sailor moon: inevitability (round 13, setsuna meioh)

[lexie-b.livejournal.com]

Title: Inevitability (2/5)
Author: lexie_b
Rating: PG-15
fic_variations Prompt/Claim: Dark/Light - Setsuna Meioh (Sailor Moon).
Spoilers: Up to and including the S series
Word Count: 7,932.

History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again – Maya Angelou.

Something was coming, she could sense it. It hung heavy in her mind as she knelt before the Time Stream, examining the strands. Brightly coloured threads twisting and turning, all disappearing into one dark path; no way around that dark, single strand of time.

The Stream refused to reveal the source of what was to come, nor a definitive time when it would inflict itself; between a day and a decade, something terrible would occur at the will of Fate and Destiny, and there was nothing she could do.

“Everything happens for a reason, child.” A familiar voice washed over her. The monk stood behind her, his trademark blank expression over his old face. It had been more than a decade since her father had left Setsuna in his care, to learn the intricacies of the Time Gate, and her duty as the Senshi of Pluto.

She had been a little more than thirteen when he had simply become one with the shadows, like the Time Guardians before him, when they were no longer needed. The low undertone that occasionally caught her attention - too quiet or too quick for her to quite make out - were those of the past Guardians, whispering lessons and warnings and advice

And she had been alone since that day, in the cold, echoing hallway that housed Time and Space, only leaving for senshi training with the Princesses of Neptune and Uranus, and to protect the outer solar system from possible threats.

Only when she was truly at a loss, confused about how to proceed, would he once again appear before her with a piece of philosophy or a riddle. At the very most, a cryptic play on words was offered to assist her, and Setsuna often wondered how many of his lessons she had lost simply because she didn’t understand what he was saying.

“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men do nothing. You taught me that.” Setsuna frowned over the Time Stream, running her fingers along a particularly thin, brittle strand.

“I did.” The figure rested his hand on her shoulder. “But it does beg the question of whether you have been here so long that you have forgotten you are a woman. As long as the men are doing something, shouldn’t the women be pacified?”

“You’ve been here too long yourself, Brother. It has been realized that women can fight a battle in their own right. Now tell me - how can I fix this?” Setsuna tossed her hair over her shoulder.

“And you forget that I was the one that predicted the coming of the senshi, child. I am aware that women can fight a battle. My point is, perhaps the women should let the men fight the battle, so they can go on to win the war.”

Setsuna leant backwards, watching as the brittle thread vanished into the dark one that dominated the future.

“Do not forget that Queen Selenity expects you to attend tonight’s ball, child. She is presenting Serenity’s Terran fiancé to the court. I believe there will be planetary representatives from all the royal families will be in attendance.” And the monk faded into the shadows.

“That wasn’t terribly helpful,” Setsuna muttered, standing, her Time Staff clutched in one hand. It felt like the black thread was openly mocking her now from its haven in the silver-blue Time Stream. However, she had noted his reminder of her reprieve for the evening – a ball for Serenity’s engagement. She could warn Selenity of the dark time upon them, at the very least. And she did enjoy seeing Haruka and Michiru outside of training.

With a flutter of even colder air against her skin, her senshi fuku melted into a long black gown, suitable for one of Selenity’s galas. Her senshi boots remained under her gown, as was her preference; the long skirt covered up her lack of appropriate footwear and she’d learnt a long time ago that no one ever got anywhere in life wearing borrowed shoes. Another valuable lesson from the monk – one all three of the Outer Senshi had taken to heart.

The ball had already begun when she made her entrance, preferring to slip in amongst the guests rather than be escorted and announced. Perhaps a side effect of her isolation, but she always preferred not to be the centre of attention.

Her first stop was where her father sat next to Selenity and the Queen of Mars, on a dais at one end of the room. All three monarchs rose as she dipped into a curtsy before she moved forward and embraced her aging father.

“Papa.”

“Setsuna.” Aeon stroked her hair, smiling tiredly at her. “You have gotten even more beautiful since I last saw you. I did not expect to see you here tonight.”

“I was reminded of tonight’s occasion and thought it would be inexcusable not to be in attendance,” Setsuna smiled. “It does make me feel ancient that Serenity is now old enough to be engaged.”

The three monarchs chuckled. “Perhaps you shall be next, Princess?” Queen Rhea asked. “I know that would bring your father happiness.”

Aeon nodded. “I don’t like the thought of you up there alone.”

Setsuna smiled deviously for a second. Despite being a grown, independent woman of twenty-two, something about being around her father again made her feel like the mischievous teenager she had never had an opportunity to be.

“Perhaps what would bring my father even more happiness would be a wedding of his own?” she said sleekly, watching as Rhea’s cheeks reddened slightly.

Selenity laughed outright as Aeon gave his daughter a dirty look. Aeon had never remarried after the death of Setsuna’s mother, Persephone, despite being smitten with the widowed Queen Rhea of Mars. Up to date, Rhea had turned down Aeon’s proposals of marriage, though it was of Setsuna’s opinion that the elegant Martian would eventually give in.

