Well... here it is. The final chapter of Fate & Destiny is posted. *sniffle* It's almost over! Anyway... read on and enjoy the ending!

Disclaimer: I still don't own anything Soul Calibur related.

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Fate & Destiny

*~* Chapter 14Fate is Heard *~*

                Thunder crashed, and lighting blinded the night skies above the demolished Ostrheinsburg Chapel. Rain poured through the collapsed roof drenching Yun Sung, whom was sitting on the ground, awaiting the challenger who held the fragments of Soul Edge that he required, "I've finally made it. No matter what happens now, I know that I can face it. I've come too far to lose it all now..." in the back of his mind, he was well aware of what was coming. He had taken that dream he had while he was travelling with Mina as a premonition – Takharu would be his adversary.

                Amongst the sounds of the storm, footsteps were heard approaching. Yun Sung got to his feet and stared at the doorway, knowing what was coming... who was coming... "What a surprise," he commented sarcastically as Takharu stepped into the chapel ruins.

                "It's nice to see you, too," Takharu retorted.

                "You know that I don't want to hurt you... so please... just go back home," Yun Sung pleaded.

                "To what!?" Takharu shouted, "Go back to my ruined family? Face the consequences of murdering my betrothed?"

                Yun Sung replied, "Despite all that... you're going to have to face it whether you reach Soul Edge or not."

                "And what about you? Why should I leave and let you be consumed by the sword?" Takharu questioned.

                "Because it's what I want," Yun Sung answered, "I want to obtain the sword, whether it takes me over or not. I want to do this... it's the price to pay to gain the power I need to have people acknowledge me."

                "Why? Why do you need it? You've gotten up to the sword without it... and frankly, getting this far takes more skill than going back to Korea and getting a few lousy people to 'acknowledge' you!" Takharu insisted, "I've seen what the sword does to people, Yun Sung!" tears formed in her eyes, "I don't want you to end up like Siegfried..."

                Yun Sung gripped his blade, "Takharu, this is my choice. You can't convince me otherwise... and I can't convince you. It's no use to stand here and argue... we have to fight. Nothing you can say is going to change my mind. Soul Edge has become more important to me than anything else in this world... Fight me."

                "No," Takharu dropped her sword of Soul Edge to the ground. Her voice sounded much stronger and free of all fear that she felt for Yun Sung, "I refuse to fight you," she tossed her other shards of Soul Edge on top of the sword, "Go ahead. Screw yourself! Soul Edge isn't going to do you any good! You're going to realize that Soul Edge will bring you nothing but pain!" Yun Sung just gazed in shock as Takharu continued, "This is your choice... if you want to go on and let Soul Edge manipulate you for the rest of your like... go ahead. I don't care anymore. A bastard like you isn't worth my time," she gave him one last pain-struck glance before turning and leaving the chapel.

                Yun Sung took a moment to process everything that Takharu had just said, "That wasn't... how I expected it to go... It was different than my dream. Did I... make a huge mistake?"

~[---{-----|~-~|-----}---]~

                "Pointless!" Takharu muttered to herself. "This journey was pointless!" She had immediately stormed out of Ostrheinsburg and was on her way home... prepared to face the reality of all that had happened. The life that awaited her could not be worse than everything that took place during this journey.

~[---{-----|~-~|-----}---]~

                "I can't have any second thoughts now," Yun Sung said to himself. He dropped his fragments of Soul Edge on the ground and waited to see what would happen.

Yun Sung watched in astonishment as the shards elevated and joined together in the centre of the chapel. Once the last piece was in place, Yun Sung's surroundings began to change. The shattered stained glass windows transformed into raging flames, and the ground almost appeared as a lava stream flowing through an erupting volcano. "The hellfire..." Yun Sung said as he observed the atmosphere.

