Divinity: The Fates and the Afterlife

Chapter fifteen

A/N: To whoever is reading this story, I thank you. SerenityMorrison, thank you, kera69love, thank you. Thank you because I really put a lot of heart into this story-I know it's silly but, I do and if you are enjoying it, just let me know, so I can continue with it. Let's keep the good vibes flowing! :)

"What is this man doing here?" Hades asked, confused "Nobody can cross to this realm without me knowing. This is evil heresy..." Ares turned to Hades with a frown, "We have to take him with us."

"In the state he is, that body will not support the strain of other passages of hell. Once a soul enters Tartarus it cannot go out—his soul is condemned." Ares looked down at Eros half awake, half insane and shook his head, frustrated and desperate. It was as if he was holding to a string that would lead him to Gaia, "You are the God of this realm!" he raised his voice, "There must be a way!"

Hades turned to the gates and narrowed his dark gray eyes, so similar to Ares' yet so different. While Ares still held specks of humility, his older brother Hades did not. Like brothers, he would respond to his calling faster than to anyone else, give him more time in an audience and manifest before him but that was very much it. Hades did not share the same sentiment with Ares when it came saving either Terrans or their divine Royal family; he felt disgusted by Helios' corrupt descendants and kept a very strong opinion as to what to do once he annihilated them all. "The gates have been forced—at this point, it is difficult to tell how much of what is inside has escaped. It is not only him in there, all evil energy is trapped inside those gates—demons are imprisoned there." He looked at the delirious man with disgust, and shrugged his shoulder dismissively, "That mortal man is bound to be here. He wants him here—there is nothing I can or want to do." Hades' words stunned his younger brother, "Brother..." Ares looked at him with shock, "I must go back, I must warn Zeus and the other High Gods about this," he tried to stand up but he felt a strong pull on his cape making him look at the Terran King's bloody hand, "My son..." He muttered with evident pain, to Ares it was incredible that after so many years trapped in the darkest part of hell, the mortal could still have specks of sanity. Ares widened his eyes when he listened again to the man's plea, "W-What?"

Eros tilted his head up and made eye contact with Ares as brought one hand to his face, "My son... I tried... to protect... your... mother..."

"He is raving about the past, this man is trapped in the limbo Tartarus creates in their minds—he is past salvation." Hades looked at the King mercilessly, "There is nothing to be done to save that soul,"

"My son..." Eros lamented again, his expression was one of a suffering man. His blue eyes were dry and lost, there was any life left in them. His life now depended on the pain and dark energy of this place, as it slowly consumed what was left of him; Ares lowered his head, imagining the pain he must be going through, "Son..." he muttered with guilt for everything he has done. Something echoed inside his mind, like a new mission or better said the continuation of the mission he thought had lost when Gaia died and the Serenity's Kingdom vanished by Metallia's hand and looked up with determination, knowing what he needed to do next and found ironic how he could see a light of hope in such penumbra like Tartarus. "If you can listen to my voice, I ask of you Mortal King is to not give up. Do not succumb to his malicious voice."

Hades turned to look over his shoulder at his younger brother still holding the Terran King in his arms and narrowed his eyes, "Ares! —We must step away from this place. The Gates cannot stay open for too long,"

Ares closed his eyes and tried to swallow the guilt that was creeping in his chest as he slowly let go of Eros and stood up, "Please, forgive me—" he whispered, mostly to himself since he knew the brief lucid moment in the King's mind had disappeared. The God of War turned to walk away, thinking about how many stories he has heard over the course of his life about the Underworld but how different it all was in true person. He silently wondered how cursed someone's faith had to be to end up in a realm like this. As they exited the many stages of hell, Hades closed each gate the same way he opened them in the first place as they climbed up the long staircase he opened as a shortcut until they entered the throne room and closed the portal again with his intimidating scythe.

"I will go to Olympus—I must warn the gods and prepare the army." Ares turned on his heel without wanting to waste another minute. The situation was much more complicated than he thought and to prevent more damage he had to act fast. "Who is this shadow man Ares?" Hades' voice stopped him and made him turn to look at his older brother. Ares sighed, closing his eyes he cursed under his breath and shook his head. Never thought that he, of all the ones who were there that night, would survive the catastrophe. "That man was the Moon's Army Commander."

"What?!" Hades growled furiously, "The Andromedian?"

Ares nodded,"I thought everybody died when your daughter appeared. You sent her there to kill everybody." He sighed, "Somehow he managed to survive but, he is corrupted. I have had a previous encounter with him and he is not his normal self—there is something else lurking inside of him."

Hades stayed silent for a minute and turned to walk back to his throne, "I was following orders, Ares,"

"You do not follow orders, Hades," Ares narrowed his eyes and shook his head, "I personally came here to ask for your help and you denied it! Who ordered you to send your daughter? Who would have the nerve to order something so atrocious?! Answer me!" Hades raised his brow and looked at Ares as he sat on his onyx throne, "Chronos."

