Chapter 10:
And Then There Were Four

3/12/00
        They had secured the rowboat in a hidden place and began walking. The town had some new features: tents, burning cars, fire hydrants, and other debris littered the streets. One surprise was the remains of an F-16 downed in the street. It had graffiti on it that looked as if it had been sprayed on the plane’s tail before it went down. Serena marveled at it a moment.

        “There are three types of people,” Amy noted, “Repentants, survivors, and armageddonists.”

        “And what are we?” Darien asked as they continued walking.

        “Survivors,” Amy took the lead, “and we want to stay that way.”

        “I guess that means no stealing fighter jets.” Lita once again tried to coax a laugh or at least a smile. No one bothered. The continued on to the partially dilapidated mall. It took a team effort from Darien and Lita to slid the electronic doors open. Once they were inside, they found that the mall was mostly looted anyway.

        “I suppose people took everything from the Gap, Abercrombie, Quicksilver, and all the cool places,” Rei remarked, “So we can’t be picky.”

        “Yeah, that’s right.” Lita agreed, “I say we split up in pairs. Serena and Darien will go together, Mina and Rei will pair up, and Amy and I’ll go our own way. Anybody have a watch that works?”

        “Mine’s quartz face was smashed in the quake. I can’t read it.” Amy reported.

        “I never have a watch.” Serena shrugged.

        “Oh, we know that, meatball-head!” Rei chided.

        “I don’t have one either.” Darien said.

        “Seems we’re chronometer-challenged.” Amy managed a giggle at her technobabble joke.

        “Aw, hell. Let’s just forget it.” Lita threw her hand up, “Come on, Amy. Let’s go.”

        “Figures,” Lita smirked, “They never have anything that fits me.” She was now throwing off the last sweater she tried on. “But I don’t fit society’s female mold.” The five-foot-nine brunette picked up a sweatshirt. This one fit, and so did the flannel she took next.

        “Okay, I’m set.” Amy came up to her. Lita yanked a jogging jacket from the petite girl’s arm load.

        “I tell you Amy, you wear skirts and dresses too much. You need to get some pants.”

        “Pants?” Amy looked horrified.

        “Yeah, I’ve never seen you in shorts.”

        “My gym shorts and my volleyball uniform.”

        “In public, I mean.”

        “Lita, I’m already stealing. I don’t want to be admonished about the clothes I wear.” Amy took back the jacket, “So I’m conservative in dress. Big deal.” She paused a moment before saying something that was obviously painful, “Greg liked the way I dress.”

        “Well, gee, Ams.” Lita frowned, “I’m really sorry about...”

        “I can’t believe he didn’t take cover when the quake hit.” Amy’s temper flashed, “What kind of idiot...” The she remembered it was Greg she was talking about and she stopped. “Come on. Let’s go.” They met up with the others, all of whom had found something wearable. Mina had been thoughtful enough to pick up towels.


        The tower was one of the few buildings still completely intact, the Jigsaw Man noticed. It was a tall yet solid structure that still had both electricity and running water. There was only one problem. The seventy-five storey structure was infested. It was infested not with rats or termites, but with humans. There was at least a hundred of them in this building and it was the Jigsaw Man’s job to clean them out.

        He and the two escorting asp warriors turned the corner out of the stairs and ran into one of the little pink-skinned creatures. One of the asps jabbed his bladed quarterstaff into the male human’s gut before he could scream and then yanked it out with equal force. The human collapsed, vomiting blood from the orifice on it’s face the humans call a mouth.

        Just then, another of the puny primates ran at the Jigsaw Man with a large shard of glass. Too quick for the out-of-shape human, the Jigsaw Man took the man’s leading wrist and snapped it sideways, followed by forcing his elbow in the opposite direction it was meant to bend. The human fell, holding his shattered arm to be slain by an asp.

        The Jigsaw Man lifted a third human by his throat and threw him through the glass window. The man screamed as he fell down the entire height of the building.


        It was Rei’s sharp ears that first heard the scream.  She looked up to see a tiny dot growing into the form of a man.  Before she realized what was happening and could cover her eyes the man hit the concrete to become so much red pulp.

        Behind her, Serena screamed, and there was a collective gasp from the others. Then, there was something else. A wave of evil hit her. It was more than the negative feeling she had been fighting off since the world was infused with negative energy. No, this wave was so powerful that it felt as if her head were going to explode. She stumbled, dropping her bag and pressing the pressurepoints on her temples.

