THE HIDDEN TRUTH
A Sailor Moon Sekkushiaru Roman

NOTE: In this fanfic, as with the other fanfics I have written about the
"S" season, I have used the same names for the Outer Senshi as Mark Berger
did in his fanfics: Alex (Haruka), Michelle (Michiru), Sonya (Setsuna) and
Heather (Hotaru). For the "royal" forms of the characters, I use their
original Japanese names, again, in accordance with my honorary "little
brother's" style. ^_^ Also, I am using the name Ghangarroth for the entity
that possessed Professor Tomoe. This story is, in part, a direct sequel to
my earlier piece, "Pluto's Secret."


by Sailor Mac	
	Raye opened her eyes, feeling like she'd slept for days. Perhaps she had.
She'd certainly been exhausted enough. . .in body, in mind, in soul. .
.after the final conflict with the Deathbusters.
	Her memory of the whole thing was foggy. She knew there was a huge wall of
surging evil, pure daimon energy, and she and the others were trying to
hold it back. And then, somewhere, at the end of endurance, when they had
all collapsed, she remembered Sailor Moon silently calling upon her to lend
her power. . .for what?
	And her next memory was of a totally beaten and bedraggled Super Sailor
Moon, her eyes haunted, staggering out of the ruins of Infinity School with
a baby in her arms. . .
	Oh, Gods. . .the sight of that baby. Why had it stirred such curious
feelings over her, such feelings of attraction. . .of love?
	It was just another peculiarity in the long, strange trip that had been
her life throughout the entire Deathbusters ordeal, ever since she'd had
the first visions of The Silence. . .and been the first person to have
their heart crystal stolen. . .
	Now that it was over, she finally allowed herself to ask the questions she
had shoved to the back of her mind through the whole thing.
	Why was *she* the only one who had visions of The Silence? Serena and
Darien were psychic also. . .but neither one had said anything about having
flashes of Armageddon.
	Who *was* Heather Tomoe? And why did she always have this. . .strange
feeling when she was around her? She hadn't talked to any of the others
about it. . .but whenever she saw Reenie's best friend, she'd wanted to hug
her, soothe the torment that always seemed to lurk beneath her placid
facade, keep her safe from danger. . .
	And when Alex, Michelle and Sonya had tried to kill her. . .she'd wanted
to kill *them.*
	Oh, how she'd wanted to ask Mars about all this. But she couldn't. Because
ever since the Deathbusters had shown up, he'd been silent. He hadn't
spoken her at all, in dreams or meditations. And when she'd put herself in
a trance and tried to find him in the Spirit World. . .she'd found nothing
at all.
	And his disappearance was perhaps the most baffling thing about all this.
* * *
	"I think I've found him!"
	In Paradise, one of the immortals was concentrating on a spot on the
ground, trying to see what was underneath. She knew they'd imprisoned him.
. .but the only question was *where*. . .
	"Hold on," her spouse called. "I'm on my way. . ." He joined his wife, and
they combined their energy to look downward. . .
	"Protected with a very strong magic," he said. "We'll have to combine
forces to get him out."
	Concentrating, they made the ground dissolve, bit by bit. . .until the
container beneath was revealed.
	"Oh, stars," she said, "they've sealed him in a *jar!*" Fury coursed
through her. . .how could they be so cruel? She released a huge bolt of
magic, and the container shattered.
	The god inside had been crunched into a horribly uncomfortable position,
his arms and legs drawn against his chest. He gasped, blinked, and slowly
unfolded himself.
	"Isis? Osiris?"
	"We've been looking for you for the longest time," the goddess said
gently, sending him healing energy. "We were beginning to think we'd never
find you."
	"Raye. . .did they get Raye? Where is she?"
	"Raye is fine," said Osiris. "They didn't harm her."
	"And Heather?"
	The married deities looked at each other. "She's. . .alive," Osiris said.
"Kali saw to that."
	"I'll have to thank her. . .she protected her, while I neglected her. . ."
	"Don't blame yourself," said Isis. "There are some things that even a god
can't foresee. This Pharaoh 90 was an incredibly powerful being. . ."
	"Was?"
	"Sailor Saturn and Sailor Moon destroyed it," the goddess replied. "The
Deathbusters have been defeated. But poor Persephone. . ."
