Fandom (CLOSED) Crystal Tokyo

[Olissa]

Story

It is many years into the future, the 30th century. Crystal Tokyo flourished under the reign of Neo Queen Serenity and King Endymion. Life was good, fun, and free of youma.
A true utopia.
Both inner and outer senshi took up their respective titles as Queens of their planets, while remaining in Crystal Tokyo as Neo Queen Serenity's advisors and guardians. Only Setsuna Meioh, Sailor Pluto, took up her station at the Door of Space-Time again and remained in solitude.
Over time children were born to the inner, and outer senshi, and were raised all alongside each other together with the second child to Neo Queen Serenity and King Endymion.
All the while Small Lady Serenity, with her court Sailor Ceres, Sailor Vesta, Sailor Juno, and Sailor Pallas, were being groomed to soon take up their next title as they came of age.

These were the good years.

One day, as all the Queens, Kings, and the Heirs were gathered in the palace a loud crash was heard outside. Ordering the Princes and Princesses to remain inside the Queens and their consorts together with Small Lady Serenity and her court rushed out, promising they would be back soon.

But soon never came.

The threat that raged against the Earth and it's beautiful capital city was too great for them to deal with.
They were not strong enough.
Sailors Juno, Ceres, Vesta, and Pallas were robbed of their Sailor Crystals before the Small Lady’s very eyes. As the darkness closed in on them, the remaining senshi all gave up their powers to prevent the darkness from taking those too. This sealed away the castle, leaving the Heirs suspended in ageless slumber inside the Crystal Palace.

Fifty years have passed since that fateful day. The world has been taken over by a new imperium, and the people slowly forgot about their perfect world and beautiful ruler. The only reminder being the large crystal structure in the center of the city.
Inside the Heirs are about to be awoken. To save, protect, and bring peace once more. It will become their destiny to become the new Sailor Senshi, to regain control over the city, and avenge their parents.


The Blue Moon Cafe (OOC)
The Resistance Registry (Character sign ups)
The Great Mercury Library (Lore)

 

[Olissa]

Crystal Palace

The world had once been so beautiful. So perfect. But that was the past. That was 50 years ago.
Neo Queen Serenity, the world’s beautiful and graceful ruler was gone, as was her entire court. The Queen's eldest daughter and her four guardians had perished as well.
Many assumed that the youngest child of the Queen and the children of her court were dead too. Eight children, one to each of the Planets.
However, they were mistaken.
Inside the Crystal Palace, in the center of the city, the heirs lie up in the highest chamber. Frozen in time as they were on the day they were trapped in crystal. Ever unaging, ever unchanging. Suspended in a dreamless slumber.

The halls of the majestic palace had long since not heard a single sound. A perfect serene silence that now was broken by the creaking of an opening door.
Down one of the halls stood a grand door. The Space-Time door that was guarded by the last Sailor Senshi alive. Sailor Pluto.
The gorgeous green haired woman stepped into the quiet palace, her heeled boots clicking softly on the crystalline floor. She had waited for this day to come, and there was no time to waste.

Sailor Pluto, who had also been graced with the title of Queen Pluto, head straight to the highest chamber in the building.
Up there in Serenity’s Palace, as it was called, stood seven stone structures in a circle, with an eighth stone in the middle. On top of each of them crystals protruded, with one of the royal heirs inside each of the crystal centers.
The last remaining Queen took the Garnet Orb off of her staff and held it in front of her. At first nothing seemed to be happening as the red stone in its center glowed.
After a few moments the crystal structures started to creak and crack.
Bit by bit the crystals turned into light as they broke away and formed an orb of light by each royal’s side.

The talisman of Queen Pluto stopped glowing, and so did the orbs of light.
Next to the seven in the circle a pen like shape appeared. Beside the boy in the center the light made way for a round brooch.

"Wake up young ones." The warm soothing voice of Pluto called out. "The world needs you."

Life was breathed back into the still heirs. Stirring them to move again.
Beside the prince in the center another small figure started to wake. A young blue cat, named Mani, with a crescent symbol on his forehead. He was advisor to the youngest Moon prince, as his parents and sister Diana had been before him. Unaware of the urgency to wake up, the feline stretched again before curling up closer to his liege.

The order in which they lay goes clockwise: Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Venus, Neptune, Uranus, Saturn. The order in which they appeared in the anime/manga. Heads towards the center of the circle, feet outward.


Ryoko

Silence had surrounded the princess of Mars. For how long, she didn't know, it felt like just a moment. As if she had dozed off for just a second.
Now there was the sound of cracking that alerted her ears. At first it was distant, till it finally rang closer and then suddenly stopped. Once the cracking had stopped Ryoko gasped for air. Life returning to her body once more. Her eyes snapped open as she lay on a stone cold bed. The black orbs of her eyes staring straight up to the crystal ceiling.

A familiar voice was calling from somewhere, bidding her to wake up. It didn't fully register. Her mind was preoccupied by questions that she could not answer.
What was she doing on here, lying on her back? How did she get here? What happened? Where was the Prince?

The thought of Prince Mamoru brought her to her senses and she shot straight up on the stone platform that she had been laying on.

To her left was Akemi, the princess of Mercury, to her right Rakushun, the prince of Jupiter. Both of them were in a similar state as she was, on stone blocks, in the process of waking. But where was the prince of the Moon? Ryoko turned around to look behind her.
All the others she had been raised with were there in a circle. All of them on those stones that almost looked like sarcophagi or alters. Finally her eyes rested upon the decorative stone with the familiar blonde resting on it.

"Prince!" Ryoko called out and slid off her stone bed, making haste to the heir. They might not be close as friends, but her duty was to him, so he was her first focus.

Pretzel Heart The Succubi Queen animegirl20 EndymionRose fishweave

 

[The Succubi Queen]

AkemiIt was so cold, so strong. Akemi felt like she was being pulled along in a current, a frozen river flowing much to fast around her. But where was she going? Where had she even come from- it was like she was coasting along in a dream, drifting in a way that felt entirely too real, even though she knew in her heart it was real. Her heart... she felt a pull towards something far away... She reached out with one hand towards whatever force compelled her, her fingers stretching out as it seemed to move away... just a bit further...Her hand moved so slowly through the frozen current, but she pressed on... There was a cracking sound as her finger brushed what seemed to be a layer of ice, splintering and allowing her to rise out of this frozen river....

Akemi's eyes opened, her body flat against something very uncomfortable- what had happened? She gasped as air hit her lungs, as though she hadn't had breath for a long time. She had been dreaming. Of drowning? Of being trapped under ice? The visions faded as her awareness grew of the world around her. She stared at the ceiling for a moment, trying to process. Her thoughts felt far away and distant, and she slowly tried to organize herself, despite the fuzz that seemed to fill her brain.

"Prince!" Akemi heard a voice beside her, and rolled her eyes. Of course perfect Ryoko was the first one up, and of course she was checking on the delicate flower of a prince. A part of her was weirded out by Ryoko's voice, more than simply aggravated. She closed her eyes, trying to figure out what about this situation was so weird. She had woken up, and heard Ryoko calling for Mamo.. Why didn't that make sense? She was still in her dress slacks and button up, but that wasn't unusual- she was known to stay up late working and just fall asleep wearing whatever she had worn that day, and this was uncomfortable, but guest beds often were.

It hit her suddenly- she had only heard Ryoko's voice. No music- Akemi couldn't fall asleep without her headphones playing music, and while she could feel her headphones pressing up against her ears, there was no music. A strange series of mental jumps, but Akemi had rituals- if she hadn't put on music, then it was definite she hadn't fallen asleep on her own. She sat bolt upright, and looked around the room. Something had happened- why where they all here? Where was everyone else? She looked around the room, trying to find answers before her eyes settled on Queen Setsuna. She moved to sit on the edge of the bed, her foot knocking into her mother's transformation pen.

She looked at it, and the super-goggles on the other side of the slab, and a series of questions and answers hit her mind all at once:
Where was she? No idea. Someplace Ornate. Probably the Palace, somewhere. When had she fallen asleep? She couldn't remember. So, what did she remember? A crash heard outside the palace, and the queens all leaving. Her mother telling her to stay put. Shrugging it off and putting her headphones back on when some snotty elbow-rubber's kid tried to talk to her. That was all, and then she had dreamed of cold and ice and now she was here.

There was sort of click in her head as it all came together. Her mother was gone. All of them were gone, probably. And they were here to take up the mantle. She took a deep breath, and let it out. She wouldn't say anything- who knows how the other's might react. Mamoru might straight up faint. Instead, she stood, and looked up at Queen Pluto. "So?" She said, a simple word demanding answers, before she caught herself. Setsuna was a queen. She cleared her throat, slowly pulled her headphone off so they hung around her neck, and tried again. "Queen Setsuna, there's a lot to be explained, isn't there?"

 

[fishweave]

The first thing the prince felt was a strong inner wind stirring and twisting. Where Haruka had felt the wind and sensed certain things through that outside of her body, his was inside. It was a wind that was trying to tell him something that it never tried to tell him before. His mind hadn't finished waking up yet, the wind was confusing and making him feel nauseous.before he even had his eyes open. By the time he had woken up enough to move around, it was to sit up, lean to the side, and empty the contents of his stomach at one side of the hard slab of a bed. It was strange, even when the wind woke him up with jubilee it hadn't caused his stomach to clench up like that before, because the wind was always moving inside. It was almost like it had gone from stillness to active, but that couldn't be the case. Shouhei had never experienced a time before where the wind had felt still inside him, everything would have had to have been still inside of him. That doesn't happen, right? He hadn't fully noticed the room yet, it was hard to lookover anyone or anything until his system had calmed down.

When his body felt more adjusted to the winds movements and the contents from within had finished spilling, he just sort of quietly sad there. Even if he could say something, right now he just wanted to recover and be still. His body didn't let him have that though, it seeked movement of some sort or another. If he didn't move he didn't think it would lead to any dry heaving, but it was better safe than sorry. Grabbing a napkin from his pocket, the teen wiped off his face before rolling his body a bit, then getting up on the clean side of the floor net to the bed he was on. The napkin was folded up then placed away, his eyes finally starting to look around a bit. He was still in morning clothes, a plain jacket, jeans, sneakers, and a shirt with long sleeves and a turtleneck. He had placed it on because he didn't fully believe the weather report when the weather man had said it would rain in a few days. This was the original reason he had worn his coat, but to be fair he was usually wrong when it came to extra paranoia concerning the rain anyway.

Shouhei was aware he was normally wrong, but that didn't stop the 'just in case' from rolling in. It felt like that train of thought had happened hours ago, years having passed didn't pop in his mind. What was strange was the room, the circle, the transformation pens, and the space sword. The sword and the mirror, items with deep sentimental value to both mothers, or so he ad always assumed. The history connected to the items had always caused him to think so. So they were told to hide, and when they woke up, it wasn't by their parents, it wasn't with a smile, and waking up in a circle to receive a transformation object... His mind was feeling too dazed to come to any conclusions yet, or maybe it felt like too many pieces were missing right now. He had heard people speak, but he wasn't up to speaking right now himself. Yep, it's decided. He would let them talk and he would just listen to everyone, look at everything, and let himself recover a little bit. Things just felt a little disorienting right at that time for him.

 

[animegirl20]

It was dark and silent. It felt as if everything had disappeared and Honoka was the only one there alone in the darkness. But then she opened her eyes and saw a light and in that light a figure of a woman with her arms stretched out towards Honoka. Honoka sat up and reached out for a warm loving embrace. “Mom?” Then suddenly she woke up and realized nothing was there. She blinked in confusion as she tried to come back to her senses. “Huh?” She put her arms down and looked around her trying to get her mind to register what was happening. She then suddenly felt dazed. “I’m just going to back to sleep.” She said mumbling to herself. Then she fell back against the the stone with a loud ‘BAM!’ She then quickly sat up with both hands on the back of her head. “Ow ow ow!” She turned her neck around and realized she wasn’t in a bed. “What the heck?” She removed her left hand from her head and rubbed her right hand on the sore spot. Still not totally in the moment of what was going she looked around her.

The first thing Honoka noticed was that she was in between Rakushun and Shizumu. “Ummm.” She then took look around the rest of the room. She noticed three others were already up and moving around. Ryoko was checking on the Prince who was still out. Shouhei was standing up and looking around. Then her eyes landed on Akemi whose attention seemed to be on “Pluto!?” She swung her legs over to stand up but just before getting up her hand hit something. “A pen?” She picked it up and looked at it, then everything came flooding back to her. “Oh...That’s right we were attacked I wonder where the others are?” She said referring to the Senshi. She then looked back at the Pen in her hand and the more she stared at it and thought, the more worried she got. Honoka then quickly shook her head. “No way I’m sure everything is fine....”

