Chapter 3

Therefore, the girls, err I mean women now I guess, have finally finished their training with Baba and are ready to meet the Kaioshins! First: a wardrobe change!

"Are you ready to transport to Kaioshin-kai, girls?" Baba asked. Judaiko waved her hand and said, hold on! Aren't we supposed to dress formally on Kaioshin-kai? After all, it is a sacred planet!" Baba sighed and said, "You're right. Go ahead and change, but be quick! The girls nodded, and dashed down the hall to their bedrooms. Baba waved her head. Even after two whole years, they were the same naïve girls she had found on Snake Way. An hour later. "Baba, we're ready!" Taihen called. Baba turned and stared. They were wearing the vests of Kaioshins, but no pants, with boots up to their knees and long gloves to their elbows. They had discarded their pitiful Potara look-alikes and now wore real ones, each with their favorite color; Atarashii purple, Judaiko blue, Taihen black. So were the colors of their clothes. Snapping out of her trance, Baba said, "Alright, but before we leave, I have something to give you all." "Really?" the young women said simultaneously. "Really. Now, come her ladies." Taihen, Atarashii, and Judaiko walked forward and Baba pulled a jeweled box from her robe. Opening it revealed three pendants, one was a blood red flame upon gold string, another a tear drop so blue it seemed real upon green thread, and the third a purple cherry blossom on silver thread. "These are yours forever until you decide to take on your on apprentices. The tear symbolizes water, for you Judaiko. The flame is of fire, Taihen's, and finally, the cherry blossom represents earth, for Atarashii. Guard them like your children, never go anywhere without them." The girls laced the pendants around their necks. Atarashii felt warmth flow throughout her entire body, giving her a feeling she had not felt since she had deserted her home. Like seeing a close friend she had not seen in a very long time. "Okay, are you finally ready?" Full of confidence, the girls nodded. For the first time since their training had begun, they were very sure of themselves. Baba grinned. "Alright, I'll leave the teleporting to you three. Think 'Kaioshin-kai'." Holding hands with each other and their mentor, the girls concentrated and muttered the words they thought they would never say "Kai Kai."

I really hope I do not confuse thee, but in case you decided to be a dumbass, Rou thought he could defuse Kaiobit. Unfortunately (or fortunately for Kaiobit fans, whichever way ya see it) he only managed to bring Higashi and Kibito out of Kaiobit's body, but Kaiobit remained. Confused yet? Good! *evil cackle*

Kaioshin-kai. The holiest sphere there was. Higashi, the god of the East, lay with his back to a tree. The other Kais were nearby, all doing their thing. Suddenly, he felt three familiar energy signals nearby, none of which he had felt since… since… "Oh God! The Chosen Three are HERE!" All of the Kaioshins raised their heads as Higashi flew down the hill towards the nearest lake. Rou said quietly, "That one has been awful jittery since he separated from Kaiobit." Dai Kaioshin, the boss of all the Kaioshins, stood up *with the help of all the other Kaioshins, I'm sure ^_^* and said, "Wait, I feel an odd ki, no, three!" The others stood up and searched for the energy signals, and too found the three ki's. "Higashi is right!" Kaiobit cried. "It feels like that of our Guardians, yet different somehow. It must be their reincarnations! Let's go!" The rest nodded in agreement, and they took to the air, following the seemingly crazed Higashi. After an hour of flying, they reached a small field covered in purple flowers. "Great." Nishi whined. "If Higashi stopped there, we'll never find him!" Kita pointed down towards a smaller patch. "Hey, I think I see him…and he's not alone!" Indeed, the eastern God had landed by a small pond and there were four figures beside him. One they recognized as the witch Baba, but the others, who seemed to be girls, were strangers…yet familiar somehow… Higashi waved for them to come down. As the six gods landed back to the ground, they could now see his companions. Two seemed to be in their early twenties, but the younger one still looked like a teenager. Next to the women sat the witch Baba. Baba bowed low, saying, "Your graces, your apprentices." The older of the trio both bowed respectfully, but the blonde-haired woman stood still, dumbfounded. Atarashii thought that the Gods would look…well…godly! They looked like normal people, except for the clothes,…skin…ears…hair…okay, they looked very odd, but they did not look like the highest beings in the universe. "Atarashii!" Baba muttered under her breath. "Bow!" Atarashii gasped and bowed slightly, hoping the Kaioshins were not upset. Nishi giggled, and said as best as she could without laughing, "A-arise!" Baba and her students looked up into the faces of the gods. "Thank you, my liege. I have trained these girls for two years now, and I trust that they are ready for your own training, if you wish." The Kaioshins looked at Dai Kaioshin, who had been silent to this point. At first, the god of gods' face was unreadable, slightly frightening Atarashii. What if they were all rejected, or worse; what if SHE was rejected, and her friends allowed on Kaioshin-kai?! Dai looked at Minami and smiled. "You, Minami, have never chosen an apprentice for others or even your own. Why don't you see if their hearts are pure enough for this task?" Minami seemed a bit surprised, but he listened and walked up to Taihen. Atarashii watched in fascination as the Southern god placed his huge hand on Taihen's chest. *you had better not be thinking what I think you are thinking! He put it on the area between the neck & breasts, dumbasses* The area began to glow, first red, then a soft pink. "Yes, she is pure." Taihen sighed as Minami made his way to Judaiko and repeated the procedure with her. Again, the heart was pure. Judaiko would be trained. Atarashii thought she felt her own heart fall to her stomach as the 6-foot tall god approached her. Being only 5' 4", she felt very small indeed. She wasn't the only one uncomfortable. Minami felt something in him awaken, yet he could not understand it. Something about this girl… Ignoring the sudden attack of emotion, he gently placed his hand over her heart. Yes, it was pure, the purest he had seen in a long time, ever in fact. She had done bad things, but she did not truly embrace them and she tried to act tough around everyone so they did not take pity on her. Atarashii, as her heart said her name was, was actually very sweet, compelling, and affectionate around those she loves. Indeed, she was a very good person. Minami took a step back and said quietly enough that everyone had to strain their ears to hear him, "Yes, Atarashii is worthy. She will be trained." All the young women sighed with relief. Minami walked back to the group of gods, but his mind stayed with the young woman, Atarashii. What was this strange power surrounding her? It made sense, he could feel the essence that had once been Ichi's, but there was something else about her…

Ooh, Mimi-chan might have a crush. ^.^ To see what comes out of this new twist in the story, stay tuned for the next episode of Sailor Moon… I mean the next chapter of A/K/L…. Oh how embarrassing. O_O ~Siona
Go to Chapter 4!