	"She had to stop time to keep her allies from being killed," said Osiris.
"She had no choice. . .but they immediately yanked her back to Paradise and
imprisoned her. She's on trial as we speak. If she's found guilty. . .her
mother's curse will never be lifted from her."
	Mars shook his head. "Have *all* the gods gone mad?"
	"There's still a few who never believed that Sailor Saturn was going to
destroy the earth. Mercury, Venus, Jupiter. . .but all the rest. . ." Isis
sighed. "Hysteria. Mass hysteria."
	All this, Mars thought, over a child. . .an innocent child. . .
	Raye *has* to know. She *has* to know everything.
	"I want to you tell me everything I missed," he said to the two deities.
"And then, there's a human I *must* pay a call on."
* * *
	Raye sat before the fire, as she had done a thousand, million times
before, straining all her psychic senses for any sign of him. . .
	Nothing. Just like every time she'd tried for the past few months.
	It's finished, she thought. He's abandoned me. I'll never hear from him again.
	And suddenly, she felt emptier than she ever had before. . .
	Until she felt something stirring. . .a definite presence, moving rapidly
through the universe. . .
	He materialized in the flesh right there in the temple, beside her. She
let out a cry, sprang to her feet and threw her arms around him, weeping
with joy.
	"It's you," she sobbed. "You're back! I never thought I'd see or hear from
you again!"
	"Raye. . .believe me when I say that I would never *choose* to stay away
from you."
	She drew back. "What do you mean. . .never choose?"
	"I've been a prisoner. Ever since the gods sensed that the Silence was
coming. They seized me, stuffed me in a huge jar, sealed it and buried it
in magically protected ground."
	"WHAT? Why would they do that to you? What on earth did *you* have to do
with the Deathbusters and the Silence?"
	"With the Deathbusters. . .nothing. With the Silence. . ." He let out a
sigh. "We have to have a talk. . .a talk that I've been putting off for a
long time." She sat on the floor, and he sat cross-legged opposite her.
	"Do you have something to do with. . .Heather? With Sailor Saturn?"
	"Why do you say that?"
	"Because every time we were with her, I had this strange feeling. . .like
I was. . .*connected* to her somehow. Almost as if we were. . .*related.*
Are you her Guardian Deity, too?"
	"It goes far deeper than that," he said. "Heather. . .Sailor Saturn. . .is
our future daughter."
	Raye thought she was going to fall on the floor. Shock flooded her body. .
.but also a wonderful warmth and a sense of relief. It was as if, on some
level, she had known all along. . .and this just confirmed it.
	She must have swayed, because she felt him catching her and heard him say,
"Are you all right?"
	"Yes. . .I think I am. . ."
	"It's a shock, I know. And I'm sorry to have put her in jeopardy like I
did. I should have left her where she belonged, in Crystal Tokyo. . .but I
panicked."
	"Why?"
	"It's a long story," he said. "Heather's coming into the world had been
foretold for centuries. She is the champion and priestess of the goddess
Kali. . .who is not exactly popular with most of the gods. She comes from a
different divine race than the rest of them, and she tends to be aloof and
solitary.  And I'm afraid that gods can be all too much like humans in one
respect. . .when they come across someone different, they will distrust and
fear them. All kinds of rumors sprang up over the centuries about Kali and
her coming avatar. . .one of the few things she said publically to the
other gods was that she was waiting until the time was right to send her
Sailor Soldier out into the universe. So there were whispers that Kali
secretly hated the human race, and was planning to send her Sailor Soldier
into the world to destroy it."
	"Was that true?"
	"Not at all. I'm one of the few gods who had actually *talked* with Kali,
gotten to know her. . .and she's as concerned about the human race's
welfare as any other deity. She has a fearsome, destructive side, that's
true. . .but she uses it to defend humans, not to harm them. But other
gods. . .they just didn't understand this. Especially the goddess Demeter.
. ." He paused as if considering whether to tell her something, then moved
on.
	"Anyway. . .one of the few things that was known for sure about Kali's
Sailor Soldier was that she would be the child of a god and a mortal woman.
As a result, relationships between deities and humans were pretty much
banned for years. . .the only reason I was allowed to have a relationship
with you during the Silver Millennium, and during the present day, was that
I assured the other gods that I was holding back my seed from you. .
