Chapter Two: Shijosei
Hotaru opened her eyes. Strange, she thought, there
were flowers all around her. Every type of flower she could
think of. Lilies, roses, daffodils and more. All so
beautiful. But the question that was burning in her mind
was, 'where was she?'
She reached for the sword but it was not beside her.
She patted around her neck, but it was not there either. She
also realised that she was no longer in her senshi form, but
in her school uniform. She began to look around her to find
the sword when her hand caught on the pendant.
"Ow!" Hotaru yelped as the point broke the skin. Her
blood ran off her hand and into the flower bed. It touched a
single rose and all the flowers turned red. She concentrated
on her hand and healed the wound. She then picked up the
pendant and put it around her neck.
"I guess I should look for life forms on this planet,"
she said to herself. She stood up and began walking through
the flower bed. As soon as she left the flowers she found
herself in what looked like an abandoned town. It was quiet
and slummy, but not as badly kept as one might think. Hotaru
looked for any sign of life.
"Hello?" she called through the town, nervously. "Is
anyone here?"
"Have you come to play with us?" a little girl said.
She couldn't have been more than five or six. That's when
Hotaru realised that there were several of these small
children all around her. Their hair, even the young boys,
was long and unkempt.
"Play with us!" they said. The kids began to walk
towards her as she backed away. They latched onto her and
wrestled her to the ground. She could hear their voices
saying, "Play with us, please! Play with us!"
"Get off me!" Hotaru said. She thrashed about
under the weight of the children, trying to throw them off
of her.
"Lay off, Yoochienko!" a voice rang from somewhere.
The little children got off of her and backed away. Hotaru
sat up and looked around to see where the voice came
from.
Out of an alley way a gang of children wandered out.
The leader seemed to be the middle female child. Her black
hair was curled in the back with two braided loops on the
side. She had an eyepatch covering her right eye. Her cold
blue eye was like nothing Hotaru had ever seen. She carried
a vicious looking knife in her hand.
"Who are you? What are you doing here?"
"I, uh, I," Hotaru was so frightened she couldn't
move. Sweat trickled down the back of her neck and her spine
tingled.
"Answer me. How did you get here?"
"Well I, uh..."
"Fine. If you're not going to talk, we'll sacrifice
you at Crescent Tide!" the girl shouted.
"Crescent Tide!" everyone said in unison.
"Please don't!" Hotaru begged. "I have friends and
family back at home who depend on me. I'm just nervous and
scared."
"Are you a senshi?" the girl asked.
"A senshi?" Hotaru responded. She'd never thought
she'd hear a word like that out of the kids.
"That's right. A Sailor Senshi. A warrior for
justice and peace and life," the girl sneered. "Do you have
powers that can wipe out a race with a few words?"
"No I'm not. I'm just an ordinary girl from my
planet. I don't have powers like that," Hotaru lied. "People
from my planet can transport themselves between planets and
heal wounds, but nothing more than that."
"Heal wounds?" the girl backed off from Hotaru,
loosening the grip on the knife. Hotaru nodded, smiling.
Then the stiff grasp on the knife returned, "Who are you? I
don't know of any planet that has those type of powers!"
"My name is Tomoe Hotaru, and I come from Earth,"
Hotaru said.
"Earth?" Again the girl loosened her grip on the
knife. Again she tightened it.
"But my home planet was somewhere else. It was
destroyed in an attack," Hotaru responded almost frantically.
"Well I guess that's okay... but you haven't
answered some of my questions. How did you get here?"
"I really don't know, I mean..." but the knife blade
came towards her again and Hotaru began to talk. "I mean, I
was trying to find another planet when I crashed on this
one."
"And why did you come here?" the girl said.
"I wanted to get home, but I lost control and landed
here," Hotaru said.
"It looks like she's one of us," another girl said.
This girl had black hair spiked over the front. Her skin
was tanned, and she was smiling. "She's not like the
Zettaishi."
