Basically, I've been toying with this idea for a couple of days now, and
finally decided to just go ahead and write the prologue late last night. It's
based on Sailormoon(didn't you guess? It's -always- Sailormoon.. :>)... and is
fairly long(for me, at least ^_^;). I know something's missing, I've reread it
several times, and it really started to bug me.. but I can't seem to come up
with any new ideas.

So, if anyone would be kind enough to read this, I would appreciate thoughts
on how well I developed my characters, if I should go more indepth about
certain aspects of a character's past, the home planet, if I should rewrite
one entire part(i.e the fight scene... I didn't really like how I wrote it..
:P), etc. And of course, if I should just throw this in the trash.. go ahead
and tell me. :) I think, however, I have a fairly solid idea here.... so I
would be completely willing to just rewrite this entire thing, but.. I need
your input! :) C&C, MSTs: anything like that is welcome.

Since I don't -exactly- know where this is going, I haven't come up with a
suitable title.... but if anyone thinks I should continue, I'll think one up.
BTW, I haven't given up on Forgotten Future, Forbidden Past... I've noticed
I've been getting lazy with it, so this will be pretty much a side project. ;)
Anyway, enough of my babbling, read on, tell me what you think...

~ice
-------------------------------------------------
[Sailormoon is copyright of Takeuchi Naoko, etc. Please don't sue me. I have
no money. ^~ Um.. don't use my characters without my permission, blah, blah,
etc. Thank you ;)]
      
      The chime was resonating, melodic, but haunting in some vague,
indescribable way. Exactly at that moment, the hazy rings of yellow fire that
hung in the sky disappeared behind the horizon in a flash of white-hot light,
plunging the silent land into infinite darkness. Yet somehow this particular
world looked better by starlight, each cold metal structure taking on an eerie
life of its own, finding a companion in the darkness. And this was the way of
the land, the people worshipping the night and stars as their deities, finding
solace in the faraway heavens. Unusually, on this fair night, people turned
away from their windows in expressions mixed with fear, shutting their windows
quickly behind them, barring the starlight's path. It had, actually, been this
way for many weeks. Perhaps many months. Uneasiness hung in the air like a
dark cloud, threatening to pour down. 
      
      Had the people been gazing out their windows, they would have noticed a
much odder sight. Off to the west lay a low mountainous area, the only area
left on the planet left with natural foliage, which had been deemed sacred
long ago by the readings from the Old Texts. This particular place had been
scarce of people lately, people shunning it as they did the stars, although no
one seemed to be able to figure out why. This night, a figure could be made
out within the lazy lavender mist, a figure which at closer look, appeared to
be female. 
      
      She was a lithe woman, her frame tall and strong, yet at the same time
unusually frail, as if some part of her was broken, leaving her aura
incomplete. Her face bore no expression whatsoever, but if one had caught a
glimpse of the large ice-blue eyes, they would have been shocked by the depth
of emotions held within. Thick russet-colored hair whipped around her
shoulders, an occasional strand straying across her face. At first glance, one
might call her beautiful, but the coldness permeating from every inch of her
body would have turned away even the boldest of persons. 

      Her gaze remained fixated on the sky even as a sudden burst of wind blew
her black trenchcoat open, revealing a sleeveless turtleneck, and knife tied
securely to her side. She absentmindedly hugged the coat around her, and
frowned. Her thoughts strayed back to the face that had been appearing more
and more in her mind lately; the dark hair with the warm eyes... Seiya. She
still didn't know what to dub this one; Seiya had appeared to her as both a
man and a woman, but Seiya was the only one she considered a friend. And now
that the tension between Halcyon and Seiya's planet had increased....

      She blinked suddenly, and flinched, as a luminescent streak of gold shot
across the sky; the tail of a shooting star. Before, when it had been
exceedingly rare to see such a phenomena, the citizens of Halcyon had eagerly
told tales of the mystical powers of such an event, and waited patiently for
their chance to see one, and wish upon it. Back then, she had been amused by
such tales... perhaps even a bit hopeful. Now she sighed bitterly, and thought
to herself, 'If only my wish could come true...'

