Chapter Fifteen – The Design of a God
It was one thousand years ago when the Silver Millennium ruled and a young Princess Serenity was seen roaming about the palace, not a care to be had. Peace was the rule of her mother, the Queen Serenity. Not one creature could begin to imagine the destitute fate of the dynasty, but such things were left in the squalls of time. To that end, it was this particular point in time that would mark the beginning of the princess's understanding of a universe beyond her mother's palace – to open her eyes to the existence of presence beyond sight.
Laughing, running with only a smile to consider, the Princess had eluded her escort and was free to do as she pleased, something that came as a welcomed deviation from the proper restrictions that seemed to ruin all of her fun. With the trailing her of her signature ribbons of hair behind her, Serenity was living the life of a typical eleven year-old now, the life that had seemed to escape her at every turn. Passing a few beguiled spectators in the hallways, she giggled even more and shrilly flew through each passageway, simply enjoying the joys that only a princess could. In her hand, she carried a replica moon scepter that her mother had ordered fashioned so that the young girl could feel important, just like her mother. As the world passed as a blur through her bright blue eyes, Serenity had no idea of the future that had been poisoned for her.
"Serenity-chan! Where did you go?" called a voice from a distant courtyard.
"Serenity-sama!" a distinctly deeper voice called only moments later. It seemed that the entire castle would be on the look for her, so Serenity took a moment outside of a large set of double doors to look around quickly. Her heart was racing and her chest heaved, but she was still grinning and planning to further elude her pursuers. Hearing calls from all around, she whirled around and pressed against the heavy doors, grunting against their weight but finally pushing them open enough for a small girl to enter. After entering, she quickly closed the doors and leaned back against them, catching her breath and holding back further laughter as the soldiers and servants outside were looking for her. What a good game this was! Absence always proved to provide the important with assurance to their place. Serenity just thought it was good fun.
After catching her breath, she looked into the room she had entered and felt instantly a bit weary of her choice. It was a room she had never been in before and with good reason. The air itself felt alive. The grand pillars of the room stood in perfect order, lined in a circle around the center point of the room. There was nothing else in this room aside from the pillars and a pale purple haze that seemed to warm against the skin of the young princess.
In the middle of this room, there were two figures. The first figure sent a wave of relief over Serenity, for no child ever felt as safe or loved as when in the sight of their mother. Seeing her made Serenity rush forward, fueled on the by the haze of the room, and she called out in a very brash voice, "Mother!"
The Queen turned away from the other figure a moment, her face showing the surprise at seeing her daughter in this place, but never was she able to keep a stern glance in the sight of the Princess. Turning to her, she crouched slightly and felt the embrace of her wayward daughter, speaking in a soft voice, "Why, what are you doing in this place, my little moon bunny?" As young Serenity began to excitedly explain how she had escaped and was running from her escort, her mother's dropping brow caused her to stop and consider the trouble she would be in. No sooner than she expected to be scolded for such actions did her eyes fall upon the other figure.
His very presence sent shivers down her spine and she moved in close to her mother, staring at him with wide eyes. There was a sensation in her stomach that made her quiver, for there was an awesome aura about him that rivaled that of her mother's ginzuishou. Yet, it was very different, but at the same time, similar.
Her mother, following her eyes to the figure, rose and looked down at her sharply, but still retaining her maternal glow. "You should not be in this place," she said.
"It is all right," the other figure said softly, raising an inviting hand into the air. The Queen smiled softly and turned, holding the Princess before her in warming arms. The young girl was finally able to see the man fully and the feeling she had felt when she first saw him never truly faded. He was tall and regal, his long hair a light shade of violet that matched the swirling mists in the room. His eyes were very strange to her, blackless orbs of a spiritual blue that glowed among the mists, feeling as if they existed in their own right separate from the man. At first, they scared her, but something about him was familiar as well. His clothing was of common design of the uniforms she had seen on Earth, uniforms that were the standard issue of the generals of the royal palace on the Moon's cosmic lover. To that effect, Serenity leaned in close to her mother, but never took her eyes from the man.
