Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ The Ascension Trilogy, Book 3: Ressurrection ❯ Chapter 2

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

RESSURRECTION
Chapter 2: "The Waiting Game"

By Bill K.

"How's she doing?"

Jupiter popped her head into the room, unwilling to enter all the
way lest she seem pushy and yet so concerned about her friend that she
couldn't wait for word elsewhere.

After Endymion returned from the sky with the limp, unconscious
Serenity, her friends had acted quickly. The intact remains of a
business was found and taken over by the senshi as a shelter for
Serenity.

A cot had been rescued from what was left of an emergency shelter.
Ami stood over the cot where Serenity lay, bending down and examining
her patient. To the right of the cot, Endymion sat cross-legged on a
mat. His hand held Serenity's and a golden glow faintly colored them
both. He sat motionless, save for the rise and fall of his chest,
seemingly in a trance.

To the left of the cot, Rei knelt on another mat. She was dressed
in a blouse and slacks. These weren't what she usually wore when
praying, but her priestess robes had long been consumed by the disaster.
Her outfit was still whole and clean, a remarkable sight these days. It
was that way because it had been what Rei had been wearing when she
transformed to Sailor Mars before the final attack of the Frost Giants
of Knorr and it escaped the destruction of that attack. The woman was
absorbed in prayer, though the stress of her efforts was beginning to
show on her face.

"She'll be fine," Endymion said distantly.

"I'll be the judge of that," Ami replied curtly.

Rei kept praying.

"She is going to be all right, isn't she?" Jupiter asked
anxiously.

"I'm doing the best I can!" Ami said sharply. She felt Serenity's
pulse again. "Although I don't know how much good that is! I have no
vital sign monitors, no drugs - - I don't even have a stethoscope! I
know how to help her, but I don't have the tools!" Her hands clasped
together in front of her, the knuckles white from the pressure.

"Well, maybe we can salvage something from a hospital or
something?" Jupiter offered.

"And power it how?" snapped Ami. "The utilities are still down!
They're not coming back for a while, possibly not ever if Serenity
doesn't get better! You can't run sophisticated cardio-pulmonary
equipment without electricity!"

"Well, if it's electricity . . .!"

"No, Jupiter," Ami sighed with fatigue. "One of your lightning
strikes would be direct current. It would probably fuse the machine's
circuitry. It needs alternating current to operate and that's something
you can't provide." Ami looked away in frustration.

"Come on! You'll do it!" Jupiter said encouragingly.

"Jupiter, the only thing that's keeping her alive right now is
Endymion! All I'm doing is sitting here watching her die!"

"Hey!" Jupiter said. She came up behind Ami and began massaging
her shoulders. "I know you're frustrated and I know you're scared.
Don't give into it."

"But we've been through so much in the last two years. All the
time we've spent fighting, all the people we've lost, all the suffering
can't amount to this! She can't die now, not after everything we've
been through!"

"She won't die," Endymion said. "I won't let her."

"See," Jupiter smiled timidly.

"That's fine as far as it goes. But he's not curing her. He's
just keeping her alive. How long can he keep that up?"

"As long as there's breath in my body," Endymion whispered, not
letting his concentration slip.

"Well unless there's some change in her, that will just mean we're
going to lose you both!"

"Well she can have anything I've got, if it'll help," Jupiter
volunteered. "You can take everything if it saves her - - and I'll bet
there'll be others who'll make the same offer."

Ami looked away. "If it comes to that. We're not to that point
yet."

At that point, Rei slumped to the floor. Ami crossed over to her
and knelt down next to her. She could hear Rei mumbling, "Told her not
to do too much . . ." as she examined her.

"What's wrong with her?" Jupiter asked.

"I think she's just fainted from exhaustion," Ami murmured. "Let
her sleep. If she hasn't said enough prayers by now, then that means
the gods aren't listening."

"Sure," Jupiter grinned. "So what do I tell the people outside?"

"Who's outside?" Ami asked.

"Have you been outside at all?" Ami just shook her head.
"There's hundreds of people out there just waiting for word about how
Usagi is. They saw what she did and felt the energy she and Endymion
used to make the plants grow. I recognize a few faces, but most of them
are perfect strangers."