      Eilis Koori had never been known as the sentimental type. She never
cried, never reminisced... at least not where anyone could notice. She was
something of an enigma to the general public, but she was their hope. She was
their light... she was their Senshi. Eilis was, in fact, their only Senshi.
The others had either been killed in the wars, or had killed themselves, or in
the case of her companion, had become utterly distrusted. This certain
"companion" of Eilis's, the Tuxedo Kamen of their planet, and protector of the
Sailor Senshi.... 'Is an arrogant, money-loving, pompous..' Her temper
suddenly flared up at the thought of him. 'Jacinth...'

      "What the hell are you doing out here, Eilis? The others were worried."
As the male voice, rather grumpy and tired-sounding, reached her ears, she
graoned inwardly. He always did know the perfect time to make an appearance.
She turned to him and glared.

      Jacinth paused a second, almost for effect, letting her take in his
prominent, almost regal-looking features, the chiseled nose, mouth, and the
dark green eyes that occasionally winked out as he blinked exaggerately,
causing his long eyelashes to brush against his cheeks. He was slightly over
six feet, the arrogance that clung to him like a second skin the only thing
that marred the perfect features, at least in Eilis's mind. His spiky flame-
red hair was only slightly tousled. She wondered absentmindedly if he had been
pulled out of bed. 

      "The 'others', Jacinth?" she finally responded, pursing her lips, "Who
are you referring to? The aristocrats? Are they worried that I've gone and
left them with nothing but you?" 

      He gave a half-hearted smirk, but was clearly annoyed. "Now, I'm going
to take that as a compliment.."

      "Only you would," she remarked dryly. He shrugged, and sidled lazily
next to her, revealing his athletic form beneath the rumpled jacket, cat-like
in a way, with a very distinct air of sensuality. He looked to the twinkling
stars above, avoiding her cold stare. After a few moments, she wandered
several paces away, to the highest point of the small mountain. Eilis became
lost once again in the tapestry of the sky, although the slightly pained
expression on her face seemed to show it wasn't quite due to its beauty.

      "Something wrong, Kodomo Tsuki?" Jacinth's whisper registered in her
mind after a few seconds, and she wrenched her gaze away from the world above,
and directed it at the man behind her. 

      "Don't call me that!" she snapped, showing clearly, for the first time,
her unhappiness. He blinked, taken aback.

      "Sorry. Didn't know it upset you so much.." He smiled grandly, and
reached inside his jacket, retreiving a cerulean-colored rose. "For you.. my
dear." He tossed it to her like a projectile, flicking his wrist, and she
caught it easily between thumb and forefinger.

      Eilis held the flower up to her nose, and took a long whiff before
tossing it flippantly on the ground, her eyes showing disinterest. "At least
that one wasn't almost dead." 

      "It's hard to find decent roses, nowadays," he replied stiffly, still
giving her a smile, now somewhat forced. 

      She turned away from him, once again looking up at the stars. "Yes...
it's hard to find anything decent nowadays." Eilis's voice was flat, and
Jacinth pushed back some stray strands of hair uneasily. He never knew what to
expect from her...

      "The other planets are dead." He opened his mouth to speak, but she
continued, defiantly now, "Our planet is dying. And no one gives a damn."
Eilis turned to him now, blue eyes blazing. "Even you... you use this to your
advantage. Lending your skills to people for money... a Tuxedo Kamen-for-hire!
You're despicable!" She was nearly snarling at him now, and his face hardened.

      "I didn't come here to be chewed out by you. I'd like to go to sleep, if
her majesty would allow it," Jacinth sneered. He jammed his hand into his
pocket and retrieved a small, black object that looked like a make-up compact.
He thrust it out to her, muscle in his cheek twitching. "I'm getting freakin'
tired of having to follow you around. I'm not fond of being a babysitter! So
why don't you take your little communicator here, and stick it somewhere on
your pretty self so we can just have this conversation while I'm in bed!" He
threw the compact at her. It thudded heavily at her feet, the sigil of her
home planet, a four-pointed star crossed with a two-sided arrow, appearing
briefly on its top. She glanced at it, then at him, bemused and somewhat angry
at the same time. 

