Hi Minna-san! Well, here's the story you've all been asking for! This is my third fanfic posted to the Web. I wrote it FIRST, but lost it. I write better now, so I have little doubt that THIS version is better than my first. :) I hope you all enjoy this little trip back in time, to the day Senshi and Guardian first meet. This story takes place ENTIRELY in the Star Kingdoms, so many of you who were curious about my private little universe should get your questions answered, I hope! :) Special Thanks To: Will Wolfshohl -For editing and suggestions Beta Readers -Doug Helm, Andrew Hujsak, Jendra, Kathie Soto, Danielle Vanstane, Jennifer Henry, Zori Skye, and Ruthann Sharpe. Disclaimers: Sailor Moon, Sailor Senshi and all associated names and terms are copyright (c)1997 by Naoko Takeuchi, Kodansya and Toei. All Star Kingdoms material is copyright (c)1997 by Eric den Biesen. Characters may be used by others if they wish, as long as they are credited to yours truly. :) Rating: PG-13 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Sailor Moon: Beyond the Reach Prologue: Beginnings She opened her eyes and sat up abruptly. Too abruptly, as her head started to pound. She groaned and ran a trembling hand through her mussed blue locks. "Mercury! Are you all right?" She turned to see a young girl in a red fuku sit up shakily. "I'm fine, Mars," she replied, "Jupiter?" The girl in the green fuku rubbed her eyes. "I'm okay, just don't ask me to get up just yet." Mercury turned to the blonde in the orange fuku. "Venus?" Venus turned from where she was helping an armored man examine an unconscious girl in a blue fuku. "I'm okay, Mercury," she answered, "But Sailor Moon is still out cold!" The armored man took Sailor Moon in his arms and held her. "She'll be okay," he said in relief, "She'll wake up soon." Mercury looked around. "Good," she returned, "Now, the next question is `What happened?' and `Where are we?' also springs to mind!" The others all looked around, but no one could answer as nothing looked familiar. They were on a desolate hilltop. Far to the north, they could see a vast mountain range. To the south, much closer, was another range of mountains. All around them, was desolate, blasted terrain. "Hmmm," Mercury mused, "We appear to be in the foothills of that southern mountain range." Mars sighed in exasperation. "That's REALLY helpful, Mercury!" she retorted sarcastically, "Now, perhaps you can expand on it? Like for instance, WHERE ON EARTH ARE WE?!" Jupiter was looking up at the cloudless sky, her eyes wide as saucers. "We're not ON Earth, Mars!" she whispered, pointing up at the sky, "Not unless our moon ever looked like that!" Everyone looked up and gasped at the sight. This moon was either bigger, or closer than Earth's moon. Also, it appeared to have a cloudy atmosphere. Green tracts of vegetation and blue water seemed to confirm this. Everyone looked to Sailor Moon as she groaned and began to stir. Her eyes opened and the armored man leaned closer. "Usako?" he whispered. She blinked and looked dazed. As her vision cleared.... "MAMO-CHAN!!" she cried, throwing her arms around his neck. After she released him, she looked around and her eyes widened. Looking up, they widened even further. "Where are we?" she whispered. Mercury took her computer from her subspace pocket and began to work on it. "Let's see what I can find out....huh?!" Sailor Moon got shakily to her feet and staggered over to where Mercury was staring at her computer in stunned surprise, Mamoru doing his best to support her. "What's wrong, Ami?" she asked as she sat with relief next to her friend. "Sailor Moon, what's the last thing you remember?" Mercury asked as she turned to regard her Princess intently. Sailor Moon frowned as she tried to put her chaotic memories into some semblance of order. "I remember destroying Queen Beryl with the Ginzuishou, and the help of your spirits," she recalled shakily. "And?" Mercury prompted. "I remember dying!" Sailor Moon choked out, tears squeezing from tightly closed eyes, "I remember wishing everything was as it was before! Wishing I was just a normal girl!" "Ah!" Mercury breathed softly, "That solves THAT part of this mystery, at least!" Mars turned to regard the blue haired Senshi curiously. "What