Oh dear.

Anyway, if anyone doesn’t actually understand the whole business of how the generals were reincarnated, I don’t blame you. I get ambiguous and surreal in my writing, but hopefully, by the end of this thirteen-part chapter, you’ll understand. If you want me to condense it, just email me and I’ll try and explain it more clearly. If such a thing is possible….

Long live alchemy! Heeheehee…

______________________________________________________________________________________

Part Eight: Watermark

As the dark clouds assembled over the city, Mamoru and Zoya laughed wildly as they pounded down the pavement. The rain had soaked both through in a matter of seconds, as they ran from Motoki and Reika’s apartment to their own. Neither had taken a jacket, for this storm had no warning attached to it.

They were just happy to be together, though. They ran through the door, sopping wet, and waved at the doorman before hurrying up to their own home. He smiled and shook his head. The two young people had become quite a sight around the building, brightening faces where ever they wandered. Their love was so fresh, their devotion to each other so true, that no one could not see them and remain untouched.

She pushed him away laughingly as he tried to catch her unawares in an embrace when she slid her key into the lock. "Come on Zoya, darling sweetheart honey of my bee…"

"What the smeg was that?" she giggled, pulling a wet strand of hair from her eyes. Then she turned and opened the door, laughing. "You can wait until we’re inside, rose-boy."

"Cape-boy," he corrected, and she looked intrigued, then forgot it, yanking him inside. And into her own arms. Willingly he wrapped his arms around her slender, saturated form, and kissed her passionately.

"Oh, gods!"

They jumped apart in startled surprise, to see Usagi, eyes wide and wounded, staring at them. Zoya let out a stifled shriek. "How…how did you get in here?"

"What does it matter?" she asked, her voice broken, suddenly more cultured. It was as if this great pain was awakening her former self, the trapped Selene. "Endymion…how could you?"

______________________________________________________________________________________

Morgan sighed as she wandered into the building where her aunt lived, and winced when Naru yelled "Morgan! I want to talk to you!"

"Why?" screamed Morgan, throwing her bag at the wall. For some unknown reason, the vanishing of Owen had filled her very being with an apocalyptic rage, and somehow, a great longing. The others she had met…Karl and Masato, they had reminded her so much of a life she had forgotten, had abandoned. She would look at Masato, and feel love…then Karl. She would see him, feel sadness…sometimes, she thought she could hear a baby cry.

But Owen…he reminded her of brightness. Parents. Family.

Home.

"There’s someone here to see you." Naru popped out of her room, and indicated she should go down to the store. "He’s talking with mom…excuse me, I have to go back to the phone. I don’t want to keep Maz waiting."

She wrinkled her nose. "Maz?"

"Sanjouin Masato …a friend."

"Tell him Morgan says hi," she said absently, delighting in the look that crossed Naru’s young face.

"What – you know him?"

"Maybe."

______________________________________________________________________________________

Morgan wandered into the store – and found Osaka-san speaking with a tall young man with dark brown hair. She frowned – he didn’t look familiar. At least, not from behind.

He turned to greet her as Osaka-san did, a smile touching his saddened features. That’s what struck her the most – he looked so sad. "Morgan."

The way he spoke her name was like an echo – she had heard it before. "Leu…"

"Lucien," he corrected gently, his bright blue eyes sad. "Lucien Goodchild."

She trembled, and Naru’s mother wisely saw it was time to leave. The store was closed, anyway, and she exited, saying she would be in her office when they were ready to go.

She looked at him as if she was seeing a ghost, because she could see beyond the form he showed to everyone else.

Lucien sighed, sensing she could see beyond the illusion. He dropped the façade of the well-dressed seventeen year old teenager, and instead, stood before Morgan in a long black cloak, the high collar held closed by an unusual pendant of a golden phoenix against an aquamarine background. "Morganite."

"Leucite," she said, startled. Her own memories fell back into place with a crash, and her own form wavered, and became different. She was dressed in a uniform not unlike the other kings, the jacket was the same but lined in purple. The skirt was long, and concealed her long lean legs, and her eyes were the same old cruel orbs they had been before she had made the choice to leave Beryl’s unholy command.

"You came back," she said, overlooking the man, whose clothes and body were completely concealed by the long cloak. "I never thought you would."

