Gundam Moonshine
Chapter 10
~Shi~
AN: That was a long wait. I'm glad you're here! I hope you see this since I posted it on Monday...Enjoy!!!
Disclaimers: Don't look at me, i don't own SM or GW
A Summary of last chapter in a nutshell: Serena goes to rescue Setsuna, Haruka, and Michriu, and uses a brand new weapon. Setsuna brought them valuable information about Libra, as well as news that Relena Peacecraft was on board it. Heero goes to save her, and Serena is weakened by her new weapon
Key:
~~ ~~ Dream
* * Thought
:: :: Action
----------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------
::tap tap::
"Are you awake, Serena?" Howard asked from outside the small sick room.
"Err, yes! Come in," Serena said trying to gather up the energy to sit up in bed.
"Oh don't get up on my account," Howard said as he stepped in the room, "I just came to tell you that I was able to fix all the kinks on Moonshine. The wing attack should be fully functional now."
"Thank you. That's good to hear... Now if only I could get out of this bed I could help out again!"
"Don't try and rush anything! You need to get better, Serena. I can understand why you did what you did, but I think it was a little irrational. You have to take care of yourself, there was no reason why you had to put yourself at risk for that small battle."
Serena nodded, she had thought about that a lot in the past twenty-four hours. She couldn't think of any reasonable explanation for why she had been so blinded by the need for victory and Heero's approval that she had acted so rash. Heero and Duo had been so close to her, something could have happened to them...that thought killed her.
"Don't worry about it anymore," Howard said sensing her mood, "nothing will go wrong next time."
"Yeah," Serena nodded again, seemingly lost in her thoughts.
Howard figured he should leave her alone so he said goodbye and started backing out of the room.
"Wait," Serena said. When Howard stopped backing out and looked at her questioningly she said, "Have you had any news from Heero?"
"No," Howard said carefully, not wanting to cause her any worry, "but it's still early."
"Yeah."
"Get some rest," Howard said as he closed the door, leaving Serena alone again.
Serena sighed. All she had done once she had woken up that day was be visited by nearly all her friends, even Wufei came to see her, though she suspected Makoto had something to do with it.
She'd fallen into a deep sleep once Heero said he was leaving to go to Libra. She wasn't too worried about him going to see Relena, she just hoped they made it out alright. Something in the way he told her she couldn't go seemed as if he almost respected her for doing what she did. That was the part that bothered her, not that he respected her, but that he respected her for the destruction she'd caused (if that makes any since). That wasn't the kind of respect she wanted at all.
*I just have to get better. There is a battle coming up soon and I have to be there to protect my friends and all the innocent people of the universe. Her whole body seemed to ache when she thought about fighting and causing more destruction. Her body was refusing to allow her to fight, it was as if it knew something she didn't. Soon, she fell into an uncomfortable sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~
Serenity floated in a white, misty void. She felt warm, safe and happy. She closed her eyes and marveled in the peacefulness of this place she was in.
She felt that she wasn't alone and she knew she loved the presence with her.
"You have forgotten who you are, you have forgotten me," a loving, yet sad voice said.
Serenity opened her eyes with surprise, not that the presence had spoken but at what it said. "I am sorry! I did not mean to!" Serena said turning to face the silver haired figure of Queen Serenity who was floating at an angle next to her in the void.
The beautiful queen smiled sadly, "It is ok my daughter, everyone is entitled to a little bit of selfishness now and again." Then the queen looked her in the eye and lost all traces of her sadness and turned serious, "You made a decision, but now you must remember who you really are. You are being blinded by the teachings of the heartless warrior. You know that it is not your nature, which is why you are so sick...you must find your true nature. You will be faced with many battles but you cannot win them by fighting the way you have been. The only way is to look inside yourself."
"What does that mean? Mother, please! How do I save people without fighting? I have forgotten it all, I can not remember what I am suppose to be, and I do not want to forget you! I do not want to forget! Please tell me what I must do!"
"For love and for justice, forget the warriors pride-"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The queen's voice faded as Serena woke up. "For love and for justice?" she repeated covering her wet forehead with her hand. "Forget the warriors pride..."
"That must have been some dream," a deep voice said from beside her.
Serena turned, startled to the girl sitting next to her. "Haruka, right? You startled me, I didn't hear you come in."
Haruka stood up from the chair she was sitting in, her face took on a firm set as she said, "I admire how strong you are, I believe it's a good quality for soldiers to have, but as much as I hate to say it, it isn't you."
Serena looked at Haruka in surprise. *How does she know so much about me?* she thought, but she looked down in shame, "I know, I've felt it too...I just don't know how to find myself."
Haruka smiled, "I've always had faith in you Prin...ah...Serena!" She said putting her hand behind her back with a sweat drop on her forehead.
Serena looked at her even more confused.
"If you keep this up, Haruka, you'll end up making her more confused then she is now," Michiru said from the doorway in an accusing, yet humorous manner.
Haruka got up, forgetting about Serena sitting in the bed next to her. She linked arms with Michiru and walked out of the sick room leaving Serena all alone and confused as ever.
"I was only trying to help," Haruka said pouting her lip in mock hurt. "How are we supposed to protect her if she goes out acting all suicidal?"
"She'll find herself, you know that," Michiru said taking on a soft tone again. "I'm just glad we found her after all these years..."
"Yeah."
