Hello! Sorry for the delay! Aside from having to write for my recipe blog, I was dealing with my spine issues again for the second half of last week, so I was mostly lying down too. But I'm okay now, so I went back to writing and researching for this chapter! Btw, I've moved the rating to M since about one or two chapters ago because the ideas had transitioned to more sensitive topics such as depression and suicide, as well as some sexual content.
LOL – Just realized, this story reached its 10th anniversary haha! Whoops. I'm doing my best to complete it though! I promise! I hope you're still enjoying the story with me.
I'm hoping you guys like it, it's a long one! Keep safe.
Chapter 31: Of Myths and Unproven Theories
"Hey Taiki, Yaten. How are you guys doing? Do you remember what Slayer had encountered before? I think it's here. Hope to hear from you soon." Sending the message to the stars, he closed the device and hid it back into the compartment, deep in thought.
"Pluto, where are we?" Uranus asked in a low somber tone. "What's the brief?"
"Crystal Tokyo, year 4205, Queen Chibiusa's Reign," Pluto began.
"New enemy threatens the galaxy. There's a force field around that place. Sailor Mars and the Queen of Mars, as well as Sailor Venus, Sailor Jupiter, and the Queen of Jupiter, are already there. The others are trying to break their way through. Queen Mercury on intel, as always. That's all we know," the olive-skinned added with a bit of worry. Chaos will only keep reappearing, and can never be contained, but only be fought until it corrupts one pure soul.
"Sounds like every other difficult enemy. We don't have much time," Uranus tightened her grip on her sword as they started to run toward the epicenter.
Like Sailor Saturn and Sailor Pluto, the senshi of the wind now only seems to appear in the future when the enemy is very strong. Haruka had been to various battles in the future, to the point where she had gotten used to the moments when she had been with the mostly the daughters of the other senshi, who loved her and looked up to her as a cool young aunt. But to have the queens join the frontlines would mean extra serious business.
"About your sentence," Pluto said as she caught up with Uranus, panting ever so slightly. "The queen has decided on your pardon, but with probation on using the time key by yourself."
"Not surprised," Uranus simply said in reply, feeling a tinge of pain in her heart as she jumped from one building to the next.
She caught herself from spiraling, recalling one particular raven-haired man waiting for her to come home. Home, to the present, to where he currently is. Home to where it is safe. For the moment.
"Can we do this another time Pluto? I want to be home by dinner."
The senshi of the wind wasn't angry at her olive-skinned friend anymore. It's not that she had just quickly forgotten and dismissed the issue. But like every single time she was called to a task, fighting every future fight where she was needed—it was Pluto's duty to keep Space and Time in order.
"I don't think dinner time is possible," Pluto called out, stopping for breath. "We have a loooot to talk about, Uranus." It wasn't just about the violation against space and time, obviously. Her discovery from this morning still fresh in her mind, Setsuna chuckled briefly before trying to regain composure. The senshi of the sky swooped back down from the next building and stopped next to the senshi of time.
"Well then, let's at least finish the battle with everyone alive."
Seiya flipped through a page in an old dusty book, his eyebrows furrowed as he scanned through each page with much concentration.
"Pfffffft. Not here again." Pushing aside a stack of mythology and folklore books on his desk, he closed the book abruptly, tossing it on another already tall pile in front of him. He then turned his attention onto the screen of his laptop, typing something on the search box for a certain deity or mythical creature. The closest he could find at the time was "Apate" and "Fraus", but nothing more, and they were not even close to what he was looking for.
He sighed loudly before stretching his hands in the air. To be honest, he'd rather be somewhere else. He had just finished recording for his new single. He should be taking it a bit easy now but what Taiki and Yaten had said in response to his message bothered him. So he found himself disguised in the public library, looking for any documentation in Earth's history about the enemy that had taken one of their own.
"What?! Who is it attacking this time?" Yaten was quick to reply, but no other information.
"I have a fair guess that it's Haruka, given the types of profile that Dubium attacks," Taiki responded.
"But the problem is we know that the entity does not manifest in one single way. Much like Chaos. Your challenge, my friend, is to find out if it is indeed Dubium, and then proving it exists before you can get down to eliminating it."
Scrolling down and browsing through the pages, only one page caught his eye: Serafel – The Goddess of Doubt.
"Serafel appears as any number of things, and as her domain would suggest, no two instances of her making herself known have been the same. No shrines to her depict her image, no two records of her are the same."
