Wings of Serenity the rewrite
Extra chapter 2; The sacrifices we make

Do you know what its like to loose somebody?

She was my friend, the only person who understood all of this better than I do. She was somebody who I could trust, even though we had different personalities and most likely wouldn't have become friends. And yet we did. We were given the same destiny, a gift, but we didn't think it would end like this... Well, that's not entirely true. I did. I knew it was going to end like this. I tried... I tried to prevent this - I offered to give myself up so that she could live... She had everything whilst I had nothing.

Her name was Willow Taylor. She was only a year or so younger then me, with long dark blue hair - which I suspected was dyed at some point - and brown eyes. She was very bubbly, kind and outgoing, athletic and sometimes childish. She liked to give people nicknames. Well, me mostly despite the numerous time I told her not too. Myself? Well, I was quiet and mostly kept to myself. I was more focused on my studies and wanted to become a business women when I was done. I never made any friends, I was half German and I struggled to make conversations with anybody. I could speak English, I felt more comfortable speaking it then I did with German. When I became friends with Willow she brought me out of my shell and helped me adjust around people.

Then everything changed when I received these strange powers.

I don't remember how I got them, and I'm pretty certain I didn't inherit them for anybody - not that I remembered my family or whatever I had. At first I thought I was some kind of physic medium or fortune teller but after receiving these types of visions I realised that they were more serious then I first thought. They were not normal and if I told anybody about them they would probably think I was crazy or had a very vivid imagination. Before I met Willow and became what I am today I started writing them down in a notebook so that I would remember them for later on. There was great battle being fought in space, a wedding of a young bride with purple hair, a young women with lavender hair being crowned queen, a union between two lovers, a winged princess. None of these visions should be possible, I didn't realised what any of them meant until later on.

Then I met Willow.

Our meeting wasn't by accident. I was rescuing at cat up a tree - I don't normally do things like this but I had a sudden urge to rescue it - when I received another vision and lost my balance in the process. I fell down and broke my leg in the process, I was in pain but I managed to blot it out whilst going over my vision. There was a young women, the very same person who was in one of my visions. She was lying on her stomach on a bed. She was wearing a white gown but it was ripped and torn and exposing her body, mostly around the lower area. She didn't say anything but she was crying and there was blood on the bed. When the vision ended I could have sworn I heard the women say " Help me!" The next thing I knew what that I woke up in the local hospital. That's when I met Willow. It was her dream to become a nurse so she was shadowing one of the doctors, the one she was shadowing was the same doctor who was tending to me. When the doctor left Willow decided to stay behind and we talked for a while, eventually revealing to each other our strange abilities. Willow had the ability to manipulate and grow planets and other types of vegetation. Back then it felt good having a friend with strange abilities, it meant that I was never really alone and that I had somebody to talk to.

But if we had known back then the true meaning of our abilities none of us would have accepted our fate.

The Kingdom of Mercury was known as the most coldest Kingdom through out the entire cosmos, despite it being the closest to the sun it only received little amounts of warmth. However, the Mercurians were able to live on the planet thanks to the protective wards that kept out the more vicious parts of the cold. Despite that life on Mercury was fairly normal. The living conditions were pristine, the Mercurians didn't have much in terms of materials but they used what they had. Trade was done through the remains of the planetary alliance (An agreement between the others kingdoms which allowed them to trade without anybody getting hurt. The alliance was put in place so nothing other kingdom could attack or raid a neighbouring planet) The Kingdoms ruler was a fair women who put her own kingdom first instead of her own needs. Everything was perfect... Well, almost perfect. The Mercurians were still able to trade with the Kingdoms, however, thanks to the most recent war between the Sailor Soldiers and the corruption trade was limited and scares.

It all started with the Saturn Kingdom. Nothing devastating happen to the planet, in fact the Prince of Saturn was meant to marry the Princess of the Moon Kingdom - Princess Cherika. However, before the wedding the Prince started to become more corrupt with each passing day. Nobody knows how it happened, some say it started with the Prince being mad with power and desire as he wanted the throne of Saturn. He had an older sister who had received the Saturn's Crystal and its powers and that Tartarus, the Prince in question, killed her so that he could obtain the crystal. Then everything changed after the wedding. Tartarus had everybody fooled. They believed he would be a benevolent ruler, nobody knew what he had done on Saturn as they believed his sister's death was an accident. Everything Cherika once knew about him had been a lie and when she tried to escape he captured her and locked her in her own bedroom. He was abusive to his own wife and their people and he started to attack the other kingdoms which monsters he created. Eventually, the Planetary Queens were forced to retaliate.

