Earth
Guardian Prince Endymion
By Senshi
of Ruin and Mizu no Senshi
Act Thirty Seven Recap:
(Mamoru’s POV)
“Look!” Mamoru shouted, cutting into the cat’s ravings, “I
don’t know what you are talking about. What am I have supposed to have done?
What’s happened to Usagi?”
Even now, even after everything that has happened, I still
care for Usagi and when Luna came to me and said that Zoisite had teleported
her away, I didn’t know what to think. The Shitennou are my guardians in this
world, but they are trusted friends, too.
“Usagi, don’t listen to her. Venus is a traitor. She
tricked you into giving her the Ginzuishou and now seeks to give it to Beryl.”
It was the same for the Princess and her Senshi in the
past life, but Usagi made a grave mistake by entrusting the Ginzuishou to Dark
Venus.
“They are working together, Master.”
“Is this true?” Endymion demanded.
Yet even we couldn’t have foreseen that the Dark Kingdom
would attack one of its own.
The Dark Senshi was on the ground, bleeding from a wound
in her upper arm, as Mio stepped up to her, a crackling ball of blue energy
floating just above her palm. The blonde Senshi looked up through her mattered
fringe at Mio, her gaze steady and showing no emotion.
“Venus!” Sailor Moon cried again, struggling to push
passed the Youma but they held her back.
Dark Venus is dead and we were powerless to help her, but
Artemis thinks otherwise.
“You promised me!” Artemis snarled, “You promised me that
you would save her!”
“There was nothing I could do. Venus was a traitor. She
was no longer your friend.”
“She might have been again, had she been given the chance!
We had a deal, Seiichi. Have the Shitennou no honour after all?”
I know that it did seem as though Zoisite was betraying
us, but he cares just as much about the mission as we all do, possibly even
more so.
“We’ve queued up since 5 this morning and he didn’t bother
to show up. It was chaos here earlier. No one seemed to know where he was.”
It was a bad night for all of us, but Seiichi isn’t
usually one to take things to heart. He must have had a reason for missing the
signing this morning. I just hope nothing has happened to him. We parted on
such bad terms and if anything has happened I will never forgive myself.
*****
Act Thirty-Eight: Part One
“She was not a traitor. If anything, he is!”
“What do you mean?”
Mamoru sighed and ran a hand through his hair in
frustration as he gazed upon the apartment block. After leaving the mall he had
come straight here and had been here ever since. Either Seiichi wasn’t there or
he had been ignoring him.
Even a day ago the former would have been more likely but
now… Mamoru just didn’t know. The thought of teleporting straight in had
crossed his mind, but it seemed like an evasion of privacy to Mamoru and he
felt awkward even thinking about it.
Now that he had a chance to think things through, Mamoru
was pretty sure that this wasn’t the case.
Seiichi wasn’t one to take what Artemis had said to heart, but then
again Seiichi had been acting like himself at all ever since… ever since my
awakening, Mamoru realised. Admittedly he didn’t know Seiichi as well as Masaki
and had debated giving his friend a call, but if there was something wrong,
Mamoru was confident that Seiichi wouldn’t thank him for alerting the others to
this.
The guards were gone from the apartment block, Mamoru had
noted as soon as he had arrived, indicating that Seiichi wasn’t there, but
something had made him keep his vigil outside.
“Venus!” Sailor Moon cried again, struggling to push
passed the Youma but they held her back.
There was also Usagi to consider. A part of Mamoru wanted
to see how she was. She hadn’t been in school, or so Rika-san had said, but
what kind of Prince would be if he abandoned one of his own in favour of the
Princess? He had done that before and to do so again would be a violation of
trust. Seiichi had risked everything by being the decoy Prince and Mamoru
realised that he had never truly expressed how grateful he was to his friend
for that. At the time he had been angry with Seiichi for keeping this from him,
but now he was glad that it had been so. Had he found out who he was from the
beginning he wouldn’t have had the courage to fight and even without this
additional knowledge things had been difficult.
Mamoru wasn’t very good with dealing with problems. He
preferred to keep things to himself and he supposed that the others were the
same to some extent, yet Seiichi seemed to be a master of deception and a
little part of Mamoru was sick of it and he was sick of waiting outside all
day. He leaned back against the wall of the apartment block and checked his
watch. It was getting on and the sun was almost set. The afternoon had passed
and Mamoru was shocked that he had spent almost a whole day waiting. He had
tried Seiichi’s phone but it had been switched off and he had left several
messages. Then, as luck would have it, Mamoru happened to glance across the
street and see a black limousine pull up onto the curb. He hurriedly jogged
over to it as the driver got out.
