Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon Sailor Stars: Chaos Theory
Act 27: Distant Memories
By: Sora Kazeno
Sailor Pluto sighed, as she exited the royal palace on Uranus. She began to feel as if the search was futile. The trio returned to Neptune and did not find signs of anyone. They seemed to have the same results on this planet.
"I wonder if they returned to the Silver Millennium…" Sailor Charon said with a frown. "We haven't found any clues yet."
"But what if they stopped on their home planet and we miss them?" Sailor Titan argued. "The next planet is Jupiter… we can rest once we get there. It will be a long journey."
Sailor Pluto took a deep breath. "You make an excellent point. It would be a waste to pass the other planets on our way to the Silver Millennium and Earth." She turned to face Jupiter. "We should continue on."
Usagi returned home without speaking to the other girls. Seiya called her to make plans for the following day. He could tell Usagi was upset about something, but he didn't want to push her since he knew she would tell him when she was ready. She wasn't sure where Luna was either. She still felt emotionally drained while she sat in the bath tub. She recalled the events of the past two days and sighed. She enjoyed the time she spent with Seiya…but Mamoru finally opened up to her.
A part of her had asked herself if she was with Mamoru because of her past and knowing their future. But with Seiya it was different. Their future was not set in stone and every day seemed like a new adventure waiting to happen. Now she wasn't so sure. Could her dreams have been a glimpse of things to come? "Aaagh!" Usagi groaned out loud.
A noise caused her to sit up. After a moment she realized it was Shingo down the hall. Usagi's shoulders slumped as the tension was released. She thought back to a time when several of her baths were interrupted by a pink haired girl that she missed dearly. A few tears escaped her eyes. If she wasn't with Mamoru, Chibi Usa would never be born. But Chibi Usa disappeared in front of her eyes before she decided to pursue anything with Seiya. With a heavy heart, she realized whatever path she chose, she would always question it. She wasn't sure if she could just be happy.
It was late morning when Usagi began to get ready to see Seiya. She stared at the star shaped locket on her dresser. Her thoughts sighed back to yesterday. Mamoru had finally told her everything she had wanted to hear. She was afraid of how she felt when she was with him yesterday. She reached forward to touch the locket. She gasped when the room around her transformed into her room back from the Silver Millennium. She had a dazed look in her eyes as everything came into focus from her past.
She was dressed as Princess Serenity and she was in a rush. Her dress was on but it was not zipped up in the back and the large bow on her back was undone. Her hair is a mess. Her odangos were falling out. It looked as if she just rolled out of bed. She had to hurry. She undid what was left of her odangos and her hair cascaded down her back. She grabbed her hair brush to straighten her hair and remove the knots. Once her hair was untangled, she gathered her hair into pigtails. She pinched a section of her hair and then began to wrap the hair around it to form a ball. Once it was the desired shape, she clipped it into place and moved on to the other side of her head. Once she was done she examined the odangos she re-stylized. The entire time she redone her odangos she spoke to someone in her room. She wasn't sure who it was.
The person said something to her and laughed gleefully. Her eyes twinkled in delight. She was very happy. She never seemed so happy. She tried her best to focus on what was discussed and she was finally able to understand the conversation she had with her mystery guest.
"I'm so happy we'll be married soon," Princess Serenity said with a large grin when she turned around to face the other person in the room. "I can't wait," she said, as she walked over to him. She turned around to allow her back to face him while she asked her next question, "Can you help me with this dress that you were in such a hurry to take off?"
Prince Endymion grinned and stepped forward to help her finish dressing. He slowly zipped up the back of her dress. Once he was done he began to retie the bow of her dress. He seemed to be very experienced. After the task was complete, he leaned forward and kissed the side of her neck several times.
Princess Serenity smiles at the gesture and swats him away saying, "This is how we ended up here…." She turned around to face him with a frown. "I'm tired of sneaking around just so we can spend some time alone together."
"I thought you enjoyed sneaking around since it was more exciting," Prince Endymion said. He had a mysterious twinkle in his eyes. When her frown did not disappear, Endymion embraced her tightly.
Princess Serenity relaxed as she listened to Prince Endymion's heartbeat. She felt herself at ease, being so close to him. "It will only be for a few more months until we can be officially together forever."
Princess Serenity separated herself from Prince Endymion to smile at him. "It seems like it has been such a long engagement."
"It's only a matter of time," Prince Endymion repeated again as he leaned over and kissed her deeply several times.