It was a blood bath that day. The Planetary Queens, who had been blessed with the sacred powers of their own planets, had decided to go to the Moon Kingdom and deal with the Prince, or King as he had become, and rescue there friend. They believed it would be a simple mission, a battle between light and darkness just like old times. But what they didn't realise was that Tartarus was one step a head of them. He created a group of monsters to deal with the Queens so that they would tired from fighting them and he could easily deal with them. His plan was successful and in the end he managed to kill some of the Queens whilst others were able to escape. The ones Tartarus managed to kill were from Mars, Neptune and Pluto - their bloodlines would have ended had it not been for the siblings of the Queens. The ones who survived were Thalassa of Mercury, Arabella of Venus (who was there in the place of her sister) Aelia of Jupiter and Cressida of Uranus.

Whilst some were able to live with the darkness many people question the events that took place on the Moon. If these women were the protectors of the Cosmos then why didn't they defeat Tartarus? The corrupted King was aware of these scared powers and manged to create an object that took them away. It was a simple orb that was infused with Chaos but it managed to remove the powers and leave Queens vulnerable. The Queens who managed to escape return to their own planets and any hope of peace returning to the cosmos was scattered to the winds.

Until now...

"-Mina! Hey Mina, its time to wake up!"

Blue eyes fluttered opened once she heard a familiar voice talking to her. The young women instantly regretted it as she was met with the harsh light coming through windows. She blinked her eyes a few time, allowing them to get readjusted with the natural light, before sitting up in a cross-legged position. She knew full well who was calling to her but at the same time she wished she hadn't. Part of her abilities allowed her to receive visions through dreams and when they finished sometimes she would wake throughout the night. She hadn't received one last night but she was suffering from a lack of proper sleep.

"Mina? Are you alright?"

Armina Hayes turned to where the voice came from. Willow was standing by her bed side, still in her teal pajamas, with a concerned looked on her face. The look was soon replaced with relief and a reassuring smile. Despite being in her late teens Willow's face still held the look of innocence, it was impossible for anybody to be angry with her. As for Armina herself she was annoyed with the blue haired women. Despite the numerous times she told her not to call her by any nicknames Willow always went against her words and still used her nickname for her.

"I'm fine, Willow, but how many times have I told you? Don't call me Mina" Armina remarked "You know I don't like it when you call me that"

"I'm sorry but I could help myself" Willow apologised whilst giggling. To that Armina rolled her eyes and shook her head, clearly unimpressed with Willow's childish nature. "Besides how else was I suppose to wake you up?"

"Oh, I don't know... You could of just woke me up normally" The blonde suggested.

"And where would the fun be in that?" Willow remarked playfully.

Armina shook her head again, knowing that she was loosing the battle. Nothing beats Willow's playfulness and cheerful mood. Instead she decided to change the topic "So, why have you decided to wake me up?"

"We have a meeting with Queen Thalassa in the war room after breakfast" Willow explained.

(So the Queen has finally decided to call for us) Armina thought as she removed the covers from the bed, revealing a pair of black and white stiped pajamas.

Standing up the blonde stretched her muscles before joining Willow at the table. The duo had been staying at the Palace for three days now and Queen Thalassa hadn't called for them once, she greeted them when they first arrived at the Palace but they hadn't seen her since. Now that the Queen had summoned for them they knew it was time for a very important meeting, one that would decided to the fate of the universe. At the back of Armina's mind she knew what would be coming next. She and Willow were the last two known Sailor Soldiers and they would be the ones who fight Tartarus next. Though she would never admit it Armina was terrified. She had become more accustomed to her powers but she didn't know if it was enough to defeat Tartarus. He had killed before and could easily do it again - this time it was her and Willow fighting for their life's, and not somebody who was experienced in the art of combat. Would their own skills be enough?

… Or would they end up like the dead Queens?

