A fan fic by Caleyndar. Rating: PG. Notes: Disclaimer: None of the characters belong to me; only the few I make up. The story, however, is mine. The Name Endymion... Part Two: A Deeper Truth... Chapter Three... Sweet sixteen. Time passes so fast. It's like the magical sand in an hour glass. It can't help but fall away, slowly, but surely, slipping a little faster now and then, until you find all of it is gone. No more golden sand. Only empty glass. My eyes drifted away from the large hour glass floating in mid air above the desk in my study. A year passes so fast. But I was content with what I had achieved within it. Was I not the top student at Armand's little academy? Could I not destroy entire worlds with my powers if I wished it? And today, well, we finally get to do something fun. I set the hour glass down on the table. Armand had given it to me some time ago, saying the one thing we could not do, even with all the power we possessed, was travel through time. It was an old yet elegant thing, with hand blown glass and carved wood. The sand was golden, and at times looked almost to be magical, as time was. Sailor Pluto. Did she not have the power to travel through time? One of the Outer Scouts that belonged to the Moon Kingdom court. Perhaps one day, I would go and visit her. See for myself if such a thing as time travel was possible. But it did not concern me now. Yesterday had been our 'graduation' into the next stage of our training. No party of course. Just a formal presentation to us with our first rank stripe which we had attached to our colourless uniforms. It had been quite a boring ordeal, with approximately two hundred students. I stood up and moved to stand in front of the full length mirror in my room. I had grown taller in the last year, and my frame was filling out too. Quite unavoidable with all the physical training we had been receiving. It had been harsh, but as the saying goes; 'no pain, no gain'. My eyes were always darker than the emptiness of space, filled with a contentment at the knowledge that one day, my one and only wish will be fulfilled. My body glowed, a silvery blue allure surrounding me from the power within. I smiled, feeling the power swell inside me. With a flash of light, I teleported to the mess hall. No one else was there yet, and a comfortable silence filled the large room. I got my food and sat down at metal tables with their cold surfaces and chairs to match. Students soon began to enter the hall, and noise soon drowned out the quietness. Did I miss the friendship they had found from each other? Perhaps, deep down, a part of me did. Nick and Dawn never talked to me anymore. In fact, no students ever talked to me. I was too cold, to full of hate constantly. And if I was not, well, I still never cared for company. I was a loner. I saw them, Nick and Dawn, glance over at my small and empty table as they entered, hand in hand. They were the perfect couple these days. I smirked at that. Love. It will always hurt you in the end. Nick's eyes lingered on me, still concerned about his 'best friend'. Then he glaze left me as he was swept up by the black sea of people. When breakfast ended, I walked to class. It was a new class, filled with the top students from the two hundred. Like the other classes, there were only ten in this one. This class would begin a new section of training, specialising in surgical attacks on the higher ranking people on the opposing side. I was much looking forward to this because it would gave me a first hand look at how I could defeat Serenity. I smiled at that thought. Yes, I had waited a long time, but at last, my one dream, my one wish, would be granted. Die, Serenity, die. The classroom was large, divided into sections. One held desks and chairs, another training equipment, and the third, viewing screens and computers. The teacher stood with his back to the door when I entered, looking around the room. His figure looked familiar some how. Thin and tall, with a head full of luscious golden blonde hair tied loosely back at the nape of the neck with a black silk ribbon. And unlike all my other teachers I had encountered through the previous year, this one wore a long royal blue coat, velvet of course, with a silk shirt underneath, and dark blue breeches. "What do you think of this place?" the teacher asked me without turning around. I was a little shocked that he knew I was standing there. "It does not really matter to me," I answered. "It's a room, nothing more." "I think it's a little dull. More colour. Plants, paintings. Yes, one must have inspiration," the teacher said, gesturing with his hands. "If only Louis was here. He may be a little dull, but he has good tastes," he muttered to himself. He certainly didn't sound