476/Share The Apocalyptic News

Share The Apocalyptic News
Date of Scene:	21 September 2023
Location:	Classroom
Synopsis:	The Senshi gather for an exchange of information about the coming apocalypse - what's that? There's more than one? Why.
Cast of Characters:	Usagi Tsukino, Ami Mizuno, Minako Aino, Rei Hino

---

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
It's afternoon and classes are over. Usagi had asked Ami to volunteer to clean the classroom with her, so they'd have room to talk, without just crowding into her dorm room. She'd asked Minako the same - or, well, not to help to clean their classroom; it wasn't fair for Minako to have to clean a classroom that wasn't hers - but to meet them there, so they could have this talk.

So, once everyone else is gone, and it's just the three of them, Usagi stops wiping down the whiteboards, and turns to her two friends. There are a lot of things she needs to share, and there's still ice to be broken, so, she smiles and claps her hands. "Ami-chan, this is Aino Minako-chan - the one and only Sailor Venus! And Minako-chan, this is Mizuno Ami-chan, the cute genius girl, Sailor Mercury!"

The best thing to do is rip the bandaid off, right?

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno is happy to stay after and help clean the classroom. It's not her most favorite thing to do, but still a clean classroom, is a happy classroom. Besides. She needed to hear important information after spending so much time studying for the upcoming term. It was class, or senshi'ing and just this last time, she choose class.

Surely others could handle things in her off time right?

Still, she smiled, and bow'ed a little politely to Minako. Minako is vaguely familiar as that girl she swam with one time. "Oh, hello again, Minako-san." she says. "We only met once before."

Minako Aino has posed:
Sailor Venus. Despite all she'd done as Sailor V, it was wonderful to finally be able to be known by the Senshi she was supposed to be. It was -less- great to be lured in for cleaning of all things. Usagi was totally going to owe her for this one!

"Ami-chan is Sailor Mercury?!" Minako actually repeats before exhaling a breath. How many Senshi had she ran into without even realising it in all her time searching?

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Ami-chan is Sailor Mercury!" Usagi is pleased that at least one of her friends has a good reaction - she's pouting a little, at Ami's calm, casual reaction to the whole thing. Was the only one shocked? "But now you know almost all the same Senshi I do, Minako-chan, unless you're hiding another one? I met Kaiou Michiru-san, she's Sailor Neptune, and Ami-chan, Setsuna-san the nurse is Sailor Pluto. But Minako-chan is the most impressive of all, because she was Sailor V too!"

Her hero! Icon! All around most amazing superhero in the universe! And she was a senshi just! Like! Them!!!

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami was calm and collected as she could usually be. She'll feel bad about not having a stronger reaction later when she looks back on this. She keeps her small smile. She listens when Usagi Tsukino starts naming people off and taking notes of the names she doesn't know. She is delighting in Usagi's excitement of it all though. "I've spoken with Setsuna-sensei recently." she says. "She needs a little help with some. IT." she says. "So I'm going to try to help with that."

"Well those are glowing reviews from Usa-chan." she says with a nod.

"Regardless. It's good to meet you again, Mina..-chan?" maybe more stingy with the chans than Usagi is. Or wanting to be polite. "Yes. I am Sailor Mercury. But..."

"Wouldn't that mean you've been...."

She says. "Doing.. these... things. For a long time?" she asks.

Minako Aino has posed:
Either Minako was simply more free with honorifics of endearment than Ami was as well, or she'd been following Usagi's lead. Whatever the case, as praise turns her way and her cheeks flush there's a lift of her hand to wave it off with a classic 'pshhhaw'. Masterful Mina, truely.

Ami's question however? It brings a nod and a fold of her hands. "Yes, it seems I was the first to awaken. I remained as 'Sailor V,' so as not to put any of the other guardians at risk while I searched for you..."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Minako-chan was being a brave hero for the world, and for us!" Usagi's fan girling has no bounds! But she's pleased that Ami-chan already knows Setsuna-san, because it makes things easier. A lot easier. Her smile dims a little, as she grows more serious. "Because we haven't been allies together very long, there's been a lot of things that only some of us know, but not all of us. I think it's important for us to keep in touch, and make sure we're sharing, so we can't get caught off guard! So, Luna asked me to make sure you both had communicators, like mine."

