A/N: Alright here's chapter 4! Finally got my computer fixed so now today I had a chance to finish this chapter! Some things aren't always as they seem in this chapter and I had a little too much fun with one idea. In this chapter you'll find out answers to questions that were never fully answered in the first Arc so please enjoy.
I DO NOT OWN SAILOR MOON!
Chapter 4: Value of Trust! Hotaru and Minako join the team!
It had been seven days since Yumi's travel party had gone in search of the Serenity bloodline for more answers. They were on bird back and had traveled pretty far away from the travel shuttle that would normally be used, it was all a very new experience to Makoto. Of the travel group that were not in the shuttle, she was the only adult. The world around them had been changing drastically that what would be normal standards and without Ami by her side she began to worry.
Mountains were starting to form rifts and merging where there would normally be nothing more than simple long stretch of plans. The air was starting to become more clearer by the day as what would be normal civilization seemed to disappear without traces of prior existence. It seemed as if the old days once spoken of in history books were becoming a reality. The beasts used by the Senshi were starting to become wild by some unknown force as large groups of the Aepyornis ran freely with no master in sight. In the colder regions formed of frost and ice, the Homotherium were doing much the same in smaller packs. Other creatures were starting to fill on the earths surface as the many lands became one. Yasu had said that the only other time earth could have even remotely resembled this was when humans first can into existence, and even so there were some major differences.
Xen for her part had been commanding the birds wherever they needed to go. No leads had been found until the other day when some passerby had foretold of a war that had broken out within a few days walking distance. They knew they were getting closer by the foot marks of many youma. Between Xen and Izumi they classified the prints to be of large monsters that dealt with ground based attacks. Even so, it was also stated that they weren't overly strong just a rather large pain in the rear end.
They followed the tracks for quite a long time, trees were toppled and the ground cover had been damaged in the wake of the traveling youma. It seemed as if they had no particular place to strike, as if they were mindlessly walking. Xen knew youma didn't randomly walk around without a cause so freely. Often they were well disposed of before such actions took place. The pathway continued to raise questions and with a call through the communicators all the Senshi were placed on high alert for any odd activity. Minako hadn't been found by the others yet leaving Yumi highly worried.
It was high time some other clues were found, sadly nothing else could be offered in the way of a better strategy. Xen was currently scanning the ground when Makoto came by her side offering an odd question that had been on the minds of the adults for a while now. "I know we are trying to find answers to why the serenity bloodline has been acting strangely, but I have a more immediate question I want answered if you wouldn't mind attempting to answer it." Makoto said also taking her time to examine the pathway marked by such strange beasts.
"Yeah sure what is it?" Xen asked undoing her knife from her belt stabbing the soil a bit to loosen a chunk of it for further study. She picked it up noting the odd change in the under growth of the soil, this was seen quite often and she knew what it was. The soil was changing in both color and mass, this was a common ingredient for elemental study.
"These tracks aren't made from just any youma are they?" Makoto said also looking to the soil in question. It had a green tint on it, this mean that if it was anything like the ooze from before, Xen should be in pain. Oddly enough the child seemed not to be worried on what she was holding and even seemed to know what it was as she dug through the dirt to search for more. "Only reason I ask is because the pattern I'm seeing resembles one from awhile ago." Makoto clarified as she watched the digging continue.
"Well, your only half right." Xen said as she picked up some of the soil from the ground. "Those youma are quite common on outer realm planets, but they aren't smart, nor are they overly hard to kill. They are really more annoying than anything else, however it's the stuff they leave behind that hold value for the people of the outer realm." She placed the soil in Makoto's hands and the older Senshi noted that it felt like simple dirt, nothing more.
"This isn't like the painful feeling from before." Makoto said as she let the dirt fall through her fingers. This earned a laugh from Xen who knew what Makoto meant as she pulled out a small vial of some ooze. "What are you doing with that?" Makoto asked looking at the green ooze in the bottle.
"You really are dense aren't you?" Xen said as she picked up the soil to prove a point. "Those youma are plants, walking beings that don't actually reproduce, they drop seeds." She dug through the soil and pulled out more lightly speckled dirt. Placing the dirt in a new vial she placed both of them side by side as she pulled out another knife and a small stone.
"Seeds…" Makoto sounded incredulous as she watched Xen poor the ooze onto the stone and mix it with the colored dirt. "Be careful with that, it's painful to get on your skin." Makoto said as she stopped Xen's work with her own hands.
"Only when you haven't been exposed to it before." Xen explained as she put Makoto's hand in the very ooze she was working with, oddly enough it didn't hurt. "See, it does no harm to a Senshi, in fact it proves of value for all of us." She continued to mix the dirt as Makoto looked for all of the world lost. Xen saw this clearly and explained. "Ok, let me put it to you this way, These walking youma drop seeds, these seeds can be used for many things when harvested. One of the major uses is for reproduction, however it can hold other uses as well. It's medical qualities allow wounds to heal and helps us deal with poisons." Xen said as she made a thick paste from the ooze before her.
"These seeds ferment and a thick ooze is a result. Now, they can be poisonous if mixed with other things, the effects of these seeds are both a blessing and a curse. Actually, since your children are born from these seeds it's amazing your unable to figure out what can and can not hurt you." As Xen finished the thick paste she placed it into separate vials and did the same things with other colored dirt, albeit more carefully.
"Wait, born from these seeds? You're saying my kids are plants?" Makoto totally missed the point. She was so far off in fact Xen about touched a segment of ooze she had been careful to avoid. She paused her actions to explain before another accident occurred.
