Silver Millennium Part 1: The Dominion of Knights

by Bruteaous

Serenity is no longer unguarded. She has her first guardians against the darkness: the knights, but the planets are still not united. Setsuna, the oldest of the senshi, grew up during this time. See the Silver Millennium through her eyes.

2. Security Council

Chapter 2: Security Council

Second Millennia of Queen Seda Selene Serenity II's Reign year 1339

Galapagos, the first moon of Saturn

Castle Neia

Planetary Security Council

A lone purple moon stood vigil on the dark side of Saturn. Upon its surface rested a large crystal castle surrounded by stone walls twenty feet high and ten feet wide. Within this wall or there in lies a gate, ten feet high, sporting five feet deep iron doors to offer either entrance or eviction. From the gate sprang a cobble stone road with pairs of armored Galapagos knights patrolling up and down its path. The road led to a great crystal castle which was named Neia, after Saturn's first queen, and all the queens whom have followed in her namesake.

Within the castle their sat gathered at a great round table, a host of nobles from every planet in this solar system. Queen Serenity sat in a large throne like chair at the front of the table flanked by King Ares of Mars and King Lucious of Mercury. On the Luniarian queen's other side sat the following: King Marsalla of Jupiter, Queen Aphrodite of Venus, King Aegelle of Uranus, Emperor Mariner of Neptune, Queen Neia IV of Saturn and last but not least: King Cronous of Pluto.

All of these noble leaders had been called to Saturn's remote moon for one sole purpose: to establish peace throughout the Moon kingdom. For several years now the planets have been bickering and warring amongst themselves. This was tolerated by even the most pacifistic of governments until the knights of Queen Serenity found an evil greater than any one planet of the Moon Kingdom could hope to defeat on their own. For this reason, it was essential that the inner and outer planets settle their differences for the power to conquer this evil.

"This is insane!" King Marsalla of Jupiter argued as he slammed his fists down on the crystal table, cracking it internally. "We have not had a full scale declaration of war within our own borders since the formation of our Kingdom as a unified body. Think rulers, this will mean more than just sacrifices will have to be made. Ask yourselves is this in the best interests of all of our planets? Of our peoples even? "

"Think of it Marsalla as a chance to prove to the rest of the universe that your people are not as backed up or uncivilized as they have proven to be here, under your arrogant leadership." King Lucious of Mercury spoke up coolly while calmly resting his chin upon his hands which were held up by his elbows on the table. The ice king had long since been at odds with the stormy monarch of Jupiter and was eager to trouble his adversary and watch him squirm. "Honestly Marsalla, do not be rash think of this…think of this as a course of better action, not for your planet alone, but for the entire kingdom as a whole."

The enraged king of Jupiter stood up, his emerald cloak clashing with the lightening of emotions in his narrowing eyes of the same color. "Do not preach to me Lucious, for I am not a pawn to be played!"

"Be that or be it not, the board is ready and the pieces have being set into place." King Lucious countered rubbing his chin thoughtfully with the back of his hand, "Whether they are moved against their will or not the pieces are still set to play, so lets not disappoint them. Shall we speak of terms then?"

"Splendid Ideal, Lucious." Queen Aphrodite of Venus agreed batting her lashes and smiling slyly at the ice king before addressing the entire table. "We have long been supporters of peace on my planet, I do not see why the other planets may not see things the same way…"

"That is because you and your people are weak." Interrupted the impatient King Ares of Mars, his ebony eyes flashing dangerous warnings to the queen of Venus not to continue any further in this discussion. Ares sat straight up in his ebony armor and tensed slightly in his seat, very much ready for the proceedings to be over with. "Your planet has surrendered in every war they've ever fought in."

"That is because we are lovers not raging brutes who marry a good deal more than their fair share, and for lust alone no less." Aphrodite retorted in disgust of the Marian culture, the golden blonde of her hair showing in the dim light of Saturn's second moon. "I see you are jealous, no?"

"No." Ares stated as calmly as his bristling temper would allow, but still with added warning in his voice. The Marian king was loosing his temper, and he did not know how long he could put up with the antics of the Venian queen and her pacifist court. The short dark hair on the back of his neck stood on end and his warrior blood began to boil as complete silence reigned between him and his life long enemy, "You try my patience, woman."

