Whispers of the Past
Prologue- The Fall of the White Moon Kingdom
There was a light blissful breeze, gently carrying a scent of wet earth. Hotaru sighed and looked out the window. The dark violet skies glittered with pure white stars, each flickering calmly across the vast sky.
"Dark...my love...how much I miss you..."
With another great sigh, Hotaru walked toward her dresser. It was made of a mysterious light purple crystal like material, which was only found in the lands of Saturn. Sitting on the dresser were a series of small dangling hair ornaments, sacred jewelry, exquisite perfume bottles, and finally seating on an elevated rich garnet colored velvet cushion was the Sacred Royal Crown of Saturn. She looked at her own reflection on the crystal mirror...a grown woman with light skin, slim profile, long ebony colored hair, and light amethyst eyes gazed at Hotaru. It has been so many years since she last saw her Mother stand before this very same mirror...all Hotaru could remember were her Mother's charismatic features.
As Hotaru quickly finished putting the last hair ornaments and the Royal Crown of Saturn, a servant barged into Hotaru's private chambers.
"My Lady...pardon my intrusion! But I have just received bad news!"
The servant struggled to keep his posture, for he seemed to be out of breath. Beads of sweat collected in his forehead.
"My Lady...I have received news from General Shura that the King..."
The servant seemed unable to finish his sentence. But there was no need...for his expression foretold Hotaru what had happened. It pierced Hotaru's heart like ice shards and that same pain viciously echoed throughout her body...sending shock waves. Soon Hotaru felt a tear, slowly trickling down her cheek. With a wave of her hands she dismissed the servant...whom slowly backed away without turning his back to her. Once she was sure she was alone...she lost control. She threw herself in the king sized bed and buried her face between her pillows.
Outside of Saturn, The Great War continued tenaciously...The White Moon Kingdom and its allies tried their best to fight off the Armageddon Forces.
Neo Queen Serenity badly injured leaned against a fallen pillar...her pure white dress tainted with a deep red blood color; the beautiful gown torn and dirty. Floating above her was the Ginzuishou...it emitted a warm and bright light. With a faint smile she slowly but surely summoned all its power. Within a few minutes eleven bright rays flew in several directions...proceeding that the already falling White Moon Kingdom was destroyed along with the others, sending all Earth's Guardians and its enemies to the future. To the new beginning…
Chapter 1- The New Beginning
Birds happily chirped outside in the warm sunlight. The skies were bright blue, few clouds lazily floated around, it was a perfect day it was neither too hot nor too cold simply just perfect. Inside the dojon several students could be seen practicing their kicks, combinations, forms, one steps, and etc. Suddenly the clock struck four times, announcing that it was four in the afternoon; soon the class was dismissed by the Master. Hotaru with a towel wiped of the sweat from her face and forehead.
"Wow...sensei must've been irritated today...she made us practice beyond belief", she whispered to herself.
Hotaru headed towards the locker room, where all her belongings were safely put away in her locker. A few students passed by her...she quickly changed into her white summer dress. It was very simple, a few purple beads and ornaments were present at the bottom of her dress, and gave an air of simplicity and yet it possessed gracefulness. Next to her bag were her earrings, which were made of pearls and other precious purple stones and her sandals. She splashed some cold water into her face; it felt very refreshing after a harsh training. Quickly heading out of the floor she put her sandals and bowed out.
Once outside, the air was quickly filled with Sakura fragrances...Hotaru smiled slightly to herself. For some reason she loved flowers...it always managed to give her a peaceful feeling. Hotaru began to walk towards her home in a carefree manner, even though today was a very important day it didn't seem to affect her good mood. As she strolled by, she passed several small shops, each selling some very interesting items ranging anywhere from mochi to exotic imported goods. Hidden between several shops laid Hotaru's favorite...it sold many traditional Japanese foods, Nihonshoko as the natives called. As she entered the shop she heard the habitual custom greeting done by a store owner.
"Shirasaiimasen!"
Holding her bag in her left arm, she walked around the small store. Each step seemed to bring new intriguing sweet and pleasant scents. Automatically Hotaru pointed to the sweets, the store clerk placed ten fairly sized mochis in a white paper bag and closed them with tape. The cash register read "¥ 900", Hotaru reached for her wallet inside her bag and handed the clerk nine hakyu en coins, with a smile the young clerk gently handed Hotaru the bag of Japanese sweets.
"Arigato!"
Bowing goodbye, as most Japanese people do, Hotaru walked out again into the streets. Tokyo was always filled with a variety of people from all four corners of the world, quickly blending in with the crowd Hotaru began heading towards her home. From a bird's eye view Tokyo looked like an ant pile with several small dots busily heading in different directions. Although, Tokyo might be one of the world's most technological advanced cities, it does have places where one can truly see the essence of the ancient world and the modern world together side by side mutually. Smiling to herself, Hotaru lazily strolled through a small quite ally, which led to a path near the river. After a few minutes of walking, Hotaru arrived in the precincts of her home. It seemed that her house, a traditional Japanese house with a Zen garden, was the mirror image of herself.
Hotaru removed her outside shoes and switched them for suripas, Japanese styled flip flops which are used inside.
"Tadaiima! Is there anyone home?!"
She knew that there wasn't anyone home…it was just a custom she came to adopt as a child. She threw her bag into the floor next to her shoes…she let her hair down from the ponytail. While Hotaru carefully brushed her hair, she began to think…today was the day that the Amazon Quartet and Chibi-Usa were to become the Guardians of the Earth and its people; and the veteran senshis would have to pass their powers to the new sacred warriors. But, in Hotaru's case that did not apply…for the Outer Senshis were eternal Guardians of this World. A royal ball was going to be held in honor of the Amazon Quartet and Chibi Moon.