“Oh, here’s Pandora,” Selenity smiled at the willowy woman making her way through the crowd, her long black hair streaked liberally with violet, and escorting a child wearing a dress in the Saturn colours of lavender and white.

Selenity rested her hand on Setsuna’s shoulder. “That’s Princess Hotaru, Pandora’s daughter.”

Setsuna felt the blood drain from her face. She had known, on an intellectual level that Pandora had a daughter, but it was quite another thing to set eyes upon the little girl who would one day call upon the power of Saturn to destroy the galaxy – the senshi would not have been born if there was not a need for every single one of their powers.

“Saturn,” Setsuna murmured, feeling light headed. The unavoidable black time strand of the future, the senshi of destruction… the end of everything was coming. The explanation for the thread of inevitability had come in the form of an eight year old girl.

“Setsuna?” Selenity and Aeon stood before her, both looking concerned. Rhea pressed a glass of water into one of her hands.

“Do you need to sit down?” Aeon asked, guiding Setsuna to his seat.

“I’m…” Setsuna sipped the water. “Selenity, I need to speak with you.”

“Of course,” Selenity stood up. The two women made their way through the crowds, to one of the empty balconies. Selenity shut the doors behind them, and turned to the worried looking young woman. “You shouldn’t make yourself ill, Setsuna, if you need to seek my counsel. I am always here to listen, as a friend or as a queen.”

“The Time Stream… there’s something coming, something that can’t be avoided, my Queen,” Setsuna managed. “I’ve looked at it from every possible angle. And the Gates haven’t offered me any useful advice. I’m lost at what to do next.”

Selenity looked at her blankly, before her shoulders slumped. “I’ve been expecting this. The Ginzuishou has been flaring lately, and I can’t shake the feeling that every choice that I make is leading us closer to whatever is to come.”

“There is no way to avoid it. It is called a thread of inevitability,” Setsuna looked out over the balcony. “I am sorry to bring such horrible news on what should be a happy occasion.”

“I needed to know, Setsuna. Thank you for warning me. I would prefer that you didn’t mention this to Princesses Haruka and Michiru tonight.” Selenity sighed.

“Michiru is very perceptive, my Queen, especially combined with the powers of the Deep Aqua Mirror; if she has questions…”

“Answer any questions they have, but don’t offer any new information,” Selenity smoothed her dress. “Try and enjoy yourself tonight, Setsuna. We shall worry about political realities tomorrow morning.”

“Of course,” Setsuna dropped into an immaculate curtsey. “Thank you for your time.”

Selenity smiled, and moved back towards the ballroom, leaving Setsuna out on the balcony alone. The night was very beautiful and clear; the earth gleamed like a multi-faceted jewel in the sky, surrounded by hundreds of stars. But for some reason, the sight of the earth made Setsuna’s blood run cold, and she briefly wondered if it would be inexcusable to skip the rest of the festivities and return to the Time Gates to puzzle over the future.

“Setsuna?” The balcony door opened. “We’ve been looking for you all night!”

Setsuna turned around, and smiled. Michiru of Neptune stood there, smiling, clutching three glasses of fizzy, pink champagne. She was swathed in shades of jade and aquamarine, three loops of pearls hanging from around her neck.

“Too busy for your old friends, huh?” The lanky blonde Uranian princess followed closely behind, carrying two plates of miniature cakes. Haruka, too, was wearing a dress – undoubtedly under sufferance – in dark blue. It was much simpler than Michiru’s, with a slit up one side that revealed she, too, wore her senshi boots.

“Preoccupied, but very glad to see both of you,” Setsuna smiled as Michiru balanced the three glasses on the railing of the balcony before flinging her arms around her wayward friend.

“Sentimental,” Haruka smirked at Michiru, before popping a cake into her mouth.

“Classless,” Michiru shot back, before passing a glass to Setsuna, and taking one for herself. “How have you been, Setsuna?”

“Unchanged,” Setsuna sipped her drink. “Very little changes at the Time Gates; how have you two been?”

“I’m ready to kill them all,” Haruka half growled. “Do you know how many shades of pink there are to consider when planning a royal wedding?”

“We’ve been here almost a week,” Michiru said. “Serenity and the others have been, understandably, preoccupied with her upcoming wedding. It’s been hard not to be included in the planning.’

“Insanity,” Haruka offered Setsuna a little cake. Each one was iced in pink and white, with a different sugared flower on top.

“Well, if you’re that bored with wedding planning, there are always a few things to be done around the Time Gates,” Setsuna offered, before outright laughing at the expression on Haruka’s face.

Michiru hid her smile behind the rim of her glass. “Have you met the blushing groom, Setsuna?”

“I believe I met Endymion IV of Terra when I was younger, during the original Terran Tour of the Alliance,” Setsuna said. “It was one of the first times that I was excused from the Times Gates when I was a child. I highly doubt he’d remember my face.”

“He’s a gentleman,” Michiru said. “He obviously loves Serenity very much. He’ll make a good ruler one day.”

Haruka snorted. “Dull as dishwater. I hope the Princess never takes up any particularly intellectual pursuits…”

“Haruka hasn’t forgiven Endymion, or his guardians, yet,” Michiru smiled affectionately at Haruka.