"Good." Aphrodite replied with a smirk of defiance to her old adversary, "Someone has to knock the mighty Ares off from his high horse."

That broke that last little red thread which had reined in Ares temper and he stood up sending his fist down upon the table with great force, his great scarlet cloak flying out from under him as he vacated his seat.

"If you are looking for a war between races then by all means continue on your path, but I will be damned if I will listen to your infernal complaints and insistent speeches without putting you in your rightful place!!" Ares roared across the table as Aphrodite remained indifferent to his outburst.

"And where is my place exactly, oh great Ares, mightiest of all the Marians?" Aphrodite asked sarcastically, crossing her arms stubbornly over her chest.

"At the end of a chain, of course! At the mercy of my beating like any slave!" Ares roared fiercely, his ebony eyes blazing with untamed flames of rage for the woman ahead of him.

"Silence! Calm down all of you!" Queen Serenity beckoned by slamming a book down on the table causing hairline fractures in the crystal of its surface, silencing the bickering monarchs. "Kings Marsalla and Ares sit in your designated seats, please. As for the rest of you, we are here for talks of peace between the planets and of how to fight this new enemy not to start more wars between ourselves. What was the purpose of our forming this kingdom, if not for hope. Let us not forget that it was out of faith of something righteous that we have come to where we are today. Out of this union for hundreds of years we had fashioned peace and now our peace is being threatened by beings whom my knights have informed me, wear no proud insignia and kill in darkness. They are more terrible and more powerful than any threat we have ever faced and they will destroy us all if we do not unite against them."

"Who are they, my Queen?" King Aegelle of Uranus asked, always perceptive, his sandy blonde hair glowing faintly in the pale moonlight.

"They call themselves the Dark Kingdom and they are led by a Queen known as Metallia, whom is the most cold and ruthless of them all. She will stop at nothing to defeat us." Queen Serenity answered her friend's inquiry gravely.

King Cronous of Pluto starred at the table ahead of him pondering what could be done to thwart the plans of this new enemy. The Plutonian king often had visions of the future and so he knew that this time was coming, but the question was what to do. His garnet eyes showed with fierce determination to purge this universe of the suffering it would most likely face. "What of your knights Serenity? Can they not hold out under the onslaught until all of the final preparations have been made?"

"No." the Queen said sadly, her cobalt eyes shinning with unshed and hidden tears, "My Paladins first encountered troops of the self proclaimed Dark Kingdom on the moon Naith and thus failed miserably loosing almost half of their numbers to those merciless creatures. Since then, they have lamented for they are not strong enough."

Some of Serenity's knights stationed dormant near the great doors of the room hung their heads in shame, for they had failed their queen. One knight in particular wearing a garnet cloak hung his head in shame, because of the eyes of the queen of Saturn boring into him vehemently .

"What of your planet's knights Neia ?" Emperor Mariner of Neptune asked the queen of Saturn calmly, quickly gaining her full attention. "Are they not very strong, equivalent in strength and if not more so than those of the moon?"

"No. They are powerful, but after they are unleashed, their hatred for the enemy will be so great that it will reflect upon us all and we will cease to exist while our worlds will become nothing more than a distant memory." Neia, queen of Saturn spoke up sadly, true fear in amethyst eyes, "If they are unleashed then they will destroy every inch of life in this universe, without my control. I am afraid Serenity speaks the truth."

A torrent of dissatisfied and fearful mumbles erupted throughout the chamber.

"At the end of this dark tunnel there is but one light." Queen Serenity stated calmly wiping the tears away from her eyes where they were threatening to fall, "My seers tell me that the final battle which will decide our fates will not come to us for two more millennia, but we must be cautious for although the battle is waylaid, the war is still coming. Now back to peace negotiations, how may we settle this matter so that we shall be able to keep the apparent threat sedated? Suggestions?"

-----

A knight left through the castle's wooden doors, glad to be clear of that stuffy meeting. He donned his woolen cloak and put the hood up to keep his head dry of the lightly falling shower. His eyes shown the brightest shade of cobalt as the lightening struck down on the ground and illuminated their depths. His short ebony hair was hidden under the hood of his cloak and matched his ebony colored armor. He pulled the garnet curtain of his cloak around him in an attempt to keep the rain water from dripping down his armor.

