Deep Blue Sea

Meetings – Part 1

Nova has always said that I was like the planet of my birth. Mercury appears to be an average looking planet from space but inside the planet is a great hidden treasure, a deep blue sea as wide as an ocean on any planet. He says that I am complex like the planet, sometimes cold or hot but with a hidden treasure located deep inside. Everyone will tell you that the sea is azure color but I think that it’s a perfect sapphire blue like the emblem of House Moon. I was born by this sea inside a large cavern deep within the core of Mercury. I will always remember my days beside the sea and the treasures that it held for my people.

A thousand years ago, the grand Duke of House Moon came to a lifeless world and with powers beyond imagination carved a paradise within the planet and place a cooling sea that dissipate the heat from the sun side of the planet and warms the ice bound nether region of Mercury. The sea gave an environment that allows the transplanted people of Earth to establish a colony. My distance ancestor was the first governor of the colony and later became the first Baron of the new established fiefdom. We are blessed with an abundance of mineral wealth and even though House Moon could demand up to fifty percent of the production of the mines, they wanted all their profits returned to the people of the planet in the forms of environmental improvements including hydroponics centers and fish fingerlings that stocked our sea and provided us with a sense of self-support. Mercury prospered under House Moon and we paid fealty to them with our hearts and deeds. Even when the Grand Duke became the first king of the Silver Kingdom, we paid homage to him as our Grand Duke not the king.

The first sight that I could remember seeing, besides my father and mother, was the endless blue sea that gave us our life. I played in the shallows of the sea when I started walking and it always brought me joy whenever I can swim. Swimming is my hobby, no, almost an obsession but when you think that it was the waters that gave life to you, you will tend to appreciate it more than people from a world that had plenty of water like Earth. In a way, I guess that Nova may have been talking about my shyness when he told me that I was like Mercury. The planet doesn’t show its beauty to the universe but presents a façade of normalcy. It for the people that it loves that it shows its beauty and Nova considers my intelligence to be my most beautiful aspect and you can’t see that on the outside of a person’s body.

My father is an average man, nothing that distinguished him from a multitude of others except for his position but that’s what he always wanted, just to be one of the crowd. He told me one day that his wealth drove away many friends and loves until the day that he decided to leave it behind, even if it was for only a short time, and dwell among the people that he would one day rule. He became a common fisherman working the trawling rigs on the sea. He tolled an honest day work and then celebrated the catch with friends from the boats. He enjoyed this type of life but realized that he had other duties in the future. One good thing that came out of the years that he spent with others. That thing he has always said was the most important thing that he could find until I came in his life. While working the docks he met a small sixteen-year-old girl that worked in her father’s bakery. She was a shy thing, to hear him speak about her, but she won his heart with a smile. It took him three months of talking before she agreed to go with him on a date but it had to be with many others around them. She decided that he could take her to the day of remembrances.

The day of remembrances is a special day of the year because Mercury only celebrated two holidays; the other holiday is the day of fealty when we pledge ourselves to House Moon. This day is when we remember the old Grand Duke and the power he used to create our world. The day is concluded with a great festival with rides and fireworks. My father dressed in what would be considered a dockworker’s finest clothes when he went to escort his love to the festival. They enjoyed themselves fully, or at least that what Mother tells me, and at the end my father asked her to be his bride. She tells me that she was taken back by his rushing into the relationship but she demurely accepted his proposal for she loved him and wanted to be with him the rest of her life. She could stand the life of a dockworker’s wife for the man that she would call her beloved.

My mother couldn’t be more surprise when Father took her by the hand and walked to the royal manor of the Baron of House Mercury. It was more surprising when the guards rushed to open the gates to the courtyard when Father raised his hand to them. She was separated from her fiancé by ladies of the court and taken to a room and dressed in finery that would cost her father a year’s salary. The ladies fussed over her making sure every strand of hair was in place and every seam falling in perfection. When they were satisfied with their ward, she picked up her train and the oldest lady took her by the arms and escorted her to a great hallway.