.practicing a magical form of birth control."
	"But if you could do that. . .how did I. . ." She trailed off, obviously
embarrassed.
	"I got carried away with emotion one night," he said. "And I forgot."
	And his mind flooded with memories of the child's conception. . .
* * *
	It was a beautiful night in Crystal Tokyo. The full moon gleamed on the
Crystal Palace, and the air was warm and perfumed with flowers.
	The young woman kneeling on the window seat noticed none of it. She was
Princess Rei. . .technically Queen Rei of Mars, now. Each of the former
Sailor Soldiers had been given their full royal titles when Crystal Tokyo
was established.
	A lot of good it does me, she thought. I have no planet, no family. . .no
consort.
	Looking down at the gardens, she saw Queen Ami of Mercury with her
husband, Lord Adam. . .Queen Minako of Venus and her spouse, Lord Priest
Glendon. . .in the suite across from her dwelt the Queens Haruka and
Michiru, and she could hear them laughing and talking. . .
	And she was alone. Her 20th century husband, Chad, hadn't come with her to
Crystal Tokyo. He'd died in the disaster that had resulted in the earth
being put to sleep for 200 years, and had been reincarnated somewhere else,
to begin a new life without her.
	"What good is a life of thousands of years," she said aloud, "when all
those years have to be spent alone?"
	"But you're not, my queen," a voice said.
	She turned around. . .and there he was. The face and form she'd loved
since she was a teenager. . .had never truly stopped loving. . .
	"Mars!" she said.
	"I told you years ago. . .when you came to Crystal Tokyo, we would be
together." He moved toward her, his arms outstretched.
	She ran toward him, and they were in each other's embrace, their mouths
coming together fiercely. Oh, she could never hold him tightly enough, it
seemed. . .
	When the kiss broke, she said, "I'm so glad you're here. . .and that we'll
be together all the time now. . ."
	He eased away from her. "I'm afraid it won't be all the time."
	"What? I thought that you were my destined consort. . ."
	"A god and a human. . .cannot live together all the time. I can only be
with you some of the time. . ."
	She stalked across the room, shouting, "So in other words. . .I'm just
about as alone as I was before, right? It'll be a night here, a night
there. . .and the rest of the time, I sleep alone every night, listening to
all my fellow Sailor Soldiers being happy?"
	"Rei, Rei!" He ran to her, pulling her into his arms from behind. "This
isn't easy for me, either! You don't know how much I've wanted to be with
you. . . have always wanted to be with you. . .I'd give up my godhood in a
minute if I could." Wheels were churning in the god's head, as he thought.
. .there's got to be a way. . .there *must* be a way we can be together all
the time. . .
	"I don't think that's possible," she said, starting to pull away from him.
	"Maybe not. . .but maybe. . ." He pulled her into his arms again. "I will
think about it later . . .but for now. . .please, can we just enjoy this
moment?"
	She turned around, tears in her eyes. . .and then, her mouth was on his
again. . .
	Yes, she thought. This moment. . .let's make the most of this moment. . .
	They tumbled to the floor, fiercely kissing, their tongues tangling as
their hands pulled at each other's clothing. It seemed like eternity before
all the fabric was removed, and she could press her body against his,
feeling his comforting warmth, the delicious friction of his skin against
hers. Amazing that a god would feel so much like a human man. . .
	She rolled on top of him as their lips continued to ravish each other. His
hands stroked her hair, then moved slowly over her shoulders, then down her
back, rubbing and massaging. When he grasped her buttocks, she let out a
small cry, her hips grinding against his, wanting more heat, more friction,
more pleasure. . .
	She leaned over so he could take her nipple in his mouth, and as she felt
his tongue start to lap at it, a long, low moan escaped her. The honey was
starting to pour from her as liquid fire surged hotter and hotter through
her veins. She felt as if the very room itself was being slowly filled with
magic.
	They rolled over so she was on the bottom, making it easier for him to
take a nipple in his mouth and suck it, gently but firmly. Her hips began
moving in rhythm to his sucking as she panted and made little sounds that
were both pleas and promises. And then, she felt his hand moving down over
her belly. . .
	"Yes!" she moaned. "Ohhh. . .oh, yes!" And the cry became louder as he
began to stroke her folds while his mouth switched to the other breast.
