Lunarian Insurrection
Though the fields are laid to waste, shall we mourn?
Shall the reaper regret, shall she cast the shadows aside and allow the sun her due?
What of the warrior, brave and true, their hard fought efforts, shall the fates be kind?
Dreams shatter, but from their fragments emerge prettier things, wonders that live on in the spaces between our thoughts, hopes and heartbeats, a place where lamentation gives way to the nexus of love and hope, for there shall be a celebration for the fallen and the reborn!
Queen Tialahna of Mau Crystal Archive 3038 SE (Sulean Epoch)
Kunzite slashed at the youma and slew them with ease as Zoicite, Nephrite and Jadeite entered the fray. It was now a case of do or die, for them all as Kunzite and Dark Serenity clashed, their swords of celestial crystal clanging and throwing off a prismatic light.
“Mother no! Stop this insanity now!” Gaea screamed, unable to stop herself, the light of the Ginzuishou pulsing around her body.
Dark Serenity vanished leaving Kunzite slashing at thin air. She reappeared a short distance away from her daughter directing coal black eyes towards her. She hissed, “Bitch child of the White Moon; so disappointing it is that I must kill you also. But I am pregnant yet again. I will make sure this one is a child of Chaos and not a traitor!” she snarled.
Gaea jumped back, assuming her Senshi form as Dark Serenity’s face took on an almost reptilian expression. She continued to back away from her mother who raised her Dark Space Sword for the first time against her own flesh and blood and came at her at a run.
Gaea ran for the stairs. As she moved, she was followed by the sound of dying youma and humans filling the chamber.
She was on the balcony now looking desperately for somewhere to hide, to get away from her mother. But it was of no use, for the Dark Queen had shed all vestiges of her humanity.
Aftermath
She remembered the day she had to break the tragic news to Endymion and Setsuna. He was distraught, almost inconsolable, his parents, Arjirea and Solaris dead. This taking place during a siege by Diamond’s forces on the Terran Palace, the only consolation, the fact the perpetrator of this heinous crime was slain by Arjirea’s hand before taking her own life, unable to go on without her only true love.
The youma undercover force had helped liberate the Terran Capital. Serenity Moon thought this most ironic, for the fifth column itself was liberated by Helios on a prison world by pure chance with the aid of a spirit by the name of Akanari.
So then, shortly thereafter, upon the fields of the northern Empire of the Electrum Plateau in the arid region of the Western Empire, Helios, the Shitennou and Senshi trained their secret army to fight and overwhelm the enemy from within. The concept of a fifth column would become a more important element of defense over time. As they’d discovered, not all youma were lapdogs to the Dark Kingdom. Some yes, were spirits seeking hosts and altering the physiology of their victims to lend ferocity and cunning to the fight. But the majority of these creatures were simply forms of sentient life. These youma had little contact with humanoid life forms. However, they did sign the occasional trade agreements with worlds outside the Alliance. The galaxy, she realized, was indeed a vast and strange place.
~*~
Serenity viewed the holo-images with shock and outrage as she witnessed the events playing out before her. Some simulated, but the live footage was graphic and heartbreaking. The palace was a charnel house. Blood drinking vampire youma were feasting on the flesh of the fallen of both sides. The awful black leathery flesh and the shimmering wings, these moving with slow and sinister deliberation, as they sat atop the spires, walls and fountains of the palace gardens; the silent monsters still as statues, their opalescent red eyes waiting for something to die, to shed blood. The screeching cries announcing another harpy-like harbinger of death zeroing in on its prey and swooping to have their fill. At that point, the armies of darkness and those of light were locked in stalemate.
Then Sapphire, himself shocked and grieved by what had befallen his older brother, Lord Diamond, called a ceasefire. He did this ostensibly to give the leadership of both sides the chance to deal with their dead and wounded.
As the bodies of the fallen were taken away, the winged youma were destroyed by Sailor Mars and Sailor Venus in a series of fierce attacks. Sun Stroke Attack all but knocked out most of the youma and Sailor Venus did the rest. This gave everyone sufficient time to mourn and bury their dead. Sapphire, to the surprise of Helios and the defenders of the city, ordered an immediate withdrawal of Dark Serenity’s forces.
~*~
The funerary rite was both beautiful and moving. Watching Setsuna cradle the head of her husband as he wept unashamedly, tore at her heart. The emerald haired sovereign herself moved to tears. She had to be strong for him and for their people. Soothing him, she smiled down at little Persephone, clinging to the skirts of her mother, the queen.
