Immortal through rebirth,
Eternal by destiny,
They are the Sailor Soldiers, human embodiments of the stars
Children of a cosmic balance between life and nonexistence
It has been so since the beginning... or has it?
Does Zero Star yet have it's secrets? The Galaxy Cauldron beckons with the tale of it's origin, and a prophecy of what is yet to come.
Sailor Moon
Solar Darkness, Shadow Light
Disclaimer: I do not hold any rights to Sailor Moon or anything related to the genre. I am not making money off this story. If you truly don't know how fanfiction operates, do a web search and figure it out. I am not liable to be sued for anything in regards to this fic. If there is any discrepancy, e-mail me. Later, peoples!
Prologue: In the Galaxy Cauldron
"We do not fight for the sake of combat. Nor do we battle to ensure a future of battles... we battle to ensure a future of peace..."
"Then tell me, to what avail is it? If there will always be battles there can never be real peace. Somehow, something must end it. Only with conclusion can there be peace. How long must this dance last? If light is in conflict with darkness and darkness with light, then the removal of either can bring peace. Can you not see? Something must tip the scales, else the entire universe will eventually die without conclusion."
These two voices practically waged war within her mind as she stood on the shattered precipice, overlooking the cosmic gene pool known as the Galaxy Cauldron. The violent turbulence caused by the rush of epic power that resided in the now-volcanic dark pit was a whirlwind all about her, whipping her two long ribbons of hair behind her and pulling at her clothing. Yes, pulling; was the Galaxy Cauldron of Zero Star truly nothing more than a black hole with hell awaiting on the other side, and Chaos' phantom form in between? It seemed it could be little else. It's roaring power drew her inwards, but she knew, one way or the other, that this encounter would end within the Galaxy Cauldron's paradox framework.
"If light is in conflict with darkness and darkness with light, then the removal of either can bring peace. Can you not see? Something must tip the scales, else the entire universe will eventually die without conclusion."
The voice echoed in her head, the two sides of her deepest nature now pitted in conflict with each other. To save the universe... or her friends?
But she knew the truth. She just feared to accept it. Galaxia, Chaos, and Chibi Chibi had made it clear with the revelation knowledge they had imparted her in these last few moments, and her heart had translated the meanings together. Had she had the strength, she might have laughed. There was no choice to be made. Her heart, soul, origin, and destiny would not let her run from this place, and it was impossible for her to destroy the Galaxy Cauldron.
She could only... set it at peace. Whatever efforts she might take to destroy it would eventually conclude at that end. Even Chaos itself was powerless to suppress the cycle of the galaxy. Two opposite magnetic forces do not destroy each other, but are drawn by nature into a bond that can only be delayed and withheld by distance. She now understood.
Eternal Sailor Moon, harnessing the power of her heart and her love for her friends, leapt into the darkness. As the chosen agents of Light and Dark collided, the law of the universes took control, and balance and lives were restored...
...for how long?
Standing upon that selfsame locale in that exact same epoch of time, Sailor Cosmos' realization of the scene was all the deeper. Long ago, she herself had made the error of running from the facts of this place, what it stood for, what it was meant to do. Somehow, though, by returning in the form of a child to a past she had once lived, she had managed to give Eternal Sailor Moon the courage and power of heart to do what, previously neither of them would have dared. In that, the future was established.
'... The Galaxy Cauldron.' Pondered she, staring down into the depth of the now still galactic orifice. 'Where hopes and dreams are born... but...' She looked aside, a long-dwelled upon realization blossoming with dark hue in her mind. '...But no; though it give the potential of hope through rebirth of Star Seeds and Sailor Crystals... it offers no hope of it's own.' She then returned her gaze to the failed star of darkness. 'It is a seal of balance, one for which the universe would be greatly availed and greatly destroyed to be rid of. Forever, or as long as a universe lives, will this dark genesis both uphold and defy hopes, it's defiance on a scale far deeper than it's guardianship. If only... if only the cycle could be broken without causing the end of the birth of stars...'
But she knew it was a futile conjecture. Like a necessary curse would the Galaxy Cauldron remain, feeding off peace and love and joy and in return prolonging life, a life that, once one realizes the ramifications of a place such as this, could have no lasting hope. Because of this place there would always be battles. What was the difference between the Galaxy Cauldron and a tyrannical regime that stole from it's people all choice and all liberty and all that was sacred to the heart in return for 'protection'? The Cauldron prolonged life at the expense of peace, as did any totalitarian human governing system. Yet, unlike an oppressor, there was no way to throw off the Galaxy Cauldron. Surely, Sailor Cosmos concluded, were all Star Seeds and Sailor Crystals from all eras to be cast into the Galaxy Cauldron, the two forces, equal by birthright, would totally neutralize one another, and the galaxy, perhaps even the universe, would cease to be.
