Wow, I've been gone for a while. School sucker punched me in the face, but I didn't forget this fic. I just had to shelf it for a while. However I am back now, and I want to thank everyone that left comments during my long absence. I hope you enjoy this next installment, it is most likely the darkest chapter i've written yet. Also, because this story is written entirely from Rei's point of view I leave out a lot of other events that Rei is not apart of, i decided this to make sure the Reader is not confused by alot of jumping around.
" It has …begun"
The dark princess sat on her bed, the light of the fire casting long shadows about her room. Beside her the Princess of Venus peacefully slept, unaware of the tumultuous thoughts raging through the Martian.
Rei had been awake for over and hour thinking over everything she knew and trying vainly to find a loop hole. All the Senshi had awaken even Saturn. Saturn's Avatar, still a young girl, was not present at the ceremony where the other senshi received their planetary crystals because the girl's secret power. The official story was that she was much to young to accept the power of the Saturn Crystal into her young body and that story seemed to appease the ignorant nobles and aristocrats who were only concerned with face and status. No the real reason was there was no crystal to bestow, it had already been bestowed on the young girl upon her awakening. Because if Saturn had awakened then she meant to do one thing and one thing only.
"Bring destruction to everything" Rei sighed as she absently ran her fingers along the slumbering Venus side.
The people of the Silver Millennium had always seen the senshi as the mystical royal soldiers that awakened just when the kingdom needed them. To the masses they were no more then a legend that served the purpose of putting the minds of the people at ease. Soldiers of legend that were the vessels of phenomenal power, they were not mortal, nor where they imbued with the ability to make mistakes because they were legendary soldiers. The public didn't think on how these young girls were robbed of a childhood or put under an incredible amount of pressure, no they were in existence for one purpose, and that purpose was putting the minds of the masses at ease. Now as strife and discord continued to build the Martian sensed that more then ever the senshi were truly needed. Wars were inevitable but their frequency was mounting and with the building darkness, looming in the distance the end was sure to come regardless.
A sense of hopelessness filled Rei as a ragged sigh tore through her being. The blind princess felt uneasy as if something was still missing from the picture, some piece of the puzzle yet to be revealed and it frightened her. With head bowed slightly the Martian allowed her thoughts to delve darker.
In her vision, she had seen the Prince of Earth and Princess Serenity tied to a hopeless love. It was that love that sparked the beginning of the end. The Princess of the Moon was powerful in her own right, the Martian had felt the power herself. However the ability to bring about ultimate destruction laid only with Saturn, which meant that while the Princess may begin the end of their age it would be little Saturn that finished it all. And while the dark princess of Mars was away receiving her vision of the end times, the Moon kingdom was busy receiving a royal delegation from Earth.
"It all moves so quickly," the Martian muttered to herself, " No time to even catch our breathes".
The Avatar of flame shifted on the bed still deep in thought, as the ebony clock in her room seemed to grow in girth as the shadows lengthened in the room. Pluto must have known that the end was on the horizon. There has always been tension between the Moon kingdom and the Earth. The Earth had refused to join in the Planetary Alliance and so had been in isolation for centuries. As a result, the Earthlings were considered backwards, behind on the times. They did not enjoy the scientific advancement of the Silver Millennium and treated magic as if it were the plague. It was widely known that the Earthlings were a dim-witted, superstitious, and a culture as foreign to the Silver Millennium as possible.
So when the new Prince of Earth requested an audience with Queen Serenity, much of the Silver Millennium was in shock and suspicious of his motives. Rei herself was just as suspicious for as long as she had been alive a strange malicious aura had settled itself on the planet, and this aura only grew with each passing year.
" If only we had time" the Martian murmured to herself a frowning lightly.
The dark princess moved then, slowly feeling out her surroundings, still not use to her lack of physical eyes. Carefully, with measured movements the Avatar of Mars leaned over the still sleeping Venusian. Long fingers ghosted over the features of the slumbering girl pausing at slightly parted lips. Rei moved then, pulled by some unseen force toward those lips. Just a millimeter away the ebony haired princess stopped, staring with unseeing eyes into a peaceful face.
" I would spill all my blood to see you safe but my end has already been foretold, I'm to be as a rising phoenix." Rei started, breathing her words passed slightly parted lips. " My price I'll pay, so remember me in the next life even if I don't. Remember me and I'll find you, our souls are tied together".
