the castle’s security net, she had the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>perfect view of everything. She’d got the call from</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Security Control &#8211; whatever happened, she’d be on the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>front line; she’d done her job as doctor and friend. Now,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>it was time to be a soldier. The three most likely targets</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>were in that room &#8211; and like everyone else, she was </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>determined that those three people remain safe &#8211; at
all</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>costs. So far, the body count had stayed low; as much as</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she would’ve wanted it to stay that way, if it had to rise,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she’d do her best to make sure that it was attackers, not</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>defenders, that increased the numbers.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>But
it wasn’t an easy task; Minako couldn’t really</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>be moved, and Xadium, quite rightly, refused to go</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>without her &#8211; and there was no way she’d sanction
moving</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Sakura on her own. So they’d wait here, and if necessary,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>fight it out here as well. It wasn’t the best of </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>battlefields, but she’d been on worse. It had to be</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>done &#8211; so she’d do it. Thankfully, the silent alarm</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was on, so the baby could sleep.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>There
hadn’t been time to implant Archangel with </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a tracking 
beacon, and the other target still</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>hadn’t shown ‘him’self, but she knew; it wouldn’t be long</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>now...</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Two
sets of footsteps, on their way; their owners</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>fully focused now. Their final disguises would aid them,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to a point; beyond that, their skills would have to do. The</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>goal, the thrill, was all they could see now. And it </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>wouldn’t be long now...</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Because
it *was* now.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:3'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Hallway/Minako’s
Room</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>It
was a hell of a tableau &#8211; or it would</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>have been, if it could’ve been frozen and painted. It was</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>a near blur of indescribable motions, shouts, flashes; to an</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>aloof observer (much as Ami still hoped that she could be),</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>only the basic outline could be seen. From either end of the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>corridor, two figures were making their way to Minako’s </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>room &#8211; and just to play to the cliché, that door was
right</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>in the middle. What all the noise was about was the fact
that</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>just as the ‘doctor’ had turned the corner, he’d pulled off
a</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>wig; and they’d been looking for a white-haired guy, right?
The</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>‘nurse’ had used this distraction to get closer, but hadn’t</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>taken five steps before being queried about his ID; ‘he’ </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>must have been pretty keyed-up to 
attack like that, to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>become so bestial so quickly. And having torn out the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>guards’ throat like that, Ami knew that whatever he</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>*had* done, Archangel hadn’t killed the security team</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that he’d run into. They might even be alive &#8211; but </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>now was not a good time to think about that. Maybe he</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>hadn’t been violent with them &#8211; true or false, but he </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>was being violent now. Both attackers were weaving,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>dodging, slicing at guards as they went by, barely</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>taking the time to step over the bodies as they hit</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the floor. But...yes, there were differences. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Archangel, if you followed his progress, was the more</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>controlled fighter; tight movements, nothing wasted,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>cool, calm, collected, like it was a basic</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>simulation, like his opponents were mere shadows &#8211; </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>all he had to do was pass through them, and on</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to the next level.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
other one was getting wilder and wilder </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>with each second. Instead of a weapon, he was </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>literally tearing his way toward Minako’s</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>room with his bare hands, each one topped</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>with a vicious set of cat-like claws. Whereas</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Archangel seemed to consider his attacks, this</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>one was all passion and 
rage; he was an animal,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>biting and tearing and clawing at whatever got in</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>his way, moving through the mass of guards firing</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>at him with an almost balletic skill.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Barring
herself, Minako (who couldn’t</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>really fight), and Xadium, the ‘heavy hitters’</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>were still on their way; they’d have teleported</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>in, but with no way of knowing how any attackers</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>would try to access the infirmary, they’d had to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>keep the localised scattering field up</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>around the room and the corridor, too &#8211; they</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>were racing their way up via stairs and 
the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>elevators, but they weren’t there yet. And as</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>powerful as she was, she wasn’t looking forward</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to fighting either man. Even if Archangel seemed</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to be &#8211; what?</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>She
frowned and squinted, sending the unconscious</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>command to her visor to zoom in and follow the actions</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>of the attacking Time Lord. He...yes, he was; it was </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>hard to tell, but even at that speed, she could see</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that Archangel was cutting his way through to the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>door, yes...but was pulling his blows. He made</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sure that they were down, but the constant </p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>bio-scans showed that none were dead &#8211; at least,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>not yet. Compared to the river of blood that the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>other attacker was spilling, Archangel was being</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>kind.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>If
she’d had more time to ponder this, Ami</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>might’ve come to an important conclusion. But</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she couldn’t &#8211; because they were nearly at the </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>door, then almost at the door, then at the door.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Ami
keyed up the room’s defences, and made</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a silent hand signal. Instantly, every armed</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>person but the Time Lord and his wife got into</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>position, weapons trained on the door. The bed</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>shifted backwards on anti-grav coasters, and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>both husband and child followed Minako; other</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>than her and the people with guns, there was</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>one last line of defence.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>And
if *that* fell, they’d all lost.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:3'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
</span>***<span
style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>The
door was there, right in front of him. Just a</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>few more steps, barely a foot, and the job was as good as </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>done. Yes, they’d be armed in there, but at most, it’d</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>be a few nurses and guards with guns; and if his </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>information was right, one Senshi that could put</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>up a fight &#8211; and that being Sailor Mercury, it’d be</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a Senshi tired from conducting a delicate operation,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>with few offensive weapons, and two very fragile patients</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to protect. 
Tearing the child apart as its helpless parents</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>looked on would be so simple, it was almost sinful. Amost.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>He was already drooling, anticipating the taste of the
baby’s</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>throat; a few moments, and he could give his bestial half</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>free reign.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Just
the door to contend with. And the white-haired</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>fool with the stick-sword; he’d been a useful distraction,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>giving the Senshi a target to follow &#8211; and more than
that,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he was known to hate the one called Xadium with a </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>passion. If Euidal had contacted him, he </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>had no idea; but with him around, it’d been 
that</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>much easier to execute his plan. And with a</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>door like this, double-sealed, computerised lock with</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>multiple-digit combination, he could have another</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>use; not that he was going to share the money, but</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he’d thank the man. Well, kill him, but he would say</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>‘thanks’ at some point.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
growled, “You; Archangel.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Archangel
looked up from the door, which</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he’d been examining. “Yes?”</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Fighting
to keep his beast side at bay for just</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a little longer, the assassin continued, “You want </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>them dead as well?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Archangel
paused for a moment, then nodded, and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>went back to trying to open the door, with what looked</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>like a sonic screwdriver. After no more than thirty</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>seconds, he huffed in irritation, pocketed the tool,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and pulled out a sonic blaster. He motioned the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>other man to step back, aimed, and with a squeeze of</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the trigger, the door was gone. 