Mamoru felt like a bit of a fool when he asked the man
where he had taken Seiichi.
“Who wants to know?” he asked gruffly.
“I’m his manager, Ikuhara Tetsuya” Mamoru said without
thinking.
“Ikuhara-san” the driver said in surprise, “I didn’t know
you were back.”
“Where did you take Seiichi?” Mamoru repeated, not quite
believing his luck. Obviously this driver had never met Tetsuya before.
“He requested that I drive him to the harbour,
Ikuhara-san.”
“I see. Do you know why?”
The driver shook his head; “He gave me this and told me to
leave” he showed Mamoru a wad of Yen.
“Can you take me there? I’m worried about him.”
The driver considered this for a few moments, “I don’t
know. He said he wanted to be alone. I don’t want to lose my job over it.”
“You won’t” Mamoru assured him, hoping that this was true.
He really didn’t want the man to get into any trouble over this, but he was
really worried about Seiichi now. What could possibly be of interest at the
harbour?
The driver nodded and gestured for Mamoru to get in. “If
you are sure, Ikuhara-san.”
“I am” Mamoru answered as he got inside the limousine.
******
“You are not to blame for what happened. No one blames you
so why must you blame yourself like this?”
“She might have been again, had she been given the chance!
We had a deal, Seiichi. Have the Shitennou no honour after all?”
“You’ve changed, Seiichi. There was a time when you used
to care about other people. When did you become so selfish? Well you can drown
in your senseless self pity for all I care!”
Zoisite stood at the harbour’s edge, staring at the
reflection of the full moon in the water. It felt as though he had been here an
age and, indeed, he had been. He felt powerless to move from this spot. His
mind was whirling with the events of the day before, his thoughts in utter
chaos. He hadn’t expected it to be like this… this was all Tetsuya’s fault! How
dare his manager drag up issues that should have died that day! As soon as he
awoke his powers, Komoro Seiichi had died. He was Zoisite and always would be.
Nothing else mattered expect the mission. He had no other purpose in this
world.
Then why did he feel like this? No… he didn’t feel
anything, that was the most frightening thing. He felt numb.
He felt as though he should feel something, but he didn’t.
The chaos was over powering and yet he felt detached from it now. As he stared
down at his own reflection, his true self, he felt his confusion begin to wane.
“Zoisite?”
He heard his Master’s voice and saw Mamoru’s reflection
standing behind his own. How had the Master managed to follow him here? The
confusion was back and Zoisite exhaled deeply, clenching his hands into fists
as they started to shake.
“Where have you been?” the Master tried again, taking a
step nearer, “You disappointed hundreds of people today. Why?”
What? Oh, the signing…
“That was not important.”
“And standing here all day staring at your reflection is?”
“I haven’t been here all day, Master”
“Then where have you been?”
“I wanted to be alone.”
“May I ask why?”
Zoisite shrugged, “Is that an order?”
“Why does everything have to be about orders? Seiichi, I’m
worried about you!”
He had no answer to this. He had no wish to talk, not even
to the Master.
“De-transform” the Master said next, “I can’t talk to you
how you are now”
Zoisite hesitated slightly and then did as he said.
“If this is about Venus” Mamoru said quietly, “There was
nothing you could do, despite what Artemis might think.”
“I do not care for Dark Venus, Master”
Mamoru took another step in his direction, “Then what is
it?”
“I--” Seiichi started and then broke off as a shadow to
his left caught his attention.
Zoisite ran, his heart hammering loudly in his chest as he
gave chase to the Youma. It was always one step ahead of him… he could almost
scream in frustration as it tore down the back streets of Tokyo, moving fast,
even in the daylight.
It had eluded him so many times. That day in the park
before he collapsed, when Jadeite and Zoisite confronted Sailor Moon… he could
easily lose count of the number of times when this particular Youma had
escaped.
Seiichi locked gazes with the Youma, well aware that his
trembling had increased as it stepped out of the shadows towards them. It had
eluded him so many times and now… now it appeared before him? Seiichi stumbled
slightly, even as Mamoru transformed, drawing his sword as he did so.
“Master, matte” Seiichi whispered, a lump forming in his
throat as the memories that this particular Youma invoked threatened to send
him to his knees.
Endymion paid him little heed and slashed at the beast. It
leapt back, shock keeping it from fleeing as much as its mere presence rooted
Seiichi to the spot. He couldn’t move… his heart was pounding in his chest… he
swallowed hard as a wave of vertigo crashed into him when the Master struck
again. His second blow knocked the stunned Youma to the ground. Seiichi moaned
in pain and placed a shaking hand on his forehead, but his gaze was still fixed
on the Youma and his Master.
