Sympathy for the Devil, Part 2 - Better the Devils You Know
Just as they were dragging Minako out of her residence's front door, the two UN troopers fell to the ground, blood trickling from their nostrils and grasping their heads as if they were going to explode at any time. It was the result of a spell that Dis Pater managed to release even in his immobile effigy state. Minako stood there, aghast at the sight.
"What the fuck is going on!?" Minako's mother Retsuko shouted out, just as mortified as her daughter.
"Run now," Dis Pater recommended. Artemis went to the blond girl and nodded, signifying that she would better do as the villain said.
"Halt!" demanded more law enforcers that ran down the street. Minako simply leaped over them, using the shoulders of one of the grunts as a trampoline to jump away further and higher to whatever safe place she could reach.
I could have done that against you, or your immediate family, the voice of Dis Pater still resounded in their heads, even from afar as she ran away. But I did not. I hope this takes away any doubt about where my allegiances now lie.
Then what do you suggest we should do now?" Minako instinctively communicated with him through her thoughts.
I suggest you go after at least one of your fellow Sailor Guardians. They are being pursued the same way you are. Strength in numbers, so they say in these days.
Finding some sense in what Dis Pater had said, Minako used all her strength and agility to leap from ceiling to ceiling, with Artemis in tow, in search of the closest place she could find one of her sisters-in-arms.
(xx)
"I'm afraid to break terrible news to you, Kings," the disembodied voice of Helios spoke throughout the entire landscape of the Dreaming. "The Shadow Gems have been destroyed..."
"WHAT!?" Shinozaki was the only one who shouted right away, in contrast to the subdued but not less apprehensive gasps that the others released.
"How... Then how are we going to come back to life?" Ryo nervously asked.
"There are other ways, even if temporary," the Warden of Dreams resumed. "You could use soul transmutations like Astar is doing right now to speak to Usagi, but for that... You would still need to rise your spiritual power. And this will take more time."
"Ugh... I can't just stay here like a fucking sitting duck!" Yuuichirou finally affirmed. "We need spiritual power, you say? Then I'm gonna train hard and steady, until I can at least talk to Miss Rei through her dreams!" He then addressed his fellow Heavenly Kings. "And if you wanna see your girlfriends and family ever again, you better do the same!"
Having said this, Yuuichirou sat in the lotus position and started concentrating his spiritual power right away. A light hum could be heard from him, and a red glow covered his body ever so slightly.
"Gotta give it to him, he's taking this quite seriously," commented Hawkseye.
"Eh, perhaps way too seriously," answered Tigerseye.
"But he has a point, doesn't he?" Daisuke rhetorically asked as he, too, assumed the meditation position. Ryo and Shinozaki soon followed.
"They understood perfectly well the gravity of the situation, and for that we should commend them. Girls, please prepare an extra pitcher of Nectar," the Warden of Dreams addressed the Maenads, who promptly obeyed their master.
"We better leave them alone," suggested Fisheye. His companions agreed and promptly left the new Kings in their uneasy concentration.
(xx)
Usagi's Dreamscape
Once more, Astar saw himself in the corridors of the old Mare Serenitatis Palace. He noticed the lights were dim and the air felt damp, which denoted conflict within the young woman's mind. But even then, Usagi could have a pleasant dream of her past self, this time sharing a good time strolling alongsidew her fellow Princesses in the Palace's frondous atrium.
"You again..."
Just as he was about to reach for the Guardian's inner self, he turned around and saw the spirit of Queen Serenity once more. Her stern look and her clenched fists denoted her discontent in his presence.
"Why do you insist on coming here," the erstwhile Queen queried.
"You know well of what is going on in the Universe," the Angel answered. "It's time to end all the lies. For the sake of... Your daughter."
"Who are you to speak of lies?" she indignantly snapped back. "You already interfered once in my plan of saving humanity!"
"Save humanity?" he simply asked. "Did they really need saving at all? Did you really think your dealings with Lucifer were for the greater good of the Galactic Commonwealth?"
"SILENCE!" Serenity exploded in fury and prepared her hand to blow Astar away once more. "I will hear no more of your blathering. Thanks to the help of Lucifer, I created the most peaceful and prosperous era that humanity had ever seen, and if it wasn't for that rebel witch Beryl, we would still live in the perfect society! Selyne shall create it anew, and you will not interfere, do you hear me!?"
