Crystal Points
Emania, Land of Infinite Gods
I wonder if the stars sign
the life that is to be mine
and would they let their light shine
enough for me to follow
I look up to the heavens
but night has clouded over
no spark of constellation
no Vela no Orion....
-Enya,“Anywhere Is”
Episode 1- Summons to Another World? Emania, Land of Infinite Gods.
Her eyes opened narrowly, and Minako’s first action was to mumble the
words, “There’s a big chunk of rock over my head. Okay.” She blinked a few
more times, clearing her head. Whatever had just slammed into her body full
force had been dizzying, and now...rock. Actually, when she considered the
rock, it wasn’t just a rock. It was an arch. As her vision cleared, adapting
to the dim light of a single candle, she traced the arch along its path,
eyes meeting the slash of a familiar face. Her own, in a polished bronze
mirror. She was tempted to lay back in bed again. Though she felt the lumpy
tracings of branches under her, they were covered in a thick mattress, made
of feathers, by the feel. Warm and comfortable, she was reluctant to leave.
Then again, she smacked herself on the forehead; something was obviously
wrong, and she certainly did not belong in a bed that was not hers, in a
room that was not hers, with a candle instead of a lamp, and apparently
walls made of stone.
She sat up, shoeless feet touching the smooth stones of the floor. It was
cold, and she felt it though her socks. There was a rug before her, and she
stepped into it, curling her toes and glancing in the mirror. She still wore
her school uniform, blue and white, rumpled slightly from her sleep.
“Minna?” She turned, and saw her three friends draped in various places in
the room. Ami, too, had a bed, parallel to hers, one arm up over her head as
she slept peacefully, lips parted slightly. Rei was scowling as she slept,
from where she was tucked under a blanket, feet propped up on a footstool.
Makoto, though, had been given a heap of pillows, mostly too small for a
person’s full length, and she had managed to send them scattering over the
floor as she slept, currently strangling her blanket. It was Mako that
Minako decided to wake first.
“Mako-chan?” The sleeping girl didn’t respond to Minako’s whisper, so
Minako shook her, roughly. Makoto leapt out of sleep, nearly bolting upward
as Minako pressed a finger to her lips in warning. Sleepiness fading, she
scrambled out of her blanket, further sending the pillows across the floor.
Very quietly, Minako whispered, “We’re all here...no Usagi-chan, though.”
Mako nodded once, and they stood, looking tentatively at the door.
Wordlessly, they separated, Minako to Ami, Makoto to Rei, shaking them awake
and holding a finger to their lips for quiet as their eyes opened. “What
happened?” Rei asked as she saw Makoto’s face leaning close. As the taller
girl backed away, Rei saw the room. “Oh. What happened?”
“I don’t know,” Minako said, looking around the room. “We haven’t been
hurt,” she continued as she pulled on her shoes. Likewise, the others
straightened themselves out. “We need to figure a way out of here.”
“Henshin?” Makoto offered, hand ready to go into the air.
“Baka,” Rei snapped quietly, shaking her head. “They’ll hear us. We need
to....”
“Minna?” Ami asked.
Minako was shaking her head, in agreement with Makoto. “Whoever brought us
here did it without our permission. They must be new enemies.....”
“Minna....” Ami continued, then sighed, shaking her head.
“Then they must have Usagi! We have to-” Rei was cut off as the three heard
the door open, turning their heads to see Ami with her hand on the knob, the
door opening easily.
“It’s not locked,” Ami told them as she shook her head, gesturing at the
door with a hand.
Poking her head outside, Ami peered down the sunlit corridor. They had been
placed in an outer room, the walkway beyond leading down into a courtyard.
The light slanted onto the stone floor, and Ami stepped outside, sensing
Minako’s presence at her back as they began to leave their room.
“You’re awake,” a voice said from the streams of light, stepping through
them. “I was just about to wake you.” She was pretty, in a demure way, with
a narrow face and liquid brown eyes. She was young, maybe seventeen or
eighteen. Her hair was auburn, and she wore it bound back into a thick tail,
her bangs held back from her face by a circlet of green stones and golden
metal. With so much light around her, she wore only black, except for a
strip of violet velvet around the lowered hood and the edge of the loose
sleeves. “I hope you have been comfortable as you slept?” Stepping forward,
the two in the hallway could see she held a tray of food. A young girl stood
just to the left and behind of her, massive green eyes wide and staring at
the two senshi before her. A little goldfinch sat on her shoulder, head
cocked. The young woman seemed to notice her companion’s slightly rude
staring and smiled, shaking her head. “Please, it would be better if we
stepped inside. There are many prying eyes out here, and it would be best if
we spoke privately first.”
She moved forward, the girl and her bird trailing, and Ami and Minako
backed into the room, watching the graceful young woman set the tray down on
a narrow table. “Lillia,” the woman said to the girl, as she set down her
own tray, trying to blend into the wall as so not to be sent away during the
oncoming discussion. “you have kitchen duties the rest of the day. Attend
them.”
The girl gulped and looked embarrassed, edging slowly away, eyes never
leaving one of the senshi for a moment. Then she turned and fled, the
goldfinch flitting along after her, and the older one remained, shutting the
door. “The whole temple will know what you look like within a few minutes,”
they were told with a grin. “Word travels on the wind here. You’ll have to
forgive the humble surroundings...I’m sure you’re accustomed to far more,”
she looked down at the floor, embarrassed, hands folded. “It is the best we
have, all things taken into consideration. I had the finest wine brought
up,” she said hopefully, then meeting their eyes as though this would help.
“You are welcome to it, princesses.”
That brought several startled gasps, and broke the senshi out of their
confusion. “Where is Usagi?”
“What have you done with her?”
“Who are you?”
“Where are we?”
The woman stepped back under the sudden barrage of questions, hands up and
pleading for peace. “Please, forgive me, my name is Lenora...I mean you no
harm. Please, a moment....”
Rei got her voice loud enough over the other questions, and Lenora’s
pleading. “Where is Usagi? What did you do with her?”
Lenora just blinked at Rei, shaking her head. “You four are the only ones
the spell called. I imagine your friend is fine. We do not need her.”
That brought dumbfounded stares. Not need Usagi? That had to be a first.
“Wait,” Minako had a hand to her head in confusion. “you summoned us? Not
for bait or anything?” She eyed Lenora suspiciously. “You’re not trying to
kill us, zap our energy, or take over the world?”
“No?” Lenora replied, looking confused. “I do not want to ‘zap your
energy,’ I am far from trying to kill you, and as for taking over the world,
no, but that is why my sisters and I called upon your magics.”
