Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon or Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon. They belong
to the very talented goddess Naoko Takeuchi
and I do not mean to pretend that I own them. I am not attempting to make money from them.
I'm just a poor 'lil fanfic author who loves this show and the manga it's based on, so
please don't sue me. I won't have any money after buying Fushigi Yuugi anyway.
Author's notes: This is basically a first draft (though it has been rewritten
once and revised
several times) so there may be a couple of typos. Also, as I am not entirely
happy with this (I still think it needs a fair amount of work)
as it is, I will probably do another set of revisions in the future to create a
better version.
Please, please review this so that I can have a better idea of how to improve it
and the two parts
that follow this one (this is sort of a prelude to the rest of the story).
I need all the help I can get!
Arigato gozaimasu!
Oh, and before I forget, I would like to that Mina-chan for listening to the
horror that was the
original form of this story. I still don't know how she survived. ^_^
The princess's eyelids slid open, revealing two shadowed irises. Her eyes
darted around, bleakly surveying her
surroundings. A moment ago she had dreamed of a pale blue sky with wisps of
clouds hanging over her head.
Now, she saw only darkness. It seemed that that was her world now. She lived
in that suffocating blackness.
When she went to sleep at night it was the last thing she saw, just as it was
the first thing she saw when she opened
her eyes in the morning. There were times where she was unable to picture
anything but it, unable to recall what color
or light or beauty was. She closed her eyes once again, realizing that there
was nothing to look at, there never had been.
That was all right though, that was something she could tolerate. As long as
her own eyes could not perceive her weakness,
no one else could. She was safe, hidden beneath the veil of near eternal
night.I have so little time left, she thought grimly.
How many years-no, maybe not even that-do I have before my death? How long
before she is the only one left?
She let out a small cry as another spasm ripped through her. After that,
there was silence.
* * * * *
"Sugoi," Chibi-Usa whispered as she looked at her mother. "Mama, you look
wonderful!" A smile spread across
Neo-Queen Serenity's regal face. For an instant, Chibi-Usa could have sworn she
saw Usagi peeking out from her mother's
perfect exterior. For that brief moment in time they were like sisters once
again, giggling over some secret that only they knew.
"Arigato, Small Lady," she said. She tugged at the hem of the silver gown
a bit nervously. "Ne, do you think Mamo-
chan will like it? Our anniversary is tonight and I…" Her daughter nodded
enthusiastically, her pigtails bobbing up and down.
"Of course! How could he not?" she said cheerfully. Her grin faded
slightly, though she managed to appear joyful.
She wished that she could look like that. Maybe she was a bit-just a little
bit-envious. While she was pretty enough in her
pink dress, her mother was radiant, an angelic figure masquerading as a mere
human. She was a symbol of perfection, one
which she could never achieve in her childish state. If only I could grow just
a little, she thought longingly. I know I could
make her proud. I could be a true lady and a real princess, not just a little
girl. And Helios…
She shook her head to clear her thoughts, her cheeks slightly flushed.
For now, she would simply be happy for
her mother and enjoy the celebration.
As the small princess stood there, watching her beautiful mother she felt
a faint twinge in the back of her mind. She
tried to ignore it, but found that it was hard to forget. For some reason, she
had an ominous feeling, like the moment before
a storm. There was the small feeling of something being amiss somewhere,
somewhere very close to her. An enemy? No, it
couldn't be. The Crystal Tokyo has been at peace for years. Besides, no one
would dare come near the ginzuishou.
With that, she dismissed her worry and returned to the matters at hand. Later,
she would regret that deeply.
* * * * *
The hologram flickered into existence with only a few seconds of delay.
The light from the projector illuminated the
princess's face, but did not reveal much of her. Darkness concealed most of her
features, just as it was entwined in her soul.
Slowly, she unclenched her fist and smiled. It was a bitter expression, one
which few people cared to see. Why should she
ever care though? She had no need of sympathy or friendship, emotions would
only cloud her judgment.
The hologram showed a group of women in schoolgirl-like costumes. They
were laughing in the picture, clearly happy
with everything around them. It was nauseating to watch their expressions.
They remained blissful despite the suffering of
the people beneath their feet. They didn't even spare a single thought of pity
for those forgotten people.
Unbidden, memories swam up in her mind. A girl, barely breaking the age of
adolecence was torn to shreds by a
violent storm rising from the planet's surface. A grown man broke down and
wept. With an anguished smile, a silver
haired girl drew a glistening dagger across her wrists. The world around her
dissolved into chaos as the whole world
rocked. She trembled slightly, but forced it to cease quickly. She couldn't
afford these emotions. She had dealt with
such pain all of her life and had learned that isolating yourself from it was
the only way to endure. Loneliness was a blessing in disguise.
She stared at the smiling face of a woman clad in an elegant white gown. She
was beautiful, shining from both inside
and outside. She was disgusting. Her smile was coated with sacrifices she
denied and her kingdom was built upon
skeletons. Always, always she had hated her. Deep down inside, she loathed her
with a passion that bordered on insanity. She closed her eyes but still that
smile blazed against her eyelids. It haunted her dreams, her thoughts. She
couldn't get that monstrosity out of her mind.
Slowly, she stretched her fingers out into the hologram itself. Shadows drifted
upwards as she covered up the light.
She moved her fingers in a slow, dark dance so that the shadows reached up to
extinguish the queen's light. Those
inhuman fingers created of darkness covered the queen's empty smile, destroying
it. She felt her anger die,
smoldering until nothing was left. All emotions sank away into oblivion, as she
had trained
them to. Soon, she felt nothing at all. The familiar numbness that shielded
her filled her soul once more. She felt
nothing. Nothing at all.
Soon…your kingdom will end. The just shall rule once more, and banish
your people to where they belong. Then you will know how we have suffered here.
Only then will you truly understand the crime that you committed…It will be to
late for you then though. You will be trapped in the darkness then…forever…
* * * * *
Haruka tried to restrain a smirk as she looked in the mirror, but found
it impossible. What could she say?
She looked great and she knew it too. She reveled in that brief moment of
utterly selfish, ridiculous pleasure while Michiru
chuckled.
"Who are you dressing up for?"
"It is our queen's anniversary. I have a right to be vain once in a
while," she insisted. Michiru raised an eyebrow and
looked at her partner's ensemble. Not surprisingly, it was a classy with a
slightly modern appearance. For the occasion,
she had chosen a deep navy suit, the top tightening at the waist to fall down
and form a dress-like tunic that accented her
more feminine side. All of this was embroidered carefully with golden patterns.
"I don't know how you can manage to be so cheerful at a time like this,"
Michiru said, half envious, half teasing.
She watched as Haruka let her eyes slide towards her, leaning against a bookcase
in the room. Her partner knew she was
missing something. Her eyes scanned the surface of the situation but saw
nothing obviously wrong.
"A time like what?" she asked in what she hoped was a casual tone.
Michiru arched a single eyebrow upward.
"You actually don't remember who's coming as guests for the celebration?"
Haruka searched her memory, but
found no answer.
"Do you remember the last time we went on a diplomatic mission to Kinmoku?
Our settlement was that they, the
senshi of Kinmoku and its neighboring planets, were given not only diplomatic
immunity but they were allowed to visit here
at any time they pleased. They decided that since the queen's birthday was so
special and they owed her such a great debt…" She let her voice trail off as
her partner's eyes had already widened immensely.
"Why, in the name of Kami-sama, do I need to deal with them?" Haruka
groaned. "I had been having a good day
and…" A smile played across Michiru's lips.
"Try to be civil. They are some of our strongest allies, and we can't
afford to have relationships between our
planets crumble. We don't even have many allies outside of this system."
"The less, the better," Haruka grumbled. "They're all equally arrogant,
self-centered and useless."
"Don't try anything, even if you can't stand them," Michiru warned her.
"Look, I tried to prevent this somehow but
it didn't exactly work out. You will civil to them while they're here though,
ne?" She gave Haruka a particularly harsh look,
her sea-blue eyes staring her partner down. Haruka looked back at her defiantly
for a few seconds before relenting with a
rueful laugh.
"Only for you, love," she muttered. Michiru softened her expression to a
smile. With a small wink, she turned and
exited the room. She let a little sigh escape her lips as soon as she was out
of earshot. Their conversations tended to be
lighter these days, Haruka showing her small but amusing playful side. It had
become easy for her to take such little things
for granted, but every once in a while she would remember a time when things had
been different, when the only words
exchanged between them were ominous warnings and mutual fears.
Michiru's thoughts were inturrupted by a sense of foreboding. Without
really understanding why, she got a sudden
desire to look at her mirror. Knowing that her impulses were rarely wrong or
without basis, she did not resist. She held her
hand out and carefully withdrew the object from its dimensional pocket. Her own
face looked back at her, motionless,
concentrating on the smooth surface for something that did not appear.
It happened so quickly that she could almost have imagined it. The
surface of the mirror darkened, fogged over.
Within a fraction of a second, it was normal again. Michiru felt her shoulders
sag slightly. She shifted her weight so that
she was resting on the wall. Her legs suddenly didn't feel very steady.
Kami-sama…it isn't over already is it? This gift of peace? I don't know
if I can go back to that. It never
gets easier.
It wasn't the beginning of this though. Even though she didn't want to
believe it, she was aware that something had
been going on for some time. Everything had seemed to be rushing past her at an
incredible speed. It was as if she just
didn't have time to grasp anything, to stretch moments out forever.
The other senshi had been feeling the effects to. Mercury would spend
hours on her computer, taping furiously as
though she was searching for something that she could niether understand nor
place. Jupiter had begun to pace restlessly,
the energy locked within her leaking out in too many ways. Venus, while usually
optimistic, had developed a painfully
cheerful disposition, straining to smile despite her fear.
And Uranus…Michiru winced. She was starting to think of her own partner
as a senshi. She had to remember
that there was a person there. If she forgot…
That was when she realized that Haruka had begun to act more like her old self.
Normally she was the teasing,
thoughtful person she loved, but there were times when her eyes turned cold and
her face hardened, her features
returning to the icy, bitter expression that had haunted them for too long.
Distant, Michiru thought grimly. That's
what she's becoming again, isn't it?
Haruka had hidden it well though, Michiru reflected. She had never spoken of
the subject, even to the point of not
mentioning previous battles. She continued to pretend to be cheerful, flirting
and gently teasing her partner as though
nothing was wrong. She was even starting to show some of the strained optimism
that Minako had. It seemed so
obvious, now that Michiru thought about it.
Why didn't I see it before? she thought. Why didn't I notice that she was
acting? I know her better than she knows herself, so why couldn't I see through
her façade? The answer came unbidden to her almost instantly: she had not
wanted to see the truth. She had wanted everything to continue this way, with
nothing ever coming between them again. Above all though, she couldn't bring
herself to face the fact that her partner was lying to her.
Oh, not directly lying. But she had been decieving Michiru, concealing her
emotions. Why, Haruka? You know I
care about you more than anyone else in the world, so why did you have to hide
it? Why didn't you trust me?
Michiru would listen, and try to understand. She would do anything for
Haruka, even die. She needed her, and
needed her to be honest about everything. Every secret in her heart was another
brick for a wall between them. Now,
if something came shattered the bond between them, she didn't know if she could
stand it. One more war, one more
set of endless sacrifices, nerve-wrecking battles and impossible hurdles and
their relationship would be at risk.
Michiru took a deep breath to calm her frayed nerves. This was no time to
think of such things. She had a duty
to fulfill, a terrible, burdensome duty that she would never be rid of. She
had to be a senshi again, at least temporarily. That
meant putting aside everything else and thinking of protecting her queen and
kingdom.
She couldn't be sure that some enigmatic enemy was going to attack Crystal Tokyo
and destroy everything she had
given her life to preserve. Besides, she couldn't make an announcement with no
proof. She knew perfectly well
that she would look like a fool. She would just have to wait until something
turned up.
She could only pray nothing did. As long as she had no evidence, she
could believe that it was just paranoia from
to many battles, . As long as she didn't acknowledge it, it didn't really exist
for her. For this one time only,
she didn't want to go with her gut instinct.
* * * * *
Haruka's smile dwindled and vanished after Michiru had left. Michiru had
been uneasy about something, not just
the Starlights. She had hidden it very well, her partner couldn't deny it, but
there had been something about her manner.
She was a little too calm, a little too distant. She was afraid of something.
Haruka let tightly coiled muscles relax and slumped into the couch. There
was something else bothering her, not that
it was anything new. She had felt restless for months now, but could never show
it. Something had been plaguing her, a
spectral force that she could never seem to place or understand.
Something she couldn't fight. That alone worried her. A battle was one
thing, with the threat clear and in front of
her the entire time. That she could handle. But this thing-whether it was
merely a creation of her subconcious or a very
real danger-was something beyond her ability.
Damn it! she thought. Michiru's the one for this sort of thing, not me.
She deals with the future, I deal with
the present, simple. That's how it's supposed to work. She didn't want to talk
to Michiru about this though, a fact that
startled her. She knew she'd try to understand, and to empathize, but that was
what worried her. Michiru was too
empathetic. She'd get all worried about a touch of paranoia. She loved her too
much to put her through so much pain
if it really was for nothing.
She didn't want to think about all that right then. She had too many
thoughts swirling around in her mind. All of
them were going no where very quickly.
She closed her eyes, allowing herself to sink into the dazed state between
sleep and awareness. She let her weary
mind drift back a duet they had played a while ago, to that moment when it
seemed like there was nothing between them,
as though they were one person. She savored that feeling, running it through
her head again and again. Each time, it
seemed to fade a little, until she could barely remember it at all.
* * * * *
Michiru stared into her mirror. Her steady gaze did not falter at all.
She needed to know what this was, if there
was anything there. She ached to just put the silly thing away. She could
deposit the mirror again and just forget about it.
No one would ever need to know. No one could ever prove it had happened.
Then a treacherous thought crept into her mind: What if it was something?
And if it was, and she didn't warn
anyone, Crystal Tokyo would never have time to prepare sufficiently. And if it
came to that, Haruka might be hurt, she
might even die.
Her mind conjured a startlingly vivid picture of her lover's mangled
corpse. Just thinking about it made her chest tighten and heart ache. Her
resolve strengthened with that and she continued to peer into the fathomless
depths of her mirror. Still, nothing unusual showed.
I wish that I could believe that there was nothing there, she thought. I
really do. I cannot afford to risk anyone because of that though, I need to
know for sure.
It seems like we've had so little time at peace though. The war with
Nemesis only ended a decade or so ago. She couldn't help but wince at the
memory of that experience. They were perfectly prepared to face us and caught
us all off guard. I still can remember the isolation we outers experienced.
They separated us from the Crystal Tokyo, forcing us to use our greater powers
in an endless stream of battles against droidos designed to exhaust us. I can
still almost see the dungeon in my mind. It was designed to suck energy slowly
from those who stayed there. It seemed like an eternity before the war ended
and we were taken, barely alive from that miserable cell and returned to our
castles. I thought I would go crazy there, completely cut off from everyone
else as our bodies degraded each day.
Peace was such a wonderful thing after that experience. Haruka and I had
been able to live the life we had yearned for all those years. We had been able
to be sort of a family even.
Someday, perhaps we will have a family, like we did when we were raising
Hotaru. I know that a child is too much to ask for. I should be happy that I
already have someone to love. Maybe when we have a long stretch of peace that
dream can become a reality.
Haruka would say I'm being selfish right now to indulge in my own world
and my own dreams. Perhaps it's because I've guarded these things at my own
expense for so long. To have the dreams that have always seemed so far away
would be such a joy. That might be why I don't want to go back to fighting, to
our never-ending battle. We can never truly be free from destiny, but it would
be nice to have a chance to sit back and grow old with my partner, to enjoy what
we've struggled to save for so long. If only this time of peace would never
end. If only we could stay this way forever, not worrying about things like
that.
I know that it can never be though…I will not waver when I need to protect
the future of this kingdom though. If I have to fight, then I will. I cannot
turn back for my own selfish reasons. I once swore that I would sacrifice
everything for this, I can't go back on that now.
The mirror in her hands suddenly turned black. A stunned woman turned to
face her. Michiru could not see the details of her face because of the darkness
surrounding her, but her anger and fear were apparent. With little warning, the
woman held out one hand, as if to strike her. Cracks split the smooth surface
of the mirror. Michiru held up one arm in front of her face, but only succeeded
in catching several of the shards of glass.
Michiru screamed out of shock and collapsed on the ground, her body aching. The
fragments of her mirror slid across the floor to reform the talisman. She
picked it up, shaken. It was confirmed now, their peace had ended abruptly.
* * * * *
The princess gasped sharply, struggling to retain the rhythm of her
breathing. After several minutes she resumed inhaling and exhaling normally.
She shouldn't have tried to use so much energy so quickly without preparation,
even if it was urgent. By all appearances, her affliction was getting worse all
of the time. Pushing it was begging for danger.
It's not as if I have a choice, she thought. I…I can't justify saving
myself while others die. I don't deserve that. Besides, the time is now. If
we cannot eliminate them with one strike we may be overtaken completely.
She mustered all of the strength she could, pouring it into one quivering
hand. She reached out with her mind, stretching her awareness far beyond the
little chamber she was residing in. At the edge of her consciousness, she felt
another mind, reaching out to find her, to expose her plan.
Another spasm ripped through her flesh, causing her body to jerk foreword
slightly. She gritted her teeth and tried to concentrate on the threat and not
her own pain. Her anger cut through her agony leaving her with the single
thought of destroying the source. She held on to that blind rage until the
attack subsided and she returned to her normal state.
Without hesitation, she thrust her hand foreword into the air and sent the
collected energy hurtling across space. It was a tremendous distance for her to
cross and most of her magic dissipated.
The princess snarled as she watched the spell crumble. Reluctantly she
withdrew energy from the supply stored in her collar. That, combined with her
own power, was enough to pose a threat to her enemy. Driven by shear will it
sped towards its target.
The princess smiled a little and fell back once more, breathing heavily.
She felt no joy in doing this, barely even satisfaction at this point. All it
did was ease the hunger of her fury, leave her emotions content for a while. It
wasn't enough though, she needed more.
* * * * *
Rei prodded the smoldering embers in the hearth. After a few minutes, her
patience was rewarded and flames leapt up from the ashes. She folded her legs
beneath her and pressed her hands together in the traditional position. She
called out the familiar chant, urging the fire to help her.
She waited anxiously, her eyes never leaving the fire. After several
moments of staring, she gave up to let her eyes rest. Nothing. She still could
not find a thing. She sighed a little and shook her head. She was being
ridiculous, Minako had already told her that. Crystal Tokyo had not faced an
enemy in years. Why should one come now?
If she had been anyone else, she would have given up completely, or even ignored
her nervousness. It was easy to dismiss these things as paranoia. She was used
to acting on her gut instinct though and was not about to break that habit.
There was no warning. Before she could possibly have reacted, pain ripped
through her. She tried to yell, but could not force her throat to make any
noise other than a faint choking sound. Her muscles went rigid, then relaxed
completely. She slumped to the floor, unconscious before she struck it.
* * * * *
Why now, of all times? Haruka thought. She turned to look at Michiru again and
felt her heart flutter. Her normally elegant partner's face had been
transformed. She was still beautiful, of course, she would always be beautiful.
But her lips had not always been pressed together quite as tightly and her eyes
had not always darted around the room warily.
Michiru's fear was also starting to infect her. While she could not tell what
was bothering her lover, she knew there was a reason for it. There was nothing
she could do, not yet anyway. So, she simply tightened her grip on her lover's
shoulder, as if she could somehow pass strength to her that way.
Michiru looked up to her with gratitude, but showed no sign of relief. There's
nothing I can do to help her, Haruka thought miserably. I wish she would just
tell me what's bothering her, maybe I could find a solution then.
"Michiru-sama!" someone called, their voice cutting through the din. Haruka
sighed internally and watched her partner disappear into the crowd. She hated
all of this formality. If people wanted things done, they should just do them
with out flourishes and exchanges of courtly manners.
She straightened a little in order to get a better view of who Michiru was
talking to. She felt a twinge of jealousy as she noticed most of them were men.
They were probably only discussing politics and she trusted Michiru. Still, she
couldn't make herself feel completely at ease about it.
Soon enough, people clustered around her, making movement almost impossible.
She talked with them for a while, if only to kill time. When she could no
longer stand it she made some polite excuses-all lies, of course-and left the
room. She went to her own chambers and lay down on the bed, drifting in and out
of sleep in an effort to ease her restlessness.
* * * * *
Michiru watched Haruka's fleeing form with a growing sense of isolation. There
were hundreds of people crammed into that room, all bearing smiles. Yet, she
felt more alone than ever. They couldn't understand her, they never would. For
all of their kind words of support, they didn't know what it was like to live
her life, to feel her pain.
She continued to converse politely, no longer hearing the words leaving her
lips. Maintaining this calm appearance under the most difficult of
circumstances had become second nature for her. She barely had to be aware of
anything as she went through the practiced dance of courtly manners.
She kept scanning the crowd with increasing anxiety. Haruka was still missing.
Normally, it would not have bothered her tremendously, but right then she wanted
someone to hold her tightly, to tell her it would all work out somehow. She
felt a wave of guilt at her selfishness. She wanted so much from Haruka, her
love, her support, her time. She shouldn't demand so much of her, even after
all of this time, but she didn't know how she could live without all of those
things.
Michiru brushed away her guilt and longing for comfort before she had the chance
to get carried away. These were the emotions she had often felt as a school
girl, they were no longer needed now and it was childish to let them control
her.
Looking for something to occupy her, she went looking for her fellow senshi.
After several minutes of scrutiny she saw Minako. The bubbly queen was
surrounded by a crowd of admirers, winking and smiling broadly. Michiru almost
chuckled out loud at the sight. Who could resist the charm of her personality?
Minako had gained elegance through age, but had never quite lost her playful
nature.
Michiru excused herself as quickly as she could and walked over in Minako's
general direction. It was something to do, a simple goal to accomplish that
would help take her mind off of things.
She sighed internally, still not allowing a trace of emotion to show on her
face. When she was younger she would have gone to the pool right about then, or
the ocean if it was summer. She would swim laps for a while, melting her energy
and frustration away and leaving only the placid cold of the water. After that,
she would simply float there, aquamarine hair drifting out around her head while
the water caressed her tensed muscles.
Those had been the only times when she had really felt completely sane, with the
water washing away all of her troubles and feelings. Her feverish desire to
excel, to meet the impossible standards everyone set for her, the scorn of her
classmates, even her obsession over Tenoh Haruka all disappeared, leaving her
feeling empty, but at peace.
She wanted to do that now, but couldn't. She couldn't just let go like that
anymore, she had too many responsibilities. So, she continued to walk towards
Minako seeking distraction.
Someone slammed into her. Instincts formed from years of battle took over as
adrenaline raced through her system. She relaxed when she saw who it was, but
only slightly. Standing before her, still looking eerily like the adolescent
who had entered her dressing room, was Seiya Kou. He was fidgeting slightly,
obviously unaccustomed to his male body.
"Gomen n-" he began quickly. Before his apology could be completed, he noticed
exactly who he was speaking to. He visibly stiffened, then knelt before her in
a formal bow. He gently lifted one hand and brought it to his lips in a brief
kiss. It meant nothing, of course. Both were fully aware that it was merely a
pretense.
She smiled a little and allowed herself to relax. Seiya was clearly uneasy
about the situation, which would help neither of them.
"Would you like to step outside?" she offered. "It's a little too crowded for
my tastes in here." He nodded gratefully, relief washing away his nervousness.
She could understand completely. Kinmoku was still what it had once been and
they depended heavily on the Neo-Silver Millennium's support. A single false
move on his part could ruin his planet's economy.
"So, how is Kakyuu-san?" she asked politely. It was an awkward beginning for a
conversation, but she had to start somewhere. Seiya hesitated briefly before
answering, his eyes clouded with worry.
"She's pregnant," he said at last. Michiru murmured her congratulations. She
had heard of the controversial marriage that Fighter and her princess had
entered into. She had to admit that she felt slightly jealous though. A child,
a child of her own, would be such a wonderful thing.
"I don't know how it's all going to work out though," he confessed. "She hasn't
been very strong lately and some of the doctors were actually suggesting an
abortion until a few months ago. I shouldn't be so worried about it, it's just,
I wish I could be there with her." Michiru looked at him with increased
respect.
"She'll manage. I've only met her a couple of times, but she doesn't seem to be
the type who would give up easily." That produced a grin on Seiya's face.
"Definitely not. She even wanted to come here. She said that a little thing
like that was no excuse for not honoring someone who had helped her so much.
Kakyuu's like that, you know. Maybe that's why I love her so much. She's more
determined than people give her credit for, even a little stubborn, but she
usually avoids conflicts. She's a lot like…Serenity in that way. I couldn't
even dream of holding on the way they do, but they pull it off. Oh, gomen, I
didn't mean to dump all of that on you. I can get a little sappy when she comes
up in a conversation." Michiru chuckled quietly.
"It's quite all right. I've thought of Haruka like that occasionally, but she's
very different from Kakyuu-san or Usagi. She doesn't avoid conflicts very well,
in fact, I think she attracts them."
They both ceased talking after that, not because they were uncomfortable but
simply because they had a lot to think about. Times were difficult for them,
though for different reasons. As rulers of planets, they had a duty to think of
that before their conversation
They must have been there for some time, though neither really noticed. When
she looked back on that moment in time in the next few weeks, Michiru realized
that she shouldn't have permitted herself to lose track of the time like that.
It was a careless error, one she could not afford.
Michiru heard the muted sound of feet on one of the paths behind her. She
didn't turn, but could feel someone coming towards her. When at last the
footsteps ceased, she turned her head, her eyes looking upward. She realized
what she would see, but knew no way of avoiding it.
She had seen every emotion imaginable cross Haruka's face. She had seen guilt,
torment, bliss, love and grief. This expression was one even she had rarely
seen though; one which she had hoped never to see again. Haruka was hurt. For
that brief moment, she looked almost childlike. Michiru often forgot just how
vulnerable her partner really was.
Michiru watched helplessly as Haruka struggled to regain her lost
composure. Rage flared across her features, obscuring the pain she had shown
only seconds before. Her eyes narrowed to cold slits as Seiya turned around to
face her. She opened her mouth; her tone of voice lowered until it was barely
audible.
"Watch your step, gaijin." She didn't let her eyes meet Michiru's before
she turned her back to them and strode off far too quickly. Michiru's first
impulse was to run after her as quickly as she could, to explain that it really
had been nothing. Her common sense told her that Haruka would not even hear a
word she said in this mood. She needed a little time to resolve this on her
own, to calm down before she was ready to talk about it.
Seiya mumbled something, clearly embarrassed and excused himself. She let
him leave, barely aware of his absence. Oh Haruka, please understand.
* * * * *
The princess sank backwards, for the first time allowing her weariness to
show. She had never believed it possible to feel so exhausted until that point
in time. Every limb in her body ached and her eyes begged for sleep.
The results would be worth the price though. Anything would be worth it,
as long as the Neo-Silver Millennium was overthrown somehow, as long as her
people finally found a real home to go to…
* * * * *
Panic rose up in Ami's throat, choking the words in her mouth before they
could emerge. Something catastrophic had just happened on her planet. She
could feel the terror of the inhabitants and the planet itself screaming. The
fear echoed in her mind triggering a similar reaction in her.
She managed a weak smile at the diplomat she was talking to. She quickly
said that she wasn't feeling well and excused herself.
She could barely think straight. The thought of what could have happened
kept flashing in her mind. Once she was outside, she paused and took a deep
breath, trying to steady her frayed nerves. If she didn't think this through
carefully, she could make a fatal mistake.
She looked around to make sure that no one was watching her or was close
enough to hear her. While her identity was no longer a secret, she knew that it
might cause people to panic if they saw that the senshi were ready to fight.
She raised her henshin pen above her head and whispered the phrase that would
change her. She didn't know what she might encounter and she didn't want to go
into battle in her cumbersome dress.
She felt better once she had changed. She was more accustomed to being in
this form than her civilian one. She never liked to admit it but this was a
crucial part of her.
She concentrated as she summoned enough power to create a teleport spell.
The spell was a challenging one, even for her. Normally, she would have gone to
a public portal but she did not have the time to find one.
She reached into herself, into her source of power. From that source, she
withdrew a thread of her energy, and cast it onto the ground. A glowing, blue
circle formed around her feet. She focused on the main hall of her palace and
vanished with her portal in a swirl of water.
A minute later, she landed with a click on the marble floor. The entire
palace was made of blue tile to give it an aquatic look that contrasted the
barren surface of Mercury. Mercury stepped around the fountain and series of
pools with statues that surrounded it. She typed in her access code on a panel
embedded on the wall. A computer screen popped up displaying the status of
everything in the castle.
Mercury scanned through everything, making sure that it was all in order.
The magic spells holding up the energy dome that contained their oxygen and
maintained the temperature were fine. None of the water channels were clogged.
The computer contained no reports of anything being wrong. Even the library was
in order.
Mercury wasn't fooled though. She knew that something was amiss. The
castle was perfectly silent. She couldn't here a single dog bark or child
laugh. It was deserted. Mercury tapped on the key panel, trying to figure out
what had happened. There had to be an explanation.
Suddenly, the computer screen filled with static. Someone had tampered
with it earlier to prevent her from accessing everything. Her face paled. She
knew what this was. She hadn't expected it to happen so soon though.
She reached for her communicator watch. Her hand didn't move though. She
tried to walk foreword, but found that her legs were trapped. She looked down
in horror to see that most of her body was covered in blue crystal. She was
completely helpless. She closed her eyes quietly as the rest of the crystal
covered her. Please don't let the others suffer my fate, she prayed silently as
she sank into unconsciousness.
A sapphire tinted crystal in the shape of a flower floated out of her body
and disappeared.
Far away, on Nemesis, the princess smiled. She would make sure that the
Mercurian queen never opened her eyes again.
* * * * *
Makoto-sama! Help me! a voice begged silently. Makoto felt her eyes
widen in surprise. Before she had time to react, the emotions that accompanied
the cry struck her. An overwhelming feeling of terror washed over the queen.
She staggered slightly, unconsciously
Dozens of people rushed over to her, asking if she needed any help getting
up. She forced a smile and said cheerfully that she was fine. She insisted
that she was a bit tired and said that she'd be fine after a walk. She hurried
out of the uncertain mob while she still had a chance.
Once outside, she ran through the various people strong enough to send a
telepathic message from another planet-that's where she was certain the message
was from. It had to be one of the stronger elementals living there. It also
took a great deal of energy to send even a few words. If someone had bothered,
it must be desperate.
Already, Makoto could feel something wrong with her planet. She was
surprised she hadn't noticed it before.
She took a deep breath, remembering what one of her old martial arts
teachers had told her. She had to focus to be able to defeat her enemy. She
also should approach the situation with caution. Years of experience had taught
her that. She lifted up her hand and summoned her henshin pen. She softly
uttered the words that would change her into a senshi. She could fight well in
any outfit, but she was used to this.
She let energy collect in her hand for a moment. Then, she pointed to the
ground below her. The stored power was channeled through her finger to the dirt
below her. Green lightning shot out and formed a circle beneath her feet. She
really shouldn't have attempted a teleport spell this strong without resting for
a week or two to recover from the previous one. She was one of the stronger
senshi, but she had enough common sense not to overestimate her abilities. She
knew what her weaknesses and strengths were.
She stepped through onto the teleport spell and vanished in a flash of
energy. By the time she reached her castle, she was feeling exhausted. Her
energy had already been depleted from traveling back and forth for several days.
She looked around the castle, trying to get a sense of what was wrong.
She could see no sign of whoever had sent the urgent call a little while ago.
She resisted the urge to call out to someone. Normally, she acted on
impulse, but she couldn't be careless now. Her enemy could be anywhere in this
place.
A knot of fear rose up in her throat. Everything was too perfect. The
spells on the moon orbiting her planet where the castle was built were in
perfect condition. The walls constructed of jade weren't even slightly cracked.
Her palace was never in such perfect condition. She walked over to the vines
covering the walls and put a hand on one of them. The vine eagerly wrapped
around her hand. Something had caused it to wilt. It was a subtle change, but
the energy that pulsed through the network of vines had been slightly drained.
Jupiter closed her eyes, allowing her mind to be a part of the plants for
a few moments. She could feel its distress. It was weakening.
What happened here? she thought silently to the plant. The plants
response came back in simple emotions. Their thought patterns were fairly
primitive, but had developed from living around her. Something bad had
happened, it didn't know what. There was lots of noise, bad noise. Now,
something was taking its life force. It wasn't happy.
Jupiter thanked it for the information, though it hadn't done much good.
It had only confirmed the fact that something had happened here, which she had
already been certain of. She let her mind wander through the life force of the
vines, tracing the place that was taking energy. It was in the armory.
She rushed down there, already feeling the strain of using too much of her
power. Whatever it was, she wouldn't be able to put up much of a fight.
When she got there, she was surprised to find the crouched form of a tree
spirit. She was clutching a vine in one of her pale green hands. She had to be
one of the older ones, for her face was slightly lined with age.
"Callisto!" Jupiter gasped. "What happened?" The spirit-Callisto-looked up at
her with painful hope. She released the vine, much to the poor plants relief.
"Makoto-sama! You must get out of here and warn the other senshi!" she cried
frantically. "It's a trap for you!" Her eyes widened suddenly as a she froze
in position. She glowed faintly green for an instant. A massive crystal
solidified around her.
Jupiter stared in shock at her own legs which had been imprisoned in a similar
crystal. Damn! How could I not have seen this? Whoever was here set up a
spell to trap anyone who landed on the planet!
She let the antennae on her tiara rise up and gather electricity. She didn't
have enough strength at the time for a powerful attack. She would have to use
her weakest. It should be enough to shatter the crystal anyways.
"Supreme Thunder!" she shouted. She slammed her free hand onto the crystal. It
was futile though. The crystal didn't even crack. It grew over her face before
she had time to do anything.
A flower like emerald crystal appeared above the crystal that held her prisoner.
It hovered for a moment over her limp body before vanishing.
* * * * *
Rei's psychic sense screamed at her that something was wrong. Her legs
wobbled slightly, threatening to give way under her. She paused in the middle
of the dance, trembling violently. Her partner paused and looked at her
inquiringly.
"Rei-san, daijobu?" the man questioned. Rei nodded, struggling to remain
standing. Her head was throbbing and everything was spinning around her in a
blaze of red. Whatever she had been foretelling had just happened.
Inside her mind, she could hear the surface of her planet shrieking as a
foreign magic invaded it. The people were suffering. All of the panic and
agony that they felt was coursing through her body multiplied a hundred times by
her own intuition.
It was all she could do to remain there quietly shaking. If she cried
out, who knew what would happen? She bit her lip until she could taste blood in
her mouth.
"Daijobu?" the man repeated more urgently. She forced the corners of her
lips to curl into something she hoped passed for a smile. It probably resembled
a snarl more closely, but it was not something she needed to worry about.
"I'm…fine," she managed to say. She had to get away from here. She had
to find out what had happened on her planet, before it was too late.
"Rei-sama!" someone cried, close to hysterics. Rei looked over to see her
newest apprentice winding her way through the crowd. "Rei-sama, Makoto-sama and
Ami-sama have disappeared," she whispered.
"Kotono-chan, they just went for a walk. They're fine. Be careful…not
to…cause people to worry." With that, she went outside as quickly as her
quivering body permitted. Once she was outside, she fell to the ground, gasping
for air.
The vague sense she had felt that something was wrong had suddenly gotten
much, much stronger. She could feel the evil energy on her planet burning at
her. With tremendous effort, she stood up. She held up one hand above her
head. A small red pen materialized in her palm. Clasping it, she said the
words which would transform her into someone ready to fight. A moment later,
her senshi form emerged from a shower of fire.
She raised her hand and summoned the power of her badly wounded planet. A ball
of glowing red energy gathered in her hand. It wasn't as strong as it normally
should have been though. The shock was weakening her.
Focusing on her castle, she teleported in a blaze of red. A direct
teleport was more dangerous than creating a gateway, but she didn't have time.
She felt the energy of her planet around her. Her body wavered between
the two places-Crystal Tokyo and the surface of her planet-for a moment. Just
as she had begun to think that the spell had not been cast correctly, her high
heels landed with a click on the floor of her palace.
The palace was never cheerful, unlike some of the others. The place was
always fairly dark with bon fires casting eerie shadows on the walls and
pillars. Its appearance sent most people away, but not those who knew it well
enough. The people of the planet were attracted to it like moths to a flame.
Its warmth in the sheltered spell-dome drew them away from the freezing Martian
surface.
The castle had a strange charm in its own way. The elegant carvings on
the stonewalls and the dances tongues of flame gave it a mystical appearance.
Ornaments of various types of metal adorned the otherwise barren places.
Long irrigation canals melted water from the enormous glaciers and
channeled it to the castle. In the lower regions of the palace, smiths worked
tirelessly in the sweltering forges. Though mysterious and not for many people,
the castle was perfect for Rei. It was home. The tight knit community of
priestesses; smiths and ordinary people all knew each other perfectly.
Mars walked through the empty, silent castle without making a sound. She
could still feel the danger, but something was preventing her from finding the
source. Something was clouding her intuition.
She walked over to the central fire and knelt before it. She whispered
the chant that would bring her into the proper state of mind to conduct a fire
reading. It was several minutes before she was into a trance. She concentrated
all of her energy on the flickering fire, reaching out with her mind. She felt
her awareness spread beyond her own body, stretching out through the castle.
Her soul, united with the fire reached out to every corner of her home.
She gazed quietly into the flames as she felt her mind expand. She could
sense no one else here. There were people here, but they were in some sort of
status. Something was wrong with them. Their minds were…closed.
She pondered why this was, why their minds were different. She tried to
find out through the fire, but it offered no answers. Suddenly, an image rose
up in the flames and in her thoughts that almost caused her to lose her
concentration. It was Yuuchirou. He was frozen in some sort of gigantic
crystal. His face was twisted in agony and his mouth was open slightly as if he
were attempting to say something. Beside him, her two advisors-Phobos and
Deimos-were trapped in similar prisons. They had been halfway to their human
state before the crystals had imprisoned them.
"Yuuchirou!" she gasped. She had to know if he was all right. She tried
to force the answer to come up in the fire, but the images had stopped. The
fire crackled softly, as if in warning. It rapidly died down to a collection of
glowing embers. It shouldn't have done that, and she knew it.
She tried to stand up, but found herself unable to. Her legs were frozen
in place in the same sort of prison that had captured Yuuchirou.
"So, this is what it has come to," someone whispered from the corner. Rei
turned her head to see who the speaker was. She was obviously female, but her
face was hidden by the shadows.
"Dare desu ka?" Mars demanded, her voice rising slightly in near panic.
She couldn't see the figure's face, but she was certain that she smiled. She
said nothing though.
"Just tell me…tell me what you did with Yuuchirou!" she begged. She was
approaching hysterics. The princess laughed coldly. She still offered no
response.
"For the love of Kami-sama, tell me what you've done with Yuuchirou!" she
screamed. The princess stepped out of the shadows and into the fire's light.
She was smiling. It was a bitter, empty expression though. It was as icy as
the rest of her.
With a shock, Mars realized that her enemy was no more than seventeen.
How could this child have been twisted in this way?
"Please!" she cried. The princess walked toward her, unmoved.
"I want you to suffer, as I have suffered," she whispered. "I want you to
know what it feels like to lose someone. In a few minutes, maybe even less,
this crystal will cover you. You will remain in status for all eternity.
Before you go though, I want you to feel my pain." The black crystal collar
around her neck glowed an eerie purple color. With that said, she turned away
from the helpless queen. She teleported effortlessly from the now empty world.
"Yamete!" It was too late though. She was gone, leaving the Martian
queen to her fate.
"Yuuchirou." The words escaped her lips in her last breath as the crystal
solidified over her. A flowerlike gem floated over her for a moment before
disappearing as the other's had.
* * * * *
Minako paused for an instant on the dance floor. Her partner stared at
her questioningly. This was not his first time dancing with her, so he knew all
to well that being in a place like this, whether flirting, dancing or merely
socializing, was where she felt most at home. She paraded flaunted her timeless
beauty and charm as few did. Tonight, she was different though, her eyes had a
vacant look to them, as though she was only partially there. Her movements had
been almost flawless, but there was a robotic quality to them. Her usual
cheerful bounciness was missing, leaving only a shadow of what she normally was
like.
"Is there something wrong?" he said softly. She didn't respond for a
moment. She still wore the same distant expression. That concerned him more
than anything. Few people ever gave Minako credit for being intelligent or
alert, but she possessed both of those qualities. Years as a warrior had
sharpened her senses to the point where she almost never missed something as
obvious as this. After an uncomfortable few seconds, her head snapped up and
her eyes returned to focus.
"Gomen ne, what did you say?"
"Did something happen to you? You're not yourself."
"" She smiled lightly and tried to brush off his concern.
"Do you want me to come with you?" he asked.
"Ara, I'll be fine on my own. I think this cramped palace is starting to
get to me," she said with her usual jaunty wink. That was more like the Minako
he knew. She was almost always cheerful and confident. There were times though
where her face clouded over with memories of her own past. It seemed almost
like she was two different people. She was usually the fun, pleasant girl that
everyone loved. When things became difficult though, a noticeable change came
about her. She became darker and more serious, the grim leader needed to
command such a powerful force as the inner planetary senshi. Sometimes, he
wondered what had happened to her in the past to make her this way. He would
have loved to know, but it was not his place to ask.
Minako excused herself and went outside. She knew her partner was
probably just as aware as she was that she was far more comfortable in the
spotlight of the dance floor than out alone. She soaked up attention like a
sponge and practically lived in the spotlight. She adored the extra publicity
she got from being queen, though missed the simplicity of fighting solo.
Once in a while though, it did feel good to be on her own to collect her
thoughts. She would have enjoyed a few minutes to herself.
Her mind couldn't seem to quiet down though. For days now, she had had
the vague feeling that something was wrong. She could never place it and always
dismissed it. It had returned so often though that she had begun to wonder if
it was important. She didn't have an intuition like Rei's, but she had good
instincts and she trusted them. Being Sailor V had taught her that some times
her instincts were the only things she could rely on.
Without warning, Minako collapsed in the dirt, gasping for air. The
danger that she had felt looming over her had suddenly increased dramatically.
Her planet-Venus-was suffering. She could feel the cries of fear from the
people echoing inside her skull. She could feel the planet itself shuddering in
agony. Some foreign magic had invaded it.
She pressed her hands to her throbbing temples in an effort to clear her
head. She couldn't think straight though. The panic of her people would
probably drive her mad. She couldn't think past the terror that they were all
experiencing.
She took in a deep breath and let it out, focusing her energies as Artemis
had taught her so long ago. Gradually, the blind fear subsided and her more
rational side took control of her mind.
She might have to fight. With this in mind, she pulled out her henshin
pen and transformed in a flash of golden light. It was always best to be
prepared. The outfit she had been wearing would only have gotten in the way.
With that taken care of, she raised her hand and allowed the energy of her
planet to flow through her. She let it build up for a moment before casting it
on to the ground. It formed a small circle around her body. She closed her
eyes and exited through her crude portal, closing it behind her. The spell she
had used lacked polish, but would serve her need right now.
Only seconds later, she landed in the main entrance of Magellan Castle.
The entrance looked as cheerful as ever. It was a combination of white marble
and gold vines with roses on them that climbed up the pillars. It was
somehow…empty now though.
The usual sounds of people laughing and running about were missing. She
walked along cautiously, feeling like a stranger in her own castle. Her high
heels clicked eerily on the marble floor. There was no other sound. None.
"Is anyone here?" Venus called out. Her own voice echoed back from all
corners of the room. There was no response though. Venus looked around
apprehensively. Something drastic had happened here.
She continued to walk through the hallways, though no one was there.
There were dozens of mirrors lining the corridors, so she should have seen
someone at least. The castle seemed to be deserted though.
Venus walked over to a window over looking the garden and sat down,
feeling more afraid by the second. If she could see an enemy, she could deal
with it. This silence though was worse. She couldn't fight it and she couldn't
find out what had happened. All she could do was wait until whatever it was
made itself known, or she heard from one of the people.
Had the dome that shielded them from the harsh temperatures of her planet
weakened for a moment? It was possible. All of the people would have evacuated
under such circumstances, explaining their absence. Her instincts told her that
that was not the case though. She knew somehow that whatever had happened had
been worse than that. Besides, if the shield had weakened temporarily, the
plants would be dead.
She looked out through the window at the magnificent garden below. It was
primarily roses of various colors, though she had added in plenty of other
flowers for variety. The garden was patterned around a series of pools and
fountains of Mercurial design. Actually, she had designed not all of the
castle. The people of Mars had donated the metal and the people of Jupiter had
helped with the gardens.
In the distance, just beyond the massive dome, storm clouds gathered. The
sky of Venus had turned a poisonous shade of yellow as it usually did during
storms. That was nothing unusual though, not enough to cause an entire
population to flee.
Venus decided to continue her search to see if there was anyone left here.
She needed to at least feel like she was doing something productive. Just
sitting here would drive her crazy. She tried to stand up, but found that she
was frozen in place. She looked down in horror to see that a massive golden
crystal had formed over here legs and one arm. It was slowly climbing up her
shoulder to engulf her completely.
Venus turned her head to see a woman standing in the shadow of one of the
pillars. Her hair was tied up in two pointed odangoes and fell down almost to
her feet. Venus's eyes widened in horror. The silhouette of the person
strongly resembled…
"Black Lady?" she gasped. The person stepped out of the shadows,
revealing their face. Her face was hardened and had a cynical look to it that
Venus could never remember Black Lady having before. Her eyes were familiar to
the senshi though. They were cold, brutal and utterly merciless. The second
you saw them; you could feel the wrongness in them. You could tell that they
were things that never belonged in this world.
"Why did you do this? What happened to everyone?" Venus demanded. The
girl sneered at her.
"It would not help me if I told you."
"Dare desu ka?!" Venus yelled. She pointed her finger at the intruder.
"Crescent Beam!" The attack was easily blocked.
"Those crystals have a dampening effect, you know. Not that anything you
can do would be strong enough to hurt me, but I had to take precautions."
"How can you do this?!" The princess watched her calmly, her collar
glowing faintly.
"I could ask the very same question of you. How could you condemn an
entire race to certain death? You never considered the consequences, did you?
You never thought that we might come back."
"What are you talking about?"
"You know perfectly well what I'm talking about, or you should." Venus
struggled to get out of the crystal which now covered everything but her head.
She wanted to strike at the invader, but knew she couldn't. There was nothing
she could do to prevent her fate. She closed her eyes and waited for it to
come. A few seconds later, the crystal engulfed her and a flower-like gem
floated out of the frozen body.
The princess walked towards her and ran her fingers over the smooth
surface of the senshi's coffin. If removed from it, her body would deteriorate
almost instantly. She had the starseed and the pure heart. She would let her
and the others stay like this though, to show the queen their fate. She would
reserve something much worse for the queen herself though. Much worse.
Her eyes and collar flashed dangerously before she teleported. It
wouldn't be long now…
* * * * *
The princess stood before the bodies of four of her servants. They were
unconscious at the time, as that would make the transfer less painful. They had
volunteered for whatever fate came to them.
Each one had a nearly perfect psychological profile for what they were
needed for. Each one had ambition and a firm degree of control over their
powers.
The first one-Peridot-had short, wavy green hair. She was small compared
to most people and didn't appear to be terribly athletic. She had a strong will
to gain power though and had somehow managed to survive this long in the
cutthroat society of Nemesis, which said a lot. Anyone who did survive had to
possess some sort of ability. Peridot's was cunning. Though not powerful, she
was a backstabber and had been able to destroy a number of very capable
officials to get to the top. The princess let the blue Starcrystal of Mercury
float down to reside on her chest.
The next one-Jade-was considerably taller than Peridot. He also appeared
to be a lot stronger. His wavy coal-black hair went down to his shoulders. He
looked like he would have no trouble surviving. He was tough and could best
most people in physical combat at least. His other skill was manipulation,
though he used magic to aid that. To a certain degree, he could control
people's minds and force information out of them. He could even cause them to
do what he wanted, some of the time. At the time though, he didn't have much
offensive magic. That would soon be remedied. She considered her selection.
After a moment, she chose the strongest one for him-Jupiter. He would use her
strengths well. She let the crystal float down onto his chest.