"No you idiot! Look these seeds are the base property ingredient for altering life forms into different things. When you mix the properties together you get varying effects. Sometimes you get a planet of idiots, like those of ice who figure out how to use the seeds for the benefit of others. When they do however, they fail to see the amount of nature they destroy in doing that." Xen sighed as she collected herself and picked up another vial with red ooze.
"Take this shit for prime example, it will not feel very good if you or I touch this stuff because it's not an element we are bound by. As a result it will actually cause harm for us to have it absorbed into our system. If Rei or Yumi comes into contact with it, it'll sting a bit and some changes in their basic DNA makeup will occur, but that's about it. For them it will have healing properties and that's why I'm mixing this stuff together. If I'm not careful though it can hurt me, so don't be a freakin' idiot while I'm mixing the rest." Xen said as she went back to work, this time far more carefully.
"It changes DNA make up?" Makoto asked more calmly trying not to pull another stupid move. "Can it change it to the point where two women could reproduce without a male involved at all?" Makoto asked gawking at the red mix currently being worked on.
"Yes, in fact it can. Although in order for such DNA properties to alter you'd need some advanced equipment to make the ooze reactive. By doing this you take away any actual medicinal properties and release the toxins. If you come into contact with toxic ooze of your property then you actually become a reactive being, or more specifically speaking, genetics become mutated. That's generally how kids like us are born. Normally you have had to come into contact with processed ooze for such mergers to occur, they don't just magically happen." Xen explained as she moved on from the red ooze and worked her way towards some of the orange colored specks in the dirt.
"Well what about your family?" Makoto asked realistically. "Did your mom or dad come into contact with ooze? Is it possible to mix deities or other things without such means?" Makoto asked quickly before it dawned on her she seemed to be asking a lot of random questions at once.
Xen didn't seem annoyed and continued her mixing and also continued to answer her questions. "Well yeah, my dad did. It doesn't matter what parent contracts a toxin, if it happens to be radioactive their body mutates slightly. It never effects the person heavily unless it's an ooze of an opposing deity. On the outer realm if you got hit with a radioactive ooze of your element than it's passed down to you children more often than not. Normally it's noted by the mergers of power afterward. It would be impossible to give birth to a baby of mixed power without that mutation. Ironically, it can also allow people of the same gender to give birth."
"One last question and I'll leave you be about this for now, but what about the toxins. You said it could kill us, yet myself, Rei and Haruka came into contact with radioactive toxin. We aren't dead, why is that?" Makoto asked still slightly confused.
"That's simple, the ooze you came into contact with was radioactive, but it had been processed. When you process this stuff you can change different property densities. When used for reproduction you reduce a lot of harmful values in exchange for an unstable base element. Often this reduces the effect it would have on anyone besides someone of equal elemental value." Xen sighed at the lost look on Makoto's face and went for a more direct approach. "Alright think of it this way, It was made for reproduction, not to kill people. When you process this stuff with equipment you can make it both kill people, or help people depending on what you do with it. The stuff you came into contact with was not made to harm you or others, thus only you were affect by the ooze since it was made for a reaction for your element. Got it?" Xen finally stood and called for Izumi for more vials and more equipment.
Makoto called Ami on the communicator and told her what she had heard. The new information was quickly added to the list of things to research as the others spent the time in the large shuttle house. Zori and Yasu were in the middle of a hushed conversation by the time all could be said and done dealing with the seeds. Multiple vials had been prepared, marked, and cased so that it was easy to see what vials were made for what deities.
When they resumed their movement to find Usagi it became apparent that a lot of different factors could change where they would find her. The seeds were at the top of the list as far as these factors went and that was why they continued to follow the trail. After a few hours they saw her. Standing on the hillside on the outskirts Usagi looked out towards their group. The first thing Makoto noted was the looks of defeat among her and the others in that family. Among them stood Hotaru, she was older now, in fact she was the age she had been before her rebirth.
When Usagi saw them she ran back into the cavern, Chibiusa followed quickly after teary eyed as she bid Hotaru farewell. For her part, Hotaru seemed to not be fazed by the reactions as she ran full speed ahead of her, dodging the rocks and underbrush as she came closer and closer to the birds. Hotaru had remembered them. She donned furs of the nomads and it was clear to both Xen and Mari that although she was dressed as a Senshi, she held no powers or abilities of one.
"Hmm, it seems Saria kept her promise." Yumi said as she embraced her friend. "Your no longer of our world, so how did you end up staying among us?" Her eyes held deep questions and Hotaru knew everything that had happened. She also knew of the pact that kept her among the Senshi. She did remember contrary too what everyone thought would happen.
"That's because of Setsuna. It's because of the pact I was able to stay with you all." Hotaru said with a smile, her eyes turned to the mountain behind her and she smiled at Chibiusa who was behind a rock. "I know I wasn't supposed to remember my Senshi roots, but I wanted too. I was Saturn before I was released from my deities grasp. Saria took that burden from me." Hotaru said as she turned back and gave Makoto a hug, she had missed the other Senshi.
"Heh, what a pain in the ass. She had this planned. Damn it Setsuna better be ready for a good ole fashioned kick to the rear." Saria said as she sized up the older girl in front of her. Hotaru wanted to protect Chibiusa. That was Hotaru's main promise before she had used her body as a converter. Now here she was a human girl wanting to be a Senshi if only to up hold the promise. "Then who is it you will become?" Yasu asked as she blanched at the annoyance of it all.