There, in the aloneness of that both sanctified and desecrated place, she stood overlooking the brink. The sheer... hopelessness, endlessness of it drove her to seek out another method, some ...way by which all could be made right. Those voices from so many years gone past echoed back to her. Darkness, by definition, could not exist without light and, surely, light would have no definition without darkness. Yet the two could never co-inhabit the same sphere; where there was light there could not also be darkness, and likewise vice-versa. Could it be that this monstrous, terrible balance had to be sustained in order for life to exist, that of all things the existence of evil had to be upheld even if only in the hands of nature's own law?
Could there truly never be a world without death, pain, suffering, fear, and all the other fruits of the tree of darkness? Would battles never end?
She sighed, realizing that her purpose here had been fulfilled as best as was possible. Conclusion was out of her reach. There was no way she could find, here of all places, to end the evils she despised so much.
She would become the guardian of this place, from now until, at whatever time in the future, eternity met with obscurity, or, she prayed, when a way was found to do the impossible.
Until the end of battles...
From beyond the scroll of the universe of Sailor Soldiers, he had come. He had felt it, strong and powerful. The call of destiny, of a purpose interwoven with his very being. He had felt it, yes, but also heard it in his dreams, as he had often. The voice of the one who called him struck a cord so deep in his heart that it could not be ignored, and he would therefore go to wherever that voice called him if only for the sake of hearing it again.
Upon arriving, he had sensed something else as well; a dark, evasive, intelligent, ether wind that foreshadowed the presence of great evil. He had quickly traced it to it's source, but had found himself almost too late to witness firsthand the miraculous eruption of power that took place within the fortress star. A power, in fact, that had frozen both mind and body in their tracks with the sheer force of it's motion and momentum and luminescence; only after recovering from the initial reaction did his heart skip several beats at the realization of the magnitude and output. Never before had he sensed a power so great, as if the universe itself had fueled the eruption. Particles of blinding light, he could hardly know what lay within, streaked in thousands and ten thousands from a point of origin that, at that moment, had been vastly out of his range of sight.
Only later had he come to know what those comets of pure surreal power contained, and only by careful surveillance from a distance had he learned of the place from which they had issued forth and, early on, of the guardian of the locale, against whom he had more than once been forced to preoccupy himself with keeping his presence hidden from her. It was hardly an easy task, considering the vast power of light which radiated from nearly every facet of her being; a less observant person would likely have deemed her an archangel of the highest order immediately upon being in her extended presence, and even though at length he could safely assure himself she was a mortal being, there was a kind of half truth to the archangelic appearance. Needless to say, she had the stereotypical wings to match the occupation, and the almost celestial powers that beamed forth as blinding daylight from her, at least, to those who could sense what deep powers she truly possessed, did seem to place her on the scale of some vastly superior guardian. But he had encountered creatures of similar, and in some rare cases even vaster power, and only questioned her humanity for a moment, if that. Yet the power that radiated from her was hardly of the level of that contained by the common stripe of humanity; nay; she, like himself, was doubtless of extra-ordinary origin, and likely held within her being a far greater power source than flesh and blood alone could afford. 'Of course, the rules do change a bit from universe to universe', he reminded himself. And all things are possible, even if not probable. He noted though that this woman's power, although obviously contained and nowhere near possessing the explosive and drastic qualities of that moment, greatly resembled the energies he'd detected during what he'd dubbed 'The Star Explosion', for lack of a better term. He had wondered, at length, if she herself wasn't somehow the product of that moment transfused into a human form, even though he'd felt those energies scatter across the distant star scape.
But, of course, most of his conjecture was futile without further evidence. He remained at the star only long enough to gather what information could be obtained; perhaps, at most, and hour. An hour of hiding himself from her detection while the faint echo of his powers and perceptions searched out what could be learned of this place. During this period she had thrice nearly detected him, and likely felt a distant inclination that someone was about, but he was not a specter for nothing. With great skill he had manipulated the fields of both light and dark energy emitted by the swirling vortex that seemed the centerforce of this place, keeping his own powers invisible by their use. A clever contrivance, but clever or not she still nearly uncovered him. After learning what he could he had stealthily made his exit, yet he could not be sure if she truly had identified a living presence besides herself in the star fortress or not. At least, if she had, she took no action to prevent his departure. Once back in the free folds of open space, he breathed far easier. Yet what he'd learned while at the star fortress occupied his mind and kept him on his guard.
He knew one thing for certain: events would soon unfold and reveal his purpose for coming to this universe. After all, they always did...
(Author's note: Whatd'ya think? I don't usually write Smoon, and it's been awhile since I've worked on a fanfic, but I think that it's cool the way this story's just kinda flowing outta my brain and all or, more accurately, writing itself directly from my creative energies with little or no forethought as to how things are gonna turn out. But, as always, I hardly continue something if I don't have an audience so... please read and respond!, that is, if you care to see further chapters. Chapter one is in it's early stages right now and should be out soon [I wrote the prologue in a sitting, so a chapter shouldn't take overlong either.] If you enjoyed this fic please, out of common decency and a respect for the golden rule, post a reply. Doesn't matter how long, just let me know what you think!)