Astar simply shook his head and gave out a tired sigh. His eyes emitted a bluish glow. "No. You hear me now."
Before she could toss Astar away from Usagi's mind, Serenity's stance relaxed and paralyzed while she retained her conscience. She knew well what this meant: Astar was using the Power of the Word, inherent to all Angels. All those who listen to it are bound to obey the command of its perpetrator.
"I could use this power to rule the entire Universe myself, but I do not, because I understand the greatest gift that Existence could ever give to us: Free will. The chances to make our own paths as we walk through the time we are given upon the Universe. And this is something you have failed to understand when you decided to engage in your crusade, even siring a child to lead them all in case you could not. It all ended in blood and ashes, as all things the Fallen Angel treads with end up, and it will all end so again. But soon enough, Usagi will know the truth. Either you tell her... or I will. And if she hears it from me first, you may forget whatever plan to vicariously rule through her."
Upon saying that, Astar silently faded from the Dreamscape, feeling weakened by his use of the Word and having failed to speak the dark truth he wished to tell to the leader of the Sailor Guardians.
All the soul of the former Queen could feel was dread. The kind of fear one feels when their scheme is exposed for what it is. "Selyne... Usagi..."
(xx)
"ON GRAMMATON'S REASONS TO HELP HUMANITY"
The Om, as they were called in the Age of Angels, were nothing more than what we today call as humans. They resulted in the fading of the powers of the Angels that did not take sides during the civil conflict that resulted in the Schism, the separation of Angels between the loyal El and the rebellious Qu, and ended up cast away from the heavenly cities of Gog and Magog. As generations went by, they became completely powerless, using merely their physical and mental prowess to provide for their own necessities.
Grammaton grew to admire the Om as they built themselves independently from the pettiness of the Angels and how they were able to build their own fates even in the face of immense adversities, but did not have the gumption to ask for Aveh to go to the surface level to help them. For all the First God cared, the Om were filthy and lesser beings not worthy of being reinstated into Eden, which was what he believed was their ultimate target. The invasion of the Qu and the betrayal of Lucifer changed everything. This was the chance Grammaton had to see humans first-hand, and help them reach their own Heaven on Earth - Even if it was at such under less than pleasant conditions.
Yet, as he walked and tried to aid the Om, all he saw was conflict, war and hate. His attempts to use his Power of the Word upon them all failed - The New Gods that raised from the uprising against Aveh, as well as the Demigods (children of Gods with humans) also retained some degree of the Power, and used them upon the Om to make them remain loyal and submitted to their respective divine rulers. Grammaton was considered as as either a fool or an outright menace to societies for his attempt to subvert the orders they built.
In solitude over the North Pole of Planet Terra, Grammaton felt the dread of hopelessness take over his innards, manifesting itself into the first tears and sobs he would ever shed. He remained in this state for a few years, until somebody else managed to find him in that inhospitable corner of the world.
A rare female Angel had come to his aid. Her name was Gaia, and she offered herself to help Grammaton and humanity at large.
Book of Titor, Chapter II: The Age of Angels, Section II
(xx)
The starless and moonless night loomed over Tokyo as Minako and Artemis made their tentative way to Makoto's apartment block. Her strength and perseverance could come in handy, and besides, in their uneasy run, it ended being the closest place they could run to. Hopefully, she will understand.
Once there, however, she saw more SDF grunts in front of the block where the Guardian of Thunder lived. Two women stood there, loudly arguing with one another. From afar, Minako recognized one of them as Shizune, Makoto's aunt and sole caretaker. She appeared to not be affected by the infernal transmission and was still willing to defend the Guardians.
"What in all hells are you waiting for!?" the middle-aged woman ordered the SDF troopers in a shaky voice. "Arrest them already!"
"Stay away from my niece!" Shizune bellowed out. "Listen, Mrs. Shinozaki, I don't know what has gotten into you, but-"
"SHUT THE FUCK UP! If it wasn't for your little niece, I'd still have my husband and my son by my side!"
"Should we break in?" One of the troopers asked the commander. "They don't seem to be armed."