---
After she had woken up from the dream with her mother, Serena found herself in full strength, almost as if she had never been so weak she couldn't hold her head up. She didn't forget the dream, however. Serena knew it was her mother, but it didn't fit in with what she'd remembered from her past...could there be something else she was missing? Something Haruka and Michiru had to do with? They were opening a whole new life she never knew.
----------------
Later that day, while Serena and the others were playing cards and chatting to pass time, Heero returned with Relena. Serena tried to read his face and see if anything had gone on between them, but found Heero impossible to read and Relena only looking sad. Serena found out she looked so sad because she had not been able make her brother Zechs understand her.
Serena had embraced her warmly upon seeing her again, and remarked that her friend had been up to so much since the last time they had been together. (With Relena being queen and all.)
Heero and Relena didn't even have time to settle in. Not too long after they had reached Peacemillion, the huge control room screen lighted up with an intergalactic message.
A silence fell over the entire galaxy when the face of Zechs Marques, leader of the well-known terrorist group, White Fang, came on the screen.
The look in his almost animal eyes caused a shiver among all that looked upon his face as he spoke to the galaxy. "As leader of the White Fang organization, I come before you all in behalf of the people of the colonies. For too long the colonies have been ruled by the likes of the people of earth, and enough is enough. After I declared the colonies independent the people of earth continued to ignore my threats and I have no choice but to declare war between the colonies and the earth. I repeat the colonies are at war with the earth. Thank you."
Long after the screen had turned off, the team on Peacmillion was silent. "This is not what the people of the colonies want!" Makoto jumped up enraged.
"The colonies don't want war with the Earth," Raye agreed.
"It's White Fang that wants the fight with the Earth, not the colonies. I just hope that when the battle begins it's not the colonies that suffer for White Fangs rash actions," Quatre said solemnly.
"This is all Quintz's doing, I think he has taken his grudge with the earth too far, he's including too many lives in this fight," Setsuna said sadly.
"No, I think Zechs has just gone wacko and Quintz has no control over him," Duo said. After he had said it he immediately regretted it with an elbow from Ami. "Uh, sorry Relena, I wasn't thinking-"
"It's ok," Relena said sadly, "My brother is going too far, we couldn't talk any sense into him...I..." Relena couldn't finish her sentence, she was too strong to cry but no words would come to her. Serena who was sitting besides her hugged her to try to comfort her.
Trying to get everything back on topic, and ignoring everyone's weakness, Wufei said, "Treize, I'm sure, is on his way to battle Zechs, neither the Earth, nor the White Fang will give up without a fight."
"Do you think Treize will be rash enough to attack Libra with its cannon?" Trowa asked. "We ourselves have seen that it is not a force to be reckoned with."
"Then perhaps they'll attack a colony," Haruka stated with full support from Michiru.
"We can't let that happen," Noin said determined. "Look around at all these great warriors we have in here. Together we can make a difference in this war, we have to protect the colonies."
"But, we're not on the same side as White Fang," Sally Po assured.
"Right," Noin agreed, "we protect the Earth too.
-----------
"Serena! It's time!" Raye said running into Serena's room, scaring the living daylights out of her. "Libra has turned its cannon on one of the colonies that has rejected the ways of White Fang!"
Serena jumped out of bed, over the initial shock of being so rudely awakened. The announcement had only happened four hours ago and White Fang was already attacking. All she'd wanted was a few hours of meditation in her room to figure out what she was going to do about her dream, and she'd fallen asleep. She quickly followed Raye to the hanger where the other pilots were waiting.
Serena looked at all her friends that were there, that counted on her. Raye, Minako, Makoto, Ami, Quatre, Duo, Heero, Wufei, Trowa, and Noin were all ready for battle. Serena also noticed with surprise that Setsuna, Haruka and Michiru were also suited up for battle, she hadn't know that they were going to help in the fight.
Sally Po and Howard walked into the room and started telling them what they needed to know to fight. "We know that this colony has denied to follow White Fangs lead by declaring it apart of the foundation as well as at war with earth. They have said they wish for peace only with earth. We believe that this is why White Fang is attacking. And, remember, Libra's cannon has a bug in it; it cannot fire twice in a row. Use this information to your advantage.
Without anymore said the pilots jumped into their mobile suits and went out to space determined to end this thing here. As they were heading towards Libra they weren't surprised to see thousands of mobile dolls shoot out of Libra to meet them. But, not only were they meeting the gundam pilots and friends, from the opposite side of the colony came another army of manned mobile suits. Treize.
"I wish to fight a duel with Zechs Marques, and end this war with as little blood shed as possible," Treize said appearing on everyone's video screens in the area.
Serena held her breath, praying that it would be that easy, she didn't want to spill any blood. After a few minutes though, Zechs answer was apparent when his army of mobile dolls started to attack.
"Darn!" Serena shouted.
"Serena, you and your friends stay and fight off the dolls, help the rest of us get to Libra so we can destroy the cannon," Quatre said.
"Got it," Serena said trying to hide the sickness consuming her body from the thought of battle.
"I'll take Treize," Wufei said in a manner demanding compliance. Nobody denied him his wishes.
As Serena forced herself to destroy a few dolls so the rest of the gundam pilots could have a clear route to Libra, her thoughts were racing and her mind was feverish. *I don't know if I can hold out this entire time...But I can't let my friends down, I have to save this colony!* Each time she struck another mobile suit, her body ached with more pain.