do you mean?" she asked. "Well, apparently, Usagi-chan's wish caused the Ginzuishou to unleash a great amount of power," Mercury answered as she read the information on her computer screen, "It granted PART of her wish by restoring us all, BUT, the power released was too great. It caused a rip in the fabric of reality and we've been taken to a parallel universe!" "Taken?!" Venus gasped. "Taken," Mercury said firmly, "According to THIS, some power came through the rift and dragged us through. The residue of that strange power is still around us!" "Not only THAT," she continued, "But there are files on my computer that weren't THERE before!" Sailor Moon looked frightened, but Mamoru's arms came around her from behind and her fear lessened somewhat. "What kind of files?" she asked. Mercury tapped a key, and a turning globe appeared on her computer screen. Sailor Moon leaned over Mercury's shoulder. "It doesn't look like Earth!" she admitted. "It's not," Mercury confirmed, "According to THIS, this world is called Alare." The globe was replaced by a golden eight pointed star. A menu appeared below the star symbol. "Ah!" Mercury exclaimed, "NOW we're getting somewhere!" She chose `History' from the menu and read rapidly as the words scrolled across the screen. When she had finished, the star and menu reappeared. "This is VERY interesting!" she commented excitedly, "We ARE in a parallel universe! This universe's version of our own Silver Millennium, is called the Star Kingdoms, a loose federation of Kingdoms on the planets orbiting this solar system's sun." "Yeah, so what?" Mars said impatiently, "How does THAT prove it's another universe?" "Well, a thousand years ago, the Star Kingdoms fought a terrible war against a force called the Dark Empire!" Mercury explained, "Aside from the fact that the Star Kingdoms and the Silver Millennium are similar, The Dark Kingdom AND the Dark Empire being similar stretches coincidence about as far as it'll go. The similarities are just too great!" "So, they got stomped by the bad guys too?" Venus asked curiously. "Actually, no," Mercury admitted, "That's where our universe differs from this one. The Star Kingdoms won that war at great cost. Something called `Dragonkin' apparently turned the tide." "Is this `Dragonkin' something like the Ginzuishou?" Usagi asked. "I don't think so," Mercury replied hesitantly, "I get the impression that it's a living creature. Some uses of the word in the history I read makes me think there are more than one of them." "Does this help us?" Jupiter queried. "Not with our problem, no," Mercury answered, "But it DOES give us some idea of what to expect here. THIS, however, just MIGHT." She pointed at another menu choice. Sailor Moon looked. "Star Kingdoms Maps," she read slowly, "How does THAT help us? Mercury touched a key and when another menu appeared, she selected `Alare'. "A map of THIS world will tell us where we are," Mercury explained, "We'll need to know THAT in order to decide where to GO." Her fingers flew over the keyboard, and the map obediently began to zoom in on their location. She felt a chill go down her spine as their location was marked by a flashing square. "Uh oh." "What? What?!" Mars cried impatiently. "We're in an area called `The Dead Lands', bordered by the Reach to the north, and the Shieldwall to the south," she said, pointing at the respective mountain ranges. "Nice names," Venus remarked with a shudder as she looked at the blasted desolation all around them, "It fits. Now, where can we go?" "Well, we can't go north. The Reach is too far away and...." "But we can SEE it," Sailor Moon interrupted, "How can it be far?" "Because it's the largest mountain range on this world," Mercury explained, "The mountains there are thousands of feet higher than anything on OUR world! And north of it, is Dark Empire territory according to the map!" "So we go south then?" Jupiter suggested. "Yes," Mercury returned, "We're on the western continent. The eastern continent and the Southern Archipelago is part of the Star Kingdom called `Caledonia'. South of this Shieldwall is ALSO Caledonian territory. Sailor Moon looked at the mountains known as the Shieldwall. "I don't know, Ami," she said uncertainly, "They're awfully big! Can we get