Spiritwing: Sorry for not updating sooner! I now have high school to worry about and the stupid servers haven't uploaded the italics and bold letters before this, so sorry for the delay. I didn't get any reviews for the last chapter which is understandable...but please keep reviewing, I really appreciate it! Anyways...I hope you like the chapter!

Chapter 3: Fate



"Death is coming…"

"What do you mean Death is coming?! When will he get here?" Venus exclaimed in fear. They had just defeated Chaos in what was probably the worst battle of their lives, and she wasn't sure she wanted to meet the father or the mother.

"It's too late…he is already here…all of hell's army will be after Fate…you will all die…protect yourselves…Taihosha is lost to us now that Death is here…"

"Hell's army?" Mercury wondered to herself as Jupiter, who was offended by the statement, let loose an enormous raging outburst,

"So just because Death comes to Tokyo we're all going to die?! Are you saying we should just run away? We're the Sailor Senshi, the protectors of this solar system! So what if hell's army comes? We can defeat them just like all the other youmas that appear here! And then after we destroy them, we'll kill Fate and Death!"

"Wow…go Jupiter…" Venus and Mercury stared in amazement at their fellow senshi. This sudden outburst of honor cause the soft winds around them turned to violent torrents. Shigorei whirled into the cyclone of snow in front of the three senshi, her rage apparent. The senshi hugged themselves for warmth as they shivered in the mini blizzard the guardian deity created.

"Your arrogance will be your downfall Sailor Senshi! Do you think you have the skills, power, and wisdom to defeat an army of warriors straight from the depths of hell, trained by Death himself? Each soldier of hell's army holds power Chaos could only dream of!"

"What if we kill Fate when she is set free? If we fail to protect Taihosha then couldn't we just kill Fate?" Venus suggested meekly, though hoping such a thing would not come to pass.

"You can't kill Fate…"

"What?!" the three senshi exclaimed in surprise.

"Fate is immortal…she cannot die under any circumstances…We would have destroyed her eons ago if she was mortal, but the only option was to seal her away inside someone…"

"So you seal her away in this young woman's heart!?" a familiar voice exclaimed in outrage. The senshi turned to find Sailor Moon standing behind them, carrying Taihosha in her arms and Rei clinging loosely to her back.

"Sailor Moon! Rei!" the other three senshi called, overjoyed. They all ran up to their princess and took the half conscious Rei of her back and propped the young priestess up against a nearby pole. Sailor Moon walked slowly up to the whirlwind and set Taihosha down at its base. She glared at the cyclone that reached to the heavens, her eyes full of anger,

"You just decide to throw Fate into Taihosha? I listened to her words when Rei and I found her; this is tearing her to pieces! Don't you care? You're her guardian! You should be able to tell what she feels!"

The senshi of the Moon was on the verge of tears as she said this. She remembered the sadness in Taihosha's eyes:

"I know you think life is hell, but there's got to be something good in your life, isn't there?"

"Not anymore…"

"Why do you do this to her?!" Sailor Moon exclaimed, her tears now flying across her face.

"Do you think I would have chosen my own charge for such a burden? You don't know the pain I've gone through, seeing her in agony! I feel everything she feels ten fold…for it was my fault she was chosen…"

"What do you mean?" Sailor Moon demanded.

"Taihosha is Fate's captor only because she has discovered all parts of her being through me…"

"All parts of her being?" the senshi asked among themselves, "What is she talking about?"

"Spirit…body…soul…those are the parts of your being…if one can discover the true powers of all three, their being becomes centered, and they become one of the most powerful beings in the universe… It is how one becomes a guardian…I taught Taihosha to see these powers…she is the only being in the universe that has realized these powers without becoming a guardian…this made her the only candidate with enough power to hold Fate…"

"Couldn't you have taught someone else? From what you're telling me, Taihosha's dreams and goals were stripped away when you threw this upon her! How could you do that?!" Sailor Moon screamed at Shigorei, her eyes blinded by tears. Why did Taihosha have to go through all of this? Why her?

"It takes one an entire lifetime to learn these powers…I had been teaching Taihosha since birth, which would normally be a terrible crime against the other guardians…When Fate became a noticeable threat, I had no other choice to tell the others about Taihosha's power, therefore setting the duty on her…She has contained Fate within her heart for thousands of years now…I protect her from anything that comes between her and her duty…Everything was going well until Fate decided to attempt to escape ten years after her capture…"

"What happened?" Sailor Moon demanded, the tears slowly freezing on her face.

"It would be easier to show all of you…then you would understand…"

"Right," Mercury agreed, "But how will you show us?"

