Tides of Darkness by Adyen
Chapter 1: Painful Memories
In one of the wards of Tokyo, there's a shrine. In the shrine was a shrine maiden called Rei Hino, who was rumoured to have mystical powers, able to banish spirits and evil omens.
Today, however, there were a few more females within the shrine. A friend of the shrine maiden had asked to see her that afternoon, and she in turn had called a few more of their mutual friends to meet. Therefore, there were a total of six enthusiastic girls talking about what's happening and one grown woman smiling at the scene.
"It was a good idea to bring Hotaru, wasn't it?" Setsuna asked Rei after taking a small sip of her tea.
Nodding, Rei watched as Minako and Hotaru talked about school and, as in every casual conversation involving the self-proclaimed Goddess of Love, boys. "It's good to see her so lively."
The two were quiet before Usagi tapped both of them on the back, startling the pair. Rei because she thought nobody except Setsuna could sneak up on her, and Setsuna because. well, because she never thought someone would sneak up on her.
"Can I talk to you two in private?" She asked, a small frown on her face. Rarely has either seen the look on Usagi's face except when she 'evolved' herself into Serenity. Setsuna had saw that look many times before when she gazed upon her Queen, and knew that it was important. The trio went to the nearby room where Rei often did her fire-readings, and sat in a triangle, each facing each other.
Usagi broke the silence by saying, "For last past week, I've been having. dreams, I guess, though I'm starting to think that they're memories."
Rei made a 'go on' gesture and glanced at Setsuna, who was listening to Usagi calmly.
"At first, I couldn't really remember any of it, except Luna told me I would keep jolting awake in the middle of the night. Then, last night, I finally remembered something."
For a moment, Usagi was quiet and the two other women just waited for her to speak up. Finally, Usagi said, "It was about a young man, with dark hair and wearing an armour made from white crystal. There wasn't much in the memory, but I remember seeing the Earth behind him, off to a side. He was smiling at me, and waving as he walked off somewhere, and I had the feeling that I would never see him again."
Rei moved over to Usagi and gently hugged her, trying to comfort her princess. Usagi wasn't crying, but she was clenching her fists repeatedly, as if trying to hold something back, or force something out. Setsuna, on the other hand, sat rigid as she tried to remember what person Usagi could be talking about. Frankly, the possibilities are daunting. The amount of people with white armour in the past numbers in the hundred thousands, and more than half of them have been on the moon. Even she couldn't remember everyone in matter of moments.
"Was there anything else?" She asked Usagi, trying to help as much as she can. "Maybe if you described him better, I can help you remember him."
Slowly nodding, Usagi let go of Rei and closed her eyes. "I can remember his brown eyes and short dark hair easily. I think he was a bit taller than I am, but shorter than Mamo-chan. He was quite well built, and quite handsome, but somehow I just can't think of him romantically. I think. yes, I think he was someone very close to me, but not in a romantic way."
As the three mulled over that, Luna snuck herself in and said, "Here you are. I've been looking all over for you."
Usagi got up and picked Luna up, much to the cat's embarrassment. "Luna, do you remember a short dark haired young man in my past life that I was close to?"
One of Luna's ear flicked. "Eh? You know my memory. I could barely remember you were the Princess, how could I remember someone with such a vague description? It could be anyone, from some off-shot noble or even someone passing by to Earth."
"I may know who you are talking about, but if it IS him, we may be in for a shaky future."
Rei, Luna, and Usagi all looked at Setsuna as she spoke. Her face was grave, but that's how she looked normally, so none of the three could be sure if it was significant or not.
"Who is he?" Usagi asked, curious as to the person who appeared in her dreams.
Setsuna waved them to sit down, and when they were seated, she said, "The royal family of Lunar was always a matriarchy. The eldest female would be the heir, and any male children were get a spot in the ruling government, depending on what he like or was fit to be.
"In the rule just before the Fall, there were, in fact, five members of the Royal Family, and when I say that, I mean direct descendants of the previous Queen. Usagi, your mother had two brothers and you had a younger brother, one who was actually the first casualty of the war, though we did not know of it until much too late."
Usagi blinked. "I had a brother? Shingo isn't."
