Chapter Twenty Five
Child from the Sky
She ran and ran until it felt like she could run no more. Her sides ached, and her throat was on fire. She had to keep running. There was no escape. They were after her—so many close calls. Her legs were scratched up from their long nails. Her clothes were torn to shreds and soaking wet from the rivers she swam through. She could hardly go on.
It was a very dark night. It was difficult to see where she was going. Frequently, she would trip, scraping up her knees, or stumble over something. She glanced behind her. The creatures weren't far behind. She couldn't see them, but occasionally their red eyes would flash in the darkness. They never grew tired, and they never gave up. They had been chasing her for hours. There was only one thing she could do.
Beryl stood over the pool with a wide smirk on her face. She had discovered the future. She watched as her demonic minions chased the young girl through tall pillars of crystal and streets of pure diamond. She would destroy the very thing that was prophesied to destroy her.
The young girl, recognizing where she was in the city, made a right turn. It was a daring plan, but it would be her only means of escape. She thought of her family for a moment, wishing they were alright, but she had no idea what had happened to them. The creatures attacked the palace, and her mother made her run and never look back. She looked back, only to see her mother engulfed by the creatures. It was only terror that kept her running.
In the middle of the city was a very tall building made of crystal of course. There was a large staircase that led up into the building. Tiredly, she hiked up the stairs. The creatures had followed her. Once she reached the top of the stairs, she looked back and saw the creatures in the light. They were black creatures that looked like ogres with long nails and teeth. She looked forward and kept running. In the middle of the interior of the building was a long pillar of light raising up from the floor. She took a deep breath and ran towards the light. She jumped into the light and disappeared.
It was the middle of the night. She was sleeping peacefully like everyone else. She had left her blinds rolled up. She liked to fall asleep looking at the stars and the moon. She never used to like to do that. Everything about the Moon Kingdom felt painful, but now, knowing who she was, it was her destiny. As she slept peacefully, a meteor dashed through the sky. A quick streak of blue, purple, pink, and white trailed through then crashed into the ground. It was close. The ground rumbled gently, but not forceful enough to wake anyone up except for two people.
She fluttered her eyes open. She immediately sat up and looked out her window. Even though she didn't see it, it was like she knew exactly what had happened. She kicked the covers off, got out of bed, and tried to find some appropriate clothing. She grabbed her sneakers and a hooded sweatshirt and left the room. She stepped out onto the deck and saw a flashlight turn on. Kyoji was awake too. She ran up to him. "Did you feel that?"
He nodded then looked out to the sky. "Yeah, I think it landed in the back property." He strung his katana over his shoulder.
"Alright, let's go." They immediately started charging towards the grassy fields behind the Cherry Hill Temple. They discussed what it could be, but they had no idea.
Raye zipped up her hooded sweatshirt. Wanting to be careful with her crystal necklace, she tucked it on the inside of her shirt. "Were you awake or asleep when you felt it?"
"Asleep."
She nodded. "Me too. This must be something pretty big then."
They tromped through the grassy fields for a few minutes only with the flashlight guiding their way. Kyoji stopped suddenly. He shut off the flashlight and peered through the darkness.
"What is it?" She whispered.
He didn't answer.
They followed her. She didn't think they could, but they did. She crashed landed into this place, and they were shortly behind her. Again, she had to run, except this time it was much harder through the field of tall grass with its dips and holes. She could barely stand it anymore. Her legs were dripping with blood. Her body was tired, cold, and numb. She couldn't breathe anymore. She trudged on a few more feet, but caught her foot in a dip. She fell to her knees and as quickly surrounded by the creatures.
The tears that she was constantly crying were now able to flow gently down her cheeks. It was silent in the field, but her heart thumped so hard, she swore she could her it audibly. She gulped and looked around. It looked like only maybe five or six followed her compared to the twenty that were after her earlier. Hundreds of these creatures had attacked the palace. She thought of her family, and closed her eyes.
The young girl fluttered her eyes open. Fire balls surrounded her, but they all hit the creatures that surrounded her. Next, flashes of a blade in the faint light appeared, striking all of the creatures dead. Seeing her chance, she got up and started running through the fields.