The third one was named Heliotrope. He had short cropped, straight blonde
hair. He wasn't overly strong or tall, but he was by far one of the more
intelligent. The princess found that she had a strong dislike for him, but that
didn't really matter. What mattered was the way that he could use almost anyone
he encountered. He had supposedly been in brief relationships with several
girls for a while, leaving them utterly devoted to him. He was in the inner
circle of Nemisisian politics and made good use of that fact. She chose Venus
for him.
The final chosen one was Tanzanite. She had waist length scarlet hair
that she kept tied back in a tight braid. She was the only one of the quartet
that had gotten to this position the regular way. While the others had lied,
cheated, and killed their way here, she hadn't. She had been the top of her
group in every training exercise she had ever been in. She was fairly athletic
and skilled with a number of weapons. She also was excellent in the use of
magic. The one potential problem that she could see was that she still had some
sense of ethics left and appeared not to have absolute control over her
emotions. That could be difficult. She gave her the Starcrystal of Mars. It
would suit her.
The princess took several steps back from all of them. She didn't like
what she was about to do. It was an ancient spell, one which most people would
stay far away from. She had heard that the royal family had either destroyed
their copies of it or hidden them. She wasn't surprised. They were often
weak when it came to such things.
The spell was forbidden by most people. It was the height of black magic
and something that few would ever do. She was one of those few. She despised
using it, but she had to. She would sacrifice anything for the sake of her
people. This would help them. She had no choice.
She said the cursed words as she walked around the four people. They were
practically corpses at this point. Their bodies had been put into status for
the time being.
Reaching deep inside of herself, she called on all the energy she had.
She channeled that dark power through her into the spell she was forming. The
four crystals began to glow brightly. There was no turning back now.
She sent a stream of her own energy at them, sealing the crystals to the
four bodies lying down. A cyclone of raw power swirled around her in the
circle she had paced out. The crystals seemed to hesitate. After a few seconds
though, they dissolved, melting into the four people. The bodies flashed
briefly.
Four pairs of eyes shot wide open. Their faces were drenched in sweat and
they were all gasping wildly for air. All of a sudden, they screamed
simultaneously out of pure agony. Their cry echoed throughout the entire
galaxy. Sailor Pluto collapsed, Galaxia cried out, even Serenity screamed with
sudden pain. Every single senshi cried out in horror, not knowing why.
The four figures were knocked out from the shock. Even in their sleep
though, their faces were twisted with anguish.
The princess wobbled slightly on her unsteady legs. She slammed into the
floor, exhausted. Within seconds, she too was asleep.
* * * * *
Haruka ran blindly into the night. She didn't bother to consider what
some people might think if they saw her, a senshi, running away from the castle.
She didn't care at the moment. What they thought was irrelevant.
She had to get away from everything. She didn't care what the
consequences were, she had to. She looked back and saw the castle, still
looming over her. She put on an extra burst of speed to gain some distance.
She had no destination, nothing to run to, only something to run from. She just
wanted to get away from it all.
That had been what she had wanted a long time ago, to get away. She
wasn't sure if she had really understood it at the time, but she had felt the
need to run away from something that was following her. She was constantly
finding new ways to go faster, as if she could outrun her own destiny. Things
hadn't seemed to bad then, not to her anyways. She depended on herself, no one
else. Many would have been lonely without any family members she was still
really connected to or friends she really knew, but it had suited her.
In a way, she had just been lying to herself. Somehow, in her
subconscious she had known that she could never stay that way. Some part of her
she was unable to eliminate longed for companionship. With the same unyielding
stubbornness that she used all of the time, she pushed these traitorous thoughts
to the back of her mind. She told herself that this was the life she wanted.
She had success, money, and fame, everything many would have killed for. What
reason did she have to be miserable?
When she started getting the dreams though, it became harder to ignore. Her
discontentment grew by the day until it was insufferable. She started pushing
herself even harder, going at speeds few would have dared. She started to
emerge at the top of the racing circuit and cut everything else out. It became
her world. Everything else paled in comparison to it. She still wasn't really
happy though. There was something missing which she could never find.
Over the next few months, the dreams had become more intense. She also
began to see the same person appearing in them. They even started to affect her
daily. She lost sleep for fear of seeing that same scene again. Her grades
didn't drop by much and she still managed to win virtually every race she
competed in, but she was definitely not doing as well as before. She found that
she couldn't concentrate on most things. Her mind just kept repeating that
scene, drawing her away from the life she had worked so hard to achieve.
She started putting more of her energies into car racing. Everything else
was just a way of killing time. The number of races she was winning soared, but
she knew that in the long run, she was losing.
When she saw Kaioh Michiru, she had been terrified. At first, she thought
it must have been some sort of coincidence that this girl resembled the figure
in her dreams. When she said that she could hear the wind in the trees though,
and when she looked at her like that, she knew it was no coincidence. A cruel
twist of fate, or something like it, had brought this girl into her life.
Over the next few weeks, she struggled to avoid Kaioh Michiru. It became
a near obsession to get away from this personification of her own destiny. The
more she tried to stay away from her though, the more she seemed to encounter
her. Sometimes she wondered who was responsible for the times they met. Was it
fate, careful planning on Michiru's part, or had she unconsciously tried to run
into the aqua haired girl? Though she told herself firmly that she wanted
nothing to do with Michiru, she couldn't help but feel attracted to her.
Several long weeks after their first meeting, she once again stumbled into
Michiru, this time on a cruise ship.
It wasn't long before that fateful day in the garage. She remembered
every detail, the vague stink of oil, the jumble of paint cans on the shelves.
She had just been about to check if her car was fixed yet. There had been a
small boy, crying. She could still see every detail on his face perfectly.
When she had gone over to help though, he had changed. Some demon had risen out
of his body. She had tried to fight it of course, though she had no chance. No
ordinary human would ever be able to stop something like that.
Moments later, though it felt like hours, her pen appeared in the air. It
glowed almost seductively, drawing her closer. It was a promise, a promise that
she could have what she had always known she had been missing. With trembling
fingers, she had reached out to grab it, unaware of what she was doing.
Ironically, Michiru had gotten her out of the trance. She had begged her
not to take it. It wasn't really Michiru's words that had awakened her. It was
the bitterness in her voice. She was speaking of what she'd lost. Haruka's
hand had shot back and she had turned to Michiru, wondering why she had done
that.
Michiru had transformed and fought against the monster for her sake. She
hadn't faltered, despite her wounds. She had struggled against it. Why? For
Haruka, that was why. When she had fallen, shielding her and dropped into
Haruka's arms, Haruka knew what the emotion she had been feeling lately was.
She loved her. There had been no choice left for her. She couldn't let Michiru
fight alone. She grabbed the henshin pen at that time and transformed. Once
that was done, there was no going back.
Over the next few months, they'd grown closer to each other than they had
ever dreamed. They had never been able to come close to anyone else though.
They severed any ties they had with other people, they couldn't afford them.
Ruthlessly, they both shattered the lives they had worked so hard to gain. They
couldn't afford those either. All of that was all right though because they had
each other.
Haruka had thought they always would. Now though, she wasn't so sure.
This was the second time that she had seen Michiru with Seiya, and she was
beginning to worry about it. If she didn't have Michiru, she had no one.
So Haruka ran as she once had, trying to escape everything. When her
lungs felt as though they were about to burst and her legs weakened, she
collapsed on the dirt, gasping. She lay there under the stars for a while, she
wasn't sure how long, regaining her breath and thinking. When she had
recovered, she stood up and started walking. Running for that long had taxed
even her stamina.
Only one thought was left in her mind, she had to find Michiru. She knew
where she was. Deep inside, she knew where to find her.
* * * * *
The princess awoke, still feeling barely alive. The spell had required
more power than she had thought. She had also been casting too much recently.
She had to coordinate her attack perfectly in order to catch the senshi by
surprise. This didn't allow much time for her to rest though.
She hauled herself up and walked into her small chamber. It wasn't much
of a home, especially for a leader. The only indications that she was more than
a commoner were a few furnishings like a rug, some curtains and a bench in the
corner. Even the bed wasn't very elaborate.
The place had once belonged to Diamondo though, and that made it royal
enough for her. Anything he considered fit was certainly above most standards.
She would have liked to rest, but she didn't have the luxury of that time.
If this invasion went wrong, most of the people on this planet could end up
dead, a fate they shouldn't have to suffer.
She put a hand to her collar, worried. It was almost burningly hot. It
hadn't done that too much before now, but it seemed to be more active lately.
She put a hand to her head and went over to the small scrying mirror she
kept. She needed to select her next target and destroy them before the senshi
realized what had happened and attempted to retaliate. If she planned
this right, she should have the entire Crystal Tokyo down in a few days.
After several minutes of observation, she found one. She was standing alone,
the surf breaking against her in the night. The princess smiled. It had been
a mistake for this one to leave the safety of the palace...
* * * * *
As her partner had expected, Michiru had gone to the ocean. It was her place
of refuge. Just as Haruka turned to the wind whipping by her to find strength, Michiru
turned to the surging waves of the sea.
Haruka suppressed the desire to run to her lover and ask her what was troubling
her. If Michiru wanted solitude, it was a good sign that she needed it. So she
let her lover remain there, standing up to her waist in the water, gazing at the horizon.
Haruka felt a small pang in her heart as she thought of the evenings events and of
the fact that Michiru had gone to be alone. There was a time when instead of going to the
ocean, Michiru would have gone her her.
* * * * *
Michiru let herself fall foreword into the waves, feeling the water cover
her. The stars in the sky seemed to die out as she submerged herself
completely. The water seemed to dance around her, welcoming their sister back.
Yes, this was who she was. She was a part of this. She let the oxygen
seep out of her lungs and water replace it. She sank deeper into the laughing,
joyful waves, feeling her own body weaken. She wouldn't need that shell. She
was beyond that. She was the ocean.
The current reached for her and began to drag her out into the abyss of
the water that she loved. Her legs kicked weakly out of impulse. The tide
ignored it. She was a part of this, not some human. She could feel the shell
she had inhabited for so long slowly dying. It had no more air to feed off of
and couldn't survive in these conditions. She would soon leave it.
She laughed in joy with her sisters. She could be one of them again. She
crowed with glee as the body sank down towards the ocean bed, where it would
rest eternally. She would be free.
She felt something tugging at the corner of her human mind, wanting to
pull her back. She saw herself with another human, holding hands. The other
human's eyes were slightly widened in surprise. She knew that the scene had
held some meaning for her at some point. It was important.
It was nothing to her now though. Now, she would finally be a part of the
sea, forever.
* * * * *
Haruka watched Michiru sink beneath the surface of the water with a
growing unease. Michiru was a strong swimmer, she should have no problems.
Haruka knew that she shouldn't be so concerned about her, but something was
wrong. She had stayed down too long. She should have come back up by now.
Haruka suddenly realized it: she was drowning. It didn't seem possible,
but she was drowning. Why though? It couldn't have been an accident, not with
her. Suicide didn't seem likely either.
Haruka didn't really care though at this point. A rush of adrenaline gave
her the extra strength she needed. She sprinted down towards the sea with all
of the speed she had. All other thoughts were driven from her mind. All that
mattered right then was saving Michiru.
She plunged into the icy water as quickly as possible, not stopping to
think. Once submerged in it though, she realized that it was far colder than
she had anticipated. Even with her increased senshi capabilities, she would
only last about ten minutes. She forced her eyes to open in the water. The
water burned at her eyes and she couldn't see a thing though.
She dove down blindly trying to find the body-she prayed it wasn't a
corpse by then-that was down there somewhere. She was a fairly strong swimmer-
though she could never catch Michiru-but she was finding that she had to exert
all of her energy into swimming not to get dragged out.
She wondered if the ocean was always this way. It hadn't seemed terribly
violent before. Finally, she had to come up for air. Her well-trained lungs
felt like they were going to explode and she was beginning to feel disoriented.
She fought her way up to the surface with her weakened limbs and attempted to
get another breath. A wave washed over her two quickly though and she found
herself sucking in salt water. Gasping and choking, she struggled to get up
again. She couldn't hold on much longer. The ocean itself seemed to be
dragging her down though. The current dragged her down constantly.
She finally managed to get up a second time and gulp down a quick breath
of air. It had cost her too much time though. Michiru could have died in that
time.
* * * * *
It was almost a corpse by now, she reflected gleefully. The ocean had
been cold tonight, too cold for the weak human shell to live. She helped the
current and pressed the feeble part of herself down into the icy sands at the
bottom. It would make a good meal for all of the creatures swimming inside her.
The sands added weight to it, pulling it even deeper under the layers of grit.
Not much longer, not much longer…she would be free from that shell. She
could join the rest of the sea, becoming something even stronger.
The human's lips were a pale shade of blue. Its face was a spectral
white. Hypothermia was finally overcoming it. Feebly, it reached up with one
gloved hand toward something. It was a bizarre reaction, almost a compulsion.
She snapped free of the shell, pulling out towards the ocean, trying
desperately to get away. The ocean helped her, trying to get her to break free.
What was that shape up above her though. She could sense another human's
presence. What were they doing.
She realized suddenly that they meant to drag the almost lifeless body
back to the surface, and take her with it. No! She couldn't return to that
prison! She was free! Free.
The human seemed to be very strong. It was still alive. If that was the
case, then her corpse could accompany the other one on the ocean floor. She
would enjoy watching the flesh rot off their skeletons.
Die…
* * * * *
Haruka could already feel her limbs growing numb and limp as she dove down
for a fourth time. She couldn't see a thing. The worst though was that she
couldn't see Michiru. Her worst thoughts began to catch up with her already
dying, freezing mind. It was almost impossible for her to have survived this
long…
She let herself sink down to the bottom. Frantically, she searched around
blindly. No sign of Michiru. She struggled to get up again for air. The tide
slammed her down into the sand though.
This time, she couldn't get up. Her arms and legs were almost completely
numb and she could barely move them. The sand began to wash over her, burying
her alive. She wanted to scream out to someone to drag her from her watery
grave, but no one would hear. There was no one to scream to.
Beneath her, she touched something that was still slightly warm. She
turned down to look at it. The salt seared her eyes, but she still opened them
and looked. She saw a touch of white in her distorted, blurred vision. It was
a hand, reaching up from the filth it was buried in.
That was all she needed to see. She grabbed the hand, feeling some life
come back into her muscles. She slammed one of her boots into the sand and
kicked off with it, sending her floating upward with Michiru dragging limply
behind.
The world blurred around her into a mess of light and dark. No way
out…have to…have to save Michiru…where? Where is the castle?
A part of her was already aware that she wasn't thinking clearly, that
hypothermia was beginning to take effect. She couldn't seem to snap out of her
disoriented state, even though she was aware she was losing precious time trying
to think which direction to go.
After an eternity, she saw a faint glimmer in one direction. The moon…It
had been her guiding light for all of those years, ironic that it was all that
could save her now. With the last of her energy, she swam against the brutal
ocean currents towards it.
The ocean's strong current suddenly stopped. A giant wave reared up and
tossed them onto the beach. Haruka lay there, barely moving for a moment as she
sucked in the much-needed air around her.
"Michiru, daijobu?" There was no response. She was completely limp.
Haruka's salt-stung eyes widened in horror. It couldn't be…
"Michiru!" she cried. There was an edge of panic to her voice now.
Michiru stirred slightly and opened her eyes though without too much of a delay.
There was something wrong with her eyes though. The blue of her eyes had
swallowed up the pupil and the outer rim. She looked at her blankly, not
recognizing her.
"Why did you pull me back? You are not a human, you are the wind…" Her
eyes transformed, reverting to their original form. Her body began to quiver
and she grabbed on to Haruka as if her life depended on it. She didn't say
anything for a few minutes, she just sat there shivering.
Haruka wasn't worried about the fact that she could have hypothermia. As
a senshi, she would recover from such things far more quickly than any normal
human. Their immune system was incredibly strong. In a little while, she would
be fine. What frightened Haruka was the fact that Michiru was scared. After
what they had been through, very little ever really got to them.
"Don't worry," she said softly. "I won't let you go." It was one of the
few times that she realized just how fragile Michiru could be. She held so much
life in her small frame. It didn't seem possible. Physically, she was far
superior to most humans. Even emotionally she was more capable of handling
things.
There were times though, brief moments where a haunted, despairing look
seemed to cross her face. Haruka was well aware that she had born that
expression too. Perhaps it was just a result of what they had been through.
Michiru always seemed so sure of herself though, like she was invulnerable to
depression, though she knew that was not the case.
"Ai shiteru." Michiru didn't reply. She simply sat there shivering
either out of cold or fear-for once in her life, Haruka wasn't sure-staring up
at the sky.
"She's here," she said quietly. Michiru stated it with absolute
conviction and sincerity in her voice.
"Who?" Michiru continued to stare upwards into the star flecked sky.
"I don't know. I felt her presence for a split second there. I should
have been a little more wary, but I was too surprised." She shivered again,
something abnormal for her. "I've never experience anything like that. I was
there but…I wasn't the person you know. I was actually a part of the ocean. I
had no real identity." Neither said anything for a few minutes. She just
remained there recovering, still clinging to each other. "Our peace has ended,"
she said abruptly, shattering the uncanny silence. There were so few times
where Neptune sounded bitter, but this was one of them.
* * * * *
"Damn," the princess hissed, her voice so low as to barely be audible. She
had been close, very close. Another minute or two and Neptune would have been gone
completely. It would have made matters far more simple for her in the future.
She couldn't help but feel slightly sick at the thought. A few months ago and
she would not have considered killing someone, not like this. The idea of setting
traps that her foes could not possibly defend themselves against would not have appealed
to her. Times were desperate though, people were desperate.
I was so naive, she thought to herself. Believing that everything could be solved
without the lose of life. How stupid...
She felt a bit of remorse at that last thought, that she had grown so cynicle in so
little time, but she pushed it away. There was no time to lose, no time to let her grow up
as she pleased. They needed a leader, one more mature and strong then the child she had been.
If gaining that leader meant the sacrifice of the child, that was what would happen.
* * * * *
It was late by the time that the couple finally went back to the castle.
Neither said a word. A sense of growing dread had come over both of them. They
weren't quite sure what they would find when they got back. Haruka had known
Michiru long enough to be pretty sure that she was accurate when she said
someone had just invaded the solar system. She knew perfectly well that her
battle-hardened intuition would be able to find something like that.
To Haruka's relief, the castle appeared to be fine when she got back. The
lights were still on and even from a good distance, she could hear music playing
faintly in the background. She wasn't sure what she had been expecting, but she
had almost anticipated the place to be burned down or to have had something
equally disastrous happen to it.
They decided to head for the side entrance. Whenever they showed up,
people always seemed to follow them wanting a better view. They would certainly
scare people if they showed up like this. Two wet, bedraggled, haggard senshi
coming in on the queen's anniversary was hardly an ordinary event. It would
start quite a few rumors, especially with them. Michiru was still leaning
heavily on her shoulder and she felt like a wreck.
Her foot bumped into something as she walked along. At first, she thought
it was just a rock or some random piece of junk. She was bound to trip over
things in her fatigued state. She almost dismissed it as nothing.
Out of some bizarre compulsion, she looked back though. It was definitely
not a rock. It was fairly large and curled up on the ground. Haruka walked
back to examine it, dragging Michiru with her.
As she came closer to the object, a sickening sense filled her. She it
wasn't an object, it was a person wearing black. Who ever they were, they
couldn't be in very good shape, provided they were still alive.
Michiru bent down and rolled the person over to see who they were, or had
been. Haruka's worst fear had been fulfilled. Hotaru was lying there in the
dirt. Her face was a ghostly, surreal shade of white and her frail figure was
caked with dried blood. Her breathing came in rough, ragged gasps that hurt
Haruka almost as much as her.
Her purple eyes cracked open. Through those two tiny slits, she saw her
parents.
"Haruka? Michiru?" she whispered. A tiny stream of red liquid trickled
out of the corner of her mouth. Her words triggered a brief coughing spasm.
Haruka could only stand there helplessly, watching as her own child shuddered in
anguish.
Her narrowed eyes closed weakly. Michiru quickly bent down and checked
her pulse. It was there, but it was a weak one. Neither one of them said a
word as they looked at her. Haruka picked her up, cradling her like a newborn
child. Together, they continued walking towards the palace.
* * * * *
"She's bleeding internally," Michiru said grimly. Even she had to fight
back some tears looking at the mangled body that was her child. They had gotten
most of the blood off of her and bandaged her wounds. There was no way they
could help her inside though.
She checked her pulse for the thousandth time. It was still far two
erratic. Her heartbeats were merely twitches of the skin and they didn't seem
to follow any sort of pattern. It was all right though as long as her heart was
still beating. What she was afraid of was that she would put her hand over her
wrist, and feel nothing but cold beneath her fingers. She tried to brush away
the thought, but it was impossible.
"Michiru?" she mumbled. The word was barely comprehensible. Michiru
noticed instantly though.
"What is it?" she asked. Perhaps there was hope for her yet.
"Where is Chibi-Usa-chan? I-I know that…" Another set of hacking coughs
racked her body and more blood gushed up from her open mouth. Michiru waited
patiently, unable to do anything for her. "She's probably too busy as a
princess….but, could you find her for me? I kind of wish that she could be one
of the last faces for me to see." Michiru felt slightly sick. She couldn't
lose Hotaru, not after all this time.
Haruka appeared behind her. She had changed back to her civilian form and
was wearing a lose blouse, one of her gold earrings and a pair of black pants.
It was formal enough to at least pass.
"I'll find her," she said. Michiru looked up to her gratefully.
* * * * *
Chibi-Usa yawned loudly. It was almost one in the morning and she was
exhausted. She'd left the ballroom a little while ago after being pestered by
so many people. It was annoying. She was now in the library reading a book and
watching the other people dance. She couldn't help but be a little depressed
while watching them. They managed to be so graceful and look perfect, two
things she felt she could never do.
Something was wrong though. Her mind kept drifting back to that thought.
It was that way when the Dead Moon invaded earth those many years ago. As the
sun had slowly dwindled to a crescent, then vanished, she had felt a sense of
growing dread. She knew that something was coming, though she had no idea what.
She shook her head and smiled a little, attempting to clear her mind of
such dismal thoughts. She was probably half asleep and already having
nightmares.
"Ara, Small Lady, I didn't see you there," someone said. Chibi-Usa
visibly sank a little at the comment, though she knew it wasn't intended to be
harsh. She carefully kept her face blank, trying not to recall that remark.
Some of the other people had been harsher than usual that day. It wasn't
anything she couldn't put up with though.
"Hi," she said cheerfully. She carefully monitored her voice so that none
of the hurt she felt would show. She was out of practice from hiding her
emotions. In the twentieth century, she almost never had any need to. The
other senshi just assumed her petite size was the fact that she hadn't had a
growth spurt in a while. She had never bothered to mention that it had been
several centuries.
She turned to her mother and saw that she was nervous. She was reading a
book but she was constantly looking up as if she expected someone to jump out at
her. She fidgeted consistently, a habit that Chibi-Usa thought she had
abandoned years ago. Her normally placid blue eyes were fairly wide and she was
biting her lip.
Chibi-Usa smiled as encouragingly as possible, attempting to cheer her up.
"That party was really great! I don't know how you planned it!" Neo-
Queen Serenity looked as if she hadn't heard her at all. Her eyes were focused
on something else.
"Queen?" some court official said timidly. She looked up, startled. She
composed herself quickly, but her hands were still trembling.
"Nan desu ka?" she whispered.
"The senshi all appear to be missing, they have been for some time.
Saturn was said to be absent several hours ago. The inners all left at around
the same time and Uranus and Neptune have been reported missing for about half
an hour."
"They're quite capable of taking care of themselves," she insisted. The
officer hesitated for a minute before speaking again. He pulled out a tattered
piece of black fabric that was stained with blood.
"This was Hotaru-sama's dress and further testing revealed that the blood
is also hers."
"Arigato. That will be all," she said firmly. The advisor hesitated,
then left.
"I had feared that this would happen. There is nothing that I can do to
help them though," she said sadly. Chibi-Usa knew that she was being spoken to,
but the queen did not look in her direction. She stared out in to space, her
forehead furrowed with worry.
"What's going to happen?" Chibi-Usa asked. She didn't want to know the
answer. She felt obligated to ask it though. If she was a member of the royal
family, she should be aware of what happened.
"Everything that we know and love may change," the queen said. Her voice
bore the weight of years of tragedy. It was hard to believe that she had once
been Usagi. "For several months now, our astronomers on the farther, outer
planets have been monitoring Nemesis. There appeared to be no change, until one
day it vanished. I suspected an attack, but wasn't quit sure. I think the
other senshi had begun to get the same feeling of unease, but no one said a word
about it as the planet vanished just yesterday at midnight, earth time. The
energy build up I felt a little while ago was unmistakable. They've already
struck. I don't know how many planets they've hit, but they've almost certainly
inflicted severe damage. I will need to raise the shield over the city. Last
time, Minako-tachi did it but…this time, I must try alone. In several hours,
anyone who is outside of the shield will be unable to return and potentially be
killed." Her voice wavered slightly for the first time. "I-I can't let
anything happen to the others! As the queen though, I must protect the
inhabitants. I have warned the rest of the planet, but there is nothing else
that I can do for them."
Chibi-Usa looked at her in shock. One issue that Usagi had always stood
firmly on was the fact that everyone must be protected. Now, even she was
forced to make sacrifices? There was no way for her to avoid it? Chibi-Usa
jumped up. She knew she was being irrational, but the thought of one of her few
friends trapped outside of the shelter and facing certain death or torture was
too much for her. She knew just how strong the people of Nemesis were. She
knew what their grief was like.
"We'll wait for them! We'll wait until everyone's here until we raise the
shield!" Her mother smiled at her, sadly. There was no bitterness in her
expression though.
"I'll wait as long as I can before I raise the shield, Small Lady. There
is nothing else that I can do though. I-I'm sure they'll show up."
"Small Lady," a familiar voice said. Chibi-Usa turned around joyfully to
see Haruka leaning against the doorframe. She was wearing casual clothing,
bearing evidence to the fact that she hadn't been at the ceremony very long.
The only jewelry she had bothered to put on was her small, gold hoop earring and
a matching necklace made out of a thin chain. There was also a ring on her
finger, but she always wore that. The other thing that Chibi-Usa noticed about
her was that her close-cropped blonde hair was still slightly wet.
Neo-Queen Serenity looked like she might collapse with relief.
"Haruka-san! Do you know where the others are?" Despite the fact that
she and Haruka knew each other very well at this point, and the fact that she
was far above the other's position, she still insisted on using the respectful
suffix. She said that there was no way she could ever think of Haruka as
someone to look down on.
"Michiru and Hotaru are with me." As usual, there was barely a hint of
emotion in her voice. It was low and calm, not betraying her emotions like the queen's.
"And the inners?" Neo-Queen Serenity queried. Haruka shook her head
grimly.
"No sign of them. I wouldn't bother sending out search parties though.
Hotaru was badly injured." She paused. "Michiru has proof that something has
just invaded us. It's strong enough to be a threat." She said nothing else.
"I see." Haruka's eyes flashed angrily, but she said didn't reply.
"Chibi-Usa-chan, come with me. There's someone who wishes to see you."
Chibi-Usa looked up at her, a little surprised. Haruka rarely wanted to have
much to do with her. She tolerated her and helped protect her. That was the
extent of it though. "Are you just going to sit there?" she snapped. The princess
hurriedly got up and left with her, feeling slightly embarrassed and also afraid.
* * * * *
Haruka walked off with the little princess trailing her.
"Damn fool," she muttered to herself. The queen knew perfectly well what
she was getting herself into, but she was still going to try it. There was
nothing the senshi could do but watch.
"Nani?" Chibi-Usa asked. Haruka looked at Chibi-Usa miserably. The poor
kid had no idea, none at all. The queen had made sure of that. The queen wouldn't
have wanted her child to worry about her. Haruka's lips twisted into a bitter smile,
anger clearly visible on her face.
Having the child remain ignorant was no solution to the problem. It would only make
things harder for her when she found out.
Of course, I'm the one who gets to explain to her what's happening to her mother,
Haruka thought. I'm the one who brings the bad news, not her. Serenity wouldn't want to
hurt anyone, even if it was for their own good.
"She's going to use the ginzuishou. There's no way around it."
"But that would kill her!" Chibi-Usa gasped. Haruka nodded.
"She knows it too. That spell drains the life-force of whoever needs to
use it so desperately. On her own, she may only last a few months." Chibi-
Usa's eyes widened, shock and pure horror reflected in them.
"Venus-tachi used a shield spell last time though."
"Yes, but it was at a lower power level and there were four of them not
one. Even though the queen is strong, there's no way that she can survive
that." Neither said anything for the rest of the way. There really wasn't a
lot that they could talk about.
Haruka stopped and gestured to the door in front of her. Chibi-Usa looked
at the door uncertainly. She didn't want to go in, but she didn't want to look
like a coward in front of Haruka. In the brief time that she had known her, she
had gained a tremendous sense of respect for the older woman. Trying not to
quiver, she opened the door and stepped in.
What she saw was far worse than anything she had anticipated. Hotaru was
lying on the bed. Michiru sat beside the stricken figure of her friend, her
face clouded with silent anguish.
Stifling a sob, Chibi-Usa rushed over to her. She clasped the pale, limp
hand. She stayed there for almost an hour, forcing back the tears that always
threatened to break free of her eyes. Hotaru was practically a wraith, hovering
on the line between life and death. Her skin was as white as a ghost.
How could this all have happened so fast? Chibi-Usa wondered. Everything
was fine just a little while ago. Everybody was so happy, simply enjoying the
party. Now, that's all gone. It's like it was years ago. The inner senshi are
missing. My mom may be about to die, and even Hotaru is slipping from this
world. Why do such things have to happen? Why must everyone endure these
sacrifices?
She wanted to run through the door of her old house. Tsukino Ikuko would
smile and welcome her back, refusing to let her stay out in the cold weather.
She would plop down on her bed and wait for Helios to talk to her. She would
ask him about this. He'd say that everything would be okay, that as long as she
believed in them, they wouldn't die. That time was a thousand years in the past
though. There was nothing for her to go back to now.
Hotaru's eyes opened just a crack.
"Chibi-Usa-chan?" she whispered. Her voice was so soft that Chibi-Usa
could barely hear it through her labored breathing. The knowledge that at least
she could speak and could recognize her was comforting though. There might
still be hope for her.
"I'm here. What is it?" She wanted to ask her so many questions. She
wanted to know if she was okay, what had happened. Most importantly though, she
wanted to know who had done this to her. For the first time in her life, Chibi-
Usa hated someone. She wanted to get back at them, to hurt them as badly as
they had hurt Hotaru.
"There won't be much time before the rest attack. Another war may begin,
if we are not careful. Gomen nasai, that I couldn't fight beside you."
Hotaru's narrowed eyes closed and her hand flopped back down.
"Hotaru-chan!" Desperately, she put her hand on Hotaru's icy wrist.
There was still a pulse there. She was still clinging to life, but she wouldn't
last long. A rare look of determination flashed in the small princess's eyes.
Normally, she acted just like her mother once had and seemed unable to focus on
the problem at hand. There were times though where a maturity that few people
possessed showed through her.
"How can I help?" she said.
Haruka looked at the little girl with a face that showed both contempt and
respect. She was completely sincere. Despite the fact that her pathetic powers
could accomplish almost nothing, she still wanted to help.
"There is a way," Michiru said. She never really had to expend effort to
command attention, and this moment was no exception. Her voice was softer than
usual, just enough to show that she was afraid. "The hospitals will soon be
full, so we cannot take her there. I've been observing her for the past half
hour and the damage is more than physical. Her life force has been badly
drained. She once mentioned….that on Saturn they had a shrine of rebirth, where
the planet's energy would help heal those who needed it. There is a good chance
that it will work for the senshi of that planet."
"Then let's go there!" Chibi-Usa cried with her usual impulsiveness.
Without even trying to, Haruka could understand the child's thoughts on this
matter. She had not considered the consequences of going to that planet. All
that had crossed her mind was the fact that her friend was in danger. Haruka
shook her head at the princess's naivety.
"The planet Saturn is rarely visited by outsiders. It's far too
dangerous," she said.
"Why? What's there?"
"I don't know. That planet was civilized by a slightly mysterious group
of people. They use old magic, spells which many would forbid. No one can
really be sure what sort of energy lurks in that place. Besides, someone
obviously wanted Hotaru to be either dead or injured. There's a good chance
that they already set up traps on that place." The princess shook her head
defiantly, causing her pink hair to swish back and forth.
"I won't just let her die! She didn't let me down, she never did. I
won't let anything happen to her if I can help prevent it!" Haruka paused for a
moment, considering what should be done. It would take a while for the shield
to be at full power. There was about a half hour time frame in which it would
be possible to exit. After that, they would be helpless and sealed into to
their doomed city. Once outside though, there would be no returning. They
would be left for their unknown enemies to hunt down.
In the end, Haruka's more sentimental side won. The concept of waiting
around in the Crystal Tokyo watching her adopted daughter die would be torture.
Still, dragging along the heir to the throne would be far too dangerous.
"We'll just have to do what we can here," Haruka said. Michiru shot her a
slightly surprised look out of the corner of her eye. She knew exactly what was
going on. "The shrine may not even exist after all." Michiru let her shoulders
sag down enough so that she looked as though the despair was sinking in. She
made certain though that it was fairly subtle. Chibi-Usa was an intelligent
child and would realize something was wrong if they were too obvious.
"We can't do that!" Chibi-Usa yelled desperately. Her eyes brimmed with
tears at the thought. "I can't leave Hotaru-chan!" Haruka turned away as
though she were unwilling to face her. She narrowed her eyes slightly giving
herself a pained, slightly bitter expression.
"Urusai! You cannot understand this," she snapped. Chibi-Usa fled from
the room looking horrified.
"We don't have much time left, we should leave now," Michiru said. Her
voice was monotonous. They were doing something almost unthinkable and might
lose their lives in the process, all based on an irrational, illogical rumor
that might work.
"We'll go," someone said. Haruka turned slightly to see the three
Starlights in civilian form. She repressed her first impulse to hit Seiya as
hard as she possibly could. Her more rational side realized that this would
accomplish absolutely nothing and would waist their precious time which they
were rapidly running out of. The queen's shield would be impenetrable soon.
"Fine," she growled. She wasn't happy about the idea, but it made sense.
They were bound to run into trouble and with Saturn out of action they might
need help. With that said, she turned around and walked towards the western
section of the castle. She didn't bother to see if the others followed her.
She knew they would. Michiru wanted to save Hotaru as much as she did. If the
Starlight's didn't want to come, she didn't really care.
* * * * *
The ship wasn't very large. It would fit their purposes without being too
crowded though. Normally, the senshi wouldn't have bothered using one of the
awkward things. They only existed to prevent the portals from becoming crowded
with people who lacked the ability to teleport. In this case though, they were
likely to be intercepted or blocked if they teleported. All of the portals had
been closed to prevent transportation between the worlds. No one had bothered
to consider that this could be a means of escape for someone.
Michiru laid Hotaru out on one of the least stiff of the beds anxiously.
Haruka had insisted on piloting the ship, despite Seiya's protests that he
would.
Fortunately for them, the staff who would have normally been there had
moved closer to the center of the city. No one wanted to be near the outside in
case the barrier didn't completely surround the city at first.
Haruka stared down at the button beneath her hand. One small touch would
send them hurtling out into space. She was no fool though. Once they were gone
they were blocked out of the place for quite a while. There was a good chance
that they would never see it or any of its inhabitants again.
She cast a backwards glance at the beautiful city. The stars were still
shining brightly giving the place an unearthly look. It was like a glimpse of
their former time. It embodied the spirit of the queen, her pureness and
nobility. She would miss the place.
With that done, she slammed down on the button. A long good-bye would
only make things harder and slow them down. She felt the ship engines start,
its slightly aged shell vibrating uncertainly in the atmosphere. With years of
racing behind her, she waited tensely for it get ready. A signal light flashed
briefly. She pulled the lever feeling her body being forced back into the seat
as the vehicle accelerated. Now I know what they mean when they say you can't
go back home, she thought as they blasted off.
* * * * *
Peridot woke up on a large stone table with a splitting headache. She
pressed her hands to her throbbing temples in a futile effort to make the room
stop spinning around her and cause her head to stop burning.
With a good deal of effort, she dragged herself off the stone pedestal
that she had been resting on. Her legs suddenly gave way underneath her,
sending her falling to the floor. She let out a yelp before struggling up.
Once she was standing again though, she still had to lean on something just to
remain erect. Her body was already showing signs of strain just from breathing.
"Why do bad things always happen to me?" she whined. There was no answer
except for the echo of her own voice. The three others were still unconscious.
A smile spread across her face and her eyes narrowed. The opportunity
would probably only come once. The three other volunteers were her competitors
for power in the militaristic society of Nemesis. If an…accident were to happen
to them, it would benefit her greatly.
She knew all too well that any of them could defeat her in a battle face
to face. Their innate magical gifts were far stronger as was their physical
strength. Even when it had come to choosing who would control which senshi, she
had gotten the weakest one. The power she had received was tremendous, but not
as useful for offense as Jupiter's would have been. As long as they were
around, she would be the cannon fodder and have the lowest status.
Her window of opportunity was fairly short though. She had no time to
waist. With that thought in mind, she reached down into her boot and extracted
a small knife. Many people pondered how it was possible to conceal weapons
underneath her skin-tight clothing. She had practiced the art of deception and
every form of magic associated with it for many years though. Silently, she
walked over to her first victim, Jade. She lowered the blade down to his
throat.
Just as she was about to slit his bare flesh, something stopped her. Her
hand twitched compulsively and moved away from him. She struggled to force it
back, but her hand continued to move of its own free will. She muffled a shriek
with her working hand as she gazed in horror. She couldn't control her own
body!
Her fingers relaxed and dropped the knife onto the floor. All Peridot
could do was watch in shock as it clattered on the cold stone beneath her feet.
The situation didn't improve either. The strange force in her hand seemed to
move up her arm, causing her to lose control over more and more places. A
brilliant blue light appeared on her forehead where her black crescent normally
was, illuminating the darkened cavern. She resisted weakly, sinking to her
knees.
The blue glow condensed into a single area, growing stronger each second.
Peridot had already figured out who it was. The blue projection finally
solidified into the form of a senshi. Her large, clear blue eyes were slightly
wider than they normally would have been. She was wearing a simple garment, a
school-girlish fuku with a short, blue skirt that complemented her hair. Her
lips seemed to be mouthing some words, but they were to quiet for Peridot to
hear at first. After a moment, her voice became audible.
"What have you done to me?!" she asked in horror. Peridot glowered at
her.
"I could ask the same question. You should not be outside of my body.
You belong to me and are no longer a separate entity," she snarled. "I've been
working forever to get to this position and I won't have you ruining it!"
Mercury said nothing for a few seconds. She simply stared at her in stunned
silence as realization dawned on her.
"Face the facts, you don't exist anymore. You didn't use your powers
effectively while you had them and now they're mine! Do you hear me? Mine!"
"I won't let you use my planet's energy for evil! That power is for
protecting the princess!" she cried.
"Shut up you little bitch! Shut up!" Why couldn't she control her? She
should have been able to. If anyone saw this, they would take it as a sign of
weakness on her part. She could not only lose her position, she could be
killed. The princess might decide to grant the Mercurial queen's power to
someone else. If Peridot had it removed from her though, she would never
survive.
Mercury continued to talk, though Peridot was no longer listening. Her
mouth had gone very dry and she felt as though she were about to choke on her
own breath. The longer this continued, the higher the probability of someone
discovering this.
Peridot held up one hand and summoned some of her new energy. She sent a
small ice crystal hurtling towards the shadowy figure. It went straight through
the spectral vision and shattered on the wall. Peridot's temper blazed into
life triggered by her terror. She was completely helpless against this.
Cursing under her breath, she ran at the person only to pass right through and
slam into the wall as her small projectile once had. Ignoring the pain, she
rebounded back and attempted to strike it again in a jump. She sailed through
her target, landing against the pedestal that she had been resting on a few
minutes ago.
As if possessed, she charged at the shadowy nightmare before her,
shrieking curses and sending shards of ice flying. Each time her attack
produced the same result though. She wanted to tear her opponent into tiny
pieces, but she couldn't reach her.
She had several large bruises by then and was bleeding badly. She
couldn't even feel it. All that mattered was the destruction of the senshi
inside of her.
"I'll kill you! I'll kill you!" she screamed. With all of her remaining
energy, she conjured an enormous ice spear and hurled it at the senshi. It
collided with the wall with a deafening crash sending fragments all over the
room. The senshi flickered, then vanished. Peridot's eyes widened in horror as
she realized what had just happened. If anyone saw that…she shuddered as she
thought of the consequences.
"What happened?" a low voice mumbled in confusion. Peridot whirled around
to see one of her rivals, Jade sitting up. One of the pieces of her final
weapon had gotten lodged in his arm, leaving a small, crimson stain on his
clothing. If he finds out, he'll destroy me, she thought. After all, he is my
rival, no, my enemy. They're all my enemies.
"Nothing!" she cried, her voice rising to a level that could almost have
been classified as hysterical. "I don't know anything!" With that, she
teleported to her private rooms.
* * * * *
The princess bowed before a small alter so that her long hair pooled
around her feet. The formality wasn't really necessary as she knew that this
demon could not dispose of her. Still, it rarely paid to take chances with such
a powerful entity. Also, today she did not feel like arguing with her (at least
that's what it seemed to be). Its aura was already having an effect on her and
she wanted to exit the room as quickly as possible.
"Akuma-sama," she said, carefully keeping her tone of voice respectful.
"Are you sure that Peridot was a good choice?" She knew that she could not
openly disagree with it, but she would have liked to in this case. Peridot
wasn't overly competent for one thing. She had also tried to assassinate her
once. The princess had no doubt that she would attempt it again. Over all, she
wasn't someone pleasant to work with, to say the least. If mislead, she could
be manipulated. She was still too ambitious though.
"Are you questioning my judgment?" a low voice hissed. Out of the
blackness of near the shrine, several tendrils seemed to detach themselves and
move in her direction. Two gleaming red eyes flashed dangerously. She ignored
her first instinct that was screaming at her to teleport. Instead, she gritted
her teeth and retracted her protest.
"Forgive me. I had not intended to doubt your decision. I am merely
saying that I have more experience in dealing with her and I do not believe that
she is trustworthy." She silently prayed that the demon wouldn't rise to her
slight contradiction of what she (or it) had said. She was lucky that day
though and Akuma decided not to do anything drastic.
"Why must you make things so difficult?" Akuma asked. A dark cloud shaped
vaguely like a female human with two enormous wings protruding from her back
detached itself from the wall. She lifted one translucent hand up to her face
and looked directly at the princess. "I am only trying to help you in your
goal."
"And you may be endangering that goal by putting someone like her on this
mission. We cannot afford failure!" As soon as she had said the words, she
regretted them. Akuma's eyes narrowed to tiny slits in her face.
"Your tongue may cost you your life one day," she said. The tone of voice
was steely but well controlled. It was also very quiet. That was what worried
her. Akuma never yelled or made unnecessary noise when she was angry. She
seethed in low, barely audible tones. That was when she was most lethal.
The princess realized that since she hadn't done anything yet, she might
still be able to pull this off though.
"I would suggest that you let Opal go." She hesitated for a moment,
barely breathing as the demon considered. Without warning, Akuma thrust a half-
formed hand forward and shot a blast of blood red energy at her. The princess
levitated herself upward into the air, nearly striking the ceiling to avoid
being hit. After a few seconds, she dropped down letting her hair trail behind
her. She landed on the floor with perfect timing, not even flinching at the
attack.
"I will not have you arguing with me. You must remember your status!"
"Don't you understand what's at stake here?! This planet won't last
forever and it's going to take my race with it!" With that, she stormed out of
the room, not turning her back to the monster behind her until she was sure that
she was safe.
* * * * *
Haruka switched the ship into autopilot and went to check on Hotaru. Her
presence in the pilot's chair wasn't really required all of the time. She
really was only bothering driving to distract herself.
Inside her chamber, Hotaru was sprawled out across her bed looking like a
corpse. Her black hair only accented the unnatural paleness of her body. Every
muscle was utterly limp and she looked as though she had not moved in years.
Haruka knelt down beside her silently, letting her sleep. It hurt her
deeply to see Hotaru like this. She had already endured far too much. There
really was nothing that anyone on the ship could do for her though.
Haruka grabbed her cold hand and held it tightly for a moment, fighting
back the tears that were threatening to come foreword from her eyes. She rarely
cried. It just wasn't something that she was comfortable letting everyone see.
"Haruka?" a voice said. Haruka's eyes widened as she Hotaru's eyes opened
slightly and looked at her.
"Where am I?" she said, her voice monotonous.
"It's all right, Hotaru. We're going back to your planet to heal you."
Hotaru looked at her hopefully, but with a trace of guilt in her dark eyes.
"Gomen nasai. I-it's all my fault that this happened…isn't it?" Haruka
flinched a little when she heard that. It wasn't fair that Hotaru should be the
one to feel guilty about this.
"Not at all. Everyone on this ship did this because they were willing to
risk their life for you. They chose to come," Haruka insisted fiercely. Hotaru
smiled a little at that, the shine returning to her eyes.
"Arigato. I'm so glad that you're all here for me." With that, her eyes
closed and she sank into sleep.
* * * * *
Chibi-Usa lay in a small corner of the ship, trembling and trying to
sleep. The place she had found was in the storage room, so no one would come
back there unless they were looking for her. That was the only advantage of her
hiding place though. It was too far away from all of the rooms that were heated
and she was sure that she was going to freeze to death. There was also nothing
that she could use as a blanket back there either. The place had nothing but
empty crates and cold, hard steel.
She couldn't leave though. The others would try to send her back. There
was no way that she would let them do that. She had to be there for Hotaru, no
matter what the price was.
The princess's, Chibi-Usa's almost numb hand touched something wet.
Blood. How much longer could she hold on?
* * * * *
Dinner was devoid of any noise with the exception of the clinking of
silverware. Everyone ate in silence, left alone to think. Michiru and Taiki
had attempted to start a conversation in the beginning, but it had slowly died
off. No one seemed able to talk with Haruka sitting at the end of the table
like a dark cloud. She had eaten almost nothing and hadn't said a word since
she had entered the room. The only sign that she was even aware of anything
were her occasional glares at Seiya and worried glances at Hotaru.
The black haired woman was barely able to even sit upright. She was
struggling to look normal, but her food remained untouched and her hands shook
violently. Suddenly, Hotaru's eyes widened and she froze in place. Everyone
turned to her at once, still not saying anything. The silence was almost
tangible, filling the air and making it almost impossible to breath. It felt as
though it were about to swallow them.
"Daijobu?" Michiru finally asked. Hotaru said nothing for a moment. She
opened her mouth at last and a strangled cry emerged. She fell from her chair,
collapsing on the floor still shrieking in pain. Haruka leapt up and rushed
towards her, ignoring everyone else.
Hotaru recoiled from the senshi rushing at her.
"Yamete! Yamete!" she begged. After a few moments, she regained her
composure and was able to stand again. She looked at them desperately.
"Someone on this ship is causing this!" she declared. "They're eating away my
life-force in an attempt to grow stronger." The senshi looked at each other
wondering who would do such a thing. Michiru couldn't help but notice that
Haruka shot a nasty glare in Seiya's direction.
Hotaru closed her eyes in concentration, trying to discover the source of
her pain. When she opened her eyes, they were filled with determination. There
was another emotion glinting in them though: rage. She was barely able to
contain it. Hotaru held out one unsteady finger pointing towards a passageway.
The others silently went down, lead by her.
* * * * *
Hotaru opened the storage door with far more force than necessary, letting the
light from the hallway shine in. She stepped in, her eyes cold and narrowed to
near slits.
"Come out!" she yelled. Nothing responded. Hotaru froze and motioned to the
others to do the same. In that moment, they heard a faint shuffle from the far
corner. Hotaru stormed over and threw the crates out of the way. Once they
were gone, nothing obscured her enemy.
Pressed up against the wall was a small girl who appeared to be about nine years
old. Her pastel pink hair was a filthy, oily mess and was coming out of its
usual style. Dirt and grime covered her slightly pale skin and sailor fuku.
Squinting in the bright light, she looked up at Hotaru in shock.
"Hotaru-chan! Daijobu?" she asked anxiously. In her concern, her own suffering
was forgotten completely. Hotaru did not bother to answer her though. She
lifted the child up from her hiding place and flung her into the metal wall.
Chibi-Usa collapsed on the ground in shock, bleeding from the impact.
