Outer Senshi Trilogy Aftermath {1/1} A Sailor Moon story by Tim Nolan e-mail: nomad@cyberverse.com Please see comments following the story. This is part of a trilogy of stories about the Outer Senshi. The correct order they should be read in is 1. Aftermath 2. Intermezzo 3. Advent These are based on the manga and not the anime. ************* Aftermath part one of a trilogy of Outer Senshi stories For a time, there was no sound. Faint breezes that were slowly becoming colder wafted through the ruins of the Silver Millennium, stirring up slashed and tattered clothing in their wake. Delicate wall hangings and decorations of silk would sometimes ripple in a bright counterpoint to the charred banners and battle flags of the invaders. A booted foot completed a step that was started worlds away. Fine, gray dirt tracked in by a squadron of human pikemen crackled under the heels of the woman as she looked about her at what she remembered as the foyer to the throne room. A sad, mournful sigh escaped her. " It is over," Sailor Pluto whispered. In response to her words, two blurs of light appeared and resolved themselves into two women. Sailors Neptune and Uranus, her partners. The two newcomers touched hands once, a simple brushing together of fingertips. They needed no other displays of affection. " Why?" Sailor Uranus asked, looking around them. She knew the answer. All three of them knew the answer. Instead of hoping for a response that would ease the pain, the tall woman stalked towards the entrance to the palace. Neptune and Pluto followed a few moments later at her low cry of outrage. " Children," Sailor Neptune breathed as she saw the figures on the stairs and began to weep. " Oh, Serenity-sama. They're just children." The four Inner Senshi lay near the foot of a set of stairs. Prince Endymion was slumped against a pillar a few steps above them, unseeing eyes staring at the sun. Princess Serenity was sprawled out next to him, but her head was gently cradled in his lap. " Children or not, they gave a good accounting of themselves," Uranus added as she briefly embraced Neptune. She grimly made herself look at the bodies of the fallen, and not just the Senshi. They might have been young, but it looked like they had accounted for hundreds of Beryl's troops. It was a futile, final stand that deserved the attention of the finest bards; a saga that even the gods could appreciate. Especially as it dealt with the downfall of one. It was a pity that it was due to that most ugly of human emotions: greed. " The queen knew what was going on," Pluto declared. " Beryl was of the Silver Millennium as well, so I can only guess that Serenity-sama considered it an internal matter and refused to call us in." " We know, Pluto," Neptune assured her and put a hand on the older woman's arm. It was clear what Pluto was thinking about. All three of them had been thinking the same thing since they received word of the attack, but not one message from the queen requesting their assistance. " It wasn't our fault. We can only come here at Serenity-sama's orders." " And Serenity-sama would not have missed such a build-up of armies on the Earth below her," Uranus commented without a trace of sarcasm or irony in her voice. They regarded the queen as a veritable equal to the gods they had grown up worshipping in their distant youths. Her sea-green eyes narrowed slightly as she looked at their counterparts on the stairs, and their princess and her love. " I don't want to leave them like this," she decided and walked into the palace. A few minutes later she emerged carrying a stack of white linens. Pluto and Neptune had already concurred and carried Mars and Mercury to the top of the steps. If you ignored the blood once you had laid them out, they looked like they were asleep. Uranus walked over to Venus. Something was missing, she realized as she started to pull out the arrow that protruded from underneath the bow on her chest. Barbed, she noted, snapped it instead, and removed the shaft. A short length of slender chain was still attached to the girl's waist. Broken ends bore mute testimony to what had happened. Aha, she congratulated herself and walked a few paces away to one of the Earthers. She pried the rest of the chain from his stiff, unyielding fingers and draped it back over the girl's waist before picking her up and putting her with the others. " A badge of office, perhaps?" Neptune slyly observed, glancing at Pluto's similar chain with a hint of mischief in her eyes. " Perhaps," Pluto replied as red eyes met and held ones of deep blue for a moment before Pluto walked down to retrieve Jupiter. " I never met these girls, either. I do not know if she attached any special significance to it." " What about them?" Neptune asked, motioning towards the princess and her prince as she covered each of the Senshi with a sheet in the place of a proper burial shroud. It would have to do. " Leave them," Pluto answered and