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Episode #121:  Occultations
Reel 1
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	Antares had several rather tough decisions to make.  The most
important was what to do with Sailors Moon and Orion.  Their performance in
the previous battle had been downright awful, and if it happened again, he
seriously doubted that they or anyone else would survive.

	How to reconcile the two?  It was a question he'd been pondering
since he found out the two would be put on the same ship.  His hope at the
start of the voyage had been that the two would gradually get used to each
other, and learn to accept their differences.  For a time, it had even
worked.

	However, things had gone downhill in the last few months.  The
bickering between the two had escalated, and he was at a loss as to why.  It
couldn't be the pressure: Sailor Moon had faced worse in the twentieth and
won through, and Orion had been tested enough in the past few months to get
any frivolity out of her.

	He knew that something had to be done, but what?  They weren't going
to settle their differences by themselves; the two were far too stubborn for
that to work.  What he needed to do was to lock them in a room by
themselves, and not let them out until they played nice.  But that wouldn't
work; it smacked of complete and utter lunacy.  He'd have to be crazy to try
a fool stunt like that.

	Crazy like a fox.

***

	"Will he be all right?"  Moon and Orion hovered over Dr. Sampson,
who in turn was hovering over Eric Lunestes.  The ersatz chief engineer
still hadn't recovered from their last battle with Number Two.

	"It's rather hard to tell," said Sampson reluctantly.  "It would
help if I knew how he got in this condition in the first place."

	"Sorry, sir," said another woman, the same one who had originally
notified the infirmary of the situation.  "No-one in engineering can
remember anything out of the ordinary.  In fact, no-one can remember
anything at all about the battle.  It's like a mental fog!"

	"Which I don't buy for a second," replied the doctor, "but until I
can have everyone else down there checked out, it's the best explanation. 
And while we're on the topic of explanations," she continued, turning to
another bed, "there's the matter of *her*."

	'Her' was a small girl, with pink hair and odango that would have
been a dead ringer for Chibi-Usa about a thousand years ago, or even twenty
years ago.  The engineering staff had found her outstretched, along with
Lunestes on the floor.

	She was a complete enigma; no-one seemed to recall her showing up at
all, and of course no-one remembered seeing her before except for Orion. 
For her part, Orion refused to admit to anyone the fact that she had seen
the girl several times, beginning over a year ago in a school cafeteria. 
Things were bad enough without being accused of insanity, regardless of
whether the specter was actually there.

	"Have you considered blood typing her?" asked Sailor Moon.

	"Well," said Sampson wryly, "I admit that the resemblance between
you two is more than a little suspicious, but I doubt you're related all the
same.  You've got different blood types, after all."

	"You know her blood type?"

	"Yes."

	"Well," protested Orion, "that doesn't mean anything, does it?"

	"If you're ready for a protracted discussion of multiple alleles,
modern magical heredity theory, and Mendelian genetics, then I can give it
to you.  Otherwise, just take it for granted that, at the least, she's not
your daughter."

	"Good, since I'm still . . . er, good."

	"Still a what, Sailor Moon?"

	"Still a-"

	"Sailor Orion and Sailor Moon, please report to the gymnasium
immediately.  Orion and Moon to the gymnasium please."

***

	The duo arrived at the gym, having had a relatively low-order
argument on the way.  Truth be told they were rather tired; the past few
days had been terribly fatiguing, and neither had had the benefit of a full
night's sleep in quite some time.

	Orion was too aware of this; her hair was in abominable shape, and
she'd long ago stopped trying to fix it.  Sailor Moon wasn't doing too much
better, and she had smudges on her face as well.

	There was nothing either of them would have liked more at that point
than a nice long shower, but there was the mystery of why they were at the
gym.

	As they reached the doors, they swung open.  "Please come in,"
invited Antares.  "Don't worry, I won't bite."

	"I'm worried," said Orion immediately.

	"Really, ladies, I'm disappointed in your lack of faith."

	They walked in.  As usual, the gym was empty; ever since the attacks
began the equipment had been stowed safely away.  Now, it was half-lit,
with shadows only hinting at walls. Orion wasn't too thrilled about this,
and told Antares so.

	"Oh, sorry."  The lights brightened, and the door closed.  "Now,
let's get down to it.

	"Sailors, you have been, for the better part of five months,
complete assholes towards each other."

	"WHAT?"

	"Oh, don't sound so surprised.  I dare say that if it hadn't been
for my intervention you would have been injured by now, what with all your
plotting and scheming."

	"What plotting?" asked Moon.  Orion merely hung her head.

