Back to the Nest
Chapter two:
Deep in a dark forest, a young man was sitting on a log. He wore blue armor and had silver-colored, wavy hair. His distinguishing characteristics were a large scar over the right side of his face, and the lack of one eye. Another man came up to him, identical in every feature, except he wore red armor.
"The troops are nearly done, brother, we may leave at any time."
"Let's get going then," the blue-armored one replied as he got up. The silver-haired pair gave the rod-like items they kept in leather wrappings a quick glance and went on their way.
"Sailor Lead Crow is going to work with us!?" Deimos exclaimed.
"Red Crow is going to assist you," Queen Coronis corrected, "Keep in mind she is no longer an animate."
"Coronis-sama, you must be joking!" Phobos protested, "This is someone who betrayed her planet to aid a tyrant!"
"Hey, I'm not doing this for my health!" the copper-skinned woman growled, "If it were up to me, I'd be with Siren at some vacation resort right now."
"Nevertheless, you will work together," the undead ruler stated authoritatively, "Red Crow's battle skills will serve you well, while Phobos and Deimos posses abilities which will be vital. So stop this petty quarreling at once." The twins sighed in resignation and bowed.
"Hai, Coronis-sama."
"As you wish, your majesty," Red Crow said in a sour tone.
"Good. Now, come with me, there is one more secret to reveal."
The four longhaired females took a tour of the entire castle. They went up and down countless staircases, corridors, and halls. As you may have guessed, there was tension between the three younger ones. The twins glimpsed at their once friend every once in a while. It was true, the evil aura that had surrounded this woman for so long had been dispelled. Still, a great amount of anger could be seen in her crimson eyes. As they advanced, the architecture became notably older, and judging by the dust, no one had been down here for ages.
"I remember this place," the former animate said when they got to a low and narrow passage, so much that they were forced to walk single file and watch their heads. "When I was a child, I used to explore all about the palace, but I was forbidden to come down here."
"And for good reason," Coronis replied, "it leads to where I keep a very important item."
"What item?" the cerulean twin asked, "There's nothing here." She said this because they had reached a dead end.
"Don't be fooled by appearances, Deimos," the dark-eyed queen replied with a wink. She put her hand against the wall and pressed some specific spots. A hidden door opened and a secret staircase was revealed. "Follow me."
The spiral stairway seemed endless. For a moment, Red Crow and the twins thought they would reach the planet's surface, maybe even the core. When they finally reached a door at the bottom, Phobos let herself drop on the steps and took a deep breath.
"Coronis-sama, please say there's a room behind that door, and that the thing you want to show us is inside," the scarlet girl pleaded in a complaining tone. "Kuso, my legs are killing me," she added as she rubbed them.
"Not used to walking?" Red Crow questioned, "You disappoint me, Phobos, back in the old days you could jog twice the distance."
"Perhaps, but I know someone who must be a bigger disappointment," Deimos retorted.
"You little-"
"Enough!" Coronis snapped, "I wish to hear no more of this, understood?" The girls nodded in response, the tone she used had been quite severe. The undead woman opened the door and they entered a small and simple room. There was a chair, a table with a wooden rack on it, and a large painting on the wall, it was a portrait of Princess Coronis being held by a blonde man. "Do you know who this is?" she asked.
"Ie, aunt Coronis, but you two seemed to know each other well," the cerulean-eyed girl quipped.
"Manners, Onee-chan," Phobos scolded. She tapped her chin. "Judging by the appearance, and adding what I know about Greek lore, I'd say that's Apollo, god of music and medicine."
"Right!" Red Crow said, snapping her fingers, "I looked it up while on Earth, a legend in which Apollo and Coronis were lovers. One day, Apollo's pet crow told him about a tryst Coronis had. Blinded by jealousy, Apollo slew Coronis with a golden arrow." Her eyes widened and she turned towards the twins, who had similar shocked expressions. The three looked at the cracked jewel on Coronis' chest, then at the rack, then again at the jewel and up at their queen's face.
"Umm, Coronis-sama," the scarlet-clad girl wondered, "How much of that legend is actually true?"
"Most parts," the undead ruler answered.
"Unbelievable!" the copper-skinned woman exclaimed, "You were actually doing it with a god, and yet that wasn't enough!? Get outta town!" The dark-haired females sweat-dropped.