Ares' pale gray eyes widened with horror, "What did you just say?!"

Hades didn't show any signs of remorse and also didn't look like he was lying. His face was stern and cold, highly unaffected by that particular affair from the past. Ares, on the other hand, was enraged by feeling more and more deceived by the one he thought was the last to hold any mercy and sanity in the divine world. "You are lying..."

"I do not have any necessity to lie to you," Hades crossed a leg, still showing little to no sympathy for the matter at hand, "Chronos himself came to me and made the request."

O—o—O

The long doors of the throne room opened wide showing a very serious Chronos walking inside. The man himself did not show much emotion, and his voice was always deep and calm but the urgency was evident with every step he took closer to the God of the Underworld.

Hades looked at him with slight surprise since it was not common for the Titan of Time to lower himself to visit him at the place where some of his kind still lay trapped in limbo and his Elysian fields. "Chronos..." he welcomed him from his majestic throne, "This is one unusual visit." Chronos stopped in front of the man in black armor and gave him a serious look, "Hades." Chronos acknowledged the God's presence but that was as far as he would go.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?" Hades tapped his fingers, always calculating and seizing a new opportunity to bring more souls into his realm. Chronos narrowed his deep burgundy eyes, "You must have heard about the war that is moving towards us," his dry voice and lack of riddles made Hades raise a brow with interest, "Oh? Now it is a war?" he chuckled and waved his fingers dismissively, "I have heard too many things these days Chronos, I no longer know which ones are true or not—this could be another void alert coming from my dear little brother, Ares is always so melodramatic."

"A shadow is covering the Sun," Chronos did not react to Hades' taunting game, "It has been mentioned before in our meetings in Olympus, Ares is watching over this situation—his reports are specific and clear."

"A shadow..." Hades muttered and arched a brow, "Anything related to the Sun brings complications, that family is cursed—I am disgusted by such dynasty."

"The shadow cannot be stopped by any of us—Earth has been compromised and is heading towards its demise," Hades smiled and run his tongue softly across his lips, almost savoring what Chronos' words meant, "Is that so?"

"Darkness has reached for Earth, and it is heading to the Moon, Serenity cannot fight it alone." Chronos tilted his head down, Hades chuckled, "Then fight with her."

"This is not how this works, not this time."

Hades leaned forward, finally showing some interest, "Are you saying the Alliance is compromised by this curse? Serenity still gives asylum to those cursed by the Sun! What did you expect?!"

"I am not here to ask you to go save them." Chronos fingers curled around his long key rod, finally attracting Hades' full attention, "I do not understand, then why are you here?"

Chronos took a step closer to Hades' throne and stomped his metal rod against the marble floor, "I am here to ask you to send your daughter to end the invasion." Hades' eyes widened, "I do not think I am following your request—you are asking me to summon Saturn—you know what that means, right?" Chronos nodded, "Your daughter must swing down her scythe."

Hades leaned to one side of his throne chair as he tried to process what he was being asked to do, "You are asking me to kill Serenity, her daughter, and the entire population on the Moon?"

"Hades, the shadow covering the Sun is very strong, if released, it could spread around all realms. I cannot longer step into this fight, it no longer belongs to me—I have another mission to accomplish. In order to continue this war and actually have an opportunity to win is by bringing the soldier of death to the Moon and annihilate everything—the talismans are already reacting I just need you to call for Saturn and send her to fulfill this mission."

"Ares will never forgive you for this," Hades looked at Chronos with amusement, "He will come, he is desperately looking for help because he wants to save her soul... but she is already condemned."

"Let me be the one to decide on that," Chronos responded with determination, surprising Hades. The God of the Underworld turned and snapped his fingers to call for his daughter, Saturn, to manifest in front of him. It didn't take long before the Senshi in black and purple appeared like the reaper itself, surrounded by a heavy energy as she held her Silence Glaive. She turned and bowed her head to her father, showing her deep admiration and respect, "You called for me, Father." Hades rested his head on one hand and looked at Chronos for a minute, "Yes, my dear Saturn—" he stood up from his black throne and walked towards her, "My sweet child, I must entrust you a mission,"

Saturn looked up at her father and nodded, Hades put both hands on each side of Saturn's face and half smiled at her, the only person he would give a genuine gesture of appreciation in addition to Persephone. "Sweet child of mine, I need you to swing down your Silence Glaive again. Go to the Moon—" he looked at Chronos for a brief moment to confirm the Lord of Time's request, and turned his attention back at his beautiful daughter again "And send everything, to oblivion."

