The Kisenian flower was puzzled by this reaction. Her symbiotic connection to Fiore meant that she was fully aware of all his physical functions. There was no physical reason why he should no longer be able to fight, at this moment. She was even more puzzled by the reactions of the man Mamoru, who had just broken away from her tendrils. She knew the man Mamoru had chosen not to kill Fiore, as the Kisenian knew it had been in his power to do. He had only wounded Fiore just enough to stop him.

"I do not understand this man, Mamoru," thought the Kisenian. "There is much in his past which would create anger in him. But always, he holds back. Always, he uses his powers just to stop violence, and only wounds when he is forced to do so. It seems, that he has an absolute abhorrence of killing any living creature, even when that creature has added to his own inner pain.

Had I been able to claim his mind, I could destroy many, many planets. His powers to destroy are far greater than Fiore's, but he utterly refuses to use them."

"Even now, weakened by hours of our connection, he could have killed Fiore, and thus protected this Sailor Moon, the one he calls Usako, and her friends, instantly, from any further harm from us. But he will not kill, this man Mamoru. He just will not kill when he has the opportunity. He does not even like to wound living creatures. No, I do not understand him at all. But I still have control of Fiore, and I will take advantage of this strange and foolish man, Mamoru, who does not like to kill things."

The Kisenian's eyes glowed red. "I can still win this planet for my children; I can still claim it from the foolish humans who oppose me. I still have Fiore, and our connection has gone on too many years for him to break free so easily. And he is not reluctant to kill. He will gladly destroy anything that stands between him and the man Mamoru. His mind is a simple pendulum, which swings between what he trusts, and what he does not....us and them, them and us. Mamoru is his only understanding of "us" and all other creatures are "them." I have played on this pendulum of his for years, and told him what he wanted to hear."

"Fiore has willingly helped me claim other planets for my children, but his spirit, it seems, grows ever weaker with the years. He misses this man Mamoru, who cared for and sheltered him when he was young. So I have brought him here to this planet, to seek the man Mamoru. For I know his life force is weakening for some reason that I don't understand. If he is with the man Mamoru, and these other humans are not there to intervene, perhaps his life force will begin to thrive again, and we can take more planets."

"I have no choice but to try to sustain Fiore's life for as long as I can, for I am a symbiot, and cannot reproduce without a host. I would have much preferred to find a new stronger, healthier host; this man Mamoru, whose mind, I thought from Fiore's description of him, would think the same way as Fiore's. But it seems Fiore was wrong about him, and my gamble has failed. But I can still claim this planet for my children, even if there is, as yet, no host to take me to other planets. Another host will arrive at this dead planet, in time. They always do. And they always want to touch my lovely, pink flowers. So I will claim this planet, and wait."

The Kisenian smiled to herself. "Oh yes. I can deal with Fiore. He will carry out my will; he will allow me to find a new home for my children. I know exactly what to say to him. His mind, always on that same pendulum. Us and them. Them and us. Us, Fiore and Mamoru. Them, all the people who do not care about us. Destroy them, Fiore. Destroy them, and we both shall have what we are seeking."

"Of course, now that I have connected with the man Mamoru, I know that hewill not embrace the future you seek with him. He is very tiresome about his so-called Princess whom he calls Usako, and the future he hopes for with her. But I will not tell you, Fiore, that all your hopes are in vain. I need you to carry out my will blindly, as you have done all these years, just one more time. And then you can die, since I will have this planet. There are always other hosts."

"What is wrong, Fiore?" the Kisenian spoke aloud. "I am with you! Take strength from me. Destroy this Sailor Moon, first of all, and I am sure that Mamoru will come back to you, and you will be happy together."

"I can't!" cried Fiore, "I can't! It's Mamoru...he has struck me with this rose. Why? Why? Mamoru-kun, would you leave me alone too?" His voice broke into almost a sob of despair, all the years of futile loneliness like a dark weight on his soul.

The Kisenian shuddered, as she felt a massive disturbance in Fiore's life force. "Something has broken inside him, I can feel it," she thought. "Why? Just because the man Mamoru wounded him? Just because he believed this man would never, never hurt him? My flowers here...they're starting to die. With so little of Fiore's life energy left, they have not enough to sustain them. Soon, he will not have enough energy left to keep my seed pod in orbit above the planet. My only chance now is to get the rest of my seedlings to the planet's surface quickly, to where life energy is still abundant. My seedlings will survive a crash landing with no injury; they are virtually indestructible."

"How can I persuade Fiore to help me in this? Ahhhh, yes. Revenge. Revenge is a concept many species have as a motivator. He has lost Mamoru, it seems. But there is still, always, revenge."

The Kisenian sent a volt of malevolent energy into Fiore. "If you can't have Mamoru, no one should have him!" Her sibilant whispers entered Fiore's mind, which reeled with despair and loneliness. "You are weak, but still you can divert this seed pod, so that it will crash-land on this planet. I will still live, and I will avenge these Earth people for you, Fiore. I will punish the people of this planet, who poisoned Mamoru's mind against you."

