Chapter Two: Elsewhere in the Cosmos ...
In the deep throes of space sits a cold, dark and dreary area, devoid of any pure light or happiness. It is called the NegaVerse. It feeds on despair, jealousy, loneliness and hate. The ruler of a large portion this area is a beautiful but evil woman, Cassiopea.
Cassiopea sat tall on her throne and peered down upon her subjects. She tucked a stray piece of ebony hair behind her slightly pointed ear. Her blood red eyes narrowed.
"Well? How are my demons doing? I want results NOW." Figures cringed and drew back to the dark recesses of the dark throne room.
The only figure to stay in what little light illuminated the room shrugged. He was dressed in a black uniform, decorated with gold medals. His lilac colored hair skimmed his broad shoulders as he shook his head. "I won't know for another hour, Cassiopea," Cephus said. He ground his molars. It was a habit he had acquired ever since he met the hot-headed woman. They both wanted the same thing, to rule Jupiter. It was just that Cephus wanted to rule by himself.
"Fine, Cephus. Tell me as soon as you know. I want to head to Jupiter myself soon. I know that the King will be a pushover once we have his precious daughter."
"That he will be. My sources say that he is quickly trying to find the mythical Sailor Satellites. I think he might have been tipped as to a possible attack."
Cassiopea laughed. "Not likely, but if he is, you'll take care of it, or I'll take care of you."
Cephus bowed. "Understood." He turned sharply and exited the room, his dark cape fluttering as he marched out. He entered his dark chambers and sat in front of his mirror. "Hades." he murmured.
The mirror shivered as a figure appeared on the opposite side. A young man, approximately 20 years old appeared. His ebony hair hung past his shoulders.
"Ah, Cephus. How is it being Cassiopea's lap dog?" The young man asked, smirking.
"Very amusing, Hades. Remember who created you?"
Hades' smile faded. "Right. What can I do for you, O creator?"
"That's better. I have an assignment for you. It looks like those demons we created aren't doing the job."
Hades furrowed his dark brows. "That can't be! Those were rather powerful demons!"
"Well, Cassiopea wants everything sped up. I want you to go to Jupiter to kidnap Princess Lita."
Hades tapped his finger against his temple. "What of those. Satellite Soldiers?"
"They haven't been found yet."
"So we still have some time." Hades smiled. "Although, I think I'd rather wait awhile."
"Wait? Are you insane? They might be found by the next cycle!"
"That's fine by me. That way I can test out my new powers. I promise you, Cephus, I'll take Princess Lita and get rid of those Satellite Soldiers for you all in one try."
Cephus shook his head. "You had better do it, because if Cassiopea doesn't see any results, she's going to make me responsible, and if I suffer, YOU suffer." "No worries, O creator. I assure you, Princess Lita will be ours."
Back on Jupiter. Training Mission #2: Dispose of another alien life form on Jupiter
"So! This is it! Our big training mission!" Callista said, hopping onto a boulder. "Quite strange ... it seems surreal. I wonder if we'll even actually FIND this thing. Whatever it is." Sophia commented as she leaned on the boulder. "Say, Sophie," Callista said, sitting atop the rock, "If you didn't get to be a protector of Jupiter, what would you do?" "You mean, like a career?" "Yeah." "Well ..." Sophia shrugged. "I always dreamt of becoming a teacher." "You seem well suited to it. I'm sure you'd be a great teacher, Sophie." Sophia smiled. "Thank you. What about you, Callista? What would you do?" "Me? Well ..." Callista paused and shrugged. "I don't know. I would probably move to Jupiter to become a writer. But my big dream is to be married and to have a family. I lost my parents when I was very young, so family is important to me." "I can see you being a doting mother," Sophia nodded. Just as Callista started to say, "Thank you," birds scattered, and many of the animals of the forest came bounding towards them.
"What in the world--?" Sophia gasped as she leapt to the boulder. A strange figure lumbered towards them, the obvious cause of the animals fleeing.
"What IS that thing?" Callista whispered.
