Elysion, Silver Millennium
Endymion woke up to screams and then a mad shuffle of feet slapping against stone.
Bleary eyed, he stared at his door. For a split second, he thought the sounds might've been the remaining echoes of a dream, but as his vision became clearer and his mind now sharp, he realized the horrific noises were coming from inside his house.
More screaming, more running. Heavy boots ascending and descending stairs and the clamoring of armor: The Royal Guard. In the pit of his stomach, he realized something was very, very wrong. The prince had a prophetic sense of clarity about things. Often, merely touching something or someone brought on a slew of distorted memories, usually things that had already occurred but sometimes things yet to come. Though, those memories were far less concrete.
This feeling now was ominous and dark, so twisted it took his breath away.
He ripped himself from the bed and rushed through the door without bothering to cover his bare chest. In the hallway that overlooked the large palace entrance, we saw staff of all kinds hustling back and forth. A few rushed right by his door down the hallway toward the king's wing, followed closely by guards who had their swords drawn. Each of their faces curved in strange concern.
Endymion's feet suddenly felt restless. He was never one to rush anywhere, but tonight he wished he could soar. His shaking hand gripped the bannister and he found himself skipping steps at a time, nearly leaping over huge swaths of stairs like he did for fun as a child. Down below, a group of maids gripped onto blood-soaked rags and wept.
Just past them on the opposite side of the foyer were the double doors leading into the throne room. They were only shut during private meetings. The king liked to keep them open for the day-to-day, letting the glittering marble and royal finery sit on display for all of those coming in and out of the castle. Tonight the doors were closed shut.
Standing near was Kunzite, his entire body tense as he spoke to several guards. Endymion stopped and studied the elder Shitennou's face, watched as the lines in his forehead ebbed in worry, and waited for him to catch his eye. When Kunzite saw the prince standing there, his expression filled with pain.
Endymion knew right then that something was very, very wrong.
He pushed forward, breaking a line of guards before being intercepted by Kunzite. His friend pressed against his shoulders and held him back.
"Endymion, please!" Kunzite begged. "Do not go in there."
"Why?" Endymion's voice cracked. "Where is my father? What is going on?"
"Please," Kunzite said again. "Just give me a moment to explain."
Endymion channeled Kunzite's energy into his mind's eye. A river of red crept along a sea of white, a figure sat stoic in a chair, a wave of nausea and then pure shock. Kunzite's emotions were jumbled and frantic, unlike his usually careful and calm demeanor, and Endymion felt his longtime friend purposefully pull back from him. He was trying to conceal something. He was shutting Endymion out.
His heart was slapping against his chest and his head was going light. All the air in his lungs escaped and along his body, his skin prickled. Everything in him wanted to violently shake, because he did not need Kunzite to tell him what had happened. He knew. This was the exact feeling he had the night his mother died.
Endymion pushed back once more against Kunzite and this time it worked. Kunzite's hands folded and the prince broke free from his grip. Endymion raced through the doors and found a crowd standing in a semicircle, their curved backs facing him.
And sitting right in front of him, slumped over and lifeless, was his father.
"No," he stammered. "No, it can't be."
"Endymion, wait–" Kunzite tried to interject, pressing his hand on the prince's stone-like shoulder, but Endymion rushed forward. The crowd parted as he stumbled ahead, stopping just short of the dais where his father's throne sat.
King Endymion's skin was gray and his cheeks—usually rosy and flush—were flat. His eyes hung open but there was no light behind them, and his clothes were covered in crimson red blood. It sprawled from his neck, down his white tunic, on his lap and finally puddled on the floor, and directly in the center of the pool was a rose.
Endymion fell to his knees. His vision went wide. A heaving knot formed in his chest and he gasped for air. A scream escaped his lips but Endymion's ears had seemingly shut, for all he could hear was deafening static. White spots appeared in the air and time stood still, the ground becoming a tilting platform that made the room spin.
All the while his father sat there lifeless, and yet, at the same time, watching.
Kunzite looked out into the night sky. Soon, the sun would rise on the horizon and the light of day would reveal the true events of that evening. Someone had managed to evade guards, someone had managed to corner the king while he was alone and stab him in the neck. The king did not struggle against whoever his attacker was—Kunzite knew if the king had been afraid, he would've fought back—and they left the oddest of clues behind: A single rose.
