Room 4: The Reflection Pool - This gallery feels strangely intimate compared to the others. Rather than towering skeletons or impossible machines, its displays are filled with ordinary things, each carefully preserved beneath crystal glass. A well-worn sword with a cracked leather grip rests beside a child's wooden toy. Nearby, a faded wedding dress stands upon a mannequin, opposite a pair of spectacles folded atop a handwritten journal whose pages have yellowed with age. A chipped teacup, a musician's instrument, an embroidered blanket, a half-finished carving, pressed flowers, letters tied neatly with ribbon--none appear remarkable on their own, yet each has been displayed with the same care as the museum's grandest treasures. Their placards are sparse, often recording only a name, a place, or a single date. These things would have been unremarkable in the hands of their owners, yet time has rendered them extraordinary. Somehow, each survived when countless others did not, preserved long after those who treasured them have been lost to time.
There is a quietness to the room unlike anywhere else in the museum. Those who linger near an object may find themselves overcome with the faintest impression of its history--not visions so much as feelings, fleeting glimpses of laughter, grief, triumph, routine, or love, as though the memories that shaped these ordinary possessions had never quite faded. Whether these impressions are the work of ancient magic or simply the imagination is impossible to say, but visitors often find themselves lingering far longer than they intended. In the center of the room is a strange fountain, with silver liquid that runs like water, but looks like mercury. Despite the miniature waterfall, the water is still, creating an almost perfect mirror.
A placard says 'Reflection Pool', but there's more to it than that--and anyone who looks within it will find out why. The pool has a hypnotizing effect, drawing the viewer into an old memory. Guests may accompany them into this memory, but it is a deeply personal experience. The magic will pull them into a defining moment of their life where they experienced a critical failure or other impactful moment that lingers in their memory. Through this magic, they have the opportunity to confront this experience again, as they are now instead of as they were then. Though this is a hallucination, it is incredibly realistic and can last for a few minutes. Though it forces conflict, it can result in a great catharsis. The reflection pool can only give access to a memory you have from your present life, so no past life memories, forgotten side swapped memories, or memories you haven't unlocked. This can be used as a battle requirement, regardless of the memory; the character simply needs to confront a difficult moment in the past. Your character does not need to be powered in this memory and does not need to engage in real physical combat. This memory is an illusion and can distort wildly. While the past cannot change, the illusion can reveal an alternate future if the path had been different. The illusion will only last for a few minutes; if visiting as a group, each may experience their own individual illusions, or they may be sucked into one person's illusion together, or they may arrive in a combined illusion formed from each of them. A person cannot be harmed in this illusion. There isa warning posted by the pool that cautions against looking too deeply, but below that is a note: We are all defined by the small moments in our lives.
Kua'kua had tried to avoid the room. She really had. Something about it repelled her - the strange hush, the stranger pool. It set the tiny hairs on the tips of her ears on edge. But as repelled as she was, she was attracted, too, and even when she set out to explore a different room, she kept finding herself standing in front of the door marked Reflection Pool.
On the one hand, Kua didn't think she needed any more reflection right now. She was still savoring the memory of the vasa gula, a beautiful gift that she held onto, so tightly, for fear it would fade or shimmer back out of existence. That was what she wanted to reflect on - the good memories, for once. She had been haunted by the bad ones for so, so, so long, it felt like she was due to bury herself with the warmth, the reassurance, the love of a good memory for a change.
But...
It may have been a gift, but Kua'kua had a strong sense of balance. Rarely was something so valuable given for free. Even if Maus had refused a return favor. Kua'kua was still wracking her brain for some way to give him what he'd given her. It wasn't a matter of 'repaying' it, or 'owing' it, but - when Kua was as grateful as she was, it felt wrong to simply express herself in words. She hadn't asked Joy yet, but Maus had made it clear that Joy would simply call upon her for a favor at a time of her choosing, and that satisfied Kua'kua, even though she wasn't sure at all what such a powerful Knight would ever need someone like her for.