Saturn widened her eyes, "But, Father—"

"Evil has spread and the Moon is its target—Earth has already been invaded." Hades muttered, his hand never leaving his daughter's warm cheek, Saturn turned to Chronos with a terrified expression on her innocent looking face, "You are asking me to kill the Lunar Queen,"

"No, my dear," Hades narrowed his dark gray eyes, "I am asking you to kill the curse that has stepped foot on the Moon. Drag the evil to hell, whoever involved will face the consequences—despite risking innocents lives, evil must be dragged to Tartarus, with you as a guide." Saturn closed her eyes and bowed her head, "Yes, Father. I will follow your command." she turned and looked at Chronos confused by his decision, "Lord Chronos... why?" her voice came out in a soft whisper, still hoping for a more merciful reason behind such atrocious request. Chronos gave the young Senshi and apologetic look, "Because, I need him—as selfish as that sounds, dear Saturn. There is someone I need for future purposes," Young Saturn frowned and shook her head, "I do not understand."

"In time, you will," Chronos answered "Once you are there, do not mention my name—this information must not leave these walls. Everything will be told in time." Saturn bowed her head and exited the room, leaving both men behind. Hades raised his hands and went back to his throne "It is done then, although, at the cost of my name," Chronos looked at him "I thank you Hades, for your cooperation."

"Of all the divine beings in this realm, I was not expecting you to demand such request, that is enough for me to cooperate. Anything else you might need?" Hades looked at the Time Titan and crossed his fingers, Chronos nodded, "Yes. Do not speak of this encounter to anyone, not Zeus, not Poseidon, not Apollo—not Ares."

"Ares will come, he looks after Serenity like a sister," Hades rolled his eyes with annoyance, "And he is still infatuated with Gaia, such wasted dedication." Chronos smiled sadly and shook his head, "Ares has another mission to fulfill."

Hades sighed, defeated. He knew that when it came to bringing Gaia into any conversation with either Ares or Chronos it was a lost cause, "My lips are sealed but I do want to be clear on something, his soul is mine Chronos. It doesn't matter if you save him this time, he will not live forever—I still think you are making a mistake, I still believe he is a threat to us all and that he must be dragged to hell."

Chronos stopped at the doors and looked over his shoulder a soft smile broke his usually serious face, "As much as you repeat those words, you cannot have it—it does not belong to you, in time, you will see." Chronos bowed his head in respect and disappeared in a flash of garnet light, leaving a very confused and upset Lord of the Dead.

O—o—O

Ares looked at Hades with a face of shock and disbelief, "Everything was planned by him, Ares." Hades said dryly, "He used my name as an excuse for what happened, I agreed because, in the end, it was something that was beneficial for my Kingdom."

Ares shook his head, "Chronos... he knew this was going to happen." He looked at his brother, "It was his way to save him... You saved him." he muttered with surprise. Hades looked at the God of War and narrowed his eyes "Chronos is a strong Titan, and probably the only one I would owe my respect at that precise moment I could not go against his wishes no matter how against I was about it but I still stand by my beliefs, Ares. He is the result of a crime; his existence is a sin and I still believe he is a threat to us all—his soul belongs to me. Do not misunderstand things, I did not save him—"

"The real threat is beneath our feet, brother." Ares said in a serious tone and came to think about the girl, "She must have gone there... I have to bring him back."

"That family is a curse, Ares," Hades narrowed his eyes, "This unceasing desire to maintain that damned legacy—that is what will bring you to your own disgrace, can't you see?!" Ares turned to leave, "Maybe yes, sadly—Helios left a heavy and powerful burden on their shoulders but there is a reason why his legacy is still alive."

"Ares!" Hades watched Ares left the room with determination, Hades shook his head and took a deep breath, for the first time in his existence, he showed genuine worry, "Hell will end up invading us all."

Behind the heavy doors, one of the shadows serving Athamas listened and soon traveled to his hideout in a secluded area of the Omega Galaxy. The blonde man looked out one of the windows at the penumbra outside and narrowed his eyes when he noticed he was no longer alone, "What is it?" he muttered in a monotone voice, almost uninterested. The dark creeper moved closer making Athamas frown, "Well?"

"They went to the Underworld."

"Who is they?"

"The God of War and God of the Underworld,"

Athamas' attention was fully captured by the creature next to him, "You managed to go inside the Palace of the Underworld as I asked you to then," he smiled "Good."

"They mentioned something about the girl, the God of War seems to know where she is." The shadow creature hissed. Athamas eyes narrowed in deep thought, "They are looking for something else," he looked at the dark shadow "Did you get any more information?"

"They mentioned the curse of the family protected by the Sun, and how Lord Chronos was the one who ordered the fall of the White Moon Kingdom."

Athamas stayed silent and turned to look out the window again. Images of the war that broke that night on the moon were still fresh in his memory. The whole chain of events that happened, his engagement with the Moon Princess, his imprisonment, his fight with the Terran Prince before everything went straight to hell.