"The who???" Hotaru asked in wonder.
"The Zettaishi." The leader's eyes became fierce.
"They're a group of rebels intent on destroying our happy
life. They're mostly elders, though many of them are even
younger than us. However, we got stuck with the Yoochienko."
"Why do they want to destroy your happy life?"
"Because they don't like the gift that was bestowed
upon us all," the black haired girl said. "The gift of
freedom and eternity!"
"But they do not appreciate the gift and call it a
curse. You must be tired from your journey," the leader
commented. "Come, to rest."
"But where are all the adults on this planet?" Hotaru
asked, wondering.
"Adults?" the main girl said.
"Yeah, you know. Men and women over eighteen who
can smoke, drink beer, gamble and vote?" Hotaru knew
suddenly by the confused expression on the children's
faces that there were no adults on this planet.
"There's no one like that here, however, the Elders
might remember people like that," the black haired child said.
"Where are the Elders?"
"They are part of the Zettaishi. They don't like us,
but there is one Elder on our side," the main girl offered.
"She is one of the oldest people we know, but she was
wounded in a large clash with the Zettaishi. We fear she may
die before Crescent Tide comes," a white haired girl said.
"You said that your people could heal peoples wounds,
correct?" the main child asked of her.
"Yes," Hotaru said, "but I get very weak after I do
it."
"That's all right. You can help us then, can't you?"
the main child asked, no emotion showing on her face.
"I guess, but first I want to know your names and why
you live here without any adults," Hotaru said.
"The story will come in good time, I can assure you.
If you really must know, my name is Nao Katsuni," the leader
said.
"I'm Hanako Akabashi," the black haired child announced.
The white haired girl joined in as well. "I'm Ayame
Akino."
One by one children announced their names left and
right as they marched Hotaru to a sort of hotel, where the
rooms had been kept fairly clean. Hotaru was glad that they
weren't going to hurt her, but she was still afraid of what
they could do. And what was the Crescent Tide celebration
they spoke of?
Hotaru opened her eyes. Strange, she thought, there
were flowers all around her. Every type of flower she could
think of. Lilies, roses, daffodils and more. All so
beautiful. But the question that was burning in her mind
was, 'where was she?'
She reached for the sword but it was not beside her.
She patted around her neck, but it was not there either. She
also realised that she was no longer in her senshi form, but
in her school uniform. She began to look around her to find
the sword when her hand caught on the pendant.
"Ow!" Hotaru yelped as the point broke the skin. Her
blood ran off her hand and into the flower bed. It touched a
single rose and all the flowers turned red. She concentrated
on her hand and healed the wound. She then picked up the
pendant and put it around her neck.
"I guess I should look for life forms on this planet,"
she said to herself. She stood up and began walking through
the flower bed. As soon as she left the flowers she found
herself in what looked like an abandoned town. It was quiet
and slummy, but not as badly kept as one might think. Hotaru
looked for any sign of life.
"Hello?" she called through the town, nervously. "Is
anyone here?"
"Have you come to play with us?" a little girl said.
She couldn't have been more than five or six. That's when
Hotaru realised that there were several of these small
children all around her. Their hair, even the young boys,
was long and unkempt.
"Play with us!" they said. The kids began to walk
towards her as she backed away. They latched onto her and
wrestled her to the ground. She could hear their voices
saying, "Play with us, please! Play with us!"
"Get off me!" Hotaru said. She thrashed about
under the weight of the children, trying to throw them off
of her.
"Lay off, Yoochienko!" a voice rang from somewhere.
The little children got off of her and backed away. Hotaru
sat up and looked around to see where the voice came
from.
Out of an alley way a gang of children wandered out.
The leader seemed to be the middle female child. Her black
hair was curled in the back with two braided loops on the
side. She had an eyepatch covering her right eye. Her cold
blue eye was like nothing Hotaru had ever seen. She carried
a vicious looking knife in her hand.