“Master” Seiichi called again as Endymion raised his sword
above the struggling Youma’s chest. “Master, matte!”
Seiichi lunged forwards, seizing hold of Endymion’s wrist,
forcing his sword hand to halt its downward arch. The Youma leapt to its feet,
bounding away from both men and back into the shadows. For a moment that seemed
to stretch over an entire lifetime, neither man spoke. Seiichi let go of
Endymion, even as the latter de-transformed, and stumbled backwards, trying to ignore
the pounding in his head as he did so.
“What the hell did you do that for?” the Master whispered
coldly and Seiichi could tell that Mamoru was struggling not to lose his temper
completely.
Seiichi shook his head. Gods, he couldn’t talk about this… not today of all
days. Before he realised what he was doing, Seiichi started to walk away.
“Seiichi!” the Master ran after him, surprising them both
by grabbing a hold of his arm, forcing him to a standstill. “You are not going
anywhere until you tell me what is going on! I know something is bothering you
and I want to help if I can.”
“Nothing is going on, Master.”
“You’re lying. You’ve been acting weird for days. At least
explain what was going on with that Youma.”
“Is that an order?”
“I don’t want to force you to tell me anything, but”
Mamoru took a deep breath, “If it is affecting the mission then, yes, consider
it an order.”
Seiichi stopped dead and turned back to face the Master. A
direct order… he couldn’t not answer and suddenly he had no will to do anything
otherwise. Yet it seemed that Mamoru was already regretting his tone.
“Seiichi-kun, I’m sorry” he said quietly, “You don’t have
to tell me. Not if you truly don’t want too.”
“No” Seiichi shook his head, looking out across the
harbour again as he spoke, “It shouldn’t bother me. Not now I have awakened my
powers, but sometimes…” he broke off and said instead, “That Youma, it is
connected to me.”
“Connected? How?”
“When it feels pain, I feel pain and vice versa. If it
dies then so do I. I have been after it for a year now, ever since I awakened
to my destiny as one of your guardians.”
******
Komoro Seiichi nervously shuffled through various sheet
music feeling more than a little anxious as he glanced, from off-stage, at the
packed concert hall. He took a sip of water from the glass on the table next to
him and set the sheet music down, only to leaf back through it a few minutes
later. He felt more than a little apprehensive about tonight and who could
blame him? Only a few weeks ago he had been just another pianist among the
hundreds of others in Kamakura City and now, because of the right contacts, he
had a best selling CD single and was to perform live on stage for the first
time in front of hundreds of fans and three different television channels. The
chances were that millions of people all across Japan could be watching him
tonight and Seiichi wasn’t the least bit happy about it.
Of course, he had played in public before. Playing the
piano had always been a source of comfort for him and, he had to admit, he was
talented. He wrote his own music, and could play the Moonlight Sonata
with his eyes closed. It had never truly been his goal to release a best
selling single. It was just something that had happened and Seiichi had to
admit he did enjoy fame… just a little bit, but who knew how long it would
last? It was only one single after all and so he kept reminding himself.
In a few months time half his fans would have probably forgotten that he even
existed.
He jumped slightly at the knock at the door, which
interrupted him from his thoughts. Seiichi called out for them to enter and
they did so.
“How are you feeling?” Komoro Zinan, Seiichi’s father, asked
as he hurried into the room, shutting the door behind him.
“Fine” Seiichi answered quietly as Zinan took a seat on
one of the chairs opposite him and then got up again and took to pacing up and
down in front of him.
Zinan, unlike his son, was an extravert. He couldn’t sit
still for five minutes and always had to be doing something. Zinan also played
the piano as well as the drums, and the guitar and taught music in a local
primary school. Zinan was taller than Seiichi and wore his hair long and tied
back in a loose ponytail. He was always dressed in jeans and Seiichi doubted
that he even owned a suit. Indeed the white shirt and jacket that he was
wearing tonight were loaned from Ikuhara Tetsuya, Seiichi’s manager.
Apart from their music, Seiichi and Zinan had very little
in common. His father had a wide circle of friends in the music world and his
dream had always been to become famous for his skills. Sadly, although Zinan
was still relatively a young man, he had just turned 40 years old; health problems
had always kept him from fulfilling that dream.
Zinan had been 21 when he got an infection in the left
ventricle of his heart. For a while it had been serious and, at the time, the
doctors hadn’t been sure if he would live. Zinan was told afterwards that he
could never put himself under any unnecessary stress as his heart was weakened
by this infection. Even now he could only work part time due to the strain and
owing to his extraverted nature, he often found this frustrating. Seiichi could
only suppose that this was why, when he started to learn to play the piano,
that Zinan pushed him so hard.