Kua'kua looked down at her hands, mouth pressed into a thin line. Eons before, it felt like, she had grown past this form. She had been as powerful as she felt she could be, and she had still failed to save her planet. She was so - diminished in this state. What favor or good or gift could she really give anyone?
Kua'kua sighed. She needed to regain her former strength if she ever wanted to reclaim her planet. She knew that now--she knew that really, she needed to regain her former strength and then some, since her former strength hadn't been enough to stop it in the first place. She needed to be better than the best she'd been able to be.
Even if Maus wouldn't accept any sort of payment, Kua'kua felt sure in her heart that a gift like the one he'd given her...it had to be repaid. To someone. To something. The Cauldron, perhaps, through which anyone received any sort of ability at all. Perhaps it was the workings of more powerful beings than she could fathom that had nudged Maus and Joy along, to meet her at the exact moment she needed them; perhaps her incessant reappearance at this door was their way of calling to her, too. Nudging her along, to be where she needed to be. To give as much as she had gotten.
Nodding to herself, Kua'kua squared her shoulders and marched into the room, letting the door hang open behind her. She had peered in earlier when she was scoping all the different rooms out, so she bypassed the trinkets and scattered items in the room, and made her way straight to the Reflecting Pool in the center of the room.
And then she stopped. Her heart was beating unevenly in her chest, and she could feel - something. She could do this. She had to do this.
And so she would.
...Just as soon as her heart stopped trying to climb up into her throat, she would peer into the Pool and take whatever came of it. Yep. Any second now. Aaaany second...
orangeish sherbert
Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2026 2:08 pm
Julienne had been curious of this whole space museum and had decided to see it for herself. There had been so many people who had arrived, and while she wasn’t happy with the amount of Chaos that had come to visit, there wasn’t anything that she could do about it. As a Mauvian, there wasn’t much that she could do in a fight. She had claws, which were good. And teeth. But…she had chosen to stay low, out of sight and be as unassuming as possible.
Of course, with all the different Senshi about, there were a few who seemed to feel different, and her eyes had fell on one of the ones from space. A cute girl, with butterfly like ears, Julienne had honed in on her in the large group but followed carefully after her as she made her way to one of the side rooms.
“Hello! I’m Julienne, and I’m sorry to bother you…but do you have a few minutes? I wanted to say hello, and possibly to ask you if I could borrow your henshin pen for a few minutes?”
If she was wrong, which…she didn’t think she was…at least this was a room where the girl could entertain herself…if that was the right word. Regardless, Julienne just needed some time with the pen to be sure.
Kua'kua jumped, startled at the soft voice. It took her a second to locate the source, but when she noticed the Mauvian, she couldn't help but smile. It felt like a good omen somehow, especially when Kua noticed her jaunty little...was that a hat? A poofy hat? How delightful.
"Of course," Kua'kua said. She had never denied a Mauvian's request before, and she certainly wasn't about to start now. She removed her pen and placed it gingerly on the ground in front of the cat, giving her a small smile. "My name is Sailor Kua'kua, of Hellebore. It is an honor to meet you."
(It was also nice to have a momentary reprieve from staring at the Pool, but that was neither here nor there.)
"May I ask your name?" Kua'kua said. She did not need to ask what the cat planned on doing with the pen - she had never been led astray by a Mauvian before, and was sure that only good things would come from anything the cat did to it. Perhaps there were some upgrades that Mauvians had come up with in the intervening thousand years since a Mauvian had seen her pen.
orangeish sherbert
Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2026 5:51 pm
“My name is Julienne! It’s lovely to meet you, Kua’kua! You are absolutely stunning, if I do say so myself.”
Her paws wrapped around the henshin pen and her but wiggled slightly as though she were about to pounce. “You came in here for a reason, didn’t you? I don’t want to distract you from that, I won’t be long, I promise!”
