Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon or any of the canon characters. Miyako, Cleo, Lia, Harper, and Owen, as well as a few others, are only figments that have escaped from my imagination.
Chapter Nine: Zoicite's Return
"Well, if you didn't insist on keeping secrets from the rest of us, maybe this wouldn't have happened!"
Kyle's voice echoed through the closed door. Groaning, Darien grabbed the extra pillow on his bed and pulled it over his face. It meant, while he could still hear his three generals arguing, he couldn't make out exactly what they were saying. Even with the closed door, the three of them had gotten quite vocal. In fact, the only reason no one complained of the noise was because of the magical barriers the three Shitennou had established. But he didn't need to hear them. They'd had practically the same argument every night since they'd gotten to Europe.
At least the trip was finally over. Well, almost. They'd reached London a few hours earlier and checked into a nearby hotel, courtesy of Harper's many contacts, in order to get some sleep before they continued their search for Zoicite.
And there was the promise they'd made to Isolde. Since her brother was studying in Oxford, they'd promised to stop by and visit. But, with only a week and a half left until he promised to be back in Terrarose, he wasn't sure he could find Zoicite in time. It had been three and a half months since he'd seen Serena. She'd forever be his Serena, even if she was calling herself Usagi these days. Unfortunately, he'd missed most of her recent calls. He was still beating himself up over the last one. He'd left his phone to charge in the hotel room in Helsinki. He'd hurried out of the room when Kyle had started in on Harper, again. Noland had dogged his heels, though, but at least Noland hadn't spoken much.
He really did think Serena's idea had merit, though. He really wanted to lose his guards, even if only for a few hours. Noland was becoming the only one he could spend any time around without wanting to bash his head in.
Frustrated at the continued shouting, he sat back up, throwing the pillow aside. They'd gotten a suite, as usual, with two full beds in one room and a pullout couch in the other. Harper always took the second bed, while Kyle and Noland had the couch and the floor. The two of them traded off. Darien had tried to offer to take either the couch or the floor, but a lifetime of training meant all three of them refused, insisting that he have one of the beds. And, with the tension with Harper, the only one who could manage not to strangle him in his sleep was Darien. He just wanted to strangle his dark general when he was awake.
Silently, Darien dressed and moved to the small balcony. Suddenly, inspiration struck. Now was as good a time as any to try out his new transformation. A flick of his wrist brought out the cream rose and another flick gave him his new outfit, which did resemble the Arabic outfit Kunzite had once worn. He leapt onto the balcony's railing and down onto a nearby roof, landing as easily as he had as Tuxedo Mask. Behind his new mask, he grinned, leaping until he was almost at street level. One final drop put him down in a darkened alley, completely deserted as he'd checked first, and he released the transformation. Leaving the alley, he began to mingle with the small crowd still on the streets.
Friday nights here didn't bring out the large crowds he was used to in Terrarose. But, there was a small pub on the nearby corner that appeared to cater more to the college student crowd. He slipped in and looked around. Most of the crowd was what he expected, college-age students, some of whom were more rowdy than others. Not quite the Crown, but close. That was the closest he'd gotten to a place like this in this lifetime. As Endymion, however, there had often been times he'd grabbed Jadeite and Zoicite to sneak out to places like this.
But, over the din of voices, clanking glasses, squeaking leather, and scrapping wood, he heard it. Something that drew his attention away from the pub's patrons. A mournful melody danced through the air, a song no one in this lifetime should know. Zoicite had written that song. And he'd never played it in public. In fact, Darien was sure not even the other Shitennou had heard it.
Back when Zoicite was courting Mercury, and she was keeping him at arm's length, he'd written any number of sad songs, some of which he'd played for her, some of which he'd rarely played at all. But, this song, he hadn't finished it. It was being written for Mercury, with an accompanying piece for her harp.
He absently wondered if Amy still had the love of music she'd shared with his Shitennou. According to Serena, she still had that allergy to love letters (there had to be a story behind that), but they'd never discussed anything else that might have crossed lifetimes. Nephrite was still drawn to the stars, but that was also part of his magic. Did Zoicite still hold his love for the piano? Did he remember a half-finished song?
