Chapter 1: Far-Folded Mists and Gleaming Halls of Morn: The Mysterious Pegasus and the Fair Maiden
Summary:
"Our high school time is about to start!"
"Isn't it great? After all this time, so much will change for us."
"Hey, did you see what happened during that eclipse? Something dark is coming."
"Nooooo, my quiet high school life!"Far-Folded Mists and Gleaming Halls of Morn: The Mysterious Pegasus and the Fair Maiden
In the name of the Moon and Stars, we'll punish you!
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
Far-Folded Mists and Gleaming Halls of Morn: The Mysterious Pegasus and the Fair Maiden
Her footprints echoed down the street as she ran, following the sound of a bell and the neighing of a horse that echoes through the nighttime. The city seems to change as she runs down the sidewalk, sometimes that of the city she’d known, her home of Crystal Tokyo, and other times the city she lives in now. At other points, she turns and there are other sights - the city in a time she’d only heard of in history books, fires of a war fought long ago, but it all blends and morphs as she chases after something. Someone.
The soft moonlight illuminates the meadow she finds herself in, the open area free of trees and city lights allowing her to see all of the stars above. They turn and swirl, like glitter in a water vortex, while below the grass and stones ripple like they’re under a clear lake she’s walking on. She looks around before seeing a small island nearby, and what seems like a golden glow coming from it.
“ Maiden…”
She stops at the crumbling column before a lake so clear it makes it seem like she’s seeing a mirror. In the middle, a huge archway stood before a fairy ring of brilliant flowers and small mushrooms. She stops at the entrance, her power flowing as she thinks she sees a horse in the distance, but two huge wings sprout from its back, a golden horn glittering on its forehead. Next to it, a young man looks up at her, his eyes a golden hue that seems to shift between a brilliant yellow and a cooler red. His light blue hair flutters in the wind as he speaks again.
“ Maiden, you must wake up.”
Chibiusa blinks as she sits up groggily, Usagi coming up and saying something about them going to be late. It takes her a moment to recall that they were going to see an eclipse that was due to happen later today.
It also meant it was almost time for her to return home.
Anduin sits next to Minako in the spot they’d found for everyone, relaxing in the cool day as the others slowly gather with them. Despite all that he’d done to try to catch up, Anduin had failed to join the others at Juuban High School. At least Motoki is willing to let him keep up their original arrangement until they know it’s time for him to return home himself.
The thought is one that he’s been having more and more recently, along with how he wishes for a way to travel between the two worlds with the others. It would be nice to bring Rei and Minako to Azeroth, Minako so they could continue or end their relationship in a more natural course, and Rei so she might meet Velen and the others.
Of course, introducing those two, or any of the others, to the Alliance would be chaotic. He could see Tyrande and the other Night Elves being quite surprised at Usagi or Chibiusa - literal embodiments of Elune and the Child-Moon, let alone Mamoru meeting with them. Ami would say something and the gnomes and more mechanically-natured Humans or Dwarves might be excited to hear more. Makoto’s baking alone might bring shame to some of the bakers of Stormwind, not to mention the adventurers who dabbled in baking and traveling.…
If they’d managed to convince Haruka and Michiru as well to join, the chaos would be at its peak, mostly because he’s sure the strict Genn Greymane or the other conservatives of the Alliance would not be able to figure out how to deal with Haruka being themselves. If they said anything, though, Father might get a laugh out of them underestimating Michiru when she rose to the occasion in a fight. They had mentioned once it was Michiru who, like Minako, awakened alone, and neither found themselves wanting to bring the rest into the dangers of what was to come.
The distance also makes Anduin hopeful about learning a new way to approach the Horde. Going through Go’el - Thrall - or Baine is going to be difficult, since they had sway but only so much after Garrosh’s tactics won the Horde more control over Kalindor. Anduin doubts highly that it’s changed in the three years since he’d been gone, though he suspects the addition of Pandarians might have managed to get in some cooler heads.
Still, getting Garrosh to speak and understand would be important. A solid middle ground would go a long way towards keeping things safe. Of course, that would not mean it was a fix - the fanatical Night Elves who viewed the Orcs as interlopers into Kalindor and who also viewed the trees as too sacred to even take from would not be happy about giving usable land to Orgrimmar. Jaina would see it as a reward for what they did to Theramore. They wouldn’t see that it was a way to help both the gentler Tauren and the Orcs, thus resolving a part of the conflict, and would claim they had rule over it all, as much as the Sin’dorei claimed their land was sacred despite the Troll’s claim over the same area.
It was all of what he was busy with looking into, reading over various treaties and the histories of this world. Added to those readings was the end result of those treaties - the anger, hurt, and even escalated conflicts that were slowly fading from this world’s history, but still was deep in the heart of many who’s peoples had been decimated, scattered, or otherwise wounded by a foe.
“There you are!” Anduin sits up as Usagi, Mamoru, and Chibiusa wave at them. From another direction, Rei wanders in while Ami and Makoto come in, Ami with a thick magazine and Makoto with a basket of what he guesses is food.
Rei sits on the other side of Anduin, Makoto and Ami spreading out their own blanket to sit on, Chibiusa joins them while Usagi and Mamoru stand, passing out the sunglasses and darkened viewers for when the eclipse began. Ami reads through a magazine she’d picked up about the eclipse - though there were such phenomena every decade or so, this one and the alignment of planets only occurred once every millennia.
“Aren’t eclipses rare on Azeroth?” Chibiusa’s question, as well as being surrounded by his friends, has helped to stop his melancholy thoughts. If anything, he enjoys it when they ask about his home, and he can do his best to explain the world to them.
“Somewhat. I’ve heard that the dragons revere them as a time of meetings and awakening their powers. But we also have two moons - the Mother,” he smiles at Usagi, then taps Chibiusa on the nose, “and the Child.”
“It’s not called that!”
Usagi giggles and nods as Chibiusa pouts. Minako sighs, leaning against him.
“That sounds dreamy…”
“It can be,” he admits, thinking of the night time in Stormwind, the way the stars looked outside of the crash of the Exodar in Ammon Vale, or even when he’d seen the sky in Theramore. “It’s simply a different look at the night sky. Sometimes I think I see constellations that, if looked at in another way, I might have seen them while stargazing.”
“Even here on Earth, you can look up and see similar stars,” Rei states as she also leans against him, “you’ll just have to find the ones to show us, Minako especially.”
“The galaxy is large, and the universe is vast,” Ami spoke up, Makoto sitting next to her and Chibiusa, “So finding that constellation to cluster of stars is a boon, that shows how alike our worlds are.”
“It’s romantic,” Makoto says with a smile, “knowing that even in such a big universe, you could find that one spot to connect with each other.”
Chibiusa sighs deeply, in a way that makes Anduin think she’s trying to grow up a bit too fast. He’d sighed like that before he went to stay with Velen and the Dranaei, and at other times when he spoke to his father. He’s glad that they both, despite being so sheltered and cared for, got this chance to grow without the watchful eyes of their parents and others. That they could find a way to grow, and then return to show that growth as well.
Perhaps that was why the power in Chibiusa had stagnated her growth to that of a small child until recently. A sign of her inability to see past a childish thought, and now….
“It’s starting.” Mamoru’s voice brings him to the present as they put on their glasses or hold the darkened glass above their eyes. He looks up, watching as the Sun’s glow slowly begins to fade.
“An eclipse is a time that the dragons are said to gain power,” Lady Prestor tells him in his studies, “but more importantly, it is an event that can only occur once every few thousand years, and few places on Azeroth are privy to the sight.”
“Why is that?”
She hums in thought before answering. “Think of it as you look out and down to the city below. You would see the ones as insects below you - without any distinguishing features. All things larger than them cast shadows upon their paths. Yet do you see how, of the whole ground, the shadow might only cover a small area of the larger city?” She smiles sickly-sweet at him as he frowns and holds the quill between his fingers, not writing down anything just yet.
“Shadows, cast by the larger and more powerful beings, move with them. Their omens are only good for as long as they might tell someone that they are being watched.”
“But the Light is--.”
“Light only exists for so long. Even moonlight is temporary…” she stops, tilting her head, before adding, “but so too is the Dark….”
The moon covers the sun, a brief blink of light on the edge as a chill sets in.
“...depending on where you are, the dark can be as all-encompassing as the Light.” She walks slowly behind him, circling like a panther circles its prey, “One never negates the other, but is the definition of its absence.”
It’s dark enough that he doesn’t need to look through the glass anymore, yet it feels too cold and dark. He feels something flit across his shoulders, a phantom touch or memory before he hears cruel laughter all around, and sees something move through the darkened sky, twinkles of light glittering like fine glass in the sand.
Strange pieces falling from the sky, glittering as a ship of bones--
“Anduin?”
He blinks and looks over at Minako, who seems curious about something as the darkness begins to disappear. “Did you see something?”
“I’m…not sure.” The light of the sun is already blinding, as if trying to erase the linger dread he’d felt.
Rei touches his back as above them, the two crows from the shrine fly overhead, letting out angry caws. The trio looks up as two feathers fall down, between them a card that Rei catches easily before showing to Anduin. “What do you make of it?”
He looks at the odd card - a fortuneteller’s card of some sort, with a half-full moon smiling down at a river, with a strange water animal flanked by two barking dogs…no, wolves or wild dogs of some sort.
“Mystery, a threat hidden from our view, but that can be made briefly visible.” He pauses, thinking. “Intuition…something to do with the unconscious.”
Rei nods in agreement as Anduin notices that the others are around, all of them looking worried. He glances at Usagi, noticing that she and the others are already in protective stances - her in front of Mamoru, the others around them. Only he and Chibiusa seem to be the odd ones out, though he doubts it's intentional.
Something else had seemed to alert them to what was going on - not just the attack on the Moon Princess, but the other, underlying danger that bubbles up to the surface. The whole thing makes him shiver as the group shifts and heads to the Crown. Though they were already heading there, the mood was now one of getting ready for the next battle.
The shadows laughed and danced in the darkness of the tent, showing off their talents as they joked and jeered about the townspeople below. The slow beat of the oars on air seemed in time with the music of the calliope and the other instruments being played, old and worn and better seen in forgotten courts and old, rotten places.
”ENOUGH!” The booming, old voice gets the laughter to instantly stop, the shadows bowing and disappearing beneath the center ring before, at the huge stage on top of the elephant statue shines with a faint light. The old creature stretches out, the tall staff looking like it was made of bone as an eyeball with a bit of fire above it looks around, flapping its wings quickly before it settles on the top of what looks like the large femur or leg bone. The bug-like old being looks out before banging their staff three times on the ground. “Amazon Trio! Where are you?”
A whorl of water spins into a circle, moving up to reveal an elvin being with long blue hair, puffy blue suit that seems like bubbles all over their body, and webbed hands with green fish scales over clawed fingers. “Fisheye, present.”
A tornado of dusty wind and feathers spins to a circle, moving up to reveal a pink-haired elvin being with short, windy hair and a sash across their chest, a skirt and tights going up while brown gloves with feathers at the end adorn their hands. “Hawkseye, present.”
A wave of heat curled into a swirling inferno of fire, spinning up to reveal the final elvin being with long, orange hair with a white top, a black speedo and tiger-stripe tights covering their legs as they bow, a circus trainer whip in their hand. “Tigerseye, present.”
The Trio bowed before the old being as they awaited their order.
“Go out and learn of the dreams of this place,” the old crone said as their skeletal fingers moved out, “We must be ready to have them. As well, keep an eye out - the Pegasus that our beautiful queen has been working on taming escaped, and is hiding somewhere in this city.”
“What a naughty creature!” Tigerseye states in anger. “Master Zirconia, let me go out and find the Pegasus to bring it back.”
”And if it’s not where you could smell it out? I, Hawkseye, can find them easily enough.”
”You two do what you will. I, Fisheye, am fine with finding all the dreams we need instead of going after that ungrateful Pegasus.”
”QUIET!” The Trio and the rest of the laughing shadows fall silent. “You three will go out and learn the dreams of this place, and keep an eye out for Pegasus. He is dangerous and may go to try to find others if you try to capture him without any aid! If they utilize his power before our beautiful queen, then it will be on you three! Understood?”
The Trio bow. “Understood, Master Zirconia.”
Zirconia bangs the staff three times, getting the dark circus to fall silent as everyone looks up and waits.
“Always remember not to forget—.”
”—a child’s dream is a dream you can never get.” The Trio spoke the next line in a near dreamlike state as other words echoed throughout the rest of the Circus.
”Dream and dream, don’t doubt it. Dream and dream as children dream.”
There is laughter, but it’s cruel. Within it, he hears screams and anger, and voices chattering over and over before screaming again and again.
He turns as four voices speak in one tone, “In the circus, in the darkness, we don’t have--”
The dark blue landscape is frozen over, with webs like that of a spider having wrapped around crystals and landscapes far into the distance. A chill wind blows through as he hears the whispers of those trapped again, of strange echoing screams that reminds him of stories he’d heard - whispers in the dark, the eternal cries in doomed cities….
As he turns, he sees a darkened temple, one that makes him frown as he walks into it. A garden of rose bushes, all dead, ring the area as familiar power seems to seep into the very stones he walks upon. At the top, he sees a darkened mirror, like polished obsidian, but it makes him stop as he realizes the white frame of it is made of bleached bones that…that are still--
Anduin and Rei shake themselves as there’s a sudden rattling that gets both to jump up. While Anduin is trusted with most of the area, he doesn’t go to many of the areas beyond a few that have helped him with learning more about his spiritual power. However, caring for the sacred objects is Rei’s job, and she easily races ahead of him to where the sound is coming from. Her grandfather is ahead of Anduin, but all three make it to the inner area before he sees it.
This temple has a sacred mirror, and there is a strange, dangerous shadow moving over it.
Both Rei and her grandfather work quickly, Rei chanting as Anduin, hoping to aid them in some way, throws up a ball of Light that quickly banishes the weaker parts of the attacking shadow and radiates off the dark surface of the sacred mirror. Hino-san finishes the chant first, throwing out a paper to try to seal it, before he lets out a pained cry. Anduin rushes forward, catching him, as Rei finishes and throws. Hers lands and chases the darkness away, but Anduin’s focus is on Hino-san.
“Grandpa,” Rei rushes to sit next to him, watching as Anduin takes in a small breath to focus and heal him. Whatever they both saw or sensed, this was not a good sign, anymore than other sensations. It felt like something was starting to cover them. He’d only ever felt this same sensation when Onyxia was at full power in Stormwind.
The reminder makes him shiver before he pushes the thought out of his mind and concentrates. It doesn’t take long for Hino-san to recover enough for the two to lead him to rest in his own room. Going back to clean up the mess their rush had made and ensure the fire was still going, Rei sighs in worry. As they head out into the night, the dark shapes of the two crows as they land on Rei’s shoulder and hand gets him to realize how dangerous this would be, if they aren’t careful.
“You thought of something like that power,” Rei says as she pets one of them.
“Yes,” Anduin tells her, letting out a breath. “In my youth, a dragon tried to take and weaken Stormwind - not that we might fall to the orcs completely, but for some other reason related, I think, to her flight’s leader.” The reminder of Onyxia as she had been, as she’d transformed into, makes him let out a breath to steady himself. Why think of that after so long? Was it the magic used, or something else?
Rei is quiet, one of the crows hopping to his shoulder and rubbing its soft feathers against his skin. He slowly petted the bird before glancing at Rei. “So…you are taking this threat seriously?”
He yelps as the crow pulls on his ear and Rei glares at him, then motions for the crow to come back to her. “Yes, yes. We’ll have to tell the others as soon as we can. But I also don’t like it. That wasn’t the only thing at work from our new enemy.”
