short Mighty Max/ Sailormoon crossover that just sorta popped into my head . . . set near the end of the Silver Millennium; perhaps Queen Serenity had one advisor who knew the future fate of the entire solar system because of who and what he was. And though he might tell of that future, there was nothing he could do to prevent it, as it was decreed by fate for the Silver Millennium to end . . 

Queen Serenity walked through the nearly continual party taking place in the grand ballroom of her palace, in search of one of her advisors. Normally, Virgil was never late to one of her meetings, but the last few times had seen him show up later and later. The queen had been waiting nearly an hour for the Lemurian this time, and finally decided to go look for him.

Seeing Princess Usagi and Prince Endymion slow dancing in one of the corners, Serenity smiled slightly to herself. 'My little girl's growing up,' she thought as she continued to survey the ballroom with her eyes. Not wanting to bother the two lovebirds, Serenity looked for Luna or one of Usagi's other friends. The queen found Luna talking with Artemis and Princess Minako near the refreshments table, so she went to ask them if they had seen Virgil anywhere around.

"Hello there, Queen Serenity," the princess of Venus said as she curtsied. "And how are you today?"

"I'm fine, Minako, but I would be better if I knew where one of my other advisors has disappeared to. Have any of you seen Virgil or his companion Norman around?"

Artemis was the first to speak up. "I don't know about Virgil, but I think I saw Norman talking with Princess Makoto out on the veranda."

"Virgil? You mean the old Lemurian, right? I saw him heading for the reflecting pool, my queen. I caught his gaze for a moment as I passed him; he looked so sad! I wonder what could be the matter . . ."

"I'm sure it's nothing, Luna. Well, I guess I'll see you all later; I was supposed to discuss a few things with Virgil nearly an hour ago! You know how long-winded he can get . . . I'll probably still be listening to him well into the night!"

The two moon cats and the two royals shared a laugh, then Queen Serenity headed for the reflecting pool, hoping to find Virgil still there.

Serenity found her quarry sitting at one end of the reflecting pool. Virgil was staring down at his reflection in the water, which was being broken by the occasional tear falling from his face.

"Virgil? What's the matter, my dear friend? I know it's something serious if you're so upset . . ." Serenity began as she stepped closer.

Virgil startled slightly at her voice and looked up at her. "Queen Serenity?! How many times must I tell you not to sneak up on me?" He tried to discreetly wipe his tears away with the edge of his sleeve.

Serenity sighed a bit, once again the Lemurian was trying to skirt the issue. "Virgil . . ." the queen began, with a somewhat exasperated tone to her voice.

Virgil looked away from her. "Oh very well, Serenity . . . I suppose I should at least tell you what's going on. Or more to the point, what will be going on. To put it bluntly, my queen, it's over. The Silver Millennium, the planetary kingdoms, as well as the Moon Kingdom, they will all be destroyed . . . it shall be the end of the universe as you know it, Serenity. An even greater shame, it will be at the hands of one you once trusted. Other than that, I refuse to tell you the exact details; I don't wish for you to bear the pain those truths would bring."

"And you would bear that pain yourself?"

"I bear that pain every waking moment, Serenity. To know the future is a curse, especially since I usually can't do anything about it! Sometimes I don't know why I even get close to anyone . . . it seems those who befriend me are doomed . . ."

Tears were gathering in Serenity's eyes at the revelation. Knowing that Virgil definitely needed comforting at that point, she sat down beside the Lemurian and hugged him.

"Oh, Virgil . . . if you hadn't come here, none of us would have had the pleasure of knowing you. You wouldn't care so much about us, either. But even if my kingdom is destroyed, none of it would be your fault. We've all done what we can, but nothing lasts forever."

"But I--"

She let go of him then and looked him in the eye. "No buts, Virgil. Whatever it is that's powerful enough to destroy the Moon Kingdom would be far too much for you to handle. You and Norman make an incredible team, but I doubt adding two more soldiers to our army is going to matter much in the end."

