Nebula felt nothing. She watched as the army slaughtered the people. Men, women, children… all brutally killed. And Nebula felt not the slightest remorse nor regret. She had been ordered to do this. Her mother had deemed this planet unsuitable for the New Age. Nebula knew this judgment to be a sign that this planet was to die. So she had led the army to the planet, and now, genocide was nearly complete. This planet was dead.
Sailor Nebula was the first of Sailor Chaos' children, and was thus the commander for the army. She was also regarded by many as the most beautiful woman in the Galaxy. It was rather ironic, actually. Sailor Chaos was white as a corpse, her eyes and hair were both blood-red, and her features were devoid of life. Sailor Nebula, on the other hand, had light blue, almost white, hair and eyes, her skin was perfectly peach in color, her figure was elegant and smooth, and her face was small. It was her beauty alone that often caused the armies of planets to hesitate. Nebula's army was also made up of mostly women; Chaos had desired to make her children a reflection of herself. While the army did have men, they were mostly used as scouts or sentries.
"You have done well, my daughter," came a deep voice. Nebula turned and saw her mother standing beside her. "You have yet to disappoint me. I assure you that you will take my place when I depart this dimension."
"Yes, Mother," responded Nebula, her beautiful voice devoid of emotion.
"That's enough, Nebula. You may withdraw your forces for now," said Chaos.
"Of course, Mother," Nebula took a deep breath. "That's enough! This planet is dead! Withdraw!"
The army stopped the massacre. Immediately, they started forming behind mother and daughter. "Soon, the New Age will begin," said Chaos.
"Yes," Nebula knew in her heart that her mother was right.
Nebula returned with the army to the planet claimed by Chaos as the Home world, located on the outer rim of the Galaxy in the rural section called Pisces, in the Orion arm. It was out of the way enough not to be noticed by any would-be rebellion. The planet orbited no star, but a black dwarf. And so, it had no natural source of light nor life; indeed before Chaos, it had no indigenous life to speak of, not even microscopic. Yet now, a castle stood on its surface. The Fortress of Chaos, the army called it. This was where life on Nemesis flourished. Yet every living being there was either a Sailor Soldier, an undead being, or an evil person who volunteered to join Chaos. The first of these people was a creature who was on Nemesis when Chaos took form. Exactly what he was before is unknown even to him, but Chaos had given him a great deal amount of power. And so, he was a god. A God of Darkness. He called himself Death Phantom, the most powerful being in the Galaxy second to Chaos herself. Even Sailor Nebula had to bow down to him.
The Fortress of Chaos was made of many towers, the highest ones reserved for the leaders. From a birds'-eye view, the castle resembled a city. At the center of the castle, a tall black tower with a devil carving at it's pinnacle rose suddenly with two smaller towers connected by bridges on either side. These smaller towers were for Death Phantom and Nebula, and only they were allowed to cross the bridges; anyone else seen crossing them was executed on sight by the undead sentries stationed on either bridge. The sentries were nothing more than zombie slaves, so they never tired nor hungered.
As Nebula neared the castle, Death Phantom was there to greet her. He always gave Nebula a sense of death, for he had the form of a skeleton of a human, but he emitted a darkness that covered him like a veil, and he had a black crescent on his forehead. He was known to some as the King of the Dead.
"Sailor Nebula," began the empty voice of the Phantom. "Planet Krilla is dead. For your efforts, I grant your army safe slumber for the night."
"Master, the army is tired. For this gift, I thank you," said she. "However, I have but one request concerning the next target."
"Concerning any target or mission, the one to consult is not me but Mother," said he.
"Of course. How foolish of me," Nebula bowed. "I apologize for taking your time."
"Apology accepted," said the Phantom.
Nebula, pleased to be free of the Phantom's unpleasant presence, entered the castle. After announcing the Phantom's privilege, she looked for her mother. As usual, Sailor Chaos was in her sleeping quarters at the highest tower in the castle. Nebula just walked past the sentries, trying to ignore the foul stench of death. The inner sanctum was a large room with a ladder in the middle, which led to Chaos' sleeping quarters. It was this ladder which only Nebula was allowed to climb, and climb it she did.