Hotaru undressed herself from her white dress, grabbing a towel before she got into the hot tub. Placing the towel right next to the bath tub she dunked herself into the warm and comforting water. The room was filled with fragrances of lavender, white roses and other ambrosia smelling flowers.
"Sigh…I wonder how this time the ceremony will turn out…"
After a relaxing shower Hotaru stepped out and began to dry herself, she walked into her room. An old grandfather clock struck eight o'clock…with a gasp realizing the time, Hotaru quickly summoned her powers. She wore an elegant long deep violet dress, which were carefully adorned with silver beads and ornaments. It showed parts of her back and shoulder giving an extra feminine touch…along with the dress Hotaru also wore amethyst colored jewelry; which each piece contained the sacred emblem of Saturn.
Before departing into the portal, which all the Moon Kingdom people were able to summon at will, Saturn snatched the bag of Japanese sweets and hopped into the portal.
Chapter 2- The New Guardians of the Beloved and Sacred Earth
Almost instantaneously Saturn appeared in the grounds of the Moon Palace, it appeared that the servants had specially decorated the silver crystal palace with white, light pink, pink, blue, red, and golden yellow flowers each color representing each Kingdom. Queen Saturn gracefully entered the sacred shrine, where all the royals were present with Queen Serenity and King Endymion proudly standing before the royal court. Everything seemed richly decorated; amongst the archaic scriptures nine ancient emblems were present each symbolizing different planets. The scintillating palace floors were also engraved with ancient symbols from sacred texts, with the center being adorned with a golden star intertwined with a crescent moon.
Without any further ado the ancient celestial ceremony initiated, Queen Serenity took a step forward…her voice seemed to be a fusion of a sweet and mellow choir of angels, for it was so soft, pleasant and gentle.
"Ladies…gentlemen and friends…may I proudly say that tonight is a…special night for all of us. More so to our new Guardians: the Amazon Quartet and my daughter Chibi Moon. For tonight we will introduce them to the duty as eternal protectors of this Universe whom we all love dearly. Will each royal, who respectfully represent their Kingdoms, please follow me."
Rei, Makoto, Ami, Minako, the Amazon Quartet and Chibi-Usa all followed Queen Serenity and King Endymion to the most inner sacred chambers of the Palace walls. All the veteran senshis had an avid memory of this familiar chamber; this is the very same place where they had been bestowed with the same unique powers.
"Mars, Mercury, Jupiter and Venus…would you please step into each sphere where your astrological symbol are engraved."
As soon as each ruler stepped into the spheres, it began to glow in a bright shimmering light with all four inner planets' color shining out of the circles. All the four veteran senshis chanted their ancient spells, slowly four crystals appeared. Mars' was a deep garnet red, Mercury's was a deep ocean blue, Jupiter's a deep rich green and finally Venus was a golden yellow crystal, they all aligned in a straight line before the Amazon Quartet while Chibi-Usa's own Ginzuishou appeared before her, it had awakened and emerged from the depths of her own soul. Different star seeds appeared before the veteran senshis, they were in the shape of a lotus flower, it contained the same color as their previous warrior star seeds but instead now their colors were a light and gentle pastel color. Slowly descending into their new owners' bodies the crystals sunk in releasing the eternal powers of Jupiter into JunJun, Mercury into PalaPala, Venus into VesVes and Mars into CereCere. They were now the new Guardians of the beloved and sacred Earth…they carried in their shoulders the weight of protecting at all costs the well being of the blue planet. Momentarily each senshi seemed to be in a trance state, but coming back to their senses the new Amazon Quartet were transformed into their new fukus. Each Amazon Quartet's fukus were adorned with their planet's color.
After what it seemed a few minutes Queen Serenity arrived back into the outer chamber of the sacred shrine. Soon following were the Veteran Senshis, each wearing elegant gowns and the Amazon Quartet in their transformed appearances. A few gasps in amazement could be heard from the guests within the immense outer chamber.
Out of all the Senshis Chibi-Usa had the most radiant smile, beaming with pride, joy, excitement and much enthusiasm. Chibi-Usa for years had been eager to earn her spot as a warrior…through out her life ,she had always done everything in her reach…had always explored everything her sparkling and curious eyes laid upon…had always been destined to become a great influence into the everlasting changing world. Shaking those thoughts out of her head she heard a bottle of champagne being open, commemorating the special occasion.
Endless crystal cups were raised declaring a toast to the new soldiers…
Several hours had passed by…slowly one by one guests began to depart. Hotaru had already slipped out of the party…the streets of Tokyo were almost deserted except for a few drunk men and an occasional pedestrian. Sleep began to make it difficult for Hotaru to pay much attention to where she was heading…consequently she bumped into someone and fell. Quickly realizing what she had done she did a apologetic bow,
"Hontoni gomenasai!!!"
The man began to laugh slightly; enraged by the gesture Hotaru raised her head to look at the brute man whom she had insipidly apologized to. But…Hotaru was caught off guard…she was breathless. Right before her an extremely elegant man stood before her…he had long and spiky purple hair, his eyes were an elegant garnet color, and his body had just enough muscles to give him a nice and sexy toned body. He offered his hand to help her.
"Are you alright little girl?"
Raising herself from the floor even more enraged, Hotaru quickly spat at him:
"I am not a little girl mister! For your information I am twenty-one years old, thank you very much!!!"
With that final phrase Hotaru stomped off in the direction of her home. But, due to her frail health, her legs began to give up on her. The stranger whom Hotaru had just bumped into, sort of half smiled and half smirked. He tenderly caught Hotaru before she fell into the concrete floor.
Hotaru felt a sudden wave of warmth flow through her entire body; her pale skin slowly became a light pink shade. She could not help but lock eyes with, this mesmerizing stranger…although she called him a stranger her heart told otherwise. Her mind told her "Stop this non sense he's just some random jerk…with some good looks"…but deep inside her she could feel this inexplicable warmth, the same feeling of when you revisit someone who you've been longing for a long time.