"So what do they want with her?" Ami asked, sighing with fatigue.
"Another miracle?"

"Eventually," shrugged Jupiter. "Right now, I think they just
want to know that she'll be all right. Because I think they all realize
that she's probably our only hope right now."

Ami bowed her head, seeming to be on the verge of tears. Then she
summoned a reserve of strength from somewhere and pushed the emotions
down.

"Tell them she's still alive," Ami said. "Tell them - - we're
doing all we can."

Outside, Sailor Pluto watched the crowd. Occasionally her gaze
would shift to Venus guarding the door to the shelter. Venus was good
at concealing the concern she felt for the princess, as good as she was
at concealing the fatigue she felt. The woman was far better at it than
Pluto was. Her limbs felt as heavy as her heart did right now and she
had neither the strength nor the inclination to conceal it.

An older man walked up to them. It took Pluto a moment to
recognize him as the shock victim she and Ami had helped.

"Ah, I have found you," the man said and bowed to them both.
"Thank you for helping me earlier. I am deeply in your debt."

"I am glad to see you up and around, Honored Sir," Pluto replied.
"Are you feeling better?"

"As well as anyone else," he replied. "I fear none of us will be
perfectly well for a great while." The old man sighed. "I remember the
tales my grandfather told me of life in Hiroshima and the hardships they
faced. I thought, in my youthful arrogance, that I understood what he
was saying. But it seems only now do I truly understand." He seemed to
want to say more, but hesitated.

"Did you wish something else of us, honored sir?" Pluto asked.

"Forgive me. I merely wished to offer what little I had to aid in
the recovery of Sailor Moon." He looked down. "I have thought a great
deal about death and dying during - - whatever period of time that has
past. I am grateful for my life, understand. But there are others
clearly more important than I am. If a sacrifice is needed, please let
me be the one to make it, rather than someone such as her - - someone
far more important to everyone."

"And what makes you believe that you are not important?" Pluto
asked, staring at him with eyes that saw him, and yet did not. For a
moment, the old man was taken aback. "Believe me, Honored Sir, when I
tell you that I may see things that others cannot. I have seen how
important you can be, should you not surrender to the despair that
surrounds us. You play a vital role in life, far more vital than you
grasp. We appreciate your gesture, but I would prefer that you live."

The old man looked at Pluto, unsure as to how to take her
pronouncement. He understood what she said, but not how she could know
it. Pluto only looked at him with a placid demeanor, peacefully
awaiting any response he might make. At length, the old man bowed to
Sailor Pluto and moved off. She turned and caught Venus staring at her
with much the same wonder that the old man had.

"You know," Venus scowled warily, "any more, you're as spooky as
Serenity."

"You will come to understand," Pluto replied cryptically, "in
time."
* * * *
In a secluded spot by the waterfront, amid the dark hulks of
collapsed warehouses and the harbor cluttered with broken and useless
ships, Sailor Uranus stood guard. She would alternately scan the sky
and the area around them. The latter was to guard against any refugee
desperate or greedy enough to attack them. The former was to guard
against any possibly threat from space. To accomplish this, her Space
Sword was drawn and ready.

While Uranus stood guard, Sailor Neptune selected a spot along the
wharf that was in perfect harmony between the land, the sea and the air.
She set aside the sea's soft lament for all the bodies within it and for
all the desolation on land and summoned the Deep Aqua Mirror. Focusing
her consciousness on the mirror, she used it to probe into the heavens.

Long moments passed. Neptune remained silent, focusing on the
mirror, searching through it for the truth. Uranus stood guard, her
already thin patience unraveling with the passage of every second. She
glanced back at Neptune. The senshi clutched the mirror with both
hands, staring into its face with glassy eyes and slightly parted lips.
Uranus wanted to speak, but held her tongue. Forcing herself to look
away, she scanned the area again for possible threat.

A sound to her left made her turn. However, it was just a rat
skittering along the edge of the dark warehouse. From the matting of
its coat and the rodent's gaunt look, it had fared little better than
they had. Already the blessing of Serenity and Endymion's energy was
wearing off and the tangle of vegetation it had wrought hadn't made it
to the docks. Uranus felt her stomach growl. Mentally she growled
back.

