I haven't done any review responses in a while for this fic and I apologize, but I sure do appreciate you guys for taking the time to review! They are very inspirational when I get time to work on the next chapters ;)

PriestessHelene : Thank you so much for your messages and your reviews. They're always so flattering and make me feel special lol. I do hope you enjoy this chapter and I'm so glad you seem to like this story as much as I do! Hopefully I get more angst in this story but sometimes I struggle to write angst well so I'll cross my fingers on that one and do my best XD Also, I think you'll be happy to know that the bad guy is someone you probably know pretty well since she is pretty important in her show/manga =] but I don't wanna spoil it just yet!

michiriru88 : I'm glad you liked the scene between Heero and Mako though it was really short. I know I love romance between those two but haven't been able to fit much in after that climactic end two chapters before lol Now I have to get to all the other not so romantic features of this fix ^^; Hopefully they're interesting though!

l-annethunder : lol your review made me laugh cause my 3 year old cousin says the same thing haha hope this chapter can maintain the same factor as the previous!

nadeshiko-yuna : Haha yeah that Relena, you gotta watch out for her! XD Also there's much more Kiori in this chapter but Idk if its boring or not since i am pretty bias lol. Hope you like it though!

SpartanCommando : Oops! XD Sorry if it was confusing! I'm hoping this chapter will clear up what happened at the end of the last chapter but I guess we'll see! Thank you so very much for reading!

IkariPanda : Lol no need to apologize about the review situation! I do it all the time XD It probably got lost in cyber-space though XD Anyways, I feel sorry for Relena too and I'm glad you did since I try to stay neutral about her since she is a character that gets on my nerves so its kind of easy for me to want to bash her but I promise I'm not bashing her character in this fic! Just wanna put that out there ^^; Also, I really liked writing the little Ami/Duo fluff, truly one of my favorite couples! And Heero, that was definitely my favorite scene of all time to write him finally realizing what he wants ;) *sigh* my heart always melts lol

Anyhow, on with the story!

Makoto shuddered as she stared into the cold, vengeful eyes of the once pacifist. How could this be? The Relena-look alike smirked in satisfaction as she sensed the confusion in the brunette.

"Are you really that dense?" She jeered.

Makoto gulped, uncertain of how she should react. A part of her was still bent on protecting the girl as her eyes seemed to fall helplessly to the pulsing shadow looming around the Sanq kingdom's own princess but, another part of her was urging her to retaliate. After all, this could not be the real Relena if Makoto had seen her get taken by some masked crony could it?

The Relena imposter's eyes jumped to the pounding door, both women fully aware of the possible people that might be trying to break through. In a split second decision, Makoto tightly gripped the woman's wrist and sent a high voltage charge coursing right through her.

The blonde's body slammed roughly into the wall behind her at the sheer power, Makoto panting as her weakened body struggled to get up. An even darker aura engulfed the room as the infuriated woman managed to shake out the torrents of electricity from her veins. Still, Makoto stood stubbornly across from her with no intentions of backing down.

"Give Relena back," she demanded.

The tight-locked jaw of the imposter was well noticeable along with the sternly pressed line of her lips.

"Fool," she replied. "Relena and I are the same."

"I don't believe you!" Makoto growled through grit teeth charging a ball of thunder in her left hand.

The woman scoffed.

"You are dense after all," she muttered stonily. She glanced quickly at the breaking door and frowned. She wanted more time to torment the brunette but she hadn't wanted to face the person that was most likely trying to get in. With a reluctant scowl, she forced herself to withdraw with bitter parting words.

"We'll have to resume this little chat some other time, til then, prepare for the worse Kino, I will have my revenge."

With that, she was gone leaving Makoto wearily to stand in the residue of her confusion.

The door finally gave way.

She could hardly even hear the voices of the two males as her mind ached with inquiry. So many unanswered questions, so many perplexing facts, so many possibilities! She rather hated to think of it but she knew she needed to. Her decision of who that woman was would affect everyone and the fact that she was the only one to see her somehow raised doubt in her mind about the others believing her. It was a silly thing really to think that they would undermine her input but she couldn't seem to shake it no matter how hard she tried.

