Bring Back the Past

Mina’s Tale II -- Part 4

A warm and welcoming light poured from the opened doors casting dancing shadows among the ruins. A brilliant light welcomed us home … a home we never knew existed. The symbols above the door flared a bluish light that outshone all the stars of the heaven. The sky became alive in the dazzling display of lights and then nine beams from the heavens struck the symbols and each glowed with the color of the corresponding planet. The planets were coming alive and giving their power to the structure and to their daughters standing in front of the doors. Immense power supplied to each of us granting abilities beyond the normal person. Powers that are unseen but affect our daily lives. I stared about me and looked down at Nova’s hand. A hand that commanded great power and here I, a small girl from a lone planet in the universe, was holding his hand. It’s strange that will all the wonder that was opening before me that I would look at Nova’s hand but there is something special about it. There is nothing unusual about it. It’s like everyone else’s with four fingers and a thumb but when it is in mine something magical happens. I look to my daughter being held in his strong arm. I was lucky to have found him after so many years.

As I gazed up at the building, I saw other structure reforming in the distance. The Palace that I remember was forming itself from the dust and ruins. It is a miracle. Everything was rebuilding itself to their appearance over a thousand years ago but the people were missing. They had left to populate the Earth or were reborn in the generations that came after the final battle. I was sad when I looked at the splendor developing around me. A sadness for all the people that lived in those structures and stood on this ground and gazed at this structure before me that represented the most powerful force in the universe. They saw it as a symbol of the might and power of the Silver Kingdom but without Nova it was just a locked building. Sealed from everyone including those that it would have protected from harm. Did we the right to take Nova out of the past? The thought only cross my mind for a second. The only answer, that was acceptable for myself and the future of humanity was yes … a thousand times … yes. Without him the planets would never support life again and I wouldn’t have him by my side. The first reason is important to everyone but the second is paramount to me. I seem to have found my direction in life with him by my side and I never wanted to give him up for anything.

I looked down the passageway into the building … I should call it the Fortress because that is its true name: the Fortress of the Warriors. The wood on the walls was a golden brown color and shone in the light from the ceiling that was washing the walls with a soft brilliance. The carpet in the hall was spotless even though no soul walked the floor for a thousand years. A great sense of agelessness came from the walls but I think that we would have this feeling when the Fortress was built. It may seem strange but the Fortress seemed alive, … no, not like you and me. It seems to possess some intelligence or emotion that is far beyond our normal senses to feel or understand. Nova started to move towards the door and slowly I followed at his side. I held his hand but I moved closer to be near him. I was touching his side with my arm wrapped inside his arm. It wasn’t that I was scared but it did comfort me to be close to him.

He moved slowly but with purpose and allowed time for all the others to form behind us. I looked back at their faces and saw the awe or fear in their eyes and faces. None of us except Nova and Chibi knew what we faced inside. Yes, we have memories of the interior but they aren’t clear and many areas in my memory were missing or hidden from me. We had talked among ourselves and not even Susan could fully recall the Fortress. It was a mystery but maybe without Nova, the Fortress sealed itself from all our minds or recall. Now, it was coming alive along with the Moon as we walked towards the doors. The Fortress was welcoming us home. We are its children and I can feel in my heart that it was our protector and friend. It would be days, weeks, or years before people could inhabit the region but I could feel that the Moon was rejoicing in the return of its magic and gaining the ability to sustain life once again.

I stopped at the threshold and looked at Nova’s face, “Love, is it safe to enter?” Nova laughed and raised my hand to his lips, “Mina, I would never build anything that would harm you or my family. It is a special part of us, a place where our essences are stored. Come, my love, let’s enter our home.” We stepped into the Fortress and the difference from the outside that was recovering from a long sleep was immediately noticeable. It was comfortable inside and any fears that I had dissolved as I walked in the entry. It appeared that the Fortress was welcoming us back and wanted to make everything perfect for us. We stopped just inside the threshold to allow the trailing group of Susan and Terri to enter the hall. It didn’t feel right to go on until all the family was assembled inside the Fortress.

