Chapter 15 arriving in Alpha Senshi
With a steadily increasing roar of engines, the starship belonging to Sailor Galaxia decelerated and descended toward Alpha Senshi. The Sailor Scouts had endured a forty-eight hour flight from their home planet, and now they rushed to the view ports to see if the world was everything they had been promised it would be.
As the ground came into view beneath them, they realized that it was everything promised and more.
The trees were tall enough to touch the clouds, and were a uniform blue and sea green color. Some of the trees grew together, forming a single organism that was greater than any single tree. From these great branches swung monkey-like creatures with lizard tails. Flying in and out of the trees were the most brilliantly colored birds Sailor Moon had ever seen. One bird was orange and red, with a touch of purple on its wingtips, but when it landed in a tree branch, it's feathers changed color to match the color of the blue leaves. ...
"It's like a chameleon," Sailor Halo observed.
They flew over a canyon that stretched on for miles. Waterfalls could be seen all over the place, and the rainbows caused by refraction of the water mist and sunshine were abundant. Over and through these rainbows flew even more exotic and beautiful birds and insects. The insects themselves were amazing. They had three pairs of wings, instead of two, twelve legs, three compound eyes, and ranged from the size of a hand span, to the size of small trucks. They were beautifully colored in violets and blue-greens, and their wings were translucent pinks.
The canyon itself was made up of orange and yellow rocks, just like the canyons back on Earth, but this particular canyon stretched on forever. It could easily dwarf the Grand Canyon in the United States. ..
Just visible on the horizon were craggy mountains topped with snow. On the peaks of these mountains sat various pulsating blobs of green that stuck up like domes. None of the scouts could identify them, but Sailor Venom, who had visited this planet before said that they were egg sacks for some of the mountain wildlife. For the egg sacks to be big enough to see from miles away made every scout awestruck with wonder and a tiny mixture of fear. Surely that must be a lot of eggs.
For what seemed a long time, the starship flew over the natural scenery of Alpha Senshi. The scouts saw several more natural ecosystems, ranging from wide Savannah's to thick Rain Forests, teaming with even more exotic animals and plants. Once, Sailor wildfire spotted a plant that looked like a Venus Fly-trap, only it was easily the size of a full grown elephant. It stirred to the sound of the vast engines flying overhead, but then settled back down again. ...
When the city of Alpha Senshi finally appeared over the horizon, the natural wonders were forgotten entirely.
The city was gigantic! Even from hundreds of miles away, it stretched as far as the eye could see, disappearing over the curve of the planet. Its buildings surpassed the clouds, and were sheathed in a copper metal that gleamed like gold in the midday sun. The city was planted firmly in the ground, but to the surprise of a few of the Sailor Scouts, some of the buildings in Alpha Senshi actually hovered above the ground, suspended by some sort of engine or force field. As the ship came within a hundred miles of Alpha Senshi, the scouts began to see little dots flickering over the tops of these gigantic buildings. Like the birds in the canyon, they were diverse and colorful, and they seemed to fly about completely care-free. There were some ships and small transport vessels as well, but the majority of flying objects were actual Senshi. ... A small number of Senshi flew out from the city and flanked the ship on both sides. More and more filtered in from the vast metropolis the closer the starship got. By the time they actually entered city limits, they had an escort of easily a thousand Senshi guiding them to the floating shipyard that hung suspended over a shorter set of buildings. It should be noted that even the shortest buildings in Alpha Senshi dwarfed the World Trade Center, and Tokyo Tower.
Their escort broke away as the starship came to a hovering standstill on one of the landing pads. Sailor Moon tore her enraptured gaze away from the city skyline and noticed the three figures standing on the edge of the pad. Three very familiar figures indeed.
"Hey look!!" Sailor Hardrock pointed to the same four people. "Isn't that our cousin Kakyuu the princess of Alpha Senshi and Sailors Starhealer Starmaker and Star fighter ?!" ...
