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Part Twenty-One: Back to the beginning. Orion's history
The three golden-robed figures bowed low as the Sacred Child approached them through the mists of the tunnels. They'd agreed to meet here, and the Child was not looking forward to the inevitable scolding she was to receive. She was surprised when Guardian Father's first words were about something else entirely.
"Child, I am glad you have come. The Neo Moon Princess' condition is worsening, and we do not know what to do for her."
Though she was a bit taken aback, the Child tilted her head. "She is still fading away?"
Neophilus nodded gravely. "Yes. We Guardians have not been able to stablize her, nor to determine what has occurred to cause this. All we do know is that something must be changing the course of time in a drastic way, and the Neo Moon Princess' very existence is in grave danger."
Oberon shook his head. "I fear the Negaverse is behind this," he declared in a whisper. "And if this is true, it is one of the most disturbing attacks they have ever levied against the Senshi. I do not know how to stop them, for I do not even know what it is they have done."
The Child looked from one to the other and sighed. "It's not the Negaverse this time, my Guardians." They looked up at her, and her voice was weary. "At least, not directly. The Negaverse was responsible for filling the Princess with feelings of guilt about the recent death of ChibiMoon. That guilt has been polluting her heart and it is the Princess herself who has brought this upon her future child. She has called off her relationship with Prince Endymion."
"What?" Guardian Brother, in the center, exclaimed. "But but how is that possible? The Sailor Leader and the Prince of Earth have been together in every lifetime they've ever lived. If they do not marry"
"The Neo Moon Princess will not be born," Guardian Friend finished in his overpowering whisper.
The Sacred Child nodded. "But there is an even greater danger, my friends. If the Neo Moon Princess is not born, then the Princess cannot be reborn. And this must not be allowed to happen."
Guardian Father shook his head. "It does not make sense," he mused quietly. "The Sailor Leader and Endymion are bound to one another in eternal love. She cannot refuse to love him, not with her heart as wide and pure and open as it is."
The Sacred Child sighed, her soft hair glittering in the electric blue light. "Yet I am afraid that she is refusing, at least to acknowledge, her feelings for the Prince. She feels that she is a poor mother and would make a poor wife. I was with her in the Doomsday Gate, and I heard her telling Prince Endymion that she thought it would perhaps be better for the Neo Moon Princess if she were never born. These dark feelings have cluttered up the purity of her soul, so much so that I do not think she has ever been as weak as she is now. Without her innocence and integrity, she loses much of her power and cannot wield the Silver Crystal. She walked right into Narcissus' arms, and he would have killed her along with all of the other Senshi had I not intervened." The Child shook her head slowly. "She must be reconciled to the Prince, for her own safety as well as the safety of the other Senshi and the very fabric of the future itself."
Guardian Friend rubbed at his chin. "How are we to accomplish this reconciliation, Child?"
"That I do not know." The girl sighed again, heavily. "It seems that all of the Senshi have been frightened by me. Not that I blame them, of course, but at the moment none of them are speaking to me. And even if they were, I do not know what I could say to the Princess to convince her that her fears are unfounded."
Guardian Father cleared his throat. "Speaking of which, Child, the other Guardians and I have some things we'd like to discuss with you."
"Like why you decided to risk everything and become the Prince of Darkness again," Guardian Brother spoke up with a note of accusation in his voice. "How many times have we warned you about that, Child? You cannot control the darkness when it is released like that. What if you had hurt one of the Senshi?"
The girl met his eyes calmly. She'd been expecting this. "Demetrius, it was the only way to destroy the Soul Dissolver. You know that as well as I do. If I hadn't returned to my old self Narcissus would have dissolved the souls of the Princess and all the other Senshi, for the rest of eternity. What else could I do?"
"I wish you wouldn't refer to that monster as your old self, Child. The Prince of Darkness is not you. You are a different person entirely." Oberon's voice was gentle but full of conviction.
There was impossible sadness in the Child's face as she turned to face him. "Not entirely, Guardian Friend. He is still in me. He will always be in me. His cruelty and spite are ingrained in my nature, no matter how much I would like to forget it. I cannot deny the truth about myself, Oberon. I was that monster. In many ways I still am. I may have had a change of heart, but that can never change the deeds of the past." She paused, and they could hear the regret in her tinkling, silvery voice. "But while it is true that I cannot directly control the darkness, the Princess can. Being in her presence is enough to remind me, to remind the Prince of Darkness, where I stand now. He would never hurt her or the other Senshi."
"He murdered Narcissus," Demetrius pointed out bluntly. "Not that that insolent Negaverse admiral didn't deserve what he got but still, Sailor Orion murdered him."
The Child nodded. "I know. And I regret that the Princess had to watch that. I regret that Iwas forced to reveal that part of me to her at all. But we've been through all of this before, my friends, in other lifetimes. Sometimes it's just necessary for the truth to come out. And when it does, we must deal with it."
"But it's never happened like this before," Neophilus reminded her. "During those other lifetimes we had the chance to prepare the Senshi, to tell them about the Prince before he just appeared and started blasting away at things. But this time we weren't able to warn them at all."