 

[EndymionRose]

Lightening flashed behind his closed eyes and thunder crashed in his ears and the next thing he knew, Rakushun was laying on a stone slab posed like a corpse. Then his memories flooded back to him, which didn't help at all. He had survived the gauntlet of the press that had lined the doors surprised to see him instead of his sister walking beside his mother and father. the crowd of nobility within the palace gathered for the event. Then hearing the crash and feeling the ground rumble. His in the chaos his father picking him up, his father was about the only man that could, and practically throwing Rakushun into a room and then everything going black. Now he lay on a stone slab in a room he had never seen before surrounded by silence. That is until he heard someone vomit.

He sat up to see what was going on and his right hand landed on a cold metal object. He looked down to see his mother's henshin pen. The fear and confusion that gripped his mind tripled and he looked around to see his father, mother anyone to say this was a joke. He was sitting on a slab set in a circle with a slab in the center. Ryoko was standing next to the center slab tending to the moon prince. It seemed Honoka and Akemi were interrogating Queen Pluto, whose mere presence set his anxiety ablaze. Shizumu hadn't seemed to wake up yet, but Shouhei was awake and judging by the fact he was wiping his face with a handkerchief and standing facing his brother, Rakushun guessed that he was the source of the retching he heard upon waking. Despite his fear and anxiety Rakushun grabbed his mom's pen and walked over to Hisako, noting that her mother's grave lay beside her. "Hi-hi-hi-Hisako." he stammered, "Are y-y-y-you ok-k-k-k-kay?" His face blushed with embarrassment as he struggled through his stutter. It hadn't been this bad in a long long time.

 

[Pretzel Heart]

☾ Mamoru Tsukino ☾​

It was such a beautiful dream. Something familiar...nostalgic, even......and warm. He couldn't quite understand what he was seeing...it felt...almost empty. Like a field that went on and on to the ends of time. Only distinguished by that nice, warm light. Pretty. A sense of silver. And yet...what fantasies the mind produces during body's rest are hardly important. It's the emotion that remains. And somehow, despite that quiet, comforting glow...he couldn't shake a swelling sense of grim unease--

On most days it could take a great deal of rattling, words, and false starts to fully rouse Prince Mamoru from his sleep. But the lingering sensation of that...uncanny dream, a feeling of hardness and cold when he tried to burry deeper into his sheets, and a familiar voice united to send him instantly upright.

"Setsuna!?"

He blinked, wide awake with the embarrassment that a woman had come into his room. And not just any woman... All the blood rushing to his face, he instinctively tried to cover himself. Oh God...hopefully he wasn't wearing anything too incriminating. No, it seemed he had fallen asleep dressed normally. Too normally. Had he forgotten to put on pajamas again? But more importantly, what about the Space-Time Door? That was Setsuna's place in the world; the prison she attached herself to- voluntarily, but all the same, one she never left. And yet... here she was. Far from it. Free.

Was this some kind of miracle? An early birthday present? He was thinking about all the places he wanted to show her when reality smacked him in the head.

"Prince!"

Wait. This wasn't his room.

"Ryoko...you don't have to--hav--to..achoo!" Now even more embarrassed, he sought about for the cause of his suddenly itchy nose. A small, pale blue cat was curled next to him, dreaming as peacefully as he wished he still could be. Mani. Son of Luna and Artemis, the King and Queen's advisors, destined to be his own the day he was born on the prince's third birthday. That is...until they discovered the ill effect his milky fur had upon the boy. Luckily it wasn't anything too severe...no rashes, swelling, or hives. But still, oftentimes living in a palace surrounded by felines gave him the feeling of having a perpetual cold. Eventually they had to implement all kinds of precautions...as a kid Mamoru had just cried it away, but the more he became self-aware the guiltier he felt. Then again, it wasn't as if someone like himself really needed an advisor. He wasn't ever going to be important enough to have to make big decisions. He had always felt bad for Mani, though. Like he had inadvertently denied him his destiny. And thanks to his condition, the people of Mau had even been forced to avoid his room. But then, why now...?

And that was when he saw it.

The compact.

Just a simple, metallic circle laying peacefully on the...come to think of it, bizarre stone slab he had woken up on. And yet, it held his gaze as a magnet draws iron. His whole body sinking into the ground.

His last memory last memory--

"Setsuna. What's going on?" His voice came out like a hoarse whisper, his mouth suddenly dry. Funny...he could feel...no...hear his breaths growing shorter, louder. But no...he had to stay calm...calm... He closed his eyes to give them some relief from that ominous circlet, yanking away his gaze to the larger, and yet equally portentous ring of disoriented youths waking around him. All the heirs were there...even Prince Shizumu, and Mamoru couldn't even remember the last time he had seen him. Instinct drew him to locate Princess Hisako - young and frail as she was - but thankfully Prince Rakushun had already beat him to it. Wait...Rakushun was here, but Princess Shouke was not?

It was all too much too quickly...and he, quite literally in the middle of it. Swallowing, he tried to refocus on the one person he could trust- the figure who, in his vapid, meandering life, had always represented the comforts of resolution and calm. Setsuna. But even the ataractic pleasure of her gentle face, as always softened by the aura of mystery, could do little to stop the frenetic beating of his heart...

♆ Shizumu Kaiou-Tenou ♆​

Whether his eyes were open or closed the blur of color remained the same. He lay there, blinking a few times to shake off the uncertainty, invaded by a collage of hues somehow both hazy and blaring at the same time. It seemed to increase the weight of his headache tenfold. And man, did he feel it.

"Christ. What the fuck...? Did I have too much wine again?" He muttered, running a hand through his hair as he lethargically propped himself up.

Shizumu liked to think of himself as a smart drinker. And, if anyone asked, he was. But the reality was that he sometimes let himself be more controlled by his emotions than he liked to admit. And those emotions too often found themselves enslaved to that warm, bubbly comfort drawn out by fermentation. Easy peasy. Like drinking liquid fun.

But for once it seemed alcohol had little to do with his current predicament. He was on...some kind of stone bed. Surrounded by strangers. Holy fuck. Had he been kidnapped? Was this some kind of bizarre ritual? An obsessive fan?

Wait...those weren't strangers. Though he wished half of them would be. Balancing himself on one elbow brought him face-to-waist with Honoka, who was babbling on as usual through a peach-colored haze. Just great. Honestly, he wouldn't be surprised if she had kidnapped him. But it wasn't just Honoka. All the little princes and princess were there. And in the middle of all of them...Sir Sleeps A Lot. Talk about being center of attention. Though with his shuddering body and scarlet face it looked like he might explode from the pressure.

Smirking at the thought, Shizumu let out a lazy yawn before finally sitting the rest of the way upright, head still spinning in protest. At least he wasn't throwing up yet, like the person next to him, from the sound of it. Wait.

That person was Shouhei.

"Shou...you alright?" He had never known his brother to party too hard- even when he tried to take him out and get him to- though right now, he sure looked like he had. Maybe he finally met someone cute who could get him to crack. But...that still didn't explain where they were and why. Just what the hell was going on? The weirdest part was, he couldn't remember anything. Wait...that wasn't right.

The palace.

He could remember.

Riding down the slick, crystalline roads that juxtaposed estrangement with familiarity. Wind whipping through his hair. Caught off-guard by the buzz of paparazzi at the gates. And the thoughts in his mind...

That was when he saw it.

Eyebrow cocked, he picked up a delicate, golden object by his side. Looking every bit a fairytale princess awoken from long slumber and needing to check her beauty-sleep's effects, he gazed past his face into the surface of glass.

Wearing an uncharacteristic expression, he pocketed the mirror without comment. He had no idea what the fuck was going on, but he was beginning to have his suspicions.

The people waking up around him were all the royal planetary heirs. But their parents were nowhere to be seen. No one but a woman he barely recognized as the smokin Babe of Pluto. Just the cold, crystal casing of the palace.

"Hey, Shou..." he continued, his eyes caught upon a second, more telling object by his hand, "do you have Mom's sword?"

 

[Olissa]

Hisako

Calm.
That is how she appeared.
Resting peacefully on the stone set out for the heir of Saturn.
It was almost serene. As if she, the future guardian over death and rebirth, was displayed like a corpse, ready to be buried any moment if it weren't for the crystal spikes surrounding her. Only to soon be awoken, reborn. Like a true representation of what she was meant to be.

How tiny the frail little body appeared on that big stone. Upon Queen Pluto’s command the crystal around her started to dissipate. Just then a tear rolled further down the side of Hisako’s face. As if it had been frozen in time mid drop.

A familiar voice beckoned. A release of breath was its reply. The small teenager’s eyes opened and looked to the ceiling. Her body felt cold, absent. It made sense, she was laying on a cold stone. Carefully she started to move her toes, then her feet. Her fingers were firmly grasped around the cold rod of her mother’s Silent Glaive. It would take some time to get those moving too.

Once Hisako got cold it usually meant a stiffness would enter her body, and only by careful, patient, calm movements would she be able to regain motion in her body.

Now too was no difference.
As she focussed on herself there was a bustle around her. People talking, walking. The only notable sound that pulled Hisako from her near mediative mode was the sound of someone throwing up near her.
Having been in a hospital for such a large portion of her life it was not an unfamiliar sound to her. The sight nor sound were repulsive to her. It was a part of hospital life.

Her head turned sideways to see Uranus’ heir wiping the remaining contents from his mouth. Feeling compassionate towards the other outer she wanted to get up and comfort him, but by the time she was able to really do so, he had turned himself around to the side where his brother lay.
Perhaps that was best.

By her other side Hisako heard footsteps of someone approaching. Her head turning, first spotting the familiar dark skirt of Sailor Pluto. That was not the source of the footsteps. The actual source was Rakushun, as he stammered to get words out.
His presence prompted Hisako to roll slightly to her side and push herself up using one of her arms. With her free hand she brushed away the remainder of the tear.
“I’m alright Rakushun. I’m alright. Just a little cold” She replied, her voice still weak from having just woken up.

To sit up properly with her legs over the edge Hisako moved the Glaive and let it rest on the ground.
“Are you alright though?” She asked concerned. She reached out to let her hand rest on his shoulder. Although he was big, he was small too.

Sailor Pluto moved and Hisako looked up, meeting her eyes.
The Queen of the planet Pluto gave a soft nod to Hisako before walking to the Moon Prince at the center.
Saturn’s princess followed her with her eyes, and then turning back to Rakushun. “Perhaps we should follow.”
Sitting on the stone structure her feet were nowhere near the ground so she leaned on both the Glaive and Rakushun’s arm to gently guide herself down.


NPC Setsuna

The last remaining Queen had taken up position between the heirs of Mercury and Saturn. At the beginning and end of the circle. Just as time itself. Throughout the circle of stones each of the heirs were waking up in a manner distinct to them. No two awoke the same way.

Time had stood still for these young souls far longer than she thought would have been possible. Even Neo Queen Serenity hadn’t been sealed in crystal that long. Circumstances had been different then. Different now.

It was good to see them all.
Alive.
Well.
Innocent.
Innocent in the ways of war.
Innocent in knowing no loss that could not be replaced.
Innocence that she was going to rob from them despite how much she wished there was another way.

Princess Akemi got up and approached her. “So?” The short and impatient question sounded. If it were any other situation or circumstance Setsuna would have made a point about it. Now she didn’t. She was certain that the brilliant mind of Mercury’s heir had put the pieces together. The explosion outside, the pens and accessories, and how the only ones here were the only ones that did not leave.
At Akemi’s more collected second attempt Setsuna merely nodded slowly. There was a lot to explain. More than they could possibly grasp.

“Follow me.” She told the girl and walked past her towards the center where Prince Mamoru Young Lord Endymion was seated. As she walked by Prince Rakushun and Princess Hisako she gave them a soft nod as well, hoping they would follow too.

Slowly more were gathering at the stone in the center. Although none could hide their worry, only few asked questions. So far she had evaded the questions, her focus being on the Prince had deterred most of the follow up questions.
Soon they would all know.
Soon they would be faced with the harshest reality of all.
Soon they would learn the true weight of those little pens in their hands.
Soon...

No.

Now.

Once most had gathered Setsuna spoke up.
“There is no easy way to say this.“ She began. Her eyes going by each of them, taking a moment to take them in, before they would learn everything.
“The world has been thrown into chaos.“ Ignoring the shift in tension in the room she continued. “As you know there was a loud crash, to which the Queens, their consorts, and Small Lady Serenity with her court left the palace. This crash came from a threat that invaded the earth.“ Setsuna's eyes rested on the last heir to the Moon kingdom.

“They fought valiantly.“ With a lump forming in her throat she slowed down, pausing. The glistening of the high noon sun through the crystal building was a stark contrast to the dark words she spoke.

“They never stood a chance.“

The surge those words sent through the group was tangible.

“I’m sorry.” Sorry she couldn’t have done more, sorry she had to bring this news, sorry that she had to burden them with this.

“Since then you all have slept here for the past 50 years.“


Ryoko

The way that Mamoru woke up was in so many ways similar to how his mother was told to be like in the past. Ryoko’s mother had not spared any details of the times the Queen over this planet had been nothing but a normal teenager that was a below average student.

