Chapter 4: Star Fighter
Seiya knocked on the door of the house where Setsuna Meiou lived with her two daughters and her husband. She knew it was time for her to pass on her powers like Taiki had done, and she knew that her successor was one of Setsuna's daughters. She smirked to herself as she thought of the irony of the situation. When she and the other Starlights had first come to Earth, Setsuna, Haruka and Michiru had not been very welcoming to them, since the three Outer Senshi felt that the Starlights could possibly be a threat. Now, Seiya thought, Setsuna was going to be willing to allow one of her own daughters to inherit the Senshi abilities of a "suspicious alien," as Setsuna probably would have called Seiya in the past. The door opened, revealing Setsuna herself.
"Good afternoon, Seiya. Both of my daughters just got home from school. I understand that you have something for one of them?" Setsuna greeted, getting right to business.
"Well, yeah. I had the feeling that it was my turn to pass on my powers, like Taiki did, and I can sense that one of your daughters is my successor," Seiya said, "I'm pretty sure that it's Niji, but it would be best to make sure."
"I have always sensed that both of them have the potential to be Sailor Senshi. I used to think that Niji would be Hotaru's successor someday, since she admires Hotaru so much, but if she's the new Sailor Star Fighter, then that's obviously not the case," said Setsuna as they entered the house together. Seiya sat down on a chair in the living room while Setsuna went off to find her daughters, who were both in their bedrooms doing their homework. It wasn't long before Setsuna brought Niji into the room, followed by Misora. Seiya made a black wand that was topped with a pale blue heart appear in her hand.
"Could each of you come here and try out this wand? I can sense that it belongs to one of you. Niji, it's probably going to be for you, but if it doesn't work for you, then I'll ask Misora to try it out. All you need to do is hold it, and if it belongs to you, the Star Fighter symbol will appear on your forehead. That's how Taiki told me that she knew that Nanaka Tsukino was her successor," Seiya explained.
"I guess I'll try it, Ms. Seiya," Niji said quietly. She took the wand from Seiya and it glowed a pale blue color. Seiya could see the telltale blue heart on Niji's forehead, showing her that she had made the correct choice.
"May I ask you and Ms. Seiya a question, Mother?" Misora spoke up. She had been watching the transfer of power between Seiya and Niji, and Setsuna had thought that it seemed like her older daughter was a bit disappointed.
"Of course you can," Setsuna said, wondering if Misora might be asking when her turn would be.
"Am I going to be a Sailor Senshi too?" Misora asked.
"Yes. However, I do not know which Senshi you will be. I do sense the potential ability in you, though. You may be one of the new Zodiac Senshi instead of a direct successor to one of the current Senshi like your sister is. Makoto told me that her daughter Nozomi became Sailor Libra, and thus I assume there will be 11 other Zodiac Senshi who will join her," Setsuna answered, "If you ARE a Zodiac Senshi, I would assume that you are likely to be Sailor Taurus, given when your birthday is."
"Do you know what type of powers I would have if I were to be Sailor Taurus?" Misora wondered.
"Maybe you'll get the ability to control a herd of raging bulls," Seiya snickered.
"That does sound rather powerful, but I've never heard of a Senshi who had powers to control a specific kind of animal before. Is Ms. Seiya correct, Mother?" Misora asked seriously.
"I honestly do not know. Unfortunately, while I do know that the Zodiac Senshi exist and that you may be one of them, even I do not remember anything about what they were like in the Silver Millennium," Setsuna said.
"What about me? Will I use the same powers as you, Ms. Seiya?" Niji asked.
"I actually don't think so, at least not yet. Because Taiki told me that her successor, Sailor Chibi Star Maker, attacked using slime rather than the Star Gentle Uterus attack. So you could end up with my Star Serious Laser, or with something completely different," Seiya answered.
While the Meiou sisters were having their question and answer session with Setsuna and Seiya, there was another girl in a very different place who also had a question. A girl with lime green hair that hung to her shoulders stood before the throne of Princess Lollipop.
"May I ask you something, Princess Lollipop?" the green-haired girl requested.
"Of course you can, Strawberry Shortcake," Princess Lollipop answered with a sweet smile on her face.
"May I go to challenge the Sailor Senshi next? I'm curious to meet them. Maybe I could even convince them that the world that we wish for is a good thing," Strawberry Shortcake said.