It was the closest description to Dubium that he could find. Pity, it was a fictional creation meant for roleplayers. He took notes and bookmarked the page nonetheless, saving the photo of the symbol of the deity. The other results refer to "Deity of Doubt" as a concept or a framework, rather than an actual deity, used as a theme for art exhibitions.
Yawning as he stretched again, he stopped to take a look at his phone's photo gallery. Flipping through hundreds of photos the senshi, with his bandmates, with Taiki and Yaten, and by Taiki's genius or perhaps wizardry, a couple of photos from Kinmoku of Kayuu and the Starlights. In one of the photos, a fourth starlight was beside him, her elbow on his shoulder. Wavy, ombre lavender hair mostly swept to the right side, the left side of her scalp very short and nearly-shaven. Sharp, honey-golden eyes, and like the other Starlights, a long ponytail. She was the only one wielding a weapon, a huge double-handed blade that was as tall as her shoulders. Sailor Star Slayer.
The phone buzzed repeatedly, shaking him from his thoughts. He picked up, whispering into it.
"Hello?"
"Tadaima." The wind senshi's voice sounded tired.
"Hai…Okaeri," he responded slowly. Somehow, he understood that she wasn't just referring to their physical home.
"Where are you, Seiya?" He flinched. Was that a quiver?
"I'm in the public library, but I'm going home already," he responded, as he abruptly started to gather his belongings.
"Oh okay," her tone sounded dissociated. "I'm going to have a shower. Setsuna is making dinner and is asking if you would be free to join us. She said she had time today."
"Oh, is this some sort of 'meet the family' date he he he," he attempted to joke, wincing at how awful the punchline was as he trailed off.
"As if you haven't hung out with them for years now," she forced out a weak chuckle.
"Heh…well I'll be home in a few. See ya' then."
"Okay," she simply replied, hanging up briefly.
On the white granite countertop of Haruka's residence, Setsuna Meioh preparing dinner. In a pot that she was arranging were sliced tofu, some enoki mushrooms, a couple of vegetables, and glass noodles, a plate of thinly sliced beef was beside it. Sukiyaki nabe was going to be for supper, a dish that was comforting and perfect for the weather. Slowing down from her task, she observed the senshi of the wind as the ash-blonde made a couple of calls.
"Okay," Haruka said as she hung up. Her eyes were visibly red and puffy. The wind senshi dialed another number.
"Hey, Rei!... Oh nothing, just checking how you are going….. Yeah? That's good," Haruka sounded like her usual self, conversing with the senshi of war and fire like normal.
The senshi of revolution has learned to dissociate herself from certain events that she knew would happen. But she also knew how hard this can be for someone who's only experienced it for the first time.
"Hey, how about we hang out next week?... I know it's a bit random, just that, I'm on your side of the city next week and it might be fun to catch up…. On Wednesday?...sure…. and Seiya? I'll ask if he's free," the wind senshi managed a small smile as she spoke. "See you then!"
It was quite unlike Haruka to initiate a meetup with the inner senshi, except maybe for medical checkups with Ami, or regular visits to Makoto's café to support her flourishing business. But Setsuna knew what this was all about.
As Haruka turned her back, the senshi of time approached her putting a hand on her shoulder.
A sob escaped from Haruka's mouth. "I don't know how you do it," she said in between sobs.
"Oh Haruka," tears rolled down Setsuna's cheek, giving the younger senshi a tight hug as the wind senshi openly wept.
"I've learned not to do it alone and remember what the present is," she responded, as she comforted the wind senshi. "I found constants that I can go to. I found my own principles that I can also hold on to."
Pluto's heart had always been breaking for Uranus. She most certainly knows what it feels like to be alone, having to guard the time gates for many years in the past. She bore the burden of knowing many things that the rest of the senshi of the present did not know. She dealt with the death of the senshi over and over in alternate past timelines, and even until the future. To have this burden on Haruka, too soon after discovering the demise of her planet in the future, and many other things may be too much for her.
The doorbell rang, causing the wind-senshi to break away from her friend's embrace, and wiping off her tears.
"I should get that," the tall-blonde said weakly. "He's being polite again," she added, chuckling. The dark-green haired woman nodded. Her magenta eyes followed Haruka as she opened the door to greet Seiya.
"Hi…." he greeted the host of the home with a smile before his smile quickly turned into a frown. "Hey….heyyy," he nearly cooed, as the wind senshi flung her arms around his neck and burying her face into his chest.