walked to the couple. She gently closed his eyes and put one of the princess' hands in his. " It is obvious that they cared for each other a greatl deal. As long as they are together, I don't think that they'd mind." " You're right," Uranus sighed and ran hand through her short, almost-white hair in an old, habitual gesture. She took one of the sheets and draped it over the prone body of the princess from the shoulders down. Before Neptune could come any closer, she finished by covering the prince's lower legs. The daughter of a goddess should not have any weaknesses, at least not ones that her worshippers should see, Uranus reminded herself. Judging from the angle, Princess Serenity's wound was self-inflicted, and she didn't want Neptune to know that. " Could we wait a little while before we summon her?" Neptune asked suddenly, catching the others off guard. Their steady gaze caused her to blush slightly, and she swallowed nervously before speaking. " It has changed so much since we were last here. I wanted to look around so I can remember it." " Yes," Pluto smiled and nodded in reply. She felt the same way, as did Uranus. It had been many years since they had last been summoned to the palace by the current queen's great-grandmother, and those of the Silver Millennium possessed long lives. Shortly after they began to look around at the remains of the place they drew their inspiration from, the dream they had sworn to defend; they found their queen. Serenity lay upon a broken slab of white marble that matched her gown and her long hair. Her face was calm and relaxed, and they could easily make themselves believe that she was merely asleep. No marks were visible upon her body. Pluto knelt by her for a moment, her eyes half-closed in concentration and one hand slightly raised as if to touch the queen. " Serenity-sama!" she choked back a sob, but it was strange given the circumstances. It was not in mourning that she began to cry. It was joy. " Pluto?" Neptune softly asked and put a hand on Pluto's shoulder. The older woman looked up at her and smiled. " When we heard the death-cries of the Silver Millennium, I heard something else as well. A song of hope. Serenity not only defeated and sealed away Beryl and Metallia at the cost of her life. She sent the others forward." " You mean... " Uranus began to say, her voice trailing off as she realized the implications of what Pluto had said. " The Silver Millennium will rise once more," Neptune said in relief. " As shall we once we are needed." " Of course. We will always be there," Uranus added and paused a few moments before going on. " That certainly makes our duty easier, though." " Afraid of dying, Uranus?" Pluto gently asked. The blonde shook her head. " No. It was living that I feared. I was afraid that we would survive what is to come," she said. " To live forever, without hope... that would be tragic." " It would be," Neptune agreed. " I'm tired, Pluto. If it means fulfilling my duty, I would gladly keep on living. If not... " she added, allowing her voice to trail off. " I know," Pluto smiled at her. " The first queen's orders as part of our oath were very specific as to what we must now do. Shall we begin?" The other two nodded and together they walked towards the temple that was on the opposite side of the spacious plaza in front of the palace steps. Uranus paused by a spire reaching up from the center of the plaza. At the front of spire, which faced the entrance to the plaza that led to the city beyond, the hilt and part of a blade of a sword protruded upwards from the marble. She reached for it out of curiosity, having recognized the style of the workmanship as being lunar. The tall woman blinked rapidly a few times after grasping the hilt and quickly knelt, murmuring an apology. " That has to stay," she explained as she stood and turned towards the temple. That was all she would say about it, and then they reached the temple and, by a silent consensus, the time for talk of anything else passed. " It is strange to think that we are doing this," Neptune said as she took out her Talisman, the Deep Aqua Mirror. " Ironic, even. We did so much to make sure that she would never wake up." " Things are different now," Pluto replied and took the Garnet Orb from the top of her staff. Uranus nodded and produced the Space Sword. All three of the Talismans seemed to shine a little brighter now that they were united, but this was even greater than normal for the rare times that they were together. They solemnly filed into the temple itself and stood before the altar. A faint glow appeared around the Talismans as they pointed them towards the altar, and the light flowed from them to surround it. Moments later, an indistinct form was visible. Over the next few heartbeats, it took on a more definite shape and gained substance. It was a young woman in an outfit similar to theirs, and she held in her hand a tall polearm that was nearly twice her