"For Serenity's Sake"
By: Isis @}->--
isis@moonkingdom.com
Rated: G
Disclaimers:  Please do not copy.
AN:  Dedicated to those who work to protect the innocent, and a 
prayer for those battling again prejudice and injustice.  We are all 
the same inside, only some of us choose to revoke our own 
creaturely status and attempt to rise ourselves to more… since 
Adam and Eve it has never worked.


Chapter 9
@}->--


Serenity sat peacefully in the deepening shadows of evening 
twilight.  The Earth was dark tonight, but it remained mysterious 
and omnipresent on the horizon.  The ruffle of the day had nearly 
been forgotten, and her studies were put aside for the evening.

She leaned back in her seat and looked up through the open 
framework of the Selenium to the few bright stars that could 
already be seen.  The orange of the sun through the atmosphere of 
the Earth cast a glow on the gardens surrounding them.  Even the 
fountain next to her felt the effect of the coming night; its waters 
seemed hushed as they flowed in rivets of little orange flames.  
The wind was circling lightly as it seemed to be unable to decide 
upon just one direction that it would haunt this night.

Yet without warning it switched its attack and roared harshly right 
through the fountain, sending sparks of water like shrapnel towards 
her.  Serenity was so surprised by the sudden upheaval she allowed 
herself to be carried off the bench that she was sitting on and 
tossed to the rock of the floor.  The wavering light of orange burst 
into a ball of energy between the Selenium and the fountain 
sending shockwaves through the area and causing her to slide back 
even farther.

The princess found herself leaning up on one elbow, which was 
perched on the first step of the metal shelter.  The light intensified 
and again she was forced back, screaming in surprise as she was 
tossed down the two steps onto the rock pathway opposite her 
unseen attacker.

She coughed as she rose to her hands and knees undignified and 
terror stricken.  She whipped around to the orange ball of crackling 
static; eyes blinded by the light and her own tears.

"Such a pitiful child," it mumbled almost inaudibly over the din of 
the rush in her ears.  "What do you think you could ever lead?" it 
spat as the intensity rose again.

The flash was her only warning as the pure force of fury reached 
out and wrapped itself around the surrounding area.  The metal of 
the Selenium was the first to feel the wrath and it screeched as the 
metal gave way as more and more static energy was poured into it.  
The whole frame of the round observation shelter was being ripped 
and forced from its stone foundation.  And it was aimed straight 
for her prostrate form…


The dull knife twisted full turn as Endymion rounded his last 
obstacle and headed full tilt for his fallen bride.  She was wide-
eyed and panicked, attempting to get to her feet as the power-lit 
figure screamed with the exertion of forcing his powers to rip the 
mammoth frame from its foundations and hurtle it into the fragile 
princess.

Serenity made it halfway to her feet before he rounded the circular 
bulk of the gazebo and snatched her into his arms as the scream of 
metal shrieked and died in a chain of increasingly fast staccatos.  
Catching her in a glancing blow he carried her several steps before 
his footing was tangled in her skirts and they were both driven to 
the ground.

He wrapped her securely in his arms and managed to take the brunt 
of the fall on his armor, rolling as far as possible out of the falling 
monument's way.  The aftershocks threw them several more feet 
and into the sidelining shrubberies.  The momentary daze was 
enough to slow Endymion's reaction time and he left Serenity's 
form close to the protective bushes as he staggered to his feet, 
assessing his barring.

The huge artwork was now strung in a tangled mess of metal 
limbs.  Its last 'legs' still attacked to its holdings, farthest from the 
figure still wrapped in a crackle of orange energy.  For the most 
part the thing inside of it stood steady, but Endymion drew his 
sword, knowing that it was next to worthless.

The figure slowly turned to the side that they now stood at and the 
orange of the energy seemed to collapse itself until it was 
completely centered in the black figure's eyes…


The clatter was all the more defining seeing as it was completely 
unexpected.

