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Fall of Ravensong

Lamentation of a moon blossom


She was dreaming the familiar dream that always came to her as she slept. Giggling, Princess Beryl Ravensong inhaled the sweet spring air, the soft Lunarian breeze caressing the bare skin of her neck, shoulders and her long gazelle-like legs as she skipped happily through the foliage, a profusion of living magic she always found so intoxicating this time of year. But as she knelt upon one flawless golden knee gathering flowers and brushing the pollen from her thighs, she took pause.

Whistling a Lunarian lullaby, she looked up as a strange rumbling sound disturbed her reverie in nature’s bounty and gasped at the sight of a swirling aperture that opened up as if out of nowhere a short distance away.

In that moment, the midnight blue sky, on the white side of the moon then seemed a dark and frightening place for a young adolescent girl.

She blinked disbelievingly at the angelic man whom seemingly appeared out of thin air before her, his face handsome, but his dark clothing, the stoic expression, all this made her feel a little uneasy.

(Where on the moon did you come from?) Beryl mused, regarding him with cautious eyes.

He smiled warmly, and bowed. He excused himself and quickly tended to his steed, tying the straps of the black moon horse to a nearby tree. He then turned slowly to face the trembling girl, still on bended knee. He admired her physical beauty, thinking she would make a suitable lover. He examined her youthful form appreciatively, finding himself captivated by her smooth complexion and her sumptuous long coppery locks that poured over her girlish form like a fountain of liquid fire, pleased the princess was endowed with the obvious accouterments of a desirable woman. He was losing himself in those pretty, golden eyes, his horse whinnied impatiently behind him bringing him back to himself.

He leered at her, and walked towards her slowly, licking his lips. She remained frozen to the spot, she could not breathe, let alone move. She screamed.


Before the fall


Shall I sing to the seasons of the Lunarian tides? I am Lady Ravensong, muse and enchantress, shall I sing for you?

I, the princess of floral tribute, am but a fresh vine upon which the bejeweled skies of the cosmos can ripen their fruit and I shall bring forth their nectar-laden bounty so all might feast!

Let me tell you a story of pretty things, of places wondrous and far away, the kind of things that a child’s dream are fashioned and that adults long to recapture.

I sing my song, I sing of love, and yes, I sing of the beauty of my homeland, the kingdom of dappled night, of heroes and heroines brave and beautiful.

Allow me to tell you of the lands kissed by the stars that lie beneath the crystal domes of our smaller, but no less attractive cities on the darker side of the moon, no less striking than of those found in the lands of the White Moon.

Come play with me, bring your troubles and be light of heart in the rain of my voice and my stories, and please tell me your own tales, listen with me as the Lunarian birds and our mysterious and lovely butterflies -- though these are of a darker hue -- they glitter under the starlight in violets, reds, purples and polished onyx!

Be sorrowful not, for I am lady of life, mistress of moon romance, story craft and song, your celestial muse, the keeper of dreams.

I love you all!


Beryl Ravensong, ‘Ode to Night’ recovered from an ancient tablet in 3011 Crystal Tokyo Central Archive


Kore’s Dream


Princess Beryl Ravensong, at sixteen years of age, was a vivacious young woman. She, affectionately known as ‘the gatherer of flowers,’ the coppery-haired beauty was considered the living dream and hope for their shadowy realm on the darker side of the moon.

The princess, much loved by her people, her polished golden eyes bright with the wonder of nature's charm, it was often said of the lovely princess, that her eyes and smile would illumine the night wherever she set foot. She was quite attractive and in her innocence, her undeniable allure captured the hearts of many would-be suitors and this would always surprise and puzzle her, but not in the case of her many admirers.

She reveled in their affections, careful not to get too close, yet not too distant that she risked breaking any hearts, as she loved all her subjects.

She also loved the fields of flowers that led to the temple of Hecate. While there, she would take food and drink and read atop the slight rise that offered a breathtaking view of the small city nestled in the valley below. She would sit there for hours, read her Lunarian faery tales by the light of the stars, and sing her lullabies she loved so well.

This night, much like many others spent in this place of welcome refuge and solitude, a pride of Star Tigers would often keep a safe distance and listen to her melodic arias. Before long, as she knew they would, the huge felines began to purr loud enough for her to hear. This delighted her and she smiled and bade the cubs to come closer and crawl into her lap where they would sleep or play with the princess until a low growl woke the little creatures whom stirred and would soon hop onto the ground and trot off back to their parents.