Indeed it was. The princess stood in the center. Her red hair was done in loops hanging to her shoulders. Her dress was dark pink, with a gold cape hanging around her neck that glittered with tiny specks of golden gems. She held a long scepter that resembled the Garnet Rod held by Sailor Venom, only the top of it was crested with the same symbol that rested on the hull of the starship. Inset on the top of that symbol was a ruby gem in the shape of a crown. Kakyuu's dress reached to the ground, and was folded and embroidered in such a way as to be almost impossible to discern where it ended and where it began. White ribbons hung from the skirt, with little white Senshi bows every few inches. On the front of her dress was another ribbon, only light pink, not white.
standing next to the princess on her left side were the Sailor Starlights. They were clad in the usual bikini design Senshi uniforms they were so well known for. The only difference was that instead of black and gray, the uniforms were Silver and Gold. Their hairstyles were the same as well. They did have differently shaped brooches holding their Senshi bows on in front. They were the same symbol as the ruby jewel on the princess' staff. Clearly since they last saw them, the Starlights had gone through something of a promotion in status. ...
When the hatch on the starship opened, Galaxia led the Sailor Scouts out onto the pad. The wind blew quite strongly, but was still warm, even at this altitude. The air was a little thin, but other than that, not much different from the atmosphere on Earth. Sailor Mercury activated her visor and confirmed that, though it wasn't really necessary. If the atmosphere were noxious in any way, they wouldn't be standing out there unprotected.
Galaxia bowed before the princess, and the two exchanged a quiet dialogue for a few minutes. Then, Galaxia stood up and moved to the side.
"Sailor Scouts," Princess Kakyuu stepped forward. "I am so delighted to see you could make it here. Your presence at the celebration has been greatly anticipated." She looked over at Sailor Moon and she took her hand. Clutching it warmly, she went on. "Princess Jenny and Princess Amber. Your presence is most appreciated. Everyone wants to see who it was who destroyed the Negaverse!" ...
As soon as formal introductions were ended, Kakyuu turned and motioned to her three honor guards. "You remember the Starlights, of course," she said. "As you have probably noticed, their uniforms are different. They too have been honored for always being loyal to me They are now my official aides and bodyguards."
"Congratulations," we responded to them.
Soon it was time to leave. Princess Kakyuu invited them to accompany her to the palace. Some of the most important members of the city leadership were assembled there, and it was important, Kakyuu said, to meet them all. The princess and the Starlights got onto a type of floating platform. The rest of them flew next to her, like an escort wing. Galaxia flew as well, staying ahead of the platform and ordering other Senshi to stand aside for the princess. News traveled surprisingly fast in a city that big, and Senshi came flying out from all over to look at the newcomers. We tried not to lose our temper as she overheard some whispered comments about our hair. It was important we maintain an air of dignity. We were after all, to them, Princesses of the Moon Kingdom. we found she might actually enjoy royal treatment. ... The opulent palace of Alpha Senshi was easily the tallest building in the city. It went up over two cloud layers. It was shaped like a double tower, linked by suspended walkways at intervals up and down the length of it. The top of the palace was molded together into a gigantic archway. On the top of it was gigantic mirror. Sailor Moon noticed for the first time that several of the tallest buildings in the city were crested with such mirrors.
Must be some form of communication," Sailor Strata said, from behind her. She was scientifically studying every building and structure, and the various Senshi onlookers carefully. The archway at the top of the palace was actually bigger than it looked. It was large enough to actually hold the throne room inside of it. That was where the entourage was headed. They landed on a broad balcony that seemed to materialize out of nowhere. Kakyuu said that it was a form of solid light projection.
"Solid Light?!" Sailor Strata exclaimed. "That's impossible!"
Princess Kakyuu was not in the least taken aback. "Actually, it's simple," she smiled. "The crystal battery within the matrix of the projector machine takes the light it absorbs and converts it into solid matter. As you must know, light is a form of energy. All things are made up of energy, even matter. The projector simply converts and transforms the energy from light to matter. Thus, once the balcony is no longer needed, the solid energy gets converted back to light again."
"Pretty cool," Sailor illusion commented. "I'm surprised the whole city isn't made of this stuff." ...
Kakyuu frowned. "Well, it IS a simple process, but it's also unreliable over extended periods of time. For example, we can't use this machine at night, because there isn't enough light to convert. Also, if there were to be a sabotage attempt, the whole city would vanish like a mirage. Much better if we use it on a limited basis."
"Ah," illusion nodded. "Then again, it's better just like this."
