A single white gloved hand ran along the fallen, dust covered stone walls. Slowly, the glove tore away the layers of age and ruin, dropping ever so slowly to the ground. As it fell, the dust slipped over the toes of the woman standing there before finding its new place on the cold floor.
She didn't seem to mind too much as she glanced back to the broken cracks she had now exposed to light for the first time in... how long? If she had been on Earth, surely a spider or some other small bug would have come crawling out to lodge a complaint against this intruder.
But seeing as the planet Earth was behind the raven haired female, clearly any creature was out of the question.
With a long sigh, Super Sailor Phact turned on those red heels she wore and leaned her back against the ruins of the Moon Kingdom. Bent ever so slightly at the waist, she slowly stirred the dirt on the ground with her toe, her movements making the only noise in the area.
Life had once more become...routine.
Sure things had changed since they walked the land of the Negaverse. She personally had been granted more power. But that power had not paid off. Phact had watched others die. She had watch people fail not only others but themselves. Selfish. That's what many had been. They thought only of their actions, refused to work together and had nearly gotten others killed. Worse of all, no one listened to each other. How much magic overlapped? How much had countered each other? How much had the selfish hope of being the one to save others blinded them from the truth…
...That they have no idea how to overcome the Negaverse...
Picking her head up, the senshi of doves gazed back at the blue green planet. “But neither do I.” Her voice seemed soft. Pushing off the wall of the moon castle, she began to once more walk it's halls.
Oh what was left of them.
Of course the largest hallway was the one Cosmos had recently given back to them. A hallway that contained the countless rooms that so called Courts could use.
Stopping a moment before that long walkway, Phact felt her head gently shake. “She spoke truthfully. We can't do this on our own. That should have been made clear! Even a royal using his crystal failed to make a dent!” Her hand came up to her face to brush the long hair back behind her shoulders. “He tried but...even the princess needed others to help.” Phact rolled her neck, trying to stretch it out as she remembered the princess and her crystal. It had only affected a select group but both and appeared not limited on who was targeted.
“And yet, here we stand...this hall still empty. Cosmos, did your warning fall on deaf ears?” a long moment of silence passed. Nothing was there to break it until the senshi in white began to walk again.
“Listen to yourself Phact. You are as selfish as the others.” Her hands began to ball into fists as her steps seemed to echo even louder. “Here you stand passing judgement overs for not listened to warning! You haven't done s**t either!” her left fist swung out, striking the stone wall. With the boost of strength she had gained, the strike shook the existing cracks, spreading them even more…
“You had a chance! You had people willing to follow and you blew it!” her arm dropped back to her side, now shaking both from impact and emotion. “You failed those who separated from you and those with you...ugh…” spinning on her heels, Phact slammed her back now into the wall, her hands covering her face.
In silence she remained until she allowed her body to slide down that cold stone. Finding herself on the floor, she drew her legs into her chest and kept her face covered.
“Long ago this place was a paradise.” The senshi of doves whispered. “A kingdom ruled by the most powerful people. A Princess who could save the world. A world she forsaken her kingdom for. The love of the prince of said world…” Phact spoke out, eyes beginning to slowly close. “A forbidden love…”
“So, you gave up this world and those who loved you. Now its halls are walked by people who you never met. It's secrets locked away. It's powers hidden. The people left behind are as confused as ever. No one to lead them. No one to unite them. Is the negaverse right? Is fear and power the way to go? Is Castor right?” sighing, Phact’s head rose and leaned back to the wall.
“What are you saying woman? Look at history! Those who rule in fear never succeed in the long run. Sometimes it may take longer to get there but those who lead with respect…”
The word left her mouth and her eyes blinked. That was it. That was what their so called royal leaders lacked. No one...no one respected them. “Castor tries to be a know it all. Ganymede tries to help but she seems so focused on those closest to her. Polaris has disappeared after her marriage and Iris has vanished.” She whispered out, counting off each of four royal senshi. All of them. All of them had vanished at one point in time. And none of them were willing to unite. If someone disagreed with them...they were simply...wrong.
“Those who do respect them are those who have followed them since before they were royals…” she assumed based on how they looked at them. “Have watched them before they each in turn vanished.”
Her thoughts began to process. “The problem is that they expected the same respect they had when they left when they returned. We are not the same anymore…”
“We...are not ...the same. I am not the same…” Her hands extended out and she gazed at the white gloves. They opened then balled into fists once more. “I joined this war without a clue about it. I fought because I had to...no, because it was expected of me. I had no reason. I too ran away.”
Slowly her hands came back towards her chest and she fished out the white crystal she wore around her neck. Holding it in the center of her palms, she gazed at the stone. “So do I have one now?”
Her eyes did not move but in her mind, Phact saw the images of those she loved. Her parents. Mercy. Mei. Sitara. Arthur. Quinn. Her teachers and classmates. Even her new boss! Hannah…
She had a who. She had who she wanted to protect. Who she wanted to see live normal lives.
That had never been an issue. She had a gift that meant she could help others. Even with weak powers she had learned to adapt. She had a brain that could think and process quickly in a bad situation. There was knowledge to be passed on that she had learned. Not to mention she wasn't afraid to stand up to anyone anymore…
She had the skills.
But a reason…
Her eyes flickered towards what at one time had been a window. Rising, Phact walked towards it until she could see the entirety of the Earth.
Watching for a several moments, she could see the clouds move across the skies. A storm was coming to life off in one area. In another, she could see lights flickering on as the area slipped into darkness.
A planet filled with so much life. A planet unlike any other out there. Every single one of them represented a world or star that was now...dead. Hundreds of places now gone. Their life put out for one reason or another.
Phacts hand came up and cupped around the crystal Caedus had given her as if she was praying. He represented something altogether different. A world that had been made! A world not truly alive.
“Chaos wants to rule this world. Chaos wants to enslave everyone. Chaos wants to kill all of us tied to other worlds.” Phact spoke softly. “Chaos will stop at nothing….to achieve their goals.”
They took control of everything. Every little piece of happiness was being stolen from the rest of them. Even walking down the street now had become deadly. They had lost the ability to enjoy concerts without fear. To take a late night stroll with others without worry. To believe that running out for milk won't mean ending up in a body bag because your starseed had been taken.
Oh lord the starseeds.
Dropping her necklace, she lifted her right hand back up and placed it over her heart. Her very soul. The reason she had this uniform…
Her eyes opened large. The reason she had this uniform…
“Is because my starseed is that of Sailor Phact. My soul is that of a senshi. Of a senshi reborn on a living planet.” Phact realized it then what those words meant now. Biting her lip, Phact summoned her courage and her phone.
This had to be done.
Closing her eyes, Phact reached out to hold onto her courage and pressed the home button.
And then she was gone.
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