Forgotten Dreams
Chapter 10
"Damia, I'm not so sure about this," Pegasus stammered from his chalice by her bedside.
Damia sat down on the edge of her bed and studied the tiny winged horse carefully. "You could have said something earlier, you know," she retorted. "I can't go and un-invite them now. Besides, they're the other Sailors. Why are you so worried anyway?"
"Well," he started, not meeting Damia's eyes, "I just…"
"It's not like anyone knows about you, and a lot of people probably wouldn't believe you exist even if I told them. I could hardly believe it at first," Damia argued. "But Indira, Althea, and Nerine believe me. They've got the transformation spheres you gave us and believe that you've been giving me advice on all this."
"Well, it's just that," Pegasus said, still avoiding her gaze, "I'd rather that people didn't know about me."
"So introducing yourself to me was just a necessary evil to find soldiers to protect you and your Elysion?" Damia demanded, suddenly offended. "Is that it?"
"No, no. That's not it at all," Pegasus replied quickly. Almost urgently, he continued, "I really wanted to find you. I searched all over for you. While I did, they stole my body, so I had to come find you like this. I'm too weak now without it and I'm afraid I'll be found."
"They?" Damia asked, "You mean the Dead Moon Circus? That's not your real body?"
Pegasus nodded regretfully then straightened up and stretched out his wings, "Were I able to fly free, you would see me the size of a horse." He paused, as if unsure to continue, "But this is only a manifestation of my spirit, since the Dead Moon Circus tried to capture me. In truth, I am a man."
"You're what?" Damia stammered in disbelief, "So I have a man, or the spirit of a man that looks like a winged horse living in my room? I certainly hope my mother doesn't ever find out."
Pegasus blushed and said quietly, "I hope so too."
Damia found herself at a sudden loss for words.
After a long silence, Pegasus finally said, "I really had hoped to meet you as my true self, but I made a mistake and was looking in the wrong place. I fell right into their trap. I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry," Damia protested and locked his tiny amber eyes in her gaze, "I had no idea. And I promise you, we'll get your real body back."
"Damia, I—" he started, but the sound of feet thumping up the stairs stopped him. In an instant, he faded away and only a lifeless chalice remained on Damia's bedside table.
There was a quick knock at her door, and her little cousin Caya poked her head in. Damia sighed with relief at Pegasus' quick thinking. "Damia, you're friends are here!" she informed her, then turned and scurried back down the stairs. Damia swallowed and followed her down.
All three girls already waited in the entry way, Caya chatting happily at them, "I told her you're here and she said she'd be right down. I've never met you before. You must be new friends from school. I'm Caya."
"We're working on sort of a project together," Althea said.
"Oh, hey, I remember where I recognize you from," Caya suddenly exclaimed, pointing to Althea, "You're the fastest girl on the track team."
"I just won that one race," Althea mumbled, looking away from the tiny girl's bright green eyes.
Just then, Indira finally noticed Damia in her slow decent down the stairs. "There you are," she said.
"Hey guys," Damia said, suddenly finding her heart beating in her throat when she found all eyes on her. I'm supposed to be the leader in all this… "Come on up to my room. We can chat up there," she invited awkwardly.
Damia's mother stuck her head in from the kitchen wearing a chocolate-splattered apron. "Sorry I didn't say so earlier, I was a little occupied," she said with a chuckle and gesturing to her apron, "but welcome. These brownies should be finished soon, so I'll bring you up a plate when they're done. Now you girls hurry on upstairs. I'm sure you've got lots of work to do."
Damia all but scurried out of their way up the stairway as her mother shooed the three other girls out of the entryway and up. They poured into her room after her while she hovered nervously in front of Helios's chalice. "Make yourselves comfortable," she invited as hospitably as she could, "Oh, Indira, could you close the door while you're over there?" With the door shut and everyone settling into place, she should have felt more at ease but didn't. Nerine had immediately plopped down on her bed, while Althea slouched on the window seat next to her violets and spider plant, and Indira took her place on Damia's desk chair. Damia herself finally sunk onto her bed next to Nerine, pushing the chalice forward on her nightstand.
"So that's what you've been talking about?" Nerine immediately caught sight of it.
"Um, yea," Damia stammered.
"Huh, interesting means of communication," Indira murmured, squinting and leaning closer for a better look.
"Pegasus, it's just us. It's safe," Damia coaxed, "You can come out now."
In a twinkling, the tiny figure of a winged horse now stood in a bubble of light at the top of the chalice. Nerine gasped while Indira drew in a sharp breath in surprise. Althea pretended to be unimpressed. Shooting Damia a nervous glance, he surveyed the room and the girls sitting around him. "You look like you've hardly changed a day since I saw you last," he finally said.
"Since you saw us last?" Indira echoed. "I don't have any memories of a winged horse at all. What do you mean by that?" she asked skeptically.
"I apologize," he said, lowering his head, "Perhaps I should start from the beginning." He glanced at Damia, looking for confidence, but she was hardly in any condition to reassure him. "My name is Pegasus. I am sure you have heard Damia speak of me. My home is Elysion, a centerpiece in the old Earth Kingdom, a green paradise inside the Earth. I am the priest of the shrine there. It still remains, hidden and nourished by dreams, but it is under attack by those that you now know as the Dead Moon Circus."
"So Elysion is kind of a real place then?" Althea asked, eying Damia.
Pegasus nodded.
"Then what about Erebus and Aether and Nyx?" she asked.
