Something fuzzy rubbed against her cheek. She brushed it away with a
smile. It came again, again she brushed it away.
The third time, she shoved it off the bed.
A loud yowl followed by a thump on the floor brought a laugh from her throat. Beauty sat up and looked over the edge of the bed to where Bastet, her pet cat, lay sprawled on the floor. The cat was staring at her with extreme annoyance. "Well," Beauty said, "Don't wake me up like that again." She laughed and picked the cat up from the floor, snuggling against its tummy. "Oh, you silly, lovable cat. I love you."
Bastet meowed and started purring loudly. Then she meowed again.
"What!" Beauty exclaimed. "I've only got five minutes to get ready for court today?" The cat nodded. "Omigosh! Mother's gonna kill me! I don't have enough time to pick out a dress and get into it on time! Why didn't you wake me up sooner?" She went into her wardrobe and began searching frantically. Then she stopped, realization dawning on her face. "Wait a minute. What am I doing? I can just use the yumezuishou to dress myself." That said, she put herself in the blue dress she wore the night before and applied her makeup in two minutes.
With thirty seconds to spare, she performed a perfect reverence to her mother before the double-doors to the throne room. When she rose, she saw the ambassador from Omega waiting. "Ambassador," she said by way of greeting, curtsying again.
"Beauty," the Queen began, "I'm afraid I have some distressing news. Omega has been attacked. We—the ambassador and I—think that this is an attack like the one on the Moon Kingdom of Luna. If so, then they will not stop until they have destroyed our kingdom. We must get everyone out as soon as we can."
"Are you going to tell the court? How will they take it?"
"Yes, I will tell them. I hope they will not panic."
"They won't," Beauty said, suddenly sure of it.
"How do you know, child," the ever-present Vincent asked.
"I don't—" She broke off, for the yumezuishou had begun to glow an eerie green. "What's happening?"
Queen Beauty had seen this happen before, when the mirror had warned her of things to come. "Go to the mirror, Beauty," she ordered her daughter. "Now!"
"Why?"
"It's trying to warn you. It did the same for me, when it wanted to warn me of dangerous events. Go child; this could be the difference between the life and death of this kingdom!"
Beauty whirled and ran, lifting her skirts up just enough to keep from stepping on them.
"You shouldn't have frightened her like that," the Omegan ambassador told the queen.
"I know," she replied, "but it was the only way."
Beauty dashed into her room, barely avoiding Bastet, who was lying in a patch of light on the floor. She snatched up her mirror and touched it with the yumezuishou. "Show me what the yumezuishou warned me of!" she commanded, and the mirror flashed green light.
Through the mirror Beauty saw swarms of black creatures—for that was what they were—begin to creep over the surface of Omega. They blocked out the Omegan sun, causing everything on the planet to be engulfed in shadows. Some started to move toward Omega One, and Beauty knew they would be there by dawn. The mirror told her that they would be at the front door of the Ninth Omegan Moon Palace by the end of the month. "Oh, no," she whispered. "Ambassador!" She had forgotten she wasn't in the hallway. Beauty whirled around, the mirror clutched to her chest, and dashed out of her apartments. Careful not to drop it, Beauty clasped it tightly with one hand and lifted her skirts with the other. 'D*mned heavy skirts,' she thought idly.
Rounding the last corner, Beauty slowed to a quick walk. The ambassador turned when he saw the movement. The action brought her mother's attention as well. "What did you find out," the ambassador asked.
"Ambassador, sir, I'm afraid I have news more grave than Her Majesty's." She showed both of them the mirror's images. "I'm afraid we have to evacuate the entire Omega System. Her Majesty was right. This is an attack by one of Beryl's sisters. I believe the yumezuishou called her 'Daikirai.'"
"'Daikirai!' Hatred!" Queen Beauty hissed. "Beauty, take His Excellency and his party, your guards, and Queen Meisatsu and her son out to the comet. Do it now!"