Darien walked around tables, dodging young men and women barely older than himself, trying to find the source of the music. In the back corner, there was a dark brown, upright piano. A dark blonde head bent over the keys, facing away from Darien. He couldn't see his eyes, and his hair was shorter, only to the collar of his navy jacket, but that didn't mean anything. It could still be Zoicite. It had to be Zoicite. But, before Darien could get to the piano, the song stopped and the young man was gone.
Darien shoved his way back out the door, looking wildly around for the young, dark blonde man. But there was no sign of him, anywhere.
There was no guarantee the pub's employees would know who he was, either, but Darien had to try. He turned and stopped as a hand grabbed his shoulder.
"You can't just up and vanish on us like that," said a deep voice, disapprovingly.
Darien sighed. Kyle had found him. He glanced over to see the white-blonde man digging out his phone and calling off the search for their prince. But his general didn't release him.
"Look, can we step inside for a few minutes. I have to ask a few questions." Darien asked. "I promise, I won't run off."
Kyle glared at him, but slowly relaxed his grip. "You stay in sight at all times, my prince."
Darien nodded and fought his way back through the crowd to the bar.
A young woman with black hair, streaked with red, stood behind it, filling orders as other young women came up, trays balanced on their hands.
"Can I help you?" She gave Darien a slow smile.
"Maybe. The young man in here, earlier, playing the piano. Who was he?"
"Zander? He's an Oxford student. Comes in every Friday and Saturday to play for us. Don't know much more about him than that."
"Thanks."
Darien nodded to Kyle and they headed back out.
"It couldn't be that simple, could it?" Darien muttered, once they were back outside. "Zander? Oxford?"
"What?" Kyle demanded.
Darien realized his voice hadn't been loud enough for the other general to understand him. "Nothing. Think you and Noland would be up to coming down here, tomorrow night?"
Kyle shrugged. "Should be able to. We're here until Monday, at least. Oxford students have school on Saturdays, so visiting Zander has to wait until Sunday."
"Or maybe not." Darien grinned. "Do me a favor. No more arguing tonight. Give it a rest for a while."
"We don't argue," commented Noland, falling in step beside him as he seemingly materialized out of the darkness. "We just have very heated discussions."
"So heated I can't sleep." The reincarnated prince glared at both of them.
The next night, all four of them made their way towards the pub.
"Harper, I want you to keep an eye on the back door, see if you can spot him if he leaves before we can talk to him," ordered Darien. "Noland, Kyle and I will head inside."
Zander was already at the piano when the three of them walked in, playing a more modern song. But, still, Darien made his way closer, motioning Kyle and Noland to hang back for a moment.
He leaned against the railing that separated the piano from the rest of the pub, since it was set up on a small platform he hadn't noticed the night before.
"Not bad," remarked the dark-haired young man. "Personally, I was more impressed by the last song you played last night."
The young man's head jumped up and bright green eyes met midnight blue. There was no mistaking those eyes. Not now, not ever. The question was, how much did he remember?
The green eyes widened, and his fingers stilled. He braced himself, as if he were about to take off running. Darien glanced down, and the ring was there. A small diamond of zoicite, with what looked like a sea serpent wrapped around it. A sea serpent referred to as the Leviathan of the North.
"Hello, Zoicite. It's been a while," remarked Darien, grinning. "Sorry it's taken this long to find you."
Zander slowly sat back down. "You're not mad at me?"
"Why? It wasn't your fault."
"But Operation: Decoy…"
"Neph's already claimed fault for that. If I don't blame him for coming up with the idea, then I can't exactly blame you for backing him up. And even if it was your fault, we can't change things, now. We need your help, Zoi."
Zander crossed his arm. "With what?"
"For starters, Beryl's back. Secondly, we still have to find Jade, and none of us have any clue where to begin." Darien explained.
"But everyone else?"
"Including the ever annoying Shitennou of Secrets," grumbled Noland, stepping over to join them. "Hey, Zander."
"Noland! But…" Zander looked between him and Kyle, who was standing a few feet away, keeping an eye on the crowd. "Really?"
