All standard disclaimers that I have already used so far with any of the various stories that I now have on fanfiction dot net will apply. For your information, all of the characters that you may not actually recognize well enough in this story are original characters of mine, unless otherwise stated, in fact. So please don't steal my original characters from this story or any others, for that matter.

Now without further ado, let's get on with the story once again, if that's all right with you here, readers. And I hope that if you've read the first ten sections of this story here, you've enjoyed what you've read of it so far. More will come as time allows, of course. And I really hope to add all of the remaining chapters for this story at least, by the end of April, at the latest. That's so that all of you people on who've followed the story well enough, and often enough, will be able to eventually read the whole story here, of course. Please read, review, and enjoy, if at all possible, quite naturally enough, for all the obvious reasons, readers!

The Beginning of It All

A The Chrysanthemum Chronicles Series Story

Main Ballroom In The Crystal Palace

Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon

July 26, 986

Some time later, Serena then found her mother attending a ball in the Crystal Palace's main ballroom, where she'd gone after checking on all the other Princesses for a short period of time. Serenity had gone to the ball after checking on all of them for a while. After she'd done so, Dr. Matthew had told her that there wasn't really anything she could do for them at the current time. So she'd gone to the ball not long after doing so. When she'd done that, she'd also put what was left of Serena's most recent meal in a refrigerated area of the main dining hall, for the obvious reasons. Especially because she'd not known how long Serena would be chatting with Darien when she'd left the main dining hall with him earlier.

Serena soon found her sitting out a dance in the main ballroom. And she then sat down on a chair near her mother in it. She then said, "Hello again, Mom."

"Did you have a good long chat with Darien, Serena?" asked Serenity, once Serena had made herself comfortable enough in her chair.

"Yes, I did." Princess Serena then began discussing her most recent conversation with Darien in her own chambers not long before. Serenity didn't interrupt her daughter very often as she described her still-recent conversation with Darien in her own chambers. And then she spent at least two more dances after Serena had finished describing it to her, if not more than two, talking at greater length with her daughter about it. And they also talked about other things that were currently of sufficient interest to both of them in their respective mortal lives on the Moon. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons.

Eventually the other Princesses were brought up in their conversation, for the obvious reasons. And they were brought up by Serena, who asked her mother, "How were the other Princesses, when you last checked on them?"

"All of them are still unconscious. But I expect that they'll be out of it again before too much more time passes. That is, of course, if things go sufficiently according to plan, both for them and for us all."

"Are they all still in each of their respective Sailor Scout states of being, Mom?"

"Yes, they're all still in them."

"Were you somehow able to learn what actually made them all slip into unconsciousness earlier, Mother?"

"Not entirely, Serena. But you can surely bet, if you were a betting girl, that your recent training session had something to do with them all slipping into unconsciousness, Serena. That, of course, is for all the obvious reasons."

"How soon until we know whether they'll be all right or not, Mom?"

"At least not until they come out of unconsciousness, I believe, Serena. I think, and I hope, that they'll all make it out of it easily enough, Serena. But only time will tell if that'll be the case for any or all of them, of course."

"I see. Why are you here then, Mom?"

"Because there's not much more that I can do at the current time to help them. Other than to pray for them all, and to stay out of the ways of Dr. Matthew and anyone else who's currently helping him with them. And that's also true for your father, of course, Serena. We'll have to wait to see what else develops for them and us in the meantime. Even if we'd rather prefer not to, we'll have to wait to see how the situation develops for them and us, of course, Serena."

Then the two of them spent at least a few more minutes discussing things of a more pleasant nature, whenever possible, before Serena said that she was beginning to get really tired. And she wanted to have as much of the rest of her food as she could before she retired for the rest of the night. So Serenity let her leave the main ballroom for the main dining hall. And as she did so, she wished Serena some pleasant dreams for the rest of the night, if she could possibly have them during what was left of it. Serena then left the main ballroom for the main dining hall, as she was now quite hungry. The two of them briefly waved at each other, as Serena did so. And then Serena left the Crystal Palace's main ballroom.

Serena soon spent a little while in the main dining hall, finishing what was left of her earlier meal. And then she returned for the rest of the night to her own chambers. She soon retired to her bed. And she was eventually lost in somewhat pleasant dreams as she then slept in it, not rising until about two hours past local dawn, at the earliest, but not past about four hours after local dawn, at any rate, in Moon City's local area on the Moon.

When she woke up again, she then went to her mother's Crystal Palace chambers, hoping that her parents would have more news about the rest of the Princesses, of course. She came to her mother's door, and then knocked on it a few times. And she was soon rewarded with her parents' answering voices.

She asked, "Mom, may I come in there to see you both right now?"

