Ian yawned and stretched in the back row of the Math lecture theatre, the tiny seats keeping his over six-foot frame confined to a fairly uncomfortable position. There were about 300 people listening and taking notes in the class, keeping up with the countless number of equations and theories that flashed across the board at the front of the room. His own pad was somewhat empty with the exception of a few marks in the margins. That was the advantage of having already done 2 years of his computing course back home; doing the first year of the same course in another country was nothing. Instead of listening to the rest of the lecture, he decided a good look around was in order. Yesterday hadn't been completely devoid of jovial activity, although having his nose broken for the 8th time wasn't especially what he had been looking for. Why had she gone off like that? He shook his head and laughed to himself, a rare half-smile turning the corner of his mouth up. Silly bitch. He'd thought she'd understood his warped sense of humor, but she'd proven otherwise by bloodying his nose.
"I'm sorry, but what's so funny?"
Caught completely off guard, Ian jerked his neck violently to his left. A blue haired girl who had been late had slid into the chair next to him and he was sure he'd heard her mutter something about a Serena being a meatball headed lazy bitch. "Well?" she hissed.
"Nothing, personal joke," he replied calmly. Man, this was one uptight little girl. "With one tight little ass too," he said aloud in English, and laughed again more loudly.
"I didn't quite catch that. My English isn't very good… oh, English! Are you Ian by any chance?" Her voice was very smooth and sweet Ian couldn't help but notice.
"Yes I am." He replied warily, looking at her face. Oh fuck, she's going to start screaming for the police if Dawn told her about last night. She didn't; instead, she smiled and bobbed her head in greeting.
"Hi, I'm Amy. I think you met Mina yesterday; she's a friend of mine. She said something about having coffee with an English man named Ian and an American girl named Dawn."
"Then my reputation precedes me. Nothing bad I hope." I really hope.
"Oh no," she smiled up at him, still painstakingly pleasant. "She just told me she met you. Anyways, can I ask why you aren't taking any notes?"
"I'm here on foreign exchange, so I'm two years through my course. This stuff is child's play." Amy nodded and went back to her notes. Ian slouched down in his chair again and found his train of thought again. Ah, yes. Dawn. He should probably find her and apologize at some point in the near future. The problem was what he could say – "Sorry but I've got a very sick sense of humor, oh yes and I find it hard to resist hormonal urges after turning into an 8 foot winged beast, hope we can still be friends though," didn't exactly make for a good reply. Fuck that for a game of soldiers. Besides he had bigger problems to handle. He had never decided what side he was on yesterday, or any day he'd made an appearance in his alternate form. Was he a good monster, a strong proud protector of the innocent? Sure, that was what he did yesterday and every other time he had gotten involved as DarkWing, but… was it his responsibility? Surely not, but those chicks in the funny-looking uniforms took quite a pasting until he was able to lend a hand. He wondered if he should actively seek them in order to help out… A light tap on his shoulder broke Ian's train of thought. "Whafuck?"
Amy laughed, a little giggle that she instantly hid with her hand. "Um, could I get past now?"
Ian looked around and saw that everyone was leaving. "Oh, sure. Sorry, I was somewhere else completely," he said as he shook his head. Ian stood and allowed her to pass, a thought coming to him. "By the way, do you know where I could find Dawn?"
"No, but she might be with Mina. I'm meeting her now, you can come if you want." Ian nodded and walked behind her. He kept a few steps back, watching her lower half as she weaved in and out of the crowd. It wasn't a bad view, as far as he was concerned. He could definitely follow it for a while.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"I'm not going to let this affect me, I'm a better person than that." Dawn's new mantra was almost working now. While it had taken about 500 repetitions, she was pretty sure that yesterday's incident was behind her. As long as that English creep stayed away, she'd be fine. Sadly, fate wasn't going to be kind today; she just didn't know it yet.
She had gone into college with Mina, Serena, and Rini, who still hadn't apologized for running her down the previous day. Still, yesterday didn't happen in her mind, so today was new and good. They'd helped Rini enroll that day, with Serena being pretty pissed and snapping at the poor girl all morning. Dawn assumed they had some kind of family problem, and she wasn't about to get involved in anything of that nature. The others all had a lecture coming up in a few minutes, but they were waiting to talk to a girl called Amy who was finishing up a Calculus lecture. The doors to the building swung open, and the other three girls turned to look for their friend. Dawn's head turned as well… oh fuck. Any and all confidence brought on by the sentence she'd been saying all morning ran down her spine and out through her toes. That bastard was coming her way, walking with some blue haired wench. From the look of his face, she had busted his nose but he'd reset it. The resulting black eye didn't exactly help his already threatening image, and Dawn stepped back from the group to avoid him.
"Hi guys," Amy chirped, the girls greeting her with the same degree of enthusiasm. Ian walked around the group and over to Dawn, lowering his voice and switching to English so no one would notice.
"I have to speak to you."
"Fuck off." It was rude, but in the same discrete fashion. She wasn't sure if she could maintain it for long.
"Look, I really should explain…"
"Explain what? That you're a psychopath?" Dawn hissed through her teeth, not wanting to cause a scene. "Just get the fuck away from me, Ian."
He looked at her, her eyes no longer bright but cold and angry. "Okay, I'll let you calm down first." He switched back to Japanese, replying to some idle chitchat from the girls in his usual mono syllabic disinterested way. From where she stood, Dawn shot him a dirty look, noticeably antagonized by his response.
"Hello, girls." A tall woman with long green hair came up behind Dawn and greeted the group. Her tone wasn't exactly hostile, but she seemed relatively annoyed about something. Rini nearly jumped out of her skin as the woman spoke, and the other girls recoiled. What she did next baffled the entire group; she turned to Dawn with a half-smile and looked her over once before speaking to her. "I'd like to see you later. Your last lecture finishes at 2 this afternoon, so I'll meet you outside."
