Author's Notes: All the usual disclaimers, neither series belongs to me,
they all belong to their respective owners. This is a mostly Setsuna
chapter, which gets a little out of character at the beginning. There's a
little more coverage on Serenity here, but through the rest of the story
she will be virtually non existent. Oh yes, Pluto makes an important
revelation here that perhaps lets us know why the rating is what it is.
Its not that unpleasant or graphic, but it is a vital part of the Dark
Jewels series, so I couldn't avoid mentioning it here. Thanks to my one
reviewer, hopefully this chapter will live up to your standards. It's a
bit shorter than the others, but maybe that's a good thing. I only plan to
have a few more chapters, but knowing me I will probably get carried away.
I think that's about it, oh yes, one more thing. Chibi Usa or Rini for all
the North American readers, is about teenage, maybe a little younger. It
wasn't really key to the story so I did set a specific age. Please read
and review, your input really helps. Well, enjoy the chapter.
By the time Setsuna reached the palace, her indignation had cooled. Too many years of watching time go by had turned her into a pacifist. She loved Serenity too much to get into an argument with her queen over a man she hardly knew. But she couldn't just sit by and watch slavery pollute the pure and just city of Crystal Tokyo. The issue raged back and forth in her mind as she stood in the main foyer of the castle. Finally, she decided that if she didn't take a stand now, the issue would only get worse. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Setsuna walked in the direction of the Queen's chambers.
"Setsuna!" exclaimed Queen Serenity, opening the door into her lavish bedchamber. She was wearing a light pink kimono bathrobe and her hair was piled under a towel on her head. Chibi Usa was lying on the silky bedspread, reading a magazine. One hand unconsciously twirled her hair. Serenity gently pushed Chibi Usa out the door. "Go small lady, Setsuna and I have to talk."
Setsuna smiled fondly as Chibi Usa skipped out the door, magazine in one hand. In many ways she still resembled the small hyper child that used to visit a lonely guardian of time out in the time gates. Setsuna shakes her head to clear the memories that cloud her mind like a soft protective haze. She steadies herself, building up her resolve for this task before her. She can't help looking at the queen, how young she looks since her aging was halted at twenty-five. Setsuna shook herself, then finally breached the matter. "My queen, I have something to ask you."
"Please call me Usagi, my queen makes me feel so old," Serenity replied with a grimace. "You know you can always ask anything of me."
For a moment, Setsuna wished for the old Usagi back. Everyone had changed so much, she was the only one who remained the same. Once she had been physically the oldest of all the senshi, now only Chibi Usa remained younger. Time changes all, but time always remains the same. She had to stop stalling. Setsuna grasped for a nice way to breach the topic. "Seren . . . Usagi, did you know there are slaves in Crystal Tokyo?"
Serenity looked at Setsuna in a strange way before answering. Setsuna got the feeling that her queen was psychoanalyzing her, and it made her uneasy. "Yes, there is one, I believe his name is Daemon Sadi. He was a gift from Dorothea SaDiablo. I couldn't turn it down. I don't take advantage of him personally because I have Mamoru, but he is here for the other senshi."
"So there are no other slaves?" asked Setsuna. Serenity nodded, and Setsuna pondered her newfound information. There was one piece of the puzzle that she couldn't quite grasp. Serenity had hinted at it. Slowly, Setsuna went back over the words before finally asking, "What kind of slave is Daemon Sadi anyway?"
Serenity blushed in typical Usagi style, and whispered very quietly in Setsuna's ear. There was a long pause as Setsuna made sense of the mumbled words. When she did, she stood up very quickly, the air around her becoming hot like an oven. Though Setsuna didn't know it, she had begun to descend slightly to the abyss in the hot anger of emotions. She opened the door and slammed it shut before Serenity could offer an explanation. The words repeated themselves over and over inside her head, pleasure slave, pleasure slave. The angry dirge pounded against her skull.
The cool outside air hit her like a slap in the face, but it couldn't cool the indignation deep inside of her. The thought that there had been a person used for such purposes in Crystal Tokyo was beyond imagining, and yet it was true right before her eyes. Setsuna realized that she had just blown up at Queen Serenity. She wanted to go back and apologize, but deep inside Setsuna wasn't ready to forgive yet. She had been thrown into this strange new world against her will, but now that she was here, she wanted to change someone's life for the better.
