"So, are you ready to go?" Nandus asked.
"I think I have everything," Ami said after closing her bag. She had packed some food, two books, a swiss army knife, her pencil case and a diary... there was no way that she would go on such an adventure without any meanings of noting her experiences down.
Nandus smiled. "That's just like you, always curious about new stuff..."
Ami frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"
He smirked. "Nothing, nothing... it's just that on my last birthday, you told me how similar we are to each other. And seeing you pack that diary reminded me of myself, on my first day of school..."
"You go to school?" Ami wondered.
"Of course... Alveran Academy, the school for all young godlings. One third of our time, we help our parents, one third, we study, and the other half, well... we are still young, so we need some free time, don't you agree?"
Ami smirked. She was young herself and knew how much she enjoyed her free time. "I guess you're right. Well, I guess I better inform my mother before we go..."
"I don't think that's a good idea," Nandus frowned. "She doesn't even know that you are a Senshi, right? What do you think she would do if she finds out that in the future, you will be a goddess? Do you think she would treat you the same as she normally would?"
"Of course!" Ami shouted, but then, realized that that wasn't quite right. She knew that Nandus was capable of convincing her mother of the truth... but how would her mother feel, knowing that one day, her daughter would have the power of a DEITY?
"She'll worry and wonder where I am," Ami finally spoke up.
Nandus smiled. "That's no problem. I will just convince her that you are on a vacation, the same story that Setsuna is going to tell your friends." He looked down at the little hamster in the cage. "As soon as we are gone, she will turn back, and your mother will believe that you are already on your train."
"Well, okay... but how are we going to travel? Are you opening some sort of portal? or do we have to crawl through a mirror or something like that?"
Nandus shrugged. "If you prefer such fancy tricks... but I could also bring you to Alveran in the blink of an eye."
"Um, okay, then do just that. I'm pretty new to this stuff, remember? It's just hard for me to grasp that all you have to do is to blink once and we are..."
She blinked when she realized that they weren't standing in her bedroom anymore. "...gone?" she finished her sentence. "Where... where are we?"
Nandus spread his arms. "Welcome! Welcome in Alveran, the citadel of the gods! And welcome in what will one day be your own palace: Ami's Labyrinth!"
Ami peered down. They were standing on a big, circular platform made of marble, which was floating high in the air above... well, the first word that came to Ami's mind was 'library', but that would be the understatement of the year.
This wasn't just ANY library, this was THE library... the embodiment of all scholarly dreams come true. The massive room they were standing in had no ceilings, and the walls were as far from each other as the eye could see. On one side, Ami couldn't even see a wall, that's how far the room was stretching out in that direction.
And as far as her eye could see, there were bookshelves. A labyrinth of bookshelves, filled with books of all kinds, big books, small books, old books, new books, dictionaries, science books, encyclopedias, cookbooks, children's books, magazines of all kinds, stacks of ancient scrolls, stone tablets with gravures on their surfaces, and much, much more. It was making Ami's head spin.
Nandus stepped up next to her. "Well, impressed?"
"That's... that's incredible!" she blurted out. "Where... where do all these books come from?"
"There are all the books that the inhabitants of Aurius have written in their lifetimes... and I mean all of them! There's no end to them, literally. Every day, dozens of new books and scripts appear in our shelves, every time an author finishes a book. You see, this is truly a scholar's heaven... the studies will never end."
"But... but you haven't read all of them yet... have you?" Ami asked her future son in bewilderment.
"I haven't... but my mother has," he grinned. "You have to remember that she is a goddess, and therefore, omnipotent. It is no problem for her to read several books at once, or to finish a book within one second. Although she admits that she prefers the old-fashioned way of reading, one page after the other. But studying the books she already knows is still fun to her, and when a new book appears in our library, she sometimes reads it the normal way, too."
Ami looked down at the library again. "And what are those gleaming lights that are floating around the shelves?" she asked.
"Those are souls," Nandus explained.
"Souls...?"
"Yes, the souls of those who have chosen you as their patron deity. Not just your priests and scholars, but everyone who has an inquiring mind and who is always eager to learn more. And naturally, a human's life will never be enough to learn all of this world's secrets. Therefore, if they had been loyal servants of your cause, they will be rewarded... their souls will ascend into this paradise, your paradise: Ami's Labyrinth! And they will spend the rest of eternity in here, studying as much as they want."