      She opened her mouth to speak... and Jacinth caught her roughly by the
shoulder, head cocked to the dense foliage on the other side of the hill,
expression suddenly intense. She sweatdropped, and tried to bat his hand away
from her. He reached out again, quick as lightning, and grabbed her other arm.
"Stop it. Don't you hear--"

      There was a loud crash, as the tree directly next to them suddenly
uprooted itself from the ground and made its death-bringing descent upon the
two. Eilis wrenched herself free from Jacinth's grasp, and threw herself to
the side, the impact of the tree merely inches next to her causing a slight
tremor. Jacinth was yelling something unintelligable from the other side of
the tree, and Eilis looked up immediately. He had a peeved expression on his
face, and was gesturing around wildy, obviously mad that she had pushed away
from him. A tiny smile broke through her cold mask, something like relief
coursing through her veins. The smile dropped however, when she saw the dark
shapes emerging from the bushes.

      "Baka! Look behind you!" she shouted, springing to her feet, and
reaching for the knife concealed within her coat. 

      Jacinth dodged the first slash rather clumsily, a look of complete
confusion dancing in his eyes, and Eilis gasped when she saw the flash of
silvery-green. 'Poison blades..' She furrowed her brow, and readied to throw
the knife when a hand clamped down over her mouth. "Mmph!" She bit down hard,
and brought the heel of her boot on the person's shin, as the one behind her
screamed out in pain, followed by a long string of curses. The man's ramblings
were cut off, however, when she brandished her knife, and slit him across the
stomach. She blinked several times, surprised that he had been taken out so
easily. Bandits occasionally made their way into the hills to look for
unprotected worshippers, but even they were more prepared than this. Eilis
touched the man's wound thoughtfully, and furrowed her brow as she noticed the
spot where she had slashed him seemed to be devoid of blood....

      "Eilis!" 

      The cry came too late. A small, razor-edged sphere came hurtling towards
her, as Eilis watched with morbid fascination as it came at her... and cut
into her side. She screamed out, the pain so excrutiating she could hardly
think. The last sound she heard before she lost consciousness was Jacinth's
horror-filled cry. 
------------------------------------

      "Senshi Darkstar? Eilis?" The voice was impatient, and female, a voice
Eilis would have been glad to go without hearing. She winced involuntarily,
and a little trill of laughter echoed thoughout the room. Eilis wondered dimly
why that laugh sounded so forced. "Ah. You're awake." 

      She cracked an eye open. "Yes, Lady Morrin," she mumbled. 

      Lady Morrin of the Halcyon hierarchy was a petite woman, nice-looking in
a rather odd way, with long jet-black hair twisted in braids, and eyes devoid
of emotion. Her eyes, in fact, were the thing that unnerved the people the
most, even Jacinth had admitted to a certain fear of this particular woman.
Her position in the court of Halcyon was quite unnerving as well, as she was
the High Magistrate, and upheld the laws with an iron hand. And there had
always been something about her...

      "Well, I heard you had quite a scare last night." Morrin laughed again,
then quieted at Eilis's cross stare. "You don't need to take that expression
with me, Eilis. Of course, I'm very sorry about what happened to you." She
smiled suddenly. "But you're all healed up now. Stitches and everything." 

      "What was it?" Eilis asked tiredly.

      Morrin blinked. "What was what?"

      "The thing that cut into me." She moved slightly, and gestured to her
bandaged side, wincing at the pain that followed. Morrin remained silent, and
Eilis glanced at her. After a few moments, she shrugged. 

      "I'm not the person to ask."

      Eilis nodded, sighing. She was too tired to pry an answer out of the
older woman. Her ice-blue eyes suddenly flashed, as she remembered her
partner. "Jacinth? He's alright, isn't he?"

      "Of course he is." Jacinth strolled into the hospital room, smirk
plastered on his face. "Didn't know you cared, Eilis."

      She groaned, and his expression softened. "Hey, you're alright, too...
aren't you?" She laughed at that, and clutched her side again when the pain
hit her.

      "Yeah.. I'm ok," she answered grudgingly. "Who the hell were those
bastards, anyway?" She frowned suddenly. 'If those were bandits.... dammit.
How embarassing... can't even take care of street trash...'

      "I dunno," he replied softly, eyeing Morrin, who was casually listening
to their conversation. "Forgive my manners... hello, Lady Morrin." He strode
over to her, and brushed his lips against her hand. A coy smile erupted on her
face.