Princess Serenity sighed slightly, she enjoyed each kiss. As much as she didn't want to, she forced herself to separate from him. "We already made love…. and we should leave before we're caught."
Prince Endymion smirked at her. "What can I say? You are too irresistible for me." He lightly kissed her on her forehead, above the crescent moon birthmark. "I love you," he whispered in her ear.
She parted her lips gave him a broad smile, "and I you."
"I have a gift for you," he said as he began to search his clothes. He found nothing. "That's odd…" his voice trailed off when he noticed a pale blue box on the floor." It must have fallen out of my pocket." He walked towards the box and picked it up from the floor.
"Oh?" Princess Serenity exclaimed at the sight of the box. "I love presents." She felt anxious when she walked over to Endymion.
He opened the box and revealed a pair of golden pearl shaped barrettes. There were three pearls strung together and twinkled when the light bounced off of the golden objects.
Princess Serenity was speechless as she stared at the objects. "They're beautiful." Prince Endymion slowly passed the box over to her. She stared at them for a few moments. She blinked her eyes a few times and then quickly took them out of the box. She rushed to her mirror to place them in her hair.
"They look wonderful on you," Prince Endymion said, standing behind her.
Princess Serenity nodded her head in agreement. "We really should be leaving before someone sees us. My mother is expecting me any minute… and I don't want to be late."
"I know," he said. He stepped beside her and leaned over to kiss her one final time before they had to part. "I'll sneak back out the way I came….until next time."
Princess Serenity stood still for a moment. She watched him retreat and waited until he was out of sight before she walked over to the bedroom door. She took a deep breath to calm herself. It was difficult for her to concentrate on anything after she was with Endymion. She forced herself to focus on the meeting with her mother. She opened the door and walked down the corridor, the smile never left her face the entire way. A few minutes later, she arrived at her destination. "Hello Mother."
"Ah, Serenity…. I was beginning to think I would have to send someone to search for you," Queen Serenity greeted her daughter warmly. "You always seem to disappear when Prince Endymion is here…" She raised an eyebrow slightly at her daughter.
"Oh?" Princess Serenity said, as she tried her best to not fidget with her hands. "I was not aware he was here…"
Queen Serenity laughed at her daughter's attempt to hide she had just been with him. She knew they spent time together, it was only natural since they were soon to become husband and wife. "Anyway, there are some individuals I would like for you to meet before they leave again." Queen Serenity led her daughter to a conference room. She opened the door and eight sailor senshi stood up at the sight of the Queen.
The young woman bowed slightly as a sign of respect. Princess Serenity seemed confused as she examined each individual. Each of their fuku's reminded her of the other senshi she had seen before in the palace.
"I would like you to meet a special group of sailor senshi. They are responsible for collecting information throughout the galaxy to help ensure the safety of everyone," Queen Serenity said as she gestured to them. She introduced each Sailor Senshi and referred to them as the Moon Senshi.
Princess Serenity was excited at the prospect of other sailor senshi. She wanted to know when it would be her turn. "I wish I could join you and be a Sailor Senshi…" she gushed. "But I heard the training is very difficult."
A girl with short blond hair and bangs smiled at Princess Serenity's enthusiasm. She wore an orange fuku with a large blue bow in the front and an orange yellow bow in the back. Her overskirt was orange and her underskirt was purple. She wore a pair of orange high heels. "We've never had a senshi from the royal kingdom before," said Sailor Callisto. "What senshi would you be?"
Princes Serenity paused to consider her answer. "Hmmm….", she said thoughtfully. "Well… I would be a Moon Senshi too. I am from the Moon…. so Sailor Moon?"
The other senshi laughed.
Princess Serenity looked at them with a confused expression, "What's so funny?"
A woman with wavy pale pink hair in an aqua sailor uniform said, "A royal princess is not allowed to be a sailor senshi," said Sailor Triton. She tried to let Princess Serenity down easily.
"That's not true," Princess Serenity argued back. "Each planetary Sailor Senshi are also royal princesses of their respective planets. You are their guardians. The Moon looks after the Earth."
"The Moon may overlook the Earth," Queen Serenity said with a defensive tone, "But the Silver Millennium ensures the peace of this galaxy. The Queen or the future Queen, cannot be putting herself in constant danger by becoming a sailor senshi. You will have this kingdom to look over one day when my time ends."
Princess Serenity was silent after her mother spoke. She didn't want to think about the future she would have. A lot of other girls would be excited to be a princess, but all she wanted was to spend time with her love.