The Andromedian remembered the moment he came out of his hideout and walked through the remains of the Lunar Palace. Everything was destroyed, there were only debris, blood and a sense of solitude left. What he once worked to build, all his efforts, everything went down to hell with the destruction of this Kingdom. The time to take control of one of the strongest Kingdoms in Olympus and the Universe had completely vanished and now all that remained was just the memory of it.

He wandered all the places he once remembered as grand and spacious gardens. The fountains were no more, the water that once pooled from them was now mixed with the blood of all the fallen people on the ground. Corpses everywhere, divine and mortal for once, were the same. He looked up to the stairs close to the praying tower where their bodies lay covered in blood. His eyes stared blankly at the Princess's lifeless body next to the Terran Prince, who was also dead. She had committed suicide, he could tell, his sword was impaled in her chest and her hand was still wrapped around the hilt of the weapon. Athamas anger only grew when even dead, the Terran managed to take the woman that was meant to be his in the first place. All his efforts to win her heart were now gone in a blink of an eye; the woman that had captured his thoughts and desires was now dead, along with everything he was so close to ruling, as King.

O—o—O

He hid behind a pillar and saw Ares in the distance talking to a young woman, "His sword…" he heard him say as he helped the girl stand up from the ground, "You need to take the Prince's sword with you and deliver it to its rightful owner." Megumi widened her brown eyes and shook her head, "I do not understand."

"That sword has been part of a legacy for many generations and because of that legacy, it must be kept away from evil hands… you need to take it with you—take it, guard it, protect it, and return it to its rightful owner when the time is right." Ares closed his eyes for a minute to mourn their passing and turned to the young Terran maid. Megumi widened her eyes, "But… how? I am no divine being, how am I going to find this rightful owner you speak of?" she turned to look around and saw the Prince's lifeless body, "I—"

"I cannot take it with me because if the gods find out it, will bring more problems, it would only bring Chaos to the surface and we must not let that happen by any means," Ares took a moment to continue, "That sword cannot fall into the wrong hands. You were his friend, I must entrust that sword to you until you find its owner."

"But… how am I going to find that person?"

"You will be guided by it, until then, you need to take it with you and guard it with your life… do not let anyone find you; I must warn you this mission is life threatening, they will be following you, he will follow you—you have to be strong and you must have faith," Ares said and pointed in the direction Endymion lay dead, "There is not much time left before they know you and I are here and their bodies disintegrate by Saturn's energy." he closed his eyes for a moment, desperate to have more answers to give to the young girl, "Please… the future of Earth and this Galaxy depends on that weapon."

Megumi widened her eyes and nodded accepting her new life for the sake of her Prince and planet. She turned and walked until she was close to the praying tower. Megumi stopped and took a moment to see the couple on the ground and looked at them and mourned her loss with teary eyes. To her surprise, both royals looked like they were both asleep, there was no trace of pain or distress. It was Serenity's blood on her white gown and the stains around the Prince's body what brought her back to reality and again, she was reminded by the recent tragic events and felt the weight of her loss.

The young girl kneeled next to her prince and caressed his face softly with the tip of her fingers, she could not believe he was dead. She could not believe the Prince that had worked so much for the sake of his Kingdom and people was gone; it was a pain she could not describe and probably the shock of seeing him lifeless was greater because she never thought she would be witness of such thing, "There is no one stronger or greater than you, my Prince." she closed her eyes and allowed her tears roll down her cheeks slowly, "I will protect your sword and find its rightful owner… I promise my Prince, I will never forget you, thank you… for saving my life." she opened her eyes slowly and held the sword from its handle and pulled it slowly from the Princess' lifeless body. To her surprise, the blade came out easily as it cut through the air making that melodic echo while it moved slowly in the young maiden's hand. Megumi put it on her lap and ripped a piece of fabric from her gown and wrapped the bloodied sword in it immediately and brought it closer to her chest protectively.

She took a few more minutes to say goodbye to both Prince and Princess and accepted her fate. Minutes after, she stood up and turned to look over her shoulder at Ares who was still there with her, "I will protect it until I find its owner… I accept my fate, God Ares."

Ares nodded, "We will meet again, someday—in the future. Until then, I have to fight against darkness and prevent it from spreading across the universe… I must fight until it's all over."

Megumi nodded and gave him a kind smile and turned to walk away; with nothing else to say, Ares watched her until her fragile image was soon lost in the immensity of the night. From behind the pillar, Athamas appeared with a wound on his head that stained his face with dry blood. His hair was disheveled and dirty and so his once impeccable uniform. He looked around with a face of surprise and shook his head trying to understand what he just overheard, he was now intrigued by Ares' words: "Rightful owner…" he muttered, still trying to put the pieces together in his mind.