"Paradise?" Ami murmured.
"That's right," he nodded. "Almost all of the Twelve have their own paradise in which their followers will stay after death."
"So, there is no such thing as reincarnation on this world?" Ami wondered.
"Sure there is," Nandus said. "Whenever the Goddess of Youth, Renewal and Reincarnation deems someone as worthy, and the situation as appropriate, she will allow a soul to be reborn in a new body... although she will have to clear it with the Goddess of Death first."
"Who... who are they?" Ami asked. "The Goddesses of Renewal, and Death, I mean?"
Nandus smiled. "Why, you know them pretty well. The Goddess of Death is Hotaru, and the Goddess of Renewal is Usa, better known to you as Chibiusa."
Ami shook her head. Although it made sense that those two would work hand in hand...
"And where am I... I mean, where is your mother?"
"You will meet her," Nandus said. "She just wanted you to see this first, before you talk to her." He gestured over to another floating platform (which Ami was sure hadn't been there just a second ago). On it, she could see a round, ornate table with a small pile of books on it. On a likewise ornate chair, a beautiful woman with long, blue hair was sitting. She was clad in a long, sleeveless dress and had golden bracelets on her wrists. She was reading a book that was lying in front of her. Ami had no doubt about it: This was her future self.
The platform they were standing on floated closer to the other one, then Nandus jumped over and helped Ami across.
The goddess welcomed them with a smile. Ami suddenly realized that there was a small snake with blue scales lying on the table, next to the book. It looked like it was eyeing her curiously.
Nandus gave his mother a short bow. "Mother, I have returned!"
"Welcome back, Nandus! I knew I could count on you." She then turned to face her younger self, who was suddenly very nervous.
"I welcome you, Ami Mizuno, my younger self. Many years have passed since I have been the mortal that is now standing in front of me... and I must say, I still have many fonds memories of that time. I am honored by your visit."
"Oh n-no, the honor is all mine, Your, um... Your... Highness?"
The goddess chuckled. "Please, just call me Ami-sama, that's what everyone does... except for my children, of course. I hope you don't mind."
"No, not at all, Ami-sama!" Ami quickly said.
"And I also hope you don't mind if from now on, we all will call you Ami-chan... it will help to differ you from me."
"Th-that's all right," Ami-chan said.
"Well then," Ami-sama went on. "I guess Nandus has already shown you my library... how do you like it?"
"Oh, it's impressive, really! I've never seen such an amazing collection of books before..."
Ami-sama smiled. "I'm glad you like it. We are rather proud of it. If you like, you can read a few of the books... but not right now. Now, Nandus already told you the reason why you are here, didn't he?"
"Y-yes, he said... he said that you decided to teach me about this world and your role as deities," Ami-chan said.
"That's right," Ami-sama nodded. "I don't know how wise it would be to already tell Usagi what will become of her kingdom... and Setsuna, well, she tends to be rather... impulsive at times. I know I can trust my friends, but if there is one person I trust the most, it is myself. That is why I've decided to bring you to the future, to Alveran, so you can learn and prepare yourself for your future role. If you want to tell your friends later on is up to you... but I know I will make the right decision. I already made it, after all."
"Th-thanks, I am honored by your faith in me."
Suddenly, their conversation was interrupted by the arrival of a strange bird. It almost looked like a raven, but its feathers were lavender-colored, and its beak a dark purple. It fluttered above the platform hesitantly, and it seemed to Ami as if it didn't quite want to disturb the conversation.
Ami-sama smiled up at the bird. "It's all right, come on down, Marbo-chan."
The raven nodded and landed next to them. In a flash, it transformed into a pretty girl that looked like she was the same age as Nandus. Her hair was the same color as the raven's feathers had been. She was wearing a violet toga and a pair of sandals.
The girl bowed in front of the goddess. "Please forgive me my intrusion, Ami-sama, but I have an important message from my mother."
Ami-sama smiled. "It's all right, Marbo-chan! I was just talking to my son, and to my younger self from the past. Ami-chan, this is Marbo, the daughter of Hotaru. It is her duty to accompany the souls of the dead to the afterlife in Alveran."
