Chapter 2: The Revelation
The little girl tossed and turned, her feet and legs becoming uncomfortably tangled in her sheets. Her dark brow was covered in a heavy gleam of sweat and her skin shimmered with the dull light of the moon outside of her window. It was cool and her forehead was steadily growing warmer and warmer as her body caused her to throw off all of the blankets in her dreamlike state. She wanted to wake, somewhere in her subconscious mind, her soul raced towards a light she could not see. Her heart thumped rhythmically against the walls of her chest, also seeking a way out. Hotaru tousled around again, another set of disturbing images arising in her mind's eye causing her to whimper pitifully.
A jagged bolt of lightening split the blood red sky. There were thick black clouds everywhere, but no sign of rain, no rumble of thunder. Then the sky faded and all that was left was an unfathomable abyss where her feet could not touch bottom. Hotaru was free falling, plummeting as her frightened screams disappeared into the frigid obscurity of the void. The adrenaline was racing in her veins and the fear in the pit of her stomach was growing with each passing moment as her chest constricted from lack of oxygen. What was this darkness? Where was the light? She closed her eyes against the tears and prayed silently in her head for her Haruka-papa and Michiru-mama to show up and save her, but no one was coming.
The liquid darkness around her suddenly took on form and her back slammed painfully against the new lines as they became rigid. Stars exploded behind the lids of her eyes as the agony sprang out from the base of her spine and her lungs momentarily lost the ability to breathe. She fell limply back to the ground, her head lulling to one side. The darkness dissipated and left a starry night sky forlorn of clouds or warmth. Rain fell from above in heavy thirsty drops to the ground Hotaru could not see, only feel beneath her injured form. She could feel energy, a strong foreign energy which was somehow familiar pulsating at the base of her stomach, though she could not discern where she had felt it before or how she knew that it posed no threat to her. It was visible to her, not just as a feeling, but almost in the form of a vivid color. It was dark, rich, a shady gold shining against the dim palate of her eye lids. Where was it coming from? She wondered, and how was it that she could feel a power so pure, so undaunted and unbridled as this one was without feeling fear too?
A bolt of lightening slashing across the sky, no cloudy origin in sight, caught her gaze as she strained to watch it. The point set down near a rocky precipice and backlit the shady figure standing a few meters before it. The figure was tall, solidly built, and blonde and for a moment Hotaru thought it might be Haruka papa come to save her. She began running towards the enigmatic figure as fast as her legs would carry her, but the dark body seemed to be disintegrating into the violent storm of the night.
"Haruka-papa! Haruka-papa!" Hotaru began shouting desperate not to be left alone there. "Please, don't leave me!"
The standing figure vanished and as she came closer she could see that it had not disintegrated, but was instead laying prostrate on the ground. She also noticed that the mysterious person was injured and bleeding badly, but she hesitated because it was not her Haruka-papa, but a girl of about the same age who looked very similar to her. Hotaru's jaw dropped as she knelt beside the battered form. The little girl was stunned at how strong a resemblance the prostrate form held to Haruka. Short, more militaristically styled, blonde locks graced the bleeding head; strewn, and dirty. The closed eyes were the same almond shape only less pronounced while the strong jaw line held the further hint of a hard life spent fighting. The parched lips were parted peacefully and Hotaru considered for a moment how much the unconscious fighter looked like Haruka-papa had the day before taking an afternoon nap on the sofa.
There were some qualities though that the fallen soldier possessed which were not her papa's. The strong profile, had it been seen under different circumstances, had hints of feminine beauty in addition to its roguish handsomeness. The skin was light, almost the exact shade as Michiru-mama's, but marred across the check and above the eyebrows by fading scars which stood out intensely as another bolt of lightening lit up the sleeping face. And the nose, which was somewhat crooked in the middle from being broken multiple times, gave the impression that it once held a softness reminiscent of the easy life of early childhood. The soldier was dressed head to toe in a black military tunic and trousers, ebony leather boots completing the ensemble to austere perfection. Though one more bolt of lightening alerted Hotaru that the black on the warrior's chest was wet with something. What could it be? She wondered, there was no water around them.
