Forgotten Dreams
Part Four
Serenity and Endymion had moved out
from the ballroom balcony to
the Palace patio the moment they had heard
the cry to battle. Endymion
was filled with grim determination.
He was going to protect his Princess.
Ominous loud laughter had begun and it
rung through the air, causing
Serenity to clutch him tighter. He wanted
to see how the Senshi were
faring before making a final decision,
yet he did not want to leave
Serenity alone. As he was debating what
to do, Serenity let
go of him and stepped away. She spoke
softly.
"Go. Check on them."
Her voice trembled with worry for
her Senshi. Endymion wavered.
He didn't want to leave her unprotected.
She gave him a small smile.
"It will be all right. I will remain
here out of sight."
He thought for a split second more, before
screams pierced the
air. His decision made, he turned away
and ran towards the sound of
battle. He de-transformed in mid-step,
pushing himself physically. He
reached the battlefield in time to see
four beams of light coming from
a shadow creature hitting the Senshi.
They screamed and their bodies hit
the ground with a sickening thud. The
Negaverse foot soldiers pressed
forward, slaughtering some, capturing
others. Endymion's throat tightened.
He had to get back to Serenity.
Serenity stared at the spot where
her beloved had vanished from
sight. She could hear the screams now
and she shuddered. This wasn't
supposed to be happening. She was in love,
her Senshi were in love. They
were supposed to live happily ever after.
Serenity wobbled on her feet
as an intense wave of pain ripped through
her. Above the general battle
sounds, four particular screams had reached
her ears. Her Senshi. She
strained her ears, hoping for some thing,
anything, even a scream, that
would prove they were still alive. Nothing.
She squeezed her eyes tightly
shut, trying to keep the tears inside.
When Endymion returned, she would
have to be calm. Suddenly, the air around
Serenity *changed.* Her eyes flew
open and she stared at the approaching
figure. Beryl. The evil queen's voice
reached her first.
"Well, if it isn't the pretty little
Moon Princess all alone. Did
Endymion tire of you already?"
Serenity's fists clenched at her
sides, but she did not answer the
woman.
"What's the matter, Princess? Too
weak to fight back? You're nothing
without your little Senshi friends, aren't
you? And they turned out to be
rather weak."
Serenity met Beryl's gaze steadily
and said one unprincessly word.
"Bitch."
Rage twisted Beryl's face and her
eyes narrowed. She spoke in an icy tone.
"No one speaks to me that way. NO
ONE!"
Beryl extended her hand and began
reaching towards Serenity, malicious
delight covering her face. Serenity was
frozen, but silently prayed to the Goddess.
*Let us all find each other again in the
Next World. Please let us be together
again.* Serenity reflexively pulled away
from Beryl's talons. A red rose suddenly dashed
between them, forcing Beryl to lean back.
Serenity backed away from her.
Endymion didn't even bother to think
about where he got the rose from, he simply
darted forward to stand in front of Serenity.
Raising an arm to shield the Princess,
he said, "Leave her alone, Beryl."
Beryl's face changed into a look of twisted
yearning. She seemed to lean towards Endymion
saying, "It's not too late, Endymion.
You can still join me. We can rule the Universe
together."
The Prince's face twisted in disgust as
he said,
"Why would I want to be with a snake
like you, all twisted and ugly and filled with
bitterness?"
A keening sound escaped Beryl's mouth
as she flinched back as if he had struck
her. Her eyes lit with the fires of rage
and an aura of green lightening surrounded
her. She rose above the pair, the air
crackling around her. Extending a hand, her
aura expanded and then a funnel of green
lightening formed over Endymion. Whipping the
air into currents, it sucked the young
prince up and away from his Princess.
Selenity gasped, her chest heaving.
She could vaguely hear the two cats breathing
heavily next to her. The handle of the
Moon Wand dug into her skin, but she ignored the
pain, concentrating on finding her daughter.
Bursting into the Gardens from the ruins
of the Palace, she saw a green whirlwind
coming from the Patio. Not stopping to breathe,
she spun on her heel and headed towards
it, praying all the while. *Please, not Serenity.
Please, not my daughter. Please let me
save them and their dreams.*
Serenity raced towards the edge of
the balcony. Her beloved, no, it couldn't end
like this. His face was twisted in panic
and his eyes were firmly locked on hers.
"Serenity, run!"
Her entire being rebelled at that.
"No! I want to be with you!"
She threw herself into the whirlwind, letting it lift her towards him.
"No!"
Endymion's heart broke. What was she doing?
She was throwing her life away. For him!