      "Hello.. Jacinth-sama." She cocked her hips seductively towards him,
smirking. Eilis sweatdropped. These displays were starting to get sickening...

      "Ah.." Jacinth stepped a few paces away from her, smile wavering. Eilis
could hardly keep from snickering. Jacinth wasn't too fond of Morrin's obvious
advances, either. 

      "Well." Morrin abruptly turned serious. "I actually have some news for
you. You do know about the current predicament this planet is in?" Eilis
nodded hesitantly, as Jacinth looked troubled. "You, as Senshi,
Sailordarkstar, and Protector, Tuxedo Kamen, have a certain duty to this
planet." She rubbed her hands together, and nodded at the both of them. Morrin
continued, an odd glint in her eye, "The time has finally come for you to
truly fulfill that duty, my dears. This planet is in dire peril... but we have
enough energy to sustain us for many years to come... the other planets in our
solar system, however, are not as lucky. They wish to steal our energy and use
it for themselves.." She made a tsking noise with her tongue. "This, of
course, led to the first Senshi Wars.. and the death of several of your
teammates." She held a grim expression on her face for a moment, then perked
up again, looking at Eilis. "But we have you! That is all that's important.
Your father is a very respected man around here..."

      "Even though he's a greedy bastard that abandoned this planet.." Jacinth
muttered. Morrin's eyes briefly flashed with irritation, and she put her hands
on her hips, making quite the odd spectacule as she faced off against the much
taller man. 

      "Please don't interrupt me, Jacinth," she said sweetly, her eyes quickly
becoming a mass of inky darkness. 

      Eilis cleared her throat. "I'm sure he's very apologetic right now,
M'lady... but you know about his little problem..."

      Morrin paused, as Jacinth set a bewildered look at Eilis. "Ah yes. His..
problem." Morrin stepped away from the man, and nodded at him in a discerning
manner. Jacinth blinked, and smiled at her uneasily. "Well.. as I was saying,
Eilis, your father is a highly respected member of our planet, and he has gone
to find a suitable source to replenish our, and every other planet in our
system's, energy. Unfortunately, the job has proved too large for him to
handle numerous times, and he has requested your help."

      "A suitable source..? What exactly do you mean by that?" Eilis asked
suspiciously, fidgeting within the heavy white blankets.

      Morrin laughed. "Oh, don't be silly, dear. Yes, we will be taking energy
from another planet... but this one is rich with life! It won't hurt to take
just a bit.." She hesitated, and a strange look crossed her face. "There may
be, however, one small problem. The planet is Earth."

      Eilis blanched. 'Earth... fatheryoustupidbastard..' She trembled
slightly as Jacinth fixed her with a worried gaze. He didn't know.... She bit
hard into her lip, trying to block out the painful memories of her past.

      Morrin smiled uneasily. "Really now, dear, it's not that bad. You won't
have to deal with the Sailor Senshi from that planet... I promise." She smiled
kindly, and took a step towards Eilis. 

      "Stay.. stay away from me," she muttered, flinching. Her eyes suddenly
became hard. She noticed Jacinth's warning look, but chose to ignore it. "Your
promises are worth nothing to me, Morrin. Everything you say is worth nothing
to me."

      Morrin's mouth formed a little 'o' of surprise, and she froze in her
tracks. 

      "But.." she hesitated, "I don't wish for this planet to die... and it is
my duty as a Sailor Senshi to protect the people living on it..." 

      "That's correct," Morrin sniffed.

      Eilis frowned, thoughts hidden behind her suddenly closed eyes. "..."
They'll send someone else in your place if you don't go. Do you want that to
happen?' the voice of reason in her head said quickly. 'Do you want to start
another War..?' "... I'll go.." she sighed resignedly, as Morrin nodded and
smiled.

      "Excellent. Be at launchpad 54H in two hours. You too, Jacinth," she
whispered, turning and winking at him. She briskly walked out of the room. 

       When Morrin was out of earshot, Jacinth gave Eilis a furious glance,
and whispered, "Are you mad?! What have you turned us into? Energy-sucking
vampires?"

      "Well.. that's not as bad as a money-sucking leach," she returned
calmly.

      "You are a bitch." His tone was deadly calm, but the muscle in his cheek
was twitching without abandon. "But then I suppose it's due to your heritage,
isn't it?" Eilis stiffened, as Jacinth looked at her haughtily, as if he
thought he had some advantage over her.