"This is the one who is responsible. I remember the queen telling me of a time
where evil energy possessed her and she attacked our forces. Apparently, this
has resurfaced," she said. "The only way to destroy it is to kill her." She
turned to look at Haruka. "Letting her drift in space for a bit is probably the
best way, ne?" No one said a word. They all stared at Hotaru as if they were
seeing a ghost.
Chibi-Usa's looked at Hotaru in confusion.
"Why are you doing this, Hotaru-chan? I-I thought…" her voice drifted off for
an instant. "I thought that we were friends…" Hotaru stepped back and ran from
the room into her own cabin leaving the others in stunned silence.
* * * * *
"Hime-sama!" Jade yelled, pounding on the princess door. There was no
response. The ill-tempered man shoved his coal-black hair away from his face in
irritation. She hadn't said a word to him for several days. She spent all of
her time in her room sulking. He had never gotten along with her at all, but
she should still find time to see someone as important as he obviously was.
"What's wrong with the stupid bitch this time?" he wondered out loud. He did
not have the patience to put up with this much longer.
"You know that she never has time to see any of us," Peridot grumbled in
her usual whiny voice. She had thought that Mercury would be weak and easy to
deal with. She could not have been more wrong. The senshi had a far stronger
will than she had been lead to believe and was fighting her constantly.
Needless to say, she had become even moodier and her temper had not improved.
Jade growled something incomprehensible and slammed into the door. Black
energy flared up around the doorframe and sent him flying backwards muttering
curses. From inside the room a low voice mumbled something to them.
"Go away," she said. "I don't know who you are, and at this point I don't
care. I don't want to hear what you have to say because I don't feel like
talking to anybody right now. Go away!" Peridot snorted contemptuously.
"We have such a weak, pathetic leader," she sneered quietly. "She should
be easy to get rid of though." Jade smiled slightly.
"I've often thought of the idea myself. There's no reason for her to be
in charge. Oh, she's quite powerful, but the only real reason that she's the
ruler is because that demon is backing her. Now if it were to choose someone
else…" He paused suggestively.
"I like the idea," she purred. "Just one little ice crystal in the back
and-" She moved her finger across her throat in a slicing motion.
"Would you like to meet me in my office a little later?" he asked. "I
think that we might be able to…work something out." Peridot grinned.
"I think I would like that very much." With that done, Jade sauntered
off, obviously pleased with himself. Peridot waited until he was gone to let
her glee show. Finally, she would have an opportunity to rule this useless
planet. Jade controlled one of the strongest senshi that existed in the solar
system. With his help, she would easily be able to defeat the princess. Once
that was through she would have to dispose of him too, of course. It was a
minor setback though.
"I always thought that you had no sense of ethics. I see that I was
correct." Peridot whirled around to see a tall woman with bright red hair tied
back in a tight braid. Unlike Peridot, she wore the standard uniform of
Nemesis. Peridot forced a smile, attempting to hide her dislike of this
particular person.
"Ah, hello Tanzanite. I didn't see you there," she said, sounding a
little annoyed at the others presence.
"People who are blinded by there own ambitions usually have problems with
that."
"What do you want from me? Are you going to use this against me?"
Peridot hissed.
"I don't want anything from someone like you. I was just passing by when
I noticed you're conversation."
"If you have nothing to do with this then leave!" she snapped.
"Despite what you might think, love is something a bit deeper than a
political game, at least to some. Do you really think that you're flirtations
are going to gain you more power? Can you be that blind?" A slightly
melancholy note crept into her voice when she said this.
Peridot tensed, waiting for her to attempt to attack. The blow she was
anticipating never came though. Tanzanite simply turned her back and walked
away. Peridot smirked at the other woman's back. She should never have made
that mistake. Turning your back to almost anyone on Nemesis could be fatal.
With Peridot, it was the equivalent to suicide.
Let's see what this senshi can do, she thought. She conjured a long,
wicked looking icicle and prepared to send it at Tanzanite in the style that one
might throw a javelin. The other woman would never have time to react. Without
hesitation or remorse, she hurled her projectile at her opponent.
Tanzanite was not quite as naïve as she had expected though. The more
experienced woman whirled around at the last possible second and sent an
enormous blast of fire in Peridot's direction. The icicle dissolved instantly.
The flames didn't stop there though. They rushed foreword at Peridot as if they
were going to eat her alive.
Peridot jumped back, frantically trying to think of a spell to use before they
consumed her. She searched through the memory of her senshi. After a few
seconds-though it seemed like an eternity-she found something that might work.
"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!" she yelled. Fortunately for her, the senshi
inside of her knew how to use the attack effectively. A stream of ice clashed
with the fire. The flames weren't quite hot enough to reach her through the
senshi's energy. Peridot could feel herself shaking with fear and relief. It
took all of the strength she had left not to fall over.
Tanzanite glared at her.
"I could have finished you then. You'd better watch your back." With
that said, Tanzanite strode off into the gloom of a nearby passageway.
"I'll kill you for that," she snarled. She ran towards the training
ground.
* * * * *
Chibi-Usa was vaguely aware that she was walking somewhere, being lead by
a person. Numbly, she went with them until she was deposited in a room on a
bed. The door closed behind her with the click of a lock. She didn't really
care whether she could get out or not. It didn't matter where she was.
All she could do was play the scene over and over in her mind. The door
had opened and light had flooded into the pitch black room. Through the painful
brightness she could see Hotaru's silhouette followed by the other members on
board the ship. Hotaru's face had been contorted with fury. She had grabbed
Chibi-Usa and flung her against the wall accusing her of causing everything.
Hotaru had wanted to kill her. After that, everything had become a blur.
It wasn't possible. It just wasn't possible. Hotaru would never have
done something like that. Hotaru was the shy, gentle and brave girl that had
grabbed her hat as it was snatched up by the wind. That Hotaru couldn't be the
same one that had suggested sending her out into space.
What if she had been right though? What if she had been the one who had
caused all of this? She didn't remember it, but it was possible. Black Lady
was not just a creation of Wise Man, she was a part of Chibi-Usa. It was a
darker side of her that few people ever saw. It was all her jealousy, pain and
hate. All that Wise Man had done was compact that side of her into a single
entity. It was possible that that person had resurfaced after all of this time.
What have I done? Have I destroyed the Crystal Tokyo for the second time?
I did it before without meaning to…Am I the one that is causing my mama to
destroy herself slowly?
Chibi-Usa felt something wet slide down her cheek. She put a hand up to
her face and realized that she had been crying all of this time without even
knowing it.
"Baka," she whispered. It was such a childish habit, one which she had
been trying to rid herself of for years. Despite her efforts though, her tears
would not stop. All she could do was let them come. She reached her hand out
into the dimensional pocket where she kept most of her things. A small, cat-
shaped ball with a crescent moon on its forehead appeared.
"Don't cry, Small Lady," it said in its usual cheerful voice. Chibi-Usa
pulled the object close to her and hugged it as if she were a baby. Sobs racked
her small body. For once, she didn't bother to keep them back. She had to cry.
* * * * *
Haruka slammed her fist into the steel wall of the ship, leaving a fairly
good sized indentation. She withdrew her raw hand, trying to keep her bloodied
knuckles from leaving a stain on anything. She knew perfectly well that it
wasn't the best of things that she could have done under the circumstances.
At that point she didn't really care though. What else was there to do on
board this ship? They could not come right out and kill Chibi-Usa as there was
a good chance that she was innocent. On the other hand, they couldn't trust her
either as there was a chance that Hotaru was telling the truth.
All that they could do was wait. Waiting was not exactly what any of them
needed right then though. As senshi, they were used to fighting what ever
monster happened to be attacking earth at the time. It was easy for them to
eliminate concrete enemies that stood before them. When the enemies were
themselves though, things got more difficult.
"All this damn silence," Haruka muttered darkly. "It just doesn't seem to
end." The worst part about this was that it gave her too much time to think, to
let her mind drift into "what ifs" which she did not need right then.
Too often, she found herself wondering why Michiru had been so close to
Seiya. It wasn't as though Michiru had never danced with someone before. It
was just that all of those times it had never been behind her back. She had
also always known that it was merely a friendly dance, that it didn't really
mean anything. This time, she wasn't so sure.
Baka! She would never do something like that! Haruka couldn't help but
think about it though. It was possible that after all of these years Michiru
had been growing less comfortable being with her and that she wanted to move on.
It was also possible that she would be willing to love Seiya. After all, though
Haruka hardly ever looked at men as most girls did, she could tell that he was
attractive. He was also a senshi, eliminating that difference.
Maybe this wasn't even something new. Could it have been that she always
felt that way about him? Could it have been that that time in the locker room
really did mean something?
Haruka winced a little as she thought of these things. She hated to even
think of the idea, but there was no way that she could deny the fact that it was
possible. She wished she could talk to Michiru about it, or even Seiya. No,
she didn't want to talk to Seiya. She wanted to hit him until he resembled her
bleeding hand.
No, she couldn't talk to Michiru about this as she had no solid proof that
this was true. So all she could do was sit and wait like everyone else on this
cursed ship. For all of her skill with magic, for all of her strength, for all
of the years of service she had given the queen, she was completely helpless.
* * * * *
Chibi-Usa's eyes were puffy and slightly redder than usual from crying.
She had wiped away all of the tears, but she still felt that she might go into
relapse at any minute. All of the sleepless days and nights spent in the
freezing storage room had worn her out and left her as nothing but a bundle of
nerves and exhaustion. The incident with Hotaru had been too much. It had
finally overwhelmed her.
All of sudden, she knew what she had to do. She didn't have to think
about it, she just knew instantly. She got up, grabbed Luna P and went to the
door. She had known that it would be locked so it wasn't much of a
disappointment for her. She simply took the cat-like ball and pressed it up
against the lock. After a few minutes it gave way and she was free to go around
the ship.
She took Luna P and made it stare straight at her.
"Repeat this: Please don't come in. I-I really need…need to be alone."
Luna P's eyes whirled.
"Small Lady! Small Lady!" it said. Chibi-Usa sighed in exasperation.
Luna P had always been a wonderful toy but it was rather lacking in
intelligence. She tried to get it to mimic her several more times before giving
up. It was completely useless. She hissed at it to be quiet and grabbed it so
that she could bring it with.
Once that was done, she crept out her room. She locked the door behind
her and headed towards Hotaru's room. She knew that this had to be some kind of
mistake. Hotaru would never have intentionally hurt her. All that she had to
do was find her friend and talk things over. Hotaru would understand. She had
to.
Quietly, she walked through the halls until she arrived at the door.
Normally, she would have knocked. While she was not the most polite of
children, she was not intentionally rude. Right now though, she wasn't thinking
clearly. She was nervous, hurt and tired. In her rush to get out of sight of
the others and reach Hotaru, she burst into the room without thinking.
Hotaru wasn't in the room, but someone else was. She was considerably
taller than the dark senshi and also less frail in appearance. She had long,
silky black hair pinned up in two pointed odangoes similar to the ones Chibi-Usa
had worn as Black Lady. The black dress with little crystals on it was too
tight for her and the skirt didn't go down very far at all.
The lady didn't actually seem very intimidating at the moment though. She
had to support herself by putting her hands on the desk in front of her. Her
breathing was too loud and it sounded strained.
Chibi-Usa froze. She had realized that Hotaru had done something strange,
but it had not yet occurred to her that someone was impersonating her. This
situation was even worse than she had imagined. There really wasn't a lot that
she could do though. She could not call Helios because there was no way that he
could reach her in outer space. She could try to blind her enemy temporarily
with her attack and run to tell the others. That might work, but it was
incredibly risky. Chibi-Usa had a limited knowledge about spell casting. From
what she had read when she had snuck into her mother's room she knew that
disguising your appearance was extremely difficult and anyone who was capable of
keeping up such a complex spell for so long had to exceptionally powerful.
The pink haired child backed away slowly, reaching for the door. By some
horrible stroke of luck, the door creaked. The lady turned around, uttering a
soft curse when she saw who was there. On the person's forehead, there was a
small upside-down black crescent, marking her as one of the banished ones.
Chibi-Usa also noticed that the imposter couldn't have been older than Usagi.
She actually looked rather ludicrous standing up in Hotaru's dress that didn't
fit her.
Stealth was out of the question now as she had been found out. She was
going to have to do something that she hadn't done in over two years. She
yelled at Luna P to change. In a puff of smoke, the little cat-like ball
transformed into a perfect replica of a 20th century gun. She pointed at the
person in front of her, trying to act like she knew what she was doing.
"I don't know why you're doing this, but I can't let you pretend to be my
friend! I can't forgive you! In the name of the moon, I'll punish you!" Like
Usagi, she had always been good at giving the speech effectively and
melodramatically, even if it was rather pointless. Right now though, she needed
to buy some time and this might get it for her.
The girl glared at her in annoyance, but said nothing. Chibi-Usa put her
finger on the trigger.
"I know that this weapon is outdated, but it can still kill you. This is
a real gun and I know how to use it, so listen to what I say!" The girl still
did not reply. She was beginning to shake slightly. A black, crystal choker on
her neck began to glow a dull shade of violet.
Chibi-Usa was beginning to get worried. If this person called her bluff,
she wouldn't have a chance. Though Luna P could change into almost anything,
her mother had made sure that it wasn't actually capable of severely hurting a
person.
The older girl's eyes narrowed began to glow the same shade of purple as
her collar. She extended one hand in Chibi-Usa's direction, the malicious
expression on her face darkening. Suddenly, the illumination radiating from her
collar vanished and her eyes reverted to normal. She grabbed Chibi-Usa's wrists
and twisted them, causing her to drop the gun. With that, she threw the child
into a corner of the room.
Chibi-Usa watched, her eyes transfixed to her opponent as a change came
over her. Her hair color slowly transformed from black to a rather bright shade
of pink. Her eyes were also altered from dark purple to red. By the time she
was finished she resembled Chibi-Usa's former self, Black Lady, closely. Her
facial structure as well as her body was different, but there was enough
resemblance with the hair that the other senshi-who had never actually seen
Black Lady-could be fooled. She smirked in Chibi-Usa's direction and left,
sealing the door with a ward behind her.
"Let me go!" Chibi-Usa yelled. In frustration, she slammed into the door.
It was futile though. All she could do was watch as her life unraveled.
* * * * *
Peridot stormed off to the training grounds. She had to burn off a little
of her anger some way. The way she would have preferred would be sending
various pieces of Tanzanite flying onto the wall. Unfortunately, that was an
impossibility for her. Trying to attack Tanzanite would be suicide.
She despised the slightly older woman, she always had. In fact, she had
despised many of the people on Nemesis. Now though, she could feel her hatred
getting even stronger to the point where it was intolerable. It was like some
kind of strange disease that was eating her alive, piece by piece.
Peridot pushed her way through the cluster of droidos that were gathered
at the training grounds. Why did they have to get in her way? Everyone was
just in her way!
None of the targets were free, but that didn't stop her. She shoved two
humans who were practicing away. Now, she had a chance to vent a little bit.
If she didn't, she thought she would burst in frustration. She raised her hands
above her head and tried to think of one of the attack phrases Mercury was
supposed to use. She was probably capable of using more power than those
attacks could ever produce, but it would be best to use something easy to begin
with.
"Shine Aqua Illusion!" she cried dramatically. Energy gathered in her
arms causing her body to drop in temperature slightly. She expected it to
release. It didn't. She could feel it writhing inside of her, but something
was preventing it from leaving her body.
Silence descended on the stunned audience of droidos. Quite a few of them
had seen the attack in action before, and knew that this was not what it was
supposed to do. Slowly, whispers began to sweep across the crowd as quickly as
the suddenly silence had. Everyone wanted to know why she couldn't use the
power, why she was in capable of controlling the senshi and also why she had
ever been granted such a high position.
Peridot could see that her hands were shaking and glowing faintly blue.
Slowly, a pool of water leaked out of her hands and dissolved on the ground.
She wasn't able to see her, but she could almost feel the senshi inside her
laughing. Why shouldn't she laugh? She's winning this battle, Peridot thought
grimly. She hated losing to anyone, but losing to one of her lifelong opponents
was something she couldn't tolerate.
"Get away from me!" Peridot shrieked. She wasn't really sure whether it
was directed at that monstrosity embedded inside her or the throng of droidos
around her. It didn't really matter to her at this point. Shaking violently,
she stood up. She swept her icy gaze around the crowd, searching for a target.
She lashed out at the first droido she saw. She didn't even bother to use
magic. She simply kicked it over. It was a primitive method, but it was
effective. What she had forgotten though was that the droido was designed to
try to attack anything that struck it first. Without being fully aware of its
actions, it lunged at Peridot's throat.
The emerald haired woman was sent flying across the training area. She
was nimbler than she appeared to be though. Before she struck the other wall,
she rebounded off one of the targets and managed to land on two quivering legs.
She reached down into the memory of the senshi, struggling to maintain
control. Slowly, an icicle began to condense into her hand. She could still
hear Mercury screaming, but it wouldn't be enough.
She grinned nastily as the icicle finally solidified. She would make it
pay. She would make them all pay for insulting and humiliating her in this way.
She ran at the mob of droidos and slammed her weapon at the first one she saw.
It sliced through the monsters arm causing some chemical to ooze out of the
wound and onto the floor. Peridot giggled. You haven't won yet! Go on,
scream, plead and cry down in your soul. It is useless!
Her giggling increased in volume until she was laughing crazily. She
continued to swing her weapon about her unceasingly. She didn't care what
happened at this point. She was too full of adrenaline and desire for blood to
think of the consequences.
The droidos had decided to let this insane woman fight something else.
None of them wanted to be responsible for the death of their superior, but none
of them wanted to be killed by her either.
With almost nothing left to destroy, Peridot turned to the nearest human.
He was a good deal taller than her-though most people were-with short, blonde
hair. He seemed to be ignoring her rampage completely as he was occupied
flirting with Unakite. She recognized him as one of the other four who had been
chosen for this assignment. He didn't appear to be having any difficulty with
his senshi though. It wasn't fair.
Peridot smirked a bit as she pictured the look on his face when he
realized his own doom. By then, it would already be too late though. She
hurled the icicle at him as though it were a javelin.
A split second before impact, someone dashed in the way. The ice crystal
shattered into dozens of shimmering pieces which vanished in an instant. A
bright shield of flame surrounded her, protecting her from harm. Peridot could
see the person as the flames blurred their face, but she knew exactly who it
was. It was the only person on this planet who would do this.
Peridot took one moment to flash a brutal glare in Tanzanite's direction
before she turned and fled the scene.
* * * * *
The princess, Adularia strode cockily towards the main deck of the ship.
She radiated confidence and malice. This was far from the emotions that she was
actually feeling though. Inside, she was sick with nervousness and also with an
insane sort of joy. She had finally done the unthinkable, she had struck
against Serenity. There was no going back now. She had created her one
opportunity for revenge and freedom. The fear came from the fact that if she
made even the slightest error at this point could cause her to fail. She would
never get another chance.
The time she had to finish this battle and be successful was limited
though. She was no fool. She knew that Nemesis was dying. The planet could
not last more than a few years at the most. Already, she could feel the demon's
power taxing the planets and her strength.
She had another motivation to work quickly though. Such a thorough
disguise was wreaking havoc with her energy supply. She was getting to the
point where it was hard for her to keep up even such a small thing as changing
her hair to pink. If she didn't make this skirmish short, her disguise would
slip and there was even a chance that she would be injured or knocked out by one
of the senshi. At this point, she was at her weakest.
If only she had more time! It was slipping away from her constantly,
killing her planet and dissolving her control. She had none to waste.
She took a deep breath before she entered the room. Everything would work
out perfectly, it had to.
* * * * *
Dinner, again. They had only been on the ship for about a week and
already Haruka found the monotonous routine disgusting. They woke up in cold
space under some illusion that it was day time. They ate. They went back to
sleep. All of this was conducted in near silence as none of them were willing
to mention their dilemma. None of them even wanted to speak a word about the
possibility of having to kill their princess. So, by some unanimous, unspoken
taboo they remained silent while their supposed days dragged on and the queen
grew weaker.
She was about ready to explode. She had to do something, anything. Being
a racer for all of those years had never prepared her for this experience.
The worst part of it was Michiru though. She hadn't spoken to her partner
in a while, which was a rarity for her. She should have been able to talk to
her about anything. Now, she wasn't quite so sure that she could.
Amidst the clinking of silverware, she heard another sound, one that she
had trained her ears to pick up over time. Someone was coming. They sounded as
if they were trying to be quiet and failing. The vibrations of the steel floor
were a dead give away.
Everyone else seemed to feel it too as they stopped eating. Whoever was
making the noise either wasn't trying to be very subtle or they hadn't noticed
because the footsteps continued to get louder.
A few seconds later, a young woman stood poised on the threshold of the
room. She was wearing a rather unusual black dress that contrasted her
impossibly pink hair sharply. Haruka could not be certain, but the lady did
have a strong resemblance to the Black Lady that Usagi had spoken of
occasionally.
The enemy laughed and began to say a few things, taunting them about their
weakness and inability to restrain her. Haruka didn't bother listening. She
had heard various empty threats from virtually every enemy that she had ever
fought. They were meaningless. In this case though, it gave her time to find
out something important: Where had Michiru gone? The aqua haired senshi seemed
to have slipped out of sight without anyone noticing. Haruka couldn't help but
wince. No matter what came between them, she didn't think she could bear to see
her hurt in any way.
Black Lady-it was logical to assume that that was who it was-stopped
speaking almost in mid-sentence. She conjured a large, black crystal and
slammed it into the deck of the ship, slicing through the metal as if it didn't
exist. Using the hole she had made, she slipped down onto a lower level.
Instinctively, the senshi jumped up to avoid what they realized was coming. A
few seconds later, the same crystal sliced through the floor, allowing Black
Lady to resurface.
Black Lady turned to make her exit in the confusion that followed her
attack. Haruka saw it first though. She wasn't in her senshi form, but that
didn't mean she was helpless. She leapt through the air and landed a flying
kick on Black Lady's back. The pink haired woman fell to the floor with little
resistance.
"Are you going to tell me what you're doing here now or will I have to
take that information out by force?" she growled in her attackers ear.
* * * * *
Adularia cursed her rotten luck. She should have realized that working
too many spells at once would drain her energy. She had been relying mainly on
intimidation to get her through this alive. After all, she didn't need to kill
the senshi, not yet anyways. She just needed to put them in a certain position.
Had she just used some light spells that were somewhat effective at a distance,
she could have pulled this off. But no, she had to get close to them to provide
the dramatic effect that she was looking for. It had never occurred to her that
any of the senshi would get past their initial shock and actually strike her.
The next moment, her luck got even worse. The aqua haired woman held up a small
hand mirror. It looked fairly ordinary, if one ignored the symbol of Neptune on
the back. Adularia wasn't fooled by its unimpressive appearance though. The
magic attached to that object was tremendous. With a sinking heart, she
realized what it had to be. She had heard legends of Sailorneptune possessing a
mirror somewhat like this one, and knew what it did.
After a few seconds, the woman looked up from the mirror.
"She's not Black Lady!" she yelled. It was too late for her charade now. She
might be able to turn circumstances in her favor later on, but that would have
to wait.
She tried to break free, but she was exhausted and knew that she didn't stand a
chance to the blonde haired woman who had her pinned. She just had to
improvise, something that she hated even under the best of circumstances. She
closed her eyes, trying to ignore her captor. After a few moments of
concentration, her body reluctantly faded from the room. She landed on Hotaru's
bed a few seconds later. After changing, she instantly fell asleep.
* * * * *
"Damn! Where'd she go?" Haruka demanded. Obviously, no one knew the
answer, a fact she was getting tired of. None of them had any idea what was
going on. All that they knew was that it reeked of a trap. Since there was
nothing that they could do about it quite yet though. That meant even more
waiting, which she didn't think she could stand. How could they sit there doing
nothing while their queen slowly died, their friends gone and the civilization
that they had devoted their lives to protecting crumbling? We're senshi, not
the damn castle staff, she thought venomously. They lived to protect, something
that they were utterly incapable of doing at this present time.
Yaten looked strangely thoughtful for a moment.
"Has anyone considered the possibility that she could be anyone of us? If
she knows the spells to disguise herself and knows how to use them, she could be
anyone at anytime on this ship." It was not a pleasant thing to think about,
but even Haruka had to admit that it was logical. Why hadn't she seen it
sooner?
Uneasily, she looked over at Michiru. She couldn't even trust her now.
* * * * *
The lock was turning out to be harder to open than Chibi-Usa had
anticipated. She thought that Luna P would be able to get her out.
Unfortunately, the imposter had thought of that and made the lock reasonably
secure.
She couldn't give up though. If the other senshi came and found her after
whatever the girl pretending to be Black Lady had done…She couldn't even bear to
think about it. The senshi rarely showed it, but when they had a reason to
destroy they were very effective, too effective.
How could everything have gotten so horrible so quickly? Just the other
day she had been in the Crystal Tokyo by her mother's side. Her biggest concern
was helping her mother plan her anniversary. How could all of this happen?
She listened and from down the metal corridor she could hear footsteps.
They were faint, but she was almost certain that they were coming in her
direction. In desperation, she tore at the lock with her own hands, struggling
to open it. All of her efforts only left her with numerous cuts in her hands.
Now the lock was soaked in blood, but it was not opening.
Chibi-Usa realized that she was being irrational. All she was doing was
making the lock more difficult to open. I have gotten through worse events
unscathed before, she thought in an attempt to calm herself down. I can get out
of this. If the door won't open, I'll just find another way.
She looked around the room, willing herself into calmness. Even with her
experience, it was hard. The knowledge that some of her closest friends were
probably dead and that the others were about to kill her wasn't easy to ignore.
She could still see flashes of their faces when Hotaru-no, not Hotaru-had
accused her. Their eyes had been shocked at first, but had slowly narrowed in
cold anger. The faces kept flashing in the back of her mind, haunting her like
ghosts.
After a moment the little princess saw her exit. There was a vent a ways
above her bed. The tunnel behind it was small but she could fit through it.
For once she blessed her tiny size. It might be a curse most of the time, but
it had provided her with a way to survive for now at least. As long as she was
safe for a few hours, she would be able to secure her future for a few more.
All she could do was stay alive for the present time until a solution to her
problem presented itself.
Chibi-Usa positioned Luna-P on the bed so that she could boost herself
into the vent. As she pulled the steel cover off of her route to freedom, she
looked down slightly self-consciously. Her hands were still coated with blood.
She couldn't allow that to give her away. She ripped off small pieces of her
uniform to create some rather shabby looking bandages. She looked liked an
escaped convict. How could she have come to this position.
"Helios, wish me luck," she whispered softly. Even now, the winged horse
who hid Helio's face was the first person she would turn to. He wasn't around
anymore, but she still thought of him constantly.
With those final words, the small child crept into the vent, dragging her
toy with her. She carefully hid the evidence that she had been there, wiping
away as much blood as she could and closing the entrance behind her. How long
could she live like this?
* * * * *
Tanzanite cast a slightly nervous glance at Heliotrope. He was with
Unakite, again. She tried to ignore the stabbing pain in her heart as she saw
the two of them together but failed. It was too strong. How could she ever
truly forget him? He was…everything to her. He was the only thing that broke
the monotony of each day and made life worth living. He was…
No, she couldn't think that. There was no chance that he returned her
feelings, so it was foolish to continue thinking them. Still…
He had been like that once with her a long time ago. She had gone with
him everywhere and he had paid attention to her. She had been like his
reflection, always there for him, no matter what.
Perhaps someday things could be like that again. She still felt that when
he looked at her there was that same emotion in his eyes that she had once seen
so often. Someday, he would notice her again. She was certain that the feeling
was still there, it was just hard to see. But it was there. It had to be.
* * * * *
"Chibi-Usa-chan?" Michiru called. Her voice echoed down the corridor
uncannily, replying in a thousand distorted versions of herself. No child's
voice called back though. That was what worried her. Even if she was afraid,
surely she would answer her door. When she opened it though, the room was
completely empty. The bed was slightly less orderly than it had been but other
than that it looked as though no one had been there.
On an impulse, Michiru turned to stare at the lock. The rough edges were
encrusted with a thin layer of dried blood. The aquatic senshi strode over and
wiped some of it off on her hand. A bit of it was still wet. At least they
still had some chance of finding her.
Michiru close her eyes and concentrated for a moment. She focused on
every detail of the room, the cot that passed for the bed with its ruffled
covers, the lock, the door, the walls, the entire room. Slowly, she felt her
mind expand to fill that space. She forced herself to move foreword in all
directions, feeling every part of the ship come into her awareness.
Her mind felt something coming from one of the vents, a feeling of
uncertainty and pain. She didn't need to confirm it with her mirror, she knew
who was down there. She let her a spirit leak out of the vessel, returning to
its normal place.
She couldn't go down the ventilation pipe. There was nothing she could
do. If small lady did not come out, this ship would become her tomb.
* * * * *
Haruka winced a little as the steel bars at the sides of the cot cut into
her shoulder blades and her feet slowly froze on the floor. It was a fairly
cheaply made little ship, designed before stable portals had been established.
At this point it was basically obsolete, so no one actually bothered to keep
anything in good condition. Unfortunately that meant a lack of sleep for Haruka
whose cot was in dire need of replacement.
It didn't really matter though. She had too much to think about for sleep
to come to her easily. She wished she didn't. The thought kept running through
her mind that she had no way to trust her partner. She couldn't talk to her, be
close to her…
She looked over at Michiru's unconscious form. The tiny lights of the
stars shining from the oblivion of the night sky cast a soft glow over her. She
looked so peaceful there, as if she had never known pain. It was far from true.
Few could claim that they had endured what she had. Still, in this brief moment
all of those added years drifted off of her face, making her look almost
childlike.
Haruka smiled a little ruefully. It was hard to believe that she was
incapable of anything cruel in this state. She looked more innocent than her
partner had ever seen her. Almost like…Usagi. She had a different light than
the princess, but it was a beautiful shine just the same.
Haruka stood up and walked over to her. Michiru was right there in front
of her. So close, yet so untouchable. She reached out and tentatively ran her
fingers through her partners bluish hair. She bent down and brushed her lips
lightly over her forehead.
"No matter what you do to me, I'll always love you," she whispered.
Haruka didn't need to say it to Michiru. She already knew.
The wind senshi strode out of the room, aware that sleep would never come
to her. The least she could do was brood on her own. She didn't want to awaken
Michiru. She didn't notice her lover's eyes staring out at the night sky in
confusion as she walked out.
* * * * *
Adularia gasped frantically. There was air all around her, but she
couldn't breath. Her foreign lungs were too small, her body too strange. How
long had she kept herself imprisoned like this? How long had she been keeping
several dozen spells active? She didn't know. Time had no meaning anymore.
Her only relief was the fact that Hotaru was expected to sleep constantly
because of her injury.
Nemesis was getting out of control again and holding it, the disguise
spell and the spells binding the other planets of the solar system together was
taxing even on her strength. How long could she continue with this insanity
before lack of energy started to cloud her judgment and make her slip up? Would
she last until they reached their destination?
Slowly, she calmed her panicked mind into a state of false tranquility.
She didn't have time to be afraid. She didn't have time for anything. If she
lost control now, who knew what would happen to those on Nemesis?
She could still see that little girl's-Fluorite's-eyes staring up at her.
She could still feel her hope…
"Is everyone going to be all right?" the child asked nervously. Her large
purple eyes gazed innocently at the princess. Her violet hair was in a state of
chaos as usual, but she didn't seem to mind. Everything was put out of her
thoughts until her question was answered.
"Of course."
"Hondo ni? Last time…last time everyone wasn't all right when you said
they would be," she said accusingly.
"I know. But I thought that your mama would be okay. Now, I have to keep
believing that we'll make it so that we can save everyone else's mama's."
"But what about…Neo-Queen Serenity," she questioned nervously. The name
of the queen was what bullies often referred to in order to scare little
children. Her name was what the smaller ones whispered in the dark, afraid to
say it when people were around as if she would jump out and carry them away.
Fluorite had always prided herself in being above that and bravely said the
name, making sure everyone knew that she wasn't afraid of any moon queen.
Still, she whispered it with a kind of reverence.
"Don't worry about that. I can't die. What would happen to everyone else
if I did?"
"We'd die too?" she shrieked, jumping back.
"No, of course not. I'd never be so selfish as to do something stupid
like dying!"
"Not like my mama," she mumbled.
"Everything will be fine."
"Do you promise?" she said, her eyes filled with almost painful hope.
"Yes, I promise."
In all of her pain, that one thought kept Adularia thinking with a certain
degree of clarity. She had to manage this. She couldn't hold on to this spell
that hid her appearance forever though. She might be able to let go off her
disguise spell for a few minutes if she could find a place to hide.
* * * * *
Seiya tugged at the cord holding his ponytail in place. Black hair
cascaded around him, falling down past his waist. He forcefully pushed it away
from his face, not caring that it undoubtedly looked like a mess at the moment.
He heard footsteps approaching behind him and couldn't suppress the feeling of
annoyance that arose. He didn't need company right now. He wanted time to
think. For that he needed to be on his own, preferably with no distractions.
He didn't have much choice though. Privacy was hard to get in such a small
space.
He turned around to acknowledge whoever it was. To his surprise, Haruka
was standing before him. Her hair was slightly out of place from lying on it
and she wasn't quite as intimidating as she was wearing pajamas at this point,
but it was undoubtedly her. At least, he hoped that it was her.
"Couldn't sleep?" he asked, attempting to sound sympathetic. It was
difficult, knowing the record he and the outer senshi had of cooperation. She
glared at him, indicating that he voice was a noise she would rather not hear.
He took the hint, wondering why she was being so hostile. Under the best of
circumstances they had never gotten along. Under the worst…it was painful for
both sides.
Seiya didn't move though. If Haruka wanted to stay here, fine. He wasn't
about to leave just because she felt like being a bitch about everything though.
He wouldn't let her be an inconvenience to him. Apparently she felt the same
way because she stubbornly remained. Seiya decided to try holding a
conversation again. Haruka wasn't a bad person, he was sure of that. After
seeing the way she sacrificed herself, he was certain that there was more to the
outers than one might believe at first glance.
"We'll be there by tomorrow," he commented. She said nothing. "Not that
there are days in space, but by earth time it will be the next day." Haruka
didn't turn her head.
"Do you think she'll be all right?" the blond haired woman asked. To
Seiya's surprise, she didn't sound sarcastic. Her voice was sincere and
slightly choked with emotion.
"Who? Michiru-san?" Haruka turned to face him. For an instant, he
glimpsed a strange expression on her face. It was a bizarre combination of
pain, grief and anger. It was only there for a second though. She quickly
smoothed it over with a more placid expression.
"All of them. The queen, Hotaru, Small lady…I would have thought the
queen meant more to you than…Michiru." Seiya looked at her in confusion, not
quite sure what she meant. All of a sudden, he understood completely.
"Ano, I don't think that our relationship is what you think it is. We're
not…" he said, he voice trailing off. Why should she be reassured by him of all
people? She had never trusted him before and old habits-especially hers-didn't
die easily.
"Who do you think it is?" she said. Her rapid change of topics was a bit
startling, but Seiya wasn't terribly surprised. She had a lot to think about
and somehow needed to get it all out.
"I have my suspicions," he answered. "Have you considered your own
daughter?" Haruka flinched a bit, like she didn't want to answer his question.
"Yes, of course. Everyone here is under suspicion though. That includes
you," she snapped.
"You're dodging the subject," he replied irritably. "She's one of the
most likely people here. After all, didn't you think that it was odd that she
wanted Small Lady dead? Even for someone in that much pain, it's too extreme."
"I know. If you do anything to harm her or frighten my child…" she left
the threat hanging. She didn't need to finish it. Seiya was perfectly aware of
how ruthless she could be. Realizing that they were getting no where, Seiya
decided to back off.
"I won't do anything without Michiru-san's or your consent. Don't be so
jumpy." With that, he walked off. He hated admitting defeat on even the
smallest of issues, but it didn't pay to be stupid in times like this.
"And Seiya," she said. "Stay away from Michiru." He did not respond.
What was the point in trying to convince her?
* * * * *
Michiru listened as the sound of her partner's feet on the metallic floor
of the ship faded. The instant she was certain that Haruka was gone she sprang
out of the narrow cot. She pulled a small wand out of her clothing and held it
up above her head. She quietly whispered the words she had repeated a hundred
times before. In a flash of blue light and illusionary water, she transformed
into a sailor senshi.
She ached to tell Haruka about this but she couldn't. She might not be able to
tell if her it was really the person she loved or merely an imposter. Her
mirror could detect any illusion, but if it was a well crafted one it might
elude her for a while. By then it would already be too late.
She was surprisingly graceful even on the awkward perch of the cot. She
quickly estimated the distance between her and the vent and figured out the
amount of force she would need. Without hesitating, she leapt from the cot to
the vent, grasping it with her finger tips. It was all done in one silent,
fluid motion. She might not match the wind senshi for athletic ability, but she
was hardly weak.
Deftly, she unscrewed the cover of the vent and crawled in. She knew that
it was far too small to hold her. That wouldn't be a problem though. She
closed her eyes and focused on her body and the size of the passage.
Cautiously, she let some of her energy flow onto her. Slowly, she shrank. It
wasn't a terribly dramatic change, but it would allow her to move freely, at
least enough to find a little girl.
She knew that it wasn't the best of ideas. A thousand things could go
wrong at any given point. Has my common sense abandoned me in my hour of need?
she thought wryly. It did seem like something she wouldn't do. It was far too
risky and the odds against her finding Chibi-Usa were great. Still, she felt a
strange protectiveness of the child. Perhaps it was the fact that she knew that
it could have been Hotaru in that position. Perhaps it was the part of her that
longed for a child to protect of her own. Even she didn't know at that point.
All she knew was that Chibi-Usa was dying and she needed to reach before it was
too late.
Beads of perspiration dripped down her forehead as she forced her body to
maintain its current size. Once, she lapsed and instantly could not fit in the
tunnel. It was a painful experience that she did not intend to repeat.
After what seemed like an eternity, she heard some shuffling ahead of her.
Feeling new strength come with her refreshed hope, she surged towards the noise.
As she turned around the final corner she wondered what awaited her. The
thought that they might not be able to save the princess was too much.
She was shocked to find that the pink haired princess was not the one she
had heard. Instead, someone far less innocent was crouched in the pipe.
Neptune had seen her before, staring back at her from behind the glass of her
mirror. Her black hair, purple eyes and her body were unmistakable.
"Neptune?! Nan de-" Neptune felt a flash of rage at this being. She
wasn't going to give her the chance to explain, she didn't deserve it.
"Deep Submerge!" she yelled, her voice resounding off the pipes. The ball
of blue energy slammed into the dark princess and sent her flying into a
wreckage of twisted, destroyed pipe. Apparently she wasn't as strong as Neptune
had guessed. With a cry of surprise mingled with pain, she collapsed and was
instantly unconscious. Neptune crawled over to her. This seemed a little too
easy. Could her opponent be only pretending to sleep?
The princess really had been knocked out though. Neptune grabbed the
slumped body and slung it over one shoulder. She was rarely ruthless, but under
these circumstances she felt no pity for this creature. After what they had all
gone through seemingly at her command, she deserved whatever cards fate dealt
her.
Neptune could not crawl out of the tunnel dragging her burden though. She
was having enough difficulties fitting through the narrow pipes without an
additional person. She only had one choice, though she didn't like it. She
closed her eyes and focused on every detail she could recall of her room. She
wished desperately that she had bothered to form a better mental image before
leaving. Having a blurred or unclear image when one teleported could result in
going to going to the wrong destination or even the wrong dimension.
Her body wavered slightly, flickering like a candle in a storm. Slowly,
the princess and she faded from the pipe and appeared in her room. With a small
crash she landed on the floor. There were tiny beads of sweat on her face and
she was exhausted both mentally and physically. The prolonged use of that one
size-changing spell had taken its toll.
She wanted to cry out, to say something, anything. She felt so weak
though. Her muscles screamed in protest at the very concept of movement. She
knew that she needed to sleep, but she did not have the time.
Painfully, she forced her body off the steel mesh that some people thought
resembled a floor. She dragged herself to her feet, supporting the majority of
her weight on one corner of the cot. Once up, she walked-perhaps staggered
would be a more appropriate phrase-towards the door, to find someone, anyone.
As she approached the door, it swung open and Haruka stepped in.
"Michiru? What happened to you?" she asked, startled. Neptune smiled.
It was different from her normal smile though. This was a harsher look worn
down from weariness. She waved a gloved hand in the direction of the
unconscious body on the floor.
"I believe that I have found the our uninvited guest." Without bothering
to turn back, she went to her cot and fell asleep. Haruka shook her slightly,
attempting to wake her. She should have known better, unless she sensed
something, her partner slept like a rock.
Haruka grinned a little with relief. The grin vanished though when she
remembered something else. Hotaru, she realized suddenly. If she is innocent
then…
* * * * *
Haruka violently shoved the door out of her way. She was slightly out of
breath and her bangs were dampened with sweat. Inside of the room her child lay
on the bed under the cheaply made blankets. Her sheets were tangle from her
fitful sleep and her face was slightly streaked with tears.
Slowly, her eyes opened to take in the room around her. She moved her
head slightly to stare at Haruka. For a moment, it seemed as if she did not
even recognize the one who had cared for her for years. Suddenly, understanding
filled her face. She gasped slightly and tears began to stream from her eyes.
"Haruka!" she cried. She struggled to sit up, but was too weak. Her body
would not allow it. Gently, Haruka placed her hand on her back and helped her
rise. She wrapped her arms around Haruka's neck and began sobbing, her body
trembling.
She was so fragile, Haruka realized. It seemed as though she were made of
glass and could shatter at any second.
"Chibimoon! Where's Sailorchibimoon? Please, tell me!" she pleaded.
Haruka hesitated. She had never been one to beat around the bush or lie without
cause though. Now was not a good time to start.
"I don't know where she is right now…" she said quietly. She didn't turn
her head away, but she wanted to. The look on Hotaru's face was painful to see.
Even though she was an adult now, she still felt like the little girl who
Michiru had brought home one day at times. She almost winced thinking of
Michiru. She had been trying not to consider such possibilities.
"Please, tell me what happened to her," she said, quivering slightly.
"You can tell me the truth. I need to know. I need to help her!"
"Hotaru, where have you been for the past few days?" Haruka asked. She
hadn't intended to sound that harsh. Hotaru looked confused.
"I don't…I don't know. I was at the party and I went outside for a few
minutes. Then…then…I don't remember." So, Seiya's suspicions might have been
correct, she thought.
"Haruka-san!" someone called. Yaten paused at the door, uncertain whether
to enter or not. He had disregarded his ruffled appearance for once, indicating
an emergency. "We're about to land!"
* * * * *
Uranus tensed slightly as she watched their destination grow from a tiny
speck to a massive object obscuring their view of everything else. It was
impossible for them to actually land on the planet Saturn as the core was buried
under layers of gas, but that did not prevent them from entering the castle
itself. The castle was built on an artificial moon which orbited the planet.
It was large enough to have almost as much gravity as earth, even without all of
the spells attached to it.
Despite its spacious appearance though, virtually no one chose to dwell on
near Saturn's castle. Few were born there and many left the place as soon as
possible. It was not a pleasant place after all.
Certain people seemed to be drawn to it though. The outcasts of society,
the mystics, the ambitious; all seemed to see something in it that no one else
did. It was almost like it called to something deep inside these people, as if
the planet itself was some piece of themselves that they were missing. These
were the people who made up the bizarre community nearly that forsaken, eerie
planet.
Uranus had been there a few times, but had despised every moment of it.
She had always felt like someone was watching her. She knew in the back of her
mind that she was just being overly suspicious, but she could never shake the
feeling off. Maybe it was just the people there. Their eyes were all shadowed
and had an almost hollow look. They watched the people from outside of their
small, dark world in an almost hungry way.
Uranus remembered talking to a shrine maiden who lived there. The woman
had claimed that there was something almost seductive about the place. It was
like Nemesis in that sense. Most normal humans saw nothing attractive about it,
yet there were certain people that seemed to like having it as a home.
The ship found what appeared to be a landing pad and settled down. Uranus
couldn't help but notice that their vehicle was not in excellent condition. The
metal groaned in protest and the engines rattled slightly. Apparently it had
not been in the best of condition when they'd left. Normally, it wouldn't have
bothered Uranus so much. She was used to technical difficulties like these.
Now though, if the ship should break they could be stranded on this desolate
place for months. The prospect was one which did not interest her at all.
Hotaru shuddered slightly. She winced as though in pain. She reached out
to grab Uranus's hand.
"Chibimoon…is she dead?" she whispered, horrified. Standing there, wide-
eyed and trembling, she looked more like a child than ever before. It only
served as a painful reminder of the childhood that she had never really had.
Hotaru composed herself quickly though. The tiny tears that had been
forming at the corners of her eyes dissolved and with tremendous effort she
calmed down.
Uranus grabbed the body of the dark princess. There were times were she
wondered if their opponent was still alive. She hadn't moved for hours at this
point. Her heart was still beating though and the irregular rising and falling
of her chest indicated that she still lived. If she was simply recovering from
energy drain, she was still a potential danger for the senshi.
That was why they had decided to bring their worst enemy with them. If
they left her in the ship and it turned out that she was not really unconscious,
there was no way to know what traps she might lay in a short period of time.
As if by some unspoken order, the senshi all stepped out onto the
artificial ground at the same time. Out on the surface, the silence was
deafening. The hum of the ship, the occasional sentence or two spoken out loud
ceased. All sound died in their throats.
There was something haunting about that place that none of them could ever
identify. Perhaps it was the stillness that had descended upon the city. Or
maybe it was the way the planet Saturn hung ominously in the sky, covering the
stars. Whatever it was though, they all felt it. There was a dark, almost
melancholy aura about this place.
They began to wander through the streets of what had to be the capital.
The buildings were mostly shrines or temples with small hovels scattered around
the place. It was an odd patch work of stone that seemed like a labyrinth at
the moment.
"Hotaru, do you know where-" Uranus began. Hotaru simply nodded and lead
them down one of the smaller alleyways. Their destination seemed to be a rather
large, gothic style castle. Enormous, black turrets were crowned by white
crystals which illuminated the darkened landscape, casting shadows. They were
almost like stars of some kind. Uranus couldn't imagine what it would be like
to have nothing but that as a source of light.
Uranus looked over to Neptune, trying to make sure that no one else saw.
Her partner seemed perfectly calm, but Uranus knew that it was an illusion. She
was just as scared as they all were. She didn't say anything to Uranus though.
Either she was trying not to worry the Starlights-though they were quite capable
of handling fear at this point-or she was simply trying to distance herself from
Uranus.
Before the castle, she couldn't help but notice a statue towering over the
land. It was an enormous figure of a woman holding a wickedly pointed glaive.
Her face was emotionless, so blank and empty that it was uncanny.
They walked inside to a dimly lit stone chamber. The place obviously
hadn't been used for quite a while. There was a thick coat of dust on the floor
and occasional glimmers of light revealed cobwebs dangling from various placed.
Suddenly, Neptune froze. The light in her eyes dimmed until it vanished
completely. The muscles in her became limp.
"They're…here…" she said quietly. A spasm rippled through her body and
her eyes widened. Neptune sank to her knees, seemingly oblivious to everything.
Neptune inhaled deeply, struggling to gain control over her obvious terror.
Slowly, she appeared to calm down. The tremors in her body came less often and
her breathing became normal. She hadn't dispelled her fear of whatever her
intuition warned her of though. She was merely concealing it for the benefit of
everyone else.
"I must go to Triton Castle. Something happened. My people…my people are
dying. But someone is…here," she said, almost debating what to do. Uranus
stood by, torn with indecision. She wanted to help Neptune somehow. She wanted
to comfort her and promise her that she was there no matter what. Yet,
something inside her prevented her from doing that. What if her thoughts about
Seiya were accurate? What if Neptune-no, Michiru-wanted her to stay away? The
rational part of her mind argued that she was being ridiculous, but she could
not ignore the possibility.
Neptune slowly looked up, despair etched her face. She lifted one finger
to point at on of the shadowed corners of the temple. All of the senshi turned
to see what it was, afraid of what they might find.
It was too dark to see exactly what Neptune had pointed to. So, Uranus
reluctantly left her partner to find out. She had a growing sense of unease
about this whole situation. Even though their enemy still seemed to be asleep,
she was certain that there was something wrong. In the corner she found a
crystal slightly taller than her. She brushed some of the dust off of it,
certain that she needed to see what was inside.
There was a person in there, a woman who Uranus knew very, very well. Her
eyes were frozen in an expression of shock, her mouth remained open in a scream
that never reached her lips. Purple ribbons were suspended around her slight
frame. The majority of a sailor fuku had already formed on her. One hand even
held a translucent glaive.