Murals of vivid colors dominated the walls of the hallway. All the murals had a single theme, the Sailor Warriors. There we were in our Sailor suits and gowns and Nova in his uniform as the Defender of the Realm. He appeared so handsome in his uniform and appeared in most of the murals but at different ages. There were portrait of us as small children to ones that showed us at roughly our current ages. That would make sense since the Sailor Warriors grew with him. He is our focal point in the pictures a point of light that shows us the way through the darkness and brings us together. The portraits of all the Sailors in their splendor dominated the walls in the alcove at the center of the hallway. They seemed so real that it appeared to be a photo of each of us and if it weren’t for the brush strokes, I would swear that they were photos. As I stared at my portrait, I saw the artist’s name. It puzzled me why the pictures had a sense of love flowing from them but then the artist painted them with all the love he had for the subjects … Nova had painted them.

It must have taken him years to finish the portraits but every brush stroke was done with a purpose and with love. I looked to my right and saw Serena, “Nova, they’re beautiful. Is that what we looked like long ago?” Nova squeezed my hand and raised it with his into the air, “No, Serena, that is what you look like now.” I felt a surge of power and our outfits changed to match our portraits. The Sailor suits were slightly different from our regular uniforms but they seemed special, like the transformation that Pegasus brought about over a year ago. Nova looked at us, smiled and said, “You are all very beautiful and I love each of you with all my heart.” I looked him in the eyes and then stared down as his clothes had changed to the uniform in the picture and Chibi now wore a short gown. “Come everyone, we have a lot to do before we can go back to the Earth and so much to see. Our past and future waits for us.” We follow closely behind him as we entered the Grand Hall.

The Grand Hall was a circle with nine doors, one for each of the female Sailor Warriors, and the entry hall that we were walking out. Around the side of the entry are the common areas, the kitchen, libraries, and studies. The most important part of the Grand Hall is the round table in the center of the room. It was made of a light colored wood and polished to a luster that reflected the light that is cast on its surface. Eleven chairs of the same wood surrounded the table. Each chair held the planetary symbol of the sailor that it represented except for Nova and Chibi’s. Their chairs’ emblems were a starburst, an exploding star … a nova. I noticed that Chibi’s chair seat is smaller than the others but the chair rose to the same height as the rest and it had another symbol on its surface … my symbol, the planet Venus.

Nova gestured us to sit in our chairs. We moved around to our chairs and sat nervously at the table waiting for Nova to speak but he never said a word. Instead we looked at him and he extended his hand to Chibi and me. Soon all of us held hands with each other around the table. I don’t know what was going to happen next but the air was electric with excitement. Suddenly a bright light appeared and exploded over the middle of the table. Nova slumped forward in his chair without a sound. My heart leaped to my throat as I saw him face down on the table. No, he can’t be taken from me, not again. I will follow him to the gates of Hell just to be with him for eternity. I almost released Nova’s hand to hold him in my arms to see if he is alive but froze when two crystals came out of Nova’s back. The first was silver and shined with the light of a million stars but the second was black, so black that light entering it sphere of influence was absorbed. The crystals floated to the light over the table and engaged in some sorts of conversation among themselves. No sound came from the trio of entities but they were communicating among themselves. All the Sailors looked on the scene but no one uttered a sound. Eerie silence filled the Grand Hall but we were not afraid of the strangers in our midst.

I couldn’t stand it any longer and rose from the table to hold Nova in my arms. He was still warm when I placed my ear to his chest and heard his heart beating. Relief rushed over me like a waterfall, he’s still alive. I don’t know what I would do if I lost him so soon after finding him again. The light spoke, “Nova will be fine, Venus. Curb your thoughts of dread and doom. He is our chalice in which we poured our power and drink deeply from its source. We would not allow anything to happening to him or those close to him. We protected him from the Unstoppable and instructed him to have Pluto save him when all present thought the battle was lost. He did so unwillingly because he did not wish to leave you or cause you grief but we couldn’t allow him to stay in the past. His love for you almost destroyed the future of humanity. He wanted to change everything to remain with you but knew in his heart that humanity must be saved no matter the cost. We could not build on the past or we would bring it back. Only in the future did we see a chance of succeeding. It took a million years to develop Nova to be used against the enemy but we had to do what was needed … even if we had to wait another million years to get him to agree to our plan.”