"Is he from Earth?" she asked timidly.
Her mother, upon being slightly confused by the question, looked to the figure and then promptly laughed softly, shaking her head slowly. "No, my dear, he is not. His name is Jikan and he is from a place far away from here," she replied, looking back to him.
Jikan also seemed slightly amused, but simply tilted the staff in his hand forward, revealing a soft violet glow from a very beautiful gem at the end. The bladed end scared the young princess at first, but the gem soon caused a small bubble to form before her, making it grow in size until it became big enough to fit in both of her hands. In the bubble, an image of four young men appeared, then to be replaced by one young man. Serenity recognized them instantly and blushed a bit, hugging to her mother as she watched the young Endymion. "Is this where your recognition lies?" Jikan asked, leaning his staff up slowly. Serenity simply nodded, entranced by the clarity of the image in the bubble. As Endymion began to merge with the four previous figures, she reached out and tried to grasp the bubble only to have it pop in her hand. A slight spurt of water kissing her cheek made her shriek lightly, but then look up at Jikan, her eyes full of wonder. "Young Serenity of the Silver Millennium, your future is one of great importance. You will live in joy, then sorrow, only to have them mixed for all eternity. However, as you are the beloved child of the Tear of Hecate, you shall never sleep forever, but rather awaken time and time again – to endure as the purest of hearts," Jikan said in a voice that echoed in the room, but also in Serenity's very ears. It resonated with her, caused her to feel burdened by such predictions, but she said nothing in return.
Holding her child, the Queen appeared very much disturbed as well, looking upon Jikan with sad eyes. Jikan offered nothing in return, just a glance and a commanding appeal of his voice. "Very well, I shall grant you this extension of my aid. However, her duties to the Eternal Gate are given priority over all other considerations. I have entrusted with you the rules of this realm, the forbidden items of her service. You must dictate these things to her, for I shall not influence the things to come."
The Queen smiled once more and bowed her head lightly, holding her daughter even closer to her. "Thank you, Chronus-sama. We are honored to accept her into our house. I will not forget how generous such an act is," she said, receiving a bow of the head in return. However, she was also feeling uneasy, as if this would be the last time she would see Jikan in her mortal lifetime. Still, this enlistment of such a powerful soldier had particular impact on her smile, for she knew the truth about the importance of the soldier of time.
Jikan's image began to ripple out of the room slightly, causing the young princess to grip her mother's gown tightly in fear of the strange and unknown. The mists of the room also began to swirl, coming to a point at the tip of his staff and being consumed by the eerie glow. Jikan smiled lightly, speaking as his appearance was fading from her sight. "You shall forget, princess of the Moon, yet see me once more when you have become the protector of the Galaxy, the soldier and Messiah," he said before disappearing in the final wisp of haze, leaving the two standing alone in the unimpressive room.
"Mother? Who is Jikan?" she asked, looking up at the Queen.
The Queen looked down at her daughter, smiling weakly but holding her just as tightly. "My dear moon bunny," she said, pushing her hair back from her brow to see her beautiful blue eyes, "there is someone you will meet one day. She is one of the sacred soldiers. Her name is Sailor Pluto."
Standing amidst all of the chaos and death that had assaulted her, Usagi felt much like a little girl again. "Jikan," she said, her lips almost unable to press out the name.
Shadings of her lost past were coming back to her like a coming tide, moving in and receding in a maddening pulse of memory and time. Yet while her entire world was seeming to crumble, the appearance of the man she had once forgotten made her feel that same unnerving feeling that approached whenever Yamito did, the sickly welling in her stomach of power and darkness, yet also light. Upon feeling this, many things clicked inside of her. Her eyes widened. Her mother had once called this man Chronus, the god of time and father to Sailor Pluto. Yet, this also caused her to stare forward at Yamito, the feral creature now standing with a lifeless Rei in his arm. Their auras were so attuned that Usagi stepped back, finally fearing what she hoped would never be true.