Notes:
"A new enemy has already appeared! What can we do? Our powers are gone after that last battle!"
"We have to try, no matter what!"Next time: Come Over Us, The Silver Star: The Gorgeous Transformation of the Moon and Child
The moonlight is a messenger of love.
Chapter 2: Come Over us, The Silver Star: The Gorgeous Transformation of Moon and Child
Summary:
Chibiusa's dreams become more and more strange, but with the arrival of odd fliers for a "Shadow Show" and the new enemies, she knows the Pegasus of her dreams will help them out. Meanwhile, Anduin and the others realize that there's more history to the Silver Millennium and the Knight before him than they have, and it could create problems...
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
Close Over Us, The Silver Star: The Gorgeous Transformation of the Moon and Child
Her footsteps echo as she runs, the ripples at each step on the ground that flows like water, the city and forest melding together as she pauses, hearing the sound of the bell and horse again. She looks around, finding herself flying on the winged pegasus with a golden horn on its forehead, just below a red gem like that of the young man she’d seen before.
Below them, she sees much of the city spread below her, but something seems weird about it.
“ You see it, maiden? The stakes are placed, and soon they will begin. ”
She looks around, then down, seeing what looks like a great black circle in the center of town, near the huge open area where they’d gone to see the eclipse. The glittering shards of what look like broken glass shine above, like a cloud, as it swirls in a circle that grows bigger and bigger.
“What will begin?”
“ The Dead Moon Circus. ”
Chibiusa blinks as she wakes up, looking out the window of her room in the upper part of the Tsukino household. The sunlight outside seemed to dispel the odd dream from last night. Still, the sensation of something creeping up, threatening them, seemed to hang in the air as she went out to visit the computer in the basement of the Crown Arcade.
She’s surprised to see a strange flyer as she heads in, one that looks almost like the Takabana fliers she’d seen before.
COMING SOON!
THE PANDEMONIUM SHADOW SHOW OF THE AMAZON!
The rest was mostly odd words about some big event coming in, but she didn’t see anything else. If anything, it seemed like the words were ready to move at any time, depending on who was there.
“Oh, you found them,” Anduin’s voice gets her to look up at him. “They went up last night, it seems.” The two walk back to the secret basement where Luna and Artemis are already looking over one of the papers. While both were similar, there were subtle differences that the computer picked up, but nothing else. Chibiusa sighs in annoyance at it - she thought it could be something, and was a bit annoyed that someone else had seen it before her.
“ By the prickling of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes… ”
Chibiusa looks up at Anduin as he says, “It was from a play I was reading earlier - Shakespeare’s Macbeth . The story of a man who became king, but at a great cost. I heard the line was used later for another story, a warning of what we wish for.”
“I wish I could be older….”
He chuckles and pats her head, “It’s a lovely dream, but that shouldn’t be your only one.”
“You try being six for six hundred years, see if you don’t want to grow up…” she mutters as he smiles and barely manages to contain his giggles at her glare.
“A good point.” He seems to agree with her, at least. “But what brought you here so early?”
Recalling the dream and its strange premonition, Chibiusa shifts before answering. “I had a…dream. Anduin, can you come with me to check on something?”
He nods, getting her to smile as she drags him up and out of the basement and back out into the city. The search quickly changes to a shopping trip when she finds a crystal bell that jingles with the same sound she heard in her dream. Anduin looks over some of the items but ultimately gets Chibiusa the bell over anything else, having her happily hum as they walk off before they hear Usagi’s own gleeful cheers, signaling that she was out with Mamoru nearby.
Chibiusa does her best to not groan or show her dismay. For some reason, she wasn’t quite up for seeing them or how happy they were. It only reminded her that she was still just a child, that for all she’d advanced, she was still a Soldier-in-training, and though it was nearing the time for her to return home, she didn’t want to go back to that peaceful time if it meant stagnation again - another six hundred years of being a child, of being just Princess Lady Serenity.
Of being the daughter of the Immortal Neo-Queen Serenity, the ruler of Crystal Tokyo, who was beautiful and powerful while she was just--
“Hey,” Anduin’s voice brings her back to the present, his warm smile and understanding making her lean against him. “Should we keep going? I can always ask the others to help.”
Before Chibiusa can respond, a scream gets them both to look up, nodding as they race towards the alley it came from. Usagi and Mamoru arrive at the same time, both groups looking down at a man with long orange hair and a strange outfit glancing away from a woman. She appeared to be on a board of some sort, like the type used for magicians before they threw knives at their assistants.
“How rude, interrupting our talk.” The look in his eyes gets Chibiusa to shrink back, Anduin looking nervous as the man pulls on a whip in his hand. “And when we were looking into their dream to see what they might want. You’d take that away from them?”
“If it means they don’t have to deal with you ,” Anduin states as Chibiusa rushes to hide and transform with Usagi nearby, “I’ll be as rude as need be.”
Tuxedo Mask jumps down to free the woman as Sailor Moon and Sailor Chibimoon rush to attack the new enemy. Anduin ducks away as the trio fight him. Sailor Chibimoon glances over when she hears Anduin suck in a breath. He hasn’t quite transformed - something seems to be missing.
Sailor Chibimoon sees him looking down at the bracelet in surprise before shaking his head at her. “It’s fine, you have to keep the woman safe!”
Chibimoon watches as Sailor Moon tries to bring up the Rod from before as nothing comes up to her or Chibimoon’s call, not even the one from before they transformed into their Super forms. Chibimoon finds herself shivering in confusion and fear. What was going on?
“My, do you have stage fright?”
Sailor Chibimoon freezes as Sailor Moon and Knight Phobeus get between her and the man, Tuxedo Mask cutting off his escape as she sees the woman has been put to the side and the barrier is still up.
But why? Why don’t we have our….
Sailor Chibimoon gasps as she remembers - they’d been given to SuperSailor Moon, before--
“Moon Tiara Action!”
“[Penance!]”
“Tuxedo Smoking Bomber!”
The man dodges easily, leaping behind the three before he chuckles as dark clouds appear, getting the trio to move and try to keep Sailor Chibimoon safe. “Go forth, my lemures! Take care of these interlopers!”
The barrier goes up around them, Knight Phobeus pulling in a pained breath as sparks start to fly around both the one around them and the one around the unconscious victim. The dark balls of inky blackness swarm, more and more seeming to come from some unknown place. He begins to shake, sweat beading on his brow as he holds up the two shields around them.
“Phobeus!”
“I’m…fine,” he grounds out through gritted teeth, “get…ready…to…”
“No! There has to be something we can do! Someone…” Chibimoon claps her hands, throwing out a desperate prayer, “ Anyone! Help us!”
The explosion of light throws off the enemy as the man flees through a ring of fire. She opens her eyes and sees….
“ Maiden, I will help you and the others who protect this sacred land,” the Pegasus from her dreams stands before her, bowing his head low as the golden horn glows brightly. She reaches out a hand to gently touch its face, wondering as the sights she briefly sees before the crystal bell Anduin had bought her lands in her hands. “ Call forth my power, and allow it to aid your family and friends.”
She nods, holding the bell high above her head as she sees the Lemures begin to rush back at them. “Pegasus, protect our dreams! TWINKLE YELL!”
Sailor Chibimoon feels her own power swell as well. She holds the bell up as it transforms, the handle heart-shaped as the bell lets out a choral ring, blasting out a ring of power that destroys some of the enemies, pushing back the rest.
The Pegasus reared up, the golden horn glowing brightly as a crystal kaleidoscope glows before Sailor Moon. As she takes it up, her outfit transforms into the brighter white of SuperSailor Moon that Chibiusa had only seen briefly in the fight against the Death Busters, near the end of the battle. SuperSailor Moon takes up the new weapon at the handle, the color twirling in an array of light scattered through crystal and glass, as she yells out, “Moon Gorgeous Meditation!”
The lemures all are vanquished in the one blow, everything calming down as they all look over to the Pegasus as it begins to fade away.
“ Maiden, protect this world…help us… ”
The Pegasus disappears in a shower of blinking light as the group look at each other. She thought that, just for a moment, she saw what looked like a young man with sad eyes, just like those of the Pegasus she’d met.
“Maiden…” She and Usagi whisper quietly.
“Is she talking about me?”
Anduin and Tuxedo Mask sigh as the two begin to squabble. Anduin goes to check on the unconscious woman, leaving Tuxedo Mask to try to calm the two down.
The Inner Soldiers gather as they scan the now-glowing bracelet, Chibiusa and Usagi having gone to check up on something with Mamoru. Anduin is a bit surprised that the Astraea now seemed all but doused in energy and having changed into something new. Unlike the opal-like gems from before, these are far more spherical, and the dark edge from Nemesis’ power is now moving into etching inside of the now-solid silver band, transforming into a strange script.
“Now,” Luna says after scanning the bracelet, “call up your normal power.”
Anduin and the others start, recalling the time he’d had those nightmares when he’d first tried, but Luna just nods to him. Trusting that she or Artemis could help if anything bad happens, Anduin lets out a breath and concentrates, frowning as he senses something…has changed.
“What do you notice?”
He finds himself relaxing in the strange sensation, attempting to figure it out. The Light was warm, wrapping him up like father’s large cloak on a cold day when they sat before the fire.
“My mana is more attuned to the power of a Knight. It’s…Light, as before, but a different…type, or….” He frowns, unable to find the words to describe it beyond realizing how much more there was than what even Velen might have taught him. Like he’d just realized that the points of Light he’d learned about where it came from, and seen a veil over something larger than he could explain.
“Is this due to what happened in the Omega Area? The power I used to go into that place?” He doesn’t remember a lot of what happened, having been so engulfed in that power as it guided him to that final star…to the crystal that Sailor Saturn held. Her….
Artemis’ answer brings him out of the hazy memories, “It’s likely. However, information about Knights, and even the last Knight in this area, is rather lacking.”
Anduin nods in understanding before letting out a sigh of frustration. All he’d seen and heard of his presence indicates that, even though his life was originally finite, he’d gambled to try to gain immortality. “The Tithonus Curse…Mamoru and Haruka mentioned it. Maybe the Earth Kingdom would have more information, or different information we can use?”
Minako leans her head against him, getting him to relax as the two cats and Ami look over at the large computer. He thinks of his upset over the idea of leaving her, but how both understood their time together would end. Her home and purpose was here, and his was on Azeroth.
Did the other Knight not want to return…or couldn’t return for some reason?
The thought of what Nemesis had said, the way the Outers had been so angry at the Inner Soldiers and him…had that all come from what resulted from the Knight and his actions?
A part of him could understand the desire to remain. Here, he was his own person. He was also Ami’s accomplished student who, though he didn’t get in with them to high school, now managed far better than any who started where he had; Makoto’s friend who learned all sorts of things from her and never called her less of a woman for it; Rei’s student that, though they argued and fought, could hold his own against evil entities now. Minako’s lover, who would not shy away from her “curse”, and who would not be saddened that he knew she would always pick her duty first.
On Azeroth, he was the Prince of Stormwind, the leader of the Humans of Stormwind. He was the apprentice of Prophet Velen, and was a beloved person to Jaina Proudmoore, the new leader of Dalaran and the once-ruler of Theramore. His status allowed him to be a diplomat, but mostly, he was Varian Wrynn’s son, who wanted something stupid called ‘peace’.
Even here, he’d ended up looking up something that could better help his home when he finally returned. However, that didn’t stop them from seeing him as Anduin, as himself , and understanding why he did it.
“Here.” Luna’s voice brings him out of his thoughts as they see a grainy image of a circle with a spear through the top and coming out the other end, like an axis on a globe. A script, similar to that on his bracelet, is placed over another one that has a very distinct look to it as well. “‘Coeus, the Pole-star Knight. He appeared shortly before Queen Selenity, and aided in building the Silver Millennium. He took up the Tithonus Curse to remain by the side of the Soldier he loved, forsaking his homeland. His body decayed, but he remained, a shadow upon the mirror.’” Luna hums as she taps a few more times. “Strange. Nothing else is there.”
“Nothing else?” Ami’s confusion was evident as Luna shakes her head.
“While the Silver Millennium had power and abilities far beyond what we do now, the records of before Queen Selenity arose to power were, even then, scarce. Artemis and I arrived after you four had become the Guardian Soldiers of Princess Serenity. As such, even the computer and official notice had nothing about the Outers until they appeared last year, yet it has nothing about Sailor Saturn or Sailor Pluto, beyond epitaphs that were fragmented.”
He says nothing as the mood sours, glancing instead at the script. He’d not seen anything like it - even the holy text that Velen had brought with them was not similar.
“It’s like the script on the Holy Moon Sword,” Minako’s voice gets him to look at her as she holds out her hand, summoning the blackened sword he’d only ever seen in an attack, holding it with the same ease Father held Shalamayne. “The symbol of my authority as the leader of the Inner Soldiers. I geládun ilumá cerún elá, Thási ípula irá térmia cristía íli cor-désu le vupá. Perféctu térmiu árgientu cristíu hávae, ne Lúni manílle furtúne empérae. Lúni divíne turúne alá oratíe dárae, ne pásia thasúne alá le tiverá.” As she says it, the script dances brightly on the Sword, allowing him to see it more clearly. Still….
“You said the black part was from Nemesis, the remains of the Soldier’s power,” Minako continues as he looks to her, “I can’t read it, even though I normally could read things from our past lives after we regained our memories for the second time.”
The Sword disappears as the group thinks about it. Anduin glances at the script again, wondering at the differences, and why, after hearing Minako say that, he felt something was…wrong.
Mamoru grimaces as he takes in a shaky breath, the pain seeming to grow from a point in his chest. Damn it . What was it? Something from his family’s history? Something else - a premonition of what they’d seen?
He’d begun to feel it while they were fighting too, and pushed through it as much as he could. It was sheer luck and the residual power that Anduin had - the power he called Light - that had allowed him to send Usako off with a smile before nearly collapsing.
I shouldn’t keep this from her…but if I tell her, she’ll worry about this as well…I can’t keep being so useless.
The thought makes him shake a bit from laughter. Didn’t Anduin call him a useless prince before? Though he’d worked to not be so useless, it still felt like all he did was be there for Usako to worry about and save.
He reaches to get the communicator, only for the pain to spike and he briefly hears Usako and Chibiusa let out twin cries of worry before everything went dark.
Notes:
So I am definitely letting "Something Wicked This Way Comes" influence how I write the arrival and slow take-over of the Dead Moon Circus. But only because the 90s anime and the Crystal movie (aka the manga) tends to not play up on that. If you haven't read it, please do so! Quintessential "evil circus selling dreams for a price" and also "OH, boys that age have always had two settings".
What Sailor Venus says is something based on Tumblr user Annesophie96 deciding to do a fanlang for the Ancient Language found in Crystal/the manga (link here) and basing it a bit off Latin and Ancient Greek. It says "When this sword shines bright, when the Silver Crystal hidden inside the one who will someday become Queen begins to shine in reaction to the wishes of her heart, she will become complete and reawaken the full great powers of the Moon. Offer up a prayer to the holy Crystal Tower, and bring peace to our kingdom once more."
Chapter 3: The Vapours Weep Their Burden: The Harmonious Transformation of Mercury
Summary:
Ami has to think about a variety of things, as the first of the Dead Moon Circus makes a move against the Sailor Soldiers, and they try to learn more about the time before the Silver Millennium and their enemy.