Sophia shook her head. "I don't know, Callista, but I think that this is what we were supposed to find ..." The creature was human-like ... to a point. It stood on two feet and had two arms, but the arms were made out of steel and shaped like knives. It spotted them and made a strange groan. "Uh oh ..." Callista gasped. She drew her bow. "Looks like we need to take it down."
"I agree. May I have the honor of the first attack?"
Callista frowned. She had never really seen Sophia in combat before. Callista shrugged and nodded. "Well-sure! Let's take him out!"
Sophia nodded and closed her eyes. What is she doing? Callista panicked. Then, it happened. The monster stopped and started looking around at some object that seemed to be alluding it.
Is ... is Sophie doing this? Callista thought. She shook her head. Whether or not she was did not matter now. She aimed her arrow and shot, aiming for the beast's head. Her shot was true, and connected directly with the beast.
The beast emitted a horrendous howl as it crashed to the ground. "Hey, we did it!" Callista cheered. Within seconds, the beast crumbled and turned into dust. "Huh? That's not normal!"
Sophia opened her eyes and smiled. "We did, didn't we? Hey, Callista- you have a symbol on your forehead!"
"Huh? A symbol? Now that you mention it ... so do you, Sophie. What does it say?"
"It ... well, it looks like the symbol of your satellite, Callisto."
"Weird! ... hey, it just disappeared from your forehead!"
Sophia blinked and sat down. "I wonder what it means?"
"I do too ... Say ... Sophie ... what exactly did you just do?"
"Oh. That. Well, I have some limited mind control abilities. I can project my thoughts into the minds of other beings. It doesn't work so well with humans, but it works with most animals."
"You never cease to amaze me, Sophie. In the meantime, we have to get back to Instructor Byron and tell him what happened."
Back at the RTF:
Instructor Byron nodded to the four trainees who successfully completed their missions. "So, you four are the only ones who came back. Tell me what happened?"
The Ioian nodded. "Well sir, when we-"
The Ganymedian jumped up and started sparing the air. "We met with the beast and Gabby here came up with a great plan an' we took it out o' commission!"
Gabrielle shrugged and shook her head. "... Yeah. That's basically what happened. Trudy did a great job too, though. Her skills are really awesome. It was a really big and evil creature, definitely not of this world."
"Same with us!" the Callistan candidate nodded. "But luckily I had Sophia with me and we stopped it. Although, something weird happened after we defeated the alien."
Instructor Byron raised his eyebrow. "Oh? What happened?"
"When Callista and I finished, the symbols of Europa and Callisto appeared on our foreheads, Sir," Sophia, the Europan said.
"'ey! Same here!" Trudy said.
"... Well, not necessarily the same symbols," Gabrielle said. "But the signs of Ganymede and Io." Byron smiled and clasped his hands. "This is too good to be true!" He stood and ran to the doorway. "Page! I need a Page urgently!"
"Why does he need a Page? Is he writin' a book?" Trudy whispered to Gabrielle. "No, Trudy. Pages are usually messengers for the King ... I wonder ..." "Tell the King we've found them! We've found the Satellite Soldiers!"
Instructor Byron yelled down the hallway.
The four girls blinked. "Huh?" Callista asked.
"We're ... we're the ones?" Sophia whispered.
Instructor Byron raced back to the girls. "Oh, this is marvelous! I had an inkling after observing your scores all this time, but!" he shook his head. "Those symbols prove it! Quickly now, we have no time to waste. The King will want to see you immediately!" Members of the Royal Guard poured into the room and bowed. "Please escort the Satellite Soldiers to the Purification Room." Byron told the Guards.
"Purification?" Gabrielle asked.
"Yes. It is part of the ceremony. We must make sure that you inherit your powers without delay. Quickly, now. Follow the Guards!"
* * * * * *
After purifying their bodies, the young women dressed in beautiful long gowns, save one. Callista's gown was a sleeveless deep green silk dress. Sophia's was a midnight blue dress with a high neck and long sleeves, suitable to her Europan upbringing, and Gabrielle wore a sequined black dress with spaghetti straps. Trudy, the athlete and tomboy that she was, decided to wear a dressy pants suit in red.
