Nakiad felt his sudden change of attitude, and felt that the Dark Lord was
about to retrieve creatures to fight on his side.  And the Chosen prepared his
own energy to intercept that of his enemy, knowing that the creatures the Dark
Lord would summon would probably destroy the scouts.  Nakiad knew that stopping
the summoning would take up the rest of his energy, and would mean his death,
but he had no choice.  If he did not stop it, the scouts would die.

But the two enemies were close now, in some ways overlapping.  And Nakiad felt
the thoughts of the other, felt his intentions.  For a moment, his mind froze
in astonishment, and then he did a very strange thing.

Hiding it very carefully from the Dark Lord, he laughed.

And suddenly, the energy advantage that the Shadow had was lost, used up in the
resurrection of his allies, and the two were on equal siding once more.

You might not know this, he thought silently at the sailor scouts, but you have
given me a chance.  He does not know what events happened here, and so he made
this mistake, he told the scouts, careful not to reveal his thoughts.

<You have given the Universe a chance.>



Sweaty and tired, Rei faced the remaining shadows along with the rest of the
scouts, ready to call upon her power once more.  Her energy was almost
completely exhausted, along with the rest of the scouts' energy, and they were
barely holding their own.  But by her count, there were only six or seven
shadows left, and, with the help of Darian and Kaneth, they would prevail.

Then she felt something, a subtle trace of power that came through despite the
sphere of conflict blinding her senses.  The shadows shrank back as well,
obviously feeling it as well, retreating to figure out what was going on.

As one, the scouts, their protector, and the Negaverse warrior turned to one
side.

Four figures were forming, four humanoid figures.

The first appeared fully formed, a layer of some transparent material
dissolving from his skin.

The second formed out of sparkling dust, flowing together to create a figure.

A flurry of flower petals twisted in a non existent wind, twirling, forming a
third.

Blue bubbles of energy appeared, coming together in a vaguely humanoid form,
then changed into a person.

The four stood in a semicircle, ready for battle.

And Rei knew who they were.

*Jadeite.*

*Nephlyte.*

*Zoicite.*

*Malachite.*

The Four Generals appeared in battle stances, ready to throw themselves
into the fray.

A part of Nakiad watched while he battled the Dark Lord, for the Chosen was
almost certain that the summoning of them was a mistake.

He hoped he was correct.



He was free!

After an unknown time, frozen in the agony of the crystal, feeling pain
every single moment without being able to do anything, he was finally able to
move.  His mind screamed joy in his head, shrieking madness at the same time.
He had never expected himself to be free of the crystal, and he had given in
somewhat over time, letting his mind go as it wanted, anything to stop
insanity.  

He was already mad, though he did not realize it.

And he was unable to cope with the imprisonment, not being able to set his mind
on a single focus as another might have, he merely screamed silently inside his
head, hoping for only one thing, for an end to it.

Now, he thought, now I shall wreak vengeance upon the Queen and all who stand
in my way.  His mind refused to process the knowledge that Queen Beryl could
have destroyed him with a thought, and he had no knowledge of her demise.

He forced his eyes into focus, slow because of the time they spent staring into
a point several inches away from him.  They had been frozen along with the rest
of him at the point of impact, and it was difficult to move, but his hatred was
strong, and his insanity gave him power.

The scene resolved itself into startling clarity.

In front of him, five figures stood in a type of outfit he knew all too well.
They were surrounded by some other figures, but his brain filtered them out, he
no longer had the capacity for logic.  The only things he saw were the five
scouts.

Five? His mind groped for an answer, Five? He mouthed the words as if they were
vile.  How could there be five, a portion of his brain asked him, but he did
not care.  He recognized the uniforms, and that was all that mattered.

"You did this to me!" He shrieked, launching himself at the five scouts.



Nephlyte opened his eyes for the first time in what felt like an eternity.  He
remembered nothing since the moment of his death, nothing but peace and
contentment.  He had been free of the burden of evil, he had felt love.  He had
heard Molly say she loved him, he had heard her laugh.  And he saw her cry with
the rest of the scouts as he died.

And because of this, he went to death content.

And now he could feel again, he could see again.  He opened his eyes, focusing
them easily.  For a few moments, he saw Molly once more, and he whispered her
name gently.  Then he realized he was somewhere else, back in the Negaverse.
With detachment, he saw someone, Jadeite, he recognized, launch himself at a
group of  white clad girls, hate plainly written on his snarl.

For a moment, Nephlyte did nothing.  This did not concern him, he knew none of
the people involved well enough to care.

Then Tuxedo Mask turned, crying out at one of the girls. "*Serena*!"  The
voice, full of anguish reached Nephlyte, and the world blurred around the
general.  Serena became Molly and Tuxedo Mask became himself.

His body reacted before conscious thought, a crystal knife materializing in his
hand.  Before he really knew what happened, the knife left his hand and slammed
itself into Jadeite's side.

Then the thoughts hit Nephlyte.  

Serena was Molly's friend.  

If she died, he would be hurting Molly.  

The thoughts seemed to take a long time to travel through his mind.

Tuxedo Mask loves Serena.  

I loved Molly.  
<br>I can not let anyone suffer as Molly did when I died.

Molly is good.

I love her.

And he reached the conclusion, almost too far from normal for his mind to
grasp. "I am not evil," he whispered in wonder.

At the same moment, he slammed into Jadeite, just as the other general was
getting up.  As the two locked together in combat, Nephlyte looked into the
other's eyes.

Full of hate and rage, the eyes burned into his memory, the absence of humanity
etching themselves onto his soul.



Miscalculating Nephlyte's loyalty and Jadeite's sanity were the first mistakes
the Dark Lord had made.  The other error was in the way the generals
materialized.

They started out in a semicircle, Nephlyte and Jadeite in the center, facing
the Sailor Scouts ahead of them.

Zoicite and Malachite appeared on the ends of the semicircle, facing each
other, not the scouts.

With astonishment, Malachite gazed at his love, whom he expected never to see
again other than in death.

"Zoicite", he whispered, the name catching in his throat.

But Malachite's love heard him, staring at him from across the distance.

"Malachite," the other responded with the same love, and they rushed into each
others arms, ignoring their surroundings for a few moments.

And that was all the time the scouts needed to adjust to the new situation and
prepare to defend themselves against the new threats.  They turned so that
Serena was facing both threats, the shadows and the four generals.

Then Kaneth snarled at them, still slashing at the black creatures. "I'll
handle the shadows, you take care of the generals!"  And, in fact, he did seem
to be in control, with only four shadows remaining who faded back from his
strikes, fearing for their lives.  But the call of their leader was strong, and
they had to continue to attack, unable to flee from the battle.

"He's right," Darian agreed, pulling the altered rose from his cane and putting
it away. "He can handle it.  We have to get through those generals."

"Ooooo.... How did they get here, anyway?," exclaimed a very annoyed Serena, "I
thought we toasted them."

Ami was busy tapping away at her computer, scanning the four with her visor.
She shook her head, baffled. "Apparently, they are back, just as powerful as
ever, except they do not have the energy of Queen Beryl behind them."

Darian took out a bunch of roses, crouching down a little. "Those two," he
indicated Zoicite and Malachite, "won't be absorbed in each other forever. When
they see what's up, I'll handle Zoicite, you just take care of Malachite."

Lita glanced at him briefly. "What about the other two?"

Serena turned to her. "Don't worry, Nephlyte is on out side," I hope, she added
to herself, then continued aloud, "he saved me from Jadeite."