“What did they do?” Setsuna asked the suddenly embarrassed-looking blonde.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Haruka grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Oh, love,” Michiru turned to Setsuna. “They met Haruka after we’d been riding, and mistook Haruka for a boy – not that she did anything to dissuade that notion – and they played a prank on her.”

“Oh?”

“They filled the shower head with scarlet ink pellets,” Michiru was trying to steady her giggles. “When Haruka went to shower, they melted… and she screamed and ran out wearing nothing but a towel.”

Setsuna began to laugh. “S-scarlet?”

“I was bright red for a week, Michiru! Setsuna!” Haruka cried, throwing her hands in the air. “It’s not funny!”

“Oh Haruka, even Queen Selenity laughed when she saw you.”

“I don’t like them,” Haruka muttered. “Endymion’s boring, but his Generals…”

Michiru’s face darkened instantly, before looking sideways at Setsuna. “I agree. There’s something about those four that the sea warns me about.”

“Did you consult the Mirror?” Setsuna asked carefully.

“I did,” Michiru looked thoughtfully. “I actually meant to ask you about that.”

Setsuna sighed, taking a seat beside Haruka. “Queen Selenity has asked me not to speak about this to you tonight,” she said slowly. “There’s something coming – something that cannot be avoided; the Time Stream cannot be manipulated away from this. I’ll speak to you both about it tomorrow.”

“Are you sure it can wait until tomorrow, Setsuna?” Haruka asked, resting her hand on Setsuna’s arm.

“I’m sure. We should enjoy the party,” Setsuna drained her glass. As the three women moved to go inside, Setsuna stopped them, hugging Michiru and then Haruka. “If I don’t get another opportunity,” she said softly, “you have been the best friends and partners I could have wished for. Thank you for that. Go and enjoy your evening.”

She watched as the pair exchanged a look before slipped back into the ballroom, Haruka leading Michiru out onto the dance floor. The Terran party looked slightly stunned at the sight of the two princesses in each other’s arms, but Setsuna smiled. She couldn’t imagine Haruka with anyone but Michiru by her side.

Slipping back into the ballroom herself, Setsuna chuckled when she noticed her father leading Rhea onto the dance floor, much to the scandal of Rhea’s daughter, Princess Rei. Her eyes wandered to the tall, blonde man who held Rei’s arm. He had a teasing grin on his face, as Rei complained about her own mother dancing and courting like she was a teenager again.

Despite the tender, playful look on the man’s face, he left Setsuna feeling cold and unsettled. She wished she could summer her Time Staff, which was a comfort in such worrying times, but she did not want to cause a stir, carrying what was generally acknowledged as a very powerful weapon at a party designed to welcome the Terran people.

She took a seat on an elegant silver chaise, with another glass of champagne, waiting the dancers twirl around the dance floor in a rainbow of colour.

She could pick Princess Serenity from a mile away – in a delicate pink gown and what could only be an entire Mercury mine of diamonds, she looked like she was a doll fashioned out of the very concept of beauty and love. And escorting her around the ball was Endymion IV of Terra – tall, dark and handsome, in his black formal wear. He looked every bit the dashing young prince, and Setsuna mused for a second what it would be like to be eighteen again, escorted to a lavish party by such a dashing man – a man that Serenity obviously loved very much, by the way she looked at him.

“It’s a very beautiful night, General.” Setsuna turned to see the golden Princess of Venus, Minako persuading a tall Terran General out onto the balcony. “You must see the Earth as we do.”

“Nothing could be more beautiful than you tonight, Princess,” the General tucked her hand around his arm. “Perhaps one day, I might show you the moon from Earth. And, if I am truly lucky, Venus.”

The look on Minako’s face was giddy with joy as the pair slipped out onto the balcony, but Setsuna felt icy fear clutch at her heart seeing the intimidating, platinum haired General so enraptured by the leader of the Guardian Senshi – and vice versa.

Nothing truly lifted her spirits – several young men worked up the courage to ask her to dance, and the champagne flowed freely all night, but she still felt like the world rested upon her very shoulders, and was getting heavier every moment.

It was towards the end of the festivities that she found herself back on the silver chaise, watching Haruka’s younger sisters try to drag Lords onto the dance floor, while their older sister watched with disgust, her arms around Michiru.

“Hello.” Setsuna turned to see the Princess of Saturn beside her, smiling shyly.

“Hello,” Setsuna managed.

“Your dress is very beautiful,” the little girl said shyly. Setsuna looked at her plain black evening gown, devoid of the beading and ruffles that festooned the gowns of many of the other women.

“Thank you,” Setsuna smiled. “I was admiring your dress earlier. The colour suits you very well.”

“Thank you.” The little girl looked up at her and offered her a small smile. “I’m Hotaru.”

“I’m Setsuna.”

“I know. My Mama says that we’re cousins, because your mama was my mama’s older sister.” Hotaru swung her feet, gazing steadily at the other party guests.