Hotaru sighed and began speaking although she thought to herself: "I think I am going to regret this later…but what ever".
Although still with a slight hint of sarcasm and anger Hotaru spoke again
"Alright…that's enough. May I know your name, oh so kindly stranger? As for me I am Hotaru, I am a senior in Tokyo University; my major is in the Medical field and Literature Arts"
The stranger did a small bow and introduced himself
"It is an incredible honor to meet such an elegant and dexterous lady as you are. My name is Dark."
To avoid letting any weird conversation to continue, she decided to invite him to a dinner.
"I know this is a little sudden…but would you like to have dinner with me? Maybe this Friday…that is if your schedule allows you…"
As Hotaru spoke to him, Dark sensed that this girl was no ordinary mortal. He looked deeply inside her soul…but suddenly as soon as he noticed her inner powers, he retrieved himself from the depths of Hotaru's soul. He felt a cold sweat running through his body…Dark noticed it was that same ominous feeling he had in his dreams. The dream that had haunting his mind and soul for eternity…
Chapter 3- Yume
Gasping for air, a man courageously fought off as many enemies as he could while protecting something. Everything seemed to be getting out of focus, he began to lose sight…he looked over to the side where he was so dearly protecting. Tears desperately flowed down…screaming in outrage he looked in direction of his brother. His brother devilishly smirked at his direction; they looked like exact carbon copies with the exception of color of the eyes, hair and obviously values.
As Krad walked towards Dark, echoes of his boots rang through the halls giving an eerie feeling. He mercilessly looked at the pitiful state that his own brother was in. Slowly bending down and touched his brother's bloody and bruised face.
"Dark…how pitiful your face looks, it even manages to give sheer pleasure to me. Ah I see that you still love…"
Nothing more...all of the sudden everything became much muffled. He soon felt his body letting go of the object he was holding…he closed his eyes involuntarily. A deep garnet colored stream soon tainted the halls as the two things dearest laid next to him.
As each night painfully passed through the times, Dark could now see eight talismans laid scattered next to him, but missing pieces of the dream still were present; preventing from Dark from further seeing the second item so dear to him that he gave his life to. But, one thing for sure boldly engraved in his mind, he needed to find the eight talismans and perhaps…one day of his eternal time here…he would find his purpose in his current life and untwist his tangled past.
Hotaru noticing that for a moment that Dark or rather this intriguing man was not completely aware of his surroundings. But, Hotaru decided to keep pretending she didn't notice and asked him in an irritated tone.
"Oii! Hello? Earth to Dark! What's the matter with you? Cat ate your tongue?"
She waved her hands in front of him to see if she would get any response, which she quickly received one. Dark quickly shook his head and looked at her.
"I am really sorry…I…gotta go."
Without another word he swiftly ran and disappeared behind the curtains of darkness. Once more both went their separate ways. After a few minutes of the brief encounter, both Hotaru and Dark found themselves in their own homes.
Dark felt an excruciating pain throbbing from the depths of his body…a malignant purple aura began to shroud all of Dark's body. As more of his power poured to the outside, he slowly began to transform into his real form moving away from his human side. Dark dropped to the floor on his knees.
Slowly two long and elegant onyxed colored wings materialized in Dark's shoulders, they seemed to have a life of their own for they brimmed with power. His human clothes melted away from his body and another appeared replacing it. His true form clothed him all in white; simple white jeans, belt, undershirt and jacket which showed part of his shoulders adorned with small and thin silver chains. On his left ear Dark wore a slender silver earring, at the end a small cross gently swayed, accompanying the earring a necklace made of several thin leather laces and a unique and exotic ring composed of volcanic glass and titanium.
The aftermath of his forced transformation, Dark felt extremely tired not to mention the numbing effect that was left behind. Dragging his body across the floor Dark, opened the door to his suite. It was very spacious and numerous luxuries were present, his bed lay untidy. He threw himself in the bed and closed his eyes...
"That woman..."
For a moment silence laid over the room like a blanket, trying to put everything into a deep slumber. Dark sighed and got up; he opened his wings behind him and walked over to the window. From the balcony of his apartment, he had a full sky view of Tokyo City. Smirking to himself, Dark placed a hand in the cold glass and glanced down the city below him.
"This should be interesting…"
Chapter 4- The Gentle Intertwining Golden Threads of Fate & Love
As the divine aura of Amaterasu bathed the surface of Tokyo, Dark had already risen from his bed and was found outside in the roof of the tall Tokyo building. He sighed:
"Today is the day…that perhaps another shred of my past life will unveil itself before me."
Taking another glance at the faint red glow in the horizon, Dark returned to his apartment. Dark unbuttoned his shirt and took off the rest of his clothes; he turned the faucet of the shower on. Slowly, a light mist began to shroud the bathroom. Upon entering inside, warm water ran through his body; Dark quickly washed himself.
Within a few minutes he had finished drying himself and dressing, quickly grabbing his wallet and keys Dark walked towards the elevator, pressing the button for the sub-ground floor. As the sliding doors of the elevator opened, he clicked on a button which automatically gave a start on the engine of his bike.
Quickly speeding off into the streets of Tokyo, Dark headed towards Tokyo Tower. His loose clothing whipped as the air grinded against him. He looked at the small card that the girl he had met in the middle of the night, it read "Please meet me at Tokyo Tower at 12:30 pm". Arriving early he parked in front of Tokyo's most famous landmark. Dark looked around, the street as always seemed to be filled with people, busily walking around under the warmth of a Saturday afternoon. Putting the keys inside his pockets he walked around:
"I guess I should buy her some flowers…"
Dark entered a small flower shop, as he entered the small shop he gave a small smile. The small delicate flowers reminded him very much of the times he wandered around the fields of Saturn, as he took a quick survey of the flowers in display he picked a simple white rose. Handing the rose to the shop keeper, Dark took out a 1000 yen bill and took the rose. In one hand he held the rose while the other he tucked inside his pocket, As Dark, walked back to his bike he spotted Hotaru walking down the sidewalk looking for him, Dark smirked and leaned against his motorcycle.
