Story: Hentai Crystal

You know, it had to admit to not actually having a plan. All it saw was a couple of idiots handing away opportunities on a silver platter as though they were working in some mall passing out free samples. Of course it was going to devour the whole tray in one shot! That's the trouble with lust, you see. It can be a rather overriding impulse. Prone to make a person go right for the first chance instead of taking the more cautious approach.

It was like he'd been offered a chance to mount a mission to the sun, and leaped all the way there. No plan. No equipment. No <i>anything</i>. Just an amazing opportunity landing in its lap. I mean, come on. If someone said to you, "Would you mind holding onto this incredibly priceless diamond for about a month while I go off around the world?" would you really wait for them to come back or would you try something kind of stupid and run off with it instead?

Well, okay. Maybe a human might act scrupulously, at least out of fear that someone might catch them out in the act. But we are talking about a demon that had been sealed away for - That long? My, my, how the time flew on by. Scrupulous is only in the sarcastic portion of its dialogue.

Hence, caution once it was actually "holding the diamond", so to speak. A rash action might upset things too much, tip off the wrong people too quickly, getting the wicked spirit killed or imprisoned while cautious actions might result in (eventually) having access to one of the most powerful items in the universe to use however it damn well pleased. This is not a hard equation to solve.

That was before. This was now. Things changed as new information arose. So they had themselves an enemy based on Order in some capacity, it seemed. How wonderful. It made the demon sort of paranoid in a rather fun way; was the universe going out of its way to make things easier for it? Was this perhaps some wondrous dream it had concocted in the throes of madness from being imprisoned in that damned book for so long that it could still (metaphorically) taste the ink?

So it was developing a plan. A plan which would enable it to assist the Sailors in the most efficient way, overcoming their enemy - which had to be done otherwise the great risk of possessing this crystal would be meaningless - and simultaneously corrupting them towards its own ends at the same time. In essence the best plans get you everything that you want while seeming to be giving nothing away. Lose nothing, gain everything while making it seem like the opposite is closer to the truth. The demon considered the situation carefully, and concentrated on the task ahead.

Tonight would be the best time to make its first move....

<hr>
So, for about as long as Usagi could remember she'd had freaky dreams. If you stripped away the context and started telling people that you dreamt you were a Moon Princess in an ancient kingdom with talking cats and a handsome prince and there was war and tragedy and magic and you had a bunch of friends fighting to protect you and they were only really wearing short skirts of different colours and tight white leotards, then your friends might smile, nod, and say, "That Usagi is such a dreamer," before then getting on with their day.

Oh, how little did they know.

Anyway, she could tell right away this was a dream because the last thing she could remember was lying down in bed, and almost the second she had closed her eyes she was sitting in a palace made of crystal, right in the middle of a chamber with five different exits. Each having a symbol like the kinds she and the others would get on their foreheads when they transformed.

"Huh," Usagi said, sitting up and looking down to see herself still in her pyjamas. "Feel a little underdressed, even if it is just a dream. This place is really pretty!"

"As it happens, this entire location is an unconscious metaphorical construct being utilised in a manner best suited for ease of communicatory purposes," said a completely unfamiliar voice that made Usagi jump. "Regarding your attire, fret not. It flatters your posterior, and in no manner diminishes the illustrious swell of your tender bosom."

So, Usagi tuned out around about five words into that. Had her back not been to the Moon chamber, where the man began to walk out from, she might have lost it completely. As it was, the only noise she made upon turning to see him was "Pffffffffft," which is, of course, the universal onomatopoeia for barely restrained laughter.

And why not? Guy had a pretty face, but his costume was a little bit edging out on the ridiculous side. Daft curly wig, white puffy shirt with frills all over the collar and cuffs, and she didn't even think about what he was wearing on the lower half of his body or she might die of a burst gut.

"... Did I do something amusing?" the mystery man asked, looking himself up and down. "I was under the impression this was the height of fashion. Ah! Perhaps I am a little out of date? Uh... Beg pardon one moment whilst I attempt an emergency stopgap measure."

The figure melted away into an exact duplicate of Usagi herself, pyjamas and all. "Salutations, Usagi Tsukino!" the other her said with a deep dramatic bow. "You might consider me the embodiment of 'balance' in the universe, though for the time being I am only manifesting in your mind in the form of your curvy body. Ahem! You may call me Libra."

"L-Libra?" Usagi said, wiping away a tear. "You mean, like, the star sign?"

