And our freedom's consuming itself
What we've become
It's contrary to what we want
-Muse, "Take a Bow"
It was a bad habit, one that her mother tried to break her of. That fidget, when she would bounce her leg against her other knee. Someone had told her that it was a sign of anxiety, another that she had too much energy that should be devoted to studies. Still, another said it was completely unbecoming of the Princess of Venus, a sign of disrespect to the Goddess. Ultimately, she should learn to stop it from happening in the first place if she ever wished for the Goddess' favor and become Her Embodiment.
She still did it anyway.
Not very often, mainly due to mostly not having the time to or the situation not being favorable for it. Meetings certainly didn't allow for it, and most of her time prior was taken up in meetings. This though was somewhat like a meeting. It didn't really matter that dinner was involved, after all. Dinner was the distraction, the nice way of getting what someone wanted. People were far more inclined to share and receive things if food was involved. It reminded her of taming wild animals; you did it best with food.
Animals. Barbarians. Uncultured.
She had already told everyone that the dinner was fast approaching; Rei had been the first and surprisingly for once, Ami and Makoto were not in each other's presence. To her at least, it was surprising. Then again, Makoto was taking a quick shower in their shared bathroom. That was one place, she had been adamant to put her foot down about, one person was allowed at a time. It just made it easier; if you wanted to do that, then save your activities like that for the baths, because then you would have to deal with some stupid Lunarian. The small bathroom? One person, that was it. End of discussion.
That was why she was sitting at the table by herself, her leg bouncing still as her sandal clung to her foot by way of her toes. It was informal. She needed to feel normal, somehow, someway. As normal as she could feel given that nothing around her was ever remotely considered such.
Maybe the table was, but she doubted it all the same. Its normality was on a different realm of reality than what she existed on. Her universe consisted of promises, sneers, virtual magic, and an uncertain heart. Her fingers drummed the top of the table; another bad habit. More than one ruler and she still hadn't been cured of it. She missed her though, sighing softly. Even being holed up in the infirmary for a week, that day after and the night then today. She had grown accustomed, maybe that was the word. Save it seemed more akin to taking it for granted.
She got it though, she knew the reasons why it even all came out. Her lips pressed together, twisting to the side as it hovered on the choice to curl upwards to a smirk or descend to a frown. It lingered a second or two more before she breathed out a soft snort through her nose, a smirk decided on as she leaned back in the chair, bouncing foot stopping at last.
A glance to the clock told her it was five minutes until. She suspected, and would be willing to bet, that Artemis was already outside the door, patiently waiting. Maybe even telling the servants that they had to wait the full five minutes, because that was what had been agreed upon. Some of them were probably rolling their eyes at the notion. She could just picture it now, why do we have to adhere to the barbarians' wishes? Since when did they matter? Biting back what was going to be a very much completely unladylike laugh she shook her head.
Just in time.
Rei beat the other two on exiting the hallway by about five steps, if she had to guess about her count. She bore a rather pensive face that was rapidly fading away to that stoic sort of look that she generally had about her on Mars. Behind her, Makoto and Ami looked about how they always did; a smile on one face and a thoughtful look on the other. Her gaze strayed back to Rei though, an attraction that she didn't really want to fight. They followed as she took a seat across from her in a barely concealed huff.
She couldn't help the rise of her eyebrow, tilting her head slightly to the side. It wasn't her fault that she was reading that book or even that she was still reading it. After all, she gave plenty of warning when she awoke to just what it was. Just before Makoto and Ami arrived, the latter going to the door to let in Artemis, she caught the flicker of the book's effects. The interest, the desire, a sort of burning passion; it made her feel warm, and that following slight smile before the servants came in with their own schooled features absolutely slayed her.
Internally she sighed, rather happy.
Plates and dishes presented before them and really, it was only by social graces that any of them ate. Looks were exchanged, shared, levied to the white haired man at the end of the table who ate without any outward knowledge that four sets of eyes were on him. Unflinching he didn't even acknowledge them, merely going about the meal with near automated motions.
She ate because of the eyes that focused on her; the words of the prior night still fresh. Don't get her wrong, she knew she should but her excuse had been how it always was. There was simply never enough time, never enough to eat or sleep or relax or whatever else the fuck it was she needed to do in the name of taking care of herself. She had others to worry about, others to ensure their needs were meant. A nation of people, a kingdom, a race… transcend that to include a very System and there you had it, they told her what they were, what she was. Disposable people. Disposable lives.
Why care for yourself when no one else did?