                From the flames, emerged the apocalypse... the ultimate opponent... Soul Edge's true form – Inferno. This was the challenge that Yun Sung had been seeking this entire time. At long last, he had found it. The true Soul Edge... it wasn't the 'salvation' his culture claimed it was... but it was all that Yun Sung could have asked for... power. "At last... Soul Edge will be mine!" Yun Sung smirked. He clutched White Storm tightly, "This is it..." he charged at Inferno and jabbed his blade through the creature's gut. He pulled it out and Inferno collapsed; appearing unconscious. "What? Was that it!?" Yun Sung commented, a little disappointed. Perhaps he should have savoured the triumph while it lasted... for Inferno was far from defeated. It rose once again, the flame on its body burning stronger than before; however, it was not enough to bring down Yun Sung's strength. He continued his onslaught against Inferno – using various techniques he had improved on throughout his quest. Soul Charge and Guard Impact were but two of the skills that he used. The creature collapsed several times before Yun Sung was able to wipe it from the face of the earth.

                "You may have defeated me..." the beast spoke, "But I shall return. I can never be silenced..." it slowly vanished into the hellfire, leaving behind the echo of menacing laughter.

                Yun Sung's surroundings returned to their original state of Ostrheinsburg Chapel. The demonic blade, Soul Edge, fell before him... finally giving Yun Sung the opportunity to obtain the ultimate power. Yun Sung reached for the sword... but abruptly stopped, "What am I doing? I destroyed Inferno using White Storm... I have the power to protect my country. I don't need Soul Edge... I never did..." he glared morosely at the blade for a minute before coming to a conclusion, "I should have known that Mina was right in the first place. I was being selfish. I have to make things right again. I need to help the country," he quickly left the chapel to return to Korea.

~[---{-----|~-~|-----}---]~

                After several weeks of travelling, Takharu was finally at her village... she had walked through the streets dodging the glances of villagers who, obviously, thought it odd for her to simply return after such a long time of being gone. She chose to ignore them and go directly to her home. She stepped through the doorway and looked around the house. It was eerily quiet. "Father...?" Takharu almost felt as though she had to speak softly as though not to disturb the silence, "Are you here?" it was odd for her to be in her empty home. Someone was always home; but now that her father was the only remaining family member, the house was deserted.

                 "Who's there?" a woman's voice came from the doorway.

                Takharu turned around and stared in disbelief, "Salama?"

                The woman covered her mouth in shock, "Takh? Is that you?"

                "Of course it's me!" Takharu was so happy to see a familiar face. Salama was an old friend of hers. Seeing the woman was a relief for Takharu, knowing that not everything in her village had changed.

                "But... you disappeared from the village... we all figured that you had been killed..." Salama said quietly.

                Takharu frowned, "Well, I survived."

                Salama forced a smile, "And I'm glad that you did."

                "Salama... what's wrong?"

                "What?" Salama seemed confused by the fact that Takharu could read her expressions, "What makes you think that something's wrong?"

                "I've known you since we were children... I can tell when you have something serious on your mind," Takharu replied.

                Salama had a sad expression in her eyes, "Many things have happened, Takh. You... did know about your mother and broth–"

                "Yes," Takharu answered without allowing Salama to complete the sentence. She did not want to hear about Nightmare killing her family again, "But... what other things?"

                "My brother... Masudi... he... was also killed," Salama added. Takharu's eyes moved to the ground, she did not want to see Salama's expression when she admitted what she had done. Masudi was not only Salama's brother, but the man that Takharu was meant to marry.

                "Salama... I knew about Masudi..." Takharu hesitated, "You see... I... was the one... who..."

                Takharu could hear Salama gasp, "You killed him?"

                "Yes..." it could easily be heard that Takharu regretted what she had done. She prayed that Salama would be forgiving.

                "Takh, I knew that you didn't love him, but... killing him? My brother?" Salama sounded more full of anguish than rage.

                "I'm so sorry," Takharu whispered. They both remained silent for a moment, wrapped up in thoughts of all that had just been said. Takharu was the first to speak, "Where... is my father?"

                "Gone..." Salama answered, "After you ran away, he left. He didn't say where he was going or how long he'd be."

                "So I have no family?" Takharu asked in a monotonous voice. Salama simply shook her head in reply, "Just my grandparents... I can't stay with them..."

                "Takh, if you want, you can stay with my family..."

                "No... Maybe this was meant to happen..." she seemed lost in thought, "There are some things... that I never got to say..."