"Well, I was thinking, I like being a human, but I want to protect Chibiusa. I want to live among you all, yet I don't necessarily want the powers I used to have." Hotaru then pulled the thick cloak off her body to reveal her actual clothing. She had on leather armor. Thick leggings and a breastplate donned her features. On her back was a Glaive of normal metal. "As a Senshi there were very few times I could actually use my powers. This time around I have none, but that doesn't mean I don't have the skills to fight." She twirled the blade with little effort. Her skill had been preserved, but that didn't mean that this was a good idea.
Makoto looked down to the now fully mortal girl at hand and sighed. "I'm not sure I can agree to this one. Hotaru, you're a human girl now, not a Senshi, you have no abilities to keep you safe should you mess up. If you get hurt you'll really regret it." Makoto said as she then thought of a key thing about being fully human. "You don't have a normal Senshi lifespan anymore, do you Hotaru?"
"No, I am now mortal. This is what I want, and because this is what I want, let me live my mortal life to it's fullest. After this lifetime, I won't be reborn again and that's why I wish to serve my last lifetime in service to Usagi and Chibiusa." Hotaru said as she smiled her normal happy smile. It was as if her horrific life as a Senshi finally was at it's end, she would serve her last years as what she wanted to be in the first place, a mortal girl. "More than that though, everything will come to an end one day for all of us. Mine has been long overdue, I wish to be a light again, a little happy floating light. After this, I will be. I want to enjoy my human life full of laughter, the only way I can is among the Senshi family that I have always known. That's why, even as a human, I will fight along side you."
Makoto sighed in exasperation. Here Hotaru was, free of constant need to worry about Senshi duty, only to still want to fight along side them. She nodded her understanding, it was true that Hotaru had to be far more skilled with weapons than the other Senshi. Without her clear skill in combat Hotaru would have been done for on more than a few occasions in the past. With that bit of info settled Yumi cut to the chase rather quickly.
"Alright, well you choosing to stay along side us is all well and good. I do not need to question your motives, but I do want an answer to one very important question." Yumi said taking a seat in the nearby grassy area where Xen was taking care of the birds. Ignoring the movements around her from the large feathered beasts Hotaru followed suit.
"I trust you have been traveling enough to know that things are indeed changing." Yumi said as she received a nod of affirmation from Hotaru. "What I want to know are the facts dealing with the coins and the pacts. Do you know anything about either situation?" Yumi questioned lightly. she didn't want to upset Hotaru, and while her memory had returned, it was a common question to everyone just how much was actually remembered and how much had been implanted within her mind as a result of the pacts.
"I know what your getting at, but I assure you, If there would have been underlining conditions to the pact I would know of them by now." Hotaru said before going into the more pressing information at hand. "From what I understand the pact with my personal welfare doesn't actually have to do with what's going on, at least not currently. It's just Setsuna being paranoid in case the time line doesn't work as planned. I'm not overly worried about that." Hotaru said as she thought about the other pact and the concerns she held about the eventual outcome.
"You may not be concerned about your situation, however I find that over all this is getting dangerous." Yumi said as she sighed looking around her where Xen had taken a seat leaning on the bird closest to the circle, Izumi was next too her, while higher up on the tree Zori found refuge on a low tree branch, one of his legs hanging off of the limb relaxed. Hana was finding herself glued to Xen's side as per the normality nowadays. "These Senshi you see here are among those who had come with the different elemental planets. I assume you know even more than I do as far as basic situations go. Am I correct?"
"Yeah, I also figured you would come here looking for Chibiusa. I can't say much for the other Senshi that have come here with you all to rebuild but honestly I think the answers you want are right in front of your face." Hotaru said as Yasu handed her a communication watch. When she opened it up she noted the others were already connected on the other end listening intently. "Ah, so that's where you all are." Hotaru laughed as she noted the wooden walls in the background.
"Hotaru." Saeko interrupted "Go back to what you were saying about the pacts for a moment please. What is it that a death pack is designed to do in the case of a bloodline like that of the Serenity one. What is it that could be attained by taking out an entire bloodline by force like that." She inquired quite confused by everything going on. "Also if you don't mind explain what the coins mean inside of the crystals mean."
"That's easy, each of you were given a crystal as a way to awaken your abilities as Senshi, however you never really needed them. The coins are that of a past life, each one means something to the holder, though that's something for each of you to figure out on your own." Hotaru said simply before looking over to Usagi specifically noting she had covered her head before showing her face. "In the event of the pact, that's just slightly harder to explain. History repeats itself, that is perfectly clear. What you have been given is a chance to redeem yourselves in anyway possible. Usagi has suffered the fate of years ago, now you have a choice. You either redeem both her, and yourselves by finding out the meaning of your coins, or simply let another war break out and let it go as it had in the past. The choice is yours really." Hotaru said as she noted the people behind her, not turning her head she pointed out the two figures that not only seemed fearful, they seemed different.
Yumi followed the quiet lead of Hotaru and addressed these figures head on. "Small Lady Usagi, please don't be afraid to show yourself. We are the Senshi that will protect you and I will not allow any harm for you or Neo Queen Serenity to take place." Yumi approached and knelt down showing great respect for the figures. Yasu followed suit and strangely enough so did the other Senshi. That left everyone not bowing quite highly confused. Finally the shorter figure addressed the kneeling Senshi.