"Walk into the center of my form…I will create an illusion exactly like what happened on that fateful day…"

"All right senshi! Let's go!" Sailor Moon turned to her fellow soldiers who were already advancing on the whirlwind, except for Rei who was sound asleep against the pole. As they walked closer, the wind became colder and harsher. Each of them had to put their arms up to protect their faces from impaling snow. As they walked through the outer walls of the cyclone, the ice whipped at their skin, causing minor scratches.

"What is this? It's like she doesn't want us to get to the center!" Jupiter exclaimed as they pushed through. Finally, all the senshi were thrown into the eye of the storm. Instead of finding walls of snow cycling around them, the senshi found themselves in a large forest. Instead of the harsh winds of Shigorei, a soft breeze flowed through the leaves, adding to the serenity of the scene. As the four senshi looked around the area they found a large foundation. Crystal clear waters flowed from the small dragon at the top over three layers of pools into a large basin. The sound was so soft that one could barely hear it. The senshi stopped when they saw who was leisurely sitting beside the fountain, letting her toe fall into the waters.

"Taihosha…" Venus whispered as she looked upon the girl in amazement, as she had never seen her before. Sailor Moon noticed that this Taihosha seemed somewhat different than the one they knew in their time. When she turned her head they saw it, Taihosha was smiling. She wasn't the suicidal wreck that she had found in the park, but a normal, joyful girl that she could have been. Taihosha turned towards the part of the woods opposite the senshi.

"Nukumori!" Taihosha called to the woods, though the senshi couldn't see who she was talking too, "Nukumori I know you're there!"

"Okay, okay you've found me," a deep male voice sounded from the trees as a young man walked out from the shrubbery with both arms raised in defeat. His blonde hair hung loosely in his emerald eyes as he walked over to Taihosha and sat down next to her on the fountain.

"How did you know I was there?" Nukumori asked curiously, looking at his beloved.

"Anyone could have heard you stomping through those woods," Taihosha replied with a slight chuckle, "I swear, you could never sneak up on someone."

"But I am good at surprising people," he smiled as he leaned in closer to her.

"Wha? What do you mea…?" Taihosha began to ask, leaning backwards a little from him being so close, before Nukumori shoved her backwards into the fountain waters. He was still clutching his stomach in laughter when Taihosha had finally managed to pull her waterlogged body out of the fountain. Her wavy white hair was now straight from the wetness, and she blew a couple pieces angrily out of her face before advancing on her love.

"You…total…totally fell…for tha…for that one!" Nukumori was able to gasp between fits of laughter. Taihosha glared at him for a moment before bursting into laughter herself. She threw herself onto him, causing both to fall over. By the time they had stopped rolling, they were indulging themselves with deep passionate kisses. Nukumori stopped to catch his breath and looked upon his beloved, who was lying under him.

"So this is what the most powerful being in the universe is reduced to," he stated teasingly at Taihosha, before kissing her passionately again, pulling her tongue in a tango with his.

"Well, just because I can access my body, soul, and spirit and hold Fate in my heart doesn't mean that I can't live a normal life right?" she asked as they broke their kiss.

"I hope none of that changes anything between us," Nukumori stated as he nuzzled against her neck.

Suddenly, the scene changed right in front of the senshi who were watching on in wonder, especially Sailor Moon. How could this be the Taihosha that she knew?

Though the scenery changed, they were still all in the same forest. It seemed like spring as the trees had just begun to bloom. The senshi were standing near a large pathway lined with trees on both sides. Suddenly, out of the shrubbery jumped Taihosha, searching for something. She looked around until she saw him at the end of the pathway.

Nukumori called her name, his arms strong arms spread wide open. Taihosha smiled happily and began sprinting. Running to him…

Taihosha flew into his arms as he closed them in a humongous hug, which she returned with a kiss.

"I found you!" Taihosha giggled, "Normally you're not supposed to give away your hiding spot until I found you on my own."

"But that would mean being away from you," Nukumori replied with a pout on his face, "Plus, I think we could be doing other things."

"Oh? Like what?" Taihosha smiled mischievously at her beloved as he moved in for another diving kiss. She quickly returned it, each of them tasting each other. Taihosha had never been happier in her entire life. Ever since Fate was concealed in her heart, she thought that she would have to live a life in seclusion for fear that Fate would try to escape. Nukumori didn't care about the risk involved with loving her, just so long as he could stay with her. Life was heaven for them, well, at least until this day.

As their tongues were battling each other, a strange feeling came over Taihosha. She felt energy, dark energy, tearing at her heart. She quickly broke the kiss and began to clutch her heart.