Yet, as Jikan spoke, her fears were only amplified into sheer helplessness. "Yes, it is time. The finality of this endeavor has begun and the final act begins. Now to the purpose," Jikan stated, the room around him beginning to distort.
All of them felt it, the wavering support of their reality shearing away into a false acceptance of existence. Not even Eve could bear this incredible change, for she screamed out and cradled her stomach just as light began to show inside of her. The appearance of the light caused a stir in Yamito and his wild eyes began to thrash about, causing his black wings to spread further and his aura of fire to flicker more. Usagi and the others feared another incident of total fire, yet Jikan simply waved his staff in front of him slightly and the beast fixed his dark gaze to him.
"You are nothing to me! I am a god now!" Yamito raged, his voice imposed over a growling, deep groan that signaled the duality of his existence. With the boast, a massive ball of fire appeared before him, called upon by the true depth of his new power. It seared the air around them all once more, yet Jikan simply brushed his hand through the air and the fire disappeared. Yamito was taken back a moment, yet tried again. This time the fireball was hurled through the air, yet it simply faltered and extinguished before reaching Jikan. All of the girls were in awe at the dominance of will, yet Yamito still raged in the face of a new servitude.
Jikan parted lips to speak, using the same voice that had soothed and frightened Princess Serenity so many years ago. "We shall see. The human known as Yamito has truly ascended any limit of this reality, but he has yet to become a god," he said casually.
"What?" Yamito roared, attempting to stretch his powers once more.
Usagi was then very surprised when Jikan turned to her, giving his back to the dangerous Yamito and offering her a very comforting smile. "As foretold, we meet again, soldier of the Moon. You do remember me fully now? I feared in the face of the impending battle, the Higekitai had robbed you of any clear moment to search your past."
Usagi was very nervous, very overwhelmed, but nodded slowly and took a step forward, almost as afraid of this figure as she was of Yamito's new power and madness. "Chronus-sama…" she whispered, though the name had never crossed her lips before. All of the others gasped, looking at him with utmost awe, for they all knew the name but never would have imagined the moment of meeting a god of infinite legend.
Jikan smiled, utterly ignoring Yamito. "The last mortal to speak that name to me was your mother, though countless others have cried it out. Are you fully prepared for the end of this?" he asked, though it caused a tremor of fear to pulse through her again. The thought of fighting Yamito thrashed her soul, yet the lifeless form of Rei in his arm demanded her purest emotions. Her friends around her stirred and she felt an overwhelming fright at their fates, yet she clutched a hand to her chest and nodded, able to make the hard decision as she had done many times before. Each of the others responded with determination, also able to fulfill their duties.
In response, Jikan seemed very pleased. "Very well," he said, "let this be the beginning."
Suddenly, there was a white flash of light and the place was chilled. When this moment of relief from the heat passed, Eternal Sailor Moon looked to find them all standing on the surface of the moon, the ruins of the lost Silver Millennium spread all around and an entire new number of participants around them. Every senshi was present, save for the absent influence of a sleeping Sailor Saturn. Even Sailor Pluto was now present, standing close to Jikan in terms of silence and doubt. All were restored to full capacity and even Sailor Star Mars was erect, looking about with a very confused look, obviously turned every which way by the abrupt darkness of her light, snuffed by the hand of her beloved. Yet, she stood now as if nothing was amiss. Sailor Star Jupiter was on her feet and astounded, her back pressed soulfully against a silent Kage, the man who looked about with the eyes of a dragon. Suteki and Kurai were also present, situated close to their counterparts with utter confusion latent in their stares. Eve was still engrossed with the light in her bosom, yet made no sound. Most importantly, however, was Prince Endymion, who stood adjacent to a much relieved Sailor Moon.
Just as life coursed swiftly, these moments passed so quickly that each of them had barely enough time to breathe before reality moved on.