"But how does Plu-OW!" Serena rubbed the spot on her stomach where Rini had elbowed her. "What? You know, I told you…" She trailed off as she saw their new companion staring at Ian in shock.
"L – L – Luciender? W – what, er, um, how are you here?" She swallowed and looked over at the rest of the girls, who were now regarding Ian with the same slack-jawed expression of bewilderment.
"HI. I AM IAN." He spoke loudly and condescendingly without any sign of emotion, then chuckled and offered his hand to the green haired woman. She took it, shaking noticeably. "Well, you know how to kill a good thing, huh? Anyways, I got a lecture in minute, so nice to meet you all." With that, he turned and headed into a nearby building. The girls grabbed the green haired woman, Serena leaning over to Dawn with an embarrassed grin.
"Um, sorry, but we gotta go. See you later, right?" She didn't wait for a response, running after the group as Dawn was left alone, dumbfounded and a little shaken. Who was Ian then, if some stranger that those girls knew could pick him out of a crowd? She checked her watch and sighed, realizing that she had an hour to kill before her last class of the day. And why the hell does some stranger want to meet me after class? She sighed audibly and set off towards the library, fully intending to forget about the past twenty four hours through the joys of materials theory. Maybe there, she'd finally start to be a normal student and have a normal day.
Heh, normal. First time in her life she'd wished for that.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The last thing that Raye had expected that afternoon was an impromptu visit by the rest of the gang. Not that she didn't appreciate the company; since the rest of them had started school, she'd been a bit lonely at the temple. Still, as she swept the leaves and dirt from the steps for the nineteenth time that day, seeing the five girls accompanied by Setsuna sent a chill down her back. After yesterday's meeting, she had come back to the temple and finished her usual daily tasks. The last hours before bed had been spent at the fire, where Raye had tried to get a better feeling of what had happened that afternoon and what the following days might bring. The resulting image she'd seen had confused her; seeing another set of flames within the fire wasn't exactly clear. Raye had dealt with plenty of obscure visions in her time, but seeing fire inside fire didn't make any sense. Maybe she'd been sweeping too much these days.
"Have you had lunch yet?" Serena, thinking with her stomach, greeted Raye from the bottom of the stairs. "We, um, kinda had our plans interrupted." She tilted her head towards Pluto, who had remained behind them talking to Rini for most of their walk.
"What's she doing here?" Raye whispered as the other four girls climbed the last group of stairs up to the temple. "Is it because of Rini, or does it have something to do with all that stuff yesterday?"
"We don't know," Amy replied. "She hasn't said anything to us since we met Lita on the train and came over here. Rini's in serious trouble, I bet." Amy glanced back at their pink-haired companion, who was squirming uncomfortably as Setsuna talked to her in a hushed tone. Whatever Rini had done to get back to Tokyo, Pluto had seen it as reason to step away from her usual obligations and pay the girls a visit. Amy could only assume that there was more going on than just a simple case of Rini using the Crystal Key for a joyride, and that they'd have to play Sailor Senshi again. The idea annoyed her more than just a little bit. She was all ready to start at the university, get her pre-med finished a few years early, and then have her pick of med schools once she graduated. Now… well, this was going to cut into her study time, and that just kind of pissed her off.
Raye sighed audibly and looked at the group, who all wore similar expressions of concern and confusion. "All right," she finally replied. "I think we can pull something together in the kitchen. Come on in and let's see what we've got to do this time. At least it's more exciting than sweeping these damn steps."
Neither Rini nor Lita ate much. Rini picked at her food while Lita simply stared at her hands in her lap. None of them were too interested in eating, with the exception of Serena who devoured her sandwich in what might have been record time. After a few minutes of relative silence, Setsuna cleared her throat and stood up, brushing her hair away from her face as she did so.
"All right, let's start with the obvious things," she began. "I assume Luna's told you about the legend associated with the ancient cults of the Moon and the creation myths regarding Atlantis. Is that correct?" The girls nodded, and Pluto continued. "And you know that Rini's here on her own, not because I sent her?"
"Yeah," Serena answered. "I'm making a mental note to ground her in the future for this one."
Setsuna looked to the ceiling, the "why me?" evident on her face. "And from the way you four reacted earlier, I guess you know who Luciender is. Did Luna explain that to you as well?"
"Yeah, she said he was Lita's older brother," Mina replied. "She told us that he was banished because he almost killed Queen Serenity, but..."
"But what?"
Mina chewed her lip thoughtfully. "Shouldn't he be older? I mean, Luna said this guy was a soldier when Lita was a baby. How could he be our age?"
"Our age?" For the first time since she'd met up with the rest of the group, Lita spoke. "How do you know how old he is? You've only seen him once."
Serena shook her head. "Nuh-uh, we've seen him twice, and you're not gonna believe this. We know who he really is, like everyday, average guy on the street." Lita went as white as a sheet while Serena kept running her mouth. "You know Mina's friend, Donna?"
"Dawn," Mina automatically corrected. "It's Dawn, and Lita met her the same day that you did."
"Right, whatever," Serena continued. "Anyways, she's got this friend Ian, this guy from England who's kinda scary-looking, but kinda cute, if you go for that whole psycho serial killer look. Personally, I think he's creepy, and he doesn't talk all that well, but…"
"He's not that bad," Amy jumped in. "I was talking to him in class, and he seemed all right. A little quiet and somewhat reserved, but he didn't seem all that bad."
Setsuna passed a hand over her forehead. She'd hoped they'd grown out of this once they'd graduated from high school, but evidently, she'd been mistaken. "Regardless of this young man's normal demeanor, his personality and behavior as Luciender are not something to be taken lightly. The demon form he can assume brings with it some fairly serious side effects."
"Like what? He didn't say much when he helped us out, and he's never hurt any of us," Mina said. "What kind of side effects are you talking about?"