Of course Mamoru wouldn’t be Mamoru if it wasn’t for the sneezing fit because of Mani. The poor cat. As she followed Prince Mamoru’s gaze to the cat she too was distracted by the sight of a little metallic round object. One of the compacts of the Queen.

In silence Ryoko second the young man’s question. Something was most definitely wrong and Queen Pluto was the only one it seemed that could give them any answers.
In her haste to reach the Prince Ryoko hadn’t taken anything with her, but behind her, on that stone table she could see the pen laying all alone. In her haste she also hadn’t noticed Sailor Pluto’s presence. Now she saw her. She dreaded seeing her like this.

Sailor Pluto drew closer, and some of the princes and princesses followed. Among the faces she searched for one of the few that she could call a friend. Shizumu. She spotted him by his brother’s side.
Once Queen Setsuna began Ryoko quietly listened to the words that were spoken.

Quiet till the last words.

Crack
Even though there was no more crystal around them, to Ryoko it sounded like something broke. The perfect, composed, mature armor she held showed a massive rip, a divide, a tear from top to bottom.
Without warning her knees gave way. One hand searching for grip on the side of the stone that Mamoru had been placed on.
Everything she once held dear. Her mother, her father, her life. It died that very instant.
She wanted to scream.
She wanted to shout.
She wanted to punch her way out.
She...
She wanted to die. Right there, on that spot.

 

[animegirl20]

Honoka had been lost in thought. She snapped out of it when she heard someone stuttering. She then looked around for the source of it. Her Eyes landed on Rakushun who was by Hisako she guessed he’s nerves were getting to him for him to be stuttering that bad. She hadn’t noticed Shizumu waking up until he sat straight up sitting on the stone bed. Slightly caught off guard she tried to backup but instead just ended up falling on to the stone. She then quickly swung her legs around to the other side and had her back towards him. Did she have to be placed next to him?

When Hisako woke up, she noticed everyone walking over near to Pluto. She got up and followed the others and listened to what Pluto had to say but the moment Pluto said those last few words Honoka eyes widen and the pen in her hand dropped to the floor. She stood there frozen for a good min. Her hands started shaking. “Haha no she...can’t be......”tears slowly started coming out one by one. She Dropped to her knees and hands starring at the floor. More tears started pouring out. Her mind was everywhere. 50 years?! She couldn’t even fathom it. Memories flashed in her mind it felt like it all happened yesterday. Just the day before her and mom were together at home laughing and watching movies together. Finally not being able to take it anymore she screamed, “MOM!!!!” Her arms were around her stomach as she was bent over crying. She felt like her entire body was just in Total pain. She couldn’t move all she could do was kneel there and cry her heart out.

 

[EndymionRose]

Rakushun started to begin to stutter out a response to Hisako’s question when Pluto walked past them into the center of the circle. Her presence confused him. His mother only told him a few stories, but they all said that if Queen Pluto ever left her door it meant BAD news. He helped HIsako down and followed her to the center where the rest of the heirs had gathered to listen to what Queen Pluto had to say. When those words. Those infernal destructive words were uttered, Rakushun wanted to fell to his knees and cry, to scream and punch the ground, to do something. A storm was building up within him something he had never felt before. Anger and despair swirled together within him, blending and colliding.

Despite all of that when Ryoko’s knees gave and it looked like she was going to pass out, he responded instantly. His strong arm shooting out to grab her and keep her from falling and hitting her head. From there he let her down gently, more so that one would think possible of a boy with his musculature. Then a glimmer of hope sparked in his mind. His parents had been at the palace but not his siblings. He turned to Setsuna, eyes already wide and pleading on the verge of tears. “W-w-w-what a-ab-b-bout m-m-m-m-m-m-my si-si-si-si-“ Tears began to flow as the stress of the situation was becoming too much for him. All the work he had put it to suppressing his stutter in years past was flying out the window faster than lightning. And now he couldn’t even ask about what happened to his siblings. it was frustrating that he couldn’t do this one simple thing. And now it seemed he was stuck repeating a single syllable as his frustration grew and it along with his anxiety fed into the growing embarrassment and difficulty in speaking. What would his mother say if she could see him now? What would his father say? What would Shouke say? Or any of his siblings for that matter. To his brothers he had been the strong role model, the one the tutors compared them to, and to his sisters, other than Shouke, he was the protector, the one that kept bullies and creepy boys at bay, even if he was silent. And where had he been when they needed him? Locked away and sleeping. And he was suppose to be the new Senshi of Courage and Protection?

 

[fishweave]

翔 Shouhei
兵

The young teen looked over to Shizumu, his beloved older brother. Of course they both knew what the mirror and sword meant before Setsuna said anything. Maybe he should feel sad, or upset over his parents. They were some of the few rare people he was able to trust, but both had spent so much time either with their work or around his brother or figuring out how to be near his brother that the only ways the younger prince had really got to know the two on any deep of a level was through observation and reading history books at Mercury's great library.

It wasn't even either of his parents that got him to want to prepare to be a great next Uranus, his mothers didn't want either of their children to ready for war. The news of the death didn't really shock or upset him, a group of people he should have cared more about. Mercury had called him studious once, but she wasn't even either of his parents.

Light yellowish tropical green eyes looked to the seafoam beauties. The only person left alive that he could fully trust.
His words came out softly, but with some energy behind them. "I'm alright, thank you for worrying. It was just the wind animated before my body... and I couldn't move on time. It's a very active wind right now... I do have mothers space sword." It wasn't like he wasn't upset at all though.
They were here for a reason, their parents were not here for a reason. Their parents, chibiusa and her court, they were all allowed to try because they thought they could win if they fought together.

"We were saved and kept from fighting because our parents knew they would more than likely die, but wanted some form of hope to remain. If we had been allowed to try to help, we would have been useless. The sleep was so still for so many years because we needed to wake at a time were we had some sort of chance. Whatever we have coming isn't going to be a cakewalk."
His persona hadn't been slipped on quite yet. It was hard to slip it on when he was so upset. All those years preparing for an attack, for something, and he had failed. "They must have known the trouble was coming, that's why we were gathered that way on that day."

That wasn't rain the wind had been yelling about, was it? If only he had known sooner, maybe it couldn't have been so hidden away. Then again, if they had been told, would it have made a difference? It hurt, but they would have been useless. They had to be careful, to be cautious. When finally walking, it was a fluid and swift set of movements that could be barely called walking. This was just how he moved, unless he had to go slower. He grabbed what was needed for himself and his brother. Shizumu would be hurt as well, right? He started walking again, returning to near neptune, handing Shizumu the proper transformation stick.

Besides that, how could he really help? The teen didn't even know how to dear with his own emotions. Now he had Harukas original transformation stick. The only way to grow would be to grow himself, to make it his own. How does one deal with this? They only just woke up and had already failed everyone. Should he hug Shizumu? That was the sort of thing he had read in some books and seen in observation, but not something he had done for any reason in practice, even when his parents had hugged him.

Should he has if his brother was alright? But would that not be rude and plain? Something that needs not words or question to know that upset of some set or another is there. His eyed moved to look at Pluto. "Do we have any form of belongings or currency? Are we going to have to find work and a way to gain shelter? If so, that will have to come before hunting information on what we should do next concerning the enemy. This is clearly something we can't solve in under a day."

His mind had started to wake a bit more, the fog only really fully lifting around then. But even with it lifted, what now? Could he put his persona on? No, he was too upset. This only served to upset him more, it was his cover, his protection, his safety.

Hopefully fate does not find a way to find a way to make this day darker than it already was, the whistling of the wind wrapping itself within and making those small sounds of intensity like a storm of wind that never fully formed anything but coiled and whipping sounds.

 

[The Succubi Queen]

Akemi It was one thing to have come to a conclusion as grim as this on her own- simple logic had told her something had gone terribly wrong. But to hear Pluto confirm it so simply, with so little fanfare, that put a dark pit in Akemi's stomach, and she thought she just might be absorbed into it like a black hole forming at her core. "50 years... that's almost a lifetime" she muttered to herself, the dread spreading through her body like stepping out into cold night air. She felt a familiar urge in her hand, her hand twitching against her leg in a pattern, tap tap tap tap tap tap against her leg. She had for so long tried to stop it, years focusing so hard on reality, but this news was unfathomable to her. She almost wished to be back in that crystal, trapped in a cold constant instead of this equally cold chaos. She allowed herself to slip into the comfort of a simple gesture, something that kept her grounded, kept her from screaming aloud and losing herself and screaming aloud in this moment of sheer despair. Better to stim until someone snapped her back to reality than to have an outburst. She had never had a real outburst in front of royalty, thank god.

Tap, tap, tap, tap "Si- si-si-si-si-si-si" Something was matching her rhythm, pulling her back to reality. Dark hair, the quiet one- Shouke's brother, Rakushun. She had seen him in the gardens, that lost hidden prince who had flowers to attend instead of meetings. She had never spoken to him, but a part of her had always felt a distant kinship to this prince who also wanted nothing more than to disappear from his duties. She had always admired his freedom from afar, but it didn't take being his friend to know he was getting close to panicking. She hadn't had a panic attack like that since she was young, but she remembered being 11 or so, a computer not working for her, and Ami finding her at some godawful hour, tapping on the walls like she was desperate for an answer from them. Vague memories flashed in her head of her mother calming her down, physically restraining her until she came back from wherever her head when went she disassociated like that. Since then, and a few rare incidents, Akemi had mostly been in control. None of the other royals had known, she was so in control. But she knew what to do, had done it countless times on people in clubs who'd been giving strange drinks or pills and lost control of their bodies, or even people who the lights had hit just the wrong way. She could do it now, for Rakushun. She took a deep breath, and did what she always did in those awful moments when she was in public and wanted to die. She imagined a box, and put her dark feelings in it. She could open the box later. Now she had work to do.

She walked over to Rakushun, and gently pulled him away from Ryoko, away from the center of the group. Her hands were firm on his wrist, and she looked up into his eyes. God, she hated eye contact. Seeing her own fear reflected in his eyes almost made her spiral. But she could do this. She could calm them both down. She spoke, not just to Rakushun, but to herself. "Hey, HEY! We're not gonna panic. If you panic, we'll all panic and that won't be a good time for anyone." She released his left wrist for a moment, putting her hand on his cheek and lightly tapping, physical contact that hopefully would keep him grounding. She remembered that saying his name was a good way to ground someone, but honestly, she wasn't one-hundred percent sure Rakushun was his name, and calling him something wrong would just be the worst thing for both of them right now. "We can deal with all this shit later, cuz yeah, shit's totally fucked, but right now you gotta breathe, ok- we're gonna take deeeep breaths, together, ok?" Her hand went back to his wrist, giving a light squeeze. "It's ok to close your eyes, just focus on my hands and on your breathing. We're gonna start easy, in for 4 and out for 4." She took a deep breath, counting to four, before exhaling, giving him an example. "Got it? Just like that. Then we're gonna go in for four, and out for eight, and so forth." She began to count out loud, very slowly, very clearly and deliberately. The counting calmed her, and the breathing would calm him, at least pull him out of this stupor, she hoped. Or she'd look like a complete idiot here, and they'd probably never let her talk to him again.

Just a few feet away, she could hear Shouhei talking, trying to figure out their next step. She had always clashed with him, a bit, but it was good to know he was being practical in this situation. She could join that conversation later. Right now, she and Rakushun needed to come back to this reality, broken as it was.

((Permission to move Rakushun given by EndymionRose ))

 

[Pretzel Heart]

☾ Mamoru Tsukino ☾​

While she did not immediately answer his question, being bombarded with them as she was, Setsuna held Mamoru's gaze as she moved before him. He could almost feel his eyes digging into hers, practically pleading for any sense of assurance, that this bizarre set of circumstances had any other explanation than the one most probable. But again, the woman gave no answer, instead turning to each of the other heirs around him. Someone who, despite her composure, despite her talent and her strength, had always seemed so...sad, and alone......he had spent enough time by her side, trying to ease that loneliness, that he could sense that, whatever she was about to say, it wasn't easy for her. And there was nothing he could do to alleviate that pain. No. He had no other choice but to watch. Wait. And be a part of the cause.

"The world has been thrown into chaos," Setsuna began, her steady voice doing nothing to parallel the squirm of emotions he felt already churning his stomach. She continued. "This crash came from a threat that invaded the earth." Her eyes came full circle to meet his again. He bit his lip, hoping that the medicine of her gaze would be enough to heal the wound she was about to deliver.

"They fought valiantly." They were the words of a history textbook. Already cataloguing and examining the past. The past--

"They never stood a chance." He could feel hands sliding over his face, as if the cool of dark could somehow calm the rapidly increasing vibrations of his heart. But instead all he could see was his father's gentle smile. Something he both resented and aspired towards. He remembered sneaking into his room with Usagi to try on their parents' clothes. The weight of that silvery cape draped around his back. How he'd been caught staring at himself in the mirror, firm hands suddenly placed upon small shoulders. 'It suits you.'

Dad...

