Above All, Exists Love

.

Disclaimer: Nothing is owned. The end.

AN: No, I am not dead. And no this story is not over. I cannot guarantee frequent updates, but I can sure as hell guarantee that I will eventually finish this story. The next chapter is in the works, and should be posted relatively soon. And so the plot thickens… :-)

Technical Note: Since changed their formating, my html and other such wonderful spacing and readability issues I had previously worked out, now no longer wish to work. Therefore, I apologize if something is hard to read...I will try and Jury-rig this to do what I want it to. Hence all of the random periods throughout this document.

Comments/Answers/Questions:

eventidespirit: Oh trust me…it's all just getting started. The development will definitely occur. I know it looks rushed and shabby right now, but thus is the price for what I will achieve later. I know it sounds corny and everything, but just trust me. Thanks for your support!

GracedAngel1854: LOL! I don't think anyone reads the warnings…:sigh: Maybe I should write it all in caps and underline and stuff? Or maybe that would make it too hard to read. Hmmm…anyway, just trust me young padiwan. It will all make sense in the end. I have a very twisted and downright evil mind…so, you get stuck with this . Thanks for the review!

heart of ice: Thanks for the review! I am very glad that you are enjoying this story, and I hope that you will continue to do so!

DarkAngelPearl: Thanks for the review! I'm glad that I shocked the hell out of you, mission accomplished. You wanted to know, so here is what happened to the other senshi…or is it? Hehe…(I'm so evil)

sonar de mercury: Thanks for your review!

suisei no mitsuaki: I know about the realism. Too often in both fandoms, authors tend to forget that war is a messy, messy business. I'm glad you're interested and hopefully you'll stay interested as I continue to sporadically post.

Scarlet Angel16: It's updated, sorry it's not soon.

FilmMaker: Thanks so much for your praises! :blush: I am a much more proficient author now a days, so hopefully my work will only improve.

sevin800: No, I am not ending it there. There is much more I promise you! I'm glad you liked the moment with her and Wufei, still not sure who it's going to be. :-)

.
.

Last Time:

"Until Sailor Moon was killed."

"What?" she whispered, recoiling from the man, her eyes widening, tears falling and forming already forming tracks. Her hands were shaking and she thought that she was going to break down in a complete and utter wreck.

"Hai Ami-chan." A new voice said. Ami looked up and into the sad eyes of one of her best friends. She had changed, a lot. She was much taller than she remembered, but then Mako always had been the tall one of them. She was wearing green camouflage pants that covered standard military issue black boots. Her top was adorned with a green three-quarter length shirt, however on her right side, the sleeve was pinned from the elbow up for she was missing half of her right arm. Ami's hands raised to her mouth, the tears trailing over the obstacles as if they were nothing.

"What…what about the others?" she managed.

.

.

Chapter Six: The Wrath of Fate

.

Makoto sighed and sat on the couch opposite Ami and next to Seiji. He smiled at her and slid her left hand into his, his fingers running along the pad of her palm in a comforting gesture. At any other time Ami would have smiled and pestered her friend at what appeared to be a lover, but this time she was too shocked and broken to do anything of the sort.

"First, I think I should explain a bit about what happened. After you left, we continued to fight. We barely had time to recover from one attack before another would take us down. Soon, we had to start fighting in shifts; otherwise, none of us would have been healthy enough to even stand a chance. When we weren't fighting, we were looking for you. Or for a portal that would take us to you. Pluto couldn't…wouldn't help us." Mako sighed bitterly before continuing.

"It's not her fault, we all know that, but…she could have done something…warned us or something. Anyway, after about a year and half of this the senshi could no longer afford to have you in their…our plan. I never gave up…in fact I'm sure that while the others thought we were resting we were out searching for you. None of us ever gave you up Ami-chan…not until…not until that night."

"Mako…you don't have to continue right now. I understand how hard this must be for you…if only I…"

"No Ami! This is not your fault. It's those…creatures! It turns out that they were just scouts sent to scope out our planet and its defenses. Their masters came three years after you left…that was the year when all hope was lost, when Moon died."