"They too were special, hidden places of the Earth Kingdom long ago, but Elysion was the centerpiece. Nyx, the vale of storms, and Erebus, the shadow canyon, were foreboding places were few people dared to venture, while Aether was a light and airy place, built of clouds. Those places, along with Phlegethon, the river of fire, Hemera, the valley of light, and Cocytus, the sea of secrets, held the Seven Shrines of the Earth," he replied, glowing nostalgia hung on his voice. "It was there that I knew you first, you four. You, along with three others, were the guardians of the Earth Kingdom, and of Elysion in particular. Its crystal wood and its mirror pools were unrivaled in beauty anywhere on this planet, having been founded on dreams."
"Wait," Althea interrupted, "You said there were three more then; Cocytus, Phlegethon, and Hemera, I assume. Are there three more now too?"
"Yes. I found them almost on accident before I found you," he replied. "In this life, they are three sisters, and they are now fighting a different front with the Dead Moon."
"Are they anywhere close to us? Can they help us out?" Nerine asked quickly before he could move on, "Or should we be helping them out?"
"I am ashamed to say that I do not know geography of this modern world very well, but I know where I found them was far north and west of here. The air was crisp and cold, and there were towering mountains everywhere, surrounding a sprawling city on a broad bay," he answered blushing a bit at his failings.
"It doesn't sound like anywhere I've been before," Damia murmured.
"Maybe somewhere in Canada," Althea suggested, then added, "Or even Russia! We'll have to look into that later on."
"Getting back on track, what can you tell us about the Dead Moon?" Indira asked, staring down at him. "It seems like we hardly know anything at all about the guys that we're fighting."
"I had heard rumor of a queen of the Dead Moon, a kingdom of the new moon that was somehow in the shadows or in the very depths of the moon itself, back during the age of the Silver Millennium and the Golden Kingdom, but I thought of it as no more than rumors," Pegasus explained, his eyes focused on something distant. "It was whispered that that queen had cursed the princess of the moon, predicting her death and the fall of her kingdom, but no one wanted to believe it. Even Queen Selenity, the queen of the moon and the Silver Millennium at that time, tried to argue that it was a lie.
"But now I know it's truer than any of us had feared in those days. Nehelenia is a terrible and beautiful queen who is after the beautiful dreams of this world's people. For what end, I don't yet know, but dreams are indeed powerful. She has not yet discovered how to enter Elysion herself, but it is bombarded from every angle. I know she also seeks the Golden Crystal, an item powerful enough to overthrow her if in the right hands. As the guardian and priest of Elysion, she had her minions capture me and has tried to force out of me the secrets of Elysion and the dreams it is built on."
"Captured?" Nerine asked, "Then you must have escaped?"
He shook his tiny equine head sadly, "What you see now is an illusion of me. My spirit has managed to escape, but they still have my body. The Dead Moon Circus may not yet know what I have done, but I am certain they will soon realize that part of me is gone. There is not much time if I am to be able to help you."
"How are we supposed to defeat them?" Althea asked, "Can you fight with us?"
"Not like this, I cannot," he said. "Even if I were free, I am only a priest, so battle is not my strong point, but I can lend you what little powers I have. You are the soldiers of the Earth while I am but a caretaker. Call my name and—"
Just then, Caya burst through Damia's bedroom door with a plate full of fragrant brownies. Pegasus' eyes widened, lashing his tail in panic. Instantly, before Caya caught sight of him, his green chalice returned to normal.
"Brownies!" Nerine exclaimed and bounced anxiously on the bed.
"Caya!" Damia blurted, glancing frantically between the chalice and her little cousin. "Try to remember to knock," she scolded.
Caya lowered her eyes and murmured her apologies.
"Aw, Damia, don't be so hard on her," Althea said and directed a warm smile at the young blue-haired girl. "Thanks for bringing us a snack, Caya." She rose and walked over to her then knelt down to Caya's level. "Those smell delicious. Your mom must be a good cook," she said, taking one from the plate.
Caya, who's smile ebbed back a moment before to Althea's encouragements, looked away again, lower lip quivering.
"Caya is my cousin," Damia quickly interjected, and then just as swiftly added, "Those do smell delicious. It looks like there's enough on that plate for everyone to have a couple. Caya, why don't you give one to Indira and Nerine too? They look hungry."
"Okay," Caya nodded, gaining confidence again. While Althea gingerly returned to the desk chair, Caya shuffled around the room distributing brownies. Once all of the girls had one in her hand, or mouth, Caya flopped down onto the carpet and set the plate on the floor between them all, taking one brownie for each hand.
Great, we can't talk to Pegasus with her in here. Damia grimaced. Althea didn't seem to be bothered while Nerine was enjoying her brownie too much to care that they had been interrupted. Indira caught Damia's eye with an inquisitively raised eyebrow.
"Mmm!" Nerine said through a full mouth, "These are amazing!"
"Yeah." Damia nodded and glanced to the chalice next to her again. Unlike Nerine or the other two girls, she did not reach down for a second or third brownie.
As Caya reached for her third, she asked, "What were you working on? Is it hard?"
"Um," Damia stammered.
"We were talking about some ancient history," Indira filled in for her. "I guess it's a little hard to understand because it was so long ago."
Damia couldn't help but crack a smile. Caya had no patience for history.
"Oh," Caya nodded, shoving the brownie into her mouth. As soon as she had swallowed, she announced, "I helped Aunt Laurie make them. I stirred it for three minutes."
"Good job, then," Nerine giggled.
