DarkStar Rising
by DarkStar (of course)
_________________________________________________________
Let us pay tribute and thanks to good old N.T. She has given us
this set of characters from which we authors can work our magic
(whether that magic be for good or evil is for the reader to decide)
but she is not the only one. We shall also thank DIC for the
americanized version. For Characters we have Jason, the Queen, and
the Krell as creations of Wolfbyte. My only guys in this fic are
Cameron Drake, Frell, Melvik, the astronauts and the cloaked figure.
But I'm begining to sound like one of those sunday morning TV
preachers.
Let me just start by saying that this is NOT the original story.
What we have here is the beginning chapter for a revision of my first
story. So if you don't notice much yet don't worry, more changes
shall come later.
________________________________________________________
Prologue:
Once the moon was populated by the Moon Kingdom. It was a
prosperous kingdom ruled by the gentle Queen Serenity. Under her rule
the planets of the Solar system had formed a peaceful union. The
Silver Millennium was populated by the peoples of the Mercury, Venus,
Earth, Mars, Jupiter, and the moon. Each sent their representative to
the Moon Kingdom to serve their Queen and guard her daughter, Princess
Serena. So it was that Princess Amy of Mercury, Princess Mina of
Venus, Prince Darien of Earth, Princess Raye of Mars, and Princess
Lita of Jupiter came to know one another.
In the year prior to the coming of Queen Beryl they were joined
by the peaceful, nomadic Sun People, ruled by the kindly Prince Jason.
Together the many peoples lived together until Beryl came. Her forces
from the Negaverse destroyed the Kingdom. As her last act, Queen
Serenity sent the children of the Moon Kingdom, including Prince
Jason, to their future were they would revive the Moon Kingdom.
But that was 1000 years ago. Now, the moon was a barren husk.
No atmosphere existed here and neither did water. No wind had blown
here for centuries. Only once since had the surface of the moon been
disturbed, that being years before when American astronauts had landed
their. Now the surface of the moon was disturbed once again as a new
American craft landed on its surface. From the landed craft emerged
three figures in bulky suits.
Chapter 1:
-Gifts From On High
He stands in a room of metal. He is surrounded by machines and
computers of types unheard of to normal man. From here he can view
anything happening anywhere on the planet Earth. He has watched since
his life was destroyed, planning for the time when he would settle all
debts. His crippled body limped along on a mechanical leg attached in
place of his lost one. His arm, unable to be replaced, laid limply
at his side. His flesh was flayed from his bones leaving a blooded
mass. Worst was the pain that everyday existence brought, a pain as
that of standing in the hottest flame as it licked the flesh from ones
bones and burning the body from inside out.
And now his time was fast approaching "Soon." his harsh voice
rasped, "Very soon."
* * * * *
Captain James Kyle smiled with ecstasy. He watched his foot
touch the surface of the gray planetoid. It was the first foot to
touch the moon in over two decades. Behind him two of his four
crewmen stepped down from the landing craft. "Sternburg, get the
camera. We need some pictures."
"Yes, sir." the jaunty navigator bounded back up the stairs and
jumped out a second later, camera in hand. He landed light-footed on
the surface, due to the decreased gravity. "Okay, James, smile." He
snapped off five quick shots in a row of his comrades.
James took the camera and snapped off two shots of Craig
Sternburg standing next to the landing capsule. "Okay, time to look
around. Lets get the rover out." he said, approaching the bay
containing the compact auto. Once it was out, he seated himself with
Craig beside him. "Brad you watch the lander. We'll be back in a few
hours."
* * * * *
Two days later, Craig was seated in the lunar rover. They had
explored much of the barren Sea of Serenity. This was their last
exploring mission before lift off and joining with the space
transport, Armstrong. "Hey, Craig, you gonna miss it?"
Craig looked over at Brad Stock, sitting next to him staring at
the Earth on the horizon. "The view, the experience, or the real
estate? They are all pretty spectacular."
"I mean all of them."
"I'll miss the view and the experience. The landscape I could
care less about."