Lita shook her head, baffled, but let it go.

At the same time, Malachite lifted his head. "The Sailor Scouts!" He snarled
the words, lifting his hand.

"And Cape-Boy!" Zoicite shrieked, separating from the other and getting ready.
The two exchanged a glance and launched themselves into battle.



Zoicite and Darian fenced for a few moments, neither gaining an advantage, the
general's crystal sword blocked by the prince's cane, and Tuxedo Mask's roses
always buffeted aside by whirlwinds of petals.

"Give it up, cape-boy," the general snarled as they circled each other, "I
defeated you before and I can do it again."

Darian smiled, forcing the words to come lightly from his mouth.  In truth, his
battle with the shadows had weakened him, and the other seemed stronger than
before. "Only by trickery and deceit did you hurt me that time, and, if I
recall from my stay in the Negaverse, you got killed for trying to fry me."

"Well, I'm here now," Zoicite snarled, "and I'm backed by the strength of the
Dark Lord.  Nothing can stop me, especially not you.  You've interfered with my
life for the last time."

So that's why the other was so strong, Darian thought, the Dark Lord must have
given his minions some of his power.  He blocked another blow from the crystal
sword, wincing a bit as his right shoulder screamed pain.  It had been brushed
by a shadow tendril, and most of the energy had left it for a few moments.

The general laughed. "Looks painful, cape-boy."  I wish that viper wouldn't
call me that, Darian thought in annoyance. The general was continuing, not
knowing the prince's thoughts. "If you recall, the last time we fought, we you
had an injured shoulder as well."  Darian winced again, realizing that the
touch of the shadow had been in exactly the same place, and wondered if it was
a coincidence.  "And, if I remember correctly, I gave that wound to you that
time."

He remembered that it was his turn, the verbal by-play of the two had been
played out too often to be abandoned now. "You only hurt me by cheating that
time, and, if *I* recall, that was the day before your... demise."  He
grinned at the other and the general snarled.  Glad he was able to make the
other respond emotionally, he followed it up with a query that was not very
well thought through, but one that had been on the tip of his tongue for a
while. "How come you are back, anyway?  I thought you were dead."

Zoicite stopped attacking for a moment, the sword lowered. "Actually I don't
know," for a moment the normally jeering voice was thoughtful, then the general
continued. "I'm just glad I have the chance to rid my self of you.  Forever!"

With that, the crystal sword suddenly came up, too fast, and as he tried to
wrench his cane to respond, his shoulder shrieked in pain, dropping the black
stick.

Zoicite stood over him, sword raised and ready two strike. "Now.... Now, you
will die."



The five scouts faced Malachite, tired expressions on their faces.  They had
been using their energy to fight the shadows, and did not expect to have
another challenge so soon.  Nevertheless, despite their low strength, they put
on a brave front.

"You'll which you never came back, Negatrash," Lita exclaimed, readying to
attack, then faltered as she realized she had barely enough energy for one
thunderbolt, not nearly enough for a Thunder Dragon.  Looking around, she saw
similarly grim faces on the other scouts, confirming that all of them were
having the same problem.

Except for Serena.  She was as ready for a fight as he had ever been,
remembering the amount of pain Malachite cost her before.  The Imperium Silver
Crystal was somewhat drained, but only of one aspect of its power, and the
force that made her Sailor Moon, the force that powered her Tiara was intact.
She glared at the general, going into one of her standard poses, ready for
attack. "Yeah, we have beaten you before, and we will do so again!  I am Sailor
Moon, the champion of justice!  And I- hey," Serena yelped as Rei slammed into
her, pushing the princess out of the way of an energy blast.

Malachite laughed. "You've defeated me once, but this time, I have the power of
the Shadow behind me.  And you are tired from your fight.  And, unlike the last
time we met, I will not make foolish mistakes.  Now, face the power of the
Negaverse!  HA!"  He yelled, releasing spheres of explosive energy.

The scouts dodged aside as the balls of power exploded around them.  Several of
them felt licks of fire against their skin, only realizing a second later that
they had been injured.

"Oh yeah?," Rei exclaimed, holding one hand against her side where red stained
the white uniform.   "Well, take this." She breathed in, aware that she will
get only one shot for this. "Mars Fire..." She felt her power ebb, and finished
quickly. "Ignite!"

A red lance of flames sped from her fingers to Malachite's torso, and hit him,
bathing him in fire.

Looking almost bored, the general closed his eyes, a black aura surrounding him
for a moment.  The fires flickered and died out, wiped from his uniform by the
energy he had summoned.  Rei stared with astonishment at an undamaged and
slightly amused Malachite. "You try that old trick with me?  Ha!"  With an
almost negligent move, he hurled a bolt of energy at her, and as she tried to
move, her energy dissipated and she felt her scout powers exhausted.  As she
began to fall, another figure spun her away from the path of the impact, saving
her.

"Are you all right, Rei?" A worried Lita was staring at her face.

She frowned and shook her head. "I've used up the last of my powers.  Sorry."

Meanwhile, Sailor Venus and Sailor Mercury were attacking simultaneously, a
blast of light and bubbles impacting upon the stationary figure.

Malachite laughed again as an invisible shield absorbed their power, and
watched them slowly collapse to the ground, their energy spent.  He felt
something off to one side, and saw a lance of lightning approaching.  Relaxed,
he stayed there, waiting for it to hit, then deflected it to the ground at the
last moment.  Four down, one to go, he thought with a bitter smile.



Serena's eyes filled with tears as she watched the other scouts fail. "Ami,
Mina, Lita, Rei," the girl whispered, "my friends."  A black cat nudged her
ankle.

"They are still alive, Serena.  We are counting on you."  But Luna looked
frightened.

Without a further word, Luna leapt at Malachite along with Artemis.

You may have been able to defeat the others, Serena thought, but you won't stop
me.  While the cats distracted him, she took off her Tiara.  It did not have
the power of the scepter, but she had used the energy for that fighting the
shadows. The fragile tiara was her last hope, and although it had failed her
before, she believed in it.

"Moon Tiara..."  She whispered so that he would not hear. "Magic."

A disk of light left her hand, going straight for the general.  Malachite did
not seem to see it, concentrating on getting the cats off him, then seemed to
catch a glimpse of it out of the corner of his eyes.  Too late, he turned, just
in time for the tiara to smash into his unprotected chest.

"Yes-!"  Serena began to exclaim, then watched in horror.

The tiara bounced off Malachite's chest, landing on the ground as a golden
discus.  He picked it up, protecting himself against its energy with a force
field around his fingers. "You were perhaps aiming at me?," he asked
dangerously.  "Next time, try harder!"  and he sent every ounce of negative
energy he had into the disk, overloading its power.  In a split second the
tiara changed from a brilliant shining gold to a twisted black color. "Let's
see how well you can stand against your own power."  Without warning, he hurled
the tiara back at Sailor Moon, her eyes widening as she realized what just
happened.  Then all was blackness.



The general watched as the disk hit the sailor, draining her energy and
reversing her transformation.  She collapsed to the ground, the disk reverting
to its normal tiara shape, the dark energy coming back to Malachite.  The
general looked at the other scouts, all exhausted, with no more energy to fight
him with.  With a thought, he created a blast of air that flung the bodies of
the scouts into one area, easier of him to destroy.  Only feet away, Tuxedo
Mask fell down, about to be impaled by a crystal sword, and Malachite decided
the deaths of these heroes would be simultaneous.  Without remorse, he raised
his hands, gathering enough energy to vaporize the whole group.

