Glimpses of the Past
Chapter 12
Unintelligible chants cheers and songs reverberated throughout the circus tent. Barely visible shadows tumbled, jumped, swung, and flew about at the edge of the light.
"We have them! We have them!" some cried.
"Victory for Queen Nehelenia!"
"The Dead Moon is unstoppable!"
"And what part did you lot have in this?" Zirconia demanded sourly, appearing suddenly upon her platform high above the floor, "If I recall, those three Sailors got all the way to my private tower without any kind of interruption. The victory was mine."
"We are fortunate to have such a wise and powerful leader," a voice rose up out of the darkness.
"Don't try to flatter me," she spat, "It will get you nowhere. This is a small victory. We have two of those brats captive, but there are at least five more still out there. We have found neither the Secret Keeper nor the Golden Crystal yet. Now get back to work!" she roared.
The shadowy figures slowly disappeared, mumbling as they went.
"Amazon Quartet!" Zirconia roared, "Where are you?"
"Right here, your hagginess," ParPar said from his perch on a trapeze, saluting.
Zirconia growled angrily. The other three boys appeared in the spotlight below and ParPar somersaulted down to join them.
"You four still have a lot of work to do. No more of this playing around, understand? Queen Nehelenia's patience is waning" Zirconia boomed.
"Yes, ma'am," they all chorused in response. All four had their fingers crossed behind their backs.
She grasped a rolled piece of paper in her hands and flung it down to them. AthoAtho snatched it and unrolled it while the others crowded around behind him to get a better look. "What is this?" AthoAtho asked.
"It is the flier for a school play called 'The Crystal Wood'," Zirconia explained.
"So?" TouTou demanded.
"Hey," NikNik observed, "It says here that it's written by a student at Asatara Jr. High, Caroline Wong."
"Correct," Zirconia said smirking, "And it bears remarkable similarity to the legends of Elysion, which no human of today should know. Knowledge of that was lost with the Secret Keeper."
"You mean, this girl could be the Secret Keeper?" ParPar asked.
"Or the host of the Golden Crystal," Zirconia nodded.
"Alright!" TouTou said, snatching the flier from AthoAtho, "I'll take this one then."
"Hey!" AthoAtho exclaimed.
"Oh no you don't," NikNik warned, "I'm not going to let you get all the glory on this one."
"I'm coming too!" ParPar piped in.
"You can't do this without me either," AthoAtho put in, trotting after the other three, who had already started off into the darkness, each trying to get possession of the theater poster.
***
Nerine stood in a vast hall of cold gray stone. Ornately carved pillars dotted the room while thick tapestries hung on all the walls. High above, the hall was lit with flickering candle light from immense candelabras. It was somehow both majestic and forbidding.
"You summoned us, Your Majesty?" a young woman—no, a Sailor with curly blond hair and a yellow and pink uniform bowed before a massive throne. Nerine looked around her, and saw other Sailors: Nyx, Erebus, Elysion, and two more she didn't recognize. Following the older girl's lead, they all dropped to one knee and bowed as well.
On the golden throne before them sat an old man, broad shouldered and pot bellied with a thick brown beard. He wore ceremonial armor, a regal red cape, and a golden crown on top of his head. King Endymion. With a curt wave of his hand, he signaled them to rise.
Nerine heard more footsteps approaching from behind. As she turned, she saw four more men in crisp white and brown military uniforms striding towards them. Each had a sword at his side.
"Good, you are all here," the king began darkly.
"Where is the prince?" the blond sailor asked.
The King stared darkly at the four generals, all of whom avoided his gaze. They knew something. That much was clear, but they weren't willing to betray their master.
"Something has happened, hasn't it?" Sailor Nyx observed.
"Kunzite, if you would," King Endymion said, gesturing to the tallest of the four generals who had just arrived.
"Yes, Your Highness," he said, bowing. His hair was long and white. On any other man, Nerine would have sworn that it would have made him look feminine. On Kunzite, the hair was part of what made him so commanding a presence. "You all have observed the strange activity on the sun lately, I am sure," he began. "It seems that this has been more than just a simple act of nature. Evil has descended onto our beloved planet. Revolts are breaking out everywhere and our citizens are demanding justice."
