The Light Never Fades, chapter four, by Sailor GlitterGirl & Rose Aquarius, June, 2001 Rose-chan: Konnichi-wa, minna! How is everyone? Gomen, this is part is so short. Well, I'll start by saying I mostly wrote this with corrections and changes by Glitter-chan. GlitterGirl: So, I'm Glitter-chan now, huh? Oh, and once again, she means I made this part readable; She has HORRIBLE grammar! Rose-chan: Hey! So? Oh, and just so you know, it's now Glitter-BAKA! GlitterGirl: You wanna play games, Rose-*BAKA*???!!!!! Rose-chan: Ok see us next time for our fight in the AN's but until then here's the story! Read it while I KILL Glitter-baka! Bye!!! Your lovable authors, Sailor GlitterGirl and Rose-baka. (Er, I mean, chan!) *****@ THE UNIVERSAL GALAXY SAGA @***** The Light Never Fades Chapter Four: Legends and Loss Rated: PG, for emotional stuff By: Sailor GlitterGirl and Rose-chan At: Sailorglittergirl@sailormoon.com or roseaquarius@aol.com "Alright, we have a lot to discuss," the now de-transformed Mercury started. Sighing and rubbing her head, she continued. "First, That was a Soul Vampire- from what I gather from their speech, previously believed to be myths in the Silver Millennium." Lita snorted. "Some myth." She muttered. Ignoring her, Amy went on. "Second, We've got two new scouts more powerful than ANY of us. Probably even better than all eleven of us combined, from my readings. "Third, Alex, or 'Laxa' and Ali seem to know our identities as Sailor Scouts, perhaps even from the Silver Millennium. "Fourth, it seems that these new Senshi may know of our Silver Millennium identies as well. "Fifth, I am getting a migraine from too much thinking. And finally, I also think I'm going insane because this makes NO sense to me!" the flustered Senshi said before collapsing on a chair holding her head while the others looked on in shock as the 'always calm' Ami broke down in frustration and slammed a fist into the wall. The group spoke up. "Soul Vampires?" Rini asked, her voice shaking slightly. "Two new scouts?" Hotaru inquired. "More Powerful?!" Lita asked. She thought that Puu was the most powerful. The most powerful of the normal Senshi, anyway. Serena WAS the Moon Princess, and Hotaru WAS the Senshi of Destruction and Silence. "Ami, Do you need an aspirin?" Mina asked the extremely frustrated former Mercurian Princess. "No, I need Setsuna to explain this before I pull my hair out! Well, okay, yes I'd Like that aspirin, thank you, Mina." Amy then turned back into a calm, patient Guardian of Time. "Setsuna?" Ami was DEFINATELY not herself. "Setsuna-chan, who ARE these people?" Raye asked quietly. "Are these Sailor Guardians and the two transfer students connected?" Mina asked. "They did look similar, from the brief glances we got of them," Amy said quietly, having swallowed the aspirin Mina had fished out of her purse, and was feeling better after a drink of water. Unfazed by these questions, Setsuna simply turned to Luna. "Do you remember the legend of the First Senshi?" The woman asked. "Of the Light Kingdom? The place that no one but their direct descendants could go? The one hidden in the third dimension?" "What?!" Luna asked in shock. "What does that have to do with anything?" The cat asked. She was clearly shaken, a very un-luna like characteristic. "Tell them of the legend, Luna." Setsuna said simply. "Tell them where they come from. Tell them who Beryl really was." "I...I can remember quite well." Luna said. "There was always a question of how the senshi started," Luna began telling an obviously painful memory, but continued. "There is a legend, based on a true story that was eventually forgotten and became just that; a legend." Inquiring looks implored her, and with a sigh, Luna contiued. "That legend is of the Sailor Guardians, the first scouts- and no they did not design the uniform," Luna said. The senshi always hated the fact they wore short skirts and spike heels and always said if they ever got a hold of the person who designed them they would kill him. Slowly. (AN from Rose-chan; I don't blame them about killing the designer; I would too! GlitterGirl; Rose-chan, you baka, that would mean killing Naoko-sama! Silly.) As Luna said this the hate and disappointment in the girls eyes dissipated with the recognition that they couldn't drag out that person and shoot them; even Puu hated it! "They are said to be the sole Guardians of the system at that time. Then, for reasons unknown, they chose a warrior with exceptional power from every planet; your great-great-grandmothers' had that honor. "Then they disappeared, saying only to the Queen of the Moon -You're great-great-grandmother, Serena- who was named Tranquility Serenity -that's where you got your name- to watch for an evil. They told the Senshi to guard the Queen and Princesses of the Moon for as long as they lived, and to teach their children -who would inherit their powers, they said- to do the same. "It is said that the Guardians went away to another dimension, where their home was, for they were of the Star Kingdom, never to return. "However, there is one other aspect of that legend, and that is that they left behind their two daughters, and those two daughters remained secret, no one except the current Moon Queen, Princess, and the other Planetary Queens and Princesses knowing of their existence beyond legend. "Their power was by far the most powerful, as they controlled light and their signs power. "Then, during the reign of your grandmother, Serena, when they were