"Orders are orders," the commander answered, then proceeded to advance towards Shizune and the main entrance to the block. Shizune still insisted in blocking their passage, and for her troubles, she got smacked with the butt of a rifle across the face.
"Aunt Shizune!" Already transformed, the brown-haired Guardian shouted as she came out of the block to her aunt's aid, who fell and felt her conscience slip away.
The SDF commander then stood right in front of them and started to speak: "Makoto Kino, you're under arrest for-"
"ARREST THIS, YOU FUCKWAD!" Eternal Sailor Jupiter screamed as she released a flurry of thunderclaps that floored all of the belligerent.
"Oh, boys..." came a slow and throaty voice. "It seems you need some extra help..."
"Lord Beelzebub, Legionnaire of Gluttony" the leader of the troopers recognized the source of the voice. "It seems they insist in their squabble."
"Hmm, yes... Fréamund and Abadon warned me of this... Leave it to me, then... And stay out of trouble..."
A fiery pentagram formed in the grass right next to where the soldiers fell, and from it emerged a tall creature - Some sort of zombie, whose pungent smell of rotting flesh almost made the stomachs of everyone present turn inside out. The sight was enough for Mrs. Shinozaki to pass out in shock. Her mind could not compute what seemed to be a perfectly normal person materializing ahead of her.
"Stay away from them!" Minako finally intervened, putting herself between the Legionnaire of Gluttony and Sailor Jupiter.
"Mina..." was all an incredulous Guardian of Thunder could mutter.
"Oh? What do we have here..." Beelzebub mused upon seeing the blond girl standing "I can only assume you are one of the Sailor Guardians... Why, two Guardians in the same night... The Lord of Light shall be pleased..."
But rather than calling for her powers, all she did was stay there, shaking with anxiousness. The last time she turned into Sailor Venus, tragedy struck as she saw Daisuke brutally murdered by Kunzite, who also had his head blown off.
"Mina, what are you waiting for!?" Sailor Jupiter called out. "Transform, NOW!"
"I... I can't..."
"Easy... Perhaps, way too easy..." the filthy Legionnaire gloated as he prepared himself to strike down the Guardians. "Hit me with your best shot, ladies..."
(xx)
Mamoru's Dreamscape
In the inner gardens of the Palace of Sheer Crystal, two children played, and their parents observed proudly from an artisanal bench in the farthest side of the place. This is how Mamoru saw himself in his dreams, in the purple drapings of his future self as King Endymion. By his side, his wife and sovereign, Neo-Queen Serenity, as comely and regal as she could be.
The peace of a guaranteed future took over the troubled mind of Mamoru in that vision of the future. He knew well the names of his future descendants. The eldest was Usagi Small Lady, or Chibiusa for the acquitted; and by her side was her younger brother, Young Lord Seiya - The spitting image of his father. The future of the strongest dynasty humanity would ever see was rekindled and guaranteed to rule forever more...
But all of a sudden, the Palace's pristine walls cracked and crumbled, and the gardens bursted into flames. The Queen and the princes fell into chasms that opened from beneath them, and as much as he tried, Endymion could not reach for any of them. In fact, he was inmobile, watching as an angry mob of non-descript people carrying torches and weapons of all sort barged into the blazing atrium, ready for a massacre. Their voices echoed even through the fire.
"Who do you think you are to call yourself King of the World?"
"And who the hell told you pampered fuckers we are Merkabans or what have you? None of us are nothing alike! We want our nations back!"
"It's not the subjects who should be afraid of their rulers... It's the rulers who should be afraid of their subjects!"
"No Gods! No masters! No Kings and no Sailor Guardians!"
"DOWN WITH THE CRYSTAL KINGDOM!"
As the mob approached Endymion, all he could do was scream in horror for his life. "No! NO! Why... Why is this happening?"
Before the first blade could touch his flesh, the young King felt like everything around him stopped and acquired negative colors. A tender male voice spoke: "This is the future that awaits you... If you do not stand for yourself."
"Who... Who is that?"
"I do not think we have been formally introduced yet... My name is Helios, son of Morpheus, Warden of Dreams."
"I think I heard that name before... But why are you here? What is the meaning of all of this?"