"Dark Energy..." He began.



Kaneth chopped off the tentacle, then came in, slashing several times at the
main body of the shadow.  The dark form began to dissolve, the last of the
creatures dying with a shriek.  It faded, the damage too great to repair, tried
to grasp at Kaneth, then disappeared completely.  The warrior sighed in relief,
sheathing his sword and letting his guard down for a moment.  Then he looked
around for the scouts...

And saw the group with Malachite standing over them.  A yard or two to the
side, Zoicite raised a sword up, an expression of pure hatred on the general's
face as the crystal sword was ready to plunge into the black form on the
ground.

Malachite glanced over at his love, then raised his hands. "Dark Energy.." He
began, and, without thinking, Kaneth found himself yelling out.

"No!"

The two hesitated, looking at him as he ran towards the two.

Zoicite snarled. "You are one of the Lesser Generals, you have no authority
over us.  Only the Dark Lord can order us now."  The general looked back and
Kaneth drew his sword in frustration, unsure what to do.

This time, it was Malachite who looked up. "Fool.  You have no power over us
with that weapon.  Leave before we kill you too."

There had to be a way to convince them, Kaneth thought. "Wait," he yelled
again. "I have authority.  I have been in command of the Negaverse army."

Malachite glanced at him. "Past tense, so you no longer are.  Do you have any
other precedence?," he asked sarcastically. Kaneth swallowed and looked down.

Then another voice came. <"Yes he does.">  A bright sphere of light
appeared in front of the two generals. <"He speaks on behalf of the
Chosen.">

Zoicite snarled again. "He has no authority over us, he is from the-"

Suddenly, Malachite raised his hand, silencing his love. "Very well.  The
Chosen is one of the greater powers of the universes, and though we are not
subordinate to him, it behooves us to listen. Speak, but we will have no
compulsion to obey, right my love?"  He gestured to Zoicite and the other
nodded, thought still angry at him for interrupting.

Kaneth's mind whirled, now that he had their attention, he did not know what to
say.  Looking over to the scouts, he noticed with relief that they were alive,
just without energy and being held captive by some force, probably
Malachite's.

Kaneth swallowed, a decidedly human habit that he had somehow picked up over
the years.  Suddenly, a voice came directly into his head. <He believes in
you.>  It was Guardian, Kaneth realized with a start, and the 'he' could
only refer to the Chosen. 

His mind suddenly cleared, an idea coming to him, and Kaneth took a deep
breath.



Nakiad faced the dark Lord, feeling their powers begin to fade, canceled out.
The other snarled, realizing that by summoning the four generals, he had given
the Chosen a chance to win.  Still, the Shadow reasoned, the generals would
defeat the scouts and come to his aid, then he would triumph ultimately.

Nakiad, too knew this, but it did not matter. He had been given a chance to
defeat the evil, defeat it forever, or at least for another period.  That
Nakiad would die doing any one of those things did not matter.

Then he saw it, at the same time as his opponent, the astonishment leaking
through the barrier of energy between them.  They watched, still fighting, as
Jadeite went down under Nephlyte, and watched as the scouts organized an attack
against the other two generals.

The Shadow snarled across the think curtain of energy that separated them.
"They are still stronger than the scouts, as they are.  I will yet win this
day."  With an effort of hate, he flung more energy at the Chosen, the other
somewhat shaken.

For the dark Lord was right, and Nakiad watched with a part of his mind as
Malachite and Zoicite defeated their opponents.  Then the chosen felt
something, another variable.

Kaneth.

He was trying to argue with them, stopping the two from attacking directly.

There was nothing Nakiad could do, he had to use all of his energy for the
battle at hand, and he watched with despair and Malachite threw aside Kaneth's
claim, and prepared to kill the scouts.

Then the Chosen thought of something.  He could do nothing *directly*.

With an effort of will, he concentrated. <Guardian.  Guardian, help
him.>

That was all he could do, and Nakiad turned back to the fight.



Malachite waited, then frowned. "Speak, or I will vaporize you where you
stand."

And Kaneth found his voice. "Fools!"  He spat at the others, noting with
satisfaction and a bit of dread how they reacted, shifting to him instead of
their enemies. "Do you not realize what is happening?"

Malachite looked at him. "We have been summoned to help the Lord, and that is
what we are doing."  He answered, but it was obvious Zoicite would go with
whatever he said.  It was him that Kaneth had to convince.

"Yes, but you have been summoned only for a short period of time, released from
death." Malachite looked at the Dark Lord, occupied in the battle. "When you
are done, he will send you back, even if he wins.  And he will not, for you can
see that the two of them are equal," Kaneth referred to the Chosen and the Dark
Lord, "and their power will end.  Once they will be done, the forces holding
you here will not be there any more, and you will be sent back once more.  To
die."

Malachite's eyes flared. "All the more reason to kill our enemies now."  He
raised his hand, Zoicite doing the same.

They did not see. Kaneth looked at them with pity. "Do you really want to die
alone, in a battle with your enemies, filled with hatred again?"  The two
exchanged a glance. "Don't you understand?  When you died for the first time,
you each died alone, filled with hate and rage, and you never felt peace after
death." He knew by their expressions that he was scoring. "Now, you have a
chance to change all of that, you have a second chance.  You can go ahead and
kill the scouts and Tuxedo Mask, and get sent back to oblivion in hatred."
They looked at him with understanding now. "Or you can let the Sailor Scouts
live, set your loathing for them aside, and spend your last moments together,
as you did not have the chance before."

The two of them looked at him with strange expressions on their faces.
Malachite turned slowly to Zoicite, then turned back, obviously about to say
something, and Kaneth stopped him.

"You can die in each other's arms, with love," he finished. "And you can rest
in peace."

The two looked at each other.

"Malachite," Zoicite whispered.

"My love," he answered, letting the energy in his hands dissipate into the air.
Zoicite dropped the chunk of crystal, coming into his arms.

For them, the rest of the universe ceased to exist.

Kaneth almost collapsed to the ground in relief, but a strong hand held him
up.

"You did well," someone said behind him.  Kaneth turned to find it was
Nephlyte, injured but alive.  Behind him, Jadeite lay on the ground, most of
his chest bloody, several chunks of crystal embedded in it.  After a moment,
his chest rose and fell, showing he, too, was still alive.

Kaneth and Nephlyte helped the scouts and Darian up from the ground, carefully
avoiding the two lovers standing still on the field.  Then everyone turned to
the sphere of battle.

It was shivering, fading, breaking up.  Abruptly, with a blast of light and
power, it shattered, blinding everyone for a moment.  Then the two contenders
were revealed, standing almost face to face.



Mina drew in her breath in surprise, seeing them together.

It was justified.  The two looked like brothers in many ways.  Both had dark
brown hair, light skin, similar facial features.  The Dark Lord wore a black
robe that concealed everything while Nakiad wore something similar to a black
gi, which was very similar.  And the way they stood was very similar, both
remained well balanced, seeming ready for anything.

At the same time, they were almost complete opposites.  The Dark Lord's face
was lined with wrinkles along the sides of his chin and along his forehead, as
if he spent much of his time frowning, an expression that led to a perpetual
scowl.  His face was also contorted with hate, adding to the effect, and his
eyes flashed anger.

In contrast, the Chosen's face was calm, almost serene.  There was no question
that he was ready for anything, and ready to fight, but he showed no tension,
just a calm view of the situation.

