Throughout her life, Oniwabandana had been through many things that could drive most beings mad. She had served a demon-blooded queen, stood in the presence of a dark goddess, had seen an entire kingdom destroyed in one night, its people slaughtered in even less time, consorted with demons and devils, and even temporarily lost her physical body for the sake of a mission. Oh yes, the ninja youma had been through it all, to the point where things such experiences were an everyday occurrence to her.
But nothing could prepare her for what had just happened.
Oniwabandana still couldn't figure out what it was specifically: a little while ago, she was in the same dark, empty void that all fallen servants of Chaos found themselves in when they failed in their mission. She had been destroyed by Sailor Moon and would spend an indefinite amount of time-perhaps even an eternity-within the abyss, waiting until she would reincarnate-if ever at all. But that wasn't even the worst part: within that cold vacuum, the denizens had lost all senses. They were completely unaware of their surroundings and each other, dooming them to an existence of complete and utter isolation. But then, suddenly, a bright light shone through that inky hell, blinding her temporarily. As the light began to fade, Oniwabandana learned that they had been brought to a new place.
Looking at her body, she breathed a sigh of relief: she was in her true form once again. She still had the same dark blue, somewhat revealing ninja suit, along with her long light brown hair. Looking at her hands, she saw her sallow skin, long pink nails and the dark brown gauntlets, greaves and shoulder pads that offered her main protection. She also felt her large scimitar and tanto on her back; a pleasant feeling to know she was not totally defenseless. As more of her sense returned to her, she also felt her iconic bandana upon her forehead, nice and snug as if it was a part of her. And even though she couldn't see them, she was certain her red-brown eyes were back as well.
However, after she finished her small inspection of herself, she realized that the place she was in was not the Negaverse. The first thing that she saw, besides a few other servants of Chaos, familiar and unfamiliar, all unconscious, was the vast wasteland that stood before her. As far as she could see, pitch-black sand covered the entire land, dotted only by dead, broken trees and demolished buildings. Above her, the seemingly red sky was painted with gray clouds of ash and sand. However, the most noticeable thing was the great, obsidian orb that hung in the sky. Despite its dark color, it still gave off a crimson light that flooded the wasteland before her.
So transfixed by the new sights she was experiencing again, it took her a few moments to realize she had also regained her hearing. Of course, it was not the voices of anyone she knew from the Dark Kingdom: rather, it was pained and terrified screams of men and women. Looking around, she finally saw the source of these screams: far off, on another hill of black sand, there was a group of humanoid figures, all being forced to walk in a single line by other humanoid creatures-though something seemed… off, about the latter. For whatever reason, the humanoids were constantly screaming, as if in deep pain.
Oniwabandana cocked her head in confusion, wondering why the humanoids were being hurt. However, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed something. Looking down quickly, she saw the culprit: strewn across the sand were numerous small, sharp objects. Glass shards, rusty nails, jagged metal, and other objects littered the ground as far as the eye could see. As she put two and two together, she realized the truth: this desert sand, or at least the part of it right now, was filled with these sharp pieces all across the ground. That was why the marching humanoids she saw were in pain: every step that was taken was pure agony, as the pieces jutted into their flesh.
Fearing the worst, Oniwabandana quickly raised her left foot to inspect it. Even though she felt nothing right now, she knew that it could just mean that some parts of her body had not regained feeling. As she lifted her foot, expecting at any moment to feel the sting of the broken pieces and to see the bloody remains that were once her foot, she saw… that her foot was completely clear of wounds. "What?" She said to herself as she set her foot down. Confused, she began to pace around, seeing if she could feel anything. Nothing. Finally, she reached down, got a single glass shard, and attempted to cut her palm. As she slid the craggy piece across her hand, she not only felt nothing but saw that the glass did no damage. As if her skin was unbreakable.
"Hey…" Jumping around, the ninja turned to see another girl right behind her. Her pale blue skin contrasted greatly with her dark red, sleeveless qipao and dark purple hair. The qipao was decorated with an ornate gold jewelry on her chest, some gold spikes on its breast area, and had a few cuts that showed off her cleavage, stomach, and legs. On her face was a dark red symbol, the same color as her qipao, in the shape of a diamond. The ponytail that consisted of her head had a green band with a few small, pink balls decorating the top of the braid. Her pointed ears featured a unique pair of earrings, which appeared to be small gold cups with a few strands of red fabric hanging down them. She wore a pair of black, comfortable looking shoes and what appeared to be large pink balls on her wrists as if they were armbands. Her eyes were almost completely navy blue, though some white dots showed up as a form of pupils.
