Through Their Eyes
Chapter 11: Maiden Voyage
By: trusuprise
Disclaimer: Naoko Takeuchi owns Sailor Moon.
With the influx of refugees to the Moon, most of the Lunar spaceports had been reclaimed as valuable real estate and had been incorporated into the Tent Cities, quickly filled with tents and buildings for the displaced peoples of the Moon Kingdom. Of those few ports that remained open to see to the refugees that continued to flee their failing planets, there hadn't been one adequate to receive the Earthlings.
It had proved to be a touchy subject, trying to dance around the fact that not only was the Terran spacecraft far too big and bulky to land within the city limits, but the Earthlings were using untested space-fairing technologies and would make their first Lunar landing on what would be a maiden voyage. None of the Lunar diplomats had been eager to explain to the Terrans that the inertia from their craft's primitive thrusters alone might well have decimated the precariously held together dwellings of the Tent Cities, but they had managed to smooth things over and redirect the Earthlings to another landing site.
Of course, the dusty pit off the shores of the Sea of Serenity hardly seemed the proper place to welcome the royalty of their neighboring planet, but in this new day of improvisation, it would have to do.
Mars looked to the heavens in disdain. If the creaky jalopy of a boxy spacecraft, still on its tedious descent from the starry sky wasn't bad enough, she couldn't believe the trashcan that the Earthlings had used to escape their planet's gravity. A large, cylindrical spaceship with two wide, fat wings orbited high above the crystalline facets of the geo dome, and from that giant hunk of metal, this other, smaller shuttle descended.
"It's a wonder they made it here in one piece." Mars muttered under her breath.
She pulled her gaze from the black sky when she felt a slight pressure on her left foot, and she found Venus' golden sandal poking her discreetly. The slightly smaller woman was silencing her, reprimanding her for the comment, even though Venus failed to repress an honest smirk and a quiet chuckle.
'Gods, I miss her smile.' Rei realized, and despite herself, she smiled softly.
It was a gesture that was fated to a slow death, and as the Terran spacecraft neared the surface, its barbaric rocket engines initiating reverse thrusters in order to slow their descent, a wild wind whipped across the basin of the dried ocean. Scraggly trees bent backwards in the frenzied winds, grains of sand blasted against the sides of the Lunar Rovers that waited behind them, yet the senshi stood tall and grim, exposed and unflinching.
The shuttle's pilot made several clumsy, manual adjustments as he neared the ground. For one tense moment, the craft's thin legs threatened to cave underneath its weight, but finally, with a creaking groan, the mass of metal righted itself. The deafening roar of the engines was cut in a sudden vacuum of air, and in its wake, the superheated metal of the hull clicked and tinged, the metallic sounds creating a sharp staccato in the sudden silence.
With a sucking gasp, a metal staircase pulled away from the shuttle and slammed into the dusty ground. Mercury flinched, but caught herself quickly and stood to her full height. Each of the senshi watched the cavernous black opening, the void that preceded the Earthlings.
Four men stood in the mouth of the doorway. With grim expressions, they locked eyes with the four women standing at ground level. After an uncertain pause, the one in front finally nodded. Together, they descended the stairs in a tight, single file line.
The shitennou – they were to their Prince what the senshi were to their Princess – warriors infused with magical powers. Similarities, however, ended there. Kunzite; a tall and stern man with a high brow and long, straight hair lashed into a tidy tail, looked to be in his early thirties and was quite clearly their leader. Zoicite; demure and regal with a long, luxurious silver mane loosely pulled back from his face, wore a persistent frown paired with ever watchful eyes and seemed slightly older than Rei and Minako, perhaps in his mid twenties. Nephrite; of bulky build with chiseled features and a furrowed brow looked slightly younger while Jadeite; the picture of youth and innocence with blonde, curly hair, a wispy frame and a baby face, seemed no older than Ami, just barely having come of age.
There was a brief, uncomfortable exchange of pleasantries between the two sets of warriors. The women reached their hands outwards in greeting (save Mars), while the men bowed slightly at the waist (save Kunzite). There was an awkward moment where they realized that though they might have learned each other's names and titles via telecom conferences, they had failed to discuss the proper etiquette for greeting one another given their differing cultures.