A hiss of steam from one of the overhead pipes lifted the girl's shining hair a bit, and illuminated her eyes. "I'm aware of that, Guardian Father. And believe me, it is another of my regrets. Right now the girls refuse to have any contact with me at all. Under normal circumstances I would simply allow them to work out their feelings and come to me when they were ready for answers. But if what you say about the Neo Moon Princess is true, then we just don't have the time. I must speak with the Princess and Endymion, before the course of destiny is permanently and fatally altered. Both of them must understand what is at stake here."
"But how are you going to get them to listen to you?" Guardian Brother wanted to know. "You said they won't even talk to you."
"Well, perhaps I ought to arrange a little kidnapping," the Child replied with mischief in her tones. "The Orion Music Sphere can take us back to the very beginning of this mess and I'll show them everything."
"Everything?" Oberon repeated softly.
The face of a certain young blond motorcyclist suddenly flashed before the Sacred Child's eyes, and the smile disappeared from her face. "No," she answered, so quietly that she was almost whispering. "Not everything, I suppose. She's healing so well I'm not going to reopen those wounds." The Child straightened her shoulders, though her eyes were still pained. "But they don't need to know the whole story. Just enough to explain who I am, and who they are, and how this all happened and hopefully it will be enough that I can earn their trust again."
Guardian Father shook his head slowly. "This is such poor timing we have only two months left before the vernal equinox, and still no sign of the Dagger. The Senshi are in a muddle, the future is being changed right before our eyes, and your past is catching up with you."
The Child nodded. "I know. And to top it all off, I have a concert I'm supposed to perform in tonight and I haven't even rehearsed the music yet."
Demetrius frowned. "Can you not simply cancel, Child? After all, saving the universe would appear to be the priority here."
There was a tinkling giggle. "My sister and I have to eat, Guardian Brother," she reminded him with amusement. "How else do you think we survive? It is my music and Sachiko's art that puts food on our table. And immortal soul or not, I still have to eat." The Child giggled again. "But don't worry about me, old friends. I'll be all right and we'll find that Dagger, you'll see. We've never failed before."
The three Guardians bowed to her then. "Safe questing, Child," they said in perfect unison.
Performing the ritual handshake, hug and peck on the forehead, the Child said goodbye to each of them. "Safe questing, Guardian Friend. Safe questing, Guardian Brother. Safe questing, Guardian Father." And then she turned and strode out of the tunnels, away from them.
Demetrius turned to look at Oberon. "Do you think we'll find the Dagger in time?" he asked. "She does have a point we've always found it before."
Oberon shook his head. "I have a dark feeling about this," he whispered in reply. "This lifetime is different than the others. I know it in my bones. Something tells me that right now, nothing is certain."
Neophilus put one hand on each of his companions' shoulders. "Come, my friends," he rumbled. "We have been away too long as it is. I will remind you that we have a very sick little girl lying in our Hall. She will be frightened if we are gone for much longer."
Nodding in agreement, the other two turned to join him as they headed into the darkness in the opposite direction. The blackness reached out to greet them, and then they disappeared.
"Don't you guys think you're being a little unfair?" Usagi wanted to know, looking from one face to another. "I mean, come on. There's got to be a good explanation. We at least ought to hear her out."
Rei shook her head adamantly. "Listen, Usagi-chan. Maybe you couldn't feel the darkness surrounding that monster that Orion morphed into, but I sure could. It's the most powerful, absolute evil I've ever felt in my life. Even Queen Beryl didn't have that kind of power."
"She's dangerous," Makoto added, fire flashing in those emerald eyes as she looked up from the table. "Not to mention the fact that she's been lying to us all along, parading around pretending to be a Sailor Senshi, one of us. All the time she was really that thing that Prince of Darkness."
"She never lied," Usagi protested, albeit a bit weakly. "She just left out some things."
"It's the same thing, Usagi-chan. She decieved us." This came from Ami, and Usagi turned to look at the normally soft-spoken girl with astonishment.
"Ami-chan? You don't trust her either?"
"You saw what she did to Narcissus, Usagi-chan. You of all people should agree that it was wrong to just destroy him like that." Ami returned her gaze to the science book in front of her with a calmness that the other Scouts knew was not entirely genuine. She'd been as shaken by this latest turn of events as the rest of them were.
Usagi wanted to protest but found she had nothing to say. It was true. Orion had killed a man who was completely helpless and begging for his life. The battle had already been won, Narcissus was surrendering, and Orion killed him anyway. Usagi would never be able to agree with that decision.
Haruka growled under her breath from across the room. She turned to face the younger girls, seated at the low table in Rei's room, and her grey eyes were full of steel. "I knew there was something that wasn't right about her," she spat out. "And now we know what it is. The next time we meet I won't have to hesitate to destroy her."
"Haruka. Orion saved our lives. Evil being or not, man or woman, Orion saved our lives and destroyed the Soul Dissolver." Setsuna rose to her feet to join Haruka at the window. "Orion is on our side. I'm certain of it."