The waning evening had been a wonderful time for the guardians 
of the moon to repay the favor of Earth's resplendent generals for 
their earlier pilgrimage to the planet.  With time during the 
princess' studies the four guardians had escorted the four generals, 
Lady Styx and Prince Endymion, about the Royal Palace's 
grounds.  Since, the prince had gone to wait Serenity's release, 
Styx had vanished without much of a word, and the dwindled 
group of eight had requested their evening meal a bit early.

There was not that much formality between the two guardian 
forces, yet common courtesy would not have excused the four 
earthling's abrupt disposal of conversation and their dinnerware.  
The girls did not even have the time to ask what was wrong before 
the men were to their feet and the quickest was sprinting for the 
door.

Kunzite, to his credit, tapped Mina on the shoulder, nearly taking 
her from her chair, and threw over his shoulder, "The prince has 
called us!"


In the dim, faded light, the darkness seemed to ever envelop the 
figure before him.  Black robes and an air of sunken mortality 
reigned, and Endymion was forced to look directly into the blaze 
orange glow of two eyes.  There was no other feature that existed 
on the man, nothing but the concentration of power so focused and 
centered.

And looking into those eyes, Endymion knew there was next to 
nothing he could do.

The figure appeared to gather an amount of dignity to himself and 
the darkness around him once again was lit by the static crackle of 
energy as he brought one hand up on front of him.

The prince was in a terribly desperate situation; he was forced into 
a corner with Serenity behind and their only protection coming 
from his own powers, never before tested off his home planet.

He felt her stir behind him but could do nothing at the moment.  If 
he could only remove her from harm's way…

The figure stretched his hand to full extent, power pulsing 
repeatedly faster.  Endymion concentrated, praying for enough 
help from his guardian hanging low and black in the sky, to block 
this threat.  A golden glow gathered itself around him and he 
clenched a ball into his left fist…

He never noticed the approach of the fourth individual until his 
opponent snapped back with a howl of pain, his energy dispersing 
like lightning above his head as he flung his arms around in 
thrashing motions.


The ball of light illumined only a small part of the vast, unconfined 
yet enclosed area.  Its surface at once reflected and absorbed the 
images that played out across it.  The vision turned and then 
stopped as all light ceased to show from the sphere; its only 
replacement being that of two glowing orange eyes.

"It seems our time has come."


Serenity was battered and feeling broken, but she did not have the 
time or the consciousness to dwell on it.  She had no idea of what 
was happening, but the yell of pain was the first to awaken her to 
the realization that she was not in the best of positions.

She looked up to see Endymion spin towards her out of a crotched 
position and grab her arm to toss her to her feet.  She was barely 
able to recognize his words through the throb of her heart in her 
ears as he yelled at her to run.

The princess never questioned and simply let herself be guided by 
his strong hand wrapped around her upper arm, forcing her on in 
front of him as they both sprinted back towards the cross sections 
of the garden-maze.

Something flew past them as they ducked and landed very hard 
against the bush covered rock wall divider ahead of them but it was 
not until Serenity recognized more than saw the lump that now lay 
sideways of their path.  A distant shriek was heard just behind her 
mind as she became aware of what had been flung by them.

"Luna!" she screamed, tearing away from Endymion's grasp and 
reaching for the black lump, half tangled within the rose bushes, 
without heed of what her actions would cause.  She dropped to her 
knees and enfolded her feline teacher in her arms; shock already 
well set in.

There was no time for her to collect herself as she was once again 
hauled bodily to her feet, Luna still in arm, and pushed forward 
into the maze.  "Run!" came the only reply to her scream of terror 
at what had happened to her friend.

Yet again she ran with all her might, unable to do anything else.  
She had no direction but dodged around the first bend in the rows 
of dismal green.  Suddenly the landscape lit to life and she was 
thrown physically off her feet and hit a lining hedge, slumping to 
her knees and cascading onto her side, head hitting the stone of the 
walkway before she ever realized she was off her feet.