Venus smoothed it over flawlessly and bowed slightly to Kunzite. "Welcome to the Moon Kingdom. It is our pleasure to host you here for diplomatic relations."
Kunzite stood stiffly for a moment as if assessing any potential threats. Then, with a careless smirk, he returned the gesture. With no further exchange, he turned back to his shuttle and nodded firmly.
On cue, a tall, dark haired man stepped from the void, his gleaming shoulder armor nearly stretching the span of the opening. His silver and sea green cape caught the blue tinged light of his planet that hung low in the sky as he descended the metal steps perhaps a bit quicker than decorum should have allowed. His dark eyes were innocent and searching, and though he bowed respectfully to each of the senshi, it was obvious that he was looking for someone else entirely.
Returning the favor, Venus glanced over her shoulder. She winked, and a white clad valet that stood at the side door of the closest rover snapped to attention and opened the rover door.
Serenity shot out of her luxurious cage like a bird taken to wing. The silver piping in her white gown reflected the sun's golden rays as her dark, unbound hair bounced between her shoulder blades, her steps unmeasured and hurried.
The senshi subtly converged around their Princess and the shitennou flanked their Prince. There was barely any space left for breathing where Serenity and Endymion met in the middle of their warriors.
With fumbling hands, Endymion clasped his fingers around Serenity's. "Princess Serenity, you are even more beautiful in person than I had dared imagine."
Mercury edged closer to her Princess, a stony expression capturing her delicate features. After rolling his eyes, Kunzite looked back to his shuttle before whistling a low, loud call to action that opened an entirely different floodgate.
This signaled the go-ahead for the rest of the humans to exit the shuttle, and with great clamoring and excitement, several dozen people streamed onto the Lunar surface. These people held secondary roles; aides and ambassadors, and as soon as they hit the ground, they were struck with awe.
Venus waved her hand, and auxiliary rovers and transport vehicles that had been sitting idle moved on her cue, approaching the Terran traveling party where they would be ushered back to the Moon Palace. As the rovers drove by, the large, fat tires kicked up a thin haze of dust that rose high over the depression of the sea basin.
It was a rough, unorganized start that even Venus' subtlety and tact had a hard time managing. She had to nearly pry Endymion and Serenity apart and direct them to separate rovers, for she wasn't ready to hand her Princess over to the Earthling Prince just yet, no matter how charming he seemed.
Mars lingered, watching silently as the last of the Terran diplomatic party was finally herded into their transports, their eyes gawking and mouths gaping at the profile of the Moon Palace outlined on the not so distant horizon, its gleaming, white spires visible even through the veil of dust that hung in the air.
Mars' dark eyes narrowed then and she squinted, her gaze drawn to a tall woman with startlingly red hair who didn't seem to be as captivated as her peers. She could only wonder why the woman stared with such a steely gaze in her direction before she, too, was ushered onto a rover.
Mars' attention was quickly diverted though, and she straightened stiffly. She was more than a little surprised to find that her commander was willing to spare a moment's distraction with her, and when Venus quietly came to stand along side her, it was a conscious effort on the Martian's part to keep her hands at her sides.
"Look at them," Mars spat, "standing in awe of a civilization in ruins." She knew, at first glance, that whatever was to happen with these disgusting people…
There was a gentle touch on her shoulder. Venus' gloved hand perched there gently. "Mars, do you sense anything?"
…these humans would amount to no good.
The crimson warrior met her commander's hesitant gaze. "It doesn't matter what I sense..."
And it was true, because the problem was that the alternative of doing nothing and condemning themselves to this dying satellite was even worse than reaching out to the Earthlings.
"The future has been set in motion." Mars finished darkly.
Venus' hand withered from Mars' shoulder, but she did not step away. Through the hazy veil of dust, despite the way they'd been treating each other, in that moment, their reluctant closeness was a strength they each could draw from.
High in one of the spires of the Moon Palace, the accommodations were much more comfortable, even if the atmosphere was far from it. Across opposites sides of a large, round table made of a solid sheet of brown-flecked white granite, the shitennou and the senshi afforded one another steely glances, if any at all.
Entirely too enamored with Serenity, who sat directly across from him, Endymion seemed oblivious.