Michiru's soft, elegant voice came from over Haruka's shoulder. "I have to agree with Haruka on this one, Setsuna-san. Sailor Orion is evil. I sensed it with every pore of my being as soon as that Prince of Darkness appeared. Like Rei said, it's the most unadulterated darkness I've ever felt." There was a bit of regret in the teal eyes as she sighed. "I just don't understand how a creature with that much black power could manage to disguise himself from me. I've spent hours with Shinzui, working with our music, and I never once sensed it."
Haruka smacked her fist into the pane of the window with scarcely restrained fury, and Rei looked up with annoyance. "Haruka-san, be careful. Grandpa doesn't need to be replacing our windows because you get all self-righteous."
Haruka gave a snort of amusement at that before turning to respond to Michiru. "Orion is cunning, that much is for sure," she observed coldly. "If you and your mirror couldn't detect her true self, then she must be able to hide it very well."
"You seemed to know about it, though, Haruka-san," Makoto pointed out.
"That's right, Haruka-san. You never did trust Orion," Minako recalled as she looked at the blond tomboy with new respect. "The rest of us were completely fooled."
Usagi was shaking her head again. "Look, guys, maybe she wasn't trying to fool us. Maybe Orion had a very good reason for keeping her past a secret."
Ami looked up from her book and sighed. "Usagi-chan, you saw that monster she turned into. Of course she had a good reason there's no way we would have let her get so close to us if we knew what she was."
Setsuna turned back to face them again, and her smooth, beautiful features were lined with worry. "I don't think we're looking at this the right way," she declared evenly. "Orion is not an enemy. What about all the business concerning the Guardians and the Sacred Child? I am beginning to remember some things images and voices. Enough to convince me that Sailor Orion was telling us the truth when she said she was here to sacrifice her life for Sailor Moon's." The expressions on the other girl's faces remained dubious, however, and she sighed. "We're not going to solve anything by refusing all contact with her. We must confront Orion and get her to explain all of this."
Haruka shook her head stubbornly. "No. It's too dangerous. We all saw what kind of power that creature possesses. We can't risk confrontation until we're ready and able to destroy Orion."
"That's right," Makoto nodded. "We should start thinking about new ways to combine our attacks anything that might give us the advantage. We need to start some regular training."
Rei was also nodding. "And I'll check the fires. It could be that Orion has a weakness that the fires will reveal to me, and it might prove helpful."
"We should develop some attack strategies as well," Ami noted, pulling out her mini computer and beginning to type rapidly. "I've been documenting the methods, plans and strategies that have been successful for us in the past. I think with a little manipulation I could come up with an attack plan of sorts."
Usagi rose to her feet, and she sounded close to tears. "Will you listen to yourselves?!!" she demanded in frustration. "You're talking about attacking and destroying a friend. I don't believe you."
Minako reached up from where she was sitting and patted Usagi's arm soothingly. "Usagi-chan, you're forgetting that this is someone who has lied to us from the very beginning, one of the rulers of the Negaverse and a cold-blooded murderer. Orion is not our friend anymore in fact, she never was. The person we got to know never really existed."
Usagi shook off the hand, staring at the faces around the room in shock. "I just don't believe you guys," she mumbled. "I just don't believe it." Then her eyes narrowed. "You can make all the plans you want to, but leave me out of them. I'm not going to be a part of it." With that, she turned and stalked out of the temple room.
Outside in the snow-blanketed courtyard, the cold February air felt good against her inflamed cheeks. Usagi just couldn't understand it, and she suddenly felt very, very tired. Emotions had been running high for days now, and it felt like they'd been fighting forever. As if having Mamoru to deal with wasn't enough, now she had all of her friends angry and upset and the past few days had been nothing but grueling battle and unpleasant surprises. Usagi slumped down onto the bench beneath the white frosted branches of the cherry trees, ignoring the cold wetness as the snow beneath her yeilded to her body heat. This was just too much. "I can't do this," she whispered pitifully as a fat tear rolled down her nose. "I'm supposed to be the leader. But how can I lead them when I'm so mixed up myself?" It was getting harder and harder to hold fast to her resolve. She knew it was safer and better for Mamoru if they were not together. But she couldn't deny how much she missed him. It was like a sick, tight knot in the middle of her chest, and there was this overpowering feeling that maybe things would never be right again. It was just too much for her to handle all at once.
"Princess."
The soft, tinkling voice seemed to somehow soothe Usagi's heart a little, and she looked up to meet the vacant gaze of the blind girl, with Centauri at her side. "Shinzui-san," she breathed. And then a vision of the Negaverse Prince with his fathomless black eyes filled her head, and she stood up and backed a way a few steps. "I I'm not supposed to talk to you," she declared a bit uncertainly.
Shinzui nodded. "I know, Princess. But there is something very important I must tell you about. Chibiusa-chan is in grave danger. If you continue to persist in your refusal to be with Endymion, you will alter the future irreparably. She will cease to exist."
Usagi shook her head as her eyes filled with tears. "Then she'll be better off," she mumbled, scuffing at the snow around her feet. "I can't be her mother. I don't deserve it. Better for her to never have existed than to live a short time and get killed because of my own stupidity and cowardice."
