In the last chapter, we saw Darien and a number of others involved in an unexpected fight during a fashion show at a certain design studio in SEST, which ended with Earth Knight and them victorious against any number of Eramcelers that were trying to wreak great havoc during it. And we met a few of them, as well, some of which will be key to certain later events in this story, as situations permit them to be in it.
We met Shinobu and Keitaro, and we will see a good deal of them in this particular story, but they will not be part of Earth Knight's team of fighters, or at least not for quite a while, if at all. In the cases of Sylvia and Rolando, however, that may not remain the case, ultimately, for reasons yet to be revealed in this story.
There will be others brought into the story in this chapter, to help the story along. Just how important they will ultimately be in this story is yet to be determined, but I will say this. Besides Hitomi who you will learn at least a little more about, there will be at least one future member of Darien's fighting team who will be present during the events of this chapter, if not more than one, for sure. Just how many there will be, you'll have to continue reading to find out, of course.
There will not be another fight in this chapter, or at least there'll not be one until the very end of it, though, for Darien and his animal allies. Instead, this chapter will mainly be used to continue building the foundation of this story, so that the rest of it hopefully flows much better and more believably as it is still in the process of being told, folks.
With no further ado, the story shall recommence very shortly, once I add some blurbs about each character that will make their first real appearances in this chapter of the story, everyone. Hopefully, they'll help you all to keep things straighter in this story after you read them.
Hitomi Wakahisa - novelist/fashion designer, 45 years old, lavender-colored hair, blue eyes, usually wears simple yet elegant clothes in lighter colors, and is still very attractive for her age, married to her husband Kenshin for many years, and they have several children not yet seen in this story, one of a few co-owners of the Chrysanthemum and Rose Corporation, has had a fairly good-sized number of her novels published to date in various literary genres, often quite kind and often quite gentle-minded when circumstances still allow her to be, very determined, potentially dangerous foe to those who would intend harm to her or to those close to her or to their belongings or other property, not one to unavoidably be provoked by anyone normally, normally peaceful when she and those around her are left sufficiently alone by others who may not like them, is one who typically uses swords and projectiles in battle whenever she unfortunately has to fight against those who seek to do harm to her or those around her. (02/20/1945)
Klavan Metharom - high school student, 14 years old, straight brown hair cut short, brown eyes, usually dresses very modestly in long-sleeved shirts and long trousers or jeans, perhaps, enjoys listening to classical music, and is studying to become an architect, likes bowling and fantasy novels and radios and architecture, and is a decent writer, more details to be revealed later. (06/18/1976)
Terna Frinussi - high school student, 16 years old, straight midnight blue hair often worn in short ponytail, blue eyes, likes to wear old-fashioned clothing, gentle, is a trivia buff, wants to be a programmer, interests include computers, reading, mysteries, and teddy bears, decent flower arranger, and picky eater, more details to be revealed later. (04/10/1974)
Pita Ortius - College student, 18-19 years old, mostly dark green mid-thigh-length hair with some unexpectedly natural black and maroon streaks in it usually worn in a bun and interlocking rings or in braids around her head, magenta eyes, often dresses conservatively and professionally, good saxophone player, excellent student, interests include tomes of obscure knowledge, card games, tea sets, and saxophones, more details to be revealed later. (09/11/1971)
Amy Anderson - high school student, 14 years old, somewhat dark blue roughly chin-length hair, blue eyes, often dresses modestly and conservatively in blouses and skirts or in long dresses that fall at least to her knees, if not to her ankles, in terms of their usual hem lengths, most often in various shades of blue or other similar colors, occasionally wears glasses, bookworm, excellent swimmer, excellent student, parents divorced semi-contentiously, rarely sees her parents, especially her artist/musician father, and her mother is a pediatrician who is often quite busy with her medical work, so she is currently not particularly close to either parent in her life, quite shy, spends quite a lot of time alone in her life, whenever not at school or otherwise in public with anyone else in her life, attends cram school outside of her regular school's hours, very intelligent, but a real loner quite often, more details to be revealed later. (09/10/1976)
Ami Mizuno - high school student, 14 years old, considerably dark blue roughly chin-length hair, blue eyes, often dresses modestly and conservatively in blouses and skirts or in long dresses that fall at least to her knees, if not to her ankles, in terms of their usual hem lengths, most often in various shades of blue or other similar colors, often wears glasses, bookworm, excellent swimmer, excellent student, parents divorced semi-reluctantly, rarely sees her parents, especially her photographer/journalist father, and her mother is a general practitioner who is often quite busy with her medical work, so she is currently not particularly close to either parent in her life, quite shy, spends a lot of time alone in her life, whenever not at school or otherwise in public with anyone else in her life, attends cram school outside of her regular school's hours, very intelligent, but a real loner quite often, more details to be revealed later. (09/10/1976)
There will be at least some, if not several, differences from the known canon versions in terms of certain important character details related to the last two characters listed above, but hopefully you still will all give me a little freedom to explore where I can take those two characters, at least, in this story and potentially-related ones. For we don't know as much about them in those canons as we do about certain other characters, because of the simple fact that the various canons for Sailor Moon don't typically focus on them in most episodes or musicals, people, for various reasons. I have some plans to feature at least one, if not both, of them as somewhat significant enough characters later on, but for now, they both will simply help to move certain things along, until enough other people are in this story as well as needed.
