Hi!  This started out as a lame intro/teaser that Lurker did not like
very much.  Truth to tell, it did sound a lot like the opening of
"Made of Stone" by Sean Gaffney.  (Great fic! read it if you've got
the time!) It was not an intentional thing to make that section too
alike to what's been done before, and I did intend to go on a
different direction than he did, but that approach was a bit
constraining in what it would eventually allow me to do with (and
within) Crystal Tokyo. I believe this approach will work much better,
as it gives me more room to be creative, but it still has a few rough
spots. (That is where y'all come in, to tell me what you thought. 
Hopefully, it is not a rehash of something already done by someone
else, but I'm sure Lurker or someone else will be up to the task of
roasting me if I did.)  I have a bit more worked out, but the intro
feels awkward. I thought I better send it as is, get some feed-back
and revise as necessary, even as I continue writing the rest of it,
since the first chapter keeps growing as I flesh it out.  

	But before I go any further, please acknowledge the following
disclaimers:

	1.  The characters and locale were created by Takeuchi Naoko and 
	    are used without permission.  

	2.  The following events are not a part of Pluto's grand design
	    for the Sailor Moon universe, so expect changes and 
	    alterations from the established flow of events leading to 
	    the creation of Crystal Tokyo.  

	3.  If anyone in a sailor fuku shows up and asks for me, 
	    particularly Pluto herself, I had nothing to do with it, I'm 
	    merely re-telling events as they happened to the parties 
	    involved, and I have no idea why someone would try to frame 
	    me for whatever inconvenience said events caused to anyone.  

	I await any comments, good, bad or angry.  How well I respond to
upsetting comments might depend on my mood at the moment, but all C&C
will be read & welcome regardless.  


Now, without further ado:


_________________________________________________________________________


		Harmonic Resonances and Dark symmetries


	"Safety in Crystal Tokyo is something taken for granted.  After all,
life is nearly perfect in this city of solid dreams.  A place with no
crime, no poverty, or any real disease, where the best of the past,
the present and the future work together to create a utopian paradise
for humanity."  

	"Huh?  Hey, you senile old bastard, you're lecturing, again!  Snap
out of it!  It is all quite pointless, anyway.  After all, why should
we care about any of that travel brochure crap anyway?  It's not like
it means anything to us now, right?"  Heck, even if we had know we'd
end up like this, it might not have made a diff�  Hmm?  What's this?
	"Look, old man, here's something for you to ponder on:  See that one,
all alone by the park?  If this city is such a safe place for
everyone, why does that little one seem so worried, then?  There's
nothing to fear here.  Right?"

	"Would you shut up insulting my age already!  After all these
centuries, a difference of a year or two between us hardly matters.  
	But, if you insist:  Look at the park you just mentioned, for
example.  
	It's nearly midnight, and it is still relatively bright, orderly and
welcoming.  Moonlight pours over the cherry trees, and the sweet sound
of running water can be heard throughout the place.  Even the stone
walkway that meanders among them looks full of life!  
	A lonely park should not be so animated, particularly after dark!  It
should feel more relaxed and homey.  Wouldn't you think so?  Within
it, one should be able to take but a single step to get away from the
hustle, the noise and the lights, and become part of something older,
something a great deal darker and primal."  At least if one could
ignore the wretchedly manufactured nature of it all.  
	"Still, even here and now, we should be able to manage a cloud or two
to make it a bit more comfortable, right?  See, that's much better. 
The wind has gone still, and a chilly silence has begun to settle in! 
Look!  Our young person looks more awake and alert already!  As a
matter of fact, If I didn't know better, I'd say there was something
familiar about her.  Almost like�"

	"So you finally noticed it, you old windbag.  I was wondering how
long it would take you to."  (I wonder if they did not scramble his
mind, along with his molecules, so very long ago?  Not much I can do
about it now, I suppose.  We could have changed a bit in these last
couple of millennia, but still...)  
	"Well, oh wise and ancient one, are you going to quit staring and
come with me, or what?  Don't you think it is about time we introduced
ourselves?  You used to be a lot more polite than this before, old
geezer, and if she really is the one we are both thinking of, it might
be a really bad idea for us to keep Her waiting any longer." 