"Who are you? What are you doing here?"
"I, uh, I," Hotaru was so frightened she couldn't
move. Sweat trickled down the back of her neck and her spine
tingled.
"Answer me. How did you get here?"
"Well I, uh..."
"Fine. If you're not going to talk, we'll sacrifice
you at Crescent Tide!" the girl shouted.
"Crescent Tide!" everyone said in unison.
"Please don't!" Hotaru begged. "I have friends and
family back at home who depend on me. I'm just nervous and
scared."
"Are you a senshi?" the girl asked.
"A senshi?" Hotaru responded. She'd never thought
she'd hear a word like that out of the kids.
"That's right. A Sailor Senshi. A warrior for
justice and peace and life," the girl sneered. "Do you have
powers that can wipe out a race with a few words?"
"No I'm not. I'm just an ordinary girl from my
planet. I don't have powers like that," Hotaru lied. "People
from my planet can transport themselves between planets and
heal wounds, but nothing more than that."
"Heal wounds?" the girl backed off from Hotaru,
loosening the grip on the knife. Hotaru nodded, smiling.
Then the stiff grasp on the knife returned, "Who are you? I
don't know of any planet that has those type of powers!"
"My name is Tomoe Hotaru, and I come from Earth,"
Hotaru said.
"Earth?" Again the girl loosened her grip on the
knife. Again she tightened it.
"But my home planet was somewhere else. It was
destroyed in an attack," Hotaru responded almost frantically.
"Well I guess that's okay... but you haven't
answered some of my questions. How did you get here?"
"I really don't know, I mean..." but the knife blade
came towards her again and Hotaru began to talk. "I mean, I
was trying to find another planet when I crashed on this
one."
"And why did you come here?" the girl said.
"I wanted to get home, but I lost control and landed
here," Hotaru said.
"It looks like she's one of us," another girl said.
This girl had black hair spiked over the front. Her skin
was tanned, and she was smiling. "She's not like the
Zettaishi."
"The who???" Hotaru asked in wonder.
"The Zettaishi." The leader's eyes became fierce.
"They're a group of rebels intent on destroying our happy
life. They're mostly elders, though many of them are even
younger than us. However, we got stuck with the Yoochienko."
"Why do they want to destroy your happy life?"
"Because they don't like the gift that was bestowed
upon us all," the black haired girl said. "The gift of
freedom and eternity!"
"But they do not appreciate the gift and call it a
curse. You must be tired from your journey," the leader
commented. "Come, to rest."
"But where are all the adults on this planet?" Hotaru
asked, wondering.
"Adults?" the main girl said.
"Yeah, you know. Men and women over eighteen who
can smoke, drink beer, gamble and vote?" Hotaru knew
suddenly by the confused expression on the children's
faces that there were no adults on this planet.
"There's no one like that here, however, the Elders
might remember people like that," the black haired child said.
"Where are the Elders?"
"They are part of the Zettaishi. They don't like us,
but there is one Elder on our side," the main girl offered.
"She is one of the oldest people we know, but she was
wounded in a large clash with the Zettaishi. We fear she may
die before Crescent Tide comes," a white haired girl said.
"You said that your people could heal peoples wounds,
correct?" the main child asked of her.
"Yes," Hotaru said, "but I get very weak after I do
it."
"That's all right. You can help us then, can't you?"
the main child asked, no emotion showing on her face.
"I guess, but first I want to know your names and why
you live here without any adults," Hotaru said.
"The story will come in good time, I can assure you.
If you really must know, my name is Nao Katsuni," the leader
said.
"I'm Hanako Akabashi," the black haired child announced.
The white haired girl joined in as well. "I'm Ayame
Akino."
One by one children announced their names left and
right as they marched Hotaru to a sort of hotel, where the
rooms had been kept fairly clean. Hotaru was glad that they
weren't going to hurt her, but she was still afraid of what
they could do. And what was the Crescent Tide celebration
they spoke of?