through them?" Mercury studied the map carefully. "Well," she said, "To the south is a pass through the Shieldwall. There's even what appears to be a fortress city in the pass. I suggest we head for this `Calaskathlon'. We might get some answers there." Mars took Mercury aside. "Who put those files on your computer?" she asked. Mercury shook her head. "I don't know," she replied, "Whoever brought us here, I'd say." Mars frowned. "Dare we trust them?" "Any other ideas?" Mercury asked dryly, "Consider this though. We've been placed rather precisely. Only a few hours walk north of the pass. And we've been given the information we need to get around here." They started their southward trek. "Why not place us IN the pass instead?" Mars asked. Mercury shrugged. "I don't know," she answered, "But we're close enough that I'm NOT going to quibble about it. At least the Dark Empire is far to the north! I've read enough in that history file about them that they're STILL too close for my peace of mind!" "Peace of mind? PEACE OF MIND?! By all the Gods, Mercury!" Mars cried, her temper bursting loose at last, "We were DEAD! I saw YOU die! If there's one thing I DON'T have in THIS situation, Dark Empire or no Dark Empire, it's peace of mind!" The other Senshi shuddered, for they remembered their deaths vividly. "Calm down, Mars," Jupiter pleaded, placing a gentle hand on the hot tempered Senshi's shoulder, "It does no good to remember THAT. The Ginzuishou gave us a second chance. Let's not waste it, ne?" Mars looked ready to argue further, then subsided, knowing that Jupiter was right. Three women watched the Senshi head south, and one turned from the image displayed in the Loom, to face her hooded companion. "Was that wise?" she questioned calmly, "To bring them HERE?" The hooded woman at the Loom nodded almost imperceptibly. "Without them, the Guardians will fail, and THIS reality will fall." She whispered, "We cannot intercede on behalf of our children since we are bound by the Pact." "So THEY will intercede FOR us?" the third interjected sarcastically, "We must depend on CHILDREN?!" Her armor rattled as she moved from the Loom and confronted the other. "They are ALL our children, Shael," she answered softly, "Even the Sailor Senshi, though they know it not." She turned to the other, who was garbed in green from head to foot, a bow slung over her shoulder and a quiver of arrows at her back. "And you, Shalhanna?" she asked, "Will you ALSO question my choice?" "No, Weaver," Shalhanna replied firmly, "I will not. You are the Weaver of Time. You see time as one piece while WE do NOT. My sister agrees, even if her pride won't let her admit it." The Weaver turned to regard Shael, who finally nodded her head in reluctant agreement. The three of them returned their attention to the image in the Loom, watching the Senshi as they continued their way south. Up through the atmosphere of Alare. Up and out into space, a space that contained, not an empty void, but myriad currents of dimly visible aether. Further, out in space, about an hour from Alare's atmosphere, two vessels moved through the aether, moving closer to their destination with every minute. The smaller of the two was sleek and narrow. Large wings jutted from the aft section of her hull, shorter stubby wings from the fore section. Across the front, on each side, was her name; `Star Breeze'. Her sails were narrow and triangular. She was obviously built for speed. A tall graceful woman walked along the deck and leaned on the portside rail. Her hair was a waist length fall of silver and her large pointed ears proclaimed her heritage. Her violet eyes stared out through the atmospheric force field, watching their escort. Unlike Star Breeze, which looked fast, the Kin class cruiser `Anduin' looked EXACTLY what it was. DEADLY. Sleek as the Star Breeze, but four times her size. Wings fore and aft, and bristling with weapon emplacements. Everything about her screamed `warship'. Star Breeze, sleek lady that she was, had to hold back to half speed in order to allow Anduin to keep up. Aislynnia, Crown Princess of Tarandar, Alare's moon, sighed pensively. There was a time when Anduin would have been unnecessary. With Dark Empire vessels attacking helpless ships, that time was