	"Well, anyway, I've come to a decision.  You two pose a threat to
the welfare of this vessel, and therefore you're staying in here until you
decide to treat each other with the respect you each deserve."

	"Why you-"

	"No need to argue, now.  Just get along, okay?"  There was a audible
click.

	Sailor Orion walked over to the wall and considered punching it. 
She decided against such a course of action; it would do neither the wall
nor herself any good.

	"You feel it too?"

	"Hmm?"

	"The angst, the frustration, the urge to punch his lights out?"

	"Oh."

	Sailor Moon walked dejectedly to the door, and halfheartedly tried
to open it.  It didn't of course.  That didn't leave many choices.  She
walked back to where Orion was standing.  "So, you want to talk about it?"

	"Me?  Talk about it?  For crying out loud, it was *you* who started
this mess!"

	"Me?"

	"Yes!  'Dammit, Jen, you stay away from Eric-san!'  Direct quote,
Sailor Moon!"

	"Well, can I help it if you've been hanging off him for the past
month or so?"

	"I really don't see how it's your business!"

	Sailor Moon balled up a fist, then let it go and began pacing. 
Exactly how could she justify her attachment to Eric?  Truth be told, she
was having trouble justifying it to herself.

***

	She wasn't quite sure when it began.  She suspected that it was
sometime after her ordeal in the vacuum.  After that, she'd felt a definite
attraction to him.  Not entirely sexual, mind you.  There was that, yes, a
bit, but nothing really serious.  It had what has been described elsewhere
as a matriarchal twang to it, like she was somehow responsible for him.

	She'd often wondered how her mother felt in the twentieth century,
having to deal with a daughter when she didn't even know her identity for so
long.  Serenity had never been blatantly mean to her.  Yes, there were a few
incidents, but nothing to really complain about.  In fact, she had to admit
that her experiences in the past had really helped to fill out her
character.  It was true that those trials allowed her to mature for the
first time in nine hundred years.  Ever since, she had been maturing
naturally, something she rarely took for granted.

	But she was merely dodging the question of Eric.  Why was she so
attached to him?  Or, put a better way, why was she so determined to keep
Sailor Orion from him?  Dedication to duty?

	Inherent jealousy, perhaps due to latent repressed lesbian desires? 
No, that was definitely out of the question.  There was no way she was gay;
she had a definite attraction for the male gender, or at least no attraction
for Jennifer.

	Then again, she *was* the future, and the number of suitors with the
necessary rank and peerage was admittedly low.  In fact, the only person
around who could even be considered as a proper husband was an obscure duke
on a far- off colony world, who, through some convoluted genealogy, was
apparently next in line to Endymion's old throne on Earth.  The throne had
been ceded over to Serenity, though, and the boy was only three years old
anyway.

	But why Eric?  The question went around and around in her mind.

***

	Sailor Orion idly watched Sailor Moon pace, whisper to herself,
gesticulate, and generally make a scene.  All in all, she had to admit that
it was rather amusing.

	As for herself, well, she had no illusions of what was going on. 
This time Antares meant it; they were staying in here, come hell, high
water, or Dark Kingdom attack, and she knew that a resolution between
herself and her first officer would be a long time in coming.

	She thought a bit, and then decided that she was a bit thirsty. 
She'd been practicing a bit, and she thought that she'd perfected a little
trick she'd read about.  Apparently, during the Second Sailor Wars, damage
to the various warships was such that no hands could be spared at any time,
not even to retire to the restroom or to get a drink.  Some senshi had
figured out a work-around by putting canteens and water bottles in their
pocket dimensions.

	Ever since reading about it, she'd worked on doing it herself. 
Success had come a bit later, and she'd had a couple liters of water with
her ever since.  She'd never tried to pull it out, though.

	Frowning a bit, she pulled a half-liter bottle of water from
nowhere.  She smiled when she realized that it was nice and cold.  What
couldn't pockets do?

	"Impressive display," said Antares quietly, so as not to disturb
Sailor Moon's ponderings.

	"Thanks," she replied in an equally quiet tone.

	"She likes you, you know."

	"What?"

	"Well, she does.  She hasn't admitted it to anyone, and I don't
think she knows it herself, but she *does* like you."

	"Um . . . "

	"Don't worry," said Antares with a laugh, "it's nothing like you and
Ms.  Pearcy."

	Orion breathed a sigh of relief.

	"Though I must confess curiosity at the prospects of such a match. 
Just joking," the computer added hastily.

	Orion merely frowned.