Sighing, Lenora stepped though the four senshi, who stood around her,
motioning to the chairs of the room. “I see that there will be more need to
speak at length than I imagined. Forgive me for my foolishness,” she bowed
her head, and the other four recognized the motion as an apology. When
Lenora lifted her eyes, the she asked them to sit, and to eat. “The food is
not much, I’m sorry. The trade routes have been disrupted these last few
years, and worse in the last months....but the cooks are good. Here,” she
broke a chunk of bread off the loaf, and offered it to Ami. Lenora, though
thinking it bizarre that the girl’s hair was hacked short and oddly colored,
sensed that if she could win one over, the rest would follow. And this one
seemed more open to reason than the other three. So, it was to Ami she
offered it, and it was reluctantly accepted.
Lenora and Lillia had brought a cask of wine, ruby red, and glasses for
each woman in the room, as well as the golden bread that Lenora now sliced,
and the sharp cheese to go with it. Each senshi slowly followed Ami’s
example, and found that they were very hungry. When Minako tore into hers,
Rei rolled her eyes, and Lenora laughed. “You have slept for several hours.
It is late afternoon, now. That is why I bought the food. You must be
hungry.”
The girls looked between themselves. Makoto finally decided to go first,
asking, “Okay, well. If you brought us here, why not Usagi-chan?”
Lenora shook her head. “I’m sorry, you speak of your friend so much, she
must be very important to you. I see, then, that you four must all know each
other.” There were nods at that, and Lenora continued, “That is good. Your
friend is safe, I am sure. But the four of you...I don’t know how much you
know of this...you have powers. Magic. Is it so in your world?”
Lenora watched uneasily as eyes narrowed and the four seemed to pull
themselves closer, though they had selected different spots to sit while
they ate. Here, she would have to tread cautiously. She did not know their
world, or their duties as princesses there. Strange gowns, though, for
royalty, three identical outfits, and one differently colored and styled
differently, but still the same kind of uniform. How odd. And the cut hair
of the one! What could possibly have happened to her? A dishonored princess?
It didn’t matter, though, and Lenora continued. “There is a cycle, that the
land of Emania must undergo every thousand’s thousand years. It is said that
the time is infinite, yet the signs exist still, and our ability to call
upon you only confirms it.”
“Confirms what?” Makoto asked, getting a little annoyed. It wasn’t Lenora,
it was the situation. She could tell the others were just as tense about
this as she was. The woman before them was behaving as though she knew they
were senshi. She hadn’t stated it, but it was close enough. “We don’t have
magic.”
“Oh, but you must!” Lenora leapt to her feet. “The spell could not go that
wrong! We did everything correctly! I saw to it. I led it. Please, tell me,
you are four princesses of your world, yet soldiers still, each of the
elements?” Lenora was looking desperately between them, and at their
silence, began to shake, sitting down. Her legs wouldn’t support her. She
couldn’t have failed. She just couldn’t have. “Those with beautiful
dreams....fire, water, earth and air....you have to be?”
The senshi looked at each other nervously. None of this made sense. Minako
looked at Lenora, who was slowly becoming a tiny ball on her chair. Feeling
sorry for her, she looked at her fellow senshi, each of them standing in
turn. “Hai, Lenora-san, we are.”
Her head snapped up instantly, relief filling her eyes as she let out a
heavy sigh. “Then will you help us? Please?”
“Lenora-san,” Ami asked, “maybe it would be best if you explained to us
what was going on? This place is very different than our world. And we are
not yet...ah....” she hesitated, thinking about what to say. “...crowned as
rulers. Things are very different, in our world. Please, we would like to
help you if we can.”
Hopefully, Lenora looked at the younger girls, their eyes agreeing with the
words Ami had spoken. “Thank you. Yes, please,” she began to gather herself,
wiping her eyes, and getting in control again. “Sit, I’ll tell you....the
beginning.”
So she began to speak, and spoke at length of her world, called Emania.
“Our land is ruled by four kingdoms, North, South, East, West. Each in
balance with the others, each with their own element as their standard. We
examined the princesses of each family of their royal houses, and yet none
were the ones we sought. Too old, too young, lacking magic, lacking destiny.
The result of our summoning was not as we expected. It was you. Each element
represented by a princess, who must also be a soldier. Royalty in our world
are trained in the fighting arts, but women are rarely allowed in battle,
much less be soldiers.
“For the last fifty years, the stars have come into the alignment that is
told in the old lore, the legends passed down though the generations.
Darkness drops upon our world, and with it, the coming of the Silence, and
the Chaos that our world was born from. Or at least, so it is told.”
The expressions on the faces of the senshi were not lost on Lenora. The
words ‘Silence’ and ‘Chaos’ terrified them, and it was written clearly on
their faces, controlled as they may be.
“Demons sealed away from our world have been breaking though, attacking the
people of the four lands. The stars are in alignment, and the four moons
will soon have taken their places in accordance with the legend. The spell
we have used is only to summon the four described in the spell, the ones who
will awaken the Crystal Points, and replace the Seal that barriers the evil
from entry to the Land of Infinite Gods.
“Nothing my sisters and I have done has been able to stop the demon armies,
and now we learn that they are acting in unison with one another. This has
been a land of peace for thousands of years. The legends say that once my
sisters and I would have fought with spells, but these powers have been
disused, unneeded in the times of peace. We are academics, scholars. We know
nothing of battle. For fifty years, the signs have been coming, and for
fifty years, we have been unable to stop their spread. It is as it is
foretold in the legends, and those who manipulate shadow are being born into
the ranks of the sorcerers. Not even the Cleansings have stopped their
births.
“We are fortunate they are marked, but their shadows make it difficult as
their numbers grow. All these things, the demons, the new breed of
witches....they are all in accordance with what is prophesied. It is to be
the end of our world.”
The senshi watched Lenora tell them this in silence, growing aware of what
she was telling them. It was their version of the Silence, the end of the
world. They had fought that before, once, and won. “You were expecting four
from your world, and you got us,” Rei stated, just to make sure she was
clear. “There are dark witches appearing, and demons that show your world is
collapsing. Do I have this right?”
Lenora nodded miserably, pouring herself something to drink, then holding
the glass with nervous hands. Minako picked up where Rei left off,
considering, “So you want us to help you save it.”
Again, a nod, then a question from Ami. “What are the Crystal Points?”
Lenora set her glass down, frowning. “Actually, we don’t know.”
That brought an exchange of uneasy glances. “You don’t know?”
“Only that they must be awakened, and they form the Seal that will cast out
the demons that invade. We hoped that you would know, being the chosen
ones.”
Makoto sighed, shaking her head. “And since we’re from an entirely
different world, of course we don’t. Oh, Pluto would just love this one.”
Lenora tilted her head at Makoto. “Who is Pluto?”
“A friend of ours,” Rei told her hastily, glaring at Mako for talking.
“Actually, we’ve been pretty rude. I’m Rei. This is Makoto, Ami and Minako,”
Rei bowed politely, and Lenora smiled at her, tired. “Lenora. High Priestess
of the Temple of Infinite Gods.”
“You’re the High Priestess?” Rei exclaimed. “You’re so young for that! Or,
well, unless all priestesses are young here?”
“No, I am young. And it scares my sisters.”