        “Rei, what is it?” Amy had collected herself much quicker than the others. The dark oppression got so severe that Rei was unable to speak.

        Amy heard a tinkle high above and she looked up to spot another person falling in a shower of glass.

        “Something evil,” Rei managed between gasps, “up there.”

        Amy needed nothing else. “Mercury Star Power!” The blue ribbons surrounded her once again and she was Sailor Mercury. Behind her, the others followed suit.

        Rei managed to stand up on shaky legs, using Mercury for support. The feeling subsided and soon, she was christened by fire to Sailor Mars. “Let’s go!” The Sailor Scouts and Prince Darien raced into the building.


        Most of the little pink slugs were now scrambling for an exit. The Jigsaw Man saw a group of them huddled into a corner. With aim true, he flung a dozen energized puzzle pieces at them. The pieces exploded, killing or maiming every human huddled in the corner. The ones that survived were finished off by the asp warriors.

        He cocked his hand to fire another handful when something burned his hand. His eye followed the sound of a metallic ping to see a black rose stuck into the bloodied carpet.

        “Stop right there, negatrash.” A male voice ordered. He turned to see a tall figure in cape and uniform. A sword was drawn from the scabbard at his hip. Five other figures, these female, stood abreast this Earth warrior.

        “Who are you?” the Jigsaw Man asked contemptuously.

        “I am Prince Darien,” the rose-thrower announced, “Champion of the Neg...er, Earth.”

        The evil pile of puzzle pieces laughed, “What little is left of it. And soon there will be even less.”

        “Not if I have anything to do about it!” a blonde female with pigtails stepped forward, “I am Sailor Moon, and on behalf of the Moon, I will right wrongs and triumph over all evil. For your part in the destruction of my world and the murder of these innocent people, I will punish you. So prepare to be thrashed, you Milton Bradley reject!”

        Behind the Jigsaw Man, the two snake warriors hissed and readied for battle. He held up his hand to stop them, then glared down at this insolent creature. “You?” he cackled, “A mere girl? Defeat me? Ha! Before the hour is up, I’ll have taught all six of you a lesson you won’t live to remember.” And he threw the charged pieces in his hand.

        The Sailor Scouts scattered, diving every which way. Jupiter had the presence of mind to do something. “Jupiter Thunderclap zap!” The Jigsaw Man dodged the ball of lightning and returned with an attack of his own. He then allowed his two warriors to charge.

        “Mercury Bubbles blast!” the Jigsaw Man heard before the entire world turned gray. It took him a moment to realize that this was a mist.

        The creator of that mist, meanwhile, scrambled across the floor. She had to move quickly, lest someone attack and burn the fog away. She soon found Sailor Venus huddled in a cubicle.

        “Come on, Venus,” Mercury urged, “we need you.” the aquabelle tapped her earring and instantly began analyzing the enemy. His readings were off the scale, but he still wasn’t powerful enough to cause the quakes.

        “Is it him?” Venus asked.

        “No,” Mercury shook her head and turned off her visor, “It’s not.”

        “Yeah, well I wish it were.” Venus growled, “I personally want to repay him for taking away my family.”

        “Well, that’s one of his henchmen.” Mercury said. There was an explosion and the mist lifted. Venus was no longer in the corner.

        “Venus Crescent Beam smash!” the laser beam caught the Jigsaw Man in the arm as he prepared another barrage of puzzle pieces.  The deadly game parts were flung towards the snake-like monsters and exploded on contact, splattering dark green blood over the walls.  Before the Jigsaw Man could react, Venus let rip a Meteor Shower, knocking him back.

        “Don’t even!” the blonde girl cried as he prepared another barrage of his little weapons. She had a Venus Love Chain ready to fly from her fingertip. The two stood there, glaring at each other. For a moment, it seamed as if the negaverse creep was on the verge of backing down.

        Venus blinked first.

        The cluster of shimmering puzzle parts flew at her and hit before she could get her Love Chain off. The array of energized hearts went wild and seared a hole in the ceiling as Venus was knocked back through a window.

        “Venus!” Sailor Moon leapt and grabbed the other Scout’s flailing hand. The moon princess landed hard, almost dragged out of the shattered window by Venus’s weight. “Come on, Venus. Gimme your other hand.” Sailor Moon reached down with another hand to hold on with. “Venus, your hand is slipping out of your glove. I can feel it slipping. Give me your hand!” But the other Scout simply hung there.