The knight had been dumbfounded by the arguments which had occurred during the meeting. He had always been taught that ruling royalty must always have control over their emotions because it was to be expected that the royalty would be able to act rationally in a situation when most others would not. Apparently this distinction could not always be proved to be true.

The knight then heard a noise, it sounded like a sneeze coming from close by.

The young knight tensed and stood from where he had been leaning against the castle walls. There it was again. The sound was most definitely a sneeze. The young knight walked towards the sound and was led around the corner of a palace wall. It was then that the young noble man first beheld her.

A young girl in her early teens late adolescence maybe wearing a garnet gown matching her eyes. Possessing long dark green hair, surely as soft as silk and beautiful garnet eyes as deep and vast as any ocean could ever be. Her skin was lightly coffee colored and had a soft sheen to it that the young knight longed to be able touch. The young knight walked unnoticed up behind her and was content to just watch her.

Then the source of the noise he had heard earlier was confirmed as the young girl sneezed again into a handkerchief.

"Bless you, princess." the young knight said before he could stop the words from leaving his mouth.

Then the thought crossed his mind, he had called her princess, he did not even know for sure whether she was royalty or not, although the rich color and fabric of her gown almost completely assured it.

The young girl jumped at the unexpected voice from behind her and instinctively tensed as she backed slowly away from the young knight whom was stuttering apologies.

"Who in the name of the stars are you?" the girl asked frightened and yet curious about the furiously blushing and stammering creature standing before her.

"I…I…I am Nathaniel of the royal house of Saturn and a Campaigning knight of Queen Serenity of the Moon Kingdom." the young knight stammered finally finding his voice. He felt the heat on his face and sincerely hoped that the redness of his embarrassment did not show on his cheeks.

The girl studied him for a minute and cocked her head to one side to see under his hood better, "Please, will you be so kind as to remove your hood so that I may see the rest of your face."

"Certainly, my lady." Nathaniel replied without hesitation removing the hood of his outer cloak to reveal all of his still reddened face and his short tousled ebony hair. "If I may be so bold to ask, what is your name, my lady?"

After several minutes of studying the young knight's demeanor and physical features, the girl decided to confide in him. With a slight smile she indulged his question.

"I am Meioh Setsuna, daughter of King Cronous of Pluto." the girl answered softly. Then she sneezed again and Nathaniel noticed for the first time that she was dripping wet from the rain.

"Here." Nathaniel stepped over towards Setsuna and undid the silver fastenings of his cloak and was about to put it around her shoulders when the young girl backed away from him. The thought occurred to him that this girl did not trust him yet and might still fear him due to their recent meeting, "It's alright, truly there is nothing to be frightened of."

Setsuna met his cobalt gaze with her own garnet one and decided that he was trust worthy enough. "Thank you, but won't you be cold? Your armor might get wet." Setsuna asked worriedly.

"Its fine. Wet armor or a cold knight is better than a sniffling princess." Nathaniel answered with a dashing smile, touched by the concern that the young princess already had for him. He slipped the cloak on to her shoulders and allowed her to fasten the silver fastens on the front to hold it on her slim form.

"What are you doing here on Galapagos?" Setsuna asked curious to the young knight's travel plans.

"I am here for talks of peace with my queen." Nathaniel replied facing Setsuna.

"For how long?" Setsuna asked curiously.

"For about two weeks." Came Nathaniel's answer. He was trying to muster up all of his courage to ask the princess for one thing that would dearly please his heart, "My princess, I was-"

"Setsuna." Setsuna interrupted and corrected Nathaniel's formal way of addressing her.

"What?" Nathaniel asked somewhat confused by the interruption.

Setsuna smiled and laughed warmly, admiring the cute expression of confusion on Nathaniel's face which was only escalated by the amused joy in his cobalt eyes.

"You may please call me Setsuna, there is to be no formalities between us." Setsuna said smiling up at the knight whom she found cutely confused.