"Fool! Relena and I are one and the same."

Relena.

If she was in deed Relena then why was she doing this? And how? Last she knew Relena could not make copies of herself.

"Makoto," she heard. "Makoto!"

Her emerald eyes gazed heavily in the direction of concerned Prussian blue. They seemed so anxious, so unlike how they use to be and in a trance-like state she could only stare. He didn't like this look and getting her to pull back to her normal self was proving difficult even as he stood with hands firmly holding her shoulders. Her injuries didn't look too severe but the distant look in her eyes troubled him.

Kiori observed nervously by, as he too felt disturbed by his mother's gaze. What could she have seen that would make her like this?

"…I will have my revenge."

Makoto gulped, her face suddenly paling in a sickly manner. As if struck by a strong voice of revelation, her eyes watered as she looked over both Heero and Kiori.

"Oh no," she mumbled nimbly burying her head in her hands. "It's my fault."

Heero more puzzled than ever wrapped his arms tightly around her as she silently shook in his hold. It made no sense for her to be acting this way but for her sake, he thought it best not to question her until she became more stable.

"Dad?" Kiori muttered from the side trying to listen in to what his mother was mumbling.

"Go check on Relena," he said.

With a curt nod of obedience, Kiori quickly scurried off to find Relena. His throat dried as he met with an empty room and his heart raced when he realized that she was nowhere to be found.

"Alarming news," Minako whispered nervously.

Hotaru, Michiru and Rei each looked up in anticipation.

"What is it?" Rei asked. "Did someone get hurt?"

Minako's lips were pressed in a small frown.

"Mako-chan was a little tattered, I heard, but that's not the worse part." She bit softly on her bottom lip as the tension in her chest grew.

"There's a worse part?" Hotaru asked grimly.

Rei's head lowered as if she had already figured out the mystery while Michiru too shared the same reaction but for the sake of Hotaru's curiosity, Minako continued.

"Relena was taken. Usagi plans to tell Milliardo, Wufei and Quatre immediately and she has asked that we all attend the meeting."

"Of course," Michiru replied whilst the others appeared taxed with distress.

Their feet mindlessly sprung to life as they sauntered towards the meeting room. The men would not be happy and this would put a huge hanker in their trust, but keeping this from them was no option. With a long exasperated sigh, each girl silently mumbled a prayer for the best before they entered.

"Kidnapped? I knew you women were too weak to do anything right!"

Rei's fists clenched as she constantly tried to remain calm despite Wufei's offensive remarks. All he ever said was "Weak Woman this" and "Weak Woman that" it was getting on her damned nerves but she refrained from losing her temper since this time he actually had a reason to be upset.

"They're working on getting her back," Usagi assured. "I promise you they'll find her."

"Weren't you the same people that promised she would be safe too?" Milliardo's voice was quite lethal, his cold stare sending shivers down Minako's spine.

She herself looked down in shame, the small moment she had with him suddenly seeming irrelevant as this single event trumped all progress they may have had before. There could be no good from this meeting. All Milliardo and Wufei would say would discount the senshi and their supposed strength while all the girls could say in response would be promises about the future and at the moment, their promises were hardly even worth a dime.

"Prince Milliardo," Mamoru spoke, resting a comforting hand on his wife's shoulder. "The senshi will find her. I myself have been kidnapped many times and yet I still stand here today. They won't rest until she is retrieved."

At Mamoru's admission, Wufei seemed to sneer and for the life of her, Rei could not ignore it.

"Is something wrong?" She asked through grit teeth.

Wufei was still sneering, his attention resting solely on Mamoru though Rei had been the one to bring his actions to attention.

"You needed rescuing from a group of women?" He scoffed. "Well than you can hardly be considered a true man, weakling."