"If you must know," Coronis huffed, "I was merely trying to make Apollo feel a little jealous." She touched her brooch gingerly. "I guess he didn't take it well."
" Not to mention he overreacted." Deimos got closer to the table. "Say, this rack can hold two arrows."
"And two was the number of arrows Apollo used," the pale woman confirmed, "One alone would've been useless, but the added force of the second shot was able to drive the arrow through both my crystal and heart, ending my mortal life." She looked at the portrait longingly. "Aside the arrows' vital importance, they were all I had left of him, so I had to keep them close."
"In my opinion, your majesty," Red Crow commented, "this behavior borderlines psychotic." She closed her crimson eyes and crossed her arms. "Okay, let's recap: a) you sent out rather hasty summons, even to someone who has no right being here; b) there's this tragic love story; and c) the arrows are gone; at the risk of sounding stupidly obvious, I deduce you want us to find them."
"That is correct," Coronis confirmed, "In fact, the arrows were stolen."
"Matte," Phobos raised her hand, "Coronis-sama, you had us travel over a hundred light-years so that we would recover a love memento!?" There was an obvious trace of Rei's influence in the longhaired girl's voice.
"Pay more attention to what I say, Phobos," the undead queen scolded with a dark glare, "this matter is not so simple. The golden arrows are not only my keepsake, they are my charge, for together they form one of the doom keys."
"Doom keys!!" the three of them gasped. Very few people know about such artifacts; the twins had learned about them in the silver millenium, and Red Crow did the same from her time spent with Galaxia.
"The exact number of doom keys is unknown, but they all serve the same purpose, unlocking the end of everything," Coronis indicated, "Specifically, the golden arrows will both release us from our bond to the planet and put us under a trance, one that will force us to steal every single soul-pearl in the galaxy."
"Killing everybody in the process!" Deimos exclaimed. "Aunt Coronis, do you have any clue as to who did this? You have to tell us!"
"Patience, Deimos. No, I have no idea who did this, or how they possibly managed to do it, but there is only one place the arrows will work. Come along."
"Not more walking," Phobos groaned.
The scarlet-eyed girl was relieved to see they were taken to a carriage. It meant whatever Queen Coronis had to show them was farther off, but at least she could rest on the way. The vehicle started moving and the pale woman handed each a bag of provisions and something else.
"Every key needs a lock, this map will lead you towards it. And it is an advantage your adversaries do not have."
"This is a map of the surface," the cerulean-clad girl noted. Her eyes went wide. "But it's a forbidden zone, no messenger or guardian may go down there."
"Not even I am extent from that rule," Coronis added, "But you three are able to bend it; Phobos and Deimos were reborn on Earth, officially, you are alien visitors; while Red Crow-"
"Deserted!" the copper-skinned woman snapped furiously, "Abandoned her people, renounced her rights, forsook her heritage, blah, blah, blah! Do we have to go over that crap every day!?" The Mars twins were quite surprised by this outburst. They never thought choosing Galaxia's side would affect her so. The rest of the trip was spent in uncomfortable silence.
The carriage reached the end of the path, the coachman was told to wait while the four longhaired females entered a small tower.
"Here is the elevator, the final lap before getting your mission underway," the dark-eyed ruler said. "Now, that map is very old, a lot of things may have changed over the centuries, so be ready for anything."
"I'm surprised to see towns marked here," Phobos confessed, "I always thought the surface was completely barren." She rolled up the map and put it away. "Makes no difference, I guess. Well, Onee-chan, Red Crow-san, let's go, we've taken more than enough time already." She opened the door and the trio rushed inside.
"Wait a moment!" Coronis called, "First we must do something very important." Phobos and Deimos were ordered to stand in front of their queen, who put one hand over her brooch and directed the other towards the dark-haired sisters. "I was hoping to do this in a more dignified ceremony, however, I'm afraid we'll have to skip all those formalities." The cracked jewel gave a red glow, and the Mars twins felt warmth coming from within their breast.
"Nani!?" There was a glow and they saw their crystals come out of their bodies. Red Crow, who was leaning against the wall, seemingly indifferent, gasped and feared the worst, but unlike last time, this was a completely painless process, Phobos and Deimos didn't collapse nor vanished.
"Phobos and Deimos are the moons of Mars," the undead ruler reminded, "small, but still reservoirs of immense energy." She held the stellar seeds for a minute then sent them back. "Now it's time for you to tap into that power." The ruby and sapphire-colored crystals fused with their respective bodies, it took a while for the pair to recover from this experience.