"The cannon is preparing to fire! Get out of the way, fast!" Duo yelled to his fellow gundam pilots.
Serena froze in place and stared terrified at the cannon, she could see it preparing to fire and that the gundams were in its path. "Hurry!" she screamed as she saw the yellow energy being shot out of the cannon. Without any time to spare they dodged out of the way as the gigantic energy blast rushed toward the colony. Serena closed her eyes with a cry escaping her lips, all those innocent people in the colony had to die, and there was nothing she could do! She felt the pain, more than from just sorrow.
She heard gasps over her radio coming from her friends in the colored taruses. Serena opened her eyes in terror as she say that the cannon missed the colony all together and exploded into earth.
*No!* Serena thought her eyes wide and her body in even more pain. *This can't be!* She thought of all the people of earth and how they were injured. *The earth may not last another blow,* she thought wide eyed.
By now Treize and his army had attacked the White Fang mobile dolls with full force; Wufei was no doubt seeking out Treize to have his duel. Noin was nowhere to be seen.
Duo, Quatre, Trowa, and Heero were most likely infiltrating and attacking Libra. All Serena could do was sit there, watching the explosions all around her. Watch as her friends fought around her; Raye, Minako, Ami, Mokoto, Haruka, Michiru, and Setsuna all fought to protect her.
She looked on with relief, for before Libra could fire it's second attack on earth, an explosion erupted from deep within it. Still in pain with an unknown source Serena was glad the earth was safe. But, her happy tidings didn't last for long as she saw that Libra itself was plummeting toward the earth.
"No!" she screamed.
"Serena why aren't you fighting?" Raye said as her red tarause suit smashed into a mobile doll next to Serena.
"Thanks," Serena said numbly, referring to her friend saving her, "I...I can't really explain...I don't know-"
Before Serena could finish her sentence a mobile doll shot Reye's Taurus and it blew up in a huge, bright explosion.
"No!" Serena cried with tears falling down her face. She saw Raye's body floating lifelessly, perhaps just unconsciously, in her space suit. "Raye..." Serena felt so sick she almost fainted in her seat. *Raye, No!*
"Pull yourself together, little bunny," Haruka said hurriedly over her radio.
"Serena, we need you to be strong," Minako said with a sob over her radio.
"Yeah," Makoto said with emotion apparent in her voice, "Raye would want you to go on, remember what you're fighting for!"
Serena attempted once again to put her hands to the controls of Moonshine, with a glance to earth and the huge space fortress moving ever more faster toward it.
"I'll try," she said trying to control herself and ignore the pain. As she said that, two more explosions erupted near her, the yellow and green tauruses were no longer there. Serena called out her friends' names again. Nearly falling out of her seat, eyes watering in pain and sadness. "No!"
In her state, Serena didn't notice the mobile suit right in front of her that was pointing it's huge cannon at her. It prepared to fire and just in time a blue tauruses jumped right in front of her and took the blow; it too exploded.
"Nooo!" Serena cried almost in hysterics, "Ami, Makoto, Reye, Minakoooo! It's all my fault, I never should have gotten you into this..."
"They were here because they wanted to, they believed in you and your ability to reach your goal. You must go on," Michiru urged kindly.
"Yeah, don't give up on us Princess, the fight isn't over yet," Haruka assured over the radio, putting emphasis on 'Princess.'
"I know you have it in you, Princess," Setsuna said.
"Wha...what do you mean? Princess?" Serena asked between sobs. She closed her eyes as her mind returned back to her dream. That lady, her mother, was a Queen. Which meant she was a princess, is a princess?
Slowly she opened her eyes and in front of her, seeming to fill her entire window, was the moon, full and golden. Tears flowed down her face as she remembered her life on the moon. She felt her body remembering the ways of the Lunarians and the way of her mother. A crescent moon symbol appeared on her forehead for the first time in over a few thousand years and she remembered.
"I am Princess Serenity of the Moon Kingdom. I swore to protect this universe with love and justice." As she spoke the symbol on her forehead grew brighter and brighter. She spun her gundam around to face the huge flaming mass that had once been Libra, which was shooting closer and closer to earth. "Heero..." She could feel that he would save the earth and she believed he would.
She turned her gundam back to the battlefield, which she was in the middle of. Treize was dead she could just feel it. And what was the reason? There were more still out there, fighting for their lives all of them; it didn't have to be that way. And, her friends; they were gone, yet she could feel them with her, urging her save them, save their universe.
Moonshine opened the hatch and Serena floated out, her spacesuit truing into a long, beautiful, white, flowing gown. Her hair was in two buns, both with rivers of long, golden hair flowing from them. The silver imperial crystal, Ginzuishou, floated from Moonshine to Princess Serenity as she whispered, : "Remember, love. Stop the fighting, too much blood has been shed, none of us want this."
As she said this, a white glow filled the darkness of space and enveloped everything. The mobile dolls grew dark, no longer running; solders of the manned suits opened the hatches of their suits and floated into space, into the warm, white light. One by one, they disappeared as Princess Serenity teleported them to the nearest colony for safety.
---
"There is no way we can stop it, it's too huge and our weapons are too weak," Duo said in defeat, referring to the hunk of Libra falling toward earth.
"We have to try, do as much as we can," Trowa said determined.