Still despite their differences, father and son rarely
argued and it had been Zinan who had persuaded Tetsuya to become Seiichi’s
manager. Tetsuya and Zinan had been friends since high school and Tetsuya had
unofficially been Seiichi’s manager since he was thirteen but, owing to the
risks involved, he had only been granted a recording deal when he turned 21 a
few weeks ago. Because of Zinan and Tetsuya’s friendship, Tetsuya felt an
obligation to look after Seiichi and often reminded him of this and thus his
manager looked out for Seiichi far beyond the call of duty. Seiichi did find
Tetsuya a little suffocating at times, but he knew the man only meant well and
saw him as the son he would never have.
“Are you sure?” Zinan asked, breaking into his thoughts,
“You look terrified.”
“I’m a little nervous” Seiichi allowed, “It will pass.”
“Seiichi you are a master. You have nothing to be nervous
about” Zinan assured him, “This is just the break you’ve been looking for.”
He shrugged, “In a few weeks it will have all died down.”
“What sort of attitude is that?”
Seiichi smiled “A realistic one.” Zinan also did tend to
get carried away and, if Seiichi wasn’t careful, he found it very easy to get
swept away in his father’s enthusiasm.
“You underestimate yourself” Zinan ridiculed him, “You are
a very talented pianist, much more so than I was at your age.”
“I don’t know about that. How long before I have to go on
stage?”
Zinan sighed and looked at his watch, “About ten minutes.
Why?”
“I need some air” Seiichi stood, setting the sheet music
back down as he did so, and hurried towards the back door. This was all moving
so fast. He shut the aforementioned door behind him, glad to leave the roar of
the fans behind. Zinan was right, Seiichi did underestimate himself, but he
couldn’t shake off this feeling that… he sighed and started to walk along the
deserted streets, pondering his actions.
Ever since he was a child he could remember watching his
father play the piano with an awe that, at first, Seiichi put down to
admiration and respect for the man. But as he grew up, Seiichi found himself
almost drawn to the instrument and he had never before been interested in even
learning the piano, despite his father’s obvious love for it.
Playing the piano brought about feelings of familiarity
and calm upon him and Seiichi could quite easily lose himself for hours in his
room composing new pieces. They had to be right, if not he would tear the paper
up and start again. Seiichi was easily a perfectionist when it came to his work
and, as strange as it sounded, he felt as though the piano was the key to
unlocking a part of himself that he had always suspected existed but he had
never truly believed in.
Now, as he walked along the streets, seemingly lost in his
own thoughts, Seiichi found that these feelings were returning.
“It is just nerves” he whispered to the night air and, if
the truth be known, he felt a little guilty that he was so concerned about one
performance. Zinan and Tetsuya had worked so hard to help him achieve this and,
though Seiichi had never asked for it, he owed them both a lot. Zinan had
always been supportive of his music and Seiichi knew that he wouldn’t have been
able to get up on the stage for the first time when he was thirteen without
this support.
Seiichi sighed and stopped walking, knowing that he should
get back. His ten minutes were almost up and it wouldn’t be good to delay the
start of his first performance.
“Seiichi?”
He glanced around when he heard someone call out his name.
Scanning the streets, Seiichi frowned when he couldn’t find anyone. Thinking he
imagined it he started walking back when he heard the voice again.
He whirled around. Set on the ground in front of his feet
was a small white plushie cat. Looking around, Seiichi couldn’t see anyone else
present and he would have noticed if the cat had been there before. He shrugged
to himself and knelt down, reaching out to pick the plushie up.
“Seiichi?”
He jumped backwards, his eyes widened in surprise as it
spoke. It spoke? He really was nervous, Seiichi thought to
himself and laughed nervously, dropping the plushie as he did so.
It bounced harmlessly onto the concrete and, again,
Seiichi berated himself until it sat up, shaking itself as it did so.
I’ve lost it; Seiichi thought to himself as he took
another step back, I must be seeing things. It moved.
The plushie gazed at him for a moment or two, narrow green
eyes boring into his own.
“Komoro Seiichi?” the cat spoke again.
“How do you know my name?” Seiichi felt foolish for even
replying to the animal. Cats couldn’t talk, especially plushie ones! He looked
around curiously, wondering if this was his brother’s doing. Yasuo did like to
tease him sometimes.
“You were easy enough to recognise even in your current
form” the cat continued, much to Seiichi’s dismay, “Though I doubt that I would
have found you at all had you not started performing in public. Do you know how
many pianists live in Kamakura?”
“You were looking for me?”