Centauri spoke up then. "You do not understand, Princess. If Chibiusa ceases to exist, then you will too. Without her you cannot be reborn for your next lifetime. It is the way of things."
The petite blond girl's face scrunched up in confusion as she looked down at the handsome golden retriever. "I don't understand."
"I know." Shinzui reached a hand out towards her. "Let me show you."
Usagi shrank back from the oustretched hand as if it were a snake. That hand it was the same one that had summoned the power to kill Narcissus. "I I can't. How do I know I can trust you? I mean, what are you, anyway?"
The blind girl took a deep breath and lowered her hand. "I realize how confusing this must be for you, Princess. The truth is a very long story. But now that it has been revealed, I have no choice but to tell you that story so that you may all understand I am no longer your enemy."
"But you were our enemy, once right?"
Shinzui nodded, and her face was very sad. "Yes." She reached out again. "Please, Princess. Come with me and let me explain."
Hesitantly Usagi reached out towards her to take her hand. But an instant before their fingers touched, something went whoosh! and Shinzui was forced to pull her hand back to avoid the piercing stem of Tuxedo Kamen's rose. Both girls turned to see the caped young man striding toward them with a look of fury on his face.
"Stay away from her, Shinzui," he barked, coming to stand at Usagi's side.
Usagi looked up at him, her eyes wide. "Tuxedo Kamen-sama," she uttered with surprise.
But the man in the mask did not even look down at her. He kept his eyes fastened to the tall blind girl, and his expression was cold. "I don't know what you think you're going to do to Usako, Shinzui, but I'm not going to let you touch her. You aren't welcome here."
Shinzui closed her sightless eyes for a moment, and when she opened them Usagi could see tears there. "Tuxedo Kamen, I promise you I mean the Princess no harm. I am trying to explain to her why it is important for the two of you to be together."
"Our relationship is none of your business," he snapped back. "We'll take care of things on our own."
"Chibiusa is dying, Tuxedo Kamen," Shinzui declared softly. This announcement caused a moment of silence, as Tuxedo Kamen pondered this. "If you and the Princess do not reconcile, the universe is lost. The Neo Moon Princess is as crucial to the future of the Posiverse as the Princess herself is."
The dark-haired man narrowed his eyes again. "I have no reason to believe you," he insisted. "You lied to us from the very beginning. Why shouldn't I think that you're lying now?"
"Because I'm not lying. And because, if you come with me now, I can explain everything."
"Nobody is going anywhere with you, Orion." The three of them looked up to see Sailor Uranus marching towards them, with the rest of the Senshi following right along behind. The Magnifiscent Soldier raised her fist. "You'd better get out of here before we kill you."
"Uranus!" Usagi exclaimed in shock. "Don't say that!"
Shinzui tilted her head towards Uranus, and her voice was full of sorrow. "Sailor Uranus, if you and the other Senshi will not come with me willingly, for the sake of the future of the Posiverse I will be forced to take you against your will. Is that what you want?"
"You're not taking me anywhere," Sailor Jupiter snarled, stepping forward to join Uranus.
Shinzui sighed. "Girls, please don't make me do this."
"The only thing we're going to make you do is leave," Sailor Venus spoke up. "We don't want you here."
Shaking her head, the blind girl pulled up the sleeve of her jacket to expose the transformation bracelet. "Very well," she responded quietly. "Centauri?"
The golden retriever nodded and called out, "Orion Constellation Power, Make Up!" For a moment time stood still as the swirling peach-colored energies surrounded the pale-haired girl, lifting her off the ground and replacing her heavy winter jacket and jeans with the familiar peach and black Sailor fuku. An instant later she was rising from her defensive crouching stance, her silver eyes sweeping over the distrusting faces of the Senshi.
"Well, come on, then, let's do this," Sailor Jupiter declared, taking a step forward as the electricity crackled through her tiara.
Sailor Orion shook her head. "No. Jupiter, I don't want to fight you."
"Then leave," Sailor Mercury commanded from the left.
"I can't. Not until I've shown you what you need to know."
Sailor Uranus snorted. "Then you'd better start powering up those defenses of yours," she snapped. "World Shaking!" The golden planet-shaped orb of energy blasted towards Orion, gouging the ground as it went. But it only crashed into the cherry tree. Orion was gone. In confusion, Uranus looked around. "Where'd she go?" |
But before any of the Senshi could collect their wits, they heard a familiar humming sound coming from behind them. "Heavenly Symphony!"
"Oh, no you don't" Uranus began, but found that she couldn't finish. Her feet felt as if they'd been bolted to the ground. She couldn't move. Her arms were heavy. "What the hell" She looked to either side of her at the other Sailor Senshi who seemed to be in a similar predicament.
"Orion, what are you doing to us?" Sailor Mars gasped out, trying to lift her arm and finding that her muscles would no longer respond.
"Shh, it's all right," Sailor Orion responded. There was no malice in the sparkling silver eyes. "Just relax and enjoy the show."