He raised one hand and waved towards Hotaru.
"Yo!"
Hotaru looked at Dark still with that awkward sensation that lingered inside her from last night. She gave him a small smile. Dark laughed and walked towards her, giving her a kiss on the cheek. Hotaru was taken by surprise with the sudden kiss, but before she had any time to react, Dark had given her the white rose he had bought earlier. Her cheeks became a light pink as Hotaru looked at the single white flower. Slightly smiling to himself, Dark asked Hotaru:
"Sa…where are we going for today beautiful?"
Looking at the floor and with a small voice Hotaru shyly spoke:
"Erm…uh…well there is this really good restaurant near by…"
Dark nodded and hopped on to his bike and motioned Hotaru to take the back part of the seat. Hesitant Hotaru slowly sat herself, and shyly held herself to the side of Dark's body. By then her heart was beating at a hundred miles per hour. He laughed and looked back to Hotaru taking her hands and putting more around his body.
Soon after Dark gave a start to the bike's powerful engine, which it quickly responded. He could feel the engine's full throttle…at once Dark sped away in high speeds, not giving much attention to the speed limits. Noticing it Hotaru yelled, as the wind beat against her face:
"DARK! Aren't you…going too fast?!"
He smiled and replied.
"Don't worry! It will all be fine…just tell me which way to go!"
After a few wild spins and turns they both finally arrived at the restaurant. Dark parked his bike right next to a dark alley. Hotaru somewhat dizzy slowly descended from the bike and fixed her wind blown hair. Meanwhile Dark looked at the entrance of the restaurant. The entrance of the restaurant had a very modern outlook; countless futuristic like architectures and adornments could be seen in the building with main parts of the building were embellished with lights, metals particularly stainless steel, and glass. With a warm smile Dark looked at Hotaru and spoke:
"Hm, not a bad choice you made there Hotaru. I am quite fond of this place now…"
Without another word Hotaru walked towards the entrance of the restaurant. Her dress elegantly swayed behind her, Dark followed her. A host opened the door for her; she gave him a small bow in gratitude. At the grand entrance both Hotaru and Dark were greeted by an extremely exquisite entrance hall, all decorated with famous modern architectures from around the world.
Soon enough they both arrived into the main room a young hostess greeted them.
"How many people in your party madam?"
"Just two…"
"Please follow me…"
They followed the hostess whom guided them to their seats. Soon after a waitress arrived taking out a small block of paper.
"May I take your order ma'am?"
Hotaru looked at the menu which was filled with endless choices of food, anywhere from everyday foods to fine and exotica delicacies. This time Hotaru decided to stay with something simple and delicious.
"I would like to order a garden salad, grilled salmon and a passion and mango juice please."
The waitress quickly wrote down the order and looked at Dark to take the next order.
"And for you sir?"
"I would like to order a beef and chicken stew and a side order of potatoes, and I also I would like a glass of red wine."
The waitress nodded and took their menus before disappearing. In a short moment the same waitress arrived with their drinks. She handed Hotaru a simple round glass of juice which had been garnished with a slice of star fruit and to Dark she placed an elegant and refined wine glass of an Italian red wine named "The First Apostle", which its vintage was 1987. Dark took the glass and gently swirled the wine inside, letting the full flavor and aroma of the wine blossom inside. Revealing a wonderful fragrance, smiling Dark took a sip of the wine savoring it; the wine exposed its graceful complexity through the taste of red fruits and flowers. As he put down the glass he looked at Hotaru reaching with both hands he took Hotaru's hands.
"Now what is it that you wanted to tell me?"
Taking a moment to think Hotaru slowly spoke, she wanted to know who he was and yet not totally reveal who she was herself.
"Um, well first off I wanted to apologize for my rude remarks last time…I didn't really mean to be that snappy with you. And the second thing is…"
But, before Hotaru could finish a sentence a sinister feeling suddenly crept up her spine. Quickly noticing something was not right she looked around. Without speaking another word Hotaru got up and left the table quickly. Though, Hotaru was not the only one who had noticed the malicious energy dangerously floating around in the air. Even though the food had not arrived Dark paid the bill and left. Once outside, he called upon his powers, and once again he transformed into this true self. He spread his black wings behind him…
Hotaru quickly ran into a small dark street and whispered:
"Saturn Planet Power! Make-up!"
Saturn's transformation within a few seconds was complete; her fuku was a bit differently composed than the other senshis, for out of all the senshis with the exception of Serenity, Saturn was the strongest. Her shoulders were decorated with a white petal shaped pattern, her brooch was a transparent star seed which sat upon a black bow, and a laced up purple high heeled boots. While her jewelry contained a choker which in the middle another smaller version of her star seed was placed, her silver earrings on each side had a small sized replica of Saturn with the ends being complimented with a pointed shaped bead and her tiara contained a white opal colored jewel. Sailor Saturn's iconic Silence Glaive accompanied her in her hands. Firmly griping her Silence Glaive, Saturn set out to search for the source of the dark energy she had sensed inside the restaurant.
Closing her eyes she tried to tune into the stream of the foreign energy once more, like a wave of bitterly cold air the energy almost devoured her. Saturn briskly opened her eyes…she was in disbelief. It had been many millenniums since she had felt such powerful and malignant force. She shook her head the thought of that energy once more roaming the Earth was terrifying.