Damia found herself staring at where Pegasus had been. Directing her attention back to reality, she added, "You always are such a good helper, Caya. Though, I bet Aunt Laurie needs some more help downstairs now."
"Okay," she bounded to her feet, "I can do it!" In a moment she had scurried from the room. The door hung ajar behind her.
Damia breathed a sigh of relief and walked over to the door to push it shut.
"What was that all about?" Althea asked, snatching up the last brownie.
"What was what all about?" Damia asked as she sunk back onto the bed.
"She's your cousin?" Althea clarified.
"Right, that," Damia sighed. "Her parents died when she was three years old and she's been living with us ever since. Her memories of them aren't very clear, but she still really misses them."
"That's so sad," Nerine murmured.
"I had no idea," Althea nodded slowly, "You really should be easier on her then, Damia."
"But as long as she was in here, we couldn't talk to Pegasus," Damia argued, "Coming in like that without knocking; Pegasus could have been seen."
"She's just a kid though," Althea said, "She probably wouldn't have thought he was anything suspicious if she saw him."
"But what if she told Mom about him?" Damia demanded, voice rising nervously
"What didn't happen isn't worth arguing about," Indira cut them off, giving both a steely glare that dared them to continue. "Pegasus?" she called.
He twinkled back into view on the nightstand. "Erm, yes," he began, "where were we?"
His question was met by only the ticking of the clock.
"Right, now I remember," he continued slowly, "I want to help you four in whatever ways I can, but there isn't much I can do. I can lend you what power I have, just call upon my name and I'll be there."
"And you can hear us from anywhere?" Althea asked, toying with her ponytail.
Pegasus tossed his head in an equine nod. "I will be listening for your call."
"You know, what I'd like to hear more about is the past, since we have the time," Indira commented, looking out the window rather than at Pegasus. She sighed, then shifted her gaze back towards him. "This whole 'Sailor Soldier' thing is completely new me; kinda like Superman, only real. The idea that not only do I have these powers I can't explain, that I also had a past life in some ancient time is almost too much to wrap my mind around. I don't know about you guys."
Althea nodded and surveyed the three other girls and tiny horse. "Sometimes this is almost as scary as it is exciting. It's surreal."
"But I wouldn't want to give this up, ever," Nerine piped in. "We've got these powers and people need our help. And besides, having magic powers like this is really cool, you guys have to admit."
Althea cracked a smile while Indira and Damia giggled quietly.
"I never thought there were actual bad guys out there like this Dead Moon Circus, or that powers like this were possible, or that I'd meet a winged horse," Damia laughed, "It's crazy, but now, it's life."
"You four ladies are taking to this far better than I could hope," Pegasus nickered softly.
"So," Indira reminded, "About our past lives."
"To be plain," Pegasus began slowly, "I did not see any of you very often. That is, except—" he paused, as if debating weather to continue, then met Damia's eyes, "except the Lady of Elysion."
"You mean Damia?" Nerine asked, leaning closer with the eagerness of a child listening to her favorite fairytale.
"Yes." He cleared his throat and continued, "I was the Priest of Elysion and she its guardian, you see. You three had little reason to visit Elysion regularly, and I rarely had reason to leave."
"And that's why you found her first," Indira concluded, nodding.
Pegasus did not respond to her, but instead said, "I can tell you this: the Earth was a strong and prosperous kingdom in that age. The king ruled from a beautiful oasis near the North Pole. Beyond the earth, the other planets Sol System thrived under the rule of the Silver Millennium, under Queen Selenity of the Moon. The Sun Kingdom mirrored the beauty and power of the Earth and the Moon, however relations between the three were strained.
"While the other planets could easily accept the rule of Queen Selenity and the Moon, as it had been for eons, the people of Earth were not willing to submit to people of Earth's satellite. I never understood the details, but the Sun and Moon had been at odds since the time I was a child. History and politics were never my strength. If one wanted to know those things, they could go to the Priest of Cocytus. Eventually, the Earth attempted to cut off all communication with the Silver Millennium Kingdom.
"Despite all this, somehow Prince Endymion, heir of the Earth Kingdom, and Princess Serenity, heir to the Silver Millennium, met and fell in love. This only fueled the anger of the two peoples.
"Soon, a great and evil spirit calling itself Queen Metalia descended on the Earth. I remember the terrible visions and dreams I saw in those days," Pegasus paused, every feather of his wings shuddered. "I thought the end was near but did not want to truly believe it. You, the seven Elysion Soldiers, were hardly able to keep the secret kingdoms hidden and safe. In desperation, you evacuated as many people as were willing to leave, sealed the entrances, and I helped you hide away the key to returning to them until a safer time.
"I do not know if you made it to the palace before the Silver Millennium fell. It seems that, with her palace falling to ruins around, she used the last of her power to send what was left of the courts of her kingdom to a freer time in the future. By a surprising act of compassion, she seems to have sent us forward as well. I only just re-awakened from a deep sleep myself."
"You mean there's more people from the past on Earth today?" Damia asked.
Pegasus nodded. "I believe the other six priests have returned as well, and who knows how many other courtiers. We may never be able to recognize those of the past who had no special powers. Although, I assume you have heard of Sailor Moon?"
"That comic book hero from Japan?" Althea asked. Before Pegasus could even nod in response, her eyes lit up and she slapped her knee, laughing. "I can't believe I didn't realize it before! If I really am Sailor Erebus, Sailor Moon must really exist too. That's too big a coincidence. I'd always brushed her off as the Japanese Wonder Woman."