The whole room tensed immediately as if astonished that Wufei would even say such a thing. Quatre himself had a look of disapproval while Milliardo too seemed to have flinched at the comment. The only one besides Wufei that didn't look so shocked was a fiery young priestess who had reached her whit's end. She moved so fast through them all that the Chinese man had barely even noticed her gripping the collar of his shirt dangerously, flaming amethysts scathingly taunting his deep charcoal hues.

Her body was rippling with heat; sweat inevitably forming on Wufei's smooth skin. Steam could even be seen coming from her hands, phenomena that he couldn't quite bring himself to believe though the cotton fabric of his collar were now starting to singe.

"Rei," Usagi had muttered nervously but the girl would not acknowledge her choosing only to keep her daggering eyes on Wufei who smirked arrogantly at her.

"What do you think you're doing, weakling?" He jeered, the low tone in his voice echoing in her ears.

Something inside her was relentless, pulsing hazardously as if trying to break out of her very skin. The temperature rose. Body trembling with irritation, Rei could barely resist the urge to just burn him completely but by some luck she still maintained a very thin thread of composure.

"Ugh," she groaned, releasing her grip on his shirt in frustration. "You're not even worth the effort."

She glared at him, eyes full of rage before receding back to her place beside her fellow senshi. Wufei's shirt was left in an awkward shape, threads of his shirt charred as imprints of Rei's hands left searing marks on the white cotton. For the first time, the men had realized that the ranges of abilities held between these women were large and for the first time, they noticed that their power was real. Wufei kept his cold stare on Rei, the skin of his chest throbbing. There were boils there, he was certain as he felt the heat of her hands pierce through the fabric of his shirt. However, he was much too proud to show that she had actually marred him so he would keep it hidden behind his stony façade.

Minako glared with disappointment at Rei who stood indignantly to the side. It was quiet for a while, too quiet.

"Milliardo," Usagi spoke softly, vision splayed with hesitant tears. "I'm sorry about your sister but you have to believe that we will fix this."

Milliardo's face was expressionless, his eyes hardened by the whole scene.

"I'll believe it when I see it," was his harsh reply.

He paced out of the room before more could be said, disappearing instantly behind the painted white door. Quatre bowed sympathetically towards the girls and Mamoru before he too departed alongside Wufei who could not seem to forgive Rei for her unexpected behavior.

Awkwardly, the women and Mamoru vacated the room alone feeling burdened by the mistrust they had now earned. Of course they had faith in their senshi back home, but situations suggested that perhaps they should start to worry.

"This is not your fault Mako-chan," Ami stated forcefully in the brooding brunette's direction. "Now please, tell us what you saw."

Makoto gulped hesitantly, her eyes shifting between each of them, as she was still drenched with an immense amount of guilt and shame. How could she not be the one to blame? She was entrusted with Relena's protection and she failed! Surprisingly enough, neither Ami, Haruka, Trowa, Duo, Kiori or even Heero; which truly shocked her; held any notion of respite towards her. At this point, they were all more concerned about her health and what she had witnessed before they arrived.

"I can't," she muttered weakly, diverting her eyes in pain.

If she were to say this, she would be claiming the very person they needed to make this mergence work the enemy! How could that possibly be good for anything? Suddenly her mind started to swarm with fault. It was her fault Relena had come to this, she couldn't seem to deny it. If she hadn't…if she wasn't…she groaned in detestation. If she herself had been in Relena's place, she was certain she probably would have been driven to the same fate.

"Mako."

Her heart ached at the deep tone of his voice. It chilled her very core just to hear it. Heart racing, she tried to listen carefully for his words though she felt terribly guilty about him altogether.

"I am Relena Peacecraft," the honey-blonde woman introduced. "I was hoping I could reason with you about your recent…engagement."

Makoto blinked mindlessly before nodding slowly. She had not known too much about Relena other than the fact that she had assumed leadership over Earth in Mamoru's stead since he was so invested in the Moon Kingdom. The meeting to establish her as the Earth's main "representative" went rather smoothly, never harboring too much tension as the diplomats were all in high spirits about the peace that had spread wonderfully across the universe. Relena was a very sharp woman, conscientious of all aspects of politics and extremely noble in the sense that all she wanted was to maintain this peace whether it meant she be implemented as Queen of Earth or not, it did not matter as long as the universe was in harmony. So, for this alone, Makoto had much respect for her even before she had ever met her.