The only figure not animated was Yamito, who now floated next to Jikan on the opposite side of Sailor Pluto. All attention wandered to the three figures, yet the ghostly images of the Silver Millennium passing and fading around them caused silent stirring, but never taking away the duly deserved attention.
"Your trials and tribulations have all led to this single moment in time. The Scion, whose entire universe was destroyed by Anubis, have arrived at their designated crossroads. The Sailor senshi, who shared this danger because of the love in their hearts, have taken these steps as well. Death and life have been your muses, love and loss have been your epics. Yet, I stand here before you not to prepare you for battle, but for commencement," Jikan said, seeming pleased with the result of cosmic analogy.
"Commencement?" Sailor Moon repeated.
Jikan looked then to the side just as Eve broke the mood with a howling scream. All eyes fell on her as the light inside began to consume her, taking her body into a blinding light and soon becoming nothing more than a glowing form of power. None of the others had been paying attention to her since the arrival of Jikan, yet now all eyes darted to her and her agonizing screams. The role of this provisional villain had come to a swift and lackluster end, for the true force behind the malevolence of the worlds was about to reveal itself. Sailor Moon recognized it instantly and went on her guard, feeling once more threatened even after Jikan's comforting, if not cryptic, words. "Anubis!" she cried, making the others instantly flare into attention as well, but then all were awed once more as the power field fell away to reveal a figure bathed in white light.
He was beautiful and ornate, wearing gold and white gowns that caused his entire presence to glow. Glowing strands of blonde hair cascaded around his kind face and all who looked upon him were instantly soothed. This was not the Anubis that had threatened so many and killed so many more, but was the essence of their conflict. Confusion was the better part of silence as all eyes followed the figure as it approached Jikan and rested his arms along his shoulders. The two spent a moment in a silent greeting, though there was nothing about the silence in the minds of the onlookers. This pastel truth about Anubis, Eve and Chronus all sent frays through their understanding of the situation, for this ambient figure was the name and number of the evils that had befallen them.
"Hyperion…" Jikan said finally, then turning and letting the figure finish his final function.
The man was Jikan's kin. His true name and role had been denied even Sailor Pluto until only after she had been forbidden from taking an active role in the things that were to come. Eve's beauty and purity of light resonated him, for he had shed the costume known as Anubis and was free to witness the end of the scene.
Yet there was far more to him that merely playing the part. Hyperion shifted his celestial eyes toward Sailor Moon, a smile crossing his face that forced her to wince. He moved to her with affection in his eyes and a longing in his hands. For the passing of an eternity, the kind only Cronus could truly reconcile, he had longed to touch her face and speak to her, even though his own duties would hardly allow it. Yet now was a rare opportunity and one not easily let go.
Hyperion reached out and touched her cheek with the tips of his fingers, wanting to tell her so much but unable to do so. It was his legacy that instilled so much destiny into her. Her mother, the once-queen of the Silver Millennium, had also professed the desire to touch the child once more, yet there were things that even gods could not do. How beautiful it would have been to tell Sailor Moon of her mother; how she sat proudly among those in the Pantheon and warped the universe so her child could shine. Those standing high spoke to her as Phoebe, goddess of the moon and child of the same Hyperion that fit forever in the simple touch of a hand.
Sailor Moon felt a piece of this in her grandfather's touch, yet the entirety of it was lost in his brilliance. Although he said nothing, she felt the love and affection of a family. If possible, she would have asked Jikan to stop time so she could ask her unanswered questions. She would forget Hyperion had played the part of antagonist. She would forget that he had been the center of the tragedy that was focused on the Scion. She would even forget that this entire façade had been staged by beings she could barely conceive of, a group that included the celestial roots of her family tree. She would do it all if she was allowed the truth behind all of this.