When Serenity Moon met with the new Terran Queen after the rite, she embraced Endymion. He felt warm in his thick black woolen cloak as she held him and muttered her own condolences.
The skies grew gunmetal grey and the snow was falling. The palace gardens were like a fairyland, covered in the soft powdery blanket, Persephone distracted from her burden of grief for a time.
(Oh Persephone, a load far too heavy for one so young, my little munchkin) her mother thought, smiling at the little snow princess as she played with other children rugged up against the cold like herself.
Setsuna smiled as she pulled the soft gold hood from her face, not minding the snowflakes settling upon her soft green locks nor the cold, having lived most of her life on a world of ice.
“Serenity Moon, I had always hoped that one day, when Arjirea chose to retire and travel to Orion with Solaris, that then, and only then would I accept the mantle of Terran Queen. But now,” she said, looking back to the fountain where the children were tossing snowballs at one another as if war had never touched the city, she went on, “It was thrust upon me. I know people feel I am a deserving recipient, but I only wish it could have worked out the way it was intended.”
“I know Setsuna, and I have a daughter already dead to me, she brought this on us all. I must stop her, no matter what!” she said, gripping the other woman’s arm as Setsuna nodded and pressed a finger to Serenity Moon’s lips.
Endymion was laughing with Persephone who was holding her father’s hand as they moved towards the two women, the sadness not leaving his blank eyes. Each woman smiled, knowing their little snow princess would help her father through this terrible loss.
“Hello darling!” Serenity Moon said, crouching to meet the ocean blue orbs of the little wide-eyed girl.
She curtseyed to the exiled queen before flinging herself around the neck of the winged soldier, “Lady, aren’t you cold in that Senshi fuku?” she giggled.
“Not at all, my magical power, the Ginzuishou keeps me warm,” she laughed, shaking her head, “Oh, and by the way child, you have a good throwing arm, little one!” she declared, impressed by her prowess during the snowball fight with her friends.
Persephone beamed and kissed the queen’s cheek and stroked her soft downy wings then grabbed her father’s hand. “Thank you, Lady Serenity Moon!”
Endymion mussed up the little girl’s hair and spoke in a cracked voice, “You’re my light and my heart little munchkin, now let’s get you and our guest inside now shall we?”
“Oh yes, please father, lets!” she gushed, leading her unseeing father into the palace.
~*~
Queen Setsuna was a fair and just ruler. After returning to the capital to occupy the palace, the dark armies were repelled by the Silver Alliance and Dark Serenity was furious, vowing to return. An uneasy peace had settled over the Terrans, for Dark Serenity was building a new army and all knew it was only a matter of time before she launched a counterstrike.
Alternate Moon Kingdom 17 years later
It was dusk and the night’s so-called entertainment was soon to begin. Beautiful, yes it was just perfect, the glory of art and battle invested in stone, the stories its timeless structures could tell of ages past when Selene’s ancestors first set eyes upon what the Ginzuishou had created from the hearts of its celestial monarchs. One could only but admire the skill of the crystal mason, her imagination, her crystal hands forging a city of pure majesty and resplendence – Serenity City.
This was a city of great achievement, artisanship, commerce, beauty, pride and above all, the cradle of peace for the Silver Alliance. Many had fought to keep it that way and died to guarantee its legacy. Now, for all its glory in battles won, coronations and cultural achievements, it could so easily come to naught if they didn’t stop Dark Serenity and soon.
~*~
Serenity’s silvery-blue wings and her golden odangos shone under the light of the blue planet overhead. The Senshi of Lunarian Magic bore a look of fierce determination on her lovely face as the Lunarian resistance prepared to make their move.
The Ginzuishou gave her the strength to face her dark daughter. Also, the exposure to the combined power of the Kinzuishou and Garnet Rod that reinforced her auric field served as a shield of armor for this formidable woman; a Senshi like no other. She had to get her daughter back by any means at her disposal. She would succeed. She could return to the moon, but she could never again rule it so long as Dark Serenity held the White Moon in the name of Chaos. She grunted, clutching the hilt of her Moon Sword.