"Shall we?" Kakyuu motioned toward the throne room entrance. The Sailor Scouts followed her into the palace.
As was mentioned before, the archway was the seat of power. It was large enough to hold the throne room, and so it did. Inside it was a massive chamber, with a broad, carpeted floor, covered from top to bottom with mirrors. Tapestries depicting ancient battles and great momentous events in Alpha Senshi history hung from the rafters. At the end of the hall was the throne, studded with jewels of all colors. On either side were a row of chairs. Nine in all. Seated at each chair were the council members Kakyuu had talked about at the landing pad. She introduced them from left to right. ...
"First, there's the Senshi of Public Works," Kakyuu said. She motioned to a Senshi with black hair, dark brown eyes, and a silver and black Senshi uniform. She looked like a serious enough woman, though she bowed deeply in respect to Sailor Moon and the scouts. "Her name is Sailor Singularity. Her chief power is hyperspace and inter-dimensional teleportation."
The scouts acknowledged Sailor Singularity gravely.
"The next one is Sailor Silver Comet, our Justice of the Peace." said Kakyuu. An elderly looking Senshi arose. She had white hair, and a Senshi uniform of varying shades of gray and silver. "Her power is, like Rowen of Mercury's, Ice, only far more advanced."
"Next there's Sailor Polaris, Senshi of the North Star. Her power is Magnetism. She is the Information and Charting Librarian." A Sailor Scout dressed in Green and Light Blue, with icy blue lipstick and dark blue hair and eyes arose and acknowledged them. Her expression was peaceable enough. ..."Our fourth council member is Sailor Nebula. Her power is high velocity and entropic storms. She is our Minister of War." The look on her face was tightly controlled and just this side of hateful. Her red eyes seemed to burn right through Sailor Moon as she rose and seemed very reluctantly to acknowledge her team. Her hair was a mix between violet and red-orange. Her Senshi outfit was purple and rose pink, with a white ribbon in front.
If Kakyuu noticed the baleful glare of Sailor Nebula, she did not say anything just then. She moved on as if nothing were wrong. "Sailor Nova Proxima you've already met before. She is the leader of the Nova Senshi, and the Minister of research and development. She also is our Intelligence Chief." Sailor Nova Proxima was sitting at the council chair. amber and I wondered just how she'd gotten here ahead of them from the starship without being noticed. ...
"Sailor Diamond Dust, our Minister of Commerce." Kakyuu motioned to the sixth council seat, filled by a Senshi with blonde hair, and a red and blue Sailor Suit.. She did not rise, but instead simply nodded in amber's and my direction. Her face was unreadable. "Diamond Dust's power is spontaneous crystallization of diamond hard substances."
The Sailor Scouts puzzled over that power, but the princess did not stop to explain. She plowed onward.
"Number Seven is our Environmental Specialist and Cartographer; Sailor Alpha Senshi herself. She was born purely of this planet, and knows it better than anyone. She is also my personal advisor on all around subjects involving the running of Senshi-controlled space and terrain. She makes it a point to know what's going on in terms of maintenance and upkeep all over our domain." The seventh Senshi stood and bowed flowingly. She was dressed in the same copper color, with a touch of Indigo, as the city itself was covered in. Her hair was bright orange. "Welcome Sailor Scouts of Earth," she said in a rich voice. Thus far, she was the only one of the nine who spoke. ...
"Then there's Sailor Selenium. She is the Senshi of a planet controlled by us several light years away. She is the defense and perimeter watcher. She is the first to know of any attacks from outside our territories." Sailor Selenium had yellow eyes and purple hair. Her uniform was green, with a bit of gold here and there. Selenium nodded, but did not get up from her chair. It took me a minute to figure out why.
"Hey, she's crippled!" I said a bit too loudly.
The others looked at her sharply. The princess seemed rather embarrassed by the outburst. Selenium, however, took the discovery in stride. She went around the desk and placed herself in full view. Where her legs should have been, there was instead a platform melded to her midsection, with treaded wheels underneath it. From the waist down she looked like a tank. ...
"What happened to you?" Sailor Torrent asked her, her eyes were full of pity.
"I wasn't always like this," Sailor Selenium replied. "Once I could walk, but I lost my legs in the Senshi Wars."