"What show?" Mercury wanted to know. In response, Sailor Orion grinned and turned to look at her Orion Music Sphere, which was playing a new melody one the Senshi had never heard before. And she began to sing.
"You don't have to trust me, you've seen what I was
And it's hard to believe I have changed
But keep your hearts open and listen to me
I will show you how it was arranged
Sphere of Orion, with heavenly light
Hear my command and obey
You must take us all on a memory flight
We need you to show us the way
"Take us back
Back to the beginning
Back to where this story had its start
It's time to know
Time to hear the answers
Time to tell the secret of my heart
Close your eyes and remember
The way things used to be
The time has come for you to hear
The truth about our history
"The things you will see were forgotten by time
Yet they form the foundation of all
The way we are now and the reason we're here
And the basis for Destiny's call
The war that has raged between evil and good
Got its start at the dawning of time
And each of us picked out the place where we stood
I will show you what happened to mine
"Take us back
Back to the beginning
Back to where this story had its start
It's time to know
Time to hear the answers
Time to tell the secret of my heart
Close your eyes and remember
The way things used to be
The time has come for you to hear
The truth about our history."
As Orion's sweet, silvery voice filled the temple courtyard, the Senshi all felt their eyes drawn to the Orion Music Sphere. It was pulsing with that same warm, pure light, illuminating the Orion symbol and punctuating the lyrics of Sailor Orion's song. It seemed to be getting bigger or was it that the Senshi were getting smaller? They still couldn't move, and the Sphere seemed to grow, stretching out towards them, enveloping all of them. There was no sensation as the boundaries of the Sphere swelled to encompass them, but the sides of the Sphere deepened and darkened until all they could see was an endless expanse of starry blackness swirling above and on all sides. It was beautiful, breathtakingly beautiful, and despite the fact that none of them trusted Orion, they could not help feeling safe here. It was a strange feeling, almost like coming home after a long absence. The music of the Sphere was still surrounding them, relaxing and soothing. Sailor Uranus tried to fight it off, because the rage inside of her was still burning hotly towards Orion and she wanted nothing to do with her little magical tricks. But she found it increasingly difficult to stay angry when the music was swelling inside her soul.
Finally the song ended and the Senshi looked around them. Usagi, the only one not in Sailor form, was actually turning around in slow circles trying to get a good look at their new surroundings. She spoke first. "Orion, where are we?" Her voice echoed with a delicate, bell-like sound around them.
"We are inside the Orion Music Sphere," Sailor Orion informed them, her own tinkling silver tones taking on a new resonance here. "I am going to show you the truth of myself, the truth about what happened to all of us. The Music Sphere has taken us back to the very beginning of time."
Sailor Uranus tried to take a step towards her, but found that she did not really want to. In fact, she was finding it hard to remember why she ought to be angry towards Orion. There was an intense dislike remaining strong within her, but the fury and hatred she'd experienced only a few minutes before was gone now, and her rational mind had taken over, calmly affirming that she was safe here and there was no reason to mistrust Orion until she actually hurt one of the Senshi.
Orion swept her arm around behind her at the swirling expanse of stars. As she did so, three figures shimmered into being behind her, each one cloaked in a golden robe, their hoods pulled down to obscure their features. Each wore a colored gemstone at their throats, one red, one blue and one purple, and their robes were trimmed in these respective colors. The Senshi recognized the figures immediately as the beings they'd met known as the Guardians of the Balance. Orion nodded slowly as the image of her Guardians appeared, and then she began to speak. "In the beginning, there was a Blend. A perfect mixture of dark and light, good and evil, positive and negative energy. And there were three who became the Guardians of the Blend, each one possessing control over a different aspect of existence. Guardian Father," she touched the figure who bore the red stone, "has power over Physical Strength. Guardian Brother," she touched the center figure whose stone was blue, "has power over the Spirit. And Guardian Friend," here she moved to the third figure with the purple stone, "has the power of Wisdom and Intellect. Together, these three Guardians protected the purity of the Blend between forces."
Orion turned to face the Senshi again. "As the population of the universe grew, however, it became difficult for merely the three of them to watch over everyone and everything. So the Guardians decided to create helpers for themselves. They chose from the people they protected ten warriors who would become the Sailor Soldiers of the universe. These soldiers were chosen for their pure hearts, physical capability and strength of will, and each one would be given power over one of the ten realms of existence. One of them, the one with the strongest soul, would be the Sailors' Leader. This Senshi would be given power over the Realm of Soul itself, and be given the Guardians' most powerful tool, the Imperium Silver Crystal. This Crystal, wielded by a pure heart, would render the Sailor Leader invincible and immortal, the most powerful being in the universe."