like a teacher. He was too open. And Louis? That name sounded awfully familiar. Where had I heard it from? Maybe I had read of it in the library. "I'm hurt. The great Prince Endymion of Earth doesn't remember me," the teacher said, finally turning around to face me. He smiled at me. "Remember now, mortal?" "Lestat?" I whispered, surprised. Damn! I had let my guard down. I closed my mind up. "You're Armand's friend. What are you doing here?" "I thought seeing the destruction of others would be amusing. And you, my dear Prince, are very amusing," Lestat said, smiling. "And Endymion, Armand is my friend. I am not his. I do not belong to this kingdom. I choose to be here. And as you already know, I am a vampire. So please, don't try any of the little mind tricks you play on your other teachers. I won't hit you, I'm not that cruel," he smiled evilly. "So tell me, what do you think would suit this wall? Armand has enough paintings. Perhaps he can spare one or two." "You're teaching this class?" I asked, still a little surprised, ignoring his question. "Yes. Why shouldn't I be? I'll teach you what you need to know about killing. After all, I am a killer myself. But you want to know what I think? About your little obsession with killing the Princess of the Moon Kingdom? I don't think you'll be able to hurt a single strand of her hair, much less kill her," the vampire said thoughtfully, a smile playing on his silken lips. "You think so?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. "You don't hate her as much as I do. Your parents weren't killed like mine was. You kingdom wasn't destroyed!" "I also don't love her as much as you do," Lestat said softly. "Love?" I asked. "Love! I don't love her! She has caused me pain. Why would I love her after all she's done, after how she's hurt me!?" Lestat said nothing, but kept on smiling. Other students came in then, Nick being one of them. We said nothing to each other, but Nick looked at me with a worried glance as we passed each other. Lestat watched this, amused. We were asked to take our seats when everyone had arrived. Lestat began by explaining what we would be learning in this lesson, and began it by teaching us about each and every one of the possible opponents we may have to face. The Inner Scouts of the Sailor Soldiers or other wise known as Serenity's Court. They consisted of Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, and Venus. Mercury had the power of water and ice, and was the weakest of the four scouts. She was also the most intelligent of the four. Mars had the power of fire and spiritual strength. She could sense evil or other forces, and was psychic. She was the second in command of the Sailor Soldiers. Jupiter had the power of lightning and thunder, and was physically the strongest of the Sailor Soldiers. She was the most loyal to Serenity. Venus had the power of light. She was the strongest of the four, and was also the leader. Her physical appearance was very close to that of Serenity. The Princess Serenity of the Moon Kingdom. She had no elemental powers, and was not directly part of the Sailor Soldiers, but had great mental powers such as telekinesis, teleportation, and was also psychic. She had a crescent moon symbol on her forehead, with an earth inside of it. Only the royal line had it, and the symbol can also be made to be invisible to any prying eyes. Using the Imperium Silver Crystal, she had to power to heal and to destroy almost anything. Only she and her mother, Queen Selenity, could use it. The Prince and his relatives of the Black Moon Kingdom; Prince Diamond, his brother Sapphire, his sisters Emerald and Ruby. They all had great power, and were considered to be a considerable force to contend with. They were easily recognisable by their upside down black moon symbol on their foreheads, which could be made to be invisible. The sisters were weaker than the brothers, and Prince Diamond was the strongest of all of them, and could use his third eye, which was only visible when in use, to hypnotise any opponent. The Leader of the Shadow Kingdom and his relatives; the three Weapons; Blade, Sabre, and Sword. Blade was the leader, and he and Sabre were identical twins. Sword was the younger sister. They did not have any powers, but they used technology against any attack. They were the most advanced kingdom in technology, and could use it to counter any known attack of any of the kingdoms. The Weapons were also very skilled in hand to hand combat, and could use the weapon they were named after like it was an extension of themselves. Lestat dismissed the class early that day. It must have been our first early mark ever at this school. Everyone was also surprised that no one was hurt today. It seemed to me that no