"I don't understand why they reject my vision of a world of candy. Especially Neo-Queen Serenity, she loves to eat sweets so much that I had thought she would be easy to convince," Princess Lollipop pouted, but then she perked up and a mischevious glint came into her blue eyes. "Strawberry, I'll give you a challenge. Go find Sailor Pluto. She's the most annoyingly stuffy and serious of those Senshi, so if you can convince her, then the others will be easy."
"Sailor Pluto it is, then. Maybe I'll even get that Garnet Rod of hers for you so you can turn it into a giant lollipop or something," Strawberry Shortcake smirked.
Back at the Meiou household, Seiya was now the one who had a question.
"I don't doubt that the Zodiac Senshi are real, but how do their powers work? Is astrology actually a real force on this planet? I was curious because the constellations here on Earth are in different shapes than the ones back on Kinmoku, but Taiki has told me that some of the same stars can be seen from both of our planets," Seiya said.
"I do not know the exact nature of how the Zodiac Senshi's powers work or where their powers ultimately come from. As I said, I honestly can barely remember anything about them. It's almost as if someone had erased them from my memory, because I do remember many other things from the Silver Millennium, but not the Zodiac Senshi. I didn't know they existed until I was told what happened at Makoto's house. Perhaps you should ask Luna and Artemis, because they were the ones who were able to easily recognize Sailor Libra," Setsuna explained. Just then, a flash of green light appeared in the middle of the room, interrupting the conversation. Strawberry Shortcake appeared, smirking at Setsuna.
"Tell me, what's your favorite food? It's something sweet, right?" she asked cheerfully.
"No, I am in fact partial to green tea. I do sometimes enjoy having sweets for dessert, but I would not want the entire world to be turned into a giant dessert, particularly if it meant sacrificing every single living being on the world," Setsuna replied coldly.
"Wait, really?! I thought everyone LOVED the idea of living in a world of sweets!" Strawberry Shortcake exclaimed incredulously.
"That is a common setting in fiction, you are correct. But that fantasy does not usually involve a desire to be turned into sweets for someone else's consumption, which is what your Princess Lollipop wants to do to everyone in the world, am I correct?" Setsuna retorted.
"What if I convinced her to spare you Sailor Senshi and asked her to let you join us? You could enjoy her world of sweets along with us then," Strawberry Shortcake suggested.
"No. I already said that I would not want the entire world to be turned into sweets, nor would I want to eat sweets that were once other people," Setsuna restated.
"Maybe you just don't understand because you're an adult," Strawberry huffed, and then she turned to Niji and Misora, smiling sweetly. "I'm sure you girls understand me, right? I bet you like to eat candy, and would love it if the entire world was made of it!"
"But I shouldn't eat just candy, Mommy says it's not good for me and that there are other things I need to eat so that I can become healthier and stronger when I grow up," Niji said shyly.
"That's weird, Princess Lollipop can live on candy and sugary foods alone and I don't think there's anything wrong with her health," Strawberry Shortcake said.
"How do you know? Are you her doctor like Mrs. Mizuno is for me?" Niji asked.
"No, but I think I would be able to tell if she was obviously sick or dying. I don't understand why you people are so opposed to the idea of a world of sweets!" Strawberry Shortcake snapped, getting annoyed at the resistance she was receiving, "Are all Earth people as weird as you? I was so sure that people here loved sweets just as much as Princess Lollipop, especially your Queen!"
"There is a difference between enjoying sweets and enjoying being turned into sweets to be eaten, a distinction you and Princess Lollipop don't seem to understand," Setsuna repeated.
"You might say that now, but this isn't the last you weird Earth Senshi will hear from me. I'll find a way to convince you to like becoming a part of a world of sweets," Strawberry Shortcake boasted, and then she disappeared in a flash of green light, leaving in the same manner she arrived.
"I don't think I've ever seen an enemy who just wanted to argue instead of attacking us," Seiya commented.
"Don't let your guards down, girls, she might be trying to lull us into a false sense of security, plus the others in her group aren't so inclined to simple verbal sparring," Setsuna warned, "I remember them from the Silver Millennium and Princess Lollipop was very good at tricking people into thinking she was cute and innocent. I presume the same would go for her followers as well."