What was remarkable about the Mariner Palace was it was protected by a wall of ice. The ice didn't encase the Palace, the wall was very low and many people saw it as a protective circle as it was used to stop people from infiltrating it. It was a transparent material but it was strong enough so that nothing could break it - not even the most strongest of fires could melt it. There were a few rooms inside the Palace. The throne room, the royal bed chamber, the guest room, dining room, parlour room and, of course, the war room. The war room was a meeting room for the King, Queen and their generals so that they could discuss battle strategies or any new developments concerning the Mercury Kingdom. The room had dark blue flooring with silver patterns stitched in to it and the walls were painted as a mural. In the middle of the room was a circular rug and on top of it was a large, round table with a collection of maps, buttons and other documents. The table wasn't your stand oak table, it was made out of metallic substance with a built in computer that displayed information. There were a few bookcases around the room, smaller table with documents and books on them, suits of armour and other items. There were a few stain glass windows and on the walls were a few portraits that weren't covering up the mural and the Mercury coat of arms.

Armina and Willow were already in the room, waiting for Queen Thalassa and her special guest. They were both wearing gowns that the Queens left for them. Armina was wearing a purple gown with two sets of gold gemstones on it (just under her breasts) and healed shoes. There was a frilly gold bow at the back of the gown and on each of Armina's arms were long fingerless gloves with gold bracelets on them. Willow was wearing a dark green gown with a floral pattern on it, short white gloves with silver bracelets on them and flat shoes. They were siting next to one of the table waiting for Thalassa to arrive, Armina was reading book whilst Willow was admiring the mural.

"I wonder what the Queen has planned for us" Willow mused.

"I'm not sure but whatever it is Queen Thalassa wouldn't have call this meeting if it wasn't important" Armina replied.

"Do you their spy has finally contacted them?" The bluenette asked. "Thalassa did say that they were waiting for him to give them information"

"Possibly. Without the spy's information we won't know what Tartarus is planning next" Armina said.

At that moment the double doors opened and in walked a women who looked like she was only a few years older then Armina and Willow. This women was Queen Thalassa. She had light blue hair, which was in a ponytail with a bun on top, and gold eyes. She was wearing a blue gown with silver fabric on it that made the gown look like a ballgown, healed shoes and at the top of the gown was a silver bow. When Thalassa entered the room she was accompanied by another women with reddish brown hair and grey eyes. She was wearing a long sheer overlay gown in black that had a floral design on it in silver, a hooded cape which was down at the moment and black shoes. Armina and Willow joined Queen and her guest at the round table.

"Thank you for coming on such sort notice. I can only apologise for the delay" Thalassa said.

"There is no need to apologise, your grace. We completely understand" Armina replied whilst Willow nodded in agreement.

"Thank you, Lady Armina. Believe me when I say this but I wished it hadn't come to this. But without our powers we cannot stop Tartarus or save Princess Cherika" Thalassa said. She then gestured to the women next to her. "Ladies this is Princess Brieanna of Pluto. She is the sister of Queen Astrid"

"It's a pleasure to see you, Princess. I'm so sorry for your loss, you and your sister must have been close" Willow greeted sadly.

"Thank you, Lady Willow" Brieanna replied sombrely. "Yes, my sister and I were really close. I can't imagine living without her"

"We will avenge her, Brie" Thalassa promised "We will not let our sisters die in vain"

The Plutonian Princess didn't say anything, except for wiping away the few tears coming out of her eyes. Willow knew what she was going through, knowing full well what it was like to lose somebody. Before meeting Armina her own father had past away. Despite her happy-go-lucky attitude she remembered hiding herself away from the world whilst she was grieving. It was months before she was back to her usual self - that was something she would never tell Armina.

"Forgive me for interrupting ladies but we must discuss our latest news" Thalassa prompted. "As you both know the one reason as to why we haven't had this meeting is because our spy hasn't given us any information regarding Tartarus plans. Until now that is"

With that said Thalassa pressed a few buttons on the table and image of the Moon Kingdom appeared on the screen. She then picked up one of the pieces of paper and turned it over.

"How did you do that?" Willow exclaimed.

"I am a Mercurian for a reason, Lady Willow. Our technology is more advanced than that of the Earth kingdom so I was able to create a holographic computer that can be used for just about anything" Thalassa explained whilst trying to suppress a giggle. "Part of the computer is instilled to this table"

Thalassa composed herself before continuing "The report from our spy came last night and... the results are quiet shocking"

"What does it say?" Armina questioned.