"I'm sorry." A pathetic, wimper-like choke escaped his lips, instantly swallowed less it escape into a full-on sob. He thought about the way his sister would randomly come into his room, falling face-forward on the sheets. 'Usagi...what's wrong?' 'Nothing.' She'd finally look up at him, wearing that peevish grin that meant a plan was forming in her head, 'Hey, wanna see something cool?' How she'd push him out of bed...quite literally, sometimes...leading him to the secret route she took to sneak out of the palace. 'I wasn't planning on showing anyone. Well, maybe Hotaru. But I felt like you needed to see it first.' Tumbling through the vast dandelion plains surrounding their home. The time she let Diana sleep in his favorite shirt...how she'd giggled at his sneezing fit, then got scolded and had to apologize. But she came back later. 'You know...I really am sorry.'

Usagi......

"Since then you all have slept here for the past 50 years." One of his earliest memories, getting his fingers caught in his mother's long, silvery hair. Thinking how soft and sparkly it was. Pulling on it and crying while his sister laughed in the background. Laughter... A giggle so light it had always reminded him of the way moonbeams wafted through his window, filtered by the faint chiffon surrounding his bed. And how she would sit there, leaning over him with a bright and girlish smile that spoke only of love. 'Remember how I always used to come in like this? You couldn't sleep without me.' 'And now...we don't get much time to talk, anymore.'

Mom--!

Gone. Nothing but fleeting memories that rushed before him at such a rate he felt like he couldn't catch them, and they'd slip through his fingers like the goldfish at the matsuri they had all gone to years ago. Fifty years-- It was only last night that she was sitting there, shimmering in the moonlight. The pink bounce of his sister's hair as she had passed him in the hall. 'I'll be right back, okay?' But she was never coming back...

He could feel his face contorting, tears pooling at the corners of his eyes. How ridiculous he must look... His body...it felt light. Paper-thin. Like he wasn't even real.
If only that could be true......

With a deep breath he smoothed his hands the rest of the way over his face, as if that would be enough to wipe away the mounting despair. Using all his willpower not to cry--

The sound of skin slapping stone snapped him from the spiral, tears choked back in shock as he knelt by the slab's edge. "Ryoko--!" But someone had already beaten him to it. Prince Rakushun, once again. Well, it wasn't like he could have done anything to help. All around him, it seemed, the sounds of crying were breaking out. Poor Princess Honoka... Instinctually his body turned to go to her, but, again, what could he do? He didn't think she had ever really liked him...so his presence now could only be more nuisance than comfort. And then even Rakushun, after seeing to Ryoko, was now also starting to break. It was the normal response, after all. Setsuna's words had changed everything. There were still so many questions, so many things left unexplored, unsaid.

"Prince Rakushun..."

He was there, right next to him, sobbing. Mamoru had always tried to be a comfort to others, and usually just his presence, a smile soft and supportive, was enough. But this...this was something else entirely. What should he do? What should he say? He reached out a hand, as if to place it gently on the man's shoulder, but stopped, hovering awkwardly halfway. Someone like him...in a situation like this......there was really nothing he could do.

And yet--

Hand retreating to his lap, he looked around the circle. For better or worse, those gathered around him now were depending on him. And on his strength. Strength he didn't have...strength he would have to...have to force. Taking a deep breath, he sucked it in. The memories, the thoughts. There, in the center of all of them, he couldn't afford to break down. He had to remain calm, composed. Lock away all those feelings for another time, far, far from now. No. Never. He could no longer afford to parade such a side of himself. No...from now on he had to be their strength. Their pillar. Supporting them just as, for hundreds of years, the Silver Crystal had supported its city. The Silver Crystal-- He grit his teeth, burying the last impulse of tears, pushing closed the floodgates of his memories with the remaining strength of his former self. He was a new man, now. He had to be. He may have wasted the past 18 years-- was it only 18?-- but now there could be no more procrastinating. And no more running. All his life he had been fleeing from that dark cloud, and now it had come crashing down upon his head. If only he had been a better son...if only he had run faster, gone further, maybe none of this would have had to happen--

Mom.........

He would never even get the chance to tell her......

Wasn't there anyone else? He couldn't do it. He was...he wasn't like the others. He didn't belong in that same light world that his parents had.

And yet it was up to him. With only memories as his guides.

What would his mother do? His father? His sister? His brain wracked feverishly through memories of all the stories, all the legends, all the tales. The sound of crying still thick in his ears. He could feel the fingernails of his fist biting into his hand. What about Ryoko? She had always been so sure and mature, the perfect future Senshi...now fallen to the floor......

He had never felt so helpless. All the nights spent wide awake worrying. Hours pouring through tome after tome. And what had it all been for? He had always known peace couldn't last. But now that he was proven right...so what? It was an empty I told you so. Certainly no reward.

"I'm sure...your siblings are okay. Right?" It was as if he needed the sound of his own voice to keep himself sane. He looked to Setsuna hopefully, thinking about how Princess Shouke always seemed to spare him a kind word when they met. The others whose names he could never remember but sometimes ran into. He had kept putting off getting to know them...and now he may never have the chance...... Pushing such thoughts to the bottom of his mind he turned back to Prince Rakushun only to find him gone. Huh? Oh...Princess Akemi, unexpectedly, seemed to be trying to calm him. Though she didn't look to be doing too well herself. Still, the sight of the usually closed-off girl going out of her way to help another funneled into his false sense of strength.

He could almost feel his limbs again...

Prince Shouhei, more composed than the others, began rattling off questions, further grounding the turbulent situation and earning Mamoru's silent appreciation. They certainly were going to need such level-headed thinking in the days ahead. But, rather than focusing on the minutia, the small details, he was naturally attuned to the big picture. Realizing that, for better or- more likely, worse- he was now the sole rightful heir to the Crystal Kingdom. In other words...the entire world. And they knew nothing about the place that world had become.

"Well spoken, Prince Shouhei. But I want to know...just who was it, Setsuna? Who has been in control of the Kingdom all this time? And what about it's people? While we've just been asleep...they've had to live......"

He stopped the thought mid-sentence, something dark and troubling edging on the words left unsaid. What was life like for the citizens of this chaotic new world? Naturally he didn't want to learn they had suffered, but then...if they were doing well, didn't that mean the new rulers were just as competent as his parents? It would be like justifying the collapse. But if he wanted to believe in his family's perfections, then didn't that doom their people under the new regime? He didn't know why his mind was cycling around such uncomfortable thoughts, now, of all times. So he shook them away, instead moving far ahead of the messy, distraught circle of his peers. Reaching far into the future, past who knew how many days...weeks....months......years........of pain they would continue to endure. To fight whoever had taken their world from them. To avenge their fallen parents. The crippled group around him now-- No...his......Guardians. His. The last thing he wanted to do was waste their power. The world's last hope--

I'm sorry, father...

He remembered the time he had ran from dinner, tears streaming down his face, his dad excusing himself to follow. "It's your namesake. I want you to have the joy of protecting the things you love." His thoughts back then, how impossibly daunting that task seemed. To be able to protect them...? Or just.....not to be a burden. The things he loved...his people...his world......his family... This was the last effort he could make for them. For their legacy.

Mom--

How many times had he turned away or closed the door to his mother's voice? All that time he knew he would return to her one day, once he had found his place...once he could be her equal, facing her without doubt, hesitation, or shame....but he had waited too long.

This was the only thing he could do.

"But...I'm sure it will be alright. I has to." Finally he stood, trying to focus on Setsuna to steady his voice, unsure even of what he was trying to say, "My father once told my mother that she was eternal...that no matter what futures came or who replaced her, her light would continue to shine forever..." his broken breaths failed to keep his voice from cracking as he spoke, though he did his best to hide it "...and he was right. Moth-- Neo-Queen Serenity may be dead, but her light shines on through us. Through...me......"

Though the thought had been fluttering on his mind ever since he had awoken and laid eyes on that cursed compact, now, saying it aloud, it felt more real and terrifying than ever. Like a spell he had just cast upon his own head.

"Prince Shouhei is right. Whatever is before us won't be easy. But our parents-- it was their last wish to believe in us, so..."

He trailed off, obviously not used to giving speeches, and honestly a bit dumbstruck that he had even tried. But...he couldn't comfort them. The least he could do was make some attempt to show he understood the situation. That...while the last person who should be allowed to lead...he at least knew that it was his duty to try.

"Right, Setsuna? Isn't that why you woke us?"

"I should fucking hope not."

♆ Shizumu Kaiou-Tenou ♆​

Shizumu wasn't like the others. He didn't need time to mourn. In some ways, he had already been in mourning long before they had ever been put to sleep.

"Damnit..." he muttered, but said no more.

Even till the very end, they hadn't been able to let him go...

His eyes flicked up at the sound of someone collapsing. Ryoko. He blinked, something moving in his heart. But seeing the two other boys falling over themselves for her, he decided to just push it down until it died.

She had always been the mature one, right? She could...handle herself.

Thankfully Shouhei was taking things in better stride. Or at least appeared to. He knew his brother had a tendency to put on a mask, and his manic babbling did little to assure Shizumu that he was really as okay as he seemed. Upon his response, the older had simply lifted a sympathetic hand to his sibling's shoulder, giving him a gentle squeeze and a half-grin. Half-reassuring. Just enough to tell him that he understood. They had both ended up a bit fucked, after all; Shizu with his colors, Shou with his wind. It meant that they lived in a different space from other people. But that was perhaps what he liked about him most.

And yet, as he continued to speak, Shizumu just stared, his brother's words barely registering above the other, much louder thoughts banging around in his still-throbbing head. Again, saying nothing. It wasn't that he didn't care about what Shou might be going through. It was that he wanted to believed he was strong enough to handle it. Besides, in the middle of a ring of children was not where he wanted to have a one-on-one family matters chat. Besides...it had gotten loud.

The echoes of sobbing were only enhanced by the haunting acoustics of the crystal and stone room, sending violent splashes of color spinning from wall to wall. Big, garish, ugly colors, too. Eventually Shizumu had to shut his eyes, rubbing hands over head and ears to do anything to drown it out. Why couldn't they just all shut up?

At last he let out an exasperated groan, sounding more like a child who had been told to do their chores rather than one who had been told their parents were now dead. Running his hands one last time through his hair he came face-to-face with a long, metallic object leering at him.

His mother's pen. Shouhei holding it expectantly.

Resisting the urge to swat it out of the boy's hand, or take it only to snap it in half, he begrudgingly took the object, slipping it next to the mirror sticking out of his pocket.

One last joke, huh?
One last attempt to control him...

The sounds of crying continued as his brother tried to reason through the facts. Currency...shelter. Things Shizumu had never exactly had to worry about. Not back then. So why should he now? Fifty years or not, this was still the city that was his.

At some point Akemi- that crazy kid- had thankfully dragged the Jupiter boy off to talk some sense into him. Now if only someone could do the same for Honoka. Shizu had scoffed at the way she failed to scramble from him. What a weird girl. A few years ago she hadn't been able to get enough. Now she couldn't even stand to look his way.

"Would you be quiet?" He asked impatiently, tucking stray hairs behind his ear, "I can't even hear myself think over all that-- that--" He wanted to say 'yellow,' but he knew she wouldn't understand. So he just dropped it. Besides, against all odds, it sounded like Prince Moony was going on his own tangent. Admittedly, Shizumu was surprised the little prince wasn't also on the floor sobbing; he would have thought he'd be the first one to break. Instead here he was trying to give a pep talk to a bunch of toddlers. If it wasn't so pitiful, he might even find it cute.

"Right, Setsuna? Isn't that why you woke us?"

"I should fucking hope not," he snapped, finally standing up. This whole thing was just a pain...that's right, a pain in his ass. What he wanted was to slip away to the nearest bar and drown out all further thoughts into a Dark and Stormy. But his headache wasn't going to make that easy for him, was it? Damn thing still rattling around his brains. He guessed being asleep for so long affected everyone a bit differently. And he was here, now. Here, against his will, emotions raging like waves tossed by tempest's storm.

"She just said it's been 50 years. As far as I'm concerned, that's ancient history. Why go digging it up? Just because we're expected to? By who? Her?"

As he spoke he continued walking from his spot near the back of the circle, eventually feeling the swaying motion of brains floating on evening tide subside to the point where he could remove his hand from his forehead, shaking the last of the worst of the feeling off. His goal was currently standing before the Moon Prince, all prim and proper in her little black skirt. He walked directly up to the woman. He wasn't much taller than her, but it was still enough to loom with the shadow of a threat.

"You said everyone fought valiantly? Everyone gave their lives? So then what the fuck are you still doing here, huh, Babe? Call in sick that day? Or just too afraid to leave your little door?" He grinned, giving her an approving pat on the cheek. "Smart girl. Can't say I blame you. So no hard feelings if we do the same, right?"

"Th...That's enough."

With lifted brow Shizumu turned. It was the Moon Prince. Doing what, he guessed, was his best attempt at a defiant glare, though to him it looked more like the boy was about to cry. Pathetic. Just like his whole family. The family that his parents had died for. His grin widened.

"Oh? Are you suddenly ready to come out and play hero?"

