Healing Cascade
Chapter Two
Sailor Pluto was consumed with frustration. The Sailor scouts had stopped queen Beryl from destroying Tokyo only to discover that Usagi was missing. Sailor Pluto had quietly slipped away as they searched for her. Filled with an unexplainable fear, she returned to the time gate, prepare to search for her. Horror filled her as she saw the utter disruption of time, and the resulting darkness that would soon fill the world. Darkness that was caused only from the loss of hope, darkness that would stop the creation of the silver millennium. This hopelessness could only mean one thing, Princess Usagi, and her love hope and compassion, would sooner die.
Sailor Pluto vowed to stop this. She entered the time gate, searching for her princess. She saw Sailor Moon running towards of the battle, desperate to help her friends. She saw Jadeite, Nephrite, and Kunzite, appear behind her, and shot her in the back with their dark power. Taken by surprise, Sailor Moon quickly succumbs to the combined attack. She saw Usagi awake in the layer of Queen Beryl, the dark power preventing her from transforming. She watched in horror as the three dark generals took turns ravishing the defenseless girl. Then she watched as Q appears, blasts the three dark generals into nothingness, and then disappears with Usagi.
Sailor Pluto searched every era –passed present and future, it could not find where or when Q had taken Usagi. She quickly realized that Q could have taken her to another dimension, so she summoned her greatest power as the Time Guardian, and called to all her other counterparts in all the other dimensions, and beseeched to them to search for their dimensions for her Usagi. All had agreed, all had searched all times, past and present; and all have failed.
Sailor Pluto had searched all of creation, all of time, and now all of existence, and still could not find Q and Usagi. "I have searched the Everywhere. Q is powerful, but he must still be in the Somewhere. Yet I cannot find him. Q cannot be Nowhere. I must find him. I know he still exists, for Existence still Exists. Why can I not find him?" "Because I did not wish to be found." Sailor Pluto turns quickly; her staff raised and prepared to defend the time gates against the intruder. She freezes, and all thought leaves her stunned mind. Standing before her is one who was not in Existence a moment ago. "Your power as Time Guardian, as well as your counterparts, is great. But you are still ignorant to so many of Existences deeper secrets," Q says with respect. "I and my companion search all Existence, and could not find you," Sailor Pluto whispered, unable to comprehend how anyone, even Q, could be Nowhere. "You're right. Not even I could be Nowhere. Nor was I." "But I searched all of Existence!" exclaims Sailor Pluto, her mind, ancient beyond comprehension, could not escape this one the fact. "No, you did not."
Normally, Q would have loved to continue this, to revere in Sailor Pluto's incomprehensible confusion, but there's too much its stake here. "You and your companions searched every dimension that you'll know of. However, there's one dimension, a failed and lifeless dimension, where neither life nor time was birthed. Since this dimension has no time, it has no Time Guardian; therefore there was no companion Sailor Pluto to search it." "A dead dimension," Pluto whispered, unable to comprehend how such a thing was possible. "Only the Q and beings higher than us, know of its existence. It took almost all my power to enter it, and I'm still not fully recovered."
"This is where you took Usagi?" asked Pluto. "Yes. It is the only place in existence where she would be safe. Your fruitless search across known existence proves that neither queen Metailia nor queen Beryl could find her, and even if they did, they still could not enter it. She is safe." "Safe!" Pluto exclaims, "Her hope is dying! As it is now, love, hope, and compassion will soon die –and darkness will fill this dimension."
Sailor Pluto did not realize she was shouting, or that her eyes were filling with tears, or that her legs were collapsing, until Q caught her, and in a show of compassion even she had never seen from the super being, pulled her into an embrace. Now that she knew that Usagi was safe, the fear and the energy of the search was crashing down on her, and all she could do for the next few minutes was cry. Q held her, saying nothing. He just held her, and let her have her moment of grief. And grief it was, strong and overwhelming. Sailor Pluto had seen the ravishment of her princess, and she had seen the coming darkness and destruction, and these sites were too much, and Pluto knew that her mind was about to break. However, Q held her together; he helped her, and kept her whole.
Eventually, the hopelessness and helplessness ended, and Sailor Pluto was able to compose herself. Seeing that the threat of Sailor Pluto's mind shattering had passed, Q slowly pulled away from the powerful and alluring woman. Taking her small face in his hands, Q forced Sailor Pluto to look into his eyes, and to see the truth of his words. "Time does not exist in the dead dimension. When Usagi entered it, she left the stream of time. She is still in existence, but she's outside of time. Because of that, you could not find her. Also, because she is no longer in time, from this point on, time will progress without her. But, when she is returned to time, it will rearrange itself to accommodate her return. I pulled her out of time, to keep her safe from queen Metailia and queen Beryl, and to give her a chance to recover without the risk of danger. I know it will be hard to watch, but let this dimensions time progress as it will. It will all be rearranged when Usagi heals her shattered heart, and returns to this dimension, as well as this time."
