Disclaimer: I do not own any SM/DBZ characters in this fic.
Tenshi's Notes: All right minna-chan, we're approaching the end once again. And yes, you will all yell at me for being cruel, but I tried being nice once and it didn't work! :P Ano, the only thing I can say is… next chapter will be up on Friday! After that, next chapter of Legacy will be up, and for Eternal-chan, I will start posting occasional chapters of One Day at a Time as well. What else? Thanks to all those who have been supportive, and who actually review. My two imouto-chans, Ivory-chan (for never failing to make me howl like a hyena whenever she reviews) and Usa-chan (2 more reviews till we hit 20!), who are such wonderful supporters of my work. Jade-chan and B-chan, for always encouraging me to go on no matter what (and putting up with my insanity). ^-^ Ja!
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Goddess: Chapter 11
The troop had finally settled in an uneasy truce. They sat around the kitchen table, glaring at each other for what seemed like hours before eventually falling asleep. Even the formidable Saiyajin prince and Haruka had grown so weary that they had allowed themselves to close their eyes. The apartment was silent, and Trunks had decided to camp outside to allow Usagi some rest. She tossed in bed, unable to fall asleep once again. Too many things plagued her mind. Her friends would die for her, that much she knew. But then again, she would do the same for them. Before she knew it, her eyes closed unwillingly in slumber due to all the strain she had experienced that day. Just for one moment…
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In the land of dreaming, Usagi was once again under attack. She knew no peace, and no matter how hard she tried, it eluded her. Images of Endymion and Mamoru haunted her, nipping at her heels, refusing to let her go.
"But don't I deserve a chance for happiness?" She pleaded.
"Because of your selfishness, I am doomed to a horrible destiny. Reborn to a time to be with the woman I love, I find out that it was all lies, and that she loves someone else. Do you know what that feels like, Usako? Betrayal of the worst kind, as if someone has stabbed you in the back."
"Mamoru… I don't mean to," she whispered, wanting to beg for forgiveness. On the bed, she had begun tossing and turning, reflecting the inner conflict warring in her. She jolted out of bed, heaving slightly with the emotions that still ran rampant in her. How could she have been this selfish? Her happiness in exchange for Mamoru's? Time and time again, she had been shown that she never had a choice with anything. Destiny was once again reminding her of her position in life, and dreams of happiness and true love were never hers to have. Ignoring the slight discomfort that had appeared in her body as another wave of pain assailed her, she gripped her blanket in her hand, and the tears fell down her cheeks as she sobbed for the man she loved.
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Slowly, Usagi made her way across the city. The gang had been asleep when she had snuck out of the apartment. She had paused slightly when she saw the sleeping figure of Trunks on the couch. God he looked so tired, and so beautiful to her. Gomen, gomen nasai, my love. I hate to do this to you once again but I have no choice. I never had a choice in the first place. My mistake was believing that I could beat destiny.
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And not too far behind her, a black figure followed with surprising stealth. You can't be allowed to reach them Usagi. I must stop you.
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A few blocks away from the city of Juuban, the black figure tackled Usagi to the ground. A shriek could be heard from miles around, drawing people's attention.
"Be quiet Usagi!!" A voice hissed at her, grappling with her still, holding her face down.
"Mina-chan?!" Usagi exclaimed in shock. "What on earth are you doing??"
"Stopping you from making a brutal mistake," Minako said slowly before letting Usagi get up.
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Still deep in sleep, a frown crossed Trunks' lips, his brows furrowing as if sensing something was amiss. His eyes flew open suddenly as he glanced into the bedroom. It was empty. Jumping to his feet, he dashed into the bathroom, and back out into the rest of the apartment, waking the rest of the group in the process. Feelings of panic were assailing him, and he could not think clearly.
"What's wrong?" Michiru asked sleepily.
"Usagi's gone," Vegeta growled out immediately, his protective instincts for the girl jumping out full force.
"Our princess has always been guilty of having a soft heart. My guess is that she has gone back to try to clear things up with the Inner senshi and Mamoru," Haruka bit out in frustration.
The look that Trunks gave her at her announcement nearly tore her heart out.
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"I know you far too well, Usagi-chan. Always self-sacrificing, ever the noble princess who would give her own happiness up for the sake of others," Minako said softly.
"I can't allow that many people to get hurt by my actions, by my selfishness."
"Selfish?!" Minako almost yelled at her. "How can you call yourself that? You're the most giving person I know. You gave your life up for ours, Princess. How could you say otherwise? The Inners… they're only concerned about the ultimate weapon that exists within you, the same thing that's killing you right now isn't it?" She whispered.