Endymion stood to his feet again, and tried once more to raise 
Serenity, yet stopped, noting that she was unmovable.  Deathly 
afraid he stared at her a moment, still cradling the lifeless form of 
her feline friend who had fearlessly jumped unto the back of their 
attacker to try to forestall his efforts.  Serenity…

He stood shocked, yet the thunder of another orange flash rocketed 
past him, sending his mind toward the goal of the moment.  She 
would live; she would have to live…  He prayed she would live.

But the only assurance of that was to make certain that this menace 
was dealt with before he could find and harm her farther.  Without 
thought he ran down the aisle of plants the way they were going 
before and at the intersection to the next branch, jumped instead 
over the hedge stone and landed a row away from the clearing 
where the Selenium once stood.

The marauder was staggering in the direction that they had fled 
and Endymion leaped to the top of the last wall separating them as 
the other was about to enter the labyrinth.  Coming from this 
direction he had the upper hand and he was determined to take it.

Yet, before he was able to gather enough energy to himself a flash 
of white, almost nova-like, light lit up the area where he had left 
Serenity, and he was shocked to see from his vantage point, her 
body rise and turn over in mid air, still lying prone and unmoving, 
Luna's limp body sliding to the ground.  The light gave way to a 
shape and revealed the youth's body in the arms of a woman.  And 
a woman that he was fearfully unable to place.

Shrouded in black and with floating black hair, this entity did not 
seem whole or even real.  Yet she rose, not only Serenity's body, 
but also her own as she floated a half-meter off the ground, trailing 
the shadows with her.

He was stunned but involuntarily moved into action at this new aid 
to the enemy.  He leapt from the wall he was perched on to the 
next with only semi-success.  The bushes, growing up past this 
lining wall caught at his boots and brought him down inside the 
face of it and away from his bride.  Roses and branches snapped at 
him as he finished his fall and heard something not so discretely 
snap once he hit stone.

The blinding pain burst inside his left arm, yet it did not prevent 
him from seeing the buttered light of the figment that had swept up 
his child-wife brighten in a flash and was gone.  He stomped to his 
feet and groaned in agony, most of it non-physical, as his body 
slumped back to its knees again.


The bright flare of light was a desperate beacon in the blinding 
night.  The guardians of the Earth Prince, stumbled in their flight 
through the Palace walls and outer balconies, threading their way 
towards the gardens that they knew housed their liege and 
whatever danger that he was facing.  Behind them sprinted the four 
girls associated with the protection of the Moon's new court.

Yet there could be no mistaking where the action was transpiring 
as they ran, jumped and dodged their way through the foliage of 
unsuspecting plants, trampling as many as possible in their path.

A new light of cream overcame the flashes and lightning nightmare 
of the orange pulses that had suddenly stopped.  The four generals 
spread themselves out in the last of their run and meant to encircle 
the scene.  Kunzite ran full tilt and scrambled up the bush-
shrouded wall and launched himself over it and into the middle of 
the fray, rolling as he hit the ground to rebound back to his feet on 
the opposite side of the pathway.

What he saw was enough to make him stop shorter than he had 
intended as the image of a woman as Night herself blinked out of 
existence with Serenity in her arms as the light that had 
surrounded, and somehow given her structure, came unstrung from 
the black frame… and they vanished.


Lady Jupiter bounded out of the courtyard area into the beginning 
of the rose rows and stopped in her tracks as Nephrite had stopped 
only a few meters in front of her.  She had followed him as the four 
had split themselves off and was now grateful that she had.

The bright light that had guided them here shot outward in all 
directions, wordlessly going back to where it had come from and 
they were left again in the dark.  Yet standing there, just before the 
entrance to the first rows was a figure, bent at the waste and 
holding its side.  At first Lita would have assumed this to be a 
simple bystander that had gotten in the way, yet the figure noticed 
them and raised itself to height again, turning towards them with 
eyes that blazed with the orange of fire.


