Rumors of War

Mina’s Tale – Part 10

It seemed that the world itself was exploding. Wars had broken out on all the continents and the losses were became unreal. Mexico and the US, England and France, Egypt and Israel, and China and Russia were involved in various states of war. The Earth itself seemed to be in constant war and it was affecting Darien. He is tied to this world through his power and when it suffers he suffers. Serena is spending her every waking moment at his side but even her presence is not helping him. He puts on a gallant face but I can tell that he is hurting. Nova gathered us together, “We have to help Darien and this world. The only way that we can affect what is going on is by stopping all the wars on the face of the Earth.” He started to explain his plan to us and readily we all agreed to help. If the wars will not stop on their own, we will stop them for the good of the Earth.

Nova and Susan did what they could to quell the invasions by using the power and money behind Silver Kingdom Inc. I never realized that the corporation they had formed wielded such power in the international community but when they threatened to stop the flow of goods to a country because of a war the country usually ceased hostilities. I rarely see Nova during the daytime and at night he holds me in his arms until he fell into a fitful sleep. It’s comforting to have him near me but I wish that I could do more to help his effort. We were not staying idle, no, far from it because Nova is having each of us use our power to prevent or suppress the outbreaks of war.

Amy sends in the rains and flood rivers to halt the advance of armies. Raye can have volcanoes erupt or fire break out to accomplish the same result but she needed to be more careful to prevent injuries. Lita was able to accomplish the most. She controls the powers of nature and it is disturbing to a person walking to battle to have the grass beneath their feet reach up and grasp their ankles. We all did what we could but we are so few against nations that are set upon the total destruction of the neighboring countries but we have to try.

Chibi’s role is the most important role in the conflict as she was trying to find the avatar called Battle. Nova wanted to have a direct confrontation with the being because he thought it was the best way to prevent farther bloodshed. She was not having much luck but I help her search everyday after school. She sits on the balcony and throws his mind to the four winds trying to touch his mind. I go along and kept constant contact with her mind to protect her because I couldn’t allow anything to happen to her.

We are lucky to live in Japan because the conflicts between it and another country never materialized. In accordance with the peace treaty that was signed after World War II, we are unable to field a standing army other than the Japanese Defense Force. The JDF was not an impressive force but it didn’t hurt when Nova appeared in the mind of every human in the world as the winged female and told him or her in no uncertain terms that Japan was under her protection. I finally learned the name of this persona; she is Sailor War, the Sailor of Vengeance, the avenging angel with the ebony blade. I have to say that this persona scares me to the core of my being. She is the avenging angel to her enemies and she was a great comfort to her friends but darkness resides in her soul. I wonder sometimes if Sailor War was just an outpouring of the Dark Queen. Nova was a different person when she was Sailor War, not, the one that I love but I knew that she loved me. Something never changes and one of those things is our love for each other. Nova hates to talk about Sailor War and I love him enough not to press the issue.

What frightened me about Sailor War was that I was in complete contact with Nova’s mind. I see the past, the present and glimpses of the future. The rise and fall of empires, the deaths of saints and sinners, and the birth of angels and demons is there in his visions. I understand why he hates this role in life; Sailor War’s power is beyond his understanding. After his first change to tell the world that Japan was off limits, he collapsed in my arms, “My love, your arms are so comforting. I don’t know if I could stand Sailor war if you wasn’t by me to hold and comfort me.” Nova slowly changed to a non-winged body. She looked at me with those green eyes, “Mina, you know I love you and I always will protect you but right now I need to be that little girl that’s inside me.” I held Nova close to my breast and undid her hair. It flowed down her back and over my legs. I stroked her head as she slowly went to sleep. I knew that she couldn’t hear me but I have to say something. “My love, you are the most important person in my life. I will always be here to hold you when you are troubled.” I kissed Nova’s head and went to sleep myself.