"Justice?" Sailor Erebus asked, "For what?"
"They are dissatisfied with the rule of the Silver Millennium in our system. They demand independence, swearing that it is unjust for a grand planet such as Earth to be ruled by its satellite," another man with wavy brown hair filled in.
"Thank you Nephrite," Kunzite nodded to him, "But we sense other powers at work in this."
"Just two months ago, a woman came to He—the high priest of Elysion and demanded the Golden Crystal," Sailor Elysion offered hesitantly, "He didn't give it to her, of course."
"Any why wasn't this reported?" the king demanded.
"It was, Your Majesty," the third general said quickly. Of the four, only his hair was cut short like a man's should be, in Nerine's opinion. "But it seems that the woman fled to the Moon after her failure and was imprisoned there."
"This is all unsettling news," Sailor Nyx said softly.
"Do you think this is connected?" a sailor with long indigo hair and a uniform of pale blue and purple asked quietly.
"I suspect that the moon is at the heart of this," the short-haired general said decisively.
"What makes you say that, Jadeite?" Nerine found herself saying.
"The moon has been wary of us for ages, of the power and resilience of our civilization, and of our unwillingness to bow to their rule," he speculated, "They want to break us and our hold on our people. They want us to come to them on our knees asking for help and forgiveness."
"It is in such times," the four general said quietly, "That we need to band closely to our people and remind them of the glory of the Earth Kingdom." His light brown hair was long, but he kept it tied in a ponytail.
"Well said, Zoisite," King Endymion nodded slowly, "We must be prepared for a fight, whatever may come."
The sailor in pink and yellow stepped forward again, "But, Your Majesty, don't you think..."
"Nerine!"
"Nerine!" Someone was shaking her shoulders. Suddenly, she was sitting at a desk in school, no longer as Sailor Aether, but as Nerine Chailyn.
"What?" she stammered as the classroom and the girl in front of her came into focus.
"That was the bell. Class is over for today," the girl, her friend Annie, said. She added, "It was like you were asleep with your eyes open. Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," she said slowly. "That was weird though. What did I miss?"
"We were talking about the moon," Annie explained, "but then Mr. Carlson got sidetracked on some legends about Mare Serenitatis, so you didn't miss much. I'm sure if you do the homework tonight, you'll be caught up again," she said, pointing to the assignment written up on the black board.
"Okay," she nodded and slowly got up from her desk, collecting her things. "Let's go. Thanks for waking me up, Annie."
"No problem," she replied, looking worried, "Just be sure to get some rest tonight, okay?"
Nerine forced a smile, "Of course!"
In a few minutes, she was outside the school and heading home, still deep in thought about what she had just seen. Was that my past? Who were those four generals? Where was that anyway? In Aether or one of the other hidden kingdoms? Were those other three sailors Cocytus, Hemera, and Phlegethon?
"You look like you've just seen a ghost," Damia observed, suddenly appearing beside her.
"Maybe I have," Nerine answered, shaking herself out of her web of thoughts.
"What do you mean?" Damia asked, suddenly concerned.
"Hey girls," Indira said, sauntering up to them, "What are you up to?"
"Not much," Nerine shrugged, "Just heading home."
"You three plotting again?" Althea asked, joining them as well. "It makes me nervous when I see all of you together. Any news on the Dead Moon?"
They all shook their heads. "Nothing since the incident at the day care," Indira answered.
"All this quiet is making me nervous," Althea admitted, balling her hands into fists. I wish there was something more that we could do than just waiting for them to make another move."
"Well, why don't we all go and ask Pegasus for some more advice tonight?" Nerine suggested.
"We've got a track meet tonight in Urbana," Althea said, pointing her thumb towards Damia.
"We won't be back until late," Damia explained apologetically.
"I'm working tech for that play that's going up this weekend," Indira added.
"'The Crystal Wood'?" Althea asked and Indira nodded. "That's the reason I never see Chris any more. I'll be glad when it's over. Between her rehearsals and all of this track stuff for me, I hardly see her any more."
"From what I've seen, she's a great actress," Indira observed. "You're going to the show, right?"
"Of course," Althea smiled, "I've got a ticket for tomorrow, opening night."