Virgil looked towards the floor, not quite wanting to meet Serenity's gaze. "I suppose you're right, Serenity. But I just wish I could have been of more use to you!"

"You've done more than enough for me over the years, my friend. Now, you should return to Earth, to your home. If things turn out as bad as you say, they're probably going to need you down there."

"As you wish, my queen. Do you want me to say farewell to the rest of the royal court?"

Serenity was lost in thought for a second, then gave him her answer. "No, it would only cause unneeded pain. The princesses would hate to see you go, as would Luna and Artemis. It would be easier for everyone if you were to just slip away unnoticed."

"Yes, you're right. Now before I go, have you seen Norman around?"

"Last I heard, he was on the veranda talking with Princess Makoto."

Virgil stood and turned to leave. "I'll have to go get him, then. Well, I guess I should be going. Farewell, Serenity, and good luck!"

"Good luck to you as well, Virgil! Farewell, my friend."

Virgil headed back into the palace to retrieve Norman. Serenity turned to watch him go, and when he was out of sight, she looked down at her own reflection in the still water.

'Neither of us have any easy choices to make . . .'

****

Luna was still in the ballroom when she saw Virgil and Norman leaving. At first she thought they were merely leaving the party, but somehow she knew she wouldn't be seeing either of them again for a very long time . . .

****

It was a few nights after their departure from the Moon Kingdom, and Virgil and Norman were sort of out stargazing. But they were out there for a very specific reason, since that night was when the Moon Kingdom was destined to fall. It was a cloudless night, and the moon itself was full, almost too peaceful in it's orbit high above the world.

Norman was growing a little impatient. "Has it started yet?"

Virgil glanced at his scroll then over at his companion. "No, not yet. According to this, it will start at or near midnight . . . which should be coming around any second now."

There was no more conversation at that point; both of them were focused on the moon above them. Midnight struck, and the sky suddenly took on a darker shade. The stars dimmed, and the moon lit the entire sky. Then, the first explosions came, nothing more than random flashes of light across the moon's surface, though they were signs of a ferocious battle.

"Quite a battle up there . . . too bad we couldn't take part in it!" Norman exclaimed, always eager for battle.

"Yes, I know, but it wasn't our destiny to fight there. The people of the Moon Kingdom are on their own."

The explosions grew ever more intense and widespread, building up to a crescendo, dying down somewhat, and then starting up again. It kept up for 10 minutes, until, almost out of nowhere, a huge flash of light blazed from the general location of the Moon Palace and spread across the moon. There were no more explosions after that flash, and Virgil gasped in shock when he realized just what had happened.

"What was that, Virgil?" Norman asked, wondering why his friend reacted like he did.

Virgil almost couldn't answer him, his voice rather shaky from shock and disbelief. "T-that light . . . that was the Ginzuishou . . ."

"Ginzuishou? As in the Silver Crystal of the Moon's royal family?"

"Yes. But not even Serenity could safely use an attack of that power-- oh no, she wouldn't dare!!"

But looking back on it, Virgil knew she would have, if sufficiently motivated to do so. The utter destruction of Serenity's kingdom would have been more than enough.

"Virgil, what happened?"

Tears came to Virgil's eyes, but this time he didn't care if anyone saw him cry. He faced Norman and sobbed, "Serenity . . . s-she's gone! She used the greatest power of the Ginzuishou to destroy Queen Beryl, but paid the ultimate price . . ." The Lemurian sniffled a bit, then began to openly cry, not caring about anything else.

Norman was slightly confused, but he hated to see his friend so upset. Ever so gently, he picked him up and held him close, letting Virgil cry on his shoulder.

"Virgil, I'm so sorry . . ."

The Guardian looked up at the moon then, and spotted a single shooting star streaking away from it. He didn't know what it was, but somehow he felt it meant there was hope for the future . . .