Uranus almost hit herself right then. She should have known, she should
have realized it sooner. All of that time on the ship she had had the
suspicion, but she couldn't bring herself to do anything about it. She couldn't
confront someone who might be her child saying that she didn't trust her. Now,
everyone would pay simply because she wanted to avoid sacrifices.
Suddenly, there was a whistling sound behind her and air brushed past her
face. She turned around. She knew that she was a split second too slow, that
she had no chance. Still, some desperate survival instinct compelled her to see
what she was facing.
It all happened far too fast for anyone to react. By the time Uranus was
facing whatever had come at her, Neptune was already in the way, arms
outstretched. Dozens of small, narrow projectiles pierced through her skin.
The next moment seemed to happen in slow motion for Uranus. Blood,
hideous, scarlet blood spurted from the wounds that covered her partners body.
Neptune staggered slightly. She looked as if she would scream, but all that
emerged from her throat was a choking noise. Someone cried out. The noise was
beyond description in horror. It was filled with shock, agony and total
despair. Uranus realized the cry was hers, but she didn't care anymore.
Uranus rushed to Neptune's side, forgetting everything that had come
between them for a moment. All that mattered was her partner, the one she
loved. Everything else was unimportant right then. She tried to catch her, but
the aquatic senshi fell too soon. Her body struck to the stone floor with a
dull thud. Dust rose up from the floor, swirling around both of them.
Uranus picked her up, cradling her as if she were a child. There was so
much blood. It seemed like it was everywhere. It dripped from her short skirt
and landed in pools on the floor. She stared at it in horror. Neptune's life
was leaking away and there was nothing that she could do to prevent it.
What could she do? She wasn't a damn healer! She was a senshi, a
powerful warrior. How useless all of that was now. For all of her magic and
experience, she was completely and utterly helpless. She could just watch.
She turned her head away from the sight, unable to bear it. She needed
something to fight. She needed to know who was responsible for this. An enemy
of flesh and blood she could fight. Against injury she was powerless though.
She turned to the dark princess lying crumpled on the floor and her heart
sank. The princess's long, flowing black dress melted away into a tattered,
ragged sailor fuku. Her hair lightened to become pink and her whole body
shrunk. The one that they had treated so poorly was Chibi-Usa, their princess.
Which meant that Seiya had been right after all.
Hotaru was standing in the center of the temple, smiling slightly. A
flickering light surrounded her tiny body and her eyes began to glow. Within
several seconds her obviously fake appearance had dissolved to reveal their true
enemy.
The girl who appeared was about Usagi's height, though she seemed taller
somehow. She was probably around Usagi's age. Her skin was a little pale, as
if she hadn't been out in any sort of light for years. Her hair was incredibly
long. If it had not been pinned up it probably would have reached her feet.
The black dress she wore suited her well. It went down to her feet, but had two
long slits up the sides. She had no sleeves, but two translucent, black ribbons
covered the area below her shoulders. Around her neck there was a very
noticeable choker made out of diamond shaped black crystals that were shimmering
slightly. Uranus barely saw any of that though. What caught her attention were
the girl's eyes. They had a look that told of lost innocence and bitterness
deep inside. There was something else in those eyes though. There was a
soulless, cold, empty appearance to them.
The girl made some gesture with her hand. In an instant, Neptune
vanished. There was no bright light or indication of something that was about
to happen. She was simply there one moment and gone the next.
Uranus didn't bother to think of any consequences, the time for that was
gone. All she knew was that Neptune was not there. She couldn't protect her in
anyway, she couldn't tell her how much she loved her. She couldn't even say
good-bye. A blazing, irrational fury erupted inside of her. She lashed out at
the princess without hesitating.
"World Shaking!" she yelled. The familiar yellow energy condensed in her
clenched fist and flew at her target. This time though, it never connected.
The princess held out one hand and blocked Uranus easily.
"Baka," she snapped coldly. "You'll have to do more than that to defeat
me." Her eyes stared straight at Uranus, ignoring the Starlights and the
unconscious pink haired child. It took Uranus a moment to understand what was
going on because it was so painfully similar to an emotion she must have had
once. This demon, or whatever she was, was challenging her. She was daring her
to equal her.
Damn bitch, Uranus thought icily. You'll regret that. I'll take your
challenge, and I'll show you what happens when you hurt my family!
"World Shaking!" she repeated. This time though she didn't wait for
impact. She launched herself into the air as only she could. It might not be
as sophisticated, but kicking someone in the skull would be enough to knock them
out for quite a while.
The princess seemed to be ready for her though for she stepped to the side
at the last second. Uranus was unable to break her momentum, but did manage to
land on her feet. Shimatta! She's quicker than I thought, Uranus thought
grimly. The senshi of the sky wasted no time. She lunged for the princess
again, a large ball of golden energy in her hand. The dark girl shimmered
faintly before levitating off the ground several feet. Once again, Uranus had
failed.
Sweat was collecting on her forehead as Uranus prepared to attack again.
This opponent was not as weak as she appeared to be. She had to defeat her
though, somehow.
Her mind was not one the battle though. She could still see those
horrible images flashing before her. She could still see Neptune fall, she
could still hear the final, strangled cry she uttered. Every single detail of
the scene came unbidden to her.
"What did you do to her?!" Uranus demanded, her anger mounting. Neptune
was dying and she couldn't do anything about it. Once again-it seemed like it
had happened a hundred times before-she was completely helpless.
The princess merely smiled that irritatingly smug smile of hers.
"What did you do?!" Uranus screamed. Her rage was growing stronger as was
her grief. She couldn't think clearly. Everything was muddled together in a
rush of emotions that she couldn't even begin to understand. There was one
thing that she did understand though. Through her hysteria and fear, she
remembered how to fight.
She was acting all on instinct now. She swept her sword up in an arc.
The princess moved to block her again, but failed. Instead she did something
almost comical. She stumbled on the hem of her gown. It was funny, Uranus
reflected. It was something that Usagi would do. It was the same kind of
clumsy, foolish mistake that her princess would have made. For a second, just a
brief flash, she could almost see Usagi in that same position. She could
picture her startled expression, her innocence.
She shook off the feeling and launched a "world shaking" at her fallen
opponent. The princess fell to the ground before she had a chance to block it.
She focused all of her fury, all of her anguish on the shining sword in her
clenched hands. With that done, she leapt through the air, landing easily on
top of the dark girl. She put her sword's tip directly over the girl's pulsing
heart.
"Give her back," she hissed. She was painfully aware of the agony in her
heart. She did not respond to it though. There was no time to be sentimental,
not now. A senshi didn't have room for emotions that would cloud her judgment.
A senshi had to be beyond dreams, beyond pain, almost beyond life so that others
could have such luxuries.
Once again though, Uranus thought she could see Usagi in the same
position. It was true perhaps that there was a resemblance between the two
people. This twisted menace might have once possessed Usagi's hopefulness and
naivety. Those traits were long gone from her hardened face and eyes though.
She was beyond them. She was the perfect warrior, or was she?
A tiny spasm rippled across the princess's face. The light in her collar
flickered and died out briefly. For a moment, she looked confused.
"You're weak," she snapped. "You love that woman, admit it." Uranus
forced the tip of her sword down further, drawing a few tiny droplets of blood
above the girl's skin and leaving a hole in her garment. Her enemy still
refused to show any fear.
"You might even be willing to lose a battle for her sake, ne?"
"These may be your last words, are you sure that this is what you want to
say?" Uranus said. "This battle is not one I'm going to lose though. As a
sailor senshi, I will do my duty." It was true. She hated killing on any
occasion, but sometimes it was necessary. Now that the adrenaline granted by
her rage was slowly draining out of her system, she no longer felt anger. She
merely felt…hollow, empty and tired. Every time she killed she felt more of
that. Still, if it was needed this time, she wouldn't hesitate.
"Ara," she smiled. "I was disappointed, but I guess you'll be a worthy
opponent after all. Let's see what you do when facing your own partner though."
Uranus realized with sudden dread just how this was going to end.
"Kami-sama…" she whispered, unsure of whether it was a curse or a prayer.
"What have I done to deserve this fate? The air in the center of the room
glittered slightly, as if there were some light source that she could not see.
After a few seconds, a teal crystal materialized there. Uranus knew who was
inside of it. She couldn't bring herself to see it though. Not after all that
they'd been through…Michiru, you can't just die like this.
She kept her sword in position, ignoring the Starlights cries of shock.
Her hands were trembling though. Her bloodied, filthy hands could not remain
focused with Michiru possibly dead.
The princess smiled unpleasantly again. She raised one hand and began to close
her fingers. Uranus heard a crunching sound behind her. She flicked a quick
glance at the crystal and saw that her guess was accurate. Neptune was
imprisoned within the crystal, frozen. It would have been a good thing, if not
for the fact that cracks were now visible along the surface of the crystal.
"Fighter! Healer! Maker!" she yelled. The Starlights nodded, for once not
bothering to question her orders. There was no time for questions, not now.
She could only pray that they knew what to do.
The princess tightened her fist causing tiny fragments of the crystal to fly
off. Uranus forced her sword farther down. For a few seconds, no one moved.
The scene seemed to freeze as both sides remained poised to finish the other
off.
"Star Serious Laser!" Fighter yelled. The princess beneath Uranus's feet
actually grinned. Right before the attack connected with her skull, she
vanished. One of Uranus's boots slammed into the floor as it no longer had any
support. The senshi swore under her breath and turned to see where the girl had
gone to. She could still win this. She could beat this child.
The girl did not appear though, at least not right away. After a few moments
confusion on the part of the senshi, she made herself known. A violent
explosion came from no where. Radiant violet energy expanded outward from the
center of the room, sending the senshi flying backwards, thrown forcefully
against the walls behind them. The explosion did not stop there though. It
tore through the walls of the room, devouring the chamber and turning it into
nothing but rubble by the massive castle.
Silence, again, Uranus thought as she dragged herself out of the debris. It's
like there isn't another soul in this cursed place. I suppose it's a
possibility at this point.
A few minutes later the other senshi emerged from their potential grave. Uranus
said nothing for them, but did make sure that they all came out eventually.
Their fukus might be covered with dirt from the wreckage and they might have
some minor injuries, but at least they were alive. Even Chibi-Usa had managed
to survive since Fighter had brought her up.
All of a sudden, Uranus rushed over to a selected spot in the rubble and began
to dig frantically. With incredible strength she lifted the pieces of stone
from the ground and discarded them carelessly. She worked quickly, far faster
than any normal human could have done anyways. She wasn't going quickly enough
though. The more time that went by, the more the pressure would push down upon
whatever lay buried down there.
She noticed Hotaru's prison in the stones. She removed it, relieved that it was
intact. It didn't help Michiru though. Her gloves were beginning to wear thin,
but she didn't even notice. Nothing mattered outside of getting Michiru out.
The rational part of her already knew that there wasn't much hope unless the
crystal was very strong. She couldn't bring herself to accept that idea. She
couldn't think about it.
She was going so slowly! It would take her forever to remove enough of this!
She tried to speed up, but found that her strength had betrayed her. Her limbs
were already weakened from the tiring work and could not move any faster. Her
gloves finally gave out. They were still attached to her wrists, but only as
useless pieces of battered cloth. Her hands began to get cut by some of the
sharper rocks. Blood dripped from her fingers and the pain caused her to slow
down even more.
Uranus felt tears prick at the corners of her eyes as the hopelessness finally
began to overcome her. She couldn't cry though. Senshi didn't have time for
tears.
Finally, Fighter crawled over towards her. She barely had the strength to stand
as she had not been fortunate enough to be buried near the surface. She still
had to help though. She didn't say anything, she just began to dig. A few
seconds later, Healer and Maker came over. Uranus would have resented their
presence, but she didn't have time for such emotions right now. She had to
focus all of her energy on one task.
They worked for another half hour, struggling to continue, but enduring. Soon,
all of their hands and knees were encrusted with a mixture of liquid and dry
blood. Even the Starlight's thick, leather gloves eventually wore down. After
all of that work, they still had not found any sign of Neptune or her crystal.
It was encouraging at least that they had found no fragments, but they were
still worried at the fact that they should have uncovered something by then.
"Looking for someone?" a voice queried. Uranus lifted her head up to see who it
was. The princess was back, hovering about thirty feet in the air. Next to her
was the crystal and it's precious contents that they had been searching for.
Uranus bit her lip until blood came from it. She couldn't beg, not now. If
this…creature knew how desperate she was, she'd never get Neptune back and
remain intact. She needed someway to bargain, and she didn't have it.
"Baka! Do you really think that I'd let one of you slip through my fingers?"
she laughed. Her voice suddenly grew quieter. "I would be willing let her live
though. You were admirable, Uranus, to resist the impulse to run to her. You
knew of course that I would have destroyed her if you left, but it still proves
that you were strong to stay. I could use the help of someone like you. If you
come to me without resistance, I shall allow your partner to serve me also."
Uranus took one hesitant step foreword. Something was wrong here. If this
princess was as capable as she seemed to be, she wouldn't trust her enemy.
That was when she noticed a several tiny sparks of light on the girl's right
hand. Of course she'd get a spell ready in advance. She thinks that I'm going
to fall for it again though. Uranus nodded and began to walk foreword.
Carefully, she built a small shield around her. She couldn't use defensive
magic on the same scale as Saturn, but this should keep her alive.
The princess whipped out her charged hand and send a strong blast of energy
directly at Uranus. Uranus was knocked backwards and badly injured but was
conscious at least.
"Damn you," the girl hissed, clenching her fists. "I won't be defeated by scum
like you." With that, she placed both hands on the crystal. Cracks began to
branch out from her fingers, distorting the image of Neptune. Uranus looked up
in horror. No! She needs her to bargain, why is she going to kill her!
Michiru!
The collar around the princess's neck and the two bracelets on her wrist began
to shine again, their light increasing in intensity. Uranus waited for her to
stop, to give up on this pointless threat, but she didn't. The cracks around
the crystal were beginning to widen and pieces were starting to fall off. One
landed at Uranus's feet. A small shred of teal cloth had gotten caught on the
shard. The cloth was damp and crimson in some places. Uranus sank to the
ground, stunned.
"Kami-sama," she whispered to herself. "She really will…" It was then that
Uranus's firm control over her emotions snapped. She could stare down any
demon, any monster, but this was too much. Her muscles tensed as she prepared
to jump. Like a spring, she rocketed into the air, her feet separating from the
ground.
Fighter stared at her, transfixed by what she saw. For one brief instant, she
was more than human. Her body was still there. She was still solid and very
real, but Fighter could sense that there was something more to her. It was as
if the wind itself was a part of her and fighting with a passion as only it
could to regain its other half.
Fighter shook herself out of her daze and into reality. Forgetting the almost
surreal beauty of the moment, she realized the problem at hand. Haruka didn't
seem like the kind of person to lose her head easily. She understood the need
to make sacrifices and was able to ignore her own emotions and sentiments for
logic. When it came to Michiru though, her common sense seemed to abandon her.
Fighter had never liked Uranus particularly, but in a strange way she thought
she understood her. Perhaps it was that moment before she died when she had
smiled slightly and entrusted her princess's safety into her hands. Maybe it
was the fierce protectiveness she had shown after that one concert. Whatever it
was though, she felt a certain empathy for her at that moment and also knew just
what she was going to do.
Uranus sailed upward, ignoring everything but the single-minded desire to get
Michiru back. Suddenly, something slammed into her, the impact knocking her in
the wrong direction. She yelled out unexpectedly as the additional weight
dragged her back down to earth. She turned her head slightly to see Fighter
forcing her down onto the ground. She struggled, but was already pinned.
"Let me go!" she shouted furiously.
"How stupid do you think I am? If I do that, you'll go right back up and kill
yourself! There's no point in that! That's what she wants." Uranus lay pinned
to the ground, agonizing over what might happen to Neptune for the next minute
or so. She fought at first, trying desperately to throw Fighter off. The
Starlight had her in a bad position though and she remained trapped. Finally,
she just went limp. The energy given to her by raw emotion was gone and she
felt like just felt like sobbing.
"I won't go," she said finally. Fighter hesitated, but released her. The
leather clad senshi looked at her back almost sadly. It wasn't as if I could
hold her there forever. She is the wind, changeable, fierce and predictably
unpredictable. Anyone can imprison her, but she'll always slip through there
fingers.
Uranus saw the Starlights launching various attacks at their foe without
success. The strange girl hadn't been bluffing all of this time, she was
powerful and dangerous. The massive quantities of energy she harnessed were
slightly unrefined, but deadly none the less. Forcing herself to ignore the
partially destroyed crystal, she gathered magic into her hand for an attack.
Abruptly, the princess stopped firing. She shuddered slightly, a look of
bewilderment spreading across her face. Slowly the look was replaced by fury
again though. The empty look entered her eyes once again. She whirled around
and placed both hands on the already damaged crystal. Her eyes began to glow a
fearsome color and energy began to accumulate on her hands.
Uranus struggled to control herself. One half of her wanted desperately
to jump up there, to attempt to free Neptune even if it cost her own life. The
other half knew that it was irrational and foolish. How could she even think of
such a thing? She was a senshi, was she not? A senshi had to make sacrifices
for the greater good. Hadn't she made that pact with Neptune all of those years
ago?
Still, if she did nothing Neptune would die. She would have to watch as
her own lover was torn to pieces. How could she do that? More importantly, how
could she go on living with nothing to go back to? She had her duty, but wasn't
her duty to the one she loved even more important?
It will only result in two deaths! she thought savagely. I have no way to
save her! I'll simply endanger the Starlights and all of the planets. I'm a
senshi! Senshi don't have time for sentimentality! I can't just break down and
cry when someone dies! Sacrifices have to be made! Just then, she remembered
what had happened only a few minutes before. She remembered Neptune's broken,
bloody body falling limply to the ground. She had fallen protecting her. She
had done everything…for what? To give some small hope to her partner? No,
because she loved her.
All this time I doubted her. I should have known better. She trusted me
all of this time, yet I could not return that trust. Why was I so blind?
She turned her eyes up to Neptune once more. For once, she tried to
forget everything. She wasn't a senshi, she wasn't a queen, she was simply
Tenoh Haruka. Now, it was time to make up for all of her misunderstandings.
After all, what would she have if Michiru was dead? Her duty? Yes, she might
have that, but she would not have life. Life would be merely a hollow, empty
routine without Michiru. Without her partner, her other half, she wasn't even
alive.
She jumped again, sailing through the air with an ease and grace that once
she could only have dreamed of. This time it was not merely a reaction the pain
and turmoil within her, it was a conscious decision that she knew she had to
make. Now that she was certain of what she was doing, nothing could hold her
back. Fighter tried to knock her down again, only to collide with the dirt.
How ironic, she thought. I am only truly free when helping the one I'm
tied down to. With that final thought, she slammed her sword into the
princess's hand. Perhaps it was the girl's concentration on destroying the
crystal, or maybe it was simply such an illogical thing for her to do that her
opponent never expected it.
Whatever the reason though, the girl did not have enough time to react and
block her strike. Blood spurted from the ugly gash along her wrist. She pulled
back, clutching her wounded hand.
Uranus floated easily over to the crystal and placed her two raw hands on
its smooth surface. Only now did she see Neptune's face. She was wincing
slightly and her mouth was set in a grimace from the pain. It hurt to see her
so close to death, to look at her like that. And yet, she thought she saw a
faint trace of happiness in Neptune's half open eye's.
"Go home," Uranus whispered. She searched for power that she knew must be
deep inside of her, power that could help Neptune. She was drained though. The
battle and her search through the rubble had left her mentally and physically
exhausted. She looked at Neptune's face once again and a sense of despair
filled her. Her sacrifice was worthless.
She placed her lips on the cold surface of the crystal. She couldn't
reach out to touch Neptune, but at least she could be close to her when she
died. In that brief moment, she felt a faint wisp of strength. She pulled it
out of herself, feeling her body sag slightly, and poured it into the crystal.
Neptune and her prison flickered then vanished.
Uranus smiled a little. It was pointless, what she had just done.
Absolutely pointless. She had only bought a little time. Still, she felt a
certain reassurance now. She waited for a moment. Finally, out of the silence
of the planet, she heard the sound she was listening for. It was a soft
whistling sound, the sound something makes when it flies through the air too
quickly. She already knew that it was too late, but she didn't care anymore.
A massive crystal pierced her flesh from the back. It severed bone and
tissue alike then dissolved into nothingness once its work was finished. She
smiled that tiny, enigmatic smile once again. After a moment, she plummeted
towards the ground.
The wind whipped by her as she fell, toying with her hair, her battered
body and fuku. There was a sound in that soulless air that rushed by her
though: screaming. The wind was shrieking in an uncannily human way as she
echoed its cry silently. She lifted one hand, feeling it rush through her
fingers. It's like the wind on the sea, crying out for what it has lost, she
thought weakly. She breathed in its scent; her last breath. I'm going to die,
aren't I? Yes, my body is too weak to continue. It doesn't matter anymore
though. Without Michiru, what do I have to live for?
So, she fell, an angel with blood stained wings, with a blood stained
soul. Without regret, without hope, she fell towards death. But she didn't
care anymore. In her own strange, bitter way, she was content.
* * * * *
"Damn it, Haruka!" Seiya growled under his breath. He slammed the lever
foreword once again. The ship's engine's sputtered slightly, protesting their
abuse. The noise continued for a minute or so before dying as it had the past
few times. Seiya swore again and forced the useless control foreword. The
ship's engine faltered, but finally came to life in a blast of sound and light.
With a roar, the ship accelerated, throwing it's crew back violently. Within
seconds, they were through the atmospheric shield surrounding Titan Castle and
back in the oblivion of space.
Seiya flipped on the autopilot and stormed out of the chamber. He walked
into the room where Haruka was. He didn't want to go there, but somehow he felt
obligated to.
Inside, Haruka was sprawled across one of the tiny cots. She had numerous
bandages covering her deathly white skin, but the blood still flowed through
them. The only sign that she was still alive was the occasional effort at
breathing she made. Even with her superior healing abilities, it didn't look
good.
It was funny, she didn't look very threatening then. The snarl or guarded
anger he usually saw on her face were gone. Her tensed muscles were limp,
though one hand still clutched her sheathed sword tightly. Seiya had to admit
that it was quite a change. He was accustomed her to slightly arrogant
attitude. He had often looked at her as a pain to deal with, but also a
potential danger. He would never have told her that of course, but when they
first encountered the outer senshi, they had been slightly afraid of them. They
were not as naïve as their dear, little princess.
Now though, she looked like a child. Her face was still hardened and it
lacked the innocence that Usagi possessed, but it had a kinder expression on it
at least. Perhaps there had been a day, a long forgotten day from centuries
ago, when her face had looked like this even when she was awake. Seiya had long
ago realized that there was more to Haruka then they realized, but had never
bothered to wonder what.
Haruka's body jerked violently, then lay still. He grabbed her hand,
checking the wrist for a pulse. For a moment, he felt nothing and really
thought she had died. Finally, he felt a faint, rhythmic twitch beneath her
skin. She was alive for now at least.
What scared him was that she might die. She had always seemed invincible.
She was simply too proud to let something like death claim her. But it was a
possibility now. In fact, it was highly likely. Not only was her body badly
injured, but she didn't seem to care if she lived or died. On that planet, it
had seemed almost like she waited for the attack to come. It wasn't something
he liked to consider though.
Haruka opened her eyes for a second. They were empty, dark eyes devoid of
any emotion. After a second, her eyelids closed once more and she returned to
her uneasy sleep.
"You know, Michiru-san will never forgive you if you just die like this.
You two have been through far too much to just give up," he snapped irritably.
She almost certainly couldn't hear him, but Seiya secretly thought that she did.
It seemed that a little bit of color returned to her face. It was a comforting
sign. If Haruka had a reason to fight for living, death itself would be afraid
to take her.
* * * * *
"Daijobu, Hime-sama?" Tanzanite asked. Adularia cringed a bit. She had
hoped that her wound would not be noticeable. In a few days it would be fully
healed, but at that point there was still an ugly gash. How embarrassing, to be
injured by a regular senshi when she had planned everything out so perfectly.
"I'm fine, it's nothing," she said quickly. Tanzanite raised an eyebrow
inquiringly.
"One of these days you're going to bleed to death from one of these
'nothings'. I have yet to hear you acknowledge pain until you're unable to
stand. Now, let me see it." Adularia hesitated, clutching her immobile arm.
After a second or two, she let Tanzanite examine it.
The older woman gently checked the severed and burnt flesh before turning
to look at Adularia.
"How did you get this?" Seeing no point in beating around the bush,
Adularia answered the question directly.
"That damn senshi, Sailor Uranus, I think. I almost had her, but she
managed to get me before I could do anything."
"You were lucky that the demon lent you so much power. Anyone would have
trouble fighting that many senshi. They're strong. Next time, I'm not sure
you'll be so fortunate." Tanzanite said nothing for a while after that. She
sat, staring off into space, contemplating something.
Adularia was silent also. She knew that the red haired woman would reveal
her thoughts in due time, if she felt like it. It wouldn't be wise to force
her. Besides, she wasn't sure she had the energy to speak right then. Her
weakness was catching up with her. All of the telltale signs were there. Her
chest had tightened, making it difficult to breath and her skin had grown cold.
She sank to her knees, feeling her energy drain from her far more quickly
than usual. This attack was worse than usual, but she could endure it. Her
people had to endure more pain than this, so she should not be selfish and beg
for help like an infant over such a small thing.
Tanzanite watched as the princess suffer, her life-force being dragged
from her fragile body. She looked like a ghost, her face sunken and wraithlike.
She couldn't survive many more attacks like this, though she was unwilling to
admit it. Mars's captor briefly considered helping her. But that would be too
much. The demon would never tolerate it. Besides, she didn't feel like dying
just yet. She still had one thing to accomplish before she could ever be truly
happy.
Adularia looked up at her, her eyes begging the warrior not to tell of
this weakness to anyone. Through her strained gasps, she managed to get a few
words out.
"I…have to go back to their ship. The one senshi…is good enough to be one
of us," she said. After concentrating, she slowly faded from the scene, leaving
Tanzanite alone.
Tanzanite checked to make sure that no one was watching, then pressed her
hand against a rock sticking out of the hewn wall. Reddish light flickered over
the surface and the wall disappeared to reveal a large chamber. Tanzanite
looked nervously at the massive, black crystal. It's appearance was
intimidating enough, but to anyone with even the slightest magical ability it
was terrifying. The thing wreaked of raw, untamed power. It was capable of
more destruction than most creatures could dream of.
Tanzanite knew that if she so much as touched it, it would undoubtedly
kill her. Her body might be able to contain the power of a single senshi, but
that kind of energy was more than she could control. After all, no one of their
clan had ever been able to truly control the Black Poison crystal. The princess
would be able to though, Tanzanite was confident of that. But she would never
have the chance to use her birthright. She would die before she claimed her
throne.
* * * * *
"Do you know how she is?" Taiki asked. Yaten lowered the book hiding his
face, revealing two livid, emerald eyes. He turned his head away from the
taller Starlight and snorted quietly.
"She'll live, maybe," he snapped. Yaten's eyes quivered slightly, the ice
melting for an instant. "It's her own fault though!" He dropped the book,
slamming into the firm surface of the couch. He began to pace back and forth,
still appearing furious and also worried at the same time.
"Calm down, there's nothing we can do."
"You're damn right there's nothing we can do! There's nothing anybody can
do!" he yelled, frustrated. "It was so stupid of her! She'll probably die now,
and for what? Nothing! Neptune's also dead and now she's going to follow!" He
sat down again, energy drained from his brief outburst. Taiki simply watched.
It was uncommon of Yaten to do such a thing, but understandable.
Yaten ran his hands through his silvery hair, forcing himself to regain
his composure.
"Why?" he whispered. "Isn't it best to survive? To just keep going? I
didn't think I'd ever be sorry to see the Outers go but…why did they have to die
like this? Couldn't she at least have just left, survived without her partner?"
Taiki wanted to provide an explanation, but had none. At least her
could have given Yaten some support, but he too was just as haunted by what
might have been two of the Outer senshi's final minute's of life. Though he had
not cared for either, he had admired Michiru as an artist her partner for her
aloofness at times. To see them torn apart like that…
"Gomen," Yaten said abruptly. "I'm acting like Seiya, too immature. I
need to be alone right now." With that, he snatched up his book and left.
Realizing that he too needed something else to think about, he reached for a
sheet of paper and pen. If he could somehow express this on paper, it might
help.
* * * * *
"What were you thinking?" he demanded of the ashen person residing in the
cot. Haruka flashed a quick glare at him, wishing desperately that he wasn't
there. She wanted nothing but the relief that sleep brought. His presence only
kept her awake and kept her mind on her partner's fate. At least her irritation
was a distraction. It wasn't enough though.
"You sacrifice your companions for the sake of the world without a second
thought but you're willing to give up your life in a pointless effort to save
her? What the hell are you thinking?!" he exploded. "I never understood you to
begin with, but this is strange even for you!"
"Urusai," she snapped. "I don't need this right now."
"Do you think I care? I want an explanation and I'm not leaving until you
provide one!" Haruka growled something incomprehensible and lunged at him only
to fall back limply. Her injury was throbbing again, reminding her all too
clearly of what she wanted so desperately to forget.
He smiled, a joyless and slightly bitter expression. He wanted to reach
out and help her somehow, to ease her pain. She would never accept his aid
though. She would much rather suffer on her own than ever lean on anyone else,
with the possible exception of Michiru. He watched as Haruka struggled to
stand. Her whole body trembled and her legs looked like they would collapse
with the effort. Eventually she had to settle for sitting upright. He had
never seen anyone manage to look so defiant about it though.
"All right," she drawled. "I'll give you an explanation. I already am
dead. Without Michiru, I have nothing left to go back to. What you saw on the
planet was merely an act of finality, to at least let her go with a bit of
dignity." Arrogant as always, he thought. This can't just go by though.
"What about the others, the Inner senshi? What about everyone who cares
about you? How can you even think of leaving them so selfishly? What would
Usagi do if you died?!"
"That's all you really care about, isn't it?" she said a little
thoughtfully. All of a sudden, she sagged slightly. "All those years ago, I
asked you to protect her. Perhaps you can understand my position then." Seiya
looked at her in confusion. It had never occurred to him that in despair, he
had done the same thing he accused her of.
"I suppose," he said carefully. "But Usagi…she needs protecting. She's
so naïve, so blind to the evil she faces all of the time. It's like she can't
understand how to hate, how to blame. We-the Starlights, I mean-lost that so
long ago." He laughed a little sadly at that.
"She can hate. She's human after all," Haruka replied evenly. "But she
can forgive."
"But why Michiru?" Seiya persisted. "I know that you two are close, but
she can take care of herself. She wouldn't have wanted you to do that." Haruka
smiled faintly, her eyes distant, seeing some memory only she knew.
"Because I love her. And…because she would do the same for me." Seiya
shook his head.
"I still don't completely understand you. But, I don't think anyone
really does. Maybe we're not as different as I thought though." Haruka raised
an eyebrow.
"It's something to think about, but I doubt it," she said stubbornly.
Seiya groaned.
"I've had all I can take. I think I'll let you sleep for now." Haruka
grinned and lay down to rest. She didn't get to sleep though, not for quite
some time. Her stormy blue eyes remained staring at the ceiling above her as
her mind contemplated what had just been said. She realized that there was
truth in what Seiya had said. He was impulsive and in the past had been less
mature than her and more emotional, but they did have a fair amount in common.
Perhaps she could trust them a little bit. She would have to anyways, her life
rested in their hands.
* * * * *
"So, this is it?" Michiru inquired softly. Haruka looked around at the
cottage a little disdainfully.
"It will do, I suppose," she muttered. Michiru poked her lightly and
chuckled a little at that.
"Just once it would be nice if you accepted something for what it is," she
smiled. "After all, it won't be easy for me either! I will have no one but you
to keep me company for quite some time."
"Is that a bad thing?" Michiru let her head rest on her partner's
shoulder, her face still slightly teasing, yet serious.
"Hell itself would seem pleasant if you were there. I think that this
place should do nicely." Haruka looked at her thoughtfully, running her fingers
through the former aquatic senshi's hair.
"I suppose when you put it that way, I should be able to tolerate it." In
all honesty, she couldn't have cared less what the place looked like, it was
perfect. Here they could forget about battles and sacrifices. Each day would
be an ordinary day-not that any day with Michiru was ever truly ordinary-where
they could live some of the life that they had given up before. Uranus and
Neptune could be simply unpleasant memories and Haruka and Michiru could truly
exist.
Besides, she had Michiru now. Before with moments of peace like this so
few, they didn't have time for idle conversation. To some degree, even their
affection for each other had to be often ignored. But that was over. It was
just them now, forever.
She pulled Michiru into a tight embrace, breathing in her scent and
letting them both rejoice in their new freedom silently. For several minutes,
they stood there, holding each other tightly. She loved her so much, an emotion
she rarely got to express. Without her, she was nothing. Michiru was her
wings, her soul. She had opened up her frozen heart and shown her feelings she
could never have imagined. When they were together, they were free, truly free…
Haruka's eyes opened and the scene from her memory vanished abruptly. Her
lethargic mind took a moment to comprehend the change in surroundings, but once
she did she longed for sleep again. This reality wasn't one she enjoyed living
in. The warmth and relief of that scene was replaced by the cold that filled
all of space and the relief was replaced by a dread of life itself.
Now that she was fully awake, she also remembered that Michiru was gone.
It was almost difficult for her to comprehend. They had been together for so
long and had changed tremendously in that time. No matter what she had done, no
matter how she had acted Michiru would always be there for her, always forgive
her. She was the rock beneath her feet, the anchor that kept her turbulent,
confused soul in that world. Now, she was gone. She simply wasn't there
anymore.
A part of her violently rejected the concept. It wasn't true, it couldn't
be. Michiru would come back eventually. She would recover and whatever enemy
there was would be defeated. Another part of her knew that it wasn't true.
Michiru was dead by now. She would never come back. For the first time in
ages, Haruka was alone.
She felt something prick at the corner of her eye. She closed her
eyelids, forcing the liquid back where it belonged. There was no time for
tears, or dreams, or even love. Besides, she wasn't even sure she remembered
how to cry. She couldn't recall the last time she had.
* * * * *
Haruka had finally sunken back into a restless sleep, only to be awoken
once again. She felt some presence in her mind, a faint shadow like a
nightmare. She opened her eyelids ever so slightly, hoping that her foe would
not notice. Her room was deserted though. She picked up her transformation pen
and discreetly changed forms.
Without hesitation, she rushed to the bridge of the ship. Her wound was
throbbing badly, causing her to stop several times. She needed to continue
though. She had a feeling she knew what this was and if she didn't reach it
first, everyone else would pay the price.
Upon reaching her destination, she ducked behind the nearest crate. She
stifled a yell as she felt warm liquid drip onto her hand. The healing her body
had been doing was no where near enough to withstand the strain she had been
placing on it. She was used to such pain though, she could endure.
As she had suspected, the black clad girl was there again. She floated
about a foot above the steel mesh of the ship's floor, elegant dress flared out
about her. She hadn't made any obvious effort to disguise herself. Uranus
wondered briefly if the figure in the center of the room was merely an illusion,
but it felt real to her.
The princess turned to face her hiding place, her cold eyes focused on the exact
location of the senshi.
"I know where you are, you may come out now," she said. "I don't particularly
feel like fighting, even though it might mean bringing your kind to justice.
I'm here to talk, so don't make this difficult." She extended one hand in the
direction of the crate. It vanished instantly.
"What do you want then?" Uranus said coldly. Accepting something on your
enemy's terms was never the best of options, but she had few choices right then.
"I want you to come with me. I'm sure that the idea does not appeal to you, but
you have little choice. If you refuse, you risk a battle and the destruction of
this pathetic vehicle." Her eyes watched the senshi's reaction carefully.
Uranus gritted her teeth, longing to lash out at her. Michiru probably would
have told her to calm down, to restrain herself. Michiru wasn't there though.
She pictured all of things she could do right there. She was powerful, maybe
even enough take this twisted child down with her. If she were quick enough,
she could finish her off. She almost wished she could, to wipe away the
memories of that day on Saturn. If she could just get rid of this person who
refused to leave her alone…
She felt sick with those thoughts of such terrible violence though. Sick,
because she knew that she had done such things in the past and would do them
again. Yes, they provided a channel for the rage that occasionally built up
inside of her, but they also wore her down. Each year she had more guilt to
swallow and more memories to bear. She didn't want more of that to live with,
it was hard enough already.
So she chose an alternative to a useless battle and the lives of everyone on the
ship. She had been stupid to even consider such a thing. After all, if Small
Lady died and Neo-Queen Serenity did not survive this final use of the
ginzuishou, the Crystal Tokyo might crumble. And, though she hated to admit it,
she didn't wish such as tragedy on the Starlights either. They still had a
great deal to learn about each other, but she had a feeling that they someday
might get along as Usagi had so naively suggested long ago.
She buried her anger inside her, letting it dissipate, leaving only a faint
lingering trace of emotion. She couldn't allow anything to cloud her judgment,
not now. Sentimentality or desire for revenge would only make the situation
worse.
The sound of leather boots on the metal interrupted the tense scene. Uranus
gritted her teeth. Her time was limited, and the longer she waited the more
people would suffer.
"Fine," Uranus said quietly. The dark girl smiled enigmatically, a look with no
joy in it. "Tell me what you want me to do. I agree."
"I'm glad you understand the situation you're in. Give me your talisman."
Uranus's hand twitched slightly as she withdrew her ancient weapon from its
dimensional pocket. Ignoring her first impulse, she extended her hand holding
the sheathed sword.
With little warning, the Starlights burst into the room.
"Get out," Uranus growled. She let her eyes slide to her left to see their
faces. They were clearly stunned, with touches of anger embedded in their eyes.
"Uranus, what are you doing?" Fighter demanded.
"I said get out!" she yelled forcefully. "This is not your concern. The next
one to step foreword gets the edge of this blade or worse." The Starlights
didn't seem pleased with the situation, but did not dare advance. They knew all
too well that she was serious.
"She's correct," the princess said. "I only came here for the senshi of the
Silver Millennium, but I will not hesitate to destroy you also." Fighter
tensed, clearly resisting the part of her that wanted to lung foreword.
"How can you do this," Fighter yelled again. She ignored the distraught
Starlight. Someday, they'd understand. The princess jerked the blade from her
grasp, sending a wave of pain through her. Having someone else touch that
sword, that sword that was so deeply a part of her…it felt wrong somehow.
The princess, still gripping the sword walked over to her and put a hand on her
shoulder. Uranus flinched, but was too numb to resist. She vaguely heard the
princess threaten to kill her if the Starlights moved, and she felt her feet
shuffle towards a portal. Beyond that, she could remember nothing.
* * * * *
It might have been several days after that fateful incident, but it was
hard to tell in space. Time crawled by with agonizing slowness for the
Starlights as they sped towards an unknown destination. They didn't know where
they were going and they couldn't have cared less.
Memories from Haruka's sacrifice were still fresh in their minds and still
unpleasant. They all tried to ignore them, to think of something else,
anything. It was impossible though. The scenes haunted their thoughts and
dreams seemingly every hour, making life itself torturous.
At that time, the three were all on the bridge of the ship. Healer had a
book in front of his face, though his eyes were slightly unfocused and didn't
appear to be on the page. Maker was staring gloomily at a blank sheet of paper
and Fighter simply sat by the window, watching debris speed past them. Through
the door and into this melancholy scene stepped Chibi-usa.
She still looked slightly sick. Her skin seemed pale, the effect enhanced
by the artificial light. Her fluffy hair hung loose, out of its usual style as
though she had not bothered to notice its disarrayed state. Her eyes were
strong though, despite her weakened appearance.
"Minna," the small princess said. "Gomen nasai, you didn't need to be
involved in any of this. But, Crystal Tokyo needs our help. Please, will you
help my mama and the senshi?" She turned to look up at each one, her eyes
challenging them to refuse. None did.
Fighter looked at the child in surprise. It seemed strange to hear words
like that coming from a little girl who had lived the sheltered, pampered life
of a princess. But then, many strange things had occurred in her lifetime.
What intrigued her though was the fact that it sounded familiar. It was
something Usagi would have said. Fighter smiled a bit.
"We'll help." Healer and Maker looked up at her in exhaustion, longing
for a rest from this battle. Neither was going to stop now though. Chibi-Usa
nodded and pulled a small key from her shirt pocket. She lifted it over her
head and silently called to the energy that slept within it. A cold, magenta
light flooded the room, engulfing them and the ship. Their surroundings faded
away into nothingness, swallowed by the light.
Moments later they were all standing in an endless abyss, surrounded by
impenetrable fog. There must have been solid ground somewhere, but none could
see it beneath the mist that swirled around their feet. The Starlights said
nothing about the change of scenery, they simply followed the pink haired girl,
hoping she knew where she was going. Even if she didn't, walking was something
to do. After a while, Chibi-Usa halted and looked around.
"Puu!" she called. "Puu! It's me, Small Lady!" For a few tense seconds
after the echoes died away, there was silence. Then, a shadowy figure appeared.
She stepped towards them, showing herself. Fighter remembered her, though she
had seemed different. Her flowing, green tinted ebony hair was the same as was
her fuku. Her eyes were different though. Their was a sadness, an aching
loneliness in those deep red eyes that had not been there when the Starlights
had last seen Pluto.
The guardian senshi stared at them coldly for a moment, her hands on her
enormous staff, poised to strike. Her eyes swept over all of them, not changing
in emotion. When she saw the princess though, she immediately dropped to her
knees and embraced the little girl.
"Small lady!" she whispered, a hint of tears in her eyes. "I was so
worried about you. I felt a predomination of danger and I thought…" The woman
released the princess, resuming her position as guard. She no longer seemed
threatening though. There was even a slight smile on her face.
"Genki desu, Puu. But," Chibi-Usa said, her face clouding over.
"Something's happened to the Crystal Tokyo! My mama is using the ginzuishou to
shield Earth and the inner senshi have disappeared. And Hotaru-chan…Hotaru-
chan…" Chibi-Usa bit her lip nervously, remembering how much Pluto cared for
her friend. Pluto's eyes widened.
"What happened to Hime-chan? Is she all right?"
"Yes…she's alive, and not hurt…" Pluto didn't pry any further, realizing
Chibi-Usa's reluctance to speak about the subject.
"And I assume that you wish to go into some other time to prevent this
event somehow." Chibi-Usa nodded.
"I want to bring Sailormoon-tachi into our time. They helped us before
and I'm sure they can again." Pluto paused thoughtfully.
"All right. I'll send you to the time in earth's history after Galaxia
was defeated. Be strong and stay together. Time travel is extremely dangerous.
Come back safely." Chibi-Usa smiled in gratitude and gave her friend a quick
hug. There was a shred of doubt in her eyes though.
"Puu, I don't understand. I thought you didn't want anyone to travel
through time. You said it was too dangerous."
"This is an emergency though. Sometimes, desperate times call for
desperate measures. Now, go quickly!" she said, sounding slightly nervous. She
opened the door with the usual ceremony and sent them through with a few quick
good-byes. Within minutes-though there really were no minutes in that timeless
world-the melancholy senshi was alone once more.
The instant that they left, Pluto collapsed on the ground again, clutching
her side. She shouldn't have remained standing for so long, but she couldn't
let them know her condition. They already had enough to worry about. Besides,
their concern would not have helped her.
She pulled away some of her dark hair to reveal a large wound with a
trickle of blood dripping from it. She removed one glove and shredded it to
form a clumsy bandage. At least that would keep her clean while her body
finished healing itself. She could do nothing more now, only wait for the pain
to end so that she could fully resume her duties.
She felt a slight shift in the mist, a subtle movement that few would
notice. After an eternity in that timeless, spaceless world her senses were far
more acute than most though. She could feel someone there, an almost tangible
presence that she could not see the source of.
"Reveal yourself," she whispered. She heard a tiny laugh, a giggle
really, but no one appeared. Pluto smiled bitterly. Her last battle was one
that even she could not fight.
"Coward," said the senshi. "Your mistress already weakened me. Do you
find it necessary to kill someone who's already been defeated?" The giggle
repeated, from a different direction this time. Pluto closed her eyes and
waited for the blow to come.
Without warning, dozens of shards of ice flew out of the fog. Pluto
gritted her teeth, refusing to allow this fool to hear her scream but unable to
summon the energy to fight back.
"King, forgive me for what I do now." The injured, now dying senshi
turned her head upward to face the endless abyss above her. She raised her arms
and staff, praying to the Garnet Orb that she carried everywhere. "Charon, aid
me!" With that, she flickered and vanished into the far reaches of the fourth
dimension.
A slender, short young woman stepped out of the mist to approach the door
of time. A slow smile spread across her face, mirroring her wickedly glinting
eyes.
"See, Mercury? Nemesis is going to win this war."
* * * * *
The room was dark, horrifically so. It was layers of shadows containing
more of their dark kind within. Specks of light, mere particles barely visible
to the eye flitted about the room, but provided little illumination. It was
perfect, darkness concealed what light would show, and the girl would rather
that people not see this right now.
The trembling began, slowly at first, barely noticeable. It rapidly
increased though until her whole body quivered uncontrollably. A ringing
sounded in her ears, causing her entire head to ache. She fought to remain
erect for as long as she could, but after only a few minutes her body struck the
stone floor with a dull thud. There she remained for several minutes-though it
seemed like an eternity-as her flesh twitched and skin crawled over her bony
form.
Waves of pain engulfed her, gnawing away at her sanity while she cried
helplessly, clawing at the ground like a crazed animal and whimpering like an
infant. It was as if some force were trying to suck very soul from her, to eat
her alive. Finally, when she felt as though she would dissolve under the
magnitude of the agony, she raised her head, jaw clenched in one act of
defiance. She sank her finger nails into her palms until they bled and bit her
lip with her teeth. She forced her legs to support her as she stood.
After a while, the attack subsided and her body relaxed. She collapsed on
the floor once again, gasping for air. It had been a long time since she had
suffered so greatly. She couldn't pity herself though. After all, the rest of
Nemesis went through so much more. She had lived fairly well all of her life,
had never come close to starvation or suffocation in a collapsed tunnel. All of
her life she had been pampered-not that anyone's life was truly easy on that
hostile planet-and for the most part safe.
No, she certainly couldn't feel sorry for herself, not now. Not with
their goal so close. Everyone was depending on her right now. She was the
golden jewel that the planet had given them at a time when virtually all of the
magical abilities of the people were weak, the one who would deliver them and
bring them back to earth.
So, she stood up once again and strode over to a mirror to adjust the bow
adorning the collar and blouse of her outfit and to make sure the pleated, navy
skirt looked decent. She had made her decision, though she still felt slightly
unhappy with it. Still, they had earned it. It had been their choice to side
with the queen, not hers.
She walked over to the two stricken bodies lying on the stone tables.
They could have been dead, had she not known better. Their skin was a ghastly
shade of white and appeared to be stretched thin over their bones, giving them a
skeletal appearance. She felt a twinge of sympathy for them, more than she
should have felt. She ignored it.
She knelt slightly by the turquoise haired woman, pausing briefly to check
to see if they really was a pulse beneath that waxy skin, to see if she really
was alive. She held one hand out into the air, waiting for the demon to give
her the needed item. Almost instantly, two crystal collars appeared. She
hesitated, running her fingers along her own collar. The device had taken away
some of her freedom, but it wasn't as if she ever would have rebelled against
Akuma anyway. She was a prisoner, but a willing one. With that final thought
she placed the collar around the former senshi's slender neck. It glowed
briefly as the crystal melted together, making it impossible to remove.
Next, she went the other one of the partnership. It's strange, she mused.
She was so defiant before, going against me in a bold but suicidal attack. It
was foolish of her, but in a way it's almost admirable. It would be almost a
pity to destroy that. She attached the remaining collar to the icy skin of the
one who used to be Haruka. It was done, there was no turning back now.
She, Adularia of Nemesis, backed away from the tables, her face an
unreadable mask. Carefully, so as not to further crumple it, she extracted a
small rectangular sheet of primitive paper. It said:
Kuraino Kishi,
Juuban High school,
Tokyo, Japan, Earth
After stuffing the paper back into her pocket she strode confidently
towards the place where the portal through time was going to be reinstalled. A
war was going to begin again, only this time the people of Nemesis would have
success. This time, there would be no time for sympathy or sentimentality.
