Hello, any people who may read this, I'm The Universal Storyteller. This particular story will be the second of many primarily Silver Millennium-related "Sailor Moon" stories from me, I hope, here on fanfiction dot net. I'll, quite obviously, accept constructive criticisms, of course. But I won't actually accept any flames, especially with strong language with them. So if you happen to use strong language with me, your reviews will be ignored. Always, and completely, as a matter of fact.
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 any further ado, let's get on with this story again, if that's all right with you here, readers. And I really hope that if you've read this series up to this point here, you've enjoyed what you've read of its story series so far. And this part of the story is actually going to be the second chapter of this second story here, in fact, readers. That's so that all of you people on who've followed the story and its related story series well enough, and often enough, will be able to eventually read the whole related series of stories here, of course. Please do read, review, and enjoy, if at all possible, quite naturally enough, for all the obvious reasons, readers!
Meeting the Menace
A The Chrysanthemum Chronicles Series Story
Inside Darien's Chambers In The Crystal Palace
Moon City, Moon Kingdom, Moon
September 10, 986
After they arrived in the Crystal Palace's main courtyard, Darien soon borrowed a large enough cart. And he began loading all the things that he'd brought with him to the Moon in it, once Serenity said that he could now do that. He had some help loading it from them and a few of Serenity's maidservants. After which Serenity let him go to his own Crystal Palace chambers with those things of his that he'd just brought to the Moon from Earth. He spent at least the next hour or so after his arrival back in his Crystal Palace chambers to put them all in it as he saw fit. Then, when he'd done so, he rested in his bed in them for at least an hour or two, if not longer, so that he could relax after his still-recent trip to the Moon.
Then, when he woke up, and decided that he'd be willing to accept most, if not all, visitors to his chambers in them, he went to a bell chain in them and pulled it a few times. This he did here just so that everyone in the Crystal Palace would know that he'd most likely not mind having any visitors at all. Then, after he did so, he soon took a scroll from where he'd stored it in them, and he began reading it. It was, as a matter of fact, the exact same scroll that he'd been reading when his mother had knocked on his door in the Imperial Palace back on Earth some time before. He resumed his earlier reading of that scroll, and did so. At least until about an hour or two before dusk would come for those who were currently in Moon City's local area on the Moon, if not later than that. He only stopped reading it when someone knocked on his door quite persistently.
He then set the scroll aside again rather reluctantly, and he shouted, "Coming! No need to beat my door in! Who is it, if I may ask?"
"Daniel. Darien, Serenity's vanished."
When Darien heard that, he wasted very little time getting to his door, and letting Daniel into his chambers. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons. Especially since Daniel was Serenity's husband and the father of Princesses Serena, Destiny, and Bethany, who were all Princesses of the Moon. Of his and Serenity's three daughters, only Princess Serena, though, was the Moon Princess. Even though Princesses Destiny and Bethany were also from the Moon as well. That was because Daniel's daughter Serena was the oldest of his three daughters with his wife Serenity. And Serena had been chosen not long after her own birth to her parents Serenity and Daniel as her mother's chosen successor on the Moon Kingdom's throne. Supposing, of course, that she was somehow ever able to succeed her mother on that throne. And she was still, at the current time, her mother's chosen successor for that throne. Even after the births of Destiny and Bethany almost three years after her own birth to their parents in Moon City. Supposing, of course, that both she and the Moon Kingdom ever lasted long enough for Serena to rule it, at the very least, for all the obvious reasons.
Then Daniel said, "One moment, she was in the Crossed Swords Garden. While the next, she was suddenly gone from it without warning. She was gardening in it about a dozen feet in front of me while I was sitting on a nearby bench chatting with my sister Princess Eileen. And she suddenly vanished from our sight. Eileen and I hadn't seen each other for quite some time. So we were trying to catch up with each other as much as we could about the time since we'd last seen each other for a long enough time. We were watching her garden there, as we chatted. And she was suddenly gone from where she'd been gardening."
Princes Daniel and Darien then briefly discussed the matter with each other. They did so here as Darien began preparing for what appeared to be potential trouble for himself and other people anywhere in the Moon Kingdom. He gathered up as many of his things as he could, as he then asked Daniel, "When Serenity's not around, do you currently have sufficient authority to control your Moon Kingdom's various resources, whatever they may be?"
"No. In her absence, Prince Raphael's usually the next person with sufficient authority to do as you're asking of me. After him, it's usually Princess Chrysanthemum that has enough authority to do that. There are at least a dozen or so other people that are higher-ranking than me, after Queen Serenity, of course, in the Moon Kingdom's overall government, Darien. At least at the current time, anyway. They'd all have to be unable to control those resources of our Moon Kingdom, whatever those resources might be, most likely, before I can even control them. And I don't think that anyone else who now ranks between me and my wife is behind the vanishings of all the currently-missing Princesses, both Luna and Artemis, and now Queen Serenity, at the very least. Even my sister Eileen's higher-ranking than I am in it. For she's a little older than I am, Darien."
"I see. Well, wish me luck, if you want, Daniel. I guess I'll have to see what I can do to find and rescue everyone, if I possibly can do so somehow."
"Understood. I hope you can do that, Darien. For I do know that Serena really does care for you very much. And she'd hate to lose you to anything or anyone, if it could possibly be avoided at all. Go with God, then. And may He shower much good luck on you as you then try to find and rescue everyone else who's now missing from here on the Moon. And as you then try to find and rescue anyone at all who has also recently disappeared in much the same manner as the aforementioned sentient beings who are close enough to us in our lives have recently done here and now, for that matter."
