Rated PG-13

Disclaimers: Sailor Moon and everything affiliated with her are the property 
of Naoko Takeuchi, Toei Animation, Kodansha, and DiC.  They are not mine, I 
am only borrowing them for a little while.  Any other characters are mine.  
If anyone wishes to use them, please notify me first.


Just a bit of clarification:  
	the * * signify a person's thoughts
	the ***** before a section signify either a memory or a shift into 
the mindscape or dreamscape (don't worry, this will make sense eventually, I 
hope).	


Please email me with your questions, comments, and/or criticisms at 
engjng@worldnet.att.net.  Heck, flame me if you want to.  I'd like any 
feedback I can get.  Enjoy the story!


Daughters of Destiny
Part 3
by: Johnny Ng


	The morning sun filtered into Rhea's room and into her eyes.  She 
groaned and turned over, but it was too late, she was awake.  Getting up, she 
rubbed the sand out of her eyes.  She didn't recognize her surroundings at 
first, but then she remembered.  She remembered everything: her mother dying, 
running away, seeing her father's...ghost, meeting her uncle, Trent, the 
magic...  
	She started.  *The magic!*  Rhea moved her hands in the correct 
gestures for the cantrip and she was rewarded when three glowing balls 
appeared in front of her.  She smiled and mentally nudged them and they flew 
around the room.
	"Rhea, are you awake?" Ikuko called out.
	She concentrated and dispelled her cantrip.  "Yes, Mrs. Tsukino."
	"Well, breakfast will be ready soon."
	Rhea's stomach rumbled at the mention of food.  "Ok, I'll be right 
down."

	Ikuko Tsukino looked up as she heard the sound of footsteps coming 
down the stairs.  Moments later, Rhea appeared and sat down at the table.
	The older woman smiled.  "Good morning, Rhea.  You seem to be the 
first one up."  Ikuko took a long look at the girl.  "How are you feeling 
today?"
	Rhea thought back to what happened last night when she and Serena got 
home.  There had been lots of shouting and crying, mostly from Mrs. Tsukino.  
When asked where she had been, Rhea had merely said that she needed some time 
alone to think.  This seemed to satisfy the police, but apparently not 
Serena's parents.  However, they did not pursue the subject.  They were just 
glad to have her home.  She looked up and replied, "I'm fine now, Mrs. 
Tsukino."
	Ikuko nodded.  "Good."  She placed a plate laden with pancakes in 
front of her.  "Here you go, eat up."
	"Mom, are you cooking pancakes?" Serena yelled from her room.
	"Yes, dear."  She winked at Rhea.  "You'd better hurry, they're 
almost gone."
	"What?!"  There were sounds of a body hitting the floor and a muffled 
cry.  A few minutes later, a thoroughly disheveled-looking Serena stumbled 
down the stairs.  "Where's the food?"
	Ikuko grinned.  "Good morning to you too, dear."
	"Oh, sorry, mom."  Serena looked around the kitchen.  "So where's 
the..."  She spied the large stack of pancakes on the counter.  "Mom!  I 
thought you said they were almost gone!"
	A grin.  "I had to get you out of bed somehow."

	"Are you sure you want to go to school, after what happened 
yesterday?" Serena asked leaving the house.
	Rhea nodded.  "I've been over this with your mother.  I'll be okay, 
and it all wasn't that bad.  My mom's gone, but I found I had an uncle...and 
I can do magic."
	"Well, if you say so."
	The school day seemed to drag on longer than usual for Rhea and when 
the final bell rang, she fairly ran out the door.  Seeing Mina, she ran up to 
them.  "Mina!  Have you seen Trent?"
	The blond grinned.  "Well, he was supposed to pick me up and head to 
the arcade..."
	"And here I am," Trent said popping into existence behind the two 
girls and causing them to jump.
	Mina punched him in the shoulder.  "Don't do that!"
	Trent smiled.  "Sorry, but I felt like surprising you."  He turned to 
his niece.  "You ready to go someplace special to discuss your training."
	Rhea's eyes lit up and Mina grinned.  "I suppose that's more fun than 
the arcade."
	Just then, Mina saw Serena walking dejectedly out the main doors with 
Amy and Lita trying to cheer her up.  She waved them over.  "What's the 
matter, Serena?"
	"It was totally unfair," she whined, "I almost got detention just for 
eating lunch."
	Lita laughed.  "But it was during class, Serena."
	"Well...I was hungry."
	Rhea shook her head.  "Anyway, Trent was going to take me to do some 
more training, you want to come along?"
	Amy and Serena declined, the former saying she had to do homework, 
the latter saying that she was still hungry.  Lita, though, decided to go.  
	"So where's your car?" the brunette asked.
	Trent was insulted.  "What do I need with a car?  I'm the world's 
most powerful mage--"
	"He's the world's only mage," Mina whispered to Rhea.
	The mage ignored that remark.  "-the world's most powerful mage.  I 
can go anywhere and do anything I want!"  He smirked.  "Besides, my car's 
being detailed."