"You died, I failed," he said simply, and raised a hand to touch the pendant, revealing he wore a uniform like Jadeite’s, except his boots were black and it had orange piping. "And the phoenix gate couldn’t help."

"Then why did you stay?" she went on, looking at him through suspicious eyes. "You knew that Phoebe’s problems were not your own. I don’t even know why I was of such concern to you. I never loved you, and you knew I never would – why did my death affect you so? Why did you always act so strangely around me? Like I should know something?"

Leucite sighed unhappily. "I didn’t want to awaken you, Morganite. But I had to, if I am to succeed this time."

"I chose my own path – and I didn’t have to let Morganite back in unless I wanted," she said coldly. "And stop avoiding the question. What am I to you, Leucite?"

Leucite looked at the pendant again, then sighed. "I am many people, Morganite. But there is only one who you need to know. Though you’ve always known my true form. When you were in yours."

"This is my true form!" she argued, eyes blazing. "Morgan Shepherd, and all those made-up memories, they were the lie!"

"This is not you," he said, and stepped forward, putting a cold hand on her forehead. "Oh sister, how you have changed. What have you become…"

"Sister?" she whispered, understanding blossoming in her chest. "That’s why you care…I’m your sister?"

"Morganite is not Leucite’s sister," he corrected softly, and stood back. He pulled the cloak over his head, concealing his entire self. Then he let it crumple to the ground in front of him.

In Leucite’s place stood a petite figure, with long white hair, sparkling blue eyes, wearing an unusual combination of purple, red and gold. He had a red short-sleeved shirt, lined in gold, and a purple tunic, with blue tights. His boots were knee-length and red, and he floated a few inches above the ground, which brought him eye-level with Morganite.

"Here’s Puck," he chuckled quietly, without any of the former exhilaration and happiness that had been his characteristic personality. "Do you remember me?"

Morganite paled. "Oberon…"

_____________________ _________________________________________________________________

Minako stood in the stark bleakness of the hospital, her eyes unseeing, uncomprehending. Zoya sat on a chair, head in her hands, while Mamoru desperately tried to calm her with a minimum of physical contact, lest he upset Usagi even more. But the blonde girl was beyond caring. She had built a wall against the pain, and was trying to comfort Minako. But the girl had slipped beyond her grasp.

The call had come as a complete shock that evening.

The day had begun with the happiness of all – but in the course of this memorable period, things changed.

Now, as the clock approached midnight, and a new day, Jonathan lay in an operating theatre, fighting for his life.

The official story was as confusing as the circumstances surrounding the four mysterious reappeared kings.

He had been found in the park – the same place where Nephrite had died in Naru’s arms. He too, had been badly injured, but had been alive when stumbled across by a group of teenagers who had gone to the park for a few sneaky drinks.

Usagi had heard about it from Minako, who had been contacted directly by the authorities. It seemed that Jonathan had come to when discovered, despite the gory wounds to his head, chest and back, and asked for her. Usagi had immediately been notified, and had made it her mission to find Zoya and tell her. Telling Zoya had lead to the truth being revealed about her new relationship with Mamoru.

The other Senshi were also in the waiting room, and Luna was desperate to talk to them. Artemis was strangely silent, not even trying to communicate quietly with any of the Senshi. He simply sat at Minako’s feet and stared at the floor.

"Zoya," said Mamoru in a soft voice, and suddenly, he didn’t care what Usagi thought. He wrapped his arms around her as she began to sob, and the others looked over in shock. They had been told by Luna quietly of what had been witnessed, but this was the first real proof they had seen. Mamoru tenderly kissing Zoya was not something that Usagi needed to see right now, but he couldn’t stop himself. She needed him.

"He’s going to die, isn’t he?" she sobbed, crying into his chest, eyes bleeding tears like she would never stop. Salty blood.

"No, he isn’t, Zoisite, and you know it," said Minako suddenly, turning her grief stricken eyes to the king.

She looked up in horrified surprise. "Nanii…what did you call me?"

"You are Zoisite," she said in a conclusive tone, dead of all emotion. "I remember. I remember everything, and I think you do too. Your awakening."

"Who is Zoisite?" asked the trembling girl, eyes wounded and confused. "My name is Zoya Irina Troubetzkoy…I am who I am…"

"You are who you want to be," Minako said softly, and she sat down beside the girl, Mamoru moving away. Minako took Zoya’s hand.