"Uranus?" Neptune said and her partner turned to her. "I'm not
finding anything."

"I'm not hallucinating this," Uranus protested. "I'm not that far
gone."

"I know you're not. I feel it, too. I'm surprised Pluto hasn't.
But I can't find anything with the mirror."

"Could it be capable of hiding itself from the Deep Aqua Mirror?"
Uranus asked.

"Why not? It's a big universe," Neptune replied, her lips
thinning. "But that presents two questions: Why, and how powerful an
entity is this if it can conceal itself from the mirror? Could even the
Frost Giants do that?"

"Those are two questions I don't like the answers to," Uranus
said.

Neptune nodded. Then, suddenly, she stared into the mirror in
shock.

"What is it?" hissed Uranus. "What do you see?"

Neptune's face only hardened into a scowl. "We need to get to
Usagi's side."
* * * *
Sailor Jupiter walked up to Sailor Venus and tossed her an orange.
Venus, who was still guarding the door to the building where Serenity
lay, caught it numbly. She stared at it for a few moments before she
remembered it was to eat.

"Why don't you take a nap," Jupiter suggested. "I'll stand
watch."

"What makes you think I need a nap?" Venus groused as she forced
open the orange with her thumbs.

"Remember the zombies in all those horror movies you used to drag
us all to?" Jupiter said. Venus nodded. "The way you look right now,
you'd frighten them."

"I'm all right," Venus frowned, shoving the orange wedge into her
mouth.

Jupiter stared, concerned. Venus hadn't risen to the bait.
That meant she was really tired. Rather than argue, though, Jupiter
peeked in through the door. Venus could be very stubborn when she was
like this and Jupiter knew she'd have to wear the woman down through
subtle cajoling. Momentarily breaking the tension, she peeked in the
door again.

Inside the room, Endymion maintained his life support of Serenity.
Rei still slept on the floor while Ami dozed in a chair. It tore
Jupiter up to see Serenity like that, knowing there was nothing she
could do.

"You'd think these gawkers would go home by now," mumbled Venus
between bites.

"Go home to what?" Jupiter replied, closing the door. "There
isn't a lot left in this city to go home to. Besides, I bet a lot of
them figure their best chance is to be as close to Serenity as
possible." Jupiter shook her head. "Man, I just can't get used to
calling her that. But it's obvious she's not Usagi anymore. She's just
so . . ."

"Would 'spooky' be the word you're looking for?" Venus asked,
staring out into the crowd as she chewed on the orange.

"No," Jupiter said, her eyes narrowing. "Do you have a problem
with what she's become?"

"Her extra firepower, no." Venus turned and faced Jupiter for the
first time. "But haven't you noticed the way she acts and the way she
carries herself ever since she 'evolved' to her Serenity level? It's
almost like she's not human anymore - - like she's above us." Venus
made a non-committal shrug. "Maybe she is. Endymion's the same way."

"Jealous?"

"Me? No." Then Venus shrugged. "OK, maybe just a little. I
don't resent her. It's just - - I'm wondering if she'll want to hang
out with us now - - if we're beneath her. I'm going to miss those
Saturday shopping trips."

"And the birthday parties she'd throw for us," smiled Jupiter.

"And how she could never keep them secret, no matter how hard she
tried."

"And the little cards and gifts she would give you, right at the
precise moment you were feeling down - - like she knew."

Venus sighed in resignation.

"One flaw in your thinking, though," Jupiter continued. Venus
looked at her, intrigued. "You're assuming those days are over. She
may be Serenity on the outside, but I'm willing to bet that Usagi's
still inside. And we'll see it when she gets a chance to relax. She
just hasn't had the chance yet."

"You are an incorrigible optimist," Venus replied, then downed the
last of the orange. "Here's to incorrigible optimism." Venus smacked
her lips. "Either I'm really hungry or that was one tasty orange."

"Serenity made it," grinned Jupiter, "so you know it was made with
love."

