PRETTY SOLDIER SAILOR MOON: FUTURE

Chapter 59: Chaotic Descendant

In the Crystal Palace, Setsuna transformed into Sailor Pluto and re-entered the Doors of Space-Time, the realm where all times intersected. She was its lone guardian, charged with the eternal task of guarding the space-time stream from being abused without her permission. Today, however, she entered with the sole purpose of finding something that could only be found within the realm of time itself.

Pluto raised the Time Staff and commanded, "By the name of my father Chronos, open the gates of eternity and show me the truth that I seek!"

The mythical pearly skies suddenly gave way as an intense wind blew through this strange subspace, but Pluto was fully prepared for it and braced herself. Her tiara broke and the Pluto sigil shone a bright magenta on her forehead. She closed her eyes as her vision turned dark. The Garnet Orb glowed bright red and transferred the images it collected into her mind, showing her brief moments of time that corresponded to the 'truth' that she wanted to know.

"So that's it!" she realized, and her eyes shot wide open. The storm subsided, and all was quiet again. Pluto lowered her staff and narrowed her eyes. "The time stream has shown me the answers I seek. Now I understand why Sailor Zarnik has the same darkness in her soul as Chaos."

The morning after the incident, Haruka drove Setsuna and Rei over to the hospital so they could visit Michiru and Midori. Haruka had told Rei what had transpired, and that a lot of the new information they uncovered coincided with Rei's own predictions. The shrine maiden insisted upon seeing Midori so she could both check on her and possibly get some straight answers out of her. While they were on their way, Setsuna told them about her brief time in the Doors of Space-Time, and that she found out everything she needed to know in order to make Midori talk more.

"So what exactly did you find?" Haruka asked Setsuna.

"It proved that my theory was right after all. However, I wish to explain with Michiru and Midori present as well, since it is a rather complex matter."

"Fair enough."

"I still can't believe that Midori was a Sailor Soldier this whole time," Rei frowned. "And that she went through so much trouble to hide all of that from us. What made her think she could accomplish so much by herself?"

"What a fool she was. She's only breaking now because the pressure is getting to be too much for her," Haruka said. "She's in a tough situation, too. Either fight with us and abandon her hope of reviving her destroyed home world, or fight with her Alkiman comrades who have gone completely mad with vengeance and domination."

"I wish I could tell her to do the right thing, but even I don't know what it is anymore…"

"That's something only she can decide. All we can do is believe in her."

Setsuna didn't say anything. She was worried as well, but she couldn't stop thinking about the new discovery she made as well. In her mind, she thought that if Midori made the wrong decision, everything would go disastrously wrong for both Earth and Alkima. Haruka drove into the hospital's parking lot, and the three women went inside to meet up with Michiru, who greeted them at the front doors.

"Good morning, everyone," she said. She wasn't surprised by Rei's presence since she already knew she was coming.

"How's Midori doing?" Rei asked.

"She's been sound asleep this whole time. I've been scanning her mind with the Deep Aqua Mirror periodically, but there haven't been any further Black Apple invasions."

"Can we see her now?"

Michiru guided them to the room where Midori was. The girl was awake and eating some light snacks when they entered. She still looked really bleary and exhausted, but she was well enough to talk with them. Rei leaned over her and said, "Hey, there. I heard about what happened and wanted to see you."

"Hm… No doubt to confirm your own suspicions, right?" Midori muttered.

"Well there's that, but I'm worried about you too. Haruka told me everything, and I passed the word along to the other Sailor Soldiers. Once you're all better, Serenity's agreed to have an audience with you so we can all hear the full story."

"I anticipated as much."

"But before that," Setsuna interrupted them with a stern expression, "I need to tell you all about what I uncovered at the Gates of Space-Time. It's about Sailor Zarnik's origins."

"My origins?"

"As in why you are a Sailor Soldier who wields darkness rather than light. You know fully well why that is the case."