"So, what do you make of this, Gabrielle?" Sophia asked.
"This is not at all what I had expected," she admitted.
"Yeah, rather formal, eh? I thought we'd just start trainin' right away, ya know?" Trudy said punching her fist. "At least they let me wear pants. Ugh, I 'ate dresses!"
Callista giggled. "You're funny, Trudy."
"I'm not funny, I'm just tellin' the truth!" she laughed. "An' I don't care much fer balls neither."
"It'll be fun, Trudy," Callista said.
"I wonder if we'll meet the Princess ..." Gabrielle mused.
"I wondered that as well, Gabrielle." Sophia piped up. "She is the one that we're supposed to primarily protect.and assist in training, right?"
"Right." Gabrielle nodded. "In a few years, she'll start training to become the protector of Jupiter, and first and foremost, the protector of the Moon Princess."
"It sounds so romantic!" Callista sighed.
"Romantic, smantic, I just wanna get this thing ova with!" Trudy said as they headed towards the restricted level of the castle.
*
The King of Jupiter looked down upon the four young women. "These are the four candidates, sire," Instructor Byron said. "They each represent one of our major satellites." The King nodded, stroking his long brown beard. "Just like the prophetess of time commanded ... good work." The King turned to the four girls, all so different from each other. A firey red head, an introverted blond, a laughing brunette and a serious, intelligent darker complexioned girl. "Could I have your names and satellites please?"
The red head bounded forward and bent down on one knee. "Gertrude "Trudy" Najla from Ganymede, your highness."
"Ah, I've heard a lot about you. Tops in sparing I hear."
"Yes sir!" Trudy beamed.
"I am Gabrielle Greer from Io, Majesty," the mysterious woman curtseyed. "It is an honor to finally meet you."
"Ah! You must be the daughter of Giselle and Garren. They are two of my most trusted advisors. You did exceptionally well in all your studies. Especially tactics and leadership."
"Thank you, Majesty."
"Callista Amina of Callisto, Sire," the brunette said, curtseying.
"I could guess that just by looking at you." The King smiled. "Quite graceful and lovely. I hear that you did very well in your course work." "Thank you, Sire."
"And you must be from Europa?" The King asked the quiet blond. He remembered the culture of Europa. It was very proper. Children never spoke to their elders until spoken to.
She nodded and stepped forward, making a sweeping curtsey. "Yes, Your Worship. I am Sophia Eira."
"You also scored impressively across the board. I am glad that you were selected. In fact, I am glad that all four of you were selected, because I hear that all four of you bear the mark of your satellites as well."
"Yes ... we were wondering about that ..." Gabrielle nodded. "What exactly does it mean, Sire?"
"It means that your home worlds have chosen you. You all are the rightful protectors of Io, Europa, Callisto and Ganymede, as well as Jupiter."
"... and the young Princess ..." Callista piped up. Princess Lita would be nine this season.
The King smiled. "Yes, and my daughter. It is prophesied by the Guardian of Time that she will become a protector of the Moon Princess. In the meantime, she will need your protection and guidance. Now, the only thing to do is to give you these."
The King of Jupiter turned and picked up an oak box with the symbol of Jupiter engraved onto its lid. "This box contains your Transformation sticks. Each has your satellite's sign engraved in the jewel on its top." He opened the box, and four beautiful sticks shined inside. "Go ahead. Take them." The girls reached into the oak box and pulled out their transformation sticks.
Instructor Byron stepped forward. "Now, to transform, you each need to call out your Satellite's name, followed by, 'Satellite Protection Power.' "
The King smiled. "I say they try it out right now, do you agree, Lord Byron?"
The instructor smiled and nodded. "I agree. Try it out."
"All right. Let's do it!" Callista smiled. The others nodded as they thrust their transformation sticks into the air.
"Callisto Satellite Protection Power!" Green shards of light shaped like leaves enveloped Callista, and spun her around.