Hyperion had played his part, the villain that would forge a god from man, in order for this one moment with his granddaughter. He had volunteered for the part simply for that reason. All of the things he had done as Anubis and his kin were for the purpose – to coddle the Scion Yamito to this very point. Only gods could justify such heinous actions upon mortals. Hyperion even considered allowing her the truths of the situation – as a gift from a loving grandfather. But Hyperion was not able to give it to her. Touching her for just a moment was more than he wished for, but his role had been fulfilled.
Without revealing to her the truths of her existence, Hyperion faded away before her as if he had been nothing more than a dream. The others were simply shocked they were denied answers, but Sailor Moon choked a moment – as if she was able to realize the magnitude of what she had just missed out on.
Anubis, Eve and Hyperion, three names that were all the same, became the previous act and the interlude that brought about the conclusion to it all.
All of them looked to Jikan, expecting a quick resolution of all of this confusion. To this, however, Jikan simply turned a warm look onto Sailor Pluto and seemed to let the moments pass by in pure, sinful silence. To perform such an act would have surely brought protest, yet Sailor Pluto nodded solemnly and proceeded to advance forward to Sailor Moon and Prince Endymion.
The two, along with the others, were very anxious to hear what she had to say. With heavy eyes, but infinitely affectionate tones, she began to explain. "I am sorry, my friends, that I have been unable to assist. As you know, I must serve the Gate of Time as my service to this realm and also to the Queen of the Moon. This was a task assigned to me by the Queen Serenity countless ages before, but it was only under the blessing of my father and beloved, the god of time, Chronus," she said, smiling lightly as the reactions of them all were varied and even humorous. Dismissing the explanation of relevant title and position among the gods, she bowed deeply to them all as a sort of grave reminder of the things that had transpired. "I offer this not as an excuse but explanation of why I was not allowed to interfere – why I was not able to tell you of the terrible fates each of you would realize all for the sake of this one boy," she continued, looking to Yamito to draw their attention to the importance of the moment.
While all of them looked on, Sailor Moon's eyes wandered from Yamito to Sailor Pluto, and then to Jikan. Her heart raced once more as she faced the true dominance of a god, yet she spoke so softly that miles of ocean glass could have been captures inside of her whimpering eyes, "What commencement did Jikan mean?"
Sailor Pluto looked back to her, happy that it was finally time to reveal these things, and tried to hide the true terror of the truth behind a weak smile. "My friends, something that has never before transpired has happened to this boy, Kurobashi Yamito. The Pantheon, the highest order of gods and goddesses, has recognized that a human has attained such a level of existence that he may now be considered part of them," she said with no lack of pertinence.
The paling moment when all truths seem transparent fell across the collection of senshi, princes and humans like a storm, taking each of them from the moment they had seen Yamito as a friend to the moment where they all viewed him for what he really was. This moment was hardest on Sailor Mars, who closed her eyes fiercely, for she knew from the moment her heart had been given to him and she asked the terrible question of who he was, that this was the inevitable answer.
But for Sailor Moon, it was a totally surreal feeling. "Yamito? A god?" she asked.
"A phoenix, actually – a being with the ability to grant life and death with the fires in its very existence. Never before has someone of your realm been able to attain this level of existence, thus the celebration. You are all witness to the birth of a new god from your own kin," Jikan said plainly, presenting Yamito like he was merely a showpiece for them all.
It was a boulder to swallow. Each of them held a particular thread of the heart when it came to Yamito, yet this truth had snuck up on each of them before this moment. All knew that Yamito was different, that he was not even on equal ground with the Scion of the Moon. They even knew, upon seeing the power demonstrated in the park in Tokyo, that he had surpasses all levels of understanding in terms of ability and destiny. He was simply different from them all. He was able to ascend to immortality.
"No," said a voice from among the crowd, causing each to turn. All eyes fell naturally on Sailor Mars, who had the most powerful stake in this entire end. With her fists clenched at her side, she forced forward through them all until she came face to face with the god of time, her lip quivering defiantly against him. "You are going to tell me that my part you spoke of was to simply help Yamito become some god? Are you saying my love for him means nothing?!" she cried, fighting this growing delusion that she could somehow fight her way through the power and will of a god to keep something so dear to her.