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The Vapours Weep Their Burden: The Harmonious Transformation of Mercury
Ikuko Tsukino waits with Mamoru Chiba before the doctor comes to get him, Usagi rushing up to follow after her boyfriend. Usagi had called from Mamoru’s home, panicking and needing help as Chibiusa cried in the background. Ikuko had helped them get him here, and made sure that Usagi’s friend, Anduin, came to care for Chibiusa while Usagi and she brought Mamoru here.
Hearing stories of his time in the hospital after his parent’s death, Ikuko could guess that he was worried, and was glad Usagi went with him after making sure everything else was alright. Her daughter had grown so much, partly due to her new friends and the love she had for Chiba, so Ikuko could only hope that things turned out well.
They seem perfect for each other.
“ You’re Tsukino Usagi’s mother?”
The question gets Ikuko to turn to the doctor who’d come to check on them. She was beautiful, with dark blue hair like a deep lake, and mature, serious blue eyes and pale skin. The name plate said ‘Mizuno Saeko’, which clicked instantly for Ikuko when she recalled similar blue eyes, though as serious as they could be, they were always hidden behind a book of some sort, studying and lonely until Usagi or the others asked for her to help them.
“I’m Tsukino Ikuko,” she says, “I’m Usagi’s mother - Chiba Mamoru is her boyfriend, but he collapsed when he was visiting us. I wanted to make sure he was alright.” She pauses. “You’re Mizuno Ami’s mother?”
The doctor nods before saying, “I would like to talk to you about something…important.”
Ikuko nods, following her to a nearby office where Mizuno says, “My daughter…I want what’s best for her, and would like to see if you could convince your daughter to speak to her about it.”
Ikuko is quiet as Mizuno continues, speaking out before Ikuko sighs. “Doctor Mizuno, I hate to interrupt…what is your daughter’s least favorite food?”
Mizuno blinks and then frowns. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“Usagi tells me a lot, and the girls have come over to my house a lot. I do my best to recall them all.” Mizuno looks up at her before Ikuko says, “Yellow tailed tuna. She also had a love letter delivered to her last year, before the exams, but she hates those - it got her to break out in hives.” She pauses before continuing, “You work very hard, Mizuno-san. I would never say otherwise. Your daughter speaks very highly of you and your work, and wishes to follow in your footsteps, just like Usagi wants to follow in mine.” She shifts before saying, “I’ve known many friends who did the same, and were miserable by trying to follow in those footsteps and found the way too hard. Others walk the path easily, or find their own way using the paths set before them.” Mizuno is quiet before Ikuko says, “I don’t mean to lecture you, of course. But I do also remember the first few times Usagi brought her over to visit, and how she looks now.”
Mizuno is silent a long moment before saying, “Yes…Ami has changed.” She lets out a sigh before saying, “Forgive me, Tsukino-san. I was worried, and truthfully I haven’t been able to see her as often as I’d like, and at times, it feels like all I’ve done is leave her a lonely life like mine.” She smiles a bit. “We used to leave notes on a white board, after…after the divorce. Just little things - when I would be back, how she’d been doing.” She looks down and then away. “I should start that again. Why did I stop?”
“You both have been busy,” Ikuko points out, slowly walking over to sit, “and sometimes, I wonder if Usagi and those others aren’t also doing something that should make me worry. But Usagi would never turn her back on any of her friends. No matter what, she would defend them from any threat, and truthfully, I think she and the others would too. And really, isn’t that a wonderful thing?”
Mizuno is quiet before chuckling. “Yes.” She pauses at a call before saying, “They’re done inspecting your future son-in-law. Let me take you up to them.”
Ikuko smiles as she follows her, grateful they’d gotten this chance to speak.
=
Ami sighs as she looks over the data, grateful that she can use the computer she’s had since she first became a Sailor Soldier to get the program. She wishes that she hadn’t had to scavenge this from the computer that the Meiou Group gave Anduin, but at the same time--.
“ This is pointless…” she glares at it as she taps her pen on her notepad, “Why should we use this?”
“Making use of things, even if you dislike the person you got them from, is the point,” Anduin tells her as the smell of Makoto’s cooking wafts in from the kitchen. “Think of it as the spoils of victory.”
“Spoils of war,” she mutters in correction as he smiles at her. Well, he would know that saying.
“Many of the adventurers that help us in quests and battles against the Horde are what’s known as warlocks. They deal in Fel energy - as such, the Night Elves are unhappy with their appearance. Still, the races who have that knack try to find a balance with it.” He points to the computer with Pluto’s symbol on it for now, “Their power, while still of the Fel magic many hate, still works against other demons. Of course, that doesn’t stop the prejudice from others no matter what their deeds.” He smiles at her. “Being so rigid is not something you should be proud of, Ami. What was that saying, Mako-chan? From the man you showed me, the one from that old show?”
Ami glares at him, then lets out a breath. “‘Be like water.’” Mako smiles at her as she comes in with some snacks, Ami thinking as she munches on them. Her rigidness had kept her safe, yet she was of Water - not the roaring sea that Michiru was, but the water that Anduin had mentioned. Fresh water that bubbled over into springs, rolled and cut into mountains and created canyons, but could be seen as soft. Rivers and streams that carried the water people needed, that allowed healthy crops and happy livestock.
He and Makoto had been right, at least. Better to use this, the ‘spoils of victory’, than to worry about it or be so upset about it. A steady flow of information had gotten the computer to bend to her will, and now her own Mercury symbol showed on more and more of the screens, while some of the other information was going to her smaller computer and the one at their base. Maybe then, they could figure out the words on the Phobeus Bracelet and what they mean.
With the time as it scans, Ami walks out towards the Crown, pausing as she gets closer and sees one of the usually empty storefronts now having something plastered on the windows.
PANDEMONIUM SHADOW SHOW FROM THE EXOTIC AMAZON!
COME SEE OUR PREVIEW!
Inside, there were a few different games, but the main thing she could see that seems to make the building even larger is all of the fish. It looked almost like you were underwater in a clear, deep river or lake. Gold and silver glitters in the various tanks and fishbowls, looking old and strange, not at all like anything she’d seen before. Ami pauses at the entrance, a sense of foreboding making her shiver.
At the same time…couldn’t she look into this? Couldn’t she take the chance to look into it? She’s not as weak as when Usagi first helped her. She can do this.
Ami takes in a breath, then reaches for the doorknob, stepping into the shop with as much confidence as she could muster. Crossing the threshold was a cold shock compared to the warm weather outside - even with the sense of rain about to come, it was too warm for this time of year…and inside here was too cold, even with the games of ring-toss, many on small pools of water that seem to lead deeper into a dangerous, dark water. Murky water where any dangers could be waiting, ready to devour any visits.
Stop it. You can do this. You can look into this. You’re….
The shop seemed endless, going further and further in as she tried to find someone to speak to, the endless rows like getting lost in a deep, cold lake.
There’s a strange booming sound behind her, getting her to frown. Where is that sound coming from? She reaches out to something, but can’t seem to figure out--
“ AMI! AMI, GET OUT OF THERE!”
Makoto’s voice from her watch-communicator shocks her out of the trance, turning as she sees the others - Makoto, Rei, Minako, and Anduin - pounding on the glass at the entrance. Dark monsters are between her and the door, rising from the slimy water of tanks left unattended as she tries to run forward.
“Oh, but our show has just begun!” a soft voice says from behind her, “You can’t leave until you tell us about your dreams.”
Ami stumbles as she hears, “ONE!” a board pushes her up and spins her around to face the strange being - an effeminate being with long, light blue hair, elven ears, and daggers shaped like fish in their scaled hand. “TWO!” manacles keep her trapped as she hears the pounding from her friends grow louder, what sounds like the glass cracking behind her. The pressure in the room seems to start to move, like water going to a new opening.
“THREE!” Ami lets out a scream as something is pulled from inside of her, her body slumping against the board as the enemy walks up to her with a smirk on their face.
“Oh, what a cutie,” the empty hand moves along the side of her face. “What dreams do you have, hm? Let me go in and see.”
Ami can only scream as the monster goes into the strange mirror before she starts to feel herself fall back, as if sinking into a bog or lake. She briefly sees Makoto’s face, feels her warm hand on hers, before she falls into the darkness.
“AMI-CHAN!”
=
The room smelled of rotted fish and ruin, the deep green rot of the tanks and stagnant water getting Anduin to nearly choke as he and the others rush in, the dark Lemures rising up as Makoto makes it to where Ami is, but her cry saying they were too late to reach her.
“Quickly, transform! We have to get to her!” Minako’s shout gets everyone’s attention, but as they raise up their wands, something seems to fizzle out.
“What the--?”
Anduin’s power rushes around them, keeping them safe from the Lemures for now as they look at their wands. He briefly sees that the images of their planets have faded.
“What’s going on?” Rei’s worry and Minako’s silence is enough for him to worry - this power he is wielding is from the Light, but that might not be enough--.
“It doesn’t matter! We have to save her!” Makoto’s anger and worry is enough for him to nod, Minako and Rei looking over at them before he glances at them both. “Get hold of Chibiusa and Usagi. Maybe they can help. Quickly!”
The two nod, rushing out as Anduin and Makoto rush in, more of the Lemures moving and getting Makoto to let out a cry when some of them hit her, getting him to pause as they reach the board she’d been on. It now appears to be a darkened mirror, something on the top like bones or the dust of which, moving as if with purpose. It’s enough to make him shudder in a way that even the Scourge and Undead had not shaken him.
“Ami…Ami-chan…” Makoto’s sobs as he looks, trying to find a way in, is rebuffed and he begins to feel the strain of holding up a shield and trying to reach their friend.
NO! I won’t let her die! You can’t have her! I will not lose them!
The mirror shifts, and he blinks as he sees something like the words written on his bracelet, but…but he can…
“...no. How dare you suggest such a thing?” looking at the bracelet, he holds his hand to the mirror and focuses, concentrating, looking for a sensation, a sign, anything to--
The words appear behind his eyelids, and he lets out a breath, allowing himself to say what comes to him, as if it’s as natural as breathing.
“Ὦ ἱερὸς ἄγγελος τῆς βασιλείας, ὦ ἀστὴρ τοῦ ὕδατος, λαμπρὸς Στίλβων, ἄκουσον ἡμῶν. Λάβε τὸν τῆς δύναμιν, ἐπικαλέσασθαι τὴν δύναμίν σου. Φρουρούμενος ὑπὸ τοῦ Ἑρμοῦ, φύλαξ τῆς σοφίας, ἐγείρου!”
The round gem glows with Mercury’s symbol flies out of the bracelet and into the mirror, leaving ripples on the water as Makoto looks up, rushing over to grab Anduin before he falls, and pulling him out of the room as well. The others are already rushing over right as the door they broke open slams behind them, Anduin breathing heavily, trying to calm down right before a familiar blue light suddenly shines and then explodes in the building.
=
It was quiet and dark. She was away from them all. Who cared about her? Her mother was always away, even when she tried to follow her work. Her father, having taught her a game two people could play, then leaving as soon as he could and never sending anything but a postcard with some words - nothing to connect to her, to link them as anything besides--
Princess Mercury…
Ami’s eyes slowly open as she looks down, seeing…seeing…herself? No, it was herself as Sailor Mercury, a small glowing near-reflection of herself. It didn’t have the tiara she did, but instead there was now a pink bow with a green gem and cuffs, the color reminding her of Makoto’s own color. Elaborate shoulder pads stuck out under the sailor collar, and a white top with long sleeves, and a blue dress with four white buttons, flowed in the strange place as Ami held out her hands to it. Blue high heels with the symbol of Mercury on the band on top land gently on her fingers and palm.
Princess, you must wake up!
“Who…are you?”
I am your guardian, Stilborn. I have come to awaken you, my princess! You must hurry, or you will die in the hands of the enemy! Remember your dreams, remember them and who supports you!
“My…dreams…I want…I still want to be a doctor. I know that even if I leave, I’ll have them with me.” Usagi had supported her leaving, even if it meant going to Germany for a year. Rei had always offered them a spot to study, even when she hadn’t needed to, and though she’d tried to be in charge of the group when the three were there, she valued Ami’s input, and was a good friend to her and Usagi even now. Minako had accepted that Ami wasn’t going to be as boy-crazed, and had not tried to convince her of the importance of accepting a love-letter when she was uncomfortable with it.
And…and Mako-chan…Mako-chan would always be by her side. She would not do what her mother did, she would have someone by her side, and support her as Mako supported Ami!
Ami reaches up, finding something solid in her hand, blinking as she realizes it’s a lyre, a beautiful white one, which glows with the symbol of Mercury in its strings. A heart-shaped crystal appears as the darkness suddenly is illuminated in a light blue light and she surfaces, taking in a huge breath before shouting out, her new power manifests.
“MERCURY CRYSTAL POWER…MAKE-UP!”
The dark, rotted water and stagnation is thrown up and out, the monster that had attacked her jumping back in anger and shock. “What? How dare you escape that dream we gave you!”
“Protected by Mercury, guardian of wisdom, I am Sailor Mercury! Douse yourself in water and repent!” The Mercury Lyre appears again in her hand as she runs her hand along the strings, pulling out a beautiful sound.
“Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!” The water flows up and out, hitting the monster over and over until it screams, disappearing as it cracks like a mirror being shattered. She lets out a breath before she hears the others call out to her, turning and smiling before she runs up to them. Mako makes it there first, pulling her into a hug that has her blushing from their height difference making it very awkward for where her face is.
“Don’t scare us like that again,” Makoto mutters against her hair, Sailor Mercury letting out a breath and hugging her back. She doesn’t know how long they remain before a soft cough gets Makoto to move away, blushing brightly as Sailor Mercury now sees the others, Usagi rushing over to hug her as well while Anduin is helped up by Minako, looking pale but smiling at her.
“I’m sorry for worrying you all,” she tells them with a soft smile. “I’ll try not to do it again.”
=
Luna and Artemis type on the computer as Ami types on her mini-computer, Anduin lying down with a towel on his forehead. “I feel like we should be doing something else.”
“The patient isn’t allowed to argue.”
Anduin lets out a sigh as Makoto watches Ami type quickly, blinking in surprise before looking back as the larger screen shows what she has. “Anduin got me a program from the computer he got while under Meioh-san’s tuition. From it, I was able to get more information.”
The group glance up, Anduin shifting the towel to check on it as Luna says, “Found it. It appears that it is an older script of the Lunarian on the Holy Moon Sword.” She glances at Anduin. “Can you read it now?”
Ami looks a bit worried as he removes the cloth, but he shakes his head after a moment. “I don’t know why I had that epiphany earlier, but it’s only a vague sensation now.” He pauses and looks down before Makoto speaks up.
“You saw something in the mirror that was holding Ami that angered you. Then suddenly you could speak it.”
Anduin is silent a moment before Chibiusa asks, “What made you angry?”
He rubs his temples before shaking his head. “I don’t recall it clearly, only…the intent behind it. Behind the words was a sense of…ownership….” He lets out a breath. “Not just because it had Ami captive, but of…” he struggles for the words, and ends up letting out a light curse that he’d heard from the Dranaei, then another in Pandaran. The feeling of uselessness was wearing on him.
Minako puts a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry about it. But can we translate it, using what we do have?”
“We have some of it, yes, but the Lunarian is a newer and almost unrelated script. This one is different.”
“...like the Minoan spelling and Greek texts?” The group look at Ami as she explains, “The Minoan culture in Crete used a type of writing that has only recently started to be deciphered, and even then there are few ways to really link it. However, some of the words are linked to the gods they share with the Ancient Greeks, so it allows us an idea of them. If it’s unrelated, then it’s like the Greek text and the Minoan. One is influenced by a later text that came in after one civilization fell, though…that would not make sense.”