	The air in the middle of a clearing shimmered and four figures 
materialized.
	Rhea blinked and looked around.  All she saw were trees and a cave in 
a cliff.  She turned to her three companions.  "Where are we?"
	Mina and Lita recognized their surroundings and assumed somber 
expressions and Trent had on a sad smile.
	"What is it?" Rhea asked, puzzled.
	"This is a special place, Rhea," Trent said putting his hand on her 
shoulder.  "Come, there's something I want to show you."
	Trent led his niece into the cave.  It was a moment before Rhea's 
eyes could adjust to the dimness, but when they did, she stopped cold.  In 
the middle of the cave was a crystal coffin.  Rhea moved closer to the coffin 
and peered into the clear cover and gasped.  Inside the coffin was the body 
of Daniel Takazawa.
	"This is your father's tomb, Rhea," Trent said walking up next to the 
girl.
	Rhea looked around.  "It's beautiful...and so peaceful."
	Trent sighed.  "I wanted it to be this way.  It was my last gift to 
him."  He stepped back.  "Take your time, Rhea.  I'll be waiting for you 
outside."  He saw his niece nod and walked back to the cave opening, 
rejoining the girls outside.
	"It was nice of you to show her this place," Lita said to Trent as he 
walked up to them.
	"She has as much right to this place as I have...perhaps more."
	"So what do we do now?" Mina asked.
	Trent sat down and urged the girls to do the same.  "We wait for 
Rhea."
	It was nearly an hour before Rhea emerged from the tomb.  Trent stood 
up and watched his niece walk over to him.  She stopped in front of him with 
her head bowed.  "I'm ready."

	The diamond-shaped form of the _Wrath_ glided past the orbit of Mars.
	"The third planet--Earth--is now in visual range, sir."
	Captain Raze sat up.  "Let's see it, and someone contact Master B-"
	A robed figure materialized next to the captain's chair.  "No need, 
Raze."  A holographic image appeared in the air above them.  "Ah, a beautiful 
planet."
	Raze turned to the person operating the science station.  "Getting 
anything from the sensors?"
	"Nothing yet, sir."  The operator frowned.  "At least nothing 
definite.  It seems as though the entire planet is blanketed by some sort of 
low-level magical field.  Unless someone really expends a great deal of 
magical energy, then the field will effectively mask it."
	"Your science officer is right, Raze," Bane said.
	"So what do we do now?"
	"Now," Bane said, sitting down on his throne, "we wait."