A small headbutt to Kua’kua’s leg and Julienne turned her attention back to the pen.
The pool held no interest for her., but this? Upgrading another one of those who were lost from Space?
Kua'kua couldn't help the smile on her face - what a good Mauvian this little one was. As Julienne bumped against her leg, Kua reached down and gave her a gentle scritch behind the ear, a silent thank you for whatever it was she was doing to her pen.
Of course, it was also completely on brand for a Mauvian to not allow herself to be a distraction from the real issue at hand: the Pool. Repressing a sigh, Kua'kua obediently turned back to the Pool, took a steadying breath, and allowed herself to peer into the silvery depths below.
---
On Kua'kua, the sky was always clear, the air always beautiful, and the people were, on the whole, happy. Sure, there were individual disappointments, heartbreaks, and rivalries, as there were in every community throughout the galaxy, but Kalani didn't yet have the faintest idea how good she had it, because she had always had it. The idea of anything ever besmirching her beautiful home was as foreign to her as Earth would come to be, many centuries later.
As the planet's Senshi, Kua'kua held no planet-level position, officially. But, in an effort to be reachable, transparent, fair and mindful, Kalani happily continued the tradition of attending meetings, and holding open court for anyone who wished her advice or assistance, whether they be a local leader or the youngest grublet. Whether it was a land dispute or a personal disagreement in need of mediating, Kua'kua was available for it all. In truth, it was one of her favorite parts of the job, even when it was boring or tedious or dull, because it let her feel useful.
And, sometimes, something that was actually interesting - actually impactful - would come along. Something beyond the interpersonal day-to-day. Something exciting.
"Taitai," one of the attendants said, giving a respectful bow as he greeted her by the title everyone called the planet's Senshi - it meant leader, even though every distinct area of the planet had its own government. The Senshi was something like a leader of leaders, and while that terrified Kalani, it also thrilled her. "There is a visitor here. From the stars."
Kua'kua sat up in her seat - it was carved of mountainstone, deep green and so shiny it almost looked wet, but it was made comfortable by the accessories upon it; a deep cushion, full of soft feathers, and animal hides draped delicately over and across. Kua'kua did not have royalty, not really, but when she sat in that seat, sometimes she felt like a queen.
"Send them in."
A few moments later, the group approached. In the front was a man, one unlike any Kua'kua had ever seen before. His skin was pale - far different from the greens, blues, blacks and purples of the Kuanian people - and his eyes were dark. Something about his eyes caught her attention and held them, but at the time, she didn't know what it could be.
He opened his mouth and the room went static. The Kua'kua seated eagerly on her throne froze, and the current Kua'kua flinched, doubled over, in imagined pain. She remembered this man.
He had been the beginning of the end.
Kuanians did not have their own space fleet. Why would anyone ever want to leave the most beautiful place in the galaxy? Mostly nobody did, but if they did, they hitched a ride in a trading vessel that used Kua'kua as a port of call. It was through this system that Kua'kua the planet began an export system, trading its rare flowers, perfumes, pollen, plants and, occasionally, animal meat or skins for other things that couldn't be found on the island. That had been overseen by a previous Sailor Kua'kua, many many cycles ago, and it worked fairly well for everyone involved. The deals were fair, and everyone mostly kept to the agreements.
Occasionally, some people from these trade routes wanted to stay on Kua'kua. Mostly this was not allowed, but every so often, someone would demonstrate a genuine need for a place such as their planet to call home, and would be willing to immerse themselves in the culture, to earn their place and call themselves a Kuanian. This had happened, perhaps, twice, in the recent memory of five Kuanian generations.
What the man with the dark eyes suggested was far stranger, far worse, than any of this limited contact with other worlds had brought to Kua'kua in the past - but it didn't seem like it at the time. Something about the way he spoke, the smile on his face...