"Hey, wait a minute!" Raye yelled.
She didn't look back—she was too frightened. Suddenly, a dark figure appeared before her standing with a blade. She turned around. The second warrior was behind her. Frantically, she looked around, tears coming to her eyes. She ran forward and punched Raye in the face. Raye grabbed her swollen eye. Kyoji continued to chase the girl while Raye followed short behind.
Knowing they were following her, she quickly ducked down into the grass. When Kyoji approached, she popped up and kicked him in the face. Raye started to catch up so the girl ran off into the woods. Being taller and older, Raye managed to come within inches of the young girl. Finally, Raye leapt forward and grabbed the girl in her arms. They both collapsed to the ground.
"Let me go! Let me go!" The young girl screamed.
"Just hold on! Stop squirming!" Raye yelled. "Calm down!"
"LET ME GO! LET ME GO!" The girl squirmed harder and harder, trying to roll away from Raye. The two of them ended up rolling down a small hill. Raye managed to dominate the fight, and when they landed at the bottom, she was on top. Raye shoved the girl down hard into the ground, pressing her weight against her.
The clouds that covered the moon finally unveiled the light. The darkest of the forest was soon illuminated, and the face of her attacker was revealed. Raye lay over top of her, but kept her head up to see the girl. Raye studied the girl's face—she was terrified. She looked familiar, but she didn't know who it was. Dangling above the stranger's face, the small crystal of Raye's necklace had fallen out of her sweatshirt. Both Raye and the girl locked eyes on the dangling crystal. Raye felt it now. She knew who this girl was.
The girl was weak and tired. She passed out. Moments later, Kyoji ran up huffing and puffing. He came over to Raye. Raye backed off the body of the girl then sat on her knees next to the girl's body. Kyoji looked at the girl.
"What in the world?" He uttered.
Raye looked up at him. She had never seen him so shocked in his entire life. "What?" She asked.
Kyoji stared at the girl's body. "She looks just like you."
Raye grabbed a hold of her crystal and showed Kyoji. "Do you know what this is?"
He looked at it. "No,"
Raye looked back to the body of the girl then looked back over at Kyoji. "I think she's our daughter."
"Easy now," Raye uttered while Kyoji laid the girl's body into Raye's bed. He gently cradled her head into the pillow then covered her body up with a blanket. Raye walked over to her desk lamp and turned it on, giving the room a dim light.
Kyoji stood back from the bed while Raye kneeled down at the side of the bed. She took the hand of the girl and brushed the locks of hair from the girl's eyes.
"She looks just like you," He uttered again. He watched Raye tenderly look over the girl's body. At first he didn't believe that this girl was Raye's daughter, but by just seeing the way Raye interacted with this girl, he believed it now. "How do you know she's your daughter?"
Raye kept her eyes on the girl. "Queen Serenity told me that I was pregnant when I died." Raye looked back to Kyoji. "She saved our baby, Kyoji."
Kyoji kneeled down next to the bed too. He looked at the face of the young girl. Now looking closely, there were some differences between Raye's face and the girls. Raye pulled back the black bangs on the girl's forehead. There was the symbol of the Moon Kingdom. He rarely cried, but this was a time that made his eyes tear up. He looked back to Raye. "This girl was our unborn child?"
Raye nodded. "Yes, I can feel it." She clenched the crystal.
Kyoji pondered for a moment. "What do you think happened to her? She's got scratches everywhere."
Raye shook her head. "I don't know. The poor thing was frightened to death."
Kyoji rubbed his jaw. "Well, if she's my daughter, she's grounded for kicking me in the face."
Raye faintly laughed and rested her head against Kyoji's shoulder while they watched the girl sleep.
Raye had cleaned and dressed her wounds, put her in new clothes, and watched over her. The girl had slept all through the remaining night, and almost into the next night. While the girl was sleeping, Raye had contacted the Sailor Scouts and explained what had happened, but unfortunately the girl did not awake. It wasn't until it was almost time to go to bed the next night did the girl start to stir. Raye knelt to the side of the bed and held the hand of the girl. Soon, the girl fluttered her eyes open. Immediately, she screamed and tried to kick away from Raye.
"It's alright!" Raye held her hands up.