Jikan looked down at her with a pallid look, his lips parting in a scripted response, "What is the power of love compared to the absolute of infinity?"
The response, even from a god, set poorly among all of them. Sailor Mars flared in anger and further defied a being of cherished prowess. "Love is the only power that goes beyond the gods! The gods may spread across the Universe, but only our love permeates every being, every life. My love for Yamito is more powerful than your entire Pantheon!" she cried, simply daring him to show his omnipotence and deny her this pain she was feeling. Regardless of the sanity in assaulting a god, her heart would demand no less of her for she was a girl whose heart was beating fast and furiously for a lover she could no more live without than the air she breathed.
However, her soul sang as the presence of those behind her began to chime, starting with Sailor Moon stepping up to her side with a deep desire to defy these gods and save someone she deeply cared for. Many of them supported the tortured senshi, standing close behind her and silently offering the foundation for an insurrection of life itself. Even as Sailor Pluto remained silent at his own side, Jikan was aware of her feelings. As much as the insolence of the mortal would have enraged the gods, Jikan remained neutral to their taunts, indifferent to their appeals.
He did, however, turn his head to Yamito. "An entire universe was crushed for the sake of this boy, the lives of the many sacrificed and the innocent dissolved. Your loved ones make a passionate plea for your fate, child of fire, yet there is only one that may make this choice. Are you ready to realize your destiny?" he asked.
As if commanded, Yamito's eyes opened and he stood weakly on his own, acting very much as if he were drained of all of his immense power but remaining strong enough to face them all. His lips were dry and his tongue offered no relief, while his eyes burned with every passing moment. No part of his fragile body escaped the aching of his destined powers, and he could not find relief past the sight of his loved ones standing to his right. Jikan and Sailor Pluto stood to his left, watching him with every passing moment. It was the realization that all of his life, all of his pain and the suffering of his loved ones came down to this destination that caused him to grip his head, his fingers pulling harshly at his hair. To choose between the gods and men was an epic malice, yet it had settled upon Yamito as simply as left or right. Truly, the weight of entire universes had fallen on him, yet there was one place he could look to find relief.
Sailor Mars met his eyes with the propensity to blur, her heart pulsing with each movement of his body and every purpose of his breath. She watched every twitch of his black wings, every shudder of his frail body, yet somehow was able to hold her smile for him, to offer him the support he needed. That last moment before she saw the creature in him, this phoenix so regarded by the Pantheon, she had felt an overwhelming surge of mourning, as if this would be the last moment she would truly be with him. Although she wasn't exactly sure what had happened when she was thrown into eternal passing, the mere fact that she had returned was sign enough that it was her purpose in this entire endeavor to be with him – to anchor him to the life he had always wanted. "Yami-chan…" she said, taking a step closer to him with a longing raise of her hand.
To her surprise, he stepped back, darting his head away from her and his eyes were set wide and afire. It hurt her, causing her to blink in confusion and lower her hand slowly as the longing love of her insanity was slipping further and further away. As much as she questioned his reaction, her heart felt truly hollowed when he began to move and speak. "Rei," he said, putting a shaking hand across his face and stiffly moving his body as if it were a strange thing to be attached to, "I can't feel my hands. I keep seeing these horrible images in my head."
As if nothing existed beyond their two hearts, Sailor Mars stepped towards him again and tried to suppress her frown, having a fine inclination as to what images he could be seeing. When he looked up at her, the blazing look in his eyes told her that he had indeed remembered what happened. "Did I…" he said, taking another step back from her and looking at her as if he had done the most heinous deed to her, even as she still approached. It was a horrible scene with pathetic players, but it played on.