“It would, if you consider a sudden move to another type of writing, which would lose many of the texts,” Anduin points out, getting them to look at him. “Your own writing system went through that relatively recently, enough that older works are fairly difficult to read without some knowledge.”
The computer beeps, getting Artemis to look back and perk up. “Oh, more information!” The symbol from before pops up, but with a few more words. “Coeus, the Pole-star Knight, who set the axis for the Silver Millennium…. He appeared shortly before Queen Selenity, and aided in building the Silver Millennium after…it doesn’t say, but a war of some sort. He took up the Tithonus Curse to remain by the side of…a Soldier I can’t read the name of…forsaking his homeland. She…did something? Or gave up on something? His body decayed, but he remained, a shadow upon the mirror.”
The group is quiet as Anduin thinks about the strange writing on the mirror, and the odd sort of living bone that was around it. The last part was ominous as well. A shadow upon the mirror…then is he the one we must fight?
=
Ami lets out a soft sigh as he gets home, saying a soft “I’m home” to the quiet front room. She feels like she’s practicing it, and can almost imagine hearing Makoto’s voice from the kitchen….
She pauses as she reaches the kitchen while looking for something light, seeing the formerly abandoned white board now with writing from her mother.
“ Will be late. Your friend left something for you in the fridge. Rest up. Love you <3”
Ami slowly opens the fridge, finding a bento box wrapped in the cute blue cloth that Makoto has started to use for her stuff, and smiling as she sees the light food that she can snack on. She closes the fridge, and under the message writes.
“ Thank you. Some will be left over. Please try it. Love you too <3”
Notes:
I swear that reading Ray Bradbury's definitive "If the circus comes late and also offers you something too good to be true, maybe worry" book only slightly makes me more willing to add it in.
Yes, that's what the "Pandemonium" posters are based on. If you can read it, or see the weird movie, definitely do so. Remember that it was written to be based in a time before the 1950s, so a lot of the stuff used for the side-shows could easily be offensive...but that's beside the point.I'll translate the various words said by Anduin at the end of the story this time. ;)
Chapter 4: Redden Thro' the Gloom: The Fiery Transformation of Mars
Summary:
Rei has a lot on her mind, as do the others as things move towards change. However, the danger is not gone yet, and the Dead Moon Circus is on the prowl...
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
Redden Thro’ the Gloom: The Fiery Transformation of Mars
Rei glares at the arrow as it once more hits off-target. Anduin, standing next to her with his own Western-style, pauses before shooting his own arrow, which hits his target.
“Your mind isn’t on the training. We should stop for today.”
“I’m not distracted,” she mutters as she raises the bow again.
“You, Mako, and Minako are afraid after what happened when we tried to save Ami.” She lowers the bow before he continues in a gentler tone, “Rei, you are not just Sailor Mars, anymore than the others are that power. You are more than that, and it’s something we all love about you.”
Rei takes in another breath and raises her bow for a final shot. He stands back as she takes aim and fires, the shot hitting true but not as deeply as it usually did. The sound of the crows cawing, landing on the one that was off-center, seemed strange as she walked up to the one that Phobos is perched on.
“It wasn’t at the target.”
“These are stationary,” Anduin points out as he clears his own target, “That doesn’t mean you missed what you were aiming for.” He offers her a smile as Deimos lands on her shoulder and nuzzles her with her beak.
She pauses before saying, “Anduin…would you stay, like that other Knight did?”
He looks at her, tilting his head in a way that reminds her of Usagi, before shaking his head. “I’m needed at home.”
She sighs. “Of course.” He looks at her curiously as she shakes her head. “It’s nothing. Everything has just gotten me worried.”
I had hoped you’d be different from all the others, and not use the same tired excuse.
“She’s mostly at the shrine now,” Minako moans as she leans against the table, holding Anduin’s hand as he sips the shared soda they’d ordered. “Do you have any idea why?”
“I think what happened with Ami shook her up, but it might be something else. The attack on the mirror also didn’t help Hino-san - he’s got a pretty bad cold, and unluckily with Yuichiro’s family seemed to be trying to get him back in for some reason. He’s not been able to stay as much as before, and…Rei isn’t taking that well either.”
Minako is quiet as Usagi and Mamoru come in to join them. Both Minako and Anduin smile, happy to see Mamoru out and about after the scare from a few days ago. After a moment of hearing that Minako was worried about Rei’s behavior, and Anduin’s own observations, the two think as they get their own soda order.
“I mean, she is related to Ryuji Hino,” Mamoru says, which gets everyone else to frown before he explains, “He’s the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party. Hina’s father talks to him sometimes, so when we dated a few years ago, he was a bit interested in who I was.”
Anduin is quiet before he says, “Hino-san mentioned that his daughter was…no longer alive. Did Rei’s father take their last name?”
“Hiwaka Shrine is a large and fairly well-cared for and important shrine,” Mamoru tells them as Usagi and Minako nod in agreement. Anduin hums in understanding. He’d heard of men taking their wife’s names before the first Human-Orc War. He’d even heard that there were talks about having Father and his sister have different names of Lothar and Wrynn, depending on who they were engaged to, or if great-Uncle Lothar’s son had not died during the war.
“I should probably start treating Hino-san with some respect…”
Mamoru chuckles a bit at that. “I think I know what else is on Rei’s mind.” The group looks at him before Mamoru says, “Yuichiro’s family is rich…and recently gave some money to the same party as Rei’s father.”
Oh….
Minako squeezes his hand briefly before kissing his cheek and saying, “I’m going to go and talk to her.” Anduin watches her go before glancing back at Usagi and Mamoru, smiling a bit.
“I’m glad you’re feeling better.”
Mamoru nods before saying, “You want to see if we can get information from the Earth Kingdom, to learn more about the Knight from before.”
“I understand that some of it is nearly inaccessible due to the battle against Metallia,” Anduin admits, the memories of the final battle from Usagi’s point of view guiding him in that thought. “Is there anything that might be able to help us?”
Usagi looks at Mamoru as he thinks before answering. “I have four gemstones…they used to be my generals, the ones who were to me as the Inner Soldiers were to Usagi.” He’s quiet again before he continues, looking straight at Anduin. “They are not fans of Knights.”
Anduin lets out an exhausted sigh before leaning forward and blowing bubbles in the remaining soda. “I’m beginning to wonder what the last Knight did to get everyone to dislike him this much.”
“It’s said he set up things to allow the Silver Millennium to last, and that he disappeared one day,” Usagi says after a moment. “Apparently, some thought it was that which caused three of our protectors to disappear.”
Anduin frowns as he glances up at them. “ Three protectors disappeared?”
Both nod, looking between each other then him before it all clicked.
“Saturn was sealed away,” Anduin states, “so her ‘axis’ was set. That’s one Protector, but then who were the other two?”
Rei pauses as she senses something like the darkness that had attempted to attack the holy mirror in their temple, glancing over and thinking she sees a man she knows, but can’t put the name to, walking into a studio of some sort. The name over says “Autumn People Talent”, with a flier for the strange show she’d seen over and over again, obviously hinting at it getting closer.
It’s getting dangerous. We have to be careful.
Yet seeing the casablanca lilies in the window, and the various other fliers for looking for ‘talented individuals’, Rei finds herself heading over to the door. She swallows as she opens up the door, stepping in and having to take in a halting breath at how, instead of it being a sort of frigid air that smelled of rot when they went in to rescue Ami, this one is too warm, like she feels too warm. It reminds her of the times she’s on stage, singing or doing things besides being a priestess.
But you’re supposed to be a priestess…you’re supposed to want that, right?
She turns, feeling herself shake as she realizes she’s in a room full of items for any sort of film or photo shoot. Anything she might want to be on a stage, but all of them have something to them that makes her back up. One was a white dress - the same that he always sent her for years - while another was the priestess’ outfit. The final few were all the others she wore before, including the one on stage or when she was directing others or getting together acts or people for events. Yet all were either white or white and red, not the colors she remembered. As if everything had bled out to only two choices - her father’s daughter, or the priestess of Hikawa Shrine.
Pounding on the wall somewhere gets Rei to turn, trying to run. A low, rumbling sound, like that of a large cat nearby, gets her body to freeze instead in fear. The pounding starts to get louder and more rhythmic, enough to get Rei to try to run again. Between her and freedom, she sees what looks like a tiger, then it changes into a smirking man with long orange hair and a gaudy outfit.
“Rei!”
Rei turns her head and sees Minako and Anduin nearby. She turns to run, the crack of a whip making her jump as the man appears between her and freedom, an evil smirk on his face. “ONE!”
The board slams into her back, making her gasp as she sees Minako look on in horror as Anduin barely manages to put a barrier around the two as more of the monsters swarm them, keeping them away.
“TWO!” The manacles hold her against the board as the man stalks around, pulling the whip taunt as he looks back at her.
“THREE!” Rei screams as she hears Minako call out her name, head falling down from the pain right before the man chuckles and motions. “Lemures, take care of the interlopers. Now then…let me in, to see all those dreams of yours.”
“REI-CHAN!” She hears Usagi’s scream right before her own rings in her ears from the pain.
“Moon Gorgeous Meditation!”
“Tux--ah!” Anduin reaches out and grabs Tuxedo Mask, managing to keep him up as Minako and SuperSailor Moon rush forward to try to reach Rei. He works to extend the Shield right before--
“…my replacement…”
Anduin grits his teeth in pain as he glares at the board, hearing Minako and SuperSailor Moon’s anxious voices as the monsters push harder against the barrier.
“...they are…mine.” Anduin swallows as he and Tuxedo Mask manage to shakily stand near the entrance. “ Always…speak the truth…always… ”
“Shut up,” he growls out at the strange thing moving, the sensation returning as he raises his hand again, “They are not yours! You are lying.”
The symbol of Mars blazes as he hears the cawing of Phobos and Deimos behind him, shooting through the ruins of the front and into the mirror. Something in his mind clears, and he speaks again, as he had before when they were trying to save Ami.
“Ὦ ἱερὰ ἱέρεια τῆς βασιλείας, ὦ ἀστὴρ πυρός, πυριφλεγὲς Πυρόεις, ἄκουσον ἡμῶν. Ἄρες σου τὸ φυλακτήριον, κάλεσον τὴν δύναμίν σου. Προστατευόμενος ὑπὸ Ἄρεως, Φύλαξ τοῦ Πολέμου, ἐγείρου! Φόβος, Δεῖμος, ἱεροὶ σύμμαχοι, ἐγείρεσθε! Προχωρεῖτε!”
The dark was strangely quiet, despite how suffocating it felt, like the walls were moving in on her. All around her, different versions of her stood, getting closer and closer.
Princess Mars!
The sudden sound of crashing makes Rei start, looking around to only see her two crows fly down, transforming as they do into women with dark hair and eyes, their skin a deep copper tone as they land. She realizes then that their hair is actually a dark red color, deep enough to be black, and their eyes are serious as they stand before her.
Thank goodness we made it in time.
“...you two…you’re Phobos and Deimos?”
Though they were identical save for the color of their one-piece suit, she knew which was which, as instantly as she’d known they were called Phobos and Deimos. They hold two crow feathers crossed, a barrier of sorts as Deimos, in the purple suit, speaks up.
Princess, you must wake up! Your guardian is here to help you, as are we.
She turns slightly, holding out her hands as a small version of herself, but not quite. She has on an ornate tiara with a purple middle, pointed cat-eye like visor, and a more armor-like top with two layered shoulder pads that have ornate designs on them. The symbol of Mars is on her choker and the middle of her larger, black bow, and she smiles up at Rei.
I am your guardian, Pyroeis. I have come to awaken you, along with your protectors and guardians. Remember your true dreams, remember who you are!
Rei blinks, looking up and seeing the various costumes in front of her. Her true dream….”I want to do so much. I can’t let one dream or one idea hold me down. I know that no matter what I do, I have them behind me, cheering me on.” Usagi had always cheered her on, and everyone had encouraged her to chase and do whatever she wanted, as much as she encouraged them. Unlike Father who wanted her to play the perfect daughter, or others who saw her as the one who would take over for Grandfather after he could no longer run the temple.
But I can do that, and all the rest. I have done that! I don’t have to pick just one!
She finds the arrow that missed its mark near her, and recalls what Anduin had said before smiling. Even if he leaves, she would be there to make sure they moved forward. They both weren’t going to the same school as the others, but so what? They could make the most of their time together, even if they all were at different places and levels. She wouldn’t let them down!
The arrow glows, the symbols from her talisman shining and moving over the arrow’s shaft, the symbol of Mars glowing on the black feathers that so resemble the same ones Phobos and Deimos were holding. A heart-shaped crystal illuminates the darkness, blasting away the mirrors as she stands tall, firm now in what she wanted.
“You dare think to escape me? I, Tigerseye, will get you and the others back for what you did to Fisheye!”
“MARS CRYSTAL POWER…MAKE-UP!” The stale air rises with the heat, suddenly pushed out of the building as the wave of coolness rushes in as well. Phobos and Deimos stand behind her, ready with their feathers, as she points to the monster and his minions.
“Protected by Mars, guardian of war, I am Sailor Mars. In the name of Mars, I’ll chastise you!” She holds up the arrow, her other hand tracing down as a bow of fire appears before her. “Mars…”
Tigerseye duplicates all around her, laughing as she takes in a breath. She was the priestess, the one who could see the dangers ahead. Michiru and her mirror weren’t the only ones who could see a future!
I can even feel it, so far away - the flame and belief in one as well, the same burning desire!
“...Flame…” her eyes snap open as she twists and points at the true one, “Sniper!”
Phobos and Deimos move, throwing out the feathers to scatter the remaining illusions and lemures that he had behind him. Her arrow strikes true, splitting the large tiger down the middle as it leaps at her. It lets out a horrible, unnatural shriek before shattering like glass. She lands, looking back to see SuperSailor Moon and Minako rushing over to make sure she’s ok as Chibiusa sits near Tuxedo Mask and Knight Phoebus, neither of whom look like they’re in good shape. Phoebus is even paler than usual, and Tuxedo Mask looks like he’s about to fall over from pain.
“Sailor Mars…Don’t worry us like that!”
She lets out a breath as Phobos and Deimos smile, transforming back into crows and flying out as Sailor Mars reaches up to stroke SuperSailor Moon’s head and chuckle fondly. “You’re such a crybaby.”
Anduin and Mamoru sigh as they lay out on the couches, the group moving around them and checking on things. Of the two, Mamoru was the worse for wear, though Anduin was not exactly able to do more than lay down with a wet cloth over his closed eyes.
“Anything new?” Anduin asks, getting Luna to hit his head with her paw.
“No,” Minako answers, “But that doesn’t mean we aren’t going to still worry about things. The loss of two of their people will possibly make them take their time, since they failed in both cases.”
“I’m more worried as to what they plan to do,” Mamoru mutters, getting Luna to shift so she can hit him as well. Usagi sits next to Mamoru and runs a hand lightly through his hair, making him relax.
“The main worry is what this means and where Pegasus might be,” Makoto says as Anduin shifts to look over at them. “He hasn’t shown his face at all during these attacks.”
“He also only came when Chibiusa called, and so far she’s been safe or away from the attacks,” Minako points out. “Perhaps that’s why.”
Ami is quiet as she looks at the system. “I think it’s less that our powers are coming and more that something is being…unrestrained. Whatever transformed our guardians into the Astraea is weakening, and with Anduin here as a Knight who - pardon if it’s insulting - conducts our light, rather than traps or restrains it…”
“It’s not,” he mutters, shifting to sit up with Minako’s help. The strange oil and water sensation from when he originally came to Earth from Azeroth was now starting to change. The time he’d pushed himself beyond the exhaustion point of both powers - without the Light to call upon, and without the powers of the Knight - at Omega Area had caused him to change his outlook on that power. Now, though, it felt as if he was removing the heavy restraints from before, though he would have liked it if it didn’t come with this fatigue.