height. " Sailor Saturn," Pluto acknowledged her and cautiously nodded. The young woman looked around the room, taking in the sights of the temple and the three women with her sad, violet eyes. " Pluto. Neptune. Uranus." she greeted them in cool, formal tones before her voice warmed slightly. " Is this the Silver Millennium that I beheld in my dreams?" she asked, becoming almost reverential as she became aware of where she was. Inwardly, Pluto sighed. This poor child existed only for one thing, it seemed. Every time she felt her resolve falter, or to curse the fate that had made her a Senshi, she had only to think of the example of Saturn to remind her of how much worse it might have been. " It is, Saturn," Neptune broke in. " We are so very sorry that it must come to this, but we have called you to fulfill your duty." " The Silver Millennium has fallen," Uranus explained. " In order for it to have the chance to rise again, you must destroy what is left of it. The cycle of death and rebirth must be completed." " I feared that was the case," the newcomer replied. " Will there ever be a time where I need not be the God of Ruin? Is destruction to be my only destiny?" " I cannot see the future," Pluto said. All three of them felt a deep sense of pity for the younger woman. " I do not know what will be, but I will pray that such a time will come." " As shall we, Saturn," Neptune added and wiped a tear from her eye. Uranus caught the gaze of Saturn and nodded once, slowly, indicating that she, too, felt the same. " Thank you," Saturn smiled softly and put her other hand on her weapon. " It has been so long I can scarce remember what it was like to be other than what I am now." Suddenly, all four of them were floating high above the grounds of the castle. It was like a child's toy at their feet. Saturn barely suppressed a giggle at the difference in perspective and turned to the others. Her face grew calm. The Silence Glaive began to glow as she held it vertically above her. First one, then another, and suddenly dozens of ghostly, translucent ribbons appeared behind her. The universe itself seemed to stop. To the three women, it was like all of creation paused in honor of what had passed this day. Not even the beating of their hearts or the sound of their breath could be heard. " It pains me enough to destroy the joy and beauty I feel in this place," Saturn whispered as she quickly glanced at each of the women in turn. They felt something pulling at them, twisting. " I cannot bear to destroy you with it. Farewell, those who are in spirit my kin." The Silence Glaive began to come down. The silence was heavy and oppressive, and it hungered for life as it rushed out into this world. They heard her say the three words and nothing more as the twisting sensation increased a thousandfold. The next thing they knew they were in the monitor room of Charon Castle, which was floating in orbit around the cold and distant planet of Pluto. Uranus and Neptune had never actually been there, but they had seen it from their own castles when the three had need to converse. They stood within a pattern on the floor in the same shape as the sigil of Pluto, and it glowed faintly, acknowledging their presence. The monitors flickered to life, revealing the damage done on the moon. Little remained of the Palaces Major or Minor, the site of ceremonial functions and the royal family's living quarters, respectively. A few rocks might suggest that once a wall stood there, but that was all. The temple had simply vanished, as had most of the small city surrounding the palace grounds. " Now, indeed, it is truly over," Pluto sighed. She reached out and turned off the bank of monitors. The room dimmed dramatically. " Do any of you have any idea of what we should do next?" she asked. " There is not much we can do," Uranus replied, holding her hand out, palm upwards. Her eyes narrowed slightly, the only sign of her concentration. Nothing happened in response to her commands, which should have resulted in a yellowish, ringed sphere of energy." I only have castle access left, Pluto." " The same here," Neptune confirmed a few moments later. " I can probably manage a teleport right now, but that is all." The dark green haired woman sighed, reattached her Talisman to the Garnet Rod, and leaned the staff against the wall by an archway leading into the castle's depths. " My words were more prophetic than I realized. You are welcome to stay here, if you wish. " Actually," she hesitantly smiled. " I'd appreciate it if you did. I'm not sure what we should do next, and that makes me nervous for some reason." " All right, Pluto," Neptune smiled at her and hugged her briefly. " We'll stay the night, at least." " But after that, I don't know," Uranus softly added and put an arm around Neptune when she went back to stand by the blonde. " I'm tired, too, Pluto. Not just physically tired." " I can't remember how long we've been on duty," Neptune