From her appearance, Oniwabandana figured that the girl before her was a Lemures: she had the same circus-like look and did seem to have an aura of humor and curiosity around her.
"You're a youma, right?" The figure said, before extending a hand. The girl gave off a warm, friendly smile. "I'm Otedamako, the Juggling Jackal."
A little hesitant at first, Oniwabandana extended her hand and clasped it around the Lemures'. "Uhh… nice to meet you. I'm… Oniwabandana." After seeing Otedamako's look of confusion, Oniwabandana replied, "Sorry, we youma… aren't exactly ones for friendly conversation."
"Ohh, I see. No problem." Otedamako replied with a smile. Oniwabandana was surprised: she had heard that the Lemures were playful and friendly, but this girl was respectful and understanding. Then again, she knew that the Negaverse tended to be more aligned with Social Darwinism, while the Lemures were more hedonistic. Perhaps such a culture led to friendlier interactions.
Walking beside her, Otedamako, seemingly realizing what Oniwabandana just learned, said, "Do… do you know where we are?"
Sighing, Oniwabandana replied, "I have no idea." Looking around, she replied, "It's strange… nothing in any of the Scrolls of Entropy mention a place like this. It certainly isn't the domain of any Avatar, yet there is no mention of an Outer Plane like this either."
Looking at her, Otedamako replied, "Well… are you sure this is one of Chaos's Outer Plane?"
"What do you mean?" Oniwabandana asked.
"Well… back at the Dead Moon Circus, there were stories about these other worlds. Stories about universes beyond our own."
Scoffing, Oniwabandana replied, "You… honestly don't believe that, do you?"
"Why shouldn't she?" another female voice said behind the two. Turning around, a Daimon appeared before the two. She was perhaps the shortest of the three, with wild green hair and pearl-colored skin. She had a star motif about her; her bright blue eyes had star-shaped pupils, she wore a giant brass star around her… nether region, small green stars on two of the largest stars top diagonal ends, and a pair of red stars covered her breasts. Even her yellow hat-a round, smooth helmet with a few red feathers jutting from the front of it-had a black star stamped on the very front of it. There was a cluster of red feathers that covered her midsection, while a pair of red high-heels, both of which had brass stars on the very front of them, was placed on her feet. On her neck, wrists and left ankle was what appeared to be a circle of beads that were strapped snuggly on her.
"Who are you?" Otedamako replied.
Smiling a smile that seemed both friendly and mocking, showing her small fangs, the new figure replied, "I'm U-Chouten, sweetie."
"And what did you mean that Otedamako could be right?" Oniwabandana replied.
The Daimon shrugged but gave an inquisitive look. "Well, let's look at the facts: I'm guessing that both of you were killed by the Sailor Senshi, right?"
Looking towards her new ninja friend for a second, Otedamako turned and replied, "How did you-"
"Lucky guess. Plus… it happened to me," U-Chouten continued. "Anyway, I'm also certain that as soon as you two die, you both-just like me-got shortly sent to the Oubliette. And, as far as we know, the Avatars weren't coming to bring us back. So, the only other plausible explanation is that someone or something brought us out of there. However, since I'm also certain we've all been on Earth, then we also know that there isn't a place like this on it. Therefore, this has to be another world or planet."
Standing there is silence, Oniwabandana replied, "Okay… you've got a point." At U-Chouten's triumphant grin, she responded, "Still, that leaves a big question: why are we here in the first place?"
U-Chouten opened her mouth to say something, before closing it again and gaining an analytical look. "Well… you got me there. But maybe-"
"Hey, you three," Another voice sounded one that Oniwabandana knew somewhat well. Turning around, she saw what appeared to be a young woman, wearing a red and black dress that made her look like some kind of dark princess. Parts of her body colored a sort of white-yellow, gave the appearance of a puppet or doll. Though her white-pink hair contrasted with the rest of her appearance. However, despite her more stoic "accent", a few bits of emotion still showed. Despite her demonic appearance, her yellow eyes radiated with empathy and kindness. "I need you're- wait a minute, Oniwabandana?"
Recognizing her, Oniwabandana responded, "Yeah… that's me. You're Murid, the Dream Princess, right?"