She soon met my grandparents and they fell in love with her and gladly welcomed her into the royal family. I think that Mother tends to embellish certain aspects of her situation since I always remember her father as having a large business and owned five bakeries in the city but it’s a good story. I came into their lives three years later. Mother always called me her pride and joy and she always had time for me. I guess that’s why I always wanted to learn more since Mother always was happy when I told her another piece of knowledge that I learned that day. I started to read at the age of three, a rather young age but doing things that were beyond my age seemed nature to me. I remember, at the age of five, visiting the observatory that my grandfather had founded. It actually is remote controlled with the viewing area located comfortably by the edge of the city. The actual equipment is located on the dark surface of Mercury facing away from the furnace of the sun. I think my first vision started me on my studies of celestial movements of the planets and stars that led to my obsession with numbers and the interactions of stellar bodies. I soon became knowledgeable in the subjects and was asked to join the observatory’s staff at seven.

My first sight of the moon started me dreaming that it was the place that I belonged. It looked like a shiny white pearl glistening against the blue planet of Earth. Each locked to each other in a timeless struggle neither to touch each other nor pull from the other’s safety. Within a year, I had rising to the highest position offered by the observatory and my love for the stars began to wane when my father announced that House Moon was holding the fealty ceremony on the moon to celebrate the marriage of Grand Duke Nova to the Venusian’s princess. All expenses were being paid by the Grand Duke, so father insisted that I would travel with him and Mother. Actually, I think that he didn’t want to be away from Mother at this time. She was pregnant with my second sibling, in her sixth month, and she was having some medical problems and he thought that he could try to make an appointment with some of the doctors while on the moon. Mother always has had a delicate constitution since she gave birth to me. She tease me that giving birth to a daughter with such a large brain wore her out but I think that it is the climate of Mercury’s interior that brought about her condition. She rarely goes outside to see the azure sea that she once loved but remains in the climate control comfort of the manor. I worry about her all the time but she insists that she is fine and just needs a rest. I know that there is something else that they are hiding from me.

The trip to the surface was the most exciting experience of my life. We boarded a submarine that will take us to the airlock that lies at the bottom of our sea. As we sank lower in the sea I could almost see that temperature change as the water began to cool. The sea life differs greatly as one goes lower into the sea that gives us life but most of the major predators were never imported to our world so all we had to deal with is the occasional porpoise or a large catfish in the region by the sea. Since the salinity becomes greater as you go deeper, the water remained liquid even though the temperature had fallen to almost freezing. At the airlock, our submarine docked and we entered a heated region where we will board a spaceship to take to the moon.

This trip is truly exciting for me. It’s the first time that I have ever left the security of our city by the sea and as we rose from the surface of Mercury, my face was glued to the window drinking in all the wonders of space. My soul has finally found its place in the universe and I knew deep down in my soul that Mercury didn’t hold my future by the sea that I love but here in the boundless reaches of space lies my destiny. I felt my father’s hand over my shoulder and he drew me back from the window as the visor doors quietly slide into place. They are needed to shield the passengers from the blinding light of the sun as the spaceship turned over the northern pole to set their course to the stars. The acceleration pushed me back into my seat and the soft light poured into the cabin. When the visors opened, I looked back towards Mercury with a dread that I would not see it again for many years. Mother gave a soft cry of pain and Father left my side to sit by her. She appears fine but I knew that Father was glad that the fealty ceremony was being held on the moon so he can find out what medical problem troubled her.

The trip was rather boring after the first few hours. It grew more exciting when we passed Venus. Venus is a world of puzzles. Bounded areas of green lush life is surrounded by the swirling chaos of a greenhouse atmosphere composed of sulfur and carbon dioxide where the temperature is hundreds of degrees. Venus, like Mercury, gained its ability to allow life from the first Duke of House Moon but because it occurred after he became the first king, they pledged their fealty to him as king and not duke. It has become a paradise in the last thousand years but it’s also a planet that will play an important role in the future.

Politics was never my strongpoint but I understood a little of the situation as I overheard my father and his advisors. House Venus has entered into a contract with House Moon that will unite both houses under a common banner. Prince Nova, my liege lord, has entered into marriage with Princess Mina of House Venus and thusly combined the houses after Mina’s parents’ death. House Venus was being overseen by one of the cousins of Princess Mina but I knew that Prince Nova was the power behind the throne. I hope that when I’m on the moon that I could just get a glimpse of him and the Queen but I’m probably dreaming thinking that I would get out in public very much. Father is rather protective of his family and really allows us access to the public. When we go swimming, it is at a private beach with guards on the cliffs above the beach. He is overly protective of us but I guess that’s his way of showing that he loves us.