"A power to tap into?" the scarlet-eyed girl murmured.
"A-aunt Coronis," the cerulean-eyed one stuttered, "are you saying that we can…?"
"Try it out," the longhaired woman invited with a playful grin. The twins looked at each other and nodded.
"Deimos soul power, make up!"
"Phobos soul power, make up!"
Colors flashed brightly and ribbons twirled about in mystifying patterns. The queen watched with a high sense of pride, and Red Crow gave a long whistle when the henshin was over.
"Well, well, Sailor Phobos and Sailor Deimos. I must admit, I'm glad I lived long enough to see this." Although, the crimson-haired woman also felt a bit of jealousy that she wouldn't admit. "And those outfits really become you." The longhaired twins looked at themselves and at each other; the black six-pointed stars on their chests now had brooches in the center, red and blue respectively; skirts were added, but only the hind part, made out of a translucent material; and they were wearing tiaras that held little black feathers. But the most noticeable change was that each suit was now a two-piece.
"Is it me, or are all senshi outfits more scarce than the regular attire?" the cerulean-eyed one complained as she tried to cover her belly.
"Onee-chan, how can you concentrate on that? We're senshi now!" Phobos ran up to her aunt and held her hands tightly. "Coronis-sama, how will we ever be able to thank you for this?"
"I didn't do anything that wouldn't have happened on its own," the pale queen replied, "You two were destined to become senshi, it was just a matter of time." She directed her sight yonder. "Red Crow, you are no longer an animate, but you still conserve some of the power Galaxia gave you. I know it will be more than useful in this mission."
"I'm sure it will be, your majesty," the copper-skinned woman huffed. It's not like I was expecting any gifts anyway. Coronis must've been reading her mind, because she came up to her and presented a package.
"Just in case, here's a little something to give you an extra edge." Perplexed, the former villain opened it and her eyes went wide.
"A dark hydra whip!" This dark-gray scaled weapon was made out of said creature's hide, it was nearly unbreakable and, if the wielder willed it so, could stretch almost infinitely. Red Crow stepped away to try it out immediately, she chose a tile on the wall and lashed away at it, hitting it ten times straight, cracking the whip loudly with each blow. "Do you have any idea how long I've wanted one of these!?"
"I'm impressed," Deimos said, "I can't quite remember how good you used to be, but I'll bet you haven't lost any of your skill." Red Crow gave her a cool gaze then smirked mischievously. Before the twin senshi could react, they were held tightly by the neck.
"I've learnt a couple of new tricks as well, and for your information, a true sailor senshi would've avoided that attack easily." The crimson-eyed woman glimpsed towards Coronis and noticed her frown. "Only playing, your majesty, I'll behave myself." She gave a quick tug and the dark-haired girls were released. No damage was done, but it was still quite a scare.
At long last it was time to go. Sailor Phobos, Sailor Deimos and Red Crow entered the elevator, a concerned Coronis gave a few more words of warning.
"I must insist, be careful down there, do whatever is possible to come back alive. And please, get over the past and work together, otherwise you will have no chance of survival."
"Hai, we'll try, Coronis-sama." The undead queen gave a silent stare. "I mean, we will, Coronis-sama." The door closed and the elevator made its way down, slowly at first, then picking up speed.
"So, how long do you think it will take us to reach the surface?" Red Crow asked.
"Beats me," Sailor Deimos answered, "but I guess it'll be quite a while. (sigh) They should've put seats on this thing."
"While we wait, we better study the map," the scarlet-eyed senshi suggested, "Learn where we're going and how to get there."
"You guys do that," the former animate said as she sat down, "I'm going to take a nap, I hardly slept at all last night." The twins nodded in understanding and went about their business. Red Crow looked upon them as she drifted off to sleep. Frankly, even with their new senshi guises, they were still the same as they were all those years ago.
Flashback:
Young Red Crow ran all about the castle's oldest corridors. The grownups were often punishing her for this, telling her that she was not allowed to come near this area. But if there was one thing the crimson-eyed girl despised, were rules that told her not to go somewhere. She came to a sudden halt when she heard someone's voice.
Sounds like sobbing, she thought. Cautiously, Red Crow peered around the corner and saw a little girl dressed in red, down on her knees, crying her eyes out. She's one of the girls from the fire! She hurried up to her side. "Hey, what's wrong with you?"
