Mistakes of the Great Beings
25. The next morning
Chameleon entered the room and found Makoto looking at the couch. Namely, the pile he left on it. He came closer.
"Something wrong?" He asked.
Mako looked at him: "Why is your bed in a pile?"
"Ehm, well, I figured out that you wouldn't like things lying on the floor, so I tidied up." He smiled innocently.
Mako shook her head and chuckled. "That's a nice intention, but a completely wrong realization of it." She came over to the couch. "Humans like things neatly folded and in their own places." She started to fold the blanket. "And since the couch's primary function isn't sleeping, you have to put your bed away in that cupboard." She took the now neatly folded blanket and bedsheet, as well as the pillow, and opened the lower doors of the cupboard to the left of the table, then put them all neatly on the shelf. She glanced at Chameleon. "Is that clear?"
He shrugged. "Sure." He still didn't get it why it had to be so complex and fixed on neatness, but hey, everybody has their quirks. Even if in this case, it was a whole planet of humans...
"Well, sit down on the couch." Mako said, closing the cupboard doors and standing up. Chameleon watched as she went to the strange big box he couldn't figure out yesterday, and took a small flat black object with many buttons. Sitting next to him, she pointed at the box with it and pressed a red button.
The black screen of the box suddenly became blue, and the Saurian of Chameleon blinked once, trying to figure out what was happening. He looked at the box, then at the small flat thing Makoto held, then at Makoto and finally at the box again. It made no sense at all. He opened his mouth to ask something, but then figures appeared on the screen that had previously been blue. Humans could be seen, as well as heard.
"Why do you have a mini world in a box?" he finally asked, glancing sideways at his human guide.
Mako laughed quietly, holding her hand to her mouth. Laughing out loud would be rude, but the question was just so funny in its naiveness...
"It's not a mini-world." She said, grinning from ear to ear. "It's television. TV for short. As for how it works... Ignika told you about computers, didn't he?"
Chameleon scratched his head. "Yeah, I remember something like that... Something about machines having a memory and storing information..." He shook his head. "I didn't understand anything."
"Well, that's too bad, because TV works about the same... All the things you see there," She pointed on the screen. "Were recorded or drawn by humans and encoded into a machine memory. Now they are replayed at a TV station, from which they are transferred to every TV in every apartment."
Chameleon blinked at her, his eyes betraying that he hadn't understood a single word she had said. "Ehm… Explain that again, please?"
"Well..." Mako started. "Imagine you drew a picture. You want to show it to as many people as possible. But what can you do besides coming up to people and asking them to look? Television goes another way. Instead of asking people to look at the picture, it copies it into millions of boxes like this one, and if people want to see it, they turn on the TV. Only there isn't just one picture, but millions of them, and they change constantly bit-by-bit, creating an illusion of movement." She looked at Chameleon. "Is that any clearer?"
"Sooo… If I get this right, this 'tee vee' has the power to show you what others have shown it?" Chameleon tried, looking hesitatingly and unsure at Makoto.
"Exactly." Mako grinned, glad that he understood it. "You learn fast."
"Heheh..." Chameleon scratched his head. Hearing the compliment was nice.
Mako poked him playfully with her elbow. "Now your cheeks are red." Before he could answer, though, Mako glanced at the TV: "Oh, the news are starting! Let's hear what they say about the destruction caused last night." She made the volume louder.
Chameleon wanted to ask what a 'news' was and if it had anything to do with 'new', but when he saw a human on the screen begin to speak and Makoto listen intently, he decided to shut up and wait with his questions. He began watching the speaking human too, wondering what was so important about what he had to say that Makoto needed this box to see it in the first place. It was all so strange, but then again, a lot in this world was. Still, this was the strangest so far. Parts of people in a box because that box has a memory that it can show to people watching it? Mind-boggling.
"... to destruction that happened last night. We are now on live broadcast with our reporter, Keiko Nakamura. Keiko?"
Chameleon raised his eyebrow as the image on the screen suddenly moved somewhere left, and on the right side an image of another woman moved in, stopping right at the middle of the screen. What's even more weird, behind the new female was a mini-site of battle they've fought yesterday. Memory or no memory, he didn't understand how was it possible to manipulate images that way. He wanted to ask Mako about it, too, but the new woman started speaking, and her image covered the old one completely.
"Thank you, Harumi." The camera zoomed out a little, so that the viewer could get a better look at the ruins and the police experts working on them. "The area which suffered most from the unknown disaster was this construction site that was supposed to become a new forty-storey house by the end of 2011." The camera moved to show different places of ruins, and Keiko kept reporting:
"The reasons behind the destruction are still unknown, and theories as to why it happened range from a deep-lying tubing water inrush which caused the ground under the basement to erode, to terrorist attacks and bombings." After showing the gaping holes in the building's walls, the camera returned to Keiko:
"Other, more impossible theories told by some residents of nearby houses include dinosaur-like aliens and Sailor Senshi who fought against them. Not a single theory has been deemed plausible yet, but we're keeping an eye on the situation development. Harumi?"