"Ganymede Satellite Protection Power!" Flecks of gold and red light surrounded Trudy, also causing her to spin around.
"Europa Satellite Protection Power!" A blizzard shot from the floor and swirled around Sophia.
"Io Satellite Protection Power!" A gush of dark lava gushed underneath Gabrielle and covered her.
"Whoa!" Sailor Ganymede finally breathed after the transformation. She examined her fuku, a white bodice with a skirt of red, trimmed in gold. She rocked in her knee high red boots. "Whut a rush!" "I'll say!" Sailor Callisto smiled. Their fuku bodices were all white, but their skirt and boot colors differed. Callisto's skirt was hunter green with a silver trim, Europa's midnight blue with a silver trim, and Io's black with a gold trim. Their boot colors corresponded with the main color of their skirt colors. Sailor Europa blushed. "Does the skirt have to be so short?"
Sailor Io tapped a gloved finger against her temple. "It seems that we are missing something."
"That you are." Instructor Byron nodded. "Your sacred weapons. They will appear when you call for them."
"... call for them?" Sailor Io asked. "I don't quite understand what you mean, Sire."
"I think I know, Io," Sailor Callisto said. "We'll call them when there is a need. A need in our hearts, right?"
"You are exactly right, Sailor Callisto," The King nodded. "Your sacred weapons have been handed down for generations. They respond to the will to protect our satellites and Jupiter. Your weapon, Sailor Callisto, is the Bow of Diana and the Arrow of Zeus. Sailor Ganymede-"
"I bet it's a spear! I'm a pro at wieldin' a spear!"
The King chuckled. "Yes. Your weapon is the Spear of Zeus. Sailor Europa, you carry the Staff of Zeus, and Sailor Io, you have the most powerful weapon, the Sword of Zeus."
"So, who's our leader?" Sailor Ganymede asked. "I think it should be the best fighter, and that would be ... me!" "Uh ... well, there really IS no leader." Instructor Byron laughed. "You will decide on your leader when the time comes. Now is the time for the four of you to be introduced to the court." They followed the King and Instructor Byron into the throne room. Many of the gentry attended the event, dressed in their finest attire. "Holy Moley!" Ganymede gasped. "Yeah ... I feel a little overwhelmed!" Callisto whispered.
"Lords and Ladies, I present to you, the protectors of Jupiter's Princess, the Planet Jupiter and its satellites, the Satellite Soldiers! Sailors Io, Ganymede, Callisto and Europa!"
The crowd roared, almost deafening the newly appointed Soldiers. "This is a ... bit much!" Io sighed.
"I definitely agree!" Europa shouted over the cheers.
"Now, please, Soldiers, feel free to de-morph and enjoy the ball!" the King smiled.
The girls breathed a sigh of relief and nodded. They closed their eyes and concentrated, changing back to their formal attire. A young girl, no more than 10 years old, with chestnut brown hair and green eyes that rivaled Trudy's approached them. "So you're the Satellite Soldiers!"
"Oi! Are ya Princess Lita?" Trudy asked.
The girl nodded, her eyes sparkling in the light. "Yeah!"
"Princess!" The other three exclaimed as they knelt.
Trudy nodded and smiled. "Yeah, you're a cute one. I'm gonna call you lil' Li-Li."
"Trudy! I don't think that would be proper!" Sophia hissed.
The Princess laughed. "No...it's okay! I like that nickname. C'mon, everyone! I wanna know all about you guys!" Princess Lita took Trudy's hand and led her to one of the benches set up against the wall. As they began to talk with their Princess, four figures watched them from the shadows.
"Do you think they know what lies ahead?" one of the figure mused.
"Hmph. Probably not. Their trials have been easy thus far. The real test will come soon." The tallest figure answered.
"Right. Let's keep an eye on them, shall we?" the third figure suggested.
"Good idea. Phoenix said that they were new. I didn't realize HOW new." The first figure noted.
The last figure nodded. "Let's head back. Nothing will happen tonight, thank goodness." The figures nodded and vanished without a trace.
