With all that had happened in the past few weeks, it did not come as a surprise that the one thing farthest from Sailor Phact’s mind had been a second trip to the moon. Kidnappings, life or death choices, guilt. All of them atop trying to be a normal student and keep up family appearances had her tired. So tired in fact that she had managed to forget and sleep through not one but two full moons. Upon realization, it made Phact all the more determined not to miss this one.
So there she stood on the early spring night. Phone in hand as the cloud covers moved across the sky. It was not until there was a large break in them that Sailor Phact raised her phone.
A flash and she was gone!
A moment later the senshi of doves appeared upon the rock face surface of the moon. All around her though was not the dust and rocks people saw in old photos from NASA but the ruins and rubble of a kingdom long forgotten.
Stumbling over several rocks in her path, Phact made a mental note: Clean out a clear landing place if this was going to be where she continued to teleport to. Her backside could only take so much. Ow.
Slowly she made her way over some of the rubble and brushed herself off. The stillness of the moon once more settled over her. It was something she had to take a moment to get used to. Even on Earth there was never a true and complete silence. Here, it was an eerie still. Had something dropped around her, Phact would have jumped out of her skin!
Thankfully, nothing did and she was able to move on.
Red eyes fell onto the Moon Castle and Phact felt herself once more stop in her tracks. The beautiful ruins of a kingdom long gone. No matter what went on back on Earth, it seemed very little changed here. At least, from what she could gather. The only things that changed had to be done by other members of the White Moon Senshi. ”So do you still see what is happening on the blue planet you watch over? Or has your light gone out as much as everyone else?”
Turning from the castle, Phact had decided prior to coming that this visit, she would explore the grounds a bit more. Of course one look would answer what was there: dust, dirt, rock and rubble. But if being in the fashion world had taught her anything, first impressions were worth very little. You had to get to the heart of a piece to really see the truth behind it.
And as she made her way around the front of the castle ruins, Phact learned one thing very quickly: from now on, cut through the castle when trying to get to the back. This place was WAY too big.
It was right about the time she made it to the first turn from the main path that Phact noticed the first unbroken statue (at least a bit more together than the ones that were nothing more than stands). A woman gazed outward onto what Phact could only guess had at one point been a garden. Her arms were outstretched in a warm welcome that echoed the smile on her face. The marble dress was plain all for the bow and crescent moon on her bosom. But what drew Phact’s eye was the single crescent moon in the middle of her forehead. ”A royal?”
Walking forward, Phact reached out to touch the base of the statue. Two round orbs sat atop her head and connected to pieces that had broken off long ago. Her hair? ”Not my choice in style but suit yourself.” As Phact walked around her, she could see both the delicate care that went into creating the piece as well as the damage that had begun to take it with age. As complete as the front had appeared, the back was chipped and damaged. As if the damage had come from behind outside of her watchful eyes.
Once she was back in front of the statue, Phact stepped back and leaned backwards on a large piece of rubble. ”So, who are you? Clearly a woman of power and status. A goddess? Ironic since the Moon Goddess was considered such a powerful and graceful deity on Earth. Who would those of the Moon worship? Especially with that mark on your forehead.”
The words coming out of her mouth were like a light bulb. Hand coming up and smacking her own tiara, Phact couldn’t believe she had not put two and two together. ”Of course. The only others I have seen with markings like that are the Princesses. So, that must make you…” Phact’s hand came up and pointed forward. ”One of them. And if my guess is correct, then you are the long lost moon princess we have been instructed to find and protect.” Her eyes looked back up at the marking on her forehead and then the orbs on either side. ”Well, should we ever find you, I hope you can convince you to get a more updated hair style.”
What Phact didn’t say was that she truly did not believe they would find the missing moon princess. ”Frankly, if I were you, I would stay hidden wherever I was and hope that neither myself nor the man I started a war over was ever found.” Phact chuckled, pushing off her perch and walking back up to the statue. ”I think you would face more problems than you could believe now. The war has gotten out of hand. And if you or your prince ever came back…”
Phact only shook her head as she looked down. Needless to say, it would not have been good. Especially if the Prince of Earth did not side with the Agents of the Negaveruse that fought to ‘protect’ the planet. What then would that start? Belief in moon brainwashing? Or was that already a thing….”People sure can get creative when they want to turn things their way….wait a minute.”
Having dropped her eyes as she was speaking, Phact noticed something strange at the base of the statue. Against the white and gray stone, a dark shade of something tried to peek out. Human nature made her wait a moment to see if it moved in the wind. A second smack to her head to remember there was no wind on the moon and she dropped her to knees. It was a slow process to move the fallen depree away from what caught her eyes. But as each rock rolled away, Phact’s eyes locked more and more on the prize. There, struggling against the crushing weight of the stone, was the first true sign of life Phact had ever seen on the ‘dead’ rock.
”Well I’ll be…” Dropping back on her heels, the senshi of doves just watched the little sprout untwisted and stretched upward, breathing relief from the removed weight. ”So, you aren’t a lifeless rock after all.” Eyes flickering up to the moon statue, Phact could have sworn for a moment the eyes of the statue gazed down at the small sign of life. A blink and it was gone.
Shaking off the creepy feeling, she turned her attention back to the green sprout. A weed? A flower? A herb? What did it matter. It was life! It was something she never would have believed possible on the moon! ON THE MOON!
”So, you have been guarding this now?” Looking out at the area around the statue, where other fallen heads and arms laid, Phact stood and nodded. There was something in this area. Time to clean up and see what was there. This little guy though...this was her prize.
-
When Phact returned to the blue and green planet some time later, her white uniform was covered in dirt and her knees were skinned. She was damn tired as well. Several hours had been spent cleaning up the rocks around the base of the statue. She had not found any more signs of life but if there was anything...it was there. She knew it.
”I could sleep for a week.” Phact sighed as she allowed herself to power down with the sun rising behind her. Yawning as Delilah returned to her normal state, she started to walk back to her dorms. Tomorrow. Tomorrow she would learn what she could about growing plants.
Today...she napped.
Word Count:1,475
-Plants allowed to be found with Mod permission. Plot upcoming with findings