Kalani, frozen in that moment, staring at that man, could see it now. He'd charmed her. She'd trusted him, and he had charmed her. He had robbed her of her people, her planet, and the only reason he wasn't standing over her bones and the bones of her people was because the Chaos had beaten him to the punch.
The memory unfroze. Kua'kua's hands were clenched as the man spoke, voice softer than silk and smoother than honey. He spoke of an agreement, an arrangement, a way for visitors to stay on the planet, briefly, enjoy the many healing benefits of her people, learn of their culture, and then go back home.
He called it 'tourism'.
He said it could be 'profitable'. Kalani didn't really know what that meant, but she was too shy and dazzled to ask. He said it would be helpful, for the whole planet; think of what Kua'kua's people could learn, from people that hailed from the far reaches of the galaxy! Think of what they could teach those people! Word of her planet could spread far beyond a simple stop on a trade route. Kua'kua, the planet and the Senshi, could become famous.
"No," Kua'kua whispered, at the same time as her memory-self gave a hesitant nod.
"I shall have to speak with my advisors," the memory said, but she said it with a smile.
"Oh, come now," the man crooned, stepping closer to her - closer than was proper, really, but he was from a far-away place, and who was she to tell him to move? He wasn't threatening her.
It wouldn't be polite. Etiquette was the better part of diplomacy, so she let him move until he was standing directly in front of her. Then he knelt, and kissed her fingers.
"Are you not the leader of this place?" he asked, from his place on the ground, dark eyes sparkling in a way that now, in retrospect, couldn't be anything other than sinister. "Can't you just decide? Surely you do not need anyone else's permission. Is this not your duty? This is what is best for your people after all. Trust me, I have been to many planets, and this has only benefited the planets lucky enough to be chosen. The sooner you decide, the sooner we can begin our exciting new...partnership."
This was the word that did her in. In spite of being surrounded by her people, being Senshi meant that she was, to a greater or lesser degree, alone. An island among a sea of people, quite literally.
She had never had a partner before.
She had never had anyone look at her that way before.
In her memory, she agreed to what the man offered. She allowed him to stay on the island, and before she knew it, he had become one of her advisors - and then her only advisor. He spoke of building great huge creations that could hold dozens, hundreds of visitors, huts so tall they passed the oldest trees; it all sounded impossible, and incredible. In her memory, the only reason she hadn't allowed this man to destroy her planet - and that was what he was proposing, she could see it now, having been to Earth and seen some of this 'tourism' for herself - the only thing that stopped him was what stopped all Kuanians.
When the Chaos came, it came on one of the ships that he had sent for. It was carrying building supplies, tools. Weapons, though Kua'kua hadn't known that for a very long time. Technically, she never proved where the Chaos had come from, but - it was the only thing that made sense.
In her memory, she let that man with the dark and sparkling eyes influence her. Control her. Use her. She took full responsibility for her inability to defend her planet, but - she realized, suddenly and all at once, that she never should have had to. She never would have had to if she had banished that man before he ever opened his mouth.
"No." Kua'kua said, more forceful now. "No, you may not do this. No. As Taitai of Kua'kua, Senshi of Hellebore," she said, voice growing in fury and volume as she stepped forward, somehow through the memory of her past self, into the very face of this man, still kneeling, still smirking, "No, I refuse your request. Get off my planet and never come back."
The man did not get up. Was she imagining it, or did his smirk widen slightly? Did she hear the softest, driest, darkest laugh, faint on the wind?
He wouldn't leave. It was going to happen all over again. Kua'kua balled her hands into fists. This man - he had convinced her that she was powerless. That he knew better. That she should leave all the important decisions to him.
He wasn't even from Kua'kua! How could she have done that? How could she have been so stupid?
How could he have been so cruel?