This particular chapter will not have a fight, or at least not have one for most of it, between Darien and any number of alien monsters, but it should still be a good chapter that helps to build the foundation for certain later events in this story and/or series of stories quite well, I hope. While at least three of them will be quite important in their own rights, later, they're not yet ready to fight or play major enough parts in this story, if they ultimately will in it. You will have to wait and see who those people are, as you continue to read on. But I promise you that at least three of them besides Hitomi will do so, in any case, if I'm somehow actually able to write up to those times in this story, Lord willing, folks.
Now without further ado, I hereby give you Chapter Three, folks. I hope you all like how it turns out, of course. TUS out.
A Mysterious Meeting
A day or so later, Darien, in his civilian state, went to a certain public library in Azabu Juuban to meet with a still-unidentified woman there. He didn't know yet what to expect, but he did hope to learn more about what was going on now in Tokyo, at least. If not also anywhere else as well, when he did so.
Where he lived wasn't too far away from that library, so he walked there. He arrived there about 45 minutes before his scheduled time to meet with that woman, at about 5:15 pm on September 10, 1990. When he did, he soon came to the front desk, and asked the young woman now there, in Japanese, "I am Darien Shields, and I am here to meet with Hitomi Wakahisa, Miss. Do you perhaps know where she is?"
Pita, a young woman wearing black with dark green braided hair, thought for a moment, before quietly answering, "No, unfortunately, I don't right now. But if I remember correctly, she told me that she was expecting to see you later, after getting here herself a bit ago. She didn't say just where she'd be in this library, though, if memory serves."
"Okay, do you mind if I look for her?"
"Go right ahead, Mr. Shields. Maybe someone else might have seen her elsewhere in the library." She started to turn towards another person near the front desk, but suddenly paused, and remembered something that might be important. When she did, she briefly stuck one hand in a pocket of her black skirt, and withdrew a medium-sized twice-folded slip of paper from it. She briefly glanced at it, and handed it to him, saying, in a very quiet voice, in English, unlike their earlier words in Japanese, "Here is a piece of paper that will hopefully help you find her in time, before your meeting. Read the clue or clues provided, then act accordingly on them, as best as you can. Enjoy your stay at the library, I hope. Perhaps we'll meet again, once you have to leave this library later tonight. But for now, I must help others here, of course."
In English, and in a very quiet voice, he said, "Thank you. I look forward to it, if we are able to meet again later tonight, for sure."
Then he just as quietly left the front desk before soon opening that paper, to read, in small, but still well-readable cursive letters, in English, "Warrior of Earth, your journey is now beginning. You must now find a Thai-language copy of The Lord of the Rings, and give it to a young man with a black and orange jacket bearing a logo featuring flaming bowling balls and bowling pins on it. He will point you to the next clue or clues you will need to have to find me this evening."
He soon went to the fantasy novels section, and soon found several copies of that novel in several languages. It took a little while for him to actually find the Thai-language version of it. But he eventually did, with at least some help from a multiple-language version of the introduction to that novel. That done, he soon went in search of the person matching the description given on the Pita-given paper.
It took him several minutes, and he had to go to the library's fourth floor, but he still found them. When he did, they were reading a book about architecture as they sat at a table. A table that was neatly covered with notes and sketches on a piece of paper there bearing that person's name, even while they were also listening to a tape of a collection of classical music from Rossini and others with his headphones. The person's name was Klavan Metharom. And he had short brown hair and brown eyes, when Darien finally came up to him.
Klavan, a young man of 14 or so years old, soon noticed Darien's presence, and stopped the tape he was listening to, before taking off his headphones. Then he noticed the Thai-language copy of The Lord of the Rings, and almost immediately after doing so, quickly motioned Darien to sit down across from him. They both studied each other briefly, once they'd introduced themselves to each other, before Klavan reached into a nearby backpack, and removed a three-ring semi-loose-leaf notepad from it. With that done, Klavan laid the notepad on top of his sketches, before briefly looking through it and finding a certain page in it. He studied that page for a few seconds, then detached it from the notepad, very carefully, so that it wouldn't be needlessly damaged, and showed it to Darien, out of the sight of anyone else now in the room with them. Finally, he asked Darien, first in Thai, then in Japanese, once he realized that Darien didn't know much, if any, Thai at all in his life, while detaching another blank page from the notepad and handing it to him, "Would you draw me a brief sketch of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart as best as you possibly can, Shields-san, please?"
"Why, if I may ask?" asked Darien, in Japanese.
"One of my contacts told me that you have an interest in classical music. And one of your favorite composers is Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, it seems, from what they told me about you earlier. You don't have to make it a well-detailed sketch, of course. But perhaps you can still draw his face, at least, reasonably well," said Klavan, also in Japanese.
"I'm not very good at drawing, Metharom-san."