Fiore began to laugh, a terrible, mad sound. "None of you will get off this meteor alive! I will divert its orbit, so it will crash into the Earth. You have defeated me, but you will not escape. You will all die with me, and my Kisenian flowers will still take over your planet!"

The Sailor Senshi looked at Fiore, horrified. They knew what he said was true, and that they had not enough strength left to stop his plans. Mamoru tried to get up, but found he was still tooweak. Never had he felt so weak, so useless.

"Why couldn't I kill him? Why couldn't I? Now, I haven't enough strength left even for one more steel-tipped rose. We're all going to die, because I couldn't find it in my heart to kill Fiore." He looked over at Sailor Moon, who was still prone on the ground. "I've failed you again, Usako. Forgive me. Forgive me."

Then his eyes widened in shock....Usako is getting up!

Sailor Moon rose on her knees, looking at Fiore with steel in her blue eyes, the Silver Crystal beaming bright as liquid white fire. "I won't let you do that!" she told Fiore. "I won't let you destroy the Earth!" As she said this, she cupped the Crystal in her hands to take it from its brooch, thus releasing its full power.

But Fiore snatched at the brooch roughly, pulling on Sailor Moon's fuku. "You will try to stop me, with this? No, you won't!" and through his hand, an energy bolt shot through her, and the fuku began to dissolve into streamers. Tuxedo Kamen and the other Senshi looked on in horror, too far away to reach and intervene. And everything was happening so fast, there was no time to react.

Yet Sailor Moon was strangely focused, calm and gentle, the eye of the hurricane. She rested a hand on Fiore's arm gently. "It's all right," she told him. "You're not alone any more." And as she spoke, the Crystal began to pulse and glow, sending out white circles of flame, blinding Fiore.

He groaned as their connection through the Crystal allowed him to enter her mind, and see the past, Mamoru's past, through the eyes of a little girl with bouncing blonde curls. Who was now Tsukino Usagi, Sailor Moon. Fiore found himself an onlooker in the hospital room, on the day the small Usagi had given the very first rose to Mamoru. The rose that was Mamoru's gift to Fiore.

His eyes widened in amazement. "The flower came from...Sailor Moon?" And he loosed his hold on her fuku, as the Crystal energy filled his soul with healing power. His body was nearly beyond sustaining him any more. But his soul, his soul was at last free of the poisoned influence of the Kisenian flower.

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Now Usagi was very tired, from her mind-meld with Fiore. He had resisted her with all his strength. It was only the touch of her hand that distracted him long enough for her to break through his wall of resistance. Because he is not used to being touched, she thought. By anyone. It is SO sad.

The meteor was hurtling ever closer to the Earth. Sailor Moon realized that if they were to live at all, she must take the risk, and take it now. No time for fraidy-cat Usagi-chan to wish she were somewhere else. It was as if she couldn't even remember what it was like to be afraid.

So she cupped the Crystal in her hands, cradling it, warming it with her thoughts. She did not understand why, but by focusing positive thoughts on the Crystal, its power increased exponentially. She closed her eyes. And focused her thoughts.

"I will protect you," she said softly. "I will protect all of you!"

"No, Usagi-chan! Don't use the Crystal! You'll die!" Her friends all called to her.

"Please don't!" Tuxedo Kamen cried out.

Suddenly, where Sailor Moon had been standing, was--Mamoru's Princess. There was the shimmering iridescent white gown of his dreams, whirling in the wind as the meteor hurtled downwards. Her tiara glowed with golden light, her golden hair gleamed; she looked radiant.

Mamoru caught his breath. Never before had she ever looked so beautiful. And never had he felt so afraid for her. Because she had done what he had always encouraged her to do; found her courage, and thus become the Princess she really was. And now, she might pay the ultimate price for her bravery.

But Princess Serenity was as serene as her name. "Come, we can do it together! Let's go back together! I won't die!"

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If this is the end, my Princess, this time, you won't be alone. I will be right next to you, and never leave your side. With all my strength, I will protect you, and with all my love, I will support you, though I am afraid for you. I am so weak now, from the effects of the Kisenian flower. If I can just focus my thoughts long enough....

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Princess Serenity turned in amazement. There, approaching her, was her Prince Endymion, in his black armour, and radiating such love and pride for her in his eyes, she thought her heart would burst with joy.

There was not a word between them. There was no need for words, now. He simply slid his arm behind her, pulling her tight against his side, while she held the Crystal aloft. The instant he touched her, she felt the Crystal glow with scintillating, blinding intensity. The Senshi watched Prince Endymion's example, and called on their own powers to support the Prince and Princess.

Perhaps, if they combined ALL their powers, they would be strong enough to stop the meteor.

Princess Serenity felt her arms trembling from the strain of focusing her powers with such intensity. She was starting to feel her strength waning. He looked at her with concern, and tightened his hold on her, staring into her eyes, willing her to hold on just a little longer. But he was aware that her life force was flickering like a flame, even as he lent his strength to her own. Sky blue eyes gazed at him with adoration, one last time. And then she was gone, falling into his arms.

TO BE CONTINUED IN PART 4: Alone Again
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