went on. " No matter what we do now or what we wish for, when the Silver Millennium is restored, we will be restored as well. I just want to sleep right now, Pluto. Maybe even as long as it takes for us to be needed again." " I understand," the older woman replied and smiled knowingly. She knew how the others felt. " We'll talk about it more tomorrow." Neptune and Uranus allowed her to show them to a suite of rooms to stay in for the time being. After that, she took the time to leisurely bathe and fix a small, simple meal. The other two women were already cleaned up and asleep by the time she took their food in to them. She smiled slightly, seeing them together like this. Neptune was curled up next to Uranus with her head nestled into the crook of the blonde's arm. Both of their faces showed the signs of fatigue and worry, but they were peaceful as well. This was probably the first time in a few centuries, she realized, that these two could be together like this. Her own duty guarding the Gates of Time kept her from helping them out too frequently. Whenever anything had arisen that demanded more than just one Senshi, they would call on each other first before asking her for help. While they rarely saw each other, it still had been enough time for the two women to have become close. Pluto put down the tray on the table by the door. It was some fruits and bread, along with a delicate white wine and some cheeses. Nothing that wouldn't keep until they woke up. After that, she took her portion of the food with her to her rooms. Out of habit, she had put her uniform back on after bathing, but she blushed when she saw herself in a mirror. What was the point anymore, she asked herself and changed into a light silk gown in a purple color that complimented her, and pulled on a white cotton robe over that. She didn't have any real reasons to be modest here, she could easily withstand the cold of space or that of the castle's interior. Nor was it the company. She had nothing to hide from the others. This was how she had wanted to be able to pass the time when she was younger, she remembered and stepped into a pair of slippers. This was what she used to think that ladies of wealth and position spent their time doing in the evening when not entertaining guests. She had the castle for some time now, but had always been on duty until earlier in the day. Aside from trying the garments on to make sure that they fit, it was the first time she had worn anything in the closet. Pausing only to select a book of poetry from the oft-used library, she took her dinner and made her way up the long, spiral stairs to the room at the top of the central spire of her castle. It was cold up here, and despite the cold not bothering her, it was still noticeably cooler. The temperature was not just due to that she was currently so far away from the sun right now. The ornate, wooden doors behind her, a physical manifestation of the Gates of Time, absorbed much of the heat of the room. As she ate, she spent some time trying to figure out the specifics of what had happened on the moon earlier in the day. She also had wanted to spend some time trying to figure out what had happend to their powers, but soon her hands fell still on the controls of her console. Thoughts of the now uncertain future filled her mind. Before, she had always assumed that this would be her duty until she died. She knew that she would live a long time, and she had, but she never had though about surviving the fall of the Silver Millennium. Death in battle was what she had always though would be the end for her and her partners. Never in a million years would she had considered that she would survive past its' fall. The unthinkable had happened, however. Now, the question was what to do tomorrow, and not how to do your duty tomorrow. The difference, after all this time, was almost frightening. Neptune and Uranus had a valid point. After all this time, there was little they wanted to do now but rest. She didn't think that they would do anything drastic, but it was possible that soon they would simply go to sleep and not wake up again. That was something that she had the option of doing as well, but the ramifications of that concerned her. The prospect of death did not bother her, nor did the concept of suicide. After as long as she had lived, nothing really bothered her. Her concern was for the future, however. The queen had won the day, but she was able to feel the effects of what Serenity had done. Their liege was truly like a goddess when it came to power, but she would also have been the first to admit that she had only a fraction of the understanding of a divine being. If she had sent her daughter forward in time, it meant that Queen Serenity had not been able to defeat the demon outright. It also meant that the seal upon Metallia was not perfect. At some point in the distant future, Metallia's evil would come forth again to plague the