"It's okay. It wasn't you," she replied, still moving towards him even as his single step parried her two. She knew forever that he would never harm her, and that her fleeting eternity had merely been the expansion of this thing growing in him. Still, there was no sweeter blade than the stroke of love, so she had no reservations at daring to touch him again.
Yamito still felt unstable, but submitted to her touch. However, just as the clarity of her hand touched his skin, Jikan's voice broke the tender moment in a moment of complete cruelty. "To quote a human adage, 'time waits for no man.' You are aware of the situation?" he said firmly.
Yamito relished the touch for a single moment, then reach up and took Sailor Mars's hand away. Holding it a moment, he then let her go and faced the impelling god, his face carefully construed in resentment and morbid curiosity. "You mean to tell me that my whole world was destroyed, my best friend was killed and my entire life was ruined all because you gods wanted me to join you? All of this death and suffering just for my ascension into immortality?" said the shaken boy.
Jikan smiled a very wry smile, his very presence seeming to emanate from the depth of his stature. "What are gods for, if not to make the troupe play?" he replied.
The response sent a wave of emotions through the group, but only Yamito felt truly outraged by the callous indifference in the eyes of the infamous god. Taking a threatening step towards him, he dared to call himself menacing and showed a glimpse of the power inside beyond the phoenix – the power of his soul. "Why would I wish to become a heartless creature that holds no value on the lives of the innocent?" he yelled.
"Spare me your moral uprising, young phoenix. You shout at the storm while peeking out a hole. Perspective is the essence of understanding, so you may not pretend to matter until you have truly seen with eyes opened. However, we are prepared to make amends to your bellicose spirit. All worlds everywhere are nothing more than dreams, to be made and broken with the mind. With the powers you will command, you may return things exactly how they were, with no death or suffering. Your friends will resume their lives, your past amended. The events leading to this grand ascension will be completely relegated to oblivion," Jikan said, pushing his staff forward to present him with a glistening bubble. In the bubble, an image of the world of the Scion appeared, with the lives returned to normal. A flowery picture of Ryu going through his daily life hit Yamito deeply, with the following faces of Suteki and Kurai commanding his breath. Even Kage was renewed, with a young Mika carried on his shoulders, and he seemed so pure. All of this caused Yamito's anger to fade, for his greatest wish was within his grasp.
For a moment, he could not look away. The beauty of his unspoiled world tempted his soul, for it was the result he long desired for this hell of ascension. Each of the others also saw this, catching them in its web of appeal and causing the former Scion to show keen interest. It was a dream realized; a painless end to a story that had consumed them and caused them to fray at the ends. This was no singularly standard option, yet the entire affair had unraveled as nothing more than the furthest extents of the ordinary – a battle not fought and tragedy not suffered.
Yet, Yamito looked away to the eyes of a silent Sailor Mars, eager to have his will coddled and his frayed edges mended. However, this was also heavy for her. The soldier in her demanded that he command this power to return all the death to life. It was righteous to sacrifice the point for the line, so that countless lives would be alight. Yet, the person in her would not let him get out of reach. The human in her would not consider forgetting they had ever met. The heart in her refused to stop loving him. This was all in her eyes, those violet pools of eternal vigilance that would not allow him to make the choice carelessly.
"Rei…" he said, twisted and contorted inside as this battle of conscience and condition. Even the paling smile of Sailor Moon and the wise endearment of Endymion only proved to make this complete agony for him. Yet, in his greatest moment of tribulation, it was his kin that came to his aid.
"The logical conclusion is that destiny is unalterable – that the events of our lives are what makes us who we are now," said Kurai, pulling the weary eyes of Yamito to him. With an affectionate glance to Sailor Mercury, he smiled weakly and attempted to adjust the broken glasses on his nose, the moral fortitude of his being satisfied by his meek understanding of causality.
Suteki was quick to join, pumping a fist in the air and offering his own brand of entanglement of the situation. "Hell ya! I dunno if it's right to cause so much destruction just to get a rookie, but all I know is that I've found the one girl anywhere that has a wilder side than me! I deserve to be selfish and want the best!" Of course, his shoulder was quickly punched by a steaming Sailor Venus over his scandalous remark, but Yamito was able to feel the pressure of his posture lifted at the support of his friends.