I began to take a stronger role in allocating Nova’s time. He will push himself until he is sick if I didn’t tell him when to stop. I am worried about him and it’s starting to affect our family life. Chibi wants her father near in these tense times but understands that he must try to solve this world’s problem. The wars between most countries have settled down to an uneasy border gathering of armies of each side but all parties have withdrawn to the own territories. Chibi is getting some serious leads on Battle and it seems that he is making his way to Japan for a confrontation. “Nova, why does he want to fight?” Nova took me in his arms and I brought Chibi into mine, “Battle’s plans are falling apart. The forces of nature are against him and the progress that he made with the unease that neighboring countries feel for each other is lessening as they start to understand why the other country acts in the manner that they have in the past.” Nova kissed me on the ears, “He realizes that as long as we are opposing him, he can’t conquer nations and since that’s his only weapon, he is unarmed against us.” He stopped and I can tell he was thinking. I cuddled closer to him, “If he’s unarmed why is coming here to fight and what will he fight with when he gets here.”

Nova laughed, “No, sweetheart, what I meant is that his plans to start a global war between all the nations and have some of the Sailor Warriors killed in these battles has fell apart. No, he is still powerful with the bow and the crown that was given to him by the Unstoppable. He just realized that he has to deal with us personally before he can continue.”

His words didn’t settle my heart, “Nova, how do we stop him?” Nova tightened his grip around my daughter and myself, “Mina, I don’t know. Well, not exactly, I do know that we possess the power that will destroy him but I can’t release the power of Sailor War against him without destroying the world. The power has to come from one of the Sailors but I don’t know which one except for something I read ages ago.” Artemis jumped up on the couch and was immediately seized by Chibi. He had overheard our conversation, “Nova, do you mean that phrase in the Martian Verses?” Nova reached and scratched Artemis’ fur. “Yes, my little friend. I believe it went:

‘When the angel appears on the moon

Watch the skies for the flash of war

The four from Styx will come to lay waste

But our protectors will defeat them

The power lies within them but they must find

The ones that turned from the light

But want to return to its warmth’

“Kind of a stretch … calling yourself an angel, Nova” said a white fur ball in Chibi’s lap. Nova chuckled, “It does make sense if they saw a winged figure called Sailor War. There are definite verses that name the angel as the Warrior that bring the final war and others state that the angel is the Queen of Darkness but she refuses to fight the light and embraced it with all her heart.” I leaned into Nova’s chest bringing my embraced wards with me, “Well, Artemis, pretty accurate description of someone that we know and love.” I settled in his embrace and while Artemis and Nova was discussing the meaning of verses wrote seventeen hundred years ago I and my precious girl fell asleep in the arms and paws of two that would give themselves to the winds of chaos to protect us. How can two people be more loved?

The next two weeks was stressful for me. I knew that the enemy was coming but we could do little to prepare. Little did I know that he would arrive and try to cause the most damage that you could possibly imagine! It was Saturday afternoon and I was strolling over to Chibi’s school to pick her up after her karate practice. She had made the team and if I can brag, she is the star of the team. She has yet to lose a match after six tournaments. She is wonderful to watch in her fights but under my tutorage, she was developing into a fine young lady. She is in the third grade, eight years old, or at least that’s what written on her birth certificate. It’s so enjoyable watching her grow but she also the person that Battle could attack and hurt me the most.

I arrived at the school and I knew something was wrong. Chibi usually is sitting under a maple tree near the gate reading some schoolwork when I came to retrieve her but today she wasn’t there. Something in the air must have given me a warning because I was transforming into Sailor Venus as soon as I step on the school ground. Nothing was going to prevent me from reaching my baby. I blasted through the outer wall of the gym and run through the opening. There was my precious daughter facing off against an armor-clad man. He wore a golden cape over his steel armor, a golden crown on his head, and in his hands a golden bow with an arrow composed of flames. He was pointing an arrow at my baby, “Love and Beauty Shock”, sprang from my lips and struck the arrow exploding it into a golden shower. I ran and grabbed my baby and rushed her out of danger. I didn’t care what happened to me as long as my baby was safe. I heard the bowstring snap and I prepared myself for the pain but it never came. Holding my girl in my arms, I turned around to face the demon. Standing between us was Terri who was holding her glaive aloft to form a shield around the three of us. He was about to attack again when I heard, “World Shaking” and “Deep Submerge” from outside the building. He was struck by both attacks that threw him through the other wall of the gym. The three Outer Sailors flew through the ruined wall in pursuit of the foe.