His eyes dark, he turned to look around the room. All of them, except his brother, a disheveled mess.

"Are any of you?"

 

[Olissa]

Hisako

With more and more gathered near Sailor Pluto and Prince Mamoru the queen of old spoke up. She told of the events of 50 years ago. Short, brief, barely any details. Even after all this time it still hurt her. No doubt that if she would have had to bring the news to them sooner, when only days or months had passed, she wouldn't have been able to compose herself as well as she did. After all, those that had died were her life long friends.

Quietly the princess of the silent planet looked at each and every one of the people around her. She was still a little farther from the back, able to observe everyone as she leaned on her glaive for support.
Maybe it was her close association with death, or the many deaths she had seen in her hospital days, that caused her to look so calm in her sadness. A single tear falling from each eye. Quiet, calm, almost lonely she kept watch over the others.

While most of the reactions others gave were similar, each responded in their own unique way. Despite her suddenly showing of a broken doll, Ryoko still held this composed appearance even as she fell and was caught by Rakushun before her knees would have been shattered by the floor.
Honoka let her emotions run free unrestrained.
Rakushun's stutter and panic were becoming worse and worse, and no doubt would have escalated if it hadn't been for Akemi's interference.
Shouhei was one of the few that didn't show much of the turmoil that might have went on inside. Using his head to find answers instead of breaking down.
Even Chibimamo had chosen to put on a stronger facade despite the obvious pain and sadness swirling behind those fuchsia eyes.

The only one that caused Hisako to frown was Neptune's prince. He had always been rough around the edges, his words unfiltered and harsh. It was understandable that he wouldn't hold back in this situation, but his attack on Queen Setsuna was way out of line.

Shizumu had barely uttered those last words when...

Smack

A tiny hand met with a previously unmarred cheek.

Within a matter of seconds Hisako had walked up to Shizumu and struck him.
He was 34 cm (13 inch) taller than she was. From the smallest to the tallest. Perhaps that was what made her action even more surprising.

"Enough. What you're doing isn't helping anyone. Not even yourself." Although she was all for keeping the peace, she also understood that sometimes words weren't enough. She could have tried to reason or talk to him, but something told her that wasn't going to do much. Not that she could claim this would solve it anything, but it at least got his attention.

"She lost everyone too, remember? She was ordered by the Queen to never leave her post. She has been grieving alone for years. The last thing she deserves is being berated by you."
Hisako's voice was strong, or as strong as you could expect from someone small and generally frail, and not strangled by emotions of grief.
"My mother could have ended it. All of it. Start the world anew." The glaive rattled in her hand. "She didn't. Because she believed we would have what it takes to save this world, to right their wrongs. I believe we have what it takes."

"Hisako."

Sailor Pluto's voice called Hisako's attention. She looked at the last living queen and bowed her head.
"I apologize."

 

[EndymionRose]

The storm was swirling within him and he couldn’t stop it. He had failed, he was worthless, his family was gone. Shouke was right she should have come here instead of him. She would have known what to do. Here he was stuck on a single word not able to even speak a single sentence. His mind was swirling with thoughts and emotions he couldn’t control. If only he could get to the eye of this storm. Just a moment of calm to help him get things together. Normally that calm came from his flowers. Roses most of all spoke to him in a way that helped him find peace and deal with the latest round of torment and insults that his sister had bestowed upon him. And what had happened to his precious garden? His mother’s garden honestly but it felt like his sacred space. But that wasn’t here and with the other royals breaking down around him. Why couldn’t he function? Now when he was needed most.

Then a hand grabbed his wrist and pulled him from the group. Dark Blue eyes filled his vision as they made direct contact with his emerald green ones. Akemi’s Voice rang through the storm of his thoughts. “HEY!” It brought him to his senses Then she helped him through a breathing exercise that was new for him. It only took a few rounds and he was becoming visibly more relaxed. He could feel his mind calming down and arranging itself to function. He was still afraid. He was still angry. He was still grieving but now at least he could be useful.

“Th-thank you Akemi.” He said gently, giving her a soft warm smile and a gentle pat on the shoulder.

Ten he heard it, SMACK! He quickly turned to see Hisako had smacked Shizu He had been in his own little world so he hadn’t heard what had lead up to the interaction and he couldn’t figure out from after because Hisako’s soft voice was muffled by its own echo off of the walls and Honoko’s sobs. But, Shizumu’s anger and vanity were legendary. And, Hisako had just done something that affected both of those things.

Again, as with Ryoko, Rakushun acted on instinct and got up from his spot on the floor and walked up behind Hisako standing as impressively as he could. Hisako was like a little sister to him and he’d be damned if he was going to fail again. He was ready to block any potential blow the older teen might make. If he was going to be the Senshi of Jupiter, The Guardian of Courage and Protection, now was as good of a time as any to start living up to that role.

 

[animegirl20]

Honoka didn’t see or hear what was happening around her. She to consumed in her sadness of loosing her mother. She wanted so bad for the pain to go away, to feel some type of warmth like her mother use to give her whenever she was down or sad. Her mother would comfort her saying everything was going to be ok. Yeah that’s what she wanted. She wanted to hear those words. She wanted to be told it was going to be alright that it’ll get better, that the pain she felt would go away.

A voice broke through her sounds of crying. Who was it? What did they say? Would she finally get some relief? Could they ease this pain even just for a moment? Could they tell her it was going to be ok? She couldn’t register the voice. It didn’t sound warm or caring infact it sounded impatient. Oh.....she knew who it was. Why him? She lifted her head up and looked at Shizumu. Apparently he couldn’t hear himself think. Of course his comment annoyed her but she didn’t have the energy to talk back. There was still no relief from the pain, no warmth, and no comfort. Just someone telling her to be quiet. Well it worked she was quiet. What else could she do?

Honoka looked around to see what was happening but her brain wasn’t totally there. She just felt spaced out. She wasn’t over anymore but she was still on the ground sitting there staring. But Mamoru’s voice at some point broke her trance. He was trying to speak up give some type of hope but of course that Shizumu had to try to destroy that. She stood up. How could he talk to Pluto like that. Of all people. He had the nerve to speak to Pluto like that. But something unexpected happen and she couldn’t help but give some type of smile. Hisako smacked Shizumu. She held her ground and her voice sounded strong to. Suddenly feeling a bit more outspoken Honoka finally spoke up. “Well it’s about time someone smacked some sense into you.”

 

[fishweave]

翔 Shouhei
兵

Did that little moon bunny seriously ask who was in charge right now? Who did he think? No, breathe, not many think like the wind. The wind was a seeking and curious thing that swept over everything and playfully smiled. Some fae were good examples of how the wind could act. His mother was closer to the heavens, but he felt himself closer to the wind aspect than the light. The hand that was placed to his shoulder did a lot to calm the young teen. Everything would be alright, Shizumu was still there. He didn't need to chatter out so many thoughts and keep this expression,
both that said more than he wanted about himself.

The others didn't deserve to see this.
Only his brother was allowed to see him upset, that in his deepest core was torrents of wind that scattered around and searched, always returning to that center light. The bunny hadn't been there for him when teachers accused him of fooling around in class. Ryoko probably didn't know of all the times his parents had to tell the teachers to ask the child what they knew before accusing their son of not listening. Shizumu was likely the only one that knew their parents had to tell school staff multiple times when he was much much smaller that he would throw up if he held still,
that it wasn't on purpose, it wasn't for attention, it wasn't for any of the stupid things he was accused of.

They needed to earn the right to see.
Of course, he could no longer come to his parents for anything. It was time to grow up. Many of the others certainly were resisting to take step steps forward, but they didn't have that luxury. His brother was an intense ocean that sometimes it felt didn't want to be an ocean. If only he knew what had caused the sink first, but that was beyond him. What wasn't was that the amount of sound in the room clearly bothered his brother, as did what others said. A group far too eager to become their parents, rather than to be their own persons. He wanted to help the little moon bunny, but perhaps that was the pull inherited from the former moon. Deep breath, cool the winds until only calm was in the wind. Keep moving in place, always keep up with the wind.

Think out each word, don't just spill things out. Every word used is vital to mull over. A smile graced his face, movements becoming a bit more playful. Everything would be alright. The smile did leave pretty fast though. Hisako hitting someone was very unexpected. Once again it sounded like someone almost wanting to become their lost parent. Now there was Rakushun, basically a complete stranger to him. So he picks now to grow a pair, or was he borrowing courage from Akemi? But that wasn't something he would voice, even if he wanted to. The coward that didn't even have the courage to not stumble on words, that never even tried to talk to him, that person was going to act like they had courage now? It was paper thin, he was sure.

But still, he couldn't stay silent in contemplation forever. He felt a strong need to address something. "Our magical luminescence form from our hearts, not past glows. Our mothers lights are gone in all but memory." This was for most of those in the room. There are no shoes to fill but your own. Sure, their had their parents old roles now, but it had to be filled by them, in their shoes, in their own ways. Even if they used the same tools, it would never be the same. They were different people with different hearts that had to find their own way. Taking a pen didn't mean they would carry on their parents light, as it was fueled by their own hearts. The old queens light was different then her own mothers, just as small ladys had been different, and he was sure the princes light would also be.

But it also meant that they could only make their magic, their power and abilities stronger by becoming stronger themselves. If they became stagnant in strength, it would be because their heart was stationary. If their abilities weakened or they became unable to transform, it was an issue in the heart that was stopping them. There would be nobody but yourself to blame if you messed up or didn't grow, and while having friends could help you to the door of progress, they could not open it for you, nor did you need any to find it in the first place. All you needed was a light to lead the way, a reason, a purpose to guide your path.

But.. now, Honoka, that little innocent one that was once again showing her mental age. Someone had to remind her that they were all adults, right? "Please mind your words. That isn't very appropriate language." Somehow he ended up sounding less like he was berating her though and more like a babysitter scolding her for bad behavior. For once when talking to her he wanted to sound less like a sitter and more like a normal person talking to another normal person. "Did you speak to add anything to the conversation? The wrong words can push everyone further apart and we are supposed to be a team." . . . from the false face of a babysitter to one of a teacher? Once again he would have to give up on trying to talk to her like she was someone around his age. Sure, she was very close to his age, but for some reason it never felt like they acted that way.

Then again, he saw her as naive and child like, and he was mature for his age. There might not really be a way for him to treat her as someone around his age while he had this mask on, his soft and low voice probably didn't help. It wasn't like he tried to make it soft and low, he just naturally had a soft and quiet voice. The way he saw it though... the previous uranus had a voice to tear down the heavens, his was made to dance there with the wind. A voice of the heavens was powerful and intense, one of the wind was soft and low like a flute. There was a reason it was called the wind instrument. But he certainly knew a way out of teacher mode, though it would be at the bunny. Part of him was a bit disappointed in how the blond had reacted, but that wouldn't be reflected. He couldn't let it be reflected, that bunny had too much of the old Queens charm for him to allow himself to be taken in for any reasons.

No, he wouldn't say it. He had asked pluto, let her break it to the clueless one. The leaders were killed, but the people were not. Outsiders come for two reasons when it involves murdering the leaders, to wipe out all life, or to conquer and make their own dictatorship. There is a third reason, but he was pretty sure it was only really used by a rare few that had not been genghis khan. What else should he ask? Except for more than just him to be calm and try to think things through. They needed to be careful. What else could he ask? He had already asked about shelter and money, and the possibility that they would need to seek work. His mind rolled on thought after thought, self berating for not working faster. 'Think, you're the only one that actually enjoys deep research. You have to ask for vital details.' Then like that, the answer came rolling in his head, like a bit of wind had carried it in. "Miss Pluto, is there anyone alive that isn't in this room that is safe to tell our identities?"

 

[animegirl20]

Honoka was quiet for a moment after listening to Shouhei. Her emotions were already raw and quite frankly she wasn’t in the mood to hear it. Normally she would take his advice and listen. But something he said passed her off. “Really? Mind my words? “ She looked at him. “We’re suppose to be a team? Tell that to the dumb ass over there! Don’t lecture me! He deserved that slap to the face! Wish I had done it first! He talks to Pluto in such a disrespectful way and you try to lecture me over some throw away comment?!” She yelled out. Honoka then looked over at Shizumu. “So Mr. Bad boy got anything else to say? Got anyone else you want to insult and belittle?” She said in a taunting tone. Her outburst obviously was not thought through but she didn’t care. She didn’t have any questions for Pluto she was just angry. On top that the pain hadn’t gone away it just felt like it was getting worse. Why wouldn’t it go away?

She walked over to the wall and leaned against it with her arms crossed. She breathed in slowly. She had never felt so angry before. Sure she had gotten mad and angry but this felt worse, different. She didn’t like it. The anger was very clear on her face. Her body was even tensed up. Suddenly she felt a tear roll down her cheeks. Was she still crying? She wiped her face and breathed in slowly. Her head was starting to pound maybe she should try to calm down. She felt like a ticking time bomb.

