Daughters of Shadow and Light

         An Alternate Universe Story
              by Lunatic Knight


Part Two: Revelation


     Darkness came to Tokyo, as it did every night.  The
contrasts between the two cities, Upper and Under, were never so
pronounced, however, as they were at nightfall.  In the Upper City,
the colour bled from the sky as the sun slipped beyond the horizon,
inflaming the night with gorgeous hues of fire and blood before finally
giving way to Sister Night.
     In Undercity, however, the dark seemed to seep up from the
ground itself.  Every tiny pool of shadow expanded its grip, flowing
up to claim the streets and alleys for its own.  Nightfall here did not
inspire poets or songwriters, for it brought not a soft cloak of black
but the domain of true Darkness.  That darkness could hide almost any sort
of menace, from common criminals to creatures of the darkest nightmare.
     One always had to be wary in Undercity, but with the
coming of night man's tenuous control of his environment
deteriorated, fading completely in some areas.  Predators roamed
freely through the gloom, and woe to any foolish enough to lose the
frail shelter of lights and crowds.
     One woman stood in a darkened room, gazing out through a wall of glass
at the city below.  The night called to her, throbbed
hot and urgent in her veins like life's blood.  She longed to be down
there, riding the current of power that flowed through this place, feeling
its rush across her skin like a lover's touch.  Let those prissy fools in
their bastion of purity scorn Undercity in their ignorance.  They would
never understand the glory of chaos.  They would never revel in it, never
set themselves against it as she did, seeking to tame the sweet night with
only her own strength and skill and will.
        The sight of the city spreading out below her was breathtaking, but 
she was
not so caught up in the vista that she failed to note the arrival of
another.  She was not a woman easily taken unawares.
        "Everything is ready, my Lady," a soft voice informed her.  She 
nodded.
        "Good," she replied.  Turning, she glanced at her desk.  The files 
she'd
gone through earlier were locked away, but the impression they'd made upon
her was not so easily banished.  Events were beginning to coalesce now, she
could feel it.  Now was the time to make her move.  She glanced again at the
soft glow of her computer's screen.  Four VG files were displayed, complete
with available data.  The VG database, however, couldn't tell her what she
needed to know.
        For that, she'd need the personal touch.
        "Have you chosen, Lady?" the shadowed form in the doorway asked, 
perhaps
mistaking her hesitation for indecisiveness.  She smiled.
        "Yes," she murmured.  She touched the screen, and one file grew to 
fill it.
  The picture showed a curvaceous young woman with a cocky grin, her auburn
hair pulled back into a loose ponytail as her deep green eyes stared a
challenge.  This one was physically the strongest from what she could tell,
and her physical fighting style was the most conventional.  A good starting
point.
        "Yes," she repeated.  "I have."  She slipped her licence card into 
the
proper slot and rapidly typed a series of commands.  Moments later, a
message flashed up on the screen: CHALLENGE ISSUED.
        I look forward to meeting you, Jupiter, the woman thought, her lips 
curving
into a sultry smile.  Yes, this should prove to be very ... diverting.