Neither man, after</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>taking cover, moved for a long moment, expecting</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the defenders to open fire; they didn’t. Archangel</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>then reached into his pocket again, and this time</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>pulled out a squat, squarish object &#8211; a stun</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>granade. Nodding to the assassin with a smile,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he pressed a button on it, and quickly tossed in</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>in the room. A bang and a flash, and then they </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>were both inside, faced with the unconscious</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>bodies of Ami and the other guards &#8211; and the </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Xadium family, alive and awake behind a </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>shimmering barrier, an energy shield. The</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>assassin snarled and took a step towards</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>them &#8211; and the two guns now trained on him. He</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>heard a chuckle, and looked over at Archangel,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>who’d stowed his gun, and was holding his cane </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>ready. The renegade Time Lord smiled at the beast-man.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“What
a pity, isn’t it? We get this close, and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>they still put a wall up. You’d almost think that</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>they didn’t want us to visit.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“Then
again”, he said, jerking his head</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>towards Xadium and Minako, “Those two are</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>notorious for being ‘party poopers’.” He 
grinned.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>“Though I have to say that I approve of the new</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>look &#8211; armed and fabulous.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Xadium
and Minako didn’t return the smile, and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>remained silent. Archangel sighed. “Typical; I’ve made</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>all this effort to see you both, and you’re not even</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>going to say thank you &#8211; you’re just going to stand</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>there, and die quietly.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Her
voice quivering only slightly, Minako</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>replied, “I wouldn’t bet on it.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Archangel’s
smile only got wider at her words.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Holding up his cane, he said, “No bet to make; this is</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a certainty.” He rubbed his thumb over the top &#8211; and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the three other adults watched the field flicker, and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>vanish. The assassin let out a roar, and sprung; or</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>tried to. Xadium and Minako fired, but he felt a</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>blinding pain erupt across his back, and darkness</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>swallowed him up as he hit the ground, just two feet</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>from the target. But just before it did, he heard</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>another body hit the floor; they hadn’t been shooting</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>at him &#8211; so who...?</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
died in ignorance.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:3'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>October
14, 2907 &#8211; 10:31AM VST</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Magellan Castle Infirmary (Secure Room)</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Archangel
wasn’t at all surprised to wake</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>up handcuffed to the bed. It made sense, seeing</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>as how he’d had to play the part of villain just</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to flush out the real one; had he been in their</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>place, he would’ve done just the same.<span
style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </span>Even so, it </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>wasn’t a very dignified way to wake up;</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and for a Time Lord, it was humiliating. But compared</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>with the very real possibility that he could end up</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>being executed for just the things that he’d done, </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>coming to with plasteel bracelets on was a small price to</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>pay. He smiled, and let his head rest on the pillow;</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>crimes or no, they couldn’t deny that it was his shot</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that had stopped the assassin; and that they’d hit him.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>No,
he’d handled things perfectly; Sakura was </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>alive, as were her parents. The body count was </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>probably higher than he’d supposed, but since he </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>hadn’t torn out any throats, he was confident that</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he wouldn’t be blamed. Especially once they’d </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>studied the security tapes of the fight in the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>corridor. And as both Xadium and Minako had had</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the pleasure of gunning down the 
‘mastermind’ of</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the attack (not that they’d ever bring themselves</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to believe his version of events &#8211; well, Xadium</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>never would), they were bound to be in a </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>generous mood. At least, it was fairly likely</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that they wouldn’t throw him at the walls again.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style="mso-spacerun:
yes">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>But he did have lives to
take; and wouldn’t it just</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>be the perfect punishment, dragging him down to the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>same level as that overblown idiot Xadium &#8211; </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>cradling his final life to his chest like a precious</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>gem, living in fear of having it taken away, to </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>such an extent that he hid behind a mere 
human with</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a bit of power...yes, that was well within the realm</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>of possibility. Especially if Xadium had any influence</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>over things.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>That
is, if they hadn’t done so already; he hadn’t</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>seen his reflection yet.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>His
thoughtful review of the ceiling was broken by</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the sound of boots being brought down sharply on the </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>floor; men coming to attention, he realised. It could</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>be any number of people, but hearing the soft footsteps</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>in the silence that followed, 
along with a certain other</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sound, told him everything.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“I
didn’t think that you’d ever want to see me again”,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he said, looking Minako full in the face, “Unless it was to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>sentence me &#8211; though I suppose that doing so with your
child</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>in your arms gives the act a certain amount of ‘punch’.” He</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>nodded at Sakura, who quietly slept. “Seeing as she’s the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>reason I came here at all. How is she, by the way?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Minako’s
face was unreadable. “Sakura-chan is</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>just fine, thank you. 
But that’s not why I’m here.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Archangel
sighed. “Of course not; you want</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>‘answers’, don’t you.” His voice put just enough </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>of a edge on the word to create the scare-quotes that </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>his hands couldn’t make.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>After
a tense moment, she nodded, just once. He gave</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a mental shrug; Pluto might be concerned about acting</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>from a position of anonymity like some god on high, but</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>since when did that apply to him? Minako wanted to know, so</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he’d tell her; and if she didn’t like the 
answer...</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“All
right. Because your daughter is too important to </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the future to allow her to die. And because if I’d made </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>my move any sooner, the real assassin would have </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>suspected something; he had to think that I was just</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>another piece on the game board.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Silence.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“That’s
why I intervened, and why I had to</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>do it in that 
manner.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>She
just stared at him, almost ignoring the child</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>she was carrying. The silence lengthened, grew heavy;</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>neither face gave anything away. Minako turned, and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he watched as she went to the door, still moving</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>quietly so as not to wake up Sakura. Mentally, Archangel</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>tossed a coin; she knew that wasn’t his whole reason,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>because she knew how he felt for his goddaughter. And</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>at this point, he couldn’t get into any more trouble &#8211;
</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>so what could it hurt? His sainted reputation? A paltry</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>life or two?</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“And...”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Minako
stopped, but didn’t turn. “And?”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“...And
having seen what you would have gone</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>through had that creature been successful, I could</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>not let that future come to pass.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>He
paused; Minako remained where she was. </p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>“And
as much as I dislike your husband,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>no parent should have to lose their child in such</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>a way; especially not someone as special as</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Sakura.”</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Minako
left then, not giving any sign that she’d</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>acknowledged his words. But he was hopeful &#8211; or
rather,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he had a fair idea that the security evidence, the </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>injury reports, and the wealth of proof in his TARDIS</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>(they had his keys, and the security system was</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>set to admit Hotaru and Minako inside, even if </p>