And then, he looked to his one great bane.
Kage was staring into the bubble, his eyes lit up by the images of Mika. While all eyes fell on him, his Ryuugan were glowing more fiercely than they had ever dared, for what he saw was the ultimate form of revenge – pure acquittal. However, his eyes soon rose to his great foe, the reflection of Yamito burned into the hues of green and gold in those mystical eyes. "All I've ever wanted is in that bubble. My life, my sins…are slated clean when my rival lifts out of my reach. To see my world, to hold my sister again…" he began, but a shifting of his tattered uniform caused him to stop. All hearts fell silent as Sailor Jupiter stood behind him, her hand grasped tightly around the remnants of his shirt and pulling them with the weight of her arm. Her forehead was pressed into his back; her eyes hidden fiercely from the world. It was sounded without words that her heart would not return to the hapless station it had subscribed to before meeting Kage, the destitute yearning of the love that she had fought for and attained.
For this tender act of love, Kage's lips turned slightly, causing him to appear in a splendid new light. He appeared as a reflection of the image in the bubble, a soul free from the whole of loss. "Nothing's more important to me than Makoto," he said simply. Behind him, Sailor Jupiter's lips turned into a weak smile and her hand grasped the material even tighter. In the end of their tragic love story, it was the one answer she had been longing to hear above all others.
Yamito found an odd sense of sensibility in his rival's conclusion, yet this choice was still a mountain before him. Turning back to Sailor Mars, he took her hand softly and pleaded with her to decide for him. For this, she just shook her head and looked up at him, biting her bottom lip to keep her from crying out for him to remain with her. Even as a sideward glance to Sailor Moon only offered more torture for a correct answer, he found a sort of peace in her blue eyes. Standing next to her prince, she struck him as being the perfect being. Not even Chronus seemed as pure as she, for great power became nothing more than useless title when not bound by a founding principle or ideal to fight for. When founded in simple being, power was pathetic. Usagi's love had served Yamito to an end that even he did not understand, yet when he finally turned back to Jikan, his visage reflected nothing short of unadulterated confidence in choice.
"The gods are cruel to ask me to choose between love and life. It shakes my very soul to think that I would have to become like you in order to serve the good of the ones I love," he snarled.
Jikan seemed indifferent as ever, yet gave a calming glance to Sailor Mars. "There is no loss of love in the gods. Conversely, you will experience affection far beyond human understanding. Looking at your feet, you cannot tell you are standing on a mountain," he replied, giving a glance over to Sailor Pluto now. His cryptic words had long since perturbed them all, yet she alone knew that truth and returned his glance with undying acknowledgement. Only they two knew what it was to be gods. Jikan, looking back to Yamito, offered one more pallid smile and the final clause for his ascension. "Being among our kin does not mean you are loveless. Truly, you may exist in an infinite prowess, being at a thousand places at once, yet still bring your love with the Princess of Mars to pass. That is what it means to be a god – to experience the whole of existence in a single thought, yet remain singular in your pursuits of heart, mind and soul."
It was over. Jikan set his staff into the ground at his side and said no more, for all he was to do had been done, all he must say being said. There was nothing left but a choice now; the choice – but also, the end that Jikan knew would come to pass. He was, after all, the god of time.
This story had come to an end that none of them had perceived, for it was the hand of the gods that turned it into a superlative decision. Their enemy had been a mask, their suffering nothing more than a thought to be dismissed and their one among them – a flowering deity. This was not a story of battles, but a story of choices. It was a story of love.
As Yamito turned back to Sailor Mars, Sailor Moon and all of his friends, he knew that he would end the story with a single thought. In that thought, that peaceful moment of commitment to the choice, Yamito's great power engulfed them all.
Yamito made the only choice.