a/n: I really love this chapter - I ended up turning some of it into an original story. Oh, and on the last chapter, I don't really think Haruka would just run off on Michiru like that - it was done mostly for humor's sake.
Among Stars – Chapter 13
Haruka found she was able to quite easily transform into Sailor Uranus without any feverish side effects now that Kakyu had relieved her of the Starlights' power. What surprised her, however, was that her power was compatible enough with theirs to be able to complete a Sailor Teleport to Kinmoku. She had left a note for the others – that would be enough, right? It was only a few days, after all. She'd been gone longer on racing trips before… she squeezed Seiya's hand a bit. It still was odd seeing him as male against his female companions.
Haruka did not have much more time to think, however, for suddenly, her feet landed on solid ground, the planet of Kinmoku. Haruka looked around. The landscape was desolate, a barren dessert of blue and purple sand. Among the waves of death were the few sad remains of some old marble buildings, pitiful remnants of their former selves. When Galaxia destroyed a planet, she certainly left nothing behind.
"This is about where we grew up," Seiya said quietly.
Healer rolled her eyes. "Must you discuss this with her?" she asked, indicating Haruka.
"She's one of us, isn't she?"
"I still find this a personal subject." That comment ended the discussion for a while until the foursome reached an empty field in front of a decimated building. It appeared to Haruka to have been a palace of some kind, but she was hesitant to speak.
"I guess the place is kind of underpopulated, huh?" Healer tried to joke. Maker looked serious, neither amused nor saddened by the comment. She stepped forward, and it almost sounded to Haruka as if she muttered something to the effect of, "Guess we should work on fixing that then."
Haruka looked suspciously at Seiya, the only male now among them and didn't exactly like the thought process it was leading to.
"Um, don't take this the wrong way," said Haruka. "But, um... wouldn't that take a while? To rebuild a whole population, I mean?"
Healer looked confused for a moment. "Oh, that's right. I forgot - you people can only produce children through intercourse."
"There's another way?" Haruka asked suspiciously.
"Just watch," Princess Kakyu assured them, nodding to Star Maker. She in turn took the signal and knelt down, gloved hands touching the bare ground. At first, she merely closed her eyes and began breathing in and out, muttering softly, as if trying to put herself into a trace. It was a bit awkward, but Haruka kept silent. At least, everyone else seemed to know what was going on. Suddenly, Maker threw up her head and shouted at the top of her lungs,
"Maker Star Power!" At first, nothing happened, but slowly a blue glow began to build up around her body. She tilted her head back towards the ground once more, and dozens, no, it must have been nearly a hundred, small blue bubbles began to appear from the moist earth. Each bubble settled itself, hovering over the ground, growing slightly larger. Inside each one a sprout began to grow, rooting itself into the ground below. Once it had taken root, the bubble began to fade, and a tiny bud showed its head. All the while, Maker poured what had to be vast amounts of energy into the planet's crust. Her body was quivering, but she did not give into the pain. Clearly, whatever it was she was doing, it was worth bearing the strain just a bit longer.
Each bud in place, the petals began to bulge, as if ready to bloom, but still not opening. When they had grown to about the size of a small fist, their growth stopped and the light surrounding the field faded. At least, the pained look on Star Maker's face started to face, but now in sheer exhaustion, she looked ready to collapse.
"Maker, you idiot!" Healer yelled, running carefully to the center and catching her comrade as she started fainting into her arms. "Why so many? Are you insane?" Weakly, Maker opened her eyes.
"We... do need... a lot," she managed to gasp.
"Shut up! You could've killed yourself," Healer snapped, ignoring the fact that it was she who posed the question to Maker in the first place. "Just relax." Here she closed her eyes and placed her hand over Star Maker's face. A green glow emerged from her hand, engulfing Maker's body and seeming to sooth her.
Haruka watched the whole thing in complete confusion, while Seiya stood back looking something like a proud father. Kneeling down to get a closer look at the new Kinmoku garden, she curiously pulled back one of the petals. Her eyes widened when she saw what was inside - a glowing blue sphere and inside of that what could only be described as a developing fetus. Hands no bigger than a fingernail prodded the minute little mouth and got a feel for their own body. Never had she seen anything so helpless yet beautiful. Her eyes slowly rose to see the bed of flowers surrounding them, every one surely holding a tiny life inside.
"Hurt one of them and die," their mother, if that was the proper term for her, muttered under her breath, still trying to get over the strain of giving birth to so many at once. Humans had it so easy, she thought to herself.
"Incredible," Haruka managed to whisper, noting Maker's threat.
"It's... unusual to have this many at once," Seiya admitted. "They're not really siblings, genetically speaking. Each of them will be very different once they're grown a bit." He looked over the garden again and Haruka joined him, but this time, something was bothering her. They were all cared for now, but when all these little ones were born, who would take care of them? It wasn't as if the deserted planet had a huge nursery just down the street.
"The children will be born in about five months," Seiya said, as if reading her mind. "We've got that much time to rebuild the palace and get it ready for them."
Haruka did not look convinced. "Do you have any idea how many you're getting ready for here?" she yelled. A few of the flowers near her bounced.
"One hundred and twenty four," Maker said, starting to gain some of her strength again thanks to Healer's powers. "Seventy-three girls and fifty-one boys. And stop yelling, you want to make them deaf five minutes after they were conceived?"
Haruka blushed and covered her mouth. Motherhood was not exactly her area of expertise.
"In either case, we're not alone," said Healer, helping Maker to her feet. "Our princess' mission was to ask for the aid of other planets to join us." She slung her friend's arm over her shoulder, encouranging to walk a few steps. "The rest of your friends from earth should arrive in a few days."
Haruka blushed. "Then why didn't we take them with us in the first place?" she demanded, trying to keep her voice in check as best she could. Healer seemed to be throughly enjoying herself.
"You and Seiya didn't want some alone time?" she teased.
"No, we did not!" Haruka said quickly, looking around to see if there was anything she could throw at Healer's inflated head. Seiya looked disaapointed.