Dark who was also searching for that vicious energy and yet familiar, hoping to see some clue to his past stumbled upon Hotaru, who he had not yet connected that she was also Sailor Saturn, the Soldier of Silence, Death, and Rebirth. Dark's eyes widened…
"That woman…she could not be…what is this strange feeling?"
But before he could put anything together, his head began throbbing with pain and flashes of his past played inside his mind, although to him nothing made sense except one thing. For a certain reason Hotaru's image remained in his mind avidly. By the time Dark had come to his senses Hotaru had disappeared and was no where to be seen.
At the top of one of the highest building in Tokyo a demon laid in his back, his demonic wings closed behind him.
"Once more…once more our paths cross…"
As Saturn flew above the skyline of Tokyo, she spotted Sephiroth, the source of every chaos. She stood in front of him floating in midair; Saturn thought to herself: "I guess times of peace is over…" Although, Saturn had also been reborn like the Inner senshis…she was one of the few who retained bits and pieces of the past. But, as time allows her, Hotaru was slowly regaining the memories of her past life in the Silver Millennium. Holding on to her Glaive, Sailor Saturn took a stance…and took a deep breath.
Sephiroth smirked and walked to her slowly, with his right hand Sephiroth touched her chin and kissed her. Disgusted she punched him away and began to attack. But, at this level of strength none of the attacks worked on Sephiroth making no damage at all to him.
Raising one finger he began to gather huge amounts of energy, which in a matter of no time he released in Saturn's direction. Realizing this was something that she could not over power. Saturn tried counter attacking by blocking his attack…
"Silence Wall!!!"
Holding the Silence Glaive in front of her with all her might Saturn tried blocking the attack, but unfortunately not only did she not have enough strength to overpower the attack but she did not have enough power to prevent herself from being launched forcefully to the ground. Finally being forced to give in she smashed against the floor, causing serious damage to herself. Saturn grimaced in pain and held her side trying to cope with the intense pain; she used her Glaive to aid herself up. A stream of blood slowly slithered its way down the side of her head and into the floor. Saturn screamed and once more charged forward towards Sephiroth. But, before Sailor Saturn had a chance to attack for a second time, Dark had swiftly interfered.
Now in his real form, raw power seemed to overflow into the air; making the atmosphere feel three times heavier than usual. He looked right into the eyes of his enemy, raising his arm into the air the skies began to darken. The same dark aura that she had felt in Sephiroth began to concentrate around Dark's body. After what it seemed that he could not gather anymore of that sinister energy he launched at Sephiroth, who know realized that he had to take the fight seriously. Sephiroth blocked Dark's attack with two hands, but being overpowered he began to slide across the skies. Suddenly a giant explosion occurred but as the smoke cleared it was obvious that Sephiroth's aura could not be felt anymore, for he had returned back to his lair.
Dark turned around to face Hotaru who was leaning against a building. Slowly descending from the skies he landed softly in front of her. She looked into his face, that sinister aura that she had felt in Dark made her feel very insecure as to whether she should trust him again. She forcefully pressed her Silence Glaive against his throat.
"Don't come near me!"
She knew that same feeling was the same feeling she had felt before the Moon Kingdom was attacked millenniums ago.
Dark raised both hands in surrender, for he did not want to cause her any harm. Because Hotaru was sustaining such heavy wounds, her fuku became faint. With a last glance Saturn walked away from Dark, gradually making her way back to her home.
Arriving home, Hotaru who back in her human form dragged her heavy body inside. No longer having any energy left, she slowly saw everything becoming quite fuzzy and blurred, falling unconscious in her own door steps.
Silence fell upon the house like a magician's spell; nothing moved or made a noise. For some time the house remained motionless, till a pair of glowing deep garnet colored eyes slowly materialized itself in midair, and here after a body. Silently, Dark tenderly picked up Hotaru who laid in the floor, gently placing her in the couch and went to search for the medicine box. Within a few minutes Dark had returned and sat down next to Hotaru. Taking out the bandages and antiseptic medicine, Dark carefully began to treat Hotaru's wound in the head first. He efficiently wiped and cleaned the blood and dirt off from her head, within a few minutes he was putting the bandages around Hotaru's head and laying her down gently.
Hotaru who was beginning to regain her energy and consciousness, moved slightly and groaned in pain. Dark, who was watching over her, looked at her with kind and warm eyes, something that had not been revealed many times neither in the past nor in the present. Those deep red eyes which most of the time displayed only distant and cold emotions seemed to be completely inexistent before Hotaru.
Before Dark could realize he found himself moving towards Hotaru, who was still lying in the couch asleep, he reached for her face and tenderly touched her. Her skin felt warm and soft, giving a blissful, comforting and nostalgic sensation. Yet, his consciousness did not tell him why such wonderful feelings for such a person were being emitted from the depths of his soul, which had long been turned into a cold dormant stone. From someone whom he had just met last night by chance or is it by fate? But, it seemed that these puzzling emotions were also being corresponded by Hotaru, who although was not awake slightly smiled warmly at the touch of Dark's hand. That internal ember of love proved to be still burning inside in the depths of Dark and Hotaru's souls, and has withstood the test of time. Despite that both cannot still remember each others presence in the past, those loving moments, the bonds they shared in their previous life.
Chapter 5- The Incantation of the Hand of Time
As the sun gracefully rose in Tokyo's horizon, its rays gradually began to penetrate inside Hotaru's home. The warmth of the sun acted as a pleasant wake up call…Hotaru slowly opened her eyes. Hotaru surprised that she found herself in the couch got up; the pain from her previous battle seemed to have lessened, but still bother some. She grabbed the side of head; Hotaru had then realized that someone had treated her wounds while she was unconscious, all she could see was a single black feather gently swaying with the wind next to the open window. Sluggishly she walked towards a mirror, she looked at the bandages…although it was only a simple medical aid she felt something very special about it.
