Author: StarlightMichi
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The next morning dawned clear and bright; a beautiful day that didn't even hint at the troubles the night before had brought. Neptune slept late, but Uranus rose with the sun, unable to sleep any longer. She let the sea-senshi rest, not quite sure what to do about her. She wasn't sure if Neptune would remember the events from the night before, but was dieing to ask her about them.
When it was clear that the aqua-haired woman would not rise for some time, Uranus dressed and left the room, her stomach growling hungrily. The happy bustle of the dining room calmed her nerves a bit, and it was easy to pass Neptune's panic off as a dream. But Uranus knew it wasn't. The uneasy feeling was still with her and she didn't like it at all.
Pluto was seated at a table in the back staring absently into space, her food untouched. Uranus walked towards her, wondering if she felt the same uneasiness. "Can I sit?" she asked, not waiting for an answer before she pulled a chair out and sat. Pluto, startled out of her thoughts, nodded absently.
"Something happened with Neptune last night," Uranus stated. She wasn't a very talkative person, but with the events of the night before and the uneasiness sitting in her stomach she just felt she had to tell someone, and Pluto looked like a good listener. Uranus described what she'd seen, and Pluto frowned deeply.
"I feel the uneasiness too," she stated simply, her eyes looking towards the happy crowd. "I think something's happened, something important." She didn't have time to continue before Queen Serenity burst in the doors. It was normal for the queen to eat with her people, but it was not normal for her to show up looking like she'd seen a ghost.
She wasted no time in spotting Uranus and Pluto, and was by their table side in an instant.
"Urgent meeting in the Pearl Chamber. Bring Neptune, and if you spot Mars, Mercury, Venus or Jupiter along the way, let them know. Come as soon as you can." She left as quickly as she arrived, and Uranus was left with an unsettling feeling in her stomach that only intensified.
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The room was oddly silent. Normally when the four guardians of Princess Serenity gathered there was hardly time to get a word in. But this morning, they were all silent, stone-faced soldiers waiting for Serenity to speak. Even Uranus had to agree that they did not look like 'giggling girls' at this time.
Apparently, whatever had unsettled Pluto and Uranus was also unsettling them. Neptune, who was more or less back to her normal self, arrived with Uranus. Neither had said a word on the way there. Uranus was unsure if Neptune remembered, and didn't want to remind her incase the sea-senshi didn't feel like explaining.
Seven pairs of eyes raced to the door as Serenity entered. She halted them with a hand as they rose to bow, and swiftly walked to the head of the long table. She didn't sit, though, but stood behind the large chair, wrapping her delicate fingers around the top. It was very clear that something distressed her. Her normally confident, lady-like quality was shattered as she stared at them with nervous eyes and twitching fingers.
"I doubt any of you cannot feel it now," she started, her voice oddly normal for her appearance. "What you feel is the Evil that entered through the rip. Before, I alone could feel it, but I can see in your faces that you can sense it now as well."
She paused, and swallowed, trying her best to remain confident. She unconsciously straightened her shoulders, and forced her fingers to remain steady along the chair. "I feel it ten fold," she said, keeping her voice from cracking with checked panic. "I don't know why this has happened, but I believe it is caused by one of two things.
"Either the Evil has grown in size, or it has moved closer." She shook her head softly, unable to look at the senshi. "We can sit by idle no longer. I want to know who, or what, is there, and I want to know why they have come. Mostly, I want to be certain whether they mean us harm. I should have done this a long time ago."
The senshi were silent. They didn't even nod their heads as they listened to Queen Serenity. The tension in the room was that of a taunt string, ready to snap at the slightest touch.
"Neptune, Uranus, you two will go to the time gate with Pluto. There, you will determine exactly where this Evil is keeping itself. If it is deemed safe—within reason—you will then go to that place and see for yourself what lies there. Do not, and I repeat, do not fight them unless you are attacked first. I understand that we may be provoking an attack by the simple act of being there, but I must know what I'm dealing with."
Mars looked ready to protest, but held her tongue. Serenity nodded at her. "I have a task for you four as well," she stated simply, and Mars nodded. "The four of you are to come with me to the Council. It has gotten to the point that we must share what information we know with Earth and it's rulers. My daughter shall not attend. This information is still confidential and will not be passed on to anyone outside of this meeting. If we're clear here, then Pluto, you Neptune and Uranus are free to go when you see fit. The rest of you," and she gave a small glance at each of her daughters guardians, "Please dress in your finest and meet me at noon for the Council."
