Momiji stormed out of the temple.

She was furious, she couldn't believe how obstinate Ryu was being. She never thought for a second he would actually sit this out, given what they were facing. But actively keeping her from fighting? When things were this serious? This was ridiculous, she couldn't figure out any logic behind it. She had never known him to be this reckless.

"Stubborn ninjas," She grumbled to herself.

She knew Ryu had come to grips with his own death long ago. As a ninja who'd quite literally been through hell and back, he would've had to. But there was a difference between accepting the possibility of death and completely disregarding it. It's like he has a death wish.

She walked aimlessly through the clan. Too absorbed in thought to notice where she was going, or that someone was following her.

She stopped and looked up, she was in front of the big main gate that was the entrance to the clan. She looked around the big city circle, all the vendors and shops were closed. The streets that had been so alive and crowded only a few hours ago were now almost completely empty, only a few people were still out. There was a peacefulness to it she thought.

She stepped up to the main gate, without saying anything they swung open for her and she walked through. There was one other place in the clan she wanted to see.

She walked through the forest, thought the cave and down the steps, she traveled down the cliff until she came up to the view she had wanted to see.

The large valley she had seen before was illuminated by the moonlight. Wind rippled through the ankle-high grass. By the treeline in the distance, she could see a sparkling river. The view was breathtaking in the daylight, it was otherworldly at night.

When she got to the bottom of the cliff, instead of following the path she walked through the meadow. She wanted to go to that stream.

She walked through the meadow to the river, she sat down on the mossy grass. She let out a sigh. Tears she didn't even realize she was holding in started sliding down her cheeks. She wasn't angry anymore, she didn't know what to do. She had already lost her family, the village, and now she was about to lose Ryu too. The only person she had left.

Suddenly she felt an unfamiliar presence, she jumped to her feet. Pinpointing the source, she saw a masked figure perched in a nearby tree. Fast as lighting, she dashed and jumped ten feet into the air, catching the figure by the throat. Knocking them out of the tree, she and the figure came crashing to the ground, Momiji landing on top of the person.

There was just enough light for her to identify the person was wearing a ninja garb... a Mugen Tenshin ninja garb. She removed her hand from the person's throat and got off them. Apologizing profusely.

Of course, there would be guards.

The ninja rolled over on their side coughing. They sat up and removed their mask. It was Hiroshi, the ninja that had guided them through the clan.

"I apologize for startling you, miss." He said, rubbing his neck.

"It's my fault."

"I have to say, I've never seen anyone move like that save for Master Hayabusa. You're incredibly skilled."

Hiroshi was grinning. His long black hair pulled into a tight bun. His soft features and lack of age lines gave him a youthful appearance. If she didn't know he was one of the clan's elders she would have guessed he was mid-twenties.

"Thank you," She said.

They sat in silence for a minute, neither of them knowing what to say to each other.

"Can I ask what you're doing all the way out here?" Hiroshi asked.

"... I just kind of ended up here. It's really beautiful."

He smiled. "I can't help but notice there seems to be something troubling you."

There was something about this man's earnest personality that made Momiji trust him, or maybe she just wanted to talk to someone.

"Have you ever lost someone? Someone you were really close to," She asked.

Hiroshi was staring at the stream, a somewhat far off look on his face. It made him look like he had lived a hundred lifetimes. "I did, a long time ago,"

"How do you deal with the loneliness?"

He chuckled, "That's a question people spend their entire life searching for."

"What did you do?"

"Drink,"

"Oh," Momiji didn't know what to say to that.

"I can't really give you a solution, or some grand perspective-changing revelation. Something like that rarely exists. All I can tell you is that fates are intertwined. We'll meet again, in another life."

That last part sounded more like he was talking to himself than her. Momiji though about what Hiroshi had said. Fate, destiny, she never really thought much about either before. As far as she had been concerned, she was in control of her own fate. But now that she's found herself in a situation she certainly wasn't in control of...

Suddenly Hiroshi's body went rigid. Momiji could hear a faint rustling, It snapped her out of her thoughts.

Hiroshi jumped to his feet, "We need to go,"

A fiend burst from a nearby tree, hurtling towards Momiji. claws extended, teeth bared.

Hiroshi unsheathed the katana strapped to his back. In one clean motion, he removed the demon's head from its body before it could reach her. The fiend fell to the ground with a thud at Momiji's feet.

Momiji jumped to her feet and the two ran back in the direction of the clan. Looking up, she saw a thin mist hanging in the air. It was blocking out the moonlight, leaving them in nearly complete blackness.

They were halfway across the meadow when fiends started melting out of the darkness on all sides. She counted more than twenty.

"Catch!" Hiroshi shouted, tossing her a knife. His sword drawn, he dashed into the nearest cluster of demons. Slashing, and maneuvering, he handled the group of demons with great skill.

Momiji slit the throat of the first demon that attacked her, she sent a flaming fist through the second. She wasn't sure how many fiends she killed, but a ring of bodies quickly formed around her.

When she didn't see any more fiends, she glanced over at Hiroshi. He was finishing off the last demon, an impressive ring of bodies around him.

She was about to compliment his skill when a woman's laughter echoed through the valley, Momiji looked around but she didn't see anyone. Turning back to look at Hiroshi, she saw a look of fear on his pale face.

"You have to get back to the clan right now," he said.