She shows them the wristwatch/bracelet-like device on her wrist, with it's four colorful orbs - orange, red, blue, green - at the cardinal directions. "I know we all have cellphones, but these will work even in places where our cell connections can't, like barriers, or Zero Time."

She mentions Zero Time so casually, as if it's just naturally something they should know about. It feels normal to her though, that place Wako-chan could call upon.

"I wasn't sure if Artemis would have given you one, Minako-chan, so I brought both of the ones Luna gave me!"

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno takes the bracelet as she examines it and puts it on. "Thank you, Usa-chan." she says softly. "-and thank Luna for me?" she says. She looks at the device on her arm. She can figure out how it works later. She can do that much. For now. Barriers and Zero Time. These are two terms brought up to her and she questions.

"Usa-chan, Do you mean like a forcefield? And, what is Zero Time?" she asks as she leans forward inquisitively. "Also. Is that why you wanted to speak after class? Or was there more?" the bluenette asks, furrowing her brow.

She looks back to Minako and back to Usagi. She gives an incredulous look between the two blondes. "So was the time right then, to stop being Sailor V?" she asks. "Has... the danger passed or. Is it something else?"

Minako Aino has posed:
"I'll take one," Minako smiles, taking the communicator and fastening it on her wrist lightly. Truth be told, aside from Artemis before the other Senshi there was noone else to speak to! As for Zero time? Either Minako knows what Usagi means...or she's taking it in her stride and pretending she does.

Has the danger passed? The blonde with the bow sighs, shaking her head. "No, it hasn't...but you are all awakened now, and the Senshi are always better together."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
The two communciators are distributed happily, with Usagi humming in delight. This will make things much easier! "Rei-chan and Naru-chan have communicators too, so us and Luna-chan can always talk to each other, now. That's good!"

Sunbreaker had taken Naru's communicator off, which meant she hadn't been able to use it, but, outside of that kind of thing, it was still a really useful device to have! Ami's questions though, make her realize that she needs to stay a little more focused - and also stop talking like some snobby expert, and remember what it was like to not know anything. It was just a few months ago, after all.

"Ahaha, sorry, no, that's not it! I wanted to talk about some... other stuff that's important. But before that - barriers are these, things that some of us - not us Senshi, but us magical kids - can put up. It's not like a shield - it's like, I dunno, another dimension or something, because even if things get blown up to heck and back in there, when they drop the barrier, everything goes back to normal. Inai-sensei uses one at Fite Club, I think - we mess up the place good, but everything is always back to normal by the end of class... And Zero Time is what my friend Ginga Otome-chan can do. it's like... she can make a bubble in the world, where time stops, and all the civilians get evacuated, so we can fight without hurting anyone! Very useful, but your cellphone won't work there at all."

She nods, confident that she's made things clear, and then grimaces as Minako explains that the danger isn't passed. Yeah, it's really not...

"So, the big thing I wanted to talk to you guys about is... it's a secret. A big secret, so you have to make sure you keep it quiet, and don't ever talk about it where you're not sure is safe, okay?"

Right, like a classroom on school? Shhhhh.

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno listens to the explanation of Zero Time and Barriers as she hrms. This. Sounds familiar. Like recently familiar. She makes a note, mentally as she then nods and looks over to Minako and then frowns a little. So the danger isn't over. Okay. That tracks. Safety in numbers.

"Of course, Usa-chan." she says as she removes chalk from inside the eraser, and makes a disproving face of some other kid's idea of a prank.

Minako Aino has posed:
Minako too listens, herself having heard of -some- of the concepts as her experience has shown her, but coming to Tokyo has shown her very many new and strange things that even a 'veteran' Magical Girl. Leaning in, her arms folding and notably her actions very much -not- focused on the cleaning up of the station.

Rei Hino has posed:
    SAILOR MOON's communicator pings a signal from SAILOR MARS. "Are you up? There's a lot of weird stuff going on that I think we should talk about. Also, I want to talk about Venus." A pause. "She was super cute the other day, wasn't she? What's up with that? I thought she'd be more calm and reserved. Like a samurai or something."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Usagi is delighted - very much so - to be able to give a report like this, sharing information like a proper leaderly person! Look at how wonderful this all is! She's even impressed Sailor V, she thinks!

