Trust
A single voice shattered the stillness of the desert.
“Martian Warrior!” The language of the red planet felt as coarse and grainy to the foreigner’s tongue as the invasive red sand, yet she projected her voice into the oppressive heat. “Why have you strayed so far from the field of battle?”
The figure she had called to in the distance paused, but only momentarily; it was a second’s hesitation before the small, red pony resumed its course, urged on by a white clad rider.
“Venus-sama,” an aide broke rank and pulled near to his leader, cautious to remain a half pace behind his commander’s horse, “I believe she is not just a warrior, but a Priestess of this planet.”
The woman’s blue eyes hardened. It was the aide’s only clue to discern his leader’s thoughts, for the customary Martian attire she wore not only shielded her face from the harsh desert elements, but also hid her normally expressive features from view.
He had no time to react to his commander’s whims. In a flourish, her white steed had reared onto his hind legs and galloped forward in one fluid motion, devouring the distance that separated himself and his rider from their target with thundering hooves and flared nostrils.
The Venusian drew her agile stallion to a sliding halt in front of the small, sturdy pony, and the shaggy creature’s wild, barely tamed eyes widened as he found his passage blocked. They were eyes that mirrored his master’s.
‘Violet eyes?’ Trapped in the Martian’s gaze, the Venusian’s anger slipped and she found it hard to tap back into, though she managed well enough.
“You are a Priestess are you not? I’m here to help you and your people.” The woman raised a hand towards her head and was unsurprised to find the Martian’s own dart for the hilt of her sword, passing over a bow and arrow also strapped to her person. The foreign commander didn’t allow this defensive reaction to alarm her. Instead, she pulled the concealing headpiece from her face. Her long golden hair falling freely to her waist, her upturned nose thrust into the air, it was her confident smile that shone the brightest. “Why don’t we join forces?”
The Priestess hesitated, though whether it was from the foreigner’s gesture of friendship so brazenly displayed by the removal of her headpiece, or the incomparable beauty that was revealed through that incredibly trusting act, she wasn’t sure. Long moments passed slowly, the only movements were the occasional swish of a horse’s tail and the unrelenting heat waves that rippled across the red sands.
“No.” The Priestess finally replied, and with a slight nudge of her left leg, her pony turned to the right and began to plod off once more.
There was a rustle of shifting sands and the Martian was unsurprised to find the Venusian blocking her path once more.
“Do you know what you’re turning down?” The woman barked, anger sparkling in those blue eyes. How dare this little barbarian ignore her! “We can help you in your fight against the youma!”
The Priestess found herself sighing. This was not the first diplomat to waltz onto her planet with a romantic notion of helping a fractured nation, but in this woman, the Martian sensed a determination and fierceness that went far beyond her delicate beauty, and she felt the smallest amount of interest stir within her.
“What do you know of the youma?” Her voice was raw and quiet, as though it hadn’t seen much use.
“I know that they’ve been ravaging your planet for the past several years and that they’re gaining in numbers, slowly wiping out your peoples. “
“And how does that matter to you?”
“It doesn’t.”
The Martian glared – the comment had only served to amplify her mistrust, but the Venusian seemed to show little regret for her harsh words and her cerulean eyes only hardened.
“That is, it didn’t.” The foreigner clarified with a deep growl. “Not until those monsters starting showing up on my planet.”
This shred of honesty and display of sheer determination seemed to have the desired effect. This woman had a people, a planet worth protecting, just like the Priestess herself. Finally, the Martian’s hand loosened from the hilt of her weapon. Slowly, she returned the other woman’s gesture and lifted her own headpiece, releasing wild, unbound raven hair that reached the tattered leather of her pony’s saddle, and she was not so blind not to notice the other woman openly staring at her own appearance as much as she had discreetly admired the other’s.
“I want to know everything,” the golden haired woman demanded, “when they first arrived, how quickly they multiplied, where they came from, what their powers are…” she paused, her tightened fists releasing slowly from around her steed’s weathered leather reins, “will you help me?”
The Martian frowned. This woman… talked too much. She was brash, irrational…
Suddenly, the Priestess’ pony shuddered underneath her and her hand darted to his neck in a calming manner, though the emotion she felt was far from it.
‘They’re here.’
