REAWAKENING
Book One of Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon CosmicStars
by Nashie (aka ShadowSamurai)
December 1999 - April 2000
Revised - Summer/Fall 2002
Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and her friends belong to Naoko Takeuchi. The author takes no credit for any of the original storyline. However, all the new characters belong to me and I'd appreciate it if you didn't take any without requesting permission.
Episode 217: Final battle of good versus evil! The ultimate farewellThe golden orb exploded against DreamStar's nightmare silence. The sailor senshi spun around and saw Sailor Uranus perched on top of the pillar. She easily jumped down, and then crossed her arms, glaring at the Sailor Twins spitefully.
"Uranus!" Sailor Moon cried, running back to the tall soldier. She wrapped her arms around the taller girl's waist and held on tightly. "I never thought I'd see you again!" Uranus smiled as she gently hugged the blonde odango-atama soldier in return.
"Oh, please!" MagicStar snorted in disgust. She turned to the sailor senshi. "We can get our revenge right now!" DreamStar clapped her hands in agreement.
"Princess, watch us destroy your beloved outer soldiers," she said, her blue brooch glowing brightly. "Dark Moon Dream power!" A huge blast of blue and black lightning erupted from the stars above, filling the room with electricity.
"Dead Scream."
"Deep Submerge!"
"World Shaking!"
"Silence Glaive Surprise!" The four attacks melded into one large ball of power. It went hurtling through the air at DreamStar. The blue haired girl just smiled as she casually knocked the attack back towards the outer soldiers. Their eyes widened as their own attacks turned back on them.
"No!" Sailor Moon cried, but it was too late. The attack, now infused with negative energy, had struck back. There was a tremendous explosion. The four outer soldiers were literally thrown across the room, and rammed violently into the back wall forcefully. In too much agony to cry out in pain, they simply collapsed to the ground. Sailor Moon's crystal blue eyes filled with tears as she saw her friends writhing in pain.
"This isn't fair!" she whispered as the other inner soldiers went running back to the outers. Destiny stayed at her side. "It's not fair. They're so cruel! How could they do this? No. I won't let them." Her brooch began to glow brightly. "They'll never win!" The silver crystal slowly came from her locket. Its pure white glow filled the room with intense light.
Mercury and Jupiter stared up at Sailor Moon in shock.
"No!" Jupiter cried. "Don't use the silver crystal! It'll take all of your strength! You'll die!" Mercury yelled the same thing in agreement.
"I'll save my friends!" Sailor Moon yelled as her sailor fuku burst into a multitude of pink ribbons. She held up the silver crystal, knowing the consequences of using its power.
"Silver crystal! Protect us!" Usagi yelled, her ribbons steadily turning white. "Save us from this evil!" Destiny watched as the ribbons swirled and converted into her princess dress. The beautiful, graceful figure stood before them all, holding the cursed gem.
What am I going to do? Destiny thought as tears spilled down her cheeks. I have no hope left in anything I do. I have no future. I need to save the princess and fight. I have to save my friends!
The crystal tears running down her cheeks were pure ones. MagicStar saw it in disgust and fury rose.
"How could you!?" she yelled, raising her fist into the air. "We looked out for you and you're turning against us!? Fine, die! Die! Dark Moon Magic Power!" The words were hollow to the brunette soldier. She just backed away and ran back towards the outer soldiers.
A bright flash of energy shot from the silver crystal. The inner soldiers watched in desperation as Princess Serenity struggled against the two evil sailor senshi of this dark solar system. They shook their heads in frustration. They couldn't leave the outer soldiers, but they had to help the princess. Tears spilled down their cheeks. This horrible fight. This choosing of life and death. How awful!
"Go on," Pluto whispered in a weak voice. "Help our beloved princess. We'll be okay. Don't worry." Chibi Moon's face look torn with sadness. Either to leave Pu or to leave Serenity. The choices were awful and heart wrenching.
"The princess needs you," Uranus insisted. She smiled sadly. "You don't need to worry about us."
"What are you going to do?" Mars asked. She was trying to be strong in face of this awful choice. Neptune glowered at her, clearly getting impatient.
"Just go!" she muttered, looking toward the ground. "You're her guardians right?" The words were harsh and bitter. The inner soldiers, except for Chibi Moon, nodded at each other and quickly rose to their feet. Chibi Moon stared at Pluto desperately for a few moments. All this was happening too quick. Too soon.