      "My _heritage_ is none of your business, you.. you stupid jerk!" She
flushed slightly, as she struggled to control her anger enough to compose a
few good retorts.

      "You do realize who lives on Earth, don't you?" Jacinth said, still calm
and collected. "The Guardian of Time... _the_ Guardian of Time..."

      Eilis's anger temporarily vanished. "Yes... the Senshi of Pluto." She
shrugged, and rubbed her bleary eyes tiredly. "You know we have... devices to
prevent her from seeing us..."

      Jacinth remained silent for a few moments, his dark green eyes
displaying a twinge of sadness, as well as something else. "I hope you know
what you're getting us into..." He cast a long, indecipherable look at her,
then slowly walked the way which he had come.

      Eilis spent many moments staring at the spot where he had disappeared
to, before whispering, "I know more than you ever will... and I hate myself
for it." A lone tear trickled down the side of her face unnoticed, as she fell
back into a restless sleep.
------------------------------------

      They had packed light, only bringing the most essential of items, some
food to take with them on their journey, spare clothes, and a few personal
belongings. Eilis brought along her stuffed cat, which Jacinth saw, and
scoffed at. However, he was quite embarrassed when she discovered his stuffed
dragon, and ceased to say another word about the things she had brought. 

      They arrived at the door to launchpad 54H just as the night turned its
coldest, and the stars disappeared from view. 

      "Omen.." Jacinth muttered as the two of them were ushered inside the
large gray building, and left standing in utter darkness by the guards. 

      Eilis reached over to the wall and flicked on the light switch, causing
the room to become painfully bright. She blinked a few moments until she
became used to it, and stared around her in annoyance. It was a plain room,
with only a receptionist's desk directly infront of them, and two chairs
crammed into the corner. A painting filled with thick, black squiggly lines
hung behind the desk, and Eilis raised an eyebrow at it.

      "Oh, whoops, wrong room," the two guards emerged from behind them,
disconcerted looks on their faces, and directed Eilis and Jacinth into the
door on the other side of the room. This one led into an immense hallway. 

      "What the hell.." Jacinth said, looking around him in an irritated way.
"Where are we supposed to go?"

      "This way," Morrin's voice chirped cheerfully from a side door, and it
whisked aside to reveal the petite woman standing in the doorway. "Sorry,
dears. We were making preparations."

      The two of them followed her into the room, which turned out to be the
hangar, an extremely large area which housed four graceful looking carrier
jets. Men and women buzzed around them like flies, checking and rechecking
that everything was in proper working order.

      Morrin turned to them. "Well, I have a few things to discuss with you.
First of all, the time disruptors. Lovely name, isn't it.. I came up with it,"
she retrieved two small rings from a lackey, and smiled broadly as she
presented them. Eilis and Jacinth smiled back uneasily as they took the rings
from her and slipped them on their fingers. "Any unusual time, space,
etcetera, aura that you might exude will be masked by these devices.. handle
them with care. There is no energy left to teleport you directly to the
planet... so our plane will take you into your father's sphere of influence,
and he will send you down to Earth. Tokyo, I believe, is the exact location.
Eilis, he will send you detailed instructions of this assignment.. though
telepathy, no? You should also keep a log to outline the basics of your
mission...Well, your new identities.." She rummaged through the files on the
desk next to her until she produced the correct ones. "Ah. Here we are.
Memorize this... your likes, dislikes, personality, favorite food..." As
Morrin droned on, Eilis's dread began to grow worse. Especially at the mention
of telepathy.

      'Invasion of thoughts is more like it...'

      "...and Eathian money. Here you are. Eilis?" Eilis blinked, and then
quickly grabbed the envelope from Morrin's hand. "Well. Schooling and living
arrangements are up to you, I suppose.."

      Eilis and Jacinth stared at her blankly. "Schooling?" they said in
unison.

      "Why yes." Morrin laughed lightly. "You're going to..." She stopped.
"...work it out with your father." She shrugged, and briskly walked away.

