AN: Gomen nasi for the delay. I just had so much to do and so little time to type. Thank you so much to all who reviewed: I love you all!!

Black Aura-Sama: lol! Thanks!

MercuryGoddess: aww Thank you so much for the complement! I'm so glad people are liking it.

Kayla-chan: hogosha no hoshi= Guardian of the Stars

Brandy: unfortunately, Uranus' part is kinda small, but Jupiter does have some special parts, especially in the end ^^;;

Kayeng Lor: Wow! Thank you so much!! Sorry I always take so long to add more. ^^;;

solarmistress17: ::blushes modestly:: aww! Yes, this chapter is a bit dark. Not too much though

DemonRyu: Gomen! I'm so sorry! ::peers down at cliffie where she had dropped readers:: Opps. ^^;; Hai, I see Kuroi as the baddie in charge when my computer is mean . . . he's not very nice. Lol

Sailor Star Scream: ::looks back at dictionary:: You're right! And . . . so am I unless this is wrong. But now that I've looked at it further, I've decided I'll stick your spelling, Shiroi, because Shiro has a few other meanings and Shiroi corresponds with Kuroi. Opps, I hope I didn't just give anything away. ^^;; Domo arigato gozaimasu for your help!

ScorpioNightShadow: Let's see . . . Hogosha no Hoshi means Guardian of the Stars and Kanshisha no Makkura is Guardian of Darkness. Hope that helps!

Lovin Vegeta : aww! Thank you so much! Sorry bout the cliffie, I couldn't help myself. ^^;;

Tenshi Cosmos: Domo arigato! I'm so glad you decided to review!

Spooky Fyre: ::holds ears in agony:: Noooo!!!! Mercy Mercy!

Urbabyanglxo: Yay! You're back!

To clear up some of the misunderstanding about meanings, 'hogosha' is another word that (basically) means guardian. And 'hoshi' is star. So Hogosha no hoshi is Guardian of the Stars. And 'makkura' is darkness, so Kanshisha no Makkura is Guardian of Darkness, the opposite of Kanshisha no Hikari. And thank you to Sailor Star Scream for correcting me. The opposite of Kuroi would be Shiroi, or white.

Also, I've finally taught myself to spell 17 and 18 in Japanese, so they'll probably be in her. As a refresher, Juuanagou is 17 and Juuhachigou is 18.

"..." is talking, '...' is thought, [...] is AN, (...) is extra info but part of the fic, ... means trailed off, -- means interrupted. Enjoy chapter 16.

**************************************************************************** ** **************************************************************************** **

Back on Earth, all was black. People stood agape in the center of streets and forests alike, staring up at the darkened sky. The time read 2:15 in the afternoon. But the sun was gone. The light was out. Would it ever return?

At Capsule Corp, Krillin stood outside with Chatzou. Both were shaking. Unlike most of the world, they knew what this meant. All hope was gone.

Krillin attempted to regain his composure and turned to his long-time friend. "Well, Chatzou, we've been through a lot together. It's been great to know you, and if there is a life after this one, I won't forget you." The two small men hugged each other [AN: guy hug- basically a slap on the back].

"I just wish I could see him one more time," said Chatzou with tears in his eyes.



Inside, Juuhachigou [18] was trying to call her daughter. For the past hour or two, the girl had been wailing non-stop. Nothing her mother did seemed to calm her. But as 18 held her close and rocked back and forth and stared at the sky, she wondered if her daughter, the joy of her life, would ever be happy again.



Even the trio of mischief-makers had been still. Sure, they'd all been in danger before, but those times they could see their enemies. Now they were up against some endless darkness that would kill the world. How do you fight that?

"Everything will be fine, Daddy'll win, and we'll all be safe and happy again," muttered Goten again, always the optimist.

"Th-That's right," said Chibi Usa, who was visibly shaking. "Mommy will come back and H-Hotaru will be there and everyone will be happy."

Trunks jumped up and pulled the drapes shut. "Enough of this!" he yelled. "We can't change the outcome of whatever happens up there. All we can do is hope, and try to act normal and not despair."

"You're right of course," sighed Chibi Usa. Then she brightened. "Soo . . . who's up for a game of sardines?"



o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~o~

[Back with the Baddie] Exhaustion was an understatement. The senzu beans were completely gone. All were now fighting creatures that would have been far beyond their level even if they were at full strength. Mouths hung wide, gasping for air. But the demon youmas were too quick. All was darkness.



Kuroi yawned above. This game was taking too long. He wanted the Hikari no Oujo *now*. He clapped his hands together twice.



Below, Usagi's eyes saw only Darkness. There was no hope. She did not even realize as her youma suddenly changed. The next thing she knew, she was staring into the black, hateful eyes of the Kanshisha no Makkura, captured once more. And from these bindings, she would never be able to break free.





Saturn's feet were heavy; her arms felt like lead. Darkness had consumed her and her planet was dying. All was lost. All was lost . . .

Her mind slipped into subconsiousness while her legs gave way, and she fell to the ground, motionless.





Once again, Gohan pushed away the fatigue that was tugging at his aching muscles. [AN: Yes, he and the others are SSJ, but remember the whole multiplication thing. He destroyed the first ten or so quite easily, while the others struggled. But do some quick math and you'll realize that if your enemy doubles each time, pretty soon he'll be way above your level.]

He looked up as Hotaru fell. She was now at the mercy of her opponent, who would end her life forever. Her demon youma smirked and raised its long sword to plunge into her helpless body.

But then something happened that none expected. Anger filled Gohan's heart. How could they be so ruthless, so uncouth, to destroy a young girl like that? Something red seemed to fill his vision, and suddenly he found himself within himself, recalling the first time he had called forth his life force. But there was something else there. A pulsating red orb. Without another thought, he plunged into it. This all happened in less than a split second.

