Sailor Moon: World Rebirth -Part 1, The Gathering
Episode 7 'Recovery and Refusal'
I found them when I went for an early morning swim with Sati. They were
unconscious and tied to the front half of a small boat on the beach. I
recognized three of them but the forth was a stranger to me. I stayed with
them while Sati went back for help. I knew why they were here. They were
going to ask me to become a senshi again. But, I didn't want to anymore; not
without HER. I couldn't. I cried softly until Sati came back.
There was no sign of them surviving until a few days later. Up until then
they were close to death so we put them to bed. Our healers couldn't do much
of anything to help them. Occasionally one would wake up and we'd feed them
but they were too delirious to answer questions.
In the turn of an hour two of them woke up on the third day. First was
Minako. It was in the afternoon, a little after lunch. I wasn't there, but I
had Suka tell me about it. She was there when it happened. She said Minako
just woke up as she would have from a nice sleep. She tried to speak but the
women there made her eat first, thinking she wasn't okay yet. After they
were done she asked where she was, and they told her she was on the Island
of Dohilne. They told her that she should lay down and go back to sleep, but
Minako wanted to know where her friends were. After finding that they were
still unconscious she explained what happened to them.
They were serving on board a cargo ship on its way to Afkzo when they were
attacked by pirates. Then a sea monster appeared and destroyed both of the
ships. Suka told Minako that she was lucky to be alive. I didn't say
anything but I could tell that Minako left out a lot.
Then the woman I didn't recognize woke up next. That was about when I
arrived for my shift. There were a whole bunch of us who were taking turns
watching over them. I stood to the side while Minako helped Suka and a
couple other ladies to feed the girl I didn't know. Minako explained to her
where they were. "We're on an Island in the middle of the ocean. Ami and Rei
are still unconscious and so have we been for the last few days."
"When did you wake up?" she asked.
"Less than an hour ago. How do you feel?"
"A lot better than when I was last awake." She turned to Suka. "I'd like to
thank you and all of you others for taking care of us. My name is Haiku and
this is my friend Minako. Over there," She pointed to the other two beds,
"Are Rei, and Ami. Did you recover our packs too? There were some very
important items in them."
I stepped up to the bed Haiku was sitting on. "Don't worry," I said. "All of
your belongings that made it here with you are at my house." When Minako saw
me she got up and gave me a hug.
"Oh, I'm so glad you're okay," she said. Haiku just smiled. Haiku got out of
her bed, walked over to Rei's bed, and knelt down beside it. She took one of
Ami's hands and held it in both of hers. Haiku started to glow pink, and Ami
started to glow a dim blue. Haiku did the same thing with Rei only Rei
glowed red and a lot dimmer. She turned back to Suka.
"They're still very weak and will take a while to recover."
"How did you do that?" Suka's younger sister, Suki asked. It didn't take
much to amaze Suki.
Haiku knelt down beside Suki and smiled. "It's an aura. Special people like
us four have them." She reached out and touched her. Haiku started to glow
but Suki didn't. "You don't have one," Before I could do anything Haiku
reached out and touched my hand. "But she does." I started glowing like
Haiku. I couldn't believe she did that. Couldn't she see that I didn't want
to be a senshi anymore. I ran out of the building. Tears tried to flood my
eyes but I forced them away. I ran across the town and into the forest
beside it. Maybe if I wished hard enough they would go away.
******************
She ran off, out of the building. Haiku wanted her to join them but could
tell there was something holding her back. She was sure she would find out
sometime. But right before she ran off Haiku saw fear in her eyes for a
second. Haiku walked back over to Minako and took her hand. "We're going to
go for a walk through your wonderful village if you don't mind," Haiku said
to Suka.
"Sure, go ahead ...." Haiku didn't wait for her to change her mind and
pulled Minako out of the building.
They were in a small village on an island. The houses were made of wood.
Suki followed them out in order to explain to them about the village. She
said that they didn't have any influence from the outside world in order to
stay safe. All of their materials and food they got from the island they
were living on or one of the nearby ones. This was one of the end islands in
a string of them. All that the others contained though was trees.
"After rebirth many people found themselves strung out on these islands, and
after the darkness all found their way to this place. There are still a few
who choose to live in the forests away from everyone else, but that is okay
since there aren't any really dangerous animals except on the last island
of the string that is quite a ways away from the others, at the other end of
the string. It is a very dangerous place." Suki showed them the beach
that they were found on. There were many children swimming and playing on
the sand. "I don't know how you got all of yourselves to stay tied to that
board but it kept you alive."
"I know," Haiku said. That was in fact what she had been planning. When they
had jumped into the water Ami and Rei had lost consciousness. Haiku knew
there was no way they were going to be okay without being able to recover
from the drain of energy that they had to undergo to use their powers so
much. Especially Rei. Maybe with Ami's help Haiku would have been able to
fix the boat with magic but not by herself. So she tied the four of them to
the boat and each other with the boat's painter. Then she used magic to
strengthen it. She used the rest of her magic to make sure that their heads
stayed above water, whether they were trying to or not. She couldn't really
recall much that happened after that. Resistance DID know about this island
but chose to let it be because that's what its residents wished.