"So," Makoto started slowly. "What can I do to help you, Princess Relena?"

Relena seemed a bit nervous, more so than she had ever appeared before which troubled Makoto.

"This is hard for me to say," Relena spoke, shifting uncomfortably in her seat. "Especially since I barely know you."

"Please," Makoto stated. "Think of me as your friend," she suggested. "After all we're both on the same side."

An appreciative smile was earned from the blue-eyed princess as she nodded to which Makoto returned the same gesture.

"You are all so kind, you princesses from the planets," Relena complimented. "I often have trouble believing that negotiations can run so peacefully."

They both laughed lightly in understanding, the mood slowly easing Relena into a realm of comfort but still not completely convincing, as she remained distressed.

"I would like for you to denounce your engagement to Heero Yuy," Relena spoke flat out.

Makoto was aghast, her emeralds blinking in uncertainty. Denounce her engagement to Mr. Yuy? The marriage was necessary in the political sense since some Earth dwellers still withheld doubts about the Moon kingdom and the rest of the planets. Heero Yuy was a well-revered soldier; one that earned the trust of Earth entirely and the idea of him having reign over the largest planet in the solar system comforted the minds of the people and kept them from resorting to violence. Relena of all people should have understood this most but for the sake of the conversation, Makoto attempted to explain.

"Well Relena," she said. "This marriage is essential to—"

"Sate the conscience of the people of Earth," she finished. "I know."

"Then why would you ask me to denounce the engagement?" Makoto queried.

Relena was silent, eyes sullen as she tried to find an adequate response. She opened her lips to speak but often times could not say anything. Feeling as though she might have touched on a personal topic, Makoto moved herself beside Relena and placed a comforting hand on her back.

"Tell me what it is Relena. I can see its bothering you but I won't know if I can help if you don't say anything."

For a long time Relena was quiet as a trail of tears started from her blurring blue eyes. Makoto's heart ached for her as she did her best to console her. Finally when Relena could muster the courage to speak again she said it.

"Because I love him."

Makoto winced at the recollection. She didn't have to marry Heero. Their marriage wasn't even the most admirable. Why she denied Relena's request to denounce the engagement was unknown to her and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't for the life of her figure it out. Another marriage could have appeased the people of Earth as a later love blossomed between one of Earth's most prestigious and a member of the senshi. Makoto herself had even known of their quiet relationship though they never admitted it to anyone openly. Then why couldn't she accept Relena's request? She did not know Heero when they became engaged. She never even spent time with him until the wedding. Why then had she clung so tightly to his proposal that was formulated through an awkward meeting amongst the Earth consulate at the time and Serenity herself?

She grimaced as the questions pounded in her head, numbing her skull until she could no longer feel it. Could she give him up now? Could she handle the idea that Kiori would no longer be there? If it meant saving Relena from what she became, could she do it?

"Makoto."

The crimson eyes were strangely alluring as Makoto was immediately pulled from her thoughts. Pluto looked grim; the whole room looked grim as they looked at her with concern burning in their eyes.

"Y-yes," she stuttered.

"Are you alright?" Pluto asked softly. "You haven't been responding for quite some time now."

Surprised, Makoto realized she was no longer sitting on her couch surrounded by curious inquiries. Instead, she now lay in the comfort of her own bed, a hand tightly squeezing her own. Kiori would not release it, worried sick about his mother's well being. Again she was struck by guilt, the feeling worsening when she caught eyes with Heero who looked disheveled with lack of sleep as though he had been waiting for her to awaken for days. She gulped.

"How long was I out for?" she asked.

"Nearly two days," Kiori answered.

Pluto stepped back to give her space, Makoto steadily easing herself into an upright position. Heero's eyes burned into her and as much as it hurt not to, she couldn't bring herself to meet his gaze again. She had known of Relena's affection towards him, but she disregarded the fact for the sake of her own selfish purposes that she couldn't even recall.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled partially towards Pluto and the others for being unresponsive for so long but mostly to Heero who wouldn't have known it unless he could read her very thoughts.