"I just wish it had yielded something more. I mean, where is
the water that was predicted here. After finding the other one down
south you would expect to find more up here." Brad said indicating
the crater. His interior clock beeped at him. "Dang. Time to head
back." He slowly turned the rover around to return to the lander.
A flash of light in the distance grabbed Craig's attention.
"Whoa. Hold up. I think we might have finally found something of
interest. Quick over there." he pointed in the direction the bright
light had emanated from.
"We don't have time. If we don't get back quickly we'll miss
our window. The next mission will find it."
"What if they can't find it? This could be an indication of
life or at least, maybe a water meteorite. We have time to swing by
and get a quick reading."
The scientist and military man inside Brad struggled over what
to do. Finally, the scientist won. "Okay, we'll swing by, get a
reading, and head back. One minute for the scanning. Agreed?"
"Agreed." The rover plowed across the surface until it reached
a small bolder on the outskirts of the crater.
"One minute." Brad reminded.
"One minute." Craig hobbled over to the bolder and began
scanning. The readings showed nothing special. "Damn. Where is it?"
"Come on, lets go. Minutes up."
Craig looked back at the bolder and lower the scanner to his
side where it promptly beeped. Craig jumped and looked down.
Directly beneath the scanner was a pure black stone about the size of
a basketball. "This is it." He grabbed it and hobbled back to the
rover and hopped aboard. "Come on. The equipment in the Armstrong
can give us a better scan." The rover took off toward the lander once
more.
* * * * *
James watched the lunar approach. "They are cutting it to
close." he thought. "Hurry up. Get aboard and latch in." he yelled
at the two astronauts. As the two hobbled over to the shuttle leaving
the disposable rover behind to join its thirty year old brothers on
the moon. It wasn't until they were aboard that he noticed the black
rock. "What is that?"
"We found it in the Sea of Serenity. It gave off a strange glow
when we drove past. I thought we could bring it along and examine it
aboard the ship. If its any danger we can jettison it up there."
James didn't like it but what choice did he have. They didn't
have time to drop it out now. "Secure it and get in your seat."
James climbed up to the control room while Craig climbed down to
storage. "And be quick about it." James yelled as an after thought.
* * * * *
The Armstrong was almost back to Earth. The lander Eagle 2 had
returned to the ship. There the three moon landers and their two
orbiting companions began to unload the samples.
When they had studied the black stone they were disappointed to
find that it contained no ice or water in any form. Rather it was
some strange crystal form contained in the black obsidian, as the
black stone was determined to be. After unsuccessful efforts to chip
away the obsidian they had decided to lock up the stone and save it
for removal on Earth.
No one had thought about the stone since but soon it would be
all that filled their minds.
* * * * *
"Prepare for re-entry blackout." James called out to the other
four astronauts.
"Losing communication now." Zak Trem, one of the orbitors,
called back.
"Well, gentlemen, we're on our own for now." James looked
around the cramped cabin at the people strapped into their seats in
their full spacesuits. Outside the ship the hull was beginning to
redden on both the transport and the attached lander, reusable unlike
its predecessors.
"Cap, I've got a problem." Brad yelled at him.
"Now is NOT the time I want to hear that. What is it?"
"I'm reading energy fluctuations in science section. They're
draining the computer systems."
"Can you do anything about it?"
"I'm having trouble just tracking it."
"Can we make it without those systems?"
"No, sir."
"Can you bypass them?"
"No, again."
James thought for a moment "Can you track it enough that someone
could find it?"
"Yes, sir, but anyone going back there would probably be crushed
by the G's"."
"If we remove the cause do you think the problem will stop?"
"I'm sure of it."
James slapped the release for his seat latches and jumped up.
The G's created by reentry, immediately, threw him back against the
hatch for the command cabin. "Cap, what are you doing?" Craig yelled.
"I'm saving us." James pushed himself up painfully and opened
the hatch. "Brad, give me some readings." He jumped down into the
science section.
"Far end. Locker 15, Cabinet 5B." Brad yelled down to him.