"Using the demon form keeps him from adequately controlling his reactions," she answered. "There are several psychological and chemical changes that take place, but let's suffice to say that he isn't able to control his instincts if he's provoked or attacked when he's in that form, or for some time after the change takes place."
"But he's still on our side, isn't he?" Serena asked.
"I don't think he knows what sides exist," Setsuna said, walking to on of the windows. "Lita, did he try and protect you during that fight in the parking lot?"
"Well, yeah. He didn't attack any of us, just those freaks who tried to attack Rini and Serena." She looked over at Mina. "He didn't hurt you, did he?"
"No," she responded. "He chased one guy out of the alley and…" Mina swallowed, glancing up at Setsuna. "He killed one of them," she whispered. "I mean, he just threw him against a wall and the guy's neck broke and –"
"I get the idea," Setsuna interrupted. "That's what I mean. He can't control his reactions, and until he's aware of his role and who he is in relationship to the rest of you, you need to be incredibly careful around him. Understood?" The six girls nodded in unison. "All right," she sighed. "Now, there's the matter of Eos."
"Eos?" Rini squeaked. "What's wrong with Eos? You aren't going to bring her here, are you?"
"Excuse me," Raye cut in. "Who, or what, is Eos? Another demon?"
"She's not a demon," Rini answered in a condescending tone. "She's anything but a demon. She's my Guardian."
"Your what?" Serena gave her future daughter a puzzled look. "What do you need a Guardian for? She still has parents in the future, doesn't she?" she asked Setsuna.
"Of course she does," replied Setsuna with as much patience as she could muster. "Still, they aren't around all the time, and someone's got to look after her and protect her. That's what the Guardian does."
"There's only one?" Mina asked. "Or does everybody have their own?"
More explanations. She needed a vacation from this gig. "There's one in the future, but the Guardian is descended from the bloodline of the last priestess of Babylon. As a result, the task of the Guardian is passed from generation to generation, ensuring that there is always someone with the ability to protect the Moon Kingdom from threats on the Earth. Does that make any sense?" The confused expressions on the five faces of the original Sailors indicated that they didn't completely understand Setsuna's quick explanation.
"So, this Guardian is always around? It's a different person, but with the same abilities?" Amy finally spoke, her brow furrowed. "And it's this person's job to protect the Moon Kingdom?"
"It's her job to protect the keeper of the Crystal," Setsuna explained. "Since Rini technically guards the Crystal Key, the Guardian protects her."
"What about me?" Serena protested. "Don't I get any protection? Last time I checked, I was the one making sure that nobody got their paws on the Silver Crystal."
Raye rolled her eyes. "Serena, that's our job," she pointed out. "The rest of us cover your ass when you can't fend for yourself, or don't you remember the couple hundred times that's happened?" Serena said nothing but folded her arms across her chest and pouted.
"Raye's correct," Setsuna answered. "Eos has been with Rini ever since she was born, so Rini knows her."
"So why don't you just bring her here, like you and Rini got here?" Mina asked. "Can't you do that?"
"I can't just bring the Sailors of the future here to fight your battles," she said, becoming exasperated. "Same goes for the Guardian. I have to find the descendant of the priestess of Babylon and 'enlighten' her, for lack of a better word."
"Won't that take a while?"
"Not really," she shrugged.
"Are you going to stay and help us, too?" Lita asked in a hopeful tone.
"I can't," she said sadly. "There are limits to what I can do in the past. I wish I could. Take care, girls."
"But what about Luciender, er, I mean, Ian?" Lita continued. "How do we tell him?"
"You don't. I'll take care of that as well."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Dawn had been very shaken by the meeting that morning, but her afternoon was shaping up to be a little better. For one thing, she hadn't seen Ian since the 'incident' with the rest of the girls. She'd spent a good half hour sitting in the library, waiting for him to sneak around a corner or come up next to her. Of course, he'd never even set foot inside, but she figured that a little paranoia couldn't hurt at this point. She hadn't seen the others either all afternoon, and in one last stroke of luck her last lecture had finished 15 minutes early. She had waited for five minutes at the door, telling herself that she had to satisfy her curiosity. After three minutes and fifteen seconds, she lost her nerve and decided that she'd go home and phone Mina, tell her she was sick, and couldn't possibly meet her friend. Fitting both straps of her backpack over her shoulders, Dawn set off for her apartment building.
Aaron and Val had been to classes and lectures that day, their "voices" keeping silent the entire time. If it wasn't for the fact that Ryan was dead, or the scrapes and bruises each of them sported, they would never have known the previous day was anything other than a dream. They started off towards home, finished for the day and somewhat anxious to return to Sarah and the book. It took almost a half hour to get there and they had to walk the length of the campus… not that it mattered much. Whatever kind of energy they had absorbed during their previous encounter felt so good. The feeling of something almost raw and electric beneath the skin, fueling and enhancing every though and movement. Aaron swore he could run a marathon and then fuck all night without stopping.
"I know what you mean," Val answered, her eyes looking forward. "I've never felt like this before. This sensation, it's just … invigorating."
Aaron glanced at her lips, which hadn't moved. He panicked slightly, wondering if he'd finally flipped. It was Val's voice, it had to be.
It is she, the already familiar tone interrupted. Thy companion and thou doth share a common bond. Rather than question it, Aaron simply accepted it. It was easier and easier to slip into that warm comfort of acceptance, where he didn't have to think about his actions or attempt an explanation. Things just were and that was enough.
Val's face contorted slightly, and she grabbed at her scarred hand. At that same moment, Aaron felt his chest burning, the mark from yesterday pulsing beneath the surface of his skin. "The Crystal," she hissed, glancing around. "It's nearby."