"How?" Was all Ami could ask, afraid that if she said anymore, she would break down and be unable to even comprehend what had transpired here while she was gone. She desperately needed to know, she needed to understand what went wrong and see if maybe there was a way that she could make things right again. She just had to. If she had only been faster, if she hadn't let the boys talk her into staying longer…no she had wanted to stay. That was the worst hurt that her heart had to endure. She had actually contemplated leaving her friends and staying with the gundam pilots forever, just declaring Sailor Mercury…Ami Mizuno dead and truly becoming Kayla eternally.

"I…it was a cold night, the kind of cold that promises snow but a night where the moon shines so brightly through the stormy clouds. And boy did Moon shine that night. She had gotten so mature over the years, I…we all wanted her to grow up, but not like she did. No one should have to grow up that quickly." Makoto paused to wipe a tear off her face before continuing, her voice cracking. "I…I was on patrol with Moon that night, Tuxedo Kamen was resting from a near fatal attack the night before, and Mars was tending to him. Venus and the guardians were "resting"…searching for you. We entered the dangerous part of town, the part that the monsters frequented; I don't why. Usually, we just stuck to keeping them out of the residential hideouts and our area. But, God, Moon wanted to win. After Kamen was hurt, she…I've never ever seen her want vengeance as much as she did that night.

"I tried to warn her, but, the thing is, I wanted revenge too. So I didn't try very hard. I could have stopped her, I was still stronger than her, but, she got to my heart. I've never seen her more determined in my life. So we went in, and it was to be the last time I ever saw her. We didn't know how many there were, because we never entered that area. Maybe, if we regularly patrolled it, it wouldn't have been so bad, with our knowledge, but we always fought for the innocent instead of fighting to win the war. We never considered using a strategy…"

She didn't say it, she didn't need to. The sentence was left hanging and all of those present could fill it in. If only Ami were there, if only we had the senshi of strategy, the brains, we might have won. If only you hadn't left us. There was an awkward pause before Makoto allowed herself to continue her tale.

"So, Moon and I entered not knowing what we were getting ourselves into. Looking back on what happened, I cannot honestly say that we would have done anything different. The only difference would have been that we would have walked in there knowing that we were going to die, instead of only believing that death was inevitable.

"Right away we could tell that this was going to be different. We knew that we had severely underestimated their strength and numbers. There were hundreds maybe thousands of the smaller ones, the scouts. And the further in we went, the more powerful the beasts became. We…the senshi, had no idea what we were getting into. If only we had known then what we know now…" Makoto paused to collect herself again. And Ami was trying her damndest not to cry. She knew that if she broke down now, there would be no going back; she would be forever lost to the tears, to the pain.

"They came out of nowhere, to this day I'm not even sure of what level and type they were. But, from the force of the attack I'd definitely have to classify them as a level eight type warrior. Before I knew it, one of them had my whole arm in its mouth as it drug me through the streets. The last I saw of Moon was two monsters trying to rip her in half as she screamed at them to just kill her, just end her pain. She went in there to die, and I never realized it until that moment."

"But you didn't see them kill her?" Ami asked, not allowing the slight hope that she was feeling swell and take root in her heart. Makoto leveled a cool glare in Ami's direction.

"I do hope that you are not suggesting that she is still alive and we left her there to die. No one could have survived that place. No one."

"You did." The words left Ami's mouth before she had time to think about them. As soon as Ami was able to comprehend what she said she clasped her hands over her mouth and flushed a dark pink. "God, Mako…I didn't think. I don't even know why I said that. I'm so sorry." But it was too late, the damage was done. She had merely said Makoto's greatest fear, that she had left her there to die, that there was a chance that their princess and best friend was somewhere dying because she was too frightened to enter that part of the city again. Makoto stood and walked over to the door to the barracks.

"Don't you think that I tell myself that everyday?" Then she was gone and only the hurt and pain in her eyes lingered in Ami's mind. She turned her gaze to Seiji to find that he was glaring at her.

"I think that she has enough pressure being the last living senshi, she doesn't need the stress that you are bringing her. Either help us fight or get out."

"Wait! What do you mean the last living senshi? Mars and Venus are dead as well?"