"Alright,…Setsuna would you like to accompany me on a walk through the castle gardens? I have heard that they are particularly beautiful this time of the year." Nathaniel asked sheepishly rubbing the back of his head nervously with his hand. Nathaniel starred down at his feet thinking how corny that must have just sounded. Here he was asking the most beautiful girl he had ever set eyes on to go for a walk with him on the first day that he had met her.

"I would love to." Setsuna's smooth voice jarred Nathaniel out of his revere.

He starred at her with his jaw slightly a slack, disbelieving what he had just heard come out from her lips.

"You would?" Nathaniel asked still looking at her disbelievingly.

Setsuna covered her mouth to silence her giggles. Then she brought one of her fingers up to his lips to silence any potential further questions.

"Yes, I would love to go on a walk with you, Nathaniel." Setsuna replied with a enchanting smile.

Nathaniel returned the smile she was giving him and offered her his arm, leading her to the rare and beautiful gardens of Galapagos.

"The Dark Kingdom claims that they have stumbled upon a power which has the ability to destroy all life, human or otherwise at will." Queen Serenity said assessing the potential power of her enemies to her fellow rulers. "We must prevent this power's coming at all costs. That concludes the analysis of the enemy and its whereabouts, now are there any questions? "

"Would it be possible to learn how to master such a power?" King Marsalla of Jupiter asked subconsciously out loud leaning back in his seat, his suddenly void emerald eyes never leaving the cracks upon the crystal of the table where his powerful fists had damaged the delicate material. The light crystal cracks seemed to change substance from clear crystal to obsidian glass as dark as the dirt of the ground right in front of the King of Jupiter's eyes as he starred down into them. He bent his head low in thought at this sight, his blazing emerald eyes never leaving the darkening cracks of the table, as the golden crown upon his brown haired head sparkled in the light of the chandlers above the royals' heads. "It would be dangerous and consuming ,yes, and yet is there not a royal here at this table who does not yearn for such a power?"

The other royals starred at him silent and aghast. Had he really meant what he had just said? Did he really intend to master this dark power which had the ability to destroy them all? Or was it simply some dastardly theory which he had mistakenly stated out loud?

"What did you mean by that?" Queen Neia of Saturn asked, quite frightened by the prospect of a rash man as Marsalla mastering such a deadly power.

The King of Jupiter looked up from his musings, not entirely surprised that his fellow monarchs had heard him at all. Instead his face remained grave until he forced a small cynical smile in Queen Serenity's direction. "I was simply theorizing, if one of our own warriors were to convert to this heresy of power, what then would happen? For example, if a powerful knight were to convert…what a shame would that be…to know absolute power in another form…what a shame would that be. It is a perfectly logical thought, friends, is it not?"

Everyone was silent for a moment, no one wanting to be the first to confront the possibility that one of there own would wonder such things. Queen Serenity was the first to break the silence, ignoring King Marsalla's disturbing statement.

"Now that the information on our enemy has been sorted out, let's move on to military provisions shall we?"

-----

"For you." Nathaniel said as he handed Setsuna a beautiful dark purple rose. "A Saturnarian rose."

Setsuna accepted the rose gracefully. She loved these roses, even more so than the ones native to her own planet. It was a devastatingly beautiful flower which bloomed in a rare and lovely color, with an enticing yet subtle fragrance. Such a flower just went to prove that great things may be subtle, but worth enjoying.

"Thank You." Setsuna said sweetly and Nathaniel averted his gaze away from her as his cheeks turned a dark shade of pink once again. "It was so thoughtful of you. I have a question though, how did you know that the Saturnarian rose was my favorite flower?"

"I Read you heart." Nathaniel answered gazing at Setsuna softly smiling a charming smile.

"You do know that most people would consider that an invasion of their privacy, but I think it was sweet of you this time." Setsuna said with a smile as she inhaled the soft fragrance of the Rose.

Nathaniel studied this princess for a moment in wonder. How could it be that she was in every way perfect and he had never noticed her presence before now. Surely, she had attended meeting of the royal court at which he would have be brought along to protect the queen and her daughter. It was a few moments before he sensed the princess's eyes on him and he realized that he had been starring at her throughout his thought process.

"Do you know the story?" Nathaniel asked.

"Of the Saturnarian Rose?" Setsuna asked, a bit confused by the sudden question. Nathaniel only nodded his head in answer, "Yes, my father used to tell it to me every night before he laid me in my bed to lull me to sleep."