It took Haiku and Minako about an hour to loose Suki, so they had to wait
until then to look for their friend. Haiku knew that she would have left the
village to be left alone so when they reached the forest at the edge of the
village Haiku and Minako split up. It wasn't very dense forest and therefore
easy to move through.
********
I saw her coming long before she saw me. I studied her long pink hair that
went down to her legs and her red eyes. But I couldn't figure out who she
was. I felt that her identity was right there in front of me but I couldn't
grasp it. If I had had my mirror I could have figured it out.. -no! I didn't
want to return to a senshi's life. The endless war was over -we lost. The
princess we were sworn to protect was gone. We had been unable to defend the
solar system. We failed.
I was sitting in one of my favourite places. It was a rock that was about
four feet high. I had a perfect view of the ocean. I always felt peace when
I looked at the ocean. Haiku came up behind me. "What's wrong?" she asked.
"I won't go with you," I answered her.
"What makes you think you need to leave your home and come with me?"
"I know who you are." I was starting to get annoyed with her. "You're the
gatherer."
"So my messager did come here."
"I never said that. I just said that I know why you're here."
"Then do you also know exactly WHO I am?"
"No."
"Do you know who you are?"
"Why can't you just leave me alone?" The whole time while we were talking
Haiku was moving closer to me. Now, next to me she picked up my hand and
touched my forehead with it. I couldn't see it, but I knew the symbol of
Neptune had appeared on my forehead. I was proved right when a copy of it
flew out of my forehead to in front of my face. When I reached out to touch
it a greenish-blue circle appeared around it. Then an eight-pointed star
around that. A handle appeared below it. The sign of Neptune merged with the
sign of infinity, a circle. I took it in my hand and just stared at it.
When I broke out of my trance-like state I shoved Haiku off of the rock. I
stood up and threw the power stick at her. "Why can't you just understand
that no means NO. Before I realized what I was doing a wave of water
appeared at my hands. It shot it out and drenched Haiku. I turned around and
looked out over the ocean and before Haiku could stop me I dived down
towards the water.
***************
I couldn't believe that she actually jumped. It had to be about a 30 foot
drop. I quickly scrambled back on to the rock but when I looked over the
edge I couldn't see anything but water. "Michiru!" I screamed and jumped in
after her. I used strands of magic to make my descent slower. I swam around
everywhere but couldn't find her. There was rock about six feet below the
water's surface and Michiru dived in... But I couldn't find anything. Maybe
having the ocean as her element saved her. I hoped.
I climbed out of the water even more drenched than I was before. I was
surprised that Michiru had been able to use the strands of magic without
even trying. Then again Resistance had said that the outer senshi would
develop differently to this world than the inners. It didn't even take
anything for Michiru to form her transformation stick. When I went back to
the rock I was stumped. Her transformation stick was gone.
When I found Minako I explained to her what had happened. She was upset that
she had missed it. I also explained to her that there was some reason that
Michiru didn't what to be a sailor senshi anymore. "Does anything come to
mind of why she wouldn't?" I asked Minako. "Anything that might have
happened during the last battle?"
Minako shrugged. "I don't know. Suka said that the island is cut off from
the rest of the world so she hasn't seen Haruka or any of us since rebirth.
That might have something to do with it." I nodded.
Taking a long tour of the island we made our way back to where we started.
When we got back it was starting to get dark. Suka was standing in the
doorway. "And where have you been?" she smiled and we all stepped in. "Now,
where are you going to stay now that you're okay?"
"What's wrong with here?"
"This is just a recovery area and infirmary. No place to stay. I think
Michiru was going to have you stay at her house for a while with Kenji. But
I haven't seen what happened to her since she ran off. Do you know where she
is?"
"Um, she's.... a-"
"Right here." We turned around to face Michiru in the doorway. "Come on,"
she said. I'll show you the way to our house." After we were out on the
street I was about to say something when Michiru turned around to me. "Just
drop it, okay? Or I'll do a lot more that get you wet." The rest of the trip
was spent in silence. Michiru led us to a pretty big two-story house. We
went up to a room on the second floor. "This is your room." Our packs were
on the floor. "You might want to change into something dry," Michiru
suggested. Minako and I changed into the clothes we had bought in Toria
Command City.
********************
I left them to change into something more comfortable. I walked into the
kitchen to help Kenji put some kind of dinner together. "It's about time you
got back. I take it we have some guests?"
"Yeah, remind me to introduce." I didn't really feel like cooking so we just
tossed a bunch of stuff into a pot for a stew.
Kenji got a worried look on his face. "Are you okay?" he asked. "You're acting
a little strange."
"Of course I'm okay." Haiku and Minako came down and into the kitchen.
"Kenji, this is Haiku and Minako; Haiku, Minako, this is Kenji, my fiance."
Kengi shook their hands. "Nice to meet you."
"Fiance?!" Minako asked. "But aren't you..." I gave her a sharp look and she shut
up. My sexual preferences were my own business.