"Well, there's good and bad news. The good news is that Tartarus isn't planning another war. The bad news is that he is making his way to the Galaxy Cauldron. When he gets there he plans on using the corruption that has overtaken his body and use it so that he can taint the cauldron." Thalassa revealed. " If the cauldron is tainted then everything will end. No more Sailor Soldiers, no more planets"

Seeing the looks on Armina and Willow's faces Brieanna decided to stepped in "The Galaxy Cauldron is the centre point of everything - life can be created and destroyed as well. It is watched over by a spirt guardian and if somebody wishes they can start over and begin another life. Without the Cauldron life cannot be created"

"So without the Galaxy Cauldron there will be no more Sailor Soldiers. Is that why me and Willow are the last of them?" Armina guessed.

"Possibly. When we discovered you two we were very surprised, we though you two were assigned to the Earth Kingdom - given your mineral names - but the King and Queen told us that there was no Earth Soldiers" Thalassa explained. "Before the war with Tartarus we had planned on traveling the cosmos in search for new Sailor Soldiers"

"This is where you two come in. As we cannot become Sailor Soldiers we ask that you travel to Galaxy Cauldron and stop Tartarus from tainting it" Brieanna requested. "The Cauldron is located at the centre point of the Milky way, in the Sagittarius Zero Star. The only way to get there is through the transporter"

Willow turned to look at Armina. Like it or not they had to agree with Brieanna's request. The Queens thought to protect the cosmos when they were just normal people. Without their powers they could do nothing. It was only right that they repaid the favour and defeat Tartarus.

"We'll do it"

Armina was having trouble sleeping that night. She managed to sleep for an hour or so before she received another vision in the form of a dream. Knowing it would be a few hours before sleep deprivation would catch up to her she decided to grab her dressing gown and go stand in front the window. The view from her position was beautiful. She could see few flickering light coming from the village down below and in the space sky she could see the twinkling stars. But, as much as she tried to not think about it, her mind kept drifting back to the dream she had. What she saw was shocking to say the least.

She was walking down a corridor. She didn't where she was but she was being drawn to a certain room. She saw people dressed as maids and servants with crescent moon of their foreheads. Thalassa had told her that Lunarian symbol was a crescent moon so she must be inside the walls of the Moon Palace. After a few minutes of walking Armina found herself standing outside a room. When she tested the doorknob the door opened and she walked inside.

She found herself in the royal bedroom which was done up in pastel pink, blue and white. She recognised it from one of her visions - well, she recognised the bed at least It was a four post bed with white curtains, covers and fluffy pillows. There were a few other items in the room as well: A wardrobe and dresser, a vanity with a chair in front of it, a pink rug in the middle of the room, two bookcases with a collection of books on and on the walls were a few painting and selves. There was a fireplace next to the double doors that connected the balcony with the bedroom and in front of the fireplace were two couches. Only one of the vacate. On closer examination Armina recognised her from one of her dreams. It was the women with purple hair.

Despite her skin being paler then normal, she was very beautiful. Her purple hair was a lot long then what Armina original thought and at the top of her hair was a bun. She was looking fireplace but Armina could see a pair of brown eyes and on her forehead Armina could see small glimpse of a white crescent moon. She was wearing a white gown which went down to the top of her shoes (which were flat and in magenta) Around her neck was a chunky white necklace with magenta pearls around it. On her arms were long fingerless gloves, with magenta bracelets on them, which went up to the puffy sleeves. At the top of her gown were magenta hoops with a darker shade of white in the middle of them and underneath that was two rows of magenta beads. Behind her gown was a gauzy bow which was connected to two long frilly ribbons in magenta.

(So this must be Princess Cherika) Armina thought.

When the women turned to face her she almost jumped from her sitting position and her eyes widen.

"W-who are you? How did you get in her?" She exclaimed.

Armina bowed before speaking "My name is Armina Hayes, your majesty. I didn't mean to startled you, Princess Cherika. Please forgive me"

"How do you know my name?" Cherika demanded.

"I met with Queen Thalassa three days ago and recently me and my friend had a meeting with her to discuss Tartarus's plans" Armina explained. "She and the other Queens tried to rescue you but Tartarus managed to remove their powers and kill some of the Queens in the process"

"I... I see" Cherika muttered. "Well, since nobody will come here for a while why don't you take a sit?"

Armina did as she was told and took a seat on the opposite couch.

"Some of my friends are still alive... I though Tartarus had killed all of them" Cherika said.

"Forgive me for being so blunt, your majesty, but he is a dangerous man and must be dealt with" Armina replied. "We cannot allow him to continue on like this"

"I know that now. I... I just wished I had discovered that sooner before he... before he..."