"My father, King Helios, wishes to extend his apologies that he could not attend this historical meeting." His dark eyes grew slightly downcast, and he seemed to make a conscious effort not to pick at the threads of his cuff. "Unfortunately, he is of poor health and could not make the journey." He brightened slightly. "However, I have acted in his stead for the past two years, and am excited for the opportunity to stand in his place here today as well."
"I understand, Endymion." Serenity smiled broadly. Two seats down, Jupiter visibly recoiled from the intense gesture she'd never before seen from her Princess. "It's because of this that my mother, Queen Serenity, has placed me opposite you to lead delegations between our Kingdoms, and to make you feel at ease here."
Jadeite's face grew warm. Maybe he was the only one to see it from his perspective, but he had to turn his head away from the suggestive expression Serenity cast at his Prince, the expression that made Endymion shift subtly in his seat.
Kunzite issued a derivative snort. Crossing his arms over the thin, ceremonial armor on his chest, he frowned sourly. "We are pleased for the invitation to visit your Kingdom, but we wish to address matters of concern immediately."
"And what matters might those be?" Venus' tongue proved to be as sharp as Kunzite's.
"We understand your… dire situation, between the refugees you harbor that sap your resources and the failing state of this satellite. We wish to be assured that the Moon Kingdom does not intend to invade our planet."
Venus straightened; her hands clasped together and her words carefully rehearsed. "I can assure you that this is not the case." Her brow furrowed as though she were reluctant to divulge the information she was offering. "Even if it were in our nature to do so, we haven't even an army left that is capable of taking anything by force."
Venus pulled her hands from the tabletop and rested them in her lap, where her audience wouldn't see her gloved hands ball into tight fists. "We have no offense, and no defense. We are completely at the mercy of those who might help our fractured Kingdom. We seek only peace, whether you offer us refuge on your resourceful planet, or supplies you can lend to us here, and only until other accommodations can be found or made for us, an effort to which our Queen has been consumed with."
Mars could see her commander's fluctuating golden aura, and she knew that Venus' words were not her own, and indeed, went against the Venusian's very nature. But though Mars could see right through her, Venus' mask was as strong as her acting, and the Earthlings, even the suspicious Kunzite, seemed to be put at ease.
Endymion leaned forward and cleared his throat tentatively. "Please excuse our concerns, Princess. You must understand that we're still trying to adjust to the sudden knowledge that there even is life on other planets, let alone yours which is so technologically advanced. My people are very interested in a cultural exchange, and are up to the challenge of helping your Kingdom in their time of need." He smiled handsomely. "I am sure we can come to some kind of partnership in which there are mutual benefits for both our peoples."
There was a long moment then, where Endymion and Serenity shared nothing but an unreadable gaze, and during that time, their guardians found themselves hard pressed to sink into the woodwork. Eventually, Venus cleared her throat tactfully.
"I'm sure that all of you have had a long day, and you're likely eager to check on the rest of your traveling party. I might suggest that we break, and reconvene in the morning to begin our cultural exchange."
"A cultural exchange?" Endymion asked brightly.
Venus smiled blankly. "You mentioned our technological advancements, so perhaps we should start with the Mercurian…" The Venusian caught the slip before she could allude to the nature of the refugee dwellings, "city."
There was a murmur of agreement. Shuffling of chairs, rushed words uttered in different languages, and a general sense of avoidance between everyone except for Serenity and Endymion ensued, and it was more than a laborious task to separate the Princess from the Prince.
"You must really like this place."
Startled, Makoto snapped her book shut and looked up in alarm. "Ami-chan?"
The smaller woman skirted around a rose bush and took a seat in the grass near Makoto. She examined her hands in her lap idly. "I hope you don't mind the intrusion. I-"
"I couldn't sleep either." Makoto took the burden of explanation away from Ami, and the Mercurian was visibly relieved. Makoto affected a mischievous smile. "The humans smell too bad for me to sleep."
"Makoto-san!" Ami stifled a chuckle behind her hand. "They're not that bad, and they're nowhere near our quarters, anyway."
This only made Makoto laugh harder, and her heavy book slipped from her fingers. Ami picked it up and gave its title some thought. "Rosa mutiflora?" She looked back to her friend. "I thought you didn't have to study horticulture, that your knowledge was senshi-granted."