During dinner Kenji did most of the talking. He told Haiku and Minako all
about himself, and when he asked them questions he started talking about
something else before they could answer. I swear, that man could talk to a
duck. After I cleaned everything up I went out for a walk. I knew Haiku and
Minako were following me so I didn't bother going far. They weren't going to
leave me alone until I explained to them why I didn't want to be a senshi
anymore. I walked to a quiet part of the village. Overlooking the ocean,
which was hard to not do wherever you were in the village. I sat down and
Minako and Haiku sat at either side of me.
"I don't want to fight without HER," I said.
"We'll find her. We're going to find everyone."
"You won't be able to find her. You don't understand."
"What!" Haiku cried. "What don't I understand?"
"You weren't there. The last time I was with her. After everyone had been
blasted she decided to play hero and attack the enemy with her sword. The
enemy just blasted her back and then blasted her over and over again. I ran
to her and held her in my arms. There was blood all over her. She told me
that she was dying, and I told her to hold on and then she fell into
unconsciousness. Then the other senshi were sent away, and we were washed
away by the water. But just before we were washed away she stopped
breathing. The earthquakes and the floods and the destruction, there was no
way Haruka could have survived that being half dead. I barely survived with
the help of my powers." I was starting to lose it and my voice was getting
wobbly. "And now, ...I'll ,sob, never see her again." I burst into tears.
Minako took me in her arms and I cried all over her too.
"Don't worry," she said in a comforting voice. "We won't make you do
anything you don't want to do." We just sat there for a while.
"But now I have Kenji, and we're going to be married in a couple of months,
in the coming of the new year, the last day of this year." We separated and
Minako pushed a strand of my hair out of my face.
"Michiru," Haiku asked me, "What happened to you when you jumped off the
rock? Where did you go?"
I found myself grinning. "There's an opening to a cave just below the rock.
It's only about three feet high. I just grabbed the edge and swung myself
in. I do it all the time and no one else knows about that cave." I sat there
in wonder about how I soaked Haiku when I began to see different coloured
threads everywhere. I thought I was loosing it. When I reached out and
actually touched one I discovered that it was magic. I found that I could
make water appear out of nothing but once it disappeared I suffered a small
jolt of pain. I decided to stop since I didn't like it. "I just exited
through the other side of the cave."
"And what did you do with the stick?"
"I got rid of it. So I'll never see it again, and you can't try to give it
to me."
********
The next week went by smoothly. Haiku, Minako, and Michiru all got along
fine together, but Rei and Ami didn't wake up immediately. Ami's condition improved
fairly quickly and in a week she was back on her feet. Rei's condition
didn't really change very much. It just got a little better.
When Suka came to get Haiku she was helping Michiru with her garden. Ami was
off trailing behind Minako who was somewhere flirting with guys. Ami said it
was a waste of time but Minako still flirted and Ami still followed her.
Suka stopped for a second to catch her breath. "Haiku, I couldn't find Ami
or Minako but you have to come quick, there's something wrong with Rei, I
think she's dying. Michiru and Haiku followed her back to Rei. She was
wheezing and coughing. Haiku took her hand. "Your right, she's slipping
away."
Suddenly there was a gigantic crash from outside. They ran outside to find
out what it was. It was the sound of a house being crushed down on itself.
The cause was a fifteen foot tall dragon that had jumped on it. Minako and
Ami ran up to them. "What's going on?" Haiku yelled over the noise of the
panicking village.
"It just appeared out of the sky," answered Ami, "And landed on that house.
"I need you and Minako to hold it off for a while. Rei is dying and I have
to help her. I'm going to attempt to use the strands of magic to bring her
back."
"Is that possible?"
"Yes, but it's pretty dangerous." Haiku hoped that Ami would take in the
lie.
"All right," Ami nodded. Haiku went back into the building and shut the door
before anyone could follow her.
"It's too bad strands of magic can't actually be used to heal people," Haiku
said herself. She opened her closed hand where a white crystal now sat.
"Mercury Eternal, UNITE!" While Ami transformed, Minako ran off to get her
bow. "Hey you!" Ami yelled at the dragon. The dragon just ignored her and
ate a fleeing person. Ami was curious to how the dragon could digest bones.
"How dare you eat an innocent person. FREEZE!" The beam of ice froze one of
the dragon's scales. Now she had the dragon's attention. "Mercury Polar Ice
Sheet, FREEZE!" The dragon put its arms up in front of itself and they were
frozen. But it was just an ice covering and when the dragon moved its arms
the ice that had formed around them shattered. The dragon drew its head
back. "Mercury Polar Ice Sheet Freeze!" And a beam of black energy
intercepted a blast of energy from Sailor Mercury. Just Sailor Mercury's
power was nothing compared to the power of this beast and she was easily
overpowered. Minako got back in time to see Sailor Mercury get shocked by
negative energy. Mercury screamed. Minako shot an arrow at the dragon but it
just bounced off its scales. The dragon swung its tail and sent Minako
flying. Now only Michiru was standing there because everyone else had fled
to the forest.