one else but me knew that Lestat was not human. He certainly acted human, more so than the other teachers. At least he did not beat us like animals. He even smiled sometimes. Everyone was in a good mood after class that day. Even I wasn't so filled with hate. I returned to my rooms, for once looking forward to tomorrow. Lestat had promised us something special, and I could not wait to see what it was. I had a dream that night. For the first time since I had changed. A garden, beautiful, filled with flowers. Roses. Red roses. Love. It was night, and a full moon hung in the sky above. Such a clear night. So many stars. Thousands, millions. She was there, within my arms. I held her tight, afraid that if I let go she would disappear. "I won't ever let anything hurt you. I will always protect you. I love you," I whispered to her, holding her still, kissing her forehead. She looked up at me, eyes large and innocent. "I love you too." Why did I dream that? Why did I say those words? 'Because they are true,' a soft voice said from within me. I shook my head and dressed for the day's class. "What do you think?" Lestat asked me as I teleported into the classroom. "It's Armand's. He always did like Heaven and Hell. He had similar paintings in that 'Theatre of the Vampires'. I hated that place. But he must have taken that from Marius, this obsession with paintings. He loved to paint." I reconsigned the mural. It was the one that had hung on the wall in the hall just outside his throne room. The one of Hell and Heaven merging and becoming one. "It's an interesting piece of art work," I said softly, walking up beside him. "Heaven and Hell. Do you believe in such places? Do you believe in God and the Devil?" he asked, gesturing to the painting, grey eyes still locked on it. "No," I replied. "Not in the way you mean. I do believe places can be like heaven or hell, and that there are people who have such power that they might as well be gods and devils. But I do not believe in them as they are portrayed in religion and the bible." Lestat laughed softly. "You do not sound sixteen, my young friend. You sound more like a friend of mine. He was mortal when I fell in love with him. He's a vampire now, wondering the ages as I am. He talked as you do now." He fell silent then, eyes dropping from the mural and turning to look at me. He smiled. "I promised all of you a surprise today. It's part of your training, but I thought it would interest all of you. I'll show you in real time just what these Sailor Scouts can do." A pain clutched my heart then. 'I won't ever let anything hurt you. I will always protect you.' I shook my head, my black hair falling over my dark eyes. "And how will you do that?" I asked, trying to hide the pain I felt. "Through modern technology," Lestat replied, waving his arm towards to viewing screen and computer. "They train every day. It will give you an idea of their powers. And Serenity will be there. Don't worry about that," Lestat added with a smile. I looked away from him. My eyes lightened for a moment. They became their natural deep blue. Did I care for her? Did I love her? Lestat laughed, turning my head so I faced him. "You care! You love her!" he said gleefully. "Ah, did I not tell you so? You don't hate her!" My eyes darkened, and I flung him away from me with a powerful blast of my energy. He slammed into the wall, but was not for one second dazed. He was still laughing. "Endymion is in love! Endymion and Serenity, sitting in a tree," he started singing. I glared at him. He kept on singing. I materialised a rose in my hand. It was steel tipped, and the bloom was as black as midnight. I threw it at him. It flew through the air, a black streak, and it buried itself in the wall next to where Lestat sat, slumped against the wall where he had landed. He stopped singing and looked at it with wide eyes. He pulled it out delicately and held it in his thumb and fore finger. "Black is for hate, Endymion," he said softly. "Hate for her, Lestat," I replied coldly. "I will kill her." Lestat merely looked at me, and then back to the rose. It bursted into flames. The ashes fell from his hand. They had a finality to them. Everyone arrived then, and Lestat turned his attention to them, rising effortlessly. Nick came in, forcing himself not to look at me. Lestat told them what the agenda was for the lesson today, and then began it. The view screen came on, static at first, and then the picture became clearer. Observe their powers, their tactics, their weaknesses. They are strong, but everyone has a weak point, and that was where one must strike in order to win, Lestat instructed. The picture became focused, and we found ourselves in a high walled garden. The area that surrounded the five figures