"Yes… but I don't understand. What are you… oh no, don't tell me…"
Walking up to her, Oniwabandana put a hand supportively on her fellow youma's shoulder. "I'm afraid so." As Murid looked down in sorrow, the ninja tried to cheer her up by stating, "But… I think that, regardless of the reason we were brought here, we've got a second chance. All of us," Murid's head snapped back up, a cautious but happy expression painted on her face.
Oniwabandana let herself crack a small smile. Murid was one of the youma under the command of Jadeite, Queen Beryl's first General during the Invasion of Earth. While she was the second-to-last in Jadeite's control, she was also one of the earliest causalities during the war with the Sailor Senshi. What's worse was, according to General Jaedite, Sailor Mars had used a charm to freeze her in place. Oniwabandana had to admit: if she was put in such a helpless position, she'd be begging and pleading to be spared. Still, despite the horrific situation that the Dream Princess was put in, Oniwabandana couldn't help but admire Murid: according to Jaedite, despite her fear, she never once surrendered. At most, all she did was ask her general for help. Such bravery and intelligence were worthy of great respect.
"But anyway, what did you need?" Otedamako asked, a little concerned. Even U-Chouten seemed somewhat concerned about this.
Looking up, Murid responded, "Well… I was with this one other group, and when one of us saw you, we figured you might be able to help us out."
"Wait? There are other groups?" U-Chouten asked, surprised by this as much as her newfound Lemures and youma friends.
"Yes, and there might be more. Umm, if you could come with me, I can show you the others."
Oniwabandana was a little concerned. While she knew Murid, at least somewhat, and wanted to meet up with others, it seemed a little strange that one group would suddenly want to help them. Besides… Murid herself seemed a little nervous.
Then again, Oniwabandana knew that there was strength in numbers. Besides, if the experience she had was the same as Murid, Otedamako and U-Chouten, they were all probably scared and confused. Taking a mental sigh, Oniwabandana threw caution to the wind and replied, "Okay, I'll go with you," Even though she tried to keep it hidden, a part of her voice did show a bit of fear in it.
Otedamako appeared behind her, putting a hand on her shoulder and saying, "I'm right behind you,"
U-Chouten came beside her next, stating, "So am I,"
Murid gave a small, comforting smile, before stating, "Don't worry. Everything will be alright." The Dream Princess then led the trio into one of the decaying forests around them. Unbeknownst to the group, a figure watched them in the distance before quietly following them.
High in the trees, a purple-colored figured scanned the horizon, trying to spot anyone who looked familiar. Her crimson cat eyes watered and blinked rapidly as some of the strange black sand blew into them. Cursing, she moved away from the branch and tried to rub the particles out of her eyes, making sure that her claws were set back in her hands. After clearing her eyes, she sighed heavily and combed her short black hair, feeling her cat ears give a reflexive twitch at her hand's touch. She had been up in the tree for hours and so far, no one had been found in this abominable place. Fingering the three yellow stripes tattooed on her left cheek, the cat-woman wondered if she and her group would ever find anyone else.
Still, they had to at least try. Taking her post once again, she began to scan the wasteland once again.
Meanwhile, below the surface, two other figures waited below, wondering when their ally would come down.
"She's been up there a while." One of them, who had the appearance of a young girl, stated. "Do you think she's seen anything?"
The girl, a Daimon, had the appearance of a kindergarten-aged girl, though she was much taller than the average kindergartener. Her short, dark red hair was pulled into two pigtails, which complemented her light green skin. A red swirl appeared on each of her cheeks, while her eyes were a mixture of blue and black, though her pupils could be seen if one looked closely. Her clothing consisted of a blue top, a red mini-skirt, a yellow kindergartener's hat that sported a black star on its center, and a yellow sash with a large black star decorating the strap. The young Daimon also had long white knee socks and a pair of white shoes with yellow heels. One of her most noticeable features, however, was the pair of tube-like appendages, similar to the ends of a jumping rope, which covered her arms from the elbow up, with her hands sticking out the ends.
Her companion sighed, before turning towards her and responding, "I not sure, U-Tomodachi," Unlike U-Tomodachi, the woman here looked like an actual human. Her snow-white skin and dark green eyes gave her a pure and friendly beauty towards her. Her blue hair fell down to her shoulders in perfectly straight lines, like a gentle and undisturbed waterfall. She wore a short, blue halter-top dress with a pair of long light blue gloves that passed her elbows, along with a pair of white heeled shoes.