Rei then sealed her words into the Venusian with a soft press of her lips. The kiss was a boldness fueled by the desperate knowledge that the wheel of destruction had already been set to motion, and a fueled by the equal amount of sorrow that she would not have the time to explore her tie with the beautiful Venusian. The blind princess could feel war bubbling up in her blood, tension lay heavy in the air, and the taint of darkness had already caused the the sun to dim. While in this moment of quiet the Martian knew that outside the peaceful confines of her quarters armies mounted, tactics of battle were being drawn up, and fate herself was reading her axe.
What good were senshi if destiny had already decided on a course of action? What purpose did her powers provide if Queen Serenity had already seen their doom spelled out in the sheer amount of senshi awakened? What kind of cosmic joke was being played?
Its true that for all of Rei's young life she had known she lived at the end of an age. Her people, the war like people of Mars, had begun to write down their history for the first time in a millennium. Techniques for fighting of all kinds were being recorded and hidden, while the Planet Mars itself became colder with each passing year. Other planets faced similar situations; Mercury had become so hot its citizens had created protective bio-domes simply to stand the increased temperature. The storms of Jupiter became fiercer and larger in all recorded history while Venus surface began to give off toxic gas. It was as if the galaxy itself was shifting and the only planet not affected was little Earth, little Earth filled with it's barbarians that reeked of darkness.
Now on the brink of monumental change, the senshi awaken to a world filled with unrest to usher in new age.
"And we will usher in that age with the blood of the Silver Millennium on a pedestal made of our broken bodies"
Fate sure was being a bitch.
Rei silently padded toward her balcony and stood in the weak light of the Earth until she heard the familiar beating of wings. As Phobos and Deimos landed on the balcony railing next to their mistress, a new determination straightened the Princess of Mar's shoulders.
" Phobos, Deimos we will need to build a fire-pit. The Moon kingdom will go to war in the coming days and it would be un-Martian of me to take this destiny of ours with sword sheathed." The blind princess paused then, turning her face back toward the dark confines of her room, " Also tell my brother to ready his army for a war like no other." The two ravens cawed excitedly and flapped their wings with barely restrained eagerness. " If this is our destiny then lets make sure to show the empire how Martians greet destiny."
The afternoon was clear and a strange hush had fallen over the world as the ebony haired Princess of Mars walked toward the outer wall of the moon palace. A vision of bone, blood, and broken bodies littering the outer wall struck the blind Princess and she staggered under its weight. Rei knew the delegation hadn't gone smoothly; it was just a rouse to start the fighting.
As each of the planets in the alliance began to slowly die the dim-witted Earthlings knew that it would be only a matter of time before they would go to Earth, and that in Rei's opinion was most likely when the darkness began.
Now the Avatar of Flame and Passion shook with barely restrained horror as an image of ten thousand misshapen demons readied themselves for battle. With a violent shake of her head Rei literally shook the image from her mind and turned herself to the task of readying the fire pit just outside the walls of the palace.
Rei worked through the afternoon, her and her two guardians working silently and intently. The ebony haired Marian worked through the feeling of tension which radiated throughout the castle as a messenger approached it's large silver gates. The Princess of Fire continued to work undaunted as the stifled cry of alarm that went through the palace as the decree for war went up. She continued to work just as intently even as she felt the other senshi looking for her during the falling dusk, no doubt to discuss battle tactics. As night took the whole of the moon into its grip the Princess of Mars finally took a step back from her day's work, sweat soaked her form, and dirt caked every exposed part of her skin along with her clothes.
It finally was ready.
As she surveyed her work, feeling the lines of power around the fire pit she had toiled over the Avatar of Mars felt a familiar presence coming toward her. A small smile graced her dirt covered features as she reached up to tighten the cover over her eyes.
" You always seem to know where to find me Ami."
A soft chuckle came from the reserved Mercurian, " Its not hard to figure out where a Martian Princess would be on the eve of war", a pause and then Rei felt the other Princess grow serious. "Minako is upset. We had to conduct the tactics meeting without you."
Rei turned then as if meeting the gaze of the other warrior a light frown gracing her features, " Thats Venus' duty not mine. Mine is here"
"Building a big bonfire?"