And then her communicator pings, the red orb lighting up brightly, and Rei-chan's voice starts spilling forth. And the second the word Venus is said, she scrambles, covering the communicator up with her hand and rushing away to the corner of the classroom, second-hand embarrassment lighting up her cheek.

"Rei-chan, wait, wait -"

But she's too late!

"I'm with Ami-chan and Minako-chan!"

BUT IT'S TOO LATE! "...Minako-chan is really cute though, she's so sweet and wonderful."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno is ready to listen to important information.

Important information doesn't happen.

Instead something embarrassing happens.

Ami Mizuno blushes heavily! "O..oh my...!" she says. "Sorry Rei-chan!" she says.

Minako Aino has posed:
Well, now it was time for Minako to go red again, if only for a moment. Okay, time to bite her bottom lip and then clear her throat and lean in. "Even a samurai needs down time, right Rei-chan? Noone can be calm and reserved -all- the time, or they'd be exhausted!"

Bright smile, she's even grinning at the exchange.

Rei Hino has posed:
    There's some silence from SAILOR MARS on the other end of SAILOR MOON's communicator after the realization of what she just did.

    Sounding like she's trying so hard not to let anything show in her voice that the effort to not show anything is itself a sign of something in her voice, she says, "You should really use our aliases on the communicator. Who knows who might overhear? This was a test to see if you could do it properly, and the others there have proven my point. Anyway, what are you even doing that I wasn't invited to!?" A huff and then SAILOR MARS hangs up.

    Okay, she can't really 'hang up', but she stops transmitting. Unless she is pinged back in which case she kind of has to pick up it will just keep dinging at her.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Usagi can save this. Usagi can save this. Usagi can save this.

"The world might end!" That's got to be enough to distract from Rei-chan's horrible, horrible mistake only slightly, partially, her fault. Right? The communicator still turns off.

She pings it again, immediately, over and over, waving a hand at Ami-chan and Minako-chan sheepishly, don't worry about! That! It wasn't a lie of course! But!

"Ahahaha... hahaha... haha... ha... I'm being serious though, it really could end."

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno goes from embarrassment blinks and places a hand on Usagi's shoulder.

"Usa-chan. I know it might seem like the world might end when you're super embarrassed, but I promise you, things will be okay between you and Rei-chan."

Minako Aino has posed:
Minako herself just blinks at that, tilting her head to the side with a pang of guilt before she lifts her own communicator. She can process what Usagi said about her properly, what Rei said about her, all of it...but first?

Beeps away!

"We're...cleaning a classroon up while we talk about the senshi. At school. You're welcome to join us if you can get here."

Rei Hino has posed:
    Still being pinged, SAILOR MARS fails to pick up. Usagi's phone does start buzzing with messages though!

    TXT Rei to Usagi: Yes, I know the world might end, that's what I wanted to talk to you about! Stop pinging me, and don't use our real names on the communicator!
    TXT Rei to Usagi: Did Luna teach you nothing about protecting your identity!?
    TXT Rei to Usagi: How many people know you're Sailor Moon by now?
    TXT Rei to Usagi: Also before the world ends I might die of embarrassment, so we should really talk.

    With two Senshi pinging her, SAILOR MARS finally picks up to respond to SAILOR MOON and SAILOR VENUS, "It's late, but I'll see what I can do."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaah Rei-chan!!!!!!!!!!!!

"No, Ami-chan, I don't mean - not - of course Rei-chan will forgive me, this is all her fault!!!

And then, as if to prove that, her phone starts beeping. And she looks -

TXT Usagi to Rei: HOW DID YOU KNOW?
TXT Usagi to Rei: wait did the fire tell you? did it tell you about that?!
TXT Usagi to Rei: but anyway of course she did and not that many people know! i think!
TXT Usagi to Rei: would i tbe better if we just called using the communicator and you didn't have to walk?

She's quick to clutch at her communicaot, reaching out to SAILOR MARS. "We can talk on the phone, if it will help?"

Ami Mizuno has posed:
Ami Mizuno looks exasperated at this and goes back to cleaning, mainly by starting to clean desks. Spritz spritz, wipe!

She looks at her communicator. "Sailor Mars." then. "It may be best to speak on the communicator if it's so late for you?" she adds. "Unless you can make it?"