      After that, Eilis and Jacinth were ushered into their jet, a well-
furnished speed-plane with enough room to be comfortable. Their belongings
were stowed in the rear compartment, and food and drinks were brought to them
presently, as the crew readied for takeoff. Jacinth sent one last glare at
Eilis, then buckled himself into the couch and dozed off. Still, Eilis could
not shake the fearful feeling at the pit of her stomach...
------------------------------------

      "Usagi-chan!"

      Usagi Tsukino looked up from her food-fest reluctantly at the call,
several pastries sticking out of her mouth and staining her lips with a
mixture of blue and red. She brightened considerably when she saw who it was,
and she attempted to swallow all the food at once, nearly choking in the
process.

      "Usagi, are you ok?" Makoto Kino looked at her friend with a slightly
amused expression on her face. "I'm glad you like my pastries so much, but you
shouldn't try to eat them all at once."      

      Usagi sweatdropped. "Ehehe... they're so good though, Mako-chan!"

      "Well, don't you want to hear my news?" Usagi nodded eagerly as Makoto
plopped down next to her on the bench. 

      "Two new students moved into my apartment complex! The woman was very
pretty.. and the man.."

      "Looked like your sempai?" Usagi grinned gleefully. "Well, well, well!?
What does he look like? Are they related?"

      Makoto got a dreamy expression on her face. "Oh, he's so handsome...
very tall.. chiseled features... soulful green eyes.." 

      Usagi stuck her tongue out at Makoto playfully. "Bet he's not cuter than
my Mamo-chan.."

      Makoto scrunched up her face at Usagi. Her face suddenly turned
thoughtful, as she scratched her head. "Hm.. I was just thinking... that woman
reminds me of someone.." She shrugged, and grinned again. "Anyway, I only have
part of their names.. the woman is Hiroko An'ei.. and the man is Kanaye..."

      "Well, did they look like a loving, romantic couple?" Usagi asked,
starting on a cup of ice cream. 

      Makoto shook her head, still grinning. "Nope. They were fighting... and
I heard the woman yelling at him that she was going to get the bed."

      "That could just mean that they're a non-romantic couple, couldn't it?"
Usagi said reasonably.

      "Usagi.. the hope destroyer.." Makoto muttered. Usagi giggled, and
continued on her ice cream, while Makoto brought out another tray of goodies.
Usagi's mouth immediately began to water at the smell of this new scrumptious
food. 

      "Nonono.. I'm sure they're just brother and sister..." Usagi eyed the
food as Makoto held it just out of reach teasingly. "Uhm... he's madly in love
with you already, Mako-chan.." She nodded furiously as Makoto laughed, and
pushed the tray in Usagi's direction.

      "So, when's the wedding, Usagi-chan?" Makoto inquired, abruptly changing
the subject, and laughing at the result: a piece of sushi flying out of her
friend's nose.

      Undectable from either of their sight, a young woman watched, her face
hard, but her eyes undeniably sad. And deep within her was the aching hope
that they would never have to meet....
------------------------------------
Log - Entry No. 1
[darkstar - clearance level 5]
2:37 am 

      I doubt we're going to ever make it home, and if we do... well, I
suppose I'll think about that when the time comes. I seriously doubt that
anyone will want to read this... they would never have sent us off without
knowing the exact details of this mission already, themselves. I believe they
wish to keep this a secret from Jacinth... perhaps they are even stupid enough
to believe they're keeping it from me. But I know... more than they could ever
dream of. 
      My father is calling himself Ulexite now. A tribute to Beryl.. or
perhaps Metallia. He was always fond of powerful women. His mental voice is
darker than I remembered, less open. Even back then, when he lived on Halcyon,
even then I could sense his deterioration...  his descent to madness. Yet on
some level.. I might be just as crazy as him. Thoughts of my past frighten
me... but the future ahead frightens me so much more. I wonder what will
happen when I'm finally forced to reveal the truth... But none of that matters
now. Only the girl... the girl I was instructed to follow. She was tall, green
eyes, brown hair. I recognized her from the files. Jupiter. I watched her...
she had a friend... it was the Princess. I only saw her from the back.. but
every fiber of my being knew it was her. We'll always be linked...
unfortunately. Starfighter's essence is around her.. I've heard she left for
home not long ago. It is, however, rather unsettling...
      It doesn't matter really. Pluto will realize sooner or later.... and it
will all come crashing down around us.