A scream pierced the thick air, slicing through the dry heat, and both women turned in its direction - to the Venusian’s traveling party. The group of two dozen men and women were at arms; drawing swords against a dozen youma the size of horses; huge, lumbering brown monsters with red, beady eyes and too many teeth.
The red pony was halfway across the distance that separated them when the foreigner could finally react. Panicking, she spurred her frightened stallion forward, chasing after the black haired woman even as the Martian dropped her reins and slung her bow mid stride, notching an arrow and taking aim into the midst of the traveling party through a bumpy gallop.
Around and around the battlefield the Martian galloped, notching arrows and sending them sailing into the fray, each arrow effortlessly hitting their marks with an unmatched accuracy. But the youma had thick skin and size to their advantage and the Priestess’ arrows had little effect; it took several of the projectiles to take just one of the creatures down, and for each one she felled, another of its party took down two of the brave Venusians.
And that’s when, with her mouth ajar, the Priestess watched that strange, brazen woman gallop forward on her white stallion, right into the midst of the battle.
Standing tall in her stirrups, her sword raised to the air, her golden hair streaming behind her, the Venusian met one of the creatures head on. Her sword caught the glint of the sun as she drew it in a wide arc and effortlessly plunged its sharp point into the thick flesh of the youma’s head, drawing both an unearthly scream and a spray of crimson blood that she galloped through unflinchingly. The monster fell to the ground with a resounding crash but two more were ready and waiting for her on the other side of its body.
And then that damnable woman jumped off her galloping horse, landing gracefully in a defensive crouch right in between the two hulking creatures. Red eyes widened and small arms grabbed for the Venusian’s slender frame but a sudden, blinding light that enveloped the woman’s form pushed the youma back.
And when that light cleared, the Venusian was revealed in a scant costume - a short orange skirt, a golden band around her forehead and… high heels?
‘How will she protect herself?’ The Martian felt her heart skip a beat as the youma convened on the foreigner once more and she knew she had to act. She singled out one of the two monsters.
Her arrow made it there first, sinking into the flesh between those two red eyes, but her pony had carried her swiftly and her sword was right behind her preferred weapon, slicing through the youma’s throat.
And when she turned to find the woman’s second assailant, she was surprised to find it already on the ground; the blonde haired warrior standing over its body, a chain of golden light tightened around its neck and the heel of that dainty orange shoe plunged into its chest as it breathed its last in a hoarse gasp.
The Venusian turned and met the observant gaze of the violet eyed Martian, and only then did they realize that the din of the battle had ended.
The Venusian fell to her knees with the slightest of tremors to her frame, and the same bright light that had brought her strange transformation into fruition enveloped her once more; this time reverting her back to her original appearance. Her eyes scanned the carnage left of the impromptu battlefield. She was no stranger to warfare, but the sight of her traveling party, more than half of them either maimed, dismembered, or worse, was a tough blow for the commander to take, even as her surviving men rose to make order of her remaining camp.
The golden warrior bowed her head then, and quietly muttered a string of words in a softly flowing tongue, a rite of death to which the Martian quickly offered her own silent prayers. And when the foreigner looked up once more, she had mastered back most of the tears that had threatened to spill from her watery eyes, and was wholly surprised to find the Martian Priestess on the ground, beside her.
“I regret that you’ve lost such valuable warriors.”
The Venusian smiled a distant smile, thankful for this small condolence, for it seemed like much coming from the stoic woman she’d only just met.
“You must have lost much to these youma as well.”
The Priestess could only nod and avoid the Venusian’s prying gaze.
Slowly, the foreign commander rose and closed the distance between herself and the other woman. “My name is Venus Minako.” She said, even as she noticed the Martian’s stiffening body language as she stared at the hand she offered her. “I am Princess of Venus and leader of the senshi.”
“Senshi?”
“The war you have been fighting against the youma has kept your people in the dark about many things. It is the power of my planet which I utilize to guard Serenity, Princess of the Moon.”
“That strange costume?”
“It’s the manifestation of that power.”
“Armor would have been more appropriate.”
Minako raised an eyebrow. Sarcasm? So the woman had emotions after all. “Your skill in battle was commendable as well. I’ve never seen such accuracy and calm calculation on the battlefield, Priestess.”
Finally, the Martian met the hand offered to her in a firm shake, only to find that Minako had met her strength evenly. “Rei.”