"Oh, right!" Nerine exclaimed, "I've heard of her too!"
Indira eyed them all evenly, making no comments. Damia's face was a mask of confusion.
"If she is, and her friends are, who I think they are," Pegasus said hesitantly, "I believe that she is the Princess Serenity of our era and her fellow soldiers are the princesses of the other planets. Although, I have never met them in this age or in the past."
"I wonder if they can help us," Damia thought out loud.
"From what I could glimpse from Elysion, they have been busy," he answered succinctly.
Indira glanced down at her watch and suddenly exclaimed, "Shoot, it's already 3:00. I promised my little brother I'd be at his hockey game at 3:30. I'd better get going."
"Three? Really?" Nerine gasped. "Could you drive me home, Indira, if you're heading that way?"
"Sure," Indira nodded and stood from the window seat. She turned to where Damia sat by Pegasus's chalice. "Damia, Pegasus, thanks. And thank your mom for the brownies. Sorry to rush off on you."
"Oh, that's okay," Damia waved her off as she and Nerine left the room and scurried down the stairs. Even as Nerine's hand grasped the doorknob, Pegasus faded away.
Only Althea and Damia remained in her room. "So," Althea stood up and said, "I guess I should go too. Thanks for this."
"You're welcome," Damia stammered, rising to meet her.
Althea scooped up the blue and white plate, now only full of scattered crumbs. She pinched some crumbs up off the plate and pressed them to her mouth before trusting the dish at Damia. "Thank your mom for me to," she said a she walked towards the stairs. "See you later."
"See ya," Damia said and waved with her free hand.
Althea descended a few steps, then grinned over her left shoulder, "We'll get those circus jerks!"
Damia found herself smiling back.
***
Eerie laughter resounded in throughout the dimness. Twisting and frolicking, strange shadows swung through the air and tumbled across the ground.
A tiny green-clad acrobat somersaulted seemingly out of nowhere onto a large trampoline. Bouncing, ParPar giggled, "Why would anyone want to be an adult? Kids have the most fun!"
All around him, a myriad of voices cackled, "Kids have the most fun!"
Cart-wheeling high above on a thin rope, NikNik added, "Kids don't have to worry about serious things."
Down below, a sudden burst of flame exploded from TouTou's mouth. "Kids can do whatever they want," he laughed. The redhead took a deep breath, ready to spout fire again, but was cut short by a blazing spotlight at the center of the tent.
AthoAtho balanced easily on one hand, coat tails and long blond hair cascading down to the floor. "And of course," he said and flipped back onto his feet, "they have the brightest dreams."
ParPar flipped off the trampoline and over to where AthoAtho stood while NikNik sprung from the tight-rope, seized a trapeze and tumbled to the circus floor, landing with little more effort than a cat. TouTou stalked over to join the other three Amazon boys. "And what makes you say that?" TouTou demanded.
"Kids have the whole future ahead of them," NikNik supplied.
"Adults always think things are impossible, but kids believe in their dreams," ParPar answered, bouncing on the balls of his feet.
"Kids area always dreaming," AthoAtho added.
"So then why hasn't Zirconia assigned us to check out the dreams of any kids yet?" TouTou demanded.
"It's just been a bunch of middle school girls," ParPar whined and fidgeted with the streamers that hung from his hips. "They were no fun."
"That Sailor Elysion wasn't any fun either," NikNik murmured.
"Then I say we find some kids and check out their dreams ourselves," AthoAtho said, gesturing to the other three. "We don't need Zirconia to tell us what to do all the time."
"Let's do it!" TouTou grinned.
Just then something small whizzed between them and arched up towards the back of the tent. A hush fell over the four boys and the whole big-top. As it flew, they could make out batty wings and a tiny, flickering flame.
"Shoot," NikNik winced, "It's Zircon."
The winged eyeball perched somewhere up high and Zirconia's platform illuminated. Zirconia scowled down at them while Zircon fidgeted angrily from the top of her staff.
"Zirconia!" the Amazon Quartet exclaimed, with varying degrees of surprise in their voices. All four swept into low bows.
"What is this about you doing anything without me?" the wrinkled figure draped in a purple robe bellowed.
ParPar and NikNik flinched into even deeper bows while TouTou straightened up and began, "But Zirconia—"
"Silence!" Zirconia roared. TouTou's green eyes grew wide and he threw himself back into a bow. For a moment, a thick silence hung in the air. Zirconia chuckled softly, which soon grew into peals of laughter. Other laughing voices soon joined in, but Zirconia's sharp glare quickly silenced them. "I am impressed," She said. "I didn't think you could come up with a thought of your own like that."
All four boys relaxed and stood up, craning their necks to see Zirconia high above them.
"So, just this once, I'll let you try it," Zirconia said sweetly.
An excited squeal escaped ParPar's mouth, "Yay!"
AthoAtho dipped his head in a small bow, "Thank you Zirconia."
"Don't fail me!" Zirconia bellowed and, in a swirl of dark robes, was gone.
"I don't like how she comes and goes like that," ParPar complained.
Ignoring him, AthoAtho asked, "So what are we waiting for?"
"Let's go find some kids!" NikNik exclaimed and darted back into the dimness. The other three followed, laughing, after him.
***
"It's a beautiful fall day and Caya is looking bored. Why don't you take her to the park? You said yourself that you didn't have any homework to do this weekend," her mother suggested.