The cat nodded, “My name is Artemis. I am one of the
celestial guardian cats of the Silver Millennium.”
Silver Millennium. For some reason that name…
Seiichi frowned and pressed a hand to his forehead, almost stumbling when an
image, fleetingly, flashed before his eyes. A beautiful marble palace
surrounded by trees, huge rolling lawns and gushing fountains…
“So a part of you does still remember,” Artemis stated
quietly.
“Remember what?” Seiichi asked, suspiciously. He knew this
was madness, he had to get back inside the concert hall, but something…
something compelled him to stay and listen to Artemis, although this feeling
also filled him with dread.
“Your past life. Your true self.”
“My true self?”
“There is no time now. Meet me here after your concert and
I will explain.”
With those words, Artemis turned and bounded back into the
shadows, leaving Seiichi staring helplessly after him.
My true self… what had he meant by that? That palace… it
had seemed familiar somehow… what was this?
“Seiichi!” he turned, startled almost as Zinan hurried
towards him. His father paused to catch his breath and Seiichi immediately
expressed his concern.
“I’m fine” Zinan brushed this off and placed a hand on his
shoulder, “Where have you been?”
“I needed some time to think.”
“Are you all right? Do you want anything?”
“Seiichi?”
He glanced around when he heard someone call out his name.
Scanning the streets, Seiichi frowned when he couldn’t find anyone. Thinking he
imagined it he started walking back when he heard the voice again.
He whirled around. Set on the ground in front of his feet
was a small white plushie cat. Looking around, Seiichi couldn’t see anyone else
present and he would have noticed if the cat had been there before. He shrugged
to himself and knelt down, reaching out to pick the plushie up.
“Seiichi?”
“Seiichi? Do you need anything?” Zinan repeated.
“No… I’m fine.”
“Good.”
Seiichi allowed Zinan to lead him back inside. His mind
was suddenly not on the concert anymore.
******
The full moon shone down upon the vast rose gardens of the
Earth palace, illuminating it in a liquid silver as the two lovers stood locked
in a needful embrace lost in their own private world. For once it was a
relatively peaceful night, even the fighting had died down to a dull roar. But
it was getting closer all the time. Soon it would reach the palace itself…
All Seiichi could feel was relief when he played the final
notes of the Moonlight Sonata and stood, glad to leave the stage,
despite the calls from the fans for an encore. He would grant their request,
but not tonight. Seiichi’s head was pounding, his thoughts swimming with half
blurred images of a place that he had never been too and yet, deep down, he
knew.
His music should have brought him some relief, but now it
only served to magnify his confusion.
Zinan and Tetsuya were waiting to greet him back stage.
His father was so proud of him and so he repeated several times. It was
strange, Seiichi thought, how little his father’s praise seemed to matter to
him now. Even earlier this evening…
“That was a magnificent performance,” Tetsuya said,
interrupting Seiichi from his uneasy thoughts. His manager’s gaze, however, was
darkened as he nodded towards the reporters outside. Tetsuya was dressed in a
black suit which was fitter for a funeral than a concert, even a classical one,
and Zinan had tried to get his friend to dress a little more for the occasion,
but Tetsuya tended to overreact when the media was present.
Seiichi wasn’t overly sure why this was. Zinan had
explained was that this reasoning stemmed from certain revelations concerning
Tetsuya’s private life and left it at that. Seiichi didn’t know or really care
what these revelations were except that they couldn’t be true. Tetsuya had been
a family friend for years and had been good to Seiichi, especially when he was
just starting out as a pianist.
Good publicity came with the bad and Seiichi knew he just
had to accept that.
“You could have performed the Moonlight Sonata one
more time, though” Tetsuya whispered as they reached one of the practice rooms
further down the hallway and away from the noise of the fans. “They did request
an encore, after all.”
“I play for my own enjoyment, not theirs”
Tetsuya fell silent, stunned at the hostility behind those
words and even Seiichi regretted it. What was with him tonight?
“There is no time now. Meet me here after your concert and
I will explain.”
He stood again and Zinan demanded to know where he was
going now.
“I want to get some air.”
“You can’t” Tetsuya objected, finding his tongue again,
“There is a media circus outside.”
“Then get rid of them. That’s your job isn’t it?”
Tetsuya looked about to argue, but then changed his mind
and hurried from the room. Seiichi sat back down again, feeling more than a little
ashamed at how he had treated his manager. It was because of Tetsuya that this
was all possible.
“You didn’t have to snap at him” Zinan pointed out quietly
once Tetsuya was gone, “He was only trying to help.”
“I know” Seiichi shrugged, “I didn’t mean too” and he
didn’t. He didn’t know what had come over him. Of course, no one was perfect,
but he rarely snapped at anyone, especially his manager.