"Give us a few minutes, Serena. Your father and I are currently getting ready for the day ahead."

So Serena waited outside her mother's chambers for at least ten minutes. After which Prince Daniel then met her at the door. When he saw her again for the first time in many days, "I see you're here again, Serena. I hope you all had a lot of fun while you were all on the other side of the Moon, Serena."

"Not really, Dad. How are Corona and Eclipse now?"

"They eventually came out of unconsciousness sometime after you went to bed, Serena. But they're now sleeping, and Dr. Matthew doesn't really want us to disturb them for at least a while longer. At least until they're both awake and ready, willing, and able to talk to us all again," said Prince Daniel.

"And the other Princesses of my royal Court?" Queen Serenity then joined them at the door of her chambers.

Queen Serenity answered this question from Serena, when she said, "Mars is still out. But Mercury, Jupiter, and Venus aren't. Mercury came out of unconsciousness before Jupiter did, and Venus eventually followed Jupiter out of it. Mars is still unconscious. But we're all hoping she'll come out of it by the end of the day, if enough things go sufficiently according to plan for us all today."

"Are Mercury, Jupiter, and Venus in any condition right now to talk to us all, Mom?"

"If you mean, 'Are they conscious enough?' even though they're resting now in their respective chambers, I'd probably have to say they are. But I'd still not recommend us disturbing them for at least a little while longer, for the obvious reasons, Serena."

"If we were to visit them, would they be able to carry on a decent enough conversation with us all, Dad?"

"I think so, Serena. But as your mother says, we probably shouldn't disturb them for at least a little while. The same thing's true for them, most likely, as it's true for your twin sisters, Serena. So let's not bother them for a while, if we don't have to, Serena."

"But I'd like to see my sisters and my friends again very soon."

"If we let you do that, will you not disturb them for a while, if you can possibly avoid it?" asked Serenity.

"I'll certainly try not to be a 'Meatball Head' about it, Mom, if I can possibly avoid it, as they've all often called me at various times in each of our mortal lives here in our own little corner of God's very own Universe, most likely."

"Serena, you're not a 'Meatball Head.' Or at least we don't think you are, whenever you misbehave. At least I don't think we think of you as being a 'Meatball Head' whenever you misbehave. Granted, you may not always behave. But I really don't believe that we think of you as a 'Meatball Head' whenever you misbehave around us, at least."

Then Serenity and Daniel briefly withdrew into a nearby part of Queen Serenity's chambers where Serena wouldn't easily be able to either see or hear them briefly discuss the necessary matter with each other. They did so for about five to ten minutes, before returning to where Serena was sitting just inside her mother's Crystal Palace chambers. Serenity then said, a few seconds later, "All right, Serena. We'll let you look in on all of them, at least. But if you act up at all while you're doing so, there'll be the inevitable consequences of your actions that you'll have to face, of course."

"Understood." Then the three of them soon exited Serenity's Crystal Palace chambers. And they began heading to Dr. Matthew's chambers, so that they could first check in on Mars for a while. It took them a few minutes for them to do so. But eventually they did get there.

Dr. Matthew soon reported to them all, "Mars is just a tad unconscious. But I expect her to regain consciousness by the end of the day, if things go well enough for the rest of us here in the meantime. If there's anything new to report later on about her, I'll most certainly ring you again, Serenity. That is, of course, if I possibly can do so easily enough."

Once her parents were obviously deep enough in conversation with Dr. Matthew, at the very least, if not other people also in the room with them besides Serena and Mars, of course, Serena then came near where Mars was lying unconscious in Dr. Matthew's Crystal Palace chambers. Then she bent down a bit until her mouth was near the right ear of Mars. She whispered only loud enough for the unconscious Mars to possibly hear her friend's voice, but not loud enough for any of the adults now with her and Mars in his chambers to hear her voice. In such a low voice, she whispered to the unconscious Mars, "Raye, if you can hear me talking to you now, listen to me really good. I need you awake very soon, if at all possible. Don't you dare die on me, Raye. I need you to remain part of my royal Court for as long as possible. We all need you to survive. I know I may often act like a 'Meatball Head' around you all. But I don't know what I'd ever do without any or all of you girls in my life now. And I believe all the other Princesses that we all know well enough in our Moon Kingdom also feel the same way about you as I now do, in each of our mortal lives. You often fill my days and nights with music. And I don't want to lose the chance to hear your wonderful music in the future, if I don't absolutely have to. If you die on us, I'll have nobody who obviously understands what it's really like to chase Darien as much as I already do. I know you've often had a thing for Darien, Raye. And you're often making it hard for me to hang around him so much, because of it. But right now, I know that neither he nor I could stand to lose you. So you better not die on me, Princess Raye of Mars. For I don't think that your younger sister would be able to protect your planet of Mars from harm as well as I think you could possibly protect it from harm. I need you, Raye. We all need you. If worst comes to worst, and our Moon Kingdom is destroyed, I want you near me when it falls, if at all possible. And if you die on me, that won't be possible, for the obvious reasons, of course. If you die on me, I'll kick your tail all the way to the edge of this Galaxy and back, if I possibly can. But I don't want to have to do that. So, please, Raye, don't leave us, at least not yet. We've not known each other long enough to let it end for us yet, and to say good-bye to each other, Raye. So, please, come back to us very soon, if you possibly can, Raye. I need you! We all need you! I can't beat the enemy Mom and Darien always say is coming to destroy us without you, Raye. That is, of course, if I'll ever be able to beat it in the future, Raye. Please wake up and come back to us very soon, if you possibly can, Raye."