"Just try. Who knows, you might just surprise yourself, at least a little?"
So Darien took a pen out of his pocket, and began sketching a younger version of Mozart while he was still a teenager. It wasn't a really good sketch of the teenage Mozart, by the time he finished it. But it was still done with enough quality to cause Klavan to smile at him, after he'd handed it to Klavan.
"You pass. That being said, it seems I must now hand you a chess piece, and another slip of paper, to lead you to the next person or persons you'll need to find the person who told me about you." Klavan reached into his backpack again, and withdrew a knight cut from a sapphire set on top of a red cedar base, before also handing him a slip of paper showing certain chess-related questions on it. Klavan said, "These questions are for your next encounter in this library. Your next contact will be wearing clip-on chess-themed earrings, and they'll be made from blue sapphires. So be watchful of that as you look for her. She'll also have a swimming cap on her head now as well, and it'll be mostly white with fish in various colors and styles on it. She'll give you your next clue or clues after you meet her, once you pass a short test related to classical cars, and beat her in a quick chess game. We will meet again later, I'm sure. Good luck against her, sir."
"Understood, I'll leave you to your sketches and studies, Metharom-san."
"Thank you, Shields-san." Then Darien left Klavan behind, and went in search of the next person he'd have to find, as 5:35 approached. He found that person at about 5:40, as she was in the part of the library that had books related to various fields of medicine. Fields like cardiology, for instance, at that.
When he found her, he soon briefly cleared his throat to get her attention, and she turned to him, soon saying, "I take it you are Darien Shields," in English.
"I am, ma'am," he said, also in English, which both soon chose to continue to speak in as long as they'd be with each other in the library.
"Good, I was expecting to meet you, after I was asked to be here tonight. Even though I did have other plans, seeing as today is my birthday, actually. I am Amy Anderson, and I take it you have questions for me, both on paper and not." She briefly ran one hand through her short blue hair, in order to brush a bit of it out of her blue eyes.
"I do. I was given a piece of paper and a chess knight, before I went looking for you minutes ago," he said, as she led him to a nearby table with several things on it. Including a normal chessboard made with crystal and wood squares and some sort of metal frame or border around the chessboard, and 31 out of 32 chess pieces already on the board. There was an empty square where one of the black knights would normally be when a game might start. But all the other necessary squares were now filled on the board as needed.
"Okay, may I please have the knight that you were given? Black needs to have another knight here available, of course, before the game we play can actually start." She motioned him to a seat across from her as she said these things. He took it, while also handing her the knight.
She moved a few of her papers aside for a while, and received the paper he now had for her. That done, she quickly examined it, and answered those questions as needed as best as she could, getting them all right. For she was quite good at chess-related things in her life, but not yet the greatest chess player in her usual competition circles, or her usual social circles, at least.
After finishing her test, she handed him another sheet of paper with a number of classic cars-related questions. He soon passed the test satisfactorily enough. Even though he missed a few questions on it, he still passed it. After she checked his answers, and told him he'd passed that test, she asked him, "Would you like to play white or black in our game?"
"Black, if you don't mind?"
"Ah, being a bit mysterious, are we? No matter, you will open yourself up soon enough to others, I am quite sure, given the right stimuli, later on. Very well, you can play black, at least for this game. Show me just how good a player you are, Mr. Shields."
They soon began playing, and they opened their game with a French Defense opening, which was a bit of a surprise for Amy, but she hid her surprise well. After his second move of d7-d5, to threaten her King pawn, she chose to go N-c3, to protect it. Which led him to invoke the Winawer Variation, by moving his black-square Bishop to b4, to threaten her knight.
About thirty moves later, after several exchanges of pieces and pawns, and an average time of about five to ten seconds, more or less, per move from either of them during the game, at least early on, White was left with a Queen, a Rook, and a pawn to go with its King against one of Black's Knights, its white-square Bishop, two pawns, and its King. The game continued for a few more minutes and about twenty or so more moves, before Darien ultimately managed to somehow trap Amy's King in one corner of the board,while also not allowing her last Pawn, which was her Queen's Rook pawn on a7 to get promoted, by trapping it on the appropriate promotion square, even. Especially seeing as both her remaining non-King pieces had each been taken within the last five moves of the game to that point in time for their game. Once Amy realized she couldn't possibly win the game, she immediately resigned, once it was her turn again. For he'd have checkmated her in a few more moves, at most.
Then she soon said, "Well-played, Mr. Shields. You seem to know your way around a chessboard fairly well. I look forward to perhaps playing chess again with you in the future."
She checked a nearby clock on the wall, and saw that it was getting fairly close to 6 o'clock, but that he still had a few minutes of leeway time left before he'd have to be with Hitomi later for their planned meeting. With that done, she quickly took something of decent enough size out of one of the science-related textbooks now resting on the table in front of her near the chessboard, and handed it to him. It was yet another sheet of paper, this time being a paper with a set of biochemistry formulas and other biochemistry-related things on it. "Please take this to a girl on the second floor wearing glasses, a swimming cap exactly like mine, but with her last name of Mizuno on it instead of mine, and a mostly navy blue sweater with several stylized fish on it in various colors and styles and shapes. She will give you a book related to astronomical phenomena of various kinds, which you will need to bring to your meeting with our mutual contact, and she will escort you to where you will need to be elsewhere in this library for your meeting. This paper belongs to the person you will need to meet next. And she accidentally dropped it while we were both at our cram school yesterday, coming out of our advanced biochemistry class at the Crystal Spheres School elsewhere in Azabu Juuban."