The princess acted with lightning speed. She dropped a swift curtsy and turned to the ambassador. "Please follow me," she said, and strode off down the hall. On the way to the Ambassador's apartments, she stopped by Queen Meisatsu's rooms. "You Majesty, I'm afraid I have grave news. Omega has just been invaded, and Omega One will be taken by sunrise. Unless we evacuate the entirety of the Omega system, all our people will be lost. Please pack your bags quickly and meet me at my apartments. Try to take as many necessities as you can. Anything extra you will have to carry on your own. Where is your son, Your Majesty?"
"He's out in the gardens," she replied absently, still trying to absorb everything she had just been told.
Beauty leaned her head in the door and called to the guards. "Make sure all necessities are packed and the queen makes it to my apartments!" They reacted instantly to command, snapping to attention and beginning to move. The two proceeded to the Ambassador's chambers. "Hurry, Ambassador," Beauty instructed. "We must be out quickly. I am going to my own chambers to get my things. Meet me there." With that, she left him.
'Please, Kuan Yin, Goddess of Mercy, do not let Kaijin be harmed, no matter what happens.' Beauty raced down the hall once she was out of the Ambassador's sight. There were so many gardens where Kaijin could be…wait! He loved the one by the ballroom, the one with the lilacs. Beauty turned another corner and ran to the grand ballroom. The doors were locked, but that was no match for the power of the yumezuishou With a gesture, the doors were open and Beauty was striding through. She made a beeline for the far set of double-doors that opened onto the balcony. A shadowed figure awaited beyond. Beauty threw the doors open…
And came face-to-face with Kaijin.
Kaijin started when his eyes locked with hers. "Beauty!" he said.
"Kaijin," she cried. "You have to get back to your mother's apartment, now! Daikirai attacked Omega and is moving through the system! Her armies have already moved to Omega One and will be here by the end if the month. You have to come with me to the comet we use for transport. Mother Beauty has commanded it. Your mother and the Omegan ambassador's guards are coming with us; Mother Beauty's telling the court about it and spreading the word that anyone who can is to leave the Omega system."
"Slow down, Beauty," Kaijin urged her. She calmed a little. "Now, tell me what we have to do."
"We have to pack everything from your mother's apartment, my apartment, and we have to get supplies. I must get Vincent and some of our guards. They could be here at any moment. Go quickly, Kaijin. And remember that whatever happens, you carry my heart." Without waiting for a reply, she turned and fled back to her rooms.
Vincent was waiting for her when she got there. "What's going on, child?"
"Daikirai attacked, and will be here by the end of the month. The rest of the Omega system is being evacuated as quickly as possible. Please, Vincent, help me pack. I can't vanish all this to the comet on my own."
"Actually, you could."
"What?"
"Just use the yumezuishou. It's not that hard. Just daydream that everything and everyone went to the comet."
"Okay." Beauty started to concentrate.
"I'd let them know before I did it, child. I don' t think they'd much appreciate a surprise of that magnitude, even if it did save their lives."
"Oh," Beauty managed to look sheepish as she said it. "Thank you, Vincent." The young woman closed her eyes. *Don't be scared,* she broadcast to everyone she was going to take. I'm going to use the yumezuishou. I'm taking everything up to the comet now. Everything around she and Vincent vanished, followed by another broadcast mental message. *Relax now. I'm taking you all up. Mother Beauty will join us in a few minutes, once she has finished in the throne room.* A slight, pleasurable, tingling sensation rippled through her body. She opened her eyes and found herself surrounded by the members of various courts, who were spread out over the meadow on this side of the comet. Vincent still stood next to her, and he caught her as her knees buckled.
"Are you all right, princess?" he asked.
"I'm fine, Vincent. Just a little weakness after using the yumezuishou. Where's Kaijin?"
"There, by the Omegan Queen, child."
"Good." After a few moments, the princess stood, her steward close by her side. *Mother Beauty, are you finished?*
The reply came back an affirmative. All of the court members had gotten or were getting to safety.
Beauty concentrated for a second, and then her mother stood next to her. "Thank you, daughter."
"You're welcome, Mother. If you'll excuse me, I have to go see to the Omegan Queen." The princess turned to go.
"Beauty, wait."
"Yes, Mother Beauty?"
"Beauty…I'm leaving. And I'm not coming back." The woman's eyes misted.