The voice told him to follow the pulse, that it would lead them to the Crystal. Aaron, with his hand over his chest, and Val, with her arm outstretched, paused for a split second before taking off towards the center of the campus. In their haste, they knocked over a brown haired girl; neither heard her profane response, something about people in this country not looking where they're going. Concentrated on their goal, nothing else mattered. The two rounded a corner and stopped abruptly; standing in the shade of a large building, the pink haired girl, the target, spoke with a young woman who appeared to be waiting for someone. Without a moment's hesitation, Aaron lunged forward and threw his hands across his chest in a sweeping motion.
"World Shaking!" Aaron's voice thundered as a bright golden light surged forward, splitting the concrete and separating the target from her friend. The green-haired woman fell back beneath a shower of dirt and gravel as Val took her place next to Aaron.
"Deep Submerge!" From the place where the concrete had broken apart, a wall of water rose up and swept the girl into the side of the building. As the wave washed over the stone, there was a muffled scream and a flash of light. When the water cleared, Aaron and Val stared in shock at the figure of the same pink haired girl, now sporting a sailor suit and crouched in a fighting stance.
"She's the same one," Aaron panted, racing forward. "We need that Key." He brought his hands up for a second attack, preparing to let fly with yet another storm of rock. The Sailor leapt towards him with a loud yell, the heel of her pink boot slamming into Aaron's breastbone and driving him to the ground. Val launched herself ahead with an ungodly shriek, tackling the surprised girl and slamming her against a nearby bench. The two girls wrestled each other to the ground, Val finally getting to her feet and hauling her opponent to a standing position. As the yelling, screeching, and inevitable hair-pulling continued, Aaron stood back up and borrowed a trashcan from a nearby. In a fit of malicious glee, he dumped the container and its contents onto the girl's head, encasing her entire upper body in thick hard plastic. Val reared back and promptly slugged the girl in the solar plexus, dropping her like a carnation sack of potatoes. Kicking her over with his foot, Aaron bent down to retrieve the Key.
Something solid clocked him in the back of the head, sending him sprawling across the girl in the trashcan. Val soon joined him, the edge of an Introduction to Materials Theory textbook leaving a nasty mark on her chin inches from her throat. Aaron flipped over, expecting to see the green haired woman standing above him. Instead, the girl they had knocked over on their way to the fight had decided to get involved. Both fists up and teeth bared, she stood waiting as he pulled himself up. The voices were getting louder, and he had had about enough of this crap for today. The last thing he needed was yet another whiny argumentative bitch to get in the way of his task.
Dawn stood her ground, waiting for one of them to come charging at her. The guy she'd attacked with her textbook had stood up and was slowly walking towards her, leaving the other girl on the ground. Both of his hands came up, and with a loud yell he released a ball of energy that skidded towards her, tearing up the brick and concrete in the process. Chunks of rock the size of baseballs hurtled towards her, showering her with a spray of earth and gravel. The blast knocked her off her feet, her denim shorts offering little protection against the rough ground as she skidded to a stop. Coughing, she squinted at the figure of the girl she'd knocked over, who was standing in front of her companion as an eerie blue nimbus surrounded her.
Val didn't care about the girl with the Key anymore. The entity that had told her to follow the Crystal now forced her attentions to the girl lying in the rubble next to the sidewalk. The Guardian. Thou must silence the Guardian. Aaron stood beside her, an ugly grimace on his face. Her palm throbbed, and she brought her hands to the skies, summoning an enormous tsunami from where she stood. Her words combined with the voice she'd obeyed, producing a mighty echo as the wave raced ahead through the cloud of dust. "Deep Submerge!"
Lifting her head, Dawn scrambled to her feet at the sight of the giant wall of water surging towards her. She turned and tried to run, but stumbled as the icy weight forced her to the ground. Rock and debris pressed against her, tumbling over her limp body as the water rushed towards a nearby building. Dawn fought to reach the top of the wave, gulping air with water in an attempt to stay alive. Each time she could take a breath, the waters drug her back down into the darkness. As the waves closed over her head once more, she felt herself smack against something solid. Her lungs screaming for air, she clawed her way up towards the light as the water continued to press her against the wall. The instant she felt the cool air on her face, the waters stopped and the waves subsided, leaving her clinging to nothing as her body fell away from the wall. Her screams resulted in nothing more than a gargled vomit of water, and she closed her eyes in anticipation of a very painful impact. Dawn figured that she had about ten seconds before she hit the ground and either died or sustained injuries from which she would surely die later, and she didn't want to see any of it. About five seconds later, she felt something hit her, hard enough to cause a bit of pain but nothing like hitting asphalt. For that matter, she felt like she was moving forward. Begrudgingly, she opened one eye to see a stony blue-grey face on a giant with wings. Too terrified to scream, she shook and whimpered as the creature drew nearer to the ground. It dropped her a few feet above the grass, and Dawn fell next to the green haired woman. Soaking wet and terrified of the creature that had caught her, she choked out a simple question. "Why aren't you helping?"
"I can't. My hands are tied in affairs such as these," she replied matter-of-factly.
"What do you mean, you can't? What the hell does that mean?" At this point, Dawn was beginning to think that she would be a perfect match for Ian. The temperament was already rubbing off.
The monster landed in front of Aaron and Val, giving Rini time to pull herself out of the trashcan. The edge of his mouth twitched; it was a tiny movement, but enough for Aaron to know that time was up. "Fuck this, let's get out of here!" Unsure if he was talking telepathically or out loud, he knew Val could hear him as she took off after him. Given what that thing did to Ryan in front of his eyes, he didn't want to know what other tricks it could do.
"Luciender," Setsuna called as the creature turned to leave. Its head spun towards her, dark eyes narrowed.
That's what she called me earlier… but how could she know it's me? Not wanting to stay, he turned to leave once more when a hand grasped his forearm. Roaring, he threw Setsuna violently to the ground. A few feet away, Dawn was emptying her stomach as her wet clothes clung to her bruised body. Rini, back in her normal clothing, had backed a fair way off as well.