In the deep throes of space sits a cold, dark and dreary area, devoid of any pure light or happiness. It is called the NegaVerse. It feeds on despair, jealousy, loneliness and hate. The ruler of a large portion this area is a beautiful but evil woman, Cassiopea.
Cassiopea sat tall on her throne and peered down upon her subjects. She tucked a stray piece of ebony hair behind her slightly pointed ear. Her blood red eyes narrowed.
"Well? How are my demons doing? I want results NOW." Figures cringed and drew back to the dark recesses of the dark throne room.
The only figure to stay in what little light illuminated the room shrugged. He was dressed in a black uniform, decorated with gold medals. His lilac colored hair skimmed his broad shoulders as he shook his head. "I won't know for another hour, Cassiopea," Cephus said. He ground his molars. It was a habit he had acquired ever since he met the hot-headed woman. They both wanted the same thing, to rule Jupiter. It was just that Cephus wanted to rule by himself.
"Fine, Cephus. Tell me as soon as you know. I want to head to Jupiter myself soon. I know that the King will be a pushover once we have his precious daughter."
"That he will be. My sources say that he is quickly trying to find the mythical Sailor Satellites. I think he might have been tipped as to a possible attack."
Cassiopea laughed. "Not likely, but if he is, you'll take care of it, or I'll take care of you."
Cephus bowed. "Understood." He turned sharply and exited the room, his dark cape fluttering as he marched out. He entered his dark chambers and sat in front of his mirror. "Hades." he murmured.
The mirror shivered as a figure appeared on the opposite side. A young man, approximately 20 years old appeared. His ebony hair hung past his shoulders.
"Ah, Cephus. How is it being Cassiopea's lap dog?" The young man asked, smirking.
"Very amusing, Hades. Remember who created you?"
Hades' smile faded. "Right. What can I do for you, O creator?"
"That's better. I have an assignment for you. It looks like those demons we created aren't doing the job."
Hades furrowed his dark brows. "That can't be! Those were rather powerful demons!"
"Well, Cassiopea wants everything sped up. I want you to go to Jupiter to kidnap Princess Lita."
Hades tapped his finger against his temple. "What of those. Satellite Soldiers?"
"They haven't been found yet."
"So we still have some time." Hades smiled. "Although, I think I'd rather wait awhile."
"Wait? Are you insane? They might be found by the next cycle!"
"That's fine by me. That way I can test out my new powers. I promise you, Cephus, I'll take Princess Lita and get rid of those Satellite Soldiers for you all in one try."
Cephus shook his head. "You had better do it, because if Cassiopea doesn't see any results, she's going to make me responsible, and if I suffer, YOU suffer." "No worries, O creator. I assure you, Princess Lita will be ours."
Back on Jupiter. Training Mission #2: Dispose of another alien life form on Jupiter
"So! This is it! Our big training mission!" Callista said, hopping onto a boulder. "Quite strange ... it seems surreal. I wonder if we'll even actually FIND this thing. Whatever it is." Sophia commented as she leaned on the boulder. "Say, Sophie," Callista said, sitting atop the rock, "If you didn't get to be a protector of Jupiter, what would you do?" "You mean, like a career?" "Yeah." "Well ..." Sophia shrugged. "I always dreamt of becoming a teacher." "You seem well suited to it. I'm sure you'd be a great teacher, Sophie." Sophia smiled. "Thank you. What about you, Callista? What would you do?" "Me? Well ..." Callista paused and shrugged. "I don't know. I would probably move to Jupiter to become a writer. But my big dream is to be married and to have a family. I lost my parents when I was very young, so family is important to me." "I can see you being a doting mother," Sophia nodded. Just as Callista started to say, "Thank you," birds scattered, and many of the animals of the forest came bounding towards them.
"What in the world--?" Sophia gasped as she leapt to the boulder. A strange figure lumbered towards them, the obvious cause of the animals fleeing.
"What IS that thing?" Callista whispered.