Q looked deep into Pluto's eyes, leaving her slightly breathless. There was such compassion and regrets in those ageless eye's. "I'm sorry I cause you such pain," he said. "Why?" Sailor Pluto asks. "You did what you had to do to save hope." "Because I caused you pain," Q said quickly and passionately. In a slow and confused voice, he adds, "and… seeing you in pain… was a most distressing feeling." Q and Sailor Pluto stay that way for several minutes; on their knees, eyes connected, hearts beating as one, and drawing comfort in the other's presence.
Slowly, reality invades the perfect moment of connection, and forces them to focus on the situation at hand. After rising to her feet, Pluto asks, "now that Usagi is safe, how do we help her?" "As a guardian of time, you cannot enter of the dead dimension without ceasing to exist. Besides, only I have enough power to take and sustain one person, besides Usagi, into the dead dimension. A ship, whose crew is caring for her now, is in the dead dimension. Their entrance, and continued existence, was and is being accomplished by the full power of the entire Q continuum. Since I can only take one into the dead dimension, I believe the best choice would be Sailor Mercury."
"Wouldn't Darien be the best choice to help Usagi? He is her soul mate, after all." Q shakes his head, "Prince Darien, of the Earth kingdom, cannot leave time. If he does so, the Earth will cease to exist. Removing the Prince of Earth, while the Earth is alive, will kill the Earth. That is why it must be a Sailor Scout. Since their Planets are not currently alive, there would be no permanent harm in removing them from time. Darien is the best choice to help Usagi, but he is the one person whose removal from time will cause un-reversible damage. So we must choose the second best person, which is Sailor mercury, whose removal from time can and will cause damage, but damage that will be reversed upon her return to time."
"I agree," Sailor Pluto said quickly. "While all the scouts love her, Ami is Usagi's best friend. Rei and Usagi's friendship is strong but kept light because of their mutual teasing. Makoto is so independent; she has trouble letting others in. Minako and Usagi are close, but it is a surface friendship, filled with banter, shopping, and gossip. Ami is always so serious about everything, including her friendships. She has the seriousness that Minako lacks, the openness Makoto lacks, and that tact that Rei lacks. Yes, Ami would be the best choice. For all that they truly love Usagi; I think Ami is the only one who could truly help her heal."
The time gate, as sentient as time itself, activates to offer its knowledge; knowledge that will affect the current plan. A scene from Ami's past is displayed, and the implications are immediately clear. "O' Ami," Pluto says compassionately. "Pluto, I don't know as much about human psychology as you do, but how can Ami helps Usagi heal from the theft of her innocence, if she has not healed from her own?" "O' Q, she can't. But the other Scouts don't have the relationship with Usagi that Ami does. They would not be able to help her heal." Pluto says. "Well, then someone will have to help Ami heal, and then she can help Usagi heal." "But who? None of the other girls are close enough to Ami, or have the kind of relationship with Ami, where she would open up enough to let them help her."
Again, the time stream, in an effort to save itself, pulls a moment from the past. Q and Pluto watch as the time stream shows progress of moments in time, showing an online chat with a 16-year-old Japanese girl named Ami, and a 17-year-old American boy named David. The time guardian and the super being watched as the young couple's online relationship booms and blossoms. Secrets are risked, those same secrets honored, and trust is built. They watched the young couple progress from acquaintance to friend, from friend to more, and from more to in love. Not a declared love, but love nonetheless.
As soon as the last seen finishes, Q and Pluto turn to each other. "David heals Ami, and then Ami heals Usagi," Q said. "How? You said you could only take one person into the dead zone?" Q considers of this for a moment, but could only come up with one tentative suggestion. "It would require the use of all the Scouts accept Mercury, and I'm not just talking about the inners; Sailor Saturn, Sailor Uranus, Sailor Neptune and you would be needed as well. Prince Darien's power would be useful as well," Q replied. Pluto founds herself mesmerized as she listens to Q. His voice is so kind so knowledgeable and so cute. Cute? Where on the Moon did that thought come from? Unwilling to dwell on the only possible answer, Pluto returns to focus on what Q is saying. "I will transport Ami to the dead dimension, and return to speak to David. I need you to gather with remaining Scouts and Prince Darien, and explain the situation. All eight of you must be united in your desire to send David to help Mercury, or you will have no hope of generating enough power." "Once we generate enough power," asks Pluto competently, "how do we send him safely to this ship if we cannot even detect the dead dimension?" "You will need to worry about that. I will transport him to voyager; I just need you to create the power for the entrance." "Good"
A question of doubt, fueled by the growing hopelessness poisoning her dimension makes Pluto panic. "What if David refuses to help! He doesn't know Ami is a real live Sailor scout!" Q, whose perception and existence is existence –wide, is not bound by the perceptions and existence as one such a Sailor Pluto, who is dimension-wide. As such, the loss of hope in one dimension does not affect him as much as it does her. However, he is knowledgeable of the fact that Pluto is tied to this dimension, which is slowly losing its sense of love, hope, and compassion.
Taking Pluto into his arms, Q holds the trembling woman, and says the most encouraging words he can think of, "David will help Ami. Not because anyone will force him to, or because love, hope, and compassion will be lost if he does not. David will help Ami for the most simple, most powerful, and most basic reason in existence - because he loves her." Apparently, the words are well chosen, because they calm Pluto. Now, if only he could believe those words, he would fill a lot better about not losing himself to the darkness.