James crawled down to the locker and threw it open. Inside were
rows of cabinets. He found 5B and opened it. Inside was a brightly
glowing, black stone the size of a basketball. He looked around for a
way to dispose of the rock. He locked around but found only useless
doors to crew quarters and lavatories. Finally he looked up and saw
the ladder leading up to the Eagle 2. "Steve, prepare to jettison
landing craft at my word."
He vaulted the ladder and threw open the hatch to the landing
craft. With a single heave he tossed the stone into the Eagle,
slammed the hatch shut, and shut the secondary hatch. "Blow it." he
yelled. With a shudder the landing craft blew off the orbitor and
flew away into the horizon.
James struggled back to the cabin, fell into his seat, and
latched himself in. It wasn't until he was seated that he realized
how much his body hurt. He looked out at the distant flame of the
lander. "Craig, can you predict were its going to land?"
"Yes, sir. Somewhere off the coast of Japan. Sir, the landers
breaking up." James watched the single flame in the distance suddenly
erupt into many fragments raining down on the planet below.
"Damn. Now we'll never find that thing again."
* * * * *
Raye, Amy, Jason, and Lita sat on a hill outside the city
staring up into the sky, hoping to catch a glimpse of the new
spaceship. Jason held Raye in his arms as they sat back under the
stars. They were wrapped in a blanket which kept them both marginally
warm. But they were so happy neither cared. "When is that stupid
thing going to show up?"
Jason looked down at his lovely wife and gave her one of his
lopsided smiles. "Soon, love, soon." She smiled back and then turned
her gaze skyward again.
"Why did I let you talk me into coming out her in the dead of
night? I don't even like space."
"Yes, you do. You might not have used to but I've seen how you
pay attention to any news articles on the shuttles." She hated to
admit it but he was right. Before she met him she could have cared
less about space but now she truly wanted to see the new ship.
She had Jason to blame for it. He always had liked space and
space flight. He had read every book on the subject and their trip to
Yavin 4 with the Jedi Academy earlier that year had been like a dream
come true. He had flown aboard starships from star system to star
system. The decision to return to Earth rather then stay had been a
hard one for him.
All his enthusiasm was infectious. After flying aboard the
Shadow Chaser she found it hard to think bad of space flight.
Of course, even if she hadn't grown to like it she still would
have come out here just to spend time with Jason under the stars.
Jason looked down at his wife and considered again how lucky he
was. He loved her dearly and could never enjoy the evening without
her. When he asked her to come he knew she wouldn't object. She had
grown to love space.
Amy to was in love with the concept of space flight. Jason
looked over at her. She was sitting lower on the hill, computer in
hand, scanning the sky while typing ideally at the miniature device.
Others weren't having as good a time. Lita was sitting not far
off half asleep from boredom. She seemed peaceful and he couldn't
help contemplating what life might have been like if he had fallen in
love with her. He admonished himself. He loved Raye and shouldn't
have been thinking about another woman. Still he watched her. "I
wonder what lucky guy is going to get her for a wife?"
His mind wandered back to his Queen's court. It wandered to
someone Jason knew well. "What ever happened to you, Cameron?" he
thought his eyes still on Lita. "You would have made her a perfect
husband."
As he watched her head lolled in his direction and she smiled
when she say him looking. He smiled back then returned his attentions
to Raye.
Suddenly Amy yelled at them. "There it is. There it is."
Jason's and Raye's heads snapped around to were she was pointing.
Lita jumped up and followed the others gaze. High in the sky they
could see a small orange shape falling through the night sky leaving a
trail of flame behind it. "Its beautiful." Raye murmured.
He looked down at the raven-haired maiden in his arms. "Not as
beautiful as you." he smiled at her again. She looked up at him and
smiled back. "Would you shut up and kiss me."
Jason laughed. He loved her straight forward attitude.
* * * * *
"Its breaking up." Lita yelled. Jason and Raye held their kiss
for a second more then quickly looked up. Sure enough the single
track of flame had separated into a large portion following the
original flight path and a smaller one the was falling away at a steep
angle.
Amy grabbed her computer and began scanning. "That's the lander.
