Oracle of Dreams Seaborn Miracle By Iruka Updated: 4:50 PM 7/26/2001 Website: www.angelfire.com/anime2/iruka/fanfiction.html ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Chapter four up and running! I added Eros Knight in here and also introduced Europa, and I hope I confused as many people as possible! Well, see if you can't figure out my madness! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Kyme smiled to herself as she dug her tiny toes into the crystal fine sands of Nereid Bay, finding the warmth her cold toes craved. As the young Princess of Neptune, Kyme always felt that she was like her toes, craving a warmth she could not see. But unlike her tiny toes, there was no pit of sand large enough to immerse herself in. Turning her cute face to the pulsing light of the far-off sun, magnified with the help of magic long since forgotten, Kyme closed her aquamarine eyes and breathed in the delicious salt burdened air that was almost a part of her being now. The air tasted like heaven, only sweeter, with the scent of sea life merging with that of the perfume of the rolling ocean. "Hey, fish head!" her older brother Triton called out from the nearby pier, his handsome face brightened by a lopsided grin. "Don't let mom catch you rolling with the waves!" Kyme flashed her pearly white teeth at her brother's teasing. She knew full well that Triton would be the one scolded, not her. She pulled her head up in a mock regal manner and with a humor astonishing for a 6 year old imitated their beautiful mother. "Now Triton, you know better then to let your sister play by herself. She could be attacked or injured!" Triton collapsed in a fit of laughter. At 15, he was tall with an athletic built typical of those of the Royal House of Neptune, but still lanky and clumsy looking. He had yet to grow into his tall frame, but already she had heard whispers in the palace that he would soon be betrothed to one of the whelps from the Venus brood, or Athene, heir of Jupiter. She liked Athene dearly, but she still felt jealous whenever she heard the rumors. How dare someone try and steal her Triton from her! Her brother stood and jogged towards her, creating large footprints in the silver sand. "With all seriousness Kyme, I do think you should take a Guard with you whenever you play. Mother's worry for you is serious. If something should happen to me, you would become heir to Neptune and loose much of your freedom that you enjoy now. And with the rise of the Nemeittes in our Kingdom, well known for their hatred of female heirs, I think it would be best if you did take a guard." Triton cocked his handsome head, his dark aquamarine hair falling boyishly into his expressive eyes. A tight grin touched his lips as he reached out and ruffled her matted childish hair. "Besides fish-head, the Palace would be so boring without you!" Kyme pulled herself up to her full height, which wasn't much compared to her brother's giant length. "Don't call me fish-head, horn-brain." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Amphitrite paced restlessly before the statue of her late and beloved father Nereus, her hands tightly clasped behind her and her eyes blazing with anger- and fear. "How could he father? How could he?" she raged in her tightly controlled voice, which nevertheless still dripped with poisonous malice. "How could he order Kyme be betrothed? Without asking me?" "He is not a good king. We all know that." Her father's spirit whispered to her, a hollow sound in the quiet room. The clap of her heels against the marble floor was her only response. Her eyes narrowed as she glimpsed her husband's bust. He was undeserving of such an honor. If only she had married another... "Child of mine, you knew the consequences." "I was never given a choice." Her words, bitter and aggravated, seemed to shake the walls of the shrine. "Amphitrite, you always were given a choice. You just never saw another besides duty. You truly are my daughter, dear, to sacrifice all for your planet." "A planet that is dying under HIS mismanagement." "You have felt the water's turbulence." Her father's voice sounded even more distant, and yet sad as well. As if sad that she had found the truth. "I am no half-wit, unlike my first son." It almost seemed like Nereus was smiling at her through the haze of the spirit world and this one. "Your first son is no half-wit. He is, however, dangerous. Our God is unhappy with the boy and will punish him how He sees fit." Awe gripped her, cooling her irrational anger. "You have met our God?" "Of course. All in the Spirit world rest in the Arms of the Gods. Some more then others..." "Father?" She asked as he trailed off, afraid that he had left for good. She depended on her father's advise, especially when it came to matters such as dealing with her horrible husband she now loathed with all of her being. "I must go my sweet. There is much to be done for the future still here. Let your husband who thinks he is Poseidon incarnate believe that he has the power to betroth Kyme. When the times come, it will not matter what lies Poseidon spews forth, for his allegiance with the Nemeittes and their cult of damnation shall be his end." "One can only hope my father. One can only hope." ~~~~~~~~~~ There was a fire in the eyes of the Prince of Mercury, one that had not been kindled for some time. Hermeleus stood before the other youthful ambassadors, his gleaming blue hair waving in the fanned air, one hand raised as if to beseech the very Gods themselves. "The Maiden