Sophia shook her head. "I don't know, Callista, but I think that this is what we were supposed to find ..." The creature was human-like ... to a point. It stood on two feet and had two arms, but the arms were made out of steel and shaped like knives. It spotted them and made a strange groan. "Uh oh ..." Callista gasped. She drew her bow. "Looks like we need to take it down."
"I agree. May I have the honor of the first attack?"
Callista frowned. She had never really seen Sophia in combat before. Callista shrugged and nodded. "Well-sure! Let's take him out!"
Sophia nodded and closed her eyes. What is she doing? Callista panicked. Then, it happened. The monster stopped and started looking around at some object that seemed to be alluding it.
Is ... is Sophie doing this? Callista thought. She shook her head. Whether or not she was did not matter now. She aimed her arrow and shot, aiming for the beast's head. Her shot was true, and connected directly with the beast.
The beast emitted a horrendous howl as it crashed to the ground. "Hey, we did it!" Callista cheered. Within seconds, the beast crumbled and turned into dust. "Huh? That's not normal!"
Sophia opened her eyes and smiled. "We did, didn't we? Hey, Callista- you have a symbol on your forehead!"
"Huh? A symbol? Now that you mention it ... so do you, Sophie. What does it say?"
"It ... well, it looks like the symbol of your satellite, Callisto."
"Weird! ... hey, it just disappeared from your forehead!"
Sophia blinked and sat down. "I wonder what it means?"
"I do too ... Say ... Sophie ... what exactly did you just do?"
"Oh. That. Well, I have some limited mind control abilities. I can project my thoughts into the minds of other beings. It doesn't work so well with humans, but it works with most animals."
"You never cease to amaze me, Sophie. In the meantime, we have to get back to Instructor Byron and tell him what happened."
Back at the RTF:
Instructor Byron nodded to the four trainees who successfully completed their missions. "So, you four are the only ones who came back. Tell me what happened?"
The Ioian nodded. "Well sir, when we-"
The Ganymedian jumped up and started sparing the air. "We met with the beast and Gabby here came up with a great plan an' we took it out o' commission!"
Gabrielle shrugged and shook her head. "... Yeah. That's basically what happened. Trudy did a great job too, though. Her skills are really awesome. It was a really big and evil creature, definitely not of this world."
"Same with us!" the Callistan candidate nodded. "But luckily I had Sophia with me and we stopped it. Although, something weird happened after we defeated the alien."
Instructor Byron raised his eyebrow. "Oh? What happened?"
"When Callista and I finished, the symbols of Europa and Callisto appeared on our foreheads, Sir," Sophia, the Europan said.
"'ey! Same here!" Trudy said.
"... Well, not necessarily the same symbols," Gabrielle said. "But the signs of Ganymede and Io." Byron smiled and clasped his hands. "This is too good to be true!" He stood and ran to the doorway. "Page! I need a Page urgently!"
"Why does he need a Page? Is he writin' a book?" Trudy whispered to Gabrielle. "No, Trudy. Pages are usually messengers for the King ... I wonder ..." "Tell the King we've found them! We've found the Satellite Soldiers!"
Instructor Byron yelled down the hallway.
The four girls blinked. "Huh?" Callista asked.
"We're ... we're the ones?" Sophia whispered.
Instructor Byron raced back to the girls. "Oh, this is marvelous! I had an inkling after observing your scores all this time, but!" he shook his head. "Those symbols prove it! Quickly now, we have no time to waste. The King will want to see you immediately!" Members of the Royal Guard poured into the room and bowed. "Please escort the Satellite Soldiers to the Purification Room." Byron told the Guards.
"Purification?" Gabrielle asked.
"Yes. It is part of the ceremony. We must make sure that you inherit your powers without delay. Quickly, now. Follow the Guards!"
* * * * * *
After purifying their bodies, the young women dressed in beautiful long gowns, save one. Callista's gown was a sleeveless deep green silk dress. Sophia's was a midnight blue dress with a high neck and long sleeves, suitable to her Europan upbringing, and Gabrielle wore a sequined black dress with spaghetti straps. Trudy, the athlete and tomboy that she was, decided to wear a dressy pants suit in red.