They jettisoned the lander."
"Why would they jettison the lander?" Jason muttered. Suddenly
the smaller object began to breakup. Simultaneously the lander broke
apart into hundreds of small fragments and Amy's computer began to
signal uncontrollably.
Lita ran over to Amy as the blue haired girl tapped out
instructions on her computer. "What's up?"
Jason and Raye ran up and joined the two sailors.
"The computer is detecting a Sailor power crystal." she answered
in a flat tone.
"A Sailor crystal?!" the three other Scouts shouted.
"Where?" asked Lita.
"Up there." Amy pointed up into the night sky at the falling
fragments of space debris.
"Well lets go get it." Lita said excitedly. She began to run
down the hill but stopped when she realized the others weren't
following her. "You coming?"
"Cool it, Lita. There are hundreds of pieces of debris up
there. We need to let them fall before we can locate the crystal.
That is unless you have some ability to home in on our crystals and
aren't telling us."
"Okay." she agreed half-heartedly. She brighten instantly "I'll
go get the others." With that she ran off toward Serena's apartment.
* * * * *
Serena was sitting at the table in her apartment munching on
some cheese snacks with several thin paged books in front of her.
"Serena. Serena" a voice called from the other room.
"In here." she muttered around the crumbs in her mouth. Mina
leaned in and looked at the pile of small thin books on the table.
"Don't you ever read anything other than those comics?"
"Why should I?" she muttered back while flipping a page.
"Whatever. Look I was going out for some dinner and dancing.
Maybe pick up a cute guy while I'm out. Care to join me?"
Serena looked up at her blond friend then down at her comic
books and cheese poofs. "Would you mind if I brought Darien?"
"Not ever."
Serena jumped up smiling and picked up the phone, quickly
dialing in his phone number. It didn't take long for someone to
answer. "Hi Darien. Mina is going out for some dinner and dancing
and wants me to come. I told here I wouldn't think about unless you
would come. You would. Great. We'll meet you at your apartment in a
couple minutes."
"Finished?" Mina asked.
"Yeah. Just let me change." she said indicating her skirt and
short sleeved shirt. She ran out of the room and into her bedroom.
Mina watched her go then quietly walked around the table and opened
the comic Serena had just been reading.
Suddenly the door to the apartment flew open and Lita ran in
panting. "Guys. We were watching the stars and the shuttle and the
ship separated and one part blew up and Amy detected another crystal
and we need to go find it and.." Lita spilled out in one quick blurt.
"Whoa. Slow down." Mina said, trying to calm her exited friend.
"You don't need to say it all in one sentence."
Serena came running out of her room, wearing a button downed
shirt and half pulled up jeans. "Is that Lita I heard?"
"Yeah." Mina shouted back. She offered her green clothed
friend a glass of water that was gladly excepted and swallowed. "Now,
Lita, what happened?" the two blondes looked at her quizzically.
"Raye, Amy, Hothead, and I were watching that new shuttle
reentering orbit when it's lander blew off and flew away. It blew up
and Amy detected a Sailor Power Crystal coming out of the lander.
She's tracing it now but Jason thinks we need to go get it."
Mina and Serena looked at each other then back at Lita. "Another
power crystal?" they both asked.
"Yeah."
"Okay. How far are the others?" Serena asked.
"About two miles."
"Jason's car is just a couple blocks at the condo." Mina
suggested. "Lita, didn't he give you a key a little bit ago."
"Yeah."
"Well lets go." The three girls quickly ran back out of the
apartment leaving the door wide open and one small black cat sleeping
soundly on Serena's bed.
* * * * *
The Queen sat at her thrown in the kingdom of Avalon. She had
been sitting there for far longer then she ever liked to consider.
Hers was a lonely job after all and she couldn't expect others to fill
it for her. At least her daughter was there when the need arose. It
was night now and her daughter, like most of the palace, was asleep,
leaving the Queen to perform her duty in contemplative silence.