                "Takharu! You can't leave Egypt! People won't accept you anywhere else!"

                "I've been through a lot, Salama. I've come to befriend some people... yes, there are enemies... but I have hope," Takharu still recalled the people she had met on her long journey, "'Seung Han Myong...' 'My father's dojo' Mina's father must be the master of a dojo," she could only think of finding either Mina or Yun Sung. They both lived under the care of the same man, so if Takharu found one, she found the other. She did not just want to see them for a place to go... there were some things that she never got to say to Yun Sung... some things she never got to apologize for...

                "Takh..." Salama broke into her thoughts.

                "Yes?"

                "If you aren't welcome there – wherever there may be – you can always come back here... I promise that I won't tell anyone that you killed Masudi... You've been my best friend for what seems like forever, I want you to be happy."

                "Thank you, Salama," she glanced around the room for a moment. "I should really leave soon... but... I just want a moment alone in this house..."

                Salama nodded, "Take care, Takh," she walked out and left Takharu alone.

                Takharu wandered into the empty rooms that formerly belonged to her parents and herself. She gathered a few of her own belongings, and several small things to remember her parents by, to bring with her during her travels. The last room that she entered was her younger brother's. Takharu held back the tears she could feel forming in her eyes. She was indifferent to the fact that her parents were gone... and soon that she would be gone from Egypt as well... but something inside of her could not let go of her brother. Just looking around his room reminded her of how young and innocent he was. "What am I doing?" she thought. "I can't just spend all of my time thinking of what already happened..." she wiped a tear from her eye and turned toward the doorway. "Good bye..." Takharu whispered, leaving her home, friends, country and memories behind.

~[---{-----|~-~|-----}---]~

                Yun Sung had also returned to his home. He has just arrived at the Seung dojo and was wandering the hallways, "Master!" he called, "Hwang! Mina!" Yun Sung was not really paying attention to where he was going as much as the names he was calling, for he did not notice Hwang standing in his way.

                Hwang held out a hand and blocked Yun Sung's way, "Usually when you call someone, you tend to watch if they are actually around."

                "Hwang!" Yun Sung never would have imagined that he would be so glad to return to the dojo and see all of the other students.

                "It's good to see you back safely, Yun Sung. However, I see that you failed to retrieve the Sword of Salvation," he commented with a rather teasing tone.

                "So Mina told you?"

                Hwang nodded, "What were you thinking? You knew that you weren't powerful enough to obtain the sword."

                Yun Sung was about to object and tell Hwang that he had actually reached the sword, but he chose not to, "Hwang... there is something I want to do."

                "If it's battle me, forget about it. It's still not happening."

                Yun Sung shook his head, "Nah. I understand now... that it was foolish of me to only care about fighting you."

                Hwang looked at Yun Sung with a certain respect in his eyes, "You've grown up a lot, Yun Sung. What is it that you want?"

                "I want to help fight against Japan. I want to join in the war," he answered.

                A smile crossed Hwang's face, "I'm impressed," he admitted. "But you can't just join a war, you have to..."

                "I know..." Yun Sung sighed, "Train in the Coastal Defense."

                "It's not as bad as you believe it to be," Hwang assured, "With your skill, you should be able to reach the required ranking soon."

                Yun Sung rolled his eyes, "Yeah, yeah... soon..."

                Hwang laughed, "Come on, Yun Sung. We should inform Master Myong of your choice. You can tell me what exactly happened to you on the way."

                "There's no way that I can tell you everything from here to Master Myong," Yun Sung said tiredly.

                "I can imagine," Hwang agreed, "Anything that made you want to help the country had to have been intense. There will be more time for us to talk. Now we have to see Master Myong and you have to join the Coastal Defense."

                "Gre-eat..." Yun Sung was still exhausted from his journeys, but he still followed Hwang for the sake of protecting his country...

~[---{-----|~-~|-----}---]~

                "Excuse me... do you know where the Seung family dojo is?" Takharu had finally arrived in Korea, however she did not know where the dojo was located. The only chance that she had of finding it was to question people on the streets.