Momiji's eyes widened. Demons started melting out of the darkness all across the meadow. Black blobs fell from the overhead mist, crashing down in a disgusting heap and forming into a demon. There were three times more than before, and they kept coming. She had never seen so many fiends in one place before.

"Run!" Hiroshi shouted.

"I can't leave.."

"Go! They aren't after me..."

Two demons charged at him. With a quick slash he sliced one of the demons in half, he impaled the other through the forehead. Three more charged at him before he even finished the first two.

Momiji looked over her shoulder, the army of fiends would be on them in seconds. She had to think fast.

Folding her hands, she began to cast a shield around them, giving them a few minutes of breathing room. But she wasn't fast enough.

She looked up to see blood gushing from a hole in Hiroshi's chest. One of the fiends had gotten behind him, it shoved it's hand through his chest, ripping his heart out. He crumpled to the ground.

The fiend tossed the organ to the ground and charged towards Momiji.

Her throat tightened. She sat down, legs crossed, hands folded. She chanted a quick spell and a barrier formed around her.

The army of fiends hit the barrier with the force of an explosion. They scratched and pounded on the shield.

Tears stung her eyes, she closed them. She cleared her mind and focused on the energy flowing through her body into the shield. She didn't know how long she could keep it sustained. Ten minutes? Five? Two? Her head was already starting to ache with the strain.

"You're very powerful, young one."

Momiji's eyes flew open. A girl was sitting cross-legged in front of her. It was the same girl she had seen at the village. The one holding the cursed knife.

"Shh, it will all be over soon."

Nyx reached out and placed a finger on Momiji's forehead. She blacked out.

Momiji breathed in, sulfur and smoke burned her lungs. Charred bodies and houses burned to ash surrounded her. She was standing in the ruins of the Hayabusa village.

She walked through the village. Her mind felt foggy, it was like she was in a dream. She saw three bodies that hadn't been burned, she approached them. It was her family, her sister laid in between her mother and father. Their bodies were spotless, peaceful expressions on their faces.

This must be when the village was attacked by Doku.

But her family's bodies, like everyone else, hadn't been preserved. She knelt down and touched her sister's face. Even in death, Kureha was beautiful. She was wearing red and white shrine maidens robes and the peaceful expression on her face made her look like she was sleeping.

Momiji was standing in a meadow, she was wearing a sleeveless white dress. A cloudless blue sky was overhead. A light breeze rippled through her hair and the sun warmed her skin. She took in a deep breath of fresh air, a sense of bliss filled her lungs.

Someone called her name. She turned around and saw Ryu standing behind her.

He was wearing loose blue robes, his long hair in a ponytail, an easy smile played on his lips. She had never seen him smile like that before. He held out his arms, she stepped forward into his warm embrace.

She was standing in the woods where she trained with Ryu.

"I'm leaving"

Ryu's voice echoed in her head. She looked around but didn't see him.

"I'm leaving"

"Why?" She heard herself ask, her voice was shaky.

"I'm leaving"

"Don't leave me" Tears started streaming down her face.

"I'm gone."

She didn't know where she was or what she was looking at. She was standing in a desert, it was mid-day and the scorching sun was shining over a large city. She was miles away but she could clearly see, the city was in ruins.

Is this a nightmare? She thought to herself.

"No," a voice in her head answered. "This is reality."

She was sitting on a stone bench in front of a pond in a beautiful garden. Purple flowers and large overhanging cherry trees were in full bloom. There was something vaguely familiar about the garden.

"My reality."

Momiji's eyes flew open, her heart was racing, her head pounded. She struggled to remember what was happening, the memories of those visions or dreams were overwhelming her. Then it hit her, she was attacked. She and Hiroshi had been attacked... Her heart stung... Then she was attacked by...

Nyx! She tried to sit up but couldn't, thick rope bound her limbs together. She looked up, the sun was setting. Had she been unconscious the entire day? She started to struggle against her bonds.

"There's no use in that."

Momiji turned best she could to see who spoke. A beautiful woman was standing behind her at the end of the alter. She was wearing a long elegant black satin dress, a loose purple robe hung off her shoulders. Jewels hung from her neck and her long silky black hair cascaded in a wave down her back.

Her eyes were closed and her hands were outstretched like she was preparing for a ritual.

"Are you Nyx?" Momiji asked the woman.

The woman opened her eyes and let out a radiant smile. "Yes, I'm Nyx."

She had changed form, but why? Whatever the reason Momiji didn't think it was good. She wondered about those visions again.

"What did you see in your visions?" Nyx asked as if she had read Momiji's mind.

"What were they?"

Nyx closed her eyes again and raised her arms over the alter. "Hmm, I showed you things to come, things past, things you fear."

"Why?"

Nyx smiled again because I didn't need you conscious until now.

'What do you want?"

Nyx sighed. "I'm getting tired of that question." She walked around the altar and sat down next to Momiji. Faster than Momiji could register, Nyx pulled out a knife, the same cured blade that had wounded Ryu. She drove the knife into Momiji's stomach.

Pain like she had never felt before seared through Momiji's entire body, she wanted to scream, but she couldn't find her voice. Her vision was dizzy from the pain. So much pain.

"I showed you what I want in those visions, and I must thank you for making it all possible," Nyx said. She got up, leaving the knife impaled in her stomach.

Walking back around the alter, she placed her hand on Momiji's forehead. "Shhh," Nyx soothed. "I know it hurts but it will all be over soon."

Momiji couldn't stay awake anymore, she slipped back into unconsciousness.