That was something easy to cling to, to hold to. A ready defense to accompany that sense of impending doom. Dread and despair could be her handmaidens that she left on Venus, save that they followed her here. It was so damn hard to give a damn about oneself when everyone else wanted to remind you just how disposable you were.
A nudge against her leg under the table drew her gaze back, raising it from her plate to meet the night sky in front of her. Questions were there, easy to pick out. Her hand collected the glass to drink from; wine, interesting, she didn't recall pouring it, before setting it back down. The questions were still there, a bit more inflamed as the gaze narrowed.
She lightly shook her head, letting the other take the answer how they would. No, she wasn't alright. No, she didn't want to leave. No, she didn't want to be here.
No, she didn't want her to leave.
The others picked at their food the same way that she did, anxiety and impatience obvious with their actions. It was probably good food; the Court did eat well after all, but it held all the flavor of ash at the moment. As the minutes ticked on with nothing save that him eating she finally had enough. She was smart enough to know it wasn't wayward emotions triggering what was going to be said. No one was going to be able to accuse her of losing her temper.
"Artemis." Her voice cut through the air, silencing the sounds of eating. Everyone's eyes turned to her but she ignored them, focused instead at the man at the end of the table.
His sigh would have been lost if she hadn't been so intent upon him, watching as cutlery was set down to either side of his not quite empty plate.
She cut him off though, before he could speak. "The Lunarians allow the condemned one last meal before their execution. Is this our reprieve before our sentence is cast?"
"What? Minako no." He sighed again, shaking his head. Motion was made to speak again before he stopped, looking for the words. Maybe he found them or perhaps he didn't. "I knew nothing about Earth, neither did Luna. We were as blind as you to the entire thing. It was only when Lunar Command alerted me to the fact you were in a shuttle and running out of fuel that I knew anything. Luna and I were told likely the same thing that you all were; the Prince and his Generals extended the invitation to you all to come to Earth for a time. That it was at the same time as the Chancellor or Queen or whatever she is would be here, I admit sounds suspicious. The Queen did not ask for our council though, merely that we prepare the Princess for her trip there."
"How does that explain that she knew, she knew Artemis, that Rei can command flames. That Makoto can call down lightning. That Ami could coat things in ice. How does that explain any of that?"
"I don't have that answer."
"When do you ever have answers? We were attacked down there; they killed our damn pilot! If Ami had been struck or killed, we would have been fucked for getting back. The Princess would have been whisked off to fuck knows where and the rest of us given for play!"
"I said I don't know and I mean it Minako!"
"What did the Queen say to any of this? It seems fucking suspicious that all of a sudden there's some bullshit emergency on Pluto of all the damn places."
This was escalating to a shouting match and she knew it. The other three had said nothing, perhaps letting her voice their joint concerns. Reaching for the wine glass she took a large swallow, her gaze fixed on him as she did.
He sighed. Of all the fucking things to do, he sighed. "Minako." His voice was soft again, "Ami, Makoto, and Rei. I don't have the answers you are looking for."
The glass was set down with a roll of her eyes.
"I do have some things though that I can share. They might answer something for you all."
They all were looking at him, watching as the Mau, otherwise steadfast and confident, seemed to age twenty years. "What do you know about … the divine and the arcane?"
"It is an esoteric classification for magic users. The divine were those that received their spells and powers from the deity they prayed to or some other primal force, while the arcane learned from old tomes and the foundations of sciences." Ami answered briefly.
"The divine are healers mostly. Great shamans and druids." Makoto knew, given her own druidism background and tendencies. It was one of the reasons why the Lunarians regarded her as backwards; it seemed uncivilized to them that a person commune with nature. It was by that same token that they had to swallow their tongues to ask her for help when it came to anything related to that very subject.
"The arcane were wizards and sorcerers, with skills that supposedly could be learned but at great lengths of study. Sorcerers however tended to have innate abilities, with study done by not only wizards and sorcerers but philosophers and sages alike to discover the common element that would allow for this manifestation of power. Some believed actual mythical creatures were involved, perhaps a polymorphed dragon, to add the spark to a bloodline. Others argue that it could be the result of an artifact having infused a person that carried for generations." Wisely, perhaps for their own sakes, Ami kept the explanation simple.
He nodded. "What happens if a deity no longer receives prayers? Does It … fade away? Go dormant?"
"It dies." With a whisper Rei answered.
"At the same, what if people begin to worship and pray to a new being. Could they make a new deity? The arcane, the wizards and sorcerers; could they gain enough power to be one?"