"W-Well, that's really an approximation of my real name, which is unpronounceable in human tongue," the other Usagi said. "But it will have to do so that you can at least refer to me. You humans do so love to name things, even completely unknowable concepts. It's adorable in its own quaint way."

"I guess?" Usagi said. "So, is this a dream or what?"

"Oh, it's a dream alright," Libra said. "It is the only way I can safely contact you at the moment and Usagi! Pay attention or I will have to discipline you!"

"What's down these corridors?" Usagi asked, peering down the one with the Moon symbol. "Ooh, spooky! I can't even see anything, but it feels like I will if I step inside..."

"Anyway!" Libra said, tweaking the girl's ear and dragging her back to the middle of the room. "I sensed a terrible imbalance on Earth earlier on and decided to investigate, leading to -"

"Ah! You mean, you helped Jupiter use that weird attack!" Usagi suddenly announced. If she were paying more attention then she may have noticed Libra suddenly tense up at just that moment. Instead, Usagi put her hands on her hips and marched right up to the exact duplicate of her, backing her up against one of the crystal walls until they were looking each other right in the eyes. "In that case, I have only one thing to say to you!"

"What might that be?" Libra asked.

"Good job! But make it less perverted next time!"

"... No promises," Libra replied, wiping sweat off her brow. "Anyway, I don't think they're gone yet but I can't stick around to keep an eye on them forever. You and your gang of hot chicks should be more than enough to -"

"You're lonely, aren't you?"

The atmosphere in the room suddenly became absolutely quiet. Unlike in the real world, there were no tiny little noises you could focus on. No heart pumping blood through the veins, no hum of machinery, no insects. Just the crystal palace and two people that weren't actually really there at all. It was the kind of silence you could put in a sandwich. A real physical presence.

"It's just that I get that impression," Usagi said. "Something about you seems like it's saying, 'I am lonely', and it makes me want to help it out. What happened to you?"

"It has been one thousand years since I interacted with anyone on a regular basis," Libra said. "That is why I was wearing that outfit earlier on. The last time I really interacted with humanity, that manner of dress was the height of fashion. It may have been a few centuries back, but I don't really have an appreciation for time the same way you do. Not sure a scatterbrained ditz like you would really understand that kind of thing, would you?"

"I think I get it," Usagi said, nodding enthusiastically. "I guess that also explains why you keep using such rude language without seeming to notice. Can you show me what you really look like?"

"Not yet," Libra said. "Your mind isn't ready to accommodate my full power. However... That is part of why I am here. The enemy you fight uses Order taken to an extreme level. In moderation, Order is good. In moderation, Chaos is good. Taken to an extreme, without the balance, either is capable of tremendous evil. In its purest form order causes stagnation, leaving no room for dreams or imagination or fun, while pure chaos rejects friendship, loyalty and compassion. For now your puny techniques have only brute force, but with the smallest taste of my power you can have passion behind them as well. Passion enough to pass their defenses and defeat them."

Usagi stared at the all-powerful being from beyond the stars with the people skills of a particularly unpleasant rock in consideration for a moment. This wouldn't be the first time they'd received a power-up from a mysterious, unknown source. Sure, the personality was extremely bad. Usagi wanted to wash out this copy of her's mouth out with soap after some of the things she'd said!

Yet as she would later tell her friends, look at those eyes. Those were eyes of such a terrible loneliness, practically pleading for Usagi to agree. Desperate for basic contact with another form of life. This was what convinced her. Not anything that had been said, but those eyes...

"Deal!" Usagi said with great enthusiasm. "But first, um, change into that same guy from before, but maybe wearing jeans and a polo shirt instead? Lose the wig and... There we go! That's much better, very handsome."

"Thank you for the advice. Would this be the form of your ideal man?" Libra asked. "I assure you, Sailor Moon. You and your friends will never come to regret this decision. Ehehehehehe... Hehehehehehehe... Hahahahahahahahaha! Bwahaha! Mwahahahaahahaha!"

Well, if nothing else then she'd at least cheered him up! Look at him laughing like a maniac there, so much happier all of a sudden. She considered joining in, but he really was having so much fun it was probably better to let him get to it.

1. Sailor Moon's new power
2. Usagi explains the meeting to the others.
3. Later, in a shared dream.
4. "Libra" considers the conversation and the course of this plan.
5. The enemy attacks.
6. Something else