PRETTY SOLDIER SAILOR MOON: FUTURE
Chapter 55: Midori's Subconscious Self
Chibi-Usa and Hotaru approached the mansion, and the former knocked the hyena-shaped door knocker several times. A woman in maid's garb answered and said, "May I help you?"
"We're here to see Midori."
"Oh my. You don't look to be her usual friends, nor anyone from the village."
"We're visitors. We heard that she could help us with something."
"Well you're more than free to come in," the maid allowed the girls inside. "Lady Inuken is preoccupied in her study, but she will take guests at any time."
"Thank you," Hotaru said, and the duo went upstairs to the room in question. As if she was nervous about breaking the silence, she gently turned the knob and pushed the door open with a soft creak.
In the study, they found who they were looking for. Midori sat upon a rocking chair facing the window that had a fantastic view of the town. She read a thick encyclopedia while a grandfather clock's pendulum ticked in a relaxing yet haunting rhythm. She was about to flip the page when she noticed her new guests and turned to face them. Her expression wasn't welcoming whatsoever. It felt more distant and detached, lacking any sort of inflection or indication that she knew them.
"Midori?" Chibi-Usa asked timidly.
After an unnerving moment of silence, Midori muttered, "Who might you be, strangers?"
"Huh?"
"You don't appear to be one of the townsfolk. Have you ventured here from one of the other planets? How strange; I heard rumors that many other worlds have no interest in this one."
Chibi-Usa had no idea how to respond, but Hotaru whispered in her ear, "Remember, this is not the real world. She's probably acting different because this is her dream."
"But why is she saying such things that only Sailor Arsenic Hyena has told us? Could she really be…?"
"Hmm…" Hotaru murmured, then responded to Midori's question, "Actually, we are Sailor Soldiers from the planet Earth."
"Earth? I don't recall that one being documented," the strange Midori replied with a raised eyebrow as she flipped through her book. "Which faction does it belong to?"
"Um… Earth is not in this galaxy. That's assuming we are in Alkima, correct?"
"Indeed, this is the outermost planet of Alkima Galaxy. So you're saying you've come from the outside?"
"That's right."
"Then I highly suggest you turn around and leave immediately."
"What? Why is that?" Hotaru widened her eyes.
Midori slammed her book shut and scoffed, "Don't be ridiculous. Even if you're foreigners, you must have heard of the tensions brewing between the hundreds of Sailor Soldiers in this galaxy. Thanks to the goddess Eris appearing out of nowhere and promising to bestow the Victory Crown to the strongest Sailor Soldier, everyone has been out for each other's blood. I have been monitoring activities on the other worlds, and I am certain that a terrible tragedy will soon befall us."
"Um…" Chibi-Usa hesitated, clasping her hands nervously. "Are you…? Uh…"
"What is it? If you have a question, then chin up and ask it without hesitation. I deplore timid people who cannot summon even a microcosm of courage to do something so simple."
"Um… Are you this world's… resident Sailor Soldier?"
"Yes, I am. I've kept my true Sailor identity hidden from the public, but everyone knows me by my pseudonym Sailor Arsenic Hyena."
The grandfather clock chimed right as Chibi-Usa's heart seemed to rise and plummet at the same time, and she needed to clutch her chest for a moment. To her, everything and nothing made sense at the same time. Such shock prevented her from thinking straight for several moments. Hotaru was just as surprised, but she kept her nerves steady so she could continue the conversation on her friend's behalf. Meanwhile, Midori frowned in consternation and demanded, "What is going on here? Who are you people, really? You act as if you know me already."
"Midori," Hotaru whispered. "Please repeat it for me. You, Inuken Midori, and Sailor Arsenic Hyena are one and the same person."
"Hmph. I don't see the point, but whatever. I, Inuken Midori, and Sailor Arsenic Hyena are one and the same. As you can see, I am to guard this tiny world from whatever foul plans lurk within the corrupted minds of those greedy Sailor Soldiers who have fallen prey to Eris' wiles. If you two are from the outside world, then I strongly suggest you make this the only world of Alkima you visit."
"I see…"
"Now that I have properly introduced myself, tell me who you two are. For some reason, my words seem to have incapacitated that girl with shock. Is there something the matter?"
Hotaru became serious as she replied, "You have no idea that this is your dream, do you?"
"My dream?"
"This is all a reflection of your true self! The 'Inuken Midori' that we know is nothing like this! She is a character you made up in order to watch over Chibi-Usa and fight the Animus Syndicate in secret! Am I right!?"