"If you can excuse us for a little while, I have to finish speaking to them about their next mission," Queen Serenity said. She softened her tone since it was clear her daughter was upset by the news she heard.
Usagi's breathing was irregular and nearly fell over as a wave of emotions washed over her. Her eyes continued to stare at the locket on her dresser in disbelief. She was back in her room. Her hand was over her heart and she breathed in short gasps. She wondered why she remembered things about her past life at this moment. Why was she remembering moments with Endymion? Her mind raced as she thought about the memory. She focused on the fact that Endymion had to zip her dress back up. It was such an intimate detail. They truly were lovers in their past life. The side she saw of Mamoru last night when he told her how he felt, was that the same side she had seen in the past as Endymion? She had so many questions. But she was afraid of where those answers would lead her.
"Usagi! Seiya-kun is here!" Ikkuko called out from the bottom of the stairs.
Usagi's shoulders slumped. She wasn't ready to see Seiya at the moment after what she just relived. No, she thought. I need to move on. She picked up her star locket and quickly placed it into the top dresser drawer. She would figure out what it all meant at a later time. She grabbed her crystal pendant and placed it around her neck. Once it was securely fastened she hid it under her pink blouse. She took a deep breath to try to push aside the racing thoughts. Perhaps time spend with Seiya would be good for her.
Usagi put on the best smile she could muster for the moment and began to descend the staircase slowly. Her thoughts immediately drifted back to her memory and how loving Endymion was. Yet she was about to spend time with another man.
Seiya smiled brightly as soon as he saw Usagi. "Hi Odango."
"...Hi..." Usagi said as she tried to return his smile with one of hers, but it was difficult.
Usagi's reaction made Seiya worried. She was still clearly as distracted as she was last night. Once they were alone he would ask her what happened. It concerned him.
Usagi put her shoes on, "Bye Mom."
"Have fun!" Ikkuko said with a wink.
Usagi didn't say much once they were outside.
"Odango, what's wrong?" Seiya asked, as he eyed her carefully trying to determine why she seemed so down.
"Oh? It's nothing... really…" Usagi tried to play if off. "You said you had something you wanted to talk to me about last night." Usagi quickly said to change the focus of the conversation.
"Okay… Taiki, Yaten and I have been discussing what will be next for us after the danger passes. There's a possibility of reforming the Three Lights for a bit. This would be great since I've been thinking about remaining on Earth."
Usagi didn't respond to Seiya's comments. She walked next to him in silence.
Seiya decided to obtain her attention a different way, "There's an ice cream truck down the street."
Usagi did not respond.
"Godzilla is attacking the city."
Nothing.
"The store at the end of the block is passing out free chocolate."
Still nothing.
Seiya knew he needed to take a different approach. He turned and hugged her tightly.
The action completely caught Usagi off guard. "Whaa?" She murmured. The sudden change nearly knocked her off her feet. It took her a few moments to hug him back while she tried to shift her attention to him.
"Odango, I'm really worried about you. What happened that has you so distracted?" His eyes pleaded with her to tell him what was wrong.
Usagi hesitated. She knew there was no way she could focus on anything, but the past 24 hours, no matter how hard she tried. "Last night…. Mamo-chan was injured after the battle because he protected me. I helped him back to his apartment and I realized how bad his injury actually was. I healed it. Just like last time, I was exhausted and fell asleep." She paused while she thought about what else she wanted to say.
Seiya's heart skipped a beat, afraid of what he would hear next. It was obvious to him Mamoru was not ready to give Usagi up.
"We talked for a while… and he seems different now. He apologized for a lot of things… things that he done that hurt me…." Usagi said quietly. She didn't want to elaborate on the details of her past relationship. "And I don't think he's going to give up. He keeps hoping… we'll get back together…" her voice trailed off. It felt weird to have a frank discussion with Seiya about such a sensitive issue. "I didn't want to talk to you about it last night on the telephone since I was still trying to figure everything out and I knew it would upset you."
"This has to be very difficult for you…" Seiya said. He tried to keep his voice neutral. He should have known Mamoru wouldn't give up on Usagi so easily. She is a very special person, one that you can't just walk away from. He wasn't able to. It was hard for her to talk about Mamoru to him, given their past experiences.
"This morning, when I was getting ready… I had a memory about my past life again. It seems to be happening more and more lately." Usagi explained. Seiya stood silently next to her, waiting for her to continue. "I was back on the Silver Millennium… with Endymion." Her voice became quieter. She wasn't ready to discuss all of the details with him. She was sure Seiya didn't want to hear all of the details.