#####

     Ami set the last of the dishes in the rack after giving it a
quick swipe with her towel.  Taking a quick look around the
kitchen, she decided that it met her standards for cleanliness and
headed into the sitting room.  Makoto was there, her lanky frame
spread out over one of the couches.  Her hands were linked behind
her head and her startling green eyes were staring sightlessly at the
ceiling.  Ami hesitated a moment, then eased herself down into the
chair next to Makoto's position.  The headphones lying on the floor
next to it marked that chair as having contained Minako earlier.
The blonde was notorious for her untidy nature.
     "So, they really went out?" she asked at last, more to break
the silence than anything else.
     "Uh-huh," Makoto replied laconically.
     "I can't believe it," Ami said, pulling one leg to her chest
and propping her chin on her knee.  "At a time like this, how could
they just carry on like nothing's happened?"
     "They're not," Makoto muttered.  "Minako-chan was smart
to get Rei-chan out of the house.  That girl seriously needs to deal
with this, and I'd much sooner she did that as far away from here as
possible.  You know how she is when she gets really mad."  Ami
did know, and wasn't anxious to witness Rei's temper in all its
glory.  Of course, Rei wasn't the only one affected by news of
Usagi's true identity.  They all had to deal with it, in their own
ways.
     Makoto seemed uncharacteristically withdrawn, though.
Ami had wanted to retreat to her room, to be alone and think about
things, but something about Makoto's mood had stopped her.  She
wasn't very good at drawing people out, or talking about feelings,
but Makoto was one of the few people she trusted.  For her, she'd
make the effort.
     "I'm surprised you didn't go with them," she said at last.
Makoto grunted.
     "Not really up for it," she said shortly.  Ami nodded,
although the other girl wasn't looking at her.  Darkness had fallen,
and two widely spaced lamps cast warm pools of light in the dark
room, throwing the shadows into stark relief.  Ami tried to think of
another conversational gambit, but came up empty.  She was about
to excuse herself and go upstairs when Makoto surprised her.
     "Hey, Ami-chan.  Do you remember the first time we all
met the princess?  Back then, I mean."  Ami blinked, startled by
the question.  They rarely spoke amongst themselves about their
previous lives.  There was no real reason that she knew of; it just
seemed to be an unspoken agreement.  And on the few occasions
the matter came up, they NEVER talked about the princess.
     Never.
     Still, she supposed it was natural enough that would
change.  Under the circumstances.
     And, as it happened, she did remember.
     "Yes," she said softly, and she found she was smiling.
Makoto seemed to hear the smile in that one word, because she
smiled too.  It was only a tiny smile, tinged with melancholy, but it
was genuine for all that.
     "We were presented to the royal court," Makoto said,
sounding as if she were very far away.  "There they were, Queen
Serenity, her husband, all the royal advisors and what-not, and of
course the princess, resplendent in flowing white gown.  And we
walked up to the dias and bowed, all decked out in Shadow Court
dress."  Ami's smile widened now, as the telling of it brought the
memory back more strongly.
     "I believe the queen was somewhat ... consternated," Ami
murmured, fighting the urge to giggle.
     "Consternated?" Makoto repeated.  "Try appalled!  That
was the closest I ever saw the queen come to losing her famous
composure!"  Now Ami did giggle, and Makoto chuckled softly.
     "And the princess," she said softly.  "When the queen stood
up in front of everyone and announced that, in accordance with the
treaty, we would serve as her daughter's senshi, she nearly fainted.
She was scared to death of us."
     "Well, to be fair," Ami said between giggles, "we WERE
quite a sight.  I'm quite sure we were nothing like what she'd
expected."
     "Her father was from Shadow Moon," Makoto mused.
"You'd have thought he might have prepared them, but I remember
... I distinctly remember ... that he seemed amused by the whole
scene.  He must have found living on White Moon very dull."
     "Judging by the queen's reaction to us, he wasn't bored that
night," Ami snickered.  Makoto sighed deeply.
     "Yeah.  And I recall wondering how anyone could ever
expect us to risk our lives for a timid little creature like that."
     "We got off to a ... rocky start," Ami said quietly, lost in
reminiscence.  "But things got better, didn't they?"  There was
silence for a time, but unlike the previous quiet this was an
intimate and comfortable lull.
     "Yeah," Makoto said at last.  "I wish I could remember
everything, though.  I wish I could remember how it all ended.
Maybe then I'd be able to understand why, even though we became
friends ... maybe then I'd be able to understand how that girl could
order Uranus and Neptune to kill me."  Makoto's tone didn't
change, but the words washed over Ami like a February sea,
shattering her mood into a billion shards of ice.
     She had forgotten, hadn't she?  In the shock of learning
who Usagi really was, she'd somehow managed to forget that
revelation would have very personal implications for Makoto.
     "Mako-chan ..." she breathed.
     "I mean, there I was, bleeding and battered, and they were
standing up on the wall getting ready to finish me off, and all I
could ask was "Why?"  And you know what they said?"  Ami did
know.  She'd heard the story before, from Makoto's own lips the
night she'd staggered into the house, badly beaten and lucky to be
alive.
     "Uranus just looked down at me like a judge about to
pronounce sentence," Makoto went on, oblivious, "and told me,
"Our princess requires this."  And if those wingwraiths hadn't been
drawn by our fight, I'd be dead now."  She stopped, still staring at
the same spot on the ceiling, her voice trailing off into the silence.
     "I just can't reconcile the two," she said finally, startling
Ami, who'd been searching for something, anything, to say.  "I
mean, Usagi-chan, she was a sweet girl, gentle."  Ami noted the
use of the past tense, as if Usagi was dead.  She suspected Makoto
hadn't done that on purpose.
     She also suspected it didn't much matter.
     "How could the girl we knew be so cold-blooded?" Makoto
asked.  "It's just so ... unbelievable."
     "Maybe she remembers the end, the last days that we