Lord Kunzite shook his head as he looked on as the youma began to swell in number around the Moon Palace, a sight he’d never thought would meet his eyes., the resistance had engaged in countless skirmishes over the years with their rebel force growing in strength and number by the year. But he was worried now, especially as the Dark Princess was becoming evermore powerful and they were fighting a battle on a number of fronts now, for Dark Moon Raiders were once more attacking the Terran world’s major cities, including his home, Atlantari City.
He was not alone; he stood beside Sailor Mau, Sailor Neko and Sailor Luna, and the Mauan warrior, Artemis. With them, lords Jadeite, Zoicite, Nephrite and Luteolous, a man who had fallen in love with Serenity Moon. The Shitennou and winged monarch side-by-side holding hands, watching the youma foot soldiers on patrol as their rebel archers prepared to attack the enemy.
Kunzite raised his hand as his fellow Shitennou squatted low beside him and fell silent, “We have to time it all perfectly, or else the jig, as they say is up, gentlemen and noble ladies,” he said, as Serenity Moon, Sailor Mau and Naru grinned at their male comrades.
Months of preparations had finally led to this moment, their rebel forces at the ready and all would hang on what transpired this night, success their goal, failure not an option.
Then Sailor Mau spoke in a conspiratorial tone, “I took care of the youma foot soldiers outside the palace and used Cosmic Tail Attack to destroy the barracks and the youma, so we’re good to go, Lord Kunzite. And look, there’s Naru’s signal coming from the upper tower, let’s move!”
Palace Ballroom
The initiation of Gaea as a dark Senshi was proving to be a bleak and tiresome affair for the adolescent crown princess of the Dark Moon. Gaea, blond and pretty, her sweet angelic face, the luxuriant golden tresses tumbling in sumptuous waves poured over her generous curves and floated about her knees giving her a faery-princess look. However, in stark contrast to the first impression, the impossibly short black shift with its neckline so low it exposed much of the girl’s chest and abdomen made her look more like a Moon Butterfly, the euphemism for a Temple Prostitute or tavern-dancing girl. However, the silver cloak and her obsidian tiara added a regal touch to her appearance. The hem of the garment, like the cloak, lined with silver crescents and the crystal high-heeled sandals shimmered with every step she took. Gaea was the undisputed crown princess and protégé of her mother, the Dark Queen. But the girl had a radiance her mother lacked. Princess Gaea's azure eyes were devoid of enthusiasm. She sat with her legs crossed humming to the tunes played by the musicians in the ballroom. Dark Serenity chastised her for pouting, but sighed with resignation, putting it down to youthful indifference. Her mother was also worried about how Gaea was struggling to master the Dark Crystal; the girl didn’t trust the magical stone, or herself, for that matter. She was at her wits end. But she was certain of one thing. Gaea would be her successor despite her stumbles along the path to ultimate power.
Gaea smiled, but her smile hadn’t graced her sorrowful eyes. She looked with compassion upon those offered for sacrifice for entertainment’s sake on her behalf. She felt sick to the stomach with guilt and helplessness, the despair threatening to overwhelm her. She could not stop this charade. All attempts to dissuade her mother from taking this course of action only resulted in her being slapped and sent to her bedchambers without food or drink until the following day. Gaea had been, according to her mother, ‘her greatest disappointment’ she’d heard her say much too often. But the light in her heart, something gentle and silent, a companion, often taking the form of a sweet and caring voice, assured her all would be well. The woman of crystal loveliness would appear to her in her dreams, offering advice and comfort.
She had forged a friendship with Iolite, Lord Diamond’s son, and Sámi’s child. He was tall, his hair dark, and his eyes an aquamarine that always made her heart skip whenever they met. The three of them spent a lot of time together; they were her real family.
Gaea asked about her father, King Endymion of Terra. Sámi told her about his curse , how her mother had trapped, seduced and blinded him. She couldn’t believe it and wanted to confront her mother immediately. But Sámi warned her against that. She had explained that her mother had punished her father for loving another after embracing the power of the Dark Crystal and its sponsor, the Dark Kingdom. Gaea was determined to meet her father, and knew that any attempt to seek permission from her mother was an exercise in futility.
Her little sister, Reika, was her most important charge. She and Sámi had been her guardians, saving her life on many occasions from her mother. But at the age of nine years when her mother tried to kill her by leaving her in the forest alone, Gaea had been called from some place deep within her dreams by a beautiful crystal girl. She was completely naked, and her hair was, like her crystalline body, completely transparent. Gaea found herself in the forest with a disorientated Iolite and his mother, Sámi and looked down at the pink crystal cocoon that glowed upon the forest floor containing her sleeping sister, Reika. The crystal girl, Chibi-Chibi had instructed them to take the amethyst case to Lady Moon Cat, which they had done. Chibi-Chibi explained that Reika would remain in a state of suspended animation until she was strong enough to protect herself.