Damia would much rather have spent the remainder of Saturday afternoon curled up in her room recovering from and thinking over their meeting. With Pegasus.
But, her mother had other plans for Damia's day, and there was no saying 'no' to her.
Damia walked down the sidewalk hand in hand with Caya, who skipped along beside her. Her mother had been right. It really was a beautiful day. A brief Indian Summer brought a few days of warmth in the middle of a crisp, chilly autumn. While most leaves lay in dry piles raked up by her neighbors, quivering gold leaves still clung the towering aspen trees. One brilliantly red maple stood alone in a clump of mostly bare trees near the street corner.
"So you want go to the park near your daycare, Caya?" Damia asked.
The little girl nodded emphatically, "The one with the really big slide."
"Maybe some of your daycare friends will be there today too," she said, her mind elsewhere. Pegasus had never mentioned so much about our past before. I had no idea. I wonder what it was like then? I wonder why I can't remember any of it? I guess I was a different me back then, but it was still me.
Caya tugged her back into reality. "Did you have fun with your friends today?" Caya inquired, "I like them."
"We did," Damia smiled down at Caya as they walked. "You know, we actually are—" she began but stopped herself. Caya was young enough to really believe in flying horses and magic powers, and yet, Damia couldn't share that secret with her little cousin. If there were things Pegasus wouldn't tell her to keep her safe, not telling Caya would be safer. It would be a fun secret to be able to share, though.
"You are what?" Caya asked. Her blue eyes were open wide with curiosity.
"Oh, nothing," Damia shrugged. "Never mind."
"What?" Caya persisted, whining.
"We are…" Damia stammered. She hated lying to Caya, "doing a project on magical animals like from fairy tales."
"Oh!" Caya squealed, "Which ones?"
"Things like unicorns and dragons," Damia lied.
"What about pegasuses?" Caya asked, "Those are my favorite."
Damia's heart skipped a beat. Does Caya know? "Yea, we talked about a Pegasus for a while too," she answered as casually as she could. At the mention of his name, Damia found herself wanting to be back in her room again.
They turned the last corner and Caya immediately broke into a run.
"Slow down Caya!" Damia jogged after her and called, "Be careful!"
By the time Damia arrived at the colorful play structure, Caya stood at the top of the slide. Seeing her cousin arrive, she threw herself down the slide, giggling. Caya darted back up onto the play structure. She dashed and climbed from one end to the other and back again with cries of, "Damia! Watch me!"
Soon, she called Damia over to push her on the swings. Over and over she urged, "Higher! Higher!" Damia quickly found herself laughing along to Caya's giggles.
When Caya tired of the swings and scurried back to the play structure, Damia sunk onto a nearby bench to watch. Half of her wanted to climb up and join her cousin. The gravel playground was right next to a cheerfully painted daycare center. The fenced yard behind it had a small swing set inside it, but the daycare teachers would sometimes take groups of children out to the larger playground. Now was one of those times. Damia waved and smiled warmly at the teacher as she let the twelve children through the gate. The weekend crowd of daycare kids was much smaller than the weekdays when Caya went, only needing one teacher today.
Damia watched as Caya happily played with some of the other kids she knew. Appearing almost out of nowhere, she noticed four newcomers; four boys a few years older than Caya. The youngest of the four, with green hair, made straight for the trapeze bar next to the swings and began tumbling in twisting in ways she had never seen before. Another blue haired boy seemed to almost tumble through the air on the monkey bars. The blond one did careless cartwheels across the grass while the redhead scampered effortlessly up the sliding pole. As she watched Caya and the other children gape at them, a feeling of dread crept over her.
They move like circus performers. The Dead Moon Circus!
Damia stood up and hurried over to the playground. Thankfully, Caya had just slid down the slide and stood applauding the antics of the blue-haired boy. Damia grasped her hand and tugged. She said urgently, "Caya, it's time for us to go home now."
"But we just got here," Caya whined, still staring at the boy.
"Caya, now!" Damia snapped.
Caya snatched her hand back and stomped off through the gravel. "No!" she pouted, "I'm not done yet, and this is fun."
"Caya—!" Damia yelled, but it was already too late.
By the time she looked up again, their street clothes disappeared and the four boys wore the circus outfits that she knew all too well. Several of the children cheered and gasped at the rapid transformation. NikNik, AthoAtho, and ParPar swept down off the jungle gym and took deep bows, but TouTou slunk back behind the crowd of children. Suddenly, he lunged, flinging his red sphere into their midst.
"Red ball into the center pocket!" he cackled. The sphere shot through three children, reveling their pink dream mirrors. As they slumped to the gravely ground, their teacher screamed.
Damia tugged at Caya's had, but she wouldn't budge. Her eyes were wide and tiny mouth hung open. Damia released her and dashed towards a nearby lilac bush that hadn't yet lost all of its leaves, dialing on her cell phone as she went.
"Hello?"
"Althea!" Damia said urgently, "All four circus boys are at my cousin's daycare. They're attacking all the kids."
"You can't take all four by yourself!" Althea exclaimed.
"I know!" Damia hissed as she fished in her purse for her transformation sphere. "Get the others and get here as fast as you can. I'll keep them busy."
"Got it!" Althea said firmly and hung up.
With the crimson sphere in hand, she yelled, "Elysion Terran Power, Makeup!"
Moments later, as Sailor Elysion, she darted back to the playground. Another eight children lay collapsed in the gravel while three more tried to flee the attackers. A fourth cowered behind the teacher who was making a frantic phone call on her cell. She spotted Caya clambering up and over the play structure with ParPar close behind her. There's no way she could out-climb him.