Now in her element, Rei began to interrogate Lenora. “How did you become
High Priestess?”
“I’m an incarnation of the first High Priestess,” she said, as though this
were obvious. “Is it not so in your world?”
“Different,” Rei said, shaking her head. “Our world is very different.”
“I’m sensing that. I’m sorry, I’ve been here for awhile. I would hate to
impose on you....” she stood, and began to move to the door, abandoning her
wine on the desk. “This is much to take in for you.... I’ll leave you four
to talk.”
“Wait!” Minako called, and Lenora paused. “Is there a way for us to get
back? If you could call us here, can you send us back home?”
Lenora looked down at the floor. “We can try. But the summoning spell is
written, and there is no spell of returning that I know. You must
understand, what I have done is our last hope. Please. Forgive me for that,”
she looked away, and the setting sun was bright orange behind her. “You are
free to go about where you wish. No one will bar you from entry to any place
in the temple grounds. That much, you have my word. Please, consider helping
us.” She waited for some acknowledgment, and when Minako smiled faintly, she
left.
The four Inner senshi didn’t know how to react to this news. So, they
quietly began to think about it, each lost in their own thoughts for some
time. They explored the room, and Rei discovered a small bronze brazier in
one corner, using a candle to light it, setting more yellow light into the
dim room, the coals glowing brightly. Four girls, in school uniforms, torn
from their world. Then again, with the Sailor Senshi, what wasn’t possible?
“So, do we help them?” Makoto asked, after a time.
“I think the answer is pretty obvious,” Minako replied with a sigh, glumly
looking at the floor, her chin on her hands, elbows on her knees. She had
settled back onto the slightly lumpy bed for her quiet time. “If the Silence
is coming to them, we have to help, Usagi-chan aside. We can’t just let a
world of people die. It’s our duty, as much as protecting the Princess.”
“Demon armies. Dark witches,” Rei thought aloud. “Not so unlike us, is it?”
“Demons and witches. Just like when Saturn was awakened,” Ami added from
where she had her knees tucked up under her chin. Like Minako, she had
retreated to where she had woken up. Each of them had, except for Makoto,
who had decided to stand next to the door, leaning against it with her arms
folded. “Of course, the daimon weren’t exactly demons.”
“Close enough,” Rei snorted, eyes closed as she tried to meditate, hands in
prayer form. “What makes me curious is why they don’t need the Holy Grail,
if the Silence is coming. Are there senshi in this world?”
“No,” Ami answered. “If there was something like the Silver Millennium
here, then their senshi would be preventing it. Lenora’s summoning spell
would have called them, not us.”
Makoto shook her head, looking at her three friends. “I wonder if Pluto
knows what’s going on. She’s Guardian of the Gates of Time and Space. Can’t
we get to her here?”
“Pluto slips in and out of our lives, Mako-chan,” Minako reminded her. “And
we’ve never been able to call her. She just shows up. Of course, that
usually means that all hell is about to break loose, so maybe we should be
glad she’s not around,” she tried to joke, but it fell a little flat. “All I
remember is...something like getting whacked upside the head. Hard. And
falling. Something above me...like rocks...stones. Anyone else care to
share?”
“Me too,” Rei agreed. “Like falling though the air. I saw four stones, and
faces in the dark. Lenora’s, I think, was one of them.”
“I don’t remember anything,” Makoto said sourly, trying to sift though her
memories. “Just the weird getting hit in the head part, like Minako-chan
said. It didn’t hurt.”
“I saw the stones,” Ami finished, adding what foggy memories she had. “In a
circle. That’s all. Lenora said we had free roam of the temple. Maybe we
should go explore, since we all remember the stones.”
There were quick nods of agreement, and they got up, heading outside. “It’s
kind of late,” Minako whispered as she opened the door. “Everyone should be
asleep....”
In fact, it was very dark. Torches lit the open air corridor, and they saw
that their room was part of a complex of some sort, centered around a
courtyard, where a small fountain bubbled in the center. Columns in a kind
of Gothic style arched on each level, and they were on the first. Crowding
to the half wall that ran along, they peered out at the courtyard, Minako
leaning far over to see further down. “There’s a path, and it goes down.
That way first?”
They walked down the corridor, until reaching a small gate, which was
unlatched. There were no people about, but they saw a guard at the entrance
and exit of the courtyard. He stood calmly, dressed in simple, boiled
leather armor, a spear in his hand. His eyes widened a bit when he saw the
newcomers, but professionally admitted them from the courtyard in silence,
letting them pass by.
For a group usually talkative, they said very little as they went on down
the gravel path. It was not long before they found their stone circle, the
four fingers of stone sticking up out of the earth, pointing towards the
stars above. Two moons hung heavily still, a yellow one at quarter, full, a
pinkish one half. The moonlight mingled with that of the stars, more than
enough to illuminate the circle, which was obviously a place of worship.
“Stone circles are found thoughout Europe, and were part of pagan religious
ceremonies. The most famous is on Salisbury Plain, Britain. Stonehenge.”
That came from Ami, as she inspected one of the pillars of rock. “There
should be outer rings of stones, though the next few miles.”
“You’re right,” Minako agreed, thinking of her time in England. “This place
is flat, but we’re in a valley. Look.” She was standing at the edge of the
precipice, and the other three crowded over to see, looking out over the
valley. There was a massive drop just below them, several hundred feet. The
temple sat atop a mountain, built into the side itself. Turning around, they
could see the glowing mountain above, towering up into red clouds. This
place was a volcano, still active. To each direction, a different view.
Directly across, a low mountain, snow capped as it reached into the air.
Another direction only showed continued chasms, with layers of rock. The
last was a further part of the mountain range, stretching west.
The four stared, and the wind was cold as it blew past them, making the
scene eerie in the darkness of the new night. They were very far from home,
and now, each of them could truly feel it. In their tiny room, it felt safe,
as though if they stepped out of the walls, they would still be in their
world. But this wasn’t their world. Each could tell that, by the patterns of
the stars in the sky and the way they stood in a foreign temple. But it was
also obvious that it was a fortress. Protected from all sides, any battles
would occur hundreds of feet below, where the ground sheared off the
mountainside. The volcano to their back, the massive mountains around them,
the valley so far below, it was impregnable. And that frightened them.
“Elements,” Makoto said aloud as they looked out over the valley. “We’re
supposed to be elements. Fire and water, that I get, Rei-chan and Ami-chan.
But I’m born under wood, and Minako-chan, you’re metal. Why us?”
Ami answered thoughtfully, “Mako-chan, you’re Jupiter. In myth, he was god
of the sky. Throwing thunderbolts.”
“I thought that was Uranus?”
“Hm, yes, but he was a Titan, overthrown by Zeus in a coup in the beginning
of time. Apparently, Lenora’s magic decided you were close enough. As for
Minako-chan, the planet Venus rules the earth signs in the zodiac, doesn’t
it?” When Minako nodded, Ami continued, “My guess is that Minako is
representing earth, and you, Mako-chan, air. Of course, the Greeks also
believed in the possibility of a fifth element, called ether, and it was
believed that....”