Nothing mattered but the results: the queen gone and Nemesis free. Nothing
else made a difference, not even what happened to her.
to the very talented goddess Naoko Takeuchi
and I do not mean to pretend that I own them. I am not attempting to make money from them.
I'm just a poor 'lil fanfic author who loves this show and the manga it's based on, so
please don't sue me. I won't have any money after buying Fushigi Yuugi anyway.
Author's notes: This is basically a first draft (though it has been rewritten
once and revised
several times) so there may be a couple of typos. Also, as I am not entirely
happy with this (I still think it needs a fair amount of work)
as it is, I will probably do another set of revisions in the future to create a
better version.
Please, please review this so that I can have a better idea of how to improve it
and the two parts
that follow this one (this is sort of a prelude to the rest of the story).
I need all the help I can get!
Arigato gozaimasu!
Oh, and before I forget, I would like to that Mina-chan for listening to the
horror that was the
original form of this story. I still don't know how she survived. ^_^
The princess's eyelids slid open, revealing two shadowed irises. Her eyes
darted around, bleakly surveying her
surroundings. A moment ago she had dreamed of a pale blue sky with wisps of
clouds hanging over her head.
Now, she saw only darkness. It seemed that that was her world now. She lived
in that suffocating blackness.
When she went to sleep at night it was the last thing she saw, just as it was
the first thing she saw when she opened
her eyes in the morning. There were times where she was unable to picture
anything but it, unable to recall what color
or light or beauty was. She closed her eyes once again, realizing that there
was nothing to look at, there never had been.
That was all right though, that was something she could tolerate. As long as
her own eyes could not perceive her weakness,
no one else could. She was safe, hidden beneath the veil of near eternal
night.I have so little time left, she thought grimly.
How many years-no, maybe not even that-do I have before my death? How long
before she is the only one left?
She let out a small cry as another spasm ripped through her. After that,
there was silence.
* * * * *
"Sugoi," Chibi-Usa whispered as she looked at her mother. "Mama, you look
wonderful!" A smile spread across
Neo-Queen Serenity's regal face. For an instant, Chibi-Usa could have sworn she
saw Usagi peeking out from her mother's
perfect exterior. For that brief moment in time they were like sisters once
again, giggling over some secret that only they knew.
"Arigato, Small Lady," she said. She tugged at the hem of the silver gown
a bit nervously. "Ne, do you think Mamo-
chan will like it? Our anniversary is tonight and I…" Her daughter nodded
enthusiastically, her pigtails bobbing up and down.
"Of course! How could he not?" she said cheerfully. Her grin faded
slightly, though she managed to appear joyful.
She wished that she could look like that. Maybe she was a bit-just a little
bit-envious. While she was pretty enough in her
pink dress, her mother was radiant, an angelic figure masquerading as a mere
human. She was a symbol of perfection, one
which she could never achieve in her childish state. If only I could grow just
a little, she thought longingly. I know I could
make her proud. I could be a true lady and a real princess, not just a little
girl. And Helios…
She shook her head to clear her thoughts, her cheeks slightly flushed.
For now, she would simply be happy for
her mother and enjoy the celebration.
As the small princess stood there, watching her beautiful mother she felt
a faint twinge in the back of her mind. She
tried to ignore it, but found that it was hard to forget. For some reason, she
had an ominous feeling, like the moment before
a storm. There was the small feeling of something being amiss somewhere,
somewhere very close to her. An enemy? No, it
couldn't be. The Crystal Tokyo has been at peace for years. Besides, no one
would dare come near the ginzuishou.
With that, she dismissed her worry and returned to the matters at hand. Later,
she would regret that deeply.
* * * * *
The hologram flickered into existence with only a few seconds of delay.
The light from the projector illuminated the
princess's face, but did not reveal much of her. Darkness concealed most of her
features, just as it was entwined in her soul.
Slowly, she unclenched her fist and smiled. It was a bitter expression, one
which few people cared to see. Why should she
ever care though? She had no need of sympathy or friendship, emotions would
only cloud her judgment.
The hologram showed a group of women in schoolgirl-like costumes. They
were laughing in the picture, clearly happy
with everything around them. It was nauseating to watch their expressions.
They remained blissful despite the suffering of
the people beneath their feet. They didn't even spare a single thought of pity
for those forgotten people.
Unbidden, memories swam up in her mind. A girl, barely breaking the age of
adolecence was torn to shreds by a
violent storm rising from the planet's surface. A grown man broke down and
wept. With an anguished smile, a silver
haired girl drew a glistening dagger across her wrists. The world around her
dissolved into chaos as the whole world
rocked. She trembled slightly, but forced it to cease quickly. She couldn't
afford these emotions. She had dealt with
such pain all of her life and had learned that isolating yourself from it was
the only way to endure. Loneliness was a blessing in disguise.
She stared at the smiling face of a woman clad in an elegant white gown. She
was beautiful, shining from both inside
and outside. She was disgusting. Her smile was coated with sacrifices she
denied and her kingdom was built upon
skeletons. Always, always she had hated her. Deep down inside, she loathed her
with a passion that bordered on insanity. She closed her eyes but still that
smile blazed against her eyelids. It haunted her dreams, her thoughts. She
couldn't get that monstrosity out of her mind.
Slowly, she stretched her fingers out into the hologram itself. Shadows drifted
upwards as she covered up the light.
She moved her fingers in a slow, dark dance so that the shadows reached up to
extinguish the queen's light. Those
inhuman fingers created of darkness covered the queen's empty smile, destroying
it. She felt her anger die,
smoldering until nothing was left. All emotions sank away into oblivion, as she
had trained
them to. Soon, she felt nothing at all. The familiar numbness that shielded
her filled her soul once more. She felt
nothing. Nothing at all.
Soon…your kingdom will end. The just shall rule once more, and banish
your people to where they belong. Then you will know how we have suffered here.
Only then will you truly understand the crime that you committed…It will be to
late for you then though. You will be trapped in the darkness then…forever…
* * * * *
Haruka tried to restrain a smirk as she looked in the mirror, but found
it impossible. What could she say?
She looked great and she knew it too. She reveled in that brief moment of
utterly selfish, ridiculous pleasure while Michiru
chuckled.
"Who are you dressing up for?"
"It is our queen's anniversary. I have a right to be vain once in a
while," she insisted. Michiru raised an eyebrow and
looked at her partner's ensemble. Not surprisingly, it was a classy with a
slightly modern appearance. For the occasion,
she had chosen a deep navy suit, the top tightening at the waist to fall down
and form a dress-like tunic that accented her
more feminine side. All of this was embroidered carefully with golden patterns.
"I don't know how you can manage to be so cheerful at a time like this,"
Michiru said, half envious, half teasing.
She watched as Haruka let her eyes slide towards her, leaning against a bookcase
in the room. Her partner knew she was
missing something. Her eyes scanned the surface of the situation but saw
nothing obviously wrong.
"A time like what?" she asked in what she hoped was a casual tone.
Michiru arched a single eyebrow upward.
"You actually don't remember who's coming as guests for the celebration?"
Haruka searched her memory, but
found no answer.
"Do you remember the last time we went on a diplomatic mission to Kinmoku?
Our settlement was that they, the
senshi of Kinmoku and its neighboring planets, were given not only diplomatic
immunity but they were allowed to visit here
at any time they pleased. They decided that since the queen's birthday was so
special and they owed her such a great debt…" She let her voice trail off as
her partner's eyes had already widened immensely.
"Why, in the name of Kami-sama, do I need to deal with them?" Haruka
groaned. "I had been having a good day
and…" A smile played across Michiru's lips.
"Try to be civil. They are some of our strongest allies, and we can't
afford to have relationships between our
planets crumble. We don't even have many allies outside of this system."
"The less, the better," Haruka grumbled. "They're all equally arrogant,
self-centered and useless."
"Don't try anything, even if you can't stand them," Michiru warned her.
"Look, I tried to prevent this somehow but
it didn't exactly work out. You will civil to them while they're here though,
ne?" She gave Haruka a particularly harsh look,
her sea-blue eyes staring her partner down. Haruka looked back at her defiantly
for a few seconds before relenting with a
rueful laugh.
"Only for you, love," she muttered. Michiru softened her expression to a
smile. With a small wink, she turned and
exited the room. She let a little sigh escape her lips as soon as she was out
of earshot. Their conversations tended to be
lighter these days, Haruka showing her small but amusing playful side. It had
become easy for her to take such little things
for granted, but every once in a while she would remember a time when things had
been different, when the only words
exchanged between them were ominous warnings and mutual fears.
Michiru's thoughts were inturrupted by a sense of foreboding. Without
really understanding why, she got a sudden
desire to look at her mirror. Knowing that her impulses were rarely wrong or
without basis, she did not resist. She held her
hand out and carefully withdrew the object from its dimensional pocket. Her own
face looked back at her, motionless,
concentrating on the smooth surface for something that did not appear.
It happened so quickly that she could almost have imagined it. The
surface of the mirror darkened, fogged over.
Within a fraction of a second, it was normal again. Michiru felt her shoulders
sag slightly. She shifted her weight so that
she was resting on the wall. Her legs suddenly didn't feel very steady.
Kami-sama…it isn't over already is it? This gift of peace? I don't know
if I can go back to that. It never
gets easier.
It wasn't the beginning of this though. Even though she didn't want to
believe it, she was aware that something had
been going on for some time. Everything had seemed to be rushing past her at an
incredible speed. It was as if she just
didn't have time to grasp anything, to stretch moments out forever.
The other senshi had been feeling the effects to. Mercury would spend
hours on her computer, taping furiously as
though she was searching for something that she could niether understand nor
place. Jupiter had begun to pace restlessly,
the energy locked within her leaking out in too many ways. Venus, while usually
optimistic, had developed a painfully
cheerful disposition, straining to smile despite her fear.
And Uranus…Michiru winced. She was starting to think of her own partner
as a senshi. She had to remember
that there was a person there. If she forgot…
That was when she realized that Haruka had begun to act more like her old self.
Normally she was the teasing,
thoughtful person she loved, but there were times when her eyes turned cold and
her face hardened, her features
returning to the icy, bitter expression that had haunted them for too long.
Distant, Michiru thought grimly. That's
what she's becoming again, isn't it?
Haruka had hidden it well though, Michiru reflected. She had never spoken of
the subject, even to the point of not
mentioning previous battles. She continued to pretend to be cheerful, flirting
and gently teasing her partner as though
nothing was wrong. She was even starting to show some of the strained optimism
that Minako had. It seemed so
obvious, now that Michiru thought about it.
Why didn't I see it before? she thought. Why didn't I notice that she was
acting? I know her better than she knows herself, so why couldn't I see through
her façade? The answer came unbidden to her almost instantly: she had not
wanted to see the truth. She had wanted everything to continue this way, with
nothing ever coming between them again. Above all though, she couldn't bring
herself to face the fact that her partner was lying to her.
Oh, not directly lying. But she had been decieving Michiru, concealing her
emotions. Why, Haruka? You know I
care about you more than anyone else in the world, so why did you have to hide
it? Why didn't you trust me?
Michiru would listen, and try to understand. She would do anything for
Haruka, even die. She needed her, and
needed her to be honest about everything. Every secret in her heart was another
brick for a wall between them. Now,
if something came shattered the bond between them, she didn't know if she could
stand it. One more war, one more
set of endless sacrifices, nerve-wrecking battles and impossible hurdles and
their relationship would be at risk.
Michiru took a deep breath to calm her frayed nerves. This was no time to
think of such things. She had a duty
to fulfill, a terrible, burdensome duty that she would never be rid of. She
had to be a senshi again, at least temporarily. That
meant putting aside everything else and thinking of protecting her queen and
kingdom.
She couldn't be sure that some enigmatic enemy was going to attack Crystal Tokyo
and destroy everything she had
given her life to preserve. Besides, she couldn't make an announcement with no
proof. She knew perfectly well
that she would look like a fool. She would just have to wait until something
turned up.
She could only pray nothing did. As long as she had no evidence, she
could believe that it was just paranoia from
to many battles, . As long as she didn't acknowledge it, it didn't really exist
for her. For this one time only,
she didn't want to go with her gut instinct.
* * * * *
Haruka's smile dwindled and vanished after Michiru had left. Michiru had
been uneasy about something, not just
the Starlights. She had hidden it very well, her partner couldn't deny it, but
there had been something about her manner.
She was a little too calm, a little too distant. She was afraid of something.
Haruka let tightly coiled muscles relax and slumped into the couch. There
was something else bothering her, not that
it was anything new. She had felt restless for months now, but could never show
it. Something had been plaguing her, a
spectral force that she could never seem to place or understand.
Something she couldn't fight. That alone worried her. A battle was one
thing, with the threat clear and in front of
her the entire time. That she could handle. But this thing-whether it was
merely a creation of her subconcious or a very
real danger-was something beyond her ability.
Damn it! she thought. Michiru's the one for this sort of thing, not me.
She deals with the future, I deal with
the present, simple. That's how it's supposed to work. She didn't want to talk
to Michiru about this though, a fact that
startled her. She knew she'd try to understand, and to empathize, but that was
what worried her. Michiru was too
empathetic. She'd get all worried about a touch of paranoia. She loved her too
much to put her through so much pain
if it really was for nothing.
She didn't want to think about all that right then. She had too many
thoughts swirling around in her mind. All of
them were going no where very quickly.
She closed her eyes, allowing herself to sink into the dazed state between
sleep and awareness. She let her weary
mind drift back a duet they had played a while ago, to that moment when it
seemed like there was nothing between them,
as though they were one person. She savored that feeling, running it through
her head again and again. Each time, it
seemed to fade a little, until she could barely remember it at all.
* * * * *
Michiru stared into her mirror. Her steady gaze did not falter at all.
She needed to know what this was, if there
was anything there. She ached to just put the silly thing away. She could
deposit the mirror again and just forget about it.
No one would ever need to know. No one could ever prove it had happened.
Then a treacherous thought crept into her mind: What if it was something?
And if it was, and she didn't warn
anyone, Crystal Tokyo would never have time to prepare sufficiently. And if it
came to that, Haruka might be hurt, she
might even die.
Her mind conjured a startlingly vivid picture of her lover's mangled
corpse. Just thinking about it made her chest tighten and heart ache. Her
resolve strengthened with that and she continued to peer into the fathomless
depths of her mirror. Still, nothing unusual showed.
I wish that I could believe that there was nothing there, she thought. I
really do. I cannot afford to risk anyone because of that though, I need to
know for sure.
It seems like we've had so little time at peace though. The war with
Nemesis only ended a decade or so ago. She couldn't help but wince at the
memory of that experience. They were perfectly prepared to face us and caught
us all off guard. I still can remember the isolation we outers experienced.
They separated us from the Crystal Tokyo, forcing us to use our greater powers
in an endless stream of battles against droidos designed to exhaust us. I can
still almost see the dungeon in my mind. It was designed to suck energy slowly
from those who stayed there. It seemed like an eternity before the war ended
and we were taken, barely alive from that miserable cell and returned to our
castles. I thought I would go crazy there, completely cut off from everyone
else as our bodies degraded each day.
Peace was such a wonderful thing after that experience. Haruka and I had
been able to live the life we had yearned for all those years. We had been able
to be sort of a family even.
Someday, perhaps we will have a family, like we did when we were raising
Hotaru. I know that a child is too much to ask for. I should be happy that I
already have someone to love. Maybe when we have a long stretch of peace that
dream can become a reality.
Haruka would say I'm being selfish right now to indulge in my own world
and my own dreams. Perhaps it's because I've guarded these things at my own
expense for so long. To have the dreams that have always seemed so far away
would be such a joy. That might be why I don't want to go back to fighting, to
our never-ending battle. We can never truly be free from destiny, but it would
be nice to have a chance to sit back and grow old with my partner, to enjoy what
we've struggled to save for so long. If only this time of peace would never
end. If only we could stay this way forever, not worrying about things like
that.
I know that it can never be though…I will not waver when I need to protect
the future of this kingdom though. If I have to fight, then I will. I cannot
turn back for my own selfish reasons. I once swore that I would sacrifice
everything for this, I can't go back on that now.
The mirror in her hands suddenly turned black. A stunned woman turned to
face her. Michiru could not see the details of her face because of the darkness
surrounding her, but her anger and fear were apparent. With little warning, the
woman held out one hand, as if to strike her. Cracks split the smooth surface
of the mirror. Michiru held up one arm in front of her face, but only succeeded
in catching several of the shards of glass.
Michiru screamed out of shock and collapsed on the ground, her body aching. The
fragments of her mirror slid across the floor to reform the talisman. She
picked it up, shaken. It was confirmed now, their peace had ended abruptly.
* * * * *
The princess gasped sharply, struggling to retain the rhythm of her
breathing. After several minutes she resumed inhaling and exhaling normally.
She shouldn't have tried to use so much energy so quickly without preparation,
even if it was urgent. By all appearances, her affliction was getting worse all
of the time. Pushing it was begging for danger.
It's not as if I have a choice, she thought. I…I can't justify saving
myself while others die. I don't deserve that. Besides, the time is now. If
we cannot eliminate them with one strike we may be overtaken completely.
She mustered all of the strength she could, pouring it into one quivering
hand. She reached out with her mind, stretching her awareness far beyond the
little chamber she was residing in. At the edge of her consciousness, she felt
another mind, reaching out to find her, to expose her plan.
Another spasm ripped through her flesh, causing her body to jerk foreword
slightly. She gritted her teeth and tried to concentrate on the threat and not
her own pain. Her anger cut through her agony leaving her with the single
thought of destroying the source. She held on to that blind rage until the
attack subsided and she returned to her normal state.
Without hesitation, she thrust her hand foreword into the air and sent the
collected energy hurtling across space. It was a tremendous distance for her to
cross and most of her magic dissipated.
The princess snarled as she watched the spell crumble. Reluctantly she
withdrew energy from the supply stored in her collar. That, combined with her
own power, was enough to pose a threat to her enemy. Driven by shear will it
sped towards its target.
The princess smiled a little and fell back once more, breathing heavily.
She felt no joy in doing this, barely even satisfaction at this point. All it
did was ease the hunger of her fury, leave her emotions content for a while. It
wasn't enough though, she needed more.
* * * * *
Rei prodded the smoldering embers in the hearth. After a few minutes, her
patience was rewarded and flames leapt up from the ashes. She folded her legs
beneath her and pressed her hands together in the traditional position. She
called out the familiar chant, urging the fire to help her.
She waited anxiously, her eyes never leaving the fire. After several
moments of staring, she gave up to let her eyes rest. Nothing. She still could
not find a thing. She sighed a little and shook her head. She was being
ridiculous, Minako had already told her that. Crystal Tokyo had not faced an
enemy in years. Why should one come now?
If she had been anyone else, she would have given up completely, or even ignored
her nervousness. It was easy to dismiss these things as paranoia. She was used
to acting on her gut instinct though and was not about to break that habit.
There was no warning. Before she could possibly have reacted, pain ripped
through her. She tried to yell, but could not force her throat to make any
noise other than a faint choking sound. Her muscles went rigid, then relaxed
completely. She slumped to the floor, unconscious before she struck it.
* * * * *
Why now, of all times? Haruka thought. She turned to look at Michiru again and
felt her heart flutter. Her normally elegant partner's face had been
transformed. She was still beautiful, of course, she would always be beautiful.
But her lips had not always been pressed together quite as tightly and her eyes
had not always darted around the room warily.
Michiru's fear was also starting to infect her. While she could not tell what
was bothering her lover, she knew there was a reason for it. There was nothing
she could do, not yet anyway. So, she simply tightened her grip on her lover's
shoulder, as if she could somehow pass strength to her that way.
Michiru looked up to her with gratitude, but showed no sign of relief. There's
nothing I can do to help her, Haruka thought miserably. I wish she would just
tell me what's bothering her, maybe I could find a solution then.
"Michiru-sama!" someone called, their voice cutting through the din. Haruka
sighed internally and watched her partner disappear into the crowd. She hated
all of this formality. If people wanted things done, they should just do them
with out flourishes and exchanges of courtly manners.
She straightened a little in order to get a better view of who Michiru was
talking to. She felt a twinge of jealousy as she noticed most of them were men.
They were probably only discussing politics and she trusted Michiru. Still, she
couldn't make herself feel completely at ease about it.
Soon enough, people clustered around her, making movement almost impossible.
She talked with them for a while, if only to kill time. When she could no
longer stand it she made some polite excuses-all lies, of course-and left the
room. She went to her own chambers and lay down on the bed, drifting in and out
of sleep in an effort to ease her restlessness.
* * * * *
Michiru watched Haruka's fleeing form with a growing sense of isolation. There
were hundreds of people crammed into that room, all bearing smiles. Yet, she
felt more alone than ever. They couldn't understand her, they never would. For
all of their kind words of support, they didn't know what it was like to live
her life, to feel her pain.
She continued to converse politely, no longer hearing the words leaving her
lips. Maintaining this calm appearance under the most difficult of
circumstances had become second nature for her. She barely had to be aware of
anything as she went through the practiced dance of courtly manners.
She kept scanning the crowd with increasing anxiety. Haruka was still missing.
Normally, it would not have bothered her tremendously, but right then she wanted
someone to hold her tightly, to tell her it would all work out somehow. She
felt a wave of guilt at her selfishness. She wanted so much from Haruka, her
love, her support, her time. She shouldn't demand so much of her, even after
all of this time, but she didn't know how she could live without all of those
things.
Michiru brushed away her guilt and longing for comfort before she had the chance
to get carried away. These were the emotions she had often felt as a school
girl, they were no longer needed now and it was childish to let them control
her.
Looking for something to occupy her, she went looking for her fellow senshi.
After several minutes of scrutiny she saw Minako. The bubbly queen was
surrounded by a crowd of admirers, winking and smiling broadly. Michiru almost
chuckled out loud at the sight. Who could resist the charm of her personality?
Minako had gained elegance through age, but had never quite lost her playful
nature.
Michiru excused herself as quickly as she could and walked over in Minako's
general direction. It was something to do, a simple goal to accomplish that
would help take her mind off of things.
She sighed internally, still not allowing a trace of emotion to show on her
face. When she was younger she would have gone to the pool right about then, or
the ocean if it was summer. She would swim laps for a while, melting her energy
and frustration away and leaving only the placid cold of the water. After that,
she would simply float there, aquamarine hair drifting out around her head while
the water caressed her tensed muscles.
Those had been the only times when she had really felt completely sane, with the
water washing away all of her troubles and feelings. Her feverish desire to
excel, to meet the impossible standards everyone set for her, the scorn of her
classmates, even her obsession over Tenoh Haruka all disappeared, leaving her
feeling empty, but at peace.
She wanted to do that now, but couldn't. She couldn't just let go like that
anymore, she had too many responsibilities. So, she continued to walk towards
Minako seeking distraction.
Someone slammed into her. Instincts formed from years of battle took over as
adrenaline raced through her system. She relaxed when she saw who it was, but
only slightly. Standing before her, still looking eerily like the adolescent
who had entered her dressing room, was Seiya Kou. He was fidgeting slightly,
obviously unaccustomed to his male body.
"Gomen n-" he began quickly. Before his apology could be completed, he noticed
exactly who he was speaking to. He visibly stiffened, then knelt before her in
a formal bow. He gently lifted one hand and brought it to his lips in a brief
kiss. It meant nothing, of course. Both were fully aware that it was merely a
pretense.
She smiled a little and allowed herself to relax. Seiya was clearly uneasy
about the situation, which would help neither of them.
"Would you like to step outside?" she offered. "It's a little too crowded for
my tastes in here." He nodded gratefully, relief washing away his nervousness.
She could understand completely. Kinmoku was still what it had once been and
they depended heavily on the Neo-Silver Millennium's support. A single false
move on his part could ruin his planet's economy.
"So, how is Kakyuu-san?" she asked politely. It was an awkward beginning for a
conversation, but she had to start somewhere. Seiya hesitated briefly before
answering, his eyes clouded with worry.
"She's pregnant," he said at last. Michiru murmured her congratulations. She
had heard of the controversial marriage that Fighter and her princess had
entered into. She had to admit that she felt slightly jealous though. A child,
a child of her own, would be such a wonderful thing.
"I don't know how it's all going to work out though," he confessed. "She hasn't
been very strong lately and some of the doctors were actually suggesting an
abortion until a few months ago. I shouldn't be so worried about it, it's just,
I wish I could be there with her." Michiru looked at him with increased
respect.
"She'll manage. I've only met her a couple of times, but she doesn't seem to be
the type who would give up easily." That produced a grin on Seiya's face.
"Definitely not. She even wanted to come here. She said that a little thing
like that was no excuse for not honoring someone who had helped her so much.
Kakyuu's like that, you know. Maybe that's why I love her so much. She's more
determined than people give her credit for, even a little stubborn, but she
usually avoids conflicts. She's a lot like…Serenity in that way. I couldn't
even dream of holding on the way they do, but they pull it off. Oh, gomen, I
didn't mean to dump all of that on you. I can get a little sappy when she comes
up in a conversation." Michiru chuckled quietly.
"It's quite all right. I've thought of Haruka like that occasionally, but she's
very different from Kakyuu-san or Usagi. She doesn't avoid conflicts very well,
in fact, I think she attracts them."
They both ceased talking after that, not because they were uncomfortable but
simply because they had a lot to think about. Times were difficult for them,
though for different reasons. As rulers of planets, they had a duty to think of
that before their conversation
They must have been there for some time, though neither really noticed. When
she looked back on that moment in time in the next few weeks, Michiru realized
that she shouldn't have permitted herself to lose track of the time like that.
It was a careless error, one she could not afford.
Michiru heard the muted sound of feet on one of the paths behind her. She
didn't turn, but could feel someone coming towards her. When at last the
footsteps ceased, she turned her head, her eyes looking upward. She realized
what she would see, but knew no way of avoiding it.
She had seen every emotion imaginable cross Haruka's face. She had seen guilt,
torment, bliss, love and grief. This expression was one even she had rarely
seen though; one which she had hoped never to see again. Haruka was hurt. For
that brief moment, she looked almost childlike. Michiru often forgot just how
vulnerable her partner really was.
Michiru watched helplessly as Haruka struggled to regain her lost
composure. Rage flared across her features, obscuring the pain she had shown
only seconds before. Her eyes narrowed to cold slits as Seiya turned around to
face her. She opened her mouth; her tone of voice lowered until it was barely
audible.
"Watch your step, gaijin." She didn't let her eyes meet Michiru's before
she turned her back to them and strode off far too quickly. Michiru's first
impulse was to run after her as quickly as she could, to explain that it really
had been nothing. Her common sense told her that Haruka would not even hear a
word she said in this mood. She needed a little time to resolve this on her
own, to calm down before she was ready to talk about it.
Seiya mumbled something, clearly embarrassed and excused himself. She let
him leave, barely aware of his absence. Oh Haruka, please understand.
* * * * *
The princess sank backwards, for the first time allowing her weariness to
show. She had never believed it possible to feel so exhausted until that point
in time. Every limb in her body ached and her eyes begged for sleep.
The results would be worth the price though. Anything would be worth it,
as long as the Neo-Silver Millennium was overthrown somehow, as long as her
people finally found a real home to go to…
* * * * *
Panic rose up in Ami's throat, choking the words in her mouth before they
could emerge. Something catastrophic had just happened on her planet. She
could feel the terror of the inhabitants and the planet itself screaming. The
fear echoed in her mind triggering a similar reaction in her.
She managed a weak smile at the diplomat she was talking to. She quickly
said that she wasn't feeling well and excused herself.
She could barely think straight. The thought of what could have happened
kept flashing in her mind. Once she was outside, she paused and took a deep
breath, trying to steady her frayed nerves. If she didn't think this through
carefully, she could make a fatal mistake.
She looked around to make sure that no one was watching her or was close
enough to hear her. While her identity was no longer a secret, she knew that it
might cause people to panic if they saw that the senshi were ready to fight.
She raised her henshin pen above her head and whispered the phrase that would
change her. She didn't know what she might encounter and she didn't want to go
into battle in her cumbersome dress.
She felt better once she had changed. She was more accustomed to being in
this form than her civilian one. She never liked to admit it but this was a
crucial part of her.
She concentrated as she summoned enough power to create a teleport spell.
The spell was a challenging one, even for her. Normally, she would have gone to
a public portal but she did not have the time to find one.
She reached into herself, into her source of power. From that source, she
withdrew a thread of her energy, and cast it onto the ground. A glowing, blue
circle formed around her feet. She focused on the main hall of her palace and
vanished with her portal in a swirl of water.
A minute later, she landed with a click on the marble floor. The entire
palace was made of blue tile to give it an aquatic look that contrasted the
barren surface of Mercury. Mercury stepped around the fountain and series of
pools with statues that surrounded it. She typed in her access code on a panel
embedded on the wall. A computer screen popped up displaying the status of
everything in the castle.
Mercury scanned through everything, making sure that it was all in order.
The magic spells holding up the energy dome that contained their oxygen and
maintained the temperature were fine. None of the water channels were clogged.
The computer contained no reports of anything being wrong. Even the library was
in order.
Mercury wasn't fooled though. She knew that something was amiss. The
castle was perfectly silent. She couldn't here a single dog bark or child
laugh. It was deserted. Mercury tapped on the key panel, trying to figure out
what had happened. There had to be an explanation.
Suddenly, the computer screen filled with static. Someone had tampered
with it earlier to prevent her from accessing everything. Her face paled. She
knew what this was. She hadn't expected it to happen so soon though.
She reached for her communicator watch. Her hand didn't move though. She
tried to walk foreword, but found that her legs were trapped. She looked down
in horror to see that most of her body was covered in blue crystal. She was
completely helpless. She closed her eyes quietly as the rest of the crystal
covered her. Please don't let the others suffer my fate, she prayed silently as
she sank into unconsciousness.
A sapphire tinted crystal in the shape of a flower floated out of her body
and disappeared.
Far away, on Nemesis, the princess smiled. She would make sure that the
Mercurian queen never opened her eyes again.
* * * * *
Makoto-sama! Help me! a voice begged silently. Makoto felt her eyes
widen in surprise. Before she had time to react, the emotions that accompanied
the cry struck her. An overwhelming feeling of terror washed over the queen.
She staggered slightly, unconsciously
Dozens of people rushed over to her, asking if she needed any help getting
up. She forced a smile and said cheerfully that she was fine. She insisted
that she was a bit tired and said that she'd be fine after a walk. She hurried
out of the uncertain mob while she still had a chance.
Once outside, she ran through the various people strong enough to send a
telepathic message from another planet-that's where she was certain the message
was from. It had to be one of the stronger elementals living there. It also
took a great deal of energy to send even a few words. If someone had bothered,
it must be desperate.
Already, Makoto could feel something wrong with her planet. She was
surprised she hadn't noticed it before.
She took a deep breath, remembering what one of her old martial arts
teachers had told her. She had to focus to be able to defeat her enemy. She
also should approach the situation with caution. Years of experience had taught
her that. She lifted up her hand and summoned her henshin pen. She softly
uttered the words that would change her into a senshi. She could fight well in
any outfit, but she was used to this.
She let energy collect in her hand for a moment. Then, she pointed to the
ground below her. The stored power was channeled through her finger to the dirt
below her. Green lightning shot out and formed a circle beneath her feet. She
really shouldn't have attempted a teleport spell this strong without resting for
a week or two to recover from the previous one. She was one of the stronger
senshi, but she had enough common sense not to overestimate her abilities. She
knew what her weaknesses and strengths were.
She stepped through onto the teleport spell and vanished in a flash of
energy. By the time she reached her castle, she was feeling exhausted. Her
energy had already been depleted from traveling back and forth for several days.
She looked around the castle, trying to get a sense of what was wrong.
She could see no sign of whoever had sent the urgent call a little while ago.
She resisted the urge to call out to someone. Normally, she acted on
impulse, but she couldn't be careless now. Her enemy could be anywhere in this
place.
A knot of fear rose up in her throat. Everything was too perfect. The
spells on the moon orbiting her planet where the castle was built were in
perfect condition. The walls constructed of jade weren't even slightly cracked.
Her palace was never in such perfect condition. She walked over to the vines
covering the walls and put a hand on one of them. The vine eagerly wrapped
around her hand. Something had caused it to wilt. It was a subtle change, but
the energy that pulsed through the network of vines had been slightly drained.
Jupiter closed her eyes, allowing her mind to be a part of the plants for
a few moments. She could feel its distress. It was weakening.
What happened here? she thought silently to the plant. The plants
response came back in simple emotions. Their thought patterns were fairly
primitive, but had developed from living around her. Something bad had
happened, it didn't know what. There was lots of noise, bad noise. Now,
something was taking its life force. It wasn't happy.
Jupiter thanked it for the information, though it hadn't done much good.
It had only confirmed the fact that something had happened here, which she had
already been certain of. She let her mind wander through the life force of the
vines, tracing the place that was taking energy. It was in the armory.
She rushed down there, already feeling the strain of using too much of her
power. Whatever it was, she wouldn't be able to put up much of a fight.
When she got there, she was surprised to find the crouched form of a tree
spirit. She was clutching a vine in one of her pale green hands. She had to be
one of the older ones, for her face was slightly lined with age.
"Callisto!" Jupiter gasped. "What happened?" The spirit-Callisto-looked up at
her with painful hope. She released the vine, much to the poor plants relief.
"Makoto-sama! You must get out of here and warn the other senshi!" she cried
frantically. "It's a trap for you!" Her eyes widened suddenly as a she froze
in position. She glowed faintly green for an instant. A massive crystal
solidified around her.
Jupiter stared in shock at her own legs which had been imprisoned in a similar
crystal. Damn! How could I not have seen this? Whoever was here set up a
spell to trap anyone who landed on the planet!
She let the antennae on her tiara rise up and gather electricity. She didn't
have enough strength at the time for a powerful attack. She would have to use
her weakest. It should be enough to shatter the crystal anyways.
"Supreme Thunder!" she shouted. She slammed her free hand onto the crystal. It
was futile though. The crystal didn't even crack. It grew over her face before
she had time to do anything.
A flower like emerald crystal appeared above the crystal that held her prisoner.
It hovered for a moment over her limp body before vanishing.
* * * * *
Rei's psychic sense screamed at her that something was wrong. Her legs
wobbled slightly, threatening to give way under her. She paused in the middle
of the dance, trembling violently. Her partner paused and looked at her
inquiringly.
"Rei-san, daijobu?" the man questioned. Rei nodded, struggling to remain
standing. Her head was throbbing and everything was spinning around her in a
blaze of red. Whatever she had been foretelling had just happened.
Inside her mind, she could hear the surface of her planet shrieking as a
foreign magic invaded it. The people were suffering. All of the panic and
agony that they felt was coursing through her body multiplied a hundred times by
her own intuition.
It was all she could do to remain there quietly shaking. If she cried
out, who knew what would happen? She bit her lip until she could taste blood in
her mouth.
"Daijobu?" the man repeated more urgently. She forced the corners of her
lips to curl into something she hoped passed for a smile. It probably resembled
a snarl more closely, but it was not something she needed to worry about.
"I'm…fine," she managed to say. She had to get away from here. She had
to find out what had happened on her planet, before it was too late.
"Rei-sama!" someone cried, close to hysterics. Rei looked over to see her
newest apprentice winding her way through the crowd. "Rei-sama, Makoto-sama and
Ami-sama have disappeared," she whispered.
"Kotono-chan, they just went for a walk. They're fine. Be careful…not
to…cause people to worry." With that, she went outside as quickly as her
quivering body permitted. Once she was outside, she fell to the ground, gasping
for air.
The vague sense she had felt that something was wrong had suddenly gotten
much, much stronger. She could feel the evil energy on her planet burning at
her. With tremendous effort, she stood up. She held up one hand above her
head. A small red pen materialized in her palm. Clasping it, she said the
words which would transform her into someone ready to fight. A moment later,
her senshi form emerged from a shower of fire.
She raised her hand and summoned the power of her badly wounded planet. A ball
of glowing red energy gathered in her hand. It wasn't as strong as it normally
should have been though. The shock was weakening her.
Focusing on her castle, she teleported in a blaze of red. A direct
teleport was more dangerous than creating a gateway, but she didn't have time.
She felt the energy of her planet around her. Her body wavered between
the two places-Crystal Tokyo and the surface of her planet-for a moment. Just
as she had begun to think that the spell had not been cast correctly, her high
heels landed with a click on the floor of her palace.
The palace was never cheerful, unlike some of the others. The place was
always fairly dark with bon fires casting eerie shadows on the walls and
pillars. Its appearance sent most people away, but not those who knew it well
enough. The people of the planet were attracted to it like moths to a flame.
Its warmth in the sheltered spell-dome drew them away from the freezing Martian
surface.
The castle had a strange charm in its own way. The elegant carvings on
the stonewalls and the dances tongues of flame gave it a mystical appearance.
Ornaments of various types of metal adorned the otherwise barren places.
Long irrigation canals melted water from the enormous glaciers and
channeled it to the castle. In the lower regions of the palace, smiths worked
tirelessly in the sweltering forges. Though mysterious and not for many people,
the castle was perfect for Rei. It was home. The tight knit community of
priestesses; smiths and ordinary people all knew each other perfectly.
Mars walked through the empty, silent castle without making a sound. She
could still feel the danger, but something was preventing her from finding the
source. Something was clouding her intuition.
She walked over to the central fire and knelt before it. She whispered
the chant that would bring her into the proper state of mind to conduct a fire
reading. It was several minutes before she was into a trance. She concentrated
all of her energy on the flickering fire, reaching out with her mind. She felt
her awareness spread beyond her own body, stretching out through the castle.
Her soul, united with the fire reached out to every corner of her home.
She gazed quietly into the flames as she felt her mind expand. She could
sense no one else here. There were people here, but they were in some sort of
status. Something was wrong with them. Their minds were…closed.
She pondered why this was, why their minds were different. She tried to
find out through the fire, but it offered no answers. Suddenly, an image rose
up in the flames and in her thoughts that almost caused her to lose her
concentration. It was Yuuchirou. He was frozen in some sort of gigantic
crystal. His face was twisted in agony and his mouth was open slightly as if he
were attempting to say something. Beside him, her two advisors-Phobos and
Deimos-were trapped in similar prisons. They had been halfway to their human
state before the crystals had imprisoned them.
"Yuuchirou!" she gasped. She had to know if he was all right. She tried
to force the answer to come up in the fire, but the images had stopped. The
fire crackled softly, as if in warning. It rapidly died down to a collection of
glowing embers. It shouldn't have done that, and she knew it.
She tried to stand up, but found herself unable to. Her legs were frozen
in place in the same sort of prison that had captured Yuuchirou.
"So, this is what it has come to," someone whispered from the corner. Rei
turned her head to see who the speaker was. She was obviously female, but her
face was hidden by the shadows.
"Dare desu ka?" Mars demanded, her voice rising slightly in near panic.
She couldn't see the figure's face, but she was certain that she smiled. She
said nothing though.
"Just tell me…tell me what you did with Yuuchirou!" she begged. She was
approaching hysterics. The princess laughed coldly. She still offered no
response.
"For the love of Kami-sama, tell me what you've done with Yuuchirou!" she
screamed. The princess stepped out of the shadows and into the fire's light.
She was smiling. It was a bitter, empty expression though. It was as icy as
the rest of her.
With a shock, Mars realized that her enemy was no more than seventeen.
How could this child have been twisted in this way?
"Please!" she cried. The princess walked toward her, unmoved.
"I want you to suffer, as I have suffered," she whispered. "I want you to
know what it feels like to lose someone. In a few minutes, maybe even less,
this crystal will cover you. You will remain in status for all eternity.
Before you go though, I want you to feel my pain." The black crystal collar
around her neck glowed an eerie purple color. With that said, she turned away
from the helpless queen. She teleported effortlessly from the now empty world.
"Yamete!" It was too late though. She was gone, leaving the Martian
queen to her fate.
"Yuuchirou." The words escaped her lips in her last breath as the crystal
solidified over her. A flowerlike gem floated over her for a moment before
disappearing as the other's had.
* * * * *
Minako paused for an instant on the dance floor. Her partner stared at
her questioningly. This was not his first time dancing with her, so he knew all
to well that being in a place like this, whether flirting, dancing or merely
socializing, was where she felt most at home. She paraded flaunted her timeless
beauty and charm as few did. Tonight, she was different though, her eyes had a
vacant look to them, as though she was only partially there. Her movements had
been almost flawless, but there was a robotic quality to them. Her usual
cheerful bounciness was missing, leaving only a shadow of what she normally was
like.
"Is there something wrong?" he said softly. She didn't respond for a
moment. She still wore the same distant expression. That concerned him more
than anything. Few people ever gave Minako credit for being intelligent or
alert, but she possessed both of those qualities. Years as a warrior had
sharpened her senses to the point where she almost never missed something as
obvious as this. After an uncomfortable few seconds, her head snapped up and
her eyes returned to focus.
"Gomen ne, what did you say?"
"Did something happen to you? You're not yourself."
"" She smiled lightly and tried to brush off his concern.
"Do you want me to come with you?" he asked.
"Ara, I'll be fine on my own. I think this cramped palace is starting to
get to me," she said with her usual jaunty wink. That was more like the Minako
he knew. She was almost always cheerful and confident. There were times though
where her face clouded over with memories of her own past. It seemed almost
like she was two different people. She was usually the fun, pleasant girl that
everyone loved. When things became difficult though, a noticeable change came
about her. She became darker and more serious, the grim leader needed to
command such a powerful force as the inner planetary senshi. Sometimes, he
wondered what had happened to her in the past to make her this way. He would
have loved to know, but it was not his place to ask.
Minako excused herself and went outside. She knew her partner was
probably just as aware as she was that she was far more comfortable in the
spotlight of the dance floor than out alone. She soaked up attention like a
sponge and practically lived in the spotlight. She adored the extra publicity
she got from being queen, though missed the simplicity of fighting solo.
Once in a while though, it did feel good to be on her own to collect her
thoughts. She would have enjoyed a few minutes to herself.
Her mind couldn't seem to quiet down though. For days now, she had had
the vague feeling that something was wrong. She could never place it and always
dismissed it. It had returned so often though that she had begun to wonder if
it was important. She didn't have an intuition like Rei's, but she had good
instincts and she trusted them. Being Sailor V had taught her that some times
her instincts were the only things she could rely on.
Without warning, Minako collapsed in the dirt, gasping for air. The
danger that she had felt looming over her had suddenly increased dramatically.
Her planet-Venus-was suffering. She could feel the cries of fear from the
people echoing inside her skull. She could feel the planet itself shuddering in
agony. Some foreign magic had invaded it.
She pressed her hands to her throbbing temples in an effort to clear her
head. She couldn't think straight though. The panic of her people would
probably drive her mad. She couldn't think past the terror that they were all
experiencing.
She took in a deep breath and let it out, focusing her energies as Artemis
had taught her so long ago. Gradually, the blind fear subsided and her more
rational side took control of her mind.
She might have to fight. With this in mind, she pulled out her henshin
pen and transformed in a flash of golden light. It was always best to be
prepared. The outfit she had been wearing would only have gotten in the way.
With that taken care of, she raised her hand and allowed the energy of her
planet to flow through her. She let it build up for a moment before casting it
on to the ground. It formed a small circle around her body. She closed her
eyes and exited through her crude portal, closing it behind her. The spell she
had used lacked polish, but would serve her need right now.
Only seconds later, she landed in the main entrance of Magellan Castle.
The entrance looked as cheerful as ever. It was a combination of white marble
and gold vines with roses on them that climbed up the pillars. It was
somehow…empty now though.
The usual sounds of people laughing and running about were missing. She
walked along cautiously, feeling like a stranger in her own castle. Her high
heels clicked eerily on the marble floor. There was no other sound. None.
"Is anyone here?" Venus called out. Her own voice echoed back from all
corners of the room. There was no response though. Venus looked around
apprehensively. Something drastic had happened here.
She continued to walk through the hallways, though no one was there.
There were dozens of mirrors lining the corridors, so she should have seen
someone at least. The castle seemed to be deserted though.
Venus walked over to a window over looking the garden and sat down,
feeling more afraid by the second. If she could see an enemy, she could deal
with it. This silence though was worse. She couldn't fight it and she couldn't
find out what had happened. All she could do was wait until whatever it was
made itself known, or she heard from one of the people.
Had the dome that shielded them from the harsh temperatures of her planet
weakened for a moment? It was possible. All of the people would have evacuated
under such circumstances, explaining their absence. Her instincts told her that
that was not the case though. She knew somehow that whatever had happened had
been worse than that. Besides, if the shield had weakened temporarily, the
plants would be dead.
She looked out through the window at the magnificent garden below. It was
primarily roses of various colors, though she had added in plenty of other
flowers for variety. The garden was patterned around a series of pools and
fountains of Mercurial design. Actually, she had designed not all of the
castle. The people of Mars had donated the metal and the people of Jupiter had
helped with the gardens.
In the distance, just beyond the massive dome, storm clouds gathered. The
sky of Venus had turned a poisonous shade of yellow as it usually did during
storms. That was nothing unusual though, not enough to cause an entire
population to flee.
Venus decided to continue her search to see if there was anyone left here.
She needed to at least feel like she was doing something productive. Just
sitting here would drive her crazy. She tried to stand up, but found that she
was frozen in place. She looked down in horror to see that a massive golden
crystal had formed over here legs and one arm. It was slowly climbing up her
shoulder to engulf her completely.
Venus turned her head to see a woman standing in the shadow of one of the
pillars. Her hair was tied up in two pointed odangoes and fell down almost to
her feet. Venus's eyes widened in horror. The silhouette of the person
strongly resembled…
"Black Lady?" she gasped. The person stepped out of the shadows,
revealing their face. Her face was hardened and had a cynical look to it that
Venus could never remember Black Lady having before. Her eyes were familiar to
the senshi though. They were cold, brutal and utterly merciless. The second
you saw them; you could feel the wrongness in them. You could tell that they
were things that never belonged in this world.
"Why did you do this? What happened to everyone?" Venus demanded. The
girl sneered at her.
"It would not help me if I told you."
"Dare desu ka?!" Venus yelled. She pointed her finger at the intruder.
"Crescent Beam!" The attack was easily blocked.
"Those crystals have a dampening effect, you know. Not that anything you
can do would be strong enough to hurt me, but I had to take precautions."
"How can you do this?!" The princess watched her calmly, her collar
glowing faintly.
"I could ask the very same question of you. How could you condemn an
entire race to certain death? You never considered the consequences, did you?
You never thought that we might come back."
"What are you talking about?"
"You know perfectly well what I'm talking about, or you should." Venus
struggled to get out of the crystal which now covered everything but her head.
She wanted to strike at the invader, but knew she couldn't. There was nothing
she could do to prevent her fate. She closed her eyes and waited for it to
come. A few seconds later, the crystal engulfed her and a flower-like gem
floated out of the frozen body.
The princess walked towards her and ran her fingers over the smooth
surface of the senshi's coffin. If removed from it, her body would deteriorate
almost instantly. She had the starseed and the pure heart. She would let her
and the others stay like this though, to show the queen their fate. She would
reserve something much worse for the queen herself though. Much worse.
Her eyes and collar flashed dangerously before she teleported. It
wouldn't be long now…
* * * * *
The princess stood before the bodies of four of her servants. They were
unconscious at the time, as that would make the transfer less painful. They had
volunteered for whatever fate came to them.
Each one had a nearly perfect psychological profile for what they were
needed for. Each one had ambition and a firm degree of control over their
powers.
The first one-Peridot-had short, wavy green hair. She was small compared
to most people and didn't appear to be terribly athletic. She had a strong will
to gain power though and had somehow managed to survive this long in the
cutthroat society of Nemesis, which said a lot. Anyone who did survive had to
possess some sort of ability. Peridot's was cunning. Though not powerful, she
was a backstabber and had been able to destroy a number of very capable
officials to get to the top. The princess let the blue Starcrystal of Mercury
float down to reside on her chest.
The next one-Jade-was considerably taller than Peridot. He also appeared
to be a lot stronger. His wavy coal-black hair went down to his shoulders. He
looked like he would have no trouble surviving. He was tough and could best
most people in physical combat at least. His other skill was manipulation,
though he used magic to aid that. To a certain degree, he could control
people's minds and force information out of them. He could even cause them to
do what he wanted, some of the time. At the time though, he didn't have much
offensive magic. That would soon be remedied. She considered her selection.
After a moment, she chose the strongest one for him-Jupiter. He would use her
strengths well. She let the crystal float down onto his chest.