Warriors are no more, and neither are the Lords themselves. We all know the stories, we all know the truth, and yet we still sit here and debate wither or not to allow Alishandra de Iciclae on as Sailor Europa! As if we, mere mortal men, had any choice in this matter! The Gods themselves have spoken, and our petty standards of nobility shalt not be the deciding factor here. We as man have no right to decide if a God can give his or her powers to a human: what is done is done, I say, and let Alishandra do her deity-granted right!" As if he suddenly remembered himself, the tall Mercuranian ran a shaking hand through his mane of hair and then slowly moved to sit down, his heart heavy for he knew in the pits of his gut that poor Alishandra would not be allowed to assume her rightful role as Sailor Europa just because her parents were not married. As if a child should be punished for the sins of her father, King Jove of Jupiter himself! But, Hermeleus’s heart was heavy also in sorrow that humanity was so weak that it couldn’t even look beyond one’s standards, one’s rank, and see the shimmering heart beyond. The easy going Ban Hathor of Venus, the Prince of Venus as well as the current Eros Knight, stood with a rare look of thoughtfulness on his face. Hermeleus groaned inwardly, for if any of the Ambassadors were to deny Europa and sway all to that tragically wrong side, it would be Hathor himself. The Prince stood magnificiantly tall and golden, his long hair falling down his back in gentle waves, held from his face by a silver circlet adorned with mock arrows. Although Hermeleus had never actually met Hathor, he saw the glamour and knew that Hathor would be a magnetic speaker- for those of the rich and snobbish side. Besides, he was from flamboyant Venus" ~~~~~~~~~~~ Hathor smiled to everyone in the room, but his brow was furled and his mind troubled. "My good and fellow Ambassadors, what Hermeleus says is thought provoking. Are we no better then those from the Platinum Era? Has our fight for equality, albeit planetary but easily seen as for the individual, dead now that the monarchy has been reestablished? Do we deny the will of a God? Are we so foolish to risk the wrath of the Gods upon our tiny Kingdom? I fear that the decision made in this room will not be the one that I, that the Gods, wish to hear. I fear that my fellow Ambassadors will only see the stigma that Alishandra carries because of her birth. And yet, my fellow Ambassadors, Alishandra has far more noble blood coursing through her hot veins then many of us here! In her very red blood, no different a color then yours or mine, she carries the line of King Jove himself and Eustacia, originally from the den of Mercury Nobles but now the widowed Queen of Europa. Alishandra is Sailor Europa, and to deny her Goddess is to deny the all the Gods." The Golden man held the eyes of everyone in the room, his eyes earnest and carrying a certain wisdom within their emerald depths. His ornate clothing shimmered like a Holy Cloud about him, his miniature crown upon his brow gleaming pure and bright, creating the illusion of God granted divinity. One by one, every delegate stood on their feet and applauded the man, beginning as softly as an angel’s wing and then building to a climax as loud as the roar of the Ocean storm. Hathor stood at the helm, his hand gripping the platform before him in terror, his hands shaking, as he fought to keep his shyness from becoming visible, to ruin his words, to destroy his fight for the poor Alishandra, a girl he had met by chance a year before she had been awakened as Europa’s warrior. Hathor looked around, to gauge the audience, and sighed when he knew that his words had swayed the pigheaded nobles to his side. He had been shocked to find that not one but three people had spoken for Alishandra, who stood watching the progress in the chamber above, not allowed on the grounds by her ‘shameful birth’, and surprised when the bookworm Hermeleus had taken his nose out of a book and spoken for a just cause. No doubt all were shocked that a son of Venus had spoken, but then again Hathor was unusual in many accounts. He was a handsome, tall man, and yet he feared woman (with the exception of the three Charities who guarded the royal family of Venus, but then again he had grown up with them and regarded them as family) and people in general, preferring solitude to the parties he was forced to attend. He loved knowledge, yet scorned himself when he lost himself in reading a scroll and missing some ‘vital’ matter, hated war yet was a Knight all the same. He- "Well done, Prince Ban Hathor of Venus." Hermeleus said on Hathor’s left, his eyes struck with astonishment still. "Although I dare say I have no idea why you would speak for the poor girl." Hathor smiled easily at the man who stood nearly eye-to-eye with him. "Ah, but you think poorly of me and jump to conclusions just because I am dressed such and look as I do. And to think, your years at the Acedamia haven’t taught you better." The Prince of Venus shook his head, feeling the pain in his heart he felt whenever someone thought so wrong of him like in this matter. Did he really look so heartless and cruel? The blue haired Prince of Mercury straightened, bringing his chin defiantly up in a movement of pride. "I only thought that you would be like many of the others. Few men of noble stature these days are truly noble in heart. Just cast your eye to the torpid Oceanus." Hermeleus pointed with his chin to the obese youth who was, as