"Hey, it's a crazy new life," laughed the brown-haired man. "You up for it?"
The dark blonde nodded. "Count me in. Just give me a couple of days to get packed and we'll be ready to go."
"Good. Our flight leaves Monday. Harper should be able to get you a ticket, too." Darien grinned. "Glad to have you back."
Harper had, indeed, been able to get Zander a ticket back on the same flight, and had delivered a large box to Zander before the flight left on Monday, though there'd been an odd look on his face when he'd handed it to him. As soon as they were in the air, Darien forced to sit between Harper and Kyle, with Noland and Zander across the aisle, the dark blonde had whipped out a computer and gotten to work on something the rest of them couldn't see. Noland kept trying to look over, but he shook his head every time. Whatever it was didn't make sense to him. Instead, he'd pulled out a thick book at started reading.
Harper had done the same, in his seat by the window. Kyle, apparently focused on the in-flight movie, but really watching the other passengers, had leaned back once he was allowed to do so. Which meant Darien was going to be as ignored on the flight home as he was on the flight to Europe. He pulled out his phone, looking through the messages from Serena. He'd almost forgotten prom was coming up. Well, hopefully his tux from the Snowflake Ball would still be appropriate for escorting her to prom. He wasn't sure they'd have time for him to find another. Not unless Harper pulled a few strings, and he seemed to have thousands he could pull to accomplish anything. What had he been up to in the centuries since the fall of the Golden Kingdom?
They returned to Terrarose, only for Owen to come running up to them.
"There's an enemy attack in the park. We were on our way there," explained the young boy, nodding to Vista. "We'd better hurry. I don't know if the others are on their way there or not."
"Have things gotten that bad?" Darien asked, pulling out the box Miyako had given him. "I know things were tense with the Elemental Warriors. I just…"
"I knew Cleo and Miyako weren't telling me everything," grumbled Kyle.
Darien opened the box, handing out the roses to his Shitennou. With only the red rose left, waiting for Jadeite, he put the box back into his subspace pocket.
"Alright, gentlemen, let's go find out what's going on." A flick of his wrist and the cream outfit wrapped around him, again.
Owen wasn't too far behind, in black. Harper followed in white, with Noland in dark green, Zander in dark blue, and Kyle, surprisingly, in pale orange, which almost looked more yellowish. They took off running, following Vista, towards the park.
Usagi crawled across the ground to reach Sailor Element, lying against Knight Aethyr. The dark knight was glaring at Rubeus, lightning crackling around him. Crystal Sailor Earth and Sailor Sardonyx put themselves between Rubeus and the injured warriors, while Petz drug the still unconscious Calaveras out of the way.
At the sound of footsteps, Rubeus growled and vanished. The figure on the roof turned and was gone, as well.
Usagi tried to stand up, but she was too tired. Instead, arms wrapped around her, lifting her up and holding her close. She could smell roses as her face was pressed into cream fabric. Tears sprung to her eyes. He was back. Thank Selene, he was back.
"Miyako," breathed Knight Aethyr. "What do we do?"
Sailor Sardonyx looked towards Petz. "What did that droid do?"
"Akumuda. She's the droid of nightmares. I think she's trapped Sailor Element in some kind of sleeping spell. But, I'm not sure. Akumuda was a droid none of us knew much about. She wasn't one of Rubeus's selected ones. I think Diamond or Emerald sent him."
"Diamond and Emerald, too?" Sardonyx asked. "What about…?"
"Sapphire, too," admitted Petz. "Wiseman's taken all of Nemesis, now."
"I see," replied Sardonyx. "The question is, how do we break this spell?"
Zoicite knelt down, a small tablet in his hands, which he used to scan Sailor Element. "It's almost like the creature is inside her. We have to find a way to pull it out."
"But, Sailor Element is the Void. Surely she could handle it?" Sailor Earth demanded, nervously.
"We can't lose her," muttered Knight Aethyr, barely noticing the others around them. "Sleeping spell, right?"
He reached down and gently kissed Sailor Element, ignoring the growls from two of the Arabian-looking warriors.
Sailor Element coughed and the smoke flew out of her, condensing down into Akumuda, again.