Seeing them like that, Mina almost screamed, sure that the Dark Lord would leap
at him madly, and not sure for a moment that her love would be able to stop
that mad attack.

Without thinking, she felt power surging through her despite her earlier
exhaustion. "Venus.."

She never got any further as three claws suddenly dug into her foot, deep
enough to draw blood.  She yelped a bit, then looked down to see a very angry
Artemis.  He shook his head. "This is his fight.  You cannot help him now,
especially not in your condition." Abruptly, Mina's tiredness returned to her
and she almost collapsed again, held up by Lita who was standing behind her.
The cat looked at her again. "We can only watch and hope he wins."



Nakiad was aware peripherally of the attention of the group on the battle, but
he forced the knowledge from his mind.  All that mattered was the fight,
everything else must come second, he told himself.

The Dark Lord reached opened one hand, so similar to his own, and, for the
second time in his life, Nakiad witnessed the appearance of the Shadow's
blade.

The sword coalesced out of burning orange particles, forming in the other's
hand.  It was a straight sword, over a yard and a half in length, meant to be
wielded with both hands.  The blade showed the eerie not-quite-metal quality of
Maraki, and the handle seemed to glow from within with a subdued red.

The Chosen smiled to himself, drawing his own two swords, seemingly small and
pitiful compared to the blade of the Shadow.  But they both knew better.

While the Dark Lord waited according to protocol, Nakiad concentrated on the
two swords.  Then, without looking, he brought them together with a
thunderclap, slamming the two handles together, the blades to either side.

The two handles met and seemed to meld, becoming part of each other, then the
length of the metal blades began to shimmer.  As the assorted people watched,
the two swords morphed, becoming a single length of material.

For the second time in his life, he summoned the weapon, as astonished at the
change as he had been the first time.

A plain, wooden stave appeared, a meter and a half in length, a bit over an
inch in thickness.  No metal emerged from it, no blades, no sharp edges.  Yet
the Chosen knew it possessed the power of Maraki, and was a match for the Dark
Lord's sword.

He raised the staff in a traditional manner, almost presenting it to his enemy.
The Dark Lord laughed bitterly. "Let it begin, then, puppy."

With a snarl, he attacked, swinging the length of the sword easily, as if it
weighed nothing.  The Chosen blocked easily enough, but the blow jarred him.

It was harder than he expected.  The simple wood of the staff seemed pitifully
inadequate to stop the biting of the metal sword, but it held, flexing only
slightly at impact.

Keeping the pressure on, the Shadow growled in his face. "Yes, Chosen," he spat
the word, "I am better now.  I will not underestimate you like I did before.  I
will not make the same mistake."  They traded blows, neither emerging for the
better. Nakiad forced emotion out of himself, concentrating on the fight as the
Shadow continued. "And the last time, you were not injured."  That was only a
mild surprised, but Nakiad seemed to have shown it in his face from the Dark
Lord's reply.  "Did you think to hide it from me?  I know how Mina attacked
you, and I know that your back is not healed."

The Shadow grinned twistedly, looking Nakiad in the eye while stopping his
attacks for a moment, then finished.  "Wounded, tired, and with no hope of
survival.  Even if you win, you can not possibly emerge the victor!"



"Nakiad."  The name came out as a whisper, and without thinking, Mina moved
forward, her body reacting to her need to help him.

Then, without warning, she stopped.  Some sort of wall was in front of her,
blocking her progress.  As the girl extended her hand, it slowly stopped from a
vague resistance, like the pressure from a magnet.  After a few feet, she could
not press any further.

She looked back at the rest of the group, and several came up to feel the
impassable wall.   Then Mina felt something strange tugging at her
subconscious, and without thinking, she opened her hand, grasping her power
stick out of its dimension.

It was pulsating slowly, lit from within with a soft orange glow. The rest of
the scouts took their power sticks out as well, finding that they, too, glowed
with the color of the planet.

Then she felt the stick begin to vibrate.

<The balance of the universes must be preserved.>

Mina shook her head.  Did she hear that?  The words seemed to come from the
four sticks simultaneously.  Looking around, she saw the rest of the group
standing around with bemused expressions on their faces, so they must have
heard the voices.

<There must be no direct interference with this fight.>

The voices were authoritative, barring any objections, but Mina gathered her
courage. "Who are you?"  She asked, feeling a bit strange talking to the source
of her power.

<We are the planets.>

<Mercury.>

<Venus.>

<Mars.>

<Jupiter.>

Each identified itself in turn.

Then something hit her, their last statement. "Wait," she almost begged, "that
isn't fair.  When the Dark Lord kidnapped the scouts, was that not
interference?"

The voices sounded almost apologetic this time. <It was not direct
involvement.  In fact, the only direct involvement was that of Nakiad, going to
rescue you.>

"Then what about the shadows?"  Mina noticed the argument was left for her, the
others not interfering.

<They serve the Dark Lord willingly, and they did not attack Nakiad directly,
therefore that is permitted.>

"But they would have attacked him later, when they got rid of us."

The voices seemed to sigh. <We are sorry.  We can not stop interference from
Evil, only from Good.>  Abruptly, the pen ceased to vibrate and dimmed,
returning to normal.  But when Mina reached a hand toward the fight, the wall
remained, blocking her.

"Nakiad," she whispered once more.



The fight was not going well.

Nakiad almost smiled as something occurred to him.  For a millennium, he had
practiced against the best of mankind, and never lost a battle with an enemy.
Now, over the course of two days, he was losing the second fight.  True, with
Kaneth, he managed to win in the end, but only by letting himself get
wounded.

And now, he was losing once more.

It was a combination of things.  Though Nakiad had a millennium to practice
combat, particularly this type, the Dark Lord was immortal.  He had studied the
martial arts for eons.  The gap between their skills was slight, but it was
there, and it was dangerous.

At the same time, the Chosen had not had enough time to heal from his wounds.
His side was mostly fine despite the Maraki blade that had pierced it.
Kaneth's knife had not penetrated any major organs, and even missed most
muscles.

The wound to his back was a far more serious matter.  Every time he moved with
force, his spine sent a twinge of pain to his brain.  At first, he was able to
ignore that, but as the fight went on, the pain became more and more
pronounced. But it was not just the pain, that he could block out.  The signals
he was getting were not just coming from nowhere, they meant something.  In
this case, they meant something was wrong, and his back might fail.

And the Dark Lord seemed to strike every blow in a way that reverberated along
the Chosen's spine, though it was probably just luck.

Then, looking at the other's savage grin, Nakiad realized it wasn't just chance
that was guiding the other's hand.  The Shadow knew of the wound, and was
specifically attacking that weak point, hoping that the Chosen would just
collapse.

As a particularly strong stab of pain came from blocking a blow, he realized
just how vulnerable he was, and altered his fighting to keep the strikes from
affecting that part of him.  Unfortunately, that limited his combat even more,
providing the Dark Lord more opportunities for hitting him.  As if by magic, a
cut appeared on Nakiad's arm, blood welling out from a minor wound.  In a
moment, the blood clotted and the wound stopped bleeding, but the Shadow
continued grinning.



Clutching at the invisible wall, Mina almost yelled out when Nakiad got cut.
At the last moment, however, she felt a flash of energy from her power stick,
and her throat failed to make any sound.  Glaring at her source of power, she
dismissed it back to its pocket dimension, turning back to the fight.