they spoke, chewing with much abandon on a roasted leg of fowl, juices running down his chins to fall amid the mess that once was a fine aquamarine tunic. "Ah, but take in his half brother, Triton. A noble man looking for a bride, it is said. I think that he will wed the young heiress of Jupiter myself, but one never knows." Hathor said, and then turned to Hermeleus. "Have you been fighting your mother to stay single, without burden of wife and child?" The Prince blushed, for he had in fact been thinking of his illusive Golden one. "Nay. Queen Maia is still much infatuated with her final child, my young sister, to think about marriage. Besides, it seems all eligible females have been taken-" "Except for Queen Serenity’s two Aunts. Now those two... One as cool as the approaching night, the other so compassionate she burns with the sun’s fire. It is odd, that their Senshi positions are so switched for their personalities. But, even they are unapproachable. After all, they have lived both for a millennia thus far, and still only appear our age." Hermeleus gazed at his boots for a moment. "Yes, they are unapproachable. Daenara and Aurora, however, are far from here, on the Nemeitte Moon, trying to find survivors from the vile attack of the Nemeittes. My prayers have been with them." Hathor grinned, taking in Hermeleus’ posture and words, then shook his head wryly. "Now, that girl from Venus I saw yesterday... hm... She looked very eligible." "Do you... Ban Hathor... ever think of anything besides women?" Heremeleus asked suddenly. Hathor blushed. "Actually I speak like this only to cover by terror of the stronger gender. I fear those delicate, a nd yet rock solid females with all of my power. And please, dare not call me Ban Hathor... it sounds terrible. My friends, who I hope I can add you to the struggling list, call me Hath and I would be honored if you would speak of me with that endearment. Hathor is, after all, a woman’s name." Hathor said with a blush, and then smirked at Hermeleus. "Alright... Hath... just tell me why you call them the stronger gender?" The golden man grinned wryly. "One does not grow to age on Venus without knowing that, my good Prince." ********************** Serenity regarded the courier before her with a carefully schooled apathetic expression, even though her mind was running with tens of thousands of emotions, all boiling just beneath the surface of her pale skin. "When did you leave Neptune?" She asked carefully, knowing that this sweet looking boy was in fact a monster of the Nemeittes, the self proclaimed members of the Nemesis Cult. "Two days prior, my Queen." Even though he himself was schooling his tone and features, hints of his hatred of her and her position leaked through. Much offended, Serenity kept a firm grip on her temper nonetheless, for a spy that had been found once would be a spy one could find again. And if the Nemeittes found that she knew this monster was a high ranking official of the horrid cult she knew they would never hesitate in killing him. And that just wouldn't do...for now. "Thank you for your service, courier. Tell me, how fairs the Queen?" The Nemeitte shuddered with disgust but hid it fairly well for a barely trained being. "The Queen is well. The King, our mighty Poseidon, is in good health as well." He added with a harsh touch of tone, as if angered that she had not asked about Poseidon, who she looked on as only a consort. A consort with far to much power. Obviously, Poseidon was a member of the Cult. She thought to herself, filing away that information for another time to regard. At least she knew which one of her fellow rulers was flirting with destruction by assuming a part with the Nemeittes. A faint smile came to her face. "I have a perfect idea, young courier. Please tell my good Queen and her King that in a month's time we shall set up court on Neptune. I fear I have neglected my duty far to long. I must see this darling child Kyme!" The smile grew as the courier's face paled to a sick translucent white. "Yes, your majesty." He gritted out, and then stiffly walked from her thrown, presumably to impart this new information to his masters, and then on down the line to Brunhilde. Serenity slouched on her thrown, her immense energy suddenly leaving her. "Please, all leave." She said weakly, vaguely aware when Bymion usured all her members of court not attending the Ambassadorial meeting about what to do with Alishandra Iciclae. She closed her eyes, feeling her age and wondered how Daenara, her aunt who looked younger then she herself did, felt at the end of the day. Serenity was not even in the middle of her life, and she felt like an ancient old hag. "Momma?" Serenity’s world brightened when she heard her dearest daughter’s voice below her. She opened her eyes and beheld the innocent wonder of her daughter. "Come into my lap, Sere." Serenity held out her arms to her only offspring, feeling guilt once again that it was her fault that Daenara and Aurora had not born any children as of yet, for she kept them at bay. No longer. Serenity decided, holding the most precious thing in her life in her arms. I will keep my family, my past, by my side forever now. "Thank you, my little angel." Serenity whispered to her daughter, inhaling her soft, baby-rose smell, trying to forget Pythia’s doom filled prophesy from the night before. Such an easy thing to do, when holding a bundle of life near her heart......... ~~~~~~~~~~~ Well, that's it! More to come soon. chibi_iruka@yahoo.com Later dudes!