 

[The Succubi Queen]

Akemi Akemi sighed as Rakushun assured her that he was mostly better now. She hadn't done that in a long time, and she was glad she had been of some use to him. It was weird, certainly, considering they had never spoken, for her to be pulling him out of the depths of an emerging attack, but here they were, and she gave him an awkward smile, and accepting his touch on her shoulder, her other hand crossing her chest to touch his.

She was about to speak, check on him, make a joke about how he shouldn't expect it again when a resounding SMACK bounced off the cold walls of the chamber. She broke contact with Rakushun, and took in the sight. She had heard Shizumu yelling, but she had dismissed it in her focus on Rakushun. It wasn't unlike him, entirely, but the focus of the room seemed to be on Hisako. She had always seemed so fragile, so delicate, and now? She was anything but. To confront Shizumu like that, a person so much larger than her with almost cold courage... It was impressive as hell.

The other seemed to jump into action, Rakushun and Honoka rushing to Hisako's side to protect her, as though Shizu might retaliate against a girl half his size and almost 6 years his junior. Even Shouhei seemed to align himself against Shizumu, citing Honoka on her language. Did nerd boy even care that his own brother had just had his face slapped? What kind of little brother was he, scolding Honoka for the least important part of all this, then going back about his business like nothing had happened? And what was he on about, talking about their "identities," as if they were superheroes in some old comic book.

She huffed, a more frustrated noise than the one she had made when she moved to Rakushun, and approached Shizumu. "Holy shit, your face is so red." She smirked at him- she might not be against him here, but he wasn't the type she would coddle. "I think they heard that slap on the moon. But for real, maybe next time, don't yell at bunch of mourning kids. None of us signed up for this shit, why don't you give us all a couple of minutes to process before you go on with your Rebel Prince shtick. None of your fangirls are here to see it." Talking to Shizu brought her back to her usual self, to some weird extent, more than taking care of Rakushun had. Maybe because dealing with his tantrums was more her regular life?

She then turned to Hisako, wondering for a brief moment when she had become the mother of this situation? Oh right, since Queen Ryoko had decided to basically pass out. "Hisa, you know I love you," she paused for a moment, and grinned, "and can I just say that was the most vicious slap I have ever seen I mean, ohmygod, but" She sighed trying to figure out how to phrase this. "We all mourn our own way. Honoka's allowed to sob for an age like a baby, and you all might have let Rakushun stutter to himself for another 50 years, but Shizu gets angry about this shit, and you all turn against him?" She spared a glance to Honoka, who had just stormed off after her outburst at Shouhei. "See? She's angry too- we all are. He just lost his mom's too- for what? They didn't even stop the bad guys. All of the Queens sacrificed themselves for us? Sorry for not having a lot of faith, but we don't exactly look the part of the Magic Princess Cute Earth Defense Force."

Finally, she turned to Pluto. "So, getting by is one thing, but what happens now? We take the magic wands and point them at the bad guys and hope we win where our Moms- who, by the way, saved the galaxy like, a million times- failed? Color me a little skeptical." She didn't bother with formality- they weren't princes and princesses anymore, she didn't need to pretend she cared about protocol.

She shook her head. it was just going to keep getting worse if she let her emotions get the best of her- she'd end up like Honoka, crying in the corner and hoping nobody noticed."For now, let's just focus on the getting by part. I'm going to assume all our stuff is gone- homes and stuff- my computers and robots?" The question was mostly rhetorical. "You've been at the door, just watching, haven't you? What are they like, these... people who killed our parents? Are they like, actively ruling? Or are they like, The Space Illuminati, pretending the world is the same and controlling everything from the shadows? How secret are we going to have to be to get by? In the big scheme of things, 50 years isn't that long- what's the political climate like? How did the world deal with losing the greatest Kingdom in history practically overnight? Do people still remember who we are?" She wasn't in some manga or comic, it wasn't just "bam, we killed the queen, we're in charge now" thing- there were real politics that had to be involved.

 

[EndymionRose]

Rakushun watched as chaos unfurled around him because of Shizu’s harsh words. He watched as Shouhei and Honoka fought over her anger. He watched as Akemi tried to calm everyone down and explain evberyone’s view to each other. He blushed a little bit as she mentioned his panic attack, but instantly began counting his breaths to keep control just like she had just so recently taught him. Thankfully it worked his head stayed clear. He decided to ignor Shizu’s words but he remained standing protectively behind Hisako, ready to block an attack or take the hit. Whichever was necessary to protect his friend. Then a thought struck him and he turned to Pluto.

“Q-q-queen P-Pluto, Wh-what happened to my f-family? D-did th-they survive? S-s-start a re-re-resistance?” his three youngest brothers had been 6, 7, and 8 at the time of the attack. And, besides him and Shouke there were nine of them, the youngest only 6. So surely at least one of them had survived besides him. And they would most likely want to avenge the death of their parents. Even Yuske, the mopey gothic third born, would want their parents deaths avenged. And if there was a resistance movement then they could offfer his companions shelter and time to get their heads together. His mind started wondering as to which sibling could have survived not only the attack but the take over after. Shouke almost definitely couldn’t, she loved being in the spotlight too much. Yuske might have made it. He had just recently gone into a painfully earnest goth phase and was always sneaking off into the shadows to hang with friends that no one ever got to meet. Asami too would might have made it. She was always paying attention to the financials of the family flower business and managed the website for orders. She could have easily hidden among the computer/hacker underground. Honma, was almost as bad as Shouke was. However he attention was nabbed by her ice skating skills and she always would brag that it was the superior blood of Jupiter that helped her skate. So she was out for the same reasons. Tatsuo, was definitely a fighter so if he survived the initial attack than he definitely would have started or joined a resistance movement. From there it got iffy as it came to the younger siblings. First there were the twin boys Daisuke and Haru who were always sickly. Not as bad as Hisako, but they did have weak hearts from being premature. However the hospital might have kept their identities a secret and helped them survive the invasion. Either way they were only 8 at the time. Then there was little Yoshio. At 7 he had never spoken a single word but had followed Raku around like a shadow whenever he could, big green eyes always looking at the world with wonder and fear. And finally the youngest. The second twins, Youko and Sekishi, the two girls were only 6 but their giggles filled the halls of his home and had always seemed to cheer him up. They were just learning how to read and their favorite thing was to practice on him and Yoshio in the evenings after diner. He couldn’t imagine the youngest three frowning up to become battle hardened warriors but he hoped that Queen Pluto would say that at least one of them had lived and received some happiness in their life. Most would be dead. The youngest would be 56 which would make them grandmothers and here he was still a teen.

NO! He must not let himself begin to spiral into negative thoughts again. Not now that he got control and things were beginning to move again. So he left his question as simple as he could. Because a resistance movement kinda answered all of the questions the others had posed. He kept himself from asking the stupid selfish question that rang in his head, “Is my garden ok?”

 

[Olissa]

Ryoko

Alone, so terribly alone. The voices all around her were gone. The sights of the palace were gone. The others were gone. Everything was gone. The world around her had fallen away, leaving Ryoko in a black void of solitude. Silently she sat there, not even realizing how Rakushun had caught her just before her fall and set her down on her knees gently. She did not notice him being pulled away either, nor the wailing voice nearby.

Then a flicker. The tiniest flicker of a flame passed before her eyes. It caught her attention and Ryoko blinked a few times as it brought her back to reality. The darkness was replaced by light. Bright light. She looked up to see a tall female figure with long dark hair. Mom! Her heart leapt. A lump formed in her throat, all choked up she tried to get a word out as her eyes tried to adjust to what they were seeing.

Slowly the dark hair gained its color, green. No. No. It wasn't her mother at all. What she saw was the figure of the only senshi alive. Sailor Pluto. How foolish her mind had been, how cruel her eyes playing tricks on her.
Ryoko closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh.
The pain of the disappointment was almost as great as the pain she felt for having lost her mother.

Disappointed that she didn't see the one she wished for, yes, but mostly disappointed in herself. How could she have been so weak? Breaking like that. The news was horrible, but she was supposed to be the one that held it together, that could keep composed.
The voice of Mamoru's would be speech pulled Ryoko away from herself. What was he on about?

As she got up to her feet Shizumu cut in with his sharper than usual cynicism. Oh dear Silver Crystal have mercy on us all. There were not a lot of ways this could end. But most of all the outcome wouldn't be good. It would be more chaos. His words were harsh, too harsh. If it were any other person she would have made a point about it, but this was Shizu. One of the only close friends she had. Even so, their relation was finicky at best. One wrong move and she might lose him for good.

It was precisely for that reason that she held her tongue. He was in pain. Let him have at it for now, she could try and broach the subcject when things had settled and they could talk privately.
Or she could have, had it not been for the surprising intervention of Hisako. Now there was a sight she never could have imagined. And it caused others to rally up and stand behind Hisako even though Sailor Pluto already had called out to Hisako and she had apologized. Oh great what a mess, now people were choosing sides? She glanced sideways. Interestingly enough Shizu's brother didn't seem bothered by Hisako's actions at all and instead focused on a trivial matter.

She wasn't going to choose a side. She couldn't. She didn't agree with either, and she would lose on both. She could try and stand in the middle, but perhaps her focus was best sent elsewhere.

Her eyes rested on Mamoru as he still sat upon his rock.
"Mamoru." Gently she rested her hand on his shoulder. Focusing on Mamoru instead of her own problems helped to shove it all away. "You probably feel very overwhelmed and underqualified, I get that. None of us are really ready to be who we're supposed to be." She let go of his shoulder and gently scooped up Mani who had thus far been sleeping through the commotion. The motion roused him, allowing him to wake up slowly.
"You're not a leader yet. But neither was your mother when she started out. She was far from the perfect image you knew her as. She was lazy, overslept, overate, a crybaby, horrible at school, and kind of oblivious to all things around her. Except to one thing. The value of the people around her." She nodded to the people present. "They have their value too. Trust in it. We might not know each other well and not see eye to eye on everything, but we do already know each other. And that's a start. When your mother started everyone that joined her was a stranger. So you're already one step ahead."

Right around when Akemi stopped talking Ryoko nudged Mamoru gently with an elbow. "Come on, get off this stone and make your stance. Now's as good a time as ever."

 

[Pretzel Heart]

♆ Shizumu Kaiou-Tenou ♆​

"Geeze, I bet you're fun in bed." Shizumu muttered the comment without thinking, as with most of the things he said, putting a hand to his face to stop the stinging. It was certainly not the first time he'd been slapped. Far from it, in fact. But it was the first time he had ever been slapped by a little girl.

For a moment he just glared at her, an almost disgusted expression on his face. His now smarting face, to match the last echoes of his pounding head. Just great. Given how far this day had spiraled over the course of the past five minutes, he thought it might not be the worst idea to try and sleep another fifty years. Still, he had to admit, the girl had guts. Hisako, huh...? Honestly he had almost forgotten the pale, faded figure of the child his mothers had been so keen on dragging him to visit years ago. Well, apparently she was out of the hospital now. And had grown a backbone. Just...next time, he'd prefer if he wasn't on the receiving end.

But, of course, after letting her go off on him, it wasn't as if he could just leave it at that.

"Well, whatever your mom believed, news flash- she's dead. Who's to say she made the right choice." He knew well enough of Sailor Saturn's powers...and, as perverse as it may sound, a part of him would be curious to see them put to use. Remaking the world, right from scratch...even if it was a world he and everybody he knew would no longer be a part of......

Well, it wasn't as if the scrawny girl in front of him had the balls to do such a thing. She had surprised him with the slap, but ending the world? That took a different kind of strength. Or perhaps, he thought bitterly, a special kind of weakness.

But before he could make further comment to prove that he was already over the incident, the Jupiter boy sprang out of nowhere like some kind of guard dog. Shizumu made no attempt to hide just how far his eyes rolled back into his head. Jesus. As if a little kid was even worth the effort it would take to hit her back. He hated kids, but that didn't mean he wanted to stomp them out. He just wanted to avoid them at all costs. And then, to really top it off, Honoka decided to throw her two cents into the pot, too.

Well, he had been over it. But apparently the rest of this sorry group wasn't as good at letting go.

“So Mr. Bad boy got anything else to say? Got anyone else you want to insult and belittle?"

Rising annoyance obscured behind an expressionless face, Shizumu walked over to where the girl was huddling by the wall.

"Yea, actually." He punctuated this statement by slamming his hand against the marble by her head, taking the opportunity to lean in real close. She was crying. God damn. He really shouldn't pick on her, but...

In a way it was for her own good. Her mother had never taken the time to teach her properly about the real world. And if she didn't learn quick, it was going to swallow her whole.

"I've got plenty, if last time wasn't enough for you." A terrible grin now full on his face, he bounced himself off the wall away from her, wandering back to the main group with a careless wave. "Well, we've all got our kinks. Who am I to judge?"