world. Obviously, Serenity meant for her daughter to combat Metallia at that time. If she chose to sleep until then, like Uranus and Neptune were considering, that would leave nobody to guard against anything Serenity may have missed. The seal's imperfections meant that Serenity had not been perfect, and that meant that her visions of the possible futures may not have been perfect. She herself knew that all too well thanks to her studies of her realm. Sailor Pluto commanded a fraction of the power that was summoned by the rightful queen of the Silver Millennium with the backing of the Silver Crystal. She was, however, far more experienced than the queen could ever be at the manipulation and understanding of time. She had already determined that she could not change what had happened that day. The queen had seen to that. If not, the Silver Millennium would have been restored already. Her own life would have been a small price to pay for its' return. Her decision was quite easy to reach. Somebody would have to stand guard in order to assure that the future would be safe. She could not ask that of Uranus and Neptune. She would let them have the rest they deserved. The facade would be easy to present to her partners, and as for the time involved.... well, what were a few more millennia to her, anyway? " Good evening," a rich, low voice spoke from behind her. At first, she thought it might have been Uranus until she heard the doors behind her close, and her blood ran chill as fear gripped her heart. Her staff appeared at her summons, as did her uniform, and she gathered her power as she spun around ready for anything. Anything, perhaps, except the ghost who stood in front of her. " You're... " she protested, unable to understand why he was here. The man was no ghost, she could now tell. He was too solid for that. She had seen his dead body earlier, and had helped summon Saturn to destroy his remains. " Dead?" Endymion offered and stepped forward a few paces and into the light that illuminated her work. Now that he had done so, she could see some differences. His hair had a more purple tone to it, as did the ornate clothes he wore. There were a few faint lines on his face, minute hints that, along with his wise eyes, made her realize the truth. This was not the same man she had seen earlier in the day. He had a confidence and bearing that bespoke power and a familiarity with carrying the weight of years. " Who are you?" she demanded. " What are you? Nothing can go through those doors without my express permission!" He help up his hands slightly, making sure that he made no sudden moves that might alarm her. " If you would allow me a moment, perhaps I can establish my credentials to your satisfaction." At her nod, he reached into the vest pocket of his suit, and came out with a small key that made her gasp and look down at the chain around her waist. All of her keys were there... " I sent you?" she whispered the question, becoming more and more confused by the moment. He nodded and took a seat at the table across from where she had been sitting. Numbly, she joined him. He handed her the key to look at, which she did, recognizing how it was the twin of one of the keys on her belt, but it was also subtly different. It showed the slight signs of aging and usage that hers lacked. The key also felt different to her senses, a reminder that it was not quite entirely her who created it. What was unmistakable, however, was that he was not from this time. He and the key were from the future. " Do you remember the restrictions that are upon your power, Pluto?" he asked when she was done and had handed him the key. He waited for her to nod before he went on. " You must not leave your post. You must not stop time. " And, finally, you must not cross time itself. That is why I am here, Pluto. I am a messenger." " A messenger?" she echoed. " What could concern the me in the future enough to break all the rules about time and paradoxes and do something stupid like this?" she challenged him. He coolly held her gaze for several moments, but then she began to see a look of pity come into his eyes. " What am I about to do wrong, then?" she asked him. " Your counterpart in the future is not hampered like you are, Pluto. She may not cross time, but the past she can examine is the future you cannot see. She, like you, would not have lightly breached the barriers of time." " What is it, then?" she repeated her question, her mind racing as she considered all of her recent actions for anything that could have been done wrong. He gently smiled at her, his eyes warm and compassionate. With a barely concealed start, she suddenly realized that her future self must love him. She could see herself doing so. " She is worried about you, Pluto. The decision you make this night is not the correct one," Endymion explained. " Am I such an idiot in the future?" she snapped. " Is it not a measure of how important it is to her that I am even