The third one was named Heliotrope. He had short cropped, straight blonde
hair. He wasn't overly strong or tall, but he was by far one of the more
intelligent. The princess found that she had a strong dislike for him, but that
didn't really matter. What mattered was the way that he could use almost anyone
he encountered. He had supposedly been in brief relationships with several
girls for a while, leaving them utterly devoted to him. He was in the inner
circle of Nemisisian politics and made good use of that fact. She chose Venus
for him.
The final chosen one was Tanzanite. She had waist length scarlet hair
that she kept tied back in a tight braid. She was the only one of the quartet
that had gotten to this position the regular way. While the others had lied,
cheated, and killed their way here, she hadn't. She had been the top of her
group in every training exercise she had ever been in. She was fairly athletic
and skilled with a number of weapons. She also was excellent in the use of
magic. The one potential problem that she could see was that she still had some
sense of ethics left and appeared not to have absolute control over her
emotions. That could be difficult. She gave her the Starcrystal of Mars. It
would suit her.
The princess took several steps back from all of them. She didn't like
what she was about to do. It was an ancient spell, one which most people would
stay far away from. She had heard that the royal family had either destroyed
their copies of it or hidden them. She wasn't surprised. They were often
weak when it came to such things.
The spell was forbidden by most people. It was the height of black magic
and something that few would ever do. She was one of those few. She despised
using it, but she had to. She would sacrifice anything for the sake of her
people. This would help them. She had no choice.
She said the cursed words as she walked around the four people. They were
practically corpses at this point. Their bodies had been put into status for
the time being.
Reaching deep inside of herself, she called on all the energy she had.
She channeled that dark power through her into the spell she was forming. The
four crystals began to glow brightly. There was no turning back now.
She sent a stream of her own energy at them, sealing the crystals to the
four bodies lying down. A cyclone of raw power swirled around her in the
circle she had paced out. The crystals seemed to hesitate. After a few seconds
though, they dissolved, melting into the four people. The bodies flashed
briefly.
Four pairs of eyes shot wide open. Their faces were drenched in sweat and
they were all gasping wildly for air. All of a sudden, they screamed
simultaneously out of pure agony. Their cry echoed throughout the entire
galaxy. Sailor Pluto collapsed, Galaxia cried out, even Serenity screamed with
sudden pain. Every single senshi cried out in horror, not knowing why.
The four figures were knocked out from the shock. Even in their sleep
though, their faces were twisted with anguish.
The princess wobbled slightly on her unsteady legs. She slammed into the
floor, exhausted. Within seconds, she too was asleep.
* * * * *
Haruka ran blindly into the night. She didn't bother to consider what
some people might think if they saw her, a senshi, running away from the castle.
She didn't care at the moment. What they thought was irrelevant.
She had to get away from everything. She didn't care what the
consequences were, she had to. She looked back and saw the castle, still
looming over her. She put on an extra burst of speed to gain some distance.
She had no destination, nothing to run to, only something to run from. She just
wanted to get away from it all.
That had been what she had wanted a long time ago, to get away. She
wasn't sure if she had really understood it at the time, but she had felt the
need to run away from something that was following her. She was constantly
finding new ways to go faster, as if she could outrun her own destiny. Things
hadn't seemed to bad then, not to her anyways. She depended on herself, no one
else. Many would have been lonely without any family members she was still
really connected to or friends she really knew, but it had suited her.
In a way, she had just been lying to herself. Somehow, in her
subconscious she had known that she could never stay that way. Some part of her
she was unable to eliminate longed for companionship. With the same unyielding
stubbornness that she used all of the time, she pushed these traitorous thoughts
to the back of her mind. She told herself that this was the life she wanted.
She had success, money, and fame, everything many would have killed for. What
reason did she have to be miserable?
When she started getting the dreams though, it became harder to ignore. Her
discontentment grew by the day until it was insufferable. She started pushing
herself even harder, going at speeds few would have dared. She started to
emerge at the top of the racing circuit and cut everything else out. It became
her world. Everything else paled in comparison to it. She still wasn't really
happy though. There was something missing which she could never find.
Over the next few months, the dreams had become more intense. She also
began to see the same person appearing in them. They even started to affect her
daily. She lost sleep for fear of seeing that same scene again. Her grades
didn't drop by much and she still managed to win virtually every race she
competed in, but she was definitely not doing as well as before. She found that
she couldn't concentrate on most things. Her mind just kept repeating that
scene, drawing her away from the life she had worked so hard to achieve.
She started putting more of her energies into car racing. Everything else
was just a way of killing time. The number of races she was winning soared, but
she knew that in the long run, she was losing.
When she saw Kaioh Michiru, she had been terrified. At first, she thought
it must have been some sort of coincidence that this girl resembled the figure
in her dreams. When she said that she could hear the wind in the trees though,
and when she looked at her like that, she knew it was no coincidence. A cruel
twist of fate, or something like it, had brought this girl into her life.
Over the next few weeks, she struggled to avoid Kaioh Michiru. It became
a near obsession to get away from this personification of her own destiny. The
more she tried to stay away from her though, the more she seemed to encounter
her. Sometimes she wondered who was responsible for the times they met. Was it
fate, careful planning on Michiru's part, or had she unconsciously tried to run
into the aqua haired girl? Though she told herself firmly that she wanted
nothing to do with Michiru, she couldn't help but feel attracted to her.
Several long weeks after their first meeting, she once again stumbled into
Michiru, this time on a cruise ship.
It wasn't long before that fateful day in the garage. She remembered
every detail, the vague stink of oil, the jumble of paint cans on the shelves.
She had just been about to check if her car was fixed yet. There had been a
small boy, crying. She could still see every detail on his face perfectly.
When she had gone over to help though, he had changed. Some demon had risen out
of his body. She had tried to fight it of course, though she had no chance. No
ordinary human would ever be able to stop something like that.
Moments later, though it felt like hours, her pen appeared in the air. It
glowed almost seductively, drawing her closer. It was a promise, a promise that
she could have what she had always known she had been missing. With trembling
fingers, she had reached out to grab it, unaware of what she was doing.
Ironically, Michiru had gotten her out of the trance. She had begged her
not to take it. It wasn't really Michiru's words that had awakened her. It was
the bitterness in her voice. She was speaking of what she'd lost. Haruka's
hand had shot back and she had turned to Michiru, wondering why she had done
that.
Michiru had transformed and fought against the monster for her sake. She
hadn't faltered, despite her wounds. She had struggled against it. Why? For
Haruka, that was why. When she had fallen, shielding her and dropped into
Haruka's arms, Haruka knew what the emotion she had been feeling lately was.
She loved her. There had been no choice left for her. She couldn't let Michiru
fight alone. She grabbed the henshin pen at that time and transformed. Once
that was done, there was no going back.
Over the next few months, they'd grown closer to each other than they had
ever dreamed. They had never been able to come close to anyone else though.
They severed any ties they had with other people, they couldn't afford them.
Ruthlessly, they both shattered the lives they had worked so hard to gain. They
couldn't afford those either. All of that was all right though because they had
each other.
Haruka had thought they always would. Now though, she wasn't so sure.
This was the second time that she had seen Michiru with Seiya, and she was
beginning to worry about it. If she didn't have Michiru, she had no one.
So Haruka ran as she once had, trying to escape everything. When her
lungs felt as though they were about to burst and her legs weakened, she
collapsed on the dirt, gasping. She lay there under the stars for a while, she
wasn't sure how long, regaining her breath and thinking. When she had
recovered, she stood up and started walking. Running for that long had taxed
even her stamina.
Only one thought was left in her mind, she had to find Michiru. She knew
where she was. Deep inside, she knew where to find her.
* * * * *
The princess awoke, still feeling barely alive. The spell had required
more power than she had thought. She had also been casting too much recently.
She had to coordinate her attack perfectly in order to catch the senshi by
surprise. This didn't allow much time for her to rest though.
She hauled herself up and walked into her small chamber. It wasn't much
of a home, especially for a leader. The only indications that she was more than
a commoner were a few furnishings like a rug, some curtains and a bench in the
corner. Even the bed wasn't very elaborate.
The place had once belonged to Diamondo though, and that made it royal
enough for her. Anything he considered fit was certainly above most standards.
She would have liked to rest, but she didn't have the luxury of that time.
If this invasion went wrong, most of the people on this planet could end up
dead, a fate they shouldn't have to suffer.
She put a hand to her collar, worried. It was almost burningly hot. It
hadn't done that too much before now, but it seemed to be more active lately.
She put a hand to her head and went over to the small scrying mirror she
kept. She needed to select her next target and destroy them before the senshi
realized what had happened and attempted to retaliate. If she planned
this right, she should have the entire Crystal Tokyo down in a few days.
After several minutes of observation, she found one. She was standing alone,
the surf breaking against her in the night. The princess smiled. It had been
a mistake for this one to leave the safety of the palace...
* * * * *
As her partner had expected, Michiru had gone to the ocean. It was her place
of refuge. Just as Haruka turned to the wind whipping by her to find strength, Michiru
turned to the surging waves of the sea.
Haruka suppressed the desire to run to her lover and ask her what was troubling
her. If Michiru wanted solitude, it was a good sign that she needed it. So she
let her lover remain there, standing up to her waist in the water, gazing at the horizon.
Haruka felt a small pang in her heart as she thought of the evenings events and of
the fact that Michiru had gone to be alone. There was a time when instead of going to the
ocean, Michiru would have gone her her.
* * * * *
Michiru let herself fall foreword into the waves, feeling the water cover
her. The stars in the sky seemed to die out as she submerged herself
completely. The water seemed to dance around her, welcoming their sister back.
Yes, this was who she was. She was a part of this. She let the oxygen
seep out of her lungs and water replace it. She sank deeper into the laughing,
joyful waves, feeling her own body weaken. She wouldn't need that shell. She
was beyond that. She was the ocean.
The current reached for her and began to drag her out into the abyss of
the water that she loved. Her legs kicked weakly out of impulse. The tide
ignored it. She was a part of this, not some human. She could feel the shell
she had inhabited for so long slowly dying. It had no more air to feed off of
and couldn't survive in these conditions. She would soon leave it.
She laughed in joy with her sisters. She could be one of them again. She
crowed with glee as the body sank down towards the ocean bed, where it would
rest eternally. She would be free.
She felt something tugging at the corner of her human mind, wanting to
pull her back. She saw herself with another human, holding hands. The other
human's eyes were slightly widened in surprise. She knew that the scene had
held some meaning for her at some point. It was important.
It was nothing to her now though. Now, she would finally be a part of the
sea, forever.
* * * * *
Haruka watched Michiru sink beneath the surface of the water with a
growing unease. Michiru was a strong swimmer, she should have no problems.
Haruka knew that she shouldn't be so concerned about her, but something was
wrong. She had stayed down too long. She should have come back up by now.
Haruka suddenly realized it: she was drowning. It didn't seem possible,
but she was drowning. Why though? It couldn't have been an accident, not with
her. Suicide didn't seem likely either.
Haruka didn't really care though at this point. A rush of adrenaline gave
her the extra strength she needed. She sprinted down towards the sea with all
of the speed she had. All other thoughts were driven from her mind. All that
mattered right then was saving Michiru.
She plunged into the icy water as quickly as possible, not stopping to
think. Once submerged in it though, she realized that it was far colder than
she had anticipated. Even with her increased senshi capabilities, she would
only last about ten minutes. She forced her eyes to open in the water. The
water burned at her eyes and she couldn't see a thing though.
She dove down blindly trying to find the body-she prayed it wasn't a
corpse by then-that was down there somewhere. She was a fairly strong swimmer-
though she could never catch Michiru-but she was finding that she had to exert
all of her energy into swimming not to get dragged out.
She wondered if the ocean was always this way. It hadn't seemed terribly
violent before. Finally, she had to come up for air. Her well-trained lungs
felt like they were going to explode and she was beginning to feel disoriented.
She fought her way up to the surface with her weakened limbs and attempted to
get another breath. A wave washed over her two quickly though and she found
herself sucking in salt water. Gasping and choking, she struggled to get up
again. She couldn't hold on much longer. The ocean itself seemed to be
dragging her down though. The current dragged her down constantly.
She finally managed to get up a second time and gulp down a quick breath
of air. It had cost her too much time though. Michiru could have died in that
time.
* * * * *
It was almost a corpse by now, she reflected gleefully. The ocean had
been cold tonight, too cold for the weak human shell to live. She helped the
current and pressed the feeble part of herself down into the icy sands at the
bottom. It would make a good meal for all of the creatures swimming inside her.
The sands added weight to it, pulling it even deeper under the layers of grit.
Not much longer, not much longer…she would be free from that shell. She
could join the rest of the sea, becoming something even stronger.
The human's lips were a pale shade of blue. Its face was a spectral
white. Hypothermia was finally overcoming it. Feebly, it reached up with one
gloved hand toward something. It was a bizarre reaction, almost a compulsion.
She snapped free of the shell, pulling out towards the ocean, trying
desperately to get away. The ocean helped her, trying to get her to break free.
What was that shape up above her though. She could sense another human's
presence. What were they doing.
She realized suddenly that they meant to drag the almost lifeless body
back to the surface, and take her with it. No! She couldn't return to that
prison! She was free! Free.
The human seemed to be very strong. It was still alive. If that was the
case, then her corpse could accompany the other one on the ocean floor. She
would enjoy watching the flesh rot off their skeletons.
Die…
* * * * *
Haruka could already feel her limbs growing numb and limp as she dove down
for a fourth time. She couldn't see a thing. The worst though was that she
couldn't see Michiru. Her worst thoughts began to catch up with her already
dying, freezing mind. It was almost impossible for her to have survived this
long…
She let herself sink down to the bottom. Frantically, she searched around
blindly. No sign of Michiru. She struggled to get up again for air. The tide
slammed her down into the sand though.
This time, she couldn't get up. Her arms and legs were almost completely
numb and she could barely move them. The sand began to wash over her, burying
her alive. She wanted to scream out to someone to drag her from her watery
grave, but no one would hear. There was no one to scream to.
Beneath her, she touched something that was still slightly warm. She
turned down to look at it. The salt seared her eyes, but she still opened them
and looked. She saw a touch of white in her distorted, blurred vision. It was
a hand, reaching up from the filth it was buried in.
That was all she needed to see. She grabbed the hand, feeling some life
come back into her muscles. She slammed one of her boots into the sand and
kicked off with it, sending her floating upward with Michiru dragging limply
behind.
The world blurred around her into a mess of light and dark. No way
out…have to…have to save Michiru…where? Where is the castle?
A part of her was already aware that she wasn't thinking clearly, that
hypothermia was beginning to take effect. She couldn't seem to snap out of her
disoriented state, even though she was aware she was losing precious time trying
to think which direction to go.
After an eternity, she saw a faint glimmer in one direction. The moon…It
had been her guiding light for all of those years, ironic that it was all that
could save her now. With the last of her energy, she swam against the brutal
ocean currents towards it.
The ocean's strong current suddenly stopped. A giant wave reared up and
tossed them onto the beach. Haruka lay there, barely moving for a moment as she
sucked in the much-needed air around her.
"Michiru, daijobu?" There was no response. She was completely limp.
Haruka's salt-stung eyes widened in horror. It couldn't be…
"Michiru!" she cried. There was an edge of panic to her voice now.
Michiru stirred slightly and opened her eyes though without too much of a delay.
There was something wrong with her eyes though. The blue of her eyes had
swallowed up the pupil and the outer rim. She looked at her blankly, not
recognizing her.
"Why did you pull me back? You are not a human, you are the wind…" Her
eyes transformed, reverting to their original form. Her body began to quiver
and she grabbed on to Haruka as if her life depended on it. She didn't say
anything for a few minutes, she just sat there shivering.
Haruka wasn't worried about the fact that she could have hypothermia. As
a senshi, she would recover from such things far more quickly than any normal
human. Their immune system was incredibly strong. In a little while, she would
be fine. What frightened Haruka was the fact that Michiru was scared. After
what they had been through, very little ever really got to them.
"Don't worry," she said softly. "I won't let you go." It was one of the
few times that she realized just how fragile Michiru could be. She held so much
life in her small frame. It didn't seem possible. Physically, she was far
superior to most humans. Even emotionally she was more capable of handling
things.
There were times though, brief moments where a haunted, despairing look
seemed to cross her face. Haruka was well aware that she had born that
expression too. Perhaps it was just a result of what they had been through.
Michiru always seemed so sure of herself though, like she was invulnerable to
depression, though she knew that was not the case.
"Ai shiteru." Michiru didn't reply. She simply sat there shivering
either out of cold or fear-for once in her life, Haruka wasn't sure-staring up
at the sky.
"She's here," she said quietly. Michiru stated it with absolute
conviction and sincerity in her voice.
"Who?" Michiru continued to stare upwards into the star flecked sky.
"I don't know. I felt her presence for a split second there. I should
have been a little more wary, but I was too surprised." She shivered again,
something abnormal for her. "I've never experience anything like that. I was
there but…I wasn't the person you know. I was actually a part of the ocean. I
had no real identity." Neither said anything for a few minutes. She just
remained there recovering, still clinging to each other. "Our peace has ended,"
she said abruptly, shattering the uncanny silence. There were so few times
where Neptune sounded bitter, but this was one of them.
* * * * *
"Damn," the princess hissed, her voice so low as to barely be audible. She
had been close, very close. Another minute or two and Neptune would have been gone
completely. It would have made matters far more simple for her in the future.
She couldn't help but feel slightly sick at the thought. A few months ago and
she would not have considered killing someone, not like this. The idea of setting
traps that her foes could not possibly defend themselves against would not have appealed
to her. Times were desperate though, people were desperate.
I was so naive, she thought to herself. Believing that everything could be solved
without the lose of life. How stupid...
She felt a bit of remorse at that last thought, that she had grown so cynicle in so
little time, but she pushed it away. There was no time to lose, no time to let her grow up
as she pleased. They needed a leader, one more mature and strong then the child she had been.
If gaining that leader meant the sacrifice of the child, that was what would happen.
* * * * *
It was late by the time that the couple finally went back to the castle.
Neither said a word. A sense of growing dread had come over both of them. They
weren't quite sure what they would find when they got back. Haruka had known
Michiru long enough to be pretty sure that she was accurate when she said
someone had just invaded the solar system. She knew perfectly well that her
battle-hardened intuition would be able to find something like that.
To Haruka's relief, the castle appeared to be fine when she got back. The
lights were still on and even from a good distance, she could hear music playing
faintly in the background. She wasn't sure what she had been expecting, but she
had almost anticipated the place to be burned down or to have had something
equally disastrous happen to it.
They decided to head for the side entrance. Whenever they showed up,
people always seemed to follow them wanting a better view. They would certainly
scare people if they showed up like this. Two wet, bedraggled, haggard senshi
coming in on the queen's anniversary was hardly an ordinary event. It would
start quite a few rumors, especially with them. Michiru was still leaning
heavily on her shoulder and she felt like a wreck.
Her foot bumped into something as she walked along. At first, she thought
it was just a rock or some random piece of junk. She was bound to trip over
things in her fatigued state. She almost dismissed it as nothing.
Out of some bizarre compulsion, she looked back though. It was definitely
not a rock. It was fairly large and curled up on the ground. Haruka walked
back to examine it, dragging Michiru with her.
As she came closer to the object, a sickening sense filled her. She it
wasn't an object, it was a person wearing black. Who ever they were, they
couldn't be in very good shape, provided they were still alive.
Michiru bent down and rolled the person over to see who they were, or had
been. Haruka's worst fear had been fulfilled. Hotaru was lying there in the
dirt. Her face was a ghostly, surreal shade of white and her frail figure was
caked with dried blood. Her breathing came in rough, ragged gasps that hurt
Haruka almost as much as her.
Her purple eyes cracked open. Through those two tiny slits, she saw her
parents.
"Haruka? Michiru?" she whispered. A tiny stream of red liquid trickled
out of the corner of her mouth. Her words triggered a brief coughing spasm.
Haruka could only stand there helplessly, watching as her own child shuddered in
anguish.
Her narrowed eyes closed weakly. Michiru quickly bent down and checked
her pulse. It was there, but it was a weak one. Neither one of them said a
word as they looked at her. Haruka picked her up, cradling her like a newborn
child. Together, they continued walking towards the palace.
* * * * *
"She's bleeding internally," Michiru said grimly. Even she had to fight
back some tears looking at the mangled body that was her child. They had gotten
most of the blood off of her and bandaged her wounds. There was no way they
could help her inside though.
She checked her pulse for the thousandth time. It was still far two
erratic. Her heartbeats were merely twitches of the skin and they didn't seem
to follow any sort of pattern. It was all right though as long as her heart was
still beating. What she was afraid of was that she would put her hand over her
wrist, and feel nothing but cold beneath her fingers. She tried to brush away
the thought, but it was impossible.
"Michiru?" she mumbled. The word was barely comprehensible. Michiru
noticed instantly though.
"What is it?" she asked. Perhaps there was hope for her yet.
"Where is Chibi-Usa-chan? I-I know that…" Another set of hacking coughs
racked her body and more blood gushed up from her open mouth. Michiru waited
patiently, unable to do anything for her. "She's probably too busy as a
princess….but, could you find her for me? I kind of wish that she could be one
of the last faces for me to see." Michiru felt slightly sick. She couldn't
lose Hotaru, not after all this time.
Haruka appeared behind her. She had changed back to her civilian form and
was wearing a lose blouse, one of her gold earrings and a pair of black pants.
It was formal enough to at least pass.
"I'll find her," she said. Michiru looked up to her gratefully.
* * * * *
Chibi-Usa yawned loudly. It was almost one in the morning and she was
exhausted. She'd left the ballroom a little while ago after being pestered by
so many people. It was annoying. She was now in the library reading a book and
watching the other people dance. She couldn't help but be a little depressed
while watching them. They managed to be so graceful and look perfect, two
things she felt she could never do.
Something was wrong though. Her mind kept drifting back to that thought.
It was that way when the Dead Moon invaded earth those many years ago. As the
sun had slowly dwindled to a crescent, then vanished, she had felt a sense of
growing dread. She knew that something was coming, though she had no idea what.
She shook her head and smiled a little, attempting to clear her mind of
such dismal thoughts. She was probably half asleep and already having
nightmares.
"Ara, Small Lady, I didn't see you there," someone said. Chibi-Usa
visibly sank a little at the comment, though she knew it wasn't intended to be
harsh. She carefully kept her face blank, trying not to recall that remark.
Some of the other people had been harsher than usual that day. It wasn't
anything she couldn't put up with though.
"Hi," she said cheerfully. She carefully monitored her voice so that none
of the hurt she felt would show. She was out of practice from hiding her
emotions. In the twentieth century, she almost never had any need to. The
other senshi just assumed her petite size was the fact that she hadn't had a
growth spurt in a while. She had never bothered to mention that it had been
several centuries.
She turned to her mother and saw that she was nervous. She was reading a
book but she was constantly looking up as if she expected someone to jump out at
her. She fidgeted consistently, a habit that Chibi-Usa thought she had
abandoned years ago. Her normally placid blue eyes were fairly wide and she was
biting her lip.
Chibi-Usa smiled as encouragingly as possible, attempting to cheer her up.
"That party was really great! I don't know how you planned it!" Neo-
Queen Serenity looked as if she hadn't heard her at all. Her eyes were focused
on something else.
"Queen?" some court official said timidly. She looked up, startled. She
composed herself quickly, but her hands were still trembling.
"Nan desu ka?" she whispered.
"The senshi all appear to be missing, they have been for some time.
Saturn was said to be absent several hours ago. The inners all left at around
the same time and Uranus and Neptune have been reported missing for about half
an hour."
"They're quite capable of taking care of themselves," she insisted. The
officer hesitated for a minute before speaking again. He pulled out a tattered
piece of black fabric that was stained with blood.
"This was Hotaru-sama's dress and further testing revealed that the blood
is also hers."
"Arigato. That will be all," she said firmly. The advisor hesitated,
then left.
"I had feared that this would happen. There is nothing that I can do to
help them though," she said sadly. Chibi-Usa knew that she was being spoken to,
but the queen did not look in her direction. She stared out in to space, her
forehead furrowed with worry.
"What's going to happen?" Chibi-Usa asked. She didn't want to know the
answer. She felt obligated to ask it though. If she was a member of the royal
family, she should be aware of what happened.
"Everything that we know and love may change," the queen said. Her voice
bore the weight of years of tragedy. It was hard to believe that she had once
been Usagi. "For several months now, our astronomers on the farther, outer
planets have been monitoring Nemesis. There appeared to be no change, until one
day it vanished. I suspected an attack, but wasn't quit sure. I think the
other senshi had begun to get the same feeling of unease, but no one said a word
about it as the planet vanished just yesterday at midnight, earth time. The
energy build up I felt a little while ago was unmistakable. They've already
struck. I don't know how many planets they've hit, but they've almost certainly
inflicted severe damage. I will need to raise the shield over the city. Last
time, Minako-tachi did it but…this time, I must try alone. In several hours,
anyone who is outside of the shield will be unable to return and potentially be
killed." Her voice wavered slightly for the first time. "I-I can't let
anything happen to the others! As the queen though, I must protect the
inhabitants. I have warned the rest of the planet, but there is nothing else
that I can do for them."
Chibi-Usa looked at her in shock. One issue that Usagi had always stood
firmly on was the fact that everyone must be protected. Now, even she was
forced to make sacrifices? There was no way for her to avoid it? Chibi-Usa
jumped up. She knew she was being irrational, but the thought of one of her few
friends trapped outside of the shelter and facing certain death or torture was
too much for her. She knew just how strong the people of Nemesis were. She
knew what their grief was like.
"We'll wait for them! We'll wait until everyone's here until we raise the
shield!" Her mother smiled at her, sadly. There was no bitterness in her
expression though.
"I'll wait as long as I can before I raise the shield, Small Lady. There
is nothing else that I can do though. I-I'm sure they'll show up."
"Small Lady," a familiar voice said. Chibi-Usa turned around joyfully to
see Haruka leaning against the doorframe. She was wearing casual clothing,
bearing evidence to the fact that she hadn't been at the ceremony very long.
The only jewelry she had bothered to put on was her small, gold hoop earring and
a matching necklace made out of a thin chain. There was also a ring on her
finger, but she always wore that. The other thing that Chibi-Usa noticed about
her was that her close-cropped blonde hair was still slightly wet.
Neo-Queen Serenity looked like she might collapse with relief.
"Haruka-san! Do you know where the others are?" Despite the fact that
she and Haruka knew each other very well at this point, and the fact that she
was far above the other's position, she still insisted on using the respectful
suffix. She said that there was no way she could ever think of Haruka as
someone to look down on.
"Michiru and Hotaru are with me." As usual, there was barely a hint of
emotion in her voice. It was low and calm, not betraying her emotions like the queen's.
"And the inners?" Neo-Queen Serenity queried. Haruka shook her head
grimly.
"No sign of them. I wouldn't bother sending out search parties though.
Hotaru was badly injured." She paused. "Michiru has proof that something has
just invaded us. It's strong enough to be a threat." She said nothing else.
"I see." Haruka's eyes flashed angrily, but she said didn't reply.
"Chibi-Usa-chan, come with me. There's someone who wishes to see you."
Chibi-Usa looked up at her, a little surprised. Haruka rarely wanted to have
much to do with her. She tolerated her and helped protect her. That was the
extent of it though. "Are you just going to sit there?" she snapped. The princess
hurriedly got up and left with her, feeling slightly embarrassed and also afraid.
* * * * *
Haruka walked off with the little princess trailing her.
"Damn fool," she muttered to herself. The queen knew perfectly well what
she was getting herself into, but she was still going to try it. There was
nothing the senshi could do but watch.
"Nani?" Chibi-Usa asked. Haruka looked at Chibi-Usa miserably. The poor
kid had no idea, none at all. The queen had made sure of that. The queen wouldn't
have wanted her child to worry about her. Haruka's lips twisted into a bitter smile,
anger clearly visible on her face.
Having the child remain ignorant was no solution to the problem. It would only make
things harder for her when she found out.
Of course, I'm the one who gets to explain to her what's happening to her mother,
Haruka thought. I'm the one who brings the bad news, not her. Serenity wouldn't want to
hurt anyone, even if it was for their own good.
"She's going to use the ginzuishou. There's no way around it."
"But that would kill her!" Chibi-Usa gasped. Haruka nodded.
"She knows it too. That spell drains the life-force of whoever needs to
use it so desperately. On her own, she may only last a few months." Chibi-
Usa's eyes widened, shock and pure horror reflected in them.
"Venus-tachi used a shield spell last time though."
"Yes, but it was at a lower power level and there were four of them not
one. Even though the queen is strong, there's no way that she can survive
that." Neither said anything for the rest of the way. There really wasn't a
lot that they could talk about.
Haruka stopped and gestured to the door in front of her. Chibi-Usa looked
at the door uncertainly. She didn't want to go in, but she didn't want to look
like a coward in front of Haruka. In the brief time that she had known her, she
had gained a tremendous sense of respect for the older woman. Trying not to
quiver, she opened the door and stepped in.
What she saw was far worse than anything she had anticipated. Hotaru was
lying on the bed. Michiru sat beside the stricken figure of her friend, her
face clouded with silent anguish.
Stifling a sob, Chibi-Usa rushed over to her. She clasped the pale, limp
hand. She stayed there for almost an hour, forcing back the tears that always
threatened to break free of her eyes. Hotaru was practically a wraith, hovering
on the line between life and death. Her skin was as white as a ghost.
How could this all have happened so fast? Chibi-Usa wondered. Everything
was fine just a little while ago. Everybody was so happy, simply enjoying the
party. Now, that's all gone. It's like it was years ago. The inner senshi are
missing. My mom may be about to die, and even Hotaru is slipping from this
world. Why do such things have to happen? Why must everyone endure these
sacrifices?
She wanted to run through the door of her old house. Tsukino Ikuko would
smile and welcome her back, refusing to let her stay out in the cold weather.
She would plop down on her bed and wait for Helios to talk to her. She would
ask him about this. He'd say that everything would be okay, that as long as she
believed in them, they wouldn't die. That time was a thousand years in the past
though. There was nothing for her to go back to now.
Hotaru's eyes opened just a crack.
"Chibi-Usa-chan?" she whispered. Her voice was so soft that Chibi-Usa
could barely hear it through her labored breathing. The knowledge that at least
she could speak and could recognize her was comforting though. There might
still be hope for her.
"I'm here. What is it?" She wanted to ask her so many questions. She
wanted to know if she was okay, what had happened. Most importantly though, she
wanted to know who had done this to her. For the first time in her life, Chibi-
Usa hated someone. She wanted to get back at them, to hurt them as badly as
they had hurt Hotaru.
"There won't be much time before the rest attack. Another war may begin,
if we are not careful. Gomen nasai, that I couldn't fight beside you."
Hotaru's narrowed eyes closed and her hand flopped back down.
"Hotaru-chan!" Desperately, she put her hand on Hotaru's icy wrist.
There was still a pulse there. She was still clinging to life, but she wouldn't
last long. A rare look of determination flashed in the small princess's eyes.
Normally, she acted just like her mother once had and seemed unable to focus on
the problem at hand. There were times though where a maturity that few people
possessed showed through her.
"How can I help?" she said.
Haruka looked at the little girl with a face that showed both contempt and
respect. She was completely sincere. Despite the fact that her pathetic powers
could accomplish almost nothing, she still wanted to help.
"There is a way," Michiru said. She never really had to expend effort to
command attention, and this moment was no exception. Her voice was softer than
usual, just enough to show that she was afraid. "The hospitals will soon be
full, so we cannot take her there. I've been observing her for the past half
hour and the damage is more than physical. Her life force has been badly
drained. She once mentioned….that on Saturn they had a shrine of rebirth, where
the planet's energy would help heal those who needed it. There is a good chance
that it will work for the senshi of that planet."
"Then let's go there!" Chibi-Usa cried with her usual impulsiveness.
Without even trying to, Haruka could understand the child's thoughts on this
matter. She had not considered the consequences of going to that planet. All
that had crossed her mind was the fact that her friend was in danger. Haruka
shook her head at the princess's naivety.
"The planet Saturn is rarely visited by outsiders. It's far too
dangerous," she said.
"Why? What's there?"
"I don't know. That planet was civilized by a slightly mysterious group
of people. They use old magic, spells which many would forbid. No one can
really be sure what sort of energy lurks in that place. Besides, someone
obviously wanted Hotaru to be either dead or injured. There's a good chance
that they already set up traps on that place." The princess shook her head
defiantly, causing her pink hair to swish back and forth.
"I won't just let her die! She didn't let me down, she never did. I
won't let anything happen to her if I can help prevent it!" Haruka paused for a
moment, considering what should be done. It would take a while for the shield
to be at full power. There was about a half hour time frame in which it would
be possible to exit. After that, they would be helpless and sealed into to
their doomed city. Once outside though, there would be no returning. They
would be left for their unknown enemies to hunt down.
In the end, Haruka's more sentimental side won. The concept of waiting
around in the Crystal Tokyo watching her adopted daughter die would be torture.
Still, dragging along the heir to the throne would be far too dangerous.
"We'll just have to do what we can here," Haruka said. Michiru shot her a
slightly surprised look out of the corner of her eye. She knew exactly what was
going on. "The shrine may not even exist after all." Michiru let her shoulders
sag down enough so that she looked as though the despair was sinking in. She
made certain though that it was fairly subtle. Chibi-Usa was an intelligent
child and would realize something was wrong if they were too obvious.
"We can't do that!" Chibi-Usa yelled desperately. Her eyes brimmed with
tears at the thought. "I can't leave Hotaru-chan!" Haruka turned away as
though she were unwilling to face her. She narrowed her eyes slightly giving
herself a pained, slightly bitter expression.
"Urusai! You cannot understand this," she snapped. Chibi-Usa fled from
the room looking horrified.
"We don't have much time left, we should leave now," Michiru said. Her
voice was monotonous. They were doing something almost unthinkable and might
lose their lives in the process, all based on an irrational, illogical rumor
that might work.
"We'll go," someone said. Haruka turned slightly to see the three
Starlights in civilian form. She repressed her first impulse to hit Seiya as
hard as she possibly could. Her more rational side realized that this would
accomplish absolutely nothing and would waist their precious time which they
were rapidly running out of. The queen's shield would be impenetrable soon.
"Fine," she growled. She wasn't happy about the idea, but it made sense.
They were bound to run into trouble and with Saturn out of action they might
need help. With that said, she turned around and walked towards the western
section of the castle. She didn't bother to see if the others followed her.
She knew they would. Michiru wanted to save Hotaru as much as she did. If the
Starlight's didn't want to come, she didn't really care.
* * * * *
The ship wasn't very large. It would fit their purposes without being too
crowded though. Normally, the senshi wouldn't have bothered using one of the
awkward things. They only existed to prevent the portals from becoming crowded
with people who lacked the ability to teleport. In this case though, they were
likely to be intercepted or blocked if they teleported. All of the portals had
been closed to prevent transportation between the worlds. No one had bothered
to consider that this could be a means of escape for someone.
Michiru laid Hotaru out on one of the least stiff of the beds anxiously.
Haruka had insisted on piloting the ship, despite Seiya's protests that he
would.
Fortunately for them, the staff who would have normally been there had
moved closer to the center of the city. No one wanted to be near the outside in
case the barrier didn't completely surround the city at first.
Haruka stared down at the button beneath her hand. One small touch would
send them hurtling out into space. She was no fool though. Once they were gone
they were blocked out of the place for quite a while. There was a good chance
that they would never see it or any of its inhabitants again.
She cast a backwards glance at the beautiful city. The stars were still
shining brightly giving the place an unearthly look. It was like a glimpse of
their former time. It embodied the spirit of the queen, her pureness and
nobility. She would miss the place.
With that done, she slammed down on the button. A long good-bye would
only make things harder and slow them down. She felt the ship engines start,
its slightly aged shell vibrating uncertainly in the atmosphere. With years of
racing behind her, she waited tensely for it get ready. A signal light flashed
briefly. She pulled the lever feeling her body being forced back into the seat
as the vehicle accelerated. Now I know what they mean when they say you can't
go back home, she thought as they blasted off.
* * * * *
Peridot woke up on a large stone table with a splitting headache. She
pressed her hands to her throbbing temples in a futile effort to make the room
stop spinning around her and cause her head to stop burning.
With a good deal of effort, she dragged herself off the stone pedestal
that she had been resting on. Her legs suddenly gave way underneath her,
sending her falling to the floor. She let out a yelp before struggling up.
Once she was standing again though, she still had to lean on something just to
remain erect. Her body was already showing signs of strain just from breathing.
"Why do bad things always happen to me?" she whined. There was no answer
except for the echo of her own voice. The three others were still unconscious.
A smile spread across her face and her eyes narrowed. The opportunity
would probably only come once. The three other volunteers were her competitors
for power in the militaristic society of Nemesis. If an…accident were to happen
to them, it would benefit her greatly.
She knew all too well that any of them could defeat her in a battle face
to face. Their innate magical gifts were far stronger as was their physical
strength. Even when it had come to choosing who would control which senshi, she
had gotten the weakest one. The power she had received was tremendous, but not
as useful for offense as Jupiter's would have been. As long as they were
around, she would be the cannon fodder and have the lowest status.
Her window of opportunity was fairly short though. She had no time to
waist. With that thought in mind, she reached down into her boot and extracted
a small knife. Many people pondered how it was possible to conceal weapons
underneath her skin-tight clothing. She had practiced the art of deception and
every form of magic associated with it for many years though. Silently, she
walked over to her first victim, Jade. She lowered the blade down to his
throat.
Just as she was about to slit his bare flesh, something stopped her. Her
hand twitched compulsively and moved away from him. She struggled to force it
back, but her hand continued to move of its own free will. She muffled a shriek
with her working hand as she gazed in horror. She couldn't control her own
body!
Her fingers relaxed and dropped the knife onto the floor. All Peridot
could do was watch in shock as it clattered on the cold stone beneath her feet.
The situation didn't improve either. The strange force in her hand seemed to
move up her arm, causing her to lose control over more and more places. A
brilliant blue light appeared on her forehead where her black crescent normally
was, illuminating the darkened cavern. She resisted weakly, sinking to her
knees.
The blue glow condensed into a single area, growing stronger each second.
Peridot had already figured out who it was. The blue projection finally
solidified into the form of a senshi. Her large, clear blue eyes were slightly
wider than they normally would have been. She was wearing a simple garment, a
school-girlish fuku with a short, blue skirt that complemented her hair. Her
lips seemed to be mouthing some words, but they were to quiet for Peridot to
hear at first. After a moment, her voice became audible.
"What have you done to me?!" she asked in horror. Peridot glowered at
her.
"I could ask the same question. You should not be outside of my body.
You belong to me and are no longer a separate entity," she snarled. "I've been
working forever to get to this position and I won't have you ruining it!"
Mercury said nothing for a few seconds. She simply stared at her in stunned
silence as realization dawned on her.
"Face the facts, you don't exist anymore. You didn't use your powers
effectively while you had them and now they're mine! Do you hear me? Mine!"
"I won't let you use my planet's energy for evil! That power is for
protecting the princess!" she cried.
"Shut up you little bitch! Shut up!" Why couldn't she control her? She
should have been able to. If anyone saw this, they would take it as a sign of
weakness on her part. She could not only lose her position, she could be
killed. The princess might decide to grant the Mercurial queen's power to
someone else. If Peridot had it removed from her though, she would never
survive.
Mercury continued to talk, though Peridot was no longer listening. Her
mouth had gone very dry and she felt as though she were about to choke on her
own breath. The longer this continued, the higher the probability of someone
discovering this.
Peridot held up one hand and summoned some of her new energy. She sent a
small ice crystal hurtling towards the shadowy figure. It went straight through
the spectral vision and shattered on the wall. Peridot's temper blazed into
life triggered by her terror. She was completely helpless against this.
Cursing under her breath, she ran at the person only to pass right through and
slam into the wall as her small projectile once had. Ignoring the pain, she
rebounded back and attempted to strike it again in a jump. She sailed through
her target, landing against the pedestal that she had been resting on a few
minutes ago.
As if possessed, she charged at the shadowy nightmare before her,
shrieking curses and sending shards of ice flying. Each time her attack
produced the same result though. She wanted to tear her opponent into tiny
pieces, but she couldn't reach her.
She had several large bruises by then and was bleeding badly. She
couldn't even feel it. All that mattered was the destruction of the senshi
inside of her.
"I'll kill you! I'll kill you!" she screamed. With all of her remaining
energy, she conjured an enormous ice spear and hurled it at the senshi. It
collided with the wall with a deafening crash sending fragments all over the
room. The senshi flickered, then vanished. Peridot's eyes widened in horror as
she realized what had just happened. If anyone saw that…she shuddered as she
thought of the consequences.
"What happened?" a low voice mumbled in confusion. Peridot whirled around
to see one of her rivals, Jade sitting up. One of the pieces of her final
weapon had gotten lodged in his arm, leaving a small, crimson stain on his
clothing. If he finds out, he'll destroy me, she thought. After all, he is my
rival, no, my enemy. They're all my enemies.
"Nothing!" she cried, her voice rising to a level that could almost have
been classified as hysterical. "I don't know anything!" With that, she
teleported to her private rooms.
* * * * *
The princess bowed before a small alter so that her long hair pooled
around her feet. The formality wasn't really necessary as she knew that this
demon could not dispose of her. Still, it rarely paid to take chances with such
a powerful entity. Also, today she did not feel like arguing with her (at least
that's what it seemed to be). Its aura was already having an effect on her and
she wanted to exit the room as quickly as possible.
"Akuma-sama," she said, carefully keeping her tone of voice respectful.
"Are you sure that Peridot was a good choice?" She knew that she could not
openly disagree with it, but she would have liked to in this case. Peridot
wasn't overly competent for one thing. She had also tried to assassinate her
once. The princess had no doubt that she would attempt it again. Over all, she
wasn't someone pleasant to work with, to say the least. If mislead, she could
be manipulated. She was still too ambitious though.
"Are you questioning my judgment?" a low voice hissed. Out of the
blackness of near the shrine, several tendrils seemed to detach themselves and
move in her direction. Two gleaming red eyes flashed dangerously. She ignored
her first instinct that was screaming at her to teleport. Instead, she gritted
her teeth and retracted her protest.
"Forgive me. I had not intended to doubt your decision. I am merely
saying that I have more experience in dealing with her and I do not believe that
she is trustworthy." She silently prayed that the demon wouldn't rise to her
slight contradiction of what she (or it) had said. She was lucky that day
though and Akuma decided not to do anything drastic.
"Why must you make things so difficult?" Akuma asked. A dark cloud shaped
vaguely like a female human with two enormous wings protruding from her back
detached itself from the wall. She lifted one translucent hand up to her face
and looked directly at the princess. "I am only trying to help you in your
goal."
"And you may be endangering that goal by putting someone like her on this
mission. We cannot afford failure!" As soon as she had said the words, she
regretted them. Akuma's eyes narrowed to tiny slits in her face.
"Your tongue may cost you your life one day," she said. The tone of voice
was steely but well controlled. It was also very quiet. That was what worried
her. Akuma never yelled or made unnecessary noise when she was angry. She
seethed in low, barely audible tones. That was when she was most lethal.
The princess realized that since she hadn't done anything yet, she might
still be able to pull this off though.
"I would suggest that you let Opal go." She hesitated for a moment,
barely breathing as the demon considered. Without warning, Akuma thrust a half-
formed hand forward and shot a blast of blood red energy at her. The princess
levitated herself upward into the air, nearly striking the ceiling to avoid
being hit. After a few seconds, she dropped down letting her hair trail behind
her. She landed on the floor with perfect timing, not even flinching at the
attack.
"I will not have you arguing with me. You must remember your status!"
"Don't you understand what's at stake here?! This planet won't last
forever and it's going to take my race with it!" With that, she stormed out of
the room, not turning her back to the monster behind her until she was sure that
she was safe.
* * * * *
Haruka switched the ship into autopilot and went to check on Hotaru. Her
presence in the pilot's chair wasn't really required all of the time. She
really was only bothering driving to distract herself.
Inside her chamber, Hotaru was sprawled out across her bed looking like a
corpse. Her black hair only accented the unnatural paleness of her body. Every
muscle was utterly limp and she looked as though she had not moved in years.
Haruka knelt down beside her silently, letting her sleep. It hurt her
deeply to see Hotaru like this. She had already endured far too much. There
really was nothing that anyone on the ship could do for her though.
Haruka grabbed her cold hand and held it tightly for a moment, fighting
back the tears that were threatening to come foreword from her eyes. She rarely
cried. It just wasn't something that she was comfortable letting everyone see.
"Haruka?" a voice said. Haruka's eyes widened as she Hotaru's eyes opened
slightly and looked at her.
"Where am I?" she said, her voice monotonous.
"It's all right, Hotaru. We're going back to your planet to heal you."
Hotaru looked at her hopefully, but with a trace of guilt in her dark eyes.
"Gomen nasai. I-it's all my fault that this happened…isn't it?" Haruka
flinched a little when she heard that. It wasn't fair that Hotaru should be the
one to feel guilty about this.
"Not at all. Everyone on this ship did this because they were willing to
risk their life for you. They chose to come," Haruka insisted fiercely. Hotaru
smiled a little at that, the shine returning to her eyes.
"Arigato. I'm so glad that you're all here for me." With that, her eyes
closed and she sank into sleep.
* * * * *
Chibi-Usa lay in a small corner of the ship, trembling and trying to
sleep. The place she had found was in the storage room, so no one would come
back there unless they were looking for her. That was the only advantage of her
hiding place though. It was too far away from all of the rooms that were heated
and she was sure that she was going to freeze to death. There was also nothing
that she could use as a blanket back there either. The place had nothing but
empty crates and cold, hard steel.
She couldn't leave though. The others would try to send her back. There
was no way that she would let them do that. She had to be there for Hotaru, no
matter what the price was.
The princess's, Chibi-Usa's almost numb hand touched something wet.
Blood. How much longer could she hold on?
* * * * *
Dinner was devoid of any noise with the exception of the clinking of
silverware. Everyone ate in silence, left alone to think. Michiru and Taiki
had attempted to start a conversation in the beginning, but it had slowly died
off. No one seemed able to talk with Haruka sitting at the end of the table
like a dark cloud. She had eaten almost nothing and hadn't said a word since
she had entered the room. The only sign that she was even aware of anything
were her occasional glares at Seiya and worried glances at Hotaru.
The black haired woman was barely able to even sit upright. She was
struggling to look normal, but her food remained untouched and her hands shook
violently. Suddenly, Hotaru's eyes widened and she froze in place. Everyone
turned to her at once, still not saying anything. The silence was almost
tangible, filling the air and making it almost impossible to breath. It felt as
though it were about to swallow them.
"Daijobu?" Michiru finally asked. Hotaru said nothing for a moment. She
opened her mouth at last and a strangled cry emerged. She fell from her chair,
collapsing on the floor still shrieking in pain. Haruka leapt up and rushed
towards her, ignoring everyone else.
Hotaru recoiled from the senshi rushing at her.
"Yamete! Yamete!" she begged. After a few moments, she regained her
composure and was able to stand again. She looked at them desperately.
"Someone on this ship is causing this!" she declared. "They're eating away my
life-force in an attempt to grow stronger." The senshi looked at each other
wondering who would do such a thing. Michiru couldn't help but notice that
Haruka shot a nasty glare in Seiya's direction.
Hotaru closed her eyes in concentration, trying to discover the source of
her pain. When she opened her eyes, they were filled with determination. There
was another emotion glinting in them though: rage. She was barely able to
contain it. Hotaru held out one unsteady finger pointing towards a passageway.
The others silently went down, lead by her.
* * * * *
Hotaru opened the storage door with far more force than necessary, letting the
light from the hallway shine in. She stepped in, her eyes cold and narrowed to
near slits.
"Come out!" she yelled. Nothing responded. Hotaru froze and motioned to the
others to do the same. In that moment, they heard a faint shuffle from the far
corner. Hotaru stormed over and threw the crates out of the way. Once they
were gone, nothing obscured her enemy.
Pressed up against the wall was a small girl who appeared to be about nine years
old. Her pastel pink hair was a filthy, oily mess and was coming out of its
usual style. Dirt and grime covered her slightly pale skin and sailor fuku.
Squinting in the bright light, she looked up at Hotaru in shock.
"Hotaru-chan! Daijobu?" she asked anxiously. In her concern, her own suffering
was forgotten completely. Hotaru did not bother to answer her though. She
lifted the child up from her hiding place and flung her into the metal wall.
Chibi-Usa collapsed on the ground in shock, bleeding from the impact.