"Taihosha! What's wrong?" Nukumori asked urgently, though Taihosha was in too much pain to answer. She had never felt like this before. She felt her body changing as she watched her hair flash from white to black. Taihosha held her hands in front of her face, watching her skin color change from pale to tanned. Darkness flashed over her eyes as Nukumori watched her amethyst eyes change to golden orbs.

"Nukumori…Run!" Taihosha managed to scream before Fate took entire control of her body. Two black wings ripped through her back, completing the transformation. Sailor Moon watched in horror as the scene in the park practically played over right before her eyes. She could feel the evil darkness surrounding this creature; she recognized it as the same as Chaos.

"Taihosha?" Nukumori asked, backing away from the demon.

"She will pay…all of you will pay for this…keeping me captured in there…you will all die…" Fate whispered to herself with her deep voice, clenching her fist. She looked up at Nukumori with malicious eyes, getting ready for her first kill.

"Who are you?" he demanded fearfully, backing even more away.

"You of all people should know who I am," Fate replied folding her arms across her chest, "I am the one destined to be captured within that wench's heart for all eternity…I am Fate."

"Fate?" Nukumori whispered, his eyes widening in horror.

"I have been trapped in her body for ten years," Fate explained, beginning to advance on him, "For ten years I've longed to escape…ten years I've longed to see Death…ten years I've longed for the hunt…now I am free…and you'll be the first one I kill…"

Nukumori turned on heel and sprinted down the pathway towards the senshi, but Fate easily jumped, flipped, and landed in front of him, blocking his way. He turned in the opposite direction, but she did the same as last time.

"Don't try to escape…every attempt is futile…I only have a little time left before she tries to take her body again…and I want to leave a little surprise for her…" Fate stated maliciously as she summoned a sword with a black blade. Nukumori backed up slowly as he watched the dark energy radiated around the blade in small bursts of electricity. He kept moving until he backed himself into a tree, and Fate with her enormous wings blocking him from all routes of escape.

"No where to run now…" Fate smirked as she lifted her sword. Nukumori screamed in agony as the blade slammed through his heart, his blood flowing freely. He looked once more upon Fate before falling into the abyss of death, and looked into those golden orbs. He didn't see the golden eyes filled with malice; he saw the amethyst pools he used to lose himself in for hours. He saw the pale skin and flowing white hair of his beloved, not the monster that had just killed him. He saw Taihosha through Fate.

"Taihosha…I l-l…love…y-you…"

As Fate slowly enjoyed watching him die, she felt Taihosha demanding her body back. Taihosha tried to break through again and again until finally she broke through. Fate screamed as her body shattered revealing Taihosha beneath. The shards turned to energy and returned to her heart. She appeared just in time to hear those last words:

"Taihosha…I l-l…love…y-you…"

Taihosha looked at the black sword she held in thrusting position completely confused. She had been trying to break free from Fate, so she did not know the events that happened. Taihosha followed the blade to where its tip was embedded, right into her beloved's heart.

"N-Nuku…Nukumori?" Taihosha asked, trembling in fear, "Nukumori? Wake up…Say something…I know you're awake…God damn you wake up!"

But Nukumori would never awaken. Taihosha carefully pulled the sword out of her beloved and held his body against hers. She sat down from exhaustion of freeing herself from Fate's grasp, and lay Nukumori's head on her lap. She stroked his blonde locks sadly, knowing that he would never feel her touch again, nor her his. Silent tears fell from her eyes, dripping onto her beloved's face.

"This is all my fault…" she sobbed, "If only I had broken free sooner…he never would have died…he would still be here…I'm so sorry…I wasn't strong enough…"

The senshi watched on in tears.

"No wonder she wants to die…" Mercury thought sadly.

"Is this the kind of terror Fate will bring?" Jupiter wondered, tears slowly falling down her cheeks.

"How could she live through all of this?" Venus pondered while she sobbed.

"This must not happen to her again…this is exactly like Chaos…acting through another…" the senshi of the Moon remembered the battles with Chaos. The dark creature had killed all her friends and everything she cared about through Galaxia, leaving her nothing to fight for. If it hadn't been for her belief that there could still be a future, then she would have died right there in that battle. She knew how Taihosha felt now.

The person she cared about the most was taken away from her. It was just like when Galaxia threw Tuxedo Kamen into the Galaxy Cauldron. What was left for her? Nothing…

"Do you understand now?" Shigorei questioned as the senshi were magically transported outside the vortex of snow.

"Fate must not be freed…"



Spiritwing: You like? Please review! I accept anonymous reviews, so anyone can! I love feedback! I'll even take flames if you have them! I'm slowly working on the next chapter…so it'll come soon. Well, now I gots to go to bed. Bai!