He screamed and his eyes glowed as the fury of Mars coursed through him. A red aura mixed with the gold, and his ki skyrocketed.

Hotaru's youma paused, but this pause cost it its life. Gohan, prince of Mars, selfishly guarded the body of the princess of Saturn as the youma's replacement rose from the ground and others approached . . .









Tien and Yamcha, Mercury and Venus were fighting as a foursome, with their backs to each other. Valiantly they fought; often if seemed as though there was something more than physical strength, some kind of bond between them, that drove the demons back.

But exhaustion is a powerful enemy. Combined with a merciless demon youma, there is no hope to win. One by one, hope was diminished and they gave way, keeling over into the lifeless black dirt, never to rise again.

Their youmas left to look for new prey.









Bulma faithfully attended the three tortured senshi. None had stirred yet, but she refused to believe that they were gone.

Unbeknownst to her, Mercury's youma was looking for fresh prey. It crept up behind her and, smirking, prepared a dark orb that would end her life . . .





Vegeta panted and inhaled deeply. He had just destroyed another youma, but he knew it would be replaced soon. He took a moment for a breather and looked around for the others.

Piccolo was by himself, and beginning to slow. Kakorrot and his mate, Mars, were battling back to back. The others were no where to be seen, but he thought he saw red fire in the distance.

Vegeta glanced around for his own mate. She was bent over, still tending the three sailors. But there was something behind her. An especially dark shadow. With the Darkness of Death in its hands.

Death?! Summoning all the speed he still possessed, he sped towards her, screaming her name. "BULMA!!!" [Yes, for once her addressed her properly.]

She looked up as the darkness left the hands of its master. Something gold flew past her and the dark orb was knocked to the other end of the galaxy.

"Never," panted Vegeta in a deadly calm voice, "try to hurt my mate while I'm around." He began a furious assault on the demon youma while whiteness seemed to cover his eyes. He did not even realize as the love he claimed he did not have, transformed him.

















"I can't do it, Goku. I just don't have the strength left."

"Just hold on, Chichi. You can make it."

Goku and Rei fought back to back. Rei was too exhausted to even notice how Goku often fought her youmas as well as his own. Her eyes were growing hazy.

'I can't let it end this way. But I'm so tired. But everyone needs me. But most have given up already.' Goku was having an internal battle of his own. Suddenly, he thought back to Earth, and a picture of his two sons invaded his thoughts. Gohan had Goten on his shoulders as he walked through the forest. Both were happy and carefree, enjoying the beauty of the world.

'I have to keep going, for them and their future.' Reaching deep within himself, he found a hidden supply of strength powered by love. A white aura mixed with his gold and passed new strength to Rei as well. Youmas cowered at the light of their love and seemed to melt away.

















But far from this renewed hope, Mirai Trunks battled hopelessly. Outnumbered by youmas and fatigue, he struggled to retain his focus. Punch. Kick. Jump up. Slam down. Blast. It all seemed monotonous. His body began to work like a robot in need of oiling and a new battery. His arms and legs were heavy and his movements slowed. The youmas seemed to increase their speed.

Wham! Smack! Punch! Trunks was being battered now. So much for a better life in another time. So much for hope. So much for love.





Makoto turned and saw Trunks fighting slow, without emotion or hope. A smirking youma advanced behind him, holding a dark ki blast ready.

A cry escaped her throat. Disregarding her own youma and pushing away the Darkness that was attempting to consume her and her planet, she ran like she'd never run before. One thought stood bold in her mind: she had to protect him.





Something green ran past Mirai to collide with something black. In slow motion, it seemed, he watched as Makoto's body was thrown to the ground. As if triggered by that instant, something suddenly clicked in Mirai's mind. He'd never realized how much he'd cared for her. In the short time that he'd known her, she had always been there.

He ran to her body and cradled her head. Her fuku was scorched and her face was black, but when her fading vision saw lavender above, she forced her burnt lips to manage three words. Her voice was raspy and quiet. "Ai- Ai shiteru, Trunks." Then her eyes clouded over and her spirit left her ruined body, without another word.

A cry escaped Mirai's throat. He had always been so focused on Usagi that he'd been blind to Makoto and taken her for granted. She'd loved him in silence, and now he'd never be able to tell her how he felt. "MAKOTO!!!!" came his anguished cry.

A dark blast singed one of his lavender locks. He looked at the gathering youma, death in his eyes. White light consumed him. "Bring it on."



**************************************************************************** ** **************************************************************************** **

AN: ::wipes sweat off forehead:: Well that was a lot of typing in a little time.

I know, I know. Some of you think this chapter is cheese. Well :p cause I'm into this whole 'power of love' thing. Being strong is one thing, but being strong because you love someone is another. So all you need is love!

******************** TEASER: ******************** Ah yes. I have been naughty and started another fic, though I'm not sure when I'll actually post it. Should be interesting, especially considering an idea I have for much later in the plot. If you read the update for From Darkness to Light, you've probably seen this almost-identical teaser. I'll try to make it different ones next time I do this. Gomen! Anyway. . .

She was running, running. She couldn't stop, she couldn't turn back. Her legs felt like lead. Her heart pounded in her ears. Her mind was a blur. Blindly, she chose one street and then the next. She knew well enough what those two monsters were capable of. She could easily guess what would happen if they caught her. And she didn't care to test her theory. After all, annoying little pink hearts are nothing compared to the ruthless hands of death? ***************************************************

Please leave a review and let me know how you like it. Arigato minna-chan! Ja ne!

~Calli-chan