Even when he was at a considerable distance away from the young maid and the God of War, the silence made it easy for him to hear his explanations perfectly and could not help to feed his ambitious heart with the mystery behind that holy sword."That sword…" he narrowed his eyes as he remembered seeing it gleam with a golden light, his green eyes changed again, turning completely black; his lips curved into a malicious smile. The man chuckled and took a step forward, not taking his eyes off the blue planet shining brightly in the distance. "That sword is the key to ultimate power… and it will be mine—again."

O—o—O

"The blue planet." Athamas muttered and turned to the dark shadow next to him, "If I want things done the way I want to, I have to do them myself." his dark eyes narrowed, filled with ambition and rancor, "I want you to go to the blue planet, and take over its energy. Gather as much as needed—I do not care if they die,"

"Yes, Master." the shadow bowed its head and disintegrated into thin air before the Andromedian. Athamas smirked, and curled his hands curled into fists, "Whatever you are protecting, whoever you are looking for... will die by my hand—this time, I will succeed."

O—o—o—o—O

Michiru stood in the hallway in silence watching the young girl curled up in a ball on the couch. She wondered how much she must have suffered to be in the state she is now, how many things she had seen and fought to keep herself alive, "Anything new?" Her thoughts were soon interrupted; Michiru turned to Haruka, who was walking down the hall towards her. The bluenette shook her head and sighed softly "No, she is asleep."

"Um, this will take some time."

"We have to be patient with her, heavens know what she has experienced that has led her to be in that state. It's heartbreaking." Michiru sighed sadly, "I should take her to one of the guest bedrooms so she can have a proper rest."

Haruka looked at the girl and closed her eyes for a minute, sighing, she had to agree with Michiru this time, despite her usual aggressive and overprotective personality. She was right, this girl looked like she had suffered enough and the best they could do was to make her feel more at ease so she could break her shell and speak to them about what brought her there, "Let her spend the night there, she will open up to us once she realizes we are here to help her."

Michiru nodded, "I really want to help her, Hotaru is sure she is not an enemy—she would have warned us if she was." Haruka nodded, "No, she is not an enemy, but the true enemy is certainly involved with her—Hotaru may not have said more than she probably knows, but I have faith that we will find out when the timing is right," Haruka said softly, "Don't worry, we will help her and we will not leave her side,"

Michiru turned to Haruka and nodded with a soft smile, resting her head on her chest she wrapped her arms around her in a loving embrace, "Thank you," Haruka widened her eyes and looked down, surprised "Why are you thanking me for?"

"I know you. You want answers as soon as questions come in, you are desperate—just like the wind itself. But with this, you are being patient and for that, I thank you." Haruka shrugged her shoulders as an immediate response, "You know me too well, but you are right, we need to give her the security she needs." she smiled softly, "We should go get some sleep as well, tomorrow will be another day."

Michiru closed her eyes and nodded, "Yes, hopefully, a better one." she moved away from the blonde and went to put a soft blanket over the girl, "Everything is going to be okay." she whispered in a motherly tone and turned to switch off the small lamp on the side table before walking away. Megumi opened her eyes as soon as she heard a door closing in the distance and sighed softly, "Maybe it is time..." she whispered more convinced, before slowly drifting to sleep.

The next day, Michiru walked down the hallway and widened her eyes in surprise to see Megumi sitting on the couch, looking out the window. Slowly, she turned and saw the aquamarine beauty standing at the door. "Good morning," Michiru greeted softly and noticed Megumi looked at her different this time, Michiru noticed a more determined aura around the girl, she no longer looked hesitant or anxious when being around her. "You must be hungry, I will go and make something qu—"

"Michiru, isn't it?" Megumi finally broke her silence, surprising the bluenette. Michiru widened her eyes and nodded, "Y-Yes," The girl turned to look out the window again, and sighed, "It has been a long time since I spoke to somebody."

"Y-You can speak our language..." Michiru said, amazed. Megumi turned and looked at her, hope was all she had at this moment and nodded, "You said you can help me..."

"Yes."

Megumi looked down at the clothed object resting on the couch "You... you have special powers... correct?"

Soon Haruka appeared at the door with Setsuna and Hotaru behind. "Everything okay?" she asked; Michiru turned and nodded, "Are you, like them?"Megumi asked softly, startling Haruka and the rest, Setsuna's eyes widened, "You can..."

Hotaru walked inside the living room and stood in front of Megumi, "We are Sailor Senshi and our duty is to fight against evil."

"When you say them, who are you referring to?" Haruka asked, still confused. Megumi at the blonde and looked down for a minute as she remembered scenes from the past, "Some time ago, I met soldiers like you. They had similar uniforms and they were guardians to the Princess."

Four pairs of eyes widened in shock "Princess?" Setsuna shook her head and turned to Haruka joining them in the living room, throwing her keys on the closest table she asked before sitting on the sofa, intrigued "Who are you?"