"Mars and Venus yes, Rei and Minako no. Those two gave up on the fight a long time ago and now are no longer a part of Makoto's world. I suggest that you decide who dies, Mercury or Ami." With that, he turned on his heel and followed Makoto's trail out of the room.

"Once again, it is down to me and a decision that could end my universe." Ami sighed to herself slumping her shoulders in defeat. She really was getting sick of this life-altering decision crap.

.

Two weeks later, Ami still hadn't made up her mind about whether or not she wanted to join Makoto in her cause. Don't get her wrong, she was willing, able and ready to fight for earth and her people, it was just that…after some careful observation, Ami discovered that Makoto's way of obtaining freedom and peace was not necessarily one that she could agree with. She did however volunteer her services in the emergency ward of their health clinic. While she wasn't going to fight for them just yet, she certainly wasn't going to stand by and watch them die from something that she could have prevented.

But Rei and Minako were always on her mind. She wondered what happened to the two of them, and if she should continue to wonder, helping with the cause, or abandon her only friend, (that she knew was still alive) and wander out into the world of chaos and death alone, in search of them.

A sharp scream of pain brought her attention back to the present. Two of the soldiers were carting in a young boy soaked in his own blood and sweat. Several lacerations adorned his once perfect, precious body, and a few fingers were notably absent from his right hand.

"What the hell happened to him?" Ami asked without very much emotion. Two weeks in the health clinic had dulled her emotions to such an extent that she feared if she would ever return to who she was before her hell began, and for that Ami's heart broke. Not for the war that ravaged her home world, not for the loss of her friends and fellow senshi, and not even for her broken heart at having to leave her new friends, but for her innocence. More than ever, Ami's innocence was forever shattered.

"Trackers, he was apparently left behind in sector 32 B after the first team swept." Shaking her head, Ami nodded to gurney to the left of the soldiers.

"Just place him there, I'll see to him." Once the boy was securely restrained to the bed, Ami proceeded to clean and cauterize the stubs that had once been fingers. Ringing out a wash cloth in a bowl of hot, sanitized water, she gently washed the blood from his hand and body. It turned out that the majority of the lacerations were superficial and required nothing more than band aids or butterfly bandages. Only a fairly deep cut on his forehead required stitches. The boy, Ai, remained motionless throughout the procedure, a feat Ami doubted that she could achieve.

"How is he?" A new voice whispered in sadness. Ami glanced over her shoulder to see Mako standing just inside the doorway, her green eyes watering slightly. Ami raised an eyebrow in question. Makoto had never bothered to visit any of the patients before, let alone visit Ami in the EM ward. Ami could understand her feelings; this was the most depressing wing in the facility. Barely half of the patients brought to her survived the night. Young Ai's chances were good however.

"He'll survive. Why the sudden interest?"

"Seiji's little brother."

"I see…"

"How have you been?" Makoto asked, almost as an afterthought. Ami shrugged in response, moving to clean up the supplies that she had used on Ai. Makoto sighed and leaned against the wall, crossing her legs at the heels, her left hand tucked safely in her pocket. "You gonna hang out in here?" She asked after a long pause. Ami shrugged.

"I help where I can."

"Damn it Ami!" Ami wasn't sure if it was Makoto's suddenly raised voice or her fist slamming against the wall that startled her more, but Makoto definitely had her attention. Makoto's fist was clenched tightly, her head tilted downwards, eyes downcast, "We could really use another senshi…" before Ami could utter a response, Makoto was out the door, and Ami was left alone with Ai's unconscious body.

Ami sighed, calling in two other clinic volunteers to help her move Ai's body to his bed for the night. Thanking them as they left, she removed his tattered clothes and slid a gown on him. Pulling the covers up to his shoulders she insured that the IV was in comfortably and that he was resting.

Making her way to her own small chambers a few hours later, Ami felt more exhausted now than she ever did fighting youma. Two weeks of being constantly on call, in a world where a young, violent death was almost a certainty was beyond draining. Mentally and physically Ami felt worse than some of her patients. Her patients, she thought with a bit of a sarcastic tilt of her lips as she removed her sweaty, blood soaked clothes and pondered that phrase. It was her dream, her goal in life, to have patients, to care for others. Now that she did…

As she stepped into the warm spray of the shower, her head resting on the cracked tile, the water cascading down her sore body she cried, soft, quiet tears. Deciding that Makoto was right, that she needed to learn more about their operation and decide where she really fit, Ami sighed. As much as she didn't want to leave the hospital, she knew that she would burn out if she stayed. Maybe she'd talk to Makoto about rotating between the ward and some military missions.