“You’re probably a little tense after the performance”
Zinan answered him, “There is a car waiting outside.”
“Your past life. Your true self.”
“My true self” Seiichi whispered to himself. He glanced
down at how he was now. This was his true self… wasn’t it? He didn’t know and,
suddenly, the idea of finding out filled him with dread.
He had probably been imaging things, Seiichi told himself.
After all he had been nervous before his concert and… he frowned, not quite
believing his own thoughts, but what else could he believe? That a plushie cat
could move and talk and had been searching for him?
It was nothing but a combination of nerves and fatigue,
Seiichi told himself as he followed Zinan to the waiting car, pausing to sign a
few autographs along the way. There was nothing more to it than that.
******
Seiichi went with Zinan and Tetsuya back to the family
home on the Eastern side of Kamakura. Seiichi had his own apartment a few
blocks away as he liked to be close considering Zinan’s health problems, but he
often stayed at the family home after concerts and tonight would be no
exception. Indeed he was glad for the company.
His headache had eased slightly and Seiichi, in truth, had
almost forgotten all about Artemis… until he arrived at the family home that
was.
Shina, his mother, greeted them and she hurriedly drew him
into an embrace, repeating how proud she was several times before letting him
go. Shina was in her late thirties, but didn’t look a day over twenty-nine. She
wore her hair loose and feathered, a long fringe just brushing her hazel coloured
eyes.
Shina was quiet and preferred to keep her feelings to
herself, a trait that she shared with her eldest son. Despite this, Seiichi
knew that she often worried about his father and did his best to make sure that
Zinan wasn’t overdoing things, although Zinan was too proud to admit it if he
was. Shina was sensible and rarely did anything spontaneous, preferring to
think things through before deciding to do anything. Seiichi had always found
it strange that she should be with someone as extraverted as Zinan and even
more so that Shina should choose to start a family so young. This thought made
Seiichi uncomfortable, knowing full well that her young pregnancy with him had
never been planned. He had always known this but they both assured him that it
didn’t mean that they loved him any the less for it. Seiichi chose to believe
them. He didn’t have a choice in the matter and he knew that they would never
say it unless they meant it. He had forced the issue from his mind; if he
didn’t then it would just eat away inside of him. So why was he thinking of it
now as Shina led them inside
“Seiichi!”
As Seiichi entered the house Etsu, his younger sister, met
him in the hallway, through her arms around him.
“You were great,” she cried, as she stepped back, smiling
up at him after speaking. Etsu was eleven and wore her black hair in long
pigtails, held in place with blue ribbons. Etsu, too, loved music and had
recently taken up learning the flute. Unfortunately, she had not inherited her
father’s musical talent and Shina had described her playing as like listening
to nails on a chalkboard. Of course, no one had, had the heart to tell Etsu
this and Zinan explained that he was hoping that she would get better with
practice. Seiichi wasn’t so sure, but last month Etsu had wanted to be a
gymnast so he expected that next month she would want to be a ballerina or
something along those lines. She was at that age after all.
“You watched the whole concert?” Seiichi asked, when Etsu
again repeated how much she had enjoyed his performance.
“Only if she promised to go to bed straight away” Shina
added in sternly, “Which you did, Etsu.”
“Mou, Mama” Etsu pouted, “I just wanted to see Seiichi.”
Shina smiled slightly and relented, allowing Etsu ‘five
more minutes and then she would have to go to bed’.
Etsu nodded enthusiastically to this and followed the
adults into the front room, happily telling Seiichi about her music lessons.
Whereas Zinan’s talent for music had escaped her, his bold nature was certainly
present in his daughter. Etsu couldn’t sit still for five minutes and, when
talking, she was constantly pacing up and down.
As they entered the front room, Seiichi was met by his
younger brother, Yasuo. Yasuo was fifteen and he, too, was quiet unlike his
sister. Yasuo loved to draw and wanted to become a Manga artist when he was
older. He could quite happily lock himself away for hours in his room just
doodling on bits of paper.
As well as drawing, Yasuo was a member of several after
school clubs and was captain of the junior high school’s basketball team.
Despite both being quiet, Yasuo had inherited his father’s
sense of humour and loved to play jokes on his other family members. Seiichi
smiled slightly, recalling the time when his brother had glued the lid of his
piano shut, and Zinan had spent hours trying to open it without realising what
had happened.
“Great show” Yasuo said with a smile as Seiichi sat down
on the sofa.
“Thank you. Did you watch all of it?”
“Most of it” Yasuo answered, “You were awesome.”
“Of course he was” Zinan said proudly, “He’s worked really
hard over the last few months.”