The sound was muffled in echoes, as though there was no end to 
the expanse of the room, but the murmurs were certainly voices.  
Hushed, quiet voices that resembled water drops in volume to 
Serenity's clogged ears.

Barely conscious she could only listen, for as yet, she could not 
bring herself to open her eyes.  Her body was heavy with nonuse 
yet lightly laid upon the flat surface.  The voices rose in octave, as 
though an argument could be made out, though no words found 
themselves to her mind.

With quick, fluttering movements Serenity commanded her eyes to 
open, though they responded sluggishly.  She opened them to life, 
yet could not tell if they were open or she was simply dreaming 
they were.  Around her nothing but the black of night echoed back 
to her.  Slowly she pushed herself up onto her elbows and fought 
back the current of dizziness that assaulted her.

She closed her eyes a moment and simply let the feeling of 
freefalling pass.  She coughed lightly, unable to catch her breath 
quite well enough, as though there was not enough air in this space 
for her.  She also noted that she was cold to the touch, as though 
the warmth of life had passed away from her…

Life.  She looked up fully now, sweeping her gaze around her in 
circles, eyes wide, frightened.  Where was she anyway?

Nothing came back to her as blackness clouded around her like an 
empty mist.  There was literally nothing here.

Serenity was closing on panic.  Where had she been taken?  Was 
she even still alive?  What was happening on the Moon?

"…Endymion?" she choked.

The princess rose to a full sitting position and found herself staring 
off into the blackness of the night surrounding her…

It was then that the whispers came again, still unrecognizable and 
hollow sounding, as though they flowed in from long distances.  
Serenity glanced around her, before stopping herself and listening 
closely to the sound.  Slowly she turned to look behind her, 
following the sound that she attempted to hear.

She drew in a deep breath as she nearly jumped out of her skin in 
first fright and then relief.  Lady Styx stood a ways away, cloaked 
a bit in the darkness and watching her.  Although the sight also 
held Serenity exactly where she was as the shadows, wrapped 
around her, formed a shape nearly unseen in the darkness.

She saw Styx's lips move and she again heard the whispered words 
that simply did not reach her hearing.  The phantom aside her 
moved to walk, or float, closer to her as it overlapped Styx's 
image.  Serenity slid back, feeling all too trapped in this endless 
prison.

Styx became visible once more as the shadow passed by in front of 
her and Serenity wanted to cry out to the woman for help, but she 
saw instead that none would be forthcoming from this would-be-
guardian.  She turned away from the scene with a sweep of ankle 
length black hair, which somehow now appeared to take on an aura 
of green… as though lit by the fires of Hades itself.


Endymion staggered to his feet and regained his balance, his self-
healing abilities helping to heal his broken arm already, although 
without his input as he had other things pressing on his mind.  He 
stomped toward the clearing that he had originally stood posed 
over the top of earlier.  He turned the corner and presented himself 
with the stop where Serenity had been lying when he had left her.  
Now, his high general stood in the place, cradling up the body of 
the small black cat that may have given her life for her princess.  
But it was not the cat that he had come to check on.  He moved 
instead to the end of this row as well and looked out into the 
clearing where they had been attacked earlier, finding exactly what 
he wanted to see.

The black-cloaked figure was still there, now being ever more 
surrounded by the forces of his court and Serenity's.  "Where have 
you taken her?" he breathed, noting the sense of fatigue on the 
stranger.  He was amazed at his own voice, raw and cutting, yet so 
low that he doubted anyone heard.

Yet the other did hear, and he turned to face the prince.  "You will 
not get away with this boy," he stated, so calm and demanding of 
pride that Endymion was certain that he had heard that voice 
before.  Yet before he could come to terms with what he was 
thinking the other gather himself up and vanished, only to reappear 
inches from the prince's chest.

Involuntarily he took a step back, unable to throw up a defense that 
fast he threw his right arm up and pivoted around to that side… he 
never made it.