Floating in air before her sat a large sphere seeming to contain
a whole other world. It was night there to but the level of activity
might have indicated otherwise. Inside the orb four young people, a
black haired boy and his three lady friends, where watching the
heavens for signs of a chariot to the stars. She knew well about the
mortal vehicles, it was hard for her not to hear of such things, but
they had never interested her as it did those she watched.
Rather it was the band of watchers which she was more interested
in. So youthful were they, so vibrant, and, for two, so loving. One
of the others was to wrapped in the realm of science to be interested
in the workings of the metaphysical energies interacting behind her
between the two lovers. Her companion was to beset by her own woes to
care either. For such sorry creatures as they appeared at first
glance, she knew them to be far more. She had met these children once
at the marriage of the black haired pair, but she had worn a full
concealing gown and veil to not be seen.
Her eyes watched the young man as he kissed his bride; she
watched her own son. Oh, not a son born of her own body, no. He was
a son she had adopted into her home, into her mind, and into her
heart. She had raised him, had shown him many splendors of her realm
but it hadn't been enough. When it came down to choosing between his
love for that girl and the Queen he had chosen the young woman. It
was possibly one of the worst losses she had ever suffered, which only
made the task at hand all the harder.
"So it is time." she thought. A quick clap brought one of her
guards running into the room. He stopped a few feet in front of her
and bowed. "Send for him."
The guard hesitated for a moment. "But, your highness, he is
locked in the stockade for another two days."
"Do you think I do not know that? I was the one who ordered him
put there. Now fetch him."
The guard nodded and turned to leave. It was only from
coincidence that his eyes passed over the orb as the boys face came
into full view. The guard stopped up short gawking, "Isn't that?"
"Yes. It is him." the Queen told him as she fought to keep her
voice steady.
"But did he not vanish three years ago?"
"Yes, that he did. Now run and fetch ..." she didn't have a
chance to finish before the guard turned and bolted out the door to
follow her order. "Now I begin to lose another child." she thought.
A shadow detached itself from the darkness cast by night behind
her thrown. It hobbled over to her in its brown robes. A dry yet
vibrant voice slipped from heavy cloak, "And I lose my son. But it
can be no other way, Queen, we are both to old to do these things.
These things were set in stone before you were even born and we can
not change them. Only these kids can, we must hope they can."
* * * * *
Jason and Raye stared over Amy's shoulder at the map on her
screen. On it was the predicted flight path for the crystal based on
the computer's gathered data. It showed a small red line spiraling
out along a path that led it to "The sea of Japan." Jason muttered.
"About a mile of the coast." Amy said.
"Do you think we should wait for the others?" Raye asked.
"You don't have to." Lita yelled as the three inner senshi ran
up.
"How did you get here so quick without a teleport?" Jason asked.
The three girls looked at each other. Finally Mina answered
"Umm...do remember that new car you bought?"
"Yes." Jason and Raye answered in unison.
"Well, remember it." Lita said. "It's wrapped around a tree over
there." Jason groaned loudly. "Stupid squirrel ran in the way."
"I think we should go get that stone. It will be hitting soon.
We had best use the sailor teleport." Amy piped in.
"Okay." Serena shouted. It had been almost a month since she
had had a need to transform. She enjoyed the experience. In unison
the five girls pulled out pens and held them in front of themselves.
"Mercury Star Power."
"Venus Star Power."
"Mars Star Power."
"Jupiter Star Power."
"Moon Crystal Power." Serena finished.
Jason watched with a smile as the five young womens' clothes were
replaced by their sailor uniforms. Now it was his turn. "Sun Crystal
Power." he yelled. His body floated up into the air and tendrils of
energy surrounded his body forming into his black suit with yellow
gloves and boots. A small red-orange crystal appeared on his
forehead, and two metal strips uncoiled from it. The strips formed
into a headband, and then with a flash his pendant disappeared. To
finish he landed gracefully on the ground. "Time to go he said."
about to teleport them all.
"Sailor teleport." the others yelled and with a bright flash
they were all gone.