As selfish as it sounded, she had known her answer. If the safety of the world were to come down to whether or not she could give Heero back to Relena, the world would be in turmoil. Her own soul was too invested now and Heero had finally opened up completely to her, she could not, would not let it go even if it meant saving the universe and this fact made her sick to her stomach. If only she had listened to Relena's pleas before, this whole ordeal could have been avoided.

"Makoto," Pluto spoke gently, eyes stern. "We need you to tell us what you saw."

The brunette in question was anxious, skin glistening with sweat from her distressing state. Should she tell them?

"Makoto?" Ami's big blue eyes couldn't hide her worry even if she tried, Makoto's heart undeniably melting at the concern.

She had so many people that cared about her but sadly it all went unnoticed until now. How could she have been so blind? Why was she so blind?

"I," she cut herself off, rubbing at her throat as if it were difficult to produce sound.

Kiori's had squeezed tighter and in a shame-ridden stare, she looked at him.

"I didn't see their face," she answered regretfully. "They were masked the whole time."

The room broke into a chorus of exasperation in response. Two days wasted and Makoto had nothing to tell them. Pluto wore a deep frown her all knowing eyes piercing into the brunette. Makoto was afraid this might happen. It was nearly impossible to keep the truth from Pluto. More than likely, she had already known who the enemy was she was simply asking Makoto for reassurance of her theories but Makoto would not fess up.

Torn, she hung her head low, Pluto nodding before disappearing like she always had. Haruka kept keen eyes on Makoto also feeling as if the girl was purposely lying but she refrained from prodding further.

"Well Makoto," Ami spoke after a period of awkward silence. "Pluto has informed us that she knows the power we are up against."

"She does?" Makoto deadpanned.

"Yes," Ami replied as the others observed and listened to the repeated information. "It's an age old power, one of the purest of dark energy. To be activated, it needs to be awakened by a vengeful spirit. Pluto says it is almost identical to the power Queen Beryl used. It consumes a human sole, takes their drive for vengeance and fuels it with negative energy."

"And how do we defeat it?" Makoto asked with her hands gripped to her sheets.

"With light," Ami declared. "However, Venus and Sailor Moon are the only ones with that type of power and due to the instability of our dimensions, bringing them back before the merger is not an option."

Makoto sighed, closing her eyes for the inevitable. Though she did not know the alternative way to defeat this new enemy, she had a feeling that it would much more difficult for her personally than the others could even imagine.

"Then what do we do?" She said weakly. She did not want to prolong it.

"There are two other ways to defeat this enemy but Setsuna has suggested we take the option that involves killing the human that has awakened the dark energy. It is not the most appealing choice but we must consider it if it means the safety of our planet."

Makoto winced rubbing her head in disdain, as a splitting migraine seemed to attack instantaneously.

"For curiosity's sake," Makoto mumbled. "What is the other option?"

Ami blinked hesitantly unsure of whether she should answer. Despite her better judgment, she bit the bottom of her lip as she opted to tell her.

"Sacrifice the vengeance-ridden human's main target."

Sirens were blaring everywhere, soldiers suddenly springing from rooms as they sprinted to their mobile suits. Rei had unfortunately been caught in the middle of the mess, men pushing by her roughly to reach their destination. She hadn't grown angry, however, since she understood why they were so rushed. She too could feel the anxiety growing inside as the ground beneath her started to rumble. It never occurred to her that there were repercussions involved in these giant humanoid fights.

Determined, she tried to find out what was happening, filtering in with the others through the doors to one of the many hangars of the Sanq kingdom. Her eyes widened, the suits towering much higher than she had imagined. Would their magic work against these machines? Did she even stand a chance?