Indira turned to the other two girls and said, "You two really ought to go too. My friend Caroline wrote it. She said it's a story that's been on her mind for years, something she dreamed up. There's something about this play; it almost reminds me of, well, Elysion."
"But how?" Damia stammered.
"You don't think...?" Althea started but trailed off.
"Well," Indira said, taking a step back, "I have to get to the dress rehearsal."
"Are there still tickets left for tomorrow night?" Damia asked urgently.
"Yeah," Indira nodded, "If they didn't sell out already after school. Come on, I'll take you there on my way."
"Okay," Damia nodded. "You coming Nerine?"
"Uh, sure," she replied, still not feeling like herself.
"Let's go," Indira urged them, and they headed back into the school.
"Damia, don't be late for the bus!" Althea called after them.
"I won't!" Damia shot back defensively. "You'd think after all we've been through, she'd realize that I was more responsible than that," she muttered.
"I hope you guys do well at your meet tonight," Nerine offered.
Damia grinned, "I plan to beat Althea this time."
"And I bet she's planning the same thing too," Indira laughed.
***
When Nerine, Damia, and Damia's little cousin Caya hurried into the school's theater, it was already nearly full and buzzing with exciting conversation. Their last-minute tickets got them seats in the back corner, but the theater was small enough that it wasn't too much of a problem. The gingerly made their way over the other people in their row who had already arrived and settled into their seats.
Before she sat down, Nerine scanned the auditorium, squinting. "There she is!" she exclaimed, pointing down towards the front where a head of gray hair poked up above the crowd. "Althea sure got a good seat," she observed, and sat down, "We should have gotten our tickets earlier."
Flipping open the program, Damia scanned the cast list, "It looks like her best friend Chris has one of the lead roles. No wonder. She must have gotten her ticket super early."
"I bet," Nerine nodded.
"I can't see," Caya whined as she bounced irritably in her seat.
There was a full grown man seated in front of Caya but only another child in front of Damia. Damia stood up, saying, "Here Caya, you can trade with me."
"Okay!" she said happily and climbed over the armrest between their two seats.
"I wonder what Indira meant by it reminded her of our pasts?" Nerine mused.
"I guess we'll find out," Damia replied as the lights began to dim.
"Shh!" Caya loudly reminded her, finger to her lips.
Damia suppressed a giggle and focused her attention on the stage.
The curtain came up on a group of uniformed students rushing down a street lined with houses that looked to be right out of London, England. The sound of air raid sirens and bombs filled the theater. The students, rushing down the street, were caught on their way home without shelter. As the whirr of German planes drew nearer, they hid behind a low wall, praying for the best.
The stage went black. Moments later, the lights came back up on a wooded scene. The trees decorated liberally with glitter. The six students lay sprawled out in the middle of a moonlit clearing. When they awoke, they were greeted by curious animals that performed a small dance around them and then a troupe of people dressed in white fairy-like costumes greeted them to the magical realm.
As the play progressed, the students befriended these magical locals and explored the crystal wood they had been whisked into. The prince of the forest told them all how to enter and exit the secret realm with only a chant. They returned home to destruction, but relieved families.
Again, whenever the air raid sirens sounded, the six students would return to the safety of the Crystal Wood. However, one by one, the four boys were drafted into the army and left for the front. Meanwhile, the prince noticed one of the two girls and fell in love.
As the war dragged on, news came that one of their friends had died. The two girls realized that they could not keep living in this magical dream and pretending that the war was far away and had nothing to do with them. They bade tearful farewells to the prince of the wood and his companions.
Indira, high above on the catwalk, switched her light to a blue film and swung it over to the center of the stage where the prince and his lover gingerly clasped hands. The second girl, played by Chris, hung to the side, watching them bitterly. It was this moment that always tugged at Indira's heart—and memories.
"It's not that I want to leave you," the girl said, trying to step away, but the prince held her close, "but I can't ignore what is really going on to my family and my friends. I can't abandon my duty to my country."
"What can one girl do, really?" the prince asked pleadingly, "Can't you stay here where you will be safe? The war won't find you here."