	 		   ------------

	Boy, it sure got cloudy, all of a sudden.  And did the forecast
mention anything about rain tonight?  Nooo, they said it would be a
beautiful, clear night.  Figures.  The weather service precogs are
certainly getting sloppy these days.  I should send in a complaint.  
Well, if it rains, there's bound to be a kiosk or something on that
park, right?  It was quite strange how the little park got so spooky
when a few clouds rolled in.  What's really weird is that it almost
seems more inviting now than it did before.  

	This young woman was trying to get away from all the people and the
noise, so it made perfect sense for her to find a quiet place to clear
her mind, and work out whatever it was that was bothering her.  She
was pretty sure it was not some kind of budding 'talent,' since early
screenings where generally very accurate in finding out precogs and
most other espers.  Rarer talents were harder to screen, but even
those tended to be apparent by age six.  Her parents insisted that it
was just a stage of puberty, a side effect of growing up, and that it
would all fade away
in due time, but she could not shake away the feeling that there was
something wrong. It was not a mental illness, like depression or
paranoia, since she had a clean bill of health at her last regular
medical checkup, and that was just a week ago.
	So here she was, considering again why it was that she had decided
that walking into a dark, deserted park in the middle of the night
would help. 
	Still, if it rained, those trees should give some shelter, and even
if she caught a cold and got grounded for this stunt, it would be
worth it.  She could just imagine the faces of her friends at school,
as she told them the tale:  
	"There I was, following the trail as it meandered behind the trees.
As I walked the path, the clouds blotted the moon from my sight, and I
was plunged into an almost palpable darkness.  As my eyes adjusted, I
could tell that there was barely enough light to distinguish the
trail.  I forged ahead, nonetheless.  It was as if the path wished for
me to
continue onto an abyss leading me into the dark heart of the earth. 
The wind seemed to whisper sinister words of encouragement that my
steps
echoed with tones ..."  

	"... just like I remember.  It must be ..."

	"Shut up!  She'll hear us!"

	Huh?  Wait a minute.  That almost sounded like someone else was here.

	"... want to be the one to explain what happened to Her?  I was just
starting to enjoy ..."

	"... must know we're here already.  If we try to hide or run, it'll
only make it worse for ..."

	Yep.  I was right.  There is someone else here.  Two of them, it
seems like.  They sound like a couple of little kids about to get
busted. 
Might as well give them what they expect.  "Look, I don't know what
kind of an act you two were trying to pull on me, but it didn't work. 
You can
either come out now, before I get mad, or I'll go in and get you
myself!" 
There, that should do it.  Huh?  These two guys look too old to be
pulling this kind of stunt on people.  Still, from the look on their
faces, I'd say my tactic worked.  They look absolutely terrified! 
Maybe I should try this on the jerks at school.  "All right you two
losers, will one of you explain the point of this little stunt?  You
better have a good excuse for following me around and ruining my night
with all your yapping, or else!"  

	Turning quite pale, the two young looking men shared a brief look of
resignation.  While they expected to receive no pity from the young
lady, it would not do to upset her any further.  They proceeded to
blame
each other for their stupidity, all the while begging for her
forgiveness.  After about a minute, it became apparent that the
apology had degenerated into an argument between the two over whose
fault it was that she had gotten upset.  And, as the argument showed
no sign of stopping after a few minutes, it became apparent that
unless somebody intervened, the amount of noise those two were making
would get all three of them in trouble.

	Geez, these guys are pathetic!  I better stop this now, before things
get too ugly.  "All right!  Stop!  I have just had about enough of you
two!  You will stop this childish behavior and pull yourselves
together!  Or do you really want everybody to know about this little
incident?  With the kind of racket you two are making, it's a wonder
the Senshi themselves have not turned up here yet!"  