A ball of orange energy lit up from the right hand of his assailant 
as Endymion let his weight crumple beneath him as he spun away, 
falling just under where the saber of light would have cut through 
his breastplate.  As it were, it clipped the shoulder brace of his 
already wounded left arm.

In so close a contact, the other did not get a chance to detangle 
himself and nearly fell over the top of his prey as his swing missed 
its intended target.  He staggered back to the side, dissipating his 
weapon as he leaned into the sidewall for support.

Endymion propped back to his knees and he heard the words 
"Venus love chain, encircle!" from somewhere behind him.  He 
saw from the corned of his eye, a loop of light wrap itself around 
the black-clocked man, bringing him to his knees.  The prince 
stood as the others closed in quickly.

But it was not over.  Slowly raising his head, the man opened still 
flame burned eyes, which pulsed once in power before he 
disappeared from Mina's hold.  Again he appeared before the 
group standing with arms raised and crackles readily flickering 
from his figures.  "I will not be deterred from my mission!" he 
shouted, turning back fully to Endymion.  He stood ready for the 
blast, yet knowing that he was more than likely too weak to dodge 
again.

The blast was minimal and hurried compared to what he had 
become accustomed to, yet it was enough to knock him backwards, 
landing again on his left side as the bolts shot out and around him 
towards the rest of the assembled.  Endymion barely noticed as 
instincts swept in on him once he hit the ground.  Rolling from his 
sideways landing he again caught his feet under him and dove for 
the cover of a side row of green covered stone.

He fell back against the protection and found himself choking too 
much to catch his breath.  He could hear the battle continue as his 
guardian court came down full force on their adversary.  Yet again, 
the prince raised himself to his feet and leaning against the now 
tangled brush, levered himself around the edge again to face the 
fight.

He could not allow his over zealous protectors to char his opponent 
badly enough that he would not be able to find out what had 
happened to Serenity.  Who else could be behind this and where 
had they taken her?

He was stopped from rejoining the others, who had now led this 
warrior away as they attempted to capture the fleeting man.  Before 
him a wall of shadow seemed to stretch open into an artificial 
gateway.  This cloak shrouded a woman who, like him, watched 
the fight for only a second.  She turned in her stance to glance back 
over her shoulder at him and Endymion recognized the 
uncharacteristic red eyes of Styx, the one symbol that always 
seemed to identify her as some otherworldly spirit…

His court member glanced at him wistfully and an almost-apology 
showed behind her eyes as she turned fully to face him 
demandingly.  He could not grasp what would cause this change in 
her or what power she held to hold open the doorway that she 
stood in, but he did not have long to ponder.

The shadows stretched and strained around her as space itself tore 
for a moment and collapsed in again, swallowing both in jaws of 
non-existence.


Endymion woke with a start and regained his feet without a 
thought.  Searching the view around him, he found nothing to lay 
his eye on as every direction held the same unforgiving, eternal 
blackness.  Calming himself he took an inventory of what had 
happened to him.  The first of which was the fact that somehow 
Styx was responsible for his being brought here.  Second that he 
had no idea how long he had been asleep or what was happening to 
his guardians.

The next thing he noticed was that his shoulder did not hurt.

He looked over at his left side and moved his arm around a bit, 
testing.  Even if he had passed out for a time, he should not have 
been able to heal completely.  Touching it gently he felt no pain, 
yet could tell that it was broken and bloodied.  It was not healed, 
only numbed.  Just as everything else in this place, his senses were 
useless.

A sound of whispers stopped his heartbeat a moment as he strained 
to here.  Nothing could be made out but the mumble of voices.  
Endymion slowly turned a full circle but could see nothing that 
would indicate life.  …Life.

The almost-voices quieted to nothing again, but on the contrary he 
felt as though those around him were closer than before.  The 
faintest sound of a rustle brought him full turn and sword drawn, 
had he had one still, before he recognized the woman standing 
before him.