“Ami-chan, we get it,” Rei sighed as Ami began to go into lecture-mode.
“Princesses yet soldiers. Can’t be too many of those.”
“I guess not,” Makoto sighed. “So we help them wake up these Crystal
Points. How to find them, though?”
“Beats me,” Minako shrugged. “There’s got to be something in one of their
books or something...I mean, if they’re in this world, then someone has to
know the location.”
Rei turned and looked up at the Fire Mountain, the grey and red clouds
swirling hotly around the summit. As she turned, the ground beneath their
feet rumbled, and Rei staggered a step, being caught by Ami.
“It seems the volcano is still active,” she said as she released Rei’s arm.
Agreeing, Rei nodded. “There’s something odd about that mountain. Volcano.
I can feel it. There’s magic in the mountain itself...I think.”
“You think, Rei-chan?” Ami asked curiously, looking up too. “What is it?”
“I don’t know. Not evil or anything. Just different. I’ve never felt
anything like it before. It’s like the Great Fire, but...I don’t know.
Conscious?” Irritated at her inability to explain things, she shook her
head, violet eyes concentrating as she tried to sort it out.
As they said this, Makoto brushed her ear, annoyed at the sound that had
just appeared in it. With Ami and Rei in her vision, she whipped around,
snapping, “Minako-chan, what are you doing?”
“Nani?” Minako stared at her from several feet away, where she had
wandered. “Doing?” Makoto blinked in surprise. What the hell?
Looking around, she listened. She didn’t know what was going on, but it was
creepy, hearing someone breathing in her ear, even though no one was there.
“There’s someone here,” she stated, dropping into a more defensive posture.
“Rei-chan, Ami-chan.”
They turned around, seeing Makoto looking ready to fight, Minako slowly
coming up behind her, looking around as well.
“There!” The breathing stopped abruptly as she saw the figure. It hung in
the shadows of the stone of the west, a hand falling to its side as it
stepped out of the narrow darkness cast by the pillar. Cloaked, they
couldn’t determine what it was, until a gleam of silver shone though the
hood, lit unnaturally, as though the person glowed from within, reflected by
the eyes. “You!” Makoto shouted, “Show yourself!”
Of course, the figure didn’t stir, but the wind picked up enough to show a
second gleam of silver, this time at the hip. The figure was female, and
armed with a sword. By now, the senshi had formed their familiar battle
line, winged out and ready to henshin, should the stranger prove to be an
enemy.
Then, in the moonlight, they saw the woman smile. It was enough to unnerve
Makoto, and with prior experience of enemies, she knew that youma and evil
witches liked to laugh as they fought, trying to kill them. She snapped.
“Witch!” Running forward, Minako tried to grab her before she charged in,
but wasn’t as fast as Makoto when mad. “Henshin yo, minna!” Makoto shouted
over her shoulder, her thought to buy her friends time to transform. The
woman stepped forward, wisking the cloak to the side, then crouched,
swiveling sideways as Makoto’s charge carried her forward.
“Cute,” was the bemused comment from the woman. Makoto, though, heard that.
“I’ll show you cute!” Wheeling and lashing out with a punch to the face, it
was easily dodged, then Makoto suddenly found herself flying through the air
as she was hurled over the woman’s head, crashing into the eastern stone.
“Mako-chan!” That snapped the other three out of their watching, Ami
running to go grab Makoto, who was sinking to the ground, a small trickle of
blood falling at an angle across her forehead. Rei and Minako, however,
chose to attack, rushing forward as their hands went to the air. Reaching
the circle of stones, they ran in, the familiar phrases being called.
“Mars....”
“Venus....”
They never finished. As Makoto had presumed, the woman had magic, and she
lifted a hand. There were no words. Before the henshin could begin, they
were blasted back, screaming, Rei nearly impacting onto another one of the
stone monoliths.
The high screams of Rei and Minako, added to the previous shouting of
Makoto, was enough to awaken the sleeping temple. New lights flared up along
the wall they stood below, and there was shouting from above. Men could be
seen running, guards with spears.
The silver eyed woman seemed disinterested in the commotion behind her,
looking at the bodies of Rei and Minako. Each were down, though Rei
stirring, Minako slowly pushing herself to her knees, though painfully. The
stranger was watching them, head tilted curiously. “Transformations?
Interesting.” Then she looked at Ami, who was half holding Makoto, half
getting ready to henshin. “I wouldn’t do that,” the woman warned her. When
Ami’s eyes flew open with surprise, the woman smiled again. It wasn’t
everyday your opponent gave you orders that calmly. “You won’t survive your
friends if you do.” She considered Ami for another moment, and the
conflicting thoughts on her face.
“What are you?”
The woman arched an eyebrow from under her hood. “Illusionist? Very
interesting.”
They appeared, a black robed woman with them, one of Lenora’s sorceresses
by the dress. There were more milling out of the gateway. As they ran down
the footpath, the silver eyed woman turned halfway to see them. Then, Ami
watched her leap into the air, flipping neatly onto the top of the eastern
pillar, cape falling around her neatly.
The guards arrived, and the sorceress with them was chanting, light growing
around her hand. Silently, the woman leapt up again, and faded away into the
air, invisible as an intelligent guard let loose an arrow into the now empty
space.
“Let me, let me!” Ami snapped out of her staring as she became aware of a
young girl pushing her away from Makoto. It was the serving girl, Lillia,
from earlier, her little goldfinch familiar chirruping and spinning
dizzyingly around her head, reflecting her alarm. “Here. I can help.” She
closed her eyes, and her sleep-mussed hair fell into her face as she
concentrated, her face screwing up as she thought, her hands a few inches
apart. Then, she cast a spell. “Breath of air, I ask your aid. Send your
healing to this, your servant.” A tiny ball of green light formed in
Lillia’s hands, and then dropped onto Makoto’s face, the blood drying as she
began to stir in Ami’s arms. “Spirits of air, I thank you for your gift,”
Lillia finished, sighing as Makoto opened her eyes.
“Ami-chan? Nan desu ka?”
Ami laughed, hugging her. “You’re okay! Thank Lillia.”
Makoto groaned as she turned her head to the little girl. “Arigatou,
Lillia-chan.”
The girl rocked back on her feet, eyes filling with pride. A moment later,
a woman appeared, towering. “Lillia! You were supposed to be in bed!”
“But Bellina....” She managed to grab the finch, and held it nervously as
it calmed down, making faint chirping noises in reassurance.
“This is not a place for children! Do you want that dark witch to catch
you?”
That obviously struck fear into the girl, and she scurried back into the
crowding guards, still clutching the bird, who were now roaming over the
stone monolith, searching out any signs of the vanished silver eyed woman.
“Mako-chan,” Minako gasped as she and Rei managed to limp over. “Are you
all right?”
