In the middle of the night, Hotaru doesn't sleep peacefully. Ever since she listened to that mysterious music box Haruka found in a dark alley, she has been haunted by strange nightmares.
They always have something in common. Hotaru always meets one of her former selves, either the evil Mistress 9 or the Hotaru from her previous life, the 12-year-old Mugen Academy student. Her former selves warn Hotaru of a dark fate for her. A fate she cannot escape.
The 10-year-old girl is then hunted by a frightening entity of pure evil. According to Mistress 9 and the Other Hotaru, everyone who has heard the song from the music box is doomed to be haunted by this creature until it takes their souls into its dimension. There is no way to escape unless you take your own life, which the current Hotaru refuses to do.
If she is doomed to die again, and permanently, she’ll not die alone. As the Sailor Guardian of Silence, Destruction and Rebirth, Hotaru has the power to defeat The Presence. To protect Princess Serenity, Chibiusa, and all of Earth's inhabitants, she is ready to perform her ultimate sacrifice.
Hotaru suddenly opens her eyes. In her nightmare, The Presence almost took Michiru away. As Haruka, Setsuna and her also listened to the music box, the Presence targets them too. Yet they never told Hotaru about it, keeping the burden to themselves. Hotaru also never told them that she listened to the music box, alone in her room. No matter. Hotaru must end the Presence.
The child gets up slowly from her bed.
"Saturn Crystal Power, Make Up." She whispers, which turns her into Eternal Sailor Saturn.
Saturn then goes to the room's door. She listens carefully. No sound. The Presence isn’t on the other side. The Sailor Guardian opens the door and steps out of her room.
She explores the rooms of Haruka, Michiru and Setsuna's big house, looking for The Presence. Looking into Setsuna's room, Saturn sees that she is asleep. Despite this, she hears Setsuna say her name. The Sailor Guardian leaves the room quickly in case Setsuna wakes up. Saturn also looks into Michiru's room. She and Haruka are lying together. They hold each other tightly, and the Sailor Guardian thinks she hears them sobbing. She curses The Presence in a low voice before leaving the room.
Saturn looked everywhere. The Presence refuses to show itself. Is it afraid of her Destruction’s power? Yet the Sailor Guardian must bring it to her, somehow. Suddenly, she has an idea. The Presence likes the music box song. If Saturn plays it on a violin (she's taking Michiru's lessons), the Presence will be drawn to the melody and come to Saturn!
The Sailor Guardian goes to the room where she has her violin lessons. She uses Silence Wall to create a protection on the door. It won't stop The Presence from entering, but it will keep Haruka, Michiru and Setsuna back. After all, they might wake up when Saturn starts to play the violin. Then, Saturn uses a ribbon of energy from her Death Reborn Revolution attack to attach her Silence Glaive to her back, then she looks for a violin.
As soon as Saturn plays the music box tune, she feels the air become heavy, unhealthy. Slight black spots appear on the walls, on the floor. The Presence approaches. The spots grow. Some become handprints. Saturn feels that everything is getting darker, even though it is night. It's only a matter of time before the Presence enters the room and takes her into its dimension.
Suddenly, the Sailor Guardian hears a trio of female voices screaming. Also knocks at the door. Haruka, Michiru, Setsuna. Saturn ignores them. Yet she clearly hears Hakura ordering her to open the door, Michiru begging her to stop playing the violin, Setsuna telling her there must be another way. There is no other way. To defeat The Presence, Saturn... Hotaru must die.
Suddenly, the large black spots on the floor go under Saturn. Saturn hears Haruka, Michiru and Setsuna transform. Hands come out of the black spots, grab the Sailor Guardian, and pull her into the abyss. This ends the life of the Sailor Guardian of Silence, Destruction and Rebirth.
Saturn opens her eyes. She’s nothing more than a soul, trapped in The Presence’s dimension, but she is not afraid.
"Presence!" She yells. "I, Sailor Saturn, the Guardian of Silence, Destruction and Rebirth, will end your existence!"
She takes her Silence Glaive, which was still strapped to her back, and prepares to swing it down when the soul of a bearded man speaks to her.
"Can you destroy The Presence?"
"Yes, I can."
"Then do it! There's no way to escape this dimension and that damned Presence is using us to get more souls!"
"This is horrible... Who are you?"
"Daniel. Daniel Noyer. You?"
"Sailor Sat... Hotaru. Hotaru Tomoe."
"Nice to meet you, Hotaru."
The Presence, sensing that its end is near, tries to attack Sailor Saturn to take away her Silence Glaive, but Hotaru doesn't give in.
"STAY AWAY!" She shouts at The Presence. "Silence Glaive Surprise!"
A massive blast of energy is sent out by the Silence Glaive, pushing The Presence back. It refuses to give up so Sailor Saturn goes all out.
"Farewell, Daniel." She said before executing her last attack. "Death Reborn Revolution!"
A series of purple ribbon-like projectiles form and a vertical light beam materializes all around Sailor Saturn. The beam seems to rise to infinity. A destructive wind begins to blow. Energy rays spread throughout the dark dimension, weakening it. Saturn levitates, climbs into the vertical light beam, and charges her Silence Glaive with more power. Trapped souls perish, others follow, and the dimension begins to collapse. Daniel and Saturn hear The Presence make an inhuman sound (a scream of horror?). It knows its time is coming.
"Presence! I, Sailor Saturn, doom you and this dimension to total annihilation!"
Daniel can't help but be amazed. This power, this destruction, this imminent end... and this peace. Peace for his soul and those of The Presence's other victims. Daniel's soul will be destroyed, but he doesn't care. He is serene, at peace with himself.
Saturn lowers her Silence Glaive and everything becomes empty. Everything’s gone. The dimension, the souls, The Presence, Sailor Saturn herself.
On Earth, the music box destroys itself and disappears. Sailor Uranus, Sailor Neptune and Sailor Pluto know what this means. They are saved from The Presence, the entity has been destroyed, but Hotaru Tomoe is no more. Neptune is the first to cry her eyes out, followed by Pluto and Uranus. As their tears are shed, they de-transform, and the first question that comes to their minds is: "How to tell Usagi, Chibiusa, and the others about her death?"
Author's comment: The idea for this fanfic came to me when I discovered Song of Horror’s tragic ending. "How to destroy the Presence and save Daniel's soul?" I asked myself and the answer came quickly. "Sailor Saturn."