Lady Styx stood watching him somberly, though he had to look at 
her twice before recognizing his friend.  The woman stood clothed 
in a completely inappropriate outfit that would have had her 
banished from public life had this been the Earth's court.  She held 
a staff lazily in her right hand, resembling a huge key with a garnet 
orb in the upper part.

Yet more than anything, her hair flashed now and then a hue of 
green, vivid in this lit darkness by which he was viewing her.  Red 
eyes still showed their color, though she turned away quickly from 
his questioning, accusing, glance.  Turning her back on him she 
began to walk and Endymion could do nothing but follow a 
woman he thought he should have known.

The distance they traveled could have been two meters, or two 
light years, he could tell no difference, but a light blinded him for a 
second as they entered an unbound section of this nightmare 
expanse.  A ball of light illuminated a radius sufficient enough for 
two other figures to be seen, both of which shocked him.

He found a woman cloaked in a long, straight, black gown that 
seemed to trail this endless night with her as a train.  She sat 
perched on nothingness solidified into the form of a chair.  Yet she 
rested her perfectly pale chin on her likewise porcelain hand, 
sitting at ease and conversing with a young woman seated on the 
"floor," numbly listening.

Serenity had her legs wrapped up under her near the foot of this 
thrown, hands folded in her lap and eyes wide.

"Serenity?" he asked nearly unbelieving of his eyes once more.  
The sound of his voice seemed to cause a ripple through the deep 
darkness and kept right on going; nothing blocked it enough for an 
echo to form.

The princess snapped her head around at the sound of her name 
and looked up, shocked to see him.  The other figure turned also 
with a smile, but it was Serenity that jumped to her feet and rushed 
forward.  Neither of their assumed-to-be captors stopped her as she 
threw her arms around his waist so tightly that he was thankful that 
he could no longer feel his possibly bruised ribs.

Her shocked countenance broke, and her eyes sprouted tears as he 
held her tightly, and as protectively as he could.  He looked up 
again to notice Styx sliding over to stand beside this vision of 
Night and wondered exactly what these could want with them.

This black-cloaked woman smiled again at the two as she sat 
comfortably, although he noted that Styx was resigned to gaze at 
the illusion of a floor.

"What is it you want with us?" he asked, deciding that he was too 
tired to be anything but blunt.  Serenity stirred in his embrace and 
turned herself just part way to see the two as well.  Styx did not 
move her gaze, though her companion laughed.  This woman stood 
to her full height, and stepped away from her… empty space of a 
chair, towards them.

Endymion held Serenity just a bit closer to him at her approach 
though his bride did not seem to be too terribly afraid, making no 
move to remove herself from harm's way.

"Forgive my inhospitality, I am not use to guests," she said 
humorously.

"It does seem you need a new decorating theme," he muttered.  
"Where are we?"

She laughed again, stopping her trek and folding her hands as they 
hung at her sides, clothed with what should have been the length of 
her second sleeves, giving the 'cloth' to trail past her wrists and 
draped into an infinite blackness.  Likewise she trailed a train that 
also simply disappeared from view.  Hair of matching black 
shimmering a bit blue now and again, but remained immeasurable.

Her skin of perfect white tracing the outline of her scooped, off the 
shoulder, gown was all that did not seem created by this void.

"Indeed.  But you see, you are both nowhere and everywhere."

"I have no interest with riddles," he said, anger influencing his 
speech.

"Forgive me," she nodded.  "Allow me to explain myself as best as 
even I can."  She raised herself again and it was then that 
Endymion found himself looking into the face of someone 
certainly not human.  Her eyes reflected back a buttery-golden 
light, as though lit by distant starts.

She smiled again, lips embossed as though with the darkest wine.  
"I am called Night, Space, Absence…  I am the embodiment of 
non-existence, and I truly have no name."

@}->--_____________
"Human war has been the most successful of our cultural 
traditions." - Robert Ardrey

"If you harden your heart with pride, you soften your brain with it, 
too." - Jewish Proverb