|
|
"Different paths...three of them...each one leading to doom. What chance do three soldiers...even if they are soldiers...what chance do they have...," Hydra choked out.
"There is a very unsettling aura about the city," Asahi said, looking around them grimly.
At a first glance, the prosperous and glittering city of Crystal Tokyo, the only remaining city in Earth, did not seem to have even remotely changed since Asahi was seven. The people continued to enjoy the peace that surrounded them, oblivious to the growing uneasiness inside Asahi's child-like soul.
Asahi, as always was on her way to Valin's home. Hakucho had not yet awoken and she wanted to be the first to see the dancer even slightly stir. She sighed as she began to feel tired. A heavy leaden pressure was coming over her heart and with all of her resistance, Asahi still could not avoid fear.
Valin-kun...
Her thoughts began to surprise her. Valin-kun...she had not thought about him in such a way before. It always was that he was there for the sole purpose of her protection. Nowadays, it seemed to Asahi that a slight change overcame her everytime she thought of him.
In his apartment, the mage sat on the floor, staring at the projection of the planet of Amaterasu. His mind wavered for a moment and from the corner of his eye, he spied a small picture frame that lay exactly behind the projection. Before realizing that he had even moved from his position, the frame was in his hand.
A child smiled at him from the shoulders of a younger Valin. Her smile was musical and had her eyes been open, he would have seen silver eyes with just a hint of gold coming into them. He could still remember the adoration that shone in them when her gaze would fall upon him. Until a few nights ago, he had never seen true anger pierce their innocence.
He traced that child's face lovingly with his fingers. That smile had begun to linger in his mind long after they had disappeared, for now, rare was the moment that Asahi would curl her lovely mouth into a smile. At the knock on the door, Valin replaced the frame and went to answer it. The same face in the picture, although much older, much sadder, much more tired, greeted him.
Asahi looked at him, no expression lay on her features. Her golden eyes had lost their spark, and the soul that gave them life had left them. There was now nothing behind that golden hue but a ghost, frightened and alone. The child Valin saw in the picture was clearly cowering beneath. Asahi fainted.
"Asahi-chan!" Valin cried as he caught her before she could reach the floor.
I'm afraid...
Asahi was huddled in a dark, empty space, afraid to look at her surroundings lest she should find something menacing waiting there. A tear clung to her long black lashes until it dropped and disappeared. She allowed herself to cry here for it was her only haven against the world.
I don't want to be alone...not anymore...I'm frightened and alone...yet I cannot cry. I won't allow myself to be human. Everything I want to be, I can't touch.
Somehow, she could see herself. A mere child struggled inside of her to become a woman. When she was younger, she was often compared to a mature young lady, and at the time, she had wanted to grow up. Now, she wanted to cling onto her childhood, her happiness. After knowing such a contentment...such peace! How could one turn her back on this, the one thing she wanted, to pursue a life she was afraid of.
"Asahi-chan...," Valin called to her even inside her mind.
Asahi didn't lift her head.
Hakucho looked down at Asahi gently with a tugging at her heart. She knew that Asahi held all of her questions, but it would take all of Hakucho's courage to allow herself to ask. Hydra's appearance had only made her dreams more violent and Asahi's presence stilled the violence, even for only a few seconds.
"Uchuno-san...what is the matter with her?" Hakucho asked of Valin who sat on the opposite side.
"She's developed a fever," Valin answered the question without even understanding it's meaning.
"This is because of me," Hakucho said bluntly. "Nothing would have happened if I had not come to this part of the city."
Her words penetrated Valin's reflections and he looked up, "What do you mean?"
"I know...that this is because of me, somehow. She saved my life, but I should never have endangered it in the first place," Hakucho answered unaware of how much her words had disturbed the mage.
"I must go now," Hakucho said after a long pause. "My Aunt...she's been on a business trip. She'll be returning in a few days, and I'm sure that she's already worried about why nobody answers the phone."
Valin motioned to get up, but Hakucho quickly stopped him, "No, it's alright, I'll show myself out. Asahi is in need of your company."
Soon, the sound of the door gently being opened and shut reached Valin's ears. Valin gazed down at the sleeping, beautiful goddess that lay in his bed, her crimson hair reflecting the sunlight. He became aware of a sudden thumping in his head that filled his entire body.
"Asahi-chan," he whispered ever so gently that it could barely break the still silence.
He lifted her head with a gentleness that he had always displayed when caring for her, but the feelings behind his actions had changed.
Oh...a warmth settling into my heart...a power that could only come from Valin.
A soft ringing in her ears made her stomach tumble and her heart leap. The cloaking strength she felt flowing from the mage lifted her mind. Her skin was alive, tingling with sensations she had never felt before. A tear came into her eye, carrying all of her angers, frustrations, and most of all, her loneliness. As the tear fell away, Valin slowly lifted her chin. Valin's heart pounded into her ears, beating in time with her own. As their lips met, a passion coursing through their bodies erupted. Asahi fell into a blissful contentment and her haunting dreams vanished.
An eerie, abandoned aura drifted into the apartment with Hakucho's disappearance, but halted before entering the gentle sanctuary that was Valin's room. Instead, a warmth seeped into this enclosure where the unity of two souls were confirmed. Asahi skipped toward school, a smile playing on her lips while Okashi stared at her in amazement.
"Asahi-chan?" Okashi asked, staring at her.
"Yah?" Asahi asked, pausing to pet the bird.
"Are you alright? After your fever, you haven't been the same," Okashi commented.
"Oh...I'm alright," Asahi smiled, her hands placed gently upon her heart while her eyes took a gentle air.
Okashi remained suspicious for the rest of the afternoon, and continued to brood over Asahi's sudden change of mood.