	Trent and Rhea stood in the center of the field; Mina and Lita stood 
off to the side.
	The mage began, "The first thing you need if you are going to be a 
mage is a spellbook."
	"But you don't use a spellbook, Trent," Mina called out.
	Trent, annoyed by the outburst, nevertheless smiled.  "True.  I don't 
use a spellbook because I don't have too.  All my spells have been seared 
into my mind."
	Rhea winced.  "That sounds painful."
	"Yes it was, though it was not of my own free choice," Trent said 
remembering his previous life.  "Nevertheless, even though I don't use a 
spellbook doesn't mean I don't have one."  He held out his hand and his 
spellbook appeared.
	Everyone except Trent blinked.  "What kind of spellbook is that?" 
Rhea asked.
	He laughed.  "What?  You expected some dusty, leather-bound tome with 
magical runes engraved on its surface?"  In his hand he held a palmtop 
computer.
	Rhea shrugged.  "Well...yeah."
	"Ok, once upon a time in my previous life I did have an actual book.  
When I remembered about it I summoned it, but it was huge and disorganized.  
So, a few weeks ago, I bought this palmtop and asked Amy to help me scan my 
entire spellbook into it.  Now, I can look up any spell I want, but like I 
said, I don't have to."  Trent turned to his niece.  "I would like you to 
have this, Rhea."  He held out the computer to her.
	"Th-thank you," Rhea said, almost too awed to speak as she gingerly 
handled the palmtop.
	"Go ahead, open it."
	She flipped open the top and was about to touch the keys when her 
fingers met a shimmering barrier.  "Um, there's something wrong with your 
computer, Trent."
	The mage smacked his forehead.  "That's right.  I forgot to change 
the safeguards.  Computer, voice check."
	"Confirmed.  User Trent Powers," the palmtop said in a mechanized 
voice.
	Trent winked at the dubious look that his niece as giving him.  "I 
asked Amy to do a little more than just scan my spells.  Computer, transfer 
all command codes and protocols to new user, Rhea Shidou."
	"Voice print required."
	Trent nudged Rhea.  "Say something," he whispered.
	The girl was a bit flabbergasted.  "Uh...hello, computer."
	Stifled giggles could be heard from Mina and Lita as the computer 
continued, "Voice print confirmed.  Transfer of command codes and protocols 
complete."
	Trent smiled.  "Now try it, Rhea."
	Hesitantly, Rhea touched the keyboard...and nothing happened.
	"You don't really need to use the keyboard, you can use the voice 
interface like I did," Trent told her.
	Rhea nodded.  "Computer...uh...um..."  She looked at her uncle.  
"What do I do?"
	"Well, since you are an apprentice mage, have it display the 
apprentice spells."
	"Ok.  Computer, display apprentice spells."  The screen flickered and 
a list of spells scrolled down.  "Cool."  Rhea did a quick scan of the 
spells.  "Hey," she said indignantly, "these spells are...are..."
	"Are what?" the mage asked, smiling.
	"Boring!" Rhea finished.  "I mean, most of them seem to be little 
more than illusions that any stage magician can do."
	 Trent chuckled.  "These spells may seem like they can be performed 
by a simple magician, but they can't.  Magicians use sleight of hand and 
other tricks.  What we do is real magic."
	"But where are the fireballs, lightning bolts, and creature 
summonings"
	"Those spells are more advanced.  You just don't have the power yet 
to cast them, but you will soon.  However, until you are ready, those spells 
will not be available to you."
	"Can I at least look at them?"
	"Not until you're ready, and that means not until you've mastered the 
apprentice level spells."
	Rhea sighed.  "All right."  She read the spell list again.  "I guess 
some of these spells are pretty interesting."
	The mage smiled.  "Good, let's get started."

	On the _Wrath_ an alarm went off at the sensor station.  The crewer 
on duty checked on it and reported his findings to the captain.  "Sir, 
sensors have detected possible magical activity.
	Captain Raze frowned.  *The sensors should be more precise than 
that.*  He turned towards the crewer.  "Possible?  Explain."
	The sensor operator fidgeted uneasily.  "Well, sir, the level of 
activity is pretty low.  The sensors say it could be a weak magic-user or a 
random build up of the latent magical field of the planet."
	Raze's frown deepened.  He disliked mysteries.  He would have tried 
to use his own abilities to try and sense this activity himself, but he knew 
the ship's scans were more powerful.  "Display location of the activity."
	The holo-image of the Earth stopped rotating and a blinking red dot 
appeared.
	Raze saw that the location was on an island.  He highlighted the 
island and the computer displayed the information on it.  *Hmm, Japan.*  He 
turned to his science officer.  "Send down a scout to check this out and keep 
me informed."
	"Yes, sir."

	Rhea was sweating profusely.  She had been training with her uncle 
now for several hours and had gone through nearly all the apprentice level 
spells.
	"Are you sure you want to keep going, Rhea?" Trent asked his 
exhausted niece, "We can continue this next time."
	"No," Rhea managed, "I'm all right.  What's the next spell?"
	Trent shook his head.  *So stubborn, just like your father.*  
Suddenly, a warning went off in his head.  Someone had tripped the wards he 
had set up around the clearing and the tomb.  He looked and saw that Mina and 
Lita were still here so they couldn't have done it.  *Then who?*
	"Is something wrong, Trent?" Rhea asked noticing a shift in his mood.
	The mage turned to his apprentice.  "I think we're going to have 
company."