"GET! OUT!" Kua'kua shouted, more force behind her words than she even knew she was capable of creating. Just like that, the image before her evaporated, dissipating like fog under the morning sun - and just like that, Kua'kua was back in the present, back in her body, back on...well, not on Earth, but back in this museum, in front of this Reflection Pool. Gasping for breath like she'd been close to drowning, trembling so severely she had to wrap her arms around her body to keep herself together.
Had she yelled out loud? Had Julienne heard? Kua'kua had no idea. She couldn't stop the tears that welled in her eyes, and she sank to her knees, head bowed low. She had failed her people, failed them so many times, failed to protect them from the Chaos and from that - that snake who slithered in to her beautiful home and poisoned everything. Why had she trusted him? How could she have been so naive? Kua'kua's breath hitched. How could she not have seen? How could she not have known?
"ʻAʻole loa rawa," Kua'kua whispered over and over again, rocking herself back and forth as tears plunked steadily into the Reflecting Pool. Never again, never again, never again...
orangeish sherbert
Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2026 8:22 pm
Julienne had been growing more and more worried the longer it had been. She had upgraded the pen, had been more than ready to tell the Senshi that she was able to become stronger. But something was wrong.
“Hey! Hey! You’re okay! I’m here!”
She began headbutting the Senshi lightly, and when that didn’t seem to work, she changed, shifting into her humanoid form. There was no reason that she shouldn’t. There were auras all over the place and hers being supercharged wasn’t going to cause a fuss.
Her arms wrapped around Kua’kua and she squeezed tightly. “I’m here. You’re safe.”
Her hat fell off of her head and into the reflecting pool, but that really didn’t matter at this point in time. “You’re safe.”
Kua'kua barely felt the bump against her, but she felt the arms around her, and for just a moment, she thought it was her old ghosts, reaching out to bring her to join them, but--
Kua'kua blinked her tears away and no, there went a little hat into the pool, and Julienne was gone but the voice was the same and...sure, why wouldn't the cat be able to become humanoid? Kua's mind was too full to process this, but - there was a warm body holding her, soothing her, telling her she was safe.
She was safe.
She was always safe. She was always safe. Wasn't that the problem? If she'd been less safe she would've died with the rest of her planet, the way she should have--
Kua'kua couldn't remember the last time she cried.
She didn't know how long she just - wept and let herself be held, but eventually, her sobs began to quiet until she was just sniffling faintly, greenish hands wrapped around whatever part of Julienne she could reach, clinging to her like a small child.
But she wasn't a small child. She was supposed to be a Senshi, for crying out loud. With a trembling hand, Kua'kua wiped her eyes, her whole face, on her sleeve, sniffled one last time, and peeked up at the human-shaped cat.
"I am sorry," Kua'kua whispered. "I--" Kua couldn't begin to explain, so she just shook her head slightly. "I am sorry you had to--see this. It is not--not your responsibility to--to..." Kua'kua gestured vaguely, shook her head again. She could already tell, the shame of this would be immense.
"I am so sorry." For this, for everything.
orangeish sherbert
Posted: Sat Jul 18, 2026 9:05 pm
“Shhh…” Julienne reached up, stroking the fluffy dark hair and holding on tightly to the crying Senshi. “You did nothing wrong. You did absolutely nothing wrong. In fact, you’ve done right. Your pen? I’ve unlocked your power, you’ve done so well. And now you’re stronger for it. Whatever was in that pool it can’t hurt you. It’s not here. It’s not real. It can’t harm you anymore.”
Her fingers threaded through the Senshi’s hair and she sighed, her own mind flickering to Lenka. She missed her. Wished that what had happened hadn’t happened. She understood the feelings. Understood why someone would apologize. Be so upset. She had been so upset before.
“You have done nothing wrong. I am going nowhere.”
It's not real. It can't harm you anymore. It's not real. It's not real. It had been real, but it--it wasn't, anymore. It was just a memory. Memories could still hurt, but--not in the same way--she'd blocked so much out. So much forgotten, but evidently not as forgotten as she'd thought...