"All right, is there anything else I will need to know right now, about either Mrs. Wakahisa or Miss Mizuno, Miss Anderson?"
"Her name is Ami, similar to my name, but instead of the A in her name being a long A, as the A in my name is, it is pronounced like Ah-me, not like the sound of a in the word wait, for example. She looks a lot like me too, but has darker hair, and typically wears her glasses more than I typically wear mine, as well. When she wears earrings, she usually prefers round stud-type earrings, if I'm not too mistaken, come to think of it."
"Okay, got all that, I think."
"Then I will see you later, perhaps, Mr. Shields. Now go, before you're ultimately late with your expected meeting with Mrs. Wakahisa."
"One last question, how do several of you already know Mrs. Wakahisa, if you don't mind me asking?"
"I do not mind, but I still cannot say. Or at least not yet, anyway. Maybe later, I can. But not yet, if ever, unfortunately. Goodbye." She gathered up her things, after also glancing at a watch on her left wrist, and quickly left. "Sorry to cut you off so short, Mr. Shields, but I have to go, for I just remembered I have another matter I must attend to now, and I don't want to be late. Also, you may call me Amy whenever possible in the future, supposing it's appropriate enough for you to do so at such times," she added, just before she left. To which, Darien quickly said that she could periodically call him Darien at times, if and whenever possible and appropriate enough as well. With those things said and done for them both, Amy left.
After she left, he quickly went down to the library's second floor and soon saw Ami where Amy had told him she'd be. A few very brief words later, in Japanese from both of them, soon elicited a quick nod from Ami towards him. She gently took him by the arm, and pulled him into a less-illuminated nearby area on the second floor for a few brief moments, so that others wouldn't be so likely to see her hand him the astronomy-related book that Amy had earlier mentioned to him before she left the library minutes before, for reasons yet to be learned by Darien in his life. She quietly whispered to him, in Latin, or in a tongue that seemed much like Latin to him, at least, "Luna's Princess is closer than you may think, even in the shadows shrouding the ancient crystal thrones in the gardens of the silver Moon. And her Queen is yet-unrevealed as well, but will be known, when the Dark Realm awakens sufficiently, after the Seven Shards rejoin to form the Moonsphere."
"What are you talking about, Mizuno-san?" he soon asked, just as quietly, in Japanese, and she soon answered back, also in Japanese.
"This was the message I was told to relay to you, before I brought you to Wakahisa-san. I do not yet know what it means, if I ever will. But I was still told to relay that to you, before you meet her tonight."
"So you are just her messenger here, at least for now?"
"Yes, at least for this particular occasion, anyway, I am. Now come, for I can say no more, and delay no longer, before I bring you to her."
So Darien immediately followed her, even after she gently released his arm. Minutes later, she brought him to a very secluded room elsewhere in the library, and briefly knocked on its door. There was almost instantly after the third knock on the door, a feminine voice from inside, which said, in Mandarin Chinese, "Bring him in, Mizuno-san."
Ami did so, immediately, opening its door, and escorting him into the room, which still had all but two lights off in it, one light shining on the woman and one on a seat across from her on the other side of a table where the ends were not currently visible, due to the general darkness then in the room. Darien quietly followed Ami into the room, and she brought him to the seat opposite that of the woman already in the room waiting for them to arrive. "Sit, Shields-san," said Ami, in Japanese, "for you and she both have much to discuss now, for sure."
"Will you remain here, Mizuno-san, while we meet?" asked Darien.
"I cannot, unfortunately. What she and you must discuss now, I cannot hear. For it is not something that I am supposed to hear. It also does not pertain to me, nor is it my business to know of what she and you have to talk about now, for sure. Therefore, I must leave, or she will not be able to converse with you now as she needs to, most definitely, Shields-san."
"Will we meet again?"
"I cannot say, but there may be a possibility that we could meet again in the future, somehow. Now I must leave. Sayonara, Shields-san."
With that said, Ami immediately left Darien alone with Hitomi. Hitomi said, just as pleasantly as possible, in English, after seeing the book Ami had given to him, "Please do sit down, Shields-san. We most certainly do have much to discuss. Especially after another one of my various contacts in the area arrives to at least briefly drop off some more information that you may perhaps find useful enough in the future."
Darien soon sat down, as asked, and Hitomi put some things in front of him from a briefcase also on their table Not everything yet that he might then need to see, but still at least some of what he might need to see. For instance, she opened an album full of many different news clippings from various newspapers existing all over the world. Most, if not all, of those clippings were at least somewhat related to many rather strange events and/or beings that were quite unusual, at least, to many people anywhere in the world If not greatly related to them, somehow.