“Rei.” The Venusian echoed, and when the Priestess saw the smile that accompanied her name, she wondered at her quickly beating heart and fell to the defensive.
“A Princess, hmm? You fight well for a Princess.”
Minako’s smile widened into a smirk. “Not so bad yourself, for a vagrant savage.”
The Venusian commander, this Minako, had been out amongst the remains of her traveling party; giving orders and reassuring her people. Rei understood this necessity, but felt she had already lingered long enough, and the luxurious comforts of this woman’s tent did little to ease her need to continue her quest.
“Rei?” That gentle voice heralded the golden haired warrior, and as the tent’s leather flap was pulled aside, letting the brightness of the afternoon sun into the dimly lit space, the Martian blinked several times to adjust her vision. When the sunspots faded, she found herself toe to toe with Minako, who held a small tray of breads and meats, and two hammered steel cups of water between them.
To this, the Priestess frowned. “I really need to—“
“Nonsense.” Minako said, and with her free hand, she wrapped her fingers around Rei’s wrist, leading the hesitating woman to the tent’s center where she placed the tray of food on a low table and sat at the other end. “You aided my people and you helped me in battle. Besides, I had almost gotten you to tell me more about the youma before… before…”
Rei sighed. To see Minako’s smile fade hurt her somehow. With a huff and a roll of her amethyst eyes, she folded her legs beneath her and surrendered to the comforts of the plush cushions that surrounded the low table. Her hand darted forward and she grabbed a small loaf of grainy bread, which she thrust into her mouth.
“You know the basics.” She said between mouthfuls. “They started appearing three years ago, attacking at random. They would appear out of nowhere and decimate entire clans of peoples and when they were done, they would leave no trace of their whereabouts.”
Minako set her fork down gently. “No trace at all?”
“I’ve traveled this planet from top to bottom and not found a single camp of youma.” Rei attacked a chunk of meat, next.
“No base of operations?”
“Nothing.”
“What of their powers?”
“If you’d call it such, they seem to drain the life-energy from their victims before they kill them.”
Minako frowned distantly. “That’s what they do… and what do they do with that energy?”
The Martian shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“Then what of their weaknesses?”
“They have few. Their thick skin and large size is little match for our weapons. Our tribes are nomadic and since there’s little governing force that binds them together, communication between them is rare. Still, just like you and your people found out easily enough, head and neck shots seem to be the easiest way to kill them. It is the only tactic we can utilize.”
The Venusian’s eyes softened. “And you’ve been chasing after them all these years?”
“I’m a priestess.” The Martian barked. “It’s my duty to help the people, and my personal goal to find answers to the youma attacks.”
“Yet you seem to have hope. Where were you heading when I ran into you?”
“The only place I’ve yet to search for the youma base,” Rei pierced Minako with cold eyes, “is the pole.”
Minako involuntary shuddered. “The… pole?” A dark place connected to even darker legends, no planet had a use for their pole, and here was this woman determined to enter hers… alone. ‘Is she crazy?’
Rei stood so fast that she nearly toppled the table over. Turning quickly, she headed for the door. Her hand paused at its flap, and the warmth of the slight sliver of sunlight it allowed didn’t reach the coldness of her distant expression. “Everything I’ve ever cared for, I’ve lost to them.”
“Rei, wait!” Minako stumbled to her feet to chase after the retreating Priestess.
As she put as much distance from the commander’s tent as possible, the Martian bristled. She really wished the Venusian would stop saying her name with such emotion. She spotted her pony easily enough amongst the tall, white steeds and made a beeline for him, but she knew Minako was hot on her heels.
“You can’t be serious- you’d travel to your pole all by yourself?”
Rei lifted her heavy saddle from the makeshift hitching post and effortlessly slung it onto her pony’s back and quickly cinched the girth. “Then you already know the pole’s dangers. I do not encourage you to follow me, Princess.”
Minako stared dumbly as Rei swung her lithe body into her saddle. Without so much as a backwards glance, the pony began a slow plod through camp, her men moving to the side as the raven haired warrior passed through.
“Rei!”
The Martian’s hackles rose and when she turned to look behind her, the shock she felt was enough to halt her sturdy pony beneath her; as closing the distance, the Venusian was a sight to behold.
For lack of saddle and bridle, long legs wrapped around her steed’s bare back, and her fingers, woven through his long mane steered her towards the retreating figure. The urgency of the action and Minako’s ensuing words left Rei defenseless against the commander’s demands.