“What are you thinking?” Artemis asks, getting his attention.
“I wish I could articulate it, but…it’s difficult. The sense I get, it’s…twisted. Like…” his eyes briefly go to the black runes that sometimes glow on the bracelet. Rei’s hand on his shoulder says they understand his meaning, and Minako leans against him, offering support as well.
“Either way,” Makoto says with a firm voice, “we’re not about to let it continue with whatever it wants to do. We’ll stop it, no matter what.”
“What is it?”
Callan’s question gets Khadgar to pause, looking over at the split in the path. Neither the spirit of the Monkey King, nor the so-called ‘psychic’ Avery seemed sure of which way to go. The odd sensation he had felt, like a boost of confidence, gets him to glance at the fork again.
What would he do?
Khadgar moves forward, the Monkey King laughing as the others glance around briefly before following him. “Oh? What gave you the idea this was the best choice?”
“What does it matter?” Khadgar really does hate those who speak in riddles. It only slows down what needs to be done.
This is what I get for deciding to be a self-sacrificing idiot…this is really all your fault, Anduin Lothar. If you’d survived, I might have had a reason to send out some other strong mage to close that damned gate and then raise someone else’s child after they disappeared to Light-knows-where on a dying world.
You’d also be proud of them…of Varian, and Adariall, everyone who remained or who managed to come back.
“...why so confident now?”
He glances back at Avery, the Monkey King pouting as it appears his taunts and attempts at play didn’t get Khadgar’s attention, but the false-Dranaei’s does.
“Are you going to complain about the results?” Khadgar asks, not in the mood to really answer when he doesn’t even know himself, though he can guess.
Avery is quiet before scoffing. “If it’s the one who blessed you, I’d be wary. We were the only ones who fought against their blasphemous actions.”
Khadgar and Callan share a look before Callan speaks up, obviously curious. In a way, he reminds Khadgar more of his mother and grandfather, in how they could speak or ask for details that others might not be comfortable with asking, or with how they easily figured out there was more to something new than simply a danger. “You say that, yet you have yet to mention what it was.”
She glares at him as the Monkey King laughs at her while they continue. “Like she would know blasphemy!”
“You dare--.” Avery stops, then glances away in anger. Khadgar is quiet, thinking of the woman who attacked him - Koan - and what little he’s seen of her memories. Not that there were many that weren’t twisted by darkness. Perhaps, like the orcs, they too had been corrupted by something.
Not that it stopped the fact that their presence from being as dangerous a sign as that of the orc’s arrival. A hint of the greater danger, lurking behind dangerous foes.
“They made everyone weak,” The answer, said with annoyance and a bit of resignation, gets the three to look at Avery. “Their false eternity. Their fraudulent utopia, to spread all throughout the known world, without any need of dissent. Only fools who nodded and hemmed and knelt before that witch and her familiars….”
Khadgar recalls what he’d seen, when he and Anduin had spoken briefly and seen the vision of an apocalyptic end under the Legion. He also recalls what Jaina had claimed to see, and the reports from the Alliance members about when the sha of Hate were destroyed before they could overwhelm the meeting. He also recalls that she’s always cagey around Callan and that strange brazier he carries on his hip, the one that seems to always smell of some odd sweetness that Khadgar had never smelled before.
“There was a talk of something that happened, before that witch appeared,” Avery continues, with the tone of a priest about to begin their fervent sermon, “The stars were blown out, and even the Moon started to darken in the sky. It was said that the last Knight and the Messiah, guided by the shooting Starlights, went to confront the great evil at the center of the galaxy, the source of that dangerous power.”
Khadgar thinks about something before they pause, and the Monkey King speaks up, serious for once.
“Ah, so you know about it too, don’t you?”
Callan isn’t looking at him curiously, meaning he has an idea of it too. Avery looks between them all curiously, and Khadgar leans against his staff, suddenly feeling like he’s just been cursed again with old age.
Light damn it.
“There is an area of the night sky that has been slowly getting darker. Since the strange disturbances start on Pandaria, it’s gone completely dark. Every star and constellation we could see has gone out. So I wonder…” He looks back at Avery with no small bit of malice, “why did that man who sticks to Jaina Proudmoore like a dog in heat call the Light-being that stopped that attack ‘false’? Or like the orcs, did the Fel influence and warp your beliefs?”
“ Ara ara ,” the familiar voice echoes behind them, “you’ve become quite the ill-mannered man since you regained your lost youth, Khadgar.” He glances over his shoulder as Callan shifts, ready to pull out his own sword on either Avery or the others, while the Monkey King watches with interest.
Behind him, Koan stood with a blackened staff, the dark crystals in it blending in with the wood. Next to her, two others stood - a tall troll woman with pale blue skin and white hair, and a Forsaken who looked similar to one of the greater-raised ones, with more skin on her and less exposed bones and flesh.
“Oh, so this is to be a great show?” The Monkey King laughs as his ghostly form suddenly shifts, becoming flesh and bone once more as he twirls a staff. Suddenly, all four look worried, glancing between each other, as Callan draws his own sword. “Very well. Let’s see if I still have the strength to keep my lands safe from interlopers like you four.”
Notes:
So remember how I mentioned I would never play WoW?
...So....they have the Beta of Mists of Pandaria out...and...*waves hands at series*Yeah...I'm getting to the story. Enjoying everything as well before that. It's got it's own appeal.
Chapter 5: Ever Thus Thou Growest Beautiful in Silence: The Sparking Evolution of Jupiter
Summary:
As the Dead Moon Circus prepares for their center ring event, Makoto finds herself in conflict over her love for Ami, her lack of power as a Soldier, and how she's perceived and what she likes.
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
Ever Thus Thou Growest Beautiful in Silence: The Sparking Evolution of Jupiter
“Idiots!” Hawkseye winces as the laughter dies down, Zirconia walking up and slamming the heavy staff down. “Two of you have failed! Not only that, you dared to fail so spectacularly that you’d even allow those of the White Moon to gain a modicum of power!”
A strange, tingling sort of laughter, like an off-key calliope playing some demented tune. Zirconia slams the staff again. The laughter echoes for a bit before silence once more descends on the Circus. A booming voice, sounding bored and above it all, like a queen of old, speaks up.
“ Zirconia…we tire of this delay. ”
Zirconia turns swiftly, bowing to the darkness before saying, “Forgive us, our most beautiful Queen. We will remedy this swiftly.” Glaring back at Hawkseye, they say, “Go, and do not return without results!”
Hawkseye vanishes before the rest look back at the darkness, the calliope sound of laughter echoing from above them before the others join in, moving to the center to show off their skills before the laughter and sound slowly becomes a chant.
“ Always remember not to forget, a child’s dream is a dream you can never get.”
Makoto pauses as Ami leads her into the apartment. Though she’d been here with the others, this was the first time she came alone. Something about it makes her pause at the doorway, not sure she can take that next step.
“Mako?” Ami’s voice brings her back to the present. “Are you alright?”
“Me? I’m fine, of course!” She smiles nervously before heading in, the bag of groceries a bit heavy in her hand as she follows Ami in and to the kitchen. “What were you thinking of me making? I know you like something light, so we can get to studying…”
“Well, since we’re already in high school, we don't have to worry as much as when we all wanted to get into the same high school.” Mako feels herself blush at the memories of the long study sessions, broken only by their mission.
Our mission…Ami can do it, she’s gained that power…but…but I can’t….
A warm hand gets Mako to look down at Ami, remembering how scared she’d been, how powerless at that moment. Now, with Ami here again, safe and sound, it’s almost surreal.
Like a dream.
“Let’s see,” Makoto says, moving to put on an apron and looking through what she brought, “what I can make us.”
The focus on cooking keeps all other thoughts at bay, and so does the meal until something pings from nearby. She looks up as Ami moves to the computer she remembers that they took from Anduin’s room in the Meiou Building.
The reminder of those three puts a sour taste in her mouth as Ami types briefly before coming back. “Sorry. I was trying to look more into the language that we saw, but it appears to have reached its limit.” She offers Makoto a smile. “This has helped take my mind off things, though.”
Makoto pushes some of her food around, feeling useless. It’s not like she could be like Haruka, with enough people believing them to be whatever they dressed as that day.
“ Mako is Mako.”
“Are you doing ok?” Ami’s concerned voice brings her back from her musings before Makoto speaks up.
“Could I…stay here for the night? There’s…going to be a lot of airplanes flying out near my home tonight.”
Ami’s hand is warm as she holds Makoto’s gently. “Yes, of course.”
Makoto sighs as she finishes cleaning the dishes from breakfast. Knowing that Ami has her dream, it makes Makoto wonder what her dream was? She wanted to run a flower shop, or a cake shop - something that would allow her to cook, to grow plants, to be nurturing and around something that would remind her of how gentle and kind a woman should be. Yet, at the same time, she wonders if she really could be like that. After all, it would cost a bit of money - more than she could get right now - and at times she wants something like this as well. Being home and making something for her…her….
Makoto blushes brightly as she tries to not think of what happened last night. She hadn’t come here with the hopes of…of that happening, but she…that is….
“Mako?”
Mako jumps at Ami’s voice, getting her to turn and try to laugh it off, only to find herself also a bit wet and soapy from the water she’d been using. Ami gives her a bit of a smile, reaching over to hold her hand. “Are you ok?”
“FINE! I’m fine! Great! Just…doing…dishes.”
Ami’s serious look gets Mako to look away and squeeze her hand briefly. “Give me some time.”
“Of course.” Makoto relaxes as that easy answer before she glances at Ami, feeling shy. The deep blue eyes look up at her, making Makoto feel like a spring rain has come to wash away her worries, but gets her to feel full of static and energy. At the same time, this makes her feel more grounded. Like a storm meeting a mountain, and creating a field of flowers and a cool lake.
“If you want, we can go and get something for Mamoru and Anduin. Their headaches have been different, but…Mom mentioned a few things that might help.”
Mako nods. If she focuses, she can get out her nervous energy from…from everything that’s going on.
The grocery store is quiet as she and Ami look through it. She’d noticed that more and more stores like the ones that had been used to try to hurt Ami and Rei were popping up, and that meant some of the local stores were now having less traffic. On top of that, the streets seemed to have more and more trash as well - a lot of it from those new stores and the continued advertisement of the circus that had no name yet.
Our enemy…whoever they are, are trying to get a foothold into our home…and we have no way of doing anything to stop them right now.
At the same time, this had been the slow build up that was coming now. It meant they had to change their way of thinking, of doing things. After all, because of how the Outers had tried to take things on their own, everyone had nearly died. Not to mention that the power of their enemy had grown without any of them realizing it.
“They’re getting bold,” Ami mutters quietly as they walk, “I wonder why.”
“Maybe they’re getting desperate as well as bold,” she muses, just as quietly as they walk, “They’ve tried twice and lost two of their people.”
Ami hums, thinking, before they hear someone say loudly, “Nah, I can’t stand girls who are that tall. Why not just date a cute dude…though I can get ‘em smaller than that!”
“Hey, worse when they try to act like they’re able to do something like be a wife!”
The laughter is harsh, Makoto’s grip on the bags tightening before they hear someone say, “Probably why you two are dating then?”
“What was that?!”
The duo look over to see a tall, androgynous figure standing between them and the men who’d been making comments, a flame of pink hair standing up as they smirk. “You heard me. Or are you both too shy with each other?”
The fight is quick, and though Makoto wants to join in, Ami’s hand on her arm stops her from it. The stranger turns back to wink at them, sauntering over to a shop nearby that gets Makoto to blink as she reads it.
“Mako…we should go.”
“...yeah…”
The stranger’s face and smile linger on her mind, even as they head back to get everything ready for Anduin and Mamoru, but the name of the shop makes her pause as she reads it.
“‘Taste of Fall’.”
She wonders what they have, and if the person who saved them was better than the others she’d looked up to before, who had only ever lied about who they really were.
Ji Firepaw looks around as he enters the Horde’s main outpost on Pandaria. That after so long, some of his people could now return home was a good thing, though he finds himself feeling a sense of loss that Aysa and the others of the Tushui clan had chosen to join the Alliance and, thus, made themselves their enemy.
Though the Horde is made up of different races, he finds that the closer he is led to Warchief Garrosh Hellscream, the more and more he only sees orcs. He’d heard similar tales of the Alliance, of course, and Orgrimmar was, at the time of his visit, primarily home to the Orcs that lived in that harsh country. Still, that even here it’s showing up is worrisome to other rumors he’d heard from his people - rumors that the mysterious Black Moon Clan were working to aggravate the already dangerous battles between the Alliance and Horde, and create more sha from it.
“Warchief,” a dark orc with only three fingers on one hand and a mean look, growled out roughly in Orcish. “The Huojin leader is here to see you.”
Ji bows respectfully to the Warchief. Unlike the others he’d encountered, Ji realizes that this Warchief is…young. Not a child, of course, but closer to his own age and, it seems, far more willing to take action.
Garrosh glances over at Ji for a moment before saying, “Good. Come…I wish to speak to him.” As the older orc starts to follow, Garrosh growls at him, “ ALONE. ”
The older orc growls back but nods, backing down as Ji motions to the others who came with him to wait as well. Whatever the Warchief wants, something is obviously afoot, and while Ji wants to deal with it quickly, he also knows from the past mistake how decisiveness could sometimes result in death.
The Huojin value decisiveness and action, but they are not above learning from past mistakes. That is how one can take the next leap forward, without falling flat like the last time, or learn how to avoid conflict if required, until the time was right.
Ji is not prepared to see the Divine Bell sitting in the camp, obviously waiting to be moved. He looks at it in shock as Garrosh says, “I have heard that your people do not use the power and items left by the Thunder King.”
Ji nods and glances at him. “It is not a power we wish to use.” He considers before asking, “Warchief, how much do you know of the power wielded by the mogu and their Thunder King?”
Garrosh snorts after a moment’s thought. “Enough. Enough to be curious about why your people don’t wish to use it.”
Ji motions to some of the images on the Bell. “One of the allies of the Pandarans created a way to stop its use. After their defeat, we had too much to think of - keeping Pandaria safe, creating our own ways of living after centuries of oppression.” He glances back to Garrosh. “The story of the last Pandaran Emperor mentions a calamity that we choose to hide from. Tolling this Bell would alert many to our location. Even I would not do that, as much as we might rush in.”
”Like drinking something for power, or taking in the power of an unknown Light.” Garrosh’s musings get Ji to look over to him before the Warchief continues, “I am thinking of using the Bell to gain power for the Kor’kron. I doubt anything will notice if I toll it, with the Alliance and Horde already here.”
“Do you also want the Harmonious Mallet to be there, in case things go awry?”
The Warchief pauses, looking like he’s about to argue, before thinking better of it. “If we get it, then at least no one will interrupt either.” He nods in approval as Ji wonders about something.
“If you have the time,” he questions, changing the subject, “would you like to play a game?”
”I am no fan of that game with no winners.”
Ji has to hold in a laugh, and barely manages it. “Nor am I. Brewmaster Lin and some others have created a way of playing jiuhui where you have a set time, but they like the idea of gambling out their brews or ingredients. No, this is another battlefield - xiangqi . I’ve heard some of the others call it ‘Pandaran Chess’...I don’t quite understand the idea. It’s also not as complicated as some like to play - go . That one takes a master of strategy and understanding of the movements of men and battle, and honestly I have no taste for it.”