Makoto's melodious laugh caught in her throat. "I, uh…"
Ami opened the tome and thumbed through it until she found Makoto's bookmark crammed haphazardly between the pages. She furrowed her brow thoughtfully. "Hybrid cultivars most resistant to pests and diseases?" She looked up, and found that Makoto's blush easily matched the intensity of her own.
Makoto scratched the back of her neck with clammy fingers. "I knew you were interested in a more pest and disease resistant variety. I found that there aren't any varieties or cultivars that quite match your specifications, but…"
"Makoto-san…"
The Jovian swallowed audibly and snatched the book from Ami's grasp. "I think though, that maybe a cross between…" she licked her thumb and flipped several pages back, indicating a picture of two roses, both circled in bold, red ink, "'Rosa Applejack', for it's resistance to disease, and 'Rosa Faberge' for its pest resistance and form, might produce the rose you're looking for."
"Really?" Ami scooted closer to Makoto. Tucking an errant strand of hair back behind an ear, she leaned against the Jovian to get a better look at the page. "That would be incredible! What kind of bloom might it produce?"
"A really pretty one."
"…Makoto-san?"
"Ah!" Makoto blushed, embarrassed by her derailment. Why was she so shy and awkward around this one woman? This just wasn't like her. With a pinched brow and a sudden determination, she tossed her reservations to the wind and leaned forward to kiss Ami.
When she pulled away from the chaste kiss, she noted that Ami was slow to open her eyes.
"I'm sorry." Makoto said briskly, avoiding eye contact. "It was a mistake the last time…"
"It wasn't a mistake."
"Ami-chan?"
"It… it's okay." Ami chanced eye contact then, but this small action only reconfirmed to Makoto that there was a deep turmoil there.
Makoto sighed resignedly. "You haven't told her yet, have you?"
"Eh?" Ami squeaked at the abrupt change of subject.
"Serenity. You haven't told her how you feel, have you?"
Ami turned her head away. "No. Not yet."
"You have to do it before Endymion can get any closer to her, Ami-chan."
"Yes."
Makoto slipped a finger under the other woman's delicate chin and turned her back to face her. "Soon?" She asked softly.
"Soon." Ami's voice was a breathless whisper. This time, she leaned in slowly, and boldly captured Makoto's lips.
Unlike the others before it, this kiss wasn't quite so chaste, and when they parted, both were breathless.
There was a distinct sound of footfalls on the gravel path beyond the rose bushes, and Ami and Makoto pulled away from each other hurriedly, facing in opposite directions. Serenity ran past them, unseeing, without so much as a glance in their direction, her dark hair and white dress streaming behind her determined steps.
"Where is she going, I wonder? And alone, to boot." Makoto glanced at her chronometer. "She should be asleep at this hour." She was met with silence and she looked up quickly. "Ami-chan?"
But her small friend was already giving chase, closing in on Serenity's heels in the distance.
Makoto sighed. Her fingers tightened around the book that rested in her lap, and it was nearly torn in two.
Ami trailed two steps behind her Princess, but the dark haired woman didn't so much as acknowledge her presence.
"Serenity-chan," she finally called, "where are you going?"
The Princess spared a glance over her shoulder. She smiled mischievously. "Oh, just to spy on Endymion."
"Spy on…" Ami increased her pace, matching Serenity's. "Princess, you know you shouldn't leave your wing of the Palace without protection."
Serenity's smile broadened. "But I do have protection. I have you."
Ami slowed. Her lower lip caught between her teeth, she watched her Princess continue to advance toward the guest wing. The Mercurian's shoulders tensed. Her brows knitted. She chased after Serenity once again and followed her into the guest wing, into human territory. Certainly, Ami was allowed access to most parts of the Palace, but with the stealthy mission Serenity had assigned herself, somehow, she felt like an intruder.
She quickly found her Princess; Serenity's form pressed tightly against a pillar, her hands balled and resting on its cool, round face as she peered into a large antechamber where several humans milled about. Silently, Ami adopted a similar stance, concealing herself behind a pillar in a row behind Serenity, where she could keep watch on both her Princess and the humans.
And she waited, though for what, exactly, she wasn't entirely certain.
