After a several minutes travel through space at light speed, a message reached the tormented surface of the gaseous giant. Jupiter heard her guardian's prayer and granted her the power she asked. For a while, she would be able to transform again and each of her attacks would have more strength than usual.
By the time her planet had listened and reacted, Makoto had concluded she was praying in vain, and so she was back to bed, her head full of hatefur thought and projects of revenge. She shouldn't have let that fly lay its eggs on her eye the other day, as expected the worms had eaten it, not that it really mattered but if she had to fight Sailor Moon to die she would need to see. Too bad. These things usually came as a pair, she still had one eye.
She wasn't thinking about it when the energy finally arrived in a weak but lengthy green glow surrounding her transformation tool. She was only thinking about the number of times she would plunge her knife into Usagi's stomach. Initially she only wanted to free herself, but her anger was growing, she was taking a cruel pleasure in imagining herself slaying the one who a short time ago was her best friend.
Through the always open window, a small flock of crows flew in, attracted by the scent of death. She tolerated flies, but that was too much, she drove them out with loud shouts and shut the screen despite the obstacle it might oppose to the wind. She patrolled the apartment, checked the grossly repaired door and, while returning to the bed where she had left to themselves a few dozens of ugly bugs, she saw the light surrounding her stick.
Well, looks like she would be going out tonight…

Angrily, Usagi was pacing in her room, eating to keep some control over herself a large chocolate chip cookie her mother had done. She had to do something, but what? How to find out what? She lacked Ami's knowledge and smart and didn't have Rei's psychic power. With much patience she might convince Makoto that death wasn't the solution, but it didn't reveal her the said solution. She didn't have the power and had she had it, she wouldn't know how to use it.
She needed the others' help, but no, they wanted to kill Makoto! If these were friends, she would do better without them! She still hadn't found the solution, she had finished the plate of cookies a while ago, Luna had fallen asleep when her mother shower up in the crack of the door, hair untamed and an half surprised half tires expression on her face.
"Usagi, she said with an unclear voice, it's past midnight, can't you stop stomping like that? Go sleep, you're impossible!
- Mom, there's something bugging me, can I ask you something?
- If only it can make you sleep…
- If I had a cancer in terminal stage and only lived with machines, and that I could be terribly sick for years with no hope to ever get better, and that I begged you to unplug me, would you?
- I… This isn't an easy question you're asking me… If it was me, I would want to die as fast as possible, but you are my child, I couldn't kill you, I couldn't do it. It's not a happy question, why are you thinking this kind of things? You're not sick, I hope?
- No… I wonder what we must do in the name of love. What is good? To kill or to let suffer? I know I wouldn't want to suffer, should I think the same about another person?
- I think the only humane thing to do would be to kill that person. But I would never do that, especially if it's someone I love. You have such questions! But to get back to mine, would you mind going to bed?
- Heu… yes mom. Thanks."
She undressed herself and put on her pyjama, but didn't get in bed. Firstly because she didn't feel any sleepier than before, and because a window just had been shattered on the lower floor. Obeying a reflex she had developed over time in her life as a warrior, she ran toward the danger, to find nothing but the dark house and a broken window.
The large living room window, that would be expensive! Anyway, that wasn't her most immediate problem. If a thief was inside, she had to stop him, and to do so, she had to be Sailor Moon. Hiding, in case her mother would still be around, she transformed and proceeded to turning on the lights not to allow the criminal to surprise her, and also because she was a bit afraid of the dark.
Nothing to be seen, that was the worst. She inspected the living room, if she could find a stone or anything, that would mean the act of a vandal, she wouldn't have too much to fear. But no, and worse than all, muddy footsteps proved someone had been there. The intruder had wiped his feet a few steps farther, so his trails wouldn't reveal his position.
Moon supposed he wasn't in the living room. She, rather, the narrow prints were more reminding of a woman's shoe, a tall woman judging from the size. She walked out and, turning on the kitchen's light, saw before anything a small pool of blood. Alarmed, she looked up and saw what she feared most to see. Her mother was crouching in a corner, hands in her face and arms covered with blood.