Gaea knew that so long as Reika remained within the palace, her cerise-haired shape-shifting sibling would always be in mortal peril. Although she would miss her dearly, Gaea preferred this to discovering one day that her little sister was murdered by her own mother.
Gaea’s thoughts returned to the present. She smiled as she remembered how Iolite had kissed her for the first time the night before. She liked it. She liked it a lot and how he touched her, his movements so tender. Iolite was surprisingly gentle with her and she felt no shame. They hadn’t consummated their union, but it was nonetheless, just as sweet and passionate for all that.
As the new day dawned, she longed to know love the way lovers did. But she was in no hurry, for conditions weren’t supportive of a relationship within the palace and her mother might object, or worse, send him away. She couldn’t risk that. The resistance needed him. Naru needed the extra backup within the palace also. She would keep her silence.
She came back to the present, ever so reluctantly, the ballroom a grotesque parody of its former glory days. She sighed, having seen the old holo-pictures of the White Moon. But now, the chamber seemed dank and empty, all this despite the hundreds of people handpicked by Dark Serenity herself to bear witness to this much-anticipated event, each guest a willing signatory of the Dark Kingdom.
~*~
Unbeknownst to Dark Serenity and her court, the youma battalion and the Shadow Warrior overlords guarding the entrances to the palace were all dead.
Saturn stood resolute, weary, her glaive at the ready. But Serenity placed a hand on her forearm, “Saturn, we have to be spies, you know, be observers,” she whispered, knowing nobody could see or hear them. Saturn, despite her self, giggled and rolled her eyes. ”I know, I know… but it’s habit, now please be quiet for a moment and let me finish will you?”
“All right, but make it fast,” Saturn answered back and sighed.
“We just need to observe at the moment. The time isn’t right to strike, but it’s close. I can feel it. I know it. Trust me on this, Saturn.”
“What I’d give to slice that wench in half with my Silence Glaive, just say the word and she’s mine!” Saturn growled, clenching her teeth.
“Don’t worry; you’ll know when I do. Right now, we need to balance our response with that of the Lunarian resistance and Dark Serenity herself. I am sure there are times the Dark Crystal loses its potency. We need to record those occasions. Reconnaissance, that is our duty here tonight. We need to know strengths, weaknesses and form our plan based on that. You know, if things go to hell, then we fight, but let’s get whatever advantage that bitch offers us, all right?” she whispered to the purple clad Senshi by her side. Saturn rolled her eyes and they pressed on, stopping every now and again to eavesdrop.
The two visitors from a parallel world mingled unseen amongst the guests but for one. Gaea noticed the two glowing figures and her heart caught in her throat at the sight of the woman who was a carbon copy of her mother, but for the hair.
(Oh, by the Kamis…those eyes…, her face, and the way she moves with such grace and poise! There’s something else; a force I recognize!)
Gaea’s heart stopped in her throat, and she leaned forward to get a better look at the woman, who even wore her hair like her mother. She recognized the shimmering corona of silver light encircling her petite frame, for it was the self-same light burning inside her Star Seed. She knew she had to suppress her excitement lest her mother become suspicious. But it was getting evermore difficult for her to do this.
~*~
Gaea had asked Lady Naru for help to understand why it was she was so different from her mother. She had also asked how to develop her powers unobtrusively so Dark Serenity wouldn’t grow suspicious. Naru kindly agreed. She had taken Gaea on an excursion on the false pretext of giving the Dark Queen a break from her adolescent daughter.
~*~
Lady Serenity Moon greeted them on the outskirts of their forest checkpoint and warm embraces and laughter were exchanged as Gaea met Lady Moon Cat for the first time. The Mauan monarch was also known as Sailor Mau, a queen of her very own world of cat people. She was the sovereign of Lord Artemis, Luna and Sere. Gaea was surprised to see Artemis there and remembered he’d not been seen much around the palace of late. Apparently, her mother virtually ignored Artemis, for she held him in utter contempt based on the fact he was of Mauan blood. Like Luna, estranged due to her Mauan heritage, despite being her blood sister and second in line to the throne. But she wasn’t surprised given how Sere -- her half-sister – was treated by their mother.