At the top of the ladder, Sailor Chaos was meditating. "Yes, my daughter?" asked she, not moving.
"Mother," Nebula bowed. "I have a request."
"What is it?" asked Chaos, still unmoving.
"I would like the next target to be a military target. The Planet Krilla didn't fight back."
"Why do you ask this of me? Do you feel remorse for killing people who do not fight back? Perhaps it is boring? Whatever the reason, the next target will be of my choosing, military or otherwise. And ponder your feelings, my daughter, for they could betray you," Chaos never moved.
"Of course, Mother. I apologize for taking your time," Nebula bowed.
"Apology accepted," said Chaos.
Nebula crossed back into her own tower. She went to her sleeping quarters and meditated. Why did she want a military target? Why did it matter? Sailor Chaos was the judge of which worlds were fit, not her. Maybe the next target would be a military target, maybe not. It was not for her to decide. In her meditation, she began to dream.
The blood ran down her side, which pulsed with agony. The abomination in front of her laughed. The laughter rocked the heavens, and shook the bones of her. She knew she couldn't give up. She raised her sword, uttered words of prayer, and stabbed the ground upon which she stood.
Part Two: A Betrayal
"The Planet Loran is a military target, so expect resistance," said Nebula to the Army, her voice magnified by a spell. "They have a reputation for being conquerors, and they have colonies on many surrounding planets. Well, history has shown us that all great conquerors are conquered by an even greater force, and this time that force is us, the Sailor Soldiers. Now, move out!"
The armada that flew to the planet caused all other transportation between planets to halt. Planet Loran was in a mid-section of the Galaxy called Taurus in the Orion arm. The planet orbited a system of three stars, and had four sister planets. Loran had no moons to speak of. The people of Loran had colonized the four other planets, Kila, Maro, Sylt, and Kor, and had even spread their empire to nearby star systems. Their reputation for being warlike was known throughout Taurus, and Chaos had deemed it unfit for the New Age because the Loran people worshipped a God of War, and this superstition was such that Chaos found insulting. She viewed herself as the only real God in the Galaxy, for she knew not of the Guardian; Death Phantom was indeed a God, but not in Chaos' eyes. In her eyes, the Phantom was nothing other than a demi-god.
Upon arrival, the armada began to bombard the planet. But soon, a second armada arrived from Kila, for the Loran government was informed of the Sailor Soldiers' arrival by a spy, and were thus prepared to counterattack. Caught by surprise, Nebula ordered the armada to take a defensive stand, but they were outnumbered. However, this was not the first time Nebula had been in this position, and she was a great strategist. She chose a few ships from the armada and flew them through a hole in the enemy forces. Nebula then ordered the ships to fire at the opposing ships' engines one by one. The order was successful, but before the last enemy ship was brought down, Nebula's own flagship was shot down. Knowing that she could breath in space for a short time, she activated an air bubble around herself and ejected. She made her way to Loran, where she would wait for the fleet to pick her up. She felt frustrated that she was not more careful, but she also knew that her mother would not scold her for it if the mission was successful.
She landed near a small settlement, which was now smoking and in ruins. Making her way towards it, she marveled at the planet's appearance. It was a desert, for it was the closest to the star it orbited, and the people who once lived here must have been highly self-sufficient. Getting an idea, she activated her personal communicator that linked her to her mother, as well as projected her life signs. A holo-projection of her mother appeared in front of Nebula.
"Yes, my daughter?" the hologram inquired.
"I am on the planet's surface, Mother, and I think it would be wise to find anyone who would join us; the planet is a desert," Nebula informed her mother.
"Very well. It would prove useful, I see. Thank you for bringing this to my attention. It will serve as redemption for your embarrassing landing," remarked Chaos.
"Thank you, Mother." Nebula killed the transmission and made her way to the ruins of the settlement.