"I'm so sorry!" I apologized. "I didn't mean to call attention to-"
"Don't worry about it," Selenium interrupted. "There are far more important things in life than a pair of legs. It doesn't make me any less of a being. Spare me the pity." Her voice was bitter as she rolled back around her desk.
I noticed my sister and friends looking at me. "I SAID I WAS SORRY!!" I protested loudly.
"It's time to meet our final council member. Our ambassador of good will. In a minute you'll find out why she has such a position." She broke off as she noticed the ninth chair empty. "Where is she, anyway?!" she demanded. ...
"RIGHT HERE YOUR MAJESTY!!" a voice boomed from behind them. The scouts turned as one, expecting a ten foot tall Senshi to be the source of that loud mouth. What they saw instead made a few of them fall over, and not a few more jaws to drop. Sailor Venom's eyes widened in horror, then she slapped a hand over her eyes. "Oh, no!" she dreaded. "You did NOT make her a council member. Please let this be a joke!"
Standing before them, a riot of conflicting colors, was the ninth council Senshi. Her hair was done up in twin ponytails on either side of her head. One tail was bright pink. The other tail was yellow. The rest of her hair was blue, with violet-pink bangs. Her eyes were two different colors: the right one blue, the left one green. Her uniform was at least ten different colors. The bow in front was gold, the bow in back was pink. One of her gloves were orange, the other was red. One of her boots was purple, the other boot was green. Her skirt was aquamarine, and her collar was silver. She was grinning from ear to ear. She was almost TOO happy, reflected Sailor Cruelty and Sailor wildfire. She was also somewhat of a midget. Standing at least a head shorter than Sailor Strata. ..."HYIE!" she squealed. "You guys are the Sailor scouts and Ronin warriors of Earth?! Wow! I've been wanting to meet you ever since I heard of what you guys did!! You're my heroes!!"
Sailor Corruption had to hide a smile of amusement. Sailor Torrent had less luck hiding her mirth. Sailor Halo was stunned beyond words. Sailor illusion and Strata had sweatdrops over their heads. Sailor Hardrock laughed nervously, uncertain how to take in this twist of events. my face had facefaulted. Sailor Venom's face, on the other hand, was like a rain cloud.
Venom turned on her heel and faced the princess. The sweatdrop on her forehead was huge. "You can't POSSIBLY be serious!" she hissed. "You made that obnoxious, overly happy, hyperactive popinjay a council member?!!"
Princess Kakyuu only smiled. "If you think about it, she's the perfect girl for the job. Her happiness can be disarming in tense situations." ...
"You obviously haven't had any tense enough situations in the past few years," Sailor Venom's eyebrow twitched.
"Allow me to introduce myself, Sailor Cruelty!" the hyperactive popinjay stepped forward and bowed from the waist dramatically. "I am Sailor Rainbow Prism! I am the goodwill ambassador of Alpha Senshi!" I nodded in return, wondering if the happiness thing was all an act, or if she was really like that.
With some nervousness all around, Rainbow Prism bounded like a little kid from scout to scout, introducing herself with unbridled enthusiasm. None of them could help noticing, however, that the girl actively steered clear of Sailor Venom. Nor did Sailor Venom make any effort to greet the girl. She simply glared. If looks could kill, Rainbow Prism would have been a puddle of grease by now. ...
Princess Kakyuu caught the sudden tension in the chamber. "uh Rainbow Prism we should not keep our guests standing around, take them to their rooms, will you?"
"OF COURSE!!" Rainbow Prism's smile and enthusiasm returned with a vengeance. "Come with me, Sailor Scouts! Wait until you see where you're staying! You won't want to leave this place!!" the scouts all followed her out. ...
Sunday one week after the preparations for the celebration. The celebration is to begin the very next day.
Michelle and Cye stood next to the fish tank in their room that sported a variety of aquatic animals she'd never before imagined existed. Michelle had changed out of her sailor Torrent costume that she had been wearing , and now wore a light blue gown with tiny Aquamarine jewels on the silky fabric. It made her feel luxurious and rich, not an altogether unpleasant sensation. we were all dressed in the way but in the color that matched our powers. Cye was wearing a tuxedo made of the same fabric as 'Michelle's gown.