Scanning for potential threats, she disregarded a group of three women holding half full wineglasses and sitting on plush couches that circled a roaring fire in the hearth. She disregarded two men who picked at the food offerings left on a broad buffet table. But then, her eyes found a familiar figure. He seemed smaller, slimmer, without his gleaming armor and flowing cape, but she recognized Endymion easily enough.
She wondered, however, who the brazen woman with the bright red hair was, the tall woman that pulled at the Prince's sleeve and seemed over-eager for his attention. Ami took a small step around the pillar and cocked her head. She could barely make out their muffled conversation.
The woman's lips were turned into a vicious frown. "It's because we're - - isn't it? - - know that such a thing isn't – to royalty anymore."
Endymion ran his fingers through his bangs. "The reason why doesn't - - Queen Serenity seemed very insistent that I indulge - - "
"Endymion, please, can't you-"
Ami glanced at her Princess to gauge her reaction. Serenity was watching the two with rapt attention. One hand was balled into a white knuckled first while the other twirled a lock of her hair in an anxious manner that Ami had never before witnessed.
"She's just a child." The red haired woman spat. "Forget Serenity, and come to my room tonight."
Serenity's fist slammed against the pillar. Ami saw it, though the frustrated gesture didn't make much noise. Serenity's frame, small as it was, shook with a trembling fury and… was she glowing? A trick of the light, perhaps?
Ami rushed forward then, intent on restraining Serenity before she could cause a scene, but a series of urgent beeps stopped her. She slapped a hand over her communicator to muffle the noise. Twirling back behind the pillar to avoid being seen, she switched the device to text only.
[monster attack - in martian tent city – need backup]
With wild eyes, Ami glanced at Serenity. She looked to the door. She looked back to her Princess. For a long moment, she was rooted to the spot, torn by two different and competing priorities. Here, in the palace, Serenity was safe. Guards were posted everywhere, not the least of which were two burly men that stood at the opening of the guest wing, their eyes already trained on their Princess.
With a strangled, helpless whimper, Ami bolted for the exit.
And she didn't look back.
Mercury ran towards the monster at full speed, her ragged panting and gasping breaths causing her shabon spray to nearly miss, but the rushing torrent managed to hit home and drag the two monsters that threatened Jupiter to the ground. The Jovian delivered a vicious kick to another that had gotten within striking distance. Her hands followed the creature to the ground where she electrocuted it in a blue-white charge of energy born from her gloved hands.
Back to back, Mars and Venus battled two of the dark-cloaked ghouls. Venus' chain strangled the monster before her, and with a mighty tug, its head was messily sheared off its body. She turned her head over her shoulder and barked, "We're in close combat! Where's your dagger, Mars?"
The crimson warrior pressed burning palms into the stomach of the monster closest to her and it went up in flames and withered to the ground. She chanced a glance over her shoulder and frowned darkly. "Where's yours?"
The two women held steely glares for a short moment before Mars cocked her weight on her hip and drew her fire bow. A flaming arrow whistled through the smoke-tinged air and impaled the last standing monster through the eye.
The four women stood panting in exhaustion. Already, the sounds of sirens could be heard not far away, signaling that Artemis had already arranged for damage control to clean up their mess. Some citizens, emblazoned and encouraged, and wishing to take matters into their own hands, were tending to an errant fire that had already claimed several shops and one building. Some were collecting the bodies of the dead while others were taking pot shots at the corpses of the creatures that lay in the street.
Venus wiped her brow, her white glove pulling away with a red stain. Her uncertain fingers gingerly touched her forehead and traced the outline of a shallow wound above the bridge of her nose.
Mercury approached helpfully, but the leader of the senshi brushed her off her concern, snapping her hand back to her side quickly. "It's nothing. It'll heal by morning."
Venus turned away, but was met with Mars' stony, sooty expression. She held still for the crimson warrior's silent inspection of the wound, and didn't pull away from the feather-light touch that insisted on reaching such a conclusion on its own. After some time, Mars nodded and grunted. She spared Venus no words of concern, and simply turned away from her leader.
"They were markedly stronger this time." Venus noted grimly. Trying to keep her wandering gaze from betraying her, she focused her attention on Mercury and Jupiter, and would not turn to look at Mars.