Behind him, feet shuffled from inside. Once the Royal Guard arrived, they managed to take a hysterical Endymion to see the palace healer. Then, they moved the king's body to a secure location away from the main throne room. Now, they were cleaning up the blood and documenting the scene at hand.
All their chattering made Kunzite's head spin. He needed to think. He needed to be alone.
The king was loved by all his people. Well, most. But none hated him so badly they would usurp him like this. It had to be the Moon Kingdom. Kunzite feared this day would come the second they realized the Moon Kingdom would not enter a treaty with them. Perhaps this was their way of showing their ultimate power—not only did they wield the Silver Millennium Crystal, they could kill a king undetected. On the terrace, the question played over and over in his head. How could anyone get into the palace unnoticed?
His mind wandered back to a few days earlier. Princess Serenity…she had managed to get into the gardens undetected. She had access to the portal. Perhaps it was unmanned. Perhaps she convinced the Moon Kingdom guards that she needed to come to Earth. And the roses. Queen Serenity's delegation had brought a bouquet of roses as a sign of goodwill between the two kingdoms. Was it mere coincidence that a rose had been at the king's feet?
"Kunzite." Zoisite's voice rang out from behind Kunzite. "Are you alright?"
"Besides the obvious calamity, I am fine." Kunzite turned to the younger Shitennou. "How is the prince?"
"Unwell, I am afraid." Zoisite stepped out onto the terrace. Both knights waited in silence for the other to speak as they watched the stars twinkling in the sky. The Milky Way floated in the blackness of night and the Moon was a mere sliver. Kunzite sighed.
Kunzite always had deep affection for Zoisite, more so than the other Shitennou. He respected all three of them equally for their dogged dedication to the Royal Family, and as the most senior leader of their group, he showed equal admiration toward them all. But Zoisite was different. The two men shared something much deeper than the others, much more intimate. Despite trying to hide his fear behind a cold exterior, for Zoisite he let his thoughts flow freely.
"I fear this will destroy us," he said calmly. Inside, he was shaking. "I fear this is the doing of the Moon Kingdom, and if I am correct, this means war."
Zoisite blinked. "War? Truly it will not come to that."
"Peace has been unattainable for us in recent weeks, and now this."
Zoisite turned to his friend and mentor, watching as his eyes curved in frustration, and just as he was starting to console him, they heard a twig snap. Kunzite immediately unsheathed his sword, and Zoisite followed suit as they scanned the darkened gardens.
"Who's there?" Kunzite's voice boomed. He inched toward the terrace stairs. In the darkness, it was hard to make anything out at all. As he made his way down to the garden, he heard what sounded like labored breathing. Zoisite was close behind, and the elder Shitennou turned to his friend and motioned to be careful.
Was it possible the killer was so foolish as to hang around? Was it a Moon Kingdom guard, or perhaps on the Sailor Scouts? Kunzite's heart slammed against his chest but his breathing steadied. Whoever was roaming around in the gardens on a night like this clearly meant no good. He would see to it they paid for their crimes.
"Show yourself, at once!" Kunzite gripped his sword tight. "We are members of the Shitennou! We demand you come out!"
Kunzite held his breath as he approached the first row of shrubs. In the air, insects buzzed and a soft wind rustled leaves. More twigs broke under the weight of something, followed by a low groan. It was a woman's voice. He thought back to that night he found Princess Serenity and Sailor Venus in the garden. Clearly they knew their way around.
"Show yourself!" Kunzite shouted again. Zoisite stuck close behind.
Kunzite took in another deep breath as he approached the first path, its entrance partially secluded by an overgrown hydrangea plant. He whipped around the corner and swung his sword forward, but no one was standing. Instead, there was someone sprawled out on the dirt in front of him, someone he had come to know very well these past few weeks.
On the ground was Beryl, barely conscious and covered in blood.
Kunzite's head spun. What was Beryl doing out here? His breath slowed and his heart stopped. Was it possible whoever attacked the king attacked her, too? While Endymion hadn't told him as much directly, he had seen Beryl traipsing around the palace at night toward the garden, in what Kunzite imagined was an ill-fated attempt to seduce the prince. If she was out there tonight, it was possible she saw who did this to the king.