Darien soon studied many of those many clippings for himself for at least twenty minutes, while Hitomi quietly waited for him to say anything more, before ultimately asking her, in Japanese, "And what do you think that I might be able to do to make it harder for them to do as you seem to think they may be doing here, if they're actually doing these kinds of things all over, perhaps?"
"Well, for one thing, you could certainly use a headquarters against them all," said Hitomi, also in Japanese. Just then, a nearby phone lightly beeped elsewhere in the room. Hitomi stood up, even while also saying, "Increase lights' current illumination level ten percent per minute for the next five minutes. Thank you." The phone continued to beep quietly as she gracefully moved to one wall and as the room's available lighting gradually brightened.
Once she was where the phone was, she briefly glanced at its screen, before picking up its handset, and putting it to her right ear while also turning to watch Darien. Then she said, apparently in Welsh or Gaelic, "Wakahisa speaking, …. Yes, he's here now, … He should have a better idea of certain things related to the design studio soon once you bring us the books related to at least its finances, I think, … Very well, we'll see you here in just a few minutes more, I expect, … Wakahisa out." After the phone call, she went back to her seat at the table. She didn't sit, however, before first moving to a little cubical fridge of some sort in the room and taking a few things out of it.
Darien soon said, in Japanese, "Aren't people generally not supposed to eat or drink most, if not all, things at all in a typical library, Wakahisa-san?"
"Yes, that's a quite common rule, for sure, all over the world, Shields-san. But being one of the main benefactors of this particular library does allow me to have certain privileges. And this room also is one of my primary work areas whenever I'm working on one of my various literary projects of all kinds. Not only that, I currently have certain health-related needs of my very own that periodically require me to have considerable stockpiles of food, drink, and medical-related items within often-close reach of myself whenever I'm here," she said, still speaking in Japanese. Even while carrying some tea, sandwiches, and three cups back to their table as carefully as she then could, seeing as the room wasn't yet as bright as she wanted it to be.
He watched her carefully pour herself a cup, after first shaking his head negatively when she offered him one to drink, then said, still in Japanese, once her tea was poured into a porcelain teacup painted so as to feature the known lunar phases, "You still haven't actually provided enough information to me in order to convince me that I should help you out at least somewhat financially, I think, Wakahisa-san."
Just then, a knock on the same door that Darien had earlier been escorted through sounded. Hitomi then asked, after taking a brief sip of her honey, milk, and cinnamon-flavored tea, in English, for Darien's benefit, at least, "Is that you, Frinussi-san, and do you have the required books with you still, as well?"
"Yes, ma'am, I still do, as requested," answered a young woman from the other side of the door, a few seconds later, at most, in the same language.
"Good. Anyone else with you now, as far as you know?"
"Nobody at all, ma'am."
"Then please join us, if you don't mind."
Without another word, the door opened to quickly admit a young woman of roughly 16 years of age in her life. The young woman was short and of moderate build for her size and age, being only about 5'3" and about 125 pounds, with midnight blue hair in a ponytail and light blue eyes. She was also wearing a long mostly dark green floor-length dress, along with a mostly dark blue backpack currently on her back.
After securing the door, she moved to the table, and set her backpack down in front of her, once she'd sat down near Hitomi's right side. She opened her backpack, and took out two rather good-sized books that couldn't be anything else besides financial ledgers, before setting them in front of Darien. Next, she reached again into her backpack, and from a case of some sort, she took out a notebook-sized device that now looked like a rather large calculator, but wasn't just a calculator, in truth. That device was also some sort of information-gathering and data collection-maintaining device, at least, if nothing else as well. She soon pressed a few of the buttons then apparently on that device, before bringing up a considerable amount of data on a screen that took up about half of the currently-visible area on the device's upper side. While the rest of that visible area was taken up by various buttons then presently seen on it.
Once she did that, she reached into her backpack yet again, and took out some sheets of loose paper, before beginning to slide them through the middle of her device's casing and pressing a few more buttons on her device. She did this for several minutes, with at least two dozen sheets of paper, before ultimately handing exactly half of the resulted printed sheets to Darien, and exactly half to Hitomi, while saying, in Japanese, "Here are several more often not easily-gathered Negaverse-related records of confirmed and known data related to any number of the strange events and beings you wished me and certain others to attempt discovery of, Wakahisa-san. All gathered by myself and a number of our mutual contacts since April of this year, once certain rather strange things first began happening around here in Japan and certain other countries."
Hitomi introduced Darien to the blue-haired girl, and vice versa, in English. Darien learned that the blue-haired girl's name was Terna Frinussi, and that she was originally from somewhere in the British Isles nation of Wales, before she and her family had come to Japan about two years prior.
After Terna learned his full name, she soon said, still in English, "Nice to meet you, Mr. Shields. You may address me as the Lady Terna of Dreamlane Manor, if you wish. Or as Lady Frinussi, if you do not, most times whenever we meet in the future, if not all such times."
"Dreamlane Manor?"