“Yes. Your mama was my favorite Auntie when I was little,” Setsuna remembered Pandora of Saturn, always taking her on picnics or reading to her whilst her own mother lay ill, Aeon at her bedside.

“But you never visit us.” Hotaru looked up. She had purple ribbons on both sides of her head that gave the impression of flowers.

“No. I have a duty that takes up all of my time. I do not get to see anyone very often – not my father or my friends,” Setsuna said, reaching for the infinity charm that she wore on a silver chain.

“Perhaps your friends could visit you?” Hotaru suggested.

Setsuna smiled. “I’m afraid my friends are too busy to come visiting, either.”

“Well, all I get to do is write lessons. Maybe we can be friends so that I could visit you?”

Setsuna was startled by the suggestion, staring at the little girl with the hopeful look in her big violet eyes, twisting the skirt of her gown in her hands. And for a second, the sense of dread faded away, and she felt a sense of camaraderie with the Princess of Saturn.

“I’d like that very much, Hotaru, but I am not sure you would like were I stay. It is very dark, and very cold,” Setsuna’s voice was gentle. “But, when I have some time, I’d like to visit you and your mother on Saturn.”

Hotaru beamed at her. “I don’t mind the dark at all. My favorite time of day is In between.”

“In between?”

“When the sun sets, and the sky goes purple. It’s not yet evening, but not quite afternoon either.” Hotaru smiled to herself.

Setsuna smiled at the picture the small girl painted, before Queen Pandora gesturing at her young daughter caught her eye.

“I believe your mother wants your attention, Hotaru – it must be time for Selenity’s speech,” Setsuna stood. The pair slipped through the crowds, and up to the dais, where the royals were seated on their thrones, the princesses standing to the right of each of their parents.

Selenity smiled as she stood up, the crowd going silent as she stepped forwards.

“My people, my friends and my family, I want to thank for joining with me tonight, in celebrating the engagement of my beloved daughter, Princess Selenity I of the Moon, to Prince Endymion IV of Terra.” Applause filled the ballroom, as Endymion stepped onto the dais from the side, offering his arm to Serenity. The couple came to stand beside Queen Selenity, before Serenity dipped into a deep curtsey and Endymion bowed low to the people of the Moon.

Setsuna tuned out Selenity’s speech – it would, no doubt, speak of the great empire that would be built on the couple’s love for one another, and for their people. Whilst Setsuna greatly admired and respected Selenity, and had long confided in the Queen in lieu of a mother, Setsuna’s personal views on love and human nature were far more jaded than the ones Selenity took stock in.

“… and as we enter a new era, I encourage everyone here to look deep inside themselves and find love and acceptance for every action, every person, every opinion that appears before them. Because only by acceptance may we reach understanding and, then, peace.” Selenity bowed her head briefly. “And now, the Princesses of the Solar System will have the first dance, lead by Serenity and Endymion.”

More applause and the crowd parted, allowing Endymion to escort Serenity to the floor. The Terran Generals appeared on the dais from the sidelines, each offering his arm to one of the Inner Princesses. Several random princes appeared to lead out Michiru and Haruka, despite the distasteful look on Michiru’s face, and the out-and-glare on Haruka’s. Michiru’s twin brother cheerfully took Hotaru’s hand, winking at his sister, the girl giggling as Michiru pulled a face.

A tall Martian prince appeared at her side, and Setsuna wished briefly that life could always be so incredibly easy, before she stepped off the dais and onto the dance floor.

It was in the early hours of the following morning that she managed to escape back to the Time Gate, ready to curl up on one of the musty old chairs kept in the atrium with an equally old book, to try and figure out what to do next. No matter what Selenity said, she was the Guardian of Time and Space. Thus, it was her duty to circumnavigate any particularly unpleasant plans that Fate and Destiny had in mind.

“Running against the wind never got Uranus anywhere.” The monk appeared as she stared at the bookshelf thoughtfully. He offered her a Look when he noticed her senshi boots peaking out from under her gown, as she reached for a book on a high shelf.

“Haruka always runs with the wind,” Setsuna said absent mindedly, plucking one of the floating candles that lit the atrium out of the air, to examine the book title closer.

The monk’s expression flashed from typical stoicism to genuine annoyance. “I was not referring to the one you call Haruka, child. If you try to open a locked door, then you get nowhere.”

“Which is why I am, in your words, trying to find the key,” Setsuna placed the first book on the low table and went back to examining the bookshelves.

“And what happens if there was no door? Just a painting of a door?” the monk had never stayed around to detail his cryptic clues before and, for some reason, this made Setsuna feel sad.

“I’d go out the window.”

The monk huffed and put his ethereal hands on his hips. “You, child, are missing the point.”

“And you, sir, are contradicting your past lessons.” Setsuna dropped a particularly heavy volume on the floor, sending mist and dust flying everywhere. “You taught me that even in the most difficult and contradictory of circumstances, there is always some sort of solution. A compromise, if you will.”

“And you are forgetting that you are not Time Itself. You are not the Keeper nor the Controller of Time and Space. You guard it, protect it and it’s secrets. You keep Time safe. That is your duty above all others,” the monk retorted. “Even it it’s darkest hour, child, you are to bow at it’s whim. And all this,” he paused to gesture at the books, “is not bowing. Did I not teach you respect?”