Orion waved her arm again, and the Senshi could see ten silhouettes wearing familiar Sailor fukus step forward from the starry expanse. The one in the center bore a the shining Silver Crystal in its hands. "The Guardians arranged for the Sailor Leader to have only one weakness; the life of the Leader would be directly linked to the Silver Crystal. If the Crystal was ever destroyed the Sailor Leader would die as well; and if the Sailor Leader was ever killed, the Crystal would be destroyed also. In this way the Guardians provided assurance that the Imperium Silver Crystal would never fall into the wrong hands. The Guardians also arranged for the immortality of the souls of each of the ten Sailor Soldiers. However, while they could extend the youth and strength of the Senshi's bodies, they were unable to make the bodies themselves immortal. Instead, they gave each of them a thousand year lifespan, after which the Senshi would die and be reborn. This applied to all the Sailor Senshi except for the Soldier who had been given power over the Realm of Death. The Senshi who controlled Death also had power over Time, and was therefore made completely immortal." As Orion said this all eyes turned to look at Sailor Pluto, realizing that it must be she that Orion was speaking of.
Sailor Orion took a deep breath and turned to look at the ten silhouettes that had appeared behind her. "The ten Realms that the Senshi were given control of are these: Air." Bubbles and wind appeared and surrounded the first silhouette. "Beauty." Golden hearts and flowers surrounded the second. "Fire." A tower of golden flames and sunlight enveloped the third silhouette. "And Lightning." A crackling greenish burst of electricity swirled around the fourth. "The Senshi given powers over these four realms were made the close protectors of the Sailor Leader, whose power came from the Realm of Soul." A brilliant white light burst from the Silver Crystal to illuminate the center figure. "The next four Realms were more powerful, and these were the Realms of Health," a purple mist rose around the figure on the Sailor Leader's right. "Earth." A golden planet-shaped orb circled the next silhouette. "Water." A turquoise wall of waves surrounded the eighth figure. "And Death." A blood red vapor, mixed with dark clouds, enveloped the ninth. "These four Senshi were to protect the other five from outside threats. And the final Realm, the Realm of Life, went to the tenth Soldier." A shower of roses fell down around the last silhouette. "The Senshi of Life was the personal bodyguard and partner of the Sailor Leader."
For a moment, Orion did not say anything more, allowing this to sink in. The Senshi watched the ten silhouettes before them, each one feeling strangely connected to one of them. Then Orion spoke again, and her voice had taken on a new sadness. "The Senshi were able to protect the Blend for a while, but it was not to last. The negative energy in the Blend became dissatisfied with its equal position. It found a way to convert small amounts of positive energy into negative energy, and in this manner began to amass strength. The negative force managed to keep its intentions secret from even the Guardians for a long time long enough that it had significantly increased its power beyond the positive force. By the time the Guardians were made aware of it, this new Negaforce had become so strong that they could not stop it. The Negaforce desired absolute, autonomous control of the universe, and to that end it set out to attack the positive forces. The Guardians called upon the power of the Sailor Senshi for help, but all of them including the Leader had been drawn into a battle within themselves, the good fighting the evil, in a power struggle. Not one of the Sailor Soldiers was able to help the Guardians." The Senshi watched in horror as a blackness grew up around the silhouettes, and the darkness and light of the stars began to separate. It was plain to see that the darkness was much larger than the light, and the Senshi were horrified.
Sailor Orion continued, her light voice carrying well throughout the Music Sphere. "The Negaforce continued to convert positive energy into negative energy until there was scarcely any positive energy left. The Guardians were at a loss for what to do, and retreated to the Celestial Hall, the very center of the universe, in order to try and plan a resistance of some sort to the Negaforce's power. The Negaforce succeeded in gaining almost complete control of the Sailor Senshi, and the Silver Crystal fell into its control along with the Sailor Leader. The Guardians knew that if they did not hurry, the Negaforce would find a way to corrupt the purity of the Silver Crystal so it could be used against them, and then all would be lost, for the Negaforce did not understand that without the positive energy it would not be able to exist. If it was able to obliterate the positive energies as it hoped, the Negaforce itself would cease to exist, as would everything." The ten silhouettes dissolved away and a new image appeared, the image of a stone fortress or castle that seemed to float in the middle of space. Somehow the Senshi recognized it as the Celestial Hall.
"Finally the Guardians did indeed develop a plan. It was a great risk, but it was the only chance they had. Using the power of the most powerful tool they had, the Book of the Blend, which was a record of the Guardian's development of the universe since the dawn of time, the Guardians were able to create, in effect, a new and separate universe. Their plan was to seal the Negaforce into this separate universe, away from the weakened, battered positive forces, until the Posiforce had a chance to recover the damage and to gain enough strength to fight back. But in order to seal the Negaforce away, they had to get it to throw an overwheming percentage of its power into the Book of the Blend, and then they had to hope that the Silver Crystal would still be pure enough that it would not be carried along with the Negaforce into the new universe. If the Negaforce could not carry the Silver Crystal into the new universe then the Guardians could use its power to seal the new universe away so that the Negaforce would be trapped forever. This was the plan." The Senshi watched the image of the Celestial Hall as the three robed Guardians appeared at the top of the roof. Two of them held the Book up, opening it so that its glowing pages could be seen, and the third one waited. "Using the Book of the Blend as bait, for the Negaforce had long coveted the Book's power, the three Guardians were able to coerce the Negaforce to throw itself at the Book." The massive expanse of blackness that had been swirling around the Celestial Hall suddenly gathered itself and shot down towards the open Book. Usagi gasped aloud as she recognized the images they'd seen this once before, when the Guardians had shown them the Book to explain the Sacred Child. The two Guardians holding the Book were knocked backwards by the power, and the Negaforce did indeed disappear into the pages. The Senshi watched as a small, shining thing bounced against the pages and rolled to the feet of the third Guardian. He picked it up and shouted something, and there was a howl of rage and fury from within the Book as the Negaforce realized it had been a trap.