"You are Zoisite, but you don’t have to be under anyone’s influence, Zoya. You can be your own person, like you’ve always wanted, and still remember what happened to you in the past. I know the transforming power of love, real love," - she looked towards the theatre, eyes sad – "And the future is not written yet."

______________________________________________________________________________________

Karl pondered over the papers for a moment, wondering at the strange language. He had, at the insistence of a small, persistent voice at the back of his head, opened his mind. It was a form of clairvoyance, and it meant that all one had to do was clear the mind, and allow others to speak through them. In this case, the spirit had written. In another language, rather inconveniently.

"That was you," whispered a voice, and he turned in shock, to face a pretty young woman, who stood at attention behind him.

He stood rapidly, instantly seeing how tiny the woman’s statue was. But no matter what her height was, she still radiated an aura of amazing power. She wore a uniform of white and grey that seemed horribly familiar, and her hair was perhaps three or four shades lighter than Zoya’s, and not as coppery. It was cut in a short, shaggy series of layers around her lovely face, her brown eyes dark.

"You wrote that," the girl continued, obviously enjoying his look of shock. "The other you."

"Who are you?" he asked, suddenly feeling very tired.

She looked insulted. "Remember, Kunzite. How could you forget me?"

Understanding dawned bright and clear over his stunned features. "Phenakite…I thought you were dead!"

"I resurrected you, Kunzite. I would hardly think that would mean I was dead."

"I…oh. I hadn’t remembered my death…" His voice trailed off as memories of the facets returned to him. The imprisonment of the glass of eternal spirits…twisted justice.

"Zoisite doesn’t love you any longer," she said, no feeling in her words. "The traitor has gone to Endymion…and Jadeite, our wonderful sleeper, has been punished for his insubordination. He should be dead within the hour."

"How?" he asked, face pale. No matter what had happened between them all, there was still a fair amount of affection between the kings. Except Nephrite and Zoisite, of course…

"I killed him." Emotionless, Phenakite took his hand in her own icy fingers, and pulled him to his feet. His ordinary black clothes faded, to be replaced by his former uniform, as the form of Kunzite wrapped itself around the former doctor, warping back to the king.

"Zoisite is…"

"Lost to us, Kunzite. He must be killed at once. Before he becomes a problem. You must return to the Dark Kingdom with me now, Kunzite. Please. The Senshi are going to use that fool changeling to discover the truth behind the resurrections, and return to destroy Beryl and Metallia, for real. Now that the glass is broken, Angelikarma has no way of holding the spirits. If they die, they will die forever…they are your masters, Kunzite." She reached up with her hand, and used one cold finger to trace a line down his cheek. He shuddered at her touch. "And Kunzaito-sama…when Beryl and Metallia destroy the Senshi, and the traitors, only you and I will survive. Neither is strong enough to survive the battle…they will all die. We alone will survive. Then…we can change things. Make the universe our own, a place for our children…Kunzite, we were always meant to be together." She stood on tip toes, so that she could plant a kiss on his lips. "Come with me."

He closed his eyes in pain. "Zoisite…I love him, not you, Phenakite…"

"Lives change…loves change. You know that he loves Endymion now, and that’s the truth. He’ll never be yours again. But why worry, when I’ll be yours for eternity."

"Eternity…I pledged my heart to…"

She slapped him hard, but he was so immersed in his world of pain, he didn’t bother to react. As Karl, Zoya’s rejection had been a hurt that he might have recovered from. After all, they had never been involved in their invented memories. But as Kunzite…they had a past that extended throughout their dark existence under Beryl. After the Silver Millennium, which no one remembered anyway. At least, not in a good fashion. He loved Zoisite, and this woman’s blunt ruling over their relationship made his heart feel…

"I am your lover now, Kunzite. Zoisite is a traitorous kisama, Jadeite is already dead, and Nephrite will never come. Not while that Naru girl is around to take. As for Morganite…" She gnashed her teeth. "Leucite, I swear to Breccia I’m going to kill you for this!"

"What…Leucite? What has he…"

"Morganite will no longer exist," she snapped, eyes dark. "She was an invented personality, as was Leucite, and he’s come to take her home. But first, he has a bone he wants to pick with Beryl. With the help of the damned Senshi, no less."

She pulled him to the portal she had opened, and took his hand. "It’s over…but you and I are just beginning, Kunzite."