Megumi looked at her without hesitation and released a soft puff of air, "My name is Megumi, I was once an inhabitant of Earth but there were circumstances that made me travel far away from home. During that time, I met five guardians who wore similar uniforms as yours, but they were guardians of a beautiful Princess,"

"That is why you were there that night." Haruka narrowed her narrowed her eyes, doubtful "But if you are from Earth, what were you doing there?" Megumi lowered her gaze and sat on the couch "When I lived on Earth, I used to live in a Palace."

"You are a Princess, then," Haruka asked, Megumi shook her head "No, I lived there as a maid." she looked up with teary eyes, "I used to serve the Royals that lived in that Palace."

"You knew the Prince," Setsuna said softly and sat on the couch, next to Michiru "You knew Prince Endymion," as if Setsuna's words unlocked a heavy secret, Megumi widened her eyes at the sound of his name and looked at her with surprise, "Y-You knew him?"

"That is why you knew the Inner Senshi, and Princess Serenity," Michiru said softly, everything made sense now, that is why she was hesitant to trust them. She never met them and yet, shared the same uniform, the same duty, and purpose. "I remember hearing about the Terran Prince being on the Moon—news spread very quickly."

"We are in the same league of soldiers but we were given other duties that did not allow us to move from our post. We are Guardians of the outer planets of the Solar System," Haruka looked at Megumi with a more serene face, "We only heard about the tragedy—" she turned to Michiru and sighed sadly, "Neptune was the only one who saw what happened through her mirror."

"The Inner Senshi were also Guardians to their respective planets, the Inner Planets, but they were also Princess Serenity's Guardians. They were given the task to never leave her side and protect her from any harm." Setsuna's voice was serene, knowing all this new information could be too much for the girl sitting on the couch close to the window. Haruka moved from her place on the sofa and sat on the coffee table in front of Megumi and frowned, "Can you tell us what that is?" she pointed her finger at the clothed object. Megumi turned and sighed softly, "It is an assignment—a duty I must fulfill."

All four women frowned, confused "Assignment?" Haruka asked, "What do you mean?" Megumi nodded but never left her eyes off the object, "It is a weapon."

"Yours?"

Megumi shook her head "No... I cannot use it. Nobody can, only its rightful owner."

"Then, who is it?" Setsuna asked softly, Megumi looked down at her trembling hands and bit her lower lip, "It belonged to my Prince."

The room fell silent despite all the questions and answers floating in the air. They all wanted to keep learning about this girl and why she has been traveling with a weapon like that, and how, being a mortal, she managed to survive all these years, but those were questions not even Megumi seemed to have answers for. Hotaru kneeled in front of Megumi and gave her a warm smile, "Thank you, for trusting us." Megumi looked at the young girl and could not believe this was the same stoic, powerful soldier who brought silence to an entire Kingdom. Hotaru directed her dark violet gaze at the clothed object and tilted her head, "Why do you have this with you?"

"When that evil spirit finally vanished, I saw my Prince lay on the ground, dead and next to him was Princess Serenity." Megumi's voice started to break, "I was asked to get hold of it and protect it from evil, and to find its rightful owner."

"Then, the rightful owner of that weapon you carry is the Prince," Haruka said logically. Megumi hung her head low and shook her head, "My Prince is dead."

Michiru stood up, "I will go make some tea," she turned to Setsuna and gave her a soft knowing smile, "Could you help me with the tray?" one Setsuna understood to perfection and nodded, knowing there was something else behind the bluenette's intentions. Both women entered the kitchen and made sure nobody was listening, "What should we do?" Michiru asked Setsuna slightly panicked. Her fingers tapped the counter while considering all aspects of the situation, "She doesn't know Usagi and Mamoru-san, are alive."

Setsuna sighed, "This is complicated, I want to tell her but she just opened to us," Michiru nodded and bit her lip softly, "It can be quite the shock to her, if we tell her right now that he is alive... she might escape looking for him." she sighed with worry. Setsuna nodded and went to the cupboard to take five cups and a pot to pour the tea and placed them on a wooden tray on the counter. "We will have to contact Minako and the rest of the girls and let them know first, they will be able to help us figure out what to do," she put water to boil and leaned on the counter with her arms crossed, "There are many things that are still unanswered, but I do not dare to ask for the same reasons you mention, like, who told her to take the weapon? Who told her to escape? How did she manage to stay alive all these years?"

"Who is after her..." Michiru added and turned to check the kettle on the stove. She sighed and tightened the strap on her robe, "God, she probably thinks the Inner Senshi have died too."

Setsuna was the only one who, just like Megumi never perished and was reborn. Her reincarnation was granted when she broke one of the time taboos to stop Nemesis and the Black Moon Clan. Her memories were intact, "I cannot remember a single thing that could lead me to meet or knowing about this girl."