Marbo bowed again, this time in Ami-chan's direction. "Very nice to meet you!"
"Oh, l-likewise," Ami-chan stammered, still a bit overwhelmed by the presence of three deities at once.
Marbo then turned to Nandus and waved at him. "Hi, Nandus!" she smiled.
Nandus blushed and waved back. "H-hello, Marbo-chan..." he stuttered.
"What message does your mother have?" Ami-sama asked.
"Well, she wanted me to inform you that one of your higher priests has died this morning. His soul will arrive pretty soon."
"Ah yes, Nicodemus, I remember... his life has been a good one, and he's been one of my most loyal servants. I shouldn't keep him waiting. Thank you for reminding me, Marbo-chan! Please tell him to wait for me at the entrance of the library. And give your mother my regards."
Marbo bowed again. "Certainly, Ami-sama! Have a nice day!" Again, she turned to Nandus and smiled at him. "Bye, Nandus! See ya tomorrow!"
"Um, yeah, bye..." Nandus muttered.
Ami watched how the girl transformed back into a raven and flew away. She then looked at Nandus, who still had a big blush on his face. She smiled. "You like her, don't you?"
"Wh-why would you say such a thing?" Nandus stuttered.
Ami-sama giggled. "Nandus and Marbo have been friends ever since they began to attend Alveran Academy, but I can't say for sure if she knows of the little crush my son has on her..."
"M-mother!" Nandus protested, now as red as a tomato. The younger and the older Mizuno looked at each other and giggled.
"Well, I think that's enough for now," Ami-sama then said. "Nandus, I'd like you to lead Ami-chan around, show her everything and introduce her to the other gods. I'd love to chat a bit more with you, but unfortunately, duty calls. We'll see each other at dinner, Ami-chan."
Ami and Nandus bowed, then climbed back on their own little platform, which then floated away.
Ami-sama looked after them for a while. The blue snake lying next to her raised its head and said: "I still think it was risky bringing her here."
Ami-sama smiled down at the snake. "I know what I'm doing, dear!"
Ami was still flustered when they were slowly floating through a long corridor with an extremely high ceiling. Moving pictures of unknown persons, fantastic creatures and gorgeous landscapes were hanging at the walls, and golden sunlight was shining through silken curtains that were hanging in front of huge windows.
Nandus looked at her for a while, then he snapped his fingers. From one moment to the other, she wasn't nervous anymore.
She sighed. "Thanks, Nandus. I think I was ready to have a nervous breakdown. All of this is just so amazing... and to think that the other Senshi have kids on their own..."
"Not all of them," Nandus explained. "But a few of them have, yes. Marbo is just one of our little clique, just wait until you meet my other friends. They're nice guys, all of them. Kor and Swafnir, Ifirn and Mokosha..."
"Who are their parents?" Ami wondered.
"Well, Kor and Swafnir are brothers... their parents are Aunt Haruka and Aunt Michiru."
"You mean... they adopted them?" Ami wondered.
Nandus smirked. "You're once again forgetting that they are goddesses. They can have children with each other even if they are female. Swafnir is a pretty cool guy, my best friend, actually. He's a bit on the pudgy side, but then again, his secondary form IS a whale. Kor is the older brother... he can be a bit rude at times, but we all know that he's not as tough as he wants to make others believe. Ifirn and Mokosha are Marbo's friends, and for godlings, they tend to act just like normal school girls." He snickered. "But who am I to talk? I guess the guys and I aren't that different from any other bunch of high school boys..."
Ami snickered as well. It surprised her to see how... human the gods were acting. But maybe that was quite natural, after all, Ami-sama and her friends have been human once...
They reached an intersection, and the floating platform stopped. In front of them, Ami could see a direction sign, with numerous places written on it.
She read:
'Haruka's Halls of Honor'
'Michiru's Ocean of Tranquility'
'Rei's Forge of Fire'
'Kasumi's Asylum of Hospitality'
'Makoto's Arboretum of Fertility'
'Minako's Tent of Love'
and several more.
Nandus smiled. "Well, where do you want to go first?
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(Posted Thu, 15 May 2008 13:45)
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