"This is the one who is responsible. I remember the queen telling me of a time
where evil energy possessed her and she attacked our forces. Apparently, this
has resurfaced," she said. "The only way to destroy it is to kill her." She
turned to look at Haruka. "Letting her drift in space for a bit is probably the
best way, ne?" No one said a word. They all stared at Hotaru as if they were
seeing a ghost.
Chibi-Usa's looked at Hotaru in confusion.
"Why are you doing this, Hotaru-chan? I-I thought…" her voice drifted off for
an instant. "I thought that we were friends…" Hotaru stepped back and ran from
the room into her own cabin leaving the others in stunned silence.
* * * * *
"Hime-sama!" Jade yelled, pounding on the princess door. There was no
response. The ill-tempered man shoved his coal-black hair away from his face in
irritation. She hadn't said a word to him for several days. She spent all of
her time in her room sulking. He had never gotten along with her at all, but
she should still find time to see someone as important as he obviously was.
"What's wrong with the stupid bitch this time?" he wondered out loud. He did
not have the patience to put up with this much longer.
"You know that she never has time to see any of us," Peridot grumbled in
her usual whiny voice. She had thought that Mercury would be weak and easy to
deal with. She could not have been more wrong. The senshi had a far stronger
will than she had been lead to believe and was fighting her constantly.
Needless to say, she had become even moodier and her temper had not improved.
Jade growled something incomprehensible and slammed into the door. Black
energy flared up around the doorframe and sent him flying backwards muttering
curses. From inside the room a low voice mumbled something to them.
"Go away," she said. "I don't know who you are, and at this point I don't
care. I don't want to hear what you have to say because I don't feel like
talking to anybody right now. Go away!" Peridot snorted contemptuously.
"We have such a weak, pathetic leader," she sneered quietly. "She should
be easy to get rid of though." Jade smiled slightly.
"I've often thought of the idea myself. There's no reason for her to be
in charge. Oh, she's quite powerful, but the only real reason that she's the
ruler is because that demon is backing her. Now if it were to choose someone
else…" He paused suggestively.
"I like the idea," she purred. "Just one little ice crystal in the back
and-" She moved her finger across her throat in a slicing motion.
"Would you like to meet me in my office a little later?" he asked. "I
think that we might be able to…work something out." Peridot grinned.
"I think I would like that very much." With that done, Jade sauntered
off, obviously pleased with himself. Peridot waited until he was gone to let
her glee show. Finally, she would have an opportunity to rule this useless
planet. Jade controlled one of the strongest senshi that existed in the solar
system. With his help, she would easily be able to defeat the princess. Once
that was through she would have to dispose of him too, of course. It was a
minor setback though.
"I always thought that you had no sense of ethics. I see that I was
correct." Peridot whirled around to see a tall woman with bright red hair tied
back in a tight braid. Unlike Peridot, she wore the standard uniform of
Nemesis. Peridot forced a smile, attempting to hide her dislike of this
particular person.
"Ah, hello Tanzanite. I didn't see you there," she said, sounding a
little annoyed at the others presence.
"People who are blinded by there own ambitions usually have problems with
that."
"What do you want from me? Are you going to use this against me?"
Peridot hissed.
"I don't want anything from someone like you. I was just passing by when
I noticed you're conversation."
"If you have nothing to do with this then leave!" she snapped.
"Despite what you might think, love is something a bit deeper than a
political game, at least to some. Do you really think that you're flirtations
are going to gain you more power? Can you be that blind?" A slightly
melancholy note crept into her voice when she said this.
Peridot tensed, waiting for her to attempt to attack. The blow she was
anticipating never came though. Tanzanite simply turned her back and walked
away. Peridot smirked at the other woman's back. She should never have made
that mistake. Turning your back to almost anyone on Nemesis could be fatal.
With Peridot, it was the equivalent to suicide.
Let's see what this senshi can do, she thought. She conjured a long,
wicked looking icicle and prepared to send it at Tanzanite in the style that one
might throw a javelin. The other woman would never have time to react. Without
hesitation or remorse, she hurled her projectile at her opponent.
Tanzanite was not quite as naïve as she had expected though. The more
experienced woman whirled around at the last possible second and sent an
enormous blast of fire in Peridot's direction. The icicle dissolved instantly.
The flames didn't stop there though. They rushed foreword at Peridot as if they
were going to eat her alive.
Peridot jumped back, frantically trying to think of a spell to use before they
consumed her. She searched through the memory of her senshi. After a few
seconds-though it seemed like an eternity-she found something that might work.
"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!" she yelled. Fortunately for her, the senshi
inside of her knew how to use the attack effectively. A stream of ice clashed
with the fire. The flames weren't quite hot enough to reach her through the
senshi's energy. Peridot could feel herself shaking with fear and relief. It
took all of the strength she had left not to fall over.
Tanzanite glared at her.
"I could have finished you then. You'd better watch your back." With
that said, Tanzanite strode off into the gloom of a nearby passageway.
"I'll kill you for that," she snarled. She ran towards the training
ground.
* * * * *
Chibi-Usa was vaguely aware that she was walking somewhere, being lead by
a person. Numbly, she went with them until she was deposited in a room on a
bed. The door closed behind her with the click of a lock. She didn't really
care whether she could get out or not. It didn't matter where she was.
All she could do was play the scene over and over in her mind. The door
had opened and light had flooded into the pitch black room. Through the painful
brightness she could see Hotaru's silhouette followed by the other members on
board the ship. Hotaru's face had been contorted with fury. She had grabbed
Chibi-Usa and flung her against the wall accusing her of causing everything.
Hotaru had wanted to kill her. After that, everything had become a blur.
It wasn't possible. It just wasn't possible. Hotaru would never have
done something like that. Hotaru was the shy, gentle and brave girl that had
grabbed her hat as it was snatched up by the wind. That Hotaru couldn't be the
same one that had suggested sending her out into space.
What if she had been right though? What if she had been the one who had
caused all of this? She didn't remember it, but it was possible. Black Lady
was not just a creation of Wise Man, she was a part of Chibi-Usa. It was a
darker side of her that few people ever saw. It was all her jealousy, pain and
hate. All that Wise Man had done was compact that side of her into a single
entity. It was possible that that person had resurfaced after all of this time.
What have I done? Have I destroyed the Crystal Tokyo for the second time?
I did it before without meaning to…Am I the one that is causing my mama to
destroy herself slowly?
Chibi-Usa felt something wet slide down her cheek. She put a hand up to
her face and realized that she had been crying all of this time without even
knowing it.
"Baka," she whispered. It was such a childish habit, one which she had
been trying to rid herself of for years. Despite her efforts though, her tears
would not stop. All she could do was let them come. She reached her hand out
into the dimensional pocket where she kept most of her things. A small, cat-
shaped ball with a crescent moon on its forehead appeared.
"Don't cry, Small Lady," it said in its usual cheerful voice. Chibi-Usa
pulled the object close to her and hugged it as if she were a baby. Sobs racked
her small body. For once, she didn't bother to keep them back. She had to cry.
* * * * *
Haruka slammed her fist into the steel wall of the ship, leaving a fairly
good sized indentation. She withdrew her raw hand, trying to keep her bloodied
knuckles from leaving a stain on anything. She knew perfectly well that it
wasn't the best of things that she could have done under the circumstances.
At that point she didn't really care though. What else was there to do on
board this ship? They could not come right out and kill Chibi-Usa as there was
a good chance that she was innocent. On the other hand, they couldn't trust her
either as there was a chance that Hotaru was telling the truth.
All that they could do was wait. Waiting was not exactly what any of them
needed right then though. As senshi, they were used to fighting what ever
monster happened to be attacking earth at the time. It was easy for them to
eliminate concrete enemies that stood before them. When the enemies were
themselves though, things got more difficult.
"All this damn silence," Haruka muttered darkly. "It just doesn't seem to
end." The worst part about this was that it gave her too much time to think, to
let her mind drift into "what ifs" which she did not need right then.
Too often, she found herself wondering why Michiru had been so close to
Seiya. It wasn't as though Michiru had never danced with someone before. It
was just that all of those times it had never been behind her back. She had
also always known that it was merely a friendly dance, that it didn't really
mean anything. This time, she wasn't so sure.
Baka! She would never do something like that! Haruka couldn't help but
think about it though. It was possible that after all of these years Michiru
had been growing less comfortable being with her and that she wanted to move on.
It was also possible that she would be willing to love Seiya. After all, though
Haruka hardly ever looked at men as most girls did, she could tell that he was
attractive. He was also a senshi, eliminating that difference.
Maybe this wasn't even something new. Could it have been that she always
felt that way about him? Could it have been that that time in the locker room
really did mean something?
Haruka winced a little as she thought of these things. She hated to even
think of the idea, but there was no way that she could deny the fact that it was
possible. She wished she could talk to Michiru about it, or even Seiya. No,
she didn't want to talk to Seiya. She wanted to hit him until he resembled her
bleeding hand.
No, she couldn't talk to Michiru about this as she had no solid proof that
this was true. So all she could do was sit and wait like everyone else on this
cursed ship. For all of her skill with magic, for all of her strength, for all
of the years of service she had given the queen, she was completely helpless.
* * * * *
Chibi-Usa's eyes were puffy and slightly redder than usual from crying.
She had wiped away all of the tears, but she still felt that she might go into
relapse at any minute. All of the sleepless days and nights spent in the
freezing storage room had worn her out and left her as nothing but a bundle of
nerves and exhaustion. The incident with Hotaru had been too much. It had
finally overwhelmed her.
All of sudden, she knew what she had to do. She didn't have to think
about it, she just knew instantly. She got up, grabbed Luna P and went to the
door. She had known that it would be locked so it wasn't much of a
disappointment for her. She simply took the cat-like ball and pressed it up
against the lock. After a few minutes it gave way and she was free to go around
the ship.
She took Luna P and made it stare straight at her.
"Repeat this: Please don't come in. I-I really need…need to be alone."
Luna P's eyes whirled.
"Small Lady! Small Lady!" it said. Chibi-Usa sighed in exasperation.
Luna P had always been a wonderful toy but it was rather lacking in
intelligence. She tried to get it to mimic her several more times before giving
up. It was completely useless. She hissed at it to be quiet and grabbed it so
that she could bring it with.
Once that was done, she crept out her room. She locked the door behind
her and headed towards Hotaru's room. She knew that this had to be some kind of
mistake. Hotaru would never have intentionally hurt her. All that she had to
do was find her friend and talk things over. Hotaru would understand. She had
to.
Quietly, she walked through the halls until she arrived at the door.
Normally, she would have knocked. While she was not the most polite of
children, she was not intentionally rude. Right now though, she wasn't thinking
clearly. She was nervous, hurt and tired. In her rush to get out of sight of
the others and reach Hotaru, she burst into the room without thinking.
Hotaru wasn't in the room, but someone else was. She was considerably
taller than the dark senshi and also less frail in appearance. She had long,
silky black hair pinned up in two pointed odangoes similar to the ones Chibi-Usa
had worn as Black Lady. The black dress with little crystals on it was too
tight for her and the skirt didn't go down very far at all.
The lady didn't actually seem very intimidating at the moment though. She
had to support herself by putting her hands on the desk in front of her. Her
breathing was too loud and it sounded strained.
Chibi-Usa froze. She had realized that Hotaru had done something strange,
but it had not yet occurred to her that someone was impersonating her. This
situation was even worse than she had imagined. There really wasn't a lot that
she could do though. She could not call Helios because there was no way that he
could reach her in outer space. She could try to blind her enemy temporarily
with her attack and run to tell the others. That might work, but it was
incredibly risky. Chibi-Usa had a limited knowledge about spell casting. From
what she had read when she had snuck into her mother's room she knew that
disguising your appearance was extremely difficult and anyone who was capable of
keeping up such a complex spell for so long had to exceptionally powerful.
The pink haired child backed away slowly, reaching for the door. By some
horrible stroke of luck, the door creaked. The lady turned around, uttering a
soft curse when she saw who was there. On the person's forehead, there was a
small upside-down black crescent, marking her as one of the banished ones.
Chibi-Usa also noticed that the imposter couldn't have been older than Usagi.
She actually looked rather ludicrous standing up in Hotaru's dress that didn't
fit her.
Stealth was out of the question now as she had been found out. She was
going to have to do something that she hadn't done in over two years. She
yelled at Luna P to change. In a puff of smoke, the little cat-like ball
transformed into a perfect replica of a 20th century gun. She pointed at the
person in front of her, trying to act like she knew what she was doing.
"I don't know why you're doing this, but I can't let you pretend to be my
friend! I can't forgive you! In the name of the moon, I'll punish you!" Like
Usagi, she had always been good at giving the speech effectively and
melodramatically, even if it was rather pointless. Right now though, she needed
to buy some time and this might get it for her.
The girl glared at her in annoyance, but said nothing. Chibi-Usa put her
finger on the trigger.
"I know that this weapon is outdated, but it can still kill you. This is
a real gun and I know how to use it, so listen to what I say!" The girl still
did not reply. She was beginning to shake slightly. A black, crystal choker on
her neck began to glow a dull shade of violet.
Chibi-Usa was beginning to get worried. If this person called her bluff,
she wouldn't have a chance. Though Luna P could change into almost anything,
her mother had made sure that it wasn't actually capable of severely hurting a
person.
The older girl's eyes narrowed began to glow the same shade of purple as
her collar. She extended one hand in Chibi-Usa's direction, the malicious
expression on her face darkening. Suddenly, the illumination radiating from her
collar vanished and her eyes reverted to normal. She grabbed Chibi-Usa's wrists
and twisted them, causing her to drop the gun. With that, she threw the child
into a corner of the room.
Chibi-Usa watched, her eyes transfixed to her opponent as a change came
over her. Her hair color slowly transformed from black to a rather bright shade
of pink. Her eyes were also altered from dark purple to red. By the time she
was finished she resembled Chibi-Usa's former self, Black Lady, closely. Her
facial structure as well as her body was different, but there was enough
resemblance with the hair that the other senshi-who had never actually seen
Black Lady-could be fooled. She smirked in Chibi-Usa's direction and left,
sealing the door with a ward behind her.
"Let me go!" Chibi-Usa yelled. In frustration, she slammed into the door.
It was futile though. All she could do was watch as her life unraveled.
* * * * *
Peridot stormed off to the training grounds. She had to burn off a little
of her anger some way. The way she would have preferred would be sending
various pieces of Tanzanite flying onto the wall. Unfortunately, that was an
impossibility for her. Trying to attack Tanzanite would be suicide.
She despised the slightly older woman, she always had. In fact, she had
despised many of the people on Nemesis. Now though, she could feel her hatred
getting even stronger to the point where it was intolerable. It was like some
kind of strange disease that was eating her alive, piece by piece.
Peridot pushed her way through the cluster of droidos that were gathered
at the training grounds. Why did they have to get in her way? Everyone was
just in her way!
None of the targets were free, but that didn't stop her. She shoved two
humans who were practicing away. Now, she had a chance to vent a little bit.
If she didn't, she thought she would burst in frustration. She raised her hands
above her head and tried to think of one of the attack phrases Mercury was
supposed to use. She was probably capable of using more power than those
attacks could ever produce, but it would be best to use something easy to begin
with.
"Shine Aqua Illusion!" she cried dramatically. Energy gathered in her
arms causing her body to drop in temperature slightly. She expected it to
release. It didn't. She could feel it writhing inside of her, but something
was preventing it from leaving her body.
Silence descended on the stunned audience of droidos. Quite a few of them
had seen the attack in action before, and knew that this was not what it was
supposed to do. Slowly, whispers began to sweep across the crowd as quickly as
the suddenly silence had. Everyone wanted to know why she couldn't use the
power, why she was in capable of controlling the senshi and also why she had
ever been granted such a high position.
Peridot could see that her hands were shaking and glowing faintly blue.
Slowly, a pool of water leaked out of her hands and dissolved on the ground.
She wasn't able to see her, but she could almost feel the senshi inside her
laughing. Why shouldn't she laugh? She's winning this battle, Peridot thought
grimly. She hated losing to anyone, but losing to one of her lifelong opponents
was something she couldn't tolerate.
"Get away from me!" Peridot shrieked. She wasn't really sure whether it
was directed at that monstrosity embedded inside her or the throng of droidos
around her. It didn't really matter to her at this point. Shaking violently,
she stood up. She swept her icy gaze around the crowd, searching for a target.
She lashed out at the first droido she saw. She didn't even bother to use
magic. She simply kicked it over. It was a primitive method, but it was
effective. What she had forgotten though was that the droido was designed to
try to attack anything that struck it first. Without being fully aware of its
actions, it lunged at Peridot's throat.
The emerald haired woman was sent flying across the training area. She
was nimbler than she appeared to be though. Before she struck the other wall,
she rebounded off one of the targets and managed to land on two quivering legs.
She reached down into the memory of the senshi, struggling to maintain
control. Slowly, an icicle began to condense into her hand. She could still
hear Mercury screaming, but it wouldn't be enough.
She grinned nastily as the icicle finally solidified. She would make it
pay. She would make them all pay for insulting and humiliating her in this way.
She ran at the mob of droidos and slammed her weapon at the first one she saw.
It sliced through the monsters arm causing some chemical to ooze out of the
wound and onto the floor. Peridot giggled. You haven't won yet! Go on,
scream, plead and cry down in your soul. It is useless!
Her giggling increased in volume until she was laughing crazily. She
continued to swing her weapon about her unceasingly. She didn't care what
happened at this point. She was too full of adrenaline and desire for blood to
think of the consequences.
The droidos had decided to let this insane woman fight something else.
None of them wanted to be responsible for the death of their superior, but none
of them wanted to be killed by her either.
With almost nothing left to destroy, Peridot turned to the nearest human.
He was a good deal taller than her-though most people were-with short, blonde
hair. He seemed to be ignoring her rampage completely as he was occupied
flirting with Unakite. She recognized him as one of the other four who had been
chosen for this assignment. He didn't appear to be having any difficulty with
his senshi though. It wasn't fair.
Peridot smirked a bit as she pictured the look on his face when he
realized his own doom. By then, it would already be too late though. She
hurled the icicle at him as though it were a javelin.
A split second before impact, someone dashed in the way. The ice crystal
shattered into dozens of shimmering pieces which vanished in an instant. A
bright shield of flame surrounded her, protecting her from harm. Peridot could
see the person as the flames blurred their face, but she knew exactly who it
was. It was the only person on this planet who would do this.
Peridot took one moment to flash a brutal glare in Tanzanite's direction
before she turned and fled the scene.
* * * * *
The princess, Adularia strode cockily towards the main deck of the ship.
She radiated confidence and malice. This was far from the emotions that she was
actually feeling though. Inside, she was sick with nervousness and also with an
insane sort of joy. She had finally done the unthinkable, she had struck
against Serenity. There was no going back now. She had created her one
opportunity for revenge and freedom. The fear came from the fact that if she
made even the slightest error at this point could cause her to fail. She would
never get another chance.
The time she had to finish this battle and be successful was limited
though. She was no fool. She knew that Nemesis was dying. The planet could
not last more than a few years at the most. Already, she could feel the demon's
power taxing the planets and her strength.
She had another motivation to work quickly though. Such a thorough
disguise was wreaking havoc with her energy supply. She was getting to the
point where it was hard for her to keep up even such a small thing as changing
her hair to pink. If she didn't make this skirmish short, her disguise would
slip and there was even a chance that she would be injured or knocked out by one
of the senshi. At this point, she was at her weakest.
If only she had more time! It was slipping away from her constantly,
killing her planet and dissolving her control. She had none to waste.
She took a deep breath before she entered the room. Everything would work
out perfectly, it had to.
* * * * *
Dinner, again. They had only been on the ship for about a week and
already Haruka found the monotonous routine disgusting. They woke up in cold
space under some illusion that it was day time. They ate. They went back to
sleep. All of this was conducted in near silence as none of them were willing
to mention their dilemma. None of them even wanted to speak a word about the
possibility of having to kill their princess. So, by some unanimous, unspoken
taboo they remained silent while their supposed days dragged on and the queen
grew weaker.
She was about ready to explode. She had to do something, anything. Being
a racer for all of those years had never prepared her for this experience.
The worst part of it was Michiru though. She hadn't spoken to her partner
in a while, which was a rarity for her. She should have been able to talk to
her about anything. Now, she wasn't quite so sure that she could.
Amidst the clinking of silverware, she heard another sound, one that she
had trained her ears to pick up over time. Someone was coming. They sounded as
if they were trying to be quiet and failing. The vibrations of the steel floor
were a dead give away.
Everyone else seemed to feel it too as they stopped eating. Whoever was
making the noise either wasn't trying to be very subtle or they hadn't noticed
because the footsteps continued to get louder.
A few seconds later, a young woman stood poised on the threshold of the
room. She was wearing a rather unusual black dress that contrasted her
impossibly pink hair sharply. Haruka could not be certain, but the lady did
have a strong resemblance to the Black Lady that Usagi had spoken of
occasionally.
The enemy laughed and began to say a few things, taunting them about their
weakness and inability to restrain her. Haruka didn't bother listening. She
had heard various empty threats from virtually every enemy that she had ever
fought. They were meaningless. In this case though, it gave her time to find
out something important: Where had Michiru gone? The aqua haired senshi seemed
to have slipped out of sight without anyone noticing. Haruka couldn't help but
wince. No matter what came between them, she didn't think she could bear to see
her hurt in any way.
Black Lady-it was logical to assume that that was who it was-stopped
speaking almost in mid-sentence. She conjured a large, black crystal and
slammed it into the deck of the ship, slicing through the metal as if it didn't
exist. Using the hole she had made, she slipped down onto a lower level.
Instinctively, the senshi jumped up to avoid what they realized was coming. A
few seconds later, the same crystal sliced through the floor, allowing Black
Lady to resurface.
Black Lady turned to make her exit in the confusion that followed her
attack. Haruka saw it first though. She wasn't in her senshi form, but that
didn't mean she was helpless. She leapt through the air and landed a flying
kick on Black Lady's back. The pink haired woman fell to the floor with little
resistance.
"Are you going to tell me what you're doing here now or will I have to
take that information out by force?" she growled in her attackers ear.
* * * * *
Adularia cursed her rotten luck. She should have realized that working
too many spells at once would drain her energy. She had been relying mainly on
intimidation to get her through this alive. After all, she didn't need to kill
the senshi, not yet anyways. She just needed to put them in a certain position.
Had she just used some light spells that were somewhat effective at a distance,
she could have pulled this off. But no, she had to get close to them to provide
the dramatic effect that she was looking for. It had never occurred to her that
any of the senshi would get past their initial shock and actually strike her.
The next moment, her luck got even worse. The aqua haired woman held up a small
hand mirror. It looked fairly ordinary, if one ignored the symbol of Neptune on
the back. Adularia wasn't fooled by its unimpressive appearance though. The
magic attached to that object was tremendous. With a sinking heart, she
realized what it had to be. She had heard legends of Sailorneptune possessing a
mirror somewhat like this one, and knew what it did.
After a few seconds, the woman looked up from the mirror.
"She's not Black Lady!" she yelled. It was too late for her charade now. She
might be able to turn circumstances in her favor later on, but that would have
to wait.
She tried to break free, but she was exhausted and knew that she didn't stand a
chance to the blonde haired woman who had her pinned. She just had to
improvise, something that she hated even under the best of circumstances. She
closed her eyes, trying to ignore her captor. After a few moments of
concentration, her body reluctantly faded from the room. She landed on Hotaru's
bed a few seconds later. After changing, she instantly fell asleep.
* * * * *
"Damn! Where'd she go?" Haruka demanded. Obviously, no one knew the
answer, a fact she was getting tired of. None of them had any idea what was
going on. All that they knew was that it reeked of a trap. Since there was
nothing that they could do about it quite yet though. That meant even more
waiting, which she didn't think she could stand. How could they sit there doing
nothing while their queen slowly died, their friends gone and the civilization
that they had devoted their lives to protecting crumbling? We're senshi, not
the damn castle staff, she thought venomously. They lived to protect, something
that they were utterly incapable of doing at this present time.
Yaten looked strangely thoughtful for a moment.
"Has anyone considered the possibility that she could be anyone of us? If
she knows the spells to disguise herself and knows how to use them, she could be
anyone at anytime on this ship." It was not a pleasant thing to think about,
but even Haruka had to admit that it was logical. Why hadn't she seen it
sooner?
Uneasily, she looked over at Michiru. She couldn't even trust her now.
* * * * *
The lock was turning out to be harder to open than Chibi-Usa had
anticipated. She thought that Luna P would be able to get her out.
Unfortunately, the imposter had thought of that and made the lock reasonably
secure.
She couldn't give up though. If the other senshi came and found her after
whatever the girl pretending to be Black Lady had done…She couldn't even bear to
think about it. The senshi rarely showed it, but when they had a reason to
destroy they were very effective, too effective.
How could everything have gotten so horrible so quickly? Just the other
day she had been in the Crystal Tokyo by her mother's side. Her biggest concern
was helping her mother plan her anniversary. How could all of this happen?
She listened and from down the metal corridor she could hear footsteps.
They were faint, but she was almost certain that they were coming in her
direction. In desperation, she tore at the lock with her own hands, struggling
to open it. All of her efforts only left her with numerous cuts in her hands.
Now the lock was soaked in blood, but it was not opening.
Chibi-Usa realized that she was being irrational. All she was doing was
making the lock more difficult to open. I have gotten through worse events
unscathed before, she thought in an attempt to calm herself down. I can get out
of this. If the door won't open, I'll just find another way.
She looked around the room, willing herself into calmness. Even with her
experience, it was hard. The knowledge that some of her closest friends were
probably dead and that the others were about to kill her wasn't easy to ignore.
She could still see flashes of their faces when Hotaru-no, not Hotaru-had
accused her. Their eyes had been shocked at first, but had slowly narrowed in
cold anger. The faces kept flashing in the back of her mind, haunting her like
ghosts.
After a moment the little princess saw her exit. There was a vent a ways
above her bed. The tunnel behind it was small but she could fit through it.
For once she blessed her tiny size. It might be a curse most of the time, but
it had provided her with a way to survive for now at least. As long as she was
safe for a few hours, she would be able to secure her future for a few more.
All she could do was stay alive for the present time until a solution to her
problem presented itself.
Chibi-Usa positioned Luna-P on the bed so that she could boost herself
into the vent. As she pulled the steel cover off of her route to freedom, she
looked down slightly self-consciously. Her hands were still coated with blood.
She couldn't allow that to give her away. She ripped off small pieces of her
uniform to create some rather shabby looking bandages. She looked liked an
escaped convict. How could she have come to this position.
"Helios, wish me luck," she whispered softly. Even now, the winged horse
who hid Helio's face was the first person she would turn to. He wasn't around
anymore, but she still thought of him constantly.
With those final words, the small child crept into the vent, dragging her
toy with her. She carefully hid the evidence that she had been there, wiping
away as much blood as she could and closing the entrance behind her. How long
could she live like this?
* * * * *
Tanzanite cast a slightly nervous glance at Heliotrope. He was with
Unakite, again. She tried to ignore the stabbing pain in her heart as she saw
the two of them together but failed. It was too strong. How could she ever
truly forget him? He was…everything to her. He was the only thing that broke
the monotony of each day and made life worth living. He was…
No, she couldn't think that. There was no chance that he returned her
feelings, so it was foolish to continue thinking them. Still…
He had been like that once with her a long time ago. She had gone with
him everywhere and he had paid attention to her. She had been like his
reflection, always there for him, no matter what.
Perhaps someday things could be like that again. She still felt that when
he looked at her there was that same emotion in his eyes that she had once seen
so often. Someday, he would notice her again. She was certain that the feeling
was still there, it was just hard to see. But it was there. It had to be.
* * * * *
"Chibi-Usa-chan?" Michiru called. Her voice echoed down the corridor
uncannily, replying in a thousand distorted versions of herself. No child's
voice called back though. That was what worried her. Even if she was afraid,
surely she would answer her door. When she opened it though, the room was
completely empty. The bed was slightly less orderly than it had been but other
than that it looked as though no one had been there.
On an impulse, Michiru turned to stare at the lock. The rough edges were
encrusted with a thin layer of dried blood. The aquatic senshi strode over and
wiped some of it off on her hand. A bit of it was still wet. At least they
still had some chance of finding her.
Michiru close her eyes and concentrated for a moment. She focused on
every detail of the room, the cot that passed for the bed with its ruffled
covers, the lock, the door, the walls, the entire room. Slowly, she felt her
mind expand to fill that space. She forced herself to move foreword in all
directions, feeling every part of the ship come into her awareness.
Her mind felt something coming from one of the vents, a feeling of
uncertainty and pain. She didn't need to confirm it with her mirror, she knew
who was down there. She let her a spirit leak out of the vessel, returning to
its normal place.
She couldn't go down the ventilation pipe. There was nothing she could
do. If small lady did not come out, this ship would become her tomb.
* * * * *
Haruka winced a little as the steel bars at the sides of the cot cut into
her shoulder blades and her feet slowly froze on the floor. It was a fairly
cheaply made little ship, designed before stable portals had been established.
At this point it was basically obsolete, so no one actually bothered to keep
anything in good condition. Unfortunately that meant a lack of sleep for Haruka
whose cot was in dire need of replacement.
It didn't really matter though. She had too much to think about for sleep
to come to her easily. She wished she didn't. The thought kept running through
her mind that she had no way to trust her partner. She couldn't talk to her, be
close to her…
She looked over at Michiru's unconscious form. The tiny lights of the
stars shining from the oblivion of the night sky cast a soft glow over her. She
looked so peaceful there, as if she had never known pain. It was far from true.
Few could claim that they had endured what she had. Still, in this brief moment
all of those added years drifted off of her face, making her look almost
childlike.
Haruka smiled a little ruefully. It was hard to believe that she was
incapable of anything cruel in this state. She looked more innocent than her
partner had ever seen her. Almost like…Usagi. She had a different light than
the princess, but it was a beautiful shine just the same.
Haruka stood up and walked over to her. Michiru was right there in front
of her. So close, yet so untouchable. She reached out and tentatively ran her
fingers through her partners bluish hair. She bent down and brushed her lips
lightly over her forehead.
"No matter what you do to me, I'll always love you," she whispered.
Haruka didn't need to say it to Michiru. She already knew.
The wind senshi strode out of the room, aware that sleep would never come
to her. The least she could do was brood on her own. She didn't want to awaken
Michiru. She didn't notice her lover's eyes staring out at the night sky in
confusion as she walked out.
* * * * *
Adularia gasped frantically. There was air all around her, but she
couldn't breath. Her foreign lungs were too small, her body too strange. How
long had she kept herself imprisoned like this? How long had she been keeping
several dozen spells active? She didn't know. Time had no meaning anymore.
Her only relief was the fact that Hotaru was expected to sleep constantly
because of her injury.
Nemesis was getting out of control again and holding it, the disguise
spell and the spells binding the other planets of the solar system together was
taxing even on her strength. How long could she continue with this insanity
before lack of energy started to cloud her judgment and make her slip up? Would
she last until they reached their destination?
Slowly, she calmed her panicked mind into a state of false tranquility.
She didn't have time to be afraid. She didn't have time for anything. If she
lost control now, who knew what would happen to those on Nemesis?
She could still see that little girl's-Fluorite's-eyes staring up at her.
She could still feel her hope…
"Is everyone going to be all right?" the child asked nervously. Her large
purple eyes gazed innocently at the princess. Her violet hair was in a state of
chaos as usual, but she didn't seem to mind. Everything was put out of her
thoughts until her question was answered.
"Of course."
"Hondo ni? Last time…last time everyone wasn't all right when you said
they would be," she said accusingly.
"I know. But I thought that your mama would be okay. Now, I have to keep
believing that we'll make it so that we can save everyone else's mama's."
"But what about…Neo-Queen Serenity," she questioned nervously. The name
of the queen was what bullies often referred to in order to scare little
children. Her name was what the smaller ones whispered in the dark, afraid to
say it when people were around as if she would jump out and carry them away.
Fluorite had always prided herself in being above that and bravely said the
name, making sure everyone knew that she wasn't afraid of any moon queen.
Still, she whispered it with a kind of reverence.
"Don't worry about that. I can't die. What would happen to everyone else
if I did?"
"We'd die too?" she shrieked, jumping back.
"No, of course not. I'd never be so selfish as to do something stupid
like dying!"
"Not like my mama," she mumbled.
"Everything will be fine."
"Do you promise?" she said, her eyes filled with almost painful hope.
"Yes, I promise."
In all of her pain, that one thought kept Adularia thinking with a certain
degree of clarity. She had to manage this. She couldn't hold on to this spell
that hid her appearance forever though. She might be able to let go off her
disguise spell for a few minutes if she could find a place to hide.
* * * * *
Seiya tugged at the cord holding his ponytail in place. Black hair
cascaded around him, falling down past his waist. He forcefully pushed it away
from his face, not caring that it undoubtedly looked like a mess at the moment.
He heard footsteps approaching behind him and couldn't suppress the feeling of
annoyance that arose. He didn't need company right now. He wanted time to
think. For that he needed to be on his own, preferably with no distractions.
He didn't have much choice though. Privacy was hard to get in such a small
space.
He turned around to acknowledge whoever it was. To his surprise, Haruka
was standing before him. Her hair was slightly out of place from lying on it
and she wasn't quite as intimidating as she was wearing pajamas at this point,
but it was undoubtedly her. At least, he hoped that it was her.
"Couldn't sleep?" he asked, attempting to sound sympathetic. It was
difficult, knowing the record he and the outer senshi had of cooperation. She
glared at him, indicating that he voice was a noise she would rather not hear.
He took the hint, wondering why she was being so hostile. Under the best of
circumstances they had never gotten along. Under the worst…it was painful for
both sides.
Seiya didn't move though. If Haruka wanted to stay here, fine. He wasn't
about to leave just because she felt like being a bitch about everything though.
He wouldn't let her be an inconvenience to him. Apparently she felt the same
way because she stubbornly remained. Seiya decided to try holding a
conversation again. Haruka wasn't a bad person, he was sure of that. After
seeing the way she sacrificed herself, he was certain that there was more to the
outers than one might believe at first glance.
"We'll be there by tomorrow," he commented. She said nothing. "Not that
there are days in space, but by earth time it will be the next day." Haruka
didn't turn her head.
"Do you think she'll be all right?" the blond haired woman asked. To
Seiya's surprise, she didn't sound sarcastic. Her voice was sincere and
slightly choked with emotion.
"Who? Michiru-san?" Haruka turned to face him. For an instant, he
glimpsed a strange expression on her face. It was a bizarre combination of
pain, grief and anger. It was only there for a second though. She quickly
smoothed it over with a more placid expression.
"All of them. The queen, Hotaru, Small lady…I would have thought the
queen meant more to you than…Michiru." Seiya looked at her in confusion, not
quite sure what she meant. All of a sudden, he understood completely.
"Ano, I don't think that our relationship is what you think it is. We're
not…" he said, he voice trailing off. Why should she be reassured by him of all
people? She had never trusted him before and old habits-especially hers-didn't
die easily.
"Who do you think it is?" she said. Her rapid change of topics was a bit
startling, but Seiya wasn't terribly surprised. She had a lot to think about
and somehow needed to get it all out.
"I have my suspicions," he answered. "Have you considered your own
daughter?" Haruka flinched a bit, like she didn't want to answer his question.
"Yes, of course. Everyone here is under suspicion though. That includes
you," she snapped.
"You're dodging the subject," he replied irritably. "She's one of the
most likely people here. After all, didn't you think that it was odd that she
wanted Small Lady dead? Even for someone in that much pain, it's too extreme."
"I know. If you do anything to harm her or frighten my child…" she left
the threat hanging. She didn't need to finish it. Seiya was perfectly aware of
how ruthless she could be. Realizing that they were getting no where, Seiya
decided to back off.
"I won't do anything without Michiru-san's or your consent. Don't be so
jumpy." With that, he walked off. He hated admitting defeat on even the
smallest of issues, but it didn't pay to be stupid in times like this.
"And Seiya," she said. "Stay away from Michiru." He did not respond.
What was the point in trying to convince her?
* * * * *
Michiru listened as the sound of her partner's feet on the metallic floor
of the ship faded. The instant she was certain that Haruka was gone she sprang
out of the narrow cot. She pulled a small wand out of her clothing and held it
up above her head. She quietly whispered the words she had repeated a hundred
times before. In a flash of blue light and illusionary water, she transformed
into a sailor senshi.
She ached to tell Haruka about this but she couldn't. She might not be able to
tell if her it was really the person she loved or merely an imposter. Her
mirror could detect any illusion, but if it was a well crafted one it might
elude her for a while. By then it would already be too late.
She was surprisingly graceful even on the awkward perch of the cot. She
quickly estimated the distance between her and the vent and figured out the
amount of force she would need. Without hesitating, she leapt from the cot to
the vent, grasping it with her finger tips. It was all done in one silent,
fluid motion. She might not match the wind senshi for athletic ability, but she
was hardly weak.
Deftly, she unscrewed the cover of the vent and crawled in. She knew that
it was far too small to hold her. That wouldn't be a problem though. She
closed her eyes and focused on her body and the size of the passage.
Cautiously, she let some of her energy flow onto her. Slowly, she shrank. It
wasn't a terribly dramatic change, but it would allow her to move freely, at
least enough to find a little girl.
She knew that it wasn't the best of ideas. A thousand things could go
wrong at any given point. Has my common sense abandoned me in my hour of need?
she thought wryly. It did seem like something she wouldn't do. It was far too
risky and the odds against her finding Chibi-Usa were great. Still, she felt a
strange protectiveness of the child. Perhaps it was the fact that she knew that
it could have been Hotaru in that position. Perhaps it was the part of her that
longed for a child to protect of her own. Even she didn't know at that point.
All she knew was that Chibi-Usa was dying and she needed to reach before it was
too late.
Beads of perspiration dripped down her forehead as she forced her body to
maintain its current size. Once, she lapsed and instantly could not fit in the
tunnel. It was a painful experience that she did not intend to repeat.
After what seemed like an eternity, she heard some shuffling ahead of her.
Feeling new strength come with her refreshed hope, she surged towards the noise.
As she turned around the final corner she wondered what awaited her. The
thought that they might not be able to save the princess was too much.
She was shocked to find that the pink haired princess was not the one she
had heard. Instead, someone far less innocent was crouched in the pipe.
Neptune had seen her before, staring back at her from behind the glass of her
mirror. Her black hair, purple eyes and her body were unmistakable.
"Neptune?! Nan de-" Neptune felt a flash of rage at this being. She
wasn't going to give her the chance to explain, she didn't deserve it.
"Deep Submerge!" she yelled, her voice resounding off the pipes. The ball
of blue energy slammed into the dark princess and sent her flying into a
wreckage of twisted, destroyed pipe. Apparently she wasn't as strong as Neptune
had guessed. With a cry of surprise mingled with pain, she collapsed and was
instantly unconscious. Neptune crawled over to her. This seemed a little too
easy. Could her opponent be only pretending to sleep?
The princess really had been knocked out though. Neptune grabbed the
slumped body and slung it over one shoulder. She was rarely ruthless, but under
these circumstances she felt no pity for this creature. After what they had all
gone through seemingly at her command, she deserved whatever cards fate dealt
her.
Neptune could not crawl out of the tunnel dragging her burden though. She
was having enough difficulties fitting through the narrow pipes without an
additional person. She only had one choice, though she didn't like it. She
closed her eyes and focused on every detail she could recall of her room. She
wished desperately that she had bothered to form a better mental image before
leaving. Having a blurred or unclear image when one teleported could result in
going to going to the wrong destination or even the wrong dimension.
Her body wavered slightly, flickering like a candle in a storm. Slowly,
the princess and she faded from the pipe and appeared in her room. With a small
crash she landed on the floor. There were tiny beads of sweat on her face and
she was exhausted both mentally and physically. The prolonged use of that one
size-changing spell had taken its toll.
She wanted to cry out, to say something, anything. She felt so weak
though. Her muscles screamed in protest at the very concept of movement. She
knew that she needed to sleep, but she did not have the time.
Painfully, she forced her body off the steel mesh that some people thought
resembled a floor. She dragged herself to her feet, supporting the majority of
her weight on one corner of the cot. Once up, she walked-perhaps staggered
would be a more appropriate phrase-towards the door, to find someone, anyone.
As she approached the door, it swung open and Haruka stepped in.
"Michiru? What happened to you?" she asked, startled. Neptune smiled.
It was different from her normal smile though. This was a harsher look worn
down from weariness. She waved a gloved hand in the direction of the
unconscious body on the floor.
"I believe that I have found the our uninvited guest." Without bothering
to turn back, she went to her cot and fell asleep. Haruka shook her slightly,
attempting to wake her. She should have known better, unless she sensed
something, her partner slept like a rock.
Haruka grinned a little with relief. The grin vanished though when she
remembered something else. Hotaru, she realized suddenly. If she is innocent
then…
* * * * *
Haruka violently shoved the door out of her way. She was slightly out of
breath and her bangs were dampened with sweat. Inside of the room her child lay
on the bed under the cheaply made blankets. Her sheets were tangle from her
fitful sleep and her face was slightly streaked with tears.
Slowly, her eyes opened to take in the room around her. She moved her
head slightly to stare at Haruka. For a moment, it seemed as if she did not
even recognize the one who had cared for her for years. Suddenly, understanding
filled her face. She gasped slightly and tears began to stream from her eyes.
"Haruka!" she cried. She struggled to sit up, but was too weak. Her body
would not allow it. Gently, Haruka placed her hand on her back and helped her
rise. She wrapped her arms around Haruka's neck and began sobbing, her body
trembling.
She was so fragile, Haruka realized. It seemed as though she were made of
glass and could shatter at any second.
"Chibimoon! Where's Sailorchibimoon? Please, tell me!" she pleaded.
Haruka hesitated. She had never been one to beat around the bush or lie without
cause though. Now was not a good time to start.
"I don't know where she is right now…" she said quietly. She didn't turn
her head away, but she wanted to. The look on Hotaru's face was painful to see.
Even though she was an adult now, she still felt like the little girl who
Michiru had brought home one day at times. She almost winced thinking of
Michiru. She had been trying not to consider such possibilities.
"Please, tell me what happened to her," she said, quivering slightly.
"You can tell me the truth. I need to know. I need to help her!"
"Hotaru, where have you been for the past few days?" Haruka asked. She
hadn't intended to sound that harsh. Hotaru looked confused.
"I don't…I don't know. I was at the party and I went outside for a few
minutes. Then…then…I don't remember." So, Seiya's suspicions might have been
correct, she thought.
"Haruka-san!" someone called. Yaten paused at the door, uncertain whether
to enter or not. He had disregarded his ruffled appearance for once, indicating
an emergency. "We're about to land!"
* * * * *
Uranus tensed slightly as she watched their destination grow from a tiny
speck to a massive object obscuring their view of everything else. It was
impossible for them to actually land on the planet Saturn as the core was buried
under layers of gas, but that did not prevent them from entering the castle
itself. The castle was built on an artificial moon which orbited the planet.
It was large enough to have almost as much gravity as earth, even without all of
the spells attached to it.
Despite its spacious appearance though, virtually no one chose to dwell on
near Saturn's castle. Few were born there and many left the place as soon as
possible. It was not a pleasant place after all.
Certain people seemed to be drawn to it though. The outcasts of society,
the mystics, the ambitious; all seemed to see something in it that no one else
did. It was almost like it called to something deep inside these people, as if
the planet itself was some piece of themselves that they were missing. These
were the people who made up the bizarre community nearly that forsaken, eerie
planet.
Uranus had been there a few times, but had despised every moment of it.
She had always felt like someone was watching her. She knew in the back of her
mind that she was just being overly suspicious, but she could never shake the
feeling off. Maybe it was just the people there. Their eyes were all shadowed
and had an almost hollow look. They watched the people from outside of their
small, dark world in an almost hungry way.
Uranus remembered talking to a shrine maiden who lived there. The woman
had claimed that there was something almost seductive about the place. It was
like Nemesis in that sense. Most normal humans saw nothing attractive about it,
yet there were certain people that seemed to like having it as a home.
The ship found what appeared to be a landing pad and settled down. Uranus
couldn't help but notice that their vehicle was not in excellent condition. The
metal groaned in protest and the engines rattled slightly. Apparently it had
not been in the best of condition when they'd left. Normally, it wouldn't have
bothered Uranus so much. She was used to technical difficulties like these.
Now though, if the ship should break they could be stranded on this desolate
place for months. The prospect was one which did not interest her at all.
Hotaru shuddered slightly. She winced as though in pain. She reached out
to grab Uranus's hand.
"Chibimoon…is she dead?" she whispered, horrified. Standing there, wide-
eyed and trembling, she looked more like a child than ever before. It only
served as a painful reminder of the childhood that she had never really had.
Hotaru composed herself quickly though. The tiny tears that had been
forming at the corners of her eyes dissolved and with tremendous effort she
calmed down.
Uranus grabbed the body of the dark princess. There were times were she
wondered if their opponent was still alive. She hadn't moved for hours at this
point. Her heart was still beating though and the irregular rising and falling
of her chest indicated that she still lived. If she was simply recovering from
energy drain, she was still a potential danger for the senshi.
That was why they had decided to bring their worst enemy with them. If
they left her in the ship and it turned out that she was not really unconscious,
there was no way to know what traps she might lay in a short period of time.
As if by some unspoken order, the senshi all stepped out onto the
artificial ground at the same time. Out on the surface, the silence was
deafening. The hum of the ship, the occasional sentence or two spoken out loud
ceased. All sound died in their throats.
There was something haunting about that place that none of them could ever
identify. Perhaps it was the stillness that had descended upon the city. Or
maybe it was the way the planet Saturn hung ominously in the sky, covering the
stars. Whatever it was though, they all felt it. There was a dark, almost
melancholy aura about this place.
They began to wander through the streets of what had to be the capital.
The buildings were mostly shrines or temples with small hovels scattered around
the place. It was an odd patch work of stone that seemed like a labyrinth at
the moment.
"Hotaru, do you know where-" Uranus began. Hotaru simply nodded and lead
them down one of the smaller alleyways. Their destination seemed to be a rather
large, gothic style castle. Enormous, black turrets were crowned by white
crystals which illuminated the darkened landscape, casting shadows. They were
almost like stars of some kind. Uranus couldn't imagine what it would be like
to have nothing but that as a source of light.
Uranus looked over to Neptune, trying to make sure that no one else saw.
Her partner seemed perfectly calm, but Uranus knew that it was an illusion. She
was just as scared as they all were. She didn't say anything to Uranus though.
Either she was trying not to worry the Starlights-though they were quite capable
of handling fear at this point-or she was simply trying to distance herself from
Uranus.
Before the castle, she couldn't help but notice a statue towering over the
land. It was an enormous figure of a woman holding a wickedly pointed glaive.
Her face was emotionless, so blank and empty that it was uncanny.
They walked inside to a dimly lit stone chamber. The place obviously
hadn't been used for quite a while. There was a thick coat of dust on the floor
and occasional glimmers of light revealed cobwebs dangling from various placed.
Suddenly, Neptune froze. The light in her eyes dimmed until it vanished
completely. The muscles in her became limp.
"They're…here…" she said quietly. A spasm rippled through her body and
her eyes widened. Neptune sank to her knees, seemingly oblivious to everything.
Neptune inhaled deeply, struggling to gain control over her obvious terror.
Slowly, she appeared to calm down. The tremors in her body came less often and
her breathing became normal. She hadn't dispelled her fear of whatever her
intuition warned her of though. She was merely concealing it for the benefit of
everyone else.
"I must go to Triton Castle. Something happened. My people…my people are
dying. But someone is…here," she said, almost debating what to do. Uranus
stood by, torn with indecision. She wanted to help Neptune somehow. She wanted
to comfort her and promise her that she was there no matter what. Yet,
something inside her prevented her from doing that. What if her thoughts about
Seiya were accurate? What if Neptune-no, Michiru-wanted her to stay away? The
rational part of her mind argued that she was being ridiculous, but she could
not ignore the possibility.
Neptune slowly looked up, despair etched her face. She lifted one finger
to point at on of the shadowed corners of the temple. All of the senshi turned
to see what it was, afraid of what they might find.
It was too dark to see exactly what Neptune had pointed to. So, Uranus
reluctantly left her partner to find out. She had a growing sense of unease
about this whole situation. Even though their enemy still seemed to be asleep,
she was certain that there was something wrong. In the corner she found a
crystal slightly taller than her. She brushed some of the dust off of it,
certain that she needed to see what was inside.
There was a person in there, a woman who Uranus knew very, very well. Her
eyes were frozen in an expression of shock, her mouth remained open in a scream
that never reached her lips. Purple ribbons were suspended around her slight
frame. The majority of a sailor fuku had already formed on her. One hand even
held a translucent glaive.