"Go with the others, Small Lady," Pluto whispered, stroking the tiny girl's hair softly. A smile flickered across her face. "You are a sailor senshi, right?" Chibi Moon, crying, nodded. She stood up and turned back towards the inner senshi. Not allowing herself to look back, she ran towards her mother and her guardians.
Destiny kneeled down next to the outer soldiers. "I'm so sorry. I never meant for things to end up like this." Saturn smiled gently. She grasped Destiny's hand and held on tightly.
"Go with your princess and your fellow soldiers," she said, her voice so ancient and wise. Her violet eyes were shining. There were no more words said. Destiny nodded and stood up. This ill-fated destiny of hers always seemed to take the wrong turns. Choosing between right and wrong was one thing and she had already done that. But choosing between life and death of people who she cared about most, that was different. How could she be strong?
Seeing the hesitation in Destiny's eyes, Saturn reached up and gently touched her brooch. It was difficult at first. But her brow furrowed in concentration. Destiny stared at the tiny sailor soldier, confused. Suddenly, a purple glowing orb flew from Saturn's body into Destiny's brooch. Destiny stared in horror as Saturn collapsed to the ground.
"Please...help the...princess," Saturn groaned in a barely audible voice. She smiled weakly. "Save...her..." Destiny looked at her brooch. In a flash of silver light, it had transformed. It was now a locket. A silver crescent moon filled the first half of it. A star was right above it, glowing the same radiant silver. Five colors designed her black brooch in the star. Silver, violet, gold, aquamarine, and garnet.
Fighting burning tears, Destiny ran away. She didn't want to look back. She never ever wanted this life. It was too hard. Too hard...
The inner soldiers lined up in a horizontal line behind the princess. She was struggling desperately. The Sailor Twins were unbelievably strong!
Destiny gently took Chibi Moon's hand. The pink-haired soldier smiled shyly at her and squeezed back. Chibi Moon took Venus hand. Mercury stared down the silent row. The only sound in the room was of the clashing power, the horrible sound of that which echoed hollowly through her ears. She gripped Mars' hand in new desperation. They had to win!
Mars began concentrating her power to the princess. It was something easily done. But something was bothering her. Thinking desperately about it, she tried to remember the vision she had. She hadn't had it in over a week now. Not since Haruka...disappeared! A sudden wash of dread spilled over her. The end of that vision! The four outer soldiers, dead and unmoving! Could that have been another ending for them if they hadn't come? Questions wondered through her mind, searching for answers. But there were none. She held Jupiter and Mercury's hands intensely.
Venus sighed. The end of all battles always ended with a fight. These Sailor Twins wanted death and blood. They wanted to kill the outer soldiers. And that, more or less, couldn't be tolerated. She firmly held Jupiter and Chibi Moon's hands, smiling. No one had ever beat the sailor senshi!
Saturn stared on silently at the clashing power. It was useless. Even seven sailor soldiers couldn't handle all the power the Sailor Twins were casting forth. The silver crystal wasn't powerful enough, only using the surface power of the moon. They stood no chance.
"There's only one way to win," Uranus whispered. Her aqua eyes were cold and showed no emotion. Neptune squeezed her hand gently. Uranus smiled slightly. Their lives were at stake here. Either way...
"The inners can't beat the Sailor Twins with surface power," Pluto murmured. Shaking her head, she stared toward her princess. "They don't know that. We're going to have to use our power." Knowing what she was talking about, Saturn's eyes widened.
"But Pluto!" she cried. Her violet eyes were rimmed in fear. "We can't do that. With the condition we're in, we'll die. We can't use a taboo power."
"We have no choice," Uranus replied, struggling to stand up. "They can't win if we don't." Neptune nodded in agreement and stood up next to the blonde soldier. Saturn and Pluto also got to their feet.
Thinking sadly about her no longer needed destiny, Saturn stared at the princess and her guardians. Her eyes mainly focused on Chibi Moon. They were fighting to save them, but it was all wrong! They didn't have enough power so they needed to sacrifice themselves for the others lives to go on. This fate was so brutal and cold. Destiny wasn't kind. It was just a death sentence.
The three talismans and the silence glaive were in the possession of their owners. It was all over. In a matter of minutes, the life that they had embraced would be over. All over...but their princess...
Raising the sacred dagger to eye level, Uranus stared at the princess. She loved that girl so much... Shaking her head, Uranus closed her eyes and concentrated more than she had in her entire life. Her tiara disappeared and the sign of her planet glowed on her forehead. Feeling no hope, she felt all of her planet's taboo energy release into the power of her sword.