And gasping again as a blow from the sword came at Nakiad's side while his
stave was too far to block it.  At the last moment, he gathered himself into a
crouch, doing a complete backflip to get out of the way, and remaining upright
at the end.  Unfortunately, the move cost him as the sword managed to make
another cut on one of is legs.



Nakiad glared at his opponent as the other grinned wickedly, continuing to
advance.  To add to the fact that he was losing, the Shadow also kept up a
running commentary to get him mentally off balance.

"You can't win, you know.  Even if you had a chance of beating me, you could
never kill yourself.  Just look at you love out there, can you really
disappoint her by dying?  Can you leave her?"

Nakiad blocked again, furiously. "I can because I *must*." He replied
through clenched teeth.  The wounds so far were not serious, but they cut down
his ability to fight.  That, in addition to the bad back, almost assured the
Dark Lord victory.  But he had a few tricks up his sleeve yet.

The Shadow grinned at the answer, effortlessly blocking a wild attack to his
head. "What kind of an statement is that? 'You can 'cause you must,'" he
taunted the other, "that doesn't mean anything.  Just think about it, your
love, left all alone to fend for herself, all those men on earth, ready to take
adv-"  Furiously, Nakiad struck at him, a blow the other easily blocked, then
returned with a cut the Chosen barely dodged.

Calm yourself, he thought, he is trying to get you angry.

And he's succeeding, another part of him thought as Nakiad forced himself to
calmness.  Relax, try to think of a plan.

Sure, easy for you to say, the sarcastic part of his brain retorted.



Suddenly, a blow seemed to land that shocked the Chosen's back once more, too
much so.  He collapsed, clutching at his back, almost dropping the staff.
Stiff in pain, he looked up at the Shadow in anger. "Damn you," he whispered,
trying to move aside.

The Dark Lord laughed. "Fool!  Do you think your measly tricks will work on me?
Your back is damaged, not broken."  Without waiting, he struck with the sword,
the Chosen scrambling away at the last minute.

The Shadow smiled to himself.  He is getting desperate if he thinks to fool me
like that.   Grinning to himself, the Dark Lord changed his attack.  Instead of
going for a killing blow, which he knew he was not going to get easily, he
concentrated on the staff, striking it time after time in the same place, as
hard as he could.

The Chosen retreated in a circle, forced back because of his wounds, slowly
losing ground.  The blows came hard now, and the Shadow noticed with
satisfaction that the other did not give as much on each blow, leaving the
staff to take the impact.

Grinning, he continued.



The scouts along with their unlikely companions watched as the Dark Lord beat
Nakiad back, forcing him down. Mina could almost feel the strikes smashing at
the staff, reverberating through the others body,  She closed her eyes for a
moment, forcing the image out of her mind, then looked again.  It was still
there, the Chosen getting obviously desperate as his hands clutched at the
staff, blocking.  Mina remembered the wounds his hands had gotten, and wondered
if they were completely healed.



They were, just about.  But that slight difference between whole skin and
almost whole skin was being felt with every strike of the other's sword.

Nakiad retreated, getting more desperate every moment.  Several parts of him
hurt for different reasons, pain he ignored.  It would not matter after this
fight anyway, he thought, one way or the other.  He forced movement into his
tired muscles, coming back with strikes the other blocked almost
disdainfully.

The Dark Lord was definitely much better, Nakiad thought ruefully as the blows
continued.  For some reason he felt no resentment for that, no anger at the
other being better than him.  There was just calmness, a kind of grim peace
before death.  He knew it was coming, he knew he would not survive this last
fight.  But he would continue to try until the last, until he was dead.  A
brief glimpse of the scouts, looking at him, affirmed this belief, and he
continued.

For the first time in over a millennium, his staff crackled as the sword hit it
again.  It did not break, but neither did it flex the way it was supposed to.
A twinge of pain went through the Chosen's body as a plan suddenly materialized
inside his head.

That's suicide, a part of his brain told him.

Do you have any other ideas?, another part of him asked, as he thought
desperately.



Mina gasped as the staff cracked audibly, the Shadow laughing as it did.  He
stood before the other, ready to attack once more.

"Now, die, pest!"

With emphatic force, he slammed the sword against the staff.

The Chosen stumbled back as a crack of sound and light whipped through the
field, then cleared.  He stood, ready to fight against a grinning Dark Lord,
but no longer with a staff.  Each hand held a piece, broken in the middle.

He collapsed.


The pain hit him as he felt the staff give way, break into two.  He managed to
turn the attack aside at the last moment, collapsing as he did.

The pain raged inside his chest, as if what was broken was himself.  He had
used that staff for over a thousand years, and it was part of him in a way that
was more than mental.  Physically, they were bonded together, almost as two
living creatures could be, though it would be difficult to call the staff
alive.  At the same time, it was not a lifeless piece of wood, no more than his
suit was a piece of leather.  Both were part of him, an intrinsic part that was
necessary to his survival.

And now the staff was broken.

He did not quite fall to the ground, but did stoop to a crouch, holding the two
segments by their ends.  The Shadow laughed, raising its sword in victory as
Nakiad looked up through eyes blurred by pain.

A rage went through him, a hate the likes of which he had not felt for a
millennium, a fire that threatened to consume his soul.  But he fought it,
chaining it with his mind, controlling it, forcing it into a single path.

For a moment, for him, time froze.  The Dark Lord stood over him, readying to
end his life.  The scouts, with Darian, Kaneth and Nephlyte stood behind the
shield they could not penetrate, all with expressions of pain and fear on their
faces.  And he, himself, Nakiad, the Chosen, was kneeling in front of his
opponent.

Kneeling.

Giving up.

*Never!*  He screamed in his mind.  

The Dark Lord seemed to freeze, perhaps seeing something wrong, but it was too
late.
The two fragments of the staff morphed for the second time, melding and
altering.  In the time between one heartbeat and the next, they returned to
what they were before.

Two swords.

Their blades flashed, a material not quite like steel revealed to everyone.
The Dark Lord moved, trying to bring his sword around.

Too late.  <I will not fail again>, the Chosen cried in his mind.

Without hesitation, without doubt, the Chosen launched himself at his enemy,
both swords extended in front like clumsy spears.  One blade missed, blocked by
a desperate Shadow.

The other did not.

It hit the center of the Dark Lord's chest and continued through as Nakiad
continued forward, smashing into his enemy as hard as he could.

Both collapsed to the ground.



For a few moments, the scouts held still in shock.  Then Mina felt the force
field dissolve under her fingers, causing her to stumble forward.  Ignoring the
slight moment of imbalance, she rushed forward, followed by the rest of the
scouts, and, more slowly, by the other three.

Neither of the two figures moved from their lying positions on the floor as she
approached.  As she came up, Mina noticed something strange.  There was a
bright tear in the back of Nakiad's shirt, one that has not been there
before.

Barely able to contain her fear, she kneeled, turning him over.  The Dark Lord
was revealed to have been actually nailed to the ground, the sword passing all
the way through.  But then Mina saw Nakiad.

The front of his tunic had a bright gash to match to one on the back, as if a
blade had gone all the way through his chest.  Yet there was nothing there, she
checked with her hands, but empty air.  Then a strange feeling came on her, and
she turned to the Shadow, lying on the other side.

The point at which the Chosen's sword went in matched exactly the point of
impact of the invisible sword.

The shock of it went through her mind, and a phrase came up from her memory,
something he said the day before, seemingly so long ago.