Before she could fully regain herself, Sardonyx drew a golden colored scale from thin air. She grabbed the base, the two bowls resting on either side of her hand.
"Sardonyx Scale Strike!"
White and black ribbons swirled around her and the scale, settling into the bowls, which tipped back and forth, finally balancing again. The entire scale began to glow with a rust-colored light, before an orb of mottled black and white energy emerged from the top of the scale. Sailor Sardonyx flicked the orb with her free hand and it slammed into Akumuda, who dissolved, instantly.
"Thank you, Sailor Sardonyx," gasped Sailor Element, leaning against Knight Aethyr, her grip tight on his black and white flannel shirt.
"It is the least I can do," replied Sardonyx, slowly turning back into Sarah Augustine. "You have helped restore some of the people who mean the most to me."
"As if you could ever really lose us, Chalcey," stated Petz, smiling.
"You had me worried, Petz," replied Sarah. "Come on. I know a few people who will be very happy to see you both."
She took one of Calaveras's arms and slung it around her shoulders, as Petz did the same on the other side. The three of them walked off, leaving the group still standing there.
Sailor Earth started after them but stopped when Sailor Element reached out and touched her arm. "Let them go, Cleo."
The three of them released their transformations as well, reluctantly joined by the Shitennou and Darien, who had yet to let go of Usagi.
"Where are the rest of the Elemental Warriors?" Kyle snapped, almost yelling. "Why weren't they here to help protect you?"
Miyako shrugged. "Don't know. We didn't really have time to call them."
Zander looked slightly bewildered. "Miyako? Cleo? Elemental Warriors?"
"Sere, I'd like you to meet Zander Marlow," laughed Darien. "Zander, may I present Usagi Moon, the current alias of Princess Serenity of the Moon."
Usagi managed a weak slap on his arm. "Hello, Zoicite. It's good to see you, again."
"Princess." Zander bowed.
A figure in blue and white came running up, ballet slippers hardly touching the ground.
"It's alright, Sailor Water. The fight's over," remarked Cleo, grumpily. "Quit glaring at me, Kyle."
Miyako managed a grin. "Though I'm glad you're here. There's someone I know you'll be happy to see."
Sailor Water turned, seeing Harper and Noland standing on either side of Zander, who still looked confused. She slowly stepped towards him.
"You swore by the Great Northern Snows, Llyr," she remarked, slowly.
"Azura?" Zander managed. "Wait, you're joking, right?"
Sailor Water shrieked, happily, throwing her arms around him, turning back into Isolde. "Yay! I'm so glad it's you! Welcome home, Zander! I've missed you so much!"
"Isolde," he chuckled, picking her up and spinning her around. "I'm glad to be home, too."
In the dark base, Rubeus grabbed the bottles on his sisters' tables and began throwing them. They were always weaker than him. They should never have been entrusted with this. It was going to have to be up to him to stop these warriors and allow Wiseman to accomplish his goals. Forget what anyone else wanted. He was loyal to no one but Wiseman.
Alright, so much for having this partially started, right? I had this started, and then I considered putting in a chapter about what was going on back in Tokyo, but changed my mind. Then, I wasn't sure how I wanted the rest of this chapter to play out. I knew how I wanted Darien to run into Zander. But the fight back in Terrarose? I wasn't so sure about.
I know Sarah/Sardonyx was obvious. I wasn't exactly going for subtle there, by the time I brought Sarah in. I wanted to bring her in a couple chapters before and then just drop the character in, but it just didn't play right to me. Oh, well. Next chapter should be taking us to the future, and we'll have a little more Rini, Aki, and Takara, as well.
I played around with the title of chapter eight for a little bit. I changed it to Tension Rising. I think it made a little more sense. I started with Tristi Lynne's idea of Confrontations and ended up with that. Thanks for the suggestion, though! Can't wait to see what you think of this chapter!
In case you're wondering, Jade won't be coming in until the next story in the arc. So, no, that wasn't him on the rooftop. And it wasn't Zoicite, like you might have been expecting. So, who was it? I'm not telling. (Insert evil laugh).
See you soon, hopefully!
Bookworm0913