With a heavy heart Seiya said, "You have to follow your heart, Odango… wherever it takes you… no matter how difficult it will be." His words and the tone in his voice made it clear that he felt insecure in their relationship due to the conversation.
"That's why I'm here." Usagi said as she looked into his eyes. "I'm here with you. I do have a history with him…. but I want to give this, us a chance." She tried to sound confident in her words, but her voice was shaking betraying the conflict she felt inside.
Seiya was somewhat relieved by her words, "I'm glad you feel that way." He knew this was difficult for her and he was terrified she would leave at any moment and run back to Mamoru's arms. "If you ever want to talk about anything…. And I mean anything, don't hesitate. I want to help you in any way I can."
Usagi smiled at his comforting words. There were still things she hadn't told him yet. The dream she had about the future. She realized she wasn't ready to share it with him. She wanted to make sure things would last with him first. She kept reminding herself that Mamoru was the past. Her relationship with Seiya was different. She liked that it was different. She wanted to explore it. "Thanks. I guess it just seems weird to talk to you about him."
"I'm glad I was finally able to convince you to leave the apartment," said Michiru. "Every now and then we need to do something that seems… normal."
Haruka laughed at her word choice. "What is normal to us anymore?"
"True. Either way I'm glad we are finally out together." Michiru said, as she grabbed Haruka's arm.
"Michiru?" Haruka was surprised by her forwardness in public.
A loud noise redirected their attention behind them. A man dressed in silver and black with long dark green hair. Varada was back. He blasted everything around him. He didn't care. Any time he began to attack the city a sailor senshi appeared. Sooner or later one of them had to be the Guardian. He was out of new ideas to try to find the Guardian. He needed to find the Starlight. He was convinced she would lead him to the Guardian.
Michiru sighed at the distraction. She touched the pendant around her neck while Haruka did the same.
"So this is what happens when we finally venture outside," Haruka said, as she shook her head in disbelief. A part of her wanted to laugh at the irony but they needed to end this.
"Uranus Eternal, Make Up!"
"Neptune Eternal, Make Up!"
The two senshi headed in the direction of their adversary.
"The planet of the sky is my guardian deity, the solider of flight, Sailor Uranus!"
"The deep sea planet is my guardian deity, the solider of embrace, Sailor Neptune!"
Varada glared at the two senshi. He remembered them from the last time he fought Sailor Moon. That is when Sailor Star Fighter was there.
"Where is the Starlight and the Guardian?" He questioned them while he developed a plan. He knew the two were very powerful and he was outnumbered.
"Starlight…" Sailor Neptune said with her eyes narrowed. "Why is the Starlight so important?" She tried her best to pry information from him.
"She will lead me to the Guardian. I am sure of it," said Varada as he walked forward.
As much as Sailor Uranus was not a fan of Sailor Star Fighter, she was not about to give the enemy what he wanted. "You know that is not going to happen." She turned her palm over and her Space Sword materialized in her hand. It was a sign she was prepared for battle.
Varada's frustration increased, "Very well. I see we are done talking."
The battle ensued.
Sailor Uranus attacked first and placed Varada on the defensive. "Space Sword Blaster!"
A large boomerang shape of energy launched at Varada. He scrambled to the side. Their abilities were very different than the others. He realized he was in trouble, but he was not about to go down without a fight.
Varada gathered energy for a large attack in an effort to overpower the two senshi. He tried to spread out the attack in anticipation of where they would move to avoid the energy. He underestimated all of the training they completed in both lifetimes.
Sailor Uranus lunged forward and connected a punch. Varada stumbled back. He didn't expect a senshi to fist fight him. Another punch came and Varada blocked it. They exchanged blows for a few more times until Sailor Uranus jumped to the side. Varada was confused by her actions. She had the upper hand and retreated.
The sound of water caused him to turn his head to the side and see Sailor Neptune's attack rushing at him. "Neptune Violin Tide!"
Varada was blasted back onto the ground, clearly injured by the attack. He staggered to his feet and begun to develop an exit plan. But he would never have a chance to execute it.
"Uranus Space Turbulence!"
Varada collapsed to the ground. He tried to stand back up, but his injuries did not allow him. "There will… be others… this will never… be over…" Varada said, as he collapsed onto the ground. His body seemed to evaporate into small black circles and carried off by a breeze.
Sailor Neptune walked over to Sailor Uranus, "We stopped him. But now we have more questions."
