Over the next following days, Mic-Hiru's machine was in construction, and Mak-Otos mood didn't actually improve... as she still had to care for the pansies.
But then, it was finally finished: An enormous apparatus that was designed to look like a golden sun, with a big amount of glass panels alongside its front, looking very much like mirrors.
As the machine was placed in the middle of the Hanging Gardens, Mak-Oto also got the additional job to make any necessary adjustments whenever the machine's power was needed.
Mic-Hiru gestured at several handles. "See, here? This is how you tilt the mirrors. The more they are tilted, the more the rays of the sun will increase our mental capacities. Understood?"
"Understood," the gardener nodded.
"But, you have to remember one thing," the head researcher said while raising her index finger. "Never push the handle completely down! Who knows what would happen... the consequences could be dire."
'I see...' Mak-Oto thought to herself. 'The more the mirrors are tilted, the more likely will the researchers be able to think up something to satisfy the queen... and I can make sure that my beloved gardens from once will return.'
"What are you thinking about?" Mic-Hiru wondered when she saw the gardener's thoughtful expression.
"Huh? Oh, uh, nothing! Everything's fine, Mic-Hiru!"
The scientist nodded. "Okay then... I'll leave the controls to you. I think I'll join my colleagues, as we give the pansies another try."
Shortly after, Mic-Hiru was standing in front of the machine with Reih-Ino and Us-Agi, each one of them holding a single pansy in their hand.
Reih-Ino put her hand upon her forehead. "I can feel it... I can feel a great enlightenment coming."
Us-Agi and Mic-Hiru gasped in awe when suddenly, a tiny object appeared over the black-haired scientist's head.
"This is it! This is it!" Reih-Ino said in excitement, as she gestured at the small light bulb that was hovering above her head.
"Interesting..." Mic-Hiru muttered. "It seems like the machine's influence actually shows us a vision of the inventions of the future. I didn't expect that sort of reaction..."
"Wait, I believe I feel something too..." Us-Agi muttered, while closing her eyes.
When she opened them and looked up, she saw another light bulb, but bigger than the one hovering over Reih-Inos head.
She grinned. "Mine is bigger than yours," she chanted and stuck out her tongue.
"Very mature, meatball head..." Reih-Ino muttered.
Mic-Hiru then winced as a sharp pain went through her head. "Wait... I believe I feel something as well..."
The three researchers gasped in shock when they saw the enormous, boulder-sized light bulb hovering over their heads.
"What the...?" Reih-Ino blurted out.
"Awesome!" Us-Agi gasped.
"Oh my..." Mic-Hiru gulped. "That... is a little bit too big, I think."
But that wasn't the biggest surprise her vision was giving them.
All of a sudden, the giant contraption above their head began to slightly lower itself, then it came descending faster, until...
"It's falling down!" Us-Agi shrieked. "Quick, run away!"
The three Babylonian women quickly dove for cover, while the titanic light bulb came crashing down and exploded in a shower of glass shards.
Us-Agi shivered when she and the other two looked up from the ground. "What... what happened?"
"I fear the worst..." Mic-Hiru whispered. "I believe that someone just pushed the lever down completely."
"And... what's happening now?" Reih-Ino asked.
The head researcher gestured above the younger girl's head, where a strange vehicle with two wheels started to appear. "Now we are witnessing the realization of all our ideas and inventions..." she groaned.
"You gotta be kidding!" Reih-Ino screamed, just before a toaster appeared out of thin air and dropped down on her head.
All over the Hanging Gardens, they could now hear the screams and shouts of everyone who was unfortunate enough to be near the enormous mirror machine.
"HELP ME!" Mak-Oto screamed as she came running past them. "I'm being chased by some rabid lawn-mowing device!"
And just as she had passed the two stunned (and one clonked out) scientists, a red blur zoomed after her, something they would have recognized as a lawnmower, would they be living in the 21st century.
Mic-Hiru looked around in horror as all over town, people were struggling with unfamiliar machines and contraptions that weren't even supposed to exist in their century.
"What have we done?" she whispered to herself.
----
"In the end, the Hanging Gardens collapsed under the weight of the unusual amount of technology placed upon them," Setsuna explained while putting away her spoon. "It really took me some time to cover up what happened back then, as I was watching it from the future. At last, no trace of what happened remained, and even among the descendants of the Babylonians, it remained a mystery just what happened to the Hanging Gardens."
Luna shook her head. "That story sounded even crazier than the first one," she muttered. "And you wanna tell us that all of this actually happened?"
Setsuna shrugged. "Well, am I the guardian of time or not?"
"I'm surprised Usagi's Babylonian incarnation didn't collapse under the weight of an ice cream machine," Rei teased.
"And what happened to all of those machines?" Ami asked. "If you 'cleaned up' after that incident, where did you put all of those inventions?"
Setsuna smirked. "Let's say that it helped me to acquire some nifty things that would otherwise way too expensive in our century. Being the guardian of time sometimes has its advantages."
"And the poor gardener?" Makato asked. She felt sorry for her previous incarnation. "Did the queen ever forgive her for what happened because of her?"
When she saw the Senshi of Time nod, she felt relieved.
Setsuna then smirked. "Well, but she had to hold out on top of the highest ziggurat, until Hakurabi calmed down again."
The other laughed, while Makoto could only frown.
"I believe I need to have a word with Haruka veeery soon," she grumbled.
"And what is the next story about?" Minako asked in anticipation.
Setsuna smirked. "Let's talk about that... in the future."
"You mean, during the next course?" Artemis licked his lips as he already looked through the menu again.
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(Posted Mon, 12 Mar 2007 15:47)
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