Gaea had spent the following six weeks training with the exiled queen and the Lunarian Resistance. She loved watching the winged Senshi flying. In a choreographed round of mock battles, she remembered Iolite’s comments and couldn’t blame him. He was right.
“Gaea, her movements are so fluid, graceful and sexy, too. But you’re sexier,” he said, kissing her reddening face.
She smiled and answered him, brushing his sandy hair out of his eyes an kissed him back, “You’re right, she’s just so incredible!” she responded, as they turned to watch Serenity Moon spinning and shooting out volleys of crystal spears at moving target drones and destroying these in seconds.
Gaea remembered how she had felt so blessed by the Kamis, for Luna and Artemis had set up a feast in her honor. She ate so much, she felt as if she’d burst. She listened to stories by firelight, and danced with the good-looking men and spent a lot of quality time with one in particular, Iolite.
Later, Gaea was surprised to learn Lady Moon Cat had escaped death by the proverbial whisker. But what she had found most fascinating was the fact Mau had come from the future.
“But Lady Moon Cat,” she said, leaning forward, “how did you get here and how did you escape the Animates?”
She pursed her lips in thought, and sat, folding her golden limbs into a cross-legged position. She pushed her coppery locks from her face and tucked a loose strand behind one of her feline ears. She considered her question for a second or two. But the fragrant fish was all too much and she giggled. Mau’s ears twitched with anticipated delight as she licked her lips at the prospect of the delicious Lunarian seafood and answered her question, “Ah, so many questions for one so young. But let me tell you this much, there are a few secrets you don’t know about your friend over there cavorting with that handsome man, Luteolous.” She took a bite of her grilled fish and savored it, as Gaea waited impatiently for her to finish.
Grabbing a piece of fish herself, she spoke again between mouthfuls, “Come on, I am on the edge of my seat here. Tell me please!”
“All right then, now let me see… the Dark Kingdom is but a fragment of a more sinister alliance, it is so old it dwarfs any of the evils committed by your mother. But nobody here knows of them. Put it this way; they could destroy the entire star system on a whim. They occupy my Mauan Kingdom and it’s in lockdown under a puppet civilian government. My family and I were under house arrest. The Alliance is pure evil.”
“How long had this enemy controlled your planet, Lady Moon Cat?” she asked, leaning forward, resting her elbows on her knees.
“You might find this hard to believe, Gaea, but it was well over 25000 of your years back, well before I was born. But, returning to your earlier question, I was lucky to have met Pluto of the future and she helped me escape. She had stumbled onto a network of portals that are laced throughout the galaxy. Such a port is beneath Serenity City. Your grandmother had it sealed off. It’s waiting for Sailor Pluto to reactivate it in the future and break the curse. I have a talisman that can open and close it at will, you see,” she slurped, licking her fingers clean, swallowing a piece of grilled fish and sipping her wine, “But, if I need it or somebody else does. It can be used again. I plan on leaving here once your mother has been defeated.”
“Wow! I must say that is amazing, my head is spinning!”
Mau laughed and they continued to talk and dance and mingle. She never forgot that time. The powerful mediations, her own prowess in mock battles and the visions of the ancient past were startling and beautiful, especially those concerning the girl calling herself, the Oberisku no Shoujo.
After she returned to the palace, Naru had given her some solar meditations from Elysian. She practiced these and other techniques each night and morning before sunrise.
~*~
Gaea’s thoughts were brought back to the present once again by the sound of her mother’s triumphant voice, and she knew the nightmare was about to begin as she continued to observe the two women. The other, was powerful she knew, especially with that crystal weapon she carried. She was formidable.
~*~
Saturn couldn’t stand much more of this, but stopped short when the Dark Queen spoke. Serenity meanwhile, in her gossamer gown of gauzy pale-blue, stood frozen to the spot, tears brimming in her bejeweled azure eyes at the sight before her. Looking on in horror, she watched helplessly as her doppelganger announced the beginning of the blood feast. Then the prisoners unfortunate enough not to escape the Dark monarch, the new nemesis of the Silver Alliance, were looking nervously around the large chamber only meeting unsympathetic eyes from the audience as they were led to the dais where Dark Serenity all but salivated at the thought of their fates.