I gathered Chibi in my arms and slowly crossed the floor to the hole in the wall. Cautiously I looked around the corner and saw all my family fighting the golden demon. The Sailor Warriors would hit him with an attack then Terri or Susan would engage him with their weapons. Suddenly, both sides stopped their assault as the winged and white sailor-suited warrior appeared in the sky. “We meet in battle. Blood and glory will be our oath. Let the fight begins and let this be our last battleground”, shouted the enemy to Sailor War. Sailor War descended to the ground and loosed her ebony blade from its sheath. It shone, if something black as the night can shine, in the bright daylight but soon it grew dark as the blade absorbed the light. A cold wind started to blow towards the sword as the heat left the air. It was drawing its power but I knew that Nova could not deploy that destructive power against the enemy or the Earth would become a smoking cinder. Battle seized his bow as a staff and struck at Nova who blocked the blow with an effortless motion but she was totally on the defensive. She was waiting for the sign to appear that would lead to the defeat of the creature.

I was so engrossed in the battle before me that I almost didn’t feel Chibi’s pull at my neck, “Mommy, look, it is Uncle Kunzite!” I turned my head and saw him standing before me. I reached to him but my hand past through his body. I stared at him and he was the same as I remember him. He is dressed in gray with a long cape. His white hair framed his face and he looked down at me with my girl in my arms, “My Princess, I can not stay long. I am sorry for everything that happened in the past. The Negaverse broke us but we always remembered where our hearts lie. We want to return to our Commander but it’s not time yet.” Kunzite turned and I saw his mouth moved but no sound came to me. “I have to hurry before I must go. Remember that ‘ you must fight fire with fire.” He disappeared slowly from my sight but somehow I know that he would be back with us one day. Fight fire with fire what could he mean. It has to be something about Raye. She attacks with fire but … then it came to me.

“Chibi, stay here!” I tucked Chibi behind the rubble and run out into the fight towards Raye. I reached her and grabbed her from behind, “Raye, Flame Sniper, and aim for the bow.” Raye looked at me for a second and then turned to the fight. She materialized her bow and drew back the string, “Flame Sniper”, she shouted and the bow, string, and arrow were engulfed in flames. She took carefully aim and let the arrow fly. The flame arrow look suspended in its flight but soon reached the area where the two opponents were fighting. As if by magic, the arrow found its mark. His bow broke apart as it hit Nova’s blade. In total shock he looked at the fragments of his weapon as the Cosmic Bane found its mark in his chest. A cry rose from his throat to the heavens and he slowly slipped from the blade to rest on the ground. His body shimmered in the returning sunlight before it disappeared like the morning dew.

I saw Nova standing still before the spot where his enemy disappeared. She threw the sword down to the ground and fell to her knees, “Why must it always end in death?” I heard her crying and grabbed Serena as I passed her to go to my love, “Serena, go get Chibi”, and pointed to where she stood in the void in the wall. I reached Nova and placed my arms around the small woman, “Nova, it’s all right. We’re safe now.” I kissed her on the neck and brought her to my chest. She picked up the sword and threw it in the air where it disappeared. In my arms I discovered that I was holding my love in his male form, “We will never be safe again. The universe conspires against us to keep us from finding happiness.” I slide around to where I faced him and sat in his lap with my legs wrapped around him. The rest of the Sailor Warriors gathered around, “Nova, no matter what happens, we are still your family and we will find happiness whenever we can find it. We are here for you. We will love you, hold you, or comfort you whenever you need our help.” Susan placed a hand on his shoulder, “We love you and we know that we will get through this tumultuous time because we believe in you. You are our leader and our inspiration.” Serena and Chibi joined us on the ground and then all the Sailors knelt on the grass and we hugged each other with Nova and me in the middle of the radiating love. We returned home that night and we all slept in our living room. We were a family but we needed to be close together at this time.

We knew that the next avatar would arrive but we didn’t expect him to arrive so soon. In three days, the news broadcasts began relating stories on civil strife and racial hatred affecting every country. In turned to Nova and it appeared that he was in a trance. Words came from his mouth but the voice wasn’t his, “I see a man on a fiery horse waving a great sword. To him is given the power to take the peace from the Earth and set brother against brother. His name is many, Rebel, Hatred, Strife but we will know him as Rogue.” I held Nova close to me while he shook from the last vision. What will the future hold from us? I guess only time will tell.

What does the future hold and how will Rogue attack our small family? Stay tune for the next part, “Mask of Rogues”.