"Who are you?" The girl asked, pressed against the wall and standing on the bed.
"My name is Raye."
The girl froze. "Raye?"
Raye nodded. "Yes, Raye. What is your name?"
The girl was silent for a moment. "How do I know if you're not with the Negaverse?"
"I'm not."
"Then why are you calling yourself my mother's name?"
"I am your mother."
The girl was even more terrified. "Impossible!"
"Go ahead, ask me anything."
The girl crossed her arms. "Fine! What is your blood type?"
"AB," Raye answered.
"Favorite animal?"
"Panda."
The girl pondered for a moment. "What's my father's favorite food?"
"That would be plain old kushiyaki with steamed rice."
The girl lowered her defenses. She sat down on the bed. "What is your favorite thing about my father?"
Raye smiled. "He unconditionally loves me."
The girl pondered for a moment. "You are my mother."
Raye leaned forward, taking the girl's hand into her own. "What is your name?"
"Tsukiyama Sakura." She bowed her head.
Raye smiled. "I gave you my mother's name."
Sakura nodded. "Yes."
"How did you get here?"
Sakura started to cry. "Those creatures attacked the palace. My mother…well…you…told me to run. I ran, but those creatures kept chasing me. I leapt into the time vortex and ended up here." She started to sob. "I don't know if my family is okay or not."
Out of her character and nature, Raye immediately reached out and took the child into her arms. Sakura instantly melted into Raye's arms and started sobbing heavily.
"Hush," Raye petted Sakura's hair. "I'm sure everything is alright. They will be okay."
The two of them sat in silence for a few minutes. After a while, the door slid open and Kyoji walked in. He dropped his empty cup on the floor, and stared at the girl.
Raye looked up at Kyoji. "Kyoji, come and meet your daughter."
He walked over to the bed and kneeled down. She reached out for him, strangely putting her hand on his face.
"You don't have your scar," She said.
"My scar?" He questioned.
She pulled her hand away, and put her hand over her left eye. "Yes, you have a scar over your left eye."
He pondered silently for a moment then looked back to the girl. "What is your name?"
"Tsukiyama Sakura."
Kyoji smiled and looked at Raye. "After your mother." His smile grew even larger. "With my last name." This was his child, and he was proud of the fact. He looked over his daughter. She was almost exactly like her mother except with shorter hair and the Moon symbol.
"How old are you?" Kyoji asked.
"Fourteen." She looked at her parents. "How old are you?"
"I'm eighteen, almost nineteen."
The girl snuggled back into Raye's embrace. Her eyes started to droop again. "I'm really tired."
"Are you hungry?" Kyoji asked.
She shook her head. "I'm just too tired to eat."
Raye got up and shifted off the bed. "You should get some sleep then." She grabbed the blankets and tucked Sakura into the bed. The girl smiled, but quickly drifted back to sleep before she could say anything.
Kyoji put his arm around Raye as they watched Sakura go back to sleep.
They watched on as she inhaled a stack of French toast. She was a skinny girl, but she was able to eat almost five whole pieces of toast, two apples, and drink three glasses of juice. Kyoji and Raye stared in amazement while they ate their breakfast.
Sakura looked up from her toast. "What?" She asked, syrup dripping from her lips.
Raye shook her head. "You remind me of Serena."
"Aunt Serenity?" Sakura questioned.
Kyoji looked surprised for a moment. "Yes, I suppose Serena would be your Aunt, wouldn't she?"
Sakura nodded. "Everyone says I got my appetite from her." She looked back to her breakfast. "Apparently all the women on father's side of the family eat like this."
Kyoji and Raye laughed. It was too true. The door bell rang. "That's probably her now." Raye got up and left the room. Kyoji and Sakura ate in silence for a few minutes. He looked up at her, not knowing exactly what to say. It was extremely awkward to see his daughter—especially his daughter with Raye Hino. He and Raye had just barely just started a relationship, and now they were eating breakfast with their future child.
The girl put her fork down and sat silently for a few moments. "So you're still in High school?" She asked.
He nodded. "Yes, last year."
She nodded back. "This is my first year."
Kyoji picked up his orange juice. "What do you study?"