Silence met his question.
It stretched on, minutes ticking by as they each mulled over what he said. Her beliefs ran to her Goddess; she could feel Her favor, she could even hear Her voice if she was in Venus and prayed at one of the numerous holy sites. Here, Her presence was dimmed; on Mars she know it wavered especially when faced with what happened leading up to the confrontation in the throne room the first time. She blinked, her brow furrowing. "Someone is trying to become a God," the words uttered on a whisper.
"But which one? Who has the most to gain from doing so?" Ami countered with her own questions.
Makoto and Rei remained silent, as did Artemis. The minutes stretched further on before the Martian spoke. "What if. What if they are both trying to achieve the same thing. Then what happens."
"There's a lot about Earth that we simply don't know. I am not trying to generalize anyone, certainly not you all. Magic has all but died out, what remains are specialities that are unique to each. Outside of Saturn, you could go generations without seeing so much as someone able to produce a cantrip, much less feats that you all can do. I'm afraid my own knowledge is lacking when it comes to things like that as well; Mau isn't known for it. Is the new Earth Queen following the path of the divine or the arcane? We don't know. What about the Queen here? I've never seen her do anything that could be considered, much less classified, to either category."
"Why are they even working together in the first place?" She muttered, but she knew it was heard. The wine was looking far too good right now, taking another large swallow. She spied the decanter; it wouldn't last at the rate this was going. "You've been here longer than me. How long has the Queen been buddy-buddy with Earth?"
He released a breath, at least it wasn't a sigh. "Luna and I have been here since shortly after the Princess's birth, so perhaps fourteen years. In that time, from what we've personally witnessed, she's made at least one trip a year to Earth. The other planets, well, not so much. Perhaps the distance or the time away; I really don't know. I know in that time she has been to Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, and Neptune. She's received communication at least from Mercury, Mars, and Uranus. I would assume Pluto as well but Pluto is … it's more than distant. There's something about it, some hazy distortion anytime there is contact from them."
She remembered when the Lunar Queen came to visit. Her handmaidens fussed over every detail before she met her, her mother reminded her that she should offer a lower curtsy than what she would give to a visiting Duke or Baron, as this was the leader of the Alliance. To be honest, all she wanted to do was go back to her sword play but her mother insisted, promising that if she did so, if the visit went well, then she would give her a gift.
Alas, her falchion was in her room.
"What was this Call anyway?" Rei vocalized it as a question, giving her a chance to refill her wine flute. Right, that. She had been waiting for the other to ask more on it. It seemed like ages ago, years ago that they were on the shuttle from Mars to here.
Artemis cast a look in her direction, forcing her to roll her eyes with an almost dismissive wave of her hand. "I told her the abbreviated version of what I told Ami and Makoto since she had no idea who she was and I wasn't going to relate who I was due to … things. No one on Mars likes the Moon, Artemis, and certainly not anyone I listened to. Their concerns were more towards their inner conflicts than to give a shit about what someone else ages away wanted."
"Still after you could have-"
She cut him off, "After what? I arrived and had to keep focused after some stupid scouting party found her and gave me a concussion a la mace, while dealing with her charming personality? After someone impaled me and I bled out on the Martian throne room floor? After I finally recovered only for the King's pet Warlord wanted my head for killing off one of his men because he was going to imprison Rei because of who she was and her perceived value? Or do you mean when we arrived here and all the little bullshit things we have to do? When, exactly, would you have told her? Don't forget that in that time, you expected me to fucking relax. Get off my fucking case Artemis, I did my best."
He wisely didn't say anything. The moment eventually defused itself after minutes and another healthy swallow of wine. If this kept up she was going to get drunk, which maybe didn't seem like a bad idea if she wanted to devote more thought to it.
"There's some debate as to when the Queen came to her decision to create the Alliance. There was mostly stable peace throughout the System, more so between the planets. Each had already established their trading partners, often dictated by their proximity to one another. Earth was always the exception and the most plagued by inner conflict. Whether to help stabilize the planet or not, the Alliance did just that. It opened trade routes to places most had not considered trading to before. A standardized currency came into effect with careful consideration given for how each planet could back it. No formalized army was created, instead each could host their own for reasons they saw fit, and naturally it was heavily frowned upon to war or raid your own allies. The Moon decided at that time to create its own standing forces, wanting to station them on each planet but was promptly shot down by all other members. The Queen kept the army however, for whatever reason."
They all listened.