Midori didn't respond. After an uncomfortable moment of silence, Haruka asked Setsuna, "So what's going on here?"

"Sailor Zarnik…" Setsuna said. "You are a Chaotic Descendant, are you not?"

Midori glared at her and tightened her lips. Finally, she replied, "I didn't think anyone on Earth knew about that term."

"What is that supposed to be?" Michiru asked.

Setsuna explained, "They are scions of the evil stars created by Chaos who were to help it return all life to nothingness. These people are scattered all across the universe and throughout all eras of time, and each one can wield powers of darkness on par with a true aspect of Chaos. Some can control others' minds, others possess knowledge of dark arts, and others have the charisma to lead entire planets into madness, among other such insidious abilities. Chaos may not have directly created these descendants, but they embody its will all the same."

Midori made no motion to silence Setsuna. Everything she said was absolutely correct.

"So the darkness within Midori's soul is a sign of that lineage," Michiru said. "But unlike an active fragment of Chaos, this darkness is totally still. It's there, but it isn't a threat to us."

"I don't know the details about Midori's ancestor," Setsuna shook her head, "but their power must have dwindled throughout the generations until it became dormant within Midori. That, or perhaps her possession of a Sailor Crystal must have calmed that darkness enough. I can't say which is true, though. Only Midori can answer those questions."

"The descendant of an aspect of Chaos being a Sailor Soldier… What tremendous irony," Haruka murmured. "Or perhaps this is the wonder of time healing all wounds. As the generations passed, the darkness within their lineage grew tame and would only awaken in times of need."

The four women glanced at each other, unsure of what to say next.

"... Arsen."

"Hm? What did you say?" Rei asked, leaning in to hear Midori's words.

"The Fallen Hero, Arsen. He is the aspect of Chaos that I have descended from."

"Who is he?"

"I don't know much about him, other than he strived to be perceived as a hero during Alkima's ancient days, way, way before your Silver Millennium. But his idea of 'heroism' was flawed. He fought other pieces of Chaos to the death with no concern for the damage and despair he caused to those he wanted to 'save'. He was betrayed by his followers, branded the Fallen Hero, and compared to the monsters he hunted. He was in turn hunted mercilessly, forcing him to leave the galaxy. I can't imagine the faith he must have lost in the people he so wanted to help."

"Midori…"

"Well, that's irrelevant now. In any case, the last thing he did in Alkima was to help settle a group of homeless stragglers to an uninhabitable planet, and he used his vast knowledge to populate the tallest mountain on this world, which he named Zarnik. He gave birth to some children to remain in his stead, and then disappeared forever. As Setsuna said, the darkness we inherited from Arsen remained silent. Then when I was born, the Galaxy Cauldron forged a Sailor Crystal for me. Zarnik must have developed enough that the Cauldron recognized the need for a Soldier to protect it."

Rei smiled a bit. "You must have seen it as the chance for you to redeem your family's name."

"Maybe, or maybe not. No one on Zarnik resented Arsen, and his name was long forgotten within Alkima. Everyone was too busy trying to survive from each other to care anymore."

"Ah, yes. You had to worry about the war."

"That's why I feel I was given the Zarnik Crystal despite being the descendant of an aspect of Chaos. I thought I could do something to prevent this tragedy from happening…"

Midori's throat tightened up and she squeezed her eyes shut. Tears rolled onto the pillow as she sniffled helplessly. "In the end, the ones I called 'friends' tricked me into leaving my beloved home to be eradicated in the ensuing conflict. If I was more vigilant and refused to go along with that stupid mission, things might have turned out differently. I'm not fit… to be a Sailor Soldier…"

"Midori…" Rei held the crying girl's shoulder and rocked her back and forth. "Please stop it."

She couldn't control this flood of emotions anymore. "If Arsen saw this… he would call me… a traitor to Zarnik… and I know… I would deserve it."