Now Midori was beginning to grow frustrated. "'Chibi-Usa'? 'Animus Syndicate'? You have completely lost me. Explain yourselves immediately, or I will have no choice but to remove you both with force."
Hotaru was about to argue back, but then Chibi-Usa exclaimed, "Midori! It's me, Chibi-Usa! We met back around my birthday and have been good friends since! You've been working on a thesis about some kind of incredible technology, and you were presenting it to Infinity Academy's professors for a scholarship when you collapsed! You don't remember any of that!?"
The three girls became quiet as Midori appeared to contemplate what Chibi-Usa was claiming. The tick-tocking of the clock continued, and then Midori was about to reply to them. That was when the clock suddenly stopped, as if representing that time itself had stopped. The girls stared outside as the usually dark skies gradually turned into ominous shades of purple, blue and indigo, and a powerful wind threatened to uproot the trees and bushes around the house.
"This is terrible!" Hotaru exclaimed. "The Black Apple is coming for Midori!"
Chibi-Usa told Midori, "You should stay in here! Leave the fighting to us!"
"Don't be absurd," the green-haired girl muttered and tossed her hair aside. "I would be a fool to leave the protection of my planet in the hands of strangers who speak complete nonsense. If you really have my village's best interests in mind, you're more than welcome to assist me. Otherwise, don't be an encumbrance to me."
"Oh… All right, but please be careful. The enemy is after you."
"I'll keep that in mind."
The trio ran outside toward the town's main square. The citizens had already evacuated to their homes and shops, so no one was around to interfere with them. From the looming skies, an orb of pure hatred and darkness floated down to eye length several yards away. Chibi-Usa and Hotaru stood in front of Midori with serious expressions, ready to transform and fight at a moment's notice.
"My, my, my," a woman's spiteful voice echoed. "So the princess and her closest confidant have broken through that girl's intrinsic darkness in order to challenge me. Are you really that determined to protect someone who has lied to you for so long, Small Lady Serenity?"
"It's true that I don't entirely know what's going on," Chibi-Usa retorted and held her brooch before her, "but I intend to keep Midori safe so I can find those answers from her."
"Don't bother trying to sway us with your foul words, you abominable existence," Hotaru snapped, wielding her transformation wand.
"Feh. Other than the Silver Crystal and making Selene suffer, I have no other use for you insignificant mouth-breathers. The one I really wish to speak with is the traitorous liar standing behind you."
Although she had no idea what the others were really talking about, Midori said calmly, "Eris… No. You're nothing more than an extension of her will. What business could you have with me?"
"So we finally meet, Inuken Midori. It took me a while to break through the darkness in your soul, which tried so hard to reject me from your body," the goddess' voice reverberated through the Black Apple. "I know that you have been watching me closely from the darkness. But just like you have observed me carefully, I too have had my eye on you for the longest time."
"Please don't tell me that you intend on manipulating me with the power of the Victory Crown. That joke has become quite the tired cliché to me."
"Well there is that, but a tool that knows it's being used would wind up breaking before its first use."
"Then what do you want?"
"We are beings born from darkness. We exist only to return the world of light to nothingness."
"Ah, I see where this is going," Midori raised an eyebrow. "The only reason you'd pay attention to a Sailor Soldier who protects the world of light while living in the shadow of darkness is because of 'that'."
"I'm glad we can come to an understanding without words," Eris grinned. "No need to reveal everything to these girls if we can avoid it, yes?"
"Midori? What are you talking about? What is this 'thing' that you're talking about?" Chibi-Usa asked.
"You don't need to know," was the sharp reply. Midori continued, "So you want me to join your side as a fellow entity of evil."
"We share the same origins. Should we not share the same destiny of returning the light to the darkness? That is the role we have been given from the beginning. You don't need to keep up with this farce of fighting as a Sailor Soldier if it is denying you the right to follow your true destiny," Eris coaxed.
Midori let out a condescending sigh and muttered without hesitation, "You certainly love listening to the sound of your own voice, don't you?"
"I beg your pardon?" the goddess grumbled, her eyes contorting into a displeased expression.
"You're wrong about many things. First of all, we don't share the same origins. Therefore, my destiny is not the same as yours. My life as a Sailor Soldier is no farce; that is my true destiny. The Sailor Crystal that the Galaxy Cauldron gave me is proof of my small role in this eternal war between Cosmos and Chaos."
"Even though your heritage began as a part of Chaos'-"
"I'm not interested. Leave."