"Again, it's hazy why she decided to but there are good and bad ramifications for it. No one wanted to trade with Earth, for example, as there were little goods that others wanted to import and despite Earth wanting goods, no one knew how exactly they were going to pay for it. What precious metals they could produce were crude in comparison to the already refined items of other planets. Earth was a charity case, I suppose, and benefited greatly. Ultimately, it helped to end some strife that had existed for generations between everyone and for that, it's said to be good."
Artemis took a drink. She refilled her wine glass. So did everyone else, meal already forgotten as it wasn't memorable in the first place.
"As I said, the Queen wanted her army in each planet. When it was nixed, she let it go. Shortly after, and realize that it gets a bit confusing, the Queen had a premonition. It was about twenty or so years ago by the Lunar calendar which, yes I know, is also now the basis for all time measurements. A great event would happen, something that she could not disclose where it would originate, that would succeed in undoing the Alliance completely and cast each planet in the system to darkness. She worked tirelessly, for nearly five years, before she found a way to prevent it. Her daughter, the Princess, as Heir, had to be protected, as this event would target her. If she fell, so would everyone else. In her consultations, her daughter could be protected by others, you four, and so she sent out her Call."
She emptied the wine glass in one pass, knowing that Rei's eyes, for that matter Ami's and Makoto's, were now on her. It was so fucking far fetched and she knew it, they knew it, and here they were.
"It sounds like the Queen, who wanted her armies everywhere, decided to punish the opposition instead with some far fetched story. Minako's a Princess for Gods' sake, she could have been the Queen of Venus. Ami and Makoto are the same, heirs. What makes us so special that we all had to be uprooted and placed here. To protect her daughter. Why does she even have an army then, isn't that their job."
That Martian bluntness. Her love and hate relationship with it. Her adoration and annoyance of it.
"Save that it's real. Otherwise you'd be right."
"Artemis even I am having a hard time believing that. What proof does the Queen have of it."
"I don't know, save that your mother, the Queen of Mars, confirmed it."
Rei frowned. They all frowned. It was like a party, the thing to do. Frown together. The wine was probably influencing her thoughts though at this point. "You said on the shuttle that you had no information on what was discussed. Just that the Queen spoke with my mother and the King."
"I don't know the vision she had. I know that it was enough, that it was something, that prompted the Queen to do what she did. Your mother and her held correspondence for years, at least five as I said, before something happened. Something happened that prompted her, your mother, to leave Mars with the destination of the Moon. I can only assume, and I'm sorry that it's the best I can give, that it was something truly horrifying or important enough that she couldn't hold it to their already established means of communication."
"And no one heard from her since."
He sadly nodded his confirmation.
It was so soft, so whimsical, that she wasn't sure if she even heard it. But there it was, a whisper from the Martian. "I wonder if Father knew as well. I wonder why she left me at the temple with Grandfather then."
Maybe to protect you, she thought. Maybe to keep you away from this fucking insanity. It didn't work though, did it? You're still here with the rest of us, still suffering with the rest of us. Being lied to, ignored, mistreated, unrespected.
Maybe I should have just let you be.
She felt a sharp kick to her shin, causing her to start. The glare levied at her told her the culprit. The wine made her speak her thoughts, "What was that for?"
"You give it away when you brood. Stop it."
"Soooo," The Jovian chimed in, taking the attention of of them. She was silently thankful for that, even if her shin did smart from it. "We got two people, maybe working together, prolly workin' together, maybe tryin' to become a God. What's that do with us?"
"That," Artemis said, rising from his chair. Dinner must be over. Thank the Goddess for small miracles like that. "I don't know. Other than you all now have powers that no one else here seems to. Save the Queen. Save perhaps, the Earth Queen. The Queen said nothing about what happened on Earth, Minako. She looked at me with that same serene face as always and seemed to accept it. She was glad that her daughter was safe, but nothing more was said on the matter. Luna and I have tried to ask, but we have gotten nowhere."
Her mother would be proud, she didn't snort at him.
"She will be gone for some time. Please, try to relax as much as you can. I'll send some servants in to collect the plates. Thank you for dinner."
He left. Her wine was almost empty. She was going to become wine drunk shortly if she wasn't already. It was a good vintage; it almost reminded her of home. Home. The wine was downed quickly; at this point she wanted to become drunk, it would be easier to deal with the melancholy. She could drink and fall asleep and wake up tomorrow with that facade mask back in place. Raising her glass in a toast she caught them all by surprise. "To my quasi-godly friends. This is all fucked. Go do something fun; I don't wanna see you doing work for a week."