Cherika didn't finish her sentence, instead she broke down and refused to make eye contact with Armina. The blonde didn't know what to do. She should comfort her. Something frightened her and she was upset about it. She was about to remove herself from the couch... when she noticed something. Cherika's left hand was placed on her stomach and... there was a bump on a stomach.

"Y-your pregnant" Armina realised. "H-how did this happen? When did it happen?"

"Since my wedding night. When I realised what Tartarus did I tried to run away but he caught me and dragged me to my room" Cherika blubbered. "I knew he wanted sex but I refused him. He was angry with my response, he pushed me onto the bed and ripped my dress into rags. He then raped me"

Cherika shivered a little, remembering the awful events from that night "I tried screaming but nobody came to my rescue, the door was protected with magic so nobody could come in anyway. When he was done he left me, I felt so violated and threw up in the bathroom. I tried to escape again but my door was locked. Nobody came to see me, only the maids whenever they brought me my meals but they wouldn't talk to me. Tartarus only came to see me at night whenever he wanted sex. I tried to fight back but it was useless and in the end I gave up"

Cherika broke down again after that. This time Armina went to sit besides her. She brought her close and hugged her, saying soothing words and

caressed her hair with her fingers. Cherika brought her arms around Armina's shoulders and gripped them. There was slight pain but Armina didn't mind.

"Don't worry, Cherika. He will pay for what he did" Armina assured her.

"Please, you have to kill him. He doesn't know about the baby and I don't want him to find out. He'll take her from me" Cherika begged.

"I promise"

That's when Armina woke up. She couldn't help but think about Cherika. Was she safe at the moment? Was her baby okay? She couldn't believe that Cherika was pregnant with Tartarus's child but the more she though about it the more it made sense. Cherika was fearful for her baby's life and she wanted to protect it. Armina couldn't help but wonder what would happen if Tartarus had found out about the baby. Would he kill her? If he didn't do that then what would he do? Cherika told her that he would take the baby away but what would he do after that? Would he kill the baby? Or, would he corrupt it?

As she was thinking something materialised in front of her. To her surprise it was the mirror that she used as Sailor Crystal.

"That's never happened before" Armina muttered as she grabbed the handle.

Then the mirror showed her something.

"Tartarus was only partly successful. The Cauldron is started to become corrupted but it can be saved. One of you must go in there and give up your powers"

"I'll do it"

When the mirror stopped flashing Armina nearly dropped it. They were doomed to fail before they could start? Why did her mirror show her that? And why did Willow say she would be the one to give up her powers?

"So this is the Galaxy Cauldron"

The following morning had already arrived and Armina and Willow were ready to face there destiny. After breakfast they met with Thalassa and Brieanna in the transporter room. The final adjustments had already been made and the machine was ready to send them to Galaxy Cauldron. They had already transformed into their Sailor Soldier forms. Armina was known as Sailor Crystal. She had a light blue sailor suit, shoulder pads and gloves, a light purple collar, skirt and crossed healed shoes, two silver bows (the one on the front of the suit had a gold brooch on it) and a silver choker. On her forehead was a silver tiara with a gold gemstone in the middle. Willow was known as Sailor Jade. She was wearing a dark green sailor suit and shoulder pads, a green collar, gloves and boots with a blue triangular top. She also had blue bows, with a green brooch on the front bow, and blue choker. She also had silver tiara with a green gemstone.

After saying there good byes to Thalassa and Brieanna the sailors entered the transporter and were teleported away. Within a few seconds the Sailors found themselves standing on a floating island with the Cauldron underneath.

"It looks... interesting" Sailor Jade commented "I wonder how far down it is"

"I'm not sure" Sailor Crystal replied.

She hadn't told anybody about her dream or vision, not even Sailor Jade. Her complete focus was on the mission but she had a terrible feeling that something bad was going to happen. Her vision had terrified her. Tartarus wasn't here, yet, some part of her believed that they were already too late - after all her visions never lied to her. Then there was the part with Willow. She was going to sacrifice herself for... something, that part was never explained to her. Her visions had there limits but they would show her everything she needed. So why didn't this one show her everything? Well, what the reason was she couldn't allow Sailor Jade to sacrifice herself.

"Now this I wasn't expecting. I didn't realise that there was more Sailor Soldiers"

The Sailors turned around and saw a man standing before them. He had black hair, red eyes and on his forehead was a strange symbol. The symbol was the letter h with a horizontal line at the top and a curve on the lower right side. He was wearing a purple tunic shirt with a dark red trim at the bottom, black trousers and boots and a dark purple cape.