"Right," Quatre said. Heero, Quatre, Trowa, and Duo all attack the falling hunk of Libra using all they have but hardly make a dent, and it is moving closer and closer to earth's gravitational pull.
They almost gave up when they heard the voice of their friend over the radio. "Hey guys, thought you might need this," Wufei said as he pulled his gundam near Wing Zero.
"That's Wing Zero's buster rifle!" Quatre said amazed and overjoyed.
"Thank you," Heero said sternly as his gundam took the rifle and blasted off toward the head of the hunk of ship.
"Just make it happen!" Wufei yelled.
"It's impossible, for normal people!" Quatre said unsure.
"If anyone's crazy enough to try, it's Heero," Duo said with a cynical laugh.
"He's the only one who can do it," Trowa said.
Wing Zero struggled to get in front of the huge hunk of ship to get a good shot, due to the fact that he was now entering the dangerous atmosphere of earth's gravitational pull. The suite threatened pull apart in flames. Despite the massive pain that was surging through his body, Heero managed to put Wing Zero in the right position to shoot and completely obliterate the hunk of burning ship.
As he was about to push the trigger to the rifle, a white light engulfed everything around him. He felt calm, and peaceful, even loved; feelings he had never felt before. *Serena...* he thought, *No, I must resist it, I have to save the earth!* Resisting the urge to jump out of his gundam and embrace her love completely, Heero pushed the trigger to his blaster rifle and destroyed the ominous debris from Libra.
"Mis...mission...com...completed!" He said with much effort as the gundam burned up around him.
-------------------------
Heero opened his eyes expecting to feel pain, but he felt none. He couldn't understand what had happened. He looked over his body for any indication of the battle he swore he had just gone through, but with the sun shining brightly down on him he realized he felt completely fine. "Am I dead?" he wondered out loud.
"No Heero," the kind, and somehow sad voice of Quatre said beside him. As Heero looked at him confused Quatre continued, "You saved earth from destruction and everlasting darkness."
This sounded good to Heero, but he still noticed the sadness in Quatre's voice. His throat grew dry as his mind turned over the possibilities. "Is everyone ok?" he asked, his voice showing more emotion then he would have wanted.
Quatre looked at him, tears threatening to spill, "Everyone's fine...except for..." Quatre's voice cracked no longer able to say the horrible truth. He pointed weakly to a group of people.
Heero looked over to the group, confused. Duo, Wufei, Trowa, Setsuna, Haruka, Michiru, Minako, Reye, Makoto, and Ami were all in a circle looking down, their faces mirroring Quatre's. Everyone was there except for...
Heero held his breath and it felt as if his heart stopped beating. He ran over to the circle, everyone parted for him to get through. He froze when he saw her, lying as if dead. His face was a mask to those who looked on but inside he was dying. Never had he felt like he did. *Serena? She can't be...Not now, not before I could tell her how I feel*
He fell to his knees, his legs no longer strong enough to hold him, and held her lifeless body in his arms.
(Play "Shape of My Heart," Black and Blue, Backstreet Boys)
Baby, Please try to forgive me
Stay here don't put out the glow
Hold me now don't bother
If every minute it makes me weaker
You can save me from the man that I've become
Looking back on the things I've done
I was trying to be someone
I played my part,
Kept you in the dark
Now let me show you the shape of my heart
Sadness is beautiful,
Loneliness is tradgical
So help me I can't make this now
Touch me now don't bother
If every second it makes me weaker
You can save me from the man I've become
Looking back on the things I've done
I was trying to be someone
I played my part
Kept you in the dark
Now let me show you the shape of my heart
I'm hear with my confession
Got nothing to hide no more
I don't know where to start
But to show you the shape of my heart
I'm looking back on things I've done
I never want to play the same old part
Keep you in the dark
Now let me show you the shape of my heart
Looking back on the things I've done
I was trying to be someone
Played my part
Kept you in the dark
Now let me show you the true shape of my heart
Looking back on the things I've done
I was trying to be someone
Played my part
Kept you in the dark
Now let me show you the shape
Show you the shape of my heart
A single tear rolled down his cheek and landed on Serena's cheek. Putting his hand behind her head he put his forehead against hers and closed his eyes causing more tears to fall. He rocked her lifeless form back and forth.
The crowd around Heero and Serena gasped. They couldn't believe what was happening.
Heero opened his eyes and was met with two bright, beautiful, loving, blue eyes.
"She was d-dead!" Minako stammered amazed.
"I checked myself!" Ami said astonished. (Come on, like you didn't know this was going to happen! ::Sniff:: ;})
The group around the couple started jumping around and hugging each other, arguing over how this miracle could happen. All the solders that had been teleported to the colony, and even the entire colony seemed to be crying and hugging each other, rejoicing.
And all through it all Serena and Heero stayed on the ground holding each other, and engaged in the most passionate kiss known to man.
When they pulled out of it Serena laughed happily. *I almost lost her, I could have never heard her laugh again...* The beautiful ringing of her happy laughter caused Heero to laugh as well. At first he felt awkward laughing, he had never done it like this before, never felt so happy before in his life.
"Never leave again," he said suddenly turning sober.
Serena answered him with a kiss.
---------------------------------------------------------
Boy was that sappy! :)
I hope you like sappy...ok so there will be one more chapter finishing everything up. I really hope i can get it out soon. Sorry this one has taken me so long.