“Hai, though I have a headache,” she replied as she sat up, touching the
side of her head, fingers contacting the dried blood. “The witch! Did she-?”
“Got away, by the looks of it,” the woman named Bellina told them with a
frown. It had been she who had appeared with the guards. She was a tough
looking middle aged woman, steely grey appearing in the black mass of her
hair. “What happened?”
“She attacked us,” Makoto said, offering a hand, and helped up by Bellina.
Ami climbed to her feet. “I tried to fight her, but...” Makoto winced in
pain. That was enough to tell Bellina what happened. The crowd was growing
around them, guards and sleepy priestesses.
“She faded into the air,” Minako added, leaping in. “Leapt up into the air,
on that one!” From there, Minako launched into great detail about what had
happened, fortunately not mentioning the aborted henshin. Minako’s
theatrical tendencies being let loose, Bellina began to urge the other three
along the path, getting them out of the way, pausing as they cleared the
thickest of the area. They saw several children Lillia’s age slipping
carefully among the soldiers and black robed women, and Bellina frowned at
them imperiously, shouting for one of the guards to get them inside.
“They’re always the first out, and should be the last,” Bellina muttered
darkly. Then she looked at Makoto, Rei and Ami. “I’m Bellina, the headwoman.
Lenora will need to know this soon enough, but if her guards are worth a
rat’s ass they’ll keep her in her rooms until its been cleared. What did you
three see? What happened?”
“I heard her breathing, I think,” Makoto told her, eyeing Bellina
carefully, waiting for her reaction. That got no response, and then she
continued. “We fought.”
“Mako-chan didn’t get very far,” Rei picked up when Mako stopped. “Minako
and I tried to fight, but she just-”
Bellina cut her off. “I’m sure she defeated you, by the looks of things.
Did you see her face?”
Rei gave Bellina a dirty look for being rude, then continued, “She had
weird eyes. Then she faded out of sight.”
“Illusionist,” Bellina stated immediately. “Not good. We’d better get your
friend and get inside. Dark witches like that are dangerous. Manipulate the
shadows. Get your friend.”
With that, Bellina headed back up the path.
“I feel like I belong on the cover of a romance novel,” Minako sighed
happily as she spun in circles, the folds of her long skirt flowering around
her as she twirled. “Now I just need some gorgeous guy without a shirt....”
From where she was stuffing an extra blouse into her knapsack, Ami laughed
at Minako, who was, as she had been for the last several minutes, admiring
herself in front of the room’s bronze mirror. “They’re not that fancy,
Minako-chan.”
“Oh, I know, but I still want a guy without a shirt....”
“So what else is new?” Rei commented as she and Makoto entered, their hair
still wet from the baths. The morning had been as busy as the night;
discussion of the whereabouts of the witch, and what the four senshi would
be doing. Over a massive breakfast, the Inners had told Lenora they agreed
to help. It really wasn’t much of a choice, but the formality of it was
done. They had promised themselves. And so they needed travel gear.
The clothing was simple, though it seemed the people of Emania were
excellent when it came to the manufacture of textiles. Finely woven, though
plain, the colors were in the muted colors of the earth, warm browns and
cremes, hanging lightly around their new owners bodies.
“Are you two ready to go?” Makoto asked them as she leaned against the
doorframe. “Lenora and that Bellina woman are supposed to be waiting for
us.” Makoto’s voice soured as she thought of Bellina. It wasn’t so much that
she disliked the woman as it was her attitudes. During the night, they had
once again repeated their tale of the witch attack, this time to Lenora,
with Bellina telling Lenora exactly what should be done. Makoto didn’t like
it, and the others agreed with her.
It was midday, and the sun shone brightly down on the outer ring of walls
around the temple, causing the people who came to watch the girls leave to
squint. And there was quite a crowd. Not everyday that the four who were
supposed to save your world stroll around for you to look at.
Lenora did stand near to the gates, Bellina with her, and just behind
Lenora, Lillia, who was carrying a massive basket. The senshi moved easily
between the people who tried to mill around, trying to watch without
staring.
“Good afternoon,” Lenora greeted them warmly, smiling. “The clothes? Do
they fit well?”
“Hai, they’re fine, Lenora-san,” Minako answered. “We wanted to thank you
for your hospitality. We’ll do what we can for Emania.”
“That is kind of you. I feared that who we summoned would not wish to help
us. Have you chosen a direction yet?”
Minako sighed, thinking of the lousy way they had picked a way to travel.
Lenora and her sorceresses knew nothing about the Crystal Points, and how to
awaken them, much less how to even find them. All they knew were rumors,
tiny references in ancient legends, saying that each direction held a
separate power. So, it was assumed that each direction also represented a
different element. And if that were true, then perhaps whatever they looked
for was to be found in each direction. It was a long, tenuous string of
logic, and even Ami had commented on its unlikeliness. Running a hand
through her hair, Minako sighed, “We’re heading north first.”
In the end, they had drawn straws.
“Ah, that is probably a good choice!” Lenora tried to cheer her. “North is
the direction of Water, First of Elements. I’m sure you will have luck.”
“I hope so....”
While Lenora and Minako spoke, Lillia had come up to Makoto, and was
tugging on her skirt to get her attention. “Nani?” Makoto asked the younger
girl.
“Here. Chirper and I helped the cooks make you food.” The chirping finch on
her shoulder echoed the sentence cheerily, hopping up and down on her
shoulder. “There’s bread, and jam for it,” pushing the basket up at Makoto,
she lifted the lid, and the rich, familiar and welcome smell of freshly
baked bread wafted out. “It’s cinnamon raisin bread, and strawberry jam. I
helped. I hope you like it.”
“I’m sure it’s very good, Lillia-chan.” She hesitated, then looked at the
wing fluttering familiar. “And Chirper.”
From the side, Ami smiled and shook her head, nudging Rei to look at the
little girl. “It looks like Mako-chan has a fan.”
The two opposing elements looked at the little girl, her wavy blonde hair
now up in a ponytail, two little streamers over either ear, eyes full of
adoration. “There’s nothing wrong with a little idol worship,” Rei chuckled,
“and she’s so cute.”
“Lillia is one of our most promising students,” Bellina said as she entered
the conversation, watching the little girl shrewdly. “Her abilities in the
healing arts are developing far more rapidly than expected. But she is far
too prone to her element, and likes to wander off.” Bellina was now close
to glaring at the girl, and then sighed. “Forgive me. Her air and my earth
seem to always be at odds.”
“Your elements...you speak like they reflect your personalities.”
“They do. It isn’t the same for you?”
Bellina seemed a little dubious of this, so Rei quickly elaborated, “We do.
But its different...a little. Some say that the stars rule our
personalities, and our blood types.”
Bellina hand an eyebrow arched. “Blood types? How many types of blood are
there?”
“There’s A, B, AB, O, and they can be positive or neg-” Rei elbowed Ami
before she went into lecture auto-pilot, and confused Bellina completely.