Mercury looked up from where she knelt on the ground, inspecting an ugly gash that ran the length of Jupiter's thigh. "They were stronger by a factor of twenty five percent." She said matter of factly before she tore off the end of the blue ribbon that circled her waist and tied it tightly around Jupiter's leg, even though the wound had already stopped bleeding and had started to close on its own.
"Something's fueling them." Rei said gruffly.
"Rei?" Venus asked.
The crimson warrior knew that the others were looking at her, but Mars' incredulous gaze snapped back to her commander who had called her name instead of her title.
Venus stammered awkwardly. "Mars." She corrected herself sharply.
The crimson warrior could only shrug indifferently, her gaze drifting back in the direction of the Palace. "I don't know how, or why, or what. But something must be fueling the monsters."
"And they're growing more unpredictable." Jupiter noted, her fingers absently ghosting over the blue fabric around her thigh. "This is the first time they've attacked at night. Do they sleep? Who's commanding them?"
Venus' hands balled into fists. "We got lucky this time, and we were all around to eliminate the threat quickly. But we can't chance letting the Earthlings discover the danger that lurks here."
"Venus?" Mercury asked.
"I'm ordering a rotating shift – guard duty around the Palace grounds, so that at least one of us is at the ready at all times, and we will up the security detail around the Palace as well. We have no reason to suspect that these creatures can get into the Palace proper, but we can't be sure that it couldn't happen. For now, our priority is to address any threats immediately."
Venus snorted then. There was a slight trace of mischief in her caramel eyes. "We can't let the Earthlings think the monsters come with the package, ne?"
The Princess was barely aware of a distant voice that sounded vaguely familiar.
"Serenity?"
There was a slight pressure around her upper arms, and she heard that clarion call again.
"Serenity?"
Her gaze seemed to clear, the fog had been lifted, and the Princess of the Moon shuddered in Endymion's hold.
"Endymion?"
The man, so much taller than her, so large and comforting, smiled worriedly. "Serenity," he said softly, "are you alright?"
"I guess I kind of zoned out." Serenity smiled widely, and pulled back slightly. She caught Endymion's hands with her own before he could pull them away completely. "I came to see you, Endymion."
"To see me?" Endymion smiled handsomely. "To what do I owe this honor?"
"To me." Serenity said softly. She leaned up, standing at the farthest reaches her tippie-toes would allow, and laid a feather-light kiss on Endymion's cheek. "Escort me back to my room?"
Endymion straightened. Stepping closer to Serenity, he offered her his elbow. "Certainly, Princess."
"Serenity." The Princess corrected him with a scolding hiss. "Never anything more than that, though I am open to something… less."
The slightest hint of a blush dusted Endymion's high cheekbones, and with a sharp nod, he led Serenity back to her quarters.
Author's Notes:
I'd like to thank everyone who has left me such amazing reviews and personal messages. I'm sorry if I've not gotten a chance to respond to you directly, but please know that I've appreciated each one! Real Life has been a cruel mistress lately, but I will do my best to continue updating.
Preview, Chapter 12: Too Blind to See
"Hn." Mars said. "That's not good." She and Venus had hopped to the next rooftop to keep their eyes on Serenity and Endymion.
"What," Venus asked, "a girl can't buy her man a shiny trinket?"
Mars scowled then, not knowing if her ire had been caused by her commander's haphazardly phrased comment that simply didn't sit well with her, or the Venusian's misunderstanding of the meaning of said 'trinket'.
"She gave him a Mati. I believe it's the Mercurian equivalent of an engagement ring."
"…oh." Venus frowned, her intent gaze following the two apparent lovebirds as they flitted to the next stall. "Do you think Serenity-"
"I suspect the only one who knows the true nature of the jewel is Ami-chan and the vendor who sold it."
"Well," Venus shrugged awkwardly, "what they don't know won't hurt them?"
Mars snorted. "It's going to hurt someone."
O
"Ami-chan, what's wrong?" Jupiter asked.
"Eh?"
"I know it's uncomfortable to see them together, but it's just a necklace."
"But it's not just a-"
"Hey," Jupiter gently elbowed her smaller friend. "Serenity's moving on. We have to keep up."