* * * * *
A figure all in black stepped through the glowing portal in the
hillside. He looked around at the surrounding country. The beach
which extended as far as could be see, the water that covered all the
way to the horizen without breaking, the high grass covered mounds
much like the one he was perched on now.
Not all that different from the last beach he had left. What
fond memories he had of that, the luau where he started dancing with
those five lovely teenagers, the advice he'd given the ultra depressed
black haired girl and her blue wearing friend, and especially the
night he had spent with the tall brunette. Had she ever had some
problems but last he'd seen she was certainly doing better. Oh what
had that been? One, two days ago? About that. Of course for those
girls about four or five years would have passed. That brunette was
now older then he was, "To bad." he thought. "Sometimes this sort of
thing can be a real pain."
Below him crashed waves across the shore. He certainly would
have liked to have sat there and listened to the crashing water,
either alone or perferably with someone, the brunette came to mind, or
to just sit next to the water and let it run over his feet. "Why
can't home have beaches like this? Always with the perfectly flat sea
and the perfectly flat beaches. So boring."
But now he had a mission. High overhead the fragments of the
lander were falling. One in particular was of interest to him. He
pulled out a smaller computer, not unlike a miniature version of Amy's
and pointed it up at the falling wreckage. The screen showed him all
the falling pieces, one highlighted by a red light. That was the one
he wanted.
He watched the piece fall closer and closer to the water through
his bulky night vision goggles. As it fell closer and closer a glow
formed about the mans fist as arcs of blue jumped from a small box at
the mans hip. Just before touching water the mans arm shot up toward
it and the blue orb of energy that had formed around his hand jumped
outward at the speed of light.
The orb caught the falling chunk, a very peculiar chunk of black
onyx, stopping it dead in the air and slowly it began floating across
the water toward the man in black. As it neared he reached out and
took the basketball sized stone into a bag. With it now in his
possession his job was almost finished, all that was left was to
return home with the prize.
But the man hesitated. He stood staring out at the darkness and
the single giant orb that dominated the sky. Not far away, hidden in
the darkness, was a long stretch of white. The Milky Way. And there
far off in the other direction the highly visible stars of Orion's
Belt. A smile spread, he'd probably never look at those things the
same way again, not after his little Hawaii trip. Too bad he'd gotten
into so much trouble over it.
"Portal Closing. Ten Seconds." the small computer plug he'd
slipped into his ear blipped at him. "Why can't it ever have some
good timing?" he muttered. He turned and stepped back through the
portal which quickly vanished behind him.
* * * * *
A short distance up the beach six figures appeared in a blaze of
light. "Hey, I was going to do that." Jason protested. The five
girls were all smiling inanely at him.
Raye curled an arm around his, smiling "We know."
Jason's sour face broke into a smile and he gave his wife a
gently kiss, complete with fireworks. He finally ended the kiss when
both decided they needed to breath. "So, where is this crystal?"
Amy pulled out her microcomputer and began typing in commands.
"Hey, its gone." she was bewildered.
"What do you mean gone?" Jason asked her. The six sailors all
stared out to sea where it was predicted that the stone would hit.
"I mean, I'm not reading anything out there."
"Maybe it already hit and you can't read it underwater?" Lita
suggested.
"Maybe you tracked the wrong piece?" Mina offered.
"Maybe ... ummm... maybe someone else has it and is hiding it?"
Serena piped in, not wanting to be outdone.
"No. My computer could detect it anywhere on Earth. Its just
not here."
Jason's face hardened "Then the question is: where is it and how
did it get there."
______________________________________________________________________ Hmmmm.. a mysterious, highly destructive crystal found in the
Sea of Serenity. An equally mysterious man in black appearing and
disappearing at will. A strange, crippled watcher plotting a
revenge.Very interesting, wouldn't you say?
Sorry if the beginning seems a little unusual but it was
something I've been wondering about a lot, when are we goingback to
the moon? But the astronauts won't be making another appearance in
this story so don't worry.
I hope you have found this a satisfactory story and I hope you
will find the other chapters equally interesting. To assure it is
more interesting to you, E-mail me with your ideas.
Dark_Star000@hotmail.com