can't," Ami murmured.  "Maybe something there convinced her
that she needed to change, to be harder, in order to succeed where
her mother failed in the past."  Makoto snorted.
     "Maybe," she grumbled.  "Maybe this, maybe that.  It's just
insanity, Ami-chan!  It doesn't make sense, it just doesn't!  How
can I believe that Usagi-chan is like that, for any reason?  I have to
hate the person who ordered me killed, but I can't wrap my mind
around that concept!  I mean, can you?"  Ami turned her face away.
She couldn't, either, and maybe that was the problem.  They
couldn't believe the truth even when it was staring them right in
the face.  How long could they keep denying what seemed
obvious?  Until someone was killed?  Was that what it would take?
     A shrill two-tone beeping jerked her out of her reverie, and
she sat up quickly, heart suddenly racing.  Makoto bolted up as
well, and it took a moment before Ami realized what she was
hearing.
     "Oh, hell," Makoto sighed in disgust.  "You or me?"
     "It must be you," Ami replied, still feeling light-headed
from the surge of adrenaline.  "Mine is upstairs in my room."
Makoto swung her long legs off the couch and trotted over to
where her jacket was lying on a chair.  She'd dropped it there when
she'd arrived home, and forgotten to hang it up after hearing the
news.  Ami watched as the tall girl fished around in the pockets of
her leather riding jacket, coming up with a rectangular metal card
about the size of a credit card, but nearly as thick as a computer
diskette.  She pressed on the side and a small section depressed,
silencing the alarm.
     "I've gotta go hit a VG terminal," she sighed.  "It looks like
someone's registered a challenge."
     "I've got my computer set up to interface with the VG
net," Ami told her.  "And it's secure.  You can check the details
here."
     "You're sure it's safe?" Makoto asked.  "Maybe I'm being
paranoid, but after today, nothing would surprise me."
     "Trust me," Ami said, leading the way.  "I use it all the
time.  Our gear is all heavily protected."  When they reached her
room, Ami flicked on the light and made her way to her large,
semi-circular desk.  The computer in her room was just a terminal
for the main system in the basement, but it was impressive enough
in its own right.  She reached out a hand absently, and Makoto
placed her VG licence in it without hesitation.  Computers were
undisputedly Ami's domain.
     Ami inserted the licence into its special slot and queried the
VG net.  The VG logo flashed up almost immediately, followed
by Jupiter's picture and stats.  Ami touched the screen where a
flashing red box labelled "Activity" had appeared, and a new
screen appeared.
     "Wonderful," Makoto sighed.  "Just what I needed
tonight."  Ami sat back.  Sure enough, a challenge had been
registered against Makoto's licence.  Troublesome, but that was
one of the burdens of having a Variable Geo licence.
     "Mmmm," Ami mused.  "The challenger has listed a place
and time ... she wants to fight tonight, open window until one a.m.
You could delay this until tomorrow, same time."
     "Hell, I could blow it off until they red-flagged my licence,
but that wouldn't make any difference," Makoto replied.  "And I
don't want to get a reputation as someone who's afraid to face a
challenge.  I know where this is, I can get there in plenty of time.
Who is it, anyway?  Anyone we know?"
     "No name listed," Ami said, having already searched for
that particular piece of information.  "Whoever she is, her point
total must be high enough that she doesn't have to reveal her
identity in advance."
     "Huh.  Trying to psych me out, hmmm?  What a cheap
stunt."  Makoto reached down and retrieved her licence, then
placed a hand on Ami's shoulder as she started to rise.
     "And where are you going?" she asked.  Ami frowned.
     "I'm going with you."
     "Uh-uh.  I just had a thought.  If your baby is as secure as
you're always saying, then I think you should do some research
tonight."
     "But what about you?" Ami asked.  Makoto waved her off
impatiently.
     "It's just a challenge," she said dismissively.  "We've all
been through them before, especially when things get slow.  The
price we pay for carrying a VG licence, right?  Anyway, I don't
need my hand held.  I'll take care of this cheap tart and be home
before you know it.  In the meantime I want you to find out
everything you can about ..."
     "Tsukino Usagi," Ami sighed.  "You think she lied to us,
don't you."  It wasn't a question.
     "About more than the obvious?  I don't know.  But I also
want you to look into Haruka-san and Michiru-san," Makoto said
grimly.  "They're Usagi-chan's guardians, and she lives with them.
They're my favourite candidates for being Uranus and Neptune.
And that girl we met, the one with the headband ..."
     "Luna?"
     "Yeah, that's her.  She might be Pluto.  Anyway, find out
what you can, okay?  The more we know, the better prepared we'll
be."
     "Well ..." Ami said, still uncertain.
     "Geez, Ami-chan!  I'll be fine!  Hey, tune into the VG circuit
later and watch me thrash this chick, okay?  She'll regret having
challenged me when her assets are laid bare for everyone to see!"
Ami squirmed, well aware of the traditional finale to any VG
challenge match.
     "Well, all right," she sighed, hiding her discomfort.  "But
be careful.  Her senshi might be out tonight ..."
     "It's a huge city, Ami-chan.  Relax."
     "If you say so," Ami relented.  Makoto grinned.
     "That's the spirit.  Maybe Rei-chan and Minako-chan had
the right idea after all.  I'm starting to look forward to working off
a little stress on some poor unfortunate.  And if her point title is
really that high, after the fight I might even be within shouting
distance of a Class A licence!  Boy, that'd show Rei-chan,
wouldn't it?"
     "Concentrate on winning first, okay?" Ami asked,
nonetheless pleased at the return of some of Makoto's
characteristic spirit.
     "I always do," Makoto told her.  "See ya later!"  Ami
watched the tall girl stride confidently out of the room, stifling a
sigh as Makoto closed the door a little too enthusiastically.  Well, at
least she was feeling better.  A challenge, after all, was something
she could handle, could take direct action against.
     And speaking of direct action ...
     Ami swivelled her contoured chair back to the screen and
cracked her knuckles, then retrieved her glasses from beside the
keyboard.
     Time to make magic ...