"What is the connection between Sailor Star Fighter and the Guardian?" Sailor Uranus asked out loud. She knew neither one of them could answer the question. "Well... at least there is one less enemy terrorizing the city."
"The question remains, whom will be sent in his stead? I'm sure they will only be more powerful. It's usually how it works," said Sailor Neptune.
Sailor Uranus turned to look at her partner and knew she spoke the truth. "We bought ourselves some time." She tried to convince herself.
After they parted ways, Usagi sat down at the kotatsu with Rei in her room. She was quiet as she thought of how she wanted to word what she was about to tell one of her best friends. Recently, she had confided a lot to her regarding her feelings for Seiya and her decision to leave Mamoru. She was always careful with Rei due to the history she had with Mamoru before Usagi had awakened as the Moon Princess.
"When you first arrived, you seemed anxious to talk," said Rei, as she eyes her carefully. "What is going on, Usagi?"
Usagi sighed. "I'm not sure where to start."
"From the beginning usually helps."
Usagi glared at Rei. "Yeah…" She hesitated. "I've been having dreams lately about being Neo Queen Serenity."
Rei's jaw dropped. "What is happening in those dreams?"
"I guess it started with the first dream that I had was on Kinmoku… I was dressed as Eternal Sailor Moon and Super Sailor Chibi Moon was there." Usagi felt a few tears begin to build as she recalled the memory. "She was screaming at me that I gave up."
Rei moved closer to Usagi. "Is that how you feel?"
"… Sometimes…" Usagi was silent for a moment. "But Rei-chan… you did not see the new future. Whatever happens…I don't think Crystal Tokyo will exist anymore… even if I was with Mamo-chan. And I had other dreams besides that one."
"Were they the same?"
"Not quite," Usagi said, as she began to shift nervously on the cushion. "I had a dream where I was dressed as Princess Serenity and Neo Princess Serenity showed up in the garden. I turned into Neo Queen Serenity and she told me King Endymion was looking for me. I looked up in the sky and noticed the Earth. I looked down at the girl with me and it was no longer Chibi Usa. She had turned into another young girl with silver hair. She ran a head to greet a man at the edge of the gardens and called him 'daddy".
"Are you sure, Usagi?" Rei asked alarmed at what the dream implied.
Usagi slowly nodded her head.
"Usagi… who was the man? Was it…" Rei's voice trailed off. She couldn't bring herself to say his name.
"Seiya." Usagi confirmed Rei's suspicions. "I've had similar dreams like this one. The last one involved Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune attacking Seiya when they learned he had become King." Usagi turned her full attention toward Rei. "Rei-chan, what do you think these dreams mean?"
"Well… I'm not entirely sure. Maybe it is the new future… a future without Crystal Tokyo? But Usagi, you've never had the ability of premonitions."
"Maybe it is because I am Sailor Cosmos…" Usagi said thoughtfully.
"I've also had visions of you as Neo Queen Serenity recently," said Rei, as she thought about the recent events. "Unfortunately, they did not reveal much." Rei eyes narrowed slightly and her demeanor became serious, "I believe they are related somehow, Usagi."
"But why am I having them now?" Usagi pouted. Her life was complicated enough at the moment.
"I'm not sure," Rei explained the best she could to her. She decided to change the topic of conversation, "We never saw you again the other day. Minako-chan told us about your date with Seiya-kun."
"Oh… well… Mamo-chan and I had a long chat after I woke up. He finally expressed how he really felt. I rushed out of his apartment. I keep trying to put it in the past… but I'm also receiving more of my memories back as Princess Serenity." Usagi eyes were downcast when she continued, "Some of them are about Endymion."
"Usagi…" Rei whispered. She reached forward to squeeze her hand. She waited for her to continue.
"It's like I'm torn between two different people… and every time I think I've made a decision I'm okay with… I keep being pulled in the opposite direction."
Two hours later, Rei escorted Usagi out of the shrine. Six young women stood outside. Once they caught sight of Usagi they gasped.
Usagi turned pale when she realized who the young women were. "Rei-chan, call everyone over here."
The six women quickly bowed before Usagi as a sign of respect for the royal family of the Silver Millennium.
"Princess Serenity," a girl with short blonde hair said. It was clear she was the leader of them. "We have searched everywhere for you and are fortunate to find you."
A short time later, all of the senshi assembled at Rei's shrine. Everyone waited in a large meeting room with the exception of Usagi.
"Where is Usagi-chan? She wanted all of us here, but it's like she disappeared," Minako said. She hoped Usagi would return soon. It was clear things were awkward in the room to have Seiya and Mamoru together. It would only grow once the Outer Senshi arrived.