He had seen that Honoka was rather fragile to his teasing, but he didn't care. He had pretty much had his fill of her for the day, and hoped that maybe this time she'd get the message to keep her mouth shut. And by this point Akemi, another damn kid he just never seemed able to shake (well, in her case, not that he really wanted to), had stepped up to do "damage control." Cheeky. How like her to pretend to be all mature. His brother, too, snapping out at Honoka for going off on him. Jesus. As if he needed a pair of kids white knighting for him.

"Holy shit, your face is so red. I think they heard that slap on the moon." At the cheeky comment whatever tension Hisako's slap had caused to build up in the room seemed to roll off of Shizumu's shoulders. His grin softening, he gave her a playful shove as he returned to the "main stage." Sounded like someone wanted to talk their way out of the recording session they had planned for next week. Or...at least, had planned before they had been kidnapped and put to sleep for fifty years. As she went on Shizu chose to tune her out, wondering briefly if Akemi's little studio would still even be active. Probably all her one-time high-tech gadgets were now completely obsolete. He knew it would drive her crazy, and the thought was revenge enough for the jab.

"None of your fangirls are here to see it."

"Sure about that?" The playful smile widening, he made a point to stare her up and down, then flicked his gaze over to where Honoka was pouting. Even at the end of the world, Shizumu Kaioh-Tennou would always have fans.

"And I'm not angry," he continued, crossing his arms with just enough of an edge to his voice to leave questions otherwise, "I just wanted to make a point. Which you all just did a Grade A job of proving for me." If that little...well, he could scarcely even call it an outburst, had caused the group to erupt in such a ridiculous way, how did they expect to react to real obstacles? The only thing stupider than a council of superhero princesses was a bunch of children pretending to be one.

"But go ahead. Play at being Knights and Queens. Just don't expect any pity when it all blows up in your face."

He leaned idly against one of the slabs, watching placidly as they took his offer full-force, each of the good little princelings and princessitas jumping into a new round of questions. And here Pluto hadn't even answered him yet. Guess the all-mighty "Guardian of Time" was content letting a 10 year old speak for her. And in the Queen's silence, the others started jumping to all kinds of crazy conclusions. Like they accepted that their parents were gone and it was their turn, now. If it wasn't for the ongoing obnoxious sniffling he might even say they seemed to be...enjoying it. And people had the gall to call him heartless. Well, it wasn't as if he was wasting time moping, either. But it wasn't like he had been close to his mothers. Reacting the way he had...it was perfectly normal, in his eyes. Why should he want anything to do with a world he had long been disgusted by?

Instead of joining in the idiocy, he allowed his eyes to scan the room, searching for any kind of exit. Everything was sealed off by some sort of crystal. An extra little present from the Queen, he imagined, to congratulate them all on their new promotion.

Sighing, he gave up on standing, slumping against the stone, wondering how long he'd be kept prisoner. Fifty years was a long time. If Pluto really had been glued to her door during the decades, then what of interest could she possibly have to share? He was itching to get out, to discover it for himself. Likely didn't have his bike anymore, that was a shame. But even just to walk the streets of Crystal Tokyo would be enough. He was a star, after all. And the public called.

Yeah... fresh air would do him good.

But in the meantime, he found himself absentmindedly going to his pocket, fingers trailing along the engraved edges of his dead mother's mirror.

Olissa animegirl20 The Succubi Queen​

​

​

☾ Mamoru Tsukino ☾​

While chaos unfolded around him, Mamoru just stood, biting his lip so hard he swore he could taste blood.

Prince Shizumu.
Damn him.

It felt like the most evil thought he had ever allowed to cross his mind, especially in the wake of trying to memorialize his mother's passing. The mother who accepted all, loved unconditionally. Mamoru had always thought that at least he could get that much right. Be kind and loving to everyone...how hard could it be? And the truth was, most people never left enough of an impression to effect him otherwise. He didn't allow them to. It was better, that way.

But Prince Shizumu...
He had always been the exception.

From the minute they first met Mamoru felt like Neptune's prince had it out for him...and that was back before he had left home and garnered a string of unpleasant rumors to follow in his wake. No matter how hard he tried to remain serene, it felt like the older prince always knew just how to get to him...unearthing feelings he didn't even realize were there lurking. Every encounter leaving him feeling exhausted and full of self-hate.

But this was the first time he had ever seen him go after Setsuna.

For a full minute Mamoru had merely stood, glaring at Shizumu as he dared to insult, to touch the queen. Just a few moments before he thought he had never felt more powerless in his life...but Neptune's heir had somehow managed to challenge even that. For all he could do was stand, fuming, hands crinkled into fists so tight they were beginning to get white. Somehow the words "That's enough" managed to escape his lips, but he could do no more. It was a fury he simultaneously hated and desperately wanted to fuel. But not now. Now was not the time for selfishness. For weakness. So, as usual, he remained stuck. Unable to figure out where to go...

Defeated, at some point during the ensuing commotion he had fallen back down to his slab. Hisako...Rakushun...Akemi......all of them had come together to solve the situation while he could not. And it was probably for the better, too...

Just what was someone like him supposed to be doing here?

At last releasing his fists, realizing for the first time the crescent-shaped impact they had made on his skin, he found himself reaching for his mother's compact. The gold sparkled dangerously against crystal-reflected light, each gemstone winking back encouragingly. As his fingers met metal they leapt back, chased off by something like a static shock. It was only for a moment, but...upon touching the compact......he had felt something. Like a shot of serotonin that felt completely foreign against the backdrop of his current anxious mood. A coating of something like optimism. Hope. Allowing himself the slightest tinge of anticipation, he reached for the compact again. But this time there was no mysterious sensation. No relief. Instead it just felt heavy, filling out the circle of his palm. He had never held it before. Never had the desire to. Looking at it, he again fought the urge to cry.

"Mamoru."

He almost jolted at the unexpected sound of another voice, sure that everyone else was preoccupied with one another, doing what they all seemed to excel at in forgetting him.

It was Ryoko.

That's right, he had watched with his very own eyes his childhood hero crumble beside him. If even the Princess of Mars, perfect in everything she did, didn't feel fit enough to take on her mother's mantle...where did that leave him?

He listened quietly, suppressing a weak sneeze as Mani was scooped up into the princess's arms. He knew she meant well, but the pep talk only reminded him of something Usagi might say, causing his chest to tighten to the point it was hard to concentrate.

"You might not believe it but...you guys......this city......you mean everything to me. And...you aren't the ones I'm worried about......"

The fact that everyone knew him wasn't much of a comfort. If anything it felt more like a curse. They already knew his uselessness, his insignificance, and how he'd prefer to be doing literally anything else than sitting there in that room clutching his mother's compact. He had never taken the time to connect with them...so it wasn't as if having them beside him was much of an emotional comfort beyond relief at the fact that they, at least, had all ended up okay. In fact...Princess Ryoko was one of the very few he considered a friend, so it stung to hear that she believed otherwise. If Ryoko didn't even consider him someone worth having as a friend, then.....

No...it doesn't matter. You don't have a choice. You're the only...living...heir to the kingdom. The only one who the Silver Crystal will obey......

As much as he wished that anyone else could take on this job, in the end, it was simply impossible. He knew he wasn't qualified, but... it was just as he had said before.

Mom believed in me. Dad...and Usagi, too.

He reached somewhere inside himself past all the doubt and negativity bubbling on the surface to offer Ryoko his best attempt at a smile.

"Yeah..."

I don't want to do this. I can't do this!

But I don't have a choice...

"I know you don't have faith in me, and you're right not to. I'll just have to do my best. For mom. And for Crystal Tokyo."

If the conversation was about to proceed, it was interrupted by a rustling in Mars' princess's arms.

"H-Huuuh? Young Lord? Wha...What are you doing here? Where am I?"

Mani's tiny blue form began to wriggle, twisting until he climbed up onto Ryoko's shoulder to peer around him. To the kitten the scene couldn't have been more bizarre. Princes and princesses crying and shouting and scattered all over. And Queen Setsuna!

"You're finally up." Sniffling, Mamoru gave the cat a weak wave. It was unfortunate Mani had slept through Setsuna's speech, as he honestly didn't have the will or desire to catch him up. After all...he had lost his family, that was crippling. But Mani was the very last of his kind. Mamoru didn't even know where to start.

"Young Lord! I'm so sorry! I know I shouldn't be here! I'll just--"

"You're fine. And I'm...sorry about all that. But things are different, now. We'll be seeing a lot of each other, so don't worry about me. I'll get used to it." He offered another smile, then met eyes with Ryoko, almost pleadingly. "But for now I think Princess Ryoko would be better suited for...catching you up."

He wasn't trying to escape his duties, that wasn't it. He just...felt like it would be inappropriate if he were the one to break it to Mani. He'd probably just say the wrong thing, and there would be one more person sobbing in the room.

Besides, he was worried about Setsuna.

At last taking Ryoko's advice, Mamoru left his portentous slab to finally join the queen at her side, trying not to think about how it might be for the last time.

"Hey guys," he began, doing his best to raise a soft voice over the panicked room, "maybe we should let Se- I mean, Queen Setsuna answer some of the questions before they start piling. Like Hisako said, she's also been through a lot."

More privately he faced her, looking up into that deep, pomegranate gaze.

"Are you okay? I'm sorry about...earlier......"

His eyes fluttered away. He wasn't just talking about the incident with Shizumu. No...he was talking about yesterday. Or rather, the yesterday of fifty years before.

"I...just got ahead of myself. It's better if you...just forget all about it.......well...if you haven't already..."

He felt a bit foolish having to bring it up at all, but at the same time, it felt as if this might be his only chance. Not that it mattered, anymore. Whatever future he might have had with the lonely queen had died alongside his parents.

He no longer had the luxury to be selfish enough to wish for that kind of happy ending, anymore...

Olissa​

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[Olissa]

NPC Setsuna

The news of their parents' deaths hit everyone in a different way. The tension, the pain, it was tangible.
Even after fifty years it felt like a wound was being reopened just to poke it with a knife once more. Her heart tightened as her eyes rested on the collapsed and distraught forms of some of the children.

But they weren't children anymore. While the eldest might be 20, and the youngest merely 14, they weren't innocent little children. They would have to grow up really fast. In a matter of minutes if they were to save the world.
Rakusun was one of the first to speak up, or attempt to. He was breaking, the weight of it all too great for those strong shoulders. Setsuna was going to let him figure out his words before replying, though she could already guess his question. What about his siblings. A large group they had been. And now, she wasn't sure. She would have wished to give him a reply that could ease him, but she hadn't kept track of each of them. So her answer would be nothing but vague. He never got to the point where he could finish his sentence as Akemi stepped in to calm him down. Pulling him away before even Young Lord Endymion could make an effort to comfort the young man and seek answers in his place. Her eyes had been resting on the Prince of the Earth and Moon kingdom, but she glanced down, unable to answer him.

More towards the back of the group Shouhei was talking to his brother. Setsuna caught snippets of the conversation as her eyes drifted in that direction. With what she knew of Shouhei she wasn't surprised at his conclusions he made without any direct information given to him. In a way Shouhei was right. They had been asleep because if they had fought they would have died. The couldn't fight back then. And they woke now because this was the moment they were needed. Though he hadn't gotten it quite right about why they had been gathered. How could he have been. No one had time to explain it to any of them. But that was in the past. This was now.

He was the first one to ask questions. About shelters and how they were going to sustain themselves before they even think about trying to resolve the issue. Valid questions even if it weren't the logical first choice of questions Setsuna had expected. Before Setsuna could answer them the Prince chimed in, asking the questions she thought were going to be asked for sure.

Setsuna nodded. "There is a place for you to go, a place where you can hide in plain sight and work together with the people of the city to free this world from the current ruler, the Dark Emperor." She answered to Shouhei first. She planned to go into detail later, but she would need to find a way to tell them all they needed to know without overloading them in one go. However later would have to wait. She stayed quiet as the Young Lord made his first attempt to rally the team. A valiant effort. It needed some work, but it was a good start. A smile formed on her lips. Hotaru had been right, there was still hope.

The last queen of her time wanted to reply, to give Young Lord Endymion praise for his resolution. And she would have if Shizumu hadn't cut in.

Shizumu took his anger out on the prince first, before turning his attention to her. He was out of line, but she'd let him have his say. Perhaps if he did he'd be able to calm down enough to hear what she had to say on the matter.
It was true that it was all long ago, a not so pleasant surprise she had sprung on all of them. In a way they could have slept forever and none would be the wiser, but that wasn't the way things could go. She clenched her jaw as he berated her about not having fought. If only he knew. She turned her face away as he pat her cheek. How she'd love to retaliate. She realized that would only cause to push him farther away from the path he had to follow, so she held her tongue, and her temper.

In a flash everything changed.
Taking up what Setsuna had let go was Hisako, hitting Shizumu across the face and giving him a piece of her mind. A sigh escaped her lips. While her words rung true, it wasn't the right course of actions that she had taken. It wasn't till Hisako started talking about her mother's duty that Setsuna stepped in.

"Hisako."

It had stopped the girl in her tracks. She looked her way and bowed her head.
"I apologize."

Setsuna had hoped it would end here, but it didn't.