Chapter 10
~Shi~
AN: That was a long wait. I'm glad you're here! I hope you see this since I posted it on Monday...Enjoy!!!
Disclaimers: Don't look at me, i don't own SM or GW
A Summary of last chapter in a nutshell: Serena goes to rescue Setsuna, Haruka, and Michriu, and uses a brand new weapon. Setsuna brought them valuable information about Libra, as well as news that Relena Peacecraft was on board it. Heero goes to save her, and Serena is weakened by her new weapon
Key:
~~ ~~ Dream
* * Thought
:: :: Action
----------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------
::tap tap::
"Are you awake, Serena?" Howard asked from outside the small sick room.
"Err, yes! Come in," Serena said trying to gather up the energy to sit up in bed.
"Oh don't get up on my account," Howard said as he stepped in the room, "I just came to tell you that I was able to fix all the kinks on Moonshine. The wing attack should be fully functional now."
"Thank you. That's good to hear... Now if only I could get out of this bed I could help out again!"
"Don't try and rush anything! You need to get better, Serena. I can understand why you did what you did, but I think it was a little irrational. You have to take care of yourself, there was no reason why you had to put yourself at risk for that small battle."
Serena nodded, she had thought about that a lot in the past twenty-four hours. She couldn't think of any reasonable explanation for why she had been so blinded by the need for victory and Heero's approval that she had acted so rash. Heero and Duo had been so close to her, something could have happened to them...that thought killed her.
"Don't worry about it anymore," Howard said sensing her mood, "nothing will go wrong next time."
"Yeah," Serena nodded again, seemingly lost in her thoughts.
Howard figured he should leave her alone so he said goodbye and started backing out of the room.
"Wait," Serena said. When Howard stopped backing out and looked at her questioningly she said, "Have you had any news from Heero?"
"No," Howard said carefully, not wanting to cause her any worry, "but it's still early."
"Yeah."
"Get some rest," Howard said as he closed the door, leaving Serena alone again.
Serena sighed. All she had done once she had woken up that day was be visited by nearly all her friends, even Wufei came to see her, though she suspected Makoto had something to do with it.
She'd fallen into a deep sleep once Heero said he was leaving to go to Libra. She wasn't too worried about him going to see Relena, she just hoped they made it out alright. Something in the way he told her she couldn't go seemed as if he almost respected her for doing what she did. That was the part that bothered her, not that he respected her, but that he respected her for the destruction she'd caused (if that makes any since). That wasn't the kind of respect she wanted at all.
*I just have to get better. There is a battle coming up soon and I have to be there to protect my friends and all the innocent people of the universe. Her whole body seemed to ache when she thought about fighting and causing more destruction. Her body was refusing to allow her to fight, it was as if it knew something she didn't. Soon, she fell into an uncomfortable sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~
Serenity floated in a white, misty void. She felt warm, safe and happy. She closed her eyes and marveled in the peacefulness of this place she was in.
She felt that she wasn't alone and she knew she loved the presence with her.
"You have forgotten who you are, you have forgotten me," a loving, yet sad voice said.
Serenity opened her eyes with surprise, not that the presence had spoken but at what it said. "I am sorry! I did not mean to!" Serena said turning to face the silver haired figure of Queen Serenity who was floating at an angle next to her in the void.
The beautiful queen smiled sadly, "It is ok my daughter, everyone is entitled to a little bit of selfishness now and again." Then the queen looked her in the eye and lost all traces of her sadness and turned serious, "You made a decision, but now you must remember who you really are. You are being blinded by the teachings of the heartless warrior. You know that it is not your nature, which is why you are so sick...you must find your true nature. You will be faced with many battles but you cannot win them by fighting the way you have been. The only way is to look inside yourself."
"What does that mean? Mother, please! How do I save people without fighting? I have forgotten it all, I can not remember what I am suppose to be, and I do not want to forget you! I do not want to forget! Please tell me what I must do!"
"For love and for justice, forget the warriors pride-"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The queen's voice faded as Serena woke up. "For love and for justice?" she repeated covering her wet forehead with her hand. "Forget the warriors pride..."
"That must have been some dream," a deep voice said from beside her.
Serena turned, startled to the girl sitting next to her. "Haruka, right? You startled me, I didn't hear you come in."
Haruka stood up from the chair she was sitting in, her face took on a firm set as she said, "I admire how strong you are, I believe it's a good quality for soldiers to have, but as much as I hate to say it, it isn't you."
Serena looked at Haruka in surprise. *How does she know so much about me?* she thought, but she looked down in shame, "I know, I've felt it too...I just don't know how to find myself."
Haruka smiled, "I've always had faith in you Prin...ah...Serena!" She said putting her hand behind her back with a sweat drop on her forehead.
Serena looked at her even more confused.
"If you keep this up, Haruka, you'll end up making her more confused then she is now," Michiru said from the doorway in an accusing, yet humorous manner.
Haruka got up, forgetting about Serena sitting in the bed next to her. She linked arms with Michiru and walked out of the sick room leaving Serena all alone and confused as ever.
"I was only trying to help," Haruka said pouting her lip in mock hurt. "How are we supposed to protect her if she goes out acting all suicidal?"
"She'll find herself, you know that," Michiru said taking on a soft tone again. "I'm just glad we found her after all these years..."
"Yeah."