Then Serena quietly backed away from the right ear of Mars. And she promptly shut up, without even letting anyone else who was now with them both in Dr. Matthew's chambers know exactly what she'd just whispered to the unconscious Mars. She did this here, in fact, for she didn't really want to have to explain what she'd just said to Mars to anyone else. Or at least not at the current time, if she didn't absolutely have to do just that here. Then she quite soon rejoined her parents near Dr. Matthew.

That done, Serena and her parents then left Dr. Matthew's chambers again. This was so that they could look in on the other Princesses, as they were all now planning to do, after Serena had asked her parents to let her do so for at least a little while, of course. They then went to Amy's chambers. For that was where Mercury actually was currently resting in Amy's bed.

Serena and her parents silently entered Amy's chambers. And they did so as quietly as they could. For they didn't want to wake Mercury up at all if they could possibly avoid it, of course. As they neared Amy's bed, Mercury began to stir in Amy's bed. For her nose had begun picking up the perfume that Serenity would most often wear whenever she wore perfume. Her nose crinkled up just a tad. And then it stopped doing so, once it recognized that particular perfume's owner. Then Mercury almost immediately began stretching herself out on Amy's bed.

By the time Serena and her parents were close enough to Amy's bed to look in on her, Mercury had begun to wake up. By the time they were next to it, she'd then woken up to a sufficient enough degree to recognize them when she saw them well enough.

As soon as she did so, she then looked directly at Serena, and asked, "Hello, Serena. Did you beat the rest of the robots the other day, Serena?"

"Yes, we did. You were out for quite some time, while we finished them off, Mercury."

"You and who else?"

"Jupiter, Venus, Eclipse, Corona, and Sentinel Serenity, as well as me, of course. You and Mars soon fell unconscious before Sentinel Serenity had been in the South Courtyard for more than a few minutes, most likely. That is, of course, if you two didn't slip into unconsciousness before she even teleported into that courtyard."

"How come she was in the courtyard, Serena?"

"Eclipse shot off some emergency beacons. And Mom saw them in the sky, so she came to help us all out."

"And what about all the other Junior Sailor Scouts besides me and Mars?" asked Mercury.

"Jupiter, Venus, Corona, and Eclipse eventually slipped into unconsciousness after Sentinel Serenity's arrival in the South Courtyard. And that then left me and Sentinel Serenity alone fighting the remaining robots we couldn't render inactive without destroying them. We beat them. Though Mom did drop into her first-power Sailor Scout state of being as Royal Sailor Serenity, while we were still fighting against them."

"And Luna and Artemis?"

"They're fine, Mercury. They've been resting at least a bit, though, quite often, ever since we came back here to Moon City. Fortunately, both of them weren't hurt at all during our recent training session that really went crazy for all of us in the South Courtyard before Sentinel Serenity showed up there to help us all out in it, Mercury."

"Have I been in my Sailor Scout state of being ever since we all came back here to Moon City?"

"Yes, all you other Junior Sailor Scouts were unconscious when we brought you back here to Moon City. But the cats weren't. So Mom and I had to teleport us all by ourselves back here to the Crystal Palace. You were out for quite a while, according to Dr. Matthew, not long ago."

"Do you think that I could transform out of my Sailor Scout state of being now, Serena?"

"I suppose."

Serena and Serenity then asked Daniel to step out of Amy's chambers for a few minutes, at the very least. If not to wait for them to exit it as well instead. And he quite readily agreed to then do so, of course. Then, once he'd done so, Mercury soon swung her legs out of Amy's bed. And she tested them when her feet hit the floor near the bed. When she did so, she was soon rewarded with the ability to stand up easily enough unassisted.

Then she went to her bathroom for a moment to get herself some water to drink. She returned with a tall glass of water seconds later. And she then sat down in one of the chairs elsewhere in her chambers. And then she soon drained the glass of water, of course.