"We were not there," Michiru said softly, soon both were distracted by the whistle from the kettle. The bluenette turned and prepared the tea in the pot, threw in some herbs and waited for them to simmer, giving them another couple of minutes to discuss their next step. "Venus, Mars, Mercury and Jupiter did,"

Setsuna sighed softly "We can talk to them in private but, with the wedding coming close it will be difficult."

"I will talk to Minako." Michiru turned and took the filter off the pot and closed it "I will call her and tell her about the situation, she will know how to talk to the girls." she noticed Setsuna stayed silent and thoughtful, "What is it, Setsuna?"

Setsuna pursed her lips, and looked at her "It seems, the future is catching up to us."

O—o—o—o—O

Usagi opened the door to her home and tossed the keys on the small table at the entrance, "I'm home!" she said loudly and saw her mother coming to welcome her with a cup of tea in her hand from the kitchen, "Oh, Usagi, you're home early!" The blonde smiled while taking her black heels and left them by the door, "Yeah... my boss went out of town so we had the rest of the afternoon off," she walked to her mother and gave her a small kiss on her cheek.

"What do you have there?" Ikuko asked, Usagi looked down and showed her several magazines she bought on her way home "Just something to read...and do some research for this new project for the magazine."

"Let me help you, dear," Ikuko grabbed the large bag on Usagi's shoulder and walked inside, "I was just about to have some more tea, would you like me to serve you a cup?"

"Sure," Usagi smiled and walked into the living room, sitting on the couch she took out her phone from her purse to check her messages before putting it on the coffee table where her mother put a cup of jasmine tea, her favorite. "Here you go dear,"

"Thanks, mama," she looked around and frowned, "Wow... the house sure is quiet at this time of the day."

"Well, all of you are out working. Your father usually comes home around 7 and your brother well... you know, between school, friends and his new girlfriend," Usagi smiled and nodded thinking how time sure went by really quick. It was only yesterday when Shingo was still in middle school and was afraid to talk to girls, now he was in college and with a girlfriend, "Time sure flies,"

"It does," Ikuko took a sip of her tea, "Shingo has a girlfriend, you are getting married—this house will feel lonely without you here."

Usagi blushed, "I will come and visit often, I promise. I still have a lot of cooking skills I need to learn."

"I thought Mako-chan was teaching you how to cook," Ikuko chuckled making Usagi sweat-drop, "Yes," she blushed deep red, "She does, but... it is not really my forte,"

Ikuko chuckled again and looked down at the magazines with melancholy in her eyes, "I always knew this time would come, I just didn't realize it would come this soon," her smile was slowly fainting as she realized how much she was going to miss her always cheerful daughter. She looked up at her and smiled again, this time with more enthusiasm "But what really comforts me is that you are marrying a very good man."

Usagi smiled and put her cup down on the table, "Good thing you do realize he is a good man and not a thief, taking me away." she chuckled. Ikuko laughed, her soft, powdery voice really made Usagi feel better, "Your father likes Mamoru too, you know how he is—he tends to exaggerate things."

The blonde gave her mother a sad smile, "I wished Mamo-chan's parents were here to be with him on his wedding day." Ikuko tilted her head and reached for her daughter's hand, "I know dear, it is sad. But from that moment on, you will become his family and that is all that matters. His parents, I am sure are watching over him."

Usagi slid from the couch to the shaggy rug and sat with her arms resting on the coffee table, "They would be very proud of him."

"I am sure they are dear." Ikuko smiled and patted Usagi's hand softly, "Yeah..." Usagi smiled and with a soft sigh, continued flipping the pages from one of the magazines she had brought home, "Is there anything else missing for the wedding?" she heard her mother asks curiously, Usagi shook her head softly, "No, just looking if they printed my designs on the magazine," Usagi turned to her mother "There have been some...issues lately with the editor in chief and her assistant that has been making me wonder about some things..."

"Everything okay dear? I thought you were happy with your job." Ikuko frowned with worry, Usagi sighed as she turned another page, "I am happy, but sometimes I have hard days... I wouldn't call them bad, but they are certainly um—challenging."

"You could look for a better job, somewhere you would be much more appreciated," Ikuko suggested, making Usagi turned to look at her, "I know but, I do think being at this magazine is a good opportunity for me. The editor could open a lot of doors for me in the future, the magazine is earning more and more followers turning into a cult, so I guess that will help me when the time to look for another job comes,"

"Well, whatever you think it is best for you, I will support you, you know that," Ikuko sat on the rug next to Usagi and wrapped her arm around her, "My baby has grown up—I am so proud of you,"

Usagi blushed, "Oh, Mama..." the phone rang, interrupting their conversation. Usagi stood up to answer the insistent caller, "I'll get it—moshi moshi?"