***

	In the infirmary, Sampson had reached a decision.  She usually went
with her hunches, and she had one hell of a hunch.  She took the DNA samples
from the pink-haired kid and Eric, then correlated them.  On another hunch,
she ordered the medical computer to run through all possible links between
anyone on the crew.  Had she asked Antares to do this, the task would have
been completed in seconds.  As it was, she used the dedicated medical
computer, and the task wouldn't be complete for several hours.

	Such is life.

***

	"Such is life, your Excellency."

	"Shut up."

	Number Two moodily stalked about his bridge.  They were en route to
Hell, to report to Queen Selenite.  Or rather, *he* was to report to
Selenite.  The rest of his crew would probably be spared.

	That was the depressing part, he thought.  Crews were valuable, but
commanders were expendable.  He'd seen that all too well with Number One. 
Would he share his fate?  Would he be handed over to Number Three?

	Probably not, he consoled himself.  Selenite held to the old-line
theory of having four commanders, but truth be told, she'd never expected
that she'd have to *use* them all.  After himself, there really wasn't a
whole lot of talent.  The current Number Three had *inherited* his position,
of all things!  He hadn't gained his rank in combat, as had One and Two. 
The thought of being replaced by that sniveling . . . thing . . . irked him
to no end.

	No, he would not be replaced.  No matter what, Selenite would have
to stick with Number Two, or command her fleet herself.  And no Dark Kingdom
leader had ever stooped to such a low.

	Never.

***

	Antares decided to leave Sailor Orion alone for a bit.  Thus, she
had a bit of time to consider things.

	She insisted to herself that she didn't understand why her first
officer was so obsessed with separating her and Eric.  That wasn't entirely
true, though, she had to admit to herself.  She knew that Eric was all
around a pretty nice guy.  He really tried to be funny, but wasn't.  That
was okay in her book; effort counted for a lot.  She was reminded of Kanomi,
who she'd known back in high school, a million years ago.

	High school.  She'd never had a boyfriend.  She'd originally written
it off to a lack of need, and now she felt herself fairly confident in the
knowledge that she would never have a boyfriend.  If she could only hold
Eileen in her arms once more, she'd never want for anything else.

	However, this situation with her and Eric demanded some additional
scrutiny.  Was she becoming friends with him because they were kindred
spirits?  After all, he was an engineer much like her father.  Antares
would probably say something about how she was suffering from a typically
misplaced Freudian attraction.

	No, that's not the answer.  Freudian attractions were the stuff of
Sophocles and writers with too much time on their hands.  There was no
sexual attraction at all between them.  There couldn't be.  If there was,
then everything she'd had with Eileen was down the drain.

	Then again, said she to herself as devil's advocate, she hadn't
considered the possibility of bisexuality.  After all, she hadn't had much
time to explore relations with the opposite sex.  Come to think of it, she'd
had just a year to get used to being a lesbian.

	But that was too much trouble to think about.  'More likely,' she
thought, 'it's because we're kind of alike.'

	'Who are you kidding?' she asked herself.  'You've got nothing in
common, except that you're both in deep manure.'

	In any case, though, she couldn't find any reason why she should be
quarrelsome with her first officer.  She decided that as captain, she should
at least put up the appearance of an olive branch.

	She stood.

***

	"Sailor Moon?"

	The pink-haired Senshi turned around, to see the red-haired one
standing before her.  The red-haired one had something between a smile and a
frown on her face, an expression Sailor Moon imagined had taken some time to
perfect.

	"Sailor Moon, I know that we haven't exactly been bosom buddies for
the past year or so . . . "

	"You got that right!"

	"Would you PLEASE . . . would you *please* listen to me."  Good job,
Jen, you're holding in your temper.  this is a very good sign.  "Sailor
Moon, I've been thinking," here Moon bit back an automatic response and
merely nodded, "and I think . . . I think that if you want to have Eric-san
as . . . ," she took a deep breath and finished in a rush, "if you want to
have Eric as a lover that's okay because I don't think I'm bisexual and I'm
certainly not straight so I hope this goes a long way to patching things up
between us."

	Sailor Moon blinked, then smiled.  "Okay."

	"What?  That's all you have to say, 'okay?'"  I just bared my soul
to you, and you can just manage two syllables?"

	Moon smiled again.  "I'm a woman of few words."

	Orion prepared an insult, then let it go.  For whatever reason, her
concession of Eric to her first officer seemed to have broken down all the
barriers between them.  "You understand, of course, that you can't
monopolize him.  I *would* like to speak to him about purely departmental
matters."