Setsuna flung a particularly flimsy looking volume across the atrium. “I have respected it for the last sixteen years! I have done everything everyone has ever asked of me. But it cannot take away everyone, everything! I will not let it! I will not let little Hotaru become Death Itself; I will not standby and watch an empire fall! Above all else, I was raised to be a soldier – and soldiers do not sit on the sidelines when a battle is coming!”

“Perhaps you should let the battle pass you by, and wait for the war,” the monk said, echoing his earlier words.

“Or end the war before it starts,” Setsuna shot back, her hands on her hips. “Tell me how I can fix this’.

The monk look at her steadily and, if Setsuna wasn’t imagining it, a little sadly. “You never did grasp my lessons on solitude. Perhaps I only have myself to blame for that. I should have left you, completely, many years ago.” He drifted towards the Hall of Time. “There is little I am allowed to reveal, child. But I can tell you that your compromise is there to take. It will not greatly ease the pain of what is to come, but it is a future.”

“What do I need to do to find it?” Setsuna said eagerly, her eyes lighting up.

“Your answers won’t be found in the Stream or in those dusty pages – but if you need to keep busy, you can read those books.” The monk bowed his head. “It is out of your control, Setsuna.”

And he was gone, leaving behind the constant cold of the Time Gates, and a very confused Time Guardian.

None of the books help any useful information to do with a thread of inevitability. The Time Stream glowed and flickered happily, refusing to offer anything except promises of suffering and general doom. The monk did not appear, not even to her most genuine of pleading, and the whispers of the Gates were even more incomprehensible than ever before.

Training did not help either – she felt even more frustrated and powerless when she was finished. She had answered Haruka and Michiru’s questions as best she could, which was fairly poorly, and had just confused and worried them. Selenity accepted her reports with sad smiles, and continued to immerse herself with the plans for Serenity’s wedding.

The end came more quickly than anyone anticipated. Between a day and a decade, and it came on day thirteen, and Setsuna wanted nothing more than to Dead Scream the Time Stream into oblivion for being so purposely vague and unhelpful.

The Garnet Orb had flared, waking her from where she slept, surrounded by books and notes that might offer a clue to decipher the Time Stream more clearly. She had been wearing her long, warm dress, her feet bare as she grabbed the Time Staff and disappeared into the door that would take her to Charon Castle.

And she screamed, staring at her feet and the puddle of blood she had stepped directly into. A dead guard, his throat slit from ear to ear. He had been stripped of all weapons, his congealing eyes staring in confusion.

Setsuna ran. It was partly trying to get away from the gruesomely slaughtered man, and partly the thought of the other occupants of the castle – the women and children, the monks who prayed for peace and wouldn’t kill a mouse for all the wealth in the galaxy, and her kind, gaing father.

Her feet slipped on the stone floor as she ran, not thinking to transform to her soldier self. For that moment, running down that hall in her long dress, her hair loose around her face, she was the panicked princess and the terrified daughter.

And as she entered the room that lead to her father’s chambers, she wanted to scream, to cry to do something.

Bodies – everywhere. Cut down without a second thought. Children, women, monks – the castle cats. The blood was almost greasy under her feet as she stared, almost uncomprehendingly at the lake of blood and spilled organs before the splintered door.

She could hear voices.

Setsuna stumbled across the mess in the entrance hall and shoved her way into her father’s lounge, her eyes wide and haunted. She didn’t want to think about the faces she recognized on those corpses, at what lay beyond the castle gates, in the city. She did not want to think about the strength and numbers of an enemy that could breach the security at Charon Castle.

She wanted her father and her friends, safe beside her. She wanted a stoic monk behind her, guiding her, protecting her.

It was not her father speaking. No. Two men, with bloodied swords at their belt, pawing through a box of something. Their uniforms were nothing she recognized; and Setsuna was familiar with all the armies of the Alliance.

Setsuna lifted the Time Staff. “Who are you?” she demanded.

Both soldiers turned around, revealing the box they were pawing through was Setsuna’s mother’s jewelry box. The pearls and garnets were now smeared with someone else’s blood.

“Who. Are. You?” Setsuna demanded again.

“We didn’t think there was anybody left here.” The taller one grinned at her, pocketing the long gold chain in his hand. “Well, bodies, yeah, but nothing else.”

“Where is my father?” Setsuna asked, her voice low and dangerous.

“Your father?” the second one gave her a suspicious look, unsheathing his weapon. “How should we…” His eyes lit up with understanding. “You. You are the absent princess, aren’t you? The one your father begged us to spare?”

A low groan interrupted the soldier’s taunting and Setsuna looked to her left, where she could see her father lying behind the chaise, blood rapidly pooling around him.

“You monsters!” she screamed, raising the Staff above her head. “Dead Scream!”

The pink and mauve energy swirled around the Garnet Orb for a moment before swallowing up the two men. With a dull look in her eyes, Setsuna watched as the two men where thrown back against the far wall, one man screaming as his leg met the fire that still burned in the grate.