Minako Aino has posed:
Minako herself slips back, sliding her behind onto one of the desks and sitting comfortably, seemingly reassured by having convinced Rei to join them...and still not really helping with cleaning!

Rei Hino has posed:
    SAILOR MARS replies, "...Okay. The communicator is fine. And we really don't have to use our codenames? I mean, I guess if we aren't transformed, it doesn't matter." Mutter mutter mutter. Rei says, "I guess we can just call each other by name. So, Usagi, Minako, Ami... Sorry for the disruption. But I have been having visions of destruction for months now. But I couldn't tell what they meant or when they would happen. It seems like... There's multiple scenarios where the world ends, maybe? In one there's a shadow with eyes and teeth, and another has everyone frozen in place while a wave of destruction flows over them, and then there's one with... An inverted crescent moon, black. Like on Lightning Guy. I don't know anything else about that except that it's bad."

    Pause.

    "So, which one were we talking about tonight?"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Phew," Usagi exhales a sigh of relief as Rei picks up, and then grimaces as Rei - continues. With the apocalypses. Multiple. Apocalypses. Her expression tightens, eyes getting bigger, and bigger, and bigger, until she squeaks, "None of those?"

What is going on, about - all of this - "I was going to tell you about the plan to merge Tokyo and the Dusk Zone and create a hellscape that destroys our whole world?" Her face is buried in her hands.

So many apocalypses. A shadow with eyes and teeth, people frozen as a wave of destruction washes over them, a black crescent moon -

"What would the moon even have to do with anything?" She mumbles, in perhaps the most ironic statement of her life.

Minako Aino has posed:
"I mean, that's not counting witches, evil robot-geniuses and angry cat ex-girlfriends....not -my- ex-girlfriend!" Minako lists off from her position only to frown and place a hand on Usagi's back in comfort while they await Rei joining them.

Rei Hino has posed:
    SAILOR MARS replies, "...Ah. Great." She is on her way to the school, in henshin, based off the sound of rushing wind and the click of high heels on pavement and gravel as she hops across rooftops. "Well, I am almost there. You can start explaining at least. No one is going to be eavesdropping on me like this." Probably, anyway. She is very much not going to ask about cat ex-girlfriends. That sounds like a whole other pile of problems that she doesn't have time for right now.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Usagi will accept that pat on the back gratefully, especially since Minako is adding more to the list. Except, one of her additions is so baffling that Usagi can't help but break through her anxiety to ask - "Angry cat ex-girlfriends? Like... an ex-girlfriend of Artemis', or something else?"

At least Rei-chan was on her way, and would have answers, and -

"Right. So, Obsidian, they're maybe, definitely involved with the Dark Kingdom, and Luna tells me they're our enemies, but, someone with them is, they have this project the Midnight Tokyo Project... and like I said, it's going to ah, merge Tokyo with the Dusk Zone?" ahahaha.

Minako Aino has posed:
"I wish," Minako muses at Usagi's idea. Teasing Artemis would have very much been a better option than the truth. She trails off, letting Usagi continue while she waits for the pretty Miko-...SAILOR MARS to turn up.

"I'm going to guess this is like the 'sleep in the mirror' sort, super bad..."

Rei Hino has posed:
    *clickclickclickclick*

    Shuffle shuffle.

    The door bursts open and Rei Hino steps through, clearing her throat and brushing her hair back a bit hurriedly with her hands, out of concern for the wind maybe having messed it up. She needn't have worried, it's perfect as always. "Hello, everyone." She slides the door closed behind her, then says, "So, please remind me what a Dusk Zone is? I'm sure I've heard the term somewhere before, but I can't think of where. It sounds awful either way." Her eyes drift to Minako briefly, then back to Usagi as she moves to join them and find a seat.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Good question!!!" Usagi turns as Rei enters the classroom, heading over to hug her because - yeah, a hug sounds good, how many apocalypses were just mentioned? So many! "It's the place that like... darkness is from? Some of the youma and a lot of the bad guys are from there, and it's a place where... where normal people can't live at all. And also, we couldn't live either?"

Ahaha... it's terrible.

Minako Aino has posed:
"So it's not even 'bad things spring up everywhere," Minako offers, a little gentle nudge of greeting before coming to focus on Usagi once more. "It's 'end of humanity' bad then?"

They'd already dealt with their home civilization being wiped out once, they -wouldn't- suffer through it again if Minako had any say in things.