"Guys… stop bowing at me like I'm some statue to worship." Chibiusa said as she rolled her eyes in mock annoyance. She never liked the entire prospect of people treating her like glass. As Yumi and the others stood she noted that no one seemed to want to resume their seats. "We've been through this once, I don't want to go through this again. We are friends, I am not going to get annoyed if you treat me as others would if I weren't a moon princess. Chill out, ok?" Chibiusa said as she took a seat in the grass, seeing her mother still in the same spot as before. "Makoto, go talk to her. Can't you see she's petrified of you? Besides we have our own things to discuss." Chibiusa sigh as she and the others nodded. Through the communicator the faces of the other Senshi looked highly confused.
Makoto stood up hesitantly. As she took very careful steps towards the cloaked woman she was unsure how to react. Makoto should be fuming with anger, on the other hand she didn't know what was fully truth anymore. Questions reeled in her mind as she stood stock still in front a person she used to regard as a very important friend. All on the communicator froze as they awaited the exchange. Finally after what seemed an eternity the cloaked woman spoke.
"Aren't you going to yell at me." The woman's voice was clear it was Usagi under that mask. Her fearful stature almost seemed weak, fearful of what the taller brunette would do to her. Through her clothes the only part that could be seen was Usagi's eyes, and they were broken, fearful of all she had done. "Aren't you going to do what you would have done in the past. Hate me for stabbing you in the back, hate me for leading you astray. Do something, say something." Her voice was strained as she seemingly egged on an attack.
Makoto thought for a moment on what had been said. Her inner voice told her she never attacked Usagi in any Senshi forms. She never had reason to harm her. Then Makoto realized, Usagi wasn't talking about being a Senshi. Usagi meant why didn't Makoto do what she would have done as when she was younger. Why hadn't Makoto passed judgment as she would have if they were still normal people who hadn't been reawakened.
"I have no reason to harm you just yet. That's why I haven't beaten you into a pulp." Makoto said as she stretched her arms over her head and then relaxed her state as if she were about to carry on a normal conversation as they used too. "Don't get me wrong I'm pissed, but here's the thing. I don't know who, or what to be pissed at currently. I'm letting you off the hook for now only because the person I think I know under that mask wouldn't screw any of us over without a damned good reason." Makoto looked into the eyes of the woman in front of her and noted a clear confliction in those eyes. What happened next caused Makoto not only to close her communicator but also threw her completely off guard.
Usagi fell in her knees. She cried hard and as the burning tears hit the ground it seemed as if Usagi wanted to get hurt. It was a very odd occurrence for someone like Usagi to actually want to punish herself. The next words that protruded from her mouth only added to Makoto's high confusion. "Hate me! For all that I've done, just cast me out because it's my fault! Don't blame anyone for my doings. If I had been a better queen, in fact if I had been a better friend none of this would have happened!" Usagi said as she cried out all of her past angst. Things she never told them came to light because she didn't want them to know and yet couldn't bottle it up any longer. "You could have had a normal life Makoto, I took that away from you. All of you." Makoto knew what her friend had meant by that. In a way they all knew that Usagi was to blame for being awakened in the first place, what Makoto didn't know was that she had been awakened a second time because of Usagi's need for help. She had chalked it up to destiny that she had been reawakened, not because Usagi had really needed her and made the call on her own.
"It's my fault you were awakened after D Point." Usagi said as her voice became hoarse. "Had I been stronger, then maybe, just maybe I wouldn't have had needed Luna to reawaken you." Though the tears had stopped flowing, in it's place Usagi's eyes were hardening. She seemed as if she could place every fault everyone had on her shoulders. No one knew why but it seemed to Makoto that this could have been it. "You all would have been normal, and it would only be me suffering this fate." Usagi had never been so distraught in such a way, and the uneasiness made Makoto act in a way she wouldn't have normally.
Makoto felt a compelling need to voice her own view on the subject of being a Senshi. This view had never been voiced to a single person. It was her soul reason to continue being a Senshi, and as such, the need to voice it had never been there before. Yet here she was feeling the need to release her own frustrations on the person before her. "You place blame on yourself now of all times?" Makoto said she roughly picked up the emotional wreck before her, green eyes peering into the hardened blue. "You sit there now and place all the blame on yourself. For fucks sake Usagi look at you! I could kick your ass into the ground a hundred times over if I wanted. But why the hell would I when you do such a damn good job doing it on your own!" She roughly released Usagi's arm as she backed up away a few feet.
"I could hate you, I could sit here and hate you for everything you've ever done!" Makoto shouted beyond the point of any ability to think clearly. "You've been irresponsible, you get us all into danger, rarely ever think of the consequences of action before it's too late to fix it, and nine times out of ten when you finally figure out that you've over stepped a boundary you crumple down and cry!" Makoto finally closed in and looked as if she were about to strike, she brought her fist within inches of Usagi's face only to note that contact would have been made. She would have actually let Makoto hit her square in the face.
"See that!" Makoto was now very angry. She would have let someone actually harm her. "That's why we have to protect you! That's why I follow your dumb ass around. You would let yourself be our punching bag." Towards the end of her sentence Makoto slightly lost her voice, but it was no less harsh as she stepped towards the woman in question. Instead of hitting Usagi she enveloped her in a hug. "You didn't flinch. You never backed away from me. You didn't back then either, don't you get it Usagi. Everyone hated me, everyone picked fights. You never did, you never ran from me. Even now, you won't run, even when your asking me to beat the hell out of you in every way possible, in the back of your head your pleading for me not too. On top of that you trust me enough not to hurt you, even when I would really like too." Releasing the woman in her arms she backed away slowly.