For a few minutes Hotaru gazed upon her own reflection, but suddenly remembering that today would be the first day that the new warriors, the Amazon Quartet and Chibi-usa, would be training for the very first time. Hotaru energetically patted her cheeks with both hands.
"YOSH!"
Hotaru quickly headed to the bathroom to take her morning shower and wash away last night's ache and pains. It seemed that this new chapter in the Moon Kingdom is an exhilarating point of everyone's life. To the Amazon Quartet this was their new saga, their new destinies while to the Veteran Senshis it was one of their glorious closing chapters, and finally to the Outer Senshis a sequel to their Golden Era.
In a half a hour Hotaru was found heading towards the Crystal Palace of the White Moon Kingdom. At the grand entrance of the Palace, Saturn was greeted by palace officials whom respectably bowed to her. Maintaining palace manners she did a smaller bow for she was in a higher position than the officials before her.
As she gracefully walked down the long hallways of palace walls, Hotaru transformed into Sailor Saturn her civilian clothing slowly disappeared and her sailor fuku reappeared in place. At the end of the moonlight lit terrace, Saturn could see the training grounds. It almost felt like déjà vu to see that field, which at the time of her training looked like it was a monster with a life of its own. Saturn could feel slight goose bumps forming on top of her skin, giggling to herself she thankfully thought to herself "At least this time we aren't the ones whose gonna be scrambling to their feet, and running around screaming our heads off…in a way I kinda feel sorry for those girls…"
Stepping into the rugged terrain, Saturn saw Ami, Makoto, Minako, Rei and the Amazon Quartet awaiting for the rest to arrive. Saturn looked at Makoto with a worried look:
"As usual Usagi-chan isn't here and neither is Chibi-Usa?" laughing to herself she spoke again " Even though it has been centuries since we first met it seems that those two haven't change one bit have they?"
The Veteran Senshis laughed in agreement for indeed Usagi, was very infamous for being late to meetings and events.
"Speaking about Usagi here she comes…"
Saturn looked in front of her and she saw Usagi scrambling and almost tripping over a small rock in the floor. Hotaru laughed, Usagi possessed this strange spell around her, everywhere she went a warm and gentle feeling was left behind. With her usual childish and playful voice Serenity spoke:
"Well…today is the day isn't it guys? Wow it's been a looong time since we have been here the last time?" Serenity nervously gulped at the memories she had of this place, which wasn't very fun at all.
It seemed that in the Royal Ball a few days ago the graceful, serene, and serious Neo Queen Serenity was just an act for the real Serenity was casual, playful, crybaby and a klutz. Scratching the back of her head Serenity looked at the Amazon Quartet who despite being new to the scene looked very confident.
"All right we shall start your training Chibi-usa, CereCere, JunJun, PalaPala, VesVes!"
All of them nodded, while Hotaru who's part of the training was to create the actual simulation of a battle. Saturn hopped to the top of a near by terrace, sitting down with her legs crossed. Raising her hand in midair, slowly a silver flute which was ornately decorated with several purple jewels materialized before her; elegantly she raised the mouth piece of the flute to her mouth.
As each musical note dangerously slithered out of the end of Saturn's flute, the training battle ground began to fall into an eerie dark silence. At once the new senshis fell into a stiff trance, despite not being able to hear anything not even each others breaths…not being able to see anything and soon even the faint melody of the flute subsided into the absolute silence, the Amazon Quartet and Chibi Moon coped as best as they could. The Veteran Senshis being more experienced than the new warriors quickly adjusted to the changes provided by Saturn's power of Silence.
As if there were no obstacles the Veteran Senshis marched towards the new warriors, for now they were going to be their newest opponents. Each Veteran Senshi took their respective counterparts; despite that most of their powers were taken away the Veteran Senshis could still summon a small amount of energy and enough to create considerable damages.
VesVes tried sensing which way the attacks were coming from, she could feel several attacks hitting her all over her body. But, at the moment she in vainly tried blocking the attacks but not having much success. She screamed in frustration, though under the spell of Silence nothing was heard…VesVes sat down in the floor frustrated and not knowing what to do; still taking the attacks from Minako. VesVes thought to herself "I have to do something…I can't fail at the first attempt of my training! My sisters are also depending on me!" It seemed that thought brought her some energy and courage. Once more VesVes got up and this time with more dignity, she summoned her own powers. A yellow sphere appeared before her, grabbing from behind her a pool stick she aimed at the ball which was aimed to launch at her opponent.
For hours after hours the Amazon Quartet, Chibi Moon, and the Veteran Senshis battled each other. Saturn who had been offering her power gradually lifted her powers signaling the end of the training session.
As the natural light and sound returned Saturn saw that the Amazon Quartet and Chibi Moon had used all of the energy they could muster for she found them laying in floor breathing heavily. Chibi-usa spoke in a whiny voice:
"Mooh! if training is this hard every time we are going to practice….I dunno if I am going to be able to keep it up! Rei nee-san had to be especially hard on us! She kept attacking all of us as hard as she could! No fair to us who just started!"
To show that she was displeased she pouted in the direction of Rei, who giggled at the sight of Chibi-usa's expression. Serenity who had been busy with civil duties visited them at the end of the training session; she smiled peevishly at the sight of Chibi-usa.
"Ne Chibi-usa it seems you're not doing so hot as you bragged to me the other night!" She laughed haughtily…
Everyone broke into laughter at the sight of Chibi-usa arguing with her Mother who seemed to be another kid, for she too was arguing and yelling.