********
The crystal gave off a light glow that illuminated the whole room. Haiku put her
hands and the crystal on Rei's chest. The whole room was getting brighter
and brighter. Haiku focused on the crystal, and then Rei and then focusing
the crystal on Rei. Finally, she lost herself into the power of the crystal.
The next thing she knew, Rei was opening her eyes and she herself was
exhausted. Haiku quickly hid the crystal and handed Rei a drink. "Welcome
back to the light."
"How long have I been out?" Rei asked, taking in her surroundings.
"Oh, about a little more than a week. But I'll get you caught up later."
Haiku stopped to catch her breath. "Right now you need to transform and go
fight a dragon that is attacking the village we're staying in. There's no
time."
Rei ran outside. She recognized the dragon as the almost the same one as the
one in Toria only it was a sea blue. "Michiru?"
"Oh hi Rei. So Haiku saved you. You have to help your friends. They're out
cold." Rei noticed Sailor Mercury lying on the ground and knelt down beside
her.
"Good. She's still alive. Mars Eternal, UNITE! Mars Flaming Inferno, BLAZE!"
The dragon was caught off guard and got some nasty wounds but it just
increased its anger. "Mars Flaming Inferno Blaze!" This time Mars' fire was
met with nega energy. The dragon started to overpower her. Sailor Mars came
up with an idea, it was a long shot but,... she pulled out the scale she had
gotten from the last dragon she had fought. She had clipped it to the center
of her back bow. Now, with the scale in her hands, the fire started to gain
ground on the nega energy.
Michiru didn't notice Haiku until she was right beside her. "She's not going
to be able to beat the dragon, even with the scale."
"Why don't you help her?"
"Because I used my strength to heal her. I can barely move now. Only you can
help her now."
"You said you wouldn't make me transform."
"If you don't help Rei, WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE! If you don't want to do it
for her THAN DO IT TO SAVE YOURSELF AND THE FUTURE OF THIS VILLAGE!" Haiku
fell back panting, trying not to loose consciousness. "Please..."
Haiku wasn't surprised when Michiru pulled out her transformation wand which
she had supposedly 'got rid of'.
"Neptune Eternal, UNITE!"
The changes in her fuku were the same as in Mars and Mercury only instead of
six-pointed stars on her front and back bows they were eight-pointed stars.
Just as Haiku had predicted, Sailor Mars began to loose again.
"I call upon the powers of the ocean, help me banish this monster." From all
around the island, water shot out of the ocean and pummeled the dragon. The
dragon went flying out over the ocean, but managed to stay in the air. Dark
clouds formed above it. "Just leave me alone! Neptune Water, Craze Tornado,
STRIKE!" While she said this she began to spin very fast and it seemed that
energy was just being sucked into her, and you could see it. When she said
the last word she stopped spinning and a big ball of blue energy had formed
in one of Sailor Neptune's hands. She threw it underhand at the dragon. When
it hit the dragon it sent a jolt through it but that wasn't the end. Next
the blue-coloured energy began to swirl around the dragon. Faster and
faster. Water from the ocean and out of nothing appeared and started
swirling around the dragon in a giant whirlwind tornado. It seemed to reach
from the ocean to the sky. The force of it ripped the dragon apart, and the
only thing left, when the water dispersed, was a greenish-blue scale, which
floated down to Sailor Neptune. She placed it on her back bow and walked
back to Haiku.
"Does this mean you'll join us?"
"I will do no such thing. I am going to live here and in three weeks I'm
going to get married."
Haiku sighed and fell unconscious. By the time the villagers had begun to
return, Rei and Michiru had carried Haiku, Ami, and Minako to their beds in
Michiru's house. While Michiru made something for Rei to eat she told her
about where she was. Over the next week all of the villager's questions were
answered and Haiku, Minako, Ami, and Rei made a full recovery. With the help
of the citizens of Dohilne they also built a sea worthy boat. (Although most of it had
been built before their arrival) Michiru still
refused to go with them. Before they left Haiku gave her message. "If you
crave the old times, or something better, meet your destiny at The
Gathering. If your cause is true, when the sky turns green, you will find
your way to Crescent Island."
Haiku didn't even know where Crescent Island was or why the sky would turn
green, but that was the prophecy she was following.
*********
Waves hit the boat in an almost rhythmatic pattern against the side of the
ship. "So where are we going now?" Minako asked.
"We're going to continue to Afkzo, the desert region. The only way we're
going to be able to persuade Michiru to come with us is to find Haruka. I
can't see her being dead so she has to be out there somewhere."
"Wouldn't we find more people if we went to the mountain region?" Ami
inquired. "It would be much more preferable to live in mountains than the
desert."
"The mountain region is impossible to get in to. There are sheer cliffs all
around the border of the region that are estimated to be about a hundred
feet tall. A special moss grows on its sides which makes scaling the wall
impossible. No one goes in, no one comes out. There must be something very
special or dangerous kept there. Right now the desert is our best bet."
Their ship quickly sped along the threads of magic, so that people like
themselves who did not know how control a seaworthy ship could travel in it.
So they sped off to Afkzo, the desert region. Miles and miles of desert....