#####

     He was hungry.  Hungry, and bored.
     This was a very bad combination in most people.  In a
darkling such as himself, it promised to be a lethal one.  He'd left
the nest and ventured into human territory, determined to find a
pretty young human diversion.  He'd take his time killing her,
though, feeding on her agony and terror for hours before devouring
her whole.
     At least, that was the plan.
     He was newly come into his powers, truth be told, and
impatient to prove himself.  So impatient that he'd rushed out of the
precincts of the great Rift, answering the night's siren call.  He'd
never been so deep into the human city before, however, and was
startled at the overwhelming sensory burden.  In addition to the
lights, sounds, and crowds, there were mystic hot-spots, spectral
sinkholes, and active wards to snare the unwary.  And that wasn't
mentioning predators native to this plane, such as vampires,
werewolves and a bewildering array of other children of the night.
     He'd found a less travelled byway and lurked now, keeping
to the deep shadows as he waited for an opportunity.  He could
appear human enough, at least in the dark, to lure some unwary
beauty to her doom in his foul embrace.  Unfortunately, the human
city was dangerous enough that "unwary" might be too much to ask
for.  Perhaps he should settle for "too drunk to run away ..."
     His temper flared, and his human seeming began to melt away.
With difficulty, he regained his form and his temper, cursing himself
for letting his power seep out like that.  After all, he was no longer
a stripling, but a hunter in his own right.  He should be above such
petty displays.
     Then his inhumanly sensitive hearing distracted him from his
thoughts.  A sound, distant but coming nearer.  Could it be ...?
     It was.  The characteristic clicking sound of high heels on
pavement.  And, if he was not mistaken, not one but two pairs!  His
patience and cunning were finally going to pay off!
     He waited, eager now, as his prey came closer.  The night
breeze carried their scent to him, the lush perfume of human female,
as yet untinged by the sharp cologne of fearsweat.
     But that would change.
     He judged the moment, then stepped smoothly from the
darkened doorway where he'd been sheltering, taking up station
directly in front of the two women.
     "Good evening, ladies," he intoned, making his voice deep
and resonant.  With his first sight of them, his black blood began to
race with excitement.
     What a pair they were.  One was a vision in black leather.
Her spike-heeled boots hugged the long, lithe length of her legs up
to mid-thigh.  Her bodysuit was cut high over her thighs, slithering
up her narrow waist and barely managing to embrace her full
breasts.  The long narrow V that plunged between her breasts to
her navel was criss-crossed by narrow black laces.  The top edge of
the leather over each breast narrowed to a strap which was tethered
to the leather collar that encircled the girl's neck.  She wore a
matching jacket, cropped short just under her breasts and worn open.  The
girl's long blonde hair flowed out from under a black officer's cap,
streaming loose and full down her back.  The brim of
the cap shadowed her face until she tipped her head back slightly,
revealing deep blue eyes set in the face of a fallen angel, lush blonde
bangs sweeping untidily across one eye in a fetching disarray.
     The girl beside her was just as striking.  Pale skinned, with a
mane of raven hair that fell past her hips, she wore glossy boots much like
her friend's, except hers only came up to the knee.  High-waisted black
pants that seemed to have been spray-painted on showed every contour of her
lean, graceful body below the rib cage.  Her shirt, the deep crimson of
blood, was worn open at the throat, providing a tantalizing view of pale
flesh and the barest hint of the swell of her cleavage.  The sleeves were
loose and blousy, but the cuffs were tight, and she wore thin black gloves
that only extended to the middle finger of each hand, leaving the others
bare.  A narrow black choker contrasted starkly against the pale skin of her
throat, bearing a small death's head insignia matching the one on her
partner's hat.
     My first time out, he thought ecstatically.  I'll show Belji
who's wet behind the ears!
     "Well, well," he murmured, letting his cloak fall open
slightly.  "Don't you two make a lovely pair.  Are you looking to
have some fun?"  He quivered, barely clinging to his disguise now.
The blonde cocked her head at her friend.
     "Fun?" she asked, her voice a husky purr.  "We're always
open to ... fun.  Isn't that right, Mars?"
     "Indeed," the dark-haired beauty replied, her voice deep and
throaty.  He smiled, letting his teeth begin to grow.
     "Then why don't we all have fun ... together?" he asked.
His eyes began to glow, and his claws lengthened as he thrust his
hands free of his cloak.  He opened his mouth wide to give the
pretties a good look at what was waiting for them.  He'd waited for
this moment, dreamed of it many times.  He'd envisioned
screaming, fainting, and of course the futile but inevitable attempts
to flee which would become part of the game itself.
     None of his dreams had encompassed coin-tossing.
     "Call it," the blonde murmured as she flipped a gleaming
coin into the air.
     "Heads," the other replied, not taking her eyes off of him.
The blonde caught the spinning coin, slapping it neatly on the back
of one gloved hand.
     "Damn," she sighed.  The other smiled.
     "First blood goes to me," she breathed.  "Excellent."  He
blinked.  The woman was stepping forward now, and even a
darkling as inexperienced as he was beginning to suspect something
might be amiss.  There was a faint sense of magic in the air, where
there had been none before.  Still, they WERE only women ...
     "I am going to slash that pretty skin of yours," he growled,
his voice becoming guttural and inhuman, "and drink your blood
while you ..."
     She didn't even wait for him to finish.