"I don't know who you think I am, but I am not Luciender," he growled. "I am DarkWing, and if you want to stay alive…" He walked towards Setsuna and placed his face less than an inch from hers. "STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM ME!" With that warning, he turned and leapt into the air, spreading his massive wings as he flew off. Dawn collapsed on the grass, shivering and crying softly as Rini promptly fainted where she stood. Setsuna looked helplessly between the two and wondered about what she had told the others. Perhaps none of it was possible after all.
"I'm sorry, but what's so funny?"
Caught completely off guard, Ian jerked his neck violently to his left. A blue haired girl who had been late had slid into the chair next to him and he was sure he'd heard her mutter something about a Serena being a meatball headed lazy bitch. "Well?" she hissed.
"Nothing, personal joke," he replied calmly. Man, this was one uptight little girl. "With one tight little ass too," he said aloud in English, and laughed again more loudly.
"I didn't quite catch that. My English isn't very good… oh, English! Are you Ian by any chance?" Her voice was very smooth and sweet Ian couldn't help but notice.
"Yes I am." He replied warily, looking at her face. Oh fuck, she's going to start screaming for the police if Dawn told her about last night. She didn't; instead, she smiled and bobbed her head in greeting.
"Hi, I'm Amy. I think you met Mina yesterday; she's a friend of mine. She said something about having coffee with an English man named Ian and an American girl named Dawn."
"Then my reputation precedes me. Nothing bad I hope." I really hope.
"Oh no," she smiled up at him, still painstakingly pleasant. "She just told me she met you. Anyways, can I ask why you aren't taking any notes?"
"I'm here on foreign exchange, so I'm two years through my course. This stuff is child's play." Amy nodded and went back to her notes. Ian slouched down in his chair again and found his train of thought again. Ah, yes. Dawn. He should probably find her and apologize at some point in the near future. The problem was what he could say – "Sorry but I've got a very sick sense of humor, oh yes and I find it hard to resist hormonal urges after turning into an 8 foot winged beast, hope we can still be friends though," didn't exactly make for a good reply. Fuck that for a game of soldiers. Besides he had bigger problems to handle. He had never decided what side he was on yesterday, or any day he'd made an appearance in his alternate form. Was he a good monster, a strong proud protector of the innocent? Sure, that was what he did yesterday and every other time he had gotten involved as DarkWing, but… was it his responsibility? Surely not, but those chicks in the funny-looking uniforms took quite a pasting until he was able to lend a hand. He wondered if he should actively seek them in order to help out… A light tap on his shoulder broke Ian's train of thought. "Whafuck?"
Amy laughed, a little giggle that she instantly hid with her hand. "Um, could I get past now?"
Ian looked around and saw that everyone was leaving. "Oh, sure. Sorry, I was somewhere else completely," he said as he shook his head. Ian stood and allowed her to pass, a thought coming to him. "By the way, do you know where I could find Dawn?"
"No, but she might be with Mina. I'm meeting her now, you can come if you want." Ian nodded and walked behind her. He kept a few steps back, watching her lower half as she weaved in and out of the crowd. It wasn't a bad view, as far as he was concerned. He could definitely follow it for a while.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"I'm not going to let this affect me, I'm a better person than that." Dawn's new mantra was almost working now. While it had taken about 500 repetitions, she was pretty sure that yesterday's incident was behind her. As long as that English creep stayed away, she'd be fine. Sadly, fate wasn't going to be kind today; she just didn't know it yet.
She had gone into college with Mina, Serena, and Rini, who still hadn't apologized for running her down the previous day. Still, yesterday didn't happen in her mind, so today was new and good. They'd helped Rini enroll that day, with Serena being pretty pissed and snapping at the poor girl all morning. Dawn assumed they had some kind of family problem, and she wasn't about to get involved in anything of that nature. The others all had a lecture coming up in a few minutes, but they were waiting to talk to a girl called Amy who was finishing up a Calculus lecture. The doors to the building swung open, and the other three girls turned to look for their friend. Dawn's head turned as well… oh fuck. Any and all confidence brought on by the sentence she'd been saying all morning ran down her spine and out through her toes. That bastard was coming her way, walking with some blue haired wench. From the look of his face, she had busted his nose but he'd reset it. The resulting black eye didn't exactly help his already threatening image, and Dawn stepped back from the group to avoid him.
"Hi guys," Amy chirped, the girls greeting her with the same degree of enthusiasm. Ian walked around the group and over to Dawn, lowering his voice and switching to English so no one would notice.
"I have to speak to you."
"Fuck off." It was rude, but in the same discrete fashion. She wasn't sure if she could maintain it for long.
"Look, I really should explain…"
"Explain what? That you're a psychopath?" Dawn hissed through her teeth, not wanting to cause a scene. "Just get the fuck away from me, Ian."
He looked at her, her eyes no longer bright but cold and angry. "Okay, I'll let you calm down first." He switched back to Japanese, replying to some idle chitchat from the girls in his usual mono syllabic disinterested way. From where she stood, Dawn shot him a dirty look, noticeably antagonized by his response.
"Hello, girls." A tall woman with long green hair came up behind Dawn and greeted the group. Her tone wasn't exactly hostile, but she seemed relatively annoyed about something. Rini nearly jumped out of her skin as the woman spoke, and the other girls recoiled. What she did next baffled the entire group; she turned to Dawn with a half-smile and looked her over once before speaking to her. "I'd like to see you later. Your last lecture finishes at 2 this afternoon, so I'll meet you outside."
"But how does Plu-OW!" Serena rubbed the spot on her stomach where Rini had elbowed her. "What? You know, I told you…" She trailed off as she saw their new companion staring at Ian in shock.
"L – L – Luciender? W – what, er, um, how are you here?" She swallowed and looked over at the rest of the girls, who were now regarding Ian with the same slack-jawed expression of bewilderment.