"What? What are you saying, Mother?" Vincent's attention had been caught, too, and he listened with an expression of disapproval on his face. "Mother, what are you talking about," Beauty repeated.
Tears flowed down the silver-haired queen's face. "I mean that I am going back to Omega Nine to stop this thing. Daikirai must not succeed in taking over the system. If she does, she could start a galactic army that could proceed in taking over the universe. Remember, Morrighan, the third evil one, is still out there.
"All I have taught you was not in vain, darling. Use the information well. You will need it someday; I saw it in my mirror long ago, before you were born. Do not use the Dream Crystal selfishly, Beauty. That will lead to your downfall. Trust your feelings; they can be a great ally. Always remember that I love you.
"Michael is coming with me. He will not leave my side; he only let me come here alone because he knew I would return. So great is my love for this planet that I would give my life for it, and I may have to. Goodbye, Beauty. I love you so much, and I wish I could see the day when you become a woman and ascend the throne." She reached out and laid her hand on Beauty's cheek. "Goodbye, my darling, my dear, beautiful child." She leaned forward to kiss Beauty on the forehead.
Princess Beauty embraced her mother, not wanting her to leave but understanding why she had to. "Goodbye, Mother Beauty. I love you, too, and I won't let you down." Beauty kissed her mother on the cheek, and then stepped back out of the embrace.
The queen turned to Vincent. "Well, papa, it seems that this little girl has finally grown up."
Vincent nodded. "It would."
"Are you happy with how this little girl turned out, papa?"
"I'm very happy, child." Vincent embraced the queen and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Now, my brave child, go; do your duty as you see you must. And remember that I love you, as well."
Tears just started to form in Vincent's eyes as the queen walked a little way apart from them and bid farewell to the Omegan queen. After a swift embrace, she returned. "I'm ready, Beauty. Good bye."
"Goodbye, Mother," Beauty replied, and then her mother was gone, sent back to Omega Nine and her almost certain doom.
"Beauty?" The question came from right behind her. "Are you all right?"
Beauty turned and buried her face in the warm blue velvet of Kaijin's shoulder. "I'll never see her again," she said. Tears fell down her cheeks to land on his tunic. He wrapped his arms around her, whispering as he did when she had told him about her aunt. "Oh, Kaijin. She's gone."
"It's all right. You are still alive. You have to live for the future. Would Mother Beauty really want you to give up when she knows you can succeed? Look at what you have around you. Vincent would give his life for you. Your court adores you, and respects you because you know how to rule and rule well. My mother supports you; if you ever have any trouble, she can help you. Your other aunt, Aurora, is still alive and she loves you." He lifted her face to look into her eyes. "As do I."
"Kaijin," she whispered as he brought her face closer to his, "I love you, too." And then she couldn't say anything, because he kissed her. Beauty was the one who broke the kiss. "I'm sorry, Kaijin, but I have to ask you to leave. There's something I need to do before we leave for good." The comet was several hundred kilometers from ninth moon; what she had planned would still work.
"What must you do?"
"I'm going to stop Daikirai's minions." The princess raised the Dream Crystal high over her head. "Crystal of Dreams, I beg of you the power to stop Daikirai and her soldiers, that I might banish them back to the dark realm! Give me the power!"
The yumezuishou flashed white light, and glimmers of light from stars around the system formed a glowing net of power that shrank around Daikirai's forces. That which belonged to the Omega system was left unharmed, but the dark powers that had no business there were caught within the web. As it shrank, the forces caught on the outermost edges of the circle were obliterated. Soon the entire force was nothing but a memory, although the officers and Daikirai herself had gone, taking the queen with them.
Beauty collapsed against Kaijin. "I'll be all right," she reassured him. "I just need to sleep. I put too much energy into using the yumezuishou…." The princess, held close against Kaijin's velvet tunic, fell into a deep sleep, almost to the point of unconsciousness.
Kaijin lowered her to the grassy meadow that was the comet's surface and touched the Dream Crystal that still hung from the chain on Beauty neck. Asking it to accept his one request, since he was not allowed to handle the yumezuishou but had to get everyone to safety, he pleaded it to take the comet to safe space, where they would not be harmed at least until Beauty woke.