"Not that it matters, you'll soon be dead like the rest of them" The man said. "Although, I don't recognise you two from before"

"You must be Tartarus" Sailor Jade guessed.

"That I am my dear" Tartarus replied whilst giving them a mock bow. "Now, unless you want to end up like the others, I suggest you two stand down and let me get on with my work"

When he saw the Sailors getting into a fighting position Tartarus rolled his eyes. "The hard way, is it? Very well" He then used his powers to attack the girls with a dark wave of power.

Summoning her mirror, Sailor Crystal yelled "Crystal shield!" and created a barrier around her and Sailor Jade.

With that was happening Sailor Jade went down on one knee and placed her right hand on the ground. She felt the ground shake and within a few seconds vines sprouted out from the ground where Tartarus was standing. The vines were able to trap the man but he was able to break free very quickly. That was Sailor Jade's plan as, by the time he had destroyed the vines, she used a "Gaia's wrath!" to attack him with a force of nature. The attack was strong enough to send Tartarus sparling backwards.

"You bitch!" Tartarus snarled.

He used his magic to knock Sailor Jade with a strong force.

"Jade!" Sailor Crystal exclaimed.

"Your next!" Tartarus yelled.

He rushed towards Sailor Crystal. Within a split second she put her barrier up but she wasn't quick enough. Tartarus shoved her down and started hitting her. She managed to block a few of his punches but he managed to get a few good hits on her. Sailor Crystal started thrashing and tried to remove him from her body but it was pointless. He was stronger then her.

"Now die!" He growled.

He was about to finish her of when something grabbed him and threw him backwards. He hissed in pain when he tried to move into a sitting. Slowly, he stood up and eventually he saw Sailor Jade staring at him with a vine that looked like a grabble hook.

"Why don't you pick on somebody your own size?" She dared him.

Growling, he was about to attack her when Sailor Crystal started to glow. Slowly, she got to her feet but she wasn't in any pain. It was like her injuries and bruises had completely vanished. She was about to say something when the tiara fell from her forehead and landed on the ground, shattering upon impact. Then, there was a strange glow on Sailor Crystal forehead which revealed a symbol. The middle of the symbol was a circle with four points coming out of it, making the symbol look like a star. Around the symbol were four more circles.

"You will never hurt another women again!" She vowed.

Picking up her mirror she yelled "Supreme Crystal reflection!" and a bright ray of light emerged from it. The light started to become brighter, so much so that Sailor Jade had to turn away and shield her eyes, and eventually hit Tartarus. He screamed in pain as the light washed over him. When it faded Tartarus vanished.

"Is... Is he gone?" Sailor Jade asked.

"I hope so. What he did to Princess Cherika was disgusting and I hope he burns for it" Sailor Crystal replied.

"I'm afraid not"

Looking behind them they saw a spirit standing before them. She had pale blonde hair, which went all the way down to the bottom of her gown, and light blue eyes with white eye shadow and pale pink lips. She was wearing a white gown that was shaped like a ball gown at the bottom and the top of the gown was shaped like a fairy bodice. On her gown were beads and her feet were showing. On her head was a beaded tiara.

"That wasn't the real Tartarus. If it was he soul would of returned to the Cauldron or be sent to the Underworld" Guardian Cosmos told them. "After fighting the Queens the last time we was weakened from the amount of power he used. He wanted to come here but he was still recovering. Instead, he created a replica and made it do its bidding"

"So we haven't defeated him then..." Sailor Crystal muttered.

"His time will come soon, Sailor Crystal. He will meet his end when his daughter is born" Guardian Cosmos promised. "However, the replica was tasked in tainting the Cauldron and its presence here has started to taint it"

"Is there nothing we can do?" Sailor Jade asked.

"Tartarus was only partly successful. The Cauldron is started to become corrupted but it can be saved. One of you must go in there and give up your powers"

(Why does this sound familiar?) Sailor Crystal thought.

"I'll do it"

"NO!" Sailor Crystal yelled.

Sailor Jade turned to the blonde in complete shock. Why did she stop her? Did she see something like this before?