But it didn’t stop there – the energy struck the wall and, as loud as a thunderclap, blowing the stone outwards.

She picked her way through the debris, ignoring the glass cutting into her feet. One of the men, the first one who had spoke, was most certainly dead. No one could be alive with a neck so obviously broken.

His companion, however, was writhing in pain, his face twisted in agony. Setsuna knelt beside him, grabbing him by his collar and pulling him up to eye level.

“Who ordered this attack?” she asked very slowly.

“You moon bitches will pay for what you have done! We will save our prince and we will make sure that your sorcery is destroyed!” he spat at her, blood dribbling down his face. “They will cut down your warriors, your queen and your simpering princess. Our prince will be poisoned by you and yours no longer!”

He began to choke and Setsuna dropped him back down to the wreckage, standing before him. He grinned up at her, his teeth stained red, and Setsuna swung the Time Staff down. A crunch of bone, and he was still, the horrible taunting smile still across his face.

She walked back into what remained of her father’s lounge. Her attack had ripped through it, overturning chairs and tables, ripping through the canvas of paintings, flinging books and ornaments from one end of the room to the other.

“Sets-una.”

The raspy voice made her jump, but she was at her father’s side before she even acknowledged that it was he who had spoke

“Papa, it’s okay. I’ll fetch Selenity now. She can heal you and we can take sanctuary on Neptune,” Setsuna grabbed a fallen cushion from nearby and pressed it into the wound in her father’s stomach, blood staining her fingers.

“My beautiful girl,” Aeon looked up at her with clouded eyes and a weak smile. “You look nothing like your poor mother, but everything breath you take, every action, you are just as elegant and poised and perfect as she was.”

“Papa, I need to find someone to sit with you while I get help. O r someone to run a note to the Moon. Or even Neptune,” Setsuna said, feeling tears roll down her face, one of her father’s hands in hers.

“Neptune has already fallen,” Aeon coughed, blood staining his mouth. “Setsuna, I am so proud of you, of everything you have managed to achieve, of all the burdens you have overcome. You must go to Selenity. There is nothing left for you here.” Blood had soaked the cushion through now. So, so much blood, Setsuna thought, surprisingly calmly, how was he still with her?

“Take this,” Aeon fumbled with a ring from one of his fingers – gold, with a dark red stone. “Take it to Rhea, with my affection and my blessings for the future.”

She couldn’t even cry out, just clutch the ring tightly, and let the tears roll down her cheeks.

“And this…this was meant to be yours the day of your coronation.” Aeon fumbled with a chain tucked into his shirt – long and silver, with a perfectly round black crystal hanging from it, and a gold filigree daisy hanging from the crystal. “The flower was your mother’s; it was a comfort to keep it close to me.”

Setsuna held the crystal in one hand; it felt warm to touch. “Papa?” Her voice was soft and childish.

“The Pluto crystal, wielded by the monarch, passed down by Pluto and Hades themselves,” Aeon managed. His skin was almost translucent now. “I am… afraid it will be quite useless for… for a short while. It … has kept me with you these last moments.” He let out a shuddering sigh and his eyes drifted closed, but he spoke once again, in a thin voice.

“You are the Queen of Pluto now, Setsuna. Go to Selenity’s side.”

And the crystal went quite cold in her hands.

She walked from the wreckage of the lounge, leaving her father’s body behind and ignoring the scene of massacre in the entrance hall. The crystal hung around her neck, the ring for the Queen of Mars hanging off the chain.

As she reached the breezeway, Setsuna began to run, summoning her Time Staff and a Time Gate – the fastest way to get to whatever waited on the Moon.

The second she set foot on the Moon, her transformation took over, and the grieving daughter morphed into the stoic – and very, very angry – Senshi of Pluto.

The men from Terra’s armies were everywhere, brandishing swords and cutting down everything that stood in their path. She could hear the angry yells of Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune nearby.

“Pluto!” Neptune called out, swinging her Deep Aqua Mirror out against several advancing soldiers. A murmured Dead Scream kept a group of men from hurling themselves back to their feet.

“Remembered where your loyalties lie?” Uranus gritted her teeth, slamming her sword through the stomach of another attacker.

Pluto ducked her head. She knew she should have been here earlier, but…

“Some things are above duty, Haruka!” Neptune raised her hands. “Deep Submerge!”

“Pluto has fallen?” Uranus looked up at the taller girl.

Pluto swung her Staff wide and offered Uranus and Neptune a blank smile. “As long as I stand, Pluto has not fallen. I believe the same goes for Uranus and Neptune, yes?”

Neptune offered her a small, but grateful smile and nodded. Uranus ducked her head. “Then we can safely say that Mercury and Jupiter have fallen beyond repair.”

Pluto couldn’t resist the urge to shudder. “Who lead this attack?”

“Those traitorous Generals of Terra,” Uranus spat, kicking a fallen soldier. “They have turned against the Moon, and the Alliance. Only Endymion appears to remain unchanged in his opinions.”