Garrosh huffs out a laugh before nodding, Ji leading the way to where one was set up by his men. He explains quickly the different pieces before they begin. Garrosh picks up quickly as Ji sets it out, explains how each piece can move. After a brief bit, Garrosh speaks up.
“No more explanations.”
Ji nods, and smiles as Garrosh pulls out a pyrrhic victory for himself with a rather bold move. The next one has Ji managing to hold Garrosh back by the same margin.
“I can see why some like this game, though I am more one who enjoys real world work.”
“Understandable,” Ji states as he stands. “Still, sometimes to sit and see how one utilizes something for the real world helps to work out strategies in their own ways.”
Garrosh glances back to the table before nodding. “It’s a way, yes. I have a mission for one of your people, and the Tauren. If the Alliance is going after the Hammer, we should see if we can’t find something else that might help.”
Ji nods, though he doesn’t relish the idea. Working with some of the Tauren only remind him of working with other Pandaran who view him and all others from the Wandering Isles as troublemakers that the Shado-Pan wouldn’t pick for their hallowed, unhappy halls. Still, the thought that it might help if anything happened that couldn’t be controlled by the elites or Garrosh Hellscream was enticing enough. He could put up with them for now.
Makoto frowns as she looks at herself in the mirror. It had been a while since she wore this outfit - probably since she had first met Haruka and thought she was awesome for being able to be herself. Her and Michiru had been her idols before they’d turned out to be judgemental jerks who thought they were better than them, and who had not wanted Usagi to be in the fight.
She pushes that thought aside. It tended to bubble up, now that she had been with Ami. It feels so odd to think of that night and what it might mean. At the same time, Makoto isn’t sure if this will last. After all, at one point Ami will be a great doctor. She’ll have to…to fly somewhere…and…
Makoto takes in a shaky breath as she gets to the store, walking in and trying to push it out of her mind. The strange smell, almost like spices that weren’t quite fresh or kept well, makes her nose wrinkle as she begins to feel a headache forming. She feels herself swaying slightly before the person from before walks up, smiling at her.
“Oh, you came back!”
Makoto's head is pounding as she looks over at the pink-haired person who had helped her and Ami yesterday. She blinks a bit, surprised to see them here and feeling like the room is spinning. It was like she’d taken something dangerous in her tea, or like an unnatural storm was in the wind. She fiddles with the watch on her wrist, not sure at the moment if she should call in help or not.
“My, you look quite pretty today. Are you meeting up with someone?”
Makoto feels her face turn red as she stammers, “Ah…y-yeah, later. I wanted to…find some good spices and…look around.”
The owner smiles as they wave. “Go ahead. Since you’re one of my first customers, I might have something nice for you.”
You need to leave. You need to get out of here. You can’t fight them right now!
“I…I should,” she looks down at her watch, the glance suddenly making her even more dizzy and stumbling as she hears laughter.
“Oh, poor little girl. Did you walk into a place you shouldn’t have? Don’t worry…I’ll take care of you.”
Mako throws a punch, landing solidly before she turns to try to run, the lights from the communicator watch suddenly bright as she hears the heavy slam of water on the door and window, starting to crack the glass.
“How dare you hit my lovely face!” She spots Sailor Mercury and Knight Phoebus working to get in or open the door. Strange vines have grown over the door, keeping her inside and keeping them out. She still makes a run for it, stopping as a stream of fire ignites between them moving along the dried plants and creating a wall of flames between them as the person changes, a brown wrap around their chest and a spiky dress around their lower half.
“ONE!” The board springs up behind her, stopping Makoto from escaping or attacking.
“TWO!” Manacles trap her as she glares at them, struggling to escape.
“THREE!” The pain causes her to throw her head back, screaming at the sensation. There’s a brief sound of glass breaking as the one who had trapped her grabs the strange mirror and pushes in.
“Let her go!” Sailor Mercury’s voice echoes through the room just before Makoto’s sight goes dark.
“No!” Sailor Mercury manages to reach the mirror. Knight Phoebus moves to reach it as well, stopping as he hears and sees the same strange, unnatural movement.
“ If you…give them up…you’ll not have her… ”
Phoebus feels his body shake, like he’s being pushed down by some oppressive force.
“ Mine…all are mine…as I set them… ”
Phoebus pulls himself back as the Astrea glows a green hue while Sailor Mercury’s icy water covers the room.
“They are no longer yours,” he growls out as he feels the strange mix of his Light and the power of the Knight grow around him, “and I will not cage them as you did! Ὦ ἅγιε προστάτα τῆς βασιλείας, ὦ ἀστήρ τοῦ ξύλου, φλεγόμενε Φαέθον, ἄκουσον ἡμῶν. Ἄρον τὸ φυλακτήριόν σου, κάλεσον τὴν δύναμίν σου. Ὑπὸ Διὸς προστατευόμενος, φύλαξ τῆς προστασίας, ἐξέρθητι!”
There’s a dark, angry scream that echoes in his head as the glowing Astrea flies into the mirror. Despite her new power, Sailor Mercury is still being pushed back away from it by the sheer amount of Lemures around them.
“Moon Gorgeous Meditation!”
“Mars Flame Sniper!”
The sound of the others gets him to take in a breath of the stagnant air as he stumbles back, calling on the Light to push out and shield everyone to keep them safe from harm.
There was a quiet to the place, unnatural even in a silent room. She looks at the strange glow before blinking as a new, small glow appears before her, the familiar crackle and sound of rain in a forest getting her to look up.
Princess Jupiter! Princess Jupiter, wake up!
She blinks in surprise as she sees something that looks like her a bit, but not quite. There’s a larger mask over her face, with a bit of an antenna to one side. Her midriff is bare, with a thinner red bow with the Jupiter symbol in the middle. Unlike her normal green color, it’s lighter, and the pink is gone, with red and yellow instead. Though it looks very different from her usual self, it’s still obviously something like ‘her’.
“You’re…me?”
I am your protector, Phaethon. What are you doing sulking here? You are our Princess, and your dreams are multitude! Do you not think you cannot simply pick one, or that heartbreak will really keep you down when it never did?
She blinks at that, surprised by the anger from the small being. But it was right - she had many dreams. She wanted to do many things. Even when there was heartbreak, even after that--
Ami’s hand, only a bit smaller than hers, holds onto hers as she sleeps next to her, face still flush from what they’d done.
Makoto’s face flushes as well as the memories before she shakes her head clear. She had so much support for all of that! She didn’t need to worry about anything, or try to be more like Haruka or Michiru. It was just like Anduin had said - Makoto was Makoto, she was herself.
The surge of power breaks out and throws the quiet air away with a rush of sound and thunder and nature growing around them. She grips tightly on that power, holding it up as she lets out her battle cry.
“JUPITER CRYSTAL POWER…MAKE-UP!”
Her power strikes out like a lightning storm, making the one who’d attacked her and the others jump back as she stands before them, feeling the light weight of the oak leaf crown now adorning her head.
“Protected by Jupiter. The planet of thunder. Guardian of Protection, I am Sailor Jupiter! I’ll fill you with regret. It’ll leave you numb.”
The enemy starts to point towards her as she gets ready, taking a step back as she yells, “Jupiter Oak Evolution!”
The charged leaves scatter as she spins, taking out the enemies and the one who’d attacked her. Sailor Jupiter lets out a breath as she finishes, looking around before she sees the ice around her just as Sailor Mercury rushes up, a hand going to hers as she looks up at her.
“Jupiter! Are you ok? You…you’re not--.”
Sailor Jupiter leans in, kissing her gently. Blushing lightly at being so close to someone in such a public display, she glances over at Sailor Mercury before blinking in worry. Sailor Mercury’s face is so deep red that it’s almost worrying, and steam is already coming up from her head.
“M-Mercury? A-are you…a…” She becomes more panicked as Sailor Mercury almost falls backwards. “Mercury!”
Nearby, SuperSailor Moon smiles at the scene while Sailor Mars grumbles as she helps Knight Phoebus up. Phoebus grins when he sees how worried Sailor Jupiter is and how red Sailor Mercury’s face still was.
“Called it.”
“Focus, please!”
The calliope-laughter echoes around before slowly dying down as four orbs move and fall down, twirling around the stage. The rest of the circus gathers, laughing and playing in their usual way before one of them lets out a cry.
“I figured it out! I figured it out, I figured it out, I figured it out!”
“That’s right!” another near the first one said, “That boy had finally found out!”
A tumbler and others laughed as one said, “He found out the fact that dreams are seen only when asleep--” “And--” “In that moment--” “The boy had turned into an adult!”
A woman in blue, her hair done up with four orbs hanging around her face, spins on a ball with her hands in the air to balance. “Your dear loving prince, then…”
Laughter from a pair of conjoined twins. “Looks like a toad in the mirror!”
A woman in yellow swings by, her pink hair adorned with yellow ribbons on her top not and the rings near her ears, with longer strands going down as she says dreamily, “The magic of dreams makes him look like a prince, but his voice is that of a toad.”
Others gather from the dark, stage-whispering around a water cooler, “Why can’t you stay an adult?” “Turn that dream--.” “--into reality?”
A snap of a whip as a fiery red-haired girl with her hair done up above her head in gold and red jewelry scoffs, her ears hidden by yellow gems. “That’s asking for the impossible. We’re good at giving up, making excuses, and wanting what we don’t have.”
On the high rope, a girl in green with hoop earrings, green and brown hair done up like a strange plant. She does a cartwheel easily as she finishes, “So enjoy the fruit while it’s still ripe. Snap them up while they’re still carefree!”
With one last burst of laughter, the lights go out before a large spotlight illuminates the center ring. “Dream, dream, don’t doubt it. A dream of dreams that dreaming children have.”
“Always remember not to forget, a child’s dream is a dream you will never get.”
“Dream, dream, don’t doubt it. A dream of dreams that dreaming children have.”
“Always remember not to forget, a child’s dream is a dream you will never get.”
A pause as the edges of the mirror moves, bones and the remains shifting to hold the mirror carefully as a clean, empty skull with a crown on it seems to look down at the illuminated center ring and the still-chanting members of the circus.
“ Patience. We will have these gems for you, and the baleful light will be put out for thy pleasure. Our most beautiful queen, our most lovely one, Queen Nehelenia. ”
Anduin looks at the four stones that Mamoru had put down between the four of them. Usagi and Chibiusa had joined, their worry over Mamoru’s health obvious by how close Usagi sits next to him, and Chibiusa casting glances at him as she shifts closer to Mamoru. Though he didn’t feel as good as usual, he doesn’t want to take away from the care Mamoru is obviously in need of.
Anduin instead focuses on the smooth stones, worn from care and other processes. However, a strange power still lingered on them as well, even though Mamoru’s own power covered them to a degree. Whoever they had been in the past, their own wishes were still holding tight onto the gemstones.
“Those were your protectors, Mamo-chan?”
Mamo nods in answer to Chibiusa’s question as she reaches to pick up the piece of jadeite, while Anduin examines the kunzite and zoisite pieces that appeared to always shift to be near one another. The lone nephrite on the table is odd, with more of a look for a piece about to be set in jewelry over the harsher edges of the jadeite, the sharper rose-thorn shape of the zoisite, or the hard to hold kunzite. “In the past, yes, but after a great evil came into our kingdom, many were taken in by their lies…including them.”
Anduin sits back as recalls Usagi’s memories of that dark kingdom - the four generals, and the ultimate battle against their leader and the one who began that corruption. Watching the ease that Chibiusa picks up or arranges the four, though, he has to wonder at the slow disappearance of that hold.
“I wonder if they’d like to meet your future daughter then.”
Mamoru and Usagi look over as Anduin stands, moving closer to Chibiusa. The sense of being watched suddenly hits him right as he grazes Chibiusa’s hand.
“How dare you touch our Master’s child!?”
Anduin backs away as the four spirits suddenly loom over him, Mamoru starting to stand up in surprise. A coughing fit draws everyone’s attention as Usagi goes to try to hold her lover up. Anduin rushes over, focused on using his power to give Mamoru some relief as the coughing grows worse. He pauses as understanding washes over him, swallowing as he pulls back his hand. Everyone but he and the four gasping as they see the black blood.
“Our enemy has put a curse on you…or, more likely, has put something into the Earth,” Anduin states, though his worry and fear are already growing at the power of it. The corrupted power of the destroy Exodur engines had not emitted such damaging power.
“...like stakes in the ground…or something big, like the center pole of a tent?”
The trio look at Chibiusa as she shakes, her eyes wide with the same fear Anduin felt. One of the four spectral generals speaks up to Anduin, looking down at him with cool, dark blue eyes. His long white hair shifts as the shorter one with longer blonde hair hangs onto him in the same way Usagi holds onto Mamoru.
“ Yes. This was how Prince Endymion’s mother, the last Princess of the Earth, died. Because of the curse laid upon her by the Coeus Knight.” The eyes glance over at Usagi, disdain obvious on them, before it continues. “ Because they did not follow the way set by that Knight, our kingdoms were destroyed.”
Notes:
Oh, look, references to the 90s anime where Zoicite and Kunzite get together! Also, yes, Makoto/Ami is just as cute to a degree as Rei/Mina. With Mina with Anduin, though...yeah ^^.
I just realized the other issue with this season...not actually looking into the dreams of the Sailor Soldiers, how that might impact them being Sailor Soldiers, or how dreams change as you grow or learn more. Bad SuperS!
Also I realize that Ji and Garrosh interaction might be a bit OOC...and while I am getting into WoW more in Mists of Pandaria Classic, I'm also wanting to have SOMEONE give me a reason why that orc was in charge for so long when *checks Warcrimes, cringes, checks notes instead* there's currently a rebellion being planned and no one likes him beyond the fact he's been winning.
...*glances at current world* Never mind, I answered my own question, OOC it is then.
Chapter 6: Ere Yet They Blind the Stars: The Shocking Beauty of Venus
Summary:
"I can see how this will end..."
Minako leans against Anduin's shoulder, watching him write in a language she cannot read.
"...in all it's bitter tragedy..."
Knight Phoebus stands in front of Minako and Artemis, the decayed monster glaring at them as the symbol of the Dead Moon glows on it's forehead.
"I'll give you all I have to spend,"
Anduin and Minako turn and kiss passionately as the candle flickers out and leaves them in darkness.
"and you'll give..."
A red ribbon with golden etchings wraps around Knight Phoebus' waist as the iridescent wall begins to break against an onslaught of thick thorns.
Notes:
Do I base the love of Minako and Anduin a bit off of other great doomed loves like Casablanca? Yes. Is it sad? Also yes?
Does this mean that Anduin has someone for him when he returns and it's an OC? No to the OC...I am also basing some of Nehelenia's actions and such off OG Maleficent from the Sleeping Beauty movie. Because I like her as a villain, even in Kingdom Hearts she's a fun evil to fight.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Ere Yet They Blind the Stars: The Shocking Beauty of Venus
Minako shifts as she hugs her knees, listening to Artemis try to raise her spirits after she’d tried to transform and, yet again, failed to do it. This wasn’t the first time she had failed at it, but at this point she was getting really worried about what that meant.
“And anyway,” Artemis continues, “you’re coming into your power as much as the others are! You just haven’t had the push that they have yet.”
Minako looks off to one side, letting out a breath before standing up. “Maybe you’re right.” Her mind drifts to what Anduin had said before, about the fact that no matter what else, she was exceptional for having been the first.
“Something deeper than happiness…what could that be?”
Artemis looks up at her as she stands, going to get ready for bed before he lets out his own sigh. He knows what she’s talking about, but with what Anduin had told them, as well as the way that the others had unlocked their transformations, he can’t help but worry.
