Keystaffs and Quests.... (part 2)

Setsuna

The quirks of multi-versal travel (where one’s life in one reality can be a work of fiction in another) really has her head spinning I have heard.

I nod slightly as Fred Takahashi raises his hand slightly, and mouthing the words “May I?” and gesturing towards Rei Hinoh.

Say what you will about Fred and all those other analogs who are (or had been) named ‘Fred‘ (a name way over taken, saturated the place with that name), they are a courteous lot. Besides, having talked with the man earlier I believe that Fred here could explain the matter a bit better right now than I could or should.

I fear that at times our fiery tempered Senshi of Mars can be a bit trying at times. Know that she’d managed to annoy in the extreme the Silver Millennium version of Sailor Mars with some of her ranting and bias against military types. Odd how views can change from one lifetime to the next. The Silver Milenium Mars is quiet the professional soldier indeed, as all “Pretty Soldiers” (ala Sailor Senshi) should be!

Oh well.

“The problem with sending Senshi into that environment is that they would be exposed to another universe’s physics and axioms more than a few times,” Fred said, gesturing slightly with his tea as if to emphasize his point. “Heaven only knows what that would do to a magical girl if they should succumb to Axiom Wash.”

“What?” Hinoh asks blankly, looking at Fred in puzzlement. “What’s Axiom Wash?”

Blinking a little in surprise, Fred and I soon learn that poor Rei Hinoh here had not yet heard about that one VERY important thing about the dangers of traveling too far afield in the multi-verse. Go too far afield and either you end up in a place who’s physics (axioms) will kill you since you’re too different for your body to function (or a lot of your powers and equipment), or said universe would redress the issue of the paradox you represent and transform you into something that is compatible!

In the case of a Sailor Senshi who’s a Champion this doesn’t come up. I’m immune to Axiom wash and cannot be killed by physics violation. Might feel like utter garbage whilst dwelling in those incompatible universes, unable to do any Senshi magery, but I’d survive and be able to return to duty once I return to a compatible reality, if you get my drift.

Someone not a Champion? Well, let us just say that either they’d be dead or transformed into a analogous version of their old selves. In some cases, they’d still be human but . . .

Sigh, we’ve gone over and over this axiom wash business so why rehash it again? Bottom line, the other Senshi could easily become something not able to help with my Quest. And even might not be able to ever be recovered and become Senshi again, stuck in what ever new forms they’d been forced into here.

Some visions I’d gotten from the Great Flame whilst meditating over this very issue showed Sailor Mercury (a very technology oriented woman indeed) transformed and reduced into a very primitive and even xenophobic centaur filly shaman....

Not good. It would have taken a miracle to bring her out of THAT one, let us just say and leave at that.

“Another thing is that the Senshi are needed back where they hale from here right now or VERY soon,” I add, sipping on my tea. “The Rules and Agents will bend time back upon itself so that my and my husband’s absence won’t be too long....”

Time travel can be so convenient at time, especially when it won’t kill you in the process due to paradox.

“But . . .I want to make up for what I did and tried to do while Galaxia controlled me and the other Senshi of my world,” she muttered softly, more than still a bit haunted by it.

. . .

Uh, back when I was Sailor Jupiter in her reality we Senshi faced a very powerful enemy, a Senshi from another solar system who’d turned evil and insane. Called herself Sailor Galaxia and was probably the most powerful Senshi around, short of Sailor Moon...

Heh, I mean the Sailor Moon of that reality. I forgot for a moment that I’m Sailor Moon in this reality...

Anyway, long story short a LOT of my fellow Senshi got their lives snuffed out, only to be brought back as evil versions of their old selves. That and completely loyal to their new mistress.

I had been in the process of getting my “clock cleaned” by Galaxia’s forces and would have . . .should have had my Sailor Crystal (the magical item inside each Senshi that makes us who we are and able to do what we can do) plucked out when I went “nuclear”, dragging my enemies and friends from that plane of existence to this one.

Not too proud of what I did while suffering from a shattered mind, but I do say I take GREAT pleasure in saying that Galaxia did NOT survive her encounter with the new Senshi I’d become.

The hard glint I must have had in my eyes as I recall that must have shown because Hino is actually cringing a bit away from me. We’d been able to undo the damage done to her and the other Senshi who’d been Galaxia’s victim, but I see that she still blames herself for not being able to resist.

“Gods . . .I’m sorry about what I almost did to you Sailor Jup . . I mean Setsuna!” she whispers hoarsely.

A bit of patting on the back and whispering ‘it’s okay’ over and over again gets the poor girl to gather herself together. The poor girl hadn’t been in her right mind at the time, but still.

“There is nothing to forgive . . .but you’ll get your chance soon enough,” I promise Rei Hinoh.

The meeting soon turns to the main purpose.

“When your wife to be and her sisters arrive I was hopping to ask for a bit of aid in swaying them to take me under their wing,” I begin. “Would I be out of line in asking for your aid in this endevour, sir?”

Fred had said that he’d think over my asking for help on this earlier when I’d approached him. I’d felt that the last meeting had gone well but had kind of wished that he’d not left me hanging, saying that he’d think about it. While he likes me well enough, there IS the fact that by having me and my husband along in his Validation Quest --by bundling mine into his-- he’d have less time to himself and his new wife!