"That is where we normally reside whenever my family and I are actually back home in Wales for a long enough stretch of time, Mr. Shields." She said that as she set her unusual device on the table in front of her, next to a cup that Hitomi had set down near her a few seconds before, and picked up a peanut butter and orange marmalade sandwich from the plate of assorted sandwiches on the table.
"Darien."
"What?"
"Darien, if you don't mind too much, please, Frinussi-san."
"Oh?"
"Many of my English-speaking associates that are fairly close to me in age typically call me Darien, Frinussi-san." He began to silently study her at some length, but not in an inappropriate manner at all, just before beginning to examine both the sheets she'd just given him and the financial ledgers she'd brought here.
She went silent for some time while she began to eat the sandwich now in her left partly-cybernetic hand, before ultimately saying, rather calmly indeed, "You somehow expect to meet me often in the future, for some yet-unknown reason or reasons to you at present."
"Yes, for some reason I can't quite explain at present, maybe, I do, ma'am."
"Very well, I will make you a deal, if that is acceptable to you enough."
"And that deal is?"
"When we are with each other in the future, and certain circumstances permit us to do so, somehow, I will accede to your wishes, and call you simply Darien, and allow you to call me simply Terna. Otherwise, I will call you Mr. Shields, or Shields-san, as may be more appropriate at a particular time. And you are to call me either Lady Terna of Dreamlane Manor or Lady Frinussi. Fair enough?"
He thought for a few seconds in silence, before saying, "Fine, agreed."
"Study this provided information very closely here and commit it quite firmly to memory, just as soon as you possibly can, Mr. Shields. You ultimately will need to quite often remember it, most likely, in the future. And most especially after you finally do come to meet up with certain Generals for the Negaverse sometime later, for sure, I think," said Terna, as she calmly continued to eat her current sandwich.
"What other Generals are there besides Jadeite for the Negaverse, as far as you know?" asked Darien, as he finally took the last teacup, poured himself some tea, and took one of the still-present sandwiches. Which, in his case, was a grilled cheese sandwich.
"Besides Jadeite, rumor has it that there are at least three other Generals for the Negaverse right now, if not more. But more specific information has not yet been learned about their chain of command, or exactly who is currently leading the Negaverse. It does seem, however, that their main goal is currently either to gather large amounts of human life energy, for some yet-unknown reason or reasons, or to wreak as much havoc as they possibly can, also for some yet-unknown reason or reasons. Several of us who work periodically for Wakahisa-san in various ways, including certain people you may meet later, have now begun trying to find out accurate enough information about how they make their various monsters in the Negaverse, if they do, or how they breed them, or whatnot. As for me, I now am somewhat more interested in their potential technological states of existence and the likely biological natures of their monsters than I am about much else in sufficient enough relation to them," said Terna, even as she finished her current cup of tea and current sandwich.
As Terna and Darien conversed with each other in English, in the meantime, Hitomi quietly sipped her tea any number of times and studied the information on the papers Terna had given her. She thought, 'We still need a great deal more information about the Negaverse, it seems to me. And Darien most certainly needs more assistance in terms of fighting them, one way or another, somehow. For I still have no idea just when he'll be able to have another human or humanoid-type of being regularly fighting alongside him in battles easily enough. Or just who his potential future teammates might be, if anyone at all,' along with any number of other things during her current companions' present conversation.
Once Darien felt that he'd examined the Terna-given papers and ledgers and re-examined the news clippings-filled album that Hitomi had earlier let him look at sufficiently well, he said, in Japanese, "Very well, Wakahisa-san, just as long as you're as honest as you possibly can be with me in the future, I promise you that I'll try to help you all I can financially. But please don't forget that while I still have substantial financial resources at my disposal, and even more such resources are now locked in a trust for me until I reach a certain age in my own life, I also have certain necessary living expenses that must be covered every so often. Not to mention the fact that I'm currently a college student studying to become a doctor later in life, if I possibly can be one later on in it." But he only said those things to her after much silent thought, and perhaps not a little bit of apprehension, at least, if not other feelings as well,
Hitomi nodded, and then said, in Japanese, "Noted, Shields-san. I promise you that I'll try to be as honest with you at all times, whenever possible. There is still much I myself don't remember about certain things in my own life, to be totally honest with you as well here. I too don't seem to remember certain things and people from quite a while ago in my own life, for some yet-unknown reason or reasons, in truth."
"Okay, I've seen enough information for now related to your design studio and its finances, at least, I think. You mentioned a location where you wanted certain supplies to be deposited at, et cetera. I'd like to know why, if I may ask. Supposing you haven't yet told me everything I may currently need to know about it, et cetera, Wakahisa-san."
"Information that we've learned recently seems to suggest that the Negaverse is searching for a place where they can easily base their assorted operations from here in Tokyo. And they now seem to have their eyes somewhat heavily on this location as a prospective base location for those operations of theirs. Seeing as it is well within reach of various parts of Tokyo that they may want to hit in them later on, if our current information is sufficiently accurate, Shields-san," said Hitomi.
"Which means, in essence?" asked Darien, in between very short sips of his tea.