Setsuna laughed. "No, he isn't. You don't think your mother is the reincarnation of the Queen, do you?"
Usagi chuckled lamely before saying, "But I had a brother? What's his name? How was he like?"
Rei cut in while rolling her eyes. "Probably has a name like 'Tranquility' and was like every other fairy tale prince or something."
Setsuna barked out a bitter laugh. "If only. Your brother was one of the most annoying, hated, and even feared person on the Moon. Some people gave him the nickname of 'Akuma', as he was sometimes like a demon. He was quick to temper, rarely gives someone a chance to redeem themselves if they failed once, and tends to jump to conclusions before he had all the facts."
Usagi's eyes widened as Setsuna continued speaking. She just couldn't believe someone in her dream could be so bad.
"If you were the light of the Royal family, he was the darkness. Almost everyone at the court said that he was your complete opposite, and he often proved himself to be as well, using his physical skills to show anyone who disagreed with him. Any time someone said something about him, he would challenge them to a duel, and his opponent rarely comes out without being heavily beaten."
"Don't get me wrong, he wasn't evil, and the Queen made sure of that several times, but he embodied everything you weren't. He can be caring to those he cares about, and was extremely protective of you. But to those who earned his ire. Well, let's just say they rarely slept well at nights."
Usagi blinked a few times before asking, "So. what's his name?"
Setsuna looked at Usagi in the eyes before saying, "Vesta. His name was Vesta, and if you're remembering him, that means change is coming, and most likely not for the better either. He is like an omen, a warning to come. And we should heed it, as the last time such an omen came, the Silver Millennium fell."
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In Nermia, a sneeze could be heard as someone in the Tendo Dojo blasted their nose repeatedly.
"Bless you." Kasumi said, handing over some tissue.
"Thank you. Someone must be talking about me."
"Hey Kasumi!" A male's voice came from outside. "Is the food ready? Everyone's about to head to the park."
"Coming!" Kasumi called out as she finished packing. "It's a good thing we finished before you sneezed, ne?"
Nodding, Akane picked up the carrier with all the food and headed out for the picnic that they had planned with Nokoda. "I wonder what that was all about."
Chapter 1: Painful Memories
In one of the wards of Tokyo, there's a shrine. In the shrine was a shrine maiden called Rei Hino, who was rumoured to have mystical powers, able to banish spirits and evil omens.
Today, however, there were a few more females within the shrine. A friend of the shrine maiden had asked to see her that afternoon, and she in turn had called a few more of their mutual friends to meet. Therefore, there were a total of six enthusiastic girls talking about what's happening and one grown woman smiling at the scene.
"It was a good idea to bring Hotaru, wasn't it?" Setsuna asked Rei after taking a small sip of her tea.
Nodding, Rei watched as Minako and Hotaru talked about school and, as in every casual conversation involving the self-proclaimed Goddess of Love, boys. "It's good to see her so lively."
The two were quiet before Usagi tapped both of them on the back, startling the pair. Rei because she thought nobody except Setsuna could sneak up on her, and Setsuna because. well, because she never thought someone would sneak up on her.
"Can I talk to you two in private?" She asked, a small frown on her face. Rarely has either seen the look on Usagi's face except when she 'evolved' herself into Serenity. Setsuna had saw that look many times before when she gazed upon her Queen, and knew that it was important. The trio went to the nearby room where Rei often did her fire-readings, and sat in a triangle, each facing each other.
Usagi broke the silence by saying, "For last past week, I've been having. dreams, I guess, though I'm starting to think that they're memories."
Rei made a 'go on' gesture and glanced at Setsuna, who was listening to Usagi calmly.
"At first, I couldn't really remember any of it, except Luna told me I would keep jolting awake in the middle of the night. Then, last night, I finally remembered something."
For a moment, Usagi was quiet and the two other women just waited for her to speak up. Finally, Usagi said, "It was about a young man, with dark hair and wearing an armour made from white crystal. There wasn't much in the memory, but I remember seeing the Earth behind him, off to a side. He was smiling at me, and waving as he walked off somewhere, and I had the feeling that I would never see him again."