*****
Episode 7 'Recovery and Refusal'
I found them when I went for an early morning swim with Sati. They were
unconscious and tied to the front half of a small boat on the beach. I
recognized three of them but the forth was a stranger to me. I stayed with
them while Sati went back for help. I knew why they were here. They were
going to ask me to become a senshi again. But, I didn't want to anymore; not
without HER. I couldn't. I cried softly until Sati came back.
There was no sign of them surviving until a few days later. Up until then
they were close to death so we put them to bed. Our healers couldn't do much
of anything to help them. Occasionally one would wake up and we'd feed them
but they were too delirious to answer questions.
In the turn of an hour two of them woke up on the third day. First was
Minako. It was in the afternoon, a little after lunch. I wasn't there, but I
had Suka tell me about it. She was there when it happened. She said Minako
just woke up as she would have from a nice sleep. She tried to speak but the
women there made her eat first, thinking she wasn't okay yet. After they
were done she asked where she was, and they told her she was on the Island
of Dohilne. They told her that she should lay down and go back to sleep, but
Minako wanted to know where her friends were. After finding that they were
still unconscious she explained what happened to them.
They were serving on board a cargo ship on its way to Afkzo when they were
attacked by pirates. Then a sea monster appeared and destroyed both of the
ships. Suka told Minako that she was lucky to be alive. I didn't say
anything but I could tell that Minako left out a lot.
Then the woman I didn't recognize woke up next. That was about when I
arrived for my shift. There were a whole bunch of us who were taking turns
watching over them. I stood to the side while Minako helped Suka and a
couple other ladies to feed the girl I didn't know. Minako explained to her
where they were. "We're on an Island in the middle of the ocean. Ami and Rei
are still unconscious and so have we been for the last few days."
"When did you wake up?" she asked.
"Less than an hour ago. How do you feel?"
"A lot better than when I was last awake." She turned to Suka. "I'd like to
thank you and all of you others for taking care of us. My name is Haiku and
this is my friend Minako. Over there," She pointed to the other two beds,
"Are Rei, and Ami. Did you recover our packs too? There were some very
important items in them."
I stepped up to the bed Haiku was sitting on. "Don't worry," I said. "All of
your belongings that made it here with you are at my house." When Minako saw
me she got up and gave me a hug.
"Oh, I'm so glad you're okay," she said. Haiku just smiled. Haiku got out of
her bed, walked over to Rei's bed, and knelt down beside it. She took one of
Ami's hands and held it in both of hers. Haiku started to glow pink, and Ami
started to glow a dim blue. Haiku did the same thing with Rei only Rei
glowed red and a lot dimmer. She turned back to Suka.
"They're still very weak and will take a while to recover."
"How did you do that?" Suka's younger sister, Suki asked. It didn't take
much to amaze Suki.
Haiku knelt down beside Suki and smiled. "It's an aura. Special people like
us four have them." She reached out and touched her. Haiku started to glow
but Suki didn't. "You don't have one," Before I could do anything Haiku
reached out and touched my hand. "But she does." I started glowing like
Haiku. I couldn't believe she did that. Couldn't she see that I didn't want
to be a senshi anymore. I ran out of the building. Tears tried to flood my
eyes but I forced them away. I ran across the town and into the forest
beside it. Maybe if I wished hard enough they would go away.
******************
She ran off, out of the building. Haiku wanted her to join them but could
tell there was something holding her back. She was sure she would find out
sometime. But right before she ran off Haiku saw fear in her eyes for a
second. Haiku walked back over to Minako and took her hand. "We're going to
go for a walk through your wonderful village if you don't mind," Haiku said
to Suka.
"Sure, go ahead ...." Haiku didn't wait for her to change her mind and
pulled Minako out of the building.
They were in a small village on an island. The houses were made of wood.
Suki followed them out in order to explain to them about the village. She
said that they didn't have any influence from the outside world in order to
stay safe. All of their materials and food they got from the island they
were living on or one of the nearby ones. This was one of the end islands in
a string of them. All that the others contained though was trees.
"After rebirth many people found themselves strung out on these islands, and
after the darkness all found their way to this place. There are still a few
who choose to live in the forests away from everyone else, but that is okay
since there aren't any really dangerous animals except on the last island
of the string that is quite a ways away from the others, at the other end of
the string. It is a very dangerous place." Suki showed them the beach
that they were found on. There were many children swimming and playing on
the sand. "I don't know how you got all of yourselves to stay tied to that
board but it kept you alive."
"I know," Haiku said. That was in fact what she had been planning. When they
had jumped into the water Ami and Rei had lost consciousness. Haiku knew
there was no way they were going to be okay without being able to recover
from the drain of energy that they had to undergo to use their powers so
much. Especially Rei. Maybe with Ami's help Haiku would have been able to
fix the boat with magic but not by herself. So she tied the four of them to
the boat and each other with the boat's painter. Then she used magic to
strengthen it. She used the rest of her magic to make sure that their heads
stayed above water, whether they were trying to or not. She couldn't really
recall much that happened after that. Resistance DID know about this island
but chose to let it be because that's what its residents wished.