Electric pleasure was streaking from her nipples to her womanhood and back
again, and she felt like her entire body was about to burst into flame.
When his finger found her jewel and started to stroke it oh-so-gently, that
did it. "AAAAHHHH!!!" she cried as her entire body shook with ecstatic
spasms.
	She fell back to the floor, dazed, feeling his lips on hers again, gently
this time. . .slowly, slowly reality faded back into view. . .
	Her fingers slowly trailed over his body, from chest down to stomach, and
lower, lower. . .
	She grasped his manhood, delighting in the groan he made, and began to
pump it, as slowly as she could at first, letting her fingers trace
patterns on the hot flesh. She caressed the head with her entire palm
before sliding inch-by-inch down his length again. Oh, how wonderful it was
to return the pleasure he'd just given her!
	Leaning over, she took him in her mouth and began a slow in-and-out
motion, and his moans became cries. "Aaah. . .ohhh, yes. . OOOHHH yes,
woman, you make me mad. . ."
	Good, she thought. That's just what I was aiming for. And she began to
suck harder, move her head back and forth faster, letting her hands gently
squeeze and caress the sensitive flesh of his thighs, then the sac beneath
his manhood. "AAHHH. . .ohhh. . .ohh. . .that feels sooo goood. . ."
	She slowly eased away from him, hearing him utter a near-shout of
frustration, and lay back on the floor again, parting her legs slightly,
just enough to tantalize him. Not that he needed any tantalizing.
	His lips were on hers again, and his hands were on her breasts, squeezing
the nipples gently. His teeth nibbled softly on her mouth, and he was
pushing a thigh between hers. She gasped, her legs clamping around it, her
hips thrusting back and forth rapidly. She felt her womanhood rub against
his skin, her jewel being tickled oh-so-deliciously by his flesh, making
hot tingles run through her again and again.
	"Please.. ." she moaned. "I want you inside me. . ."
	"How much?" he whispered, not moving his hands or his thigh.
	"I have to have it. . .I have to have it or I'll explode. . .I love you. .
.I love you so much. . ."
	"I love you too," he whispered. "I always have." And then, he was pushing
her thighs up and out, and his manhood was probing her entrance. . .
	At the first thrust, she had a little climax. It was as if there was magic
swelling up all around her, and it had entered her body along with him. As
he moved within her, the pleasure began to flood her. . .and it felt like
the magic level in the room was growing and growing. . .
	"Ohh, yes," she moaned. "Ohh, baby. . .you're so good to me. . .keep doing
it, oh yes. . ."
	"My love," he whispered hoarsely as he thrust faster and faster, making
the fires between them blaze hotter and hotter. Her hips rose again and
again to meet his, driving relentlessly toward the goal they had to reach.
. .fulfillment, sweet fulfillment. . .
	She felt it coming upon her. . .almost there, almost there, just a little
more. . .His fingers were on her nipples again, and that did it.
"AAAAAAHHHHH!!!" she screamed, and his shout of ecstasy was just seconds
behind, and as the hot spasms wracked her it felt like every bit of magic
around her was being sucked into her womb.	Finally, just when she thought
she'd go blissfully, wonderfully mad from it, it ended, and she crashed to
the floor, completely spent.
	They kissed softly, and she felt herself drifting off to sleep, feeling
completely at peace. "I love you," she whispered, then lost consciousness.
	He picked her up and gently carried her to her bed, lying her down and
covering her up, placing a gentle kiss on her temple.
	"I love you too," he whispered to the sleeping woman. "I love you so much.
. .and I *will* find a way we can live together all the time."
* * *
	"I knew within a few days that you were pregnant," he said. "And so did a
couple of the other gods. . .the more paranoid ones scanned earth
constantly for any sign of any pregnancy that *might* be divine. Pretty
soon, word had gotten around Paradise that the Messiah of Silence had been
conceived, and Mars was her father. . .and there was talk of destroying
both you and the child. I couldn't let that happen." He took both her hands
in his. "You didn't even know you were pregnant when I put you in a deep,
deep sleep one night, stole the child from your womb and fled into the
past. I thought that if I placed her with a nice 20th century human family,
they'd protect her, love her, raise her as their own. . .and she'd be safe.