<...in order to do so, a Chosen has to sacrifice himself, completely...>


Sacrifice.

Completely.

"Nakiad..."  She whispered the name, shaking him gently. "What is happening?"
But she knew all too well.  She felt someone coming up behind her, trying to
comfort her, but she ignored it.

A light attracted her attention.  It was Guardian appearing, but only barely.
The light, before bright enough to illuminate a room, now shone weakly and
unsteadily, flickering with shades of gray.

<"This is the way it has to be, Sailor Venus.">  Once again, the quality
of the voice startled her, many voices and one at the same time.  It seemed sad
somehow, yet also happy in a way.  <"In order for the Dark Lord to be
destroyed, the line of Chosen must end forever.  I would like to rest,"> the
light added a little wistfully.

Mina turned tear filled eyes toward the light, which was slowly drifting to the
ground. 
Before she could reply, it continued, speaking in a weaker voice. <"He has
sacrificed himself for the Universe, you can find no fault in that.  Now he, as
well as I, will be gone forever.  In exchange, there will no longer be a Dark
Lord to threaten the Universe.  It is good.">

Swallowing hard, she turned to face him once more. "You mean.. he's dead?"

His eyes flickered, opening slowly.  "Not yet, my love."  She could feel the
pain speaking caused him.  One of his hands rose and tried to wipe away her
tears, but failed.  She grasped it with one of her hands, holding it. He shook
his head, sighing. "This is the way it has to be.  I love you."

The words seemed pitifully inadequate.

"No," she whispered, denying it, "no."

To one side, the Dark Lord shuddered, grasping at the sword in his chest, and
pulled it out with inhuman strength.  He turned toward the Chosen. "Damn you."
The hatred and scorn seemed to have gone out of his voice a little, but it
still grated on Mina's ears. "Now we will both die."  Struggling, he crawled
toward his sword, several feet away.  Lita made as if to kick it out of his
reach, but Nakiad stopped her.

"No need," he said.  When she started to object, swallowed hard, then
continued. "He cannot heal fast enough from a Maraki blade to stop the
inevitable.

"No," Mina repeated, still lost inside her world.  "No," she said more
strongly, "there has to be another way.  I can't just let you die this way.
There must be another way."

He shook his head weakly. "Not in this case."  But she noticed a strange
flicker in his eyes.

The Shadow had reached his blade, and as he grasped it, it seemed like he was
satisfied.  Keeping a tight grip on it, he relaxed, slumping on the ground.

Mina looked at the scouts, tears running down her cheeks. "You have to find
another way, you have to."  She was begging them.

Serena started to cry as well, Lita looked angry, Ami thoughtful, Rei even more
so. The other three, along with the cats stayed back.

Then Ami seemed to remember something. "Nakiad."  She waited for him to turn
toward her. "You told me I could have tried healing you with the crystal."

A look of pain crossed his face, and he shook his head. "No.  It can only heal
things less powerful than it is itself."

Ami looked at him. "But you no longer are.  You have lost all of your power in
that fight, the crystal will work now."

He shook his head again, despite the pain the motion obviously caused him. "You
must not.  He and I are linked, if you heal me, you might also save him."

Ami looked down and Mina looked at her, shocked. "You have to try.  We can't
just let him die."

Ami closed her eyes, then looked at Nephlyte. "She's right.  I can't let him
die.  I've already watched one person's love die in front of me, and I could do
nothing about it."  The girl looked at Nephlyte pointedly. "Not again."

"I second that," Lita agreed grimly.

Serena hesitated, then went for her brooch, opening it to reveal the crystal.
"Here goes."  For once the girl seemed to be serious.

Nakiad motioned not to, but everyone ignored him.

Then he turned.



Rei watched as Serena opened the brooch.  She could understand Nakiad, and she
could understand her friends, she did not know which side to go with.  But she
would not interfere.

Suddenly, she noticed something strange.  Nakiad turned, and looked straight at
her. "Rei," he whispered, barely audible.

The plea plunged into her heart, into her soul.

I do not trust him, a part of her said furiously.  Mina loves him, and the
scouts must save him.

He is giving up himself for a higher cause, another voice argued.  You once did
this, it told her, when you gave up Darian to Serena.

It was true, she had to admit to herself.  She did like Darian, but he and
Serena were meant to be.  Thus, it was her duty to get out of their way, let
them be together.

And this was his duty.

It was his destiny.

I care about the Universe, he had told Lita that day she overheard them.

"Moon Crystal Healing..."  Serena began her chant.

In that split moment, Rei came to a decision.

This is your duty, she said to him, silently.

And this is mine.

Before Serena could finish, she held her hands in front of her.

"Mars Fire Ignite!"

As four shocked scouts turned to her, a lance of fire no thicker than a pencil
lashed out, striking the crystal, knocking it out of Serena's grasp.  Rei was
almost completely drained, but she got the power for this from somewhere deep
inside.  The crystal bounced along the ground, finally coming to a rest near
Nakiad's hand.  He grasped it, turning to Rei for a split second.

And in that moment, Rei knew he was thanking her.  And despite her being unsure
that what she did was right, she would not have changed her actions for the
world.

I trust you, she mouthed silently, and he nodded.

"Moon Crystal Healing...."  Sailor Mars wondered what he was doing, then he
finished. "Exhalation."

The crystal pulsed once, then darkened, and Nakiad tossed it back to Serena,
who examined it.

He laughed weakly.  "Do not worry, princess, it's intact.  You just won't be
able to use healing for a few days, that is all.  The makers of the crystal had
predicted that a situation like this might arrive, and made the command part of
it."

Mina turned to Rei. "Why?"  She whispered the word, full of pain.

Nakiad answered before she could. "Because it is my destiny to stop the Dark
Lord," his voice was weakening by the moment, "and this is the only way."  He
paused, turning her cheek to look into her tear filled eyes. "If there was
another way..."  He started, then stopped.  "I love you.  But there is no way
to put his off, even for a century.  This is how it must be."

"No," she whispered once more. "NO!"  She cried out, the others gathering
around her giving their support.

Particles of energy started to gather around Nakiad's body, encasing it in a
shimmering field of light.  Similar lights, but black ones, started to gather
around the Dark Lord, blackening out his features.

"Wait."  A new voice suddenly interrupted.  Nakiad lifted his eyes wearily.

"Nephlyte," he said weakly, "you have fought honorably, but there is
nothing-"

The other interrupted. "But there is."  He suddenly seemed to be speaking to
himself. "I have seen my love crying out for me when I died.  I do not wish to
make another face the same pain.  Then he suddenly seemed to be speaking to
them again. "I was not the most powerful of Beryl's generals.  But I was the
most trusted.  She saw something strange in me that seemed to make her relax,
and she let some of her secrets slip."

"One of the things I learned over the centuries was the secret of the Eternal
Sleep."

The reactions of the various people listening varied.  Jadeite, lying in a pool
of orange blood on the ground, jerked.  Nakiad lowered his eyes, the energy
sparks surrounding him dimming for a moment, and seemed to be lost in thought.
On the other hand, the scouts merely looked puzzled.

"Wait, what's that?"  Serena asked, used to foolish questions.

Nakiad looked up, answering thoughtfully. "The Eternal Sleep was the source of
Beryl's power, the way she made it to the throne.  Before her attack, she froze
the other leaders somehow for eternity, allowing her to come to power.  I
believe Jadeite, there, was sentenced to that after he failed to defeat you."