It took Haiku and Minako about an hour to loose Suki, so they had to wait
until then to look for their friend. Haiku knew that she would have left the
village to be left alone so when they reached the forest at the edge of the
village Haiku and Minako split up. It wasn't very dense forest and therefore
easy to move through.
********
I saw her coming long before she saw me. I studied her long pink hair that
went down to her legs and her red eyes. But I couldn't figure out who she
was. I felt that her identity was right there in front of me but I couldn't
grasp it. If I had had my mirror I could have figured it out.. -no! I didn't
want to return to a senshi's life. The endless war was over -we lost. The
princess we were sworn to protect was gone. We had been unable to defend the
solar system. We failed.
I was sitting in one of my favourite places. It was a rock that was about
four feet high. I had a perfect view of the ocean. I always felt peace when
I looked at the ocean. Haiku came up behind me. "What's wrong?" she asked.
"I won't go with you," I answered her.
"What makes you think you need to leave your home and come with me?"
"I know who you are." I was starting to get annoyed with her. "You're the
gatherer."
"So my messager did come here."
"I never said that. I just said that I know why you're here."
"Then do you also know exactly WHO I am?"
"No."
"Do you know who you are?"
"Why can't you just leave me alone?" The whole time while we were talking
Haiku was moving closer to me. Now, next to me she picked up my hand and
touched my forehead with it. I couldn't see it, but I knew the symbol of
Neptune had appeared on my forehead. I was proved right when a copy of it
flew out of my forehead to in front of my face. When I reached out to touch
it a greenish-blue circle appeared around it. Then an eight-pointed star
around that. A handle appeared below it. The sign of Neptune merged with the
sign of infinity, a circle. I took it in my hand and just stared at it.
When I broke out of my trance-like state I shoved Haiku off of the rock. I
stood up and threw the power stick at her. "Why can't you just understand
that no means NO. Before I realized what I was doing a wave of water
appeared at my hands. It shot it out and drenched Haiku. I turned around and
looked out over the ocean and before Haiku could stop me I dived down
towards the water.
***************
I couldn't believe that she actually jumped. It had to be about a 30 foot
drop. I quickly scrambled back on to the rock but when I looked over the
edge I couldn't see anything but water. "Michiru!" I screamed and jumped in
after her. I used strands of magic to make my descent slower. I swam around
everywhere but couldn't find her. There was rock about six feet below the
water's surface and Michiru dived in... But I couldn't find anything. Maybe
having the ocean as her element saved her. I hoped.
I climbed out of the water even more drenched than I was before. I was
surprised that Michiru had been able to use the strands of magic without
even trying. Then again Resistance had said that the outer senshi would
develop differently to this world than the inners. It didn't even take
anything for Michiru to form her transformation stick. When I went back to
the rock I was stumped. Her transformation stick was gone.
When I found Minako I explained to her what had happened. She was upset that
she had missed it. I also explained to her that there was some reason that
Michiru didn't what to be a sailor senshi anymore. "Does anything come to
mind of why she wouldn't?" I asked Minako. "Anything that might have
happened during the last battle?"
Minako shrugged. "I don't know. Suka said that the island is cut off from
the rest of the world so she hasn't seen Haruka or any of us since rebirth.
That might have something to do with it." I nodded.
Taking a long tour of the island we made our way back to where we started.
When we got back it was starting to get dark. Suka was standing in the
doorway. "And where have you been?" she smiled and we all stepped in. "Now,
where are you going to stay now that you're okay?"
"What's wrong with here?"
"This is just a recovery area and infirmary. No place to stay. I think
Michiru was going to have you stay at her house for a while with Kenji. But
I haven't seen what happened to her since she ran off. Do you know where she
is?"
"Um, she's.... a-"
"Right here." We turned around to face Michiru in the doorway. "Come on,"
she said. I'll show you the way to our house." After we were out on the
street I was about to say something when Michiru turned around to me. "Just
drop it, okay? Or I'll do a lot more that get you wet." The rest of the trip
was spent in silence. Michiru led us to a pretty big two-story house. We
went up to a room on the second floor. "This is your room." Our packs were
on the floor. "You might want to change into something dry," Michiru
suggested. Minako and I changed into the clothes we had bought in Toria
Command City.
********************
I left them to change into something more comfortable. I walked into the
kitchen to help Kenji put some kind of dinner together. "It's about time you
got back. I take it we have some guests?"
"Yeah, remind me to introduce." I didn't really feel like cooking so we just
tossed a bunch of stuff into a pot for a stew.
Kenji got a worried look on his face. "Are you okay?" he asked. "You're acting
a little strange."
"Of course I'm okay." Haiku and Minako came down and into the kitchen.
"Kenji, this is Haiku and Minako; Haiku, Minako, this is Kenji, my fiance."
Kengi shook their hands. "Nice to meet you."
"Fiance?!" Minako asked. "But aren't you..." I gave her a sharp look and she shut
up. My sexual preferences were my own business.