"Huh!?" Little Phobos was startled by the copper-skinned one's sudden appearance. "My (gulp) my little sister and I were playing hide and seek, but then I couldn't find her anymore and I (sob) I got lost."
"Okay, first of all, stop crying or you'll never get anything done!" Red Crow's tone was quite harsh, "Now tell me, how old are you?"
"Umm, eight."
"Hmm, that is young, but it's no excuse. Don't you know that we all have a sixth sense which allows us to find people, no matter where they are? If you had remained calm, you would've found your sister in a matter of minutes."
"Really?"
"Yes, really. Now, take a deep breath and concentrate. Since you're twins, it shouldn't take long for you to detect her."
"All right." Little Phobos closed her eyes. She went quiet for a few minutes, then shouted, "I've found her!" She sprinted away, Red Crow followed as fast as she could. They hurried down the passages ways, turning at almost every corner, but the dark-haired girl knew exactly where to go. Soon she found her cerulean-clad twin, also crying on the floor. "Deimos!"
"Phobos!" They ran up to each other and hugged tightly. "Where were you? I was so scared!"
"So was I, little sister, I had no idea what to do. But then she found me and helped me find you." Phobos got up and bowed gratefully, so did Deimos. "Thank you very much, sister."
"I've never seen anyone with red hair before," the cerulean-eyed girl said with a tone of admiration, "It's very pretty."
"Thanks, though I really don't think much about it. People call me Red because of it, so you could say that's my name."
"Well, we're very glad to meet you, Red Crow," Phobos replied with a very bright smile, "I hope we become good friends." The copper-skinned girl giggled in response.
"I'm sure we will be, Phobos and Deimos."
"Red Crow-san? Red Crow-san."
"Huh! Who? Oh, it's you, Deimos."
"Gomen, I just wanted to let you know that we'll reach the bottom in just a few more minutes."
"(Groan) You could've let me sleep out those few minutes."
"Hai, but I also needed to tell you something important." The cerulean-clad senshi knelt and bowed her head. "I want to apologize for the way I acted earlier. Hai, it was quite a shock to see you so soon after what happened at the Hikawa shrine, but that's no excuse for my behavior." She placed her hand on Red Crow's. "I want us to get along, not just because aunt Coronis told us to, but because we were the best of friends once, and I'm sure it will be true once more." The longhaired woman shook her head and chuckled.
"Still looking for the bright side of life, huh?"
"I agree with Onee-chan," Sailor Phobos said as she approached, "I won't question you, Red Crow-san, perhaps your motives were completely different to the ones we thought of. What really matters, is that we want things to be as before." Red Crow sighed and got up, she looked out the window and waited a while before answering.
"Thank you, Deimos, Phobos. I shall do my best to rekindle the friendship we once had." The former animate looked over her shoulder, "But I'm afraid it will never be as before, ever." The scarlet-suited senshi noticed that she was given a quick, angry glare. For some reason, Red Crow was mad at her. She would find out said reason eventually.
The perennial night was interrupted by the houses set ablaze. The villagers tried to escape, but the raiding horde gave no chance, if someone came within range of their weapons, that person was as good as dead. An old man tried to reach a hiding place but was stomped down by a large foot. He was kicked over and saw his captor, a hulking brute armed with a very thick spear and dressed in black leather armor.
"Where is the gate?" the invader snarled.
"What? What gate? I don't know what you're talking about." The old man was picked up and dangled like a rag doll.
"Don't play me for a fool! The gate, where is it!?"
"Don't lose your temper, you'll get more information if you proceed calmly." It was the man in the blue armor. "Now, let him go." The old man was dropped. "Maybe you do know something useful but don't realize it. Did you ever hear tales at the tavern, about a forbidden place where some horrible doom is being held?"
"Well… Yes, I've heard something about that. But they're only children stories, I don't know if there's any truth to them." The silver-haired man frowned and drew out his broadsword.
"If you can't help us, you're too worthless to live," he said right before cleaving the villager in half.
Hidden inside a barrel, a little boy witnessed the whole thing. He saw the one in red armor approach. The one-eyed twins talked briefly then left, certain that no one who could pose a threat had survived. The child would never forget all the death and destruction, or that feather-shaped weapon, for the rest of his life.