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Silence once again accompanied Uranus and Neptune back to their room. Pluto had told them they would go in fifteen minutes, but neither senshi felt much like eating. So Uranus sat on a large chair while Neptune stood at the balcony, looking out over the gardens as she had done the night before.
The sight of her standing there, with a small breeze playing with her aqua hair, reminded Uranus of the night before. Though she hated to bring it up, she had to know if Neptune remembered or not.
Stealing herself against angry words that might come, the blonde stood and walked out to the balcony. She didn't know how to begin, but felt a straight forward approach would be best. "Last night…" she started, but Neptune halted her with the lifting of her hand.
"I remember," she said simply, her eyes never leaving the garden below. "I was having a horrible dream. I dreamt that the entire ocean of Kaiohsei had turned black. My people were screaming. Before my eyes, my ocean turned into dust and the world became dead. When I woke up, I didn't remember where I was, and panicked when I couldn't see, feel, or smell the ocean. I couldn't feel it, either." She gave a small, wry sort of smile. Uranus frowned a bit, but let her continue. "I know that it was because I'm so far from home, but at the time, I felt as if the dream had come true. I could feel evil pressing against me, and I lost my mind."
She avoided Uranus' gaze, and the taller woman nodded to herself, turning to look out onto the gardens as well. She didn't know how to reply, but felt like she should say something.
"Thank you," Neptune said after an uncomfortable pause. She turned and smiled softly at Uranus. "I remember what you did, and I want to thank you." She left it at that, though her lips twitched as if she had more to say. A knock on the door stopped her thoughts, and both women turned as Pluto entered.
"It's time."
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Pluto stood, her eyes shut, facing away from her door. Uranus and Neptune stood on either side of her, their eyes open as they watched her in silence. As soon as they'd entered her realm, Pluto had been bombarded by a sense of evil. She was using that, now, to pinpoint where in the solar system the threat lay. After a moment, she opened her eyes.
Uranus stepped up quickly to wrap an arm around her as Pluto wavered. "I'm alright," she reassured her, standing on her own two feet once more. "I found them," she said with a bit of annoyance. "They've been hiding far into the system, always opposite from us, always on the other side of the sun. That's why we couldn't catch their presences earlier, the sense of the Sun was too powerful for such a force so far away."
This meant little to Uranus or Neptune, but they nodded their heads. When Pluto looked ready, the three teleported to the area pinpointed. The three soldiers, dressed ready to fight if necessary, peered down onto a lonely planet. It was smaller than the moon, and brown with death. Pluto frowned, and Uranus asked, "What planet is this?"
"It's not ours," Neptune said simply. "It doesn't belong in this solar system." Pluto nodded her agreement as they hovered, orbiting the small planet as a moon might.
"They must have pulled it through Time as well, though I don't remember any time that had another planet in this system." That was a concern. A power great enough to not only pull beings, but planets, through time was something to fear.
As they floated, they observed below them. The planet looked barren, deserted and dead as a rock. As they turned, a small dot on the horizon grew. It looked like a fortress, made from something resembling granite and colored black. Uranus imagined that it would blend in perfectly during the times that side of the planet lay in shadows.
As they turned and the fortress grew in size, they noticed the movement of people. Neptune squinted, counting. "I count ten, and I think the one in red is the leader." They watched, and it was apparent that their movements were coordinated, lead by the signals from the figure dressed in red.
It was an army, Uranus realized with a sinking feeling. An army of thinking beings with the power to pull themselves through Time.
"I think it's time to leave…" Neptune said.
Far below them, on the surface of the planet, the figure in red looked up and spotted three floating specks that should not be there. Her face deepened in a scowl as they vanished from sight, and she turned on her heels and marched swiftly into the fortress.
She arrived at her destination shortly, and rapped smartly on the door.
"Enter," said a soft voice. She did so, shutting the door softly behind her.
"My lady," she said, falling to her knee. "I think the Moon Kingdom knows of us," she said gravely. The soft tinkling of laughter cause her to look up, startled.
A soft, feminine figure moved towards her from the shadows, her eyes a striking black against her pale face. "Of course they know about us," she said softly, the tinkling of laughter still ringing in her voice. "We never expected to make our way here unnoticed. The power of the Moon Kingdom is great, as is ours. Just as we can sense them, they can no doubt sense us."
"Yes, my friend, they know about us. But don't let it worry you. We are ready if they chose to attack, but they won't. It is not in their nature to come looking for the fight. It will be brought to them in due time. For now, Davida, keep your soldiers working. Your time will come soon and they must be ready."