I picked out the Tomoes because they seemed like wonderful people who could
give her a stable home. . .plus, they'd tried many times to have their own
child without success. I placed the child within the woman's womb and just
walked away. . ." He sighed. "And that was my mistake."
	"You didn't know that the Deathbusters had gotten hold of her?"
	"Not until it was too late. The being Pharaoh 90 had been scouring all
planets with intelligent life, looking for a planet he could clear off so
his followers could colonize it. To do that, he needed human hosts for his
two principal helpers, Ghangarroth and Mistress Nine. He came across the
Earth. . .and across Heather Tomoe, who he knew instantly was a very
special child. He caused the accident that killed the child and offered
Professor Tomoe her life back. . .for a price."
	Raye had tears running down her face. "If I had known that, I would have. . ."
	"There was nothing you could have done alone. It is only because the
entire Sailor Team, including Uranus, Neptune and Pluto, got involved. . ."
	"Don't mention those bitches to me! They tried to *kill* our daughter!"
	"Raye. . .they *thought* they were doing what was right. They were
receiving their instructions from deities who believed that the only way to
save the Earth was to destroy the Messiah of Silence. But they *aren't* bad
people. . .they were just misinformed."
	"They fought us every step of the way! They're no allies of ours!"
	"They can be *very* valuable allies. . .it's now up to the two groups of
Sailor Soldiers to patch up their differences."
	She wasn't going to argue with him about that now. There was still one
question she needed answered. . .
	"Mars. . .is she still alive?"
	"She is. Kali has restored her to a baby state. . .so she can begin life
anew, completely free of the taint of Mistress Nine. But Raye. . .don't be
surprised if she. . .skips some phases of the growth process. If she is
needed, Sailor Saturn might very well reawaken."
	Raye felt like dancing. She was alive! Their child was alive! She leaned
over and embraced Mars, an embrace he eagerly returned.
	"And now, my dear," he said, "I have to go. I have to find out what
happened with Sailor Pluto. . .she'd been put on trial before the gods for
stopping time."
	"Sailor Pluto? But why would the *gods* put a *Sailor Soldier* on trial?
Mars? Mars?"
	But he had faded from sight, leaving her to wonder. . .
* * *
	While Mars and Raye were having their conversation, back in Paradise, a
young woman who had once been a goddess faced an angry tribunal.
	Sonya knew when she'd stopped time that the gods would take instant
vengeance on her. When she'd assumed the duties of Sailor Pluto, she'd been
told it was the one thing that was forbidden.
	Forbidden or not. . .it had been necessary for the fulfillment of their
mission.
	If only she'd been able to convince the others of that. . .
	She scanned the crowd, looking for Hades, her husband. . .but he was
nowhere to be seen. They kept him away, she thought. If I could only see
him, it would make all this so much easier. . .
	"What would have happened," the god Apollo was saying to her, "if you
*had* let Uranus and Neptune die? In the end, it was Sailor Moon who
destroyed Pharaoh 90. . ."
	"But it wouldn't have been possible without the help of the Sailor
Soldiers of the Outer Planets! If they hadn't been there to battle the
multiple daimon that came from Ghangarroth. . .Sailor Moon would have been
defeated."
	"You should have destroyed Sailor Moon!" someone else shouted. "She kept
you from destroying Sailor Saturn!"
	"No matter what, I would *not* destroy Sailor Moon! Her continued
existence is necessary for the survival of the human race in the future!"
	"Why did you let her get involved in the first place?" a voice from the
back yelled.
	Sonya took a deep breath. The same questions. . .over and over and over. .
.She was beginning to think they were just trying to wear her down until
she broke down and admitted she'd failed in her mission, the mission she
was literally born for.
	"Sailor Saturn yet lives!" shouted another voice. "Why haven't your
so-called allies destroyed her yet? She's in a vulnerable state. . ."
	"They don't know for sure that the baby is Sailor Saturn! None of us would
destroy her unless we knew for *sure* that. . ."
	"NOBODY'S GOING TO HURT THAT CHILD. . .NOT NOW, NOT EVER!"
	The voice seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once. And then, a
new deity slammed into the chamber. . .a deity with a fearsome appearance.