"I call upon the ultimate power of the planet of the sky, Uranus! Lend all of your power to this sacred dagger! Unleash your power!" There was a huge blast of gold light, enveloping the soldier of flight.
"I call upon the ultimate power of the planet of deep water, Neptune! Send all of your power to this sacred mirror. Unleash the power!" The sign of her planet glowed on Neptune's forehead. Feeling unstable, she was covered in a flash of aquamarine light.
"Legendary power of the planet of time and space, Pluto! Lend your ultimate power into this sacred orb! Unleash the taboo power!" Pluto felt her tiara disappear and get replaced by the sign of her planet. She was washed over in a blast of garnet colored light.
Looking at the chibi princess for maybe the last time, Saturn raised her glaive to eye level. "Sacred power of the dark planet of silence, Saturn. This is my final prayer. Please release the power hidden inside. NOW!" The bright light of the power blinded the little soldier.
Serenity couldn't help but feel a strong sense of security around. She held the silver crystal in front of her firmly. They were going to win! They would make it! But…the twins never seemed to lose power. If anything, they were growing in it.
"Mercury crystal power!"
"Mars crystal power!"
"Jupiter crystal power!"
"Moon crisis power!"
Knowing that nothing would work, Destiny lowered her head. "Destiny cosmos power!"
The six lights from the gem in their tiaras shot out and into the silver crystal, already glowing with a pure silver light. Serenity felt the extreme of the power and blasted the twins with it, her arms shaking with the effort. She bit her lower lip to keep her focus.
"What was that?" DreamStar mocked, still blasting the princess. "If you think you can defeat us with that kind of surface power you have no prayer!" Serenity's cerulean eyes widened. It hadn't...worked!?
The inners stared at the twins. It didn't work! What was going to happen? Even with Destiny's power, it wasn't enough. They were going to lose. It was all over...all over...
Suddenly, a huge blast of power came shooting from behind them. It was so powerful it almost knocked the inners from their kneeling position. What the...?
Serenity felt a sudden burst of power in her silver crystal. Her friends couldn't have got that strong in just a few seconds. This was a new, deeper power. Much deeper. As if an entire lifetime had been put into raising this power.
Feeling a renewed hope, Serenity stared at the Sailor Twins. "You cannot defeat us. We are planet power!" There was a huge explosion of white light. MagicStar and DreamStar felt their bodies ripping apart. What was happening!? Screaming in pain, their bodies disintegrated into nothing. The lockets on their sailor uniforms shattered before disappearing as well.
Serenity felt the crystal using what little energy she had to make sure the twins were gone for good. She began weakening. The sudden blast of power hadn't been from her so why was she suddenly weak?
The white light died down and Serenity reverted back to Eternal Sailor Moon.
The four weapons fell to the ground. The aqua mirror and the orb on the time key shattered.
"Sailor Moon!"
"Mama!" The inner soldiers rushed over to Sailor Moon. She stared at them with bleak eyes. Looking over at Destiny, they both felt the same thing. They both felt as though they knew what would happen.
"How did you guys get all that power?" Sailor Moon wondered out loud. She stared at them, waiting for an answer. Mars looked confused.
"You mean, it wasn't you?" she asked. Sailor Moon shook her head and made it clear that the power had come from behind her. Venus looked confused, but a light of realization started dawning in Chibi Moon's eyes.
"If it wasn't us," she whispered, her red eyes huge, "and if it wasn't you, then the only ones who could've sent that power was..." Seven heads swerved back towards where they had left the outer soldiers. What they saw shocked them.
The four weapons were lying on the ground. The mirror was shattered, glass all over the place. The orb on the time key had broken just as easily. It was a mess. But behind that were four bodies, lying crumpled on the ground. In the exact same position they had seen in the vision.
"Oh, no," Mars whispered, realizing the truth. Her legs felt like water as she tried to walk over to them. She began running. "Oh god, no!" The other inner soldiers quickly followed.
Mars was gently holding Saturn's small body close to her. It was too late. They hadn't made it in time. God, no. Not her, not Hotaru. It wasn't fair. Saturn wasn't even fourteen yet. She was too young for her life to be taken away like this! No. It wasn't fair!
Sailor Moon collapsed besides Uranus. The sign of her planet still glowed on her forehead, but there was no heartbeat. No breathing. No sign that this girl was alive. Tears welled up in her eyes. "NOOOOO!" she screamed, pounding her fist on to the ground. She brought her hands to her face.