Chibi-Usa gasped lightly when she heard Eris say that Midori was a part of Chaos. Midori's commanding words seemed to have an effect on Eris. The angry goddess scowled, "So that's your answer, hm? Then I have no use for you."
"I don't appreciate being coaxed into reducing myself as a tool for your convenience. For someone who's 'had her eye on me for some time', you've greatly underestimated my loyalty to Alkima."
"Say what you want, but I guarantee that you and those people on Earth you call friends will die miserable deaths together!"
"Earth, again? I know of no such world."
"Heh heh heh! You still don't understand what's going on, do you? Those two have tried to explain it to you, but you refuse to listen. What an obstinate little girl. No wonder you abandoned Alkima in its time of need on the whims of your lying friends!"
Midori stood there as she tried to understand what Eris was saying. For a moment, a flash of déjà vu struck her, and she couldn't resist pondering upon it while being mocked by the goddess. Chibi-Usa became angry and yelled, "That's enough! Pink Moon Crystal Power, Make Up!"
"Saturn Crystal Power, Make Up!" Hotaru followed suit with her own phrase.
The duo transformed into their Sailor Soldier identities and confronted the Black Apple. Sailor Chibi-Moon pointed at it and declared, "You have a lot of nerve making Midori suffer when she is working hard to improve everyone's future. I am the Sailor Soldier of Love and Justice, Sailor Chibi-Moon! In the name of the moon, I'll punish you!"
"I am guarded by Saturn, the planet of ruin. The Soldier of Silence, Sailor Saturn!" her comrade introduced herself in a more demure yet fierce fashion, brandishing her magnificent scythe-like spear, the Silence Glaive.
Eris laughed and shouted, "How adorable! Then I will have to banish you two from this dream world first before I can wreck havoc on Inuken Midori's mind and transfer my will into her body!"
The Black Apple took possession of a nearby tree and transformed it into a feminine tree-like creature with black eyes and a toothy smile, with the branches acting like her arms and the roots keeping her 'legs' entrenched within the ground. A powerful wind threatened to throw the girls off their feet as hundreds of razor-sharp leaves blew at them, constantly lacerating their skin.
"Silent Wall!" Saturn shouted and erected an invisible barrier that protected them from the leaves.
"Pink Lady's Heart Barrage!" Chibi-Moon yelled and raised the Pink Lady's Regalia high, firing enough explosive pink hearts to cancel the leaves. Once it was safe, Saturn lowered her shield and rushed in at the Erisian, swinging the Silence Glaive and chopping off a large branch. It fell to the ground and disappeared in a burst of dark energy as Eris howled in pain.
"Impudent little upstarts!" she roared and turned the branches into thin rapier-like blades. She thrust from both sides to impale the two Sailor Soldiers, but they valiantly dodged and rolled about. Chibi-Moon maintained her attacks while Saturn slashed at opportune moments. While they were busy evading, this left Midori open to a surprise attack from Eris, and she clenched her teeth in surprise.
"Silence Buster!" Saturn shouted and sent an energy helix at the branch, deflecting it in time and saving Midori. She landed in front of her and asked, "Are you okay!?"
Midori seemed oddly entranced by the battle, so she didn't respond.
Why do I remember their techniques so vividly?
Her head throbbed as memories of her battles as Hyena flashed in her mind, and she fell to her knees in agony. Eris sent a torrent of leaves at the pair, so Saturn had to wrap her arm around Midori's waist and leap high to get them out of there.
"I've got you!" Eris screeched as dozens of roots burst through the ground and trapped them inside a cacophony of twists and loops. Saturn's arm holding the Silence Glaive was restrained, so she couldn't use it to break them free. The roots tightened and made it difficult for them to breathe.
"Saturn! Midori" Chibi-Moon screamed in shock.
Midori opened her eyes and stared at the worried Soldier, moaning, "Chibi… Usa…"
"I think you know what happens here, princess," Eris interrupted them. "But just to reiterate, you will hand over the Silver Crystal in exchange for their lives."
"Don't do it! She'll kill us anyway!" Saturn yelped, only for a root to wrap around her neck and strangle her.
"Since this is the dream world, let's see if dying here will result in actual death. Should I start with this one first?"
"How despicable!" Chibi-Moon shouted. "Who would ever give the Silver Crystal to someone as wicked as you!?"
"It's not a request, princess. It's an order. You will give me Selene's most valued treasure, even if I have to ruin everything you love in order to get it."