                The man she had asked nodded, "It's in the next town to the east. It shouldn't be more than a few hours walking distance from here. Ask a resident of that town for the exact location."

                "Thank you very much," Takharu said gratefully. "Salama was not entirely right," she thought, "The world is becoming... more accepting." She turned and began walking west.

~[---{-----|~-~|-----}---]~

                "... And so that's everything that happened on my journey. Are you happy that you know it all, Hwang?" Yun Sung had just finished recounting his entire adventure. He had had a chance to tell the story to Hwang every night that Hwang was off of the battlefield.

                "Not really," Hwang replied, "You were pathetic and ruined your chances with that 'Takharu'."

                "What's that supposed to mean!?" Yun Sung exclaimed.

                Hwang yawned, "It means that you care more about her than you ever cared about Soul Edge."

                "But I..."

                "Listen, Yun Sung... I know what I'm talking about. Despite the fact that you cared for her, you still treated her inferior to you in the end... right?" Hwang asked curiously.

                "Well, I..."

                "And you regret it, because you love her."

                Yun Sung looked at Hwang in silence.

                Hwang provided his advice, "Tell her before she hates you forever."

                "I can't, Hwang. We're here, in Korea... and she's all the way in Egypt," Yun Sung sighed sadly.

                Their conversation was cut short by their commander entering the room, "Hwang, Yun Sung... You may both return to the Seung dojo for a few days. Your services will not be needed... but I expect you back after a few days! Especially you, Yun Sung; you have more training to do."

                "Thank you, sir," Hwang said gratefully before the commander exited the room, "I'm suggesting that you use this free time to think things over, Yun Sung," he lay back on the bed and closed his eyes.

                Yun Sung sighed to himself, "I really do have a lot to think about..."

~[---{-----|~-~|-----}---]~

                "This would be the Seung dojo," a Korean woman pointed to a building, clarifying the location.

                Takharu looked at it. It seemed like a friendly place, "Thank you for showing me the way."

                "Don't mention it," the woman said before walking away.

                "Time to see if they'll welcome me," Takharu took a deep breath and headed toward the dojo.

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                The dojo door slid open and revealed the familiar face of Seung Mina, "Takharu! What are you doing here?" she asked excitedly.

                "Mina... It's great to see you... but... things are not good. My family... is gone. My father left and my mother is dead..."

                Mina's happy expression turned to a frown, "That's terrible... how did it happen? Come in and tell me everything."

                As they walked through the hallways of the dojo, Takharu explained, "My mother and younger brother were slaughtered by Nightmare... my father just disappeared while I was gone. That was all of my family... so, I'm alone. There's not much more to say than that..."

                "I feel so sorry for you," Mina said, sympathetically.

                "Don't pity me, Mina. I just need time to figure things out..."

                "What's to figure out? I'm not going to let you go back out into the world," Mina said.

                "But where can I stay?"

                Mina thought for a moment, "Well... if you stay here and help out with the chores... I'm certain that my father would allow you to stay if you made yourself useful. Plus, with a few of the students gone to help in the war against Japan, some extra company and help is welcomed among most people."

                Takharu looked at Mina, "Is Yun Sung among those gone?"

                "Somewhat. He is still in training," she replied.

                "And Soul Edge...?" Takharu asked.

                "He never took it, Takharu. He hardly spoke about it at all... What happened?"

                Takharu spoke slowly, with an ashamed tone, "I don't remember exactly what I said to him... but I know that I was really harsh. I feel so bad about it... I want to see him and apologize..."

                "On the contrary, I think that he should be thanking you," Mina stated, "Whatever it was that you said, it knocked some sense into him. It was probably because of it that he isn't being manipulated by Soul Edge."

                "I never thought of it that way..."

                Mina stopped walking, "This is my room... you can stay in here with me," she said, "We'll talk more in the morning."

                "All right. Good night, Mina."

~[---{-----|~-~|-----}---]~

                Hwang slid open the door of the dojo, "Master Myong! Mina!" he called out, "Is anyone around here?"

                "Well, I never thought I'd be glad to see you back here," Mina remarked.

                "Does that mean that you're pleased to see me?" Hwang asked.