When she arrived, she began to look for survivors. However, she could not find any; only the charred remains of what were once humans remained. Nebula was about to give up when she heard crying. Following the sounds, she made her way through the settlement, looking for the source. It soon presented itself: a little girl. Nebula cursed; children were not allowed to survive, because they would eventually try to take revenge, and if they joined, they eventually found out. Nebula drew her sword, and the girl turned to face her.
It was at that moment when Nebula, for the first time ever, hesitated. She told herself that her mission required her to kill this girl, but for some reason, she couldn't bring herself to. The look in the girl's eyes were so scared and helpless and lonely… almost unconsciously, Nebula sheathed her sword. Her body began to move entirely of its own accord. She patted the girl on the head. "What is wrong?" her voice asked. The girl turned her head to what she was crying over. Nebula couldn't see what it was at first, but soon saw that it was a woman.
"Mommy…" the girl sobbed.
For the first time ever, Nebula felt pity. This girl's mother must have been killed in the bombardment. Looking back in her memory, she realized that she had never been present for a child's execution, nor has she ever seen a child die. Now she was charged with killing this girl herself. And she did not want to. She kneeled next to the girl and put her arm around the girl's shoulder. "I am sorry…" she whispered.
All of a sudden, the girl wrapped her arms around Nebula. "Help me!" she pleaded. What else could Nebula do? She grabbed hold of her communicator and crushed it. That done, she returned the girl's embrace. For the first time, she felt peace. She felt calm. She felt love. She, in that moment, no longer wanted to work for Chaos, her own mother. She did not understand why, nor did she want to understand.
She heard a scout ship approaching fast. Since she crushed her communicator, her life signs would be reading zero. Chaos had sent scouts to search for Nebula's body. The ship landed, and out came about twenty people. Some were Sailor Soldiers, some were male scouts. But all were shocked when they saw Nebula with the girl. They stared at Nebula, and Nebula stared back.
"What else could I do?" Said Nebula finally. "I have had enough. If you follow your duties, which is what I would have you do, you will kill this girl and try me for treason, and I will hang. I will not resist."
The leader of the group, Sailor Pulsar, stepped forward. "I know I speak for all of us when I say that this is a huge shock for us all. Our duties require us to do as you said, and were this concerning anyone else, we would not hesitate. But this is concerning you. And we can't bring ourselves to carry out our duties because of it. We feel somehow as you feel, and we will do anything for you. You are still our commander, and we await your orders, whatever they may be." No one objected to Pulsar's speech, they just nodded their heads in agreement.
"I thank you all. My last order for you is to renounce all ties with Mother and to no longer think of me as your superior. We are all outlaws now, and we are equal because of it. You no longer need to call me commander. As such, I will never give you an order again; anything I ask of you will be a request, and does not need to be followed." Nebula spoke with full sincerity. The group nodded their heads. "Now, we first need to hide here. There will be another search party without any doubt. When they have gone, we can leave for a planet that is so remote that the army would never think to look there. While we are hiding here, we can discuss which planet to hide on."
"And, Nebula," came a voice from the group, a man. "What about this child?"
"I am going to adopt her," she looked at the child. "What is your name?" the little girl didn't speak, she just looked down. "You do not have a name? Then I will call you Kiboh." The girl looked up at Nebula and smiled.
And so, the small group of outlaws hid the ship in a nearby canyon. The group then made a base camp in a cave. At night, Nebula lay on the rocky ground, used to the comfort of her bed. Her unease ended when Kiboh came to her side. The girl did not speak, but Nebula just knew it from her eyes. Nebula shifted her body and allowed Kiboh to lie down next to her. Somehow, both could now sleep comfortably by one-another's side, as though they really were Mother and Daughter.
The child was antagonistic. She never paid attention, she always annoyed me, and she never helped me. And yet, I cannot bring myself to hurt her, and I feel like she cannot really hurt me, either. I did not understand before, but I do now. She is my daughter.
Part Three: An Underground
Planet Kolong. In the Pisces Section. This planet was once home to a great civilization, but now, the only intelligent life was scattered dinosaur tribes. The planet itself orbited a small yellow star that was in the same star cluster as Nemesis' black dwarf. Kolong had one moon, which orbited the planet once every thirty Kolong days. The planet was the third of seven planets, which put it at a place where life could flourish.