Rei moved over to Usagi and gently hugged her, trying to comfort her princess. Usagi wasn't crying, but she was clenching her fists repeatedly, as if trying to hold something back, or force something out. Setsuna, on the other hand, sat rigid as she tried to remember what person Usagi could be talking about. Frankly, the possibilities are daunting. The amount of people with white armour in the past numbers in the hundred thousands, and more than half of them have been on the moon. Even she couldn't remember everyone in matter of moments.
"Was there anything else?" She asked Usagi, trying to help as much as she can. "Maybe if you described him better, I can help you remember him."
Slowly nodding, Usagi let go of Rei and closed her eyes. "I can remember his brown eyes and short dark hair easily. I think he was a bit taller than I am, but shorter than Mamo-chan. He was quite well built, and quite handsome, but somehow I just can't think of him romantically. I think. yes, I think he was someone very close to me, but not in a romantic way."
As the three mulled over that, Luna snuck herself in and said, "Here you are. I've been looking all over for you."
Usagi got up and picked Luna up, much to the cat's embarrassment. "Luna, do you remember a short dark haired young man in my past life that I was close to?"
One of Luna's ear flicked. "Eh? You know my memory. I could barely remember you were the Princess, how could I remember someone with such a vague description? It could be anyone, from some off-shot noble or even someone passing by to Earth."
"I may know who you are talking about, but if it IS him, we may be in for a shaky future."
Rei, Luna, and Usagi all looked at Setsuna as she spoke. Her face was grave, but that's how she looked normally, so none of the three could be sure if it was significant or not.
"Who is he?" Usagi asked, curious as to the person who appeared in her dreams.
Setsuna waved them to sit down, and when they were seated, she said, "The royal family of Lunar was always a matriarchy. The eldest female would be the heir, and any male children were get a spot in the ruling government, depending on what he like or was fit to be.
"In the rule just before the Fall, there were, in fact, five members of the Royal Family, and when I say that, I mean direct descendants of the previous Queen. Usagi, your mother had two brothers and you had a younger brother, one who was actually the first casualty of the war, though we did not know of it until much too late."
Usagi blinked. "I had a brother? Shingo isn't."
Setsuna laughed. "No, he isn't. You don't think your mother is the reincarnation of the Queen, do you?"
Usagi chuckled lamely before saying, "But I had a brother? What's his name? How was he like?"
Rei cut in while rolling her eyes. "Probably has a name like 'Tranquility' and was like every other fairy tale prince or something."
Setsuna barked out a bitter laugh. "If only. Your brother was one of the most annoying, hated, and even feared person on the Moon. Some people gave him the nickname of 'Akuma', as he was sometimes like a demon. He was quick to temper, rarely gives someone a chance to redeem themselves if they failed once, and tends to jump to conclusions before he had all the facts."
Usagi's eyes widened as Setsuna continued speaking. She just couldn't believe someone in her dream could be so bad.
"If you were the light of the Royal family, he was the darkness. Almost everyone at the court said that he was your complete opposite, and he often proved himself to be as well, using his physical skills to show anyone who disagreed with him. Any time someone said something about him, he would challenge them to a duel, and his opponent rarely comes out without being heavily beaten."
"Don't get me wrong, he wasn't evil, and the Queen made sure of that several times, but he embodied everything you weren't. He can be caring to those he cares about, and was extremely protective of you. But to those who earned his ire. Well, let's just say they rarely slept well at nights."
Usagi blinked a few times before asking, "So. what's his name?"
Setsuna looked at Usagi in the eyes before saying, "Vesta. His name was Vesta, and if you're remembering him, that means change is coming, and most likely not for the better either. He is like an omen, a warning to come. And we should heed it, as the last time such an omen came, the Silver Millennium fell."
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -
In Nermia, a sneeze could be heard as someone in the Tendo Dojo blasted their nose repeatedly.
"Bless you." Kasumi said, handing over some tissue.
"Thank you. Someone must be talking about me."
"Hey Kasumi!" A male's voice came from outside. "Is the food ready? Everyone's about to head to the park."
"Coming!" Kasumi called out as she finished packing. "It's a good thing we finished before you sneezed, ne?"
Nodding, Akane picked up the carrier with all the food and headed out for the picnic that they had planned with Nokoda. "I wonder what that was all about."