She would cry then, picturing the faces of her long dead mother and father. But all this was part of her daily pilgrimage to this private place of fond remembrances where she paid them homage. After a time, she gathered her belongings and headed for the temple of Hecate where she prayed to the Goddess.


Moon Tide of Cancer


It was her summer vacation. The domed cities approximated the Terran seasons as best they might, and due to the moon’s environmental systems scattered over the small sphere that encircled the blue planet below, it was so like the Terran Kingdom she had to constantly remind herself she was on the moon.

Ravensong adored the colorful flowers that assailed her senses, the tall stems of the ubiquitous blooms swaying in the Lunarian breeze caressed her bare legs as the petals fell upon her small feet as she ran through the flowerbeds laughing with her friends. But after good-byes were exchanged and a few hugs, she waved Karenina and Krounnari farewell and turned towards the temple courtyard to leave her basket of flowers as tribute to the beautiful Goddess Hecate.

She considered this landscape sacred. The flowers made her feel truly alive, their scent so sweet, and the soft petals kissing her skin were sheer bliss, the colors true, how she loved them so.

She then looked up, as the flowers she cradled in her arms fell to the ground, and she began to whimper, standing over her was a tall handsome man, fair of hair and skin. She felt sensations she’d never known before.

(What is happening to me!)

But despite her obvious fear, she found him desirable, and was shocked by the honey-like sensation that flowed through her abdomen in that moment. It felt completely alien to her as terror suddenly gripped her heart and a strange fire began to consume her.

“No, keep away from me!” she knew the face, yes, but was it the face of her nightmares? She flushed and felt an icy foreboding as he knelt before her and smiled, touching her cheek as she stammered, “You, you monster! Mother!”

“Virgin child, you are mine. I shall grant you a boon, to claim my dominion I need a ripe girl of noble blood to bear the child, your body shall serve as juncture of the White Moon and that of the Dark, and my power shall soon grow within its celestial heart as too my seed within your womb! You are mine!”


Birth of the Doom Phantom


She climbed the steps of the temple, weeping profusely, and heavy with child. But she knew there was no other way.

(Can I do this, I mean, murder my own child, even if it is the spawn of him, the dark lord, Chaos?)

But as she feared her resolve might weaken, she through herself into the sacred pool and allowed herself to sink.

(I won’t be the vessel of doom. I hate you, Chaos, and all you stand for! You have tainted this world, and filled my womb with the seed of its imminent destruction. But I shall have this one victory against your iron will, oh cruel arbiter of my fate! This child, will not see starlight or the pale light of the daystar!) She lost consciousness.

~*~

She woke to the sound of music, the wind instrument soothing, the night embracing.

The women of the temple sad as they seemed about to cry. “Oh lady, you lost him, your child was born without the blessings of the Kamis, and do you wish to see him?” Isheiree inquired.

“No, it is the spawn of Chaos, and I suffer his cruel brand upon the once shimmering wonder that was once my Star Seed, I am but a shell, I am a fallen princess, and those under my charge are destined to fall with me, and I am losing myself even as I say this to you, my childhood friend. Go far from me, all of you lest I destroy and ruin your lives!” she warned them, tears brimming in her eyes.

“But my princess!” Shitake protested.

“I command you! Empty this palace, all of you can live with Selene on the white side of the moon, but if I were you, I would go much further, Pluto or Orion, just be gone, save yourselves and your families while you can. By next Terran Eclipse, I shall be no more, only a Dark Monarch for the Dark Lord… for in time, this sphere will be an obsidian jewel in the heavens, and that I promise you…Leave me!”


~/~


Princess Ravensong’s parents had died in an accident aboard a Arrisaito freighter while on a diplomatic mission to a world in an unexplored part of space they’d later come to learn was under the control of two mysterious dark princes, Lord Hades and Chaos, the latter his twin brother.

Ravensong had learned that her parents had forfeited their lives to save her and the people of the dark side of the moon from imminent peril, granted the chance to leave their beloved homeland forever to avoid the attack on the White Moon that would likely destroy most of the cities on the Lunarian surface. But the price paid for this concession from the lords of darkness was the lives of her mother and father.