Mamoru sat away from the others. He shifted nervously at the sight of Seiya. The way things ended last night was difficult for him. He was sure things would finally go back to how they were but she ran out. He reminded himself he needed to be patient. The others talked quietly among themselves, but it was a blur to him. He could only think about her.
Haruka, Michiru, and Hotaru entered the room. Haruka glared at Seiya and the other Lights as soon as she noticed them. She wanted to say something about their presence, but she bit her tongue. She did it for Usagi. She wanted to know why everyone was summoned here. "Where is Usagi-chan?" Haruka asked when she noticed the princess was absent.
"I know she's around here somewhere…" Rei said, as she kept an eye on Haruka. She thought back to the conversation she had with Usagi earlier where Sailor Uranus attacked Seiya. She hoped one day Haruka could move past her anger toward Seiya. "She should be in any minute."
"I'm just curious as to why 'all' of us have to be here…" Haruka's comment was clearly directed at the Three Lights in a different corner of the room.
Seiya overheard Haruka's choice words but decided to ignore them. Nothing good would come of it. He was here to stay and she would have to get used it sooner or later.
A few minutes later, Usagi finally entered the room. "Thanks for coming here. There is something I want to tell all of you. This morning, I received one of my memories back from the Silver Millennium. It was about the Moon Senshi."
Seiya was confused Usagi did not mention the part about the Moon Senshi to him earlier in the day. He wondered what else she remembered.
"What was it about?" Michiru asked immediately.
"Well… they carried out missions for my Mother. I remember seeing them right before their last mission. I also remembered their other objective was to protect the princesses of their respective planets. This allowed most of the princesses to remain on the Silver Millennium or guard the palace from afar. What was significant about the memory was I remembered each of them. A short time ago they returned to Earth just as Sailor Charon and Sailor Titan had. They came to the shrine today and I want to make sure everyone was able to meet them," Usagi concluded with a smile.
The door slid open and a young woman with short blonde hair that fell to her shoulders entered the room. She wore a navy blue sleeveless knee length dress. She was followed by a young woman with pale wavy pink hair. She also wore a fitted knee length dress in black with short sleeves.
The two girls bowed to the other princesses in the room before they rose. The blonde girl introduced herself first, "I am Akari, guardian of Venus, Sailor Callisto." She smiled at Minako.
"You're the girl I bumped into yesterday…" Minako said in disbelief.
The young woman with pale pink hair did not seem as friendly. Her hair fell to her waist. She eyed the Three Lights carefully since she did not recognize them. She then turned to Michiru. "My name is Nanami, guardian of Neptune, Sailor Triton."
"Wait a minute," Ami said, confusion clearly written on her face. "How is Sailor Callisto a guardian of Venus if Callisto is a moon of Jupiter?"
Akari chuckled at Ami's perceptiveness. "You never miss anything, Ami-san. A long time ago an agreement was reached with the royal family of Jupiter to allow the people of Callisto to become residents of Venus in exchange for protecting the royal family. Callisto was a harsh environment at the time."
Taiki did not say anything but he was also taken aback. It made him question whom the guardian of Mercury would be since Mercury like Venus, lacked its own natural satellite.
"Our mission was to protect all of the princesses and the Queen. But we were captured on our last mission and imprisoned for what seems to be countless centuries," said Akari. She thought about how foreign Earth seemed to be based on her last journey here. "All of the planets have undergone drastic changes since then."
"What about the others?" Makoto asked. She wanted to meet the guardian of Jupiter.
"Ah yes, forgive me," said Akari while she walked back to the door to retrieve the next young woman.
The next to enter the room, was a young woman with fiery red shoulder length hair, slightly longer than Haruka's. She bore a faded pair of jeans with a black t-shirt. She appeared bored by everything. "The name is Rin, guardian of Uranus, Sailor Umbriel."
Haruka smirked at her lack of formalness. She could already tell they were going to get along well.
A few steps behind her was another young woman with jet black hair tied back in a single long braid. She wore a button down sleeveless purple shirt and a gray mini skirt. Her resemblance to Rei was uncanny. She bowed to Rei before she spoke. Once she stood back up she spoke, "I am Ayane, guardian of Mars, Sailor Phobos."
