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Ice Squared
by Lerris Smith
The noise of takeoff from the Alaska base seemed to finally awaken the people from Japan. Waking was a slow process for them, that began with Setsuna and ended with Endymion. Each had dropped their transformations shortly after they awoke, but Endymion seemed surprised as his faded.
Setsuna asked, “What happened?”
Carter said, “They destroyed a huge tree and we destroyed them, although why a huge tree was located at the north pole...” Carter trailed off as if uncertain how to continue.
Mamoru said, “It was not a tree, or rather not only a tree. Something is horribly wrong. I think they destroyed something important. The Earth is dying. I can feel it. I think Tuxedo Kamen is no more.”
Setsuna reached out with her senses and once more cursed not being able to get back to the gates of time. She could feel something, but couldn't place it. This wasn't her world, after all.
Rei said cryptically, “I think he may be right.”
From the front Jack said, “Ah come on. It was just a tree. I mean sure they provide oxygen, but losing one tree isn't going to destroy the planet.”
Setsuna took on a lecturing tone as she said, “It was during Beryl's first attacks that the biosphere's of the other worlds were destroyed, for you see they were magical in nature. From what I understand, It takes a lot of power to make a world habitable, especially if they were not naturally close to being so in the first place. I know the biospheres of the other words degraded in as little as days, with Mars lasting the longest at almost six months.”
Carter said, “Your saying the other planets in the solar system were habitable. That seems hard to believe.”
Setsuna smiled an enigmatic smile at her before saying, “Each in a way different than the others. The citizens of Mercury lived completely underground. Their technology flourished partly just as a way to deal with their environment. What I didn't know was that Earth itself had a magical component to its biosphere.”
Jack said, “Well what are we gonna do about it then? Should I head somewhere?”
Mamoru said, “Head to where the tree was destroyed.”
jack said, “Okay.. Heading back. I don't suppose anyone brought some winter clothes.”
Jack landed the shuttle at the bottom of the crater generated by the ship they destroyed. As they were debating how they were going to go outside for any length of time without freezing, a beautiful black haired and silver eyed woman faded into existence in the middle of back area of the shuttle. She wore a simple flowing white dress that did not quite touch the floor. Well it did not touch the floor until she stumbled and fell into Mamoru causing him to fall as well, as he put his arms around her to try to control her fall.
Rei started to get angry. How dare he put his arms around that woman, when he had Usagi.
Setsuna said in Japanese, “It's you.”
Mamoru tried to sit up, but it was awkward with her in his arms. After a bit of effort, he turned her now unconscious form so that her face rested in his lap. Mamoru could sense that he was tied to her somehow and that she was very sick. He did not understand it and kept examining his feelings to try to get some clue as to what was going on. Rei looked on coolly, while Makoto looked on in concern.
Captain Carter asked with concern, “Is she okay? I have some medical training.”
Mamoru looked up at Carter before saying, “No, although there is nothing you can do.” He absently brushed her black hair out of her eyes. His words were true, of that much he was certain, yet he wished he knew why they were true.
Setsuna took out her communicator and pressed a couple buttons, and waiting for the connection to open. Finally after about thirty seconds, a tiny beep was heard and a woman's voice could be heard from it saying, “Hello.”
“Luna contact Swordbreaker. Tell them to come as soon as they can. Tell them that the Earth is dying.”
“Dying?” exclaimed the moon cat through her communicator.
“Yes. We aren't sure of the details, but if my hunch is correct one of the possible futures I saw is coming true. An ice age is coming. I don't know how soon, or if we can stop it.”
“I'll tell them Setsuna-san. Is there anything else I can do?”
Setsuna thought for several moments, trying to figure out the best course of action. It was tempting to just park the shuttle in the clearing behind the shrine, but getting mobbed by press and such was just not useful. She asked, “How is Hino-san doing?”
Luna was confused by the suddenly changed topic. She said, “Oh, he is fine. Artemis and him are playing chess.”
Setsuna said, “Good. See if you can get that Doctor Tofu to meet us up where Ami's funeral was with some kind of vehicle that can handle eight people. Also give him my cell phone number, so he can reach us.”
Luna said dubiously, “Okay. I'll do what I can.”
Carter asked, “If you need doctor's we have a top notch one back at base and some of the most advanced medical facilities in the world.”
Setsuna pondered the offer, but quickly said, “No, I think Doctor Tofu is a better bet, since I don't think this is a physical problem. He is apparently quite good at the esoteric medical arts.”
With a bit of help from the others, Jack returned to the area in the ocean where they had taken off from. After a bit of maneuvering underwater the shuttle emerged onto the beach just a little north of where they had left from before. It seemed colder than it was when they left and Setsuna was left to wander if the collapse had already begun. She chastised herself. A possible future was not a certain future, and the remnant of a newspaper saw in the gates was not enough to base much on.