That done, she soon felt she was strong enough to transform out of her own Sailor Scout state of being as the Junior Sailor Scout Mercury. And while Serena and Serenity watched her do so, she then transformed herself out of her Sailor Scout state of being, and back into her normal state as Princess Amy of Mercury. Then she went back to her bed, and she said, "I'd now like to take a nap for a while, if that's all right with the both of you."

"Sure thing, Amy. We can let you do that," said Serenity.

"Thank you. How is Mars now, by the way?"

"Still unconscious, Amy. Though Dr. Matthew thinks she'll come out of unconsciousness by the end of the day, if enough things go sufficiently according to plan for the rest of us in the meantime."

"I hope so, of course, Queen Serenity. And I think that you and Serena hope the same thing too."

"That's right, Amy. The other Princesses, though, are still resting in their respective chambers, after they each came out of unconsciousness as well."

"And I suppose you're intending to visit their chambers as well, at least to look in on them, Serena."

"Yes, Amy. But how did you know that?"

"I know you quite well, after having known you for more than nine years, Serena. And I see what you're obviously planning to do in your eyes, and literally written on your face, Moonie."

"I see."

"What does Darien know about us at the moment, then, Serena?"

"I told him that you were all sleeping. And that you all needed your beauty sleeps, at least until further notice. And he didn't press the issue all that much with me after I told him that. For he had other things to attend to not long afterward. I talked to him a while ago, after he sent a rose toward Mom and I as we were eating a while ago in the main dining hall here in the Crystal Palace of Moon City."

"I see. Well, as I said, I'd now like to take a nap for a while. So I'd appreciate it very much if the both of you would leave me alone again here in my chambers, for at least that long."

"Understood," said Serena. Then she and Serenity said their good-byes to Amy, and Amy said the same to both of them, before Serenity left Amy's chambers with Serena, for the obvious reasons.

Then they went with Prince Daniel to Lita's chambers, for the same reasons that they'd just gone to Amy's chambers not long before. They spent a little while there visiting with Jupiter, before Prince Daniel exited them. Like he'd done before in Amy's chambers, he left them so that Jupiter could transform out of her own Sailor Scout state of being, and into her normal state of being as Princess Lita of Jupiter. While they were there, they discussed certain things of varying importance, either to Jupiter, or to Lita, as well. If they discussed such things with Lita while she wasn't in her Sailor Scout state of being as Junior Sailor Jupiter, they only did it while Prince Daniel wasn't currently in Lita's chambers. Then, once Lita said that she also wanted to take a nap in her own bed, Serena and Queen Serenity then left her chambers, of course.

Moments later, they rejoined Prince Daniel outside Lita's chambers. And they then went to Mina's chambers, hoping to do the same things that they'd done when they'd gone to Amy and Lita's chambers for a while. Venus was still resting. So they didn't do more in Mina's chambers than to just look in on her, for the obvious reasons.

That done, they then went to Destiny's chambers, at least to look in on Junior Sailor Scout Corona, of course. But she was still resting as well in Destiny's bed. So they all didn't stay long in Destiny's chambers either.

That done, they soon checked in on Eclipse in like manner, when they went to Bethany's Crystal Palace chambers. And she was also rather quietly resting in Bethany's bed, so they didn't disturb her in them either. They only looked in on her. And then they all left Bethany's chambers again, for all the obvious reasons.

Then Serenity, Daniel, and Serena eventually went to the Crystal Palace's main dining hall, and they each got themselves some breakfasts for a while. After they did so, they often talked with each other as they ate them in that dining hall. They did that so they all were well aware of the plans that each of them had for the rest of the day, at the very least, of course, before they left it again.

By the time they did so, though, they were all eventually joined by the rest of the Princesses. Except for Mars, who was still unconscious in Dr. Matthew's Crystal Palace chambers, in fact. Even the ones that had been resting in their respective chambers while they were still in their respective Sailor Scout states of being, and while Serenity, Daniel, and Serena had at least looked in on them. But by the time that all five of those Princesses joined them there in the main dining hall, they'd all transformed out of their respective Sailor Scout states. That was supposing that they'd not actually done so while Serena had still been visiting their respective chambers with both of her parents, of course.

I suppose that I'd better stop here now. For this will be where the next part of the story will take up from, in fact, readers. I hope that you have so far enjoyed the story, if you've gotten this far, and that you'll continue to read it, once I put more of it up here on fanfiction dot net. I don't know how long it'll take me to get each story in this series up fully on fanfiction dot net. But it might take a while for each story in this series, just the same, readers. Until later, then, this is "The Universal Storyteller" signing off here. Happy reading, and God bless, and all that, of course, readers! Over and out!