was enclosed by stone walls, covered here and there with leafy vines. The garden looked very much unkempt, and resembled more of a jungle or rain forest than a garden. There were no fountains pouring fourth sparkling water, no bright coloured flowers arranged in attractive patterns. Only random plants, big and tall, providing cover. Five figured became clear. Serenity, dressed in her white flowing gown, her golden hair done up in those tight twin balls with two long streamers flowing from them. The Inner Scouts were dressed in their Sailor uniforms; blue for Mercury, red for Mars, green for Jupiter, and orange for Venus. Their skirts were rather short, and produced a few wolf whistles from the boys in the class. Any other teacher might have yelled at them for that, but Lestat only smiled. I only watched, silent, thinking their behaviour inappropriate. The Scouts streaked with surprising speed through the wild garden, leaping from tree to tree, branch to branch. Their training had them fighting each other, and everyone was trying to attack the other whilst staying safe themselves. Serenity stood on the ground, her sceptre holding the Imperium Silver Crystal held in her hand. Shining brightly from her forehead was the moon and earth symbol. A voice called out in the dense undergrowth. "Mercury Bubbles Blast!" A flash of blue light and then the whole area was covered in a heavy fog. Serenity's figure was lost, as was almost everything else. There was a scream of surprise, followed by a large splash. Someone had fallen over in a large puddle or pool. "Damn you, Mercury!" Mars's voice rang out. "Mars Fire Ignite!" A ball of fire shot out from the fog, and blasted into a tree, missing the intended target. The mist began to clear, revealing everyone's positions. Mars stood on the ground, looked very annoyed and soaking weak. Mercury was not far from her, standing on a branch up in a tree, smiling. "Jupiter Thunder Crash!" a strong voice shouted, and a bolt of lightning struck Mercury from behind, sending her flying from her branch. A moment passed, and then a well built girl dressed in green, white and pink ran to where Mercury laid. "Oh, I am so sorry, Mercury! I didn't mean to hurt to that much!" the tall girl cried, helping Mercury to her feet. "I'm alright, Jupiter," Mercury said, giving her friend a weak smile. "Please, you don't have to apologise for hurting me in training. We're suppose to get hurt. That's why Serenity's here." Jupiter bit her lip, still looking guilty. "Venus Love Chain Encircle!" another voice yelled. A gold chain of linked hearts shot out and wrapped itself around Jupiter. "Yeah, Jupiter, we're suppose to get hurt!" the blond said, stepping out of her cover and holding the other end of the chain. Jupiter grinned. "Jupiter Thunder Crash!" Lightning shot out from Jupiter and along the chain, electrifying Venus who wasn't quick enough to let her end of the chain go. "Well, are you hurt enough, Venus?" Jupiter asked, pulling the chain loose. "Yeah, plenty," Venus said weakly. "Alright, that's enough," Serenity's soft voice cut in. "You all did well today, up until you began to joke around. Mercury, learn to watch your back. Mars, don't yell so much. Jupiter, stop apologising. And Venus, don't let your guard down." "Yes, Serenity," they all chorused. Serenity lifted her Imperium Silver Crystal from it's place in her Moon Wand and held in up in her hand. "Moon Crystal Healing Activation," she said loudly. Bright golden light came forth from the crystal, and enveloped the four Scouts. When the light faded, they were healed of the injuries. Serenity replaced the crystal on the Moon Wand and dematerialised it. "Well, let's go and have ice creams," she said, grinning. "I think I'll have a triple chocolate hot fudge sundae with sprinkles and chocolate ice cream. Oh, and I want cream and a cherry on it too!" The four scouts sighed. "With all she eats, it's a wonder why she doesn't get fat!" Mars whispered to Mercury. "I heard that!" Serenity yelled back. The five of them made their way to the exit, talking amongst themselves. They were about to leave when a deep menacing voice stopped them. "Leaving so soon, Princess?" the voice asked, mocking Serenity. "Why not stay awhile long and meet a little creation of mine?" A dark figure appeared standing on the wall. "You know, your security wasn't at all hard to breech. But then, how can you prevent something from entering when you can't even see it?" The figure laughed. A closer look revealed him to be a young man with longish black hair and green eyes. A scar marked his face, over his left eye. The four scouts immediately took defensive stances around Serenity. "Who are you!" Venus demanded. "You don't know who I am?" the man