Nearby, Hakucho was leaving the dance studio when she suddenly came upon a hunched figure, apparently sitting on the sidewalk. Hakucho approached this figure cautiously, but softened when she saw that it was a young girl with a golden head of hair. Hakucho touched this young girl's shoulder, intending to comfort her. As soon as her fingers alighted upon the child's shoulder, a hand formed from the child's flesh and seized her own.
"Ahhh!" Hakucho cried in surprise.
Loud laughter drowned out her terrified cries for help as she fought against this strange form.
"Cygnus." A flurry of what appeared to be snakes appeared and melded together to reveal Hydra's sinister appearance.
"You! What do you want from me?!!" Hakucho screamed, giving her hand one final pull without success.
"Simple...I don't want you to continue living," Hydra answered maliciously.
Hakucho stared, eyes wide. Her memory browsed through her entire mind, searching for a plan of escape that never came.
The strange figure that had appeared to be a child wrapped her as she stood in a state of consternation. Her mind never ceased to search, but her lungs were quickly giving way as the strange creature that now ensnared her began to tighten it's hold.
No...choice...please...let me go...
"Let me...go," Hakucho whispered as she lay dying.
What is this...Hakucho...wake up...no...what am I saying...
Two voices, two minds were now converging inside Hakucho. The chaos now became so intense that Hakucho cried out with her last breath.
The Empress...save this world! Find her!
A voice finally emerged victorious and a brilliant yellow light ignited inside Hakucho and exploded, incinerating the strange creature. As the light dispersed, a young girl dressed in a yellow and white sailor fuku emerged, a sword in her hand.
Asahi and Okashi made it into the scene just as the soldier's appearance was complete. Both stared in awe at this shining spectre who looked at Hydra with contempt.
"I will find her..." the soldier's voice was soft and gentle, but at the same time, had a hard edge that chilled Asahi. "The Trilogy is in search of it's mistress...I won't desert her."
"Suit yourself...this world is about to be taken over without the Queen Serenity's knowledge...the final act of our objectives will soon take it's course. I would consider deserting this planet as soon as possible," Hydra replied, a small blade appearing in her hand.
The ever gentle smile still lay upon the other soldier's serene expression, but a gleam of interest also lay in her eyes. She raised the sword just as Hydra threw the blade. A loud clank was heard as the sword deflected the small, but deadly object.
"Who...who is she...?" Asahi whispered staring with incredulity as Okashi took to the air.
Hydra turned, her senses alerted by an intruder's presence.
That girl...she's here...
Hydra angrily turned toward the new soldier and leapt backwards. She glared at her and disappeared.
Surprised, the new soldier's stare fell on Asahi and the soldier gasped. "Asahi?!"
"Hakucho!" Asahi whispered back, recognition settling on her features. "What..."
The soldier glared at her suddenly. In a blink of an eye, she had disappeared. Wind ruffled Asahi's long red hair and she looked up to see Hakucho's yellow fuku. Before Asahi could move, she saw the sword bearing down on her.
She's attacking me?!!
Fearing for her life, Asahi fell to the ground only to hear Hakucho land behind her and a loud scream erupted from some deadly creature that had somehow found it's way to Asahi without her realization.
"Hydra's present," the soldier said calmly, but her jaw had tightened.
"Oww...,"Asahi grumbled, sitting up and rubbing her neck. "Hakucho...what is all this?!"
"I am the Soldier of illusions, Sailor Cygnus," Cygnus responded, turning toward Asahi.
"I don't understand...who was that? Another soldier...!" Asahi exclaimed, mentally calling to Okashi who had gone to alert Valin about their strange encounter.
"Hydra...stay away from her," Cygnus interrupted without severity to her tone. "She wants to bring into this dimension...that of a demon woman's named Medusa. Medusa is a part of a race of viruses that invade dimensions and consume all life. She is the last of them, but wishes to revive others like her that have been thrown into this dimension. A war has ensued and for some strange reason, Hydra has joined their crusade. Using her powers as a soldier to her own benefit, Medusa invaded the Star Fields of countless galaxies not only to obtain the wonderful powers that lie within them, but also to render her hosts defenseless upon her arrival. Star fields are what keeps our dimensions from colliding into one another. Our only salvation..."
Cygnus paused here. She did not want to reveal too much of her mission to Asahi, lest she should endanger her life. She looked at Asahi gently.
"Hakucho died, Asahi-chan. Her memories would not allow her to remain human. I had to resurface, or this world would be completely destroyed without any resistance."
Asahi stared, her heart pounding frantically in her chest, the sound echoing in her head. A bitter taste flowed from a sudden realization.
She died...she died. Hakucho died...like I almost did...
"No...I don't want this life for you, Hakucho-chan..." Asahi whispered, as if in a trance.
"This life?" Cygnus allowed a soft frown to cross her face.
"The life of a soldier is a bitter battle with not only with your external oppositions, but also in one's quintessence...where her body is only a vessel used to combat against any antagonist to that which she loves...yet...against the chaos inside this retreat of power, the soul of a woman lies, battered relentlessly until she is nearly dead. She leaves without a battle...for how would she be able to fight protecting those she loves? She does not understand her sacrifice until she is bleeding, dashed against everything she stands for and breathing her last...until she finally expires and her power has become complete...a full fledged warrior..." Asahi whispered with a little sadness, but her tone was that of complete, understanding knowledge.
"I'm sorry, Asahi-chan," Cygnus whispered, shaking her head and disappearing in a whirl of feathers.
The final look she gave Asahi took her into another world where nothing was as Asahi thought. Those violet eyes became windows to Cygnus' life where, to Asahi's surprise, she found a sad contentment...a strange unity with her task.
"Asahi-chan?" Okashi's voice took Asahi away from the sudden reverie she found herself in. "What happened?"
"I understand..." Asahi replied.