mbsilvana@yahoo.com
Dedication: I really wasn't going to write a Demando sidestory, but leaving the head of the Black Moon Quartet out would be a bad idea- I'm sure someone would hurt me... To the Demando no Miko herself, Sei-chan! Who is more commonly known as Saint Erythros, but I'm really bad with nicknames.... ^_^
I suppose I was on
my way to becoming a tyrant, even as a teenager. It would have
been very simple for me to take that dark path, especially when one Rubeus
happened to be one of my chief advisors, and my other advisor thought I
hung the stars. I was fifteen, and rather full of myself, when
I met the first person who would change the course of my life. It's
rather odd, especially when I look back on it now. I was the
older, yet my brother influenced me more then I ever would have imagined
possible.
I met him in the library
when I was looking for a book with Rubeus and Esmeraude, and Esmeraude
immediately assumed the worst of him, accusing him of being a spy.
This small child was sitting on a rather abused chair, his small face alight
with fury at the implication that he was a liar. To prove us
wrong, he easily directed us to the book I had been hunting for- I don't
remember what it is anymore, but I bet he could, even to this day.
Saffir forgets nothing- it's his greatest strength and greatest weakness.
The Gods know that I would never wish to be cursed with an eidetic memory
such as his. I introduced myself, and he was elated.
His response, filled with joy, still echoes through my mind to this day
as a pivotal event, "I'm Saffir, oniisan!". I sometimes wonder
where that innocent child went.
You might think it
is rather strange that I hadn't met my eight-year-old brother before, but
Nemesis is very different from Earth. I was Heir to the Throne,
and had the best of tutors. It never occurred to me to seek
out the younger child of my parents. Saffir, on the other hand,
has always been the self-effacing sort, disappearing into the background.
When Quartz, his nursemaid, died while he was five, no one bothered to
think of him. I think he would have starved to death if he
hadn't been barely old enough to care for himself. Nemesis
is a land that does not care for the weak.
Saffir, though, was
frighteningly intelligent. He even taught himself how to read.
When I learned that, I almost sent for an assassin on the spot.
It is not a good idea for a Prince to have such a strong sibling.
But something about his youth stopped me, and I have never regretted it
since.
I suppose I should
feel guilty about what I did to him. I don't though, signs that I'm
truly a selfish bastard. But then again, I'm the Prince of
Nemesis, so I'm entitled to anything I want. And what I wanted was
my brother's total and undying devotion. I carefully
cultivated his loyalty, made myself the center of his universe. As
things stand right now, I doubt he will ever be able to love anyone more
then he loves me. And that doesn't bother me at all.
I'm entitled to it.
Yet Saffir had, in
return, changed me. Without him, I had no real concern for
anything aside from myself- but now I always think of him as well.
I made him a promise, and when I did, I became a ruler in truth.
A good ruler thinks not only of himself, but of his people as well.
And in Saffir's eyes, I see the embodiment of those I command. Sad...
terribly sad, and a longing for something that they have never known.
I will give that to them.
Our father was not
a cruel ruler, by Nemesian standards. As long as taxes and
tithes were in on time, he contented himself with his mistresses and occasional
murder here and there. He was powerful, as all my family are,
but basically a wastrel by nature. Needless to say, he didn't
do anything to endear himself to me. But he died when I was nineteen,
and I wasn't ready for that. My people live for centuries,
yet Prince Onyx just dropped dead in the middle of his fifth century, which
was very unexpected- he should have ruled for another four or five centuries
easily. I shouldn't have been surprised- no matter how young the
Prince is when they assume the throne, none have reigned for more then
two centuries- and some haven't even survived two years. All
and all, Onyx didn't do too badly. I have said it before, and I will
say it again- Nemesis is a treacherous world.
Now, it's hard for
you, a Terran, to understand exactly how precarious my position had become.
I was only nineteen, and my three closest allies were a child, a sadist,
and an egomaniac. Somehow, though, I managed to claim the Pellucid
Throne, and I was very pleased by Saffir's obvious dedication to me.
Did you know he actually confronted the entire court and made it perfectly
clear that I was now Prince? He made himself quite a few enemies
that day, but the thought for his own safety never crossed him mind.
I bless my restraint in not summoning an assassin.
The Pellucid Throne?
Yes, you wouldn't know about it, would you? I don't even think
any of the Senshi do, with the possible exception of Pluto- now THAT bitch
knows about everything. The Pellucid Throne is the key to the
Prince of Nemesis' power. It contains the energies of all the
past rulers, and grants the ability of the third eye. A very
useful ability.
Still, even with the
power of the throne, I feared assassination. Not only must
a ruler have power over his people, but his must have their acceptance
of him as well. And time was against me.
Esmeraude, surprisingly,
had a bright idea for the first time in her life. She suggested
the obvious. Give them what they want, she said.
Give the people of Nemesis Earth.
Oh, don't look so
horrified, Terran. You knew this interview would be uncomfortable
when you asked for it. Did you know my people came from there?
Since we didn't submit to Serenity and the ginzuishou, we were exiled to
this lonely rock. Look out the window- see the desolation?