Later, after her fall, she would kill Hades with her own hands. Chaos, thought it prudent to have his enemies closer than those few he considered friends, that included his own flesh and blood, a siren of the night, Metallia, a woman who slept her way into the most prestigious circles of the Celestial Alliance, and Chaos’s little sister, was his eyes and ears upon many worlds he called, the Obsidian Princess.

Metallia had given him the brilliant idea to conjure up the strategy of, The Curse, by infusing the Dark Crystal Seed within Ravensong. It would behave much like a Terran virus, consuming her Star Seed. Eventually, the transformation process would be complete. Ravensong forever altered, the core of her being and the Dark Planet Crystal it fed would grow and feed upon the White Moon until it drained the House of Serenity of its power. The Ginzuishou would then leave the Terran Star System and he, Lord Chaos, and his subordinates would occupy, reign over and challenge their rivals beyond his existing territories, or at least, that was the plan.

~*~

When the raven flew into the sanctuary of Thanatos, he grinned and held out his arm. “Ravensong! How good it is to see you, my dear. Displeased with me? Oh, that wasn’t my doing. I tried to warn your parents to let Hades take your world and start afresh on Nemesis. But I couldn’t persuade them to kill off the cousins of the White Moon, so I washed my hands of it all and planted operatives and spells upon the nobles of that planetoid, the fall of that kingdom is I tell you, most definitely assured.”

“Bastard, you could have stopped him killing my parents! I serve the Dark Kingdom, yes, but I don’t sit back and let mindless minions or those I consider my equals harm my family, even if they’re of the light!” she snarled, having assumed her human form, her eyes flashing dangerously.

“Temper, temper, my dear. You’re hardly in a position to bargain. I know you’re powerful. But let me remind you Beryl, who gave you your power and all you enjoy, hmmm? Oh, and when you ripped that lifeless babe from your body and cast the boy in the ceremonial pool, with your sorry attempt at suicide, I rescued little Styx and revived him. He is destined to become a formidable sorcerer of great power and even now, his destiny lies in Nemesis’s future, I have left nothing to chance. I will prevail. I use the weakness of human emotion against your kind to achieve my goals, and let me remind you one last time; you are my servant and not my equal, and the curse I place upon you shall prove my point, no more talk of killing or insurrection, Ravensong, you… are mine!”

Chaos smiled as the black shimmering gown fell from Beryl’s shoulders to the floor and she stood naked before him. Obediently, she moved towards him and stopped as the glittering jet crystal star dissolved as it passed into her chest, superimposing itself over Beryl’s Star Seed. At that moment, her eyes took on their red shimmer.

“I hate you!” was all she could manage before the power of the dark took her last shred of resistance.

He chuckled, also shedding his raiment while admiring her comely figure. “Little Beryl, do you not yet understand? You cannot resist my charms, nor can you hold back what must be.”

Beginning the seduction rite, he drew her into his arms and pressed his lips to hers. His tongue demanding as she punched his chest in a futile attempt to struggle free of his powerful embrace. She screamed, the sound muffled by the sheer force of his kiss and his passion that she was only all too aware of as she slowed the pounding of her tiny fists that like flowers, unfurled and began to respond to his ministrations. She kissed him back and pressed her lithe body to his as he carried her off to his bedchamber.

~*~

As they lay there after their loving, he swore he had no part in the deaths of her parents, and this was as close to an apology as she was likely to get. Beryl knew that it was only because he found her pleasing in bed that he kept her alive and that her silver-dark Star Seed, would be a cradle for his power that would overwhelm not only her emotions and her body, but also the Moon itself. She was merely an instrument, an extension of his will. His plans for domination of the Silver Alliance were well underway and she could do nothing to prevent this.


Obsidian Convergence


Queen Serenity lay secure in her bed, Mercury and the other inner guardians stood in a protective circle around their queen.

“I blame myself,” Venus said, “She is too strong, and the darkness is taking her from us, my queen!”

“Correction, has already taken her-“ Jupiter was cut off as Mars slapped her, “What the hell was that for-“

“Stop, all of you, please stop this, I won’t have it you hear me! I mean it, Mars, apologize to Jupiter at once…now!” Serenity commanded, her eyes steely, though her voice came in on a whisper upon their ears.

“Sorry, Jupiter, I shouldn’t have struck you like that, please forgive me. We’re all pretty worked up over Sere right now… Apologies to you, too Lady Serenity, but what do we do, we can’t leave Sere here like this can we?”