Daemon was still sitting outside underneath the fountain, his face turned upwards to the light of the moon. He descended slowly down towards the abyss, his breathing a slow regular intake and release. In this heightened sense of awareness, he could sense the emotions of others, their feelings riding out towards him on the crest of a storm. He sensed Pluto before he saw her, her anger sharp and hot in the cool night air. Automatically, Daemon drew himself inwards, preparing for a lashing. What he got instead, surprised him.
"Daemon, what kind of slave are you?" The voice was tight with tension, and the question caused him to crack one eye open. It was that strange Meioh Setsuna again, or perhaps he should call her Setsuna since they seemed to be on a first name basis now. The way the question was asked implied that it was a rhetorical one and that Setsuna already knew the answer. There was an almost sadness inside Daemon at the fact that now there was no one left who could treat him with that kind of naïve trust he found in Setsuna. But at the same time he hardened, because now the inevitable ring of a small bell would most certainly becoming.
"Why ask if you already know?" asked Daemon in a slow bored drawl, the danger hidden in his silky tones. He allowed himself an inward turned smile as he began to spin out the game, already anticipating the return to Dorothea's chambers at the destruction of another queen. It was a pity he could never find a queen he got along with, but perhaps it was better that way, for if they did get along, death would be a close follower. In recent times, Daemon had learned that unattached was the best way for a slave to go. Any emotions except for cold anger, and the owner had way too many strings to pull.
Daemon saw the registering look in Setsuna's face as his answer proved what she already knew. He rose from the cold fountain stone, his silk shirt rustling as a breeze blew over its surface. His cold golden eyes watched Setsuna's face carefully, monitoring for any change in expression. After many long years he had become an expert in reading facial features and anticipating the actions that would follow.
Setsuna felt his eyes boring into her head, and she knew that she had to talk quickly before she lost her nerve. She pulled nervously at a strand of green hair as she talked, the words spilling out soft and low. His eyes never left hers, but the expression in them slowly changed from hatred to something almost akin to pity. Setsuna couldn't reason out this change, but she finished off her sentence slowly. "There have never been any slaves in Crystal Tokyo, and I'm sure once Queen Serenity comes to her rightful mind, she will realize this as well. Meanwhile, I'm offering this plan to help you escape."
He threw back his head and laughed a mocking laugh that shocked Setsuna. She didn't know what to expect, but certainly not this. She had thought through most of the details, and believed that she could carry out the plan quite easily as the guards at Crystal Tokyo were designed to keep people out, not to trap them in. Why was he putting down her plan so easily? Setsuna felt almost hurt at this, her first attempt to try and change the course of the future. Perhaps there was a reason why she had always stepped back and let others take charge.
"Okay, I'll do it." Setsuna jumped. After Daemon had laughed, she hadn't expected him to actually want to follow through with her idea. She picked up her head to look at him, judging if he was serious. Though light danced within the golden irises, his face was deadly serious. Setsuna wondered at the sudden change of mind, instantly suspicious.
"What, you will?" she asked, trying to reconfirm what she had just heard. He nodded, and this time Setsuna was unmistakably sure. There was no mistaking the movement, and deep inside herself Setsuna sensed it was the truth though she didn't know how. Gathering herself together, Setsuna pulled in her senses and looked out towards the distant hills that she had chosen as their escape path. She knew that she would have to escape as well, for without her, it would be hard for Daemon to get around the city easily enough to reach the hills. Once they left the land around Crystal Tokyo however, she would have to turn her attentions towards getting back to the Time Gate. "Very well. If you are truly serious, then I will meet you at the palace gate at sunrise. If not, then I can't make your decisions for you."
She turned to leave, her dress flowing softly down around her ankles and billowing gently in the breeze created by her movement. She had a few preparations to make before attempting this wild plan. Setsuna stepped lightly across the cobble stoned center of the garden, her back to Daemon. She stopped when she felt a light touch on her arm. She turned around to see Daemon standing behind her, his movements so quiet that she hadn't even noticed.