the guardians of Queen Serenity -who was still a princess, herself- they were somehow banished to another dimension by...by their cousin," Luna choked here, but quickly gathered herself and continued. "Eventually, Queen Serenity made it possible, with Pluto's help, for them to cross into different dimensions. But by then, word had somehow leaked out that the Sailor Guardians had come back, and now the legend was stonger than ever. "So, to keep the Galaxy at peace, they made a vow to themselves -according to legend- that they would only interfere with anyone's life ever again if it meant saving the system's very excistence. "Goddess help us if we're in that kind of need, now!" Luna finished sadly. Leaving out certain parts that she would make Setsuna give them all. Everyone was silent as they absorbed the story, until it was finally broken. "I remember that story." Michelle whispered. "So do I," Mina added quietly. "My mother used to tell it to me always. She described the last Sailor Guardians so vividly I thought that they might be real, but eventually I-" "'Grew out of it,' and forgot the legend, and all it stood for." Raye finished. "I did that, too, and I remember it now, as well." "I think we all do, now." Serena said, looking at all their faces. Steeling herself, as tears threatened to spill, she looked up at Setsuna. "Those... those two we saw today at the battle with the Spirit Vampire...those girls were those legendary Sailor Guardians, weren't they?" Serena spoke with no emotion in her voice, in a regal voice. It startled even her aunt who should know more than any of them of her seriousness. "Is this all true? Setsuna, are we in that kind of danger?" Darien asked. He had remained silent throughout the whole tale. Slowly, Setsuna nodded. "Alex and Ali are involved with them somehow, too, is that right?" Serena whispered. Ignoring her niece’s last question, she said simply, quietly, "I have to go. I...I will explain things further." She looked directly at Serena. "There are things...things I need to tell you privately. Not now, perhaps not soon, but the time is nearing when you will need to know. I'll explain later. First, I need to find two certain someones!" And she left, her Time Staff disappearing, as she was going out into public, despite the near midnight time. Trying to lighten the mood, Mina laughed softly. "Oh, boy! Poor girls! I feel sorry for whoever she's going after," She said, and others nodded their agreement, trying to shake off this new heavy gloom that had settled over them. "Yeah, they have to face Puu when she's angry!" Serena said, apparently back to her normal self. She shuddered at the fact. Everyone agreed and Raye silently prayed for them as all the others did the same. *^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^* "I despise my life, and this job!" Laxa said, now transformed back to her old self plopped on her tall silver canopy framed bed, swathed in silver and silver satin and silk beddings; she had just finished conjuring up her room settings. A tear ran down her face unnoticed, wounds having been reopened at the sight of that creature, the one that they had destroyed only ten minutes ago. She missed her family. Despite her fierce love and tight bond to her sister, she still missed them. Music suddenly filled the room, a soft, silky voice drifting, weaving around the notes and melodies of the piano. The beautiful music lifted the exhausted Laxa from her sanctuary, guiding her steps out her door and into the room next to hers to see her sister sitting at a large, polished ebony piano. Her black hair let down from her braid pooling around her, head bobbing to the nameless tune, her voice filled with sorrow singing in a long forgotten, but no less beautiful language. The music filled Laxa with sadness; the only time either of them ever played that tune was right after their family's death, only a few days before they'd been banished and trapped in the third dimension. *Oh, selene!* Laxa thought, tears running down her face. *She's taking this worse than me!* She absent-mindedly picked up a short, but beautiful, gleaming silver flute and started to play the sad song, the notes and melodies tinkling and whispering into the night air, the windows letting in a lovely breeze that blew the golden silk around the room like the fluttering of butterflies. The hauntingly beautiful and lonely melody like the colors of the butterfly's wings. The music never got louder, but it seemed to fill the building and didn't stop there; it seemed to fill the city, and all who were awake heard the beautiful, heart-wrenching melody and wondered who was creating such a sad, sad song of sorrow. Down the street, a tall, seething woman stopped in her tracks, and Puu never made it to the building, after hearing her cousins' song, she turned around and went the other way. Even she didn't have the heart to break their mourning. *^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^* "Did you distroy them?" A slimy woman's voice asked from above, out of the darkness that cloaked the heights of the tower, where the voice came from. "I...I am afraid I bear bad news, my lady." The shaking, fearful voice of the messenger was replied by the deep and sinster voice of a man. "You know I despise bad news," It hissed. "You are lucky I do not absorb you on sight, but let's hear it." The dark man below gulped. "The...the Sailor Guardians...they came to their rescue." "WHAT?!!!!!" The voice screeched, then shrank to a hiss. "But they're dead! *DEAD!!