“Don’t… don’t go alone!” Once again, she had blocked the Martian’s path.
“But…”
“I told you I came here to help you and your people. Will you wait? Just until the morning? Our horses will be rested. We’ll be well provisioned.”
Even if she was hesitant to gain a traveling partner, the Martian could not deny the logic behind the Venusian’s plan. Narrowed eyes and a pursed brow seemed to consider the suggestion.
“You can even share my tent tonight!” Minako suggested leadingly.
Rei snorted. “I’ll wait until morning,” she stuck her nose to the air, “but I am not sharing your tent.”
She sat up with a start.
Stumbling from her tent, still adjusting the billowy white Martian attire around her body, the Venusian searched her quiet camp. She was unsurprised to find Rei on its edge, sitting atop her red pony, his nose turned towards the southern highlands, and beyond that, the looming outline of Olympic Mons above it.
Somehow, the Venusian couldn’t help but wonder if the Priestess had stood guard like that all night.
She quickly banished the thought and hurried to tack her horse.
The slight jingle of metal and creaking of leather was enough to announce her presence, but Rei didn’t acknowledge Minako’s arrival until the woman drew to a halt next to her.
“I’m heading to a teleport circuit. It will take us close to the pole’s center.” No words of greeting were uttered. “Where we’re going, your desert horse will be of little use.”
After a moment’s consideration, the Venusian slid from her stallion’s side, stepped to his front and then laid an open palm to his forehead. Dark eyes examined his master for the briefest of moments before he silently turned and headed back for camp obediently.
Her pony didn’t seem to mind, but Rei stiffened as Minako slung her agile body behind her saddle, and when two strong arms settled gently around her waist, she wasn’t aware she’d begun to hold her breath until her voice registered as a hoarse whisper,
“Would you so readily trust me, Princess of Venus?”
Minako frowned. She’d spent the majority of the night milling over that very question, only to find that her answer hadn’t differed from her first, impulsive decision to follow Rei to whatever dangers awaited them at Mars’ pole.
“I would, Priestess of Mars.”
The Sun tentatively hung low to the horizon. Phobos was a small point of irregularly shaped light creeping into the western sky, but it was the clouds of frost driven by harsh, howling winds that heralded the change in season.
Minako’s teeth chattered in Rei’s ear. A large, furry animal skin was draped across both their bodies, and even the stoic Martian had since ceased her nervous fidgeting at the Venusian’s proximity; for their shared body heat was all too welcome in this bitter climate.
Suddenly, Rei pulled back on the reins and the pony came to a hesitant stop. They stood still for a moment, and the driving frost began to accumulate on the pony’s red forelock and he stamped a foot impatiently. Finally, the Priestess nudged him with her right foot and urged him to the left.
“Rei?” Minako asked.
“We’re close.” The Martian said.
“How do you know?”
“I sense it.”
The Venusian rested her chin on the Priestess’ shoulder. “Sense?”
“I may not have… senshi powers, but I do have certain abilities.”
“Hmm.” Minako said more to herself, for the Martian was clearly not willing to discuss the matter further. Silently, they rode on, until they nearly crested a rocky hill.
The pony stopped once more, but this time, the Martian slipped from the arms of the Venusian to dismount. Like an animal stalking prey, Rei lowered her center of gravity to her haunches and crept the rest of the way up the rise, hiding her body behind a massive rock at its top.
Crouching behind the same rock, Minako was quick to join her, hurriedly tossing the warm fur back over both of their bodies, but Rei didn’t seem to notice this thoughtful gesture. Instead, her cold, violet eyes were trained on the snow-strewn valley below. The Venusian’s eyes widened in response.
There were hundreds… thousands of youma! Oblivious to the biting winds and driving frost, they were all milling around a central point… and their numbers were growing.
“An access point!” Minako exclaimed, finding the metal contraption from where the creatures seemed to spawn. “They’re invading from another planet!”
“Invasion?” The Martian asked slowly.
Rei’s face only hardened, and for a brief moment, Minako worried that the barbarian would fling herself into the youmas’ midst; one woman equipped with a bow and a sword against a few thousand monsters. And though she envied the Martian her bravery, she found herself wrapping her arms around the other woman even tighter, just in case.
“The answer you seek is not on Mars, Rei.”