Seiichi had to admit he felt a little uncomfortable when
they all started talking about how good he was. Tetsuya was always telling him
that he was too modest, but Seiichi honestly didn’t see what the fuss was all
about. He just liked to play the piano, that was all and, whereas he did
appreciate and enjoy his newfound success, he was confident that it wouldn’t
last and hated the fact that Zinan tended to get too carried away.
“I might get some rest” he said, interrupting the excited
chatter regarding his performance, “It’s been a long day.”
They seemed disappointed of this, but let him go. Even
after Seiichi moved out, Shina had kept his room for him and for this Seiichi
was glad. It was strange how he just wanted to be left alone. Of course, he
was, by nature, quiet, but this was his family! Why was he feeling such
despondency towards them? What was wrong with him?
Seiichi reached his room, smiling at how little it had
changed since he had last stayed at the house. The walls were still painted
dark blue and the white curtains with music notes etched on them, that he had
since he was seven, were still hanging across the window. The moonlight shone
into the room, its silvery glow filling Seiichi with unease.
Tearing his gaze from the window, Seiichi sat down on the
bed, lost in his own thoughts until he started to get the feeling that someone was
watching him. The hairs on the back of his neck began to tingle as he whirled
around and found himself face to face with a pair of emerald green eyes.
“You were supposed to meet me!” Artemis cried angrily as
he bounded forward, coming to rest on the bed beside Seiichi. The latter bolted
up, knocking the alarm clock off of the bedside table as he did so.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Seiichi demanded
furiously, berating himself for being scared so easily. It was just a cat and a
toy one at that!
“Did you think you had imagined me?” Artemis continued,
keeping his voice low as they both heard footsteps on the stairs. “Well you
didn’t and you are going to hear what I have to say whether you like it or
not.”
“Seiichi?” Zinan opened the bedroom door, frowning
slightly when he saw how on edge his son appeared. “What was that crash? Are
you all right?”
“I just knocked this over” Seiichi picked up the alarm
clock. “That’s all.”
“It might help if you had the light on” Zinan replied, a
little suspiciously, flicking the light switch on as he spoke. Seiichi whirled
around, glancing back to the bed and almost sighed in relief when he saw that
Artemis was gone.
“Are you sure there is nothing wrong?” he pressed when
Seiichi failed to answer this.
“No. I’m fine. Just a little tired that is all.”
Zinan sighed, and looked as though he was going to say
something else and then thought better of it, “Goodnight, Seiichi.” With those
parting words he shut the bedroom door again.
Seiichi turned back to the bed, once his father had gone,
and was dismayed to find that the plushie was sitting there once more.
The cat looked deadly serious, if that was possible for a
plushie to do so, but Seiichi still couldn’t help think that this was some sort
of prank that Yasuo was playing on him.
“You still don’t believe in what you are seeing” Artemis
stated, his voice taking on a slightly calmer edge as this realisation dawned
in his eyes, “I know you’ve had flashbacks. A marble palace, a battle drawing
nearer… I’ve seen these things, too.”
“Flashbacks? I don’t know what you are talking about.”
Seiichi shook his head and turned away. This wasn’t real…
it couldn’t be real. He started to walk towards the door. Perhaps he should go
back downstairs after all? He was obviously losing it.
“Seiichi?” Artemis called after him, “Seiichi, wait!”
He ignored the cat until Artemis yelled out: “Zoisite!”
“Zoisite, the Youma will kill all within these walls. I
have been trying to get the women and children away. We have evacuated as many
as we can, but the Youma have the palace surrounded. We are going to make a
final stand in the grounds. Serenity is leaving. The Moon Kingdom needs their
Princess.”
That voice… one his own and one very different, but yet
familiar… Seiichi stumbled, leaning forward into the closed door as, coupled by
half blurred images, the voices echoed inside his mind until they were whirling
together, no longer distinguishable from each other.
“His Kingdom will still fall. Not now, of course, but
there will be much resentment between him and his people. If he marries the
Princess…”
“Master?” Seiichi
whispered, as he saw the silhouette of a man walking before him, swishing his
cape as he did so and then coming to a standstill beside another person, this
one female.
She whispered these words, her hands clasped tightly together
in front of her as she addressed the man. Her mere presence filled Seiichi with
loathing and he fell to his knees, the familiarity behind this scene was too
difficult to deny and he forced his eyes to open and meet Artemis’s softening
gaze.
“Zoisite” he said again, “That was the name of your true
self.”
“My true self?” Seiichi repeated weakly, suddenly having
no will to argue with this supposed guardian cat. Zoisite… that name was so
familiar to him… It was his name. But why was he…
“In the past life you were one of the Shitennou who
protected the Earth Kingdom’s Prince, Endymion.”