During dinner Kenji did most of the talking. He told Haiku and Minako all
about himself, and when he asked them questions he started talking about
something else before they could answer. I swear, that man could talk to a
duck. After I cleaned everything up I went out for a walk. I knew Haiku and
Minako were following me so I didn't bother going far. They weren't going to
leave me alone until I explained to them why I didn't want to be a senshi
anymore. I walked to a quiet part of the village. Overlooking the ocean,
which was hard to not do wherever you were in the village. I sat down and
Minako and Haiku sat at either side of me.
"I don't want to fight without HER," I said.
"We'll find her. We're going to find everyone."
"You won't be able to find her. You don't understand."
"What!" Haiku cried. "What don't I understand?"
"You weren't there. The last time I was with her. After everyone had been
blasted she decided to play hero and attack the enemy with her sword. The
enemy just blasted her back and then blasted her over and over again. I ran
to her and held her in my arms. There was blood all over her. She told me
that she was dying, and I told her to hold on and then she fell into
unconsciousness. Then the other senshi were sent away, and we were washed
away by the water. But just before we were washed away she stopped
breathing. The earthquakes and the floods and the destruction, there was no
way Haruka could have survived that being half dead. I barely survived with
the help of my powers." I was starting to lose it and my voice was getting
wobbly. "And now, ...I'll ,sob, never see her again." I burst into tears.
Minako took me in her arms and I cried all over her too.
"Don't worry," she said in a comforting voice. "We won't make you do
anything you don't want to do." We just sat there for a while.
"But now I have Kenji, and we're going to be married in a couple of months,
in the coming of the new year, the last day of this year." We separated and
Minako pushed a strand of my hair out of my face.
"Michiru," Haiku asked me, "What happened to you when you jumped off the
rock? Where did you go?"
I found myself grinning. "There's an opening to a cave just below the rock.
It's only about three feet high. I just grabbed the edge and swung myself
in. I do it all the time and no one else knows about that cave." I sat there
in wonder about how I soaked Haiku when I began to see different coloured
threads everywhere. I thought I was loosing it. When I reached out and
actually touched one I discovered that it was magic. I found that I could
make water appear out of nothing but once it disappeared I suffered a small
jolt of pain. I decided to stop since I didn't like it. "I just exited
through the other side of the cave."
"And what did you do with the stick?"
"I got rid of it. So I'll never see it again, and you can't try to give it
to me."
********
The next week went by smoothly. Haiku, Minako, and Michiru all got along
fine together, but Rei and Ami didn't wake up immediately. Ami's condition improved
fairly quickly and in a week she was back on her feet. Rei's condition
didn't really change very much. It just got a little better.
When Suka came to get Haiku she was helping Michiru with her garden. Ami was
off trailing behind Minako who was somewhere flirting with guys. Ami said it
was a waste of time but Minako still flirted and Ami still followed her.
Suka stopped for a second to catch her breath. "Haiku, I couldn't find Ami
or Minako but you have to come quick, there's something wrong with Rei, I
think she's dying. Michiru and Haiku followed her back to Rei. She was
wheezing and coughing. Haiku took her hand. "Your right, she's slipping
away."
Suddenly there was a gigantic crash from outside. They ran outside to find
out what it was. It was the sound of a house being crushed down on itself.
The cause was a fifteen foot tall dragon that had jumped on it. Minako and
Ami ran up to them. "What's going on?" Haiku yelled over the noise of the
panicking village.
"It just appeared out of the sky," answered Ami, "And landed on that house.
"I need you and Minako to hold it off for a while. Rei is dying and I have
to help her. I'm going to attempt to use the strands of magic to bring her
back."
"Is that possible?"
"Yes, but it's pretty dangerous." Haiku hoped that Ami would take in the
lie.
"All right," Ami nodded. Haiku went back into the building and shut the door
before anyone could follow her.
"It's too bad strands of magic can't actually be used to heal people," Haiku
said herself. She opened her closed hand where a white crystal now sat.
"Mercury Eternal, UNITE!" While Ami transformed, Minako ran off to get her
bow. "Hey you!" Ami yelled at the dragon. The dragon just ignored her and
ate a fleeing person. Ami was curious to how the dragon could digest bones.
"How dare you eat an innocent person. FREEZE!" The beam of ice froze one of
the dragon's scales. Now she had the dragon's attention. "Mercury Polar Ice
Sheet, FREEZE!" The dragon put its arms up in front of itself and they were
frozen. But it was just an ice covering and when the dragon moved its arms
the ice that had formed around them shattered. The dragon drew its head
back. "Mercury Polar Ice Sheet Freeze!" And a beam of black energy
intercepted a blast of energy from Sailor Mercury. Just Sailor Mercury's
power was nothing compared to the power of this beast and she was easily
overpowered. Minako got back in time to see Sailor Mercury get shocked by
negative energy. Mercury screamed. Minako shot an arrow at the dragon but it
just bounced off its scales. The dragon swung its tail and sent Minako
flying. Now only Michiru was standing there because everyone else had fled
to the forest.