In the tank there were blue fish, with flowing rainbow tails. There were bright red, slender fish, with little lights all over them, and two dorsal fins. Michelle wondered what those two fins were for. One fish had three eyes, but the middle eye was attached to the body only by means of a thin tendril at the crown of the head. The tendril looped this way and that, offering perfect peripheral vision. Some squid-like creatures floated about, translucent and phosphorescent, like little living lights.
Michelle shook her head as she walked away and looked out her window. She and the other scouts had been put in one of the floating towers. She didn't know quite how they could float, and she didn't altogether feel comfortable with such tenuous knowledge. There were endless possibilities of entertainment on a planet like this. ...
Amy and Rowen were in their room reading some books they had brought with them and were enjoying just being together when they hear a chirp from the door way. both of them rose and went to answer the door. Pressing a button on the wall, the door slid open. Standing in that doorway was Sailor Rainbow Prism, grinning from ear to ear. "HYIE!!" she squealed. ... "Uh... hi," Amy and Rowen stuttered. This girl was most unusual.
"I hear you're REAAALLLY intelligent!" Prism gushed. "I wanna show you something that's right up your alley! Come with me!" she bounded off, not waiting for a reply. Amy shrugged and smiled at Rowen as they stepped out of their spacious apartment. What could it hurt to do a little exploring? Sailor Rainbow Prism was idling outside the building on a small landing pad. She smiled even bigger when Amy walked out. "There you are!" she stepped to the landing pad and took off with Amy and Rowen following her.
"Where are we going?" Amy asked.
"No, no, no! It's a surprise!!" Prism giggled girlishly
The building that was their destination was little more than a five-minute trip by air. It was one of the larger buildings constructed near the habitat park. They landed on a similar landing pad, Sailor Rainbow Prism went over to the door , waved some sort of ID card in front of a sensor by the time Amy was walking across the tarmac toward the building. She couldn't quite figure out Rainbow Prism. She was mature, obviously, but she had the manner and behavior of a hyperactive child. She seemed almost chronically happy. Amy and Rowen didn't know if she found that quality charming, or if they should be deeply disturbed by it. ...
Rainbow Prism continued to bound and skip her way ahead of Amy and Rowen. as they walked along a vast corridor lined with plants that resembled roses, but the flowers themselves were bigger than dinner plates, and every so often, much to Amy and Rowen's surprise, they moved right before her eyes.
"Welcome, Amy Mizuno and Rowen Habisha," the lilting voice brought her out of her thoughts. She turned and saw Prism standing next to Sailor Polaris, noting once again, Prism's short stature. She even looked like a child.
Amy forced herself to bow like they did. "Hello, Sailor Polaris," she returned politely. "May I ask what this is all about?"
"Certainly, this way please," Polaris began to lead her along another corridor. "The building you are in now is the Information Center of Alpha Senshi. A library, so to speak, of the vast knowledge and data collected by our civilization over countless eons. It is not a stretch to claim that everything you need to know about the universe is listed here. I am to understand you and Rowen are quite smart?" ...Amy took her attention off the tapastried walls long enough to answer the question. "Well... yes, I suppose in Earth standards we are."
Polaris nodded. "This library is perfect for you. All the information is contained in computers. You simply pull up to one of them, tell it what you want to search, and look at everything that comes up."
Amy felt her heart begin to pound. Everything in the universe contained in computers? She really did find herself itching to try it out. "That's all?"
"That's all." Polaris led her to an open console with a hovering seat floating in front of it. "To turn on the computer, you simply sit down at the chair. The CPU will begin by making an inquiry as to your search. You don't have to type anything, just verbally name your search, and the computer will respond in kind."
Amy sat down and Rowen next to Amy., and sure enough the computer came online. The words: "Greetings, Senshi or Ronin, what is your search topic for today?" scrolled across the screen. ... Amy considered the possibilities. There were so many. Some parts of her wanted to ask about the wildlife. There were parts of her that wanted to ask about the seemingly sentient plants she'd seen lying around. She wanted to know how the government was structured. She wanted to know about the city itself. So many possibilities.
"Perhaps you need some time alone." Polaris obviously saw her mental quandary. "If you need me, I'll be two floors down in the maintenance center. One of our computers crashed the other day, and it's taking us some time to fix the problem. Though if you have an immediate emergency, Rainbow Prism will be right here for you. Any more questions?"
