Act 1 - Boot Camp
Dreama Aurora glanced down at her watch, realizing that she was about to be late for training once again. Miss Katsuna would not be pleased. This was the third time this week that she was going to be tardy, and it was only Wednesday. She quickly grabbed her scepter, slammed her locker shut, and ran as fast as she could to the courtyard, her guardian cat, Elysia, right at her heels.
"Why didn't you tell me it was so late, Elysia?" Yumeko asked breathlessly. "I'm going to get detention for sure!"
"If you took your training more seriously, you wouldn't have that problem, Princess," Elysia replied. "Look at you! You haven't even transformed into Sailor Moon yet."
"Okay, okay! You're right as always."
She pulled out her transformation brooch and yelled out the words MOON DREAM POWER! Yumeko managed to complete the transformation just as she reached the courtyard, five minutes late. The other girls were already transformed and waiting patiently for their irresponsible leader.
"Look who decided to show up today!" Ryoko, who was Sailor Mars, retorted. "Do you realize what time it is?"
Ryoko was Miss Katsuna's beautiful, but somewhat snobbish, daughter. Just because her mother was the instructor of the fledgling Sailor Dream Soldiers, she felt it was her duty to show off.
Ryoko's and Yumeko's relationship was complicated. Although they really were good friends, there was also a friendly rivalry between the two princesses. It was no secret that Ryoko desired to be the leader of the Sailor Dream Soldiers and also had a huge crush on Yumeko's boyfriend, Phoenix.
Being ever the proper princess, Yumeko promptly stuck her tongue out at Ryoko and took a seat next to her best friend and cousin, Tokemi, who was also the guardian of time, Sailor Pluto. "Where is Katsuna-san anyway?"
"Fortunately for you, she's running a little late herself," Tokemi answered.
Tokemi was the daughter of Queen Lady Serenity's half-sister, Masago. Ever since they were little girls, Yumeko and Tokemi had been the best of friends. Wherever one girl was, the other was sure to be nearby. They were so close, sometimes it seemed as if they could read each other's mind.
"That's good," Yumeko replied, breathing a sigh of relief. "I thought I would get detention for sure. My parents threatened to not let me go to the Crystal Ball if I got in trouble again."
"Speaking of the ball, guess who just asked me to go with him," Suki, the new Sailor Venus, said, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Honda Taro-kun!"
It was no surprise to the other girls that Suki had managed to snag the most popular guy at Elysion Dream Academy as her date. Generally considered to be one of the most beautiful women in the universe, along with her twin sister Tori, who was also Sailor Uranus, Suki never had a problem with finding a date.
Though they were the identical twin daughters of Anzura and Goku -- rulers of Venus and Uranus -- Suki and Tori were as different as night and day. While Suki's purpose in life seemed to be shopping and flirting with hot guys, Tori's interest ran toward racing. She had a need for speed that was almost impossible to fulfill.
A person could instantly tell the difference between the twins by simply looking at the way they styled their golden blond hair. Tori's hair was short, sassy, and easy to maintain, while Suki wore her hair in loose curls around her shoulders, which took her hours to style in the morning, much to her sister's annoyance.
Hearing Suki's good news, Tori rolled her eyes. She never could understand her twin's obsession with the opposite sex.
"You're so lucky, Suki-chan," Kaya, also known as Sailor Saturn, sighed. "I wish I had a date for the ball, especially someone as cute as Honda-kun."
Among their group, Kaya was the most shy and least experienced in the romance department. She preferred helping her mother Shizu in the laboratory to going out on Friday nights, although Yumeko noticed that she had been paying more attention to her appearance lately. Kaya had always been pretty, but boys never seemed to notice her. They were too busy checking out Tori and Suki. Yumeko hoped with all her heart that one day Kaya would meet a guy who cared more about what was on the inside, than the outside, for her soul was truly beautiful.
"Don't worry, Kaya-chan," Mai, the intelligent Sailor Mercury, told her. "The perfect guy for you is out there somewhere."
Mai was probably Kaya's closest friend. They both had a deep love of science and math, which Yumeko thought was unbelievable. Mai was extremely smart, which was fitting as the daughter of the academy's principal. Her idea of a good time was curling up with a copy of Plato's The Republic by the fire, although she did have a steady boyfriend. His name was Renjiro, who despite his obsession with computers, was very good-looking and considered a major hottie by the other girls, even Suki.
The new Sailor Neptune, Kagami, also had a boyfriend, Toki. He was a talented pianist who often played accompaniment to her singing. She had an absolutely gorgeous voice, like an angel. Kagami also played several instruments, including the violin and flute, and was an accomplished artist. Yumeko often wished she could be more like Kagami, who she felt was the perfect princess.
Her mother was Nagisa, Goku's sister, so that made her the twins' cousin. The three of them usually stuck together.
"Maybe Toki has a cute friend I could introduce you to," Kagami suggested. "I'd be happy to set you up if you want, Kaya-chan."
"No, that's okay, Kagami-chan."
Hana, who was Sailor Jupiter, reached into her book bag and pulled out a bag of her homemade chocolate chip cookies. "Hey, is anyone hungry?" she asked. "I made plenty for everyone."