She refrained from shouting "Mom!" and instead called "Miss Tsukino!" The poor woman looked between her fingers, screamed and pushed the ground with her heels, as if she could crawl away through the wall. "Mercy! Don't hurt me, don't touch my family! Take all you want but please…
- Miss Tsukino, everything if okay, I'm not the one who attacked you. I am Sailor Moon, I'm there to help you. I will stop the one who did this, only, you must stay calm. You stay here and I'll make sure your family is safe."
Ikuko, convinced, took her hands away from her bloody face. The wound didn't seem too serious, a moderately deep cut from the forehead to the cheek, missing the eye from little but missing it nonetheless. It might leave a scar, but it probably wouldn't. She nodded timidly, then screamed, pointing the warrior with a shaky finger.
By some miracle, Moon immediately understood and abruptly turned around, allowing a long knife to finish its circular curve it had begun in the air, rather than being gracelessly stopped by the impact of the hilt on the base of her neck, the blade stained with blood and other biological liquids. Though it wasn't too clean already, a complex pattern of tiny drops of blood misted the edge, probably from her mother's veins.
The woman holding the knife was no other than Jupiter. She did threaten to kill her, but Moon never thought she would actually do! She caught the arm, but death hadn't weakened her adversary. On the contrary, without fatigue and pain, nothing limited her strength and anger made her a merciless enemy.
Jupiter managed to turn her wrist despite the two hands restraining it, and once her weapon turned toward Usagi's abdomen, she pushed toward it. Moon resisted, but when the second arm joined the first she had to change technique, merely defending herself wouldn't save her.
Knocking her head into her face should normally have a significant effect, but two teeth pulled from their root mattered little for who can't feel pain. It was no use, there was no way to fight that living cadaver that was stronger than her to begin with. Fighting for her life might buy her one minute at best, but it was a miracle she needed!
She didn't need so much. Ikuko knew her family was in danger, this psychopath didn't break in to leave so easily! This was self defence, she repeated to herself as she picked a knife from the counter where it waited to be washed along with the rest of the dishes. Sailor Moon couldn't lose, or herself and her loved ones would be defenceless! Hadn't it been for that thought, she would have hesitated forever.
But she made her mind and dug the blade in the tall woman's shoulder. It was more difficult than cutting a piece of meat, but not that much. Expecting to see her turn around, for she knew she didn't inflict her any lethal wound, she stepped back, keeping the strangely clean knife. Before the absence of reaction, the stabbed again and again, then realised it was no use and attacked one of the arms threatening the woman who tried to defend her with an horrible death.
The women wasn't bleeding or suffering, apparently, she mustn't have been human, she didn't leave Sailor Moon to defend against her, she came to doubt being able to act. But after running the blade a few times on the gloved forearm, something gave way and the knife it held fell. She ran to the door, ready to flee.
Moon didn't believe her eyes, so close to be done with her Jupiter dropped her knife and released her, uselessly trying to move her suddenly paralysed hand. The tips of her fingers moved but the fist wouldn't close, instead the severed ends of the muscles retracted into a deep cut in her forearm.
Jupiter bent to pick the knife, but Moon didn't let her and kicked it out of her reach. Jupiter wasn't so upset, stabbing her was only plan A, she had plenty of ideas: "Sparkling Wide Pressure!"
The target didn't receive all the power of the attack but was touched nonetheless. The shock threw her against the wall, half knocked out. Jupiter marched over her, her tiara's antenna emitting small lightings, showing she was ready for more. No choice, there really was no choice. "Moon Tiara Action!"
She aimed low, still determined not to kill. But from her position precision was a luxury. The tiara hit her on the left hip, leaving only a few locks of flesh to attack her leg to the rest of her body. She fell and finally renounced, forced to crawl away.
Moon stayed close to her mother, on the pretext of making sure she was well, in fact to give Makoto some advance, then pretended to go after her and retransformed into Usagi. She didn't want to kill Makoto, it was better letting her go home, she wouldn't attack in that state!
When Usagi came in, her mother literally jumped on her: "But what were you doing outside?"
- I heard the window break, so I looked.
- It's dangerous, what the hell were you thinking?
- I'm sorry. Mom, what's with your face?
- What? Oh, a cut. A mad woman broke in, and you won't believe it, Sailor Moon came, well… a whole weird story. I don't know if I should call the police or no.
- Maybe, for the window at least, but if you tell everything it might be difficult to explain.
– I'll call, I have all my time. You go to bed, you have school tomorrow."

Chapter 11