"Your deepest fears may concretize if you do not act quick, and I am here to help you with it. You are the Prophesized King, he of many names. It is time that you received what is yours by birthright."
A pronged jewel materialized and floated ahead of Mamoru. Its glow alone was enough to make the angry mob disappear, quench the flames that surrounded the place, rebuild the walls of the Palace and even bring back his family.
"This is..."
"The Golden Crystal. Your late father, King Kaisarion, gave it to me prior to the Second Cataclysm, when the Silver Millenium ended and the Galactic Commonwealth fell. I have kept it safe in my domains ever since... And I give it back to you, its rightful wielder."
Upon touching it, Mamoru felt an immense power take over him. The fear he was feeling also dissipated. "Such power... Is it really mine?"
"Absolutely. It is the boon of the Angels to the male leader of humanity, made with the first shards of matter that the Galaxy Cauldron produced in the weaving of the Universe, the same material as the Silver Crystal. They are imbued with the Power of the Word and as such, they hold some degree of control over all matter, including its metaphysical elements such as minds and souls. If the Fallen Angel takes hold of both Crystals, he will be one step closer in his master stroke of rebuilding reality as he well wishes. I am no longer in condition to hold it, for my body was slain by him... But you are its owner, and the time to act with it is now. Awaken, Endymion, and heal the world of its ailing. Protect the lands and your people from Lucifer and the hordes of Hell. Awaken..."
(xx)
"Power... Control... Humanity... Crystals... Lucifer..." Mamoru mumbled parts of what Helios dictated in his Dreamscape. Upon the order of the Warden of Dreams, he woke up and released a short scream and a desperate gasp for breath. "GAAAH!"
"YEEEOW!"
"Mamo-chan!" Usagi called from her cell. "Are you alright?"
"Uh... Yeah, it's just... Oh dear, I think there's something else in here."
"Something?" a youthful female voice spoke. As it turned out, Mamoru was not alone in his cell anymore.
"Huh... Luna!?" both Mamoru and Usagi recognized her voice.
"Guys, pipe down!" a young man's hushed voice was heard from outside.
"Sh-Sh-Shingo!?" Usagi recognized her younger brother. "How and why are you here!?"
"Shingo can explain it better," the wise cat recommended as she opened the latch inside Mamoru's cell. "What matters is that we managed to sneak into here and free you from the inside out."
"I received a call from a girl called Michiru, and she said you were here in the Tokyo Detention Center," Shingo explained. "Now that I saw Usagi is Sailor Moon, Luna came to speak to me, and we decided to give you guys a hand. Our parents still think you're the villain of this whole story, though..."
But just as Luna was able to open Usagi's cell door, the sound of steps could be heard from afar.
"Ah shit! It's the guards!" Shingo exclaimed on the verge of a full-on freakout.
"It's showtime, then," Mamoru affirmed as he transformed into Tuxedo Mask.
"The prisoners are escaping!" echoed a gruff voice as soon as they turned the corner of the block. "Block the corridor and attack!"
As if he knew what to do already, the hero pointed the palm of his right hand towards the charging guards and called for his attack power: "Smoking Bomber!"
A dazzling flash later and all the enemies went down, knocked out but perfectly alive. The heroes that remained were amazed and stupified by what Tuxedo Mask had just done. Even Usagi, who only then did manage to get out of her cell.
"Ohh... Ugh, what's going on in here," one of the beaten guards moaned as he woke up. "Wait... Why am I even here? Who are you people?"
"Huh? You... Don't know what you were doing all this time?" Usagi incredulously asked.
"No!" Another guard exclaimed as she got up. "In fact, this was supposed to be my day off! But something happened after I watched Mayor Hino's pronouncement." To this, all the other guards answered something similar.
"I think I know what's going on, and needs to be done," Tuxedo Mask affirmed. "Everyone, stay here and see if more prisoners were taken. I'll go ahead."
"Take care," Shingo told him, to which the young hero saluted both with a wry smile and a tip of his top hat.