Serenity took in the sight of the huge circle of some 365 ebony candles arranged on the periphery of the ballroom, each three feet in height atop ornate silver stands, throwing off an almost malevolent yellowish-white glare. Surveying her surroundings, she blinked disbelievingly at the host of youma and dignitaries present in what was once for her a sacred place now desecrated.
She recognized a host of familiar faces, many of which she’d assumed were friends of the Silver Alliance. Sadly, these individuals had turned against the White Moon, now revealing themselves as enemies and opportunists, some friends of her late grandmother, Selene. It broke her heart to witness their betrayal and contempt for all she held dear. She did notice their crescents, like those of their dark monarch, had turned a glossy black. She knew they were marked, destined for servitude under the Dark Queen.
As her eyes continued to probe the murky darkness, taking in the chamber’s inky-black recesses, these crammed with shadows on the outer, she began to tremble violently with fear and disgust.
Steeling herself, Serenity and Saturn continued to move stealthily amongst the throng, her hand passing through each of them as she touched people she knew. People she thought her friends. Saturn followed close on her heel, cautious, and adroitly stepping around the whirling couples on the dance floor, and when the dancing stopped and the floor was cleared, they new it would be bad, very bad indeed.
She gasped at the vitriol of these people her mother had loved and trusted, that used to babysit, entertain, bounce her on their knees, feed, bathe her. She slept over at their houses and went to school in the palace with their children. Betrayal was a bitter blow this day, but she kept her cool.
(These so-called stalwarts of the Silver Alliance, enemies of the Dark Kingdom, yeah right!)
But here they were, speaking so bitterly of her mother and her rule.
(How dare they!) Angry as she was, she attempted to focus on what they were saying beyond the superficial insults and gossip and control her hurt and rage.
Some were bragging that they had been taking advantage of the kindness of the ‘naive White Monarch’ this enraging her further, but she fought to maintain self-control. She had to be calm in order she not miss an opportunity to learn something, something that might give them a home ground advantage. She was especially grateful for Saturn’s calm state, her whisperings of restraint. Though she was itching for a fight, still, Saturn’s gentle touch on her shoulder was every bit as good as having her mother with her to offer advice. She needed all the support she could get, but seeing Saturn in action was a lesson in itself. Saturn was then the teacher: grace and poise, patience and astuteness were the hallmarks of Princess Saturn’s personal armory right now. She was young, but wise far beyond her terrestrial years. Serenity wanted to follow her lead.
At one stage, serenity slapped a woman for her caustic comments, surprisingly; the wide-eyed woman flinched at the slap. But the action was almost imperceptible, yet the woman spun around, unable to identify any obvious source.
Then a youma soldier blew a silver conch shell and bellowed the announcement of the night’s special program. Serenity and Saturn exchanged knowing looks and followed the crowds to the outer rim of the ballroom, and waited. The main event, she suspected, the initiation of Dark Serenity’s seventeen-year-old daughter, Gaea, capping off the night’s activities.
“She looks glorious, does she not?” Princess Arena of the planetary system of Alpha Centauri said, tossing back her ginger locks as she laughed.
“Yes, the occasion is indeed auspicious, dear lady…; she has a lovely glow about her at the moment and is so beautiful for one so young. Shall we dance?” Iuka asked his companion as they sipped from one another’s silver goblets as a salutation to the new Dark princess and their relationship.
~*~
Dark Serenity looked upon the scene playing out before her with satisfaction. She loved how the soft black fabric of her sumptuous gown cradled her figure and exposed most of her alabaster thighs, the slit of the flowing gown trailing from the hip the men present found most alluring. The skirts fell either side of her legs in a curtain of black to her calves. In contrast, her daughter was golden and pretty, and the men and older boys couldn’t keep their eyes off her cleavage and impossibly long legs, her body like that of a Lunarian Goddess.
Dark Serenity turned to her courtiers, a ragtag rabble of stupid looking men with obsidian swords in hand who looked dull and bored with the unfolding night’s proceedings.
She then gave her chilling command, “Let the fighting begin, and if, dear little princes and princesses, you survive, I will let you live!”
Shivering, the adolescent boy Ômi stepped up. He held a brittle lignite dagger and a shield that would afford him little protection against the bigger man. Then there was Tialahna, a Mauan Senshi princess. She had only just reached puberty, barely having started her training to use her Senshi powers when captured. Now, she would soon provide entertainment for the Dark queen, and the girl shuddered at the thought. But this dark clad sovereign had banished her own sister, Lady Luna of Mauan blood before the darkness had fully claimed her heart barring her from ever returning along with her faithful Senshi. The latter replaced with female Shadow warriors serving as her personal guard.