---
After she had woken up from the dream with her mother, Serena found herself in full strength, almost as if she had never been so weak she couldn't hold her head up. She didn't forget the dream, however. Serena knew it was her mother, but it didn't fit in with what she'd remembered from her past...could there be something else she was missing? Something Haruka and Michiru had to do with? They were opening a whole new life she never knew.
----------------
Later that day, while Serena and the others were playing cards and chatting to pass time, Heero returned with Relena. Serena tried to read his face and see if anything had gone on between them, but found Heero impossible to read and Relena only looking sad. Serena found out she looked so sad because she had not been able make her brother Zechs understand her.
Serena had embraced her warmly upon seeing her again, and remarked that her friend had been up to so much since the last time they had been together. (With Relena being queen and all.)
Heero and Relena didn't even have time to settle in. Not too long after they had reached Peacemillion, the huge control room screen lighted up with an intergalactic message.
A silence fell over the entire galaxy when the face of Zechs Marques, leader of the well-known terrorist group, White Fang, came on the screen.
The look in his almost animal eyes caused a shiver among all that looked upon his face as he spoke to the galaxy. "As leader of the White Fang organization, I come before you all in behalf of the people of the colonies. For too long the colonies have been ruled by the likes of the people of earth, and enough is enough. After I declared the colonies independent the people of earth continued to ignore my threats and I have no choice but to declare war between the colonies and the earth. I repeat the colonies are at war with the earth. Thank you."
Long after the screen had turned off, the team on Peacmillion was silent. "This is not what the people of the colonies want!" Makoto jumped up enraged.
"The colonies don't want war with the Earth," Raye agreed.
"It's White Fang that wants the fight with the Earth, not the colonies. I just hope that when the battle begins it's not the colonies that suffer for White Fangs rash actions," Quatre said solemnly.
"This is all Quintz's doing, I think he has taken his grudge with the earth too far, he's including too many lives in this fight," Setsuna said sadly.
"No, I think Zechs has just gone wacko and Quintz has no control over him," Duo said. After he had said it he immediately regretted it with an elbow from Ami. "Uh, sorry Relena, I wasn't thinking-"
"It's ok," Relena said sadly, "My brother is going too far, we couldn't talk any sense into him...I..." Relena couldn't finish her sentence, she was too strong to cry but no words would come to her. Serena who was sitting besides her hugged her to try to comfort her.
Trying to get everything back on topic, and ignoring everyone's weakness, Wufei said, "Treize, I'm sure, is on his way to battle Zechs, neither the Earth, nor the White Fang will give up without a fight."
"Do you think Treize will be rash enough to attack Libra with its cannon?" Trowa asked. "We ourselves have seen that it is not a force to be reckoned with."
"Then perhaps they'll attack a colony," Haruka stated with full support from Michiru.
"We can't let that happen," Noin said determined. "Look around at all these great warriors we have in here. Together we can make a difference in this war, we have to protect the colonies."
"But, we're not on the same side as White Fang," Sally Po assured.
"Right," Noin agreed, "we protect the Earth too.
-----------
"Serena! It's time!" Raye said running into Serena's room, scaring the living daylights out of her. "Libra has turned its cannon on one of the colonies that has rejected the ways of White Fang!"
Serena jumped out of bed, over the initial shock of being so rudely awakened. The announcement had only happened four hours ago and White Fang was already attacking. All she'd wanted was a few hours of meditation in her room to figure out what she was going to do about her dream, and she'd fallen asleep. She quickly followed Raye to the hanger where the other pilots were waiting.
Serena looked at all her friends that were there, that counted on her. Raye, Minako, Makoto, Ami, Quatre, Duo, Heero, Wufei, Trowa, and Noin were all ready for battle. Serena also noticed with surprise that Setsuna, Haruka and Michiru were also suited up for battle, she hadn't know that they were going to help in the fight.
Sally Po and Howard walked into the room and started telling them what they needed to know to fight. "We know that this colony has denied to follow White Fangs lead by declaring it apart of the foundation as well as at war with earth. They have said they wish for peace only with earth. We believe that this is why White Fang is attacking. And, remember, Libra's cannon has a bug in it; it cannot fire twice in a row. Use this information to your advantage.
Without anymore said the pilots jumped into their mobile suits and went out to space determined to end this thing here. As they were heading towards Libra they weren't surprised to see thousands of mobile dolls shoot out of Libra to meet them. But, not only were they meeting the gundam pilots and friends, from the opposite side of the colony came another army of manned mobile suits. Treize.
"I wish to fight a duel with Zechs Marques, and end this war with as little blood shed as possible," Treize said appearing on everyone's video screens in the area.
Serena held her breath, praying that it would be that easy, she didn't want to spill any blood. After a few minutes though, Zechs answer was apparent when his army of mobile dolls started to attack.
"Darn!" Serena shouted.
"Serena, you and your friends stay and fight off the dolls, help the rest of us get to Libra so we can destroy the cannon," Quatre said.
"Got it," Serena said trying to hide the sickness consuming her body from the thought of battle.
"I'll take Treize," Wufei said in a manner demanding compliance. Nobody denied him his wishes.
As Serena forced herself to destroy a few dolls so the rest of the gundam pilots could have a clear route to Libra, her thoughts were racing and her mind was feverish. *I don't know if I can hold out this entire time...But I can't let my friends down, I have to save this colony!* Each time she struck another mobile suit, her body ached with more pain.