Hotaru who was watching for afar slightly smiled, so many nostalgic memories returned to her today. The memories of when she was first allowed to step into the sacred grounds of the Crystal Palace of the Moon Kingdom, the Outer Senshis had strongly prevented her coming due to the nature of her lethal and destructive powers. But, Usagi had eventually convinced them that it was ok to do so. Despite her powers being so feared and despised Chibi-usa and Usagi had warmly greeted her. With this single act Hotaru felt she owes her life to the Moon Family, who all this time had been taking care of her.
Chapter 6- Pandemonium's Sinners
As the late hours befell upon the Moon, all of the Senshis, Chibi-usa, Serenity and Endymion returned to their own chambers in the palace. After endless hours of training they seemed happy to be able to just settle down to sleep. Hotaru who stayed outside laid back against the Palace's roofs and gazed at the stars, a small breeze began to pick up stirring up the dried leaves in the sparkling floors. While looking up at the stars Hotaru spoke to herself:
"Are the Amazon Quartet and Chibi Moon really going to be ok?"
With that thought in mind sleep also worked its way into Hotaru, who slowly closed her eyes.
Sephiroth watched Hotaru from afar, his right hand raised in midair a glowing sapphire colored sphere rested at his palm. He spoke dangerously before disappearing into the human world.
"You shall soon see the true colors of Dark and the rest…"
Sephiroth sat down under a cherry blossom tree as he watched the city got ready for its sleep; he smiled devilishly…Sephiroth reached inside a small pouch, as he retrieved his hand from the tiny bag a handful of a mysterious ruby colored dust could be seen. An uncanny and murderous aura was emitted from the small amount of the outlandish material which at the moment rested in his hand. Sephiroth slowly turned down his fist and let the mysterious dust be carried by the night's wind. As it spread through the air of Tokyo it seemed to multiply by the thousands.
Under Sephiroth's power the ruby like dust penetrated the wall of buildings and covered the entire city. As it made contact with mortals in the Earth, it also seemed to enter their defenseless and weak bodies. But, it seemed to lay dormant and silent inside their bodies for nothing seemed to change…at least for now…it was almost as if it wanted to remain unnoticed by everyone.
As Sephiroth overseeing that the strange dust settled and camouflaged itself among its surroundings, he once more sat down and took his double bladed katana. Taking a deep breath and calmly he began to take the routine ritual of sharpening and cleaning his sword.
"This will take us a while…but the time of opening the jewelry box will come."
Dark who happened to be near by, sharply sensed the trail of Sephiroth's energy. He looked into the air and around him, but all that his eyes could see were mere humans who were busy laughing and talking amongst themselves. Dark discreetly walked around blending himself among the crowds of Tokyo, but at the corner of his eyes he watched all of that was around him.
After a couple of minutes of searching, Dark found Sephiroth sitting down laid back with his hand resting on the handle of his katana, which was propped up. Dark stood before him in a carefree manner, his hands tucked inside his pockets. As if they were old friends Dark leaned against the bark of the sakura tree with his right leg and crossed his arms. Without even turning to face Sephiroth, Dark spoke in his usual cold and indifferent voice…his usual self.
"Sephiroth…what is it your plan this time?"
Sephiroth remained in silence but his smirk answered the question itself without any words. Dark looked down at his feet and closed his eyes, if it wasn't for that woman that now he knew clearly was connected to his past he could've cared less. But, the silence in Sephiroth's answer bothered him a great deal. It wasn't so much that the lives of others or his own life might be in danger, but the fact that woman's life, Hotaru's life, was in danger. Dark thought inside his mind: "Sephiroth…if you lay a single finger on Hotaru's life…I swear that I will tear you apart limb by limb…"
Without much word Dark once more left Sephiroth behind, the road before him now laid more dangerously for too many things were at stake. His past, memories, alliances, and now Hotaru. Frustration began to burn inside of him but for now he knew that all he could do was to search for Hotaru and keep her under his protection. The more he paced searching for Hotaru, the more frustration, anger and fear consumed him like an uncontrollable black fire.
Despite the low radar attack Sephiroth had used…it seemed to have disturbed Saturn. She opened her eyes immediately, stealthily Saturn teleported back to Earth. Hotaru remained invisible from human eyes, for she had remained in her warrior form. As she patrolled the city with watchful eyes, she could feel that the air's customary current was uneasy and something was causing it. Although, she could not quite put her finger at what it was she had a feeling it had to do with Dark and that enemy she had encountered a couple of days ago. Suddenly, she could feel endless thoughts flooding into her mind. Saturn asked herself: "Why is that just a few days ago…that man who I accidentally bumped into in the middle of the night…now is part of everything in my life? Why? Why does he follow me? Why do I feel that I've known him as long as I can remember? Why?" As these thoughts crawled inside her, Saturn's mind became distracted till suddenly at the end of the dark damp alley Saturn spotted Dark.
She halted immediately; raising her hand upwards she summoned her Silence Glaive, who gradually appeared with the tip of the blade being the last to be revealed. Saturn knew that she was greatly out powered by Dark, but that did not keep herself from fulfilling her duty. Death…the very same power she controlled did not cause her any fear…did not shake Saturn from her destined path. Dark seemed to have halted also, he watched her from afar. A sense of hopelessness overflowed him, the words that were unspoken left him numb, even though so many times he too was once part of it. Dark slowly walked toward her, words seemed to have left him for he was unable to speak.
Saturn narrowed her eyes, she held her Glaive with both hands. Noticing Saturn's hostile movements Dark unexpectedly disappeared and reappeared behind Hotaru. Tenderly hugging Saturn from behind tears slowly dripped from his cheeks, he spoke in broken phrases.