The two friends stood there silently, guarding the entrance to
where Serenity lay. They surveyed the crowd that stubbornly stayed
nearby. The people all seemed blank shells of human beings. They
seemed to be waiting for something. Whether they were waiting for
another miracle from Serenity or just waiting to die was hard to tell.
Venus dropped her gaze. It was hard looking at them. It was hard
enough seeing the doubt and fear in the eyes of her friends and
wondering if it was mirrored in her own. It was torture watching all
these people wander around aimlessly, robbed even of their humanity by
their circumstances.

And then she wondered if she'd ever regain her life. Was the
fifteen years of work and sweat, trial and error, rejection and
humiliation she'd invested in becoming a star now down the drain? Was
she doomed to being another face in the crowd for the rest of her life?
Was she to never again sample the sweet nectar of the spotlight and the
adulation that came with it? Venus noticed a smudge of dirt on her
glove and brushed at it, suddenly wishing she could be home soaking in a
hot bath.

She looked up at Jupiter and noticed the woman's worried, faraway
look. The senshi suddenly felt very small for what she had just been
thinking.

"Why don't you go look for them," Venus said gently. Jupiter
turned to her, surprised and confused by the blonde woman's statement.
"Sanjuro and the kids. I can tell you're worried about them."

"I've already got a job," Jupiter replied tightly.

"We can handle it."

"She could be dead any moment," Jupiter said, her fear lingering
just below the surface. "If she needs me and I'm not here, I'm not just
shirking my duty, I may be dooming everyone! I hate it, but I can't
look for them right now."

Venus looked on with sympathy.

"And San-san knows that," Jupiter whispered, her words as much for
her own fears as for Venus. "He's taking care of them. He won't let
anything happen to them." Jupiter let loose a nervous laugh. "When
Serenity's back, I'll go look for them, and they'll probably be at the
restaurant waiting for me."

Then a trickling tear betrayed Jupiter. She bowed her head,
struggling to get hold of her emotions again. Venus closed the gap
between them instantly and gripped Jupiter's shoulder. The lanky senshi
seemed to sag gratefully against her friend.

"Besides," Jupiter said hoarsely, "I don't see you running out to
look for Toshihiro."

"I'm not worried," Venus replied with a shadow of her normal
jaunty self. "Toshi's too much of a creep to die. Besides, if he dies,
ten percent of his agent has to die, too, so Hiroki'll make sure he
survives."

Jupiter giggled through her tears despite herself. That eased
Venus's spirits and the emotional crisis seemed to pass.

"It's Ichiro I worry about the most," Jupiter mumbled as she wiped
a tear away. "He's so young and so easily intimidated by so many
things. Just making it through this alive may not be enough. This is
going to scar him. I just know it! And Akiko - - she talks tough, but
she's just a baby, too."

"Well that's your fault for letting them out of the womb," Venus
jabbed.

Jupiter shot the blonde an evil glare. Then the end of her mouth
curled.

"You still have no class," Jupiter muttered.

The movement of feet on rubble caught their attention. Venus and
Jupiter turned to the sound and saw Uranus and Neptune running up.

"Trouble?" Jupiter asked. Venus tensed for action.

"Company's coming," Uranus replied, then gestured to the heavens.
"From up there."

"Aliens?" gasped Venus. "Or more Frost Giants?" Several of the
gathered survivors heard her and panic began to spread through the
crowd.

"No," was all Neptune got to utter.

Above them all came a brilliant red light. It seemed to burn like
a fireball, yet traveled in a controlled pattern at a controlled speed.
The gathered survivors fell back, many running for their lives in blind
fear. The four senshi spread out and assumed defensive positions,
prepared to ward off any new threat with their lives.

The fireball gently set down on the rubble-strewn street. It
flared brilliantly, causing all that watched it to shield their eyes,
then died away. Two figures emerged. Their vision recovered, Venus and
Jupiter looked and saw Sailor Star Fighter standing protectively before
Princess Kakyuu. With an elegance of movement that put the word
'graceful' to shame, the Princess glided up to the four senshi.

"It pleases me that we meet again," she said, bowing to them with
humble deference, "though I am saddened by the circumstances. If I may
be so bold as to make a request, would you please conduct me to Princess
Serenity?"

Continued in part 3