The older woman was staring at them blankly, obviously never having heard of
such things. Which, of course, made sense, considering the technology level
in this world did not seem to be very high. “Gomen ne.”
With a shrug, Bellina dismissed it, as they heard Lenora say to Minako,
“Here,” then slip a ring off her finger. “A ward of safe conduct through the
four kingdoms. All recognize the seal of the High Priestess. If you require
safe passage, show this,” with a small motion, Lenora ran her finger over
the surface of the ring, which was delicately scrolled. From it, a small
light emanated, four colors, blue, yellow, red and green, chasing each other
through the scrolling. Then, the priestess slipped it onto Minako’s finger.
“Wear it well. Each kingdom holds to its own ways, but all respect the
shrine of the Fire Mountain. It will keep you safe.”
“Hai, arigatou,” Minako thanked her, adjusting the ring on her finger.
“So...how do we get down?”
“The path out will lead you directly to a small village under the tree
line. There you will see many of our people. Look for the priestess named
Velis. She will give you more supplies and horses for your journey. Be
careful, though. The Fire Mountain has been rumbling as the moons come into
alignment. The temple is warded from any lava, but the trails are not. And
we’re still searching for the witch. Be wary of her illusions.”
There were murmurs of, “Hai,” and “Un,” in agreement, and the four senshi
looked at the two women and the young girl. “We’ll do what we can....”
Minako tried to say, to cheer up the otherwise sad looking faces. “Don’t
worry. We’ve fought this kind of thing before! The Silence will not fall on
Emania.”
Lenora smiled softly, and then the four of them turned, heading down the
path, leaving the shrine of the Fire Mountain.
“Lillia, you’ve been out of your classes long enough,” Bellina said briskly
as the backs of their four would-be saviors descended down the path. “Get
back, now.”
“Yes, Bellina,” Lillia sighed obediently, curtsying hurrying off into the
temple grounds, the blonde ponytail and golden familiar flying along behind
her.
“It’s not good for them to place all their hope on those four,” Bellina
said to Lenora with a frown.
“But it’s good for them to have that hope, Bellina. Don’t take that away
from them.”
The frown lines on Bellina’s face only deepened, and she took Lenora’s arm
a moment, leading her away. “I need to speak with you, privately.”
“About....”
“No. Come.”
The two women who were the most in charge of the Fire Mountain began a slow
walk in silence, their feet carrying them down familiar paths. The paths had
been filled with smooth stones, and decorated with the calm, elegant beauty
of the temple grounds. Though the whole place was referred to as ‘the
temple,’ it was actually a complex of buildings, having spread and built
over centuries of masonry and magical working, all surrounded by a massive
stone wall. Each of these wings of construction had branched off the
original structure, the four, simple, mysterious stones that jutted from the
earth on the precipice, so high in the air. They used those stones rarely
for their workings, using instead the true temple, a circular, tall building
of intricate design that lay in the center of the complex, not the front of
it.
Bellina held the door open for Lenora, as was polite for one lower in rank
to do for one higher. Lenora’s feet echoed softly on the stones, and the
place was quiet but for the rustling sound of the footsteps of the two
women. High above, windows in many colors swirled, and the light fell onto
the floor in multi-colored puddles. There were no benches, and in fact, one
would have been surprised to see that there was no altar, only a ring on the
center of the floor.
Though the stonework was finely crafted, the inside of the temple was very
plain, other than the light. But if one had looked carefully, eyes could
pick out four grotesques, one in each corner of the temple. In fact, if one
looked close enough, they would see that the figures were, in fact, tiny
dragons, the great loving detail paid to their construction worn and faded
away with the centuries they had been unwashed, and let to be dusted from
spiderwebs.
“The Cleansings must begin again, Lenora.”
To that, Lenora stepped inside the floor’s ring, smooth from the many feet
that had walked there. “I will not issue that edict.”
“The spell worked, Lenora, but not even remotely close to how we expected.
They know nothing of our world. The stars fall into alignment too soon, and
the moons will all four be full within the next two months. The day of
destiny is coming too quickly. The witches have already been able to get to
the stone circle. We have to slow them down.”
“I will not have the Cleansings begin again! The kingdoms already stand on
the brink of war. With Aurora’s not being one of the chosen princesses, she
will wed, and that will add stability. It will bring some peace.”
“But what good is that peace, we can’t even protect our world?” Bellina
argued in return, stepping into the circle with Lenora, her dark robes
swirling. “Your predecessors would not have hesitated to issue the edicts.”
To that, Lenora bit her lip, until she winced in pain. For thirty years,
Bellina had been headwoman of Fire Mountain. For her entire life, she had
lived on the slope of the volcano. She had experience that Lenora had not.
An edict from the hand of the High Priestess had the power to command all
four kings. They were rare, and not to be trifled with. All who practice
magic within the four realms owed their allegiance to her first, then to
their king. If her edict was not followed, then the kings would have open
revolt of any who held magic. A war of religion was the most dangerous kind,
for it divided people regardless of their fealty in the secular world.
A civil war could be exactly what the oncoming demons needed.
Lenora didn’t like the idea of a Cleansing. She had seen one before. To
her, they were nothing more than a witch hunt. Which, of course, was exactly
what they were. The silver eyed had been appearing periodically for fifty
years. Some twenty years ago, they began to expand. More and more sorcerers
born had the strangely colored eyes. At first, it had been ignored. A
magical fluke. The older ones did not seem any different than usual
sorcerers, and were regarded only as an oddity.
Then the demons began to appear.
And the fact that the silver eyed could cast illusions came to light.
Together, it struck too much familiarity with the old predictions, and the
tale of the oncoming Silence. Her predecessor had issued the first edict in
over one hundred and eighty years.
Hunt them down.
Any who have the power of illusion also are tainted with shadow, and hence
with darkness, and the power of Chaos. Kill them, before they could kill us.
It was a simple concept, and twenty years ago, the first of the killings had
begun, sweeping through the land.
Now, the choice was Lenora’s. Upon the death of the last High Priestess,
the Cleansings had slowly stopped. But any child who opened their eyes at
birth, to see the world in silver, was conveniently left for the whim of the
gods.
Thinking of the four princesses, Lenora did have to concede Bellina’s
point. They did not seem like soldiers, though they claimed to be. It would
have broken the utmost rules of etiquette to ask them to prove it. Sort of
like introducing yourself as a woman, then being asked to strip naked to be
inspected, just to make sure. Those four didn’t seem like warriors. And in
her heart of hearts, Lenora knew that they would need help. And if the edict
would destroy the witches that would slow them in their quest....
“I, Lenora, High Priestess of Fire Mountain, hereby issue the edict of
Cleansing, for any living person with eyes of color unnatural.”
They quickly discovered why they were not provided with horses on the
mountain top. And why there were no horses at the temple in the first place.