asked, fake hurt in his voice. "I am so hurt, dear Venus! Why, I am Blade, leader of the Shadow Kingdom." He smiled evilly as they all gasped. A sudden ball of energy appeared in mid air, within the garden's walls. It was bright green and crackled with energy. It suddenly launched itself at the Scouts and at Serenity. All of them jumped clear as the energy ball impacted with the ground, sending up dirt every where, and leaving a large crater. Blade laughed. "I'll leave you in the company of my lovely machine. I would stay, but I have other matters to attend to." With that, Blade jumped off the stone wall, disappearing over the other side. Another ball of energy appeared, gathering strength. "Mercury! See if you can take down the cloaking shield on that thing! We can't attack it if we can't see it!" Venus ordered, leaping out of the way as the ball of energy came flying towards her. "Venus Meteor Shower!" she cried when she landed, sending out multiple beams of light in the direction where the ball had come from, hoping that one beam would catch the monster. Mercury had a clear blue visor over her eyes, and a hand held computer in her hand, and was tapping away at it. "I've got the position of it now," she said, not even looking up from her computer. "Just a few more seconds and I'll have the shield down." "Well, we don't have a few more seconds!" Mars yelled as another ball flew towards her. "I've got it!" Mercury called out. A section of the air shimmered, and then a dark metallic shape appeared. It was a human shaped robot or droid. A huge sword like weapon was in the place of where an arm should have been, and the other arm was nothing more than a claw. It's metal head held red glowing eyes, and it's entire body was covered with thick armour. "Selene, look at the size of that thing!" Jupiter gasped. "Jupiter Thunder Dragon!" she shouted when she had over come her shock. Lighting flared out from her and formed into the shape of a dragon, which drove right at the metal monster. The beast saw it coming and lifted it's sword arm and sliced the dragon in half. "Mars Celestial Fire Surround!" Mars yelled. Six balls of fire appeared and gathered into one within her hands. From that, she shot out disks of fire at the monster. They hit the robot head on, but the thick armour absorbed the fire and did not harm it. The metal gargoyle then launched another attack, this time directed at Serenity. Time stood still, and then noise tore from my throat. "No!" I screamed. A flash of blue and silver light enveloped my vision, and I was suddenly teleported to Serenity's home world. A cape flowed behind me. A sword hung at my side. Silver armour adorned my tall body. High stone walls suddenly surrounded me. Shouts of surprise assaulted my ears. The shadow of the machine fell over me, enfolding me in darkness. And then the ball of green energy was hurtling towards me. I face it full on, and it slammed into me with such force that I was knocked backwards. The energy dissipated over my body, leaving me shocked and momentarily in pain. But everything was alright. Serenity was safe. She was unharmed. The pain was gone. The silver armour I wore had absorbed the force of it, and I was not damaged. I smiled at the monster, and then held out my arms, wrists together, palms facing the monster. "Goodnight, Sweet Prince," I said softly to it. Power shot out from my hands, a silver and blue stream of pure energy, hitting the monster with such force that it ripped the armour apart and blasted the mechanic within it until it ripped a hole right through it. An explosion tore threw it, and I dived away from it and on top of Serenity's body to protect her from the flying derbies. I held her tight within my arms, preying that nothing would hit her, and she would be unhurt. The fire ball died away, and all that was left of the metal robot was soot and ashes, and the destruction it had left in it's wake. What ever had taken over me in that instance when Serenity was in danger was gone. Had my eyes returned to their deep blue, they were now once again black as the darkness with in me. And had my heart once again broken loose of the anger and hatred inside of me, it was once again imprisoned in my dark and lonesome soul. I stood up and watched with a cold expression as Serenity pulled herself up. She was looking at me with wide eyes. Almost pleading, and always so innocent. The four Scouts looked on, unsure of what to do, so surprised were they of my sudden appearance and my saving their Princess. I gave Serenity an icy smile and materialised a rose in my hand. I held it out to her, smiling, and tossed it at her feet. The rose was a black rose. And then I was gone in a flash of silver and blue light. End of Part Two, Chapter Three.