Lately, her powers had been manifesting rapidly without the need of her henshin. Pluto had told them this would happen, but Rei had never expected that it would be so easy. Supposedly the development of their powers were closely rooted to their moods and Rei had been nothing short of angry since she got here and it was all to do with a certain Chinese man…

She gasped as she felt herself thrust against the shaking grounds outside the hangar. The body that had so callously forced her down covered her head protectively, the heat of a large explosion cradling tauntingly around her skin.

"Damn it Woman!" She heard. "Don't you ever pay attention?"

Astonished she looked to see Wufei, his eyes blazing in annoyance by her actions. It took her a moment to catch up and as she did so she was stuck between grateful and surprised. To be honest, she would have never thought that Wufei would save her from a life-threatening situation.

"Th-thanks," she stuttered still baffled.

She got back to her feet as he did and followed behind him through the halls.

"Go hide with the other weaklings!" He ordered but she quickly refused again regaining the spite she had for him.

With no time to actually force her into a safe hideaway, he disregarded her disobedience and halted when he met with a compromising position.

His gundam was parked in the forest at least three miles out from the castle grounds and already the place was swarming with enemy flanks. Even with his abnormal agility and talent for fighting, he couldn't get across without some type of cover.

"What's wrong?" Rei asked from behind.

Wufei growled, unwilling to admit his dilemma but even he had the sense to put away his pride in this potentially gruesome time.

"My gundam's across the field," he said.

"How far?" Rei asked.

"Approximately three miles."

Nervously, Rei skimmed the grounds and watched as the mobile suits battled across the grass. Some soldiers were even starting to scatter across the ground with their handguns, shooting targets dead in the midst. Wufei would definitely need help and for once, she was uncertain of whether she was up for the task.

"I'll cover you," she said it before she had even realized, the Chinese man looking at her ridiculously.

"The hell you won't!" He replied.

She grit her teeth, completely forgetting all former uncertainties in that single instant. How was it that even now he could still be so arrogant and stupid? There was no way she was going to cower now with him belittling her abilities like he was.

"I will," Rei seethed, flames licking excitedly against her hands. She didn't wait for him to respond, feeling as though she would burn him herself if he said another word.

For a moment, Wufei looked blankly at her fleeting figure before finally following after. Her powers were impressive, a small grin tugging at the corner of his lips as he witnessed her strength. Of course, he would never admit how impressed he was to her face. In public, he would always refer to her as a weak woman, even if it wasn't true.

Kiori sank heavily into the couch, everyone long since departed and resting in their respective places. Ami, Trowa and Uncle Duo had retired to Haruka's place as his father stayed with his mother to make sure she was okay. It was interesting for him to see his father so openly concerned about his mother, his curiosity simulating what might have happened to evoke this change. It was comforting for him, nearly made him want to jump for joy, but the strange nature of his mother's ways deterred him from rejoicing.

He shook his head. Why did he always have to linger on the bad things? After all, they had the answer of how to defeat the enemy, they were supplied with the tools necessary to track them and his parents were finally starting to get along. Was there really room for him to be dismayed?

He ruffled his hair lightly, staring blankly at the wall of the neighboring apartment to his mother. Eighteen years. It took them eighteen years to finally understand each other. A smile could not be ignored as he sat in recognition. Finally!

He jumped up hastily when he felt a gust of wind pick up in the room, the sight of a long unseen robed figure popping up from the shadows.

"Oracle," he gasped. "You scared me."

"Yeah," she replied obnoxiously. "I noticed."

Her tone was rather blunt, her eyes burdened with stress.

"What's wrong?" Kiori asked curiously, not quite used to her looking so serious.

"You're mother is going to ruin everything!"

"What?" Kiori shouted. "How do you mean?"

"She lied, Kiori," she muttered. "She knows who the enemy is!"

Kiori shook his head in disbelief.

"She would never lie about that," he refuted.

Oracle gave him a look of disgust, her head shaking in disappointment.

"Oh, and you say this because you know her so well now?" She scathed. "Who was the one that was begging not too long ago to gain some type of understanding of where she comes from? You have no idea what she's like!"

Kiori could feel anger swelling, his eyes darkening to a nearly violet hue.