"Setsuna," he began, his eyes looking through her as if seeing some kind of picture just beyond, "Are you sure you want to do this for me?"
She spun to look at him fully, her hair flying into his face. The scent of rose petals drifted through the air, before Setsuna's hair settled back into its former position. She looked at him almost sadly before replying, "All my life I have sat back and let time run its course. Now I want to make a difference and help somebody in their life. Yes, I am sure that I want to do this."
Then, before she could have any second thoughts, she fled down the garden maze away from his piercing haunting gaze.
By the time Setsuna reached the palace, her indignation had cooled. Too many years of watching time go by had turned her into a pacifist. She loved Serenity too much to get into an argument with her queen over a man she hardly knew. But she couldn't just sit by and watch slavery pollute the pure and just city of Crystal Tokyo. The issue raged back and forth in her mind as she stood in the main foyer of the castle. Finally, she decided that if she didn't take a stand now, the issue would only get worse. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Setsuna walked in the direction of the Queen's chambers.
"Setsuna!" exclaimed Queen Serenity, opening the door into her lavish bedchamber. She was wearing a light pink kimono bathrobe and her hair was piled under a towel on her head. Chibi Usa was lying on the silky bedspread, reading a magazine. One hand unconsciously twirled her hair. Serenity gently pushed Chibi Usa out the door. "Go small lady, Setsuna and I have to talk."
Setsuna smiled fondly as Chibi Usa skipped out the door, magazine in one hand. In many ways she still resembled the small hyper child that used to visit a lonely guardian of time out in the time gates. Setsuna shakes her head to clear the memories that cloud her mind like a soft protective haze. She steadies herself, building up her resolve for this task before her. She can't help looking at the queen, how young she looks since her aging was halted at twenty-five. Setsuna shook herself, then finally breached the matter. "My queen, I have something to ask you."
"Please call me Usagi, my queen makes me feel so old," Serenity replied with a grimace. "You know you can always ask anything of me."
For a moment, Setsuna wished for the old Usagi back. Everyone had changed so much, she was the only one who remained the same. Once she had been physically the oldest of all the senshi, now only Chibi Usa remained younger. Time changes all, but time always remains the same. She had to stop stalling. Setsuna grasped for a nice way to breach the topic. "Seren . . . Usagi, did you know there are slaves in Crystal Tokyo?"
Serenity looked at Setsuna in a strange way before answering. Setsuna got the feeling that her queen was psychoanalyzing her, and it made her uneasy. "Yes, there is one, I believe his name is Daemon Sadi. He was a gift from Dorothea SaDiablo. I couldn't turn it down. I don't take advantage of him personally because I have Mamoru, but he is here for the other senshi."
"So there are no other slaves?" asked Setsuna. Serenity nodded, and Setsuna pondered her newfound information. There was one piece of the puzzle that she couldn't quite grasp. Serenity had hinted at it. Slowly, Setsuna went back over the words before finally asking, "What kind of slave is Daemon Sadi anyway?"
Serenity blushed in typical Usagi style, and whispered very quietly in Setsuna's ear. There was a long pause as Setsuna made sense of the mumbled words. When she did, she stood up very quickly, the air around her becoming hot like an oven. Though Setsuna didn't know it, she had begun to descend slightly to the abyss in the hot anger of emotions. She opened the door and slammed it shut before Serenity could offer an explanation. The words repeated themselves over and over inside her head, pleasure slave, pleasure slave. The angry dirge pounded against her skull.
The cool outside air hit her like a slap in the face, but it couldn't cool the indignation deep inside of her. The thought that there had been a person used for such purposes in Crystal Tokyo was beyond imagining, and yet it was true right before her eyes. Setsuna realized that she had just blown up at Queen Serenity. She wanted to go back and apologize, but deep inside Setsuna wasn't ready to forgive yet. She had been thrown into this strange new world against her will, but now that she was here, she wanted to change someone's life for the better.
Daemon was still sitting outside underneath the fountain, his face turned upwards to the light of the moon. He descended slowly down towards the abyss, his breathing a slow regular intake and release. In this heightened sense of awareness, he could sense the emotions of others, their feelings riding out towards him on the crest of a storm. He sensed Pluto before he saw her, her anger sharp and hot in the cool night air. Automatically, Daemon drew himself inwards, preparing for a lashing. What he got instead, surprised him.