This planet was chosen to hide on because it was so remote; it was on the very edge of the Galaxy. The group of outlaws, which had named themselves the Underground, thought this perfect also because it was close enough to Nemesis that the army could hopefully pass by it. Chaos had already deemed the planet worthy of the New Age, so they would not have to worry about the army destroying the planet.
Nebula built a small cabin in a prairie-like terrain, and the entire Underground likewise build their own cabins. Within days, a small village had appeared on the surface of Kolong. Within months, the Underground had completely stripped themselves of ties with the army. Within years, any visitor to the planet would not guess that the village's inhabitants were once part of the Army of Darkness, save for its beautiful leader.
Even though Nebula had renounced her leadership, the Underground had unanimously elected her the leader, with Kiboh as her heir. Kiboh herself had now grown to be a beautiful young woman under Nebula's care. She had befriended many of the Underground's younger members, and soon showed signs of womanhood. Nebula grieved the fact that Kiboh did not have a suitor in the Underground, for any new generations were far too young.
"My child, I know that you have no suitor in the Underground," she would tell Kiboh. "But I swear that when we are free, you will find your Love."
"I believe you, mother," Kiboh would respond. But she soon grew impatient. She would steel out of the village at night to dance erotically without anyone watching, and she would play flirting games with some of the men. Nebula soon grew worried about her daughter doing something dangerous.
Yet, at the same time, she felt more alive than ever before. When she was with the army, she felt very little feeling. What emotions she did have were her natural womanhood ones. But as she grew, those emotions grew dim. But now, she felt a wave of emotions, and it made her feel alive. The odd thing was, she loved it. She loved that she worried about Kiboh, she loved that she had friends among the Underground, she loved that she loved Kiboh. Was this how people lived? If it was, she realized her crime for killing. Men, women, children…
She now knew what she had to do.
One day, she called a town meeting, something she usually only did if there was a drought or famine. "My friends!" she told the council. "The time to act has come. For years, we've secluded ourselves, hiding from our Mother! Well, hiding will not get us anywhere! My Kiboh is desperate for Love, and she cannot find Love nor will she find Love if we stay here! There is only one way! We must gain what support we can from our brothers and sisters and attack Nemesis. Since I am Chaos' eldest child, they will believe that I mean well. Any comments?"
"How could we gain support from anyone?" came a voice. "I find it highly unlikely that they will trust you after all these years!"
"Kiboh should be enough. If it comes down to it, we may have no choice but to kill whoever does not join us."
"I agree!" came a second voice. "But I have a feeling that our brothers and sisters would trust us to do what is right! We turned, so why cannot they?"
"Komo is right!" shouted a third voice. "They should trust us! What I am concerned about is that every assassination attempt was futile. How would we do it?"
"I am Chaos' firstborn!" Nebula said. "I could get close, then spring a trap. And I know that she would not feel betrayed, for she loves me so much that she would take pride in the fact that I was the one who killed her. All in favor say 'I'!"
The whole crowd agreed. And so, the Underground began their move against Chaos and the Army of Darkness.
She stared at the woman in front of her. The woman stared back. She had seen this woman somewhere before. Where? Where was it? Her memories were revived, so who was this woman? She was so familiar, it was as if she had known this woman forever. As though this woman were her sister…
Part Four: A Rebellion
It was as Nebula said. Most of the Sailor Soldiers did join the Underground when they saw Kiboh, the child who was spared. And as Nebula said, the ones who didn't join were killed, for secrecy was absolutely essential for success. Nebula was quite pleased, however, that she did not need to kill everyone. One day, though, Kiboh approached Nebula.
"Yes, my daughter?" Nebula inquired.
"Mother… you said that when I… we were free, that I would find Love," Kiboh had a light in her eyes that told Nebula everything before Kiboh's voice said anything. "Well, I found Love."
Nebula embraced her daughter tightly. "Kiboh, my daughter, I am happy for you. I am sorry that your real mother in not here to see this day."