Carefully, her nerves swarming in her belly, Hotaru reached out and tentatively touched the injured soldier's chest. The woolen material was slit across the center and through the opening the entire garment had been soaked with a sticky liquid which, had it at any time been warm, was now as cold and slippery to the touch as lake ice. She pulled her hand back and in the stiff light of another bolt of lightening it shone coated with a bright crimson. Blood, it was all blood! Hotaru shrank away in horror. She curled up against the safety of a large boulder at her back, trying desperately to wipe the substance from her hands on the rocks, but all she succeeded in doing in her frightful haste was to cause a shallow cut to form at the center of one hand. She sat back, her terror subsiding for a moment and the tears she had been warding off began to fall as she watched her own blood mingle with the smeared portrait of the fallen soldier's.
She had to calm down. Her heart was beating in her throat. Where was she? How had she gotten there? It had to be another world or another dimension for it all felt so real to her. Her senses were aflame with the reality of this place, how could it all just be a deceptive dream? She started as thunder suddenly broke the silence clouding the atmosphere. She had to get her wits about her. Where ever she was, she wasn't to get out it by just wishing it away and cowering behind a rock.
Across from her the defeated form groaned in agony as if waking and then became silent again. How long had the soldier been laying there? Had no one come to her? What if she had been out there for hours? What if her family was worried because they could not find her? Putting her own fear aside, Hotaru slide down closer, cautiously watching as the somber chest rose to meet a shallow breath and then fell again. Hotaru had noticed when her hand had first touched the chest that this particular warrior, though she was dressed as a man and could closely pass for one, was a woman. The unknown warrior groaned again and this time her eye brows knitted together as another wave of intense pain crashed through her. One of the long, strong legs twitched and the fingers of one hand flexed, but the woman made no other movement.
"Come on." Hotaru thought not knowing at first that she was repeating it aloud for the figure to hear. "Wake up."
Once the whisper passed her lips, Hotaru reached up and clasped a hand over her mouth to prevent any more unrestricted thoughts to slip passed her, but it was too late. The woman had heard her. Another loud groan and the closed eyes screwed shut with the effort to open. The muscles in the limp body began to tighten and Hotaru suddenly felt a breeze lifting out of the stillness. With a growl of effort, closed eyes suddenly opened to reveal pained pools of blue-green. The focused on he filled with such intense hatred that Hotaru moved back a ways and drew away as fear of the moment gripped her, but the eyes followed her.
After a few seconds the absolute hatred seeped out of their forefront and the expression on the angular face became bewildered.
"Who in hell-" The woman tried to speak, but a choked fit of coughing took her and she leaned her head back against the rocks as her chest rose and she pushed herself up on her elbows to take the tight strain off of her heaving lungs. When it subsided she fell back limply and settled evenly back on Horatu. "What is your name, girl?"
"Hotaru." She replied, already regretting it. The girl had been taught by her parents never to talk to strangers and she was sure that this counted as an instance of breaking that rule.
"Hotaru." The deep voice repeated it as if tasting the flavor on her tongue before coughing again. "Come here."
"My parents don't let me talk to strangers." She said.
The stranger's voice contorted into a bitter grimace before another fit of coughing took her. When she came under her own power again, the woman's voice was rough and commanding. "Your parents aren't here now are they? Get over here."
Hotaru fearfully complied.
The woman did not seem like the type to say please of thank you for something or excel in any social setting, she guessed. The warrior woman was powerful, used to being in complete control over ever aspect of anything, and ill-tempered to name a few obvious character traits. As Hotaru settled back on her haunches beside the woman, she could see that the warrior in the woman would not allow her to remain still. In the short time Horaru had moved away, she had stretched her wounded body out along the rocks, one powerful uniformed arm reaching out for some object the child could barely see out over the slope. The wound in the woman's chest streamed with a new ration of red goo at the effort and Hotaru gasped. Suddenly, Hotaru leaned forward and grasped the stunned warrior's shoulders, pinning them against the stones.
"What are you doing?!" The harsh tone barked back at her.
Hotaru ignored the bitter sting of the voice. "You can't strain yourself like that, you'll kill yourself!"
"I am warning you, girl." The tone became lower, more threatening. "Let go of my shoulders now."
Hotaru nodded and relinquished her grip, scooting back. The warrior woman turned her attention at hand back to the hidden object. Her face became solemn in earnest concentration and her body took on a rigid posture of the regale, all those noble. It then became apparent to the child that though the woman was badly wounded enough that she was sure she would not make it alive to a hospital even if someone did come now, it was not so much her body which would not quit, it was a spirit. Her stubborn soul endeared and indentured forever to the service of her wounded pride. All around them, the atmosphere was changing. The wind was picking up and the mists were swirling high above the rocky ground. There was an aura of power raising up around the woman. Even mortally wounded, she was a force to be reckoned with.