"You gave me unconditional trust, no matter what I had done you came to me as if my slate was clean. As if I hadn't been an addict, a gang member, as if I never caused harm to another living being. Even if most of those rumors weren't true, a lot of people believed them. You didn't pass judgment by what they said, you gave me your time and understanding and made your own choice based on that." Makoto made sure her voice was clear and full of the authority needed to convey what she was doing now. "That's why I'm giving you my trust now. I'm not going to follow the rules of what others deem correct, I never had before and I'm not going to start now."
As Makoto turned her body she prepared to take her leave for some time on her own. After this entire ordeal she needed time to clear her head. Before she did she left some parting words "I follow my own rules Usagi. I had when I was younger as well, even if what I do isn't always a good choice, I do it because I choose to do it. That's also why I'm your Senshi now, it was my choice back then to become your friend. Had I not, I think perhaps we very well could have ended up enemies." She took a few steps before throwing in one final thought. "I don't regret it Usagi, and neither should you."
Makoto didn't leave time for an answer as she ran as fast as she could away from the area. She opened her communicator and told the others she was going for a walk and asked to be picked up by the Shuttle. It was far to hard to be around Usagi and everyone took note that perhaps it would be best to keep their distance from Serenity for a while. Yumi agreed that some one else should travel with them instead and she chose Rei noting that her leg should be healed enough for the task.
After closing her communicator Yumi rolled her eyes annoyed. Makoto had just speed past them in the opposite direction and Chibiusa had gone back to her mother leaving Hotaru with them. It was an odd action, but no one had questioned it. Instead they mounted the birds to head back towards the shuttle. The ride was tense as everyone was getting ready to merger back together. Minako had not been tracked down yet, but that had been expected since the shuttle moved so slowly.
Hotaru for her part seemed very stressed out. She had wanted to stay with Chibiusa, but someone had to go inform the other Senshi what was actually going on. Since Setsuna and Saria weren't anyplace to be found she knew that it was her job to do it. Her body was feeling tired from the constant movement, the achy feeling of tired limbs were nothing new for her. A content smile donned her face as she allowed the dull throbbing to overtake her. She was indeed a mortal girl, she hadn't been awakened and Saturn had not claimed her. She grew tired as a normal human without powers would do, she didn't have a high metabolism, and when she got a paper cut it didn't heal up within a moments notice. This was what she had wanted, and now that she had it, every moment was a new blessing in and of itself.
~~~~~~~~~ Planet Pluto~~~~~~~
Setsuna gazed into the staff and watched the events take place. Saria was preparing something to eat and the time mage wondered idly if her daughter wanted to be a Senshi. It was odd in it's own way for a woman who had lived so very long to ponder such things. Things that couldn't be changed, or things that had no real meaning were good fodder to think on. Saria was at one point a mage just like Setsuna herself. Now she was the new Sailor Saturn. As a result it left a lot of thoughts to be pondered. Would Saria suffer what Hotaru had? Would it be too hard on her? Most importantly if it one day became too hard, would she be able to break away from the deity. This among other things flowed like a river past the depths of thought.
Placing a salad on the table for lunch Saria took a seat across from her mother with her own salad in hand. This had been their way of life for as long as both could remember. Rarely did anything change in their daily lives. The life of a time mage was simple, live, do your job, and watch the world around you. Nothing else mattered except the flow of the time line. Sure, as a person with a heart and soul, other things became of importance, yet the flow of time held the higher authority within your priorities. You could not read your own future, and thus your life became of little relevance. You could become ageless if time went too far, yet even so most wouldn't regard it a difficult task. There were many people of ageless time just like Setsuna, yet all wondered through different segments of the time line in and of itself. This was why most never became friends with each other, often locking out the need for social interaction. This was why Setsuna was an odd one out, as a Senshi she had a large need for the interaction. Even in her most withdrawn state she became loyal to a few people she would never forget no matter what. A small number had even become more important than the time stream, the one thing that should have always been her first priority.
Saria had often wondered what it was that made her mother different from the other guardians. Why did her mother have a raw need for other people, it was something Saria never fully understood. Growing up she had been around others as a sort of normalcy. In her early life she had thought it normal for people of her bloodlines to have friends and lovers alike. That was how she had been raised after all, around a large sum of people. This was largely not the case among her peers who were normally raise by a single parent with very little interaction the older they got. Many mages found social interaction far to difficult, if they had friends it meant painful partings far too often. If you had none to begin with, then the other people around you were simply pawns in the flow of time. It was in it's own right like a game, if you could out whit fate, or something that could stop fate from a taking it's intended coarse that you would be the winner.
Saria herself never grew attached to people often, yet her loyalty dictated her actions. She wasn't particularly fond of any of the Senshi, however that didn't stop her from helping them out. Unlike her mother who saw them as much needed family, for Saria they were still nothing more than pawns. Even as the new Sailor Saturn her views had not changed. She found that the questions in her head were now weighing on her mind as she continued her inward musings. One question found her voice and she had said it aloud before she could stop herself. "Why do you care about her so much?" The 'her' in question was one not even Saria had an answer for.
Setsuna looked up from the staff and over at her daughter who continued to munch away at her salad. "That depends on what 'her' you happen to be referring too. The odd thing is, you clearly don't know who it was that you based the question on, or you would have used a proper name in reference instead." Setsuna propped her chin in her hands as she used a fork to lightly pick at some of the greens on her plate before looking up. "The more appropriate question would have been 'why do I care for them?' Yet I can not answer such an oddity myself. If I could I would gladly give you an answer." Deciding not to eat at the moment Setsuna focused her gaze on the staff and the outside occurrences.