                Mina scoffed, "In your dreams!" Hwang looked somewhat disappointed. Mina smiled at Hwang, then turned her attention to Yun Sung, "Yun Sung... Takharu is here."

                Yun Sung was glad, nervous and confused at the same time, "Why?"

                "I'll let her explain it to you."

                Takharu stepped out from behind Mina, "Hello, Yun Sung..."

                "What are you doing here?" he asked.

                "I'm... living here now. It's the only place that I have," she responded.

                Mina grabbed Hwang's arm, "Come on, let's leave them alone."

                "All right," Hwang agreed, "So that's Takharu?" Mina nodded as she pulled Hwang out of the room.

                "What do you mean it's the only place that you have? What about your home and your father?" Yun Sung questioned.

                "They're not there anymore... my father left and my home is abandoned. I can't live there alone," Takharu replied, "And despite all of that... I also just want to talk to you."

                "Good... because I have some things that I want to say to you, as well."

                Takharu reached out and held Yun Sung's hand, "Then say them."

                "You were right all along. I didn't need Soul Edge, I could have gotten Hwang to recognize me without it... and now I have, simply by joining the Coastal Defense and battling against Japan. Fighting along side of Hwang has more of an affect than just demanding a battle," Yun Sung admitted, "If I had claimed Soul Edge, I would have felt eternal pain, just like you said... I never would have realized that I had the power all along..."

                Takharu smiled, "I am so glad that you didn't become controlled by Soul Edge... Everything that I said in Ostrheinsburg... I'm so sorry..."

                "Don't be," Yun Sung cut in, "If you hadn't said all of those things, I would have taken Soul Edge, I wouldn't have join the Coastal Defense, and I wouldn't have realized that I love you!" he froze after becoming aware of what he had just said.

                "You... what...?" Takharu asked sceptically.

                "I..." Yun Sung hesitated, "... love you."

                "Yun Sung... I love you, too..." Takharu tightened her grip on Yun Sung's hand. "I wanted to tell you back then... but I was so upset..."

                Yun Sung placed his other hand on the side of Takharu's face and stared into her eyes, "That doesn't matter. Nothing that happened before does... we're together now," Yun Sung let his hand slide down to Takharu's waist and pulled her closer. He closed his eyes and kissed her lips; it was much more natural than the first time they kissed, for now they both knew exactly how they felt. They knew that they were in love and that nothing could take that away...

                Mina walked back in and interrupted their moment, "Aw... how sweet."

                Yun Sung broke the kiss. He slowly opened his eyes, revealing a tone of annoyance, "Mina..." he said in an irritated tone, "Do you mind?"

                "Not really," Mina grinned.

                Hwang stood behind her, shaking his head slowly to himself. "She still doesn't truly understand..."

                Yun Sung clenched his fists, "You're going to regret that!" he charged at Mina, who simply stepped to the side. Yun Sung stopped quickly to avoid running into a wall. Mina broke into a fit of laughter and Yun Sung cursed under his breath.

                "You need to think of the consequences before you take action, Yun Sung!" Mina teased between laughs.

                "I could say the same to you! ...Except in context of words and not actions!" Yun Sung shouted, "Because I'm going to kick your ass!"

Takharu found it unusual to see Yun Sung and Mina at their home. After a long and harsh journey... it was nice to see Yun Sung's true personality; the way that he acted at home. She looked forward to learning more about this side of Yun Sung. Hwang interrupted Takharu's thoughts with a sigh. "Welcome to the Seung dojo, Takharu," he then muttered under his breath, "Although sometimes I wonder why people choose to live with these people..."

-[~|THE END|~]-

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Yaaaaaay! Fate & Destiny is COMPLETE! Mwahaha... I am pleased with my ending. ^_^ So... can you please review and give me your opinion of this chapter – or the overall fan fiction! I may write a sequel at some point... I have an idea for it... But it may take a while for me to actually get started on it. Uh... so... thank you for reading!! Now... to finish re-writing Warrior Island. @_@ And then those other stories of mine that I have to work on... and... argh! Ah well. Writing stories is worth the time it takes. ^.~ Sayonara, readers!