Chapter 1-Queen Usagi

Hi, my name is Tsukino Usagi. I am 22 years old. I am about to enter the most important phase of my life. I am about to be crowned as the queen, ruler of Earth. Who would have thought, a clumsy, crybaby like me could become the leader of this planet.

"Queen Serenity, the enthronement ceremony is about to start." One of the palace people said. I couldn't remember his name. There were over 1000 people working inside the palace at any one time. I tried to remember as many of them as I could, but new people just kept on coming in.

I put on my ceremony robe and looked in the mirror. It was only a few years ago that I defeated Chaos and saved the galaxy. The world had entered a new era of peace. Politics had changed globally and countries merged. The scouts and I had helped ended all the wars and conflicts.

It was nice to see everyone living in peace and harmony. Society ran like clockwork and the economy boomed. Sure, there were still tragic accidents and diseases. I wished I could help those poor souls. But sometimes, there was limit still to the power of the silver crystal.

"You look beautiful, Queen Usako." I turned to see Mamo-chan bowing to me. "Should I call you queen Usako or Queen Odango?"

"Well, I am going to call you King Mamo-chan. I don't feel that Queen Serenity is me yet. Maybe in the future, I will be mature like her. Right now, I feel like I am still Queen Usagi." I ran into Mamo-chan's embrace. He had been away for a month now. As much as the world was ready to accept me as the new ruler, some countries were still feeling uneasy about following a 22-year-old. So King Mamo-chan had been flying to those countries and tried to help settle some of the civil unrest.

"Well, Queen Usagi, let's go get your crown," Mamo-chan smiled and offered his arm. I hook my arm around his and look up at his face. I almost lost him twice in the past. I am never letting him go. Not ever!

The music sounded. We walked arm in arm down the long hallway toward the center of the palace. The scouts stood on both sides of the thrones. I did a quick wave to my friends and then quickly resumed my serious face. I was told to keep my face serious.

When I reached the throne, I turned and faced the courtyard. Thousands of people have come to the palace to witness this historical moment. Reporters from all over the world flown in and were broadcasting the event live. My heart beat loudly in my chest. This was my moment as the queen.

The Shinto priest placed the crown on my head, and then I bowed to my people. The ceremony itself was relatively simple. I touched the crown on my head, it felt unusually heavy. Then I turned to address the nations.

Nervously, I walked toward the center of the stage where the microphone was. I almost tripped on the long robe. Luckily, I steadied myself and kept walking. The crowd fell silent, the flashlights from the camera stopped flashing. Everyone looked at me with their hopeful eyes.

It wasn't too long ago when the world almost ended. They were still recovering from the trauma. I had become a symbol of hope for them and I am proud to fulfill that.

"Hi…." I started and then stopped. Mina was gesturing wildly to a piece of paper. As the Public Relations officer, she had been writing my public speeches. I looked down at the one I was supposed to give and I decided not to. It didn't sound like me.

"See, I am just a 22-year-old girl. It is such an honor that you chose me as your leader. You believe in me as I have believed in you. In the past, there has been too much violence, too much bloodshed. As your queen, I promise I will try to save everyone. I love everyone and I don't want to lose anybody. So, love your family, love your friends and love yourself. As Queen Serenity, I promise I will defend Earth until the end of time."

When I finished, there was a brief moment of silence. I looked at Mamo-chan and saw him wipe a tear from his eyes. Then the thunderous applause came from the crowd. The reporters resumed their reporting, translating my message to different languages and broadcasting them. Apparently, they had translated the speech Mina wrote, but since I changed my entire address, they had to start all over.

I looked up at the sky and smiled. Happiness filled my body completely and I felt blissful. I may not have the wisdom of the future queen Serenity yet, but I would be a good queen to my people. I love this world and I trust them. Sometimes they were misguided, sometimes they were tempted by evil, but I trust that they would always turn toward the light. If anyone was lost, I would guide them back. That was my solemn promise.

That night, I walked around in the garden. The gardeners said they had planted some strawberries and the fruits should be ripe now. I wonder where they were.

"Craving a strawberry shortcake, my queen?" Mako's voice broke the silent night.

"Mako-chan. Why are you still up?" I asked as I quickly took the freshly baked cake from Mako and started devouring it. There was simply no way to resist cake, especially cakes made by her. "Did you stay up late to bake this?"

"No, I made it this afternoon. I wanted to give this to you earlier, but you were surrounded by all the ambassadors from all the nations. That meeting took four hours, and I swear I could hear your stomach growl from outside the door."

Oh, my sweet Mako-chan. Aside from being my personal guard, she had become my personal chef as well. When Mamo-chan and I first moved into the palace after our wedding, the palace was too big and too lonely. I was so happy when Mako-chan volunteered to move in with me. As the queen, I could no longer roam around the city freely like I used to. So having Mako-chan here was very important to me. I needed my friends.

Mako and I sat on the curb and finished the cake in one sitting. I looked up at the sky and saw three shooting stars.

As if reading my thoughts, Mako-chan said, "Seiya, Taiki, Yaten and Princess KaKyuu must be busy rebuilding their planet now. I am sure they are fine. And we will see them one day again, my queen."

I nodded. I wondered what Seiya would say if she could see me now. I owed my life to them and I didn't even get to thank them properly. After the Galaxia battle, they left so quickly.

All of a sudden, a bright light flashed through the sky. Clouds rolled in quickly and covered up the moon and the stars. Crystal Tokyo became dark. Power was going out in the city, grid by grid. The lights in the palace flickered and then they all went out.

The city was thrown into complete darkness. Mako transformed and stood in front of me. Snow started to come down in the sky, even though it was the middle of the summer. A familiar figure descended from the sky.

"Sailor Moon. No. Queen Serenity. It is time for you to die."

So much for peace. Here we go again.