Uranus almost hit herself right then. She should have known, she should
have realized it sooner. All of that time on the ship she had had the
suspicion, but she couldn't bring herself to do anything about it. She couldn't
confront someone who might be her child saying that she didn't trust her. Now,
everyone would pay simply because she wanted to avoid sacrifices.
Suddenly, there was a whistling sound behind her and air brushed past her
face. She turned around. She knew that she was a split second too slow, that
she had no chance. Still, some desperate survival instinct compelled her to see
what she was facing.
It all happened far too fast for anyone to react. By the time Uranus was
facing whatever had come at her, Neptune was already in the way, arms
outstretched. Dozens of small, narrow projectiles pierced through her skin.
The next moment seemed to happen in slow motion for Uranus. Blood,
hideous, scarlet blood spurted from the wounds that covered her partners body.
Neptune staggered slightly. She looked as if she would scream, but all that
emerged from her throat was a choking noise. Someone cried out. The noise was
beyond description in horror. It was filled with shock, agony and total
despair. Uranus realized the cry was hers, but she didn't care anymore.
Uranus rushed to Neptune's side, forgetting everything that had come
between them for a moment. All that mattered was her partner, the one she
loved. Everything else was unimportant right then. She tried to catch her, but
the aquatic senshi fell too soon. Her body struck to the stone floor with a
dull thud. Dust rose up from the floor, swirling around both of them.
Uranus picked her up, cradling her as if she were a child. There was so
much blood. It seemed like it was everywhere. It dripped from her short skirt
and landed in pools on the floor. She stared at it in horror. Neptune's life
was leaking away and there was nothing that she could do to prevent it.
What could she do? She wasn't a damn healer! She was a senshi, a
powerful warrior. How useless all of that was now. For all of her magic and
experience, she was completely and utterly helpless. She could just watch.
She turned her head away from the sight, unable to bear it. She needed
something to fight. She needed to know who was responsible for this. An enemy
of flesh and blood she could fight. Against injury she was powerless though.
She turned to the dark princess lying crumpled on the floor and her heart
sank. The princess's long, flowing black dress melted away into a tattered,
ragged sailor fuku. Her hair lightened to become pink and her whole body
shrunk. The one that they had treated so poorly was Chibi-Usa, their princess.
Which meant that Seiya had been right after all.
Hotaru was standing in the center of the temple, smiling slightly. A
flickering light surrounded her tiny body and her eyes began to glow. Within
several seconds her obviously fake appearance had dissolved to reveal their true
enemy.
The girl who appeared was about Usagi's height, though she seemed taller
somehow. She was probably around Usagi's age. Her skin was a little pale, as
if she hadn't been out in any sort of light for years. Her hair was incredibly
long. If it had not been pinned up it probably would have reached her feet.
The black dress she wore suited her well. It went down to her feet, but had two
long slits up the sides. She had no sleeves, but two translucent, black ribbons
covered the area below her shoulders. Around her neck there was a very
noticeable choker made out of diamond shaped black crystals that were shimmering
slightly. Uranus barely saw any of that though. What caught her attention were
the girl's eyes. They had a look that told of lost innocence and bitterness
deep inside. There was something else in those eyes though. There was a
soulless, cold, empty appearance to them.
The girl made some gesture with her hand. In an instant, Neptune
vanished. There was no bright light or indication of something that was about
to happen. She was simply there one moment and gone the next.
Uranus didn't bother to think of any consequences, the time for that was
gone. All she knew was that Neptune was not there. She couldn't protect her in
anyway, she couldn't tell her how much she loved her. She couldn't even say
good-bye. A blazing, irrational fury erupted inside of her. She lashed out at
the princess without hesitating.
"World Shaking!" she yelled. The familiar yellow energy condensed in her
clenched fist and flew at her target. This time though, it never connected.
The princess held out one hand and blocked Uranus easily.
"Baka," she snapped coldly. "You'll have to do more than that to defeat
me." Her eyes stared straight at Uranus, ignoring the Starlights and the
unconscious pink haired child. It took Uranus a moment to understand what was
going on because it was so painfully similar to an emotion she must have had
once. This demon, or whatever she was, was challenging her. She was daring her
to equal her.
Damn bitch, Uranus thought icily. You'll regret that. I'll take your
challenge, and I'll show you what happens when you hurt my family!
"World Shaking!" she repeated. This time though she didn't wait for
impact. She launched herself into the air as only she could. It might not be
as sophisticated, but kicking someone in the skull would be enough to knock them
out for quite a while.
The princess seemed to be ready for her though for she stepped to the side
at the last second. Uranus was unable to break her momentum, but did manage to
land on her feet. Shimatta! She's quicker than I thought, Uranus thought
grimly. The senshi of the sky wasted no time. She lunged for the princess
again, a large ball of golden energy in her hand. The dark girl shimmered
faintly before levitating off the ground several feet. Once again, Uranus had
failed.
Sweat was collecting on her forehead as Uranus prepared to attack again.
This opponent was not as weak as she appeared to be. She had to defeat her
though, somehow.
Her mind was not one the battle though. She could still see those
horrible images flashing before her. She could still see Neptune fall, she
could still hear the final, strangled cry she uttered. Every single detail of
the scene came unbidden to her.
"What did you do to her?!" Uranus demanded, her anger mounting. Neptune
was dying and she couldn't do anything about it. Once again-it seemed like it
had happened a hundred times before-she was completely helpless.
The princess merely smiled that irritatingly smug smile of hers.
"What did you do?!" Uranus screamed. Her rage was growing stronger as was
her grief. She couldn't think clearly. Everything was muddled together in a
rush of emotions that she couldn't even begin to understand. There was one
thing that she did understand though. Through her hysteria and fear, she
remembered how to fight.
She was acting all on instinct now. She swept her sword up in an arc.
The princess moved to block her again, but failed. Instead she did something
almost comical. She stumbled on the hem of her gown. It was funny, Uranus
reflected. It was something that Usagi would do. It was the same kind of
clumsy, foolish mistake that her princess would have made. For a second, just a
brief flash, she could almost see Usagi in that same position. She could
picture her startled expression, her innocence.
She shook off the feeling and launched a "world shaking" at her fallen
opponent. The princess fell to the ground before she had a chance to block it.
She focused all of her fury, all of her anguish on the shining sword in her
clenched hands. With that done, she leapt through the air, landing easily on
top of the dark girl. She put her sword's tip directly over the girl's pulsing
heart.
"Give her back," she hissed. She was painfully aware of the agony in her
heart. She did not respond to it though. There was no time to be sentimental,
not now. A senshi didn't have room for emotions that would cloud her judgment.
A senshi had to be beyond dreams, beyond pain, almost beyond life so that others
could have such luxuries.
Once again though, Uranus thought she could see Usagi in the same
position. It was true perhaps that there was a resemblance between the two
people. This twisted menace might have once possessed Usagi's hopefulness and
naivety. Those traits were long gone from her hardened face and eyes though.
She was beyond them. She was the perfect warrior, or was she?
A tiny spasm rippled across the princess's face. The light in her collar
flickered and died out briefly. For a moment, she looked confused.
"You're weak," she snapped. "You love that woman, admit it." Uranus
forced the tip of her sword down further, drawing a few tiny droplets of blood
above the girl's skin and leaving a hole in her garment. Her enemy still
refused to show any fear.
"You might even be willing to lose a battle for her sake, ne?"
"These may be your last words, are you sure that this is what you want to
say?" Uranus said. "This battle is not one I'm going to lose though. As a
sailor senshi, I will do my duty." It was true. She hated killing on any
occasion, but sometimes it was necessary. Now that the adrenaline granted by
her rage was slowly draining out of her system, she no longer felt anger. She
merely felt…hollow, empty and tired. Every time she killed she felt more of
that. Still, if it was needed this time, she wouldn't hesitate.
"Ara," she smiled. "I was disappointed, but I guess you'll be a worthy
opponent after all. Let's see what you do when facing your own partner though."
Uranus realized with sudden dread just how this was going to end.
"Kami-sama…" she whispered, unsure of whether it was a curse or a prayer.
"What have I done to deserve this fate? The air in the center of the room
glittered slightly, as if there were some light source that she could not see.
After a few seconds, a teal crystal materialized there. Uranus knew who was
inside of it. She couldn't bring herself to see it though. Not after all that
they'd been through…Michiru, you can't just die like this.
She kept her sword in position, ignoring the Starlights cries of shock.
Her hands were trembling though. Her bloodied, filthy hands could not remain
focused with Michiru possibly dead.
The princess smiled unpleasantly again. She raised one hand and began to close
her fingers. Uranus heard a crunching sound behind her. She flicked a quick
glance at the crystal and saw that her guess was accurate. Neptune was
imprisoned within the crystal, frozen. It would have been a good thing, if not
for the fact that cracks were now visible along the surface of the crystal.
"Fighter! Healer! Maker!" she yelled. The Starlights nodded, for once not
bothering to question her orders. There was no time for questions, not now.
She could only pray that they knew what to do.
The princess tightened her fist causing tiny fragments of the crystal to fly
off. Uranus forced her sword farther down. For a few seconds, no one moved.
The scene seemed to freeze as both sides remained poised to finish the other
off.
"Star Serious Laser!" Fighter yelled. The princess beneath Uranus's feet
actually grinned. Right before the attack connected with her skull, she
vanished. One of Uranus's boots slammed into the floor as it no longer had any
support. The senshi swore under her breath and turned to see where the girl had
gone to. She could still win this. She could beat this child.
The girl did not appear though, at least not right away. After a few moments
confusion on the part of the senshi, she made herself known. A violent
explosion came from no where. Radiant violet energy expanded outward from the
center of the room, sending the senshi flying backwards, thrown forcefully
against the walls behind them. The explosion did not stop there though. It
tore through the walls of the room, devouring the chamber and turning it into
nothing but rubble by the massive castle.
Silence, again, Uranus thought as she dragged herself out of the debris. It's
like there isn't another soul in this cursed place. I suppose it's a
possibility at this point.
A few minutes later the other senshi emerged from their potential grave. Uranus
said nothing for them, but did make sure that they all came out eventually.
Their fukus might be covered with dirt from the wreckage and they might have
some minor injuries, but at least they were alive. Even Chibi-Usa had managed
to survive since Fighter had brought her up.
All of a sudden, Uranus rushed over to a selected spot in the rubble and began
to dig frantically. With incredible strength she lifted the pieces of stone
from the ground and discarded them carelessly. She worked quickly, far faster
than any normal human could have done anyways. She wasn't going quickly enough
though. The more time that went by, the more the pressure would push down upon
whatever lay buried down there.
She noticed Hotaru's prison in the stones. She removed it, relieved that it was
intact. It didn't help Michiru though. Her gloves were beginning to wear thin,
but she didn't even notice. Nothing mattered outside of getting Michiru out.
The rational part of her already knew that there wasn't much hope unless the
crystal was very strong. She couldn't bring herself to accept that idea. She
couldn't think about it.
She was going so slowly! It would take her forever to remove enough of this!
She tried to speed up, but found that her strength had betrayed her. Her limbs
were already weakened from the tiring work and could not move any faster. Her
gloves finally gave out. They were still attached to her wrists, but only as
useless pieces of battered cloth. Her hands began to get cut by some of the
sharper rocks. Blood dripped from her fingers and the pain caused her to slow
down even more.
Uranus felt tears prick at the corners of her eyes as the hopelessness finally
began to overcome her. She couldn't cry though. Senshi didn't have time for
tears.
Finally, Fighter crawled over towards her. She barely had the strength to stand
as she had not been fortunate enough to be buried near the surface. She still
had to help though. She didn't say anything, she just began to dig. A few
seconds later, Healer and Maker came over. Uranus would have resented their
presence, but she didn't have time for such emotions right now. She had to
focus all of her energy on one task.
They worked for another half hour, struggling to continue, but enduring. Soon,
all of their hands and knees were encrusted with a mixture of liquid and dry
blood. Even the Starlight's thick, leather gloves eventually wore down. After
all of that work, they still had not found any sign of Neptune or her crystal.
It was encouraging at least that they had found no fragments, but they were
still worried at the fact that they should have uncovered something by then.
"Looking for someone?" a voice queried. Uranus lifted her head up to see who it
was. The princess was back, hovering about thirty feet in the air. Next to her
was the crystal and it's precious contents that they had been searching for.
Uranus bit her lip until blood came from it. She couldn't beg, not now. If
this…creature knew how desperate she was, she'd never get Neptune back and
remain intact. She needed someway to bargain, and she didn't have it.
"Baka! Do you really think that I'd let one of you slip through my fingers?"
she laughed. Her voice suddenly grew quieter. "I would be willing let her live
though. You were admirable, Uranus, to resist the impulse to run to her. You
knew of course that I would have destroyed her if you left, but it still proves
that you were strong to stay. I could use the help of someone like you. If you
come to me without resistance, I shall allow your partner to serve me also."
Uranus took one hesitant step foreword. Something was wrong here. If this
princess was as capable as she seemed to be, she wouldn't trust her enemy.
That was when she noticed a several tiny sparks of light on the girl's right
hand. Of course she'd get a spell ready in advance. She thinks that I'm going
to fall for it again though. Uranus nodded and began to walk foreword.
Carefully, she built a small shield around her. She couldn't use defensive
magic on the same scale as Saturn, but this should keep her alive.
The princess whipped out her charged hand and send a strong blast of energy
directly at Uranus. Uranus was knocked backwards and badly injured but was
conscious at least.
"Damn you," the girl hissed, clenching her fists. "I won't be defeated by scum
like you." With that, she placed both hands on the crystal. Cracks began to
branch out from her fingers, distorting the image of Neptune. Uranus looked up
in horror. No! She needs her to bargain, why is she going to kill her!
Michiru!
The collar around the princess's neck and the two bracelets on her wrist began
to shine again, their light increasing in intensity. Uranus waited for her to
stop, to give up on this pointless threat, but she didn't. The cracks around
the crystal were beginning to widen and pieces were starting to fall off. One
landed at Uranus's feet. A small shred of teal cloth had gotten caught on the
shard. The cloth was damp and crimson in some places. Uranus sank to the
ground, stunned.
"Kami-sama," she whispered to herself. "She really will…" It was then that
Uranus's firm control over her emotions snapped. She could stare down any
demon, any monster, but this was too much. Her muscles tensed as she prepared
to jump. Like a spring, she rocketed into the air, her feet separating from the
ground.
Fighter stared at her, transfixed by what she saw. For one brief instant, she
was more than human. Her body was still there. She was still solid and very
real, but Fighter could sense that there was something more to her. It was as
if the wind itself was a part of her and fighting with a passion as only it
could to regain its other half.
Fighter shook herself out of her daze and into reality. Forgetting the almost
surreal beauty of the moment, she realized the problem at hand. Haruka didn't
seem like the kind of person to lose her head easily. She understood the need
to make sacrifices and was able to ignore her own emotions and sentiments for
logic. When it came to Michiru though, her common sense seemed to abandon her.
Fighter had never liked Uranus particularly, but in a strange way she thought
she understood her. Perhaps it was that moment before she died when she had
smiled slightly and entrusted her princess's safety into her hands. Maybe it
was the fierce protectiveness she had shown after that one concert. Whatever it
was though, she felt a certain empathy for her at that moment and also knew just
what she was going to do.
Uranus sailed upward, ignoring everything but the single-minded desire to get
Michiru back. Suddenly, something slammed into her, the impact knocking her in
the wrong direction. She yelled out unexpectedly as the additional weight
dragged her back down to earth. She turned her head slightly to see Fighter
forcing her down onto the ground. She struggled, but was already pinned.
"Let me go!" she shouted furiously.
"How stupid do you think I am? If I do that, you'll go right back up and kill
yourself! There's no point in that! That's what she wants." Uranus lay pinned
to the ground, agonizing over what might happen to Neptune for the next minute
or so. She fought at first, trying desperately to throw Fighter off. The
Starlight had her in a bad position though and she remained trapped. Finally,
she just went limp. The energy given to her by raw emotion was gone and she
felt like just felt like sobbing.
"I won't go," she said finally. Fighter hesitated, but released her. The
leather clad senshi looked at her back almost sadly. It wasn't as if I could
hold her there forever. She is the wind, changeable, fierce and predictably
unpredictable. Anyone can imprison her, but she'll always slip through there
fingers.
Uranus saw the Starlights launching various attacks at their foe without
success. The strange girl hadn't been bluffing all of this time, she was
powerful and dangerous. The massive quantities of energy she harnessed were
slightly unrefined, but deadly none the less. Forcing herself to ignore the
partially destroyed crystal, she gathered magic into her hand for an attack.
Abruptly, the princess stopped firing. She shuddered slightly, a look of
bewilderment spreading across her face. Slowly the look was replaced by fury
again though. The empty look entered her eyes once again. She whirled around
and placed both hands on the already damaged crystal. Her eyes began to glow a
fearsome color and energy began to accumulate on her hands.
Uranus struggled to control herself. One half of her wanted desperately
to jump up there, to attempt to free Neptune even if it cost her own life. The
other half knew that it was irrational and foolish. How could she even think of
such a thing? She was a senshi, was she not? A senshi had to make sacrifices
for the greater good. Hadn't she made that pact with Neptune all of those years
ago?
Still, if she did nothing Neptune would die. She would have to watch as
her own lover was torn to pieces. How could she do that? More importantly, how
could she go on living with nothing to go back to? She had her duty, but wasn't
her duty to the one she loved even more important?
It will only result in two deaths! she thought savagely. I have no way to
save her! I'll simply endanger the Starlights and all of the planets. I'm a
senshi! Senshi don't have time for sentimentality! I can't just break down and
cry when someone dies! Sacrifices have to be made! Just then, she remembered
what had happened only a few minutes before. She remembered Neptune's broken,
bloody body falling limply to the ground. She had fallen protecting her. She
had done everything…for what? To give some small hope to her partner? No,
because she loved her.
All this time I doubted her. I should have known better. She trusted me
all of this time, yet I could not return that trust. Why was I so blind?
She turned her eyes up to Neptune once more. For once, she tried to
forget everything. She wasn't a senshi, she wasn't a queen, she was simply
Tenoh Haruka. Now, it was time to make up for all of her misunderstandings.
After all, what would she have if Michiru was dead? Her duty? Yes, she might
have that, but she would not have life. Life would be merely a hollow, empty
routine without Michiru. Without her partner, her other half, she wasn't even
alive.
She jumped again, sailing through the air with an ease and grace that once
she could only have dreamed of. This time it was not merely a reaction the pain
and turmoil within her, it was a conscious decision that she knew she had to
make. Now that she was certain of what she was doing, nothing could hold her
back. Fighter tried to knock her down again, only to collide with the dirt.
How ironic, she thought. I am only truly free when helping the one I'm
tied down to. With that final thought, she slammed her sword into the
princess's hand. Perhaps it was the girl's concentration on destroying the
crystal, or maybe it was simply such an illogical thing for her to do that her
opponent never expected it.
Whatever the reason though, the girl did not have enough time to react and
block her strike. Blood spurted from the ugly gash along her wrist. She pulled
back, clutching her wounded hand.
Uranus floated easily over to the crystal and placed her two raw hands on
its smooth surface. Only now did she see Neptune's face. She was wincing
slightly and her mouth was set in a grimace from the pain. It hurt to see her
so close to death, to look at her like that. And yet, she thought she saw a
faint trace of happiness in Neptune's half open eye's.
"Go home," Uranus whispered. She searched for power that she knew must be
deep inside of her, power that could help Neptune. She was drained though. The
battle and her search through the rubble had left her mentally and physically
exhausted. She looked at Neptune's face once again and a sense of despair
filled her. Her sacrifice was worthless.
She placed her lips on the cold surface of the crystal. She couldn't
reach out to touch Neptune, but at least she could be close to her when she
died. In that brief moment, she felt a faint wisp of strength. She pulled it
out of herself, feeling her body sag slightly, and poured it into the crystal.
Neptune and her prison flickered then vanished.
Uranus smiled a little. It was pointless, what she had just done.
Absolutely pointless. She had only bought a little time. Still, she felt a
certain reassurance now. She waited for a moment. Finally, out of the silence
of the planet, she heard the sound she was listening for. It was a soft
whistling sound, the sound something makes when it flies through the air too
quickly. She already knew that it was too late, but she didn't care anymore.
A massive crystal pierced her flesh from the back. It severed bone and
tissue alike then dissolved into nothingness once its work was finished. She
smiled that tiny, enigmatic smile once again. After a moment, she plummeted
towards the ground.
The wind whipped by her as she fell, toying with her hair, her battered
body and fuku. There was a sound in that soulless air that rushed by her
though: screaming. The wind was shrieking in an uncannily human way as she
echoed its cry silently. She lifted one hand, feeling it rush through her
fingers. It's like the wind on the sea, crying out for what it has lost, she
thought weakly. She breathed in its scent; her last breath. I'm going to die,
aren't I? Yes, my body is too weak to continue. It doesn't matter anymore
though. Without Michiru, what do I have to live for?
So, she fell, an angel with blood stained wings, with a blood stained
soul. Without regret, without hope, she fell towards death. But she didn't
care anymore. In her own strange, bitter way, she was content.
* * * * *
"Damn it, Haruka!" Seiya growled under his breath. He slammed the lever
foreword once again. The ship's engine's sputtered slightly, protesting their
abuse. The noise continued for a minute or so before dying as it had the past
few times. Seiya swore again and forced the useless control foreword. The
ship's engine faltered, but finally came to life in a blast of sound and light.
With a roar, the ship accelerated, throwing it's crew back violently. Within
seconds, they were through the atmospheric shield surrounding Titan Castle and
back in the oblivion of space.
Seiya flipped on the autopilot and stormed out of the chamber. He walked
into the room where Haruka was. He didn't want to go there, but somehow he felt
obligated to.
Inside, Haruka was sprawled across one of the tiny cots. She had numerous
bandages covering her deathly white skin, but the blood still flowed through
them. The only sign that she was still alive was the occasional effort at
breathing she made. Even with her superior healing abilities, it didn't look
good.
It was funny, she didn't look very threatening then. The snarl or guarded
anger he usually saw on her face were gone. Her tensed muscles were limp,
though one hand still clutched her sheathed sword tightly. Seiya had to admit
that it was quite a change. He was accustomed her to slightly arrogant
attitude. He had often looked at her as a pain to deal with, but also a
potential danger. He would never have told her that of course, but when they
first encountered the outer senshi, they had been slightly afraid of them. They
were not as naïve as their dear, little princess.
Now though, she looked like a child. Her face was still hardened and it
lacked the innocence that Usagi possessed, but it had a kinder expression on it
at least. Perhaps there had been a day, a long forgotten day from centuries
ago, when her face had looked like this even when she was awake. Seiya had long
ago realized that there was more to Haruka then they realized, but had never
bothered to wonder what.
Haruka's body jerked violently, then lay still. He grabbed her hand,
checking the wrist for a pulse. For a moment, he felt nothing and really
thought she had died. Finally, he felt a faint, rhythmic twitch beneath her
skin. She was alive for now at least.
What scared him was that she might die. She had always seemed invincible.
She was simply too proud to let something like death claim her. But it was a
possibility now. In fact, it was highly likely. Not only was her body badly
injured, but she didn't seem to care if she lived or died. On that planet, it
had seemed almost like she waited for the attack to come. It wasn't something
he liked to consider though.
Haruka opened her eyes for a second. They were empty, dark eyes devoid of
any emotion. After a second, her eyelids closed once more and she returned to
her uneasy sleep.
"You know, Michiru-san will never forgive you if you just die like this.
You two have been through far too much to just give up," he snapped irritably.
She almost certainly couldn't hear him, but Seiya secretly thought that she did.
It seemed that a little bit of color returned to her face. It was a comforting
sign. If Haruka had a reason to fight for living, death itself would be afraid
to take her.
* * * * *
"Daijobu, Hime-sama?" Tanzanite asked. Adularia cringed a bit. She had
hoped that her wound would not be noticeable. In a few days it would be fully
healed, but at that point there was still an ugly gash. How embarrassing, to be
injured by a regular senshi when she had planned everything out so perfectly.
"I'm fine, it's nothing," she said quickly. Tanzanite raised an eyebrow
inquiringly.
"One of these days you're going to bleed to death from one of these
'nothings'. I have yet to hear you acknowledge pain until you're unable to
stand. Now, let me see it." Adularia hesitated, clutching her immobile arm.
After a second or two, she let Tanzanite examine it.
The older woman gently checked the severed and burnt flesh before turning
to look at Adularia.
"How did you get this?" Seeing no point in beating around the bush,
Adularia answered the question directly.
"That damn senshi, Sailor Uranus, I think. I almost had her, but she
managed to get me before I could do anything."
"You were lucky that the demon lent you so much power. Anyone would have
trouble fighting that many senshi. They're strong. Next time, I'm not sure
you'll be so fortunate." Tanzanite said nothing for a while after that. She
sat, staring off into space, contemplating something.
Adularia was silent also. She knew that the red haired woman would reveal
her thoughts in due time, if she felt like it. It wouldn't be wise to force
her. Besides, she wasn't sure she had the energy to speak right then. Her
weakness was catching up with her. All of the telltale signs were there. Her
chest had tightened, making it difficult to breath and her skin had grown cold.
She sank to her knees, feeling her energy drain from her far more quickly
than usual. This attack was worse than usual, but she could endure it. Her
people had to endure more pain than this, so she should not be selfish and beg
for help like an infant over such a small thing.
Tanzanite watched as the princess suffer, her life-force being dragged
from her fragile body. She looked like a ghost, her face sunken and wraithlike.
She couldn't survive many more attacks like this, though she was unwilling to
admit it. Mars's captor briefly considered helping her. But that would be too
much. The demon would never tolerate it. Besides, she didn't feel like dying
just yet. She still had one thing to accomplish before she could ever be truly
happy.
Adularia looked up at her, her eyes begging the warrior not to tell of
this weakness to anyone. Through her strained gasps, she managed to get a few
words out.
"I…have to go back to their ship. The one senshi…is good enough to be one
of us," she said. After concentrating, she slowly faded from the scene, leaving
Tanzanite alone.
Tanzanite checked to make sure that no one was watching, then pressed her
hand against a rock sticking out of the hewn wall. Reddish light flickered over
the surface and the wall disappeared to reveal a large chamber. Tanzanite
looked nervously at the massive, black crystal. It's appearance was
intimidating enough, but to anyone with even the slightest magical ability it
was terrifying. The thing wreaked of raw, untamed power. It was capable of
more destruction than most creatures could dream of.
Tanzanite knew that if she so much as touched it, it would undoubtedly
kill her. Her body might be able to contain the power of a single senshi, but
that kind of energy was more than she could control. After all, no one of their
clan had ever been able to truly control the Black Poison crystal. The princess
would be able to though, Tanzanite was confident of that. But she would never
have the chance to use her birthright. She would die before she claimed her
throne.
* * * * *
"Do you know how she is?" Taiki asked. Yaten lowered the book hiding his
face, revealing two livid, emerald eyes. He turned his head away from the
taller Starlight and snorted quietly.
"She'll live, maybe," he snapped. Yaten's eyes quivered slightly, the ice
melting for an instant. "It's her own fault though!" He dropped the book,
slamming into the firm surface of the couch. He began to pace back and forth,
still appearing furious and also worried at the same time.
"Calm down, there's nothing we can do."
"You're damn right there's nothing we can do! There's nothing anybody can
do!" he yelled, frustrated. "It was so stupid of her! She'll probably die now,
and for what? Nothing! Neptune's also dead and now she's going to follow!" He
sat down again, energy drained from his brief outburst. Taiki simply watched.
It was uncommon of Yaten to do such a thing, but understandable.
Yaten ran his hands through his silvery hair, forcing himself to regain
his composure.
"Why?" he whispered. "Isn't it best to survive? To just keep going? I
didn't think I'd ever be sorry to see the Outers go but…why did they have to die
like this? Couldn't she at least have just left, survived without her partner?"
Taiki wanted to provide an explanation, but had none. At least her
could have given Yaten some support, but he too was just as haunted by what
might have been two of the Outer senshi's final minute's of life. Though he had
not cared for either, he had admired Michiru as an artist her partner for her
aloofness at times. To see them torn apart like that…
"Gomen," Yaten said abruptly. "I'm acting like Seiya, too immature. I
need to be alone right now." With that, he snatched up his book and left.
Realizing that he too needed something else to think about, he reached for a
sheet of paper and pen. If he could somehow express this on paper, it might
help.
* * * * *
"What were you thinking?" he demanded of the ashen person residing in the
cot. Haruka flashed a quick glare at him, wishing desperately that he wasn't
there. She wanted nothing but the relief that sleep brought. His presence only
kept her awake and kept her mind on her partner's fate. At least her irritation
was a distraction. It wasn't enough though.
"You sacrifice your companions for the sake of the world without a second
thought but you're willing to give up your life in a pointless effort to save
her? What the hell are you thinking?!" he exploded. "I never understood you to
begin with, but this is strange even for you!"
"Urusai," she snapped. "I don't need this right now."
"Do you think I care? I want an explanation and I'm not leaving until you
provide one!" Haruka growled something incomprehensible and lunged at him only
to fall back limply. Her injury was throbbing again, reminding her all too
clearly of what she wanted so desperately to forget.
He smiled, a joyless and slightly bitter expression. He wanted to reach
out and help her somehow, to ease her pain. She would never accept his aid
though. She would much rather suffer on her own than ever lean on anyone else,
with the possible exception of Michiru. He watched as Haruka struggled to
stand. Her whole body trembled and her legs looked like they would collapse
with the effort. Eventually she had to settle for sitting upright. He had
never seen anyone manage to look so defiant about it though.
"All right," she drawled. "I'll give you an explanation. I already am
dead. Without Michiru, I have nothing left to go back to. What you saw on the
planet was merely an act of finality, to at least let her go with a bit of
dignity." Arrogant as always, he thought. This can't just go by though.
"What about the others, the Inner senshi? What about everyone who cares
about you? How can you even think of leaving them so selfishly? What would
Usagi do if you died?!"
"That's all you really care about, isn't it?" she said a little
thoughtfully. All of a sudden, she sagged slightly. "All those years ago, I
asked you to protect her. Perhaps you can understand my position then." Seiya
looked at her in confusion. It had never occurred to him that in despair, he
had done the same thing he accused her of.
"I suppose," he said carefully. "But Usagi…she needs protecting. She's
so naïve, so blind to the evil she faces all of the time. It's like she can't
understand how to hate, how to blame. We-the Starlights, I mean-lost that so
long ago." He laughed a little sadly at that.
"She can hate. She's human after all," Haruka replied evenly. "But she
can forgive."
"But why Michiru?" Seiya persisted. "I know that you two are close, but
she can take care of herself. She wouldn't have wanted you to do that." Haruka
smiled faintly, her eyes distant, seeing some memory only she knew.
"Because I love her. And…because she would do the same for me." Seiya
shook his head.
"I still don't completely understand you. But, I don't think anyone
really does. Maybe we're not as different as I thought though." Haruka raised
an eyebrow.
"It's something to think about, but I doubt it," she said stubbornly.
Seiya groaned.
"I've had all I can take. I think I'll let you sleep for now." Haruka
grinned and lay down to rest. She didn't get to sleep though, not for quite
some time. Her stormy blue eyes remained staring at the ceiling above her as
her mind contemplated what had just been said. She realized that there was
truth in what Seiya had said. He was impulsive and in the past had been less
mature than her and more emotional, but they did have a fair amount in common.
Perhaps she could trust them a little bit. She would have to anyways, her life
rested in their hands.
* * * * *
"So, this is it?" Michiru inquired softly. Haruka looked around at the
cottage a little disdainfully.
"It will do, I suppose," she muttered. Michiru poked her lightly and
chuckled a little at that.
"Just once it would be nice if you accepted something for what it is," she
smiled. "After all, it won't be easy for me either! I will have no one but you
to keep me company for quite some time."
"Is that a bad thing?" Michiru let her head rest on her partner's
shoulder, her face still slightly teasing, yet serious.
"Hell itself would seem pleasant if you were there. I think that this
place should do nicely." Haruka looked at her thoughtfully, running her fingers
through the former aquatic senshi's hair.
"I suppose when you put it that way, I should be able to tolerate it." In
all honesty, she couldn't have cared less what the place looked like, it was
perfect. Here they could forget about battles and sacrifices. Each day would
be an ordinary day-not that any day with Michiru was ever truly ordinary-where
they could live some of the life that they had given up before. Uranus and
Neptune could be simply unpleasant memories and Haruka and Michiru could truly
exist.
Besides, she had Michiru now. Before with moments of peace like this so
few, they didn't have time for idle conversation. To some degree, even their
affection for each other had to be often ignored. But that was over. It was
just them now, forever.
She pulled Michiru into a tight embrace, breathing in her scent and
letting them both rejoice in their new freedom silently. For several minutes,
they stood there, holding each other tightly. She loved her so much, an emotion
she rarely got to express. Without her, she was nothing. Michiru was her
wings, her soul. She had opened up her frozen heart and shown her feelings she
could never have imagined. When they were together, they were free, truly free…
Haruka's eyes opened and the scene from her memory vanished abruptly. Her
lethargic mind took a moment to comprehend the change in surroundings, but once
she did she longed for sleep again. This reality wasn't one she enjoyed living
in. The warmth and relief of that scene was replaced by the cold that filled
all of space and the relief was replaced by a dread of life itself.
Now that she was fully awake, she also remembered that Michiru was gone.
It was almost difficult for her to comprehend. They had been together for so
long and had changed tremendously in that time. No matter what she had done, no
matter how she had acted Michiru would always be there for her, always forgive
her. She was the rock beneath her feet, the anchor that kept her turbulent,
confused soul in that world. Now, she was gone. She simply wasn't there
anymore.
A part of her violently rejected the concept. It wasn't true, it couldn't
be. Michiru would come back eventually. She would recover and whatever enemy
there was would be defeated. Another part of her knew that it wasn't true.
Michiru was dead by now. She would never come back. For the first time in
ages, Haruka was alone.
She felt something prick at the corner of her eye. She closed her
eyelids, forcing the liquid back where it belonged. There was no time for
tears, or dreams, or even love. Besides, she wasn't even sure she remembered
how to cry. She couldn't recall the last time she had.
* * * * *
Haruka had finally sunken back into a restless sleep, only to be awoken
once again. She felt some presence in her mind, a faint shadow like a
nightmare. She opened her eyelids ever so slightly, hoping that her foe would
not notice. Her room was deserted though. She picked up her transformation pen
and discreetly changed forms.
Without hesitation, she rushed to the bridge of the ship. Her wound was
throbbing badly, causing her to stop several times. She needed to continue
though. She had a feeling she knew what this was and if she didn't reach it
first, everyone else would pay the price.
Upon reaching her destination, she ducked behind the nearest crate. She
stifled a yell as she felt warm liquid drip onto her hand. The healing her body
had been doing was no where near enough to withstand the strain she had been
placing on it. She was used to such pain though, she could endure.
As she had suspected, the black clad girl was there again. She floated
about a foot above the steel mesh of the ship's floor, elegant dress flared out
about her. She hadn't made any obvious effort to disguise herself. Uranus
wondered briefly if the figure in the center of the room was merely an illusion,
but it felt real to her.
The princess turned to face her hiding place, her cold eyes focused on the exact
location of the senshi.
"I know where you are, you may come out now," she said. "I don't particularly
feel like fighting, even though it might mean bringing your kind to justice.
I'm here to talk, so don't make this difficult." She extended one hand in the
direction of the crate. It vanished instantly.
"What do you want then?" Uranus said coldly. Accepting something on your
enemy's terms was never the best of options, but she had few choices right then.
"I want you to come with me. I'm sure that the idea does not appeal to you, but
you have little choice. If you refuse, you risk a battle and the destruction of
this pathetic vehicle." Her eyes watched the senshi's reaction carefully.
Uranus gritted her teeth, longing to lash out at her. Michiru probably would
have told her to calm down, to restrain herself. Michiru wasn't there though.
She pictured all of things she could do right there. She was powerful, maybe
even enough take this twisted child down with her. If she were quick enough,
she could finish her off. She almost wished she could, to wipe away the
memories of that day on Saturn. If she could just get rid of this person who
refused to leave her alone…
She felt sick with those thoughts of such terrible violence though. Sick,
because she knew that she had done such things in the past and would do them
again. Yes, they provided a channel for the rage that occasionally built up
inside of her, but they also wore her down. Each year she had more guilt to
swallow and more memories to bear. She didn't want more of that to live with,
it was hard enough already.
So she chose an alternative to a useless battle and the lives of everyone on the
ship. She had been stupid to even consider such a thing. After all, if Small
Lady died and Neo-Queen Serenity did not survive this final use of the
ginzuishou, the Crystal Tokyo might crumble. And, though she hated to admit it,
she didn't wish such as tragedy on the Starlights either. They still had a
great deal to learn about each other, but she had a feeling that they someday
might get along as Usagi had so naively suggested long ago.
She buried her anger inside her, letting it dissipate, leaving only a faint
lingering trace of emotion. She couldn't allow anything to cloud her judgment,
not now. Sentimentality or desire for revenge would only make the situation
worse.
The sound of leather boots on the metal interrupted the tense scene. Uranus
gritted her teeth. Her time was limited, and the longer she waited the more
people would suffer.
"Fine," Uranus said quietly. The dark girl smiled enigmatically, a look with no
joy in it. "Tell me what you want me to do. I agree."
"I'm glad you understand the situation you're in. Give me your talisman."
Uranus's hand twitched slightly as she withdrew her ancient weapon from its
dimensional pocket. Ignoring her first impulse, she extended her hand holding
the sheathed sword.
With little warning, the Starlights burst into the room.
"Get out," Uranus growled. She let her eyes slide to her left to see their
faces. They were clearly stunned, with touches of anger embedded in their eyes.
"Uranus, what are you doing?" Fighter demanded.
"I said get out!" she yelled forcefully. "This is not your concern. The next
one to step foreword gets the edge of this blade or worse." The Starlights
didn't seem pleased with the situation, but did not dare advance. They knew all
too well that she was serious.
"She's correct," the princess said. "I only came here for the senshi of the
Silver Millennium, but I will not hesitate to destroy you also." Fighter
tensed, clearly resisting the part of her that wanted to lung foreword.
"How can you do this," Fighter yelled again. She ignored the distraught
Starlight. Someday, they'd understand. The princess jerked the blade from her
grasp, sending a wave of pain through her. Having someone else touch that
sword, that sword that was so deeply a part of her…it felt wrong somehow.
The princess, still gripping the sword walked over to her and put a hand on her
shoulder. Uranus flinched, but was too numb to resist. She vaguely heard the
princess threaten to kill her if the Starlights moved, and she felt her feet
shuffle towards a portal. Beyond that, she could remember nothing.
* * * * *
It might have been several days after that fateful incident, but it was
hard to tell in space. Time crawled by with agonizing slowness for the
Starlights as they sped towards an unknown destination. They didn't know where
they were going and they couldn't have cared less.
Memories from Haruka's sacrifice were still fresh in their minds and still
unpleasant. They all tried to ignore them, to think of something else,
anything. It was impossible though. The scenes haunted their thoughts and
dreams seemingly every hour, making life itself torturous.
At that time, the three were all on the bridge of the ship. Healer had a
book in front of his face, though his eyes were slightly unfocused and didn't
appear to be on the page. Maker was staring gloomily at a blank sheet of paper
and Fighter simply sat by the window, watching debris speed past them. Through
the door and into this melancholy scene stepped Chibi-usa.
She still looked slightly sick. Her skin seemed pale, the effect enhanced
by the artificial light. Her fluffy hair hung loose, out of its usual style as
though she had not bothered to notice its disarrayed state. Her eyes were
strong though, despite her weakened appearance.
"Minna," the small princess said. "Gomen nasai, you didn't need to be
involved in any of this. But, Crystal Tokyo needs our help. Please, will you
help my mama and the senshi?" She turned to look up at each one, her eyes
challenging them to refuse. None did.
Fighter looked at the child in surprise. It seemed strange to hear words
like that coming from a little girl who had lived the sheltered, pampered life
of a princess. But then, many strange things had occurred in her lifetime.
What intrigued her though was the fact that it sounded familiar. It was
something Usagi would have said. Fighter smiled a bit.
"We'll help." Healer and Maker looked up at her in exhaustion, longing
for a rest from this battle. Neither was going to stop now though. Chibi-Usa
nodded and pulled a small key from her shirt pocket. She lifted it over her
head and silently called to the energy that slept within it. A cold, magenta
light flooded the room, engulfing them and the ship. Their surroundings faded
away into nothingness, swallowed by the light.
Moments later they were all standing in an endless abyss, surrounded by
impenetrable fog. There must have been solid ground somewhere, but none could
see it beneath the mist that swirled around their feet. The Starlights said
nothing about the change of scenery, they simply followed the pink haired girl,
hoping she knew where she was going. Even if she didn't, walking was something
to do. After a while, Chibi-Usa halted and looked around.
"Puu!" she called. "Puu! It's me, Small Lady!" For a few tense seconds
after the echoes died away, there was silence. Then, a shadowy figure appeared.
She stepped towards them, showing herself. Fighter remembered her, though she
had seemed different. Her flowing, green tinted ebony hair was the same as was
her fuku. Her eyes were different though. Their was a sadness, an aching
loneliness in those deep red eyes that had not been there when the Starlights
had last seen Pluto.
The guardian senshi stared at them coldly for a moment, her hands on her
enormous staff, poised to strike. Her eyes swept over all of them, not changing
in emotion. When she saw the princess though, she immediately dropped to her
knees and embraced the little girl.
"Small lady!" she whispered, a hint of tears in her eyes. "I was so
worried about you. I felt a predomination of danger and I thought…" The woman
released the princess, resuming her position as guard. She no longer seemed
threatening though. There was even a slight smile on her face.
"Genki desu, Puu. But," Chibi-Usa said, her face clouding over.
"Something's happened to the Crystal Tokyo! My mama is using the ginzuishou to
shield Earth and the inner senshi have disappeared. And Hotaru-chan…Hotaru-
chan…" Chibi-Usa bit her lip nervously, remembering how much Pluto cared for
her friend. Pluto's eyes widened.
"What happened to Hime-chan? Is she all right?"
"Yes…she's alive, and not hurt…" Pluto didn't pry any further, realizing
Chibi-Usa's reluctance to speak about the subject.
"And I assume that you wish to go into some other time to prevent this
event somehow." Chibi-Usa nodded.
"I want to bring Sailormoon-tachi into our time. They helped us before
and I'm sure they can again." Pluto paused thoughtfully.
"All right. I'll send you to the time in earth's history after Galaxia
was defeated. Be strong and stay together. Time travel is extremely dangerous.
Come back safely." Chibi-Usa smiled in gratitude and gave her friend a quick
hug. There was a shred of doubt in her eyes though.
"Puu, I don't understand. I thought you didn't want anyone to travel
through time. You said it was too dangerous."
"This is an emergency though. Sometimes, desperate times call for
desperate measures. Now, go quickly!" she said, sounding slightly nervous. She
opened the door with the usual ceremony and sent them through with a few quick
good-byes. Within minutes-though there really were no minutes in that timeless
world-the melancholy senshi was alone once more.
The instant that they left, Pluto collapsed on the ground again, clutching
her side. She shouldn't have remained standing for so long, but she couldn't
let them know her condition. They already had enough to worry about. Besides,
their concern would not have helped her.
She pulled away some of her dark hair to reveal a large wound with a
trickle of blood dripping from it. She removed one glove and shredded it to
form a clumsy bandage. At least that would keep her clean while her body
finished healing itself. She could do nothing more now, only wait for the pain
to end so that she could fully resume her duties.
She felt a slight shift in the mist, a subtle movement that few would
notice. After an eternity in that timeless, spaceless world her senses were far
more acute than most though. She could feel someone there, an almost tangible
presence that she could not see the source of.
"Reveal yourself," she whispered. She heard a tiny laugh, a giggle
really, but no one appeared. Pluto smiled bitterly. Her last battle was one
that even she could not fight.
"Coward," said the senshi. "Your mistress already weakened me. Do you
find it necessary to kill someone who's already been defeated?" The giggle
repeated, from a different direction this time. Pluto closed her eyes and
waited for the blow to come.
Without warning, dozens of shards of ice flew out of the fog. Pluto
gritted her teeth, refusing to allow this fool to hear her scream but unable to
summon the energy to fight back.
"King, forgive me for what I do now." The injured, now dying senshi
turned her head upward to face the endless abyss above her. She raised her arms
and staff, praying to the Garnet Orb that she carried everywhere. "Charon, aid
me!" With that, she flickered and vanished into the far reaches of the fourth
dimension.
A slender, short young woman stepped out of the mist to approach the door
of time. A slow smile spread across her face, mirroring her wickedly glinting
eyes.
"See, Mercury? Nemesis is going to win this war."
* * * * *
The room was dark, horrifically so. It was layers of shadows containing
more of their dark kind within. Specks of light, mere particles barely visible
to the eye flitted about the room, but provided little illumination. It was
perfect, darkness concealed what light would show, and the girl would rather
that people not see this right now.
The trembling began, slowly at first, barely noticeable. It rapidly
increased though until her whole body quivered uncontrollably. A ringing
sounded in her ears, causing her entire head to ache. She fought to remain
erect for as long as she could, but after only a few minutes her body struck the
stone floor with a dull thud. There she remained for several minutes-though it
seemed like an eternity-as her flesh twitched and skin crawled over her bony
form.
Waves of pain engulfed her, gnawing away at her sanity while she cried
helplessly, clawing at the ground like a crazed animal and whimpering like an
infant. It was as if some force were trying to suck very soul from her, to eat
her alive. Finally, when she felt as though she would dissolve under the
magnitude of the agony, she raised her head, jaw clenched in one act of
defiance. She sank her finger nails into her palms until they bled and bit her
lip with her teeth. She forced her legs to support her as she stood.
After a while, the attack subsided and her body relaxed. She collapsed on
the floor once again, gasping for air. It had been a long time since she had
suffered so greatly. She couldn't pity herself though. After all, the rest of
Nemesis went through so much more. She had lived fairly well all of her life,
had never come close to starvation or suffocation in a collapsed tunnel. All of
her life she had been pampered-not that anyone's life was truly easy on that
hostile planet-and for the most part safe.
No, she certainly couldn't feel sorry for herself, not now. Not with
their goal so close. Everyone was depending on her right now. She was the
golden jewel that the planet had given them at a time when virtually all of the
magical abilities of the people were weak, the one who would deliver them and
bring them back to earth.
So, she stood up once again and strode over to a mirror to adjust the bow
adorning the collar and blouse of her outfit and to make sure the pleated, navy
skirt looked decent. She had made her decision, though she still felt slightly
unhappy with it. Still, they had earned it. It had been their choice to side
with the queen, not hers.
She walked over to the two stricken bodies lying on the stone tables.
They could have been dead, had she not known better. Their skin was a ghastly
shade of white and appeared to be stretched thin over their bones, giving them a
skeletal appearance. She felt a twinge of sympathy for them, more than she
should have felt. She ignored it.
She knelt slightly by the turquoise haired woman, pausing briefly to check
to see if they really was a pulse beneath that waxy skin, to see if she really
was alive. She held one hand out into the air, waiting for the demon to give
her the needed item. Almost instantly, two crystal collars appeared. She
hesitated, running her fingers along her own collar. The device had taken away
some of her freedom, but it wasn't as if she ever would have rebelled against
Akuma anyway. She was a prisoner, but a willing one. With that final thought
she placed the collar around the former senshi's slender neck. It glowed
briefly as the crystal melted together, making it impossible to remove.
Next, she went the other one of the partnership. It's strange, she mused.
She was so defiant before, going against me in a bold but suicidal attack. It
was foolish of her, but in a way it's almost admirable. It would be almost a
pity to destroy that. She attached the remaining collar to the icy skin of the
one who used to be Haruka. It was done, there was no turning back now.
She, Adularia of Nemesis, backed away from the tables, her face an
unreadable mask. Carefully, so as not to further crumple it, she extracted a
small rectangular sheet of primitive paper. It said:
Kuraino Kishi,
Juuban High school,
Tokyo, Japan, Earth
After stuffing the paper back into her pocket she strode confidently
towards the place where the portal through time was going to be reinstalled. A
war was going to begin again, only this time the people of Nemesis would have
success. This time, there would be no time for sympathy or sentimentality.
Nothing mattered but the results: the queen gone and Nemesis free. Nothing
else made a difference, not even what happened to her.