“Endymion?” Seiichi repeated. He tried telling himself
that this was madness, but his name and the name of his Master… there was no
denying that Artemis spoke the truth now.
“Sit down” Artemis bade him, and Seiichi did so. Obviously
encouraged by this submission, the cat continued:
“A thousand years ago the Earth was one giant kingdom,
ruled over by Endymion. The Earth was given life by the people of the Moon
Kingdom, the Silver Millennium. Yet there was much resentment between the
people of the Earth and Moon. The people of Earth were jealous of the longevity
of the life on the Moon and this hatred soon turned to war. Leading the war was
a demon called Metallia, awakened from her refuge deep in the Earth’s centre,
by Beryl, a courtier whom Endymion had spurned in favour of the Silver
Millennium’s Princess, Serenity. The Prince and the Princess’s love was
forbidden, but they ignored the advice of their own guardians and continued
their relationship. Consumed by jealousy and rage, Beryl destroyed the Earth,
killing Endymion’s Shitennou and brainwashing the Princess’s Senshi.”
Artemis paused and looked expectantly up at Seiichi.
Seiichi held his gaze, very much aware that he was shaking. This story… it was
true, he knew this deep down and this terrified him. He didn’t want this… he
was Komoro Seiichi not this heavenly king, Zoisite. He was Komoro Seiichi.
“Beryl then turned her attention to the Silver Millennium
and attacked using the power of Metallia. She killed the Princess’s mother,
also named Serenity, and then Endymion. Distraught by the Prince’s death, the
Princess used the power of the illusionary Ginzuishou to kill Beryl and destroy
both worlds. Yet life on Earth began to thieve again, evolving into the world
as you know it today, but the threat of Beryl and Metallia has not gone away.
When Serenity used the Ginzuishou, Beryl was sealed back within the Earth in a
place called the Dark Kingdom. She has managed to break the seal and, with the
Dark Senshi, is trying to gather human energy to fuel an second awakening.”
“A second awakening?”
Artemis nodded, “Already there are Youma, the Dark
Kingdom’s servants, in Kamakura. They seek to drain the energy of humans. You
were reborn in this form to fight the Dark Kingdom’s second awakening and find
your Master, Endymion.”
“No” Seiichi shook his head and took a step backwards,
away from Artemis, “This is insane. The entire concept is ridiculous! I’m not a
guardian of the Earth!”
“You are!” Artemis snarled angrily, “You are Zoisite and I
have been looking for you for nearly a year now and you will not disappoint me
like this. Why else do you think you are a master at playing the piano?”
“My father is--”
“No. Zoisite was a master pianist. You have excelled in
your lessons far surpassing your ‘father’.”
“I’m not going to listen to this.”
“Zoisite--”
“My name is Komoro Seiichi.”
Artemis paused, his anger still clear in his eyes, even as
he sighed and said: “Okay. I’ll leave. I can just walk out of here and pretend
that we’ve never had this conversation if that is what you want, but it will
never go away. You are Zoisite and even when I am gone, you will still have the
memories of your former life, no matter how hard you try to block them out.”
“There are no memories,” Seiichi answered, trying to
reassure himself of this more than the plushie.
Artemis shook his head and then slowly excited the room.
If Seiichi was expecting the tension to leave his body with the cat’s departure
then he was very much mistaken. If anything he felt worse. His heart hammered
loudly in his chest as he crossed the room and pulled back the curtains,
staring at the full Moon in the darkened sky.
The Earth was given life by the people of the Moon
Kingdom, the Silver Millennium.
Seiichi winced, forcing himself tear his gaze from the
satellite as another image came to mind. Two people running hand in hand down
the stone steps of a palace, laughing the young woman twirled around her male
companion as he drew her into an embrace. Seiichi clenched his fists as his
sides, feeling an intense wave of fury directed towards the girl.
“Master” he whispered out loud without realising it.
“His Kingdom will still fall. Not now, of course, but
there will be much resentment between him and his people. If he marries the
Princess…”
“Okay. I’ll leave. I can just walk out of here and pretend
that we’ve never had this conversation if that is what you want, but it will
never go away. You are Zoisite and even when I am gone, you will still have the
memories of your former life, no matter how hard you try to block them out.”
“No” Seiichi shook his head, pushing all his doubts aside,
“There is no past life. There is no Dark Kingdom Youma. I am Komoro Seiichi and
nothing more.”
He quickly got undressed and climbed into the bed, whilst
repeating this sentence over and over as though by doing so he would somehow
believe it.
******