"If you go in there you will not come back. You'll be sacrificing everything, you'll never see your family again" Sailor Crystal told her. Then she turned to Guardian Cosmos. "I have seen a vision of this before and I will not let Willow enter there. Let me go in there. It doesn't have to be her"

Guardian Cosmos was about to say something but once she saw the symbol on Sailor Crystal's forehead she closed her mouth. That symbol was a part of another group. She was meant to be a part of team that would bring in a new era to the cosmos, a new dynasty for the Moon Kingdom. She is the Sailor soldier of visions and prophecy for a reason. Here, she was at wrong place at the wrong time.

"I'm sorry but it can't be you. You duty is to another, and she has not been born yet. You were meant to be a part of her team, that was always your fate" Guardian Cosmos replied. "Your friend... was always meant for this"

"But... but..."

"Mina, its okay. I don't mind doing this" Sailor Jade assured her. "Your duty is towards somebody else, not to me. You have to be strong enough to let me go"

"Please... don't do it" Sailor Crystal begged with tears coming from her eyes.

"I'm sorry" The bluenette replied.

She walked towards the ledge facing towards the Cauldron. She kept telling her that it was okay, if she was meant for this then she can do it. Turned around she saw Guardian Cosmos and Sailor Crystal looking at her, with that latter of the two breaking down in a frenzy of tears. It pained her to do this but it had to be done.

"Good bye... my friend" Sailor Jade said before jumping into the Cauldron.

Armina fell to her knees., her body was hunched over and she was pound it her fist into the ground. She didn't do it... She didn't save her friend. Why... Why does it have to be like this? She was to serve another? To hell with that, she had just lost her only friend. And for what? So that other people could live? It was selfish of her but she didn't care. She was... alone again.

"Are you satisfied?" She demanded.

"This was never about satisfaction. Without Sailor Soldiers the universe can never be at peace. My deepest sympathy's, Sailor Crystal" Guardian Cosmos told her. "You shouldn't have been born until the time the ice princess is born and yet here you stand"

"And here I stand..." Sailor Crystal muttered.

"You mustn't blame yourself for what is done. Your friend will return to you one day" Guardian Cosmos said.

Sailor Crystal didn't reply to her. Instead, she stood up and used her magic to create a wings which sprouted from her back. Truthfully, she didn't know what to do. There was no point in returning home, nobody would be waiting for her. She could tell Willow's family about what she did but she didn't want to go through the emotions again. How cowardly, she thought. She couldn't return to Mercury. she couldn't tell Thalassa or Brieanna that she failed and lost... and lost a friend in the process. She didn't know where the Moon Kingdom was. She hated Tartarus for what he did to Cherika and wanted nothing more but to finish him of once and for all, or maybe she would end up dead. No, she wasn't thinking straight. She... She needed to get away from here. She ran to the opposite side of the Island and flew of into the Cosmos.

She had no idea where she was going... And she did not care.

That's how I ended up at Glacius Palace. I failed my mission, we hadn't killed the real Tartarus and Willow ended up sacrificing herself. I don't know what happened to other Queens or Cherika, I could only imagine what would happen next for her and her baby. I could only blame myself. I could of stopped Willow from entering the Cauldron so that she could live. Guardian Cosmos did tell me that she would return one day but would it really be her? No, it would be some else. Someone who looked like Willow but without her memories - memories of our friendship. What worried me greatly was that we were never meant to be friends in the first place. I was born at the wrong place at the wrong time. As you know my duty was always to Princess Icesisity. I was the protector of her Palace and a member of her team. If I had not run away and went to find Princess Cherika I could of serve her and her daughter. But I chose to run away...

When I found the Glacius Palace I was overcome by a number of emotions. Anger, sadness, shame, pity for Willow's family and Cherika's fate, grief, indignation. It wasn't fair. That should of been me, I had no family to return to and nobody would miss me if I had chose to sacrifice myself. That's why I gave up. I didn't want to fight anymore. I know I still my duty, I wasn't sure if the Queens had their powers returned to them, but they would have to wait for Cherika's daughter to be born. I know its selfish of me but... I can't do it anymore.

That's why I put myself in a eternal sleep. I made a vow to myself that I wouldn't wake up unless Icesisity came to the Glacius Palace and become the ruler of the Permafrost Moon. In a way it was like I was contiuning my duty without fighting another evil. My spirt left my body and became the very same Armina you see today. It protected the Glacius Palace whilst I was sleeping and would only return to my body if Icesisity had arrived. Before I went to sleep I made a second vow to myself. That I would protect Icesisity no matter the cost.

Although... She did proved to me that she didn't need saving.