"HI. I AM IAN." He spoke loudly and condescendingly without any sign of emotion, then chuckled and offered his hand to the green haired woman. She took it, shaking noticeably. "Well, you know how to kill a good thing, huh? Anyways, I got a lecture in minute, so nice to meet you all." With that, he turned and headed into a nearby building. The girls grabbed the green haired woman, Serena leaning over to Dawn with an embarrassed grin.
"Um, sorry, but we gotta go. See you later, right?" She didn't wait for a response, running after the group as Dawn was left alone, dumbfounded and a little shaken. Who was Ian then, if some stranger that those girls knew could pick him out of a crowd? She checked her watch and sighed, realizing that she had an hour to kill before her last class of the day. And why the hell does some stranger want to meet me after class? She sighed audibly and set off towards the library, fully intending to forget about the past twenty four hours through the joys of materials theory. Maybe there, she'd finally start to be a normal student and have a normal day.
Heh, normal. First time in her life she'd wished for that.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The last thing that Raye had expected that afternoon was an impromptu visit by the rest of the gang. Not that she didn't appreciate the company; since the rest of them had started school, she'd been a bit lonely at the temple. Still, as she swept the leaves and dirt from the steps for the nineteenth time that day, seeing the five girls accompanied by Setsuna sent a chill down her back. After yesterday's meeting, she had come back to the temple and finished her usual daily tasks. The last hours before bed had been spent at the fire, where Raye had tried to get a better feeling of what had happened that afternoon and what the following days might bring. The resulting image she'd seen had confused her; seeing another set of flames within the fire wasn't exactly clear. Raye had dealt with plenty of obscure visions in her time, but seeing fire inside fire didn't make any sense. Maybe she'd been sweeping too much these days.
"Have you had lunch yet?" Serena, thinking with her stomach, greeted Raye from the bottom of the stairs. "We, um, kinda had our plans interrupted." She tilted her head towards Pluto, who had remained behind them talking to Rini for most of their walk.
"What's she doing here?" Raye whispered as the other four girls climbed the last group of stairs up to the temple. "Is it because of Rini, or does it have something to do with all that stuff yesterday?"
"We don't know," Amy replied. "She hasn't said anything to us since we met Lita on the train and came over here. Rini's in serious trouble, I bet." Amy glanced back at their pink-haired companion, who was squirming uncomfortably as Setsuna talked to her in a hushed tone. Whatever Rini had done to get back to Tokyo, Pluto had seen it as reason to step away from her usual obligations and pay the girls a visit. Amy could only assume that there was more going on than just a simple case of Rini using the Crystal Key for a joyride, and that they'd have to play Sailor Senshi again. The idea annoyed her more than just a little bit. She was all ready to start at the university, get her pre-med finished a few years early, and then have her pick of med schools once she graduated. Now… well, this was going to cut into her study time, and that just kind of pissed her off.
Raye sighed audibly and looked at the group, who all wore similar expressions of concern and confusion. "All right," she finally replied. "I think we can pull something together in the kitchen. Come on in and let's see what we've got to do this time. At least it's more exciting than sweeping these damn steps."
Neither Rini nor Lita ate much. Rini picked at her food while Lita simply stared at her hands in her lap. None of them were too interested in eating, with the exception of Serena who devoured her sandwich in what might have been record time. After a few minutes of relative silence, Setsuna cleared her throat and stood up, brushing her hair away from her face as she did so.
"All right, let's start with the obvious things," she began. "I assume Luna's told you about the legend associated with the ancient cults of the Moon and the creation myths regarding Atlantis. Is that correct?" The girls nodded, and Pluto continued. "And you know that Rini's here on her own, not because I sent her?"
"Yeah," Serena answered. "I'm making a mental note to ground her in the future for this one."
Setsuna looked to the ceiling, the "why me?" evident on her face. "And from the way you four reacted earlier, I guess you know who Luciender is. Did Luna explain that to you as well?"
"Yeah, she said he was Lita's older brother," Mina replied. "She told us that he was banished because he almost killed Queen Serenity, but..."
"But what?"
Mina chewed her lip thoughtfully. "Shouldn't he be older? I mean, Luna said this guy was a soldier when Lita was a baby. How could he be our age?"
"Our age?" For the first time since she'd met up with the rest of the group, Lita spoke. "How do you know how old he is? You've only seen him once."
Serena shook her head. "Nuh-uh, we've seen him twice, and you're not gonna believe this. We know who he really is, like everyday, average guy on the street." Lita went as white as a sheet while Serena kept running her mouth. "You know Mina's friend, Donna?"
"Dawn," Mina automatically corrected. "It's Dawn, and Lita met her the same day that you did."
"Right, whatever," Serena continued. "Anyways, she's got this friend Ian, this guy from England who's kinda scary-looking, but kinda cute, if you go for that whole psycho serial killer look. Personally, I think he's creepy, and he doesn't talk all that well, but…"
"He's not that bad," Amy jumped in. "I was talking to him in class, and he seemed all right. A little quiet and somewhat reserved, but he didn't seem all that bad."
Setsuna passed a hand over her forehead. She'd hoped they'd grown out of this once they'd graduated from high school, but evidently, she'd been mistaken. "Regardless of this young man's normal demeanor, his personality and behavior as Luciender are not something to be taken lightly. The demon form he can assume brings with it some fairly serious side effects."
"Like what? He didn't say much when he helped us out, and he's never hurt any of us," Mina said. "What kind of side effects are you talking about?"
"Using the demon form keeps him from adequately controlling his reactions," she answered. "There are several psychological and chemical changes that take place, but let's suffice to say that he isn't able to control his instincts if he's provoked or attacked when he's in that form, or for some time after the change takes place."
"But he's still on our side, isn't he?" Serena asked.
"I don't think he knows what sides exist," Setsuna said, walking to on of the windows. "Lita, did he try and protect you during that fight in the parking lot?"