The calm voice served its purpose and the battle readiness the Martian had felt faded significantly; she couldn’t help but feel robbed. Although she hadn’t known what to expect to find on the pole, she hadn’t expected to find more questions instead of answers.
Bonelessly, she fell to her knees, barely aware of the warm presence that had followed her descent with warm arms and protective blanket.
“This is no longer your battle, alone, Priestess.” Minako’s voice was almost harsh in her ears. “Come to the Moon with me.”
“The Moon?” Rei asked detachedly, her eyes still locked on the youma in the valley.
“Queen Serenity, the Princess, they need to know what we’ve found here. My comrades, the Princesses of Jupiter and Mercury, have been researching the youma as well. You’d be a great asset to our cause.”
Rei merely snorted and Minako frowned at her response.
“You have more collective knowledge of the enemy than all of us combined. And even though you’re no senshi, your skill in battle would be useful, along with your sensing abilities.”
“Ch’.” The Martian cursed, her eyes narrowing on the monsters pouring through the access point, invading her home from some foreign location.
Minako’s voice deepened. “If you truly want to help your people, and if you truly want revenge against the youma, then come with me, Rei.”
The Martian turned to meet the Venusian’s confident gaze, and in those cerulean eyes, she could see why the woman was named leader of so powerful a force. It was rare for the Martian to meet one as dominant and driven as herself, and though she didn’t plan on calling this woman her leader as others might, she found it surprisingly easy to fall into step behind Minako.
“I’ll join you.”
The hesitant Priestess was met with a cocky grin. “Would you so readily trust me, Priestess of Mars?”
Rei frowned. She wouldn’t have trusted a battle tested tactician or a wizened advisor after several years of serving alongside them. Yet somehow… somehow… she found herself meeting that grin with one of her own.
“I would, Princess of Venus.”
I know what you’re thinking. Oh no, another Silver Millennium fic, I know exactly how this is going to end! But remember, this is an Alternative Universe, so stick with it! The Titanic just might not hit that particular iceberg… although I can’t promise that it might not hit others.
For those of you who have followed me from past fics, A Single Voice will be a bit of a departure from my regular style. A little less descriptive, a little more plot and dialogue driven, but I hope I will continue to please.
OOO
Preview, Chapter 2: Together
“Queen Serenity, Princess Serenity, this is Rei, and-“
Rei stepped away from Minako and locked gazes with the Queen and the Princess. “And I am a Priestess of Mars.” The Martian declared this boldly, and she could feel the Venusian fuming beside her.
“You didn’t tell me you could speak Common!” Minako snapped.
Rei regarded Minako with cool eyes. “You never asked. I may be of a barbarian people, but I am not uneducated, Princess.”
The Venusian nearly growled. Payback, after all, was a bitch.
A melodic laugh broke the room’s tension and the younger of the two women, the Princess, rose from her throne. She descended the steps in a slow and measured gait until the last step, on which the long hem of her white gown lodged under her delicate shoe, sending the woman sprawling towards the floor, her arms pinwheeling and long golden pigtails streaming out behind her.
Rei was the quickest of those that lunged forward, and without thinking, she soon found a teary eyed Princess Serenity in her arms. Watery, cobalt eyes peered up at her and the Martian couldn’t help but notice the young woman’s petite frame and apparent fragility. A slight blush dusting her cheeks, the Priestess righted the heir to the Moon Kingdom and shrugged off her clinging embrace.
That seemed to break the spell, and big, round crocodile tears began spilling down the Princess’ face. “I’m sorry! “ She wailed. “You’re just so beautiful, I had to get a closer look!”
Frowning, the Martian stiffened and backed up slightly, only to find herself surrounded. Minako stood at her back, and behind her, two other women stood at the ready; one was exceptionally tall with long brown hair tied into a pony tail, and another with loose, short blue hair; both had observant eyes trained on not the Princess, but on Rei. The Martian forced herself to relax her posture, for she could sense their mistrust and she was very aware that if she had to fight over an apparent misunderstanding, she was terribly outnumbered.
And only then did she realize that the Princess had never stopped her animated gushing.
“Ne, Ami-chan? Mako-chan? Minako-chan? I can feel it.” Serenity’s voice was a whisper as she approached Rei once more. A steady hand reached forward and touched the flinching Martian’s cheek softly. “We’re all together now.”
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