"That if they do somewhat heavily covet that possible location as a potential place to base their operations out of here in the Tokyo metropolitan area, then it would only be smart to try and deny them that location as best as we possibly can, and for as long as we possibly can, would it not?"
"That seems logical. But how do you suggest we may be able to somehow do that, Wakahisa-san?"
"We're in the process of trying to figure that sort of thing out even now, Shields-san," said Hitomi, as she began to collect both the empty cups and the plate that several sandwiches had just been on, and poured one last cup of tea for Terna.
"Fair enough. So where do you think the next battle or battles may occur, when they make their next appearance in the local area?"
"Either in a possibly abandoned warehouse or some sort of factory, if not both, we suspect, at or near the location on the papers that Wakahisa-san gave you right after the fight at her design studio just a little while ago, Mr. Shields. Of course, we could be wrong, to at least some degree, if not to a great degree. But both I and a number of others have still periodically seen them trying to scope out the area, among other things, for sure. So they must evidently be planning to do something in and around that area, if we are not too mistaken. For why else would they seem to be so intent on that part of Tokyo? Especially in and around that location? Sheer logic suggests that they have major potential designs on that particular location and its immediate area, based on currently-available information about that place and the area around it, for sure," said Terna.
"Okay, I'll grant you that possibility, ladies. But can either of you tell me when I may find other definite non-animal allies to regularly fight alongside?"
"No, unfortunately we are currently unable to do just that for sure. But we have still begun to search for such people who may be able to assist you directly sometime yet in the future. So it seems that you will have to continue fighting them, at least for now, with no such human allies during most, if not all, future battles you will fight until they each may finally awaken sufficiently well, Mr. Shields."
"But we still do have some devices you might perhaps find useful against them in the future, until you start gaining the actual allies in battle that you most definitely do need fairly soon, Shields-san," said Hitomi, as she began storing away the papers Terna had earlier handed her in her briefcase still on the table, along with the album of news clippings that Darien had earlier looked at.
After a quick nodding to Terna, Hitomi said, "Frinussi-san has a few devices for you that you can use periodically to know more about what our mutual enemies may be doing, and even at least one or two communications-type devices, for your information. You'll want to always carry at least one communications device that we provide you with. Even if it's only inside a subspace pocket of some kind most of the time."
"What do you mean by a subspace pocket of some kind, Wakahisa-san?"
"A subspace pocket is where superheroic-type beings can often hide their items, Shields-san. You'll be getting at least one or two of your own. As will others who may aid you in the future. We don't understand how those things may work, but we strongly suspect they are like pocket dimensions. Based on available surveillance camera video records of your two previous fights at both the jewelry store and my design studio, we believe that your roses and other items have been, are being, and will be, kept somehow in subspace, until such time as they're needed for transformations or whatnot," said Hitomi. She said these things even as Terna began handing Darien several items, including electronic devices, showing him how to consciously access his subspace pocket or pockets, how to protect them from being seen, detected, or stolen from by other people or beings he might encounter in the future, and how to use them when possible in it.
It took several minutes until she and Hitomi were satisfied he'd understood all the things that Terna had been showing him. When they were, Darien asked, "Will that be all, ladies, at least for now?"
"Yes, I believe so, Shields-san. You may leave here at any time," said Hitomi, even while noticing that it was rapidly approaching 9 pm, according to a nearby clock on one wall of their current room.
"Thank you. Do you mind if I take these ledgers with me, so I can figure out just how best I may be able to assist you here financially, at least?"
"You may take one of them, for now, at least. Be very careful with it, for if the Negaverse or its agents get control of it, it may embolden them, and make them quite pleased indeed, at the very least, I think, Shields-san. We'll need to have it back, though, in a few days, if at all possible, most likely."
"How will I be able to return it to you, Wakahisa-san?" asked Darien, as he took one of those ledgers, and quite carefully indeed stashed it quickly away in his subspace pocket.
"We'll discuss that after your next battle, if at all possible. Rest up, if and whenever you can. And also you may want to start gradually training at your local Athletic Club, if you haven't already begun to do so. That should hopefully help you improve your current physical condition, I'm reasonably certain, so that you can fight better, et cetera, in future fights against our mutual enemies, Shields-san."
"While I do all these things, what will you perhaps be doing, Wakahisa-san?"
"We'll be trying to do things like identifying potential future teammates of yours, for instance. Or trying to find out more reliable enough information about the Negaverse and the things that it's most likely trying to do in various places all over the world, and most especially around here, for sure."
"Just how much time, exactly, do you think it actually will be that I may still have available to me before the next battle happens, ladies?"
"Unknown, Mr. Shields. But based on recent intelligence that we have perhaps been able to confirm well enough, it seems that they may now possibly be planning to carry out their next operation within the next few days, at most. If even that, come to think of it. And with that said, I think it is about time that I leave here for the rest of the current night. For my parents are expecting me back home by 9:30. Please take care, and perhaps we will see each other again real soon. Lord willing, of course."
"Yes, Frinussi-san, I have no further need of you at present. You may leave."