The woman raised her arm off of the ground. As if drawing energy from nowhere, her body began to glow an almost indistinguishable display of inner power. The stones across from them began to shift and move from their places and the hilt of an ornate two-handed longsword became visible. It shook slightly and then as if by magic, was drawn towards them. It was caught in the woman's outstretched arm, weapon and owner reunited at last. The woman let out a groan and the air became still again. The wind died down and the golden aura disappeared as she collapsed against the stone, her injuries bleeding anew and her body broken with exhaustion.
Hotaru ran forward and began shaking her shoulders. "Wake up! No, please, wake up!"
There were footsteps she could hear somewhere above her in the distance of the slope and ledges overshadowing them. The darkness was coming back and everything was fading into obscurity again. Hotaru tried to fight it, but the forces controlling this insane world were stronger and she was thrown back down into the unforgiving void, screaming. Then again she felt herself being stopped, but this time there was no pain. Images flashed at the back of her eyes. Old images of figures long gone whose time would come to pass again. She saw a girl who looked almost exactly like Michiru-mama, but she was younger and next to her was a boy about Hotaru's age with blonde hair and eyes of pure teal. There were images of faraway places . The palace on the moon, the castle on Neptune and the isolated fields of Uranus along with a long wall, where soldiers clad in black fought Serenity's knights clad in blue. There was another figure, one with short brown hair and eyes like Michiru-mama who rode a black horse into the middle of the fray. Behind her was a girl of about the same height, brown hair back in a pony-tail, double edged blades flashing. Behind her also on a black horse was a Marian girl, long ebony hair flowing from behind her, her bow poised and ready to fire down upon enemy heads. Where was she? Who were these strange people?
"Some things, they happen for a reason." A familiar voice said in her mind. "Everything happens for a reason."
"Setsuna-mama!" Hotaru shouted, but the voice did not return.
All different voices filtered in now, "The Bringer of Balance and the Guardian."
"Run back to your master and tell him that no citizen of the Queen's kingdom will be bullied by a tyrant. His rule is at an end."
"Times must change and we must usher in the change."
Hotaru woke up screaming with her parents at her side. Michiru-mama was stroking her cheek lightly while Haruka-papa and Setsuna-mama were standing by her bed side. Haruka was at the ready, poised for action. Setsuna was concerned and the crease in her forehead and deep frown showed it, but she still kept her calm demeanor. Fevered sleeps were uncommon and normally when they did happen they were not good things. The only thing they could do was allow for her to wake up on her own and then try to comfort her.
Michiru's hand gently pushed Hotaru's wild black bangs back from her eyes.
"Are you alright, Hotaru?"
Hotaru took a deep breath and let it out. "Yes, Michiru-mama."
"Are you sure?" Haruka asked worriedly taking a step forward.
"Yes." Her eyes still held a hint of the horrors she had witnessed and the three experienced senshi could tell that she was not telling the truth.
"But you-", Haruka began only to be interrupted by her Setsuna.
"It's alright, Hotaru." Setsuna interjected gently. "You can tell us when you're ready. Would you like a glass of water or milk perhaps? After such a bad dream, you might need something to clam you down some. Which would you like?
"Water." Hotaru said snuggling into the covers again, her eyes never closing.
"In the meantime, relax and we'll bring you your water." Michiru said, her hand sliding down Hotaru's jaw line before leaving her completely.
Setsuna nodded to Haruka as she passed her and the other two senshi followed the guardian of time out into the hall. Michiru turned and shut the door behind them quietly, then they all turned to Setsuna as they reached the safety of the kitchen.
"That wasn't just a normal nightmare she had was it?" Haruka asked leaning against the counter once she was sure they were out of hearing range of their child.
"No." Setsuna answered turning on the faucet and letting the lukewarm water run over her finger until it became cold.
"But you've dreams like this before haven't you?"
"Yes."
"What should we do?" Michiru asked, the illusion of calm self-assurance all about her, as she gracefully reached to retrieve a glass from the top shelf and handed it down to Setsuna.
Setsuna stood by the counter the full glass unmoving on the table top after she had filled it. "I am not so sure. Time will tell. It always does."
Author's note: Oh, the misery! Such a short chapter and none of it makes sense! Haha, that is true, but it will all make sense soon, trust me. Hope you enjoyed it!