"She wouldn't lie," he stated resolutely to which Oracle rolled her eyes.

"She would and she has."

Kiori's fists clenched, his anger urging him to do something regretful but he thankfully refrained.

"The enemy is Relena."

Kiori burst into a roar of laughter, the sound sending chills down the Oracle's spine.

"Now I know you're crazy," he stated. "There's no way it could be her."

The Oracle's graven image disturbed him, as she stood unmoving before him.

"Have you forgotten already the conditions of which I found you and your parents when I first granted your wish?" She asked stonily.

Kiori's body stiffened.

"Dad?"

"Hello? Anyone there?"

The lights shot on, the vision of two broken bodies twisting relentlessly at Kiori's gut. His father lay motionless, bullets ingrained in his skull as his blood pooled across the floor. Alongside him lay another figure, her body crippled with pain.

…

"Mom?" He said exasperated and quickly placed himself next to her and held her hand. She smiled weakly.

"Get out of here," she spoke faintly.

"No, mom. I'm not going without you!"

"What does that have to do with anything?" He nearly stammered.

The Oracle circled around him as she often did, taking in his features as she did so.

"Relena was after your mother long before I brought you here. I even overheard her plans to kill the two of you before the day of your eighteenth birthday. Never thought she would actually harvest the power necessary to go through with her plans though…"

Kiori's stomach churned in unease as he replayed that day. It was the worse thing he had ever seen, the most terrorizing by far and the idea that Relena was behind it was unbelievable.

"Relena is an honorable peace-driven woman, she would never do something so evil."

Oracle hissed.

"Relena NOW is an honorable peace-driven woman. Relena of the future is a completely different person."

"I don't understand. Why would she change?"

Oracle sighed sympathetically, patting Kiori on the back like he was a poor burdened soul.

"Jealousy, to be quite frank. Inability to move past a certain person, heartbreak, they all tend to swirl together in one melting pot of turmoil."

"What?" Kiori arched an eyebrow in question.

"Let's just say things have happened between Relena and your mother that have great weight on the reason Relena has changed in the future."

"And what exactly is the point in you telling me all of this?"

"You're the only person that can fix things."

"Fix things?"

"Yes," Oracle replied. "Like I said, you're mother is going to ruin everything."

Kiori's sharp blue eyes looked skeptically at Oracle as he mulled over the possibilities.

"I don't believe you," Kiori said as self-righteous as ever. "My mother wouldn't lie and Relena would never allow herself to become so bent on revenge. She's practically a saint!"

Again, Oracle threw her arms up in pure amazement.

"You really aren't as smart as I thought you were," she droned. "Let me fill you in on the facts of human nature. People change! Relena is a person and she has changed! People also lie. Despite the magnificent power your mother holds, she is still a person and she has lied about what she saw."

Kiori opened his mouth to speak but Oracle hastily shushed him.

"Let me finish!" She exclaimed. "I want to tell you a little something about your mother that you don't know. She is a woman of duty. She lives by duty, breathes by duty and has died by duty. Do you know how many deaths she has had in the past decade? Haha of course not!" she laughed. "Your mother would have never told you. She is a self-sacrificing woman, history has proven that much. She even married your father for the sake of duty."

"I—" Kiori had to pause. He couldn't seem to find words to express exactly how he felt. He knew his mother was tied to the Moon princess but the extent of her dedication to her never crossed his mind. Even the fact that she had married his father for duty stung unceasingly at the pit of his heart as he meditated Oracle's words.

"You're at a loss," Oracle mumbled. "I figured you would be but you can't let it cripple you," she said. "Your mother's self-sacrificing ways will ruin everything. She will not allow Relena to die; instead she will give herself to sate the hunger of the dark energy that has been revived. You cannot let her do this."

Worried again. Kiori's heart raced with troublesome doubt, his body throbbing with distress. How was he of all people supposed to fix things? He had yet to tap into his powers and he had yet to even lay a scratch on Haruka and Duo in mock training sessions. How could he dent one of the most purest dark powers with his lack of experience?