The screen split again, and Harumi became visible. "Thank you, Keiko. Now for other news..."
Mako has heard enough and pressed the red button on the remote control again, turning off the TV. She then turned to Chameleon: "Well, what do you think?"
"Weird, to say the least," Chameleon replied. He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "But am I right if I think that this is how you humans give each other knowledge of things they weren't present to witness? If so, then it's damn handy, with the mini world and all… But still, Ignika transferring mental knowledge is still better and more effective."
He waved his hand in a discarding manner. "I mean, they got some things totally wrong. Water had nothing to do with the destruction. Can't they see it was all simply corrupted? And what is a 'di no sour' anyway?"
Mako tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Okay, I'll answer all the questions in order... You're right about the first half – the TV's role, I mean. And I know that mental transferring is better, but there's next to no humans that can actually do that to another one, let alone several million... As for the report..." She leaned back. "The information was distorted on purpose."
"What? Why?" Chameleon asked.
"You asked if they couldn't see that everything simply corrupted – they could. Thing is, there's not a single technology or weapon on Earth that can cause corruption so vast and quick. And in order not to cause panic, they will think up a more or less believable legend that will 'explain' the destruction." She sighed. "Because if they tell the truth, that they don't know how it happened, people will start fearing that it will happen again, and that can make things quite chaotic. Moreover, if they don't tell anything, people will believe it's something so serious it needs to be hidden – and that will cause just the same chaos. So they do as they always do – telling half of the truth, which is always better than any lie."
The Saurian of Chameleon blinked twice. "That's pretty messed up, if you ask me. Why spread lies and half truths? The first step to defending yourself is knowing what you're up against, so why does the tee vee deny the humans watching it this right? They won't be able to defend themselves that way."
Mako nodded. "Exactly. But they don't need to. With our way of life, knowing how to survive isn't necessary anymore. You'd be surprised, but most humans don't even know how to fight. Fighting and using weapons is... Well, not really a privilege, but something you need to be specially taught. Usually those who know how to fight and use a different array of weapons are the ones who defend our lands... from other humans... and the rest don't need to worry."
Chameleon frowned, shaking his head. "I don't understand that line of thinking, but I suppose that's just me. It seems foolish, though, but who am I, anyway?"
Mako shrugged and smiled. "You're a Saurian. Even though you look like a nice 15 year old human boy."
Chameleon raised his eyebrow. "Nice?"
Mako didn't realize that the word slipped from her tongue until Chameleon repeated. "Um, ehm... Forget I said that, okay?" She stood up from the couch, then left the room quickly. Her Saurian companion watched her go, confused.
"What was that all about?"
While Chameleon was wondering about that, his youngest sister was having problems of her own. Nightmare had been up since seven in the morning, brooding over devious plans concerning herself and her host. The conversation of last night was still fresh in her mind, particularly the part where that 'Mars' girl said the Sailor Senshi needed serious training in the weapon-department. The words were like music to Nightmare's ears. Minako might not have a real weapon, but she had that ridiculous 'love me' chain of hers. While it certainly was a disgusting thing with a stupid name, it could still be an effective and dangerous tool in close combat. Minako simply needed some practice in that area, and that's where Nightmare decided she would come in.
Her first desire had been to immediately wake up Minako and start the practice, but the Saurian of Fear wasn't completely heartless and she understood the fight against Jutlin the Corrupt had taken its toll on the Senshi of Love. So, she had let her sleep some more. But it had been two hours since then, and Nightmare was getting restless and impatient. Thus, she stormed out of the living room where she usually slept on the couch, ran upstairs and barged into Minako's room without a care for the noise she was making.
"Get up, love dove, we've got work to do!" Nightmare shouted angrily, annoyed the human girl hadn't even done as much as stir because of all the noise. To the Saurian's great disappointment, it was Artemis who woke up first. The cat's condition had improved marvelously since last night, but seeing as he had been running for his life the entire night until Minako came back, that wasn't so surprising. Nightmare seriously had been in need of something to strangle, and she had decided Artemis would be that something.
Upon seeing the living nightmare stand next to the bed of his owner, Artemis' fur came upright and he hissed at her, jumping back as he did that. He hated to admit it, but he was afraid of the transformed Saurian, at least a little bit. She honored her name a bit too well.
"Minako, wake up! She's come back to kill me!"
Nightmare rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Relax, fur ball, it's your owner who'll suffer my wrath today. Speaking of which…" Having finally lost all patience, Nightmare pulled back the covers and gave Minako a not too soft kick in the backside. "Get up you!"
Finally, Minako stirred a little. "Just a few more minutes mom…" she mumbled in her sleep. Artemis sighed and shook his head in embarrassment. Some things would never change.
"I'm not your mom, and I sure as hell won't give you a minute, whatever that is!" Nightmare snapped back, now literally dragging Minako out of her bed. The Senshi of Love screamed as she hit the hard floor, awake in an instant. She glared at her guest.