<p class=MsoNormal>they didn’t know it yet), if nothing else, would</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>prove his case.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>His
only option was to wait; what happened after</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>this, good or ill, were not things he could control.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>He’d face them, even possible forced regeneration,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>with head held high. Even if he’d been manipulated by</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Time, even Xadium would have to admit that</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>he’d done the right thing &#8211; if not quite for all</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>the ‘right’ reasons.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
</span>No
sense in worrying about it.</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>***</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Author’s notes:</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Well,
wasn’t that fun? Hehe. Anyway, that’s the fic. I hope</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that you enjoyed it; my thanks to Dr. Xadium for letting me
use the</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>characters and situations from Suburban Senshi. Not only
that, but it</p>

<p 
class=MsoNormal>was his advice and clarifications about various details
regarding</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>Sakura and other Sub Senshi that helped me make this as
accurate,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>and entertaining, as I hope it is. So my thanks once again.
:) Hopefully, this’ll</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>be the first of several Sub Sen fics involving Archangel
&#8211; but if anyone</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>would like to use the character, feel free to contact me on
the Sub Sen forum. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp;</span>^_^</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>I
have no idea if this’ll become canon or not, but really, it</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>doesn’t matter; this has been fun, and I hope that you had
fun</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>reading it. :)</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span 
style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Does
Archangel regenerate after being shot? You know,</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>that’s a good question... and my secret. *evil chuckle* I’ll
have</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>to see where my muse takes me. You’ll just have to wait and</p>

<p class=MsoNormal>see...</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:1'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Anyway,
hope you enjoyed the fic; later!</p>

<p class=MsoNormal><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></p>

<p class=MsoNormal><span style='mso-tab-count:2'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>-
Between_the_Lines (aka Archangel) :)</p>

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