Amy took her eyes off the screen and nodded. "What do you suggest would be good topic of study?"
Polaris' eyes became thoughtful. "How about the history of Alpha Senshi? That would be a great place to start."
Amy turned back to the computer. "History of Alpha Senshi, please," she said to it. ...
There was a pause, and a book icon opened up. Inside were several 'chapters', if they could be called that, which listed historical sections. Amy scrolled down the list with her eyes, until she fell upon an eye catching subject. The file read: "The Chronicles of the Senshi Wars." With a tingle of curiosity, she commanded the computer to open the file. After another short pause, she was at the text section of the history.
"Good choice," Polaris approved. "That was a critical juncture in our history, though historians are still having some difficulty singling out its importance because it is still rather recent in memory. The information is at least complete, but there aren't that many photographs, I'm afraid."
"That's alright," Amy said absently. "Thank you."
"I'll leave you alone now." Polaris bowed and, with light footsteps, walked off. Amy and Rowen began to read. ...
Habitat Park, stationed just a few blocks (if they could be called that) from the main palace of Alpha Senshi, were a wonder of galactic proportion. Each individual "tree" was the size of a redwood, possibly larger. They branched out and intertwined just like some of the forest trees Sailor Wildfire had seen flying over in Galaxia's ship. The main difference, and what made them so remarkable, was that each tree had homes carved into their trunks, but were still able to live on their own.
There were doors at evenly spaced intervals, with several windows. Some of those windows had Senshi leaning out of them, either staring at the strangers or else calling down to another Senshi on the ground. It was a full-fledged community built into an all-natural forest. Sailor Wildfire could not help but feel more of the same awe she had felt since she'd come out of hyperspace to this world. With the ceremonies to start tomorrow, she had the feeling this was only the beginning. ...
Their tour guide was Sailor Alpha Senshi, the environmental minister. She pointed everything out with such intimate detail and care, that Sailor Wildfire wished she knew as much about her home world as much as this Sailor seemed to. Most of the team, she could tell, was thinking the same thing, though like herself, they were struck almost speechless by the place. The only one conspicuously missing was Sailor Venom.
"Hey, where's Sailor Venom, anyway?" she leaned over to Sailor Hardrock. "I haven't seen her since we were at the palace."
"Dunno." Sailor Hardrock shrugged. "But you heard how important she is here. Maybe she went back to the palace to talk with the princess or something."
"She did," Sailor Corruption confirmed from behind them. Sailor Wildfire jumped. She hadn't realized Corruption was so close behind them. ... "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you," Uranus smiled. "Sailor venom is back at the palace. What she's doing there, she wouldn't say exactly."
Sailor Alpha Senshi had paused and looked at the three of them. "Do you have a question, princess?" she asked Sailor Wildfire.
Sailor Wildfire blushed and raised her hands wardingly. "Sorry. Didn't mean to talk during your tour."
"Don't worry about it, your highness," Alpha Senshi reassured. "I'm here at your complete disposal. You are guests. If you are bored by this place, I can take you elsewhere."
"No, no!" Sailor Wildfire gasped. "We didn't mean to come across like that. I was just asking about Sailor Venom that's all." ...
Alpha Senshi nodded and smiled. "She is discussing the activities for the next few days with the Kakyuu Princess and Galaxia at the palace. I believe this evening you'll be hearing all about it."
"Thank you," Sailor Wildfire said. If nothing else, their reception had been rather pleasant so far. With few exceptions, their visit was rather unlike Sailor venom had talked about on the ship. Sure the place was fast, that was for certain, but she didn't sense any of the ambivalence Venom had said was there. Maybe she could have overreacted a little. Or maybe she was biased. ...The thought shook her like an earthquake. Sailor Venom? Biased? On the face of it, it was an absurd notion. Sailor Pluto was the most mature, tolerant person she knew. But there was evidence pointing to the contrary in this case. Her rather chilly, no, downright ICY reception toward Sailor Rainbow Prism. All her claims that Alpha Senshians hated the Silver Millennium. Her obvious reluctance to make the journey with them to this planet. Then there was the general behavior of the same Alpha Senshians. Mostly detached curiosity, or warm generosity. The only Sailor on this world she had met so far who was openly malicious toward them was Sailor Nebula, that minister of war.