"We've seen this before," Sailor Mars pointed out.
Sailor Orion nodded. "Yes. But you were not told the whole story. The Guardians did not explain to you what had happened to the Senshi." They all watched as the ten silhouettes reappeared, hovering above the Celestial Hall. "In the Great Division of the forces, something occurred to the Sailor Senshi that even the Guardians had not predicted. Each Senshi split into two, the dark side following the Negaforce, and the light side staying with the Posiforce. The dark sides were sealed away into the Negaverse and became known as the Sailor Constellations. The light sides remaining became the Sailor Planets. The odd thing was that the Sailor Planets were made up of nine women and one man, while the Sailor Constelletions were nine men and one woman. You Sailor Senshi are the Sailor Planets Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto and Tuxedo Kamen. Your counterparts, the Negaforce Senshi, became known as Orion, Aquarius, Gemini, Pheonix, Draco, Scorpio, Taurus, Delphinus, Libra and Lady Slipper. This is why, when I appear in my original form, I am a man." The Senshi saw the ten sihouettes split then, the dark sides diving into the Book after the rest of the Negaforce, and they recognized the remaining figures as themselves.
Sailor Jupiter shook her head. "But that still doesn't explain why you're here with us, now," she pointed out, and Orion nodded.
"That is correct, Jupiter. And that is the reason I brought you here." She turned back to the image of the Celestial Hall, where the ten Sailor Planets were still hovering over the Guardians. "You see, the creation of the Negaverse was a success, and there came a time of peace and rebuilding as the Posiforce began to heal. The Sailor Senshi assisted with this as best they could, and the Sailor Leader was so loved by the people for her selfless efforts to help them that she was hailed Queen of the Posiforce. She became Queen Serenity, ruler of the Posiverse, and under her gentle leadership the Posiverse thrived and grew stronger. Queen Serenity chose to marry Tuxedo Kamen, the Senshi of Life who was her bodyguard, for she had fallen in love with him. Together they had a daughter, the Princess Serenity. And when the Guardians met the young Princess who was so like her mother, they decided it would be wise to make her a Sailor Senshi also. The Princess became known as Sailor ChibiMoon. She would inherit her mother's power upon her mother's death, and rule in her place. The Guardians arranged then that the firstborn of Sailor ChibiMoon would always be a daughter, the reborn Sailor Leader. And when the Sailor Leader was matured and had taken her place as queen, she would again marry the reborn Tuxedo Kamen and the Princess would be reborn as their daughter. This eternal cycle would provide stability for the power of the Sailor Leader and the Silver Crystal, as either mother or daughter would be able to use it, and therefore the Posiverse would never be without a Leader." Usagi's face was now scrunched up in confusion, but slowly that confusion cleared as she watched an image of herself and Tuxedo Kamen, with a small pinkhaired child between them. That pink-haired child slowly grew, right before her eyes, and when she had become an adult the pink hair turned white and a crown appeared on her forehead. Usagi gasped again.
"That's that's Queen Serenity, my mother from the Silver Millennium!" she exclaimed in shock.
Sailor Orion nodded. "Yes, Princess. Your mother from the Silver Millennium is actually the reborn spirit of your daughter. And ChibiMoon is the reborn spirit of your mother from the Silver Millennium. That is the way of the eternal cycle. And now you see why it is so important that you not abandon her now. The universe needs her, just as it needs you and just as your daughter needs you."
Usagi felt tears come to her eyes as she looked up at Tuxedo Kamen. He met her eyes wordlessly, understanding and awe in his face, and he bent down to kiss her lips gently. For the first time since the death of ChibiMoon, Usagi did not pull away. This was more than just destiny. This was what she wanted and besides, Chibiusa needed her. Perhaps she wasn't such a bad mother after all. Orion and the other Senshi watched this exchange with smiles of approbation, and Orion felt a wave of relief wash through her. It would be all right now, now that Usagi understood. Everything would be all right.
Sailor Venus turned back towards Orion then. "And how exactly do you fit into all this?" she wanted to know. "You still haven't told us that."
Sailor Orion sighed. "I know. I'll show you." She turned back towards the images hovering before them. "The Guardians did not realize that everything that occurred in the Posiverse was reflected in the Negaverse counterparts. As Sailor Moon was declared Queen of the Posiverse, Sailor Orion was made King of the Negaverse. He called himself the Avatar, the incarnation of the Negaforce itself. Just as Sailor Moon married Tuxedo Kamen, Sailor Orion married Lady Slipper, the Negaverse Senshi of Life, and together they had a son. When the Guardians made the Princess into Sailor ChibiMoon, the Avatar's son became Sailor ChibiOri. And when the life and rebirth cycle was set into place for Sailor Moon, the same occurred for Sailor Orion."