"Stop right there you circus brats!" Sailor Elysion ordered with more confidence than she felt. Surprisingly, all four stopped mid-step and mid-climb and stared at her.
"You again?" NikNik drawled.
"How do you guys always manage to show up so quickly?" TouTou demanded.
Caya and the other two children scampered back to their protective teacher.
"With justice on our side, we'll always be here to stop you," she boasted. "Leave these poor kids alone!"
"But children have the best dream," ParPar protested.
"And who are you to stop us?" AthoAtho threatened, "There's only one of you and four of us." Suddenly, both he and TouTou sprinted towards her while the two younger boys resumed pursuit of the children.
"Elysion Pure—!" She began but AthoAtho dove and knocked her feet out from underneath her. Before she could recover, a blast of fire from TouTou's mouth scorched her back. She screamed and reflexively curled into a ball.
Distantly, Damia could hear the teacher scream again, but her own pain overwhelmed her. She rolled over onto her back to put out the fire on her clothes, but was quickly punched in the stomach by AthoAtho. She gasped for air and struggled up to her hands and knees, but TouTou knocked her down again.
I have to save those kids… Sailor Elysion braced herself for the next attack and wheezed, "Pegasus… Pegasus, please help me."
"I'm here," a warm voice spoke in her head.
In a burst of light, a full-sized Pegasus appeared in the air above her. He whinnied angrily and the light around him blazed brighter. Both TouTou and AthoAtho stumbled back away from her. All at once, a warm sensation crept through Sailor Elysion, filling her with strength. She rose to her feet and yelled, "Elysion Crisis Melody!" Prismatic light rocketed out in all directions, stinging at each of the four Amazon boys. As they hissed and yelped, she glanced up at Pegasus and smiled. The burning pain receded. Pegasus nickered encouragingly in return.
Just then, Indira's car squealed to a stop in the nearby parking lot, and Sailor Erebus, Sailor Nyx, and Sailor Aether poured out. Aether skidded to a halt and stared in awe up at the sky where prismatic light danced around the winged horse. "Pegasus," she whispered wide-eyed.
Meanwhile, Nyx and Erebus ran straight to Sailor Elysion's side. "Are you okay?" Nyx asked, raising her staff protectively in front of them. The children scampered to comforting reach of their teacher. The four Amazon boys stood frozen, staring nervously up Pegasus.
Elysion nodded. "Thanks to Pegasus," she replied softly. "You guys got here just in time."
"One on one, these little twerps are tough," Erebus cautioned them in a low whisper, "But we don't really have another choice."
"With Pegasus here—" Elysion began encouragingly.
Sailor Aether caught sight of Caya cowering with the other children. She took a few slow steps in their direction and asked across the playground, "Is that your—?"
The frantic look in Sailor Elysion's eyes silenced her, but her question broke the moment of stillness. NikNik and ParPar darted towards the children again and AthoAtho and TouTou fearlessly threw themselves toward the cluster of three Sailor Soldiers.
"They may be fast, but so are we!" Sailor Erebus declared encouragingly. "Elysion, go left, I'll split right, and Nyx, you power down on them from the front."
"Let's roll," Nyx said with a slow smile then charged forward yelling ferociously. Elysion and Erebus darted in tight arcs around the two boys.
"Dark Thunderbolt Strike!" lightning lashed at their noses. Both AthoAtho and TouTou yelped and fell back.
Sailor Elysion and Sailor Erebus fell into position and Elysion yelled, "Now!"
"Darkness Lifting Contradiction!"
"Dark Thunderbolt Strike!"
"Pure Energy Force!"
As the gray swirls, blue lightning, and bright green light struck them, AthoAtho and TouTou screamed and collapsed panting onto the grass.
"Had enough yet?" Sailor Erebus asked mockingly.
"Bring it on," TouTou growled as he pulled himself up off the ground.
All of a sudden, a boxy white van with the letters "CNN" emblazoned on the side squealed around the corner and skidded to a stop in front of the park. An excited but obviously nervous news crew poured out and set up on the lawn. The four sailors and their adversaries were too wrapped up in their fight to notice, however.
"Get away from those kids," Sailor Aether said boldly as she ran to intercept NikNik and ParPar. "Moonlight Flash!" She clapped her hands together in front of her and silvery blue light enveloped the two Amazon boys. They yelped and stumbled, giving Sailor Aether to get between them and the children. She glanced over her shoulder and smiled warmly, "Don't worry, I've got you guys now."
"Thanks," The young white-faced teacher managed to murmur.
"Do you now?" NikNik taunted. Both he and ParPar held up open palms, and blue spheres instantly materialized in their hands; dark blue for ParPar and sky blue for NikNik. In one deft, swirling motion, both boys spun together and launched the balls towards her.
Aether nearly bolted away, but remembered the cowering people behind her and held her ground. The spheres racing towards her, she stammered, "Moonlight Flash!"
As if having a mind of their own, the blue spheres swerved around the light of her attack and arched back towards her. Her eyes widened and she stood rooted in the gravel. I can't run, but—
The light blue sphere ran right through her chest and her dream mirror spun out while she collapsed screaming. Her screams cut off and instantly later as the second ball smashed into the pink rimmed mirror that floated above her. The teacher screamed and the children squealed. The mirror shards rained down all around her. Color drained out of her face and her breathing became shallow and ragged.
NikNik and ParPar giggled and walked slowly towards them as their spheres returned to their outstretched hands.