Never one to resist free sweets, Yumeko eagerly reached into the bag and pulled out a couple of Hana's delicious cookies. She was almost as good of a cook as her mother Amaya.
Hana was the tomboy of the group, although there were times when her femininity showed through, like in the kitchen. She liked to wear boyish clothes and to compete in traditionally male-dominated sports, like soccer and fencing, but she was also a fantastic figure skater. Hana also had a black belt in karate.
Just as Yumeko was finishing off her cookie, Miss Katsuna arrived. "I'm terribly sorry girls for being so late, but I had to attend an important meeting at the palace," she apologized. "But now that I'm here, let's get started. Where did we leave off yesterday?"
"We were working on target practice and Yumeko kept missing her mark," Ryoko answered smugly.
"Well, today we are going to incorporate all you have learned these last couple of months by actually battling a virtual yomua."
Katsuna pushed a button on her remote control, causing a realistic monster to appear before the scouts. They "oohed" and "ahhed" over the virtual image, impressed with how incredibly life-like it looked. "This is the latest in virtual reality technology. He is equipped with a series of increasingly difficult attacks, which I will be able to control. Your job is to defeat this youma using your authentic attacks against his virtual ones, but be warned that though these are not real attacks, you will feel a slight shock if you are hit, so pay attention."
The girls got into position and prepared to attack the youma, who sprung into life when Katsuna flipped the switch. He began throwing balls of flaming fire as the scouts danced around, trying to avoid the monster's attacks.
"Those look and feel so real!" Venus exclaimed as one of the fireballs hit her on the leg. "Somebody do something."
URANUS ZEPHYR BLAST!
A gust of wind extinguished the fire, causing the balls to become little more than harmless pieces of coal, falling to the ground. "Good work, Uranus, but the battle isn't over yet," Katsuna cried out. "You managed to weaken the monster. Now it's time to destroy him."
"Leave it to me," Mars shouted, stepping up. "I'll fight fire with fire!"
MARS BURNING PASSION!
The flame consumed the youma's scaly body as he screamed in agony. "Sailor Moon, finish him off!" Elysia ordered.
"Huh?"
As usual, Yumeko's mind was somewhere else, her eye caught by a beautiful monarch butterfly that was fluttering around the training area. Her name suited her perfectly. There was never a person alive who was as dreamy and unfocused as Princess Dreama Aurora, but she had to realize her full potential if the Sailor Dream Soldiers were to be a success.
"The youma, attack him before Mars' attack wears off!"
"Right!"
MOON DREAM BEAM!
The bell dismissing the class rang just as the youma crumbled into a pile of golden dust. Elysia sighed, wishing that her mistress would take her duties more seriously. Yumeko had to learn that this wasn't just a game and that the future of the entire kingdom could one day depend on her ability to be Sailor Moon.
"Good save, Sailor Moon, but you must learn to pay more attention," Katsuna lectured. "I need to see you after class. The rest of you are free to go."
After class, the girls gathered outside Katsuna's office, hoping to hear what their teacher had to say to Yumeko. Hana pulled out a glass and put it up against the door so they could hear better.
"She's really going to get it this time," Ryoko said. "I can just imagine my mother's face at this moment. I wouldn't want to be Yumeko for anything in the world."
Suki signaled her to keep her voice down. They could faintly here the sound of Katsuna's voice yelling at their friend, but it was difficult to understand the actual words being said.
"We shouldn't be here," Tokemi whispered. "It isn't right. Yumeko wouldn't like it if she knew we were listening in on her conversation."
"Well, nobody is forcing you to stay, Tokemi-chan."
Just then, the doorknob turned and everybody scattered, pretending they were all doing something else. Yumeko walked out of the office and rolled her eyes at her friends' pathetic attempts to hide their eavesdropping. She knew they had been there the entire time.
"Don't you have something better to do than spy on me?" Yumeko joked, walking toward her locker. Her friends and Elysia followed her, wanting to hear all the details.
"So, what did Katsuna-san have to say?" Tori asked. "Did you get detention again?"
"No, I didn't get detention, Tori-chan. She just gave me a long lecture about how I'm the leader and everybody depends on me and blah, blah, blah…"
"She's right, Yumeko," Elysia replied. "Everyone is depending on you. As the crown princess of the Silver Millennium, it is your duty to protect the kingdom as Sailor Moon, just like your mother and her mother did before you."
"I understand that, Elysia, but Silver Millennium hasn't been attacked in years. We are in an era of peace, and I highly doubt that the service of the Sailor Dream Soldiers will be needed anytime soon, so why worry about it? Now, if you will excuse me, I have to go to Japanese class."
"But, Yumeko…"
Yumeko grabbed a couple of books from her locker and slammed the door, wishing everybody would just lighten up. It was always the same thing. She was the princess, and with that title came responsibility, blah, blah, blah. She practically knew the entire speech by heart. After giving her guardian cat an evil glare, she stormed off in a huff, not even bothering to say goodbye to her friends. They would never understand…