“Face your death with honor, child! The large Terran brute shouted, and moved towards the boy of eleven years. The man had a long black beard, his hair almost as long as Serenity’s but was unkempt.
The crystal blade sliced through the air, just missing the young Martian Prince who jumped back with athletic skill that surprised his opponent and after launching into a savage high-kick, the lumbering fool flailed and fell backwards onto the hard marble floor knocking himself out, much to Dark Serenity’s Chagrin.
Tialahna meanwhile also demonstrated her agility as she danced around her own opponent, dodging and weaving her assailant’s clumsy lunges with his mace and sword. As the ape-like man stumbled and tripped over his own feet, she caught the sword as it flew from his outstretched hand. He jumped to his feet, and attempted to charge at her. But in one smooth motion, she hurled it into his heart. The monster’s body lifted off its feet and pinned halfway up the ballroom wall, the scream dying on his lips as streams of dark crimson dripped to the marble floor. The shocked assembly looked on in awe, respect and disbelief as the girl began to glow with an etheric light.
“Mauan Celestial Power!” she screamed and a Senshi stood with a scepter in hand, her tail swishing back and forth as a deep feline growl sent the youma back.
Dark Serenity jumped to her feet, balling her fists. “What is this? Mauan, you dare transform here!”
Luna, chose that moment to join Princess Tialahna in battle, her lavender locks flying out behind her. She stood in the doorway, hands on hips smirking at her mother; then launched a combined attack with the younger feline Senshi. “Stealth Claw Attack!”
“Cosmic Tail Attack!”
Instantly, a burst of pink light flooded the chamber and the real battle began. The Shitennou and Sailor Mau appeared with several thousand Lunarian rebels and soon the fight was on in earnest, even Dark Serenity drew her Space Sword and joined the fray.
Outside the Moon Palace
“All right everyone, go!” Kunzite shouted, as Nephrite sent a shadow at the youma inside the atrium as the second wave of the attack began. The Lunarians burst into the palace, killing youma and Shadow Warriors as they ran along the crystal corridors towards the ballroom. They burst into the chamber, crystal swords drawn. The fighting intensified.
Dark Serenity, eyes wide with fury glowing bright red, growled at the Lunarians as they took on her youma and personal guard who were cutting through the ranks of the front line until the Shitennou met them head on in a battle of high magic and glittering blades.
“You’ll not stop me Mauans, Terrans and my treacherous subjects! I will kill you all!” Dark Serenity bellowed, cutting down a resistance fighter and glancing a blow upon another.
But the rebels made light work of the youma and Shadow Warriors rushing to do battle against them. Kunzite slashed at the youma and slew them with ease as Zoicite, Nephrite and Jadeite combined their magical attacks. It was now a case of do or die, for them all as Kunzite and Dark Serenity clashed, their swords of celestial crystal clanging and throwing off a prismatic light.
“Mother no! Stop this insanity now!” Gaea screamed, unable to stop herself. The light of the Ginzuishou pulsing around her body.
Dark Serenity vanished leaving Kunzite slashing at thin air. She reappeared a short distance away from her daughter directing coal black eyes towards her. She hissed, “Bitch child of the White Moon; so disappointing it is that I must kill you also. But I am pregnant yet again. I will make sure this one is a child of Chaos and not a traitor!” she snarled.
Gaea jumped back, assuming her Senshi form as Dark Serenity’s face took on an almost reptilian expression. She continued to back away from her mother who raised her Dark Space Sword for the first time against her own flesh and blood and came at her at a run.
Gaea ran for the stairs. As she moved, she was followed by the sound of dying youma and humans filling the chamber.
She was on the balcony now looking desperately for somewhere to hide, to get away from her mother. But it was of no use, for the Dark Queen had shed all vestiges of her humanity.
“I am going to slice you open and drink your blood, child. Then feed you piece by piece to the winged ones out there!” she purred, moving steadily toward the trembling Senshi princess.
Holding up her Moon wand, she shouted, “Moon Healing Activation!”