"Then why did you allow my visions to guide you in the choices you made. You cared for them yet you strung them along." Saria was referring to the memories she had showed everyone at the time gates. She had implanted a destruction on the earth, pregnancies among many other things, but she had manipulated it for her own usage. The only one she had actually kept intact was the final image that only Setsuna had seen. "It seems odd that you destroyed the gates, the one bridge for all that could happen. Now the visions they had seen are coming into their lives, yet not in the order they thought it would. Why did you do it?"
Setsuna thought for a moment before giving her answer. There was a lot she could say, but only one thing gave her the justice she deserved. "They have to want to be her Senshi, now they have a choice. They will either choose to follow Usagi, or they will cast her out. Either way the kingdom will be built, yet now they actually hold all the cards in their own hands. We can not see what will happen, that means that all the choices are theirs to make. We can't get involved as mages anymore, only as the Senshi we actually are. I think that this was for the best." Setsuna said as she looked back into her staff, she could only see current and past events now. That meant that the future was no longer in her hands to protect. As useless as she felt at that moment only being able to watch, in the back of her mind, and in the depth of her heart, she hoped she had done more for them then they would ever know.
~~~~~~~~~~~Back on Earth~~~~
Usagi and Chibiusa were both sitting on a small ledge overlooking the plains that the other Senshi had come from. They were actually far away from the hideout in terms of location. That's why they had been left there in the first place. Both were quiet as they watched the world around them. It had been an eventful day. They were waiting for one person to show up. The people of mineral had given them a place to call home and Usagi needed to speak with Minako. This was why both of them were going to meet up with the Senshi of Venus.
They had not accounted for a few of the others showing up right when they had, but Chibiusa thought it was best that Hotaru went with them for the time being. Her reasons weren't spoken aloud, but within the depth of her mind she was still finding it hard to believe that Hotaru was a human. She hated the idea that her friend still wanted to stand at her side in such a dangerous situation. That was also why Hotaru hadn't chased after her. It would be safer with the others, and even if Hotaru had sworn allegiance, it was clear she had only done it to stay by her family, not to actively fight.
In the distance Usagi could see a woman in a dress ridding a horse coming up quickly. In her arms she noted the baby, at her side others rode with her. All of the horses were barebacked and if Usagi was honest with herself, she felt as if it was a scene in a movie, not standing before the sight in real life. Long blond tresses flew freely in the wind and as the animals came to a stop the woman looked up to Usagi and Chibiusa. She got off the horse and ran up to her friends. The three began to talk as much farther away fate was setting a path for all to unite again.
"Long time no see." Minako said as embraced her friends. Yuuki was in her arms looking for all the world confused with what was going on. Placing his fist in his mouth he didn't make a peep as he watched Chibiusa closely. His mother was warm and soft, he had been fed earlier, and the weather was decent. With all the factors consistent to his normalcy he readily welcomed a nap.
"Yeah it has been quite a long time hasn't it." Usagi replied as she gathered her thoughts. "There was a reason I called you here, but I'm afraid of what you'll say to me about it." Her voice was laced with worry as her eyes started to well up. Minako had known what had gone on. That was why she hadn't been confused about her friends appearance.
"I'm sure whatever it is, it can't be as big of a deal than what happened only a short time ago." Minako said recalling the battle front that was caused because of a breach in someone's orders. "Are the rumors true? Are you really hiding your head and face because of multicolored hair?" Minako asked sincerely.
"Yes." was Usagi's simple one word reply, she took the top part of her clothing to reveal her head streaked with each color of a Senshi aura. The orange clearly stood for Minako's deity. "It's because of the past mistakes. I have to atone, yet I've no idea what I have to do for each. Earlier today I ran into Makoto and as you can see, her streak is gone for some reason, though I've no idea why." Usagi explained her rather odd situation and Minako couldn't seem to figure it out. She knew by now the coins held merit, yet she didn't know enough to explain the causes and effects.
"Do you know if Makoto still has her coin?" Minako wasn't used to problem solving things like this, that was Ami's forte. Still something had to be done. Usagi fully explained what had gone on between her and Makoto and it seemed that during the explanation the green came back on her head. This of coarse caused even more confusion.
"I'll figure it out Usagi, I promise you that much." Minako said as she thought of something that may be a key factor. "If you see any of the Senshi don't tell them about this. Let me deal with this." As she stood from her seat Yuuki slightly yawned at annoyance for being woken up before cuddling back down again. Minako took her leave into the early evening, she had a thought process and now she needed to find the others to help her out. As she rode onward she idly wondered where Makoto had ran off too.
Makoto had run for quite a long time in no particular direction. This was one issue with her need to be alone, often she got lost. When she was lost before a street sign normally did the trick, sadly no streets even existed currently and sadly no signs as a result. She had run into an area that hadn't been passed by any travelers by the looks of it and as a result she had no idea where she was. It was getting late and so she would have to find shelter for the night. The tracking device on her communicator allowed the others to start making their way towards her, but it would take quite some time. She informed everyone she was going to take residence in a nearby alcove. It was behind a waterfall so she figured she would at least be safe over night.
~~~~~ Makoto's point of view~~~~~
She started making her way through the very shallow water when she was tackled to the ground. Her head started to hurt and reality became skewed. Before her stood two very tall warriors with gem encrusted swords. Armor donned their features and it's clarity showed that it had to have been made from some type of hard gem. The men were both neatly groomed and older in appearance. They meant business and quickly tied her with some rope. Not a word was said from either party as Makoto was taken inside the cavern walls. It was defiantly a type of mine with the amount of raw minerals inside. The people of mineral all wore some type of clothing made from the materials around them. The amount of smelting to forge such clothes most likely took a lot of time. It was clear that to thin out the metals and makes the chains needed to weave with took the longest.