********
The crystal gave off a light glow that illuminated the whole room. Haiku put her
hands and the crystal on Rei's chest. The whole room was getting brighter
and brighter. Haiku focused on the crystal, and then Rei and then focusing
the crystal on Rei. Finally, she lost herself into the power of the crystal.
The next thing she knew, Rei was opening her eyes and she herself was
exhausted. Haiku quickly hid the crystal and handed Rei a drink. "Welcome
back to the light."
"How long have I been out?" Rei asked, taking in her surroundings.
"Oh, about a little more than a week. But I'll get you caught up later."
Haiku stopped to catch her breath. "Right now you need to transform and go
fight a dragon that is attacking the village we're staying in. There's no
time."
Rei ran outside. She recognized the dragon as the almost the same one as the
one in Toria only it was a sea blue. "Michiru?"
"Oh hi Rei. So Haiku saved you. You have to help your friends. They're out
cold." Rei noticed Sailor Mercury lying on the ground and knelt down beside
her.
"Good. She's still alive. Mars Eternal, UNITE! Mars Flaming Inferno, BLAZE!"
The dragon was caught off guard and got some nasty wounds but it just
increased its anger. "Mars Flaming Inferno Blaze!" This time Mars' fire was
met with nega energy. The dragon started to overpower her. Sailor Mars came
up with an idea, it was a long shot but,... she pulled out the scale she had
gotten from the last dragon she had fought. She had clipped it to the center
of her back bow. Now, with the scale in her hands, the fire started to gain
ground on the nega energy.
Michiru didn't notice Haiku until she was right beside her. "She's not going
to be able to beat the dragon, even with the scale."
"Why don't you help her?"
"Because I used my strength to heal her. I can barely move now. Only you can
help her now."
"You said you wouldn't make me transform."
"If you don't help Rei, WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE! If you don't want to do it
for her THAN DO IT TO SAVE YOURSELF AND THE FUTURE OF THIS VILLAGE!" Haiku
fell back panting, trying not to loose consciousness. "Please..."
Haiku wasn't surprised when Michiru pulled out her transformation wand which
she had supposedly 'got rid of'.
"Neptune Eternal, UNITE!"
The changes in her fuku were the same as in Mars and Mercury only instead of
six-pointed stars on her front and back bows they were eight-pointed stars.
Just as Haiku had predicted, Sailor Mars began to loose again.
"I call upon the powers of the ocean, help me banish this monster." From all
around the island, water shot out of the ocean and pummeled the dragon. The
dragon went flying out over the ocean, but managed to stay in the air. Dark
clouds formed above it. "Just leave me alone! Neptune Water, Craze Tornado,
STRIKE!" While she said this she began to spin very fast and it seemed that
energy was just being sucked into her, and you could see it. When she said
the last word she stopped spinning and a big ball of blue energy had formed
in one of Sailor Neptune's hands. She threw it underhand at the dragon. When
it hit the dragon it sent a jolt through it but that wasn't the end. Next
the blue-coloured energy began to swirl around the dragon. Faster and
faster. Water from the ocean and out of nothing appeared and started
swirling around the dragon in a giant whirlwind tornado. It seemed to reach
from the ocean to the sky. The force of it ripped the dragon apart, and the
only thing left, when the water dispersed, was a greenish-blue scale, which
floated down to Sailor Neptune. She placed it on her back bow and walked
back to Haiku.
"Does this mean you'll join us?"
"I will do no such thing. I am going to live here and in three weeks I'm
going to get married."
Haiku sighed and fell unconscious. By the time the villagers had begun to
return, Rei and Michiru had carried Haiku, Ami, and Minako to their beds in
Michiru's house. While Michiru made something for Rei to eat she told her
about where she was. Over the next week all of the villager's questions were
answered and Haiku, Minako, Ami, and Rei made a full recovery. With the help
of the citizens of Dohilne they also built a sea worthy boat. (Although most of it had
been built before their arrival) Michiru still
refused to go with them. Before they left Haiku gave her message. "If you
crave the old times, or something better, meet your destiny at The
Gathering. If your cause is true, when the sky turns green, you will find
your way to Crescent Island."
Haiku didn't even know where Crescent Island was or why the sky would turn
green, but that was the prophecy she was following.
*********
Waves hit the boat in an almost rhythmatic pattern against the side of the
ship. "So where are we going now?" Minako asked.
"We're going to continue to Afkzo, the desert region. The only way we're
going to be able to persuade Michiru to come with us is to find Haruka. I
can't see her being dead so she has to be out there somewhere."
"Wouldn't we find more people if we went to the mountain region?" Ami
inquired. "It would be much more preferable to live in mountains than the
desert."
"The mountain region is impossible to get in to. There are sheer cliffs all
around the border of the region that are estimated to be about a hundred
feet tall. A special moss grows on its sides which makes scaling the wall
impossible. No one goes in, no one comes out. There must be something very
special or dangerous kept there. Right now the desert is our best bet."
Their ship quickly sped along the threads of magic, so that people like
themselves who did not know how control a seaworthy ship could travel in it.
So they sped off to Afkzo, the desert region. Miles and miles of desert....
*****