"Hai…" Usagi responded, blinking back tears that threatened to overwhelm her vision.
"That's the real reason why you're going back to Mamoru and the Inners, isn't it? You don't want to hurt Trunks, and this way, you think he'll stop hurting?" Minako, hearing no response from Usagi, saw the note of self-condemnation in her expression. "You're wrong, you know. He loves you so much, and I know you love him too. Doing this only makes it worse. If you die, how do you think it'll make him feel? He'll feel that you abandoned your love for each other to be with another man. Do you think that will bring him comfort? Do you think he'll hurt less that way?" She could see from the pain-stricken expression on Usagi's face that she hadn't thought of it like that. "Mamoru… I'm not sure what his feelings are, but I'm sure he wouldn't settle for being second best. And I'm not even sure if what he feels towards you is love or something else towards Megami-sama."
"I…"
Shouts of "Usagi-chan" could be heard in the distance as they saw the Inner senshi along with Mamoru approaching. Minako's gaze hardened at the sight of their figures rushing towards Usagi.
"Usagi-chan! Where did you go? How could you leave us?"
Usagi turned around slowly to look at them, and for the first time, it was as if a light had been turned on. She saw them for who they truly were. These people were not her friends. They didn't care about her, Tsukino Usagi, the person. All they wanted was their precious weapon that would save the universe and their hides. A sudden pain gripped her body once again as she held onto Minako for support.
"What do you want?" she asked coldly, much to their shock.
"U…Usagi-chan," Rei stammered, unaccustomed to the hostile light gleaming from the blonde's eyes. "We were just wondering what happened to you. Are you all right?"
With a strength in her voice that belied her current physical state, Usagi spoke firmly. "I'm standing in front of you in one piece. But you aren't really concerned about that are you? What you're dying to know is, how is your precious weapon?"
"Nani?!?" Makoto yelled out, the lone sound standing out starkly against the silence that had descended upon the group, who began glaring at Minako.
"Leave Mina-chan out of this. She's not to blame for my discovering the truth about you."
"Usako…"
She flinched slightly at the endearment, and the feelings of guilt and conflict once again rose in her as she stared at her ex-boyfriend, who still hadn't been told he had been dumped.
"Something's changed hasn't it?" Mamoru said quietly, noting the look that had appeared in her eyes. "It's that purple-haired man."
She hung her head, unable to meet his gaze.
"You were only gone for a few days, and all this happened? Are you sure this is not the work of our enemy?" Ami asked logically, still uncertain about the state of Usagi's mind and health.
"I've never been more sure of anything in my life," Usagi replied forcefully. "I need to tell you about your weapon though… No, Mina-chan. They deserve to know…"
"Usagi!!!!!"
Her head whipped about at the beloved voice, the man who had always stuck by her no matter what, the one who loved her, Tsukino Usagi, so unconditionally. And everyone present could see the love and happiness sparkling from her eyes as she willingly went into the arms of a young man, who had such a relieved look on his face. Not too far behind him was another man of extremely short stature, scowling fiercely at them, followed by four other females. The way the man held her and smiled at her caused most females present to sigh just a tad bit enviously. Usagi laid her head upon his chest, and wondered how on earth she could've been so stupid. If she were to die, she would want to leave the world with him knowing how much he mattered to her.
"I love you. I'm so sorry for putting you through all this," she whispered, words intended for his ears only. The smile appeared on his face made her world, as he reached up to brush away the crystalline tears that had trickled down her cheek.
"As long as you never leave me again," he uttered solemnly, the love shining from his eyes unmistakable.
"Never willingly," she promised.
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Their gazes burned holes into the skulls' of the Inner Senshi, who were confused as to why these newcomers were glaring at them so. They had recognized everyone from having seen them at the arcade except for the tall, green-haired woman, the short man who had unbelievably spikey hair and the most evil glare, and Usagi's "kidnapper". Minako was standing close to the devil (or so Makoto thought), and Makoto glanced at her curiously. It seemed like an indication of where her feelings and loyalties lay. With a grin, Minako cleared her throat at the twosome who had become so absorbed with each other that they were in danger of forgetting the presence of others. The devil merely smirked though his eyes contained a look of happiness at the young couple. They both blushed and looked away from each other, though he made no move to take his arm from around Usagi. Makoto almost sighed once again, but she cleared her mind to concentrate on the things at hand. Usagi had mentioned warning them about something before the other people had shown up. Frowning, she wondered how she was going to have to approach the subject. The blonde man was staring at them intently, a look of unbelievable hatred shining in his blue eyes, causing Makoto to shiver slightly.