Chris stepped out of the shadows and demanded, "Can't you just let her go? Prince, we are a hundred times thankful for how you rescued all of us that one day and for this beautiful sanctuary you have let us escape to. It has given us hope and strength; hope that so many others have lost. We need to take that hope back with us and do something to help, no matter how little."
"So you're going then, my lady," the high priest of Nyx said, giving Indira a long, measuring gaze.
She nodded, "It can't be helped. All seven of the soldiers of the Earth are needed."
"And what if they should come here?" he asked, as if he already anticipated her answer.
"If I can be spared from the front, I will return to protect this place. But, Kamlesh, who would dare attack the Vale of Storms?" she asked, "This place can defend itself, and you know you are just as powerful as I when you call upon the power of Nyx."
"It is true, the people are afraid, strengthening our realm and our powers. However, now it is difficult to discern what fear is from true rebellion and what is from the Evil One," he paused as a peal of thunder rolled overhead. "The women of the temple, this unknown evil has even them frightened. They would have me beg you to stay here where you will be safe."
"And will you?" Nyx asked.
He shook his head, "The Earth needs the strength of Nyx to fight off these invaders."
The Lady of Nyx explained, "You know what I have to do."
"And I know that you will not return," he said evenly.
"Then let's not put this off any longer," she replied, un-phased by his comment, "This is my duty, what I was born for: I'm going to defend the Earth King."
"We will be praying for you," he answered, but she had already begun walking out of the sanctuary.
The prince of the crystal wood let go of the girl's hand. Chris put an arm around her shoulders and led her away. "We will return once our home is peaceful again," Chris said as they disappeared from the stage. Indira blinked fervently, almost missing her next lighting cue. She proceeded in a thick haze, her mind on what she had just seen rather than on the play. Somehow, she completed the show almost flawlessly.
At the end of the play, only Chris and one of the boys were left alive, of the six students from the beginning. The war was won and peace returned, but they never felt like they could return to the crystal wood again, without their other friends.
The curtain fell, Indira switched off her spotlight, and thunderous applause erupted.
As the curtain rose again, the cast reassembled for the curtain call, joined by the play's young writer, Caroline Wong. Suddenly, four boys tumbled onto the stage, surrounding Caroline. The actors all drew back in surprise, causing nervous whispering in the audience.
"The Amazon Quartet!" Indira hissed, "We should have known they'd come. If this play caught our attention, of course it would catch theirs."
Without a word, the four boys drew back their pool cues and aimed their crystal spheres at Caroline and three of the lead actors. Indira noticed ParPar shift his aim from Chris to the boy standing next to her. Simultaneously, they fired, screams erupting from their first four targets. The balls ricocheted off the scenery until the entire cast, except Chris, lay collapsed on the stage, dream mirrors floating above them. Chris stood frozen for a few moments, then dodged her way off the stage into the curtains at the side.
Under the cover of their screams, Indira threw her transformation sphere into the air and yelled, "Nyx Terran Power, Makeup!"
As the Amazon Quartet took down the cast not twenty feet in front of her, Althea felt powerless. She couldn't transform in front of so many people. Suddenly, there came a familiar voice from high above, "Interrupting a school play? That's tacky."
"Who?" AthoAtho demanded squinting up into the darkness.
Sailor Nyx leaped down onto the stage, landing easily. Glaring down at them, she struck a confident pose and said, "Sailor Nyx, here to bring the thunder."
"You again?" ParPar moaned.
"You'd better believe it," she smirked, and then turned to the stunned audience, "This isn't part of the play any more. Everyone, get out of here. It's not safe." When no one moved, she yelled, "Run!" That seemed to break them from their trance and people poured over each other trying to reach the exits first. In the chaos, Damia, Nerine, and Althea each found dark corners to transform in.
"Pegasus, lend me your power," Sailor Nyx cried, raising her staff high into the air. I'm going to need it if those three don't hurry up.
With a whinny, Pegasus appeared in the air above the audience. A few people lingered, staring up at him. "I said run, and I mean it!" Nyx barked.
AthoAtho stood boldly before her and ordered, without looking back at his companions, "You three, check all those mirrors. I'll hold her off." He said threateningly, "You just scared away half of our targets, Sailor Nyx. You're going to have to pay for that."