She had multiple arms and wore a necklace of skulls, and her face was
stern. . .but closer examination revealed an unusual depth of warmth and
wisdom in the eyes.
	"Kali," voices whispered around the room as they all stared at this entity
from another race of gods, the goddess of death and destruction. . .and of
birth and renewal.
	"You FOOLS!" she shouted. "I didn't send Sailor Saturn into the world to
destroy it! I sent her into the world to SAVE it! It was YOUR paranoia that
almost destroyed the world!" The goddess's gaze swept the room. "I don't
see Isis among you. . .I would like to commend her on having such a strong
champion and priestess. If it wasn't for Sailor Moon. . .you people would
have no more human race to be gods over!"
	"Sailor Moon handed the Sacred Cup over to the enemy!" shouted Apollo. "To
YOUR champion and priestess!"
	Kali laughed. "*My* champion and priestess? Dear boy, you are *sadly*
mistaken. Mistress Nine was *not* my champion and priestess. She was an
abomination! A dark entity which entered the body of the child called
Heather Tomoe. My champion and priestess is the *other* persona within that
child. . .Sailor Saturn. And it was Sailor Saturn who conquered the
darkness! As I sent her into the world to do!"
	"Excuse me," said Demeter, "but it was my belief. . .for years. . .that at
the end of time, you would send a messenger to destroy the worlds. . ."
	"And it's *not* the end of time," the other goddess snapped back. "And
won't be for *millions* of years. In the meantime, my interest is in
*preserving* the human race. . .just like yours. Do you know why Sailor
Saturn was born? To help save Crystal Tokyo from the Black Moon Family! But
she wasn't there when they attacked. . .because *you* people frightened
Mars into hiding the child in the past. And again. . .it was Sailor Moon
who had to save the human race!"
	She turned toward the defendant in the trial. . .who faced the goddess
without fear. "I did what I thought I must for preservation of the human
race," she said.
	Kali chuckled. "Another victim of the cruelty of certain gods. . .a
goddess forced to become a human and a Sailor Soldier. I do not blame you
for what you did, Sailor Pluto. . .your mother brainwashed you from birth.
I do think, however, that you and your two allies would better use your
talents working *with* Sailor Moon and her allies instead of fighting
against them from now on."
	"She violated natural law by stopping time!" Demeter said.
	"And because she did so. . .the world was saved. I think that's a fair
tradeoff." She glared around at the other gods, daring them to defy her.
None did.
	"Now, I think you should let this young woman get back to her duties. The
world is going to need her. Soon. And Sailor Saturn as well." The goddess
strode back to the chamber doors, shouted "Good day!" and abruptly left.
	Everyone took a deep breath. Nobody knew what to say. . .
	Finally, Jupiter spoke. "I propose we let Sailor Pluto go back to the Time
Gate. . ."
	"She still violated natural law!" said her mother.
	"Fine. . .if we *must* impose a sentence on her. . .then she is forbidden
to go back to the world in her human form until her next mission." He
leaned over and whispered to her, "You'll be allowed to speak to Uranus and
Neptune, and Small Lady, as a spirit, just to let them know you're all
right."
	"And what about Sailor Saturn?" said Apollo.
	"You heard what the woman said!" said Jupiter. "The human race will be
needing her shortly. . .we leave her alone."
	"She can't do much now, anyway!" someone else shouted. "She's a baby!"
	But Sonya knew. . .deep inside her. . .that Heather wouldn't be staying a
baby for long. . .



AUTHOR'S NOTE: I first saw a picture of Sailor Saturn in the 1998 Sailor
Moon Japanese calendar, when I had just discovered the series. At the time,
I was only familiar with the DiC episodes and the Inner Senshi. When I saw
Hotaru, the first thing I thought was, "Did Raye have a daughter come back
from the future also?" And even when I found out who she was. . .I couldn't
shake the impression that she looked like she could be the daughter of
Sailor Mars. And so, I decided to incorporate the idea into my storyline.

Having Mars buried underground in a jar by the other gods, BTW, is based on
an actual myth. When Ares, the much nastier Greek counterpart of Mars, got
out of hand, he was imprisoned in a jar and buried far under the Earth. His
screams of outrage caused earthquakes.

Standard Sailor Moon disclaimers apply. These characters ain't mine, I'm
just borrowing them for a little while.