"Oh, Konnichiwa Neki-san." Usagi turned to look at her mother and waved her hand to call her, "Yes, she is right here, give me a minute." the blonde passed her mother the phone, "We will continue our conversation later," Ikuko whispered to her daughter before answering and put the phone to her ear, Usagi already knowing this call would take a long while, since she was her mother's closest friend. And speaking of friends, she went to the living room to grab her things, and while going up the stairs she checked her phone again for new messages.

Her blue eyes surfed through her inbox when she noticed a missed call from Minako and dialed back while closing the door of her bedroom behind her, "Hellooo!" she heard her friend answering the line. Usagi chuckled, same old Minako with her bubbly greetings over the phone, "Hi Minako-chan, what's up? I had a missing call from you."

Minako turned to Rei and put her finger on her lips, "Oh right... I just had a quick question about the bridesmaid dresses, but I found this gorgeous pair of shoes that go perfectly with it." she tapped her head with a smile, letting her dark haired friend know how quick and natural way to tell white, little innocent lies.

"Oh, that's great!" Usagi smiled and sat on her bed, "Hey, have you talked to the girls?"

"No... well, just Rei-chan, you know," she turned to her priestess friend and bit her lower lip, "She's still angry at Yuuichiro, she yells, smashes things—same old, same old." Rei glared at Minako with fiery eyes, "I am going to smash your... Ow!" Minako flicked Rei's forehead to quiet her down. "But with Mako-chan and Ami-chan, just via text, they have been super busy lately," she let out a nervous laugh,

"Are you okay Mina-chan?" Usagi said at the other end of the line, "Suuuuuure, I'm fine." Minako sweat-dropped. "Everything has been going great, we are all excited about the wedding." she paused while listened to Usagi at the other end and nodded, "Yes, everything is almost ready, it is right around the corner now," she looked at the priestess and pressed her lips into a tight line, "Yeah, sure. We should definitely go out, I will call Mako, Ami, and Rei..." she smiled and nodded again, "Okay, sounds perfect—dinner it is. Okay Usa-chan, talk to you tomorrow! Byeee!" Minako hung up and exhaled heavily, "That was close."

Rei arched her brow "What was that?"

"What?" Minako looked at her friend with quizzical eyes, Rei sighed and leaned back on the couch while shaking her head, "You couldn't sound any more suspicious because it was impossible to do so. What the hell?!"

"I know..." Minako sighed and ran her hands through her hair, "This is too hard, I cannot tell her. Not yet."

"You have been going back and forth with this situation." Rei narrowed her amethyst eyes, "We have to do something," Minako sat straight and sighed again, her blue eyes looked at Rei with all seriousness. "I know, but, I just can't go back to being her."

Rei frowned confused, "Who's her?"

"Venus, her Guardian—the one who would bring the bad news, the one that would restrain her from happiness, the one that made her cry so many times," the confession made Rei understand more the situation her friend was going through, because she knew what she was talking about and she knew how she felt. It was like betraying their new lives, what they have achieved since they stopped fighting; it was bittersweet. "Is this is what this is all about?" Rei shook her head and scoot over to sit next to her friend, "Minako, that happened years ago and I am not talking about five or ten years, I am talking about more than a thousand. Why is this bothering so much?"

"Because I don't want to go back to that time. I want to be her friend, not just her guardian. Don't you remember how much suffering I caused her? I don't want to do that again and with all this—" she trailed off and covered her face with her hands.

"Hey, you won't and you know why? Because we are not the same anymore. We all live here, there are no laws breaking. That was a whole other story." Rei patted her friend's hand. "And even if there were... she is not going to hate you or anything like it. You never were just her guardian, you have always been her friend."

"I know... I just..." the phone rang again, interrupting her. Minako turned and answered without looking at her caller ID, "Hello?" The voice at the other end of the line surprised her, making her widen her eyes, "Hey! It's been a while... H-how are you?"

Rei ran a hand through her hair and waited for her friend to end her call, maybe it was another friend of Minako's—she thought. While listening Minako's voice in the background, Rei thought about her concerns and what she just confessed to her, never imagining how serious she felt about it. Again, her personality contrasted her feelings and this was another surprising example of it. She did remember clearly, the many times she argued with Princess Serenity or the many times she tried to keep her under surveillance but also remembered how much she suffered and cried in the process. It was like if their past was making its way through their present lives and it was confusing, exciting, but also unnerving.

Rei noticed the change in Minako's voice and turned to look at her as she waited hesitant to end the call, now wondering who the person at the other end might be. After several 'yes' and nods, Minako finally hung up and put her phone aside in silence worrying Rei even more, "Minako, are you alright?" The blonde shook her head, still trying to assimilate the information she just received from the mysterious caller. "It was Michiru-san,"

Rei frowned, still confused "Michiru? Are they okay? Did something happen?"

Minako turned to look at her friend with a pale face and nodded, "They found the girl."

I do not own Sailor Moon, just this plot and some of the characters.