“Go to Selenity, Pluto,” Neptune said suddenly. “She may have the Ginzuishou, but…”

“Good luck. Stay safe,” Pluto turned and darted through the battle, to the palace. Selenity would be in the throne room, with Serenity, under the protection of the Ginzuishou.

Her boots clattered on the crystal floors as Pluto sprinted through the hallways, determined to get to her Queen and her Princess.

The tall doors leading to the throne room swung open, recognizing her as one of the Senshi. And Pluto froze.

Selenity sat on the floor before her throne, weeping into her hands, the Ginzuishou beside her.

“My Queen!” Pluto approached her.

“Oh, Pluto!” Selenity rose, her cheeks damp. “Excuse me, I just needed a moment to indulge myself.” With her tearstained face, her eyes filled with grief, and her hands twisting the fabric of her skirt, she was the very picture of a fallen Queen.

“I am sorry I was not here sooner… I have failed you and the Alliance,” Pluto managed, dropping to one knee.

“Your instincts sent you to your own planet, to your father, and I can not criticize that, Pluto,” Selenity smiled tiredly. “Your father?”

Pluto’s face fell for a second. “This attack was unexpected, my Queen, to all of us.”

“Everything is ending, Pluto,” Selenity picked up the Ginzuishou and sat upon her throne. The curtains around the windows were drawn closed, and the Queen of the Moon seemed to glow in the dim light. “Mercury and Pluto fell first, then Mars and Uranus. Neptune and Venus didn’t stand a chance.”

Before Selenity could continue, it was like all the light was sucked from her body; her face twisted in horror and heartbreak, but she did not cry. She slumped backwards, and looked more like an old woman than ever before.

“My Serenity,” Selenity whispered. “My daughter. She has left me.”

Pluto tried to block out the yells and screams from the battle that was getting closer and closer to the throne room. “My Queen…”

Selenity took a deep breath and picked up the Ginzuishou. “Go to Saturn, Pluto. I have heard nothing from them as of yet. Perhaps they have managed to withstand this horror. I have a plan, Setsuna. Go, when you arrive back here, everything will be in its rightful place.”

“And you will be safe?” Pluto paused.

“I among all others will be safe, Pluto,” Selenity sounded slightly bitter. “I will remain here, awaiting your return.”

Pluto nodded, and opened the Time Gate, which took her directly to the private rooms of Titan Castle. There was much yelling and screaming coming from the rooms, and Pluto stepped out of the portal in time to see a soldier leap out – and this time, wearing a uniform that Pluto recognized; it was of the Dark Kingdom. He dragged a screaming made into the hallway, his knife slicing into the woman’s throat.

“Dead Scream!” Once again, the strength of the attack stunned Pluto – it swept down the hallway much like a tsunami, ripping at the wallpaper and overturning furniture, before it hit the soldier and the dying maid. A door was flung off it’s hinges and then everything was still.

“Leave us alone!” came a shout, and Pluto raced down the hallway, carefully stepping over other bodies, to find Queen Pandora and Hotaru defending themselves from three more Dark Kingdom soldiers. Queen Pandora brandished a rather lethal looking dagger at the men as they attempted to advance on her, and Hotaru who was huddled against the wall, her violet eyes wide with fright.

“You cannot defend the girl forever; you will fall sometime,” one of the soldiers mocked. “There is no one left to help you or Saturn.”

“Dead Scream.” It was murmured this time, a far more controlled attack that sent the men to their knees. It was not hard to kill them outright, as they spat insults at the Queen of Saturn and the frightened princess.

Hotaru flung her arms around her mama, her eyes still wide with fright. As Hotaru buried her face into her mother’s skirts, Pluto caught sight of a purple symbol glowing on her forehead.

And met the pained eyes of Queen Pandora, with one hand around her child, and the other clutching her side, where a bloodstain was rapidly spreading across her dress. Queen Pandora smiled sadly.

“Thank you, Pluto.”

“Selenity was rightfully worried when she heard nothing from Saturn,” Pluto explained, checking the adjoining rooms for more attackers.

“What has happened?” Pandora asked.

“The Dark Kingdom appears to have manipulated Earth against the Alliance,” Pluto said stiffly. “We have fallen.”

Pandora shuddered. “You are here for Hotaru, yes?”

“Having seen what I just did, I believe it is Selenity’s wish that I return to the Moon with Hotaru immediately,” Pluto said delicately.

“No, I won’t go!” Hotaru burst out, the symbol of Saturn clear upon her head. “Not without Mama!”

“I must remain here, Hotaru,” Pandora winced as she took her hand away from her side and bobbed down to face her daughter. “I am the Queen, and I must stay here in case any of our people need help.”

Hotaru shook her head, crying hard.

“You go with Setsuna to Queen Selenity’s, and I will find you soon,” Pandora’s voice was soothing, as she wiped Hotaru’s tears away with her fingers. “Now, give me a kiss and be a good girl.”

“Mama,” Hotaru flung her arms around her mother’s neck. “You’ll come and find me soon?”

“As soon as I can, sweetheart,” Pandora kissed Hotaru’s head. “Be a good girl for Queen Selenity and Setsuna.”