"Well, yeah. He didn't attack any of us, just those freaks who tried to attack Rini and Serena." She looked over at Mina. "He didn't hurt you, did he?"
"No," she responded. "He chased one guy out of the alley and…" Mina swallowed, glancing up at Setsuna. "He killed one of them," she whispered. "I mean, he just threw him against a wall and the guy's neck broke and –"
"I get the idea," Setsuna interrupted. "That's what I mean. He can't control his reactions, and until he's aware of his role and who he is in relationship to the rest of you, you need to be incredibly careful around him. Understood?" The six girls nodded in unison. "All right," she sighed. "Now, there's the matter of Eos."
"Eos?" Rini squeaked. "What's wrong with Eos? You aren't going to bring her here, are you?"
"Excuse me," Raye cut in. "Who, or what, is Eos? Another demon?"
"She's not a demon," Rini answered in a condescending tone. "She's anything but a demon. She's my Guardian."
"Your what?" Serena gave her future daughter a puzzled look. "What do you need a Guardian for? She still has parents in the future, doesn't she?" she asked Setsuna.
"Of course she does," replied Setsuna with as much patience as she could muster. "Still, they aren't around all the time, and someone's got to look after her and protect her. That's what the Guardian does."
"There's only one?" Mina asked. "Or does everybody have their own?"
More explanations. She needed a vacation from this gig. "There's one in the future, but the Guardian is descended from the bloodline of the last priestess of Babylon. As a result, the task of the Guardian is passed from generation to generation, ensuring that there is always someone with the ability to protect the Moon Kingdom from threats on the Earth. Does that make any sense?" The confused expressions on the five faces of the original Sailors indicated that they didn't completely understand Setsuna's quick explanation.
"So, this Guardian is always around? It's a different person, but with the same abilities?" Amy finally spoke, her brow furrowed. "And it's this person's job to protect the Moon Kingdom?"
"It's her job to protect the keeper of the Crystal," Setsuna explained. "Since Rini technically guards the Crystal Key, the Guardian protects her."
"What about me?" Serena protested. "Don't I get any protection? Last time I checked, I was the one making sure that nobody got their paws on the Silver Crystal."
Raye rolled her eyes. "Serena, that's our job," she pointed out. "The rest of us cover your ass when you can't fend for yourself, or don't you remember the couple hundred times that's happened?" Serena said nothing but folded her arms across her chest and pouted.
"Raye's correct," Setsuna answered. "Eos has been with Rini ever since she was born, so Rini knows her."
"So why don't you just bring her here, like you and Rini got here?" Mina asked. "Can't you do that?"
"I can't just bring the Sailors of the future here to fight your battles," she said, becoming exasperated. "Same goes for the Guardian. I have to find the descendant of the priestess of Babylon and 'enlighten' her, for lack of a better word."
"Won't that take a while?"
"Not really," she shrugged.
"Are you going to stay and help us, too?" Lita asked in a hopeful tone.
"I can't," she said sadly. "There are limits to what I can do in the past. I wish I could. Take care, girls."
"But what about Luciender, er, I mean, Ian?" Lita continued. "How do we tell him?"
"You don't. I'll take care of that as well."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Dawn had been very shaken by the meeting that morning, but her afternoon was shaping up to be a little better. For one thing, she hadn't seen Ian since the 'incident' with the rest of the girls. She'd spent a good half hour sitting in the library, waiting for him to sneak around a corner or come up next to her. Of course, he'd never even set foot inside, but she figured that a little paranoia couldn't hurt at this point. She hadn't seen the others either all afternoon, and in one last stroke of luck her last lecture had finished 15 minutes early. She had waited for five minutes at the door, telling herself that she had to satisfy her curiosity. After three minutes and fifteen seconds, she lost her nerve and decided that she'd go home and phone Mina, tell her she was sick, and couldn't possibly meet her friend. Fitting both straps of her backpack over her shoulders, Dawn set off for her apartment building.
Aaron and Val had been to classes and lectures that day, their "voices" keeping silent the entire time. If it wasn't for the fact that Ryan was dead, or the scrapes and bruises each of them sported, they would never have known the previous day was anything other than a dream. They started off towards home, finished for the day and somewhat anxious to return to Sarah and the book. It took almost a half hour to get there and they had to walk the length of the campus… not that it mattered much. Whatever kind of energy they had absorbed during their previous encounter felt so good. The feeling of something almost raw and electric beneath the skin, fueling and enhancing every though and movement. Aaron swore he could run a marathon and then fuck all night without stopping.
"I know what you mean," Val answered, her eyes looking forward. "I've never felt like this before. This sensation, it's just … invigorating."
Aaron glanced at her lips, which hadn't moved. He panicked slightly, wondering if he'd finally flipped. It was Val's voice, it had to be.
It is she, the already familiar tone interrupted. Thy companion and thou doth share a common bond. Rather than question it, Aaron simply accepted it. It was easier and easier to slip into that warm comfort of acceptance, where he didn't have to think about his actions or attempt an explanation. Things just were and that was enough.
Val's face contorted slightly, and she grabbed at her scarred hand. At that same moment, Aaron felt his chest burning, the mark from yesterday pulsing beneath the surface of his skin. "The Crystal," she hissed, glancing around. "It's nearby."
The voice told him to follow the pulse, that it would lead them to the Crystal. Aaron, with his hand over his chest, and Val, with her arm outstretched, paused for a split second before taking off towards the center of the campus. In their haste, they knocked over a brown haired girl; neither heard her profane response, something about people in this country not looking where they're going. Concentrated on their goal, nothing else mattered. The two rounded a corner and stopped abruptly; standing in the shade of a large building, the pink haired girl, the target, spoke with a young woman who appeared to be waiting for someone. Without a moment's hesitation, Aaron lunged forward and threw his hands across his chest in a sweeping motion.