"Thank you, ma'am. Mr. Shields, remember what I said about the information on the papers I gave you earlier, among other things that I told you about here. Do NOT forget, or it could be very troublesome for many people around here, whether they are superheroic-type beings around here or not, for sure."
"Understood, Miss Frinussi," said Darien. Once he said that, Terna left almost immediately. Once she was gone, Darien said, in English, "I noticed she hardly, if ever, uses any contractions if she doesn't have to, Wakahisa-san."
"That's true. However, I can't tell you why she normally will do that. For it's not my place to say, without her full knowledge and/or consent. At least it isn't now, anyway, if it won't always be so, in direct enough relation to her, Shields-san."
"Point taken. Mind if I leave now?"
"Go right ahead, Shields-san. Besides, I have to leave here as well, anyway. For my husband and children are all still waiting for me back at home."
"Do you need an escort home?" he asked, as she gave him a book on roses.
"No, I don't, for I have my ways of getting home well enough and safely enough right now. So I'll let you go, and await our next meeting. Stay safe, and please do be careful, okay?"
"I'll try."
"Good. Hope you have a good rest of the night, too, by the way."
After she said that, he walked out the same door that he'd earlier been escorted through to meet with Hitomi and Terna. She watched him go, before moving to a certain place near one corner of the room that Darien had not yet seen, before pressing a few buttons on a console for a few seconds, and stepping onto a certain square on the floor that appeared to be about the size of a typical bathroom weight scale.
No more than twenty seconds later, the entire room was empty, in terms of actual humans then being present there. For she'd used some sort of futuristic teleportation device to travel from the library to her family residence's living room, in truth, somewhere else in Tokyo.
Darien encountered Ami, Amy, Klavan, and Pita, in that exact order on his way out of the library, only briefly talking with each of them on it, and not about all that much, if anything, as he began leaving the library. For they too, except Pita, were then also leaving it, for their own homes elsewhere in Tokyo. Pita, however, still couldn't leave. For she'd have to remain at the library until it ultimately would close for the night at 10:30.
Ultimately, Darien arrived back at his apartment, and soon conversed with Seeker and Wanderer for a while. Even as he quickly prepared a late supper for them all as needed, quite naturally enough. They basically spent a long time talking as he not only made their suppers, but as they also ate them, with Darien often asking quite a few questions of Seeker and Wanderer. No matter what they might possibly be, for sure.
After supper, he spent several hours either working on his studies, reading about various types of roses mentioned in the book that Hitomi had given him earlier, or reading from the astronomy-related book he still had, courtesy of Ami Mizuno. While Seeker and Wanderer soon decided to find other things to do, both inside and outside of his apartment, whatever those other things might possibly be, in any case at all.
Ultimately, they did, however, leave his apartment again, by way of his balcony, and with Seeker riding securely on Wanderer's back in a sling of some sort that Darien had fashioned out of older materials that he most likely wouldn't need any more for his own use. They decided to try to find out more information about their current and potentially-future enemies. And they also told Darien to make sure that he left the television on in his living room area when he finally went to bed, just in case he decided to lock the doors to his balcony again from the inside. He agreed to do that, and they left his apartment by way of his balcony, to do whatever they both felt they now had to do.
He wondered quite a bit about how effective their attempts to somehow gain enough additional and useful information might prove to be. At least in sufficient enough relation to the Negaverse and their likely allies of all kinds, of course. And he also hoped that they'd both be as careful as they both could be. Even while exploring in various places all over Tokyo, at least, if not elsewhere in Japan, as well.
After reading and studying for quite a while, he went to bed, shortly after leaving a television on in his living room area. Only to be visited yet again in his dreams by a still-unidentifiable person who now seemed to have a young woman's or young girl's voice, somehow, multiple times, during the night. He didn't sleep very well and very soundly for most, if not all, of the night while he still was in his bed, as a result.
This sort of thing would become quite commonplace for him for quite a while, for reasons not yet known either to him or to anyone else sufficiently well, for sure. He and others would ultimately try to learn why he was beginning to have these strange dreams of his. But nobody would know why for quite some time, until certain other things happened for him, at least, if not also anyone else as well.
End of Chapter Three
There will certainly be at least one fight and at least one argument in the next chapter of this tale. Also, we will see Queen Beryl and at least one Negaverse General besides Jadeite in it, for sure. I have been quite busy for quite a while with certain other things, so this third chapter was delayed in its eventual delivery to you all, unfortunately. Things like entering a short story-writing contest with a version of an original fiction-type story, for instance. However, my story wasn't picked to be published in some version by the people running that contest. But at least I entered one, and also still tried to do the very best I possibly could to come up with a good enough tale to be published. I realized that there was a chance my story wouldn't be picked for possible publication where I sent a version of it off to. But this just means that maybe another market might take it and publish it eventually if it's worked on more and to a sufficient enough degree, et cetera, I think. Not being picked for possible publication for that market isn't going to keep me from continuing to write if and whenever I can, folks, whether it's for fan fiction or original fiction, I'm quite sure. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and if all goes sufficiently according to plan, perhaps I'll even have the next chapter out within the next few days or weeks, somehow. TUS out.