"Help!" Caya screamed, "Sailors!"
"Sailor Aether!" Elysion shrieked, momentarily distracted. AthoAtho slammed into her and the two of them tumbled to the ground.
"Pegasus!" Sailor Nyx called, raising her staff towards him.
"Guardian of Nyx," he replied calmly and gazed down on her.
Indira felt warmth rush over her. She spun her staff slowly over her head, growing faster and faster until it whirred. "Nyx Tempest!" she screamed. White hot lightning erupted from the storm cloud that had gathered above her head. It lashed out at AthoAtho, who still rolled entangled with Sailor Elysion, TouTou, and all the way to ParPar on the other side of the play structure. They all, including Elysion, screamed and fell to the ground.
"Lady Elysion!" Pegasus whinnied urgently. "Are you alright?"
NikNik caught and diffused the lightning with his sphere then continued towards where Sailor Aether lay limply in front of her charges.
Nerine stood in the middle of a crystalline forest dressed in a flowing gown of sky blue satin. "Where am I? What just happened? I thought I was..." she said aloud. Her voice echoed eerily.
"This is Elysion," Pegasus' voice sounded from behind her.
She turned around to face him. Somehow, he looked far more regal here than he did in Damia's chalice or hovering above their battle. "Elysion," she echoed, "It's beautiful."
"During your days as the guardian of Aether, it was even more beautiful," he replied.
Suddenly, like a wave rushing over her, memories flooded back; memories of another life she could hardly believe she'd had. "I..." she stammered, "It was." She sighed deeply and tried to make sense of all the thoughts that flooded into her mind. Then a more recent pressed itself to the front of her mind. "But what about the others? Why am I here?" she asked urgently, "I need to get back to save those kids!"
"Your dreams were shattered by NikNik and ParPar," Pegasus explained, "No one can go on living without their dreams, but I caught your dreams here before they escaped."
"Then, I'm dead?" Nerine asked.
"Not quite," he shook his head, "But I can help you return to yourself. Come here and touch the golden horn on my forehead."
"I..." Nerine stammered but whatever she had started to stay escaped her. She approached him and gently placed her hands on his crystalline horn.
Golden light flashed all around Sailor Aether's body. NikNik stumbled backwards, shielding his eyes.
"Aether Echo Reverberation!" she yelled.
When the sky blue ripples closed in on NikNik, he screamed and tripped over ParPar. Both lay groaning on the ground.
"Sailor Aether!" Elysion and Erebus chorused together in relief.
"This is more than we can handle for now," TouTou growled, "But don't think you've beat us for good!"
All four disappeared in bright flashes of light.
The children, the teacher, the news crew, and the crowd that had gathered around them erupted in cheers. Caya and several other children wrapped Sailor Aether in hugs.
Pegasus tossed his mane anxiously and disappeared. The crowd gasped.
Sailor Nyx offered her free hand to Elysion. Groaning, she stiffly rose to her feet, "Was that really necessary? For a second there, I thought that I might die, but then..."
A brunette woman with a microphone hesitantly approached them across the grass.
"Great, CNN," Sailor Erebus said under her breath as Aether freed herself from the kids and jogged over to them. "Let's get out of here, guys."
Nyx cracked a smile, "Well fought. See you on the other side of this."
All four bounded off in separate directions, leaving a stunned crowd to cheer or murmur excitedly amongst themselves. Sailor Elysion retreated to the same clump of lilac bushes and shed her transformation. She peered out, pretending to have been there all along, then burst out onto the lawn.
"Caya!" she called as she ran towards the playground, "Oh my god! Are you okay?"
"Damia!" her little cousin yelled back and scurried over to meet her.
Panting, Damia brought Caya into a tight hug. "I was so worried," she said quietly, "Are you and your friends all okay?"
Caya nodded and took a step backwards. Suddenly, she grinned and exclaimed, "That was so cool!"
Damia giggled.
"Excuse me, I'm Anne Triston from CNN news," the brunette reporter began, all of a sudden right next to them, "Would you care to comment on what just happened?"
"Well, there was—" Damia began awkwardly.
"There were these four boys that were really good at tricks, but it turns out they were the bad guys. Then Sailor Elysion, Sailor Nyx, Sailor Erebus, and Sailor Aether came with their Pegasus and saved us. It was so cool!" Caya gushed without pausing to take a breath.
"Were you at all scared?" the woman asked.
Out of the corner of her eye, Damia spotted Indira slipping alone into her car. I hope no one took down her license plate number...
"No," Caya said proudly, then reconsidered, "Well, maybe a little bit, but I knew the Sailors would save us."
"Well, there you have it," the reporter said, turning back to the camera, "What we saw here today was nothing short of miraculous. Who were these attackers and why did they attack this daycare? That is still a mystery, as are the identities of the children's young saviors. We will keep you updated as our investigations of this continue. This is Anne Triston, reporting live." She nodded her thanks to Damia and Caya then retreated back to her camera crew.
"Are you ready to go home now, Caya?" Damia asked.
"No!" Caya responded and shook her head vigorously. "I hardly had time to play at all."
Damia laughed, "Fine then, go play with your friends for a little while longer."
***
Mocking shrieks of laughter reverberated throughout the circus tent as the Amazon Quartet returned. Zirconia already loomed high above on her platform, glowering down at them. "Amazon Quartet!" she boomed.
While the other three cowered, AthoAtho stepped forward and spoke up, "We failed, Zirconia."