	Surprisingly, this last remark caused the pair to stop at once, and
take a quick look around them.  As they straightened up, one of them,
the blonde, sighed and made a dismissive gesture.  The clouds
dissipated
at once, and the moon was once again allowed to shine above the park.  
	Under different circumstances, it would have seemed like an ordinary
spring scene:  Two embarrassed young men standing next to a rather
upset redhead girl in her teens.  Neither man seemed willing to meet
the young lady's eyes, for some reason.  Even in this late hour, a
passerby might have mistaken the scene for some kind of sabotaged
romantic date.  Said passerby might have thought the men to be rivals
for the young lady's attention, and he would have been quite right,
just not in any romantic sense.  Both men wore simple gray uniforms of
some sort, and seemed to be trying to appear apologetic, alert and
inconspicuous at the same time. 
	They were failing miserably.  Finally, after a few moments of
silence, one of them spoke, hesitantly. 

	"Your Highness, we wish to extend our profuse apologies for our rude
behavior.  Seeing you among us again, was quite an unexpected shock. 
It has caught us ill prepared to rejoin your cause.  While we have to
report that after ten thousand years of captivity, some of our combat
skills have deteriorated, and the enemy has grown strong.  However, if
you give us another chance, we will once again prove our true worth to
you.  We've have been able to study their tactics in detail, and given
the opportunity, we should be able to finally defeat them."

	Jadeite, you idiot!  Have you forgotten everything?  Never mention a
hint of weakness to her when she's upset!  At this rate the best we
can hope for is that, she'll merely think we're worthless and leave us
again, to rot here for all eternity.  It would be no big loss in your
case, but I'm not looking forward to wasting away in Crystal Tokyo. 	I
need a plan.  Something that'll make me look good, but that will still
spread the blame if something goes wrong.  If I remember correctly, a
compliment on her subtlety, good health or intelligence should
temporarily cheer her up and get me back on her good graces.  Well,
seems like once again, it's up to me, Nephrite, to save our skins. 
	"Ignore the fool's rambling, your majesty.  He is overwhelmed by
concerns for your safety here.  While it is true that we are not on
top form at the moment, we are not quite as helpless as he makes it
sound. 
Individually, we may no longer be capable of engaging the Senshi in
battle and winning, but collectively we are still quite capable of
protecting you from them. 
	We are quite grateful for the chance to learn you are all right, but
if you might excuse my boldness, might I inquire as to why you decided
to come here, now?"  

_________________________________________________________________________

A few endnote comments:

	In this reality, none of these incarnations of Queen Beryl's generals
were killed off by her, instead they were defeated by the Senshi and
quite humanely imprisoned with the intent to reform and re-educate
them.  (More details on this will become apparent later in the story.)
This has gone on for a few millennia.  (Jadeite & co. can be a tad
stubborn.)  But by now, they have been largely weakened and
demoralized.  The apparent re-appearance of Queen Beryl has just
caused them to revert to some of their old behavior patterns.  
	Is the young lady in question really Queen Beryl?  It will not matter
much in the beginning, and I do have a favorite choice, but I'm
willing to consider opinions both in favor and against it. I will
reach a point where the story plot will pivot on the answer, and I'm
curious as to which option is favored by the most comments.  

Well, I hope I hooked a few of you, as there's about almost a chapter
more of this ready written, and 3 or 4 more chapters currently plotted
out.

-- 
"There is nothing in this world of value...
 Nothing worth risking our lives for...
	 ...except 'erhaps... 
	...what little we can create ourselves."
		Daisuke Ido (Gunnm / Battle Angel)
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|  |_)   |__| |__|  |_ )  |_______|   (_)   |   |__| |__|
|    ___/        |________|        \_______/             []
|___|    http://userzweb.lightspeed.net/arev/