The slopes were steep, the path they took, narrow and rocky. It was no easy
thing, to reach the cleared plain that the shrine sat upon, and the stone
monolith before it. It was lapsing into late afternoon when they ate, still
distant from the treeline, and the relative safety they would find at its
base. There were periods of silence, then of talk, the flow of the
conversation wavering as they walked. And the path grew steeper, more
difficult.
“I still don’t think it makes any sense,” Rei was saying as she leapt down
over a crag in the mountainside. “I mean, they just send us out? They don’t
have any idea of where to find these Crystal Points? Seems pretty strange.”
Makoto leapt down behind her, Ami and Minako next, the loose stones
waterfalling down behind them. “Not really, when you think about it. I mean,
Haruka-san and Michiru-san had the Talismans in them, and they went around
looking for the holders for ages. What I want to know is how we’re going to
get these things. I have a serious problem with the idea of ripping people’s
Heart Crystals out. Daimon always did that. Or Eudial with her big gun
thing.”
“Mako-chan,” said Ami, “we shouldn’t presume that the Talismans and the
Crystal Points are the same thing. They may not even be in humans. For all
we know, they are locations, or medallions of some sort. Surely they are not
inside us, the way they were in Uranus and Neptune. We would know something
like that already.”
“Hai,” Minako sighed tiredly. “Then another senshi? One for this world? A
Saturn?”
That only got a shrug from Ami, and a shake of her azure haired head.
“Well, a senshi for this world or not, we need to know what to tell people
when we see them,” Minako added to the conversation. “I mean, what, when we
talk to people we just say, ‘Hi, my name is Aino Minako, future Princess of
Venus, which may or may not exist in your universe, considering I’m from a
totally different world’? That, and do we go around telling people we’re
trying to collect the Crystal Points?”
“Probably not,” Rei intoned, wiping some hair from her face. “Traveling
between worlds can’t be normal. Magic seems to be more open here, more
widely understood. But we should try to keep a low profile. We don’t know
everything that’s going on, and attracting unwanted attention won’t help.”
The four shared a glance, and there were nods of agreement between them.
They would keep their identities a secret. Unless, of course, totally
necessary.
“All right, I am officially tired of wearing this dress,” Makoto announced
out of the blue. She was now hiking the layers up around her waist, making
the skirt into baggy pants, tucked into her waistline. “Until we see either
really hot men or people who will scream that we have blasphemed some god, I
am wearing it like this!” With a final shove, she tucked the dress in, while
the others shook their heads, pausing a moment as Makoto righted herself,
then began to walk again.
“Actually,” Ami wondered aloud, “did any of you notice there were no
statues in the temple grounds?”
“Nani? What do you mean?”
“Well,” Ami considered, placing a finger to her lips as she thought, “no
statues to gods, or ornamentation....” She stared down at the drop below her
as she walked, and sat down, kicking herself off the ledge. Rei copied her,
but Minako and Mako leapt down, staggering a step on the impact, and Minako
ended up on her knees. “Most religions at least have some sort of symbol.
The area was decorated, but not very much. And everything was so
symmetrical.”
“They never mentioned any gods, either. Weird, for a temple,” Rei extended
a hand to help Minako up.
Irritated as she brushed sharp pebbles and grasses from her newly skinned
knees, Minako shook out her skirts, now dirty. “You know, we’ve been walking
for hours. It’s evening, and we’re still so far from the treeline. And it
just keeps getting harder. You’d think it would get easier as we went down.”
“We’re not that far, Minako-chan,” Rei reminded her, the earth shuddering
under their feet. “But we should hurry,” worried, she cast a glance up to
the volcano. “That rumbling is getting worse....”
“Ami-chan?” Makoto asked, since Ami had begun to look around her, slowly.
After a moment, she pulled out the Mercury computer, and began taking scans.
“There’s a great deal of seismic activity in the volcano. We do need to get
going. And Minako-chan is right,” she began to turn in a slow circle, the
computer humming as data streamed into it. “It should have been easier.
We’ve traveled several kilometers in the last few hours. It shouldn’t be
taking this long.”
“Henshin yo?”
Ami’s face was filled with the light from the monitor, her lip tucked
between her teeth as she frowned in puzzlement. “Hai,” she agreed, and
lifted a hand to the air.
“Mercury Crystal Power!”
“Mars Crystal Power!”
“Jupiter Crystal Power!”
“Venus Crystal Power!”
“Make-up!”
The brightness of their power fluxed around them, water, fire, electricity,
and beams of stars, giving them the power of their planets, of their
crystals. No longer did four young, slightly confused girls stand in there
place, but four Sailor Senshi, ready for battle. They knew, this time, the
most likely person they would face, and this time, they knew, they were
ready. Even as they broke their pose, turning their backs to one another in
a ring, ready to fight, Mercury tapped on her visor, and new data flew
across her vision. But the information did her little good. She saw what she
searched for with her eyes first. Then she said one word. “There.”
Upon the rock they had just leapt down from, the hooded figure stood, face
still hidden in shadow, though they could see the faint brightness of her
eyes reflect on her cheeks. The black folds fell around her, and it seemed
strange she had not attacked during their vulnerable henshin. Their stalker
lifted a hand out from under the cowl, and the world blurred around them, in
the way a curtain folds as it is drawn back from a stage. And the stage they
now stood upon was not nearly as friendly looking as the illusion the witch
had presented. The stage was bare, black, and the sky not unclouded. It was
ash grey, and the distance between them and the treeline increased
threefold. They had been traveling in circles, and had been entirely unaware
of it.
“Stop right there!” Venus began, and to her announcement, the woman’s lips
curved as she smiled. “I am Sailor Venus, and your evil will not be allowed
to harm my friends!” With that, she stepped back, lifting up a hand, and
called out, “Venus Love-me Chain!”
The fine line of golden hearts whipped though the vacant air, impacting
onto the cliff face behind where the woman had stood.
“Where? Mercury? Where!”
Frantically scanning, the data could not detect the figure. “The infrared
isn’t working! It’s too hot! Minna, I can’t get a lock on her!”
Then Venus screamed as she felt something hard impact on her stomach, and
Mars was able to turn her head in time to see the woman’s cloak fade in and
out, vanishing as she struck Venus while invisible. “Coward! Fight us face
to face!”
There was no laughter, but there was a faint sound of amusement as their
invisible attacker replied, “You use your magic against me. Why can’t I use
mine against you?”
Mars, though, was reaching out with her senses, and had drawn out one of
her paper wards. Softly, then growing in power as she summoned her own
magic, the red suited senshi cast her spell, rushing forward as she did so.
“Aku Ryo Tai San!” And the burning paper flew from her fingers, slapping
into the silver eyed witch’s arm.
From an angle, they saw her face, and she was not very pleased with this,
since she suddenly could not summon her illusion of invisibility. Before she
could react any further, Jupiter rushed forward, screaming, “Sparkling Wide
Pressure!” Her ball lightning raced out, and the woman dropped flat, dodging
as it hurled past her head.
“Earth, Mother of us All, protect your daughter,” she said softly, and the
ground began to tremble under them.