Ami shifted in her seat when the next person entered the room. She entered the room and immediately bowed to her. "It is wonderful to see you again, Ami-san." She stood up to quickly introduce herself. "My name is Rio, guardian of Mercury, Sailor Oberon." Before Ami could say anything, "Yes, I am originally from one of the many moons of Uranus until I was chosen to be the protector of the Princess of Mercury. It is truly an honor for anyone that is selected from Oberon." She possessed short silver hair, the exact same length of Ami's. She wore a khaki pants with a pale blue tank top.
The last young woman to enter had a rich purple colored hair which followed down to her knees. She wore a sleeveless black shirt with a v-cut and dark green pants. Like the others before her, she bowed to the princess she was sworn to protect, Makoto. "I am Hana, guardian of Jupiter, Sailor Ganymede."
"I'm sorry… but I don't remember any of you…" said Makoto, as she looked at all of the newcomers in the room. The other senshi nodded their heads in agreement. It was a lot for them to take in at once.
"Perhaps one day everyone will receive more memories from their past lives," said Ayane. "From what we understand… all of you have experienced difficult circumstances…" she chose her words carefully.
"We've been searching everywhere for you!" Natsuki exclaimed when she ran into the room. She ran up to the other girls and began to hug them. Yui was a few short steps behind them. While the eight of them enjoyed the reunion, Setsuna wordlessly entered the room and sat by Haruka, Michiru and Hotaru. It was clear she was tired from the long journey.
The joyful reunion did not last long once Yui noticed the Three Lights in the room. She glared at them before she spoke, "What are 'they' doing here?" She placed an emphasis on the word they. It was clear she believed they did not belong with them. She didn't give them a chance to respond before she told them, "You have no business here."
"Yui-chan, please stop," Usagi said as she tried to remain calm. She was tired of how the Outer Senshi treated the Three Lights and she was not about to have the same pattern continue with the Moon Senshi. She wasn't sure if she could handle it. "They are guests on this planet and they have just as much right to be here as anyone else."
Usagi's choice of words enraged Yui. She threw formalities to the side and ignored that she spoke to a royal princess. "How can they be guests here after what they've done?"
Akari was often considered the peacekeeper among the new group of senshi. She also felt it was part of her role at the leader of the Moon Senshi. Akari lightly touched Yui on the arm as a sign to fall back. She lowered her voice to tell her, "Calm down. They have done nothing wrong. If Princess Serenity believes they need to be here, what reason do you have to question?" Akari turned to face Usagi, "Though I am curious as to whom they are?"
Before Usagi could answer, Yui spoke for her. "They are the Starlights from the Kinmoku star system."
"Kinmoku… on Earth…?" Rio slowly stated as she processed the information she had just learned. It was unheard of to them to see anyone from that region in this galaxy. "But what could they have possibly done?" Something didn't make sense to her and it was part of her nature to understand a problem. "Kinmoku… is an ally, is it not?"
All of Rio's questions added to Yui's anger. Yui turned to Usagi to directly speak to her. She couldn't hold it in anymore. It was a culmination of things she had wanted to say for days. "I will never accept you as the Princess of the Silver Millennium since you chose an outsider." Her voice was full of venom. She knew her words were an echo of others in the room. The Moon Senshi didn't know what happened while they were away. She needed to educate them on recent events.
"Wait… what are you talking about?" Rin asked. She turned to face Yui. There had to be a reasonable explanation for her outburst and harsh words.
Taiki and Yaten exchanged looks at each other. It was clear things were about to explode. Seiya did not say a word. He knew if he said anything, it would be like adding fuel to the fire.
Yui turned to face the Three Lights again, in particular Seiya.
Haruka was surprised by the look of death Yui gave Seiya. She tried not to smile knowing that someone else felt the same way as she did towards Seiya.
"You don't belong here or on this planet. It is wrong for the Princess to cast aside Prince Endymion for one of you," Yui took a few steps forward in Seiya's direction.
Mamoru was speechless at Yui's action. She had never spoken out against Usagi prior to this moment.
The six new Moon Senshi gasped at Yui's words. They looked at Usagi for either confirmation or denial of Yui's words.
Usagi remained silent. She wasn't sure how to respond. But her lack of response told them everything they needed to know.
Several of the Moon Senshi looked at Mamoru to see if it was correct. They didn't want to believe it. The two were inseparable at the Silver Millennium. They refused to believe their love could die out that quickly. He did not speak.
"You're serious?" Rin asked with narrowed eyes.
"I don't believe it…" Ayane said softly.
"How…?" Hana asked in disbelief.
Rio did not speak, but looked at Akari for some type of signal of what to do next. But she was still in shock.
