Standard Disclaimers

Darien's Quest

Chapter Six



Winds pounded Darien's face as he hiked up the barely

visible path leading into the High Mountain. With every

step he took, it seemed after the wind became harsher and

the mountains more foreboding. He thought back to when they

left Mina's home a week ago, '"who, my dear prince, are

you?" I wish I knew.' As their number of companions grew,

so did Darien's feeling of loneliness. 'These four girls

have each other and whom do I have? No one,' he answered

himself. Yet, in some deepest part of him, he knew that

this was not true. 'Her…I must find her. She is the key…'

Soon, rain fell unmercifully upon the shoulders of the

prince. He could barely make out the tall frame of the

Amazon. 'Left, right, left, right. Must we keep climbing?'

Darien thought. 'How can they keep this up? We have been

climbing since daybreak yesterday.' Darien was out of

breath due to the thickness of the mountain air. The air at

Gaea was always thick and humid due to the warm wet climate.

Most humans stayed where it was warm and crops would

survive. Not too many people would venture into the colder

climates. In the legend, it was told that the people of

Earth lived all over, even in the frigid north. However,

that secret in conquering the cold climate was lost in the

Great War. Only the fabled soldiers know of its secret and

their lips have been sealed for a thousand years.

Darien was so deeply in his thought that he did not

notice that the group had stopped. "The wind is getting to

strong to struggle against and the rain has turned to snow.

We are not going to get there any faster in this storm. I

think that we need to stop and rest for a few hours," Ami's

soft voice carried over the harsh wind.

"Finally!" Darien breathed.

"Ami, how long until the shelter is ready?" Mina yelled

over the wind.

"It should only take about a half hour."

"Good. I am going to scout a head and see if there are

any obstacles that we need to be aware of," Mina yelled.

"Mina, I'll join you," Lita volunteered. Mina nodded

her confirmation.

"Rei, try to contact Haruka to tell her we will be

meeting up with her soon. You remember the last time we

came unannounced," Mina giggled.

"Right," Rei laughed. "Come back soon guys. I don't

want to be out in the cold more than I have to." Mina and

Lita smiled. They turned and disappeared in a cloud of

snow.

Darien stared after the women then shook his head. He

then glanced over and looked at Rei and Ami. He wondered

how so completely different women could get along so well.

'But, then they do sometimes have their disagreements,'

Darien thought as his eyes glazed over.

'A beautiful girl with long silver hair was strolling

along in the gardens. It was dark out, so the silent

observer could only see the stars' reflection off her lovely

hair. "Princess! What are you doing here! You know that

it is forbidden to stepping foot on Earth! You could be

kidnapped or even killed! Then your mother would come after

me!" Venus lectured.

"You should know better considering your position! You

need to be more responsible!" Mars fumed.

"Venus, Mars, you do not have to be so harsh! I can

take care of myself, thank you!" a low voice sobbed and the

silver hair woman stomped off into darkness.

"No, angel, don't go!" the silent observer whispered

into the night.'

"No, angel, don't go," Darien whispered to himself.

His eyes where still out of focus.

"Hello, Darien, are you okay?" Rei asked. His eyes

were still dazed and did not respond to her question. Rei

grabbed his shoulders and shook him while repeating her

question getting louder each time.

Darien blinked a few times and looked down to the

petite woman. His eyes hardened as the found himself too

open and vulnerable. 'I must stay closed to these women,

but for some reason, I feel like I can trust them.' "Rei,

if I may ask, what are you doing to me?" Darien asked in a

harsh voice.

Her cheeks flushed in both embarrassment and in anger.

"Trying to wake you up from your little daydream. You have

been standing there grinning like an idiot for the past ten

minutes. Now that you are awake, you can help Ami and I put

up the shelter," Rei bit out. Darien flushed in anger and

nodded slightly as if granting permission from a vassal at

court. He walked over and grabbed a pole while mumbling, "As

you wish."

About a half-hour later, the shelter was up and Rei was

by the fire. Mina was sitting on the floor with a great

blade on her knees. She gently stroked the beautiful blade

slowly as if it was bring every memory associated with it at

once. At points, he fact would light up like the sun and

then it would fade. Darien watched Mina through his

eyelashes, feigning sleep. Then Mina's face changed into a

new color, deathly pale. Her face was filled with horror.

She took the blade and held it up, inches from her face.

"Why, my dear princess, why?" Mina breathed. Her eyes

watered up and the sword fell to the floor. She leaned down

and covered her face, sobbing quietly.

A few moments later, the other girls walked in. They

did not even glace at Darien's shocked face. The women

gathered around Mina, hugging her, telling her everything

will work out and that they will find her.

"Besides, we have to focus on what we are doing and not

what was passed," Rei stated.

Darien played the silent observer once more.

****************************************

"Haruka seems to be angry with us. She is barely

letting us pass," Ami stated. Her blue hair was whipping

all around her. She had her mini-computer out again and

seemed to be calculating the distance to their destination.

"I am going to give her a piece of my mind," Mina

stated angrily. "HARUKA! I COMMAND YOU TO STOP THIS! YOU

ARE WASTING TIME. TIME THAT WE DON'T HAVE!" As soon as she

finished shouting, the wind stopped. A second later her

echo returned mockingly. "Now, that is much better." Mina

had a pleased look on her face, one that occurs on a mother

after scolding her child.

"He is not welcome here," a deep feminine voice stated

behind them. The company turned swiftly around. Standing

behind them with her arms crossed in a menacing manor was a

tall woman. She had dark blonde hair that was cut short

above hear ears. Her legs were long and thin, and she

looked very powerful. "He is not welcome here," she

repeated. Her dark blue eyes were boring into Darien's.

When he heard her voice, it took all of his power not

to seem alarmed. 'How could I have not hear her or even

feel her. The wind shields her from my senses.' When she

threatened him with her eyes, Darien met her stare for

stare. He knew this woman, and he knew that they never got

along.

'A tall woman with short blonde hair pulling his love

away from him. "Princess, you know the law." The tall woman

glared at him one more time, and then both of them

disappeared in a flash of light.'

"Uranus," he greeted flatly. He didn't know where that

came from but it fit correctly. She just stared at him.

After a few moments of the staring contest, Darien

remembered four gasps. He broke his gaze from the woman and

turned his hard eyes to the Inner Soldiers. Shock was

written on their faces. In response, Darien just lifted an

eyebrow.

"So the gathering has finally come to pass. Good, I

wish to see my beloved Michiru again. Why has the Earthling

returned? Has his race caused enough trouble?"

"The Queen visited him first and charged him to seek us

out. He was chosen first," Rei stated. Her dark eyes

flashed as the wind played with her hair. "It was foretold

through the centuries."

Haruka's eyes drifted away from Darien and onto Rei.

Her only response was a slight nod of understanding. She

then turned and started to lead them back down from the

mountains. The others rushed to follow her. 'Great, now I

have another one to look out for. At least the other girls

were a little nicer to me.' All of a sudden, there was a

flash.

'He saw blood all around him. He could feel himself

dying. He knew that the Silver Millennium would fall, all

because of a demon on his planet. He should have protected

Moon Kingdom better. He should have protected her better.

As he felt his heartbeat slow, he turned his eyes on his

love. Her face was stained with tears and she was reaching

for his sword. "Selenity," he whispered with his last

breath.

"Selenity," Darien breathed, as tears were falling from

his face. As he closed his eyes, he fell to his knees and

wept.



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Another chapter reformatted. Wow, this takes a long, long time!

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