“No!” Mercury screamed, “it’s too volatile! It’ll erupt.... Stop! Stop!”
“Air, Breath of Life, aid your sister in my plea....”
But no one was listening to the voice of reason. The stones around them
began to shudder as the witch’s power lifted them from the ground, and they
levitated, then shot forward.
“Fire Soul!”
“Crescent Beam!”
Leaping lithely, the cloak of the woman flew wide as she twirled between
the attacks, the Crescent Beam catching just the tip of the cloth, tearing
it. But even as they did this, the stones were flying forward. Jupiter,
facing Mars, saw it coming behind her friend, unaware she herself was in
danger. “Supreme Thunder!”
The electric energy blast summoned through the antenna of her tiara struck
the rock, blasting it apart in a shower of tiny stones. Mars covered her
head as the pellets rained down, and Venus shrieked in pain as the rock that
was closest to her struck her in the side, sending her reeling into the
dirt, sliding across the rock face.
“Jupiter, behind you!” Mars shouted in warning as she recovered, only in
time to see one of the largest stones impact into the back of the Soldier of
Thunder. As Venus had been, Jupiter was flung from her feet, the shock
sending sparkles into the peripherals of her vision, and she tumbled down
the slope, body catching on an outcropping of bare rock. She hit, and lay
still.
“Mars!” Mercury screamed over the increasing shaking of the ground around
them. “Using our power is unbalancing the energy in the area!” Breaking into
a run, she began to race towards their assailant, who was waiting for her,
seeing that she wasn’t using any magic in this attack. “We’re going to cause
the whole area to erupt! Don’t use any attacks!”
And with that, the Senshi of Water flung herself at the witch. Mercury knew
she wasn’t strong enough to fight her, but she hoped that maybe, just maybe,
Mars would be. And if she could at least slow her down....
“Mercury!” Mars heard and understood the warning, and reached again for the
safer, more reliable wardings she kept. Mercury was lashing out wildly, and
Mars began her chant, red heels clipping hollowly against the rock as she
rushed forward. She saw the witch strike Mercury across the face, a hard
enough blow to send her to her knees. “Aku Ryo...”
But then, the magical energy they had built up in the area was released, or
perhaps absorbed. The power of the volcano rose, almost as though in protest
to the battle on its rocky slope, and the land around them buckled and
shifted, folding in unholy prayer, the rocks upending themselves, reaching
for the dying embers of the sun in the west.
As the fault line broke open under Mars’ feet, the paper became charged,
the final words of, “...Tai San!” being called as red fire broke though,
steaming up into the sky, and enveloping Sailor Mars in its heat. From where
Venus lifted her battered head, she watched it happen, trying to rise to her
feet, and sinking again as the ground rolled under her body. She watched as
the witch struggled to right herself, and strangely, reach forward, a hand
grabbing Mercury’s as they dropped down and vanished from her sight.
“No!” A fist pounded against the earth, the bare stone. “Stop it! Mercury!
Mars! Jupiter! Stop it, stop it, now!”
The last word was screamed with so much authority and power, her gloved
fist impacting against the rock, blazing yellow light lazered across the
surface of the stone, and it mingled with a painful tear. When the light of
Venus’ power faded from the ground, what remained before her was very still.
Covered in dust and ash, she turned to her side, and felt like she needed to
retch. The dizziness of the collision with the rock left her nauseated, and
she stepped forward blindly, collapsing.
It was several minutes before her eyes cleared and the world became
balanced again. The sick feeling did not leave Venus, though now it was for
the apparent death of two, possibly three of her friends. Never so swiftly
had so many senshi died. It couldn’t be. It just couldn’t be. She pulled
herself to her knees, and looked up at the dark sky. The faintest shades of
bloody scarlet still streaked the treetops of the distant lands.
The pebbles dug sharply into her exposed thighs as she dragged herself
along the slope, and searched for where Jupiter had fallen. Standing had
proven to be to sickening, and the nausea had caught her. There was a narrow
chasm now, where Mars had vanished in a blaze of fiery glory. And upturned
rocks, untouched by rain, where Mercury had made her desperate stand.
“Jupiter...don’t leave me alone...Mako-chan, don’t you dare be dead....”
From her vantage point, Venus was able to look down the hill, and see the
body of Sailor Jupiter, half on her side, a few bloody cuts lacing her legs.
In the fog of pain, Venus saw that none of her limbs were crooked. In fact,
the cuts were from a shrub, which Jupiter now lay on. The root was still
sticking out of the hillside. “Let it have been enough....” Venus rolled
down the hill slowly, and ended herself next to Jupiter. She held a hand
over her mouth. “Breathing,” she sighed, and her head sank down onto the
rock. “Good old Mako-chan. Takes a beating and still keeps kicking....” She
tried to smile at her own lame joke, but relief that Jupiter wasn’t dead was
enough to let exhaustion take her. That sparse little shrub. Strange, how
something so insignificant could be enough to break Jupiter’s fall. She
lowered her head, and the blackness set in.
If, perhaps, Pretty Soldier Sailor Venus had remained awake a minute or so
longer, and if she had been able to stand and look down the hill, she would
have seen two other figures, draped over the ground. If she had also been
able to see this, in theory, then she also would have seen the cloaked one
of these figures stir, and move from the strangely protective position she
had landed in, arms wrapped over the head of the girl with her. And also, if
Venus had seen this, she would have seen the so-called witch pull up to her
knees, then, just as slowly, to her feet. And then, just maybe, she would
have seen this witch pick up the unconscious form with her, and slowly make
her way down the mountainside.
But then, this is only if she had been awake.
************************************************************************
Okay, how is it so far? I hope you like reading stuff like this...random
babblings and all. But, it gives me a chance to comment, and doesn’t hurt
anyone. What do you guys think of my silver eyed sorceress? Actually,
several of the characters in this fic (her included) are from stories I
wrote ages and ages ago...not too good. (hence not posted! No, not
Sailormoon stories...original stuff.) These incarnations of them are
interesting to me, to see how they’ve changed...I’ll talk more about that in
the end of next chapter...you’ll meet some more people...and the adventure
will truly begin!
If any of you happen to own Enya’s ‘The Memory of Trees’ CD, you really
should pop it in while reading this. It is, I suppose, the ‘soundtrack’ for
‘Crystal Points’ since I was listening to it the whole way though.
‘Watermark’ or ‘The Celts’ would do nicely as well.... The music of it
ripples thoughout the whole story, and I hope some of its tones and beauty
are reflected here. The second song on ‘Memory of Trees’ is called ‘Anywhere
Is’ and as I’ve listened to it, it really has become the ‘opening theme’ for
‘Crystal Points.’
Remember, you’re always free to email. Good things come back to you.
Until next storytime (which will not be too long, I hope!)
Ja ne!
-Queen
iceaffinity@hotmail.com
_________________________________________________________________
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com
(
geocities.com/tokyo/shrine) (
geocities.com/tokyo)