“She isn’t completely gone as yet, but time is running out and I fear it might be too late, Ravensong has her under her power once again,” Mercury insisted, beginning to cry.

“I know, I am losing her too, I felt Ravensong leaving her in the temple, it was a ruse, a brief respite, and she wants Endymion on side and will do anything to get him,” Serenity responded, surprising them all by sitting up in her bed with little effort. “I know, the Ginzuishou has healed my injuries, but we have little time, my Senshi!”

“So what do we do?” Venus asked Serenity, “We’re not strong enough to stop her and Ravensong yet, we need help!”

As if on cue, an emerald flash filled the clinic. Two impressive figures stood smiling, the Senshi bowing to the queen and the inner guardians.

Firstly, Pluto approached the bed . “Time indeed grows short with every passing moment. Trust me, I ought to know. But there is hope my queen, we need to get you away from the moon because Ravensong is slowly killing you and the Ginzuishou will desert you first, and for you this would prove fatal. Then Dark Serenity shall come to her full power and fight Ravensong for the right to rule the stars!” the Senshi of time explained.

“By the Kamis, Pluto, can’t we join forces and fight back?” Jupiter cried, thrusting a gloved fist into her palm, eyes blazing.

“Yes, we will fight back, but not right now.”

“You’re Mauan…” Mars said, staring at the Mauan Senshi.

“I am Sailor Mau, High Queen of said world and I am here to help, and Serenity, we must get you out, Lady Setsuna is right. Only the Mauans can help Sere now, believe me!”

Then Pluto spoke again, “I will get Endymion out and then we can strike back!”

Serenity’s gossamer form stood in front of her mother’s bed, hugging her, and Serenity, feeling her daughter’s pure essence smiled, she knew she was there, but not how and why. She felt the Ginzuishou lending her strength, but it was coming from another time, and another place, not of this universe.

“My Senshi help me dress,” she said, sliding her legs out of bed as the female warriors assisted her and packed a few essentials. “Sailor Mau, or as you are affectionately known by your friends, Lady Moon Cat, I shall follow your wise council. We shall teleport to the ship!”

Pluto looked to the queen and back at the others, all keyed up to fight another day, but for now, retreat was the best form of attack. “I must also get Endymion away from Serenity, I can feel her darkness beginning to grow more menacing. All right, I shall see you in orbit!”

Raising her garnet rod, she smiled as the flash punctuated her departure as she reappeared outside Endymion’s bedchamber and steeled herself for what lay ahead.

At that moment, Mau returned to the outskirts of the capital and the queen and her Senshi and Lunarian Guardians were safely aboard the Terran warship.


Temple of Hecate


The moonquakes were growing ever more frequent. The citizens of Serenity City were also growing more restless by the day, the armies of the White Moon were on high alert and the Silver Alliance fleet was on a partial war footing.

Meanwhile, on the dark side of the moon, the migration of its citizenry and its royals were leaving in ever-larger numbers and nobody in Serenity City knew why.

Prince Katakani alumna bowed and apologized for the disruption to the White Moon's usually tranquil lifestyle as the skies filled with transports and fighters making their way to larger mother ships leaving the Luna Sphere around the clock. Again, the eight houses of the Gibbous Court were moving on to Saturn and Mars, some beyond the star system altogether, such was the sense of urgency as Ravensong’s former courtiers followed her final decree to the letter.

The tectonic disturbances rocked the Moon day and night and grew evermore violent as Dark Serenity and Beryl’s conflict intensified. The earth Kingdom had asked for help from the Martians, a huge armada was being assembled on Saturn, and the Neptunian fleet was on their way to break the impasse between the challenger, the new dark princess Serenity and the evil Beryl Ravensong. But whom would be the victor and could the new Silver alliance hold if the White Moon fell to one of these dark monarchs, one a former lady of light, and the other a princess of a near extinct kingdom on the dark side of the moon?

Serenity continued her observations of this parallel world’s situation grow dimmer by the hour and was trying to make her way back to Endymion’s guestroom and assist Pluto. If she could. But she was also worried about her motives. Of course, she knew the Senshi of time was loyal, but if her darker self shattered the love, she and Endymion felt for one another, what would happen then?

(Would he, could he, dare she take advantage of his vulnerable emotional state… Would I do that? Yes, I think I would if I loved him enough, Setsuna, no! Would he turn to Setsuna?)



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