Very little grows here, aside from magical talent. We have no day,
no night- the sun never reaches this last outpost of humanity- and no matter
what anyone says, we of Nemesis are human. Perhaps a little too human.
We started to plan
the attacks. Saffir was my key strategist, and Rubeus and Esmeraude
were indispensable as Generals. It was about three years after
I assumed the throne that we made our first strike.
Oh? That's
not the way you've heard it? Haven't you wondered where the
Outer Senshi are? THAT'S what we were doing- I'm not going to tell
you exactly what happened, but Uranus, Neptune and Saturn are out of the
picture, so if you Terrans were counting on the Threat of the Silence to
save you, you're sadly misguided- the Outer Senshi, save Pluto, are no
more. Two years after THAT we made our first actual strike
on Earth, and I bet that's the first attack you're aware of.
It was a long war.
It took us five years to finally have most of the Earth, but still Crystal
Tokyo would not fall. As the seat of the Neo King and Queen,
there was no way for us Nemesians to be satisfied with just having regained
control of part of the Earth. We wanted it ALL, and I was determined
to give it to my people. Crystal Tokyo is the culmination of the
Crystal Millennium, and I was going to take it away, show them that they
were wrong for exciling my forbears. I was the sixth to hold
the Pellucid Throne- and soon the Throne of Terra would crumble to my might,
reminding my people who their devotion was due to, who had saved them.
It wasn't just for
the sake of my throne that I made war- no, though that would have been
reason enough. It was because of a pair of blue eyes- the most beautiful
eyes I have ever known. Throughout the years, I have watched my younger
brother's sapphire blue eyes darken and grow jaded, burdened by knowledge
no child should have. He's only twenty, and I despair of him
at times. Nothing can bring back that unbitter smile that had
shocked me the day I met him. Nothing, except perhaps the fulfillment
of a promise I made to him when he younger. I will give him
all the flowers he wants, all the flowers of Terra will be his to rule.
It is strange, is
it not? The two most important people to me seem so different, but
are, in fact, almost identical. Both show me the truth....
reflected in their eyes.... such beautiful blue eyes.
I was twenty-five
when I made the attack on Crystal Tokyo itself, for the first time leaving
my homeworld. Crystal Tokyo was protected by the Neo King and
his Queen, and the Inner Senshi. Saffir had assured me that
Pluto would not get involved, and to my relief, he was correct. But
then, when has my little ototochan been wrong?
I was the final attack
of that day... that grim day. The newest member of my circle, who
was known only as the Wiseman, had told me that Neo Queen Serenity would
be vulnerable, and I trusted his judgment. He sees into the
future, and his visions are powerful tools. Foolishly Serenity was
outside of the Palace, and she didn't even have the ginzuishou with her!
I would later learn that the ginzuishou and the Princess had vanished,
but that is besides the point. I can't see how Serenity can love
the rabbit enough to risk herself instead. She can always have
another child, after all... and she will. But I will sire them
instead of the insipid Neo King of Earth.
I came down on top
of her like a box of rocks, throwing ever ounce of power I could draw from
my Throne. The Pellucid Throne responded to my desire like
a kitten being scratched under the neck, giving me everything I could handle.
I almost thought I could feel a sense of triumph from the Throne- but then
again, I may have been right. The Throne is powered with the
essences of those who have reigned on Nemesis in the past, and they surely
were as bitter as I towards Terra and its rulers.
She was standing in
a field, unprotected by her Senshi- foolish of them. I raised
my hand to summon the energies, and just as I was attacking, she looked
up at me, and I was defeated.
That isn't what any
one will tell you, but it is the truth. I looked into those
eyes even as I attempted to bring her down, and I fell before her.
Cascades of golden hair flowed away from her face as she tilted her face
upwards and looked at her doom with sorrowful eyes... such exquisite blue
eyes that contained something that is simply indescribable. I felt
like the entire world that I had been seeking was there... for the first
time, I felt like I had what I had been looking for my entire life, something
I hadn't even known I had been searching for.
They saved her, those
Senshi of hers, and my heart was gladdened. I did not destroy
her- merely sent her into an enchanted sleep, a sleep which I will awaken
her from. I retreated then, before her Senshi she could- I could
see the rage in their expressions, and I understood that at that moment,
they could have destroyed me gladly, those so-called "Soldiers of Love
and Justice".
From then on, every
time I shut my eyes, even if only for a blink, I see those blue blue eyes
reflected on the backs of my eyelids. She will be mine, Terra!
Your precious Neo Queen will be my consort, and help me reign over the
beautiful lands of Earth. And I will be able to look into those blue
eyes, those beautiful blue eyes, and see nothing but devotion.
This I vow, and so it will happen.
END
Author's Note: This fits into VIRGO, my epic, probably sometimes
late during chapter three (though it contains some 'hints' towards my chapters
five and six- Shadow of the Diamond & The War of the Black Moon)- it's
Demando telling a little bit of himself, though the piece should stand
by itself. You might notice some differences between the versions
(intentionally done- Demando's ego is involved, after all!)- supposedly
Saffir is telling Ami Part Three, and this is Demando. They're bound
to remember things differently. Who's more accurate?
I'd put my money on Saffir- he's got an eidetic memory, after all!