"Usagi-chan,…" she began hesitantly, feeling the waves of hostility being sent. Minako looked at her curiously as if unsure of something. "You mentioned something about warning us earlier…"
The look that Usagi was giving her was decidedly cool, and held none of its usual warmth. Not only that, the energy waves that she was emitting was different. Makoto couldn't explain it. It just was.
"Megami-sama is not as you believe it to be. It was never intended to be your ultimate weapon. We were just pawns in someone else's game, and it already knew that you would believe that the being living in me was destined to save you."
"Nande?!" The inner Senshi and Mamoru yelled out in unison, shocked beyond belief. How could Megami-sama not be the ultimate weapon? She was foretold, passed along with their memories. How could it all have been lies?
The woman with the green hair stepped up to Usagi and kneeled before her, with one leg bent. "You are still our princess, and as such, my loyalties have and always be with you." The blonde man, the teal-haired woman, the young child, and Minako followed suit, vowing to always serve the princess. Usagi became flustered, unaccustomed to the treatment that came with being the moon princess. Visibly agitated, she knelt in front of them as well, much to their shocked gasps. "And my loyalties will always be to you, my senshi." Makoto felt left out, but she couldn't really blame Usagi. Afterall, the Inner senshi had been pre-occupied with Megami-sama, and forgot their duties to the princess. They had been so overcome with finding their ultimate weapon, with saving the earth, that they forgot their sole purpose. To protect the princess. They had failed to do that. The purple-haired man stared at Usagi, before whispering, "And my loyalties to you my love. For always." Usagi turned around, staring at him before giving him the most beautiful teary-eyed smile, not that Makoto could really blame her.
The young child stepped forth suddenly, sending them the oddest look. "Haruka-papa, they don't mean to treat Usagi-san that way. They just made a mistake."
"A mistake that could've cost our princess her life!" Haruka almost yelled, though she managed to restrain herself.
"I am Sailor Saturn. Haruka-papa is Sailor Uranus. Michiru-mama is Sailor Neptune. And that is the Senshi of Time, Setsuna, or Sailor Pluto."
"Hota-chan!!" This time, Haruka did not hold back though Michiru gave her a dirty look. "Why did you tell the inner Senshi that? It's none of their business!"
"Whatever their priorities are, they're still a part of the Sailor Senshi." Usagi replied simply.
Trunks and Vegeta appeared frozen in place, the look of horror almost identical, before arranging their bodies in a battle stance.
"He's here, isn't he?" Usagi asked as she stood up wearily. Fighting… she was so tired of it all. She would fight to the death if needs be to protect what she believed in, but sometimes, it was too much. She never asked for any of it. It had been thrust upon her without warning. The ki that she felt was powerful, and she could feel the waves of evil emitting from the creature that landed in front of them.
"Why, brat. I'd think you'd be just a touch bit happier to see me…" Freiza said silkily. "And the traitor herself, Setsuna… I will take care of you soon enough." His body began powering up with the same energy that had destroyed countless of planets. Vegeta scowled in memory as his ki began rising as well.
A sudden flash appeared out of nowhere, blinding everyone present momentarily. Usagi floated high above them, in full goddess mode. Trunks and Vegeta smiled to themselves. Freiza didn't stand a chance with Usagi's power levels. Without warning, Hotaru began mumbling, "Masaka! No! Megami-sama… Usagi-san… no!!" Setsuna was staring at the scene with a look of horror, her garnet eyes flashing in disbelief.
"You thought you knew everything didn't you, Setsuna? You tampered with the chip, but you forget something. I don't trust anyone. At all." Freiza sneered, holding up a remote control in its hands. "You were growing entirely too fond of the brat. I knew you'd try something, so I placed yet another backup."
Minako gasped out loud, and as Usagi turned to face them, her eyes had gone entirely black. Her silver hair flowed behind her, and the aura that had surrounded her once before no longer shone with her usual goodness. Evil. She was pure evil. A black eight-pointed star appeared from her forehead and radiated with unbelievable power.
"Usagi… no!!" Trunks yelled out, absolutely furious and stunned at the recent turn of events.
The smile she gave him was chilling and ominous. With a silvery whisper, she replied, "I'm afraid the Usagi you all know is dead."