"The cannon is preparing to fire! Get out of the way, fast!" Duo yelled to his fellow gundam pilots.
Serena froze in place and stared terrified at the cannon, she could see it preparing to fire and that the gundams were in its path. "Hurry!" she screamed as she saw the yellow energy being shot out of the cannon. Without any time to spare they dodged out of the way as the gigantic energy blast rushed toward the colony. Serena closed her eyes with a cry escaping her lips, all those innocent people in the colony had to die, and there was nothing she could do! She felt the pain, more than from just sorrow.
She heard gasps over her radio coming from her friends in the colored taruses. Serena opened her eyes in terror as she say that the cannon missed the colony all together and exploded into earth.
*No!* Serena thought her eyes wide and her body in even more pain. *This can't be!* She thought of all the people of earth and how they were injured. *The earth may not last another blow,* she thought wide eyed.
By now Treize and his army had attacked the White Fang mobile dolls with full force; Wufei was no doubt seeking out Treize to have his duel. Noin was nowhere to be seen.
Duo, Quatre, Trowa, and Heero were most likely infiltrating and attacking Libra. All Serena could do was sit there, watching the explosions all around her. Watch as her friends fought around her; Raye, Minako, Ami, Mokoto, Haruka, Michiru, and Setsuna all fought to protect her.
She looked on with relief, for before Libra could fire it's second attack on earth, an explosion erupted from deep within it. Still in pain with an unknown source Serena was glad the earth was safe. But, her happy tidings didn't last for long as she saw that Libra itself was plummeting toward the earth.
"No!" she screamed.
"Serena why aren't you fighting?" Raye said as her red tarause suit smashed into a mobile doll next to Serena.
"Thanks," Serena said numbly, referring to her friend saving her, "I...I can't really explain...I don't know-"
Before Serena could finish her sentence a mobile doll shot Reye's Taurus and it blew up in a huge, bright explosion.
"No!" Serena cried with tears falling down her face. She saw Raye's body floating lifelessly, perhaps just unconsciously, in her space suit. "Raye..." Serena felt so sick she almost fainted in her seat. *Raye, No!*
"Pull yourself together, little bunny," Haruka said hurriedly over her radio.
"Serena, we need you to be strong," Minako said with a sob over her radio.
"Yeah," Makoto said with emotion apparent in her voice, "Raye would want you to go on, remember what you're fighting for!"
Serena attempted once again to put her hands to the controls of Moonshine, with a glance to earth and the huge space fortress moving ever more faster toward it.
"I'll try," she said trying to control herself and ignore the pain. As she said that, two more explosions erupted near her, the yellow and green tauruses were no longer there. Serena called out her friends' names again. Nearly falling out of her seat, eyes watering in pain and sadness. "No!"
In her state, Serena didn't notice the mobile suit right in front of her that was pointing it's huge cannon at her. It prepared to fire and just in time a blue tauruses jumped right in front of her and took the blow; it too exploded.
"Nooo!" Serena cried almost in hysterics, "Ami, Makoto, Reye, Minakoooo! It's all my fault, I never should have gotten you into this..."
"They were here because they wanted to, they believed in you and your ability to reach your goal. You must go on," Michiru urged kindly.
"Yeah, don't give up on us Princess, the fight isn't over yet," Haruka assured over the radio, putting emphasis on 'Princess.'
"I know you have it in you, Princess," Setsuna said.
"Wha...what do you mean? Princess?" Serena asked between sobs. She closed her eyes as her mind returned back to her dream. That lady, her mother, was a Queen. Which meant she was a princess, is a princess?
Slowly she opened her eyes and in front of her, seeming to fill her entire window, was the moon, full and golden. Tears flowed down her face as she remembered her life on the moon. She felt her body remembering the ways of the Lunarians and the way of her mother. A crescent moon symbol appeared on her forehead for the first time in over a few thousand years and she remembered.
"I am Princess Serenity of the Moon Kingdom. I swore to protect this universe with love and justice." As she spoke the symbol on her forehead grew brighter and brighter. She spun her gundam around to face the huge flaming mass that had once been Libra, which was shooting closer and closer to earth. "Heero..." She could feel that he would save the earth and she believed he would.
She turned her gundam back to the battlefield, which she was in the middle of. Treize was dead she could just feel it. And what was the reason? There were more still out there, fighting for their lives all of them; it didn't have to be that way. And, her friends; they were gone, yet she could feel them with her, urging her save them, save their universe.
Moonshine opened the hatch and Serena floated out, her spacesuit truing into a long, beautiful, white, flowing gown. Her hair was in two buns, both with rivers of long, golden hair flowing from them. The silver imperial crystal, Ginzuishou, floated from Moonshine to Princess Serenity as she whispered, : "Remember, love. Stop the fighting, too much blood has been shed, none of us want this."
As she said this, a white glow filled the darkness of space and enveloped everything. The mobile dolls grew dark, no longer running; solders of the manned suits opened the hatches of their suits and floated into space, into the warm, white light. One by one, they disappeared as Princess Serenity teleported them to the nearest colony for safety.
---
"There is no way we can stop it, it's too huge and our weapons are too weak," Duo said in defeat, referring to the hunk of Libra falling toward earth.
"We have to try, do as much as we can," Trowa said determined.