Rei Hino has posed:
    Rei one-arm hugs Usagi back before seating herself at one of the desks, sideways, and resting her arm on the desk surface itself. "Great. That sounds great. Exactly what we need right now." Her tone is calm as she stares glassily at Usagi. Then she turns to Minako and asks, in the same casually, sarcastically calm tone, "Isn't that great? We can get every type of end of the world at once. Maybe we can ask them to pretty please schedule them one after another instead, to make it easier for us?" Then she slumps down in her seat, tilting her head back all the way to stare up at the ceiling.

    She is silent for a little bit. Then she asks, "So how are we solving this, Usagi? What's the plan?"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"Mmmmhm," Usagi draws out the sound, wincing a little. "Sorta? Kinda? Probably? ...yes, definitely." Usagi winces, just thinking about it.

"Oh, definitely going to be end of humanity bad. I have some info, that a friend gave me, but... I kind of figured, Dark Kingdom, destruction of humanity, sounds like a job for us?"

She slides into a chair, head going into her hands. "So far... there's this map of leylines, and these shrines that all might be targets and... I think the best thing we can do is try and stop them. At these shrines. We don't really... know enough, otherwise." She sighs, blowing a strand of hair out of her face. "There are other people helping us. So it's just just us, but..."

Minako Aino has posed:
"So we fight," Minako offers from her position, leaning forward and placing her hands on her knees. "We're the Sailor Guardians...facing evil is our calling, and despite everything else, we actually know more than we ever have."

Her hand slips out, gently offering Rei a little squeeze on her arm in reassurance while her eyes go to Usagi.

"All the fighting I did alone, I never had the support of others before and...I could only deal with things as I found them. We have each other...and we know their targets. That's more than we had in our hands before."

Minako, Sailor Venus, Sailor V. However she was seen, the blonde offers a smile and her best chance at reassurance. "We'll stop them, we'll win. As long as we stand together."

Rei Hino has posed:
    Rei turns to smile back at Minako for the arm squeeze, and sits up properly instead of being sprawled out like... Like... A Usagi. Then she says, "I understand. That's... Troubling, but a place to start." She scowls. "I can't forgive them for dishonoring sacred shrines for their evil plans. That's a new level of low." Rei shakes her head slowly, angrily. "I'll do what I can to strengthen the spiritual defenses at the other shrines. It might buy time at least." She chews on an idea briefly, but then decides against it. No. It probably wouldn't work.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Usagi lifts her head to meet Minako's gaze. The reassurance of it - of having the Sailor V - Sailor Venus - promising that they had more than she had... and it's a little true, isn't it? None of those other attacks, none of them had had warning attached. No ideas of what might be coming. This time they did. Ideas of what was coming and they had allies and - "It's scary, but I'm glad we know, you know? Because... we have a chance. Between us four, and Pluto, and all the others who aren't Senshi..."

There are allies. More than she had at the start, and now...

"I feel like we should have expected they wouldn't respect shrines, but it still feels sounds messed up."

Rei Hino has posed:
    "Yes." Rei looks around at the other girls. Ami, Minako, Usagi... "We're not alone anymore. We can handle it as long as we work together. It might be hard, but there's so much resting on us succeeding, and so many people who believe in us. There's no way I could ignore this, even if I wasn't a Sailor Guardian."

    Biiiig sigh. "But we could definitely use some more Senshi. Too bad they don't just pop up brand new. How many people can be reincarnations, after all?"

Minako Aino has posed:
"Maybe we need to be willing to look beyond our own numbers," Minako offers from her position. "There's lots of heroes, heroines...even if they're not senshi, we might just be able to lead the way."

A grin, she moves to excitedly stand tall. "The bad guys seem to team up all the time! It's only fair we do the same!"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"There are others. Magical kids, like us. Ginga Otome, Cute Wolf Tsukiko, Culinary Guardian Daifuku, Tragar-chan, and a bunch more. We're not... alone. They might not be Senshi, but they're my allies - and they'll be yours too!"

She hops up, energized at the thought, looking around. "There's a lot going on. and Rei-chan, you've sensed a lot, but - if we can do it together, we can do anything." The bad guys did team up. They helped each other. And they sent monsters to do the hard work for them! Why couldn't they help each other?