Darien soon left his chambers with Daniel. And he did so for all the obvious reasons, of course. Then Darien began checking out all the places where the Princesses, the cats, and Queen Serenity had disappeared from anywhere at all on the Crystal Palace's grounds. This he did because he was then hoping to find any clues to where they might have all gone since they'd first started to disappear from various places anywhere on its grounds. He found almost no clues whatsoever. But he still did see at least a few things that were most certainly from at least one of the now-missing Princesses. If not more than one of them, in fact. Such as a sheet of music written by Princess Raye, for instance.
Princess Raye was often quite interested in making various kinds of music. And she'd often written songs to go along with the music she was often quite interested in making. This sheet was evidently the first sheet of what appeared to be a symphony or something similar to one, from what he could already tell from what he could read of the music on that sheet of music. It was slightly smudged in a few places, at least. For it'd apparently fallen where rain could somehow get to it sometime after Princess Raye's still-recent disappearance from the Moon City local area. He was usually able to read music composed by a composer, if he was familiar enough with the composer or the language in which they wrote any or all of their music in. But not always. However, he could normally read Princess Raye's music well enough. And he could normally understand the Martian language or dialect that she'd often used while writing music, at least most of the time. And this was one of the times that he was able to read the music on the sheet of music that'd fallen on the ground. And he could understand the lyrics that were on that particular sheet of music to a sufficient enough degree. Which might help him find and rescue all the now-missing Princesses, the missing cats, and Queen Serenity. Or they might not, for the obvious reasons, of course.
Besides a sheet of Raye's music, he also found a pink hairbrush of Serena's. Then he found a scroll of Amy's, a dark green umbrella of Lita's, and a blue and gold sandal of Mina's. His finding of all five of the aforementioned items was followed shortly afterward by the finding of a pipe of Destiny's and a paintbrush of Bethany's. And he also found a pillow of Luna's and a collar that Artemis would often wear when he was near one or more of the Princesses on the grounds of any of the Moon Kingdom's palaces anywhere on the Moon. And then he found a bracelet that he'd often seen Serenity wear in the past, during previous visits of his to the Moon. He then picked them all up, and put them in a cart that he was currently bringing with him.
Then, after collecting all the aforementioned items up, and putting them in his cart, he searched everywhere else in the Crystal Palace he could go in it by himself. At least everywhere else in it where he could then go without prior authorization from any of the Princesses, Prince Daniel, or Queen Serenity, anyway. This he did because he was still hoping to find any other clues to the recent disappearances of the Princesses, the cats, and Queen Serenity that he'd not yet had a chance to find on the Crystal Palace's grounds. But he found no further clues to help him try to find and rescue them all, at least not at the current time. So he then realized that he'd likely have to disappear himself just like everyone else had obviously already done who he knew had already disappeared under rather strange conditions. And to somehow do so in order to possibly find and rescue them all as well.
Then he hastily returned to his Crystal Palace chambers. And he wrote out a long message on a scroll that hadn't yet been used by anyone at all. In it, he said many things, but most especially to his parents, if not also to anyone else in his own mortal life. He did so for at least an hour, if not longer, until he was satisfied enough with the message he'd just written on that scroll. After he was satisfied enough with the content of the message that he'd just written on that scroll, he then rolled up that scroll and tied it shut, of course. With that done, he soon found one of the message canisters that he'd often keep in his Crystal Palace chambers. And he put that scroll and several other things of his in it, at least as much as he was able to do that. Besides the scroll, he put at least a few things that were of varying sizes and shapes in it. But still not too many things for him to be able to close the message canister sufficiently well. Then he soon left his chambers again, after putting that canister in his cart, at least for the time being. This was so that he'd hopefully be able to catch Daniel before it was too late. Just in case he'd somehow disappear under strange circumstances like at least a few other people had already done. Not to mention at least two cats, of course. Fortunately, he was able to find Daniel before he'd been out of his chambers again for at least ten minutes, if not longer.
Then, when he found Daniel, he said, "Daniel, I have something for you to take care of, just in case something happens to me before too much longer here on the Moon. I want you to take care of this message canister for me. Just in case I'm not actually able to get it back from you within the next six to eight or so hours. If I'm not able to do so by midnight, then I want you to go to the nearest place where you can send this from. And I want you to then send this as quickly as you can to my people back on Earth, if at all possible. I have a bit of parchment here. And if I'm not able to get this canister back from you by midnight, then I want you to send this canister to the Earth. And you're to do that while using some coordinates that I'll have written for your use here on the bit of parchment I just told you about, in fact."
He handed both the message canister and the bit of parchment to Daniel. Who then quite readily agreed to do as Darien had just asked him to do for him, just in case he wasn't able to do so by himself. Then Darien soon left Daniel alone again on the Crystal Palace's grounds in Moon City. And as he did so, he towed his cart along with him, of course.
Then he soon did whatever he felt the need for him to do, at least for the next few hours after he'd just left Daniel alone again on the Crystal Palace's grounds. Which included a stop in the Crystal Palace's main dining hall, by the way. For all the activities that he'd been doing since finding out Serenity had also disappeared from the Crystal Palace's grounds had eventually made him quite hungry and thirsty, of course. He wasn't bothered, at least not as long as he was eating there, if not at other times as well. For he'd been sure to go to the Crystal Palace's main dining hall when he knew that nobody else would most likely be anywhere near there for at least a while.
And as he did those things, he thought about the things that'd recently happened on the Moon. Even while he'd been back on Earth for at least a little while. And what he might do, if he also disappeared under certain conditions from the Crystal Palace's grounds. Whether or not he was also able to find and rescue any people who were currently missing from the Moon, as of that certain time. And if and when that ever happened to him, at least. This, of course, was for all the obvious reasons. And he then tried to come up with a workable enough plan that he could possibly use to find and rescue any other people and animals who were now missing from the Moon. And he tried to do that here by the time that he might also do the same thing that they'd already done, 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 will 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!