	Jorum was not happy.  He had been rudely awakened by his commander 
and been told to investigate an anomaly on this dirtball of a planet.  His 
scoutship was cloaked and parked a few miles away in the forest.  He had been 
hacking his way towards the location of the anomaly for nearly an hour and he 
wasn't getting anywhere fast.  
	He grunted in frustration and dispelled the energy sword he was 
using.  Gathering up his energy, he launched a plasma bolt at the plantlife 
blocking his way and saw with satisfaction as a tree toppled.  He smiled.  
*This is much better.*  He continued blasting his way through the forest.  
The beeping from his scanner was lost to the sounds of burning and exploding 
foliage.
	With a final blast, Jorum was free of the forest.  He walked into a 
clearing, the bright sunlight temporarily blinding him.  He blinked away the 
spots and saw two figures and froze.  *What the--why didn't my scanner go 
off?*  He glanced at the device and his shoulders slumped.  It was blinking 
an urgent message: Power Levels Low.  Shutting Down For Recharge.
	He looked up again.  They were still there, a young man and a girl, 
but that wasn't all, off to the side were two other girls.  He sighed and his 
military training took over.

	"Hello," the stranger said pleasantly.
	*And he was pleasant,* Trent thought.  *If I hadn't seen him blow 
away that tree, I might have thought he was just a hiker.*  "Hello," the mage 
replied guardedly, "Do you need any help?"
	Jorum knew he had screwed up.  A scout was supposed to be careful, 
silent...not blundering in an attempt to gather information.  He tried to 
salvage the situation, though.  "No, I was just out for a nature walk."
	"Oh," Trent said walking over to the fallen tree.  "Does that walk 
include knocking over trees with a plasma bolt?"
	*Plasma bolt?  How does he...?*  The scout extended his magical 
senses and found his answer.  "You're a magic-user!"
	Trent walked closer.  "Yes, I am.  And you are?"
	Frantic thoughts ran through Jorum's mind.  The master's mission was 
supposed to be kept secret, but this secrecy had been compromised through his 
carelessness.  Well, he would just have to correct that.  He grinned evilly 
at the mage.  "I'm afraid that I am the person who's going to have to kill 
you."
	Before Trent could respond, Jorum leaped high into the air and 
launched a plasma bolt at the mage.
	Almost unconsciously, Trent threw up a barrier around him and Rhea 
and deflected the bolt.  "Run, everyone!"
	"But what about you?" Rhea cried.
	"Don't worry about me.  I'll be all right."  Another bolt struck the 
shield and pushed the mage back.  "Go!" he grunted struggling to keep the 
barrier up.  "Find Mina and Lita.  They'll protect you."
	Rhea hesitated for a moment then ran into the forest where she last 
saw the older girls.  Once in the forest, though, she lost all sense of 
direction.  "Mina!  Lita!  Where are you?"  Her foot snagged on a protruding 
tree root and she pitched forward.  Rhea braced herself for a hard impact, 
but she felt strong arms steady her.
	"Whoa, careful there, Rhea," Lita said.
	Rhea grabbed onto the brunette's arm and steadied herself.  She 
looked over Lita's shoulder and saw Mina.  "You've got to do something.  
Trent's back there fighting that guy!"
	Mina grinned.  "Don't worry, I don't intend for my boyfriend to fight 
alone."  She turned to Lita.  "Stay here and protect Rhea.  I'm going to help 
Trent."
	"Why do you get to have all the fun?" the tall girl complained.
	"Well, I am your commander, Trent is my boyfriend, and..." Mina took 
off into the woods.  "...I'm faster than you!" she yelled back over her 
shoulder.
	"Why you little..."  Lita tried to grab her blond friend, but it was 
too late and she watched Mina flit between the trees.  "Well, I'm not just 
going to wait here.  C'mon Rhea."
	"Where are we going Lita?  And how's Mina going to help Trent?" the 
girl asked.
	"We're going back to the clearing, so why don't you see for 
yourself."