Captain Carter wanted to study the shuttle so she and Daniel stayed in it and re-submerged it under the ocean, with Daniel there to help her with the Japanese interface. Jack wanted to stay with the others to find out more of what was going on. Of course, given the fond glances he kept giving Setsuna, there may have been other reasons for wanting to stay with the others as well. He and Mamoru carried the white dressed stranger with them until they met up with Doctor Tofu a few blocks later.
Doctor Tofu examined the patient they held quickly before directing them to his car. It was good that they were down to a group of six, since even packed in it was extremely crowded. After noticing Rei's glare, Mamoru made sure to sit in the front seat away from the beautiful visitor. As the doctor began to drive, he asked in Japanese, “Do you know what happened to her?”
Setsuna replied, “Not entirely no. We found her at the sight of an explosion. She just kind of appeared.” Jack remained silent and did his best to follow along with the language.
Doctor Tofu said, “She is different. I have not seen the like before. With your permission, I'd like to contact an associate who may be able to help.”
Before long they arrived at the shrine, and were met by not only the cats and Hino-san, but Elder Cologne. As Cologne noticed the burden they carried, she said, “Goddess! What are you doing with a Goddess?” Cologne had been surprised by the phone call. She had only come back to the Nekohaten to retrieve a few priceless artifacts and things and hadn't planned on staying when she received it, but now here she was.
Dr. Tofu said, “We should get her to a bed.”
Cologne nodded and hopped behind as they had made her comfortable in Rei's bed. Cologne and Rei's grandfather examined her from one side of the bed while Dr. Tofu did from the other. The rest went into the shrine area to let them work in peace.
Cologne said to Dr. Tofu, “You are familiar with ki transfers, are you not?”
Doctor Tofu nodded before saying, “Yes. She is not human though. I was afraid I might make things worse.”
“Just keep your ki as pure as possible, and spare her what you can. I will do the same.” She directed her gaze to Rei's grandfather before saying, “You will do nothing. Whatever you did to yourself recently your not remotely recovered from.”
Rei's grandfather nodded.
She lay under the covers and took in the heat from the warm body beside her as Keiichi gently stroked Belldandy's hair. He said softly, “You are worried.”
“Yes. I am afraid. If I do nothing, and obey my father, then the world might die. There are good people fighting and I know they will do their best to save us all, but even with everything it may not be enough.”
“Then go if you want. I will always be here waiting for you.”
“But if I help them, I might not be allowed to see you again!” Belldandy was racked with sobs as Keiichi pulled her naked body closer to him.
Keichi tried to speak, but couldn't get the words out as he held her tightly to him and felt her heart beat next to his. He tried twice more to get the words out and failed. His own tears streamed down his face as they gently held and kissed each other for over an hour before Belldandy suddenly stiffened and said, “I must go. Will you come with me?”
“Always my love.”
It was not far, so even given the urgency, Belldandy preferred to let Keiichi drive them, rather than waste the power teleporting them would take. Before long they arrived at the Hino shrine and were greeted at the door by Rei in her priestess uniform.
Rei said, “Yes?”
Belldandy said, “There is a young woman, about my age, with black hair sick here.”
Rei seemed surprised at the statement but only nodded.
Belldandy said, “May we see her? She is my sister.”
Rei noted the complete lack of family resemblance to which Belldandy replied, “We have different mothers.” Rei gave a small nod before directing them inside and taking them to the room where, even then, the doctor and the Amazon matriarch were trying to give her enough energy to wake. They didn't seem to be having much success though, if their bleak expressions were any indication.
Belldandy gasped when she looked upon her sister. She called out, “Risa!” to the surprise of the pair trying to help her in the room. They stopped what they were doing and turned to her. Belldandy rushed to the bed and pulled her into her arms before gently setting her down again.
She turned back to Keiichi and quickly crossed the space to him before she said softly, “I'm so sorry, but I have to do this.”
“I know,” was all he said.
By this time Setsuna, Rei, Makoto, Mamoru and the cats had already crowded in around the door and were quite surprised to see what must have been the most beautiful, the most tender kiss they had ever seen between the pair. Luna gave a glare at Artemis, which he completely failed to notice. So surprised were the rest by the moment that they could not help but watch as it stretched on for almost a full minute before they parted and released each other.
A few seconds later the happy vapid expression disappeared from Keiiichi's face and he said, “You might want to stand well back.”
The others in the room turned to him. His tone was such a contrast to his expression of before that they moved away from the pair on the bed without apparent thought.
Belldandy walked back towards the bed. As she walked her casual clothes shifted to the formal clothing of her office. Gasps could be heard as the others witnessed the transformation. Cologne, herself bowed deeply and was swiftly followed by Rei's grandfather. Rei started to bow, but caught herself and remained standing. Jack could not help but stare in amazement. He had certainly not expected his fishing trip to lead him here.