"Daemon, what kind of slave are you?" The voice was tight with tension, and the question caused him to crack one eye open. It was that strange Meioh Setsuna again, or perhaps he should call her Setsuna since they seemed to be on a first name basis now. The way the question was asked implied that it was a rhetorical one and that Setsuna already knew the answer. There was an almost sadness inside Daemon at the fact that now there was no one left who could treat him with that kind of naïve trust he found in Setsuna. But at the same time he hardened, because now the inevitable ring of a small bell would most certainly becoming.
"Why ask if you already know?" asked Daemon in a slow bored drawl, the danger hidden in his silky tones. He allowed himself an inward turned smile as he began to spin out the game, already anticipating the return to Dorothea's chambers at the destruction of another queen. It was a pity he could never find a queen he got along with, but perhaps it was better that way, for if they did get along, death would be a close follower. In recent times, Daemon had learned that unattached was the best way for a slave to go. Any emotions except for cold anger, and the owner had way too many strings to pull.
Daemon saw the registering look in Setsuna's face as his answer proved what she already knew. He rose from the cold fountain stone, his silk shirt rustling as a breeze blew over its surface. His cold golden eyes watched Setsuna's face carefully, monitoring for any change in expression. After many long years he had become an expert in reading facial features and anticipating the actions that would follow.
Setsuna felt his eyes boring into her head, and she knew that she had to talk quickly before she lost her nerve. She pulled nervously at a strand of green hair as she talked, the words spilling out soft and low. His eyes never left hers, but the expression in them slowly changed from hatred to something almost akin to pity. Setsuna couldn't reason out this change, but she finished off her sentence slowly. "There have never been any slaves in Crystal Tokyo, and I'm sure once Queen Serenity comes to her rightful mind, she will realize this as well. Meanwhile, I'm offering this plan to help you escape."
He threw back his head and laughed a mocking laugh that shocked Setsuna. She didn't know what to expect, but certainly not this. She had thought through most of the details, and believed that she could carry out the plan quite easily as the guards at Crystal Tokyo were designed to keep people out, not to trap them in. Why was he putting down her plan so easily? Setsuna felt almost hurt at this, her first attempt to try and change the course of the future. Perhaps there was a reason why she had always stepped back and let others take charge.
"Okay, I'll do it." Setsuna jumped. After Daemon had laughed, she hadn't expected him to actually want to follow through with her idea. She picked up her head to look at him, judging if he was serious. Though light danced within the golden irises, his face was deadly serious. Setsuna wondered at the sudden change of mind, instantly suspicious.
"What, you will?" she asked, trying to reconfirm what she had just heard. He nodded, and this time Setsuna was unmistakably sure. There was no mistaking the movement, and deep inside herself Setsuna sensed it was the truth though she didn't know how. Gathering herself together, Setsuna pulled in her senses and looked out towards the distant hills that she had chosen as their escape path. She knew that she would have to escape as well, for without her, it would be hard for Daemon to get around the city easily enough to reach the hills. Once they left the land around Crystal Tokyo however, she would have to turn her attentions towards getting back to the Time Gate. "Very well. If you are truly serious, then I will meet you at the palace gate at sunrise. If not, then I can't make your decisions for you."
She turned to leave, her dress flowing softly down around her ankles and billowing gently in the breeze created by her movement. She had a few preparations to make before attempting this wild plan. Setsuna stepped lightly across the cobble stoned center of the garden, her back to Daemon. She stopped when she felt a light touch on her arm. She turned around to see Daemon standing behind her, his movements so quiet that she hadn't even noticed.
"Setsuna," he began, his eyes looking through her as if seeing some kind of picture just beyond, "Are you sure you want to do this for me?"
She spun to look at him fully, her hair flying into his face. The scent of rose petals drifted through the air, before Setsuna's hair settled back into its former position. She looked at him almost sadly before replying, "All my life I have sat back and let time run its course. Now I want to make a difference and help somebody in their life. Yes, I am sure that I want to do this."
Then, before she could have any second thoughts, she fled down the garden maze away from his piercing haunting gaze.