Even if Anduin just sees you as becoming the goddess Venus, I sometimes still see that young girl who cried after having to kill her first crush, or who had to deal with how things turned out with that bastard Ace.
He’s curled up at the foot of her bed by the time she returns, listening as she gets ready before getting into bed.
“Artemis.” His ears flick at the sound of his name. “Do you think Anduin would do what the other Knight did, if he stayed?”
“I don’t know,” Artemis admits sleepily, finally opening one green eye as the light remains on for a while too long. “Why?”
Minako is quiet, brushing out her long golden hair, before she says, “I just…was wondering. What he heard, what he told us about the last Knight - he had to have once cared about us before he began to do what he did, right?”
“Maybe,” Artemis offers, shifting to look at her, “but I think the main difference is in how they act. The Knight they speak of from before wanted to remain, and took up a curse to do so. Anduin wishes to return to his home, and is breaking that curse that spilled out to all of us.”
Minako pauses, looking down. “Then…it would be selfish to want him to remain.”
“...Minako…”
After a long moment, Minako lets out a huff and finishes her routine, turning off the light. “Nevermind. Forget I said anything.”
“That was an interesting film,” Anduin says as he turns off the television. He looks over to Minako before moving to open up the curtain, letting in the light to his apartment. “What did you really want to talk to me about?”
“...do you…have a Victor, that you’re going back to?”
Anduin is quiet before moving to sit next to her. “No.”
“Do you think I could be your Victor, then?”
The two look at each other a long while before Minako lets out a defeated sigh. “I’m sorry.”
His hand covers hers as she looks down, shifting to hold it tightly. After a moment, she smiles at him, her eyes welling up with tears. “We’ll always have Tokyo, then?”
Anduin leans in, giving her a gentle kiss on the cheek before sitting back. “You’ll have the others, all of them with a beautiful friendship.” He holds up her hand to kiss it in the same way a prince would a princess. “But yes…this can be our Paris.”
Minako and he once more lock eyes before she leans in, this time kissing him gently on the lips. As they fall backwards, the curtains flutter in the breeze and a soft chime rings at the signal of the still-coming storm.
The next day sees Minako letting out a sigh as Artemis tries to argue with her while Anduin comes out from his early morning shower.
“ Seriously?! This is what we were warned about!”
Anduin sighs as he moves behind a cover to get dressed as Minako says, “We know what we’re doing.”
“ Do you!?”
Minako nods, looking up as Anduin comes up and offers her a robe and a change of clothing that will fit loosely on her. “Yes. We had a long talk about it.”
“...please tell me it was just a talk.”
Anduin looks away as Minako makes herself scarce in the kitchen, the baggy clothing actually looking quite nice on her.
“ It was just a talk, right? ”
“The point is,” Anduin says after a cough, “we aren’t going to make the same mistake as before.”
Artemis glares at them both, not bothering to remind them that they only had a vague idea of what that mistake was. He instead decides to not let Minako out of his sight again, watching as they meet up with Rei before walking around Juuban.
“It’s starting to feel stifling here,” Rei mutters as they end up back at the arcade, “even the air is too hot.”
Anduin nods as Minako pauses, turning to pick up something that had fallen from one of the many people handing out fliers and the like around town. Because of it, trash had started to build up more and more in the city. Rei and Anduin walk over as Artemis feels his fur stand up.
THE GREAT PANDEMONIUM SHOW OF THE AMAZON
THE DEAD MOON CIRCUS TALENT SHOW!
COME ALL, SHOW OFF YOUR TALENTS AND YOU TOO CAN BECOME A STAR!
“No!” “It’s an obvious trap!” He and Rei glance at the two as they look over at them, Anduin’s arms crossed and Minako letting out a frustrated sigh.
“Yes, and that has always been the catalyst for our transformations, but…I haven’t had one yet. How can I still see myself as your leader, as someone who can protect our princess, when I’m the only one who can’t transform?”
Rei blinks, surprised by the revelation, before her eyes trace to Anduin’s bracelet, where two Astraea remain. “...but…it’s too dangerous.”
“We know,” Anduin tells her, “but we also know that the enemy is now showing itself, not just hiding as it had with you three. They can say whatever they want, but that means they’re desperate for a win, or to keep us from fully realizing everyone’s powers.”
Rei looks to them both, Artemis feeling helpless, before he sits up on Minako’s shoulder. “Minako…you’re not powerless.”
“Hello, one and all!” The short, happy clown cheers as the group enters the huge circus, the various small tents dotting the once-pristine grassy plane that they’d all gathered at to watch the eclipse. At the center of it all, dark and inviting, was the huge center tent. “This way, this way! Follow your host, Mr. Magic Pierrot, to your destination! What waits for you all is the chance of fame and fortune, all of your wishes come true!”
The girls surge forward, young men following them as well into the tent where bright lights made it difficult to see until you reached the inside, everyone halting after a run when the heat became too much to move forward. As the flaps closed behind them, the lights appeared to be more harsh tropical sunlight, with a strange tropical forest all around them.
“Welcome!” Mr. Magic Pierrot called through the microphone, “Welcome to the Pandemonium Survival Audition! The last one standing, who reaches the top of the structure to rescue those above, wins! Go up, and all your dreams will come true!”
The group seems to go wild, rushing forward and tearing at the others in front of them. One of the people among the sea of contestants, a woman with blond hair with a red bow tied in it, tries to stop some of the fighting but can’t. Instead, they shake their head and run off the beaten path that the others had taken, braving the jungle. From the men’s side, a blond haired man quickly takes off himself to soon join her, a white cat with him as they meet up and begin to cut through the jungle.
Watching from above them, Mr. Magic Pierrot chuckles. “Oh, so that’s how it is? Well, who are we to stop the useless soldier from running to her death?”
Both end up at the tower first, climbing the huge ladder quickly as he glides above it all, watching the lemures and others attack the others below before laughing at the duo. “I didn’t think the ones who protected this dusty little ball had it in them to leave others to die!” Neither slow at his taunts, the lemures suddenly let out cries as something stops them from attacking the fainted contestants, while others, now coming to their senses, rush away from the monsters.
The clown turns to glare at them as they reach one of the platforms, rushing over to use one of the ropes to open up the flaps that had closed behind them.
“How dare you two let loose our prey!” The clown took off his hat, waiving it before a wave of fire went after them. They both turn, an iridescent wall stopping the attack as they back up only briefly, but are obviously set to fight against the clown as they glare him down with similar blue eyes.
“Oh, how cute! Well, let’s try something else then!” More of the attacks come, trying to get through the barrier as it ripples in colors before the blond girl raises up a crescent compact, the item opening to shine with reflected light.
“ Astraea Dominé !”
The colors of the wall suddenly shift before the lights turn into spinning chakras, the clown having to dodge more than once as they spin and seem to hone in on him with each pass.
“How dare you both go off the script!?”
The two blondes disguises wear off, Knight Phoebus holding the Crescent Compact, a red bow tying back his hair, while Minako, once more without a bow, quickly releases the lever that holds the group hostage. The tent flap opens wide, allowing everyone to stream out with the other fainted contestants.
“How dare you mock us?” the trio jolt as the platform is raised up high in the tent, Phoebus moving over to make sure Artemis and Minako are safe.
“You think you know better, that by showing off their light you are not taking it? ”
The change in tone makes them freeze, Knight Phoebus standing in front of Minako as Artemis hisses from her shoulder. Minako holds tight to both of them as the clown’s body begins to twist, the still-reflecting Compact showing a mass of darkness and skeletal remains, decay and rot falling off the body as it begins to transform.
“I heard liches viewed the living as an insult to their hubris,” Phoebus states as a piece of blackened mirror twists in the mass as well. “Less a lich and more a shade, held together by an ill-conceived curse.”
The remains of the clown croaks out a hideous laugh before the space under them disappears. Now at the top of the huge center ring, the group tumble and scramble to reach each other, Knight Phoebus and Artemis both reaching and finally getting a hold of Minako as they freefall down, spinning like loose leaves in a violent storm.
Minako holds tight to him and Artemis as the wind threatens to pull them away from each other.
“I’m sorry!” she yells over the harsh sound as they fall, “I shouldn’t have brought you both into this. I shouldn’t have let any of you into this danger!”
“You were brought into this danger,” Artemis tells her, “and awoken to your duty by me!” A warm light suddenly surrounds the trio, slowing their descent as a soft paw becomes a warm human hand. “I, your partner, should have taken better care of you. Phoebus…grant me the Astraea for her, that we might defeat this enemy!”
Phoebus looks over, seeing a tall man with white hair and a crescent moon symbol on his forehead, his green eyes familiar. Nodding, Phoebus lets out a breath. “Ὦ ἅγιε ἡγεμών τῶν φυλάκων, ὦ ἀστὴρ τοῦ μετάλλου, ἀνατέλλων Ἑωσφόρος, ἄκουσον ἡμῶν. Λάβε τὸ φυλακτήριόν σου, κάλεσον τὴν δύναμίν σου. Ὑπὸ τῇ Ἀφροδίτῃ προστατευόμενος, φύλαξ τοῦ κάλλους, ἔγειρε! Σύμμαχε καὶ ὁδηγέ, Ἄρτεμις, ἔγειρε! Ἀστὴρ τῆς Ἕω καὶ Ἑσπέρας, Ἔρως καὶ Πόλεμος, ἔγειρε!”
The glow around them turns a brilliant orange and yellow as Minako shouts, “VENUS CRYSTAL POWER! MAKE-UP!”
The trio land gracefully on the ground, though Knight Phoebus’ armor now has a red sash with golden thread wrapped around his waist, what looks like roses and lions embroidered brightly in them. Along with the White Rose on his uniform, it’s obvious he is claimed by the White Moon.
“Protected by Venus, the planet of beauty. Guardian of Love! I am Sailor Venus! And now, allow me to punish you with love!”
Sailor Venus holds out her hand, gold glittering within it that sparks, like hot metal flashing under a talented smith’s hand. “Venus…” she winks and blows a kiss, the golden metal heart spinning as yellow roses linked with a chain appear, following the heart as she throws it, “Love and Beauty Shock!”
The dodges don’t work this time, the sound of the clown and the other lemures being shattered gets the tent and area around them to suddenly grow far more like an old temple in the jungle, falling apart due to mold and the heat that was now oppressive. All three shift to be back to back as a dark cloud moves from where the clown had been.
“ No…I will not be destroyed so easily. I will not let you upstarts remove that which kept you safe! How dare you! How dare you reject the order of things?! And for what? For what dreams are more important than what you were born to do? That you will always do, just as those here will always betray you…as they betrayed me!”
“Astraeus Iris Refraction!” Old, thick branches with huge thorns start to push against the shield as he struggles to hold it. “Go! Run, quickly!”
Sailor Venus only pauses briefly, shaking before she nods and turns, Artemis following her. The barrier gets them out safely as Knight Phoebus grits his teeth, doing his best to hold the growing thorns back. The sensation on the silver bracelet gets him to glance down, seeing the black script and final gemstone begin to glow.
“Ὦ ἅγιοι φύλακες τῶν ἱερῶν φυλακτήρων, φύλακες τῆς βασιλείας, ἀκούσατε ἡμῶν.”
“ QUIET! YOU WILL NOT BRING THEM HERE! ”
More of the thick branches and thorns appear, pushing harder as he glares at the empty darkness, seeing glints of a mirror made of bone.
“Λάβετε τοὺς φυλακτήρας ὑμῶν, καλέσατε τὴν δύναμιν ὑμῶν.”
“ Enough. ”
The haughty tone, reminiscent of how Onyxia had spoken when she’d been Lady Prestor and believed to be the new Queen, is not enough to get him to stop. He is no longer a child, and no longer powerless
“Φαίνων λαμπρὰ, ἀδελφὴ τῆς θείας τιμωρίας, λάβε τὸ δρέπανον καὶ ἐπανέλθε ὧδε!”
The purple and black are faster than any of the others, quickly escaping as the bracelet lays bare on his wrist.
“ I see. You are as willful as the others.” A haughty chuckle as the last of his barrier dissipates, causing Knight Phoebus to stumble backwards to avoid getting slashed by them. “No matter. ”
The dark mirror beneath his feet reflected his surprise only briefly as it’s uncovered before, with a sudden flash of light, Phoebus is gone. Fine spiderwebs glitter over the top as the laughter from before echoes through the area from the big top.
“ Go. Get that Pegasus for us, and the Prince of this planet. We shall not allow those of the White Moon to ruin this.”
The skeleton relaxes against the mirror, the flying eye with a flame on top landing in the socket and looking around before it relaxes in its place.
“ No. We shall set the world as it should have been, before that usurpation by that outside power. Now that we have both the Knight and Prince, what can they do?”
Notes:
So for each chapter before this, Anduin sends out the Astraea for the different Soldiers. He says, to each:
Mercury: "O holy messenger of the kingdom, o star of water, gleaming Stilborn, hear us. Take up thy talisman, call out for thy power. Protected by Mercury, Guardian of Wisdom, awaken!"Mars: "O holy priestess of the kingdom, o star of fire, fiery Pyroesis, hear us. Take up thy talisman, call out thy power. Protected by Mars, Guardian of War, awaken! Phobos, Deimos, holy allies, awaken! Charge forward!"
Jupiter: "O holy protector of the kingdom, o star of wood, blazing Phaethon, hear us. Take up thy talisman, call out for thy power. Protected by Jupiter, Guardian of Protection, awaken!"
Venus: "O holy leader of the guardians, o star of metal, dawning Eosphoros, hear us. Take up thy talisman, call out thy power. Protected by Venus, Guardian of Beauty, awaken! Partner and guide, Artemis, awaken! Star of Dawn and Dusk, Love and War, awaken!"
Outer Soldiers/Saturn: "O holy guardians of the sacred talismans, guardians of the kingdom, hear us. Take up thy talismans, call out thy power. Shining Phainon, sister of divine retribution, take up thy scythe and return here!"
Chapter 7: Alas! For this Gray Shadow, Once a Man
Summary:
The Dead Moon Circus begins their attacks in earnest, the Sailor Soldiers recall their past encounter with them. Sailor Chibimoon and Pegasus rush to summon the Outers, while Anduin and Mamoru meets the shadow of the Knight Coeus.
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
Alas! For this Gray Shadow, Once a Man
Mamoru pants between the heavy, wet coughs that rack through his body, the oppressive heat seeming to only put more pressure on his aching body. His head ached as much as his body, barely managing to get in enough of the stagnant air to realize how dark it was in his room. To one side, he thought he heard Usako calling for him, and his vision blurred as he saw the viscous fluid on his hand.
Black bile…no, blood.
He stumbles as he gets out of the bed, vision swimming as he thinks he sees two Usakos, but one…isn’t right. Their hair is darker, flowing out in a way that reminds him of how Beryl’s hair had billowed out behind her.
“Twinkle Yell!” a bright light illuminates the room, getting Mamoru to shield his face and try to see what was going on that SuperSailor Chibimoon would--
“Mamo-chan!” The sudden scream gets him to realize too late that the other image he’d seen of Usako was actually a mirror, pulling him into the mirror as he weakly struggles against the hold. The ghostly images of his generals gather around him, trying to pull him back, but soon one after another disappear. The sound of rocks shattering behind him relays their fates, getting him to struggle as hard as he can to escape, to not make their final sacrifice be in vain.
“Moon Gorgeous Meditation!”
Mamoru struggles to get loose, seeing something like thick spider webs around his wrist and arm as he’s pulled further in. He tries to reach to the two as the mirror suddenly shines with a strange light, getting him to stumble backwards and into suffocating darkness.