Dressing in a soft night shirt, she combed out her wet hair and crawled into bed. Nothing could be done about it now. She'd do a bit of research and then come to Makoto with her offer. That decided she turned off her lamp and closed her eyes, drifting asleep almost immediately.

.

It was to be another week before Ami finally made her decision to leave the compound and search for her other senshi on her own. As much as she would like to say it was bravery or curiosity, neither were the driving force for her departure from Makoto. It was something that she understood Makoto had never wanted her to see. Something, that as a senshi...no as a human being she could not tolerate.

"Ami!" Makoto had followed her back to her room, knowing that Ami would leave after what she had seen. "Please, you don't understand."

"Of course I don't Makoto!" Ami thundered back, throwing what meager possessions she had amassed in the few weeks she had been with Makoto into a duffle bag, along with some supplies.

"Ami...please. You weren't here for the worst of it, you didn't see..."

"You're right! I didn't see. And I am glad that I didn't. I don't want to even think..." Her right hand moved to her lips to hopefully hide the fact that they were quivering. "I don't even want to think," she finally managed, her voice cracking a bit, "what you would have to go through to even contemplate doing that to anything...let alone a human."

"Ami." Makoto's voice was sharp. "You have no right to lecture me on how I keep those of us in the resistance alive. If this is what it takes, then a few lives will be sacrificed for the greater good."

"Makoto! Listen to yourself, when has it ever been acceptable as a senshi to sacrifice any life but our own?"

"I am no longer a senshi. I am merely a human fighting for my existence against a force that we cannot possibly win against. The only thing I can hope for is to make the life of the children, such as Ai as easy and worry free as possible in this new world. You should never have come back Ami-chan." Makoto said, shaking her head. "We don't need you now, and you'll only suffer for all of your troubles." Ami reeled back as if she had been slapped.

"You're right," She said shaking her head. "I never should have left the world I was in. No matter what they went through, they knew the difference between right and wrong. Takashi was your friend!" She shouted, still unable to comprehend what her friend was doing.

"He was going to die anyway. He asked for it. What you saw doesn't always happen, only those resistance members who request that their deaths not be in vain go through...that. Do you think it's any easier for us? Ami, you can't be that naive as to think that we can possibly do anything against these monsters without drastic measures?"

"But human experimentation, no matter the cause...I can not condone that Makoto. And what you were doing to those creatures was beyond cruel, there was joy in what those 'doctors' and you were doing to it." Hugging herself to fight off nausea, Ami shook her head, as if clearing the feelings and emotions out of her head, as well as the images which she feared she'd never be able to forget. How exactly does one forget the image of comrades operating on a live conscious man while he screamed from the pain?

"I knew you wouldn't be able to. You haven't changed much Ami...you're still the same naive high school girl that thought we could change the world."

"And you have changed. You are now a bitter old hag who is already dead, and you take no joy, no misery, nothing from this world. You are a void of humanity." Ami knew her words were harsh, but she realized with a sinking heart that she meant every word. Makoto nodded slightly, a definitive movement, as if she had weighed Ami's words and accepted them into herself.

"I'd like to see you stay the same after...everything."

"I'm not saying that I would be the same, and I hardly think of myself as the same naive Ami that left here. But no matter how desperate things become, no matter how hard or how impossible the task there is always hope. As long as you never give up striving for freedom, as long as you have people you love and want to protect, it's not over.

"I would never have lost my hope, because hope is the one thing that no enemy, no matter how strong or unbeatable can ever take from you. Your pride, your honor and your hope, and on my pride and honor as a senshi, I will find the others and I will make a difference." With that, she grabbed her bag and left the room, Makoto didn't even look back as she left, she didn't make a move to stop her.

.

TBC!

Expect Chapter Seven in the somewhat near future. Please Read and Review! Thanks!