Pluto summoned a Time Gate in the very room, taking Hotaru’s hand in hers. “Are you ready?” Pluto asked the child gently. “Hold onto my hand tight, and don’t let go.”

As the Gate faded away, Pluto turned around to see Pandora slumped against a wall, in pain, but still managing a smile and a wave for her little daughter, knowing that as soon as Hotaru went to Selenity, Selenity would awaken Sailor Saturn and that everything was as good as lost.

The Time Gate led directly to the throne room in the Moon Palace.

Or would have, if there had still be a throne room. Or even a Palace.

Hotaru clung tightly to Pluto as they both stared at the wreckage.

“We aren’t safe here, Setsuna,” Hotaru said shakily. Pluto saw a decapitated body lying near a pillar, and turned Hotaru away from it.

“You are safe with me, Hotaru. I will protect you. We will both be safe as soon as we find Queen Selenity,” Pluto said.

It did not take long to find the Queen - the woman was slumped on a slap of marble, and evidently close to death.

“My Queen!” Pluto burst out, as they reached Selenity’s side.

“Pluto,” Selenity smiled thinly. “You found Hotaru.”

“And your plan became evident,” Pluto nodded towards the violet Saturn symbol on Hotaru’s head.

“It was Metallia, Pluto. She corrupted so many poor people against us,” Selenity said slowly. “So many poor people have died today. I have sealed her away… as best as I know how, Pluto.”

“My Queen…”

“I have sent the others forward – my daughter, her beloved prince… the other girls,” Selenity managed and then opened her eyes wide. “Into the future, where they will be equals, and live… live freely.

“You must be there with them, too, Setsuna. Remind Serenity how special she was, how much I loved her and will miss her. Guide them, keep them safe for me.” Selenity’s breathing was shallow.

“You are dying, my Queen. Let me take you back to the Time Gates – or maybe my father’s crystal…” Pluto transformed back into her civilian form, in her torn and bloodied dress, the crystal of Pluto around her neck.

“You must guard the Gates of Time for a little while longer, Setsuna,” Selenity said softly. “But you will join your friends soon enough.”

“My…friends? Haruka and Michiru?” It was like the ground had vanished and she was free falling in a vast nothingness. It was one thing to lose her beloved father, her only remaining parents, the king she would succeed. It was entirely another to know that her friends – her sisters – were lost to her; her confidants, her sanity.

“We were fighting a battle we could not win,” Selenity’s voice rasped. “They will find you – and each other – again.” Selenity’s eyes turned to Hotaru, who was huddled at Setsuna’s side. “It is now time for Saturn to awaken.”

“Selenity, please!”

The planetary symbol gleamed so brightly it was more white than purple. The Ginzuishou flared equally as brightly and as Selenity went still, her long ribbons of silver hair spilling over the slab of marble she lay upon, Hotaru closed her eyes. The child transformed, her head bowed.

And Sailor Saturn – taller and older than the child Hotaru – stood before Setsuna, her Silence Glaive in one hand.

“Queen Pluto,” Sailor Saturn said calmly. “Your thread of inevitability is almost at an end.”

“Yes,” Setsuna said faintly. “Hotaru…”

“I am not Hotaru,” Sailor Saturn said very gently. “And I have a duty I must uphold. As you do.”

“Yes.” Setsuna stared down at Selenity’s body. “May I…?”

Sailor Saturn nodded once. “I believe you’ll find them in the north east garden. Do not take long, time marches on.”

Setsuna turned away from the soldier before her and picked her way through the debris, rock and crystal cutting into her feet.

The garden had been almost entirely destroyed by the towers of the Palace, but she found them there. Staring blankly at them, Setsuna tried to summon the energy to scream, to blast a hole in the remaining wall, but she felt entirely numb. As if everything – from the death and destruction, to the strange caricature of Hotaru that the Senshi of Destruction was – was nothing but an ugly nightmare.

Haruka lay on her back, her face peaceful, and her Space Sword flung away. Minor cuts and bruises littered her arms, legs and face, but it was the ugly angle of her neck that revealed her death.
Michiru was nearby, her eyes still open, staring blankly ahead. Again, she boasted a collection of scrapes evident of a harsh battle, but the back of her head – her beautifully aqua hair matted with blood – have been smashed in. Like a doll Setsuna had broken as a child.

Michiru’s hand reached out for Haruka’s, but they would never touch. The mirror was held loosely in Michiru’s other hand, the glass smashed and dull.

Setsuna knelt before her friends, her head bowed. There was nothing left to say. They had died and she had lived. Everyone had died, and she had lived. Even little Hotaru had lost herself in this disaster.

“It is time, Queen Pluto.” Sailor Saturn appeared beside her. “You must attend to your duty and I must attend to mine.”

Setsuna nodded and stood, summoning her Time Staff and opening a portal to return to the Gates of Time.

“In another life, Queen Pluto,” Sailor Saturn nodded, and as she closed the gateway, Setsuna watched as Sailor Saturn brought the Silver Glaive down.

And she was once again alone, in the dim light of the Gates of Time.