*" "Well, they killed Insector with ease, at least the dark one did." The man said, wetting his lips, trying to be tough; he knew his masters hated weakness. "You have ONE more chance, then you suffer your subordinate's fate! Now go! Out of my SIGHT!" The female voice screamed at the poor man who obviously was a pawn in this game and knew it. *I can't stand this!* The man thought miserably as he scuttled down the dark, musty halls, avoiding the slightest droplet of light out of instinct. *I made the wrong choice. Maybe if I find my sisters they'll take me back?* He sighed, knowing that he was too much a coward to ask. But, as much as he had hated them for it when they had tried to keep him from doing what he thought he wanted to do -join the dark forces- he had come to realize that they had been right. He had to see them, to see if they were alright, if nothing else; he hadn't seen them since Beryl had tossed them to what he had been sure was oblivion. Secretly, he was thrilled to find that they were alive. With that thought, knowing he could never really ask them to do what he wanted, but wanting to see them nontheless, he used his will and suddenly disappeared, finding himself -as he had wanted- floating above Tokyo's streets. Summoning the faint, but still there, link that he shared with his half-siblings, he found himself on Tokyo's streets, and looking up to see that he was before a tall, rich looking -by human standards- building, with smaller groups of rooms inside, crammed in there on each floor, save the bottom one. His heart gave a sudden wrench as heard a haunting song, one that he knew all too well. Gulping, he pushed off the ground and floated up, seeking the source of the music. His keen hearing led him to a large, open window, with gold silk curtains blowing in and out. Floating to the window, he peeked inside to see a sight he had longed to see in literally a thousand years, and his breath caught in his throat. At a polished black ebony piano sat a raven haired midnight goddess, her pale complexion accented by her red cheeks, stained with tears that flowed from sparkling gold eyes, shimmering with more tears. But her angelic voice unfazed by her tears as she sang the song, 'Hao Siere Karo Maline.' 'My Heart Still Cries.' He gasped, and a sob nearly escaped him as he saw another vision, his other half-sister, a tall, silver haired woman clad in robes of pure white. Her eyes streaming, but she too ignoring it, gently and silently lifted a silver flute, raised it to her full, red-pink lips, and blew softly, creating the songs of the winds, and the notes seemed to be representing the mournful cries of those winds, while the piano's melody was the tears of the stars. He could watch no longer, and with a sob, disappeared, not noticing the dark, silent figure on the roof above, watching him with black, flashing eyes. Without a sound, the watcher stood as well, and he too vanished. To Be Continued... Rose-chan: *beams* How d'ya like it huh? Yup, I'm proud of myself! A masterpiece! GlitterGirl: Of course, I was the one who made the music parts a bit more flowery, but, hey, besides that, I don't think I did much! Nice job, Rose-chan! This part was super! *pats Rose-chan on the back* Rose-chan: OH. MY. GOD! HELP!!!!!!!!!!! She's gone insane! She's being nice! AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! Call 9-1-1! Call the Po-akk! *Rose-chan gets grabbed by the neck* Glitter: Alright, that's it baka! You're in for it! *TONGUE WAR* *girls fade out as they continue a rasberry war with each other* In Unison: BYE!!!!!!!!!!!! *Blackness engulfs screen, shrinking down to a small circle. GlitterGirl's head pops up.* GlitterGirl: IF you were wondering, below is the song that that Laxa and Versia were playing & singing. As usual, it was a mess and I was the one who- *GlitterGirl is cut off as Rose-chan comes up behind her, clamps a hand down over her mouth, and drags her away. Blackness closes the hole.* ~~~***My Heart Still Cries***~~~ The sun still shines, just not as bright, The moon's still full but it doesn't look right. The stars still twinkle, but they seemed to fade the day, That you were taken away... My tears run dry, But my heart still cries. ~ ~ ~ I woke up today lookin' for you and you weren't there, I still expect to see your smiling face, Just to hear you say, "It'll be ok," Would be music to my ears. I grew up that fateful day, Did my best not to give into my dismay, And took care of everyone but me. No one saw me cry, or ever will... ~ ~ ~ The wind still blows but it's not as sweet, Still the grass is still wet under my feet, It still rains but the thunder's louder than before... My eyes may be dry, But my heart still cries. ~ ~ ~ The sun still shines, just not as bright, The moon's still full but it doesn't look right. The stars still twinkle, but they seemed to fade the day, You were taken away... My tears run dry, But my heart still cries. ~ ~ ~ There's nothing left of you, not a trace. The only thing that's there is just an empty space, That place in my heart... ~ ~ ~ Roses still smell sweet, but the thorns are sharper. My eyes are the same color but a little duller. My only wish is for this to stop hurting... My tears run dry... But my heart still cries........................ Yes... My heart still cries... End Written by Kate Rose (Rose Aquarius) Edited by Sailor GlitterGirl Taken from 'The Light Never Fades,' Chapter Four *ALL STANDARD DISCLAIMERS APPLY*