"You're telling us that woman we met in the Doomsday Gate was your wife?" Sailor Neptune asked incredulously, and Orion nodded.
"Yes. She was but you must understand that in the Negaverse there is no such thing as love. Lady Slipper and I shared the bonds of ambition and power, but not love. Love does not exist there." There was infinite sadness in the silver eyes. "During the third cycle, when Sailor Orion was reborn as the Prince of Darkness and was just beginning to come into his powers, he discovered a tiny flaw in the seal that bound the Negaverse from the Posiverse. He began to expand this flaw, working at it until he had created an actual gap in the seal. Still he kept it a secret, laboring for months until he had built a Gate, firm and powerful, that would allow passage between the two universes. When the Gate was complete, the Prince of Darkness led a full-scale invasion of the Posiforce, determined to take it over this time around. The Posiverse was caught by surprise, and they were still not strong enough to fight against the overwhelming power of the Negaforce. The Sailor Planets fought back valiantly, however, and because they had the Silver Crystal on their side they were able to put up a good fight. The Constellations and the Planets battled for a long time, and many died. Sailor Orion made the destruction of the Sailor Planets his primary goal, and to that end he built the Soul Dissolver. However, Sailor Orion had not expected the effect that the Posiforce would have upon him. He found the love of the Sailor Planets to be both bewildering and fascinating. He wanted to experience that love for himself, but he could not comprehend what love was or how it worked. Orion used the Soul Dissolver one time, on a Posiverse planet, wiping out billions of lives. He had killed thousands before, but the actual complete genocide of what he had done struck him deeply. Orion could not understand why death of his enemies would bother him, and his own Senshi were beginning to question his leadership as he began to make very illogical command decisions. Finally, during one of the biggest battles, Sailor Gemini, Lady Slipper and the others chose to betray Orion over to the Posiforce and take command themselves, seeing Orion as a weak link to be eliminated."
The Senshi watched as a battlefield shimmered before their eyes, and recognized the form of the Prince of Darkness lying in a bloodied heap on the ground. The air began to glow around him, and suddenly Sailor Moon appeared next to him. She knelt down beside the fallen Negaverse Prince and spoke to him, and they held a conversation for a few moments. "Sailor Moon decided to show Orion the love which he longed for so much and she purified his spirit from all the evil power that had been stored up there for so long." A bright light emanated from Sailor Moon's locket, enveloping the Prince of Darkness and lifting him off the ground. The long, wild black hair lightened and paled into a shade that was almost white. The pitch-black eyes focused and became a silvery blue. The billowing black cape shrunk down into a familiar sailor collar, and the wide shoulders and straight hips gave way to curves and long legs. When Orion's feet were returned to the ground, the Senshi recognized this new form as the Sailor Orion they had come to know still towering over Sailor Moon but a completely different person.
"From that day forward, I became a Soldier fighting on the Posiverse's side. With my tactical knowledge and Sailor Moon's Crystal, we were actually able to drive the Negaforce back a little. And when it came time to close the Gate, it was Sailor Moon, Tuxedo Kamen and myself who developed the plan for the Sacred Sacrifice. Because I had been the one to create the Doomsday Gate in the first place, I volunteered for the Sacrifice myself. No one wanted to allow me to do it, but there was no choice, and so the Sacrifice was carried out. The Gate was sealed, at least for the next thousand years until my rebirth. And every thousand years ever since, I once again give up my soul to seal the Gate so that the Posiverse will be safe from the invention of my own hands." Sailor Orion met the eyes of each of the others, and it was now so quiet that one could have heard a pin drop. They all stared at her, and Orion shook her head slowly. "So now you know the story," she said quietly. "And now you know who I am. You may not trust me, still, but I hope that you will be able to sense the truth of what I have shown you. If you do not believe it, just look into yourselves you were there, millennia ago, when I joined you. And you know that what I have said is true."
The Senshi remained silent, thinking, and discovered that Orion was right. And inexplicable feeling of acceptance was there in each of their hearts, telling them that this was the truth. Even Uranus knew it, deep inside, although she despised the certainty there. Sailor Orion was not the enemy anymore. Sailor Pluto was nodding slowly, and finally she spoke. "I remember the things you have spoken of now, Orion," she declared softly. "I remember the sacrifices you made and the transformation you underwent to become one of us. It's all true." The others nodded as well, and Orion gave a weary smile.
"I was a monster," Sailor Orion admitted. "And I will not deny what I was or what I have done. If any of you wish to hate me I will not blame you for it. But you have my word, my promise, that I will never use my powers against any of you again. Never again will I be your enemy. And you, Princess" she turned towards Usagi. "You are my savior and my Queen. I will serve you with my life until the end of time."
The Senshi looked at one another and something about the way the tears sparkled in the silver eyes made them certain that Orion meant every word.
Back to Part Twenty
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