"World Shaking!" Aaron's voice thundered as a bright golden light surged forward, splitting the concrete and separating the target from her friend. The green-haired woman fell back beneath a shower of dirt and gravel as Val took her place next to Aaron.
"Deep Submerge!" From the place where the concrete had broken apart, a wall of water rose up and swept the girl into the side of the building. As the wave washed over the stone, there was a muffled scream and a flash of light. When the water cleared, Aaron and Val stared in shock at the figure of the same pink haired girl, now sporting a sailor suit and crouched in a fighting stance.
"She's the same one," Aaron panted, racing forward. "We need that Key." He brought his hands up for a second attack, preparing to let fly with yet another storm of rock. The Sailor leapt towards him with a loud yell, the heel of her pink boot slamming into Aaron's breastbone and driving him to the ground. Val launched herself ahead with an ungodly shriek, tackling the surprised girl and slamming her against a nearby bench. The two girls wrestled each other to the ground, Val finally getting to her feet and hauling her opponent to a standing position. As the yelling, screeching, and inevitable hair-pulling continued, Aaron stood back up and borrowed a trashcan from a nearby. In a fit of malicious glee, he dumped the container and its contents onto the girl's head, encasing her entire upper body in thick hard plastic. Val reared back and promptly slugged the girl in the solar plexus, dropping her like a carnation sack of potatoes. Kicking her over with his foot, Aaron bent down to retrieve the Key.
Something solid clocked him in the back of the head, sending him sprawling across the girl in the trashcan. Val soon joined him, the edge of an Introduction to Materials Theory textbook leaving a nasty mark on her chin inches from her throat. Aaron flipped over, expecting to see the green haired woman standing above him. Instead, the girl they had knocked over on their way to the fight had decided to get involved. Both fists up and teeth bared, she stood waiting as he pulled himself up. The voices were getting louder, and he had had about enough of this crap for today. The last thing he needed was yet another whiny argumentative bitch to get in the way of his task.
Dawn stood her ground, waiting for one of them to come charging at her. The guy she'd attacked with her textbook had stood up and was slowly walking towards her, leaving the other girl on the ground. Both of his hands came up, and with a loud yell he released a ball of energy that skidded towards her, tearing up the brick and concrete in the process. Chunks of rock the size of baseballs hurtled towards her, showering her with a spray of earth and gravel. The blast knocked her off her feet, her denim shorts offering little protection against the rough ground as she skidded to a stop. Coughing, she squinted at the figure of the girl she'd knocked over, who was standing in front of her companion as an eerie blue nimbus surrounded her.
Val didn't care about the girl with the Key anymore. The entity that had told her to follow the Crystal now forced her attentions to the girl lying in the rubble next to the sidewalk. The Guardian. Thou must silence the Guardian. Aaron stood beside her, an ugly grimace on his face. Her palm throbbed, and she brought her hands to the skies, summoning an enormous tsunami from where she stood. Her words combined with the voice she'd obeyed, producing a mighty echo as the wave raced ahead through the cloud of dust. "Deep Submerge!"
Lifting her head, Dawn scrambled to her feet at the sight of the giant wall of water surging towards her. She turned and tried to run, but stumbled as the icy weight forced her to the ground. Rock and debris pressed against her, tumbling over her limp body as the water rushed towards a nearby building. Dawn fought to reach the top of the wave, gulping air with water in an attempt to stay alive. Each time she could take a breath, the waters drug her back down into the darkness. As the waves closed over her head once more, she felt herself smack against something solid. Her lungs screaming for air, she clawed her way up towards the light as the water continued to press her against the wall. The instant she felt the cool air on her face, the waters stopped and the waves subsided, leaving her clinging to nothing as her body fell away from the wall. Her screams resulted in nothing more than a gargled vomit of water, and she closed her eyes in anticipation of a very painful impact. Dawn figured that she had about ten seconds before she hit the ground and either died or sustained injuries from which she would surely die later, and she didn't want to see any of it. About five seconds later, she felt something hit her, hard enough to cause a bit of pain but nothing like hitting asphalt. For that matter, she felt like she was moving forward. Begrudgingly, she opened one eye to see a stony blue-grey face on a giant with wings. Too terrified to scream, she shook and whimpered as the creature drew nearer to the ground. It dropped her a few feet above the grass, and Dawn fell next to the green haired woman. Soaking wet and terrified of the creature that had caught her, she choked out a simple question. "Why aren't you helping?"
"I can't. My hands are tied in affairs such as these," she replied matter-of-factly.
"What do you mean, you can't? What the hell does that mean?" At this point, Dawn was beginning to think that she would be a perfect match for Ian. The temperament was already rubbing off.
The monster landed in front of Aaron and Val, giving Rini time to pull herself out of the trashcan. The edge of his mouth twitched; it was a tiny movement, but enough for Aaron to know that time was up. "Fuck this, let's get out of here!" Unsure if he was talking telepathically or out loud, he knew Val could hear him as she took off after him. Given what that thing did to Ryan in front of his eyes, he didn't want to know what other tricks it could do.
"Luciender," Setsuna called as the creature turned to leave. Its head spun towards her, dark eyes narrowed.
That's what she called me earlier… but how could she know it's me? Not wanting to stay, he turned to leave once more when a hand grasped his forearm. Roaring, he threw Setsuna violently to the ground. A few feet away, Dawn was emptying her stomach as her wet clothes clung to her bruised body. Rini, back in her normal clothing, had backed a fair way off as well.
"I don't know who you think I am, but I am not Luciender," he growled. "I am DarkWing, and if you want to stay alive…" He walked towards Setsuna and placed his face less than an inch from hers. "STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM ME!" With that warning, he turned and leapt into the air, spreading his massive wings as he flew off. Dawn collapsed on the grass, shivering and crying softly as Rini promptly fainted where she stood. Setsuna looked helplessly between the two and wondered about what she had told the others. Perhaps none of it was possible after all.