"Kiori," Oracle spoke cautiously.

"Why would she sacrifice herself?" Kiori whispered hoarsely. "Wouldn't that mean that I would be…"

"You would never be born," Oracle confirmed. "And neither would I. You see, the line of the Oracles spawns a new generation when the Jovian line spawns a new generation. So if she does sacrifice herself, she won't come back and neither of us will exist. Her duty has always come before everything. All she holds dear will inevitably fall second, it's an unspoken law of the senshi."

Silence filled the solemn void welting in the solace apartment. Those were the types of stipulations his mother had to live by? How was that fair? Didn't she deserve a chance to live for herself? Couldn't Serenity do without the constant protection of her senshi?

"And she won't allow Relena to be killed," Kiori stated more than asked.

Oracle slowly nodded.

"Relena is necessary to make this mergence work. Without her at the forefront, the people of the other dimension will not be won over so easily. Centuries of war will pass before the Moon kingdom gets a chance to persuade them if Relena does in deed die beforehand."

Kiori scoffed. The life of a senshi suddenly didn't look so admirable. With an enemy that could only be defeated by killing the one who awakened the power or killing the one that the power was awakened to destroy, it almost seemed like an impossible situation to win at especially since the person who awakened the power was needed alive. His mother really didn't have a choice.

"This all seems rather unfair."

"It's always unfair for the hero," Oracle frowned. "It's a strange universal law."

"Then how am I supposed to fix it?" Kiori was near hopeless.

"Kill Relena."

"I thought you said—"

"Ah ah," Oracle reprimanded with a finger in the air. "Let me finish. Relena of the future and Relena now are two different people, figuratively speaking and in the literal sense."

Kiori blinked in confusion.

"What?"

"This is how time travel works," Oracle voiced. "When I brought you back, I had no issues since you don't really exist in this time. But when I brought you're parents back, I had to merge their future selves with their present selves, a process that has proven quite detrimental since it did accelerate the mergence to a time that it shouldn't have come."

"I still don't get it."

"Future Relena has come of her own accord. Since she has, she and her present self will not merge until a specific amount of time has passed."

"And this means…"

"This means," Oracle continued. "Killing future Relena can sate the dark power and put it to rest but present Relena will remain unharmed."

Jumbled thoughts suddenly pieced together, Kiori's mind exalting in revolution.

"So we—

"Have to kill Relena of the future. You have a small window to do this, if you fail to kill the future Relena in the allotted time, she and Present Relena will become one." Oracle informed.

"We have to tell the others!" Kiori exclaimed but Oracle quickly stifled him.

"No!" She cried. "We can't do that."

"What? Why?"

Oracle stared for a moment at her feet before taking a deep breath.

"This may be difficult for you to believe, but we Oracles are rather loyal to the Jovian line."

"Uh huh," Kiori droned.

"The simple fact that Relena is in deed the enemy raises a lot of questions and in those questions, the secret dealings of your mother are inevitably tied. Since this is so, we cannot inform the others. Secrets of the Jovian family must be kept otherwise we Oracles will be no more."

She looked sternly at Kiori, mentally trying to inscribe in him the importance of this revelation.

"I understand," Kiori wryly spoke.

"Good."

The Oracle looked meekly around, shrugging as she found conclusion in the meeting.

"I bid you good tithes," she said before vanishing into thin air.

Kiori exhaled heavily, eyes cast to the ground with worry. The future of his family depended on this and he would be sure not to fail.

So what did you think? There's not too much romance happening at the moment but there is more in the future. Now I'm just working on developing the story line and what not. However, I'm feeling a bit iffy about this chapter mainly because there is so much crammed into it and I'm uncertain if it all makes sense...I may even revise this chapter but I wanted to put it up anyways because I haven't updated too much lately and felt like posting it.

I apologize if it isn't as good as it should be especially since I feel I might have been a bit lazy with this and it truly pains me to say it. I will be truly surprised if I don't come back and revise this chapter later but I digress.

Thank you very much for reading! I really do appreciate it!

JPandS