With a slight glimmer and a pull of energy from Kaijin, the comet took off under the direction of the Dream Crystal.
The third time, she shoved it off the bed.
A loud yowl followed by a thump on the floor brought a laugh from her throat. Beauty sat up and looked over the edge of the bed to where Bastet, her pet cat, lay sprawled on the floor. The cat was staring at her with extreme annoyance. "Well," Beauty said, "Don't wake me up like that again." She laughed and picked the cat up from the floor, snuggling against its tummy. "Oh, you silly, lovable cat. I love you."
Bastet meowed and started purring loudly. Then she meowed again.
"What!" Beauty exclaimed. "I've only got five minutes to get ready for court today?" The cat nodded. "Omigosh! Mother's gonna kill me! I don't have enough time to pick out a dress and get into it on time! Why didn't you wake me up sooner?" She went into her wardrobe and began searching frantically. Then she stopped, realization dawning on her face. "Wait a minute. What am I doing? I can just use the yumezuishou to dress myself." That said, she put herself in the blue dress she wore the night before and applied her makeup in two minutes.
With thirty seconds to spare, she performed a perfect reverence to her mother before the double-doors to the throne room. When she rose, she saw the ambassador from Omega waiting. "Ambassador," she said by way of greeting, curtsying again.
"Beauty," the Queen began, "I'm afraid I have some distressing news. Omega has been attacked. We—the ambassador and I—think that this is an attack like the one on the Moon Kingdom of Luna. If so, then they will not stop until they have destroyed our kingdom. We must get everyone out as soon as we can."
"Are you going to tell the court? How will they take it?"
"Yes, I will tell them. I hope they will not panic."
"They won't," Beauty said, suddenly sure of it.
"How do you know, child," the ever-present Vincent asked.
"I don't—" She broke off, for the yumezuishou had begun to glow an eerie green. "What's happening?"
Queen Beauty had seen this happen before, when the mirror had warned her of things to come. "Go to the mirror, Beauty," she ordered her daughter. "Now!"
"Why?"
"It's trying to warn you. It did the same for me, when it wanted to warn me of dangerous events. Go child; this could be the difference between the life and death of this kingdom!"
Beauty whirled and ran, lifting her skirts up just enough to keep from stepping on them.
"You shouldn't have frightened her like that," the Omegan ambassador told the queen.
"I know," she replied, "but it was the only way."
Beauty dashed into her room, barely avoiding Bastet, who was lying in a patch of light on the floor. She snatched up her mirror and touched it with the yumezuishou. "Show me what the yumezuishou warned me of!" she commanded, and the mirror flashed green light.
Through the mirror Beauty saw swarms of black creatures—for that was what they were—begin to creep over the surface of Omega. They blocked out the Omegan sun, causing everything on the planet to be engulfed in shadows. Some started to move toward Omega One, and Beauty knew they would be there by dawn. The mirror told her that they would be at the front door of the Ninth Omegan Moon Palace by the end of the month. "Oh, no," she whispered. "Ambassador!" She had forgotten she wasn't in the hallway. Beauty whirled around, the mirror clutched to her chest, and dashed out of her apartments. Careful not to drop it, Beauty clasped it tightly with one hand and lifted her skirts with the other. 'D*mned heavy skirts,' she thought idly.
Rounding the last corner, Beauty slowed to a quick walk. The ambassador turned when he saw the movement. The action brought her mother's attention as well. "What did you find out," the ambassador asked.
"Ambassador, sir, I'm afraid I have news more grave than Her Majesty's." She showed both of them the mirror's images. "I'm afraid we have to evacuate the entire Omega System. Her Majesty was right. This is an attack by one of Beryl's sisters. I believe the yumezuishou called her 'Daikirai.'"
"'Daikirai!' Hatred!" Queen Beauty hissed. "Beauty, take His Excellency and his party, your guards, and Queen Meisatsu and her son out to the comet. Do it now!"
The princess acted with lightning speed. She dropped a swift curtsy and turned to the ambassador. "Please follow me," she said, and strode off down the hall. On the way to the Ambassador's apartments, she stopped by Queen Meisatsu's rooms. "You Majesty, I'm afraid I have grave news. Omega has just been invaded, and Omega One will be taken by sunrise. Unless we evacuate the entirety of the Omega system, all our people will be lost. Please pack your bags quickly and meet me at my apartments. Try to take as many necessities as you can. Anything extra you will have to carry on your own. Where is your son, Your Majesty?"