As he ran through the corridors of the penitentiary complex, Tuxedo Mask's heart filled with a degree of hope he felt he needed. Whenever more guards appeared, he managed to make them return to their senses with the Smoking Bomber flash attack he gained, and just by touching them, he could also heal any wound that may have been caused. So... This is the power of the Golden Crystal. Mine are the hands to heal the world and its denizens. Very well, I'll heal the world alright.
When he finally came out of the building and saw the dark-purple sky and the Tokyo skyline beneath it, he breathed out a sigh of relief. His thoughts then went to his new Heavenly Kings and lovers of the Sailor Guardians... And to his future son, about whom he promised not to speak to Usagi about. Wait for me, guys. And you too, Fengari... Or better yet, Seiya. My son...
(xx)
Hearing the emergency signal that Sailor Jupiter had sent to her communicator, Rei was just about to step out of the Hikawa Shrine when one of the last things she wanted to see made himself present right beneath the main torii gate: Her father, Mayor Takashi Hino, responsible for the state of chaos in which the city plunged itself into.
"You... What the hell are you doing here?" Rei queried, barely conceiving her displeasure.
"As Mayor of the Tokyo Prefecture, I get to decide what is and what isn't within the law," he said. "You are one of the Sailor Guardians that is bound to rule upon humanity. Also, this temple is one of the Crystal Points that will support the Palace of Sheer Crystal for the Promised Sovereigns, and I shall use of all my strength to take you under custody and guarantee a stronghold upon the new order of the Universe."
"Like I would let you," the raven-haired Guardian defied. "You know well of my powers don't you?"
"Of course I do, and they do not scare me in the least bit. Forth now, Mammon! My flesh and blood are yours!" Upon uttering this, he took a grotesquely bloated form, with deep pink skin and a smile of swollen lips and wickedness. Such is how the Legionnaires could come out despite the blockage of paths between the Universe and the Hades.
Rei felt queasy and shaky upon seeing her father's diabolical transformation. "What the..."
"This who speaks is the Legionnaire of Greed, Mammon!" The demon bellowed out. "Your father agreed to become a temporary vessel to me. And in this state... It is more than enough to bring you down!"
"Evil spirit, BEGONE!" Having felt an eerie presence, Rei's grandfather leaped out from the Shrine's front porch and planted a large ofuda upon Mammon's protruding belly.
"Oh, please," the Legionnaire of Greed scoffed as he yanked away the paper talisman without problem, and slapped the old man away for good measure.
"GRANDPA!" The Guardian screamed as she went to his aid.
"I'm... I'm alright," he spoke uneasily. "Give me cover with your powers while I conjure up something to drive these demons away..."
"No more wasting time, boys," Mammon spoke as he snapped his fingers. "Proceed with the defiling."
"Mars Eternal, Make Up!"
Ten UN troopers climbed the stairs to the Hikawa Shrine and started to carve the grounds with the muzzles of their rifles. It looked as if the earth bled, as if it was a living creature being slashed and punctured until blood oozed out of its wounds.
"Screw this! Garuda Firestorm!" Eternal Sailor Mars then summoned a rain of fire that interrupted the works of the grunts.
"Well, that went great," Mammon ironized. "Okay, change of plans. Blitz on the brunette wench!"
Promptly, they ran over both Sailor Mars and her grandfather, who could not complete his evil-warding mantra in time.
"NO! LEAVE HIM ALONE!" the Guardian of Fire pleaded. The hold of the troopers overwhelmed her, as if they had some degree of infernal power within their bodies.
"I... I feel so weak..." Grandpa Hino muttered as he slipped out of conscience, no longer feeling the holiness of the Shrine.
"Grandpa! Please, hold on!"
"Excellent job, kids," Mammon commended the troopers under his command. "Now, take away with the old codger and the wench. The Lord of Light requires them alive. Once you're done, come back and finish the defiling."
As much of a fight she tried to put up, Sailor Mars could not free herself in time, while a few others dragged her passed-out grandfather away.
"It is a matter of time until the Legions appear," Mammon gloated. "Soon, this will all be ours."
About damn time I updated this, huh?
Thanks a lot to all of you who are still bothering themselves into following this. Especialmente a tí, litakino1987 ;)
Next chapter: What is going on in Hell, and how will the Guardians get out of the rut they are... If they can get out, that is.
Greetings from the Hospitaller Knight.