now over. She sighed again. A tall red haired man, his pointed ears also proclaiming his elven heritage, walked over to where the Princess leaned against the railing. "A common for your thoughts, Highness?" he asked. She turned and laughed lightly. "That would be giving them too much value, Captain!" she shot back, grinning, "But I'm mainly dwelling on the resurgence of the Dark Empire." She turned glum. "You know that war is likely to occur. Morgoth was never satisfied with halfway measures." Elan, Captain of the Royal Guard, looked at his young charge and was saddened. he thought. "Come, Highness," he said, leading her to the aft cabin, "It's time for a briefing on our mission." "Mission?" she asked in confusion, "I thought I was going to Caladon to be inducted into the ranks of the Guardians!" He looked at the glowing star on her forehead and nodded. "You are!" he agreed firmly, "BUT, there is no reason we can't kill two Dark Kindred with one spear. Our mission is diplomatic as well." "Diplomatic?" she queried, even more confused, "But why?" Elan regarded his Princess thoughtfully. "You know of the rift between our two Kingdoms. Do you know WHY this rift occurred?" She shook her head wordlessly. "No one would tell me!" she answered in disgust. "Well, I'll tell you now," he said soberly, "Tell you of the greatest shame in our history!" He leaned back in his chair and lit his pipe, puffing on it thoughtfully. "You know of the Civil Wars and the banishing of the Kashalkanite and Shaelite Clans from Tarandar, right?" She nodded slowly. "The expelling of the Kaskalkanite elves was fully justified, I thought," she remarked, "But the expulsion of our Shaelite brethren was a blunder and totally unjustified!" "I agree, as do most of our people," he said with a nod, "But five hundred years ago, the Tarandaran Throne was held by those who believed that the Shaelite Clans should be exterminated." Lynn looked at him aghast. "My history teachers never mentioned THAT!" she protested, "Why wouldn't they? And why destroy the Shaelite Clans?" "Ashamed of THAT part of our history, I guess," he shrugged, "As to the Shaelite Clans, they worshipped Shael, Goddess of War and Battle. We Shalhannanite elves worship her older sister, Shalhanna, Goddess of Nature. The Throne was held by fanatics at that time. Fanatics who believed that ALL elves should worship Shalhanna. Tarandar's Warfleet was sent to attack the Shaelite stronghold at Calaskathlon." "But, that would mean they violated Caladonia's borders!" she exclaimed in dismay. He agreed with a grim nod. "The joke was on THEM, however," he said with a nasty grin, "The Caledonian Starfleet was at Calaskathlon on training maneuvers with the Shaelite Fleet. They got QUITE a surprise when they attacked." He laughed heartily. "I wish I could have seen their faces!" he chortled, "Back on Tarandar, your family seized the Throne with the popular support of our people behind them. Your great-great-grandfather recalled what was left of our fleet. The damage was done, however, and the Caledonian Throne broke all ties with Tarandar." He sighed. "I'm surprised they didn't attack us!" she commented sadly. He took one look at the Princess' woebegone expression and patted her hand soothingly. "Hey now!" he said gently, "They didn't attack because they KNEW that a more moderate clan now held the Throne. You're the first of our folk to become a Guardian in over five centuries! King Brenlin contacted us and suggested the reopening of formal diplomacy between Caledonia and Tarandar. Considering the fact that Dark Empire forces are once again on the move, his offer couldn't have come at a better time." He raised his clenched fist. "The Star Kingdoms MUST be strong!" He brought his fist down on the table with a BANG. "Or we will FALL!" The ship shuddered violently, throwing them both to the deck. "What the..." he exclaimed as they got to their feet and rushed outside. Lynn gasped and pointed astern. "Look at THAT!" she cried. Elan looked and gasped in shocked dismay. Their large escort was ablaze from bow to stern. Explosions rocked her length, shockwaves causing shudders to go through Star Breeze's thin frame. Elan looked up and blanched. "Captain!" he yelled, "Initiate maximum speed, NOW!" Lynn