"He's out in the gardens," she replied absently, still trying to absorb everything she had just been told.
Beauty leaned her head in the door and called to the guards. "Make sure all necessities are packed and the queen makes it to my apartments!" They reacted instantly to command, snapping to attention and beginning to move. The two proceeded to the Ambassador's chambers. "Hurry, Ambassador," Beauty instructed. "We must be out quickly. I am going to my own chambers to get my things. Meet me there." With that, she left him.
'Please, Kuan Yin, Goddess of Mercy, do not let Kaijin be harmed, no matter what happens.' Beauty raced down the hall once she was out of the Ambassador's sight. There were so many gardens where Kaijin could be…wait! He loved the one by the ballroom, the one with the lilacs. Beauty turned another corner and ran to the grand ballroom. The doors were locked, but that was no match for the power of the yumezuishou With a gesture, the doors were open and Beauty was striding through. She made a beeline for the far set of double-doors that opened onto the balcony. A shadowed figure awaited beyond. Beauty threw the doors open…
And came face-to-face with Kaijin.
Kaijin started when his eyes locked with hers. "Beauty!" he said.
"Kaijin," she cried. "You have to get back to your mother's apartment, now! Daikirai attacked Omega and is moving through the system! Her armies have already moved to Omega One and will be here by the end if the month. You have to come with me to the comet we use for transport. Mother Beauty has commanded it. Your mother and the Omegan ambassador's guards are coming with us; Mother Beauty's telling the court about it and spreading the word that anyone who can is to leave the Omega system."
"Slow down, Beauty," Kaijin urged her. She calmed a little. "Now, tell me what we have to do."
"We have to pack everything from your mother's apartment, my apartment, and we have to get supplies. I must get Vincent and some of our guards. They could be here at any moment. Go quickly, Kaijin. And remember that whatever happens, you carry my heart." Without waiting for a reply, she turned and fled back to her rooms.
Vincent was waiting for her when she got there. "What's going on, child?"
"Daikirai attacked, and will be here by the end of the month. The rest of the Omega system is being evacuated as quickly as possible. Please, Vincent, help me pack. I can't vanish all this to the comet on my own."
"Actually, you could."
"What?"
"Just use the yumezuishou. It's not that hard. Just daydream that everything and everyone went to the comet."
"Okay." Beauty started to concentrate.
"I'd let them know before I did it, child. I don' t think they'd much appreciate a surprise of that magnitude, even if it did save their lives."
"Oh," Beauty managed to look sheepish as she said it. "Thank you, Vincent." The young woman closed her eyes. *Don't be scared,* she broadcast to everyone she was going to take. I'm going to use the yumezuishou. I'm taking everything up to the comet now. Everything around she and Vincent vanished, followed by another broadcast mental message. *Relax now. I'm taking you all up. Mother Beauty will join us in a few minutes, once she has finished in the throne room.* A slight, pleasurable, tingling sensation rippled through her body. She opened her eyes and found herself surrounded by the members of various courts, who were spread out over the meadow on this side of the comet. Vincent still stood next to her, and he caught her as her knees buckled.
"Are you all right, princess?" he asked.
"I'm fine, Vincent. Just a little weakness after using the yumezuishou. Where's Kaijin?"
"There, by the Omegan Queen, child."
"Good." After a few moments, the princess stood, her steward close by her side. *Mother Beauty, are you finished?*
The reply came back an affirmative. All of the court members had gotten or were getting to safety.
Beauty concentrated for a second, and then her mother stood next to her. "Thank you, daughter."
"You're welcome, Mother. If you'll excuse me, I have to go see to the Omegan Queen." The princess turned to go.
"Beauty, wait."
"Yes, Mother Beauty?"
"Beauty…I'm leaving. And I'm not coming back." The woman's eyes misted.
"What? What are you saying, Mother?" Vincent's attention had been caught, too, and he listened with an expression of disapproval on his face. "Mother, what are you talking about," Beauty repeated.
