The fire crackled once more in the dim light of the shrine. Rei Hino sat motionless before the flames, her legs crossed. Sweat beaded on her forehead as the heat from the fire washed over her.

  She had felt something earlier that day, a dark presence, a disturbance that had left her unsettled. She was determined to discover its source.

  Her focus was clearer than it had been all day. Visions of darkness and chaos flitted before her mind’s eye. The presence remained unclear, illusive. She exhaled a deep breath.

  In the adjacent bedchamber, her old Sailor Guardian communicator lay on a simple wooden table. It had been silent for a long time. She had kept it as a memento of her past life.

  Suddenly, its screen came to life with an incoming call. The ring echoed through the shrine, but Rei didn’t hear it. She had achieved focused mediation.

  Her connection to the supernatural was as strong as ever. Her connection to Usagi, however, had never been weaker.

  ***

  Laughter echoed through the cozy apartment that Makoto shared with Motoki. The smell of simmering vegetables and fried fish filled the air as she stood at the stove. Motoki stood beside her and held up Kamekichi in front of her face. Mischief twinkled in his eyes.

  “Come on, Makoto! Just one kiss for Kamekichi!”

  Makoto laughed and swatted at him with her cooking spoon.

  “Keep that up and we’ll have turtle soup for dinner instead!”

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  Motoki chuckled. He leaned in to kiss her on the cheek, but she dodged him with a giggle. Their ordeal from earlier that day was all but forgotten.

  Somewhere in the back of her bedroom closet, buried under old clothes, lay her Sailor Guardian phone. It was a relic from another time. She couldn’t quite get herself to throw it out.

  Without warning, it started to buzz and ring. Makoto had no powers anymore, no enemies to fight. Her main goal right now was to dodge turtle kisses.

  The phone still rang. She just couldn’t hear it.

  ***

  Ami moved with calm precision through the chaos of the emergency room at Nakamura Clinic. She made her way toward the elderly patient, her mind calm after her outburst earlier that day. Despite Dr. Kobayashi’s fears about her, Ami wasn’t ready to give up on her medical career just yet.

  Her hands were steady as she examined the patient. Her eyes scanned the medical chart with quick efficiency. He had suffered a mild stroke and Ami was trying to avoid a second, more severe, incident.

  “Dr. Mizuno.”

  A nurse called her name and Ami moved to assist with another, more urgent, emergency. When she had a moment, she’d return to the man with the stroke and do everything in her power to help him.

  Far removed from the frantic pace of the emergency room, her Sailor Guardian phone lay tucked away within her purse in her locker. She never had tossed the now useless thing in the trash.

  It rang and vibrated against the other objects in her purse, unnoticed.

  Ami had always been the most loyal to Usagi. Their bond had been something special, something far beyond their duties as Sailor Guardians.

  Now that Usagi needed her most, however, Ami couldn’t hear the call.

  ***

  Minako slept in her comfortable seat aboard her private plane. The soft hum of the engines had whisked her exhausted mind straight to the land of dreams. In her lap, Artemis had curled into a white ball of fur and snored.

  Sold-out shows, adoring fans, the bright lights of the stage…it was exhausting work.

  Her purse, tucked beneath her seat, vibrated as her Sailor Guardian phone rang for the first time in months. It was a muffled sound. Her slow, steady breaths drowned out Usagi’s call for help.

  The leader of the Sailor Guardians would not be coming to the rescue this time.