"Pl…please Ho…taru…just…come…wi..th me…I don't…under..stand…why…but…somet…thing…tells me…I must…protect…you"
At that Saturn was taken a back, she did not know whether she should attack him, withdraw, or do as Dark had pleaded her. Saturn loosened her grip on her Silence Glaive. Her pale purple eyes for a moment watched the dark alley; Saturn seemed to search for answers. Saturn thought to herself: "What should I do now? I feel torn apart in two ways again…my heart tells me I should follow him but…in the other hand…" her hands moved uneasily, grinding against the Glaive's staff. Dark looked at Hotaru, his own tears hindered his sight. Feeling that Hotaru was unsure and worried Dark once more spoke:
"I know that your mind tells you that I am not the one to be trusted. But, please…I beg of you to understand me!"
The uneasiness seemed to proliferate as each grain of sand fell to the bottom of the sand clock. In the end, Hotaru decided to comply with Dark's wishes. Her fuku disappeared and her human form returned revealing regular clothes. Dark faintly whispered in her ears.
"Thank…you"
Dark gracefully wrapped his vast black wings around Hotaru, unexpectedly and almost in spontaneously a wave of blissful warmth flooded her soul. Almost like a spell cast by the sun itself, Hotaru closed her eyes entering almost in a daze. But, swiftly as the pleasurable feeling had come a small flare in the depths of her soul told her to be vigilant for the moment. Though it seemed that the heavenly feeling Dark emitted overwhelmed such thoughts and pushed it into the back of her mind. Before she was aware, Hotaru found herself in a different location than they had previously been.
As Hotaru looked, she noticed that they were inside a luxury apartment. Entering the living room Hotaru could clearly see that no money was spared, it was decorated with extremely stunning white leather sofas who were accompanied by silky pastel sky blue pillows, a small center desk composed of glass and stainless steel, contemporary lamps were placed at the corners of the room, special lighting could be seen almost everywhere lighting colorful modern paintings and the room itself. Several exotic, attractive plants and aromatic candles added final touches to the decoration of the room. It also seemed that the spacious living room was separated by several glass panels which had water cascading down making the other side blurred.
Hotaru just stood in the same place that Dark had brought her, within a few minutes Dark had returned with two glasses of sparkling champagne and a platter of assorted fruits. He placed the champagne and the platter in the center table. Now the time had come to speak, once more his thoughts were transformed into a whirlwind inside. Thoughts such as "Why did he love her so dearly, but at the same time he only knew her name, age and occupation and yet he felt like he knew her before this string of events." For a few minutes Dark gazed upon Hotaru's gentle and strikingly beautiful profile while Hotaru carefully looked at a peculiar painting that had caught her attention. Hotaru had noticed that within this modern painting the emblem of the Royal Court of Saturn was present. Hotaru piercing light purple eyes turned to face Dark, calmly speaking Hotaru asked him about the painting:
"Dark…where did you obtain this painting and do you recognize what is inside this painting?"
Dark looked at where she was pointing with her finger.
"That painting…is the only thing that has survived from my past…which brings me to my mind. There is something I need to tell you…"
Hotaru continued to gaze at Dark she remained expressionless, she could not show any mercy if he was the enemy and the one responsible for the strange disturbance she felt on Earth.
"When we accidentally bumped into each other a few nights ago. It wasn't a mere accident or a coincidence…I had the intensions of killing you. But, as I looked inside you to search for what kind of power you had. I noticed something…a puzzling energy inside of you. It is the same energy that was resides inside a nightmare that has been giving me agony for as long as I can remember…and when I saw you transforming into a Soldier that was under the same celestial sign as the one in this painting. I couldn't shake off the thought that you are definitely a part of my past…the past that I've been seeking to know. The past that will tell who I really am."
For now he had said almost everything…but Dark still could not bring himself to say that he had fallen in love with Hotaru, the person he was supposed to kill and obtain the Capricorn talisman.
It almost seemed Hotaru could read Dark's sentiments, for she responded to his feelings though a cold tone still surrounded her answer, for Dark had not totally gained her trust.
"If you really do think I am part of your past and someone important. I am fine with it…but do one wrong thing that will endanger the Earth and everyone, I will make sure I will send you to the Underworld even if it's the last thing I do before I die."
With those last few words, despite being cold and distant; Dark had felt that things were beginning to improve that he might be getting somewhere. Smilinghe took the pair of champagne glasses and handed one to Hotaru, who took a small sip. Hotaru quickly stole a glance at the mystical painting that seemed to call her, soon enough that chanting that the painting seemed to create, essentially caught her attention again. As she held the champagne glass in her hands she gazed at the painting for quite sometime, gradually it seemed that the floor itself underneath her feet seemed to have faded.
Hotaru slowly opened her eyes; looking sideways Hotaru saw nothing but a white heavy mist. Hotaru held her head with her hands; pain seemed to fiercely throb inside. As she squint her eyes the veil of white seemed to gradually give up its impermeability, revealing a grassy field. Time seemed to stand still for not a single object moved; even the clouds above appeared to have stalled. Hotaru cautiously walked in the middle of the field. Despite of the fact that she knew she had never been here, Hotaru could not shake off the feeling that this place is a familiar ground. Hotaru looked around and tried to see if she recognized anything in this odd ball grassy field.
Suddenly without any warning Hotaru was nearly missed by a gargantuan sphere of black fire produced by a strong energy. As Hotaru continued to march straight forward, she noticed it was a battle field or rather the entire plain seemed to be the battle field. Hotaru could see men and women alike fighting as far as her eyes could allow her to see into the horizon. Each warrior seemed to fight as if they were turned into complete beasts, one power more fierce than the other. Catapulting goose bumps up Hotaru's back as she felt the intensity of each time powers clashed. Slightly shaking her head Hotaru glanced down from the hill above, and to Hotaru's surprise she spotted a very familiar individual.
Hotaru found her other self in the middle of the battle field, her hands tainted in blood while parts of her clothing were torn. Hotaru could see her chest rise and fall rapidly.