"So, what do you make of this, Gabrielle?" Sophia asked.
"This is not at all what I had expected," she admitted.
"Yeah, rather formal, eh? I thought we'd just start trainin' right away, ya know?" Trudy said punching her fist. "At least they let me wear pants. Ugh, I 'ate dresses!"
Callista giggled. "You're funny, Trudy."
"I'm not funny, I'm just tellin' the truth!" she laughed. "An' I don't care much fer balls neither."
"It'll be fun, Trudy," Callista said.
"I wonder if we'll meet the Princess ..." Gabrielle mused.
"I wondered that as well, Gabrielle." Sophia piped up. "She is the one that we're supposed to primarily protect.and assist in training, right?"
"Right." Gabrielle nodded. "In a few years, she'll start training to become the protector of Jupiter, and first and foremost, the protector of the Moon Princess."
"It sounds so romantic!" Callista sighed.
"Romantic, smantic, I just wanna get this thing ova with!" Trudy said as they headed towards the restricted level of the castle.
*
The King of Jupiter looked down upon the four young women. "These are the four candidates, sire," Instructor Byron said. "They each represent one of our major satellites." The King nodded, stroking his long brown beard. "Just like the prophetess of time commanded ... good work." The King turned to the four girls, all so different from each other. A firey red head, an introverted blond, a laughing brunette and a serious, intelligent darker complexioned girl. "Could I have your names and satellites please?"
The red head bounded forward and bent down on one knee. "Gertrude "Trudy" Najla from Ganymede, your highness."
"Ah, I've heard a lot about you. Tops in sparing I hear."
"Yes sir!" Trudy beamed.
"I am Gabrielle Greer from Io, Majesty," the mysterious woman curtseyed. "It is an honor to finally meet you."
"Ah! You must be the daughter of Giselle and Garren. They are two of my most trusted advisors. You did exceptionally well in all your studies. Especially tactics and leadership."
"Thank you, Majesty."
"Callista Amina of Callisto, Sire," the brunette said, curtseying.
"I could guess that just by looking at you." The King smiled. "Quite graceful and lovely. I hear that you did very well in your course work." "Thank you, Sire."
"And you must be from Europa?" The King asked the quiet blond. He remembered the culture of Europa. It was very proper. Children never spoke to their elders until spoken to.
She nodded and stepped forward, making a sweeping curtsey. "Yes, Your Worship. I am Sophia Eira."
"You also scored impressively across the board. I am glad that you were selected. In fact, I am glad that all four of you were selected, because I hear that all four of you bear the mark of your satellites as well."
"Yes ... we were wondering about that ..." Gabrielle nodded. "What exactly does it mean, Sire?"
"It means that your home worlds have chosen you. You all are the rightful protectors of Io, Europa, Callisto and Ganymede, as well as Jupiter."
"... and the young Princess ..." Callista piped up. Princess Lita would be nine this season.
The King smiled. "Yes, and my daughter. It is prophesied by the Guardian of Time that she will become a protector of the Moon Princess. In the meantime, she will need your protection and guidance. Now, the only thing to do is to give you these."
The King of Jupiter turned and picked up an oak box with the symbol of Jupiter engraved onto its lid. "This box contains your Transformation sticks. Each has your satellite's sign engraved in the jewel on its top." He opened the box, and four beautiful sticks shined inside. "Go ahead. Take them." The girls reached into the oak box and pulled out their transformation sticks.
Instructor Byron stepped forward. "Now, to transform, you each need to call out your Satellite's name, followed by, 'Satellite Protection Power.' "
The King smiled. "I say they try it out right now, do you agree, Lord Byron?"
The instructor smiled and nodded. "I agree. Try it out."
"All right. Let's do it!" Callista smiled. The others nodded as they thrust their transformation sticks into the air.
"Callisto Satellite Protection Power!" Green shards of light shaped like leaves enveloped Callista, and spun her around.