Finally, their friend climbed down from the tree, her polka dot dress miraculously not harmed or splotched by either the dead tree or the mysterious dust around them.
"Did you find anything, Nekonneru?" The blue haired woman asked.
Sighing, Nekonneru responded, "Well… I did see one group, but it was so far away it was hard to tell who or what they were."
U-Tomodachi, looking nervous, responded, "Thetis… what are we going to do?"
A little concerned, but not wanting to worry the Daimon child, responded, "Well… I guess we're going to-" However, just then, Thetis noticed something and tried to figure out what it was.
"Thet-" Nekonneru said before Thetis put a hand up to tell her to be quiet. Slowly, Thetis moved towards one of the trees and attempted to look around. Ever since the group had woken up in this mysterious place, they had been stalked by this mysterious entity. While it didn't really seem to do anything, none of them were taking chances and they agreed to fight against this being if the need arised.
As they took some hiding places, they waited for the creature to appear before them. Thetis kept sneaking a peek every few seconds to try and find where the creature was. As she prepared herself, she noticed something: the creature seemed to be exhibiting two voices, both of which were… arguing? Looking for a bit more, Thetis saw two girls walking towards the group. The duo were near identical-they had the same medium height, the same short haircut, the same triangle planted on their foreheads, and the same tails that jutted from their backs. They also wore many accessories, including a small item on a necklace, a gold bracelet on their gloved wrist and upper arm, and a pair of small plastic coverings that was placed on their ears and connected to a pair plastic disks on their shoulders.
Even their outfits were pretty much the same-two-piece "bikinis" with a frilly clip on their hips, along with a glove on one side's arm, a long pantyhose on their other side's leg and a pair of high heels. They even had the same triangle-shaped cuts on their tops, gloves, and pantyhose. However, they also complimented one another greatly: whereas one had skin the color of scarlet, the other's flesh was the color of the sky. One's hair was straight and the other was wavy. The triangle on the red girl's forehead was red, while the blue girl had a yellow triangle. Even their outfits complemented each other: the triangle cuts in the outfits faced upward for the red one, but the cuts faced downward for the blue one. Similarly, while the red twin's clothing was magenta in color, the blue twin's clothing was colored turquoise.
In the end, though, the most noticeable thing about them was the noise they made. "It was your fault we got lost," The red twin said.
"At least I didn't scare off that cute Diamond guy! He said he was going to help us!" The blue twin responded.
"Well, maybe he would have if you didn't try to get his brother to sleep with you like the tramp you are!"
"What did you just call me?!"
"Castor! Pollux!" Thetis yelled out, referring to the red and blue twins respectively, causing them to both stop yelling. Tapping her foot, Thetis asked, "I take it that you two didn't get any help?"
Hanging their heads in shame and guilt, only Castor spoke and replied, "Well… we did find this one group. But… there was this Prince Diamond guy and-"
Thetis and Nekonneru groaned while U-Tomodachi look confused, with the cat girl giving a facepalm. "That's the fourth time this week," Nekonneru stated. "How did you two even survive your childhood?"
Pollux rubbed the back of her head and responded, "Well… our parents did say-" Nekonneru groaned and walked away, not wanting to hear it. Meanwhile, as Thetis went to another area to get a breather from the antics of the Gemini Twins, she noticed something in the distance. It appeared that Murid was finally returning, along with… three new people.
This was going to be interesting.
"They're right up here," Murid stated, pointing to the glade where a few other people were situated in. Turning back, she also stated, "Oh, Castor and Pollux are finally back."
Looking at the glade, Oniwabandana saw that the Gemini Twins were with Murid, along with a couple other figures. Glad that there were a few more familiar faces, she strode into the glade.
"Murid!" One of Murid's group, a young Daimon girl, yelled as she glomped the Dream Princess. Murid responded by chuckling and returning the hug.
"Oh, it's so good to see you, my little U-Tomo," Pulling away, Murid responded. "I trust that the others were treating you well."
"U-Tomo" nodded, before saying, "Yeah, but Castor and Pollux were arguing again."
Sighing, Murid looked over at the Twins, raising an eyebrow at the Twins. Deciding to take the initiative, Oniwabandana walked into the glade.