	"Of course," said Moon in a tone that scant hours ago would have
seemed infuriating to Orion.  Now, it was still annoying, but there was an
added something, a something she hadn't noticed Sailor Moon display to
anyone other than the unfortunate Hansu, nearly a year ago.

	Respect.

	"Fine.  Antares, we're like to go now."

	"Oh, good.  Sampson's raising quite a row in the infirmary, and you
might want to check it out."

	"Right.  We're on our way."  The doors to the room slid open, and
the two women briskly walked out.

	"So," said Sailor Moon as they made their way though the corridors,
"you just give me Eric-san and we're all one big happy family?"

	"Seems farfetched," agreed Orion, "but I can't help but think that
it seems right, somehow.  Like when you've argued with a parent, or a
sibling, and then you kiss and make up.  You always seem to feel better,
mainly because what you've done to patch things up is often so simple."

	Sailor Moon laughed.  "I wouldn't know.  I'm an only child."

	"Me too."  'She's laughing with me,' thought Orion.  First time
that's happened in a long while.

	She looked at the woman beside her again.  She wasn't beautiful, not
the way models were beautiful, and certainly not in the same sexy beauty
class that Orion held Eileen in, but she was . . . cute.  That was the right
word.  Inasmuch as it was possible for a nine hundred year old going on
twenty to look cute, she was it.

	"I like you."  The words were out of her mouth before she knew it.

	"Sorry, Orion.  I'm not quite like that."  Sailor Moon accelerated,
leaving Orion behind.  "Nice offer, though!"

***

	Number Two made his way to Selenite's audience chamber.  As soon as
he saw the crowds, he knew he was finished.  The Queen never brought in the
big audiences unless there was going to be a large award given or a big
punishment doled out, and his recent performance certainly didn't warrant an
award.

	"Come forward, Number Two."

	Head bowed, he strode forward to the throne.  In whatever twist of
irony it was that the universe loved to dish out to its inhabitants, the
throne was made from crystal.

	"Yes, my Queen."

	"You have failed me yet again, Number Two.  Did I not warn you
against this?"

	"You did, my Queen."

	"And yet you ignored this warning and allowed Pleiades to best you
*again*?"

	'Well,' thought Number Two, 'at least things are easier now.  I know
I'm cooked, so I might as well get my money's worth.' "My Queen, I feel you
should know that there were mitigating circumstances that-"

	"Silence."

	"-that I feel made my task more difficult.  On this latest mission-"

	"Silence!"

	"-on this latest mission, we encountered a new source of power, one
we had not anticipated, and if-"

	"SILENCE!"  She raised an arm, and let it fall.  Number Two watched
this with horror, and then writhed on the floor in agony for some time.  His
cries loudly echoed across the chamber for a good ten minutes.  Finally, it
ceased.

	"Now, Number Two," said Selenite sweetly, "is there anything else
you'd like to add?"

	The former commander of Selenite's fleet gasped for breath.  "No, my
Queen."

	"I didn't think so.  Number Two, you're lower than dirt.  If I had
any choice, I'd have you killed right now.  But I don't have one."

	"My Queen?  AGGH!"

	"I would have thought that you'd learn your lesson about keeping
your mouth shut by now.  Apparently this is not the case.  Do you need any
further education?  Good.  Now, I don't have a choice in this.  I need every
able-bodied man and woman I can get out there.  You see, in a few days'
time, I will destroy Pleiades.

	"The time has come, denizens of Hell!  I have had enough
foolishness.  I shall now do what I should have done a long time ago.  The
combined might of my fleet will roll over Pleiades.  All three thousand
ships will descend upon every single world under Serenity's rule.  And
finally, I will stand on the surface of Earth.  I, Selenite, will claim from
Serenity's head the crown which she stole from my mother Beryl, and will
then call down from on high the destruction of everything that bitch holds
dear!

	"But I cannot do this until Pleiades and that Orion hussy are
destroyed.  And they will.  Very soon.

	"Number Two, you will be in the rear guard.  See if you can manage
not to screw anything up.

	"For in a few days, we will have an ending to this."

***

	Moon and Orion entered the infirmary.  Lunestes and the small child
remained unchanged.

	"Ah, captain.  Been waiting for you."  The black doctor drew near
and gave them a data pad.  "You'll want to be reading this."

	"What is it?" asked Sailor Moon.

	"The results of a few hours tinkering.  You'll want to see it."

	They began reading, and got to the salient points at about the same
time.

	"I'm sure you'll find it surprising."

	The two Sailors looked at each other, then back at the data, and
then back at each other.  They paused.

	"Oh boy."