"Ganymede Satellite Protection Power!" Flecks of gold and red light surrounded Trudy, also causing her to spin around.
"Europa Satellite Protection Power!" A blizzard shot from the floor and swirled around Sophia.
"Io Satellite Protection Power!" A gush of dark lava gushed underneath Gabrielle and covered her.
"Whoa!" Sailor Ganymede finally breathed after the transformation. She examined her fuku, a white bodice with a skirt of red, trimmed in gold. She rocked in her knee high red boots. "Whut a rush!" "I'll say!" Sailor Callisto smiled. Their fuku bodices were all white, but their skirt and boot colors differed. Callisto's skirt was hunter green with a silver trim, Europa's midnight blue with a silver trim, and Io's black with a gold trim. Their boot colors corresponded with the main color of their skirt colors. Sailor Europa blushed. "Does the skirt have to be so short?"
Sailor Io tapped a gloved finger against her temple. "It seems that we are missing something."
"That you are." Instructor Byron nodded. "Your sacred weapons. They will appear when you call for them."
"... call for them?" Sailor Io asked. "I don't quite understand what you mean, Sire."
"I think I know, Io," Sailor Callisto said. "We'll call them when there is a need. A need in our hearts, right?"
"You are exactly right, Sailor Callisto," The King nodded. "Your sacred weapons have been handed down for generations. They respond to the will to protect our satellites and Jupiter. Your weapon, Sailor Callisto, is the Bow of Diana and the Arrow of Zeus. Sailor Ganymede-"
"I bet it's a spear! I'm a pro at wieldin' a spear!"
The King chuckled. "Yes. Your weapon is the Spear of Zeus. Sailor Europa, you carry the Staff of Zeus, and Sailor Io, you have the most powerful weapon, the Sword of Zeus."
"So, who's our leader?" Sailor Ganymede asked. "I think it should be the best fighter, and that would be ... me!" "Uh ... well, there really IS no leader." Instructor Byron laughed. "You will decide on your leader when the time comes. Now is the time for the four of you to be introduced to the court." They followed the King and Instructor Byron into the throne room. Many of the gentry attended the event, dressed in their finest attire. "Holy Moley!" Ganymede gasped. "Yeah ... I feel a little overwhelmed!" Callisto whispered.
"Lords and Ladies, I present to you, the protectors of Jupiter's Princess, the Planet Jupiter and its satellites, the Satellite Soldiers! Sailors Io, Ganymede, Callisto and Europa!"
The crowd roared, almost deafening the newly appointed Soldiers. "This is a ... bit much!" Io sighed.
"I definitely agree!" Europa shouted over the cheers.
"Now, please, Soldiers, feel free to de-morph and enjoy the ball!" the King smiled.
The girls breathed a sigh of relief and nodded. They closed their eyes and concentrated, changing back to their formal attire. A young girl, no more than 10 years old, with chestnut brown hair and green eyes that rivaled Trudy's approached them. "So you're the Satellite Soldiers!"
"Oi! Are ya Princess Lita?" Trudy asked.
The girl nodded, her eyes sparkling in the light. "Yeah!"
"Princess!" The other three exclaimed as they knelt.
Trudy nodded and smiled. "Yeah, you're a cute one. I'm gonna call you lil' Li-Li."
"Trudy! I don't think that would be proper!" Sophia hissed.
The Princess laughed. "No...it's okay! I like that nickname. C'mon, everyone! I wanna know all about you guys!" Princess Lita took Trudy's hand and led her to one of the benches set up against the wall. As they began to talk with their Princess, four figures watched them from the shadows.
"Do you think they know what lies ahead?" one of the figure mused.
"Hmph. Probably not. Their trials have been easy thus far. The real test will come soon." The tallest figure answered.
"Right. Let's keep an eye on them, shall we?" the third figure suggested.
"Good idea. Phoenix said that they were new. I didn't realize HOW new." The first figure noted.
The last figure nodded. "Let's head back. Nothing will happen tonight, thank goodness." The figures nodded and vanished without a trace.