Makoto was quiet and allowed them to drag her deeper within the walls. Minako had to be here someplace. Everything matched too perfectly with her element for her not to reside among them. Makoto had thought she would be taken directly where she needed to go, sadly the even the best laid plans fail and she found herself locked away in some metal bars. She had cooperated for nothing it seemed as she took out her communicator to tell the new issue she found herself in. "Guys, I'm kinda stuck." Makoto said before she regaled what had happened.
"What!" Xen said when the explanation ended. "You let them get you!" She yelled through a communicator. "You don't know what shit you just got into do you! The people of the mineral don't keep people of higher authority inside fucking caves!" Xen sighed before looking at the others around her.
"What's wrong Xen, afraid I may get hurt? Makoto laughed getting ahead of herself. In all honestly behind the laughter she was fearful of where she was currently. The area she was in was clean enough, but the surroundings just screamed trouble.
"Not hurt necessarily, they are a far more elite government then the others. They have a deep sense of pride so don't anger them. If this Minako woman is there she will be called to pass judgment on you." Xen said as she thought carefully. "Play kiss ass until I get there, Izumi can bring everyone back. I'll come get you." She said as she let Izumi off of the bird she was riding. Izumi climbed onto the back of Yumi's bird.
Xen was about to take off again when she felt another body climb on from the back. "What do you think your doing Yasu?" she retorted, "Stay with everyone else, I have this covered." Xen assured fully expecting that it would be enough to get Yasu to let go. Needless to say, her planning backfired. Xen looked to Yumi for an order in either of their favor and lucky for Yasu it was an approval she gave.
Xen took off towards the dot on the radar at full speed while the other birds broke off in the original direction of the shuttle. She turned back to the communicator while riding to give one last bit of advice. "We will be there as soon as we can, Most likely you'll be released by your friend before then. If you aren't then you may be in deep shit, just keep quiet like you have been. It'll work best in your favor." Xen guided the bird in the right direction while the communication feed kept a close eye on Makoto.
Things seemed fine a few hours later. Makoto was still on the screen, all who were still awake were watching the event less night play out fully. The bird Xen guided was still on the move running at an even pace. Some voices could be heard in the background of Makoto's communicator but no one knew who it was.
Xen felt a deep pull for some reason as she stopped the bird in it's run. Looking behind her in the depth of night was sounds of hoof beats. She knew that sound. The sound of wind, and the pull of the speed. She followed the sound, sent the bird running towards the sounds that guided her heart. She could hear the beats get louder and louder. She followed it, and noted Cade's shuttle was as well. Through the communicator, Izumi and the others were doing the same. What was this feeling for them all, why did it call to them so. No one really new, yet in the depth of their heart, even those not of the wind felt the very strong pull.
"What is this calling?" Saeko asked new too the feeling that the others new by now. "Sailor Moon…." Ami smiled as she closed her eyes and savored the feeling.
"Chibiusa as well." Mari smiled from where she was sitting, now fully healed from the fight.
"She's calling for all of us." Makoto said wistfully at all the memories. Fate indeed, she never would regret this. " Our powers…. She's calling for us through our powers." As she said this she noted the raw power flow through her veins. The power of electricity called as her sign appeared on her forehead. The other Senshi were also doing the same. Saeko and the others were affected by the call. On Xen's screen they saw the hews of their powers envelop the sky.
"What's going on?" Xen asked as her body produced a swirling aura. The yellow of Wind and green of Thunder encircled her as she felt her powers flow through her. Yasu also felt her powers. The icy chill of the cold ice mixed with the shocking feeling flowing throughout her veins brought forth green and blue hues around her body.
"It's our merger in power." Yumi said as she felt the heat radiate thought her body and her mind filled with emotion as she followed where her heart took her. Mari's merger was calling as yellow hews mixed with aqua. Even the babies felt the pull as the auras flared among them.
"Well this is just well and good, but what's that light over there?" This came from Cade. He was pointing off into the distance a large aqua light seemed to cover the sky and was fast approaching.
"Michiru…" Haruka whispered as she jumped from the ship and ran as fast as she could towards the aqua aura she had missed greatly. She felt the wind beckon her as she picked up her speed. Nothing could explain her feelings as she ran full throttle towards the first place she felt at home. Michiru could be seen in the distance riding some type of scaled beasts. and now it was only a matter of moments until she was in Haruka's arms. Nodding the auras were calling to one large destination. She climbed on behind Michiru and the beast resumed running to the call. Everyone was feeling the pull of Usagi's call it seemed.
It was calling Makoto as well and her power surged sensing her inability to react to the voice the beckoned it. She felt lightning serge past her hitting the ground and a side of the wall cracked. Was her power really telling her to destroy the walls. There was only one way to find out as the power raged inside her.
"Supreme Thunder Dragon!" She yelled as the thunder from her very being crashed the wall and she saw the hews across the sky. She felt the call even stronger now as she ran to the duties. She felt the power serge within her as others also came to the call. She saw the people on minerals ride on horses past her. They too felt the pull. What was this, why did everyone feel the pull. Makoto didn't know, all she could do was follow the call made by her deity.
It seemed that everyone could feel the pull Serenity was emitting. Makoto noted that she could feel all of the other deities around her. The feelings scared her as she felt everything that made the other elements what they were.. In the sky one large dark mass was collecting and a storm was raging. Was this the tragedy that they all feared? It sure as hell didn't feel like one.