        Behind her, Sailor Moon could hear the battle raging. Jupiter had just lashed out with her Thunder Dragon, combining it with Mars’s Firebird. She returned her full attention to Venus, who had still made no attempt to aide in her own rescue.

        Sailor Venus locked her crystal blue eyes on Sailor Moon’s. The moonchild read them and before she could do anything to stop it, Sailor Venus set herself free. The glove Sailor Moon had held on to was now empty. She could see Venus’s eyes still looking into her own as she silently fell to become an orange and white dot far below before disappearing. “Venus!” Sailor Moon screamed out one last time before falling into tears.

        She turned quickly away from the shattered window and drew her Moon Scepter in rage. Taking careful aim, she cried out “Moon Scepter elimination.” The familiar crescent-shaped beam shot out at the Jigsaw Man, bearing down on him. Just as it reached where he was, a black ripple surrounded him and he was gone.

        “Where’s Venus?” Sailor Mars raced over to her.

        Serena shook her head, laughing a pathetically cynical laugh and held up the empty white glove. “She’s gone.”

        Mars drew back and clasped her hand over her mouth. Sailor Moon held Venus’s glove to her chest, letting the stinging tears stream down her face again. “She’s gone.” she repeated.

        For a long moment, the four remaining Scouts stood in a painfully heavy silence. Nothing like this had happened since they faced the Doom and Gloom gals. And even then, that had not been so permanent.


        They found her body still intact in a small crater in the sidewalk. It was not Sailor Venus, but Mina who’s crystal blue eyes stared blankly into the darkening sky. Serena bent down to rub her hand over the once beautiful face, closing the unseeing eyes forever.

        “Okay,” Amy was the first to break the silence, “we have to think about this logically.”

        “Is that all you can think about?” Rei snapped, “How to think about it logically? Is that all you can do; plot the next step, input the next figure?”

        “That’s all I can do if I want to survive.” Amy retorted with equal anger.

        “You’re such a frikin’ braniac.” the Japanese girl shouted. “It’s like...like...” that’s when she made one of the worst offenses to Amy’s Catholic heritage, “...like you have no soul.”

        For maybe the only time in her life, Amy exploded. The blow came quick and to the right spot on Rei’s jaw to send her reeling. The diminutive girl’s mouth was trembling in rage. Her dark blue eyes, wet with unreleased tears, were padlocked on Rei and she regained herself.

        The temple maid wiped her busted lip and redirected her attack in another direction. “This is all your fault, Serena.” she said, “Maybe if you had held on she would still be alive.” With that, she straightened up and walked away, snatching up her bag of clothes as she left.


Temporal Corridor
        “Sir,” the Jigsaw Man called Flute.

        “You have not taken that tower.” Flute’s eyes glowed especially red, “Why?”

        “The Sailor Scouts,” the henchman reported, “They’re still alive.”

        “All of them?”

        “Well, I slew one of them before retreating.”

        “Which one?” Flute asked, now his interest was more than just acting.

        “She had yellow hair and bright blue eyes.”

        “Princess Serena?” Flute’s eyebrow went up in inquiry.

        “No. I believe they called her Venus.”

        “Ah, the great Sailor V.” Flute half-smiled, pleased, “You have made an achievement. Venus was one of the toughest Scouts to deal with.”

        “They also had a man with them.” the walking collection of game pieces reported, “He called himself Prince Darien. I sensed a great evil in him.”

        “Hmmm.” Flute turned his back to the Jigsaw Man, “Very well, you may go.”

        “Yes, master.” and he left Flute’s chamber. Meanwhile, the Negaverse General called in his apprentice. Jekter appeared almost instantly.

        “How may I serve you, sir?”

        “Our plans have once again been delayed by those blasted Sailor Scouts.” Flute began pacing, “But they did suffer a loss today. We will hit again in a month. This time, I will send you and a small contingent of asps.”

        “It will be my honor to march victoriously on the crushed cities of Earth.” Jekter bowed deeply.

        “No, my boy. Not this time.” Flute shook his head, “You are to weed out and destroy Prince Darien, no more, no less. Without him, the Scouts will be vulnerable. It is then that you will crush them. You’ve got a month, so I would polish up on my swordsmanship if I were you.”

        “Yes, sir.” Jekter saluted. He couldn’t wait to take on this challenge.

Chapter 11: Feeling Loss and Filleting Fish
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