She didn't want to say anything to her friends about this. Not now at least. She brooded over her epiphany as the tour went on. ...
Amy and Rowen finished their search with a bewildered sort of exhaustion. The passage about the Senshi Wars was highly detailed, and extremely entangled with all sorts of intrigue, deception, and battle descriptions. they felt like they had read the Holy Bible, King James Version, from cover to cover in one sitting. She needed to sort it all out in her head, so she got up to take a walk around. Sailor Rainbow Prism skipped happily around ahead of her, but had enough sense not to disturb their thoughts.
They came to an open lounge area, with a broad window overlooking the central city. Amy and rowen stopped there and looked out again. She noticed again the large mirrors atop all the major buildings. It was a curiosity she decided to explore.
"Excuse me, Sailor Rainbow Prism," amy said to the shorter, colorful Senshi.
"Call me Prism," the other replied, bounding over to her side. "Do you have a question?"
"Yes. What are those mirrors I see atop all the primary buildings in this city. I forgot to ask about them before. What purpose do they serve?" ...
"Communication!" Prism happily explained. "When there's a great event, the mirrors catch the sun and send the light in the form of a strong, bright beam from one mirror to the other! It forms different patterns for different occasions! You'll be seeing one of those displays tomorrow! Five pointed star means celebration! Six pointed star means harvest! Helix means the New Year! If all the mirrors are activated at once, not really forming a shape at all, just forming a tangled web of light, it means invasion!"
"Invasion?" Amy and Rowen looked at her sharply. "Has that ever happened before?"
"Only once," Prism conceded, "but you already read about that."
Indeed they had. A chill went up their spines as she looked out again at the city. In the final stages of the Senshi Wars: the invasion of the planet by Chaos. The descriptions of the slaughter then were almost unmentionably severe. ...Prism noticed her change of moods. Her facade of happiness slipped. "It's not likely to happen again, if that's what you're worried about. Especially not in the few days you're to be staying here."
Amy and rowen nodded, not really feeling their guide's confidence. If it was one thing they had learned over the years, it was that evil could never truly be defeated, nor could it be totally prevented from striking. You make something evil-proof, a stronger evil would come along.
As night fell over the city of Alpha Senshi, Amy sat on the edge of the landing pad outside her apartment. She felt an odd rush being out on that pad, because there was no guard-rail and the height she was at was almost staggering. The fact she was ultimately standing on a building that wasn't even attached to the ground added to the effect.
She heard a light footstep behind her, and she turned around halfway to see me in the entrance, smiling warmly at her.
"Hey, jenny," Amy said softly. "Do you want to join me?"
"Today was a busy day.... YIPE!!" I cut myself off with a yelp as she realized just how high up they were. I had made the mistake of looking down from the landing pad. "AMY ARE YOU INSANE?!"
"If you sit down there's no danger, as long as you don't lean too far over," Amy explained. "It's a great view too." ...
I was trembling visibly as she inched her way over to the edge near her friend, but Amy's confidence seemed to boost her a little. After a long minute or two, I had my legs dangling over the edge too.
"I didn't know you were afraid of heights," Amy said, grinning in the twilight.
"Actually, it's kinda the falling from them part that bugs me," I laughed nervously.
"What have you got to worry about? sailor scouts and ronin warriors can fly."
my facefaulted. "Oh... yeah... you're right... stupid me." I looked away in obvious embarrassment.
"So what are you doing out here?" Amy changed the subject. ...
With her body relaxing, I looked back around at her. "As I was saying, today was a really busy day. What did they have you do?"
"Sailor Rainbow Prism took me to the library. I found some interesting stuff there."
"Rainbow Prism?" I questioned. "Isn't she a little odd? My impression of her is that she's kinda flaky."
"I believe that it's nothing more than a cover," Amy replied.
"What makes you say that?"
Amy shook her head. "Jenny.. have you noticed anything... odd... about the way Sailor Venom's been acting lately?" ...
I was silent for a few seconds. "Oh! Thank God! I'm not the only one who noticed!" I exclaimed. "I tried discreetly asking the others if they noticed anything, but none of them seemed to feel it!"