Queen Serenity was very generous in honoring House Mercury. Even though we weren’t her vassals, she treated us with great respect and assigned a suite of room in the east wing of the Crystal Palace while we visited the moon. The Queen loved her brother and she always respected the noble houses under fealty to him. General Jadeite visited us within an hour of settling in the rooms with greetings from Prince Nova. Jadeite is the Prince’s right hand commander and the actual general in charge of the High Guards. Even to my untrained eyes, the High Guards is the most significant force that is employed by the Silver Kingdom. They fall under the control of Prince Nova but we all know that they were here to protect the Silver Kingdom from the Negaverse. The General told my father that a squad of High Guards will be close to provide protection for my family. “Prince Nova told me that your family is to be protected and provided with immediate fulfillment of all your requests. He is very glad that you were able to arrive with little trouble and ask that you use his voucher to purchase any item that you wish while you are here. He doesn’t want you to pay for anything while you are his guest.” I thought for a second and realized the rumors of Prince Nova’s wealth must be true if he is paying for all his people’s needs or desires. I knew that Father would not abuse the honor that the Prince had bestowed on us but I knew it would have cost a small fortune for our visit and Mercury is not a rich planet. Mercury has a great deal of wealth but also a large amount of that wealth went to provide the basic necessity of maintaining life in the barren planet. Even with the Prince returning his share of our tithes, we regularly run a deficit budget in most years and if someone were paying for this trip, it would have came out of Father’s pocket and not the general funds.

General Jadeite continued to speak, “Baron, please send me the paperwork for your trip here and any other expenses you incurred. I’ll see that you are reimbursed. The Prince realizes that it’s a strain on the Houses to meet here on the moon and he doesn’t want you have to pay for his royal command of appearing in his court.” My father must have pondered for a moment but soon went to a portfolio that he always carried and produce the requested paperwork, “Please tell the prince that’s this is unnecessary. We don’t expect him to pay us for coming to the moon. We would travel a greater distance if it is his will.” Father deeply bowed as he presents the paper to General Jadeite, who returned the gesture, “Don’t worry, My Lord, the Prince has a reason for gathering his people here at this time. He will call upon you to attend the fealty ceremony in three days so until then, please enjoy yourselves and don’t worry about the cost.” The general turned to the door, “He just glad that you made the trip with your family. Family is important to him and he knows that his family extends to his supporters.”

As he past me, Jadeite stopped and looked close to me. “Baroness, is this your oldest daughter, Ami?” Mother came behind me and placed her hands on my shoulders, “Yes, this is Ami.” He extended his hand to me and took mine in his hand, bowed, and brought my small hand to his lips, “My little one, the Prince and I have read your monogram of pre-formation celestial bodies in the early development of the solar system. We are impressed with your insight and he wants to extend an invitation for you to visit the Royal Observatory when you are free.” I blushed as he gave my hand a squeeze, “Yes, we were very impressed indeed.” With those words, he stood and started for the door.

My father had to attend a meeting with Prince Nova and his generals and my younger siblings were too young to be unattended so it fell to me to accompany Mother to the doctors. She gave me a kiss on my cheek and told me to be a good girl while I waited. I wouldn’t have made any trouble for the staff even if she hadn’t told me. I sat in a corner of the room pouring over a tour map of the Silver Palace and the surrounding areas. The waiting room started to fill with people but I kept to myself until a young blonde teenager approached me, “Excuse me, would you mind if I sat here?” I looked at her, she was beautiful, the most beautiful woman that I have even seen. Her long blonde hair reached down to her waist and tied high on her head with a red bow. She was dressed in an orange and blue gown and wore a silver necklace that contained a star sapphire. “Please,” was all I said as I gathered up the map and literature that was on the chair beside me. She slowly sat down besides me and gave me a smile that I thought would never end.

She looked at me with those blue eyes, “You seem a little young to be here. I mean … these doctors treat problems that I can’t believe that you would have yet.” I smiled at her, “You mean problems of a feminine nature. I know all about those but I’m here with my mother. She’s pregnant and is having some difficulties with carrying the child.” I saw the look on her face, as I talked more about my mother’s problem and the blush that came to her cheeks as I described it more fully, “Well, that’s why I’m here but you seem a little young to be here also.”