After so long apart I can understand why he’d not want to spare the time with sharing his time with anything else than his wife, you know. Gods alone knows how Endymion and I were around each other (and ON each other) during our Wedding Night (and a LONG time afterwards).

later still...

“Okay...okay let me get myself together here,” I sputter, only to break down again and laugh long and hard after hearing about the blonde Sailor Moon plight. Seems that Queen Serenity was none too impressed with the young woman . . .and basically reduced her to the cadet branch as far as being in the line to the throne.

Wise move on the Queens part. Usagi never struck me as being the brightest bulb in the chandelier, shall we say. Heart in the right place but not the brights bulb in the lot.

Besides, Setsuna here strikes me being much more . . .capable than the other “Sailor Moon” by a long shot!

Ah, it had been a relatively laid back and pleasant flight here to the Moon Kingdom. Meeting Lilith’s long lost “sister” (a harvester/quantum duplicate), the captain’s sister, was nice. Not an exact duplicate of Lilith, but similar. She is herself and Lilith is herself, but they ARE very alike. Not bad and agreeable, in the end. Avoided the Pilots of the ship, those wayward Asuka and Shinji analogs like the plague after that initial thorny meeting, but that’s okay.

Didn’t really care for them anyway...

Something of a bumpy start after we made port here. Oh, we had tearful reunions with Mum and Dad after so long apart! Do not get me wrong! It was great seeing them again and by God did they miss us!

The reunion (again) with my husband to be was . . .beyond words. Having survived the Champion Question, he’s now a Champion himself and tonight the wild sex we shall have will be....

Er, anyway...we’re going to have a VERY good time tonight after the Wedding. Believe it!!

Had been a bit put off about news that Sailor Moon having become a Champion (along with that prince who’d come to be known asTuxedo Mask ) and was looking for someone to chaperon them on her Validation Quest.

Imagine my surprise that when it turned out that “Sailor Moon” had green hair and red eyes instead of the blue eyes and blond hair I’d come to know in the manga. At first I somehow thought that Sailor Pluto had somehow gotten her magic outfit mixed up (for that is who Setsuna had been). Not out of the realm of possibility, given the mess she’d gone through with that Chaos induced madness she’d gone through.

But no, this was Setsuna . . .but no longer was she Sailor Pluto, Senshi of Time (and a bit of the Underworld). Nope, this really WAS Sailor Moon, odangos and all.

Kind of works for her, that odd hair style... But at least she had enough sense to not wear it as long as blondie. Otherwise she’d be as klutzy as Usagi, tripping over it all the time.

That and she has much more sense than the blonde. Sense to look over and observe a fight before diving in feet first. Strategy minded but not the rather cool character I’d recall from the stories...and a bit younger. But not the fourteen year old I recall the original Sailor Moon being, shall we say.

And definitely nothing like that manipulative SOB, Gendo Akari. The old Sailor Pluto gave off Gendo vibes from time to time for me and that was . . .a definite minus.

Ah, but Setsuna, Amanda and my husband to be had approached me and my sisters to be their Chaperon. Roll her’s and my husband’s Validation Quest into one and make a lark of it, perhaps? I mean Quests do not necessarily have to be ALL grim and dark business! Some of them had been rather fun at times...

“So sisters, should we?” I ask Lilith and Reika.

Ah, but need I ask?

So later, after a small wedding ceremony (given by the Doctor . . .who’s the captain of that space/time traveling vessel the TARDIS). After a night I give myself, body and soul to the one I love, we soon find ourselves in attendance with Queen Serenity (lovely woman!) and a Rule and Agent who have introduced themselves yet. They are Rule and Agent 402 (irony that), but that’s by the by.

The Queen looks torn about letting her own daughter do this, but looks resign to it. Surrendering to a Higher Power and all that, I gather. Still, mothers are mothers...

“Mum, I’ll be okay on this...trust me!” I hear Setsuna mutter, as the Queen dithers over her.

Mothers will be mothers....

“Are you prepared?” Rule 402 asks solemnly.

Checking the gear I have and that my magical disguise (provided by a magical trinket I and my sisters concocted after that debacle we’d gone through during Reika’s and Lilith’s Validation Quest) I nod. Wings hidden from view by disguise. Hair changed to a pleasing (albeit more normal) shade of black. Brown eyes and a skin coloration found upon most people of Oriental descent. Check and ready.

My sisters are also ready as well as the Moonatics.

Heh, boy had it been interesting for them to learn about how much less varied “normal” ( non-anime based) worlds had in eye and hair coloration. Red, blue and green just won’t do for us, I fear....

Well, they’re ready and the Prince trusts his wife and us enough to let us help him fit in a strange land that is decidedly different from the Silver Millinium that he grew up in.

“Ready!” we all say and then BAM! We’re standing in front of the Sunnydale Motor Lodge and the sun is just rising over the horizon. Morning.

Well, the motel is dive but at least it could do for a home base of sorts (with proper wards against “gang members on PCP”, natch)...

And that’s just about the time a wave of magic hits us and the world shifts. Still at the Sunnydale Motor Lodge, but it’s much later in the day (getting on evening).

And was that guy who just passed us in a car in a Halloween costume? Might explain why I and my bunch don’t get a second glance (or much of one). Our magical disguise spells just collapse under that magic wave, you know...

1. “It’s Halloween?” Setsuna blinks. “But it wasn’t that when I brought this world to HERE!”

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