Davida lowered her eyes to the ground, obedience in her gesture. She waited a few seconds, then stood, bowed, and left the chamber, closing the door softly behind her.
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Mars fidgeted. The stark white of the meeting room, coupled with the haunty nature of their guests and the pinch of her dress was making her rather irritable. Venus laid a hand against her arm, a soft touch meant to reassure and comfort her. It did help…a little.
Serenity entered last, a perfect picture of elegance in white and lavender. The entire council stood to greet her, sitting again only after she'd sank into her chair at the head of the room. Endymion sat at the other end, his expression hard. She could guess, by the worried creases in his mouth, that he already knew what she had to say.
The four guardians of Princess Serenity listened with rapt attention as Serenity told the council her news. They, of course, already knew everything she had to say, but they paid their utmost attention. Their job was simply to be there, in sight of the council members of Earth, to reassure them that there were powerful forces working to protect the planets.
Predictably, the council members gave responded in uproar. Questions were shouted, explanations were demanded, and chaos ensued until Serenity stood, pointedly. They quieted to look at her, a few shameful at their comments.
"We are doing everything we can to ensure the safety of the Kingdom, as well as Earth and the other eight planets. As we speak, I have three soldiers searching out the hiding spot of this Evil, to determine what threat they pose to us. When they return, I will make my judgment on the situation. Until then, please keep vigilant and do what you must to make your planet safe."
The council dispersed quickly after this, though Endymion stayed back to talk with Serenity. The four guardians left, not wanting to intrude on what they suspected was a private conversation.
Mars sat against the marble railing, against the winces of Venus and Mercury. "You'll wrinkle your dress," Venus stated simply, smoothing a hand over her own gold silk gown. Mars shrugged. She didn't have time to worry about petty things like dresses.
"This is serious," she stated, looking at each of them. Venus nodded, her expression deadly serious. "It is, but until Serenity-sama tells us what to do, we can only wait." Jupiter grunted, crossed her arms and leaned against a marble pillar.
"I don't like waiting," she said angrily. "We're soldiers! We should be out there doing something, not sitting here waiting for it to come to us. If we wait, it will just grow stronger." Mercury shook her head. "We don't know for certain what it is, and though it is Evil, it hasn't attacked us yet. Neptune, Pluto and Uranus are out there, seeing what it is. We'll know more when they come back."
Jupiter wasn't settled, but let it go. She knew there was no arguing with Mercury, or with Serenity, and so she just had to do as she was told. The four settled into silence, each thinking deeply about the situation at hand.
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When Pluto, Uranus, and Neptune returned, they wasted no time in finding Serenity and filling her in on what they found. Serenity looked distraught at the news, but nodded. "Well, there's not much else we can do at the moment." She was debating whether to alert her people to the threat. She didn't want to ruin the carefree, happy nature that had settled over her kingdom, but leaving her people unprepared was far worse.
Pluto laid a hand on Serenity's shoulder, looking at her with concern. "You can't let your people sit by with blinders on their eyes," she stated calmly, knowing exactly what ailed the woman. Serenity nodded, and Uranus was startled to see tears in the corners of her eyes. Serenity was breaking down around them, and it hurt Uranus to see it.
Neptune, also, was gripped with pain to see Serenity so upset. She didn't get a chance to speak before the queen straightened herself, looking as poised and confident as always.
"In three days time, I will tell them." Pluto nodded, though Neptune and Uranus cast worried glances at each other. Later, Pluto filled them in that the night after next was a banquet to celebrate the end of the Earth's Council. Serenity wanted to give her people one last carefree night before she made her announcement.
Uranus thought this over later, as they sat in their room once more. Serenity was very compassionate, and Uranus understood how she felt—not wanting her people to be fearful on what should be a joyous night—but from a soldier's standpoint it made no sense. Three days was a long time, especially with a growing evil in the distance.
Shaking her head, Uranus stood and left to train, determined to be ready for the fight she was sure was coming.
The End of Chapter Five=====
A.N. First off, I must say to all those you read my story I LOVE YOU!!!! cookies for everyone! It makes me so happy to read all of your comments! I'm really glad you're enjoying the story so far, and I hope I can keep you entertained!
So, Chapter Five is done. What do you think? It's getting a bit more serious, ne? And we finally get to see those evil people lurking just outside of reach! Sneaky little baddies! Get ready for Chapter Six! Please leave comments! :)
Oh, I also noticed a comment asking about Pluto. Originally, I didn't pair her with anyone, but I'm open to suggestions. I have my own views of who she'd be romantically inclined towards, but I'm open! Any suggestions?