More redness came to her cheeks, “You probably right but my sister-in-law makes me come here once a month for a checkup.” She looked too young to be married, “Your sister-in-law? You can’t be more than thirteen and it’s hard to imagine that you are married.” She gave a small laugh, “Uh, I don’t know your name. I’m Minako.” She extended her small hand to me and I took it in mine, “My name is Ami.” Minako appeared in thought for a second, “Ami … Ami … I know now, you are Ami Mizuno, the eldest princess of House Mercury.” Now, I’m the one that must have looked astonished, “Yes, that’s me.” She moved over slightly so we could talk more privately, “To get back to your question, Ami. I have been married for almost a year and I have to say that I’m married to the most wonderful man in the universe.” I knew that she couldn’t be correct about that last statement because I knew that the most ideal man in the universe was Prince Nova and he was wed to the seven-year old Princess of Venus and not the thirteen-year old girl that I was seated beside. “She wants me to come here once a month so the doctors can make sure that I’m … developing … properly for my physical age.”

We started talking and I soon realized that she thought that she was more my age than one would expect from a thirteen-year old girl. I enjoy her company and the time while I waited for my mother went far quicker that I wanted. The doctor escorted Mother to where I sat and pulled a chair so he can sit in front of us. Minako started to leave but I placed a hand upon hers and she settled back down in the chair beside me. “Ami, you are old enough to understand what I have to say. Your mother and the baby is doing fine but we need to monitor her closely for the next few months so she won’t lose the child. We have an excellent pre- and post-maternity facility here and it’s my recommendation that she and your family enter it immediately so we can start taking care of her.” I looked at my mother’s face and realized that she was worried about the costs; my father’s resources were still hard pressed, even with Prince Nova’s generous favor of paying for our visit on the moon but he would never expect him to pay for a stay inside what has to be a very expensive facility. Mother smiled at the doctor, “Thank you for all your help but I’m afraid that I have to decline the offer. We are a wealthy planet but my husband uses the money for the people instead of our personal needs.” I was proud of my mother but she needed the care and I’m sure that Father would sell everything to make sure her and my unborn sibling was safe.

Before I could speak, Minako looked at the doctor, “Doctor, please have the arrangements made for Baroness Mizuno and her family. Send all the bills to my husband and he will take care of everything.” The doctor rose from his chair and went to speak to a nurse. Mother looked worried, “Miss, I can’t allow you to do this. My husband doesn’t take charity from anyone.” Minako started to speak but the doctor came back, “Princess Mina, everything will be ready within the hour.” Princess Mina --- wait --- that’s Prince Nova’s wife but she’s only seven, I was totally confused. Mother grabbed Princess Mina’s hand, “Are you our Duke’s wife?” She nodded and looked at me, “Ami, we are the same age but my body is developing faster than it should as is Serena’s and Nova’s so the Queen is always worried about my health.”

I can’t believe what was happening but I knew that she spoke the truth and I suddenly hugged her, “Thank you Princess but my mother is right, Father would never accept this arrangement.” Princess Mina held me closer, “Well, my friend, we just have to make some arrangements. Since you seem like an intelligent young lady, you must realize that according to Kanly Law, that Nova must provide protection and comfort for all his subjects and that includes your mother. If you are worried about your father accepting the offer then all I have to do is tell Nova to make him accept it. Nova will do anything for me, I’m his wife.” My mother started to cry and she hugged Princess Mina, “Thank you, Your Grace, I’m sure that my husband will accept.”

The nurse came for Princess Mina’s appointment but as she left, “Baroness, if you want to repay us then … please allow Ami to have dinner with us tonight. Nova would love to talk with your little girl about her interest in astronomy. He has always been a great believer in the stars and I think would enjoy your daughter’s company.” Mother quickly agreed, “Fine, then I will have someone come for her at seven tonight.” Princess smiled and waved as she left. I held my mother’s hand but the only thing that I could think about was that would soon meet my liege lord. I hope that he wouldn’t be disappointed with me.

So ends our first tale. Ami meets Nova and the rest is history as the four Sailor Warriors spent years together before they find the next destined one. In the next chapter, we will meet the Warrior of the Flames in Meetings, Part 2, “Future in Flames”.