Amy rose from her seat with a look of dismay on her face, “You mean that you planned everything … all the heartbreak, pain, and the sorrow of a billion lives just to bring about your plan. The Silver Kingdom and us were just toys to you, playthings to aid in bringing about your wishes but without a thought for the people that you affect with your decisions. What kind of being are you? To you man is just a tool to help you in your plan and nothing else.” Amy was upset. She usually was the most logical of the Sailors but her words spoke for us. I was outraged at the beings above the table. What right did they have to use people like they did?

The light darkened in thought, “Mercury, our ways are different but know that we did not plan the death of the Silver Kingdom, the planets or anyone. We hold all life to be sacred and must be cherished … but we control only half the final outcome in our war. We gave up the past and our physical bodies over a million years ago to save the future for all people and not just ourselves. We would rather allow harm to come to no one but we cannot let the other win or the universe will fall into total law, its law of entropy. The universe must have equal parts of law and chaos to survive. Please understand that we mean no harm but if we lose the final battle everything will be lost.”

I don’t know if the answer satisfied her but Amy sat down. I could see that she was still upset about their explanation but understood their reasoning and methods. Amy may not approve their methods but at least they … I don’t what they are … but each being held life as important as any of us surrounding the table. I started to wonder what this other that the light talked about in its answer. Was the other like them or was it something totally different? I had a feeling that we wasn’t going to find out until we needed the answer but just knowing that there is a greater importance to the Sailor Warriors and some good came from the fall of the Silver kingdom made me happier but was the good gained outweighed the cost of life. Hopefully, one day we can meet the enemy and after that day everything would be right with the universe. I feel that the answer that I would search for would not explain everything but only time would tell.

A change started to occur with the strange trio above the table. Beams of intense lights flooded the chamber and silently the crystals and the light merged into a ball that was the purest white, a sphere of all colors. “We needed to leave Nova’s body and infused the Sailor Warriors with the power that they lost traveling to the future. You are our children, our best hope for lasting peace. You are the future and the last hope for the universe. You must be prepared for that future and have the power to conquer the other. Know that we will always be with you. In the brightest dawn or the darkest twilight, we will remain with you to give strength and to hold you close when you are sad. Take care of yourselves.”

I sat in my chair but cradled Nova’s head on my chest and held out my hand to my left to retake Serena’s hand in mine. The sphere began to spin and beams of light traveled from its center to strike the tiara of each Sailor. Power began to flow into me. Power beyond my understanding or imagination was infusing itself into me but the sphere didn’t lose any luster as the power is siphoned from them. As suddenly as it started, it was over. The sphere of light moved towards Nova and entered his chest. He gasped for air and then was quiet. I felt his breathing against my chest and as I looked down to see if he was all right, I was stunned to see Sailor Super Nova in my arms. Except it wasn’t exactly her. She wore the same outfit but I saw and felt two wings emerging from her back. I looked in wonder as they grew and Nova shifted her head and brought her left wing to cover my shoulders. I felt the soft down of her feathers enveloping me in their warmth.

I knew that this change was not permanent but her body’s reaction to new powers and a method to control them. I reached into her mind and saw the person that I love inside but so confused with her mind trying to understand what was happening to her body. My contact seemed to calm her down but she was tired and collapsed against me. Nova was my responsibility that I welcomed with all my heart. He or she was my soul mate and no matter what form, I would love Nova with all my heart. I shifted in my chair to lift Nova in my arms. She is so light, almost like picking up a small child but I felt the power in that little body. She was smaller than Serena … maybe three inches shorter but she had the same frame. Erica and Lita came to me to take Nova from me but I looked them away. “No, Nova is my fate and soul. Thank you for the help but I have to take care of him. I have held him up in the past and I will hold him up in the future. He is my burden but I’m glad that I can count on all of you when I need the help. It’s just that right now I want to make sure that he’s fine.” I shifted her in my arms to get a better hold on her. She opened her eyes. I saw Nova’s green eyes. Even as a girl I was drawn to those eyes, “My love, I’m sorry to be so much of a burden” spoke Nova in a small feminine voice as sleep came over his mind.

What happens next, all I can say is stay tune for “Changes”, the next installation of Mina’s Tale II.