Behind him, the other three members of the Amazon Quartet scurried from mirror to mirror, plunging their heads in and pulling them out almost as quickly.
"With pleasure," she replied, grinning back. Raising her staff higher still into the air, she yelled, "Nyx Tempest!" Lightning lashed out in all directions. While AthoAtho received the brunt of it, tendrils of lightning struck the other three as well, each erupting into screams. AthoAtho, despite his pain, stubbornly remained on his feet while his friends collapsed behind him.
"Is that all you've got?" he taunted breathlessly.
"Of course not!" Sailor Erebus declared as she leaped up onto the stage, Sailor Elysion and Sailor Aether behind her. They all struck defiant poses beside Sailor Nyx.
Glancing up at Pegasus, Sailor Aether stepped forward, "Get away from these actors!"
"Not until we're finished here," TouTou retorted before plunging into yet another dream mirror.
"Aether Echo Reverberation!" she whispered drawing her arms close to her chest. A quiet murmur suddenly grew to a roar and knocked everyone, including the other Sailors, off their feet.
"You're making this awfully difficult, you know," NikNik complained and he pulled himself up off the floor again.
"That's the plan," Sailor Elysion retorted. "Now, get out!"
"Not until we've—" AthoAtho hissed.
"They're all empty!" TouTou interrupted him.
"No Golden Crystal and no great secret," ParPar whined.
"Are you sure you know what you were looking for?" AthoAtho demanded, turning his back on the Sailor Soldiers. "Zirconia was so sure of this one."
"Of course we do!" TouTou argued defensively.
"All you've been doing is standing there," NikNik accused, "While we did all the work."
Sailor Elysion looked between her three friends and they all nodded. They leaped into action, surrounding the arguing circus boys.
"Elysion Crisis Melody!"
"Dark Thunderbolt Strike!"
"Moonlight Flash!"
"Darkness Lifting Contradiction!"
The attacks all met their mark and the Amazon Quartet collapsed, screaming.
"Had enough yet?" Sailor Nyx asked, almost eagerly.
Using TouTou's shoulder to push himself up, AthoAtho panted, "You haven't seen the last of us, Sailors. We'll get that Golden Crystal, and then we'll destroy you."
Suddenly, the four of them disappeared. All that was left of their presence were the four crystal spheres that soared away, quick as a lightning, and the jumble of Dream Mirrors on the stage.
"Let's return these mirrors to the right people quickly before anyone gets curious," Sailor Erebus advised.
They all went to work, but Sailor Elysion paused and looked up at Pegasus. "Thanks again, Pegasus," she whispered. With toss of his head and another whinny, he disappeared as well.
As soon as all of the mirrors had been returned to their respective owners, and the actors began to come to, moaning, the four sailors dashed for the back exit, a safe place to shed their transformations.
"I hope Caya found a safe place to hide," Damia murmured as she hurried towards the atrium.
Althea turned on her heels and rushed back into the theater, hoping to find Chris where she had fled backstage during the fighting.
Indira turned to head back into the theater to clean up her lighting station when Nerine commented, "I know what you mean, about how that play reminded you of our past." The normally bouncy girl's voice was distant and almost sage-like.
"I've seen it so many times already from up on the catwalk," Indira said, shaking her head, "But tonight I had a vision. No, it was more like a memory from the past that I had forgotten."
"I think I'm starting to remember what it was like back then too," Nerine said, nodding. "I had a vision-memory-thing today during class. It's weird. My mind is full of memories already, but these new, old ones are pushing their way in too."
"Well, maybe they can help us figure out how to defeat our enemies better," Indira suggested.
"Or where to find the Golden Crystal or that secret they talked about," Nerine added, "So we could protect them better."
"I hope we can remember more, then," Indira replied distantly.
"Maybe I'll come again tomorrow night," Nerine said, "It was a great play, after all. I just can't get it out of my head."
"Well, I should help with clean up," Indira said, coming back into herself, "I am on the tech crew after all."
Nerine laughed halfheartedly and waved to her. "I'll see you later then."
"See you," Indira replied, and pushed the door back into the theater open again, slipping inside.
***
A lone girl in her mid-teens with long indigo colored hair walked cautiously out of the Midway airport carrying only a backpack on her back for luggage. She glanced around, taking in her surroundings, then approached the nearest taxi waiting by the curb.