He strained down towards her, reaching
for her hand. Stretching her body upwards,
Serenity reached for him. Their fingertips
brushed and then slid away. Desperately,
their bodies yearned for each other, wanting
this last final contact. Their fingertips
brushed again, and Endymion's hand clasped
around Serenity's. Their gaze remained
firm and their eyes conveyed all the love
the pair felt. A cry of fury escaped Beryl
and another lightning bolt went crashing
down towards the pair.
Selenity burst into view, just at
the bolt hit them. She fell to her knees as she
heard her daughter scream and then fall
silent. Tears streamed down her face as she stared
at Serenity's body floating in the air.
Besides her, she could hear Luna whisper,
"No...not the Princess."
Selenity bowed her head and saw the Wand
still in her grasp. Her anguish solidified and mixed
with rage. She whispered,
"Don't worry, darling. I will not
let it end this way. I will not let them take
away your future."
Luna looked up at the Queen, shock on her
face.
"If you use the crystal, you'll
use up all your energy. You'll die."
Selenity lightly brushed the Silver Crystal,
nestled in the Wand, still laying in her lap.
Meeting the Cat's eyes, she said in a
low tone,
"It is the only way, Luna. I must
sacrifice my Kingdom if the Universe
is to know peace. Cosmic Moon Power."
Beams of radiant pink light spun
out from the Crystal, pentrating the Negaverse
Army. The light ripped through the Shadow,
reducing it back to the original 7. The Shadow
warriors shriveled and each became condensed
into a brightly coloured crystal. Those
crystals traveled back through the pink
beams into the Silver Crystal. Beryl shrieked in
pain and anger as the light spun into
a cocoon around the Evil Queen. It created a vortex
and literally tore the Queen apart as
it sucked her into a different dimension. All those who
had been who had been infected with the
dark Negaverse energy suffered the same fate.
Selenity stood, bearing the wand, and
moved closer to the main battlefield. The army
was decimated admist cries of pain. She
wept at the sight of her Kingdom, her people.
Finally, the soldiers were banished. She
slumped down against a broken pillar, clutching
the Silver Crystal. Her gaze fell on the
broken bodies of the Senshi. Wearily, she spoke,
"I must send them all to a new future on Earth. None of them will remember
anything about this time or place. I will
never see my beloved daughter again or
you two either. But this is the only way
for any of you to live on."
She fixed a mental image of all the
Senshi, the Princess, Endymion and the Cats
in her mind. Shakily raising the Wand
above her head, she said,
"Serenity and her Court will need your help if the Negaverse ever breaks
free. All
of you will be reborn on Earth with no
memory of the Moon Kingdom whatsoever. But if
evil forces try to repeat what happened
here, you two will know what to do."
Beams of light shot from the Moon
Crescent Wand again and those in her mental
picture became enveloped in bubbles. Selenity
released the Crystal and it floated towards
the Earth. Luna whispered,
"Queen Selenity..."
before she and Artemis were enclosed in canisters. They all
rose towards the sky and towards Earth.
Queen Selenity spoke a final time,
"On behalf
of the Moon, you will be free again."
The Moon Wand slipped from her fingers,
but before it hit the ground, it too was enveloped
in a canister. The Crystal shone brightly
in midair for a moment before enveloping the
entire Moon in a pink glow. The bubbles
and canisters blinked out of existence as the Crystal
shattered into seven pieces, it too fading.
The Moon was silent. There wasn't
even any wind to shift the dust around. What
had once been a bustling home, kingdom,
was now rubble and corpses. Soon even those
were gone, destroyed by the passage of
time. In the years to come, Humanity would
visit the Moon. All they would find would
be the dust of those left behind. Still, it
would be centuries before life reached
the Moon again. For now, it was simply silent.
Although, there was still one being left
on the Moon. The Goddess walked among her fallen
Children and grieved. She would have aided
them if She could, but even She could not
go against what the Powers that Be had
declared. The White Moon people must die now so
that the Future could be saved. The Goddess
saw the wisdom of this, but She still cried
for her people. When She came to the fallen
body of Queen Selenity, She stood silently
for a moment before coming to a decision.
"I may not have been able to save the Moon Kingdom, but I can save their dreams."
Extending out a pale hand, creamy white
light spilled forth and bathed the Moon. All the
dreams and hopes that lay among the rubble
of the Moon Kingdom gained new life. *I wish
I could fight along side my Senshi.* *I
wish I could create, not destroy.* *I wish for peace.*
*I wish for my Love.* *I wish for my Daughter
to always be happy.* One by one, they swirled into
the air and then darted to Earth to be
fulfilled. Lastly, the white light surrounded
Selenity's still body and the Goddess
whispered to her,
"Sleep now, my Child. When your
Daughter returns to the Moon, awaken to show her
the way."
As her words faded, so did the Goddess.
And the Moon was silent.