Belldandy reached up and carefully removed one, and then the other earring. She then, carefully held the earrings, one in each hand before closing her hand on them. A glow of power came from her hands and suddenly the room was bathed in power with Belldandy taking on the role of the sun.
Belldandy just sat in the circle of power as it seemed to settle into her skin. She made no speeches, yet the resolve in her face was speech enough. She was a woman with a purpose that she was determined to accomplish.
Keiichi said softly, almost to himself, “The power of a first glass goddess.”
Several turned to glance at him, including Rei's grandfather who gave a small nod of respect to the boy, before quickly turning back to Belldandy. Torrents of power shot from the goddess and passed into the other goddess on the bed who quickly opened her eyes and sat up before looking into the eyes of her sister with a smile. She just sat there and absorbed the power for several minutes before it too finally dimmed. With a smile, she caught the fainting form of Belldandy and eased her onto the bed before she stood.
The power that went into the dark haired girl seemed to be slowly boiling off into the room, but mostly it seemed to drift down into the ground before it flared, and with an audible snap the light show ended. Seconds later the sound of lightning could be heard impacting the ground on what they all knew to be a cloud free day.
Keiichi rushed up to Belldandy, and Dr. Tofu edged his way closer when the black haired woman said, “Belldandy will be fine. Let us go outside and see what Father has decided.”
The group moved outside, save Keiichi who stayed by Belldandy's side. They were seemingly still stunned by the strange events, as they noticed the writing that seemed to be carved in the ground. Each could read it, for it appeared to each to be in the native language of the observer. It said:
“For violation of my command to not interfere, goddess first class Belldandy is hereby stripped of her powers and shall live out the rest of her life as a human. Goddess Second Class Risa is commanded to return to her station in heaven to remain until the crises is over.”
As they finished reading that sentence, a beam of light appeared in front of Risa who quickly glanced back to the text which continued with, “Should she refuse to return, her powers will also be removed, so sayeth the Lord.”
Jack quipped in English, “Kind of a stern boss aint he?”
Setsuna sighed at Jack's remark before watching the the dark haired goddess. They needed to know what was going on if they were going to do something. She could not see the pleading that was in her eyes as she stared at the goddess who took a step back from the beam, which promptly disappeared.
In heaven Kami-sama smiled. They had done exactly the right thing even when told not to. It was good to know he had raised at least some of them right.
Risa smiled at the others as the words faded and they all went back inside. Belldandy joined them in her casual clothes as they sat around the great fire. Belldandy had a small smile on her face as she held Keiichi's hand. She didn't seem to be the least bit upset that she was no longer a goddess.
After they sat down, Jack said in halting Japanese, “Would someone tell me just what is going on?” Setsuna smiled at his attempt at using Japanese again. He truly was more intelligent than he let on.
Risa said, “Once upon a time I traveled the Earth, visiting from place to place and taking in the wonder of my father's great creation when I happened to be accosted by some petty robbers. They were of course no great danger to me, yet in my curiosity I let myself be captured and hauled away, only to be rescued by a newlywed pair of farmers.”
“Such was my gratitude for the risk they took in saving me that I crafted for them two special weapons so that their family might always be protected, for you see even though I could have gotten free at any time, they could have been killed. Of course weapons fastened by a goddess might draw unwanted attention so I made them believe than an ancestor of theirs had crafted the weapons, and overlaid magic upon them to hide their true nature. Call it a whim, if you like, but I felt the pair should be rewarded.”
She glanced around. Among the Senshi's faces it seemed only Setsuna and Rei had figured out what she was referring to. She continued with, “Later, I posed as a mage in the court of the moon. I did many things there. I even crafted a few magical artifacts like Sailor Moon's scepter.”
Rei interrupted with, “Did you have to make it so gaudy?”
She said, “Hey. I was having fun, and no one then really expected that things would get so bad that she would have to use it in serious combat.”
Makoto, Luna, and Artemis hung their heads in a sigh. Their fearless leader's main weapon was constructed by a goddess in a fit of boredom.
Risa continued with, “Only Serenity knew the truth about me and she never mentioned it to anyone. From time to time, I would even disguise her with my power and we would walk around her kingdom as ordinary citizens. I still remember the time she got drunk and was making a pass at this bartender. We might have had a new heir to the throne if I hadn't been there that day.”
Setsuna frowned in annoyance. While she didn't doubt the story, and it did explain a few vague things she half remembered, especially about those staffs, it otherwise seemed utterly unimportant.
Risa noted Setsuna's expression and said, “Relax Suna-chan. I once changed your diapers. Don't worry. I didn't give up my powers as a goddess just to chat about old times.”
Setsuna gave a half nod before Risa continued with, “When Beryl's handiwork went out of control, it threatened to destroy even the environmental construct of Earth. Normally the assembled court mages and the queen with the silver crystal could have done something to repair the damage, but most of the mages were dead, the damage was extensive, and Serenity had used much of her power to banish Beryl.”
