"Shadows in the Moonlight"
by Vega

Chapter 3

Luna stretched and padded across Makoto's coffee table, waiting for Raye to arrive. Odd, for once it was not their leader that was late, but the one who admonished her most for her tardiness.

"Luna..." Usagi whined as Minako looked up from the Manga she read. "What's this about? Is there some sort of trouble?"

"No." the black cat shook her head slowly, "But Artemis and I believe that it's time you girls learned a little more about your pasts on the Moon."

Ami looked up. "Luna... does this have anything to do with the strange dreams we've all been having lately?"

Usagi snapped her head around. "What dreams?!"

Makoto leaned over. "You haven't been having them? Of course not! You dream about Mamoru every night! What would be strange about that?"

"Tell me!" Usagi wailed.

Luna only shook her head.

"Wait until Raye gets here." Artemis muttered from his position of the couch backing, not even bothering to open his eyes.

***

Vegeta was unimpressed.

He curled his lip back in distaste, and turned a contemptuous back to this "Lord Warrior Jadeite". He snorted. Whatever.

The slender man turned wide sea-blue eyes to Goku, who waved him to continue and told him silently to prepare. "C'mon, Vegeta..." Goku whined. "He's good. And he's got some really interesting techniques."

Vegeta did not move.

"He's like no one I've ever fought before!" Goku added enthusiastically. The muscles in Vegeta's back leapt, but he was otherwise unaffected. Goku smiled evilly... well, as evilly as someone like himself could. "He almost beat me..."

Vegeta spun back around, staring with slitted eyes at this thin, weak, human.

"He," he said, pointing at Jadeite, "Almost beat you?"

Goku nodded.

"You're not lying, are you?" Goku's face tilted in puzzlement. Vegeta groaned. "Of course not, Kakarotto, you don't have the mental capacity to lie, you blockhead."

Inwardly, Jadeite smiled. It was an accurate observation, from what he could tell from the Son Family's dinner-table conversation the other night, but the implied insult fell on deaf ears.

"So..." Vegeta appraised his new opponent carefully. His clothing was baggy in some place, which made for good hand holds. The red-trimmed grey jacket and pants were neatly pressed... proof that Chichi had probably gotten her hands on them in the morning.

Unlike his own mate, Kakarotto's was efficient when it came to things such as domestic chores.

He snorted again.

"You don't look like much." The prince sneered.

"Try me out." Jadeite offered with spread hands, and Vegeta smiled at the invitation and leapt into the air.

***

 "Get 'im, Jed!" Zoicite crowed enthusiastically, and Nephrite smacked him upside the head.

"Shut up! I want to hear what the short guy says, and I can't do it with you screaming like a child!"

Kunzite, leaning in the corner of the darkened room, rolled his eyes as the two younger Generals cheered Jed on through the pond. Outside, there was the sound of ki-blasts and Radditzu's frustrated curses.

"Why can't I kill you, dammit!" the Saiyajinn screeched and stomped away, past the building. Zoicite looked up fearfully for a moment as the large warrior stomped past, fearful that he would come in.

Nephrite caught the terrified look and laughed. "Ha! Zoi-chan... bet you're sorry you're so beautiful now!"

The younger General squealed in horror, "Please, Neph! Don't even kid about that!"

"Nephrite..." Kunzite clucked from the corner, lifting his eyes from a book.

"Ha, Gomen ne." Nephrite leered, "It must be your stunning beauty that makes me say such dirty and inappropriate things."

"Kunzite!" Zoicite whined.

"Nephrite..."

"Gomen."

"BAH!" The three Generals looked up, to where Radditzu came slamming through the door. "This is insanity! How do you beat them so easily every goddamned day!"

Nephrite only smirked, pleased that the arrogant Saiyajinn was railed. "I told you. We're good now. You're not."

Radditzu snatched Nephrite by the front of his yellow-trimmed uniform and shook him. "If you're such a fucking angel, what the Hell are you doing in HELL?!"

Kunzite was instantly on his feet. "Now, Radditzu, please..." he began as Nephrite proceeded to change various shades of purple and blue.

"No!" the large warrior raged. "Explain this to me!" Kunzite lowered his eyes, folding up his book. "We were evil once ourselves, but we have reformed, and feel guilt for our actions." The Saiyan stopped, focusing his attention on Kunzite. "That is the difference between us, Radditzu. We have done things far worse than any you must have, yet we feel guilt and regret for them."

The large man smirked. "Far worse than I, hmmm? Tell me, how many planets have you destroyed?"

Zoicite's eyes widened with horror, glistening with unshed tears. "You... you've destroyed entire planets...?"

Radditzu leered lewdly, and reached over to tuck Zoicite's delicate chin in his palm. "Yes, little thing."

The general yipped and ducked behind Kunzite, who only sighed.

"We've done worse..." Nephrite moaned from the floor, where he had not moved after falling.

"Really?" Radditzu's eyebrow arched. "What?"

Nephrite looked up through his auburn bangs, his face laced with a self-contempt that surprised Radditzu in it's intensity. "We killed those we loved, and betrayed our King."

"So?" the Saiyajinn warrior laughed.