“Mamo-chan!” The two yell as he disappears into the mirror, the glow from the Bell slowly fading before they have no way of reaching the room, both SuperSailor Moon and SuperSailor Chibimoon rushing out as they hear their communicator’s beep as well.
“ Sailor Moon,” Luna’s voice is worried as she says, “ what happened?”
Chibimoon holds the Bell tight as Sailor Moon explains tearfully what they’d seen, hearing the others nearby before seeing that all of them are now in their Sailor forms, but Knight Phoebus is not with them. Instead, some strange white-haired man with green eyes and the symbol of the White Moon is with them, pausing as he looks around at the darkness that has started to fall over the world, like the eclipse is coming back and darkening the world once more.
“Sailor Venus…they…they have them both?”
Sailor Venus shifts and nods, looking down as the group falls silent before Luna rushes up, pausing in surprise at seeing the white-haired man before he kneels down, smiling at her. When Luna’s nose touches his finger, there’s a brief glow before he turns back into the familiar white cat.
Giggles and high-pitched laughter echoes around them as they shift, ready to fight as more of the enemies from before, as well as strange circus people laughing and walking down the way like a chaotic parade.
“If it isn’t our rivals, all dressed up and ready to go!”
“Indeed, indeed,” another laugh from above, “the dull and tired act is nothing special now. It’s the time of the Dead Moon Circus and our nightmares.”
“What’s the use of dreams when they only ever break, when you cannot grow into them and they rot from within?”
“PallaPalla can’t wait, I can’t wait! Let’s show them now!” A spotlight appears above them, showing four girls above on round balls of different colors. “ Tama Yobai! ”
“Mercury,” the lyre comes to her hand easily as more of the strange, dark lemures appear, “Aqua Rhapsody!”
The one on the red ball laughs. “Oh please, like that will stop us! Tama Hagane! ” several daggers of varying types come at them.
“Jupiter Oak,” a spin scatters as many sparking leaves as the daggers, “Evolution!”
The green ball lands with a heavy thud, cracking the pavement as the one on it snaps her whip. “Hey, no fair! Tama Gusuri! ”
“Mars Flame Sniper!” The fire sparks as the arrow goes through the scattered dust in the air, setting it aflame and getting the girls and the others to jump back in fear before the final girl in pink and yellow glares at them before saying, “Well, looks like they still have their tricks. No matter. The White Moon can try to take us on, but the Dead Moon Circus is full of the discarded dreams that can now manifest, and the truth that is shown in the Mirror.” They look at SuperSailor Chibimoon, and pause only for a moment before the pink-haired girl yells, “ Tama Kazura!”
Vines grow around them, splitting the street and catching fire, but are too thick to fully burn away as the girls disappear towards the huge tent they can now see in the distance. SuperSailor Chibimoon holds the Bell tightly, feeling something odd in her chest, as if she needs to race after the four and shake them.
What is this feeling? How could I know…that they need to wake up from this nightmare?
The warm glow intensifies as she holds it out, allowing Pegasus to appear before them as she moves to hug him. “Helios…they have them…Mamo-chan and Anduin-kun. How can we get them back?”
The Pegasus looks at her before glancing at the huge tent the four she needs to wake up have traveled to. “ In there. That is the pathway they have used to hold ground in Elysium.”
Luna and Artemis step forward, surprised. “Isn’t that,” Luna asks, “the lost castle of the Solar Soldier?”
The Pegasus slowly nods and glances at them all before letting out what sounds like a soft sigh. “I shall tell you, and help lead Small Lady, to the kingdom and hopefully, we may find the Golden Crystals that can push back this darkness. ”
The Priest of Elysium and the Prince of Earth were born of a curse.
Despite that, they swore to protect the sacred land, the Prince as the figurehead, and the Priest blessing and purifying the land whenever danger loomed. As such, they could not work with the Silver Millennium, and so resentment grew between the two kingdoms.
“A curse?”
Elysium was once the castle of the Solar Soldier, Princess of the Sun, Sailor Sun. The Golden Kingdom was ruled by the Terran Soldier, Princess of the Earth, Sailor Earth. All those who are Soldiers have one child who may carry on their legacy - one daughter who gains that power.
But the Sun and Earth Soldiers defied the Coeus Knight, and so, he set upon them a curse.
“Him again…”
“What do you mean that they defied him?”
All Knights are destined to leave. They are wandering points of light, no more than helpers and guides who quickly leave when their duties are done. Coeus took up the Pole-Star Astraea, wishing to set rules to keep the young Soldiers safe, but ended up taking up the Tithonous Curse - a curse of immortality, that he might live as long as the star. Yet his choices lead to him cursing Nemesis when she spoke up against his treatment of her sister, and to her choosing to disappear into her planet, removing it from time and space to avoid everyone and one day die without seeing her sister or the others she’d fought beside ever again.
“How horrible…”
“But didn’t Queen Selenity agree to those restrictions? Didn’t she also agree to what he set?”
…she did. The choices made, because of what happened during that time when outside, war waged, she and the others allowed themselves to have those limitations set on them, that they might be kept safe. Yet the three who were cursed over limited ended up shattering friendship and loyalty with what would become the Silver Millennium. Though they all agreed to protect the Earth, the curses slowly overcome the Solar and Earth Soldiers in different ways. When the Solar Soldier went to the Sun, her despair and disgust created dark spots, which gave rise to the demon Metalia. Though she gave her power to her son Endymion, she knew he would one day bring about the end of the Silver Millennium through that inherited curse.
Yet despite that, their sons still hoped for a better future, and for their curses to come. They did not think that another would also lay another curse upon the young Princess of the Moon.
The group glance at the path ahead of them as the four guardians shift, recalling something. “She was there,” Sailor Mars finally said, “In the dark of the Moon, she lived and believed herself the most beautiful, encouraged by her entourage. Then, on the day we pledged ourselves to the Princess…”
“She appeared, a dark shadow and uninvited guest,” Sailor Jupiter growled out, her own memories returning. “Claiming to also be of the Moon, and with that creepy mirror behind her that whispered something awful.”
“...that mirror…something about it….” Sailor Mercury’s voice filled with fear.
The Pegasus looks at them all as they recall that fateful day, when the dark queen and her people were sealed away for what she had done to extend her beauty…and the curse she’d put on the young Princess.
She came to Elysium too, to try to gain the Golden Crystal left behind, claiming she was worthy of it, and demanding the Priest’s hand in marriage once she did. Burned by the Holy Flame, she cursed the Earth, and turned her sights to the Moon. When she was sealed away, she slept and plotted instead.
“The Priest of Elysium?” SuperSailor Chibimoon looks at the Pegasus. “You told me about him. He was captured too, but when the Golden Crystal was sealed, so too was his soul. She only has a shell of him.”
The Pegasus nods as SuperSailor Moon touches the Silver Crystal, trying to think. “A curse upon my past life, and upon the Earth…is that why the darkness took hold there? Was that…her doing?”
Her curse was amplified only because of Coeus’ own power. Pegasus looks over at them all before looking down. All things change, even that which appears immortal. That is why Coeus, who took upon himself the curse of Immortality, now lives on as the Dark Mirror, aiding Nehelenia in her bid for what they claim as their own.
The group look ahead at the looming, dark circus tent. SuperSailor Moon lets out a calming breath, then smiles at Helios. “Thank you for letting us know this.”
The Pegasus nods before turning to SuperSailor Chibimoon. The four Outer Guardians will be here, but I fear their focus will be on the one they have pledged themselves to. You, the daughter of Moon and Earth, and the Sister of Divine Retribution, are signs that their curses have failed. You’ve seen it too, haven’t you?
SuperSailor Chibimoon swallows, then slowly nods. She turns back to the group, her grip tight as she tells the others, “Save them. We’ll light the safest way, and lead the others to you!”
“Chibimoon…” SuperSailor Moon smiles, slowly reaching out to hug the younger girl. “You can do this. I know you can. Guide our way, and awaken everyone trapped in this nightmare they call a curse.”
SuperSailor Chibimoon and Helios nod, Helios kneeling to allow Chibimoon to ride him as they take off into the sky, the others looking forward as the still-mad parade and the mass of thick spiderwebs and filth that blocks their way. With a nod to each other, the group quickly rush forward, their teamwork honed from their past and present lives as they carve their way to the largest tent.
Callan lets out a huff as the Dranaei shaman arrives, holding the items as the Monkey King sits near the still-recovering Khadgar. The older mage’s eyes are closed, and he’s at least resting after they had to get away from both the Horde and those Black Moon bastards. They’d also seemed a bit off as well, though…and looking up at the night sky, Callan wonders if it’s due to how dark that one area had become.
“You have to carry around that walking ball of power?” the Monkey King’s question gets him to glance over at the censor he carried with him. Despite how it’d looked when he’d first picked it up, now it was shinier, brighter, and all but glowing with obvious power.
“I can’t leave it alone, can I?” He shifts to hold it up and smiles at the familiar smell. “It reminds me of home in a way, and bringing it has made it brighter. Why give up something nice in such a dark time?”
The Monkey King is quiet a moment before letting out a huff that sounds like a laugh. “True, true! But what will you do when that power explodes out? Can you handle it?”
Callan shrugs, putting it back as the Dranaei pauses, as if uncertain about what to report after handing over the last thing they need for the Harmonic Mallet. “I’ve heard that Garrosh and his Kor’kron are heading towards a place called Emperor’s Reach. If he has the Bell, he’ll ring it there.”
“I suppose the question is if Uncle is there,” Callan states, glancing over at Khadgar, frowning as he notices something like a shadow near the mage. As he starts forward, the shadow becomes more like a raven, glancing at him briefly before flying away. The mage slowly stands, letting out a breath as Callan frowns, worrying.
“Are you alright?”
“I had a rather…difficult conversation.” Khadgar pats Callan’s shoulder before saying, “I have to go back to Dalaran.” He pauses, starting to move and make a portal when the sound of flapping wings gets him to stop, looking up and over to the open plain. A blue-haired young man of some sort stumbles as he runs over to them, as if he’s landed from somewhere, but Callan can’t see any sign of something that would be flying away from any direction he’d be coming in to arrive and land the way he had.
“Khadgar! Something…something’s wrong with Jaina. Please…please you have to help me get to her. I’m not sure…I don’t know what’s going on.”
Khadgar doesn’t look happy about this, glancing around before looking at Callan, who nods. “Get going. We know where we’re needed.”
The mage nods, turning back before he says, “Kalec, calm down. I was heading back. Can you take me there? If you’re here, I worry about going via a portal.”
The blue-haired man shifts, nodding as he steps back, Callan blinking before he sees the man now transform into a large, blue dragon. He’d heard of the more reclusive blue dragons, supposed protectors of the arcane and the magic that Dalaran focused on teaching and cultivating. Khadgar moves over to the larger claw of the beast, the group having to look down as the burst of wind from the beat of wings kicks up dust and loose dirt as it takes off. Callan doesn’t bother to watch, instead motioning to the others.
“Quickly. We need to get to the Emperor’s Reach, and stop this madness here.”
The two mirrors shimmer in the darkness, holding the unconscious men as she glances up at the cold body in her webs. “Knight, Priest, and Prince. It appears I have everything we need, and yet…” walking past them, she glares as Zirconia shows up, bowing low so she doesn’t have to see the disgusting face, the one that always makes her recall the terrible vision she’s managed to avoid.
“ They are coming, but the girls we have will be enough of a match for them, and I shall put up the defenses.”
“Go. This planet will be ours soon, and I don’t need distractions.”
The mirror goes dark, and she turns to the two mirrors, waving as the one with the Knight released him to the hold of her webs. Looking at him as he is held there, she can see why it is that the three will be useful for solidifying her hold as the Moon Queen and ruler of this system.
As I should be. I am, after all, the most beautiful queen.
He’s brought up to the same cage she’d held the body of the Priest, allowing her to turn to the Prince. He was just as handsome, and she hears the bones on the mirror rustle.
“ As beautiful as she was…and as willful. Best to use it…to awaken the Golden Crystal. ”
She hums before sending him up and turning towards her throne. “We don’t recall asking your opinion.” She glances back up at the Knight. “He released the Astraea, though. We suppose we can always use him for something else.”
She doesn’t notice the Knight’s eyes crack open as she speaks, looking around as covertly as he could. Her eyes trailed up to them after a moment, then waved to bring down her two new prizes as one grunts and coughs, the other wincing when she grabs his hair to hold his head up. Both glare up at her with defiant blue eyes that make her sneer at them in anger.
“How arrogant. Not even offering us the barest consideration for our station.”
“You deserve our consideration?”
She backhands the Knight, though not hard enough to leave a scar. No, no need to give this face a scar or blemish.
“ Foolish Knight, my illegitimate substitute, ” the bones finally move enough to remove themselves from the mirror, standing up as the Knight he’d once been. His hair looks almost the same tone as that of the Prince, a touch of gray in it that makes him appear older and dignified, despite how thin it was. Light brown eyes look at him with disgust, the gray skin and signs of decay on his finery is an eyesore - a suit of a king, with plenty of metals, stitched together and with torn fur from his conquests and trophies. Longer elf-like ears are unadorned with any sort of gems or jewelry, as opposed to the rest of his decaying and tarnished clothing. A silver bracelet, similar to the one on the new Knight’s wrist, glimmered as the Knight looked at him, the only part of his trophies and jewelry that doesn’t have any sign of age and decay.
“ I am the one who sets things, who kept them safe as the Holy Wars outside raged. Who are you to try to break down this barrier that protects them from that danger? ” Walking forward, he glares down at the younger Knight, brown eyes as bright with rage. “ Do you even know what dangers you invite in? ”
“Quiet,” her voice gets the Knight Coeus to bow to her. “What matters not is the dangers but that everything will be set right. We can handle all that is outside, for their wars have ravaged them all, and none can reject us or our beauty. None will dare do so.”
Coeus is quiet before saying, “ Forgive me. The sight of this fool and the spawn of those who betrayed me caused you pain. But without the Golden Crystal of the Priest, we cannot fulfill your dream to its fullest. ”
She looks up, getting the two trapped to look up as well at the final gem of her collection - the young Priest she’d caught, trapped as if a bird swooping down. The black-haired Prince looks like he almost recognizes him, but it’s no surprise to her.
“The Priest of Elysium, who guarded the Golden Crystal of the Sun, and who prayed for the dreams of this planet to be fulfilled. Yet he denied us the power and his hand, and fled like a coward after we came back for him, leaving only this shell.” The area holding it rocks in her annoyance at his insolence, and that of the last two she’d gotten. “Once the Golden Crystal of Earth is awakened, the Golden Crystal of the Sun will have no choice but to answer. After all, if they don’t, then they will have failed as they did before.”
Despite his weakness, the Prince struggles when she mentions that, getting her to glance over at him as the Knight glares at her with those defiant eyes of his. She might have to pluck them out if this keeps up. She hates that look in his eyes, even more so than that of the Queen who sealed her away.
Moving back to her throne, she waves as the webs force them back into the same cages as the Priest. A simple brush of her power puts them both to rest once more before she looks back at Knight Coeus.
“The White Moon will be here at one point, and try to save them. We cannot allow them in.”
“ Your loyal subjects will keep them away. They cannot follow us to our new base on Elysium. Once we have the Golden Crystals of the Sun and Earth, our legitimate claim over this land and the Moon will be recognized. All will be set as it means to be, and we will continue under your eternal rule. ”
Notes:
If you want a good image of Coeus, he's basically an elf version of King Haggard from 'The Last Unicorn'.
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