"Shh….It's okay… you're here. You're home now," he whispered into her ear gently as he rubbed her back.
A small smile formed from Setsuna's deep red lips as she watched the unlikely pair. Perhaps, Uranus would be okay.
Haruka pulled away from the embrace, wiping her tears away hastily. "I'm so sorry, please come in," she motioned, allowing Seiya to come further into the living room.
"I'm just going to take a shower and will join you guys in a minute". Retreating to the stairs to her bedroom, Haruka left Seiya with senshi of revolution.
He sighed worriedly as soon as he heard the shower run from upstairs. Something bad probably had happened in the future, and of course, he wasn't privy to any of it. It doesn't seem to affect Haruka as much as the events before this battle, but it was enough to make her cry.
"Would you like to help me set this up, Seiya?" Setsuna's cool voice broke through his thoughts. She was holding a medium-sized ceramic pot with two hands, and she motioned to the mini-burner and a plate of vegetables and thin slices of beef at the granite prep table.
"Oh yes, definitely, sure," he said, moving to the kitchen to pick up the mini-burner on one hand, and a plate of beef on the other. Immediately going back to his thoughts which by now have been all jumbled up, he stood in front of the dining table, not caring the put the burner nor the plate down. He wanted to talk to Setsuna about Dubium, but given that something had happened in the future, he wasn't sure if it was a great idea.
"Hmmm, yes? Something's on your mind Seiya," she said, maintaining a poker face, as she continued to set up the dining table. I guess this was his cue.
"Um, yes actually," he scratched his head as he handed another plate to the senshi of time. Perhaps nothing seemed to surprise the senshi of revolution as her expression remained the same. "Do you know about Dubium?"
"That entity doesn't exist, Seiya. It only exists in the mind," the older woman's tone was a bit sharp, gently scolding.
"See, except it does. No two instances"—
"Of its proof of existence are exactly the same." Setsuna recited along with him. "No records, no shrines, no artifacts. Dubium. Serafel. The Deity of Doubt. Daemones and Algea. It's only proven as a concept or a cognitive action. I have studied this as the keeper of Space and Time. But Dubium is an unproven myth."
"So was the planet Kinmoku from a different galaxy," he discoursed with her calmly.
"Or the myth of the Silver Crystal and the Moon Kingdom. To this world at this point at least," he pointed out, raising a finger an eyebrow. "Dubium has taken one of our own, Setsuna. We didn't believe her and understand her cries for help until it was too late."
The senshi of time pursed her deep red lips, reconsidering. She has heard about Star Slayer from the Princess of Kinmoku herself, knowing that Kinmoku's senshi of Protection had woven through different alternate realities to lends its strength across millennia. Quite a bit like herself, and the senshi of the sky at this point.
"I wonder, why hasn't she been restored after the battle with Galaxia?"
"Kinmoku was the strongest our galaxy, until she took her life, after feeling like she was being driven crazy by voices that she kept hearing in her sleep." Setsuna gulped, feeling her throat drying up a little. If a senshi takes their own life, their main kingdom is weakened.
"This doesn't really prove anything though, Seiya."
"Prove what?" a husky, curious voice said, coming from the living room. Both Seiya and Setsuna turned to look at the host of the house, who was still drying her hair with a towel. She raised an eyebrow at them, as she sat down on one of the chairs in the dining area, expecting to get an answer.
It's quite a long chapter than usual. I know you might probably have questions, so ask away-I'll answer them if they're not spoilers to the next chapter xDDD
I specifically did not delve into the actual senshi battles unless they were part of the main storyline because that would be a deep rabbit hole.
When I refer to "Sailor Mars and the Queen of Mars", we're talking about the future daughter of Rei Hino as Sailor Mars, and Rei Hino as the Queen of Mars. (same with Jupiter)
Dubium – is the Latin word for doubt, more will be revealed about this entity in the upcoming chapter.
Serafel – came out of my own google search, am unsure if I can put a link here but I think I at least need to credit them- exilefantasygods . wordpress dark-gods/goddess-of-doubt/*
Again, I couldn't use English words for two Japanese phrases. It seems a bit more appropriate in this context:
Tadaima - a condensed version of "Tadaima Kaerimashita" which translates to "I came home right now"
Okaeri – a shortened version of "Okaerinasai", which means "welcome home."