"It caused the downfall of our entire civilization and initiated a war that has lasted for Millennia, ending only a few months ago!" Nephrite hissed. "And we were forced, by Beryl, to continue to serve her, unable to do anything but follow her commands and desecrate our own home planet and become petty thieves of energy for Metallia! We killed all we loved, WITH OUR OWN HANDS, and could do nothing, NOTHING to stop ourselves!" He pulled himself up, his entire frame shaking with fury at both himself, Radditzu, and Metallia. "If that is not worse," he spat, "I do not know what is." and stormed out of the room, the door slamming behind him.

***

"Usagi..." Mamoru muttered, "Tuxedo Kamen to Sailor Moon..."

Usagi broke out of her daydream and leaned over to rest her head against her love's shoulder, snuggling against him on the park bench. "Yes?" she asked innocently.

"Were you on the moon, Meatball head?" He teased.

"Why," she smiled, "How did you guess?" Mamoru shrugged. "I was just thinking about what Luna told us last week, about the Four Generals and the Inner Senshi. I feel so bad for everyone. They're all taking it really hard. Once their memories came back, it made sense to them, but..." Her eyes welled up with tears and Mamoru leaned down to kiss them away. "I know it's hard... to be without the one you love... all that stuff with Reeni and my future self, and us being apart..."

"I just wish we remembered then!" Usagi wailed, "Then I could have healed them instead of... of ... of destroying them!"

"You did what needed to be done, Meatball Head." Mamoru smiled warmly, and Usagi calmed down again. "I'm sure they're grateful for their release, where ever they are."

***

"He's not dead." Raye muttered to herself as she swept out the courtyard of the Cherry Hill Temple. It was becoming her favorite mantra. "Jadeite is not dead. We watched Nephrite die, we watched Kunzite die, and Kunzite said Zoicite was dead. But Jadeite is not dead, I know it, I just know it..."

"Raye?" her Grandfather's voice broke into her train of thought, and she nearly tripped over her broom.

"Great, all this worrying is making me as clumsy as the Meatball Head." she murmured as her Grandfather approached.

"Raye, what wrong with you? You've been sweeping the same three feet for the past hour. Are you having boy troubles?"

Leave it to her Grandfather to have so little tact.

Raye's face coloured and she excused herself quickly, determined that she would end her wondering once and for all. Was Jadeite alive?

She intended to ask the sacred fire...

***

Jadeite snapped his head back, blood drooling out the corner of his mouth. He touched it gingerly with a gloved fingertip, smiled as it came away stained with crimson, and launched himself once more at his opponent. ***

Vegeta smirked.

For once, Kakarotto had been right. Jadeite was a creative and interesting opponent, even if he was so weak that he had to fight the blond man at a few levels below what he was used to...

***

"What the Hell was that?" Radditzu snapped as a muffled shout came from the pond, and turned to glare at the images there. He froze on the spot, visibly shocked, and cried out, "Prince Vegeta! Kakarotto? What the Hell is this?!"

Kunzite peered over the edge of the pond as well, then back up at Radditzu. "Do you know this Vegeta fellow that Jadeite is sparring with?"

"Know him!" the Saiyajinn spat, "He's my Prince! And that idiot there is my brother!"

"Ah..." Kunzite murmured and pulled Zoicite to the side. "Zoi-chan." He said quietly, "I need you to do something for me." his glance flicked up to Radditzu, who was now enthralled with the battle, and Zoicite wailed.

"Ah, no, Kunzite! Please! Don't make me do that! Isn't there any other way to get information?"

"Shush, fool!" Kunzite snapped, and the delicate man obeyed, eyes downcast. "Don't do it, but flirt. You need this information. More so than I, for you'll understand it better, and I may muddle it when I pass it to you." Zoicite nodded miserably. Sometimes it sucked to be the brains and beauty of the outfit. "Now, Radditzu mentioned that he had killed his brother , yet Kakarotto is undeniably alive, as we can both see. Find out what you can. If we are ever going to be allowed into Heaven, we need to redeem ourselves, and to do that, we need to be alive. Find out how Kakarotto did it."

Zoicite nodded again, then began to primp.

"You're beautiful, Zoi-chan." Kunzite whispered warmly, then left the room to the two men, excusing himself to ‘‘go find Nephrite'. Zoicite smiled under the complement and went to work.

"Beautiful, yes..." Kunzite sighed, leaning up against the closed door after her exited the room, "But not half as breathtakingly enchanting as my Minako..."

***

Raye was crying.

She was sobbing with relief.

The fire never lied.

Jadeite wasn't dead! She rushed to her room, packed a hasty overnight bag and ran out of the temple, pausing only momentarily to mooch money from her Grandfather and to lie and say she was going to spend a few days at Makoto's. She knew Makoto would cover for her.

She ran at top speed down the street, as fast as she could possibly go without transforming, to the train station, where she bought a ticket to the Western Capitol.

***

Vegeta slammed back a pitcher of water. He was thirsty. It had been an interesting sparring match.

He was glad that Kakarotto had taken his guest home, though.

Because he was ready for sparring of a different kind now.

He put aside the empty pitcher and smiled, wiping his brow clean of sweat and dropping his torn shirt to the kitchen floor.

"Bulma!" he called as he leapt up the stairs, knowing she hated it when he shouted, "Woman...!"

***

Jadeite could not sleep.

Oh, the futon was comfy enough, and the room the right temperature. He was not ill, he was just... not tired.

Something... something important was headed in this direction... but he couldn't sense what...

***