"Did it help?" Nathaniel asked, surprised that she knew the story at such a young age.

"No, but it was still nice to hear it being read to me." Setsuna replied with a soft smile at the distant memories. "Were you going to retell it to me?"

"Yes." Nathaniel said nervously rubbing the back of his head with his hand, embarrassed that his proud knowledge in the matter had been rendered useless.

"How gallant of you. Now, why haven't you started regaling the tale?" Setsuna asked softly.

Nathaniel looked at her with obvious surprise over his features until a wave of relief washed over him. He then lead them to a nearby marble bench, seating Setsuna before he himself sat down. Then he cleared his throat as he prepared to tell the legendary story.

"There was once a princess of Saturn. Her name was Neia. She was the second and youngest child of a tenant farmer on Charon, Saturn's second moon. At that time there was no true order to this part of the universe. The was just coming into its own while the outer and inner planets still practiced their old traditions with mirth. On Saturn much was still the same, as on other planets. The tenant farmer on Charon, Chirion was his name, was a farmer of flowers. He cultivated and bred certain flowers for the money they would bring him at market. One day Chirion and his son, Electu, went out to plant in the fields leaving the young Neia alone in their home, as they always did.

"Neia's mother, her only real companion, had died when she was small of a fever and so left her to live with her father and brother. It was not long before young Neia began to grow tired of the low menial tasks that her father would leave for her to do every day and so she began to breed certain types of compatible flowers together every day after her chores had been finished. It was on that very day when a unknown traveler came to visit Neia in her tiny hut.

"This traveler was foreign, hooded and cloaked, and masked in the garb of a mercenary for hire. He came to Neia requesting for her to breed him a special type of rose. She asked how he knew that she had been breeding flowers, for she hid her new hobby well, even from her father's piercing gaze. The strange traveler answered only in riddles, suggesting more than saying, that he had been observing her for quite some time without her permission. The traveler's features were hidden under the hood of his olive green cloak, while the only feature of his which remained truly unguarded were his emerald eyes gazing out from underneath the shadows of the hood of his cloak.

"Neia asked why he would do such a thing, as to watch her in secret, the traveler answered that he needed to find out if she truly was worthy of taking on a momentous task which he had been searching for a person to perform for him for years. Curious beyond reason, Neia questioned the traveler as to this mysterious task, the cloaked stranger simply replied that he needed a special type of rose breed for him. Roses were Neia's favorite flower and she begged the cloaked man to allow her to attempt to breed this rare rose for him.

"The traveler hastily agreed and walked over to his horse and from a dragon crested saddle bag he pulled out a black rose, of the like of which Neia had never seen before. The stoic traveler marched over to Neia and deposited the rare flower into her hand, warning her that if she failed in this venture that he then would be forced to take her life, for this flower was very precious to him.

"If she succeeded then the traveler would give her great wealth and power, none of which Neia requested for payment. Instead, Neia asked for her father's and brother's release from their toil in the fields and for their chance for a better life style in payment. The traveler agreed and mounted his horse before stating calmly, 'I shall give you three months, girl. Three months in which to bred the rose and to secure a rare color in its blossoms.' And with that the traveler rode off. Neia immediately and with great enthusiasm set to work breeding the black rose to all of the others in her garden.

"She found that with crossbreeding, the offspring of the old roses were always some type of rare color, but just not the one she felt was appropriate for her planet. Neia had wished to develop a rose which would represent Saturn and all of her people in their glory.

"To this challenge she rose, and within a fortnight of the third month, she had bred the perfect flower. It was a beautifully sculpted dark purple rose, arrayed with a fragrance which mirrored some of the most gratifying spring days on Saturn's second moon. On sunset of the last day of the third month, the unknown traveler returned at which time,

"Neia reverently handed him the rose of her labors. He studied the blossom with a critical eye before bending his hooded head to smell the fragrance. Finally after several nerve curdling minutes, the traveler approached Neia and said, 'Fine work my busy little bee, now you may have your payment,' Then the traveler took hold of her arm and dragged her to his brown steed.