He took her hand, a heavy weight descending on his heart. He rejected Karl, the new life, and moved back into the evil he had once exalted in. Not now, though.

But Zoisite was gone. What did he have to live for now? Who cared what happened to him now…and that was why he went with Phenakite. Apathy for life drove him to darkness. A future was bleak without his love, thus he lost any interest in his life.

Phenakite clung to his arm, finally happy. She had her Kunzaito-sama at last…

______________________________________________________________________________________

The group gathered in the waiting room, as Zoya stood facing Minako. "I don’t understand…what is go-"

"Zoisite."

The group turned in surprise, to face a strange man in a long black cloak, eyes bright and blue.

She gasped, and began shaking. "Oh god, no…" she whispered, and sobs racked her body as she began to sob heavily. "I don’t want this Leucite…I don’t want to be him, not now, not ever. I just want…to be a normal human! I’m sick and tired of all this shit about the moon, the planets, and the goddamned Dark Kingdom! Why did you make me remember?!"

He looked at her soberly. "Just be grateful I didn’t do to you what I did to Morganite."

Her eyes were wide, angry. "If you’ve hurt her…"

Sighing, Leucite sat down, hanging his head. "Zoisite, think about it – would I ever hurt her?"

"Don’t call me that," she hissed, but she seemed to understand. The Senshi exchanged glances, and Leucite looked up.

"I need to ask a boon of you, Usagi-chan," he said quietly, and the girl appeared startled. "Huh?"

"Wake up, odango atama!" snapped Rei, and Ami hushed her quickly, by hitting her on the arm.

"Could you contact Masato and Naru…bring them here. We need to bring Nephrite into this if we can, before she can get to him."

"Who?" whispered Zoisite.

Ashamed, Leucite couldn’t meet Zoisite’s verdant gaze. "Phenakite…I failed, Zoisite. She’s changed. Become the darkness Metallia has always desired her to be…she has taken Kunzite back to the Dark Kingdom. I’m sorry…"

"It’s not your fault, Leucite. I…I don’t really love him now, anyway…I love…Mamoru…"

Usagi choked back a cry, and led the room, towards the bank of pay phones. Luna trailed her, as did Ami and Rei.

"Morganite is…near. She has not kept her true form, it pains her to do so. She is not yet ready to take back her old self…Éowyn. My sister."

"Your sister?" asked Makoto, intrigued by the sadness in the man’s eyes. Besides, he was cute in a weird-messiah type way.

"Not Leucite’s sister," he said quietly, and sighed. "This is not my real form…I’m only using it because it was the only one Zoisite would recognise. The others might know…Owen. But even he is not me…I am older than even Phenakite, who is almost ten thousand years old.

I am a changeling, a child of Oberon…I am not really from this dimension. I came from another place…another time. And there, I am Puck, the child of Oberon’s wiles and Titania’s sweet smiles. As is Éowyn, my sister.

"The story goes back a thousand years, just months before the attack on the moon kingdom, in which Beryl used the transformed generals who had once served under Endymion." He looked piercingly at Zoisite, and decided against continuing with the story. It was one that was better off remembered slowly by the ones who had had to live it.

"We were bored, the assorted children of Oberon. Avalon, the mystical isle that was our home, with its eternal summers, was really getting very boring.

"Queen Titania was even more bored, though. I won’t go into details, but we’ll just say that she and Oberon had a falling out over the King’s extra-marital dalliances, and they were divorced. As a part of the agreement, the two decided to send all of us to the mortal world.

And that opened a very convenient door for the beloved Beryl.

You see, Beryl had become "involved" with Oberon about a century beforehand, and she was desperate for one of his children to become one of his allies. As you can probably guess, she had a more "natural" way of getting one of Oberon’s children…a well conceived idea, at least in theory. Oberon always loved a pretty face…but the real problem was that he never got her pregnant. He blocked any chance of conception.

They lost contact for awhile…but when the judging came through, she returned. And asked if she could ‘borrow’ one of his children…take them to the Dark Kingdom.