"Oh, lots of things: music, art, history, science, literature, language, geography, mathematics, computers, diplomacy, and of course, there's Sailor training."
"That sounds like a lot."
"It is, but father…you…say it's my duty as a Princess of Mars," She sighed for a moment. "I don't feel very normal sometimes."
"What do you mean?"
She shrugged. "All the waving and the bowing and the parties. You know, all the royal stuff." She stared at her breakfast. "Mom and Dad just don't understand." He looked up at him for a moment and shook her head. "Just forget it."
Raye walked back into the kitchen with the other Sailors following behind her. They all stared at the girl. She did look exactly like her mother except her hair only went to her shoulder blades. She had her father's Moon Symbol, and she had her Aunt's appetite. Sakura stood up from the table and bowed. "Your Majesty."
Serena looked around then realized that the girl was bowing to her. "You don't have to do that. I'm just Serena."
Sakura looked up. "You're Neo-Queen Serenity."
"You really are from the future," Lita stepped forward. She reacted out and put her hand on Sakura's shoulder. "What can you tell us about the future?"
"Yes, where are you from, and how did you get here?" Mina asked.
Ami nodded. "All the information you can could benefit us greatly."
Sakura nodded her head. "Sure, I'll tell you whatever you want to know. Let's have tea first."
They moved out of the kitchen into the tea room. Raye served everyone green tea, and they circled around Sakura. Sakura sat silently for a few moments sipping her tea.
"So…" Mina spoke up first. "Who do I get married to?" She giggled.
Sakura sat her cup down. "Don Diego of Venus. You have two children."
"I have two children?" Mina gasped. "What are their names?"
"Marco and Gabriella."
Mina sighed. "That's wonderful."
"What about me?" Lita piped up.
"And me!" Serena exclaimed.
"It would be very interesting to know," Ami added.
"Let the girl talk, gosh!" Raye exclaimed. Raye took a seat next to her daughter.
"Well, Lita you have three children: Shiro, Kaede, and Akira." Sakura looked to Ami. "Shun and Ayeka are your children." She turned to Serena. "Your majesty, you have Princess Rini as your only child."
"How about your family?" Lita asked. "Do you have brothers and sisters, Sakura?"
Sakura nodded. "Yes, I have two brothers and three sisters."
"What?" Raye jerked her head towards Sakura.
"Six children?" Kyoji stammered.
Mina laughed. "Looks like someone's been busy in the future."
Sakura slightly blushed while Kyoji and Raye did the same. Sakura shrugged her shoulders. "I'm the oldest."
"Six children?" Kyoji gulped.
"Anyway, what is Crystal Tokyo like?" Lita asked.
Sakura leaned back against Raye just like she would against her mother. Raye looked a little shocked and uncomfortable, but felt at ease as the girl perfectly fit against her. "Crystal Tokyo is beautiful. I've been all over the universe, but Crystal Tokyo is the most beautiful place of them all. It's been peaceful and prosperous up until now."
"What happened?" Ami asked.
"Those creatures attacked the palace." She shook her head. "I don't know what they wanted. My mother tried to hide me." Tears came to her eyes again. "I don't know if she's okay. I don't know about my father or brothers and sisters.
Raye gripped her crystal necklace. "This is all so strange. Who attacked in the future to make Sakura come here and now?"
Sakura looked around. "I don't understand."
"We've been dealing with the Negaverse. Queen Beryl is alive. She was looking for the Moon Prince, and she's been trying to kill Raye," Lita said.
"Wait a minute," Kyoji raised his hand.
"What?" Raye looked over at him.
Kyoji pondered for a moment. "She wanted me, and she wanted Raye. Why would she want us both?" He put his hand on his chin and looked over at Sakura. "You must have some sort of connection to all this."
"What?" Sakura asked.
Kyoji shook his head. "I don't know."
Beryl stood watching at her pool. She grinned widely. The child was in the present and even more vulnerable. Beryl looked into the darkness. "Ryujin, come forth."
Out of the darkness came a shadowy figure in the shape of a dragon. It morphed into the shape of a human boy with black hair and black eyes. Beryl smiled. "Go, kill her."
The boy smirked then nodded.