"Hello," Oniwabandana said stoically. Upon closer inspection, she saw the rest of the group consisted of one other youma and Daimon. "I'm Oniwabandana. Who are… wait a minute." She walked up closer to one of her fellow youma. "Thetis? The Thetis?!"
"Uh, yes, that's me," Thetis responded. "I guess that my reputation precedes me."
"Precedes you?! You're one of Queen Beryl's most famous warriors! How could-"
"Umm, pardon to interrupt," One of the Daimons, who looked like a catgirl, interrupted. "But I'm afraid that maybe we should introduce one another before we go anywhere."
"You're right, Nekonneru," Thetis replied, before returning to look at Oniwabandana, saying, "It's a pleasure to meet you Oniwabandana." As she said this, Otedamako and U-Chouten walked into the glade as well, a little confused but willing to trust the group. Noticing them, Thetis asked, "And who are your friends,"
Close by; however, the dark figure that followed Oniwabandana and her new friends watched the two groups, a small smirk growing on his face.
After everyone met with one another, Otedamako asked Nekonneru, "So, you've been looking for some other members of Chaos. Have you found anyone yet?"
"Not just yet. But Castor and Pollux said they found some other people somewhere else."
"Really?" Oniwabandana asked to Castor.
"Yeah, but it wasn't Queen Beryl or any of the generals. Though I think that they might be connected with her. Maybe we could-"
"Are you really trying to find her? She never came here," A mysterious, almost demonic voice suddenly said. Fearful, the group got into a circle, wanting to make sure that they didn't get attacked.
"Murid… I'm scared," U-Tomodachi responded, clutching to Murid fearfully.
"Shhh… it will be alright, U-Tomo," Murid responded, petting the Daimon's head comfortingly.
Oniwabandana, tired of waiting, yelled out, "Who are you? Show yourself!"
Suddenly, a large, armored figure appeared before them. He was a giant amongst them, around eight or nine feet tall, wearing what appeared to be a large suit of dark red armor, made of a metal none of the group were familiar with. His appearance was that of a bald man with sickly green-white skin and red, reptilian eyes. His diamond shaped face was smooth and featureless, devoid of even hair.
"Hmm…" The figure moaned as he sized up the group. "You seem too level-headed to be mutants, but you aren't arrogant enough to be messiahs. You must be… outsiders, perhaps?"
"I… suppose you could say that," Oniwabandana replied, not sure what this creature was talking about. "We are eir'reyas, the Chosen People of Chaos. Who-who are you?" On her question, Oniwabandana stumbled a bit. For whatever reason, this creature gave her a bad feeling.
"I… am Mag'Iadroth… the Void Dragon, the C'Tan of Destruction and Oblivion, and the Gods' Executioner."
"E-executioner?" U-Chouten squeaked, her starry eyes getting slightly smaller and small beads of sweat forming on her brow.
Mag'Iadroth's mouth curled slightly into a small smile, looking slightly entertained by U-Chouten's response. "Do not fear, young Daimon," He slowly walked towards the group. "I did not come for a slaughter… rather, I have gained a great deal of interest in you all." The Void Dragon turned his head to the left and began to pace, his arms behind his back. "Apparently, you've garnered a great deal of attention from the Pure Ones. One of your leaders has even formed a covenant with them, which has led to the predicament you all have here."
"What do you mean? Where are we?" Thetis asked, getting impatient with this figure.
"All in due time, young youma. All in due time…" Mag'Iadroth replied, before turning to look at another portion of the wasteland: the one where Castor and Pollux had just come from. Pointing his finger, the Void Dragon said, "If you go that way, you'll end up meeting some others just like you. Of course, none of you will probably know them. But… they will be able to help a great deal."
With a confused look, Otedamako replied, "Why… why are you helping us?"
With a sly smile, the Void Dragon responded, "Call it a… desire to see how certain things will play out. If you hurry, you'll meet with the group pretty soon." Turning back to face them, his crimson eyes shining with cruel amusement, he stated, "Good luck, eir'reyas. And know this… I'll always be watching…" Before moving back into the dead forest, melting into the shadows of the burnt trees.
Uncertain, Nekonneru asked, "Well… what should we do?"
Oniwabandana, wanting to take what could be a good opportunity, responded, "I don't know about all of you, but I'm going to find those people the Twins met." At that, she started the trek to the area, unsure of what would happen. For a brief moment, the others simply stood there, unsure of what to do. Slowly, though, they followed the ninja, praying that they'd find help soon enough.