"What can I do for you, miss?" the cabby asked.
"Can you take me to Asatara?" she asked. Her voice was unsteady and miss-accented.
"Sure, hop in," the cabby answered.
Breathing a sigh of relief, she got into the door and pulled the door shut. Moments later, the taxi was speeding down the road.
"Where in Asatara did you want to go?" he asked.
"I'm sorry, please look at me when you speak," the girl requested, "I'm deaf."
"Oh, I'm sorry," he said. When they reached the next stop light, he turned to her and repeated, "I said, where in Asatara did you want to go?"
"There was a park on TV a few days ago because of some strange magical attacks. It was by a daycare," she answered, hoping that he had watched the news.
"Oh, that one," he said after thinking for a moment, "Yeah, I can get you there. Though, why would you want to go there at this time of night?"
"I am meeting someone there," she answered simply, and said no more.
***
"So you went to see a play with the other Terran Ladies tonight?" Pegasus asked from his chalice that evening.
Plopping unceremoniously down onto her bed beside him, Damia replied, "Yeah, and I can't get it out of my head. I think Indira was right."
"Right about what?" he asked, ears tilting forward in curiosity.
"She said that it kind of reminded her of our past lives," Damia explained. "Though I can't put my finger on how, I think it did. Well, the title was 'The Crystal Wood', first of all. It was written by a student at the school, a friend of Indira's named Caroline. It makes me wonder if she was one of us too. Indira said the idea for the play came to her in her dreams."
Shifting his stance and rustling his wings, Pegasus commented, "All seven of the Terran Soldiers have already awakened, but it is possible that this Caroline was one of the courtiers or priestesses of that era. Perhaps of Elysion, the Crystal Wood, itself. We can't know just how many people the queen of the moon rescued and sent forward in time."
"Then, do you think she could help us?" Damia asked.
"I doubt it," Pegasus answered. "She is only snatching at pieces of memories. To my knowledge, there was no one on Earth besides you soldiers, the Four Heavenly Generals, and the other six high priests that could have the power to assist us. The generals and the priests were all men."
"So that rules her out," Damia sighed. "I want this to be over, so I can go back to a normal life."
"I'm so sorry to bring this upon you, Damia," Pegasus said softly. "I wish I could be of more help to you."
"Don't say that," Damia snapped, but she was smiling, "You've been so helpful already. And you said yourself, this is what I was reborn for. If I didn't fight, who would?"
"My lady, I..." he stammered.
Falling back onto her bed and staring at the ceiling, she sighed again. "I just can't get that play out of my head. I really can't believe it was written by a girl my same age."
Pegasus nickered gently. "Tell me about this play," he requested, "I wish I could have seen it with you."
"Well, it was set in London in the 1940s, during World War II," Damia began, almost seeing the play before her eyes again as she spoke. "There were these six friends who got caught out during an air raid, but when the bombs started falling, they were magically transported to this mystical land, the Crystal Wood. There, they met the prince of the wood, and then..."
For Damia, it was impossible to tell when reality merged into dreams as she drifted off to sleep. She found herself in the role of the main character of the play. She frolicked in the woods, she transported back and forth from London, she mourned the death of her friends, and she made up her mind to go help in the war effort. But when she came to the point of tearful farewells, it was not the prince of the play that warmly clasped her hands in his.
Dressed all in white trimmed with pale blue, the man before her had soft white hair and a gentle smile. Despite the color of his hair, he seemed nearly her same age. She stared silently, wistfully up into his amber eyes; eyes that seemed all too familiar.
"Don't go," he whispered.
"I must," she began, but burst into tears. Instead of hurrying away, she buried her head in his chest and let silent sobs wash over her. He wrapped his arms comfortingly around her, but by his shaking, she could tell that he was crying silently too.
***
Paying her fare, a fragile looking girl stepped out of a taxi and onto the sidewalk. The taxi quickly drove away. Though the area was lit only by a single street light, she recognized it at once. She walked gingerly into the pea-gravel that surrounded the playground and made a pensive lap around the entire structure, finally settling onto one of the swings. I'm here, she thought, swinging herself gently back and forth. Now what?