Setsuna stood up to try and help Usagi. Although she still struggled with Usagi's decision to choose Seiya over Mamoru, she knew she had to learn to accept it. The shock was gradually disappearing and acceptance began to set in for her. "Everyone needs to relax," she said while trying to be the peacekeeper.
Nanami walked forward to challenge Setsuna. "How can we be calm? There were numerous time we had to cover for her! All those time she snuck off to see Prince Endymion and we had to provide an excuse to the Queen!" Her emerald eyes flashed with frustration. Her tone then became ice cold, "We will only accept orders from the Queen."
Setsuna closed the remaining distance between herself and Nanami. "You are forgetting, Usagi-chan will be the next Queen." Her tone suggested they should drop the subject.
Akari couldn't remain silent anymore, she was afraid of what would happen next. Something that was unrepairable. "This isn't getting us anywhere. Clearly some of you are upset…" she turned to look at the newly freed Moon Senshi to emphasize her point. "But what Usagi-san told us earlier, Earth is under attack by someone. That should be our main concern."
Akari's words had an effect on the others. Nanami took a step back and Yui lowered her head slightly. They couldn't deny she was correct. Once Akari confirmed that she had everyone's attention she continued, "We need to focus on whom is attacking Earth. Our specialty is to gather intelligence and it seems research is needed to understand what they are after." She turned to face Usagi, "This new villain does not know about us yet. We have to use that to our advantage, which means we will do what we do best, be undercover." Akari turned to face the other Moon Senshi. The look she gave them made it difficult for them to argue against her. The others respected her too much.
"I think Akari-san is correct," Natsuki said solemnly. She hoped the others would follow her lead.
The other women began to agree with Akari as their focused shifted from Usagi to determining who was attacking the planet.
"You can stay here at the shrine," Rei offered, "There is plenty of room for everyone."
"Thank you… but I believe it would be best if we begin now," Akari said with an apologetic smile.
"I agree with Akari-chan," said Ayane, as she eyed Nanami for her outburst earlier. "I think everyone needs time to adjust to all of the changes… and this time period." She chose her words carefully. Everyone knew what she alluded.
Akari smiled at her delicate word choice. "We…" she emphasized the first word when she looked at Yui and Nanami, "Should leave now before anyone says something they will regret later." She walked over to Usagi. "I'm sorry for everyone's actions Princess." Akari said with a bow.
Usagi was amazed at how quickly the atmosphere changed inside the room. She was in awe of Akari's abilities to calm the others down. It was clear they respected her greatly.
Akari and the rest of the Moon Senshi left the room without a word.
Everyone sat in stunned silence.
"Well… at least the Moon Senshi have been found…" Haruka said, as she tried to lighten the mood in the room. A part of her applauded them for their candid conversation with Usagi about how they felt.
"They do feel familiar…" said Makoto. She was fidgety and adjusted her hair tie. She felt uneasy. "I just wish I could remember more about our past."
"There was something we've neglected to you. Earlier today, Haruka and I encountered Varada. He will no longer be bothering us," Michiru said as she tried to build off Haruka and Makoto's attempts to have the others discuss something else.
"You've defeated him?" Mamoru asked, breaking his silence since he first arrived. "That is wonderful news."
"He told us there will be others…" Haruka said. "We'll be ready."
Before anyone else could speak, red fireflies began to fly into the room and swarmed to the center.
Haruka, Michiru, Setsuna, Hotaru, Rei, Ami, Makoto, Minako, and Mamoru immediately jumped up. They did not know what was happening.
"It's okay," Yaten said with a smile. "It's our Princess trying to contact us."
"Perhaps she had learned the identity of the Guardian," said a hopeful Taiki.
The fireflies materialized into a small hologram of Princess Kakyuu. She was surprised to see everyone in the same room together. "I have important news I wish to share with you tomorrow when I arrive on Earth. I've learned a lot about your abilities, Usagi-san. There is much we much discuss," Princess Kakyuu's full attention was on Usagi now.
Usagi felt nervous on what she would learn from Princess Kakyuu. She wasn't sure how much more she could handle.
"Do you know who the Guardian is?" Seiya asked the question on everyone's mind.
"Yes." Princess Kakyuu said with a solemn expression.
Finally the question will be answered in the next act, who is the Guardian? I'm sure you already know but it's time the rest of the senshi put the pieces together. The next act will also feature more members from the organization, a long overdue confrontation and Usagi's meltdown. Act 28: The Legend of the Guardian
Thank you to Kikis87, your input is invaluable!