"You failed?" Zirconia roared, triggering more eerie taunts from the shadows, "It seems that all I can ever expect from you four jokes is failure!"
"But all four of the Sailors were there, and they had a pegasus helping them!" ParPar protested.
At this, Zirconia drew back thoughtfully. "A pegasus, you say?" Zirconia asked, "What did he look like?"
"Well," ParPar stammered, "He was big and white with a golden horn on top of his head."
"That sounds precisely like pegasus that escaped the Amazoness Trio a few weeks ago," Zirconia said smugly, "It appears that our quarry is very close indeed."
"What do you mean?" NikNik ventured.
"That pegasus is one of the things you're looking for, you fools!" Zirconia boomed, "That's the pegasus that's hiding in beautiful dreams with his Golden Crystal."
"Then it wasn't a total failure today," TouTou muttered, "We drew him out today."
"Yes, you have just barely redeemed yourselves," Zirconia rasped, "Now get out of my sight!"
***
That night, after her mother had quizzed her and Caya at least three times about the events of the afternoon, Damia lay in bed. The battle replayed over and over in her head, and holding it in as a secret wasn't helping at all. She'd had no word from Althea, Nerine, or Indira, while Pegasus' chalice remained disappointingly inanimate. "Pegasus?" she called hopefully, one more time, but he didn't appear. She sighed then switched off her bedside lamp and settled down into her covers. She tossed restlessly until fatigue finally got the better of her, and sleep took over.
Damia stood at the edge of a mirror-like pool deep in a dimly-lit forest. Instead of her pajamas, she found herself wearing a spring green gown. The clearing she stood in was peaceful, but quiet almost to the point of lonely. Then it hit her, "I wonder if this is—"
"Elysion," Pegasus said as he stepped out into the moonlight. His white coat almost sparkled.
"Pegasus!" she exclaimed, rushed over to him, and threw her arms around his gracefully arching neck. "Why didn't you come to visit tonight?" she asked into the soft fur of his neck.
"I was afraid that..." he began, but abruptly said, "I'm sorry."
"It's okay. But I am glad that I'm here now." Damia said softly. "Am I actually here, or is this a dream?"
"Elysion is built on dreams, remember?" Pegasus said.
Suddenly, the thoughts and emotions that had been bottled up all evening flowed out, "I thought I was going to die today. Twice." Warm tears trickled down her face.
"I was afraid that I had arrived too late," Pegasus said softly.
"If you hadn't come..." Damia murmured.
"Hush, don't think about that," he reassured her, "I'm here now, and I promise I'll always come for you."
"And when you gave Sailor Nyx the power to defeat them," she said, "I felt like I might die, all over again. And then it... and then it..."
"I couldn't let her lightning hurt you like that, even if it meant destroying the Amazon Quartet," he explained, nuzzling the top of her head. "I had forgotten the destructive potential of Sailor Nyx."
"Wait, so then you took the power away again?" she asked, looking up into his amber eyes.
"I did," he replied.
"Pegasus," she scolded halfheartedly, "Defeating the Dead Moon Circus, rescuing your body, that's all far more important than me, just one person."
"Nothing is more important to me," he said so quietly that she almost didn't hear him.
Damia smiled, wiping her tears away with the back of her hand. "But don't get me wrong," she said, "I'm so glad that you were there to protect me. I can't even say how much. I'm really not really to die yet." She paused. "It was you that saved Sailor Aether too, wasn't it?"
"It wasn't her time yet either," he responded, "And I did what I could."
"I don't know how you, or even us in our past lives, dealt with all this responsibility," she sighed. "It was only a couple of weeks ago that you appeared and totally changed my life. Sometimes I'm not even sure why I'm doing this, or that this isn't just some dream that I haven't woke up from yet. Sometimes it's almost too much."
"On the old Earth, you handled it with grace," he replied slowly, "It was something you were born for, and everyone knew it. It's what you were reborn for."
"I..." she stammered, "I want to fight your battles for you, but I'm afraid I'll let you down, Pegasus." She stood there silently for a moment then added, "I don't want to die."
"As long as I am free, I won't let you," he said firmly. For a moment, Damia almost forgot that Pegasus was a winged horse and not human like her. "I will always be with you, whether you can see me or not."
"Oh, Pegasus!" she exclaimed and hugged his neck more tightly. Tears resumed flowing down her face. "I couldn't do this without you."
He comfortingly rested his long, equine head on top of hers and they remained that way in silence for quite some time. Finally, Pegasus raised his head and gazed up at the stars.
"There's something I want to show you," he said and bent down, "Get on my back."
Damia struggled to swing her weight up onto his back, tangling her legs in the layers of her gown. Trying for the third time and finally getting up, she laughed nervously at herself, "I'm not that used to wearing a dress."
Pegasus chuckled, "Now hold on tight." He crouched then leaped into the air, feathery wings pumping hard. With each wing beat, they rose and fell. Damia felt like her heart was in her throat, but she was breathless with exhilaration.
They soared up above the treetops and into the cloudless sky. Stars glittered around the not-quite-full moon. Down below them, the pools of Elysion were mirrors of starlight and the prismatic crystals cast gentle rainbows on the forest.
"It's beautiful," Damia gasped. She could help the broad smile on her face as the wind teased at her hair and her dress.
"I had hoped you'd think so," Pegasus replied warmly. "Sometimes I curse being stuck in this form, and yet, I would never have been able to see this with both feet planted firmly on the ground."
"Thank you, Pegasus."
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