"This isn't your fault!" Michiru implored. "You didn't betray your world!"

"But I chose to leave it… in such a time of peril…"

Haruka folded her arms tightly, resisting the brewing tension within her heart. "You left to seek help. No one can blame you for that. Your purpose was noble."

"But it was… a false purpose. What's so 'noble' about… something that's not true? It's just like Arsen… fighting evil again and again… without any concept… of what it meant to be… a hero for the people. Both of us… didn't think about… those who needed us… to help them… when they needed us… the most. I should have… stayed behind… and fought Eris… in Alkima."

"Do you seriously think you could have changed the outcome of your galaxy's war all by yourself?"

"I don't know. I really wish… I knew."

"There's no way you can fight Eris on equal terms. She gathered all of the discordant energy she created by perpetuating the tensions between those Sailor Soldiers, and that was just to recover from Queen Serenity banishing her. Can one lone Soldier destroy a goddess of such caliber?"

"So you're saying… Alkima was doomed… no matter what." Midori trembled even more. "I don't want to… believe it. I want to believe… my presence there… could have made a difference."

"You're insane. Until you believe otherwise, I won't call you anything else but that."

"That's fine. I probably… don't know… half the stuff I'm saying… anyway."

Setsuna stood over Midori and said, "What I believe in is that your Toxicum Soldier friends genuinely cared for you, and wanted to protect you from Eris any way they could. To them, having their Chaotic Descendant friend confront such a powerful aspect of Chaos would have resulted in disaster. Who knows what would have happened if both of your dark energies came within close proximity of each other. Would Eris' evil turn you evil against your will? Would Eris' darkness cause you great pain? Would Eris harvest your darkness and become powerful enough to destroy Alkima herself? They didn't want to find out. I believe they sent you here not out of malice, but rather to keep you safe from Eris."

"Why do you sound… so confident… saying that?" Midori asked between sobs.

"They sound like wonderful Sailor Soldiers before they became the Camarilla. They must have deeply regretted deceiving you and wanted you to return to them. But since Alkima is gone, they sought the Silver Crystal to revive it. Even if they dirtied their hands along the way, it would result in their wayward friend returning to her beloved home and simple life."

Midori fell silent. The stillness encased them all, as if one slight movement would shatter them into thousands of pieces. Eventually, she spoke in a low voice, "Even if that's true, the Silver Crystal's power can kill the owner if they call upon too much of its power. I heard Sailor Saturn tell Sailor Chibi-Moon not to use it for that reason. My friends must know that this is the case too. There's no way that anyone has the power to reconstruct an entire galaxy without dying, not even this world's Royal Family."

Haruka said, "I take it you wouldn't ask the queen or princess to do that then, huh?"

"No. I would rather let the Galaxy Cauldron re-forge everyone's Sailor Crystals. That way, Alkima's revival will be normal evolution, rather than change forced upon by one person."

"That's good to know. It's a great relief for me. But it would be wise to tell the queen and princess about your decision. However small that chance may be, either of them would probably try to revive Alkima by their own free will."

"That would be best. I'm afraid of seeing Chibi-Usa die using the Silver Crystal."

Setsuna murmured in Midori's ear, "Even though you've suffered so many losses, I really appreciate you thinking for Small Lady like that."

"I prefer to think of it as common sense. The Silver Crystal is an unnatural existence. It creates miracles, but is also the center of conflicts fueled by greed and envy. To be honest with you all…"

Midori shrouded part of her face beneath the covers. She didn't want them to see the spite in her tired eyes.

"… I hate the Silver Crystal."

None of the others could say anything in response. Those awful words generated a heavy silence between the four women. As if afraid to disturb the still atmosphere, Haruka placed her hand on Michiru's shoulder and whispered in a low voice, "Let's leave her be for a while. She needs her rest."

"I will watch over her for today," Setsuna offered. "I wish to speak with her more about the Chaotic Descendants."