	After seeing Rhea run into the woods (and hopefully to safety) Trent 
was able to concentrate his attention solely on defeating his opponent.  He 
took down the magical barrier and stood in the opening defenseless.
	Jorum, thinking that his opponent had exhausted his powers, let loose 
a barrage of lightning and plasma bolts.  When they hit, a great cloud of 
dirt was thrown into the air and when it settled, all that was left was a 
fair sized crater.  The scout smiled triumphantly.  *I guess the sensors were 
right, he was pretty weak.*  He was about to communicate with the _Wrath_ 
when he felt someone tap his shoulder.  He gasped and turned around.
	There was Trent hovering in the air next to him.
	"Miss me?"
	Jorum backed away furiously.  "How?  You couldn't have survived.  
Your defenses were down.  You should've been vaporized!"
	"Simple teleportation trick," Trent answered.
	"Teleportation?  But the computer says you're only a weak 
magic-user."
	In the blink of an eye, Trent was face to face with the scout.  "Do I 
look weak to you?"
	Jorum gulped and tentatively extended his magical sense again, and 
his face drained of color.  He knew he couldn't stand up to power like that.
	There was a sound of rustling leaves and Mina burst into the 
clearing.  "Trent?  Where are you?"
	Trent saw the scout's eyes light on Mina and he realized what he was 
going to do.  "Mina!  Run!" he shouted and lunged at Jorum, but the scout was 
faster, launching a plasma bolt right at the mage's chest.
	Trent was forced to erect a shield to block the attack and Jorum used 
the distraction to teleport next to Mina and grab her.  He summoned his sword 
and held it next to her throat.  'Come any closer and she dies!"
	Trent hovered in the air unsure of what to do.
	Mina, though, smiled.  "You messed with the wrong girl, buster!"  In 
an instant, her transformation wand was in her hand.  "Venus Crystal Power!"
	Jorum looked at his hostage strangely.  *What is she do-*  He was 
suddenly blinded and thrown away from Mina by a bright flash of orange light.  
*She's a magic-user, too!*
	Lita and Rhea had made it to the edge of the clearing and saw Mina 
transform into Sailor Venus.  Rhea's mouth hung open.  "Mina's a Sailor 
Scout?"
	Lita smiled.  "Not just her.  Jupiter Crystal Power!"
	As Rhea watched, Lita transformed into Sailor Jupiter.  "Stay here, 
Rhea," the Sailor Scout said, "This'll be over in a minute."  She winked and 
jumped into the fight.

	Jorum sat up and shook his head.  This was definitely not his day.  
When his eyes finally refocused, he saw he was surrounded by the mage he was 
fighting and two female magic-users.  He tried to think of a way to escape, 
but his power was almost gone.  He started to edge away slowly.
	"Not so fast," Sailor Venus said.
	"Wh-what do you want of me?" the scout stammered.
	Trent bent down.  "Just answer my questions.  Who are you?  Who sent 
you?"
	Jorum's training came to him again.  "I won't talk."
	Trent and the Scouts were puzzled.  They looked at each other and the 
same thought ran through their minds.  *What do we do now?*
	When Jorum saw his captors turn away from him, he resumed trying to 
crawl away.
	Rhea saw this and shouted, "Hey, he's trying to get away!"
	A desperate plan formed in Jorum's mind.  With the last of his power 
he resummoned his sword and made a dash for the girl.
	Trent turned to try and stop him, but he saw he that he wouldn't be 
in time.  "Rhea!"
	Rhea saw the scout running towards her.  She tried to think of a 
spell to cast, but they all kept slipping out of her mind.  Finally she 
latched onto one and cast it.

	Jorum was almost there.  He was pretty sure that this girl was 
ordinary.  He would grab her and hold her hostage until he could get out of 
here.  When he was a stride away from her, he leapt at her...and was struck 
in the face by three glowing orbs.