Nephlyte nodded. "I could try to imprison the Dark Lord.  Without his strength,
I do not think he could break loose."

Nakiad seemed to think, his body growing weaker.  "He has power to spare, and
he will be still alive.  He might be able to break free after his wound will
heal."  Then he shook his head. "But I do not think he will be able to do so
soon.

Mina clutched at his hand. "Please.  We could be together once more."

He sighed. "But since he will be alive, so will I be, and when he does free
himself, I will be there to end it.  Forever.  Very well."

Nephlyte nodded. "I am not sure this will work."  He glanced at Serena. "I will
need the power of the crystal to give me the strength to imprison him."  The
princess exchanged a cautious glance with Luna, who nodded, then she came up to
him, holding out the crystal.

He touched it, smiling a bit, then concentrated.

A strange glow came into his eyes as he forced strength to flow through him,
from the crystal to his eyes, focusing it.  The Dark Lord staggered to his
feet, holding on to his sword. "Yes," he croaked, "prolong my life.  Let me
survive."  As a flash of light emerged from the general's eyes, the Shadow
looked at Nakiad. "I will return."  Then a bolt of energy slammed into him,
blinding everyone.

While the light cleared, the Chosen murmured quietly. "And I'll be there when
you do."

Then the flash was gone, allowing the others to see the Dark Lord.

He was inside a crystal, embedded in the middle of clear material.  His eyes,
full of hate, were staring directly in front of him, and his features were
twisted with rage.  Strength seemed to flow through him, through his muscles as
if he was fighting the prison, trying to get out.

Then everyone looked at the Chosen, still lying down on the ground.  The wound
was no longer there, but his eyes were closed, and he was not breathing.

"Nakiad?"  Mina asked, gently shaking him.

<"We are still here.">  And everyone turned to Guardian, floating in
midair.  Its glow was dimmed considerably, but stable, illuminating the
ground.

Then Nakiad moved, breathing in and opening his eyes. "Apparently, it worked,"
he said as if he never had any doubts.



Nakiad forced himself to get up, painfully levering his body from the ground,
then walked over to the crystal.  The Dark Lord's eyes stared out at him, as if
promising revenge someday.  He put out one hand to touch the crystal when it
suddenly started to rise.  The top of the prison was disappearing into some
sort of portal, vanishing, until all of the crystal was gone.

He felt Nephlyte come up to him. "It should hold him for a while."

"Perhaps," Nakiad sighed, "but not forever."  And I will be waiting, he swore
to himself.

Then he turned to Mina and embraced her, holding her tight against his chest.



Ami watched to scene, confused a little, but happy that it seemed to have
turned out well.

"Chosen."  The word came from behind her, and she tuned to see Jadeite still
breathing.

He did not seem to see Ami standing there in front of him, but he spoke
directly to Nakiad.

"Finish it."  He gasped out, blood still leaking out from his wounds. "The Dark
Lord has been beaten."  The pain the effort of speech was causing was obvious.
"We will be returned to where we came from.  I can not go back there."

A trickle of blood ran down the side of his moth. "Finish it," he pleaded.

Lita came up to the other's side. "You are an evil creature who has served the
Negaverse all of your life.  Why should we make things easier for you?"

The general merely shook his head, staring at her.   His eyes had been mad with
rage and hatred before, filled with the urge to kill. Now, when he looked at
Lita, she saw them to be clear, lucid.

Lita frowned. "Do you at least regret your actions?"

Jadeite shook his head once more.  He seemed to be fading. "Regret..." He
paused, then a grim look crossed his face. "Regret.. nothing."  Despite the
pain, his voice was strong.

Lita turned around, looking at the other scouts. "I say we leave him to
whatever this 'Eternal Sleep' is."

Ami shook her head, but did not reply, not sure.  Out of the corner of her eye,
she saw motion.  It was Nakiad, coming up to the general.

Jadeite seemed to recognize him, and opened his mouth once more. "Finish it."

For several long moments, Nakiad stood over him, thinking, then blinked. "No
one should have to suffer eternal pain."  He did not seem to be aware that he
was speaking aloud, and Ami was suddenly reminded that he himself suffered the
guilt for the destruction of the Moon Kingdom for a millennium. Then Nakiad
shook his head.  "You have served your cause as best you could, though it was
not for Good.  You deserve rest."  He raised the sword that he had recovered at
some point from the ground, and Jadeite seemed almost to smile, but not
quite.

Then the blade came down in a flash of gray, embedding itself in the general's
chest, nailing him to the ground.  Jadeite seemed about to say something when
his body spasmed, then held still.  As his eyes closed, Ami had a brief
impression of peace. Nakiad pulled the sword out carefully, and stood for a few
second over the other's body.

Then he turned away, and for a brief moment, as he faced her, Ami saw his face
sad.  Then as his face turned into the light of Guardian, she saw that he was
simply relaxed, and wiped the impression away.

He turned to Zoicite and Malachite, standing together.  For those two, it
almost seemed the rest of the universe did not exist.  Nakiad seemed to sigh,
looking at them, and almost smiled.  Then he turned to Nephlyte.

The other looked down. "I have heard much about you."

The Chosen did not seem to hear. "You have acted honorably throughout this
battle.  And you have sacrificed yourself for a human girl, saving her life."
He paused, and Nephlyte looked up, seemingly in surprise. "It might be possible
for us to stop the end, bring you back to earth.  You could be with Molly once
more."

For a moment, Nephlyte looked up with hope, then shook his head.  His voice
seemed to catch in his throat as he answered. "Thank you, but no.  Molly is
happy now, is she not?"  He turned to the scouts, several of whom nodded. "I
thought so... I seemed to feel that she was content, and my return would merely
complicate that.  No, my story is finished now, I have no regrets.  I merely
wish to rest once more.

For a long moment, the Chosen looked at him with a strange expression on his
face. "Perhaps at one time you were evil, but no more.  It has been an
honor."

Nakiad extended his hand.

Ami watched with surprise the astonishment with which the general viewed the
gesture.  Slowly, almost reverently, he took the offered hand, shaking it in
the ancient human tradition.

A motion drew Ami's eyes away once more, and she watched as Jadeite's still
form disappeared, encased for a moment in a shield of blue.

To one side, Malachite and Zoicite dissolved together, forming one cloud of
energy, a mix of petals and bubbles that got blown away by the wind.  Together,
they floated away.

Then Nephlyte, too began to dissolve, his body disappearing as his essence
leaked out into energy dust that floated gently upward.

For a long time, Nakiad stared up at the energy floating away, then sighed. "So
ends one battle."  Ami almost thought he was about to say 'so begins another',
but he kept silent.

Then he turned to Kaneth, who inclined his head.

"What will you do now?"

The warrior looked around. "I really thought I would die here this day."  His
voice was completely sober. "I was actually looking forward to the fact.  I did
not really think you'd win, you see, not with your wounds.  But now.."  He
stared into space, the mask that was his face motionless. "The Dark Lord has
been destroyed, or at least imprisoned for a long time.  The Negaverse army has
need for a leader once more."

"Will they accept you after what you have done?"

The other looked down. "I do not know.  But it is worth a try, at least.  I
never did finish my command.  Have you more need of my services?"  He asked the
last in a different tone.
Nakiad looked surprised. "You were never in my debt, I thought you understood
that.  And now, I am in yours."  When the warrior did not reply, he sighed.
"No, you are freed from any obligation."