She rolled over on her side and reached out toward the shrub. Dirt covered all of her fingers, as did blood. How long had she been writhing around out here like this?
Quickly he scooped her up in his arms and dashed up the stairs, through the doors and into the throne room. Royal guards were still walking around the room in a fruitless search for clues as crying servants wiped up the last of the king's blood.
"Someone get the healer!" Kunzite shouted. The guards spun around to look while the servants stared at her in horror. One eked out a sob. "Now!"
Kunzite placed her on the ground and ripped the bodice of her dress, saving a piece of the cotton fabric to act as gauze. A small stab wound was in her side, and despite its size, she appeared to have lost a significant amount of blood. Her face was pale and her lips were nearly blue, but she was still breathing. Kunzite immediately applied pressure to the wound while Zoisite raced out to find the healer.
Beryl's eyes fluttered open. She sucked in air and reached up to touch Kunzite's arm.
"Where am I?" Her voice sounded weak. "What happened?"
"Please, don't labor too hard," Kunzite said. He lifted the makeshift bandage from her abdomen and inspected it. It was a small speck of blood—the wound was already healing. "What happened to you, Beryl?"
She looked up at Kunzite and took a deep breath. As she bobbed her head up off the floor and positioned herself upright on her elbows while her gaze went directly to the throne still covered in the king's blood. Tears filled her eyes. "I was waiting for the prince and…"
"Lie down, please," Kunzite instructed. "The healer is coming for you–"
"Is he…" Her lip trembled. "Is he dead?"
"You need to tell us what happened." Kunzite didn't want to alarm her, but in the condition she was in, it seemed the person who attacked her might be the same perpetrator as the king's.
"I was…a blonde woman came out of nowhere–"
"Blonde?" Kunzite's blood began to boil.
"Yes." Beryl cleared her throat. "She had long, flowing hair. I did not recognize her. She…she stabbed me. I tried to fight her…I tried to…and then she rushed up into the castle. I…I did not see her leave."
Beryl unfurled her hand. In it was a clump of golden hair. Beryl released it onto the floor and Kunzite leaned down to inspect it. Gripping one strand between his fingers, he brought it close to his face. It smelled of roses.
Every muscle in his body tensed and his mouth went bone dry. If all the guards hadn't been watching him, he would've screamed. All of his suspicions were true. Princess Serenity—or, more likely, Sailor Venus—had come through the portal and killed the king in cold blood. The rose was an egregious enough clue as it was, and now Beryl all but confirmed it. This was an act of war.
"I can't believe it," Beryl said breathlessly as she stared at the empty throne. "How could they have done this…"
"They are savages," Kunzite hissed. He stood up abruptly and spun on his heel. Standing off to the side was a Royal guard looking in horror. Kunzite shot him a menacing glare. "I need Nephrite and Jadeite here, now!"
As Kunzite stormed out the door to the foyer, the healer was hustling in. The old man looked frantic as he raced toward Beryl, who was now propped up again and watching as Kunzite exited the room. Dirt covered her face and she looked so pathetically scared, it made Kunzite sick.
Attempted murder on an innocent woman like Beryl. The assassination of a king. It was all incomprehensible.
Jadeite made his way down the stairs, having just left the prince's room with the healer, and Nephrite came in through the front doors. He had done his own personal surveillance of the palace in an attempt to find clues. He came empty handed. Zoisite joined them.
The three younger Shitennou stood around and watched Kunzite as he thought. All of them felt the fear palpitating in and around the palace. This was not merely a tragedy of unprecedented proportions, this was a life-altering event. The kingdom was no longer in a strange dance that flirted with peace and war simultaneously, they were now dead center of something catastrophic. The king's reluctance to war was over the Silver Millennium Crystal, the most powerful gem in all of the universe. They were not favored to win any sort of conflict against the Moon Kingdom, but now they had no choice but to engage.
Life as they knew it would cease to exist. Prince Endymion would take the throne, and ultimately he would be the one to decide. Despite it, Kunzite didn't see any other way.
"We must prepare ourselves for war," Kunzite said somberly. "We must prepare ourselves to die."