The Martian bristled slightly at the sarcastic tone, but remained silent.
"Rei, we are a team. I know you've seen the end, but if its the end we face then we face it together." The blue haired princess sighed. " Don't shoulder the whole burden onto yourself"
"Can you make water wells in the plain outside of these walls?" The blind princess asked
" What?" Ami replied, thrown off by the sudden shift.
" Can you make wells in the plain here?" Rei repeated.
" What for- refugees... " Ami caught on. " Yes that would be easy to get a team to construct..." She trailed off " But how soon?"
" Soon, in fact the sooner the better." Rei replied.
There was silence for a moment, Rei could practically feel the wheels turn in the Mercurian's head as she thought through the request and it's implications.
"I'll have them done in 3 days tops." Ami stated, her voice laced with determination, " I'll have a refugee camp sight readied also"
" You also... may want to see about Jupiter. She is looking for you back in the palace" Rei said, a smug grin crossing her features as she looked side long toward her companion.
"How do you know these things?" Ami asked incredulously
" If Makoto throws around her power anymore in her frustration I'll be surprised if someone doesn't get zapped." Rei replied with a small laugh, she could feel the smaller woman blushing a bright red.
Small hands grabbed the Martian's shoulders and squeezed them affectionately, " Rei, remember we will all be with you until the very end. We are a team".
As the other girl's foot steps walked away the fiery princess bowed her head and mouthed a silent thank you to the retreating form.
With the Mercurian gone, Rei stood a moment gathering her energy and centering herself. Then with a motion to her guardians to step back she knelt on the ground before the pit, both palms to the moon; and with a guttural roar Rei dug her fingers into the dirt under her palms bringing fistfuls of soil upward before letting the dirt slide from her fingers. It started then; she tore at the clothes on her back as the ancient Martian war chant fell from her lips. With both palms open she beat at her chest once, emphasizing the chant, her body moving with the rhythm of the tribal beat, fist in the air as she danced faster and faster. Rei's body moved with the feral grace of a cat, jumping and spinning all the while chanting until finally with a loud roar the pit erupted into a blazing inferno.
As Rei stood panting from exertion she felt two arms wrap themselves gingerly around her torso, arms that the fiery Martian gratefully sank into.
"Mars goes to war." her companion said into damp locks of ebony hair.
"All Martians will feel the call of this fire and set their blades to sharpening for the coming battle." Rei replied solemnly
"Impressive"
The Dark Princess of Flame allowed herself a tiny smile then, drawing the arms around her to hold her more securely as she murmured, "What will be impressive is the way we all will perish".
Arms tightened around her as a kiss was pressed into Rei's shoulder, " Its true then? Every Martian wishes for the honor of dying in battle?"
Ebony hair shook slightly as Rei turned her head from side to side slowly, " No, not just battle. True glory comes from fighting to protect what you care most about and giving your life to that end".
Rei's voice was raw with emotion and her exhaustion, and she could feel the Venusian commander caught in the power of her own emotion through the shaking of her body. With a deep breath Rei steeled herself and turned in those protective arms. With a gentleness rarely seen long fingers reached up to cup a soft cheek wet with tears; A light frown dusted the Martian's lips as she attempted to brush away the Venusian's tears with the dirty pads of her thumbs.
"I've seen our end Minako and it is unavoidable. I will do everything in my power to prolong our time here, but even I know these moments and this life is numbered. Cry tonight and lose your emotion onto me, but tomorrow show no one your sorrow and do the duty fate has assigned to you."
The blond commander lifted her hands to the back of the Dark Princess's head, untying the black blindfold with deft fingers. "I miss your eyes, they were the most expressive part of you".
Rei smiled ruefully then, " I miss them more. Don't worry, you'll see them again"
"Not soon enough". the Venusian replied quickly
Rei smiled sadly at her companion as images of her vision filtered through her mind, a lost little girl crying in a room of white, the same lost girl sweeping large stone steps under a foreign red gate.
"What are you thinking?" the words were whispered into the pensive Martian's ear.
"I wonder about the next life and what hardships we will face then" Rei murmured.
"Can't be harder then the destruction of the galaxy." the Venusian sarcastically replied.
The brooding Martian remained quiet unable to get the image of a crying little girl out of her mind.
tbc...