She paused and asked, “Could someone show me where I can get something to drink?”
Rei nodded as she motioned her to follow her. They returned moments later as the former goddess carefully, as if it was the most precious thing in the world, sipped from a cup of green tea. A few moments later she continued with:
“What I did was not so much a matter of bravery, but of desperation. I merged myself with the environmental construct. It did not stop the downward spiral, but it slowed it, and in time I even repaired it. Much of the population had died by then, but some lived, and the Earth healed. Of course, getting out of the construct was far more difficult than getting in, for I lacked the power to extract myself. Indeed it fed on every bit of power I could generate to heal and strengthen itself. It was only after that alien ship destroyed the focal point, that I could even reform my body fully, and it was only when Belldandy gave me so much power that I could free myself from the construct.”
Setsuna asked, “But what about on the ship. You appeared there.”
Risa replied, “As the maker of those staffs I have a link to them. I simply appropriated the energy that Sailor Moon sent out to temporarily take form and tinker with the staffs a bit.”
Rei's grandfather asked, “So what does this all mean?”
She said, “There are three secondary points besides the focal point that was destroyed. The spring at Jusendo. A pool in a cave under a lake in Peru, and another tree in New Zealand. The second tree is a cutting from the first. Even without the primary focus, with the energy that Belldandy gave me that the planet leeched from me before I was able to extract myself, the secondary focuses should be able to hold off the worst, if only for a little while.”
Mamoru asked, “How long?”
She said, “There will not be a single day where the system fails, yet, left alone, it will fail little by little. I doubt much of the Earth will be liveable in under two years, with millions likely dead in under a year.”
Jack said in English, “You've got to be kidding me. A few days ago I was out fishing!”
Belldandy said in English, “No, she is quite correct, and as I am as mortal as my husband now, I very much hope we will be able to prevent it.”
Risa said, “In case you are wondering what would have happened had I not freed myself when I had the chance, well, yes the secondary sites would have lasted longer, but only perhaps six months or so. Without the primary focus, failure is just a matter of time and I thought I could do something if I was free.”
Of course, she admitted to herself, that she had wanted to be free for so very long. Seeing through the eyes of the planet had its appeal, but even that got old.
Cologne said, “So our plan-”
Risa finished with, “won't work anymore.” Risa had been tempted to add to that, but felt that perhaps some secrets should be kept for now. Cologne could not have liked telling her daughter to sacrifice her life to heal some of the damage to the tree. They had done so, when it was needed for over two thousand years, although at least only thirteen in total had been called to that duty.
She could remember each of their lives. It was a small side effect of how they gave their lives. Of course, she mused privately, the three who were even now returning from Peru had absorbed power and were now linked to the planet.
Setsuna asked, “Luna, were you able to get in contact with Swordbreaker?”
The black cat said sadly, “No, we tried several times, but we couldn't get in touch with them.” Jack just looked at her with a half frown, as if to say, “After all this, your not weird enough to startle me.”
Makoto said, “What does that mean? You don't think they were killed do you?”
Mamoru said, “Usagi is alive. I would know if she wasn't.”
Setsuna simply nodded, and after a moment Rei gave her own half nod of agreement.
Belldandy, who was still holding hands with Keiichi, said “They are all alive and for the most part well. Before my link to Yggdrasil was severed, I was keeping track of them.”
Rei's grandfather asked, “For the most part?”
Belldandy said, “Ranma is recovering from an injury. He can tell you more, if he wishes. Of a more pressing problem is Kasumi. She has been kidnapped by the young emperor of the group that attacked you.”
Rei's grandfather said, “Kasumi. That sweet girl has been kidnapped?”
Belldandy nodded before saying, “Yes, and I must beg you not to try to rescue her.”
Rei asked angrilly, “Why not? She is our friend.”
Belldandy responded, “I won't say that Kasumi is safe, for the politics of that place are harsh. The emperor is slightly younger than Kasumi, and only is emperor because those that hold the real power secretly killed his mother and father.”
Makoto gasped and said, “And you want us to leave her there?”
Belldandy let go of Keiichi's hand and said softly, “No, it is not what I want, but the emperor is not truly a bad young man, although he was raised poorly. There is a chance that Kasumi's influence can eventually make a difference there.”
The others were silent to that. They didn't know Kasumi all that well, but the words had a ring of truth to them. The silence was broken by Rei's grandfather who said soflty, “If any mortal can change the world with her smile, I think it would be that one.”
Setsuna said, “Perhaps, but neither Ranma nor Nabiki would ever accept that, unless they heard it from her own lips anyway. The others might not either. I fear a great deal more people are going to die before this is over.”
Belldandy said simply and softly, “Yes.”