grabbed his arm. "Elan! We can't abandon Anduin!" she exclaimed, "There may be survivors!" In answer, he pointed up. She looked up to see two grim black vessels swooping down through the aether, each was half again as large as Anduin. "Reaver class battlecruisers!" The foremost fired what appeared to be a bolt of lightning. It struck the burning cruiser amidships and she exploded with a violent detonation. They left the wreckage of Anduin behind as Star Breeze jumped ahead like a frightened rabbit. Her sails billowed out as the currents in the surrounding aether caught them. With the cruiser's destruction, the black vessels turned to pursue the courier vessel. Lynn and Elan watched as the grim ships gained on them with the calm inevitability of fate. "My Lord!" the ship's master called. When Elan looked up at the bridge, the Captain pointed ahead. "We'll be entering Alare's atmosphere in about ten minutes!" "Maintain speed!" Elan cried back. The lead vessel fired and the courier shuddered as the bolt struck the stern of the ship. Alert klaxons blared as the ship yawed wildly to port. Lynn and Elan grabbed the starboard railing to keep from being thrown across the deck. "Ho! Steering controls have gone dead!" came the call from the Bridge. The Captain's muscles bulged as he struggled to turn the wheel, but it didn't budge. Looking back, he saw more incoming fire. He pulled the wheel back and the ship climbed, the deadly bolts passing beneath her. "Captain!" Elan cried, "Incoming! Dive!" He shoved the wheel forward. Too late. One aft wing tumbled away, sheared away by the strike. The ship began to shudder, the klaxon shrieking. "Shut that noise OFF!" the Captain cried as he struggled with his now unresponsive vessel. The klaxon cut off midwail as another bolt struck, shearing off the second aft wing. Elan and the Princess held on grimly as the ship began to roll and yaw, totally out of control. "Elan! Look!" Lynn cried as she pointed astern, "They're veering off!" Sure enough, the two black ships were coming about and heading back into deep space. "Why don't they finish us?" she asked, confused. "Captain!" Elan called up to the Bridge, "Damage report!" The Captain looked down at him grimly. "We've lost the steering, My Lord," he reported, "Maneuvering ability is also mostly gone, thanks to the loss of our aft wings. We're now, basically, an unguided missile. The fore wings give us SOME control, but not much!" Elan thought quickly, "We're not going to make Caladon, are we?" The Captain studied his controls and the ship's projected course. "I'm afraid not, My Lord," he replied grimly, "We're going to hit like a projectile, and the closest I can get to friendly territory, is a few miles north of Calaskathlon!" "But THAT'S in the Dead Lands!" Elan objected. The Captain turned and smiled grimly. "It's unlikely that the Killanki will find any survivors. We'll hit hard enough, that they'll be lucky to find anything left of the SHIP!" "Okay, Highness," Elan said as he grabbed her arm, "You're going to abandon ship! Your mission is too important for you to go down with us!" She looked about to argue, then nodded reluctantly. Elan reached into his cloak and pulled out a silver sphere. "Ten minutes to impact, My Lord!" the Captain called. Elan looked at his Princess. "This is still experimental," he said reluctantly, "But it's your only chance." "What is it?" she asked as she took it from him. "It's a forcefield capsule," he replied, "If it works, future ship crews will have a way to escape doomed ships. Press the star symbol." She did as he ordered and immediately went into a trance. A forcefield surrounded her body. "Five minutes to impact, My Lord!" The ship was shuddering now in the thicker air. Elan pushed the shielded Princess off the ship. "Good luck, My Princess!" he murmured as he watched her shielded body drop away. Five minutes later, Star Breeze plowed into a hillside at almost maximum velocity, exploding with a brilliant flash of light and a shower of earth and rock. The Princess' field capsule floated slowly down. She had been spotted, however, and would have company when her capsule touched down. End of Prologue NEXT: Raiders, Serenity's wounding, Rescue in Chapter One: Enter the Guardians. BE THERE!!