"She asked where he was taking her and pleaded with him and tried to struggle free of his grasp, but he was unyielding saying sternly, 'You wished for your family to live a better life and I will give them that, but only if you come to my court to present to my superiors the magnificent work you have done.' Neia was frightened beyond words, but she reluctantly agreed. They then arrived at a temporary camp where there had been erected a great tent, this, Neia assumed was the stranger's court on Saturn.

"Then they dismounted and she was lead by this stranger into the large tent. Within the tent, concealed in shadows, was a high throne upon a mountain of steps; there sat a figure. The hooded stranger approached with her at his side and bowed to the seated figure while saying, 'Your Majesty, I have brought you the flower you seek.' then the stranger took the beautiful flower from his pocket and with his head still bowed in reverence, approached the shadowed figure and handed his Queen the rose.

"'Well done, girl' the shaded queen said before turning to the still bowing stranger, 'Take her out to that field and kill her, now. That is your reward for your service to our newfound empire.' the hooded stranger stood and starred silently at his queen, 'But she is nothing more than a young one.' the stranger protested.

"This angered his dark queen and she reigned black lightening down at his feet leaving burned holes in the soil, 'Do not question my orders, unless you wish to share your predecessor's fate?' the queen bellowed and the stranger obeyed taking the young girl by the arm and leading her to the fields. Once there Neia said a prayer to the Gods for her family before bending low to the ground and lifting her dark hair off from her neck as so the stranger would have a clean stroke with his sword.

"The stranger looked upon her with sympathetic emerald eyes and spoke, 'Do you honestly think that I would kill you, obedient child.' Then he bent down and unattached his dark cloak from his shoulders before clasping it gently around her's. 'The rose was to be for my queen's plans, but you have earned the right to keep it; along with your freedom,' with that the stranger took hold of her hand lightly and lead her to a nearby stable where he saddled a horse for her and gave her the time she needed to escape the camp.

"She rode as fast as she could before finally reaching her town and then her home. The sight which befell her eyes caused them to shine with unshed silver tears, in a day's absence the dark queen's army had come through the small town and slaughtered every resident of that area. Outraged she teleported to the planet of Saturn itself and raced into the temple of the Gods in the Imperial city. There she prayed to the Gods to help her through her tears and to take care of all of the poor souls whom had died in her home town.

"Then a miraculous white light appeared and within its formed a long weapon, a glaive which she felt radiated with forbidden and yet redeeming strength. Neia reached out her hand to grasp the object and it came to her summons. Then as if it had come from someone else inside herself, young Neia yelled 'Silence Defining!' and the dark evils residing on the planet were defeated and purged into the deepest darkest recesses of the universe.

"Not long afterward, Neia was crowned queen of Saturn for her unrelenting courage and bravery on her planet's behalf. It is from her which my line descends, and we are very proud to have her for an ancestor." Nathaniel finished facing Setsuna with a certain pride in his eyes which was not there before, but his smile was sad, "It is a sorrowful tale, is it not?"

"Yes it is, but it is one which is not without meaning. One which engulfs the listener in the telling." Setsuna replied with a small smile of gratitude playing on her lips, "That is why it is one of my favorite stories to have told to me. It represents for me the courage of an individual fighting against over whelming odds and succeeding despite them all. And Neia is a beautiful heroine of timeless eons-"

"As you are." Setsuna was interrupted by Nathaniel's soft words. She looked surprised up at him. Did he really think that she was a hero of any sort, when he had only just met her? Her questions were soon answered as the young knight seemed to have been reading her mind, "You have a great strength which has not been awakened yet, and someday you will prove to the dark kingdom what you are made of…when you come into your own position of power. Do you believe that? The proposition that you could be something great and timeless someday?"

Setsuna thought in silence for a moment. She had never really seen herself as anything of importance outside of being a loyal member of her queen's nobility, but this new proposition held no wonder for her and seemed futile in its entirety.

"No." Setsuna replied shaking her head, much to the young knight's dismay, "No, I do not."

Author's Note: Hello, I hope that all whom read this chapter enjoyed it. It took me a while to write. I am a student of history and cultures so I tried to, for the first chapter at least, give a good basis for the foundation for both. Please read and review, I need to know whether to continue with this story or not (No flamers please!).