Hisako

She had hoped with just a retort on Shizumu's part it would end there. But it didn't. If anything, things had gone from bad to worse.
The retort did come. Shizumu's annoyance at the turn of events was clear, but it didn't feel quite threatening. It simply felt like he had taken the focus of hurting others in his pain and placed it in her direction, stating the facts she was well aware of. Yes, she knew her mother was dead, and it stung each time she had to hear it. But his remarks that maybe her mother had been wrong stirred something deep inside her. She glanced at Sailor Pluto who gave a subtle shake of the head. Hisako closed her eyes before looking back up at Shizumu, holding her tongue. Her mother had made the right choice. She had made the right choice. Hisako had to believe that.

If all had ended there she would have been able to breathe and everyone could have moved on. But as grateful as she was to Rakushun and Honoka to stand by her side and have her back, it seemed to only fuel more anger and frustration. Ending with the outburst between Honoka and Shouhei.
She, the one who had tried to keep the peace and be the friendly face to all in order to keep everyone at ease, had stepped in with the intent to stop a situation from escalating had chosen the wrong path. Now she was the cause of more grief.

She had to make this right somehow, step up, take the heat that was caused by her. She could have, she would have, if Akemi hadn't stepped up to the challenge of being the mediator. Akemi did what she normally would have done if anyone else had been in her shoes. Hisako felt bad, not because of the wonderful actions of her friend - though she probably wouldn't have chosen to make jabs at someone in order to calm them but it worked for her - but because of the position she was in.
She wasn't mournful of choosing to step up against Shizumu, in his grief he had chosen to hurt others as opposed to how the rest responded, but she had been wrong about her methods.

"Akemi, I understand. I am not proud of my actions. And I apologize for putting you in this position."
In silence she watched how Akemi turned her attention back to Sailor Pluto. Looking over her shoulder she smiled at Rakushun. Although his desire to stand up behind her had seemed to slightly irk Shizumu at the time, she was grateful that he wanted to stand for her even in his own grief. She wasn't quite sure if he had seen her small gesture of appreciation as he seemed to be lost in thought.
Eventually she turned her attention back to Sailor Pluto as she began her explanation of events.


Ryoko

Her heart tightened and sunk to the pits of her stomach. No, that wasn't what she had meant at all. She hadn't meant to say to him that she didn't have faith in him. (writer's note: It actually was she just doesn't realize that.) She had been talking about his own belief in himself. Oh man how was she going to set this straight. Anything she said could be taken the wrong way at this point.
"Mamoru... Ryoko began, but by then Mamoru had turned his attention to Mani and her window of opportunity had passed. Now she was tasked with bringing the news that had brought her to her knees to this feline.
Before she could protest Mamoru was walking over to Queen Setsuna.

"Great. A fine job that was." She muttered in frustration to herself. She reached up to scratch Mani between the ears. "I'm sorry Mani, I'm not quite sure how to tell you this in a gentle way. Everything changed for us from one minute to the next." That's what it felt like at least, even though time had warped in a weird way. "It seems the world was attacked, everyone we cared about went out to deal with it, but they never made it back. Meanwhile each of us in this room, except Queen Pluto, was cryogenically frozen for the past 50 years and now we are being told to go deal with the new rulers." That was the short and very abrupt version with little room for emotion. She couldn't explain it gentler than that. If she did, she would break again and that was the last thing she wanted to do now. She had to grow stronger, firmer. Unyielding, unbreakable, unmovable.

With Mani still on her shoulders, letting the news sink in before adding more details Ryoko looked around the room. Her heart went out to her friend seated against one of the stone caskets. She kind of wanted to go to him, letting him at least know she hadn't forgotten him or aligned against him. Instead she chose not to. She figured maybe he'd prefer the few minutes of alone time. She knew she would have if she was in his shoes.

So her gaze went on and landed on Honoka leaning against one of the walls. Ryoko wasn't fond of the girl, and she had a feeling the feeling was mutual, but this was a special situation. Not only did everyone lose so much, Honoka of all people was instantly crowned the leader of the inner senshi. A task Ryoko was certain would be too great to reach for in Honoka's current state.

Nearing the daughter of Venus she stood slightly to her side, as to not confront her head on like the threatening pose Shizumu made. "Honoka." She took a strand of the girl's hair and brushed it to the back. "I know you've been hurt and it's painful, and you're angry, but I'm going to need something of you. I'm going to need you to be strong. For them. For me. No matter what, you're the one we, the inner group, look to."


NPC Setsuna

Silently Sailor Pluto watched as the events unfolded. She could have stepped in, told them to cut it out and clear their heads, but they would need to learn to resolve tension between themselves. She wasn't going to be there the entire time to babysit them. Aside from perhaps Akemi and Rakushun none of the ones directly involved in the spat had behaved mature in any way.

Shizumu's words felt like the slap in the face that he had received in the flesh. There was so much he didn't know. Couldn't know.
She had been out there, she had rushed to her Queen's side. Even then there was nothing she could have done even if she had stopped time itself.
It was Neo-Queen Serenity that had ordered her to go back before the palace was sealed. Ordered her to guard not only the door of time, but also these young ones. To wake them when the world would need them most. With a deep sigh she brought herself back from her own memories.

Instead of answering the questions in the order they had been asked, she tried to group them and explain it as a whole, starting with Akemi's remark.
"You're right Akemi, they did save the galaxy, and if you were to go out there right now and try to fight the full battle of the past you'd lose. But that's not what you'll be doing. First of all you have the element of surprise, last time it was your mothers who were the ones taken by surprise. Secondly they had to take on the entire forces of evil in one go, whereas you will only need to deal with a small portion at a time. But most importantly, you won't be fighting this fight alone."
She rested her eyes on Shouhei who had already begun to ask about it. "There is a group, called the Resistance. They have been fighting to free this city. Normal civilians without powers. And while it isn't much, a few years ago they managed to free the entire south western quadrant (quindrant?) of Crystal Tokyo. It is being led by Shin Tsukino, son of your cousin Ryuu Tsukino." She now looked at Young Lord Endymion. She had heard his apology, but there were more pressing matters to address first, then she could answer him, though she gave him a quick smile.

"If any of your siblings are alive, this is also likely the place where you will find them Prince Rakusun. She answered him. She had been delaying his question for too long now. "This is also where you will be able to stay while you are in the city. It's the safest place you can be aside from the Palace as the Resistance hides under the city in the Catacombs where no evil can enter. Shin will be able to tell you more about it all when you find him." Turning to Akemi once again she continued; "And yes, you're correct. Everything you owned is now gone unless it was stored in or near one of the five Crystal Points of the city." Each of them had been taught the significance of those five points and how they were part of the city's defense system.
"As for who is in control now and how they operate, that is a question best asked to Shin. What I know is their leader is called the Dark Emperor, no one has seen the Emperor, just the Great Four who currently hold siege to the city." She wished she could say more, she knew at least a few more details than this, but time was of the essence. They were getting dangerously close to their only window in time to save the world. The sole reason why she woke them now.

"The entire palace was sealed off to protect you all, so I will create a way for you to get out, however I can't portal you into the Catacombs. You will have to get there yourselves. Find the Blue Moon Hotel, by the Neptune Concert Hall, there you'll find the entrance and Shin. Though on your way, make sure no one comes to know you are the long lost princes and princesses. If they find out, you will lose your element of surprise."

The orb atop her staff glowed once more and created a swirling portal that would lead anyone who entered out into the city. Now she turned her attention to Mamoru's more privately spoken words. "Don't worry, it's all in the past. You just focus on the future for now." She rested her hand on his shoulder and smiled warmly at him again. She was fond of him, truly, though perhaps not in the way he was fond of her.

"One last thing, she told the group before they left, "Mani will be able to tell you everything you need to know about being a senshi. Trust his guidance."


Ryoko

Behind her she could hear Queen Setsuna talking about the city, their adversaries, and where they would be able to stay while they had to pick up where their mothers left off. She did her best to focus on it and hear it without taking away too much of her attention off of Honoka.
Once the portal was created she turned her attention fully to Honoka.
"And I know a quick and easy way for you to take the lead." She nodded towards the portal.
"Be the first to step through the portal, lead the way for us." Something that simple shouldn't be too hard, right? Babysteps, and maybe with the right guidance Honoka could grow more stable and leader worthy. "Plus, that way you can take a breather without being jammed between everyone." She added.

 

[animegirl20]

Honoka soon found herself face to face with Shizumu. He had slammed his hands against the wall and had gotten real close. She expected him to say something back but maybe not so close. It scared her a little to be honest and she had gotten flustered by it. But her crying fear full eyes widen then turned into a glare at his next sentence.

"I've got plenty, if last time wasn't enough for you."

How could he say that?! For numerous reasons that hurt and made angery. She continued to glare at him as he walked off but a quick slight confusion came upon her face when he mentioned kinks. “Kinks?” She whispered to herself. She new what it meant but she didn’t understand what he meant by that now? “What kink?” She was actually pretty innocent to things like that. She shook her head forgetting it and went back to glaring at him. “I hate him.” She whispered to herself. After she uttered those words a few seconds later she heard someone say her name. “Huh?” Honoka looked to see Ryoko.

"I know you've been hurt and it's painful, and you're angry, but I'm going to need something of you. I'm going to need you to be strong. For them. For me. No matter what, you're the one we, the inner group, look to."

Honoka blinked, holy shit that’s right. She was suppose to be the leader of the inner Senshi. How could she forget that?! It was quite clear on her face that the realization just hit her.

Finally Pluto began to speak up. She explained everything and answered everyone’s questions. Honoka made sure to listen to everything she said. Though her thoughts would some times go else where.

"And I know a quick and easy way for you to take the lead. Be the first to step through the portal, lead the way for us."

Honoka looked at Ryoko then at the portal. She breathed in then sighed as she stopped leaning against the wall and stretched out her arms. She laughed a little at Ryoko’s last remark. She then wiped her eyes and looked around. Part of her was kind of wishing someone else had started walking but no. Nobody made the move to. She glanced at Ryoko and gave her a small smile. “Thanks.” She then looked back to the portal and slowly walked up to it. She stopped when she reached it and looked at everyone else. “Well no sense in waiting.” She said with a nervous smile. She then looked back at the portal. To be honest she was little nervous about leaving the palace but at the same time she strangly felt excited. Part of her wanted to see what the world was now. Finally as if she someone gently pushed her she went through the portal. When she did she found herself in a alleyway.

 

[The Succubi Queen]

AkemiAkemi bristled as Shizu gave her that look- that condescending stare that dared to imply she was just other vapid fan of him. It hurt, for more reasons than one; she had always thought he'd considered her a friend. But before she retort, the whole conversation had seemed to move on, as he disengaged entirely from the situation, and Setsuna began to speak.

While the queen did technically answer her questions, Akemi still felt like she was missing some major element of the big picture here. They had no real information about what had changed in the past half-century. Those questions had all been deflected to Shin. Because surely the leader of whatever great resistance had the time and patience to answer all the questions of 8 little kids who had once been royalty. Still, there was no point in asking more, given the trend this whole situation had taken. They would learn more hands on, rather than asking questions.

Ryoko and Mamoru finally rejoined them, and Ryoko pulled Honoka aside, probably to stop her crying and encourage her. Akemi sighed with relief. Great, she could go back to being the bratty one, finally. Being the mom friend sucked. She was glad it wasn't a permanent position. As the two talked, Akemi went back to the slab, and looked down at the only possessions she had: The wand and the supercomputer.

She had seen them both before, in photos and historical texts. She picked up the wand, sliding it into her coat pocket. She could put it on a keychain or something later. The computer was what fascinated her right now. For being a magical piece of technology that could pretty much tell her anything, it did kind of look like a pair of overglorified ski goggles. They might have blended in at one of the raves she worked, but they probably didn't make for great streetwear, even 50 years in the future. She sighed, and put the computer in her other pocket. She would wait until they were safe to try it out.

She looked back at the group just in time to see Honoka leave. Time to go, then. She sidled up next to the portal. "Are we going in some kind of order, or?" When she didn't get an immediate response, she shrugged. "Great, great, but gonna be real, I don't wanna spend another moment here with all this awful tension, so I'm just gonna...." turned on her heel, and walked right through the portal, taking in the surroundings.

She didn't know what she had been expecting, but it certainley wasn't this. It was normal- almost too perfectly normal; she expected to see some kind of secret in the bricks of this alley, a secret passage into a speakeasy or a dive bar. And for all she knew, there was a secret door, but that didn't matter now. It was safe and out of the public eye, just as Setsuna had planned. She looked to Honoka, who had arrived just before her. "You done crying? I'd offer you a hanky, but I lost mine like... 50 years ago." She grinned. Great, she was still mom friending, but at least humor was more her speed than mediating arguments.

Under normal circumstances, she would have put on her headphones, and some loud music, hovering in the corner until someone told her what to do next. But, 50 years had not been good on her smartphones battery, so no music now. A part of her wondered, almost optimistically, what kind of amazing technology was out there for audio now. If only she could afford it.