Chibi Moon stared in horror at Pluto's limp body. This...couldn't be. It wasn't right. "It's not right!" she yelled, tears spilling down her face. "You promised you'd be okay!" Breaking down, she buried her face in Pluto's chest. "Liar! I hate you! You said you'd be all right."
Destiny stared on. Her friends. Gone. They were just alive only moments before. How could this have happened? She was the soldier of fate. She could have prevented this from happening. She could have stopped the deaths of the four people she cared about most. Could have…
Chibi Moon squeezed Pluto's limp hand. Salty tears spilled down her cheeks. It wasn't fair. How could Pu leave her like this? Alone. And Hotaru. A little child who was just barely a teenager.
("Wow, it's gorgeous out here," Hotaru said. She closed her eyes and let the sun's rays shine on her pale face. "I usually like dark places, but it's too nice out here today." Chibiusa grinned and then got very quiet.)
("Chibiusa?")
("Um, Hotaru-chan?" Chibiusa said quietly. "I, uh, never asked you and it just really came to my mind. Do you like being a sailor soldier?")
(Hotaru looked surprised and the day dulled on her. Her eyes became dark and cold. "I've actually thought about it. And I'm not really sure. I mean, sometimes I still can't believe that I'm a sailor soldier, destined to fight. And then...it is such a terrible, crucial duty to protect the Princess at the risk of my own life." She looked up at Chibiusa. "You are very lucky Chibiusa-chan. You didn't have to be a sailor soldier.")
"Hotaru!" Chibi Moon screamed in a tortured voice. "Pu!" She grasped the time guardian's hand tightly. "Don't leave...me!"
"Never," a quiet voice said. The inner senshi head's jerked up, their eyes growing in fear. They looked over at Sailor Pluto and could see that her chest was rising up and down, a sign that she was breathing and still alive, even if only a little. Chibi Moon stared at Pluto, her red eyes hysterical.
"Pu?"
"Small...Lady...don't you...ever...think that...we'll leave you," Pluto whispered, her voice so weak, it tortured the future chibi princess. She opened her eyes, the light from the garnet color completely gone. There was only haziness. She looked over at Chibi Moon. "The...others?"
Chibi Moon stared at Uranus, Neptune, and Saturn sullenly. There was no movement from them. They were...dead. The word tore at the little girl's heart. She couldn't bring herself to say it. She couldn't tell Pu, who was barely alive herself.
"We...we couldn't save them," Venus said, her pale blue eyes overcome with sadness. Tears spilled down her cheeks. This emotion wasn't sad. It was worse. It was grief, depression, and sorrow beyond their maximum point. There was no hope...all hope of saving them had died when the Sailor Twins took their souls. This new terrible emotion was ripping their hearts apart, just to see their barely conscious friend suffer so. "What did you do?"
"That was...the ultimate power...of the outer...planets," Pluto whispered. Everyone could see that it pained her to speak. "But...if we use...that power...we'll die." Destiny's eyes filled with tears.
"Why?" she asked, her voice choked with emotion. "Why did you do it?" Pluto didn't respond and the others saw that her breathing was slowing down. They were losing her.
"We kept...our promise," Pluto gasped out, looking over towards Sailor Moon. "So please...protect this planet..."
"Pluto!"
"Sailor Moon...princess...don't cry...don't cry..." Chibi Moon grabbed Pluto's hand. She stared at the time guardian in horror.
"No! You can make it! Hang on Pu!"
"Small Lady...please don't cry," Pluto whispered, her voice fading with her life. "Small Lady...Chibiusa...I love you..." The moment those words came from Pluto's mouth, death slid her eyes and her body became limp. Chibi Moon buried her face in her hands and felt as though her heart was being torn by ice cold hands. The others pulled away in horror as the sudden realization of what happened struck them hard. Sailor Moon screamed out in agony, pounding her fist onto the ground. A burning sense of loss echoed loudly in their bodies, screaming over and over. Chibi Moon's body was shivering in agony.
"Pu! Pu! NOOOOOO!" The silent plea of cry went unheard and echoed through the deserted halls, never reaching anyone.
Author's Note: (looks up from Rurouni Kenshin) Neh...did anyone shed a tear or fill a twinge of grief inside during this last scene? If so, I really would like to know. I was a very depressed teenager when I wrote this (and so young, too!). Five years ago...whew! So, I'd like to give my thanks out to DarkPluto4 who started me out with the entire angst stories with her stories "Fatal Elusions" and "Sacrifices". Thanks, dearest, for opening my blind eyes and my narrow-mindedness to the real world of heartache and sorrow.
One more chapter left. The epilogue.
I'll see you there.