"Thank you."  He paused for a few moments, then extended his hand hesitantly.
Nakiad took it, shaking it firmly. "Good bye."  The other walked off into the
fog without so much as turning to the others.

"Good luck," Nakiad whispered quietly.

The other turned around, almost hidden by the fog. "I'll see you in battle, my
enemies."

Then he disappeared.

Confused, Ami looked at the Chosen. "What did he mean by that?"

The other smiled. "He was talking to you, the Sailor Scouts.  The Universe is
still his enemy, his honor demands no less.  But I do not think you could ask
for a better foe."

Nakiad looked around once more, at the bleak land, the fog, slowly dissipating
around them. "It's over," he said in a tone of finality. "Lets go home."

He walked painfully up to Mina who looked at him, then he reached out his
hand.

She took it, and nodded. "Lets."

They turned, the other scouts following, to a direction that Nakiad seemed to
pick at random.

Lita hurried up to the two, looking at Nakiad.  After a moment, he turned to
her, the expression on his face inquiring.  She shook her head. "Why did
Nephlyte seem so surprised when you offered to shake his hand?  And Kaneth
seemed surprised when you took his hand, though his emotions are hard to read."
Ami looked up, interested in the question.

Nakiad seemed to deflate against Mina, letting her support some of his weight
for a moment, then Darian came up before the Chosen could answer.

"As I remember it," he began, Nakiad nodding to him, "in the old days a
handshake like that was considerably more than a mere gesture.  It was a mark
of honor and trust.  For many, it meant that each of the two people would give
their life for the other."  Darian sighed. "As I guess it, the gesture lost its
meaning over the years, or at the end of the Silver Millennium.  But Nephlyte
knew the Chosen was using the gesture in its ancient sense."

Lita paused for a moment. "You would have been ready to give up your life for
him?"

Nakiad glared at her for a moment, then his gaze softened. "And why not?"

"But.. he's evil.  And for that matter, why did you let Jadeite die, instead of
leaving him in that prison he deserves."

Ami interceded. "Nephlyte isn't evil.  He was, but-"  The Chosen raised his
hand, interrupting.

"There is no such thing as good or evil."  His voice was abruptly very old and
tired.

"But.."

Before Lita could continue, he went on. "Was Nephlyte evil?"

The question seemed to be directed at everyone, and after a pause, Rei answered
in a hesitant voice. "No.  He seemed to be, but I think he was just misled,
because the end he fell in love."

"So."  For a moment, it seemed that he was done, but he went on. "Were
Malachite and Zoicite evil?"

"Yes, of course."

"But in the end, they chose love over hate, they decided to die together
instead of spending their time battling you scouts."  For a few moments, there
was silence, then he went on. "Was Jadeite evil?"

This time, it was Serena who answered. "Of course.  He sent those airplanes
after us, he almost killed Darian, he liked death and destruction."

"Was he, Princess?  Remember on the ship, when you sneaked aboard and pretended
to be lost?"

"Well, yes," suddenly she seemed uncomfortable.

"How did he react?"

"Well, actually, he seemed very nice, and he was kind to me.  How do you know
about that, anyway?"

"It does not matter."  For a minute, they continued in silence, finally broken
by him. "Was Beryl evil?"

All of the scouts tensed and a chorus of affirmatives rose from them.  The two
cats, who had been silent up till then, remained so, but exchanged a glance of
surprise.  Darian kept silent as well.

Nakiad shrugged. "Perhaps."

Then Rei touched him on one shoulder. "What do you mean, there's no such a
thing as evil, anyway?"

Ahead of them, the fog parted to reveal a new gateway, different from the ones
they used before.  Nakiad looked at the red scout. "Another day, perhaps.  Just
think about one thing.  Would you prefer to live in the heaven without evil
that was the Universe in the beginning, or the horror without salvation that
was the Negaverse?"

As Rei shook her head, not really understanding, he stepped through with
Mina.





*Epilogue*

Nakiad sat in the dark, relaxing in the armchair, his two swords in front of
him.

<The staff has been damaged>, he thought at Guardian.

The energy sphere appeared in front of him. <It will heal if you will.>

For a long moment, the Chosen stared in front of him into space, thinking, then
thought again at Guardian. <Did I make the right choice?>

The light seemed to sigh. <I am the combined experience of all the Chosen
there ever were, but there has never been a situation quite like this
one.>

<You do not know.>  It was not a question.

<I do not think you could have chosen to do it in any other way.>  Then
the light seemed to sigh. <It would have been nice to rest.>

<Yes.  But not just yet.> He sighed, moving his body a little so the
different wounds did not rub against the fabric of the armchair as much.
<Some part of me knows it was a mistake.  I do not think that prison will
hold him nearly as long as Nephlyte thought it would.>

<Perhaps not, but it is too late to think about that now.>

He sighed once more, staring into space. <It isn't over.>

The light disappeared suddenly as a door behind Nakiad opened, letting light
into the black room.

"Come on."  It was Mina.  "You said you'd show this house of yours to us today,
before the vacation ends, so we'd better hurry."  She came up to him, and he
levered his body off the armchair, looking at her.

She was radiant, completely over the battle, and ready to believe that the Dark
Lord would never be back.  The innocence was so obvious it cut through his mind
like a knife, searing him to the truth.  He looked at her, staring at him with
love filled eyes, unaware that somewhere, some evil might be rising.

He loved her yet.

Smiling, he put a hand around her and let her lead the way out of the room.

As he went out, he paused, looking back.

<It is not over yet.>  He thought to Guardian.

The other was silent.

Shrugging, he let himself be led into the light.

*	*	*

The pain was immense, tearing into him, singing his mind, searing his thoughts.
But he forced himself awake, staring into one direction of his prison, outside.
And he forced his arms out, throwing his pain into the crystal prison, forcing
it to relinquish him.

It did not, remaining completely stable and unaffected, a single constant in a
universe without any certainties.

Hate.

The Dark Lord forced the thought through his mind, concentrating on that
word.

He hated the Universe, the need to destroy it burning through his veins.

He hated the Earth.

He hated the Scouts

He hated Kaneth.

But most of all, he hated the Chosen, this foolish human who hoped to stand
alone against him.  And now by some fluke, he managed to defeat him for a time,
forcing him into this prison, to suffer for eternity.

The hatred ignited, burning through his arteries, setting his veins ablaze.
The muscles on his arms bulged outward, fueled by the emotion, forcing the
crystal away from his body.
The pain lanced through him again, but he ignored it, and it only served to
fuel the pain.
As he forced power through his body, the crystal whined, slowly forced away
from him, slowly damaged.  A blue crack appeared on one face, bright against
the transparency of the crystal, then it began to widen.

It went slowly, but much faster than anyone could have foreseen.

The crystal was strong, a prison made to withstand the harshest forces, to keep
its own against the most powerful creatures.

The Shadow's hate was stronger.





.....................................
To be continued.............


Whew, you made it. The next part (Choice) is out, in case you didn't know.  If you don't have it, you can get it at http://penicillin.cyber-naut.com/~arteluna/, or e-mail me at 74367.2552@compuserve.com .  Any comments, questions, flames, whatever, should be sent to that address as well.  Although you can post C&C on the ffml, I am not part of it and so I will never hear anything you say, nor will I respond.  So I prefer anything like that to be mailed to me, unless you want it to be heard by everyone *but* me. <g> Anyone who sends me comments or stuff automatically gets informed of any new parts or stories by me, and those parts/stories get mailed to you.  So it's a good thing. :-)  (hopefully)

David