"Right," Quatre said. Heero, Quatre, Trowa, and Duo all attack the falling hunk of Libra using all they have but hardly make a dent, and it is moving closer and closer to earth's gravitational pull.
They almost gave up when they heard the voice of their friend over the radio. "Hey guys, thought you might need this," Wufei said as he pulled his gundam near Wing Zero.
"That's Wing Zero's buster rifle!" Quatre said amazed and overjoyed.
"Thank you," Heero said sternly as his gundam took the rifle and blasted off toward the head of the hunk of ship.
"Just make it happen!" Wufei yelled.
"It's impossible, for normal people!" Quatre said unsure.
"If anyone's crazy enough to try, it's Heero," Duo said with a cynical laugh.
"He's the only one who can do it," Trowa said.
Wing Zero struggled to get in front of the huge hunk of ship to get a good shot, due to the fact that he was now entering the dangerous atmosphere of earth's gravitational pull. The suite threatened pull apart in flames. Despite the massive pain that was surging through his body, Heero managed to put Wing Zero in the right position to shoot and completely obliterate the hunk of burning ship.
As he was about to push the trigger to the rifle, a white light engulfed everything around him. He felt calm, and peaceful, even loved; feelings he had never felt before. *Serena...* he thought, *No, I must resist it, I have to save the earth!* Resisting the urge to jump out of his gundam and embrace her love completely, Heero pushed the trigger to his blaster rifle and destroyed the ominous debris from Libra.
"Mis...mission...com...completed!" He said with much effort as the gundam burned up around him.
-------------------------
Heero opened his eyes expecting to feel pain, but he felt none. He couldn't understand what had happened. He looked over his body for any indication of the battle he swore he had just gone through, but with the sun shining brightly down on him he realized he felt completely fine. "Am I dead?" he wondered out loud.
"No Heero," the kind, and somehow sad voice of Quatre said beside him. As Heero looked at him confused Quatre continued, "You saved earth from destruction and everlasting darkness."
This sounded good to Heero, but he still noticed the sadness in Quatre's voice. His throat grew dry as his mind turned over the possibilities. "Is everyone ok?" he asked, his voice showing more emotion then he would have wanted.
Quatre looked at him, tears threatening to spill, "Everyone's fine...except for..." Quatre's voice cracked no longer able to say the horrible truth. He pointed weakly to a group of people.
Heero looked over to the group, confused. Duo, Wufei, Trowa, Setsuna, Haruka, Michiru, Minako, Reye, Makoto, and Ami were all in a circle looking down, their faces mirroring Quatre's. Everyone was there except for...
Heero held his breath and it felt as if his heart stopped beating. He ran over to the circle, everyone parted for him to get through. He froze when he saw her, lying as if dead. His face was a mask to those who looked on but inside he was dying. Never had he felt like he did. *Serena? She can't be...Not now, not before I could tell her how I feel*
He fell to his knees, his legs no longer strong enough to hold him, and held her lifeless body in his arms.
(Play "Shape of My Heart," Black and Blue, Backstreet Boys)
Baby, Please try to forgive me
Stay here don't put out the glow
Hold me now don't bother
If every minute it makes me weaker
You can save me from the man that I've become
Looking back on the things I've done
I was trying to be someone
I played my part,
Kept you in the dark
Now let me show you the shape of my heart
Sadness is beautiful,
Loneliness is tradgical
So help me I can't make this now
Touch me now don't bother
If every second it makes me weaker
You can save me from the man I've become
Looking back on the things I've done
I was trying to be someone
I played my part
Kept you in the dark
Now let me show you the shape of my heart
I'm hear with my confession
Got nothing to hide no more
I don't know where to start
But to show you the shape of my heart
I'm looking back on things I've done
I never want to play the same old part
Keep you in the dark
Now let me show you the shape of my heart
Looking back on the things I've done
I was trying to be someone
Played my part
Kept you in the dark
Now let me show you the true shape of my heart
Looking back on the things I've done
I was trying to be someone
Played my part
Kept you in the dark
Now let me show you the shape
Show you the shape of my heart
A single tear rolled down his cheek and landed on Serena's cheek. Putting his hand behind her head he put his forehead against hers and closed his eyes causing more tears to fall. He rocked her lifeless form back and forth.
The crowd around Heero and Serena gasped. They couldn't believe what was happening.
Heero opened his eyes and was met with two bright, beautiful, loving, blue eyes.
"She was d-dead!" Minako stammered amazed.
"I checked myself!" Ami said astonished. (Come on, like you didn't know this was going to happen! ::Sniff:: ;})
The group around the couple started jumping around and hugging each other, arguing over how this miracle could happen. All the solders that had been teleported to the colony, and even the entire colony seemed to be crying and hugging each other, rejoicing.
And all through it all Serena and Heero stayed on the ground holding each other, and engaged in the most passionate kiss known to man.
When they pulled out of it Serena laughed happily. *I almost lost her, I could have never heard her laugh again...* The beautiful ringing of her happy laughter caused Heero to laugh as well. At first he felt awkward laughing, he had never done it like this before, never felt so happy before in his life.
"Never leave again," he said suddenly turning sober.
Serena answered him with a kiss.
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Boy was that sappy! :)
I hope you like sappy...ok so there will be one more chapter finishing everything up. I really hope i can get it out soon. Sorry this one has taken me so long.