As it so happened, we had a rather nasty piece of work amongst us. Éowyn had an attitude problem like no other…

When Beryl re-entered Oberon’s court, just before the division in which we all went to the mortal world, and asked to speak with him. He had already been worried, and this provided an excellent opportunity for him. You see, he didn’t want to let Éowyn go to the mortal world, for she was an insubordinate little bitch at the best of times. But she couldn’t remain on Avalon, he didn’t trust her around the Weird Sisters, Phoebe, Selene and Mona. None are any relation to Phenakite or Selenity-hime though, don’t worry about that. Oberon also didn’t want to have to keep an eye on her – so he allowed Beryl to take Éowyn to the Dark Kingdom. Forever." He glanced at Zoisite, who was wrapped up in Mamoru’s arms once more. Usagi stood alone, flanked by two of her honour guard, while Minako sat beside Zoisite. Makoto continued to watch Leucite, fascinated. "Zoisite…you don’t remember your past, do you? Well…it’s no surprise, really. That’s how Beryl had such control over you. But the thing is…you were a part of the Silver Millennium. As a part of Endymion’s honour guard, with your fellow kings."

"I remember," she whispered, and Mamoru nodded.

Leucite filled in the blanks for the others. "The four generals were captured by Beryl, and temporarily brainwashed. This links back to Éowyn’s similar fate, for you see, Beryl’s corruption worked through the death of the soul, but not the spirit.

To make the generals into her own Kings, she had to kill their souls, but keep their spirits alive. She did the same thing to Éowyn at round about the same time. Éowyn was executed before Metallia in an initiation ceremony that wove her darkened spirit into the fabric of the Dark Kingdom. Thus, she could be reincarnated as a minion of the Dark Kingdom.

The same fate happened to the generals. They were brainwashed into helping Beryl and Metallia destroy the Moon, and when they died at the hands of the ginzuishou, the spirits returned to the Dark Kingdom. Each was reborn as a potential King, with no recollection of their former selves. I myself entered the Dark Kingdom for a laugh, inventing Leucite so I could play amongst the weird people that my sister was now a part of. Several others came, too…from the Silver Millennium. Variscite, Ulexite and Nepheline Syenite were all former members of other courts, and Beryl brought them to her Kingdom as pawns. The first two are alive, and in the Dark Kingdom now. Like the others, they were brought back. But the Choice wasn’t granted to them, for reasons of transcendence. As for Nepheline Syenite…"

"What choice?" asked Usagi, looking confused.

"The Choice was what they made upon their releases from the glass of eternal spirits. Angelikarma, the force of "good" in the kingdom of Nemesis, allowed the three dead kings to choose life as a mortal, or a return to the darkness. All three chose mortality. As for Jadeite…he never died, he was never in the glass. So he was still under Beryl, though he created Jonathan Troubetzkoy, supposedly to spy on the others, but really because he had a deep desire to be like his comrades. To be human again."

"So their identities are just inventions?"

"The Grand Inquisitor corrected the timelines to give them pasts they didn’t actually have," said Leucite, fingering his strange pendant. "I do believe Pluto helped with that."

"Who?" asked Usagi, looking intrigued, and Leucite smiled sadly.

"I can’t tell you anything about her or any of the outer Senshi, Princess. That would alter the laws of causality more than I am willing to interfere – I have played around the omni-zone long enough. There is too much pain on my hands already."

"I don’t understand," spoke up Ami, who had been briefly filled in on details by Artemis. "Who are the kings back? Why is Zoya a woman? I remember going to the kingdom…the kings showing up…then Phoebe…but it wasn’t Phoebe, she was dark, so…"

"That wasn’t Phoebe, neither the princess or your school-girl friend," he said soberly. "That was Phenakite, now the only functioning commander under the Queens. Though, as I see it, they are more under her control than she under theirs. As for the awakening…" He sighed, looking towards the theatre. "When Phenakite brought them back, they stood before Breccia. Not Jadeite, though. He went to Metallia’s chamber. The three returned to earth as mortals, and as for Zoya’s gender…" He smiled wickedly as he looked at her. "Ask Zoya."

She blushed, and shook her head faintly. "Don’t ask me to explain it…it’s a long story."

"I must go," he said, leaping to his feet. To the shock of the group, he took off his cloak, revealing green theatre garb. "You lot – go, get ready. I’ll deal with this, and meet you at the park, at the infamous ‘crater’ of Zoisite’s creation. Be ready – that means Senshi, guys." He looked at Mamoru with a giggle. "And please, Mamo-chan, be Tuxedo Kamen! I can’t cope with Turban-boy!"

"Who?" asked Zoya, confused. The others sighed. "What have you been doing while I was gone?"

Turn the Page
Take a break