"What do you think you're doing?!" the blonde whined. "I was having such a nice dream!"
"Don't give a damn!" Nightmare sneered. "Now get up, we've got work to do."
Minako blinked. "We do?"
The Saurian of Fear resisted the urge to go bang her head against a wall, instead opting to slap her forehead in frustration and disbelief. "Yes, we do," she replied coldly and snidely. "Judging from what I was told, you Senshi need some serious training in Saurian combat, and I'm the one who's gonna teach you. So get up, love dove, for we don't have all day. You need to be ready for our appointment this evening!"
Minako audibly gulped. Training with Nightmare wasn't exactly something she looked forward to, or even something she wished to experience at all. "Do I have to?" she asked, pouting.
"Yes!" Nightmare shouted. "I'm going to teach you how to fight a Saurian, even if I have to ram it in your empty head myself!" She grabbed Minako's wrist and started to drag the Sailor Senshi out of the room. "And we're starting now!"
"Wait!" Minako protested. "At least allow me to change out of my nightgown and have breakfast!"
The transformed Saurian frowned. "Have what now?"
"Breakfast, that's what we call the morning meal," Artemis explained helpfully. The cat had to admit, it was a nice change of pace to see Nightmare work out her frustration on somebody else than him for once.
Nightmare sighed, but dropped Minako's wrist nonetheless. "Fine, go stuff yourself. Won't do to have you faint from hunger while I'm pounding experience into you, I guess. But hurry it up, love dove!"
Minako climbed to her feet and fled to the bathroom as fast as her legs could carry you. Artemis glanced at the annoyed Saurian of Fear. "I think you scared her," he noted dryly, cautiously taking a few steps closer towards the disguised girl. Nightmare delighted in hearing that, and grinned.
"Thanks for the compliment, cat."
Artemis fell silent for a moment. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully with his paw while studying the Saurian of Fear, more specifically the expression in her eyes and on her face. There was a gleam there, one of delight. No doubt delight in the fear she was invoking in Minako – and Artemis – but it wasn't the only delight. For a very short moment, Artemis thought he saw an expression of relief on the transformed girl's face. Relief for what, however, he could not say. And maybe it was just a figment of his imagination. The cat did wonder, though, why Nightmare was so bend on training Minako, after the two of them had clashed so forcefully the past day and night.
Unaware of her feline companion's pondering, Nightmare was pacing around and waiting for Minako to reemerge from the bathroom so they could get a bite to eat and then start fighting. She had a lot of reasons to 'train' Minako. First of all, it was a matter of payback. The Senshi of Love had been driving her nuts since day one, now it was her turn. Secondly, it was because she saw the truth in Rei and Ignika's words from the night before. The Senshi were strong, but definitely needed help while dealing with this enemy, particularly in close-combat. Teaching them how to defend themselves better in close-combat really wouldn't hurt, either.
Her third reason was one that she could barely accept herself: she cared about Minako, somewhat. Very faintly. Just a tiny bit. But regardless of everything Nightmare was, she was not an ungrateful Saurian. Despite driving her crazy and insane, Minako had still sheltered her and fed her. Giving her some experience that could save her life in return seemed like a fair trade to Nightmare. She had seen the wounds that Haruka and Hotaru had suffered. She didn't want Minako to get those herself. It might change her personality, or decrease her cheerfulness. And that wouldn't do. As much as she hated to admit it, Nightmare knew that Minako being anything else than she was now would be even worse than her current self, because it would feel unnatural.
The disguised Saurian of Fear let out a very deep sigh and buried her forehead in her left hand. She was becoming way too soft, it seemed, and she despised it. Yet there was nothing she could do about it, she had softened and that was that. Trying to toughen again would only make her look like a fool. But she'd be damned if she let herself soften any further! No, pounding some sense into Sailor Venus would definitely allow her to feel normal again, as well as get rid of all the pent up frustration. If only Minako would hurry up…
But said blonde girl was feeling no obligation to do so at all. In fact, she was doing the very opposite: try to stay in the bathroom as long as possible. The Senshi of Love hadn't liked the tone in Nightmare's voice or the look on said girl's face at all. Minako new that she was in for one hell of a 'training' the moment she'd set a foot outside after breakfast. She was not looking forward to that. Then again, maybe after they had done something Nightmare liked, they could do something she liked?
A big sunny smile appeared on Minako's face as that thought crossed her mind. It seemed perfectly fair to the Senshi. She'd do whatever Nightmare had in mind, but afterwards, they'd go on one big shopping spree!
Next chapter: Saurian teachings!
Review replies:
Chaser Warring on Everything: Well, if you ever do know what this story lacks exactly, please do tell, I'm willing to listen. Glad you still like the story, though.
SoulLoss: Predictable how, exactly? I can kind of understand where you're coming from, but I'd appreciate it if you could elaborate it a bit more. And perhaps future chapters and developments might still prove to be more of a twist than the previous chapters suggested. I'm glad that you'll remain here to read and review, though. I really appreciate hearing what others think of this story.