It was a long shot, but she thought it worth a try. The monster vanished for a split second and the golden locks of the former White monarch appeared, but then vanished. The creature that was once her mother began to growl like a youma. Dark Serenity’s face contorted into a hideous mask, becoming more alien than before. Fangs replacing the beautiful white teeth as she salivated and growled again.
(Definitely not…Lunarian!) Gaea thought, jumping back once more.
Dark Serenity, or whatever she was now becoming, had Gaea cornered. “And now… child… you die, at my hand, or should I say,” she raised her hands that had become talons, “Claws!”
“Not if I can help it -- witch!” Saturn screamed, appearing before the Dark Queen, her aura throwing off violet waves of force, Silence Glaive humming menacingly.
“No not the destroyer! Saturn you’re not real, you can’t be!” Dark Serenity keened, reverting to her Lunarian form as the Glaive sent a shockwave that struck the beast in the chest, sending her flying back against the wall with an all-mighty thud.
“Shall we test that theory, Serenity of the Dark?”
“Not before I take this misbegotten spawn’s life!” she snarled back.
Gaea found herself lifted into mid air and the last thing she saw before she lost consciousness was the Dark Space Sword flying towards her heart.
“Moon Crisis Power!”
Dark Serenity’s Space Sword clattered to the floor and its power was gone. Gaea was all right, for Saturn caught her as Dark Serenity’s magic was disrupted. Sailor Moon stood before her dark mother and launched her attack, “Moon Affinity Heart Attack!“
A black vortex spun into view and enveloped the Dark Queen, “You win this battle, but spirit, I shall destroy all you love and even if I fall, he shall die and his family and your precious Terrans with him!” she shrieked and vanished, these words sending a chill through Sailor Moon.
“We’ll stop her,” sailor Mau announced as she stood at the top of the stairs with Luna, Mars, Venus, Mercury and others including the Shitennou. Sailor Moon and Saturn were visible to all Mauans.
Sailor Mau smiled at Saturn and winked, “So, as you promised, we meet again Soldier of Destruction, we have the situation under control. The palace is now in our hands and we’re moving quickly to secure the moon and its military bases.”
“But it’s not over,” Sailor Moon said, as Serenity Moon rushed to embrace her daughter, now, they could all see Saturn and Moon, due to the flaring of the Ginzuishou and gasped. Sailor Moon’s body shimmering with blinding light as the two Senshi from two different universes embraced. The Dark Planet Seed was beginning to weaken.
“I know, but we’ll fight them together, Serenity,” she said, as Sailor Moon cried with her mother.
The moon was liberated and the enemy in retreat. But they all knew, the Dark Queen would make good on her threat and they had to be ready to stop her.
As they met in the ballroom and made plans, the Ginzuishou was already transforming the palace and purifying its interior and all evidence of Dark Serenity’s reign was gone.
~*~
Gaea woke up in a huge king-sized bed, luxuriating in the warmth and softness of the blankets, the pink and gold coverlet and the fluffed up pillows.
Serenity Moon and Sailor Moon sat beside the bed and smiled as Gaea opened her eyes and grinned. “I’m not dead!”
“I certainly hope not, my niece,” a lavender-haired Sailor soldier said with a hint of mirth in her tone as she strode into the room.
“Aunt Luna!”
“Can I come in, child? I have cookies!” Luna laughed, tiptoeing up to her etheric sister and placing a kiss on her cheek and slipping Jupiter’s treats wrapped especially for the occasion in Gaea’s eager hands.
“Oh thank you, Luna, I love you all, and today I feel at peace, the first time in a long time. And…I’m hungry!”
“Good sign!” Lord Artemis chuckled as he brought a food tray laden with plenty of goodies into the room and placed it on her lap, plucking the basket of cookies from her hands and putting them on the bedside table. “Plenty of time for sweets later, now you need to build up your strength…”
“Oh come on Arti’ I want some cookies, and I-“ she whined.
“Just like somebody I know,” Serenity giggled under her breath.
“Better save some of these in case you gobble them all up,” Artemis said, winking at the golden haired princess, “Just joking, Gaea!” She swatted him playfully, grabbed a cookie, stuffed it into her mouth, and growled.
“You’re incorrigible, Artemis!” Serenity Moon complained.
“Let’s not get overly excited, now Gaea. You’ve lost a lot of energy, and the Ginzuishou is slowly reviving you, so please take it easy, “ Mercury cautioned.
“Yes mother…” she giggled, “Party pooper!” Everyone laughed.