This was why she had folded into herself. This was why she had forbidden herself from thinking about what had gotten herself and her planet into the Chaotic mess they had found themselves in. It was so much easier to forget...
Easier, yes. But was it the honorable thing to do? Was it the fair thing to do? To forget her own complicity was also to forget her people, her friends and her family. None of them had known what to expect, none of them could have possibly seen this coming.
Kua'kua gave a jerky nod, wiped her eyes. "You...oh," Kua'kua said, blinking down at the pen in her hand. "Thank you," she said, voice soft as she took a steadying breath. She felt like a grub again, curled up in the arms of someone wiser, someone safe, someone who cared about her. Before she had any responsibilities - any debts. When she had barely been Kalani, never mind being Kua'kua.
"The problem is," Kua'kua began slowly, still studying the pen because it gave her something to look at; if she looked up at Julienne she might burst into tears again, and that was not Senshi behavior. Super Senshi behavior, now, she realized dully. "The problem is that what was in that pool was me." And other things, other people, but she wasn't weeping for them. She was weeping for her own guilt and her own foolishness.
"I...made a mistake. On my planet. I trusted the wrong person. I...I believe that is what allowed Chaos to take root." Kua'kua swallowed thickly, around the lump in her throat. "I had...I had forgotten the specifics, because it was...by the time I left, it had become....everywhere, everything. It felt like it didn't matter how it started. But...I think it does matter. It matters." Kua'kua frowned slightly, pushed back more tears, swallowed again. It mattered because she had to be sure she'd never make the same mistake again. She could not go on assuming that everyone she met was well-intentioned, that they all wanted what was best for herself as much as for themselves. She needed to guard herself, her heart. The way she should have guarded her people, her planet.
"I'm stronger now," Kua'kua repeated, echoing Julienne's words even though she didn't feel especially strong at the moment - she felt quite the opposite, in fact - but she knew that the Mauvian wouldn't lie to her or say something like that to try and make her feel better. "I--I will not let that happen again. To this planet or any other. I...I will find a way to rectify my mistake. I will find a way to rid my planet of that...that..." Kua'kua trailed off, all the words she knew in English not deep enough to reflect her feelings; maybe no word in Kuanian either.
"I will." Kua'kua nodded to herself, and this time did risk a glance up at Julienne. "You are very kind, Julienne. I cannot--I cannot express how much I appreciate your kindness."
orangeish sherbert
Posted: Mon Aug 17, 2026 6:23 pm
Julienne nodded and squeezed the Senshi once more. “I understand mistakes. I’ve made mistakes, and I lost my first bonded Senshi over it. I understand more than you might think. Mistakes. Hurt. They’re bitter, and they fester…but you…will be able to fix them. With time, with more power, we can work to heal your planet. I know we can. And I will help you in any way that I can. You have my support. You have my friendship, and you have whatever I can do for you.”
It was the least she could promise, and Julienne drew in a deep breath as she tried to hold Kua’kua just a little tighter. As she would have held Lenka tighter.
Kua'kua was momentarily distracted from own grief by that of another - she had never had a bonded Mauvian herself, so she had not ever thought about what might happen if one or the other part of a pair were to die, but as she did, she realized - it might not be on the same level as losing an entire planet, but it must be...
"Devastating," Kua'kua said softly, peering up at the Mauvian. "To lose your Senshi. I am so sorry for your loss, Julienne." Kua'kua sniffled, rubbed her eyes. Julienne was right - mistakes could be fixed. Her planet could - maybe - be healed. With help. From people like Julienne.
"Thank you," Kua'kua whispered, taking a slow, shaking breath. "I for you, as well," Kua'kua added, voice soft. "I cannot bring your Senshi back, but - if there is anything you need from me...if it is within my power to grant, you shall have it." Kua'kua gave her a shaky smile. "Thank you. Again. You are - you are very kind."