Tears flowed down the silver-haired queen's face. "I mean that I am going back to Omega Nine to stop this thing. Daikirai must not succeed in taking over the system. If she does, she could start a galactic army that could proceed in taking over the universe. Remember, Morrighan, the third evil one, is still out there.
"All I have taught you was not in vain, darling. Use the information well. You will need it someday; I saw it in my mirror long ago, before you were born. Do not use the Dream Crystal selfishly, Beauty. That will lead to your downfall. Trust your feelings; they can be a great ally. Always remember that I love you.
"Michael is coming with me. He will not leave my side; he only let me come here alone because he knew I would return. So great is my love for this planet that I would give my life for it, and I may have to. Goodbye, Beauty. I love you so much, and I wish I could see the day when you become a woman and ascend the throne." She reached out and laid her hand on Beauty's cheek. "Goodbye, my darling, my dear, beautiful child." She leaned forward to kiss Beauty on the forehead.
Princess Beauty embraced her mother, not wanting her to leave but understanding why she had to. "Goodbye, Mother Beauty. I love you, too, and I won't let you down." Beauty kissed her mother on the cheek, and then stepped back out of the embrace.
The queen turned to Vincent. "Well, papa, it seems that this little girl has finally grown up."
Vincent nodded. "It would."
"Are you happy with how this little girl turned out, papa?"
"I'm very happy, child." Vincent embraced the queen and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Now, my brave child, go; do your duty as you see you must. And remember that I love you, as well."
Tears just started to form in Vincent's eyes as the queen walked a little way apart from them and bid farewell to the Omegan queen. After a swift embrace, she returned. "I'm ready, Beauty. Good bye."
"Goodbye, Mother," Beauty replied, and then her mother was gone, sent back to Omega Nine and her almost certain doom.
"Beauty?" The question came from right behind her. "Are you all right?"
Beauty turned and buried her face in the warm blue velvet of Kaijin's shoulder. "I'll never see her again," she said. Tears fell down her cheeks to land on his tunic. He wrapped his arms around her, whispering as he did when she had told him about her aunt. "Oh, Kaijin. She's gone."
"It's all right. You are still alive. You have to live for the future. Would Mother Beauty really want you to give up when she knows you can succeed? Look at what you have around you. Vincent would give his life for you. Your court adores you, and respects you because you know how to rule and rule well. My mother supports you; if you ever have any trouble, she can help you. Your other aunt, Aurora, is still alive and she loves you." He lifted her face to look into her eyes. "As do I."
"Kaijin," she whispered as he brought her face closer to his, "I love you, too." And then she couldn't say anything, because he kissed her. Beauty was the one who broke the kiss. "I'm sorry, Kaijin, but I have to ask you to leave. There's something I need to do before we leave for good." The comet was several hundred kilometers from ninth moon; what she had planned would still work.
"What must you do?"
"I'm going to stop Daikirai's minions." The princess raised the Dream Crystal high over her head. "Crystal of Dreams, I beg of you the power to stop Daikirai and her soldiers, that I might banish them back to the dark realm! Give me the power!"
The yumezuishou flashed white light, and glimmers of light from stars around the system formed a glowing net of power that shrank around Daikirai's forces. That which belonged to the Omega system was left unharmed, but the dark powers that had no business there were caught within the web. As it shrank, the forces caught on the outermost edges of the circle were obliterated. Soon the entire force was nothing but a memory, although the officers and Daikirai herself had gone, taking the queen with them.
Beauty collapsed against Kaijin. "I'll be all right," she reassured him. "I just need to sleep. I put too much energy into using the yumezuishou…." The princess, held close against Kaijin's velvet tunic, fell into a deep sleep, almost to the point of unconsciousness.
Kaijin lowered her to the grassy meadow that was the comet's surface and touched the Dream Crystal that still hung from the chain on Beauty neck. Asking it to accept his one request, since he was not allowed to handle the yumezuishou but had to get everyone to safety, he pleaded it to take the comet to safe space, where they would not be harmed at least until Beauty woke.
With a slight glimmer and a pull of energy from Kaijin, the comet took off under the direction of the Dream Crystal.