The pull started to change as people stopped in confusion. The moon above them glowed an unearthly light and there stood the Asteroid Senshi and the Starlight's. Saria and Setsuna also stood among them. It was a sight that no one had expected as Setsuna spoke. "All who stand as the Senshi of the new earth it is I who summoned you here. Our history has preordained that no matter what we will fail and constantly we are at war with one another. Those of the many kingdoms seek solace for their people and the deities that govern them. I present to you the leaders of those deities and your leaders in this life." Setsuna called as Makoto felt herself in one very odd sailor teleport.
"Leaders of ice Please stand and take your stage!" Setsuna said as Ami somehow ended up on the moon along side Setsuna. In her arms was her son Nao and Saeko was holding Hitomi. As she stood in front of everyone she seemed confused. A mighty cheer seemed to envelope the ears of the Senshi as the icy winds picked up. Her people were cheering for her honor.
As it quieted down Rei was also next to Yumi on the moon. "The leaders of Fire stand here before you." In the place of what once was the sound and voices from the ice now were over rode as cheers from those of flame beat drums and shouted. Soon they quieted and before Makoto knew it she was somehow freakishly standing next too Ami and the others, Yasu also flanked her side.
"Those of thunder your leaders stand here!" The loud shouting felt odd to Makoto who was oddly being praised for doing nothing. The sky felt as if it was charging energy around her and she couldn't explain what she was even doing. When she noted earth in front of her, the people seemed to be just one massive ocean in and of itself. She could hear the others being called out as they stood proudly, their deities cheered them on. Then she felt everyone quiet down and for a moment she was confused.
"The deities you see before you shall lead you all for your own government, however there is only one power capable of uniting all under one wing. I present to you the Serenity family." From behind the other Senshi on the moon came Usagi, Mamoru, and Chibiusa. Hotaru, for reasons unknown also stood along side them. "Neo Queen Serenity and her family have merged together once again. Our lines will no longer shut out the reaches of outer boarders long forgotten. Those of even the Dark Moon shall be welcomed with open arms. That is why I now present to you the other members of the royal family."
When Setsuna said that more came from behind the Senshi. Among them were Katan, Dalan, Talan, a grown man that looked a lot like Usagi, a child who looked to be his son, and the Shitennou. "These members who all stand before you now are going to be the figureheads that will help shape our lives in the new Kingdom." The cheering that could be heard from the earth was an amazing sound to behold.
After the cheering subsided she could hear someone very familiar calling her name. yet no one was around. The world turned black as she heard the constant echo of her name.
~~~~~~~~End point of view~~~~
"Damn it! Wake the hell up stupid!" Minako shouted as she shook Makoto trying to get her cognitive before she turned back at the boys who had tackled her friend to begin with. "Next time you two knuckle heads want to play rugby try a using a ball!" She said in annoyance, the boys were in their early teens and rarely thought things through carefully.
"It's not our fault this nomad came into our territory." One of the boys said. "She's of the storms, and lets just say we don't get along well with them. What were we supposed to do, invite her in for tea?"
"What have I told you boys about attacking random people?" Minako said as she attempted once again to wake up her friend. "Never mind." she sighed as she passed Yuuki off and gave further instruction. "You boys just go back inside, meanwhile I'll see if I can get her to wake up."
After a about ten minuets Makoto returned to the land of the living extremely confused. Her head stung and the area around her was blurry. She partially noted a figure standing in front of her, yet she was unsure of what was actually going on. "Huh, where is everyone?" Makoto asked randomly to no one in particular. She noted her clothes were soaked to the bone and she was in a cave filled with shiny objects. Minako was sitting in front of her and it took a moment to register what had happened. "Did I…black out? Where is the queen?"
"I think you hit your head harder than they thought." Minako said as she helped her friend maintain some sort of balance. "What are you on about anyway. Usagi is still off with her brother some place." Minako explained simply as she went to find some dry clothes.
"Where are we?" Makoto asked slightly confused. "One minuet I'm looking for shelter… the next I'm… not sure anymore." Her head was throbbing and the world around seemed to be like it was before she had been placed in the cadge. "Was it a dream?" She asked the blond still trying to grasp what had happened.
"You were knocked out cold." Minako said as she sighed helping the confused brunette out of the cloak that was still sopping wet and her armor. "I would assume that anyone would be dreaming after being hit that hard. When I came back from being out for a few hours I find you passed out at the entrance of the cave and two of the boys hunched over poking at you with a stick." She relayed the fact she had been out speaking with Usagi and all of the interval that she had known of since the return. Minako was sure to explain everything slowly so as to not confuse Makoto.
"So the men that tackled me?" Makoto thought about it, she hadn't seen them coming, her dream was so realistic. She was so very confused. Looking around she knew she had been dreaming by now, yet that dream was very real. "Man, this is so far from what I thought would happen." Makoto sighed looking at the watch on her arm. She opened it and surely enough everyone was still on the way, Minako hadn't seen the watch yet and was astounded to see her friends on the other side of the screen.
After greetings were held everyone chose the cave to be the meeting point. It would take a few days for everyone to get there, however it was the safest idea since the kids were closer too them than the shuttle. Explanations would be hard to come by since it was clear Makoto's ability to retain information happened to be screwed up at that moment. Soon Minako would be reunited with the larger majority of her friends. Everything was coming together slowly and over all even if everything was only a dream it gave Makoto hope that all would one day be alright.
TBC!
Well how was that for a Kicker! I quite liked the dream idea and i wanted to see how many people i could throw off guard.. Lets see if i did.. LOL Please read and review!