#####

     The streets of this district were choked with people answering the
night's call.  Clubs and other diversions abounded down here, guaranteeing a
crowd for the fight.  Apparently, her opponent didn't lack self-confidence.
        Jupiter moved easily through the crowd, her long athletic strides 
drawing
admiring stares from passers-by.  Pausing, she scanned the square ahead.
This was the place, all right, but she didn't see anyone waiting.  Garish
displays of neon and gently glowing video screens lined the nearby streets,
and there was no shortage of pedestrian traffic as people ventured out
looking for thrills, cheap or otherwise.
     Well, Jupiter thought wryly, they're going to be treated to
some thrills all right, some very unexpected ones.  She walked
boldly up to the corner, surveying the crowd.  Still no sign of
anyone who might be waiting for her.
     Heh.  Still trying to psych me out by forcing me to make the
first move, huh?  With a crooked smile, she stuck two fingers inside
her dress and withdrew her VG licence.  Well, fine.  You'll have to
show yourself soon enough.
     Moving with easy grace, she made her way to one of the
ubiquitous cylindrical VG terminals and inserted her card.  The
terminal beeped and clicked, then flashed up an active screen.
     "CHALLENGE ACCEPTED," it read.  Around her,
streetlights began to intensify and video signs went blank, then
flashed up the VG logo.  An excited murmur went through the
crowd as they realized what was about to happen, and Jupiter
suppressed a grin.  There was always a rush, a vertiginous sensation
in the pit of the stomach, when fighting a challenge.  And as much
as she professed to hate the necessity, part of her loved fighting in
front of a crowd.
     Barriers had sprung up, blocking off the intersection, and
people were streaming out of the way quickly.  Jupiter could see
another terminal on the corner diagonally opposite her own, and
there was a stir in the crowd near it as someone approached.
Jupiter caught a glimpse of gray and black, a brief impression of
pale hair, then a figure stepped into the open and inserted her
licence into the terminal.  Across the intervening space, her cool
blue eyes met Jupiter's, and ruby lips curved into a lazy smile.  For
the first time, Jupiter felt her confidence waver as she recognized
the woman who'd challenged her.  And, without being aware of it,
she muttered under her breath.
     "Oh, shit ..."

#####




______________________________________________________
Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com