	Rhea fell back shaken.  The cantrip spell was the only she could 
think of and when she cast it, she threw the balls at her attacker's face.  
When they struck, they popped and set his hair on fire.
	As Jorum writhed on the ground trying to smother the flames, Rhea ran 
to her uncle and the Scouts.
	Trent embraced his niece.  "Rhea are you all right?"  The girl nod 
and he relaxed.
	Venus smiled.  "That was quick thinking, Rhea."
	"But it's not over yet," Jupiter cautioned seeing Jorum slowly get 
up.
	"Rhea," Trent said, "cast a 'detect magic' spell on out friend."
	His apprentice nodded and performed the spell and smiled.  "He's 
totally drained of power."
	Trent nodded and raised his voice.  "Do you hear that?  You're 
powerless.  If you surrender, we won't harm you."
	Jorum slowly got up and chuckled.  "Surrender?  Why, so you can 
interrogate me?  I don't think so."  He reached into his pocket and pulled 
out a device.  "I'd rather die than surrender."  He pressed a button and 
screamed as his body began to dissolve away.  A few miles away in the forest 
there was a large explosion signaling the destruction of his scoutship.  
Jorum grit his teeth against the pain.  "You'll never know about us until 
it's too late."  Then he was gone, the wind whipping his ashes away.
	It was a while before anyone was able to speak, then Trent looked at 
everyone.  "I think our magic lesson is over for today.  We'd better contact 
the others."

	"Captain," the _Wrath's_ science officer said, "sensors have 
indicated that scout Jorum has terminated."
	"He activated his failsafe?" Raze asked and he saw his subordinate 
nod.  "That would mean his ship self-destructed.  Can the inhabitants of the 
planet learn anything from its debris?"
	"No, sir.  All our ships are magitech ships, ships created from a 
fusion of magic and science.  Unless the inhabitants of the planet possess a 
device that can analyze both physical and magical properties at the same 
time, the debris will just appear to be pieces of scrap metal."
	"You'd better be right.  Send me all the information that Jorum 
collected.  I'll inform Master Bane of what has occurred.  *Like he doesn't 
know already.*

	"What have you got, Mercury?" Sailor Moon asked.
	All the Scouts and Tuxedo Mask had gathered in the clearing and had 
been told of the battle by Trent.  Sailor Mercury immediately took out her 
minicomputer and began to take readings.
	The blue-haired scout typed furiously for a few more seconds before 
sighing and turning to Sailor Moon.  "I'm afraid there's nothing left.  All I 
can detect is the residual magic of the battle."  She looked at Trent.  
"Maybe you should take me to the site of the explosion you saw."
	The mage nodded.  "Follow me."
	The entire group trekked through the forest until they came upon a 
small glade.  Well, a glade that looked like a bomb exploded in the middle of 
it, which was what technically happened.  The grass and ground were scorched, 
the surrounding trees were blackened, and pieces of melted metal littered the 
area.
	Sailor Mars looked around in dismay.  "We're supposed to find 
something useful in this mess?"
	Mercury didn't bother to respond.  She already had her computer out 
and was walking to the largest piece of debris in the field.  "Strange.  This 
material is like nothing I've ever seen before.  My scans show that it has 
characteristics similar to that of most metals, but it's this other reading 
that puzzles me.  My computer says that it's also detecting a magical 
signature emanating from this debris.
	"I'm not sure yet, but I do know one thing."  Mercury gestured to 
the debris around her.  "This metal is not man-made.  Magical properties 
aside, our technology isn't advanced enough to even produce this material."
	"So you're saying that the person we were fighting was an alien?" 
Sailor Jupiter asked.
	"He looked human to me," Rhea said.
	Trent spoke up.  "Alien or not, this thing's not over yet.  Just 
before he died, our friend implied that he wasn't alone."  His expression 
grew serious.  "We may have a fight on our hands."

	Captain Raze neared Bane's private quarters.  He had reviewed the 
data from the doomed scouting attempt and was going to report the findings.   
The doors automatically opened when he got to them and he entered the 
chambers.
	The interior was lit only by the starlight coming through the 
windows.  Raze moved slowly towards his master's throne that he knew was at 
the far end of the room, hoping that he wouldn't bump into anything.
	"It's all right, Captain, there's nothing in your way."
	Bane's voice both alarmed and reassured the captain.  Nevertheless, 
he picked up his pace and made his way to the foot of the throne.  The 
datapad in his hand suddenly felt heavier.  "Master, I have news from the 
planet."
	"What is it?"
	Raze was surprised.  "Excuse me, sir?"  *He doesn't know yet?*
	Bane chuckled, his eye glowing brightly.  "I may know many things, 
Captain, but I am far from omniscient.  I believe that datapad in your hand 
has the information?"
	"Uh...yes, sir."  Raze hastily handed over the pad.
	The sorcerer scrolled through the contents quickly.  "Hmm, it seems 
like we've found our target."  He activated a switch on the pad and it 
produced an image of Trent Powers.


End Part 3