"It was not your fault, Mother," Kiboh said. "Chaos killed her, not you."
"Thanks, Kiboh," Then, Nebula thought of something she thought Kiboh should know. "My daughter, I think that it is time for me to tell you what your name means."
"Really?" Kiboh said.
"Kiboh, your name means hope."
And hope was what drove the Underground. Hope was what motivated Nebula. Hope was what kept Nebula from giving into fear when she approached Nemesis. She landed outside the Fortress, and a crowd came to meet her. Death Phantom was there, as well. Nebula was glad that she could recall her emotionless self.
"Sailor Nebula, it fills me with great joy to see you alive," said the Phantom.
"Yes, master," Nebula acted accordingly. "I wish to see Mother so I may report my findings in my absence."
"Mother has been notified of your return, Nebula," said the Phantom. "She is beside herself at the prospect of your safety."
Nebula made her way to the top of the citadel. The guards that stood on the bridge were as always unmoving. Nebula entered the inner sanctum, and for the first time in years, confronted her mother, Sailor Chaos. Chaos embraced Nebula silently, but firmly.
"My daughter… it warms my heart to see you alive and well." Said Chaos after some time, without breaking the embrace.
"Yes, Mother," responded Nebula.
"My daughter, why did you not come to me?" Chaos asked.
"Because I could not," Nebula said truthfully. "I… I had something I needed to do."
"I trust it was in the interest of the New Age, my daughter?" Chaos never broke the embrace, nor did she lose her tone.
"Yes, Mother. It was." Nebula silently drew her sword.
"Without you, we were not able to destroy any unfit military targets. Your absence crippled us."
"Mother, I have one last mission that I will assure you the beginning of the New Age." Nebula whispered. "Mother… I love you."
Without letting go, Nebula used a free arm to stab Chaos. Her mother tightened her grip on Nebula from the pain. She crouched to the ground, but never broke the embrace. "So…" she gurgled. "it was… my death that… you wished for…"
"Mother, death will only bring about half of a New Age. Now, destruction is over. It is time for rebirth." Nebula whispered in her mother's ear. "No… I did not wish this. I had to do it."
"Of course…" Chaos uttered. "My daughter… with my death… the New Age… the Age of the… Sailor Soldier… now begins…" Chaos slumped to the ground. Her last breath was used for her final farewell to Nebula. "Thank you, my child… I love you…" Sailor Chaos died.
Nebula stared at her mother's body until it once again became a dark cloud. Nebula once again did do something for the first time. She fell to the floor and cried.
The light completely erased the darkness. The veil that blocked the sunlight disappeared. In its place, what seemed to be a second sun shined its light, filling the peoples' hearts with warmth. Evil was banished, peace returned. A New Age of Light had begun.
Part Five: A Beginning
The Guardian watched as the one called Sailor Nebula dismantled the Army of Darkness completely, and sealed Death Phantom within the core of Nemesis. The remaining Sailor Soldiers loyal to their mother's cause scattered throughout the Galaxy, and the Underground, which by now was made up of by far the majority of Sailor Soldiers, became the protectors of peace. Nebula journeyed to Zero Star of Sagittarius, the star which held the Cauldron at its core, and erected Star Castle upon the portal to the Cauldron to serve as a gateway to it.
Nebula herself, by unanimous vote once again, became Queen of the Galaxy, and united the 12 sections of the 4 arms of the Galaxy. When asked why she did this, her only response was: "If the people as a whole may unite under one banner, war will cease to exist. If the people as a whole may divide under many banners, war will come with time."
The crystal that Nebula bore, known as the Saffer Crystal, became her heirloom to be passed down to Kiboh when she died. Indeed, when Nebula's time came, Kiboh inherited the Saffer Crystal and became a Sailor Soldier herself, the first one who was not originally born from Chaos. She called herself Sailor Hope, and she continued her mother's legacy of peace and became known as one of the greatest rulers of all time.
And so, we end the story of Sailor Nebula, the beginning of a New Legend, and the beginning of a New Age. The Age of the Sailor Soldier.