"They're all in awe of Sailor Venom," Amy said, almost bitterly. "I don't expect any of them to feel the difference."
"Well, I'm kinda in awe of Sailor Venom myself," said Sailor Moon. "I mean, she's so much more mature and level-headed. She's always got her wits about her. She's kind and trustworthy, but I was thinking today how everyone on this world was treating us real nice. And then I remembered that Sailor Venom told us that we wouldn't be totally welcomed here. I don't get that impression, do you?"
Amy was silent a moment longer. "There's far more to it than that. Sailor Venom has been feeding us false information from the start." ... Huh? How so?" I leaned closer, as if afraid someone would overhear.
"You remember on the ship how she was so hesitant to come with us? It was just after Galaxia extended her invitation to us. We were all raring to go, except Sailor Venom She gave you and amber the choice as team leaders, but from the look on her face, I'd say she was not too thrilled with your decision."
"Why would she not want to go?" I asked.
"It's not only that. There's something deeper going on here. Why would she lie about Alpha Senshi? Why would she subtly feed us the impression that they were untrustworthy and unfriendly? She's already all but convinced Sailor Corruption,Sailor Torrent,and Sailor Saturn her closest personal friends, she's right."Stop it Amy," I protested. "You're making her sound like a villain. That I KNOW is wrong!"
"I'm not saying she is, I'm sorry if I gave that impression," Amy soothed her. "I just want you to know that the doubts you're having are based in truth. There's a history behind Sailor Venom's hatred of Alpha Senshi. Do you want to hear it?"
"History?" Iasked. "Is that part of what you found at the library?"
"Yes," Amy wasn't quite prepared to tell Serena that it was Sailor Rainbow Prism who provided her with the information. She didn't know if that would be very credible, even to Jenny's eyes. "It turns out that Sailor Venom was once part of a coup d'etat, staged by a group of Senshi." She carefully omitted the references to Serena's family tree. "The coup failed, and Sailor Venom along with a few others were banished. It's altogether possible there's a lot of residual feelings from that, even after all this time." .
"But Sailor Venom was born in the Moon Kingdom. She's the actual princess of planet Pluto. She would have had to be born there to have that title."
"True enough, but do you really think that's a stumbling block? There have been allusions from both parties that Sailor Pluto is a known entity on this world. Plus, with her status as time stream guardian, I think that time is something that really has no meaning with her. She could have easily been involved in any number of historical events without any of us knowing."
I had that look on my face like her head was spinning. Amy had to remember who she was talking to here. "Anyway, I know that you didn't quite grasp that. I think we should get back before the others notice we're missing and send out a search party." So Amy and I walked back inside together.
"I don't know what Sailor Galaxia sees in her!" Sailor Nebula fumed as she watched the security shots of the scouts' residence.
"What do you mean by that?" Sailor Singularity asked. "I think Sailor Moon and the other Earth Senshi were quite nice, if not a little naïve."
"I've been saying from the start that those Senshi are dangerous. They're not like us, and so can't be trusted. Galaxia is making a mistake bringing them here!" Nebula shut off the security camera and scowled at the blank screen.
"Galaxia believes they deserve it," Singularity pointed out. "Are you saying you have the guts to argue with her?"
"I'm no fool, Singularity. I'll keep my mouth shut around her about this. Galaxia hates when people press an argument too far. She's already made it clear that she's not going to be influenced by anyone. The only thing we can do is protect her from her own mistake." ...
"All the evidence points out that this won't be a problem," Singularity argued. "Sailor Cruelty is already renowned throughout the galaxy as a pure hearted individual like no other. How can someone like that be dangerous?"
"They are descendants of the Moon Kingdom!" Nebula snarled. "Sailor Venom in particular has a history of going against our will. Above all, they are off-worlders, and not Alpha Senshians. I'm going to monitor those aliens very closely, and if they make one mistake, mark my words, I'll be there to mop up the pieces!"
Sailor Singularity withdrew slowly. Her face broadcast her misgivings. "I pray you don't anger Galaxia in the process, Nebula," she pleaded with her. "Not even the princess could protect you from her wrath then. For your sake, and for the alien scouts, I hope you're wrong about them." And with those words she left the room. ...