here?" he quickly countered, making her go quiet as she recognized the truth in his words. He could not have come here on his own. He had to have the full co-operation of her counterpart in the future to have made the journey. " Why is my welfare so important to the me in the future?" she asked and suddenly realized why his gaze had been filled with pity for her. " She's worried because I am not in the future," she said and began to shiver. The implications staggered her. Mortality. " Her message is this, Pluto," he finally said a few minutes later after she looked up at him again. " 'Take the time to enjoy what is to come.' I assume that it applies to Neptune and Uranus as well." He reached out and placed one of his hands over hers as she sat and considered the message. " I think that she was afraid that you would spend all your time up here and be alone, Pluto. She now understands that being alone all the time is not a good thing, and I think that she wishes to spare you the pain of finding that out on your own." " That would mean, then, that I am to be reincarnated like the others," she wondered aloud. He shrugged in response. " I don't know, Pluto. Her message said nothing about any particulars, and she has told me nothing of the past. I died a few hours ago, remember? I do not know if you are the same one who is my friend in the future. " I always enjoyed debating the possible problems of time travel with her, however, and this has two possible outcomes for you to consider. In one case, you are the Pluto in the future, and in the other, you are not. Nothing has happened between us that would have changed that." " And the most probable outcomes are that I am either happier than before or still sad, based on how I react," she replied and laughed, feeling some of her sorrows lifting away from her as she did so. " The Pluto from your future is wise, indeed, Endymion. I will consider what she says." " Thank you," he said, stood, and bowed to her. Unfortunately, he couldn't tell her just how long it had taken his Pluto to learn the lesson of the importance of personal happiness, and at what cost. " That is all I could ask for, I believe, and I think that she would say the same." Pluto rose as well and walked over to him. A moment later, she impulsively hugged him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. " That is for you as well as my counterpart," she laughed, barely able to keep it from being a giggle. " My response, if you will, to my message." " I will tell her, then," he blushed slightly and smiled. " And with that, I must be going. It would be unwise to stay too long." " I know," she agreed as he walked back to the Gates and opened the door. Their eyes met for another moment before he stepped away and ahead, and was lost to her forever. She went over to her console and shut it down after turning off the lights and closing the the shields over the windows. Sure-footed in the darkness, she picked up the book and her tray, and walked to the stairs to begin her descent. Endymion had not known about the other message her probable reincarnate had sent. She knew with a great deal of certainty that she was not the one who existed in the future. The key was proof of that. There should not have been as many differences between hers and the one he bore if she was alive in the future. At the foot of the stairs, she laughed softly. Whether it was her in the future or not, the Pluto of that time was indeed wiser than her. The earth represented a whole planet that she had only seen, and never visited. That would change tomorrow, she knew. It was time for all three of them to see first-hand what they had spent so long protecting. It was time to make some happier memories than just the lonely nights that were part of their long and lonely vigil. The End. ************************************************************ All characters are copyrights of the respective holders. Please send comments, etc. to the above e-mail address. Special thanks to the following... Naoko Takeuchi, of course. incredible characters, and artwork that can give rise to so many ideas from a few little drawings. Luna and Artemis for kind words, support, and being good friends for so long. Through good times and bad, they have been there. check out their page at http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/9897/ for the best Sailor Moon fan-fiction collection. Greenbeans for being herself. all I need to say, really. check out her page at http://www.kfalls.net/~gbeans Jackie Chiang, sage advice, good fics and general silliness that lightens the spirit. check out her page at http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/3741/ Alex Glover for his wonderful work on the manga of Naoko Takeuchi. check out his page at http://www.nwlink.com/~kurozuki/manga.htm my wonderful betas, the real heroes Erica Shelley Helen Szeto aka lennie Pandora Diane Waldron Nikki Purvis aka JetWolf Aftermath {1/1}