Serena raced back into the bedroom and locked the door, just as her mother came up the stairs. She sighed and looked down at the small bottle in her hands. This should do it... I never thought I'd ever do anything like this.
Serena's mother knocked on the door to her daughter's bedroom. Hearing no response, she tried the doorknob. But she couldn't enter, the door was locked. So finally it begins, she's going to start hiding away in her room. "Serena, you're up early today!" She tried to sound cheerful through her irritation.
"Oh yeah," the teenager responded, "I just want to get to school on time." She giggled strangely, but didn't open the door.
Something's going on... What's up with that girl? "Okay, Serena, but since you're up, you can join your brother and I for breakfast. I'll expect you in fifteen minutes." She waited, expecting her daughter to answer, but there was only silence. "Teenagers!" she exclaimed as she turned from the doorway and made her way down the stairs. "Must they be so difficult?" she asked the air, somehow forgetting the torment she had put her own family through at a similar age.
Serena put the bottle down and crawled into bed. She had done it. She had taken all of mother's sleeping pills. I have to find a way to end this... I can't save anyone; I can't let this go on anymore. She settled back into the rumpled bedsheets. Memories of the past few days came flooding back to her. She remembered the school as it exploded, taking Molly and many of her classmates with it. Then the image in her head changed, she could see Sailor Mars, Sailor Mercury, and herself trying, in vain, to battle Pyro-Head.
She became very tired, and tears dripped slowly down her cheeks. Molly, Amy, Rei, I'm so sorry I failed you.. but I can't go on. I can't watch you all die again. I can't bear to watch Pyro-Head win again! Her sight became cloudy, and it was harder for her to keep her eyes open. "I wish I could fix everything... I wish..." But it became too hard to stay awake, and Serena closed her eyes and fell asleep.
The tall blue haired woman sighed and slammed her coffee cup onto the breakfast table. Sammy looked up from his cereal and snickered. "The Meatball Head is toast!" He watched his mother stomp up the stairs and snickered some more. Boy, is she going to get it this time! He pushed another mouthful of breakfast into his mouth and nodded in amusement as his mother proceeded to bang on his ditzy sister's door.
"Serena, I told you to be down here twenty minutes ago! How long does it take to get dressed?"
Sammy shook his head. She'd better answer, or Mom's gonna pop a fuse!
"Young lady, don't you ignore me! Get out here this instant!"
Luna awoke from her comfortable pillow on the couch and looked up towards the stairs. She sighed. Why can't that girl ever get ready on time? It really wouldn't hurt her to be on time one day of the week.
Serena's brother suddenly wondered what he had done to be allowed to witness this kind of fun so early in the morning. His mom marched down the stairs and grabbed a kitchen knife out of the door. "All right!" he declared, "She's gonna pry the door open! Serena! You're about to get killed!" Yes!!! he thought, putting down his spoon, Wait till I tell the guys at school! He joyfully followed his mother up the stairs and watched as she pried the lock and opened the door. I wish I had a camera!/i>
His mother's scream snapped him out of his ten year old reverie. "Quick, Sammy, call an ambulance!"
"What? What's wrong?" the boy answered in shock.
"Just do it!!" commanded his mother. Sammy turned, ran for the phone, and quickly dialed 911.
Luna heard the shouting and leapt off the couch and up the stairs. She found Serena unconscious on the bed, her mother sitting next to her, cradling the girl in her arms. She tapped Serena's cheeks, trying to compel her to wake up.
"Oh Serena, wake up please!" her mother begged, "You have to wake up, Serena! You just have to!" She began to cry softly.
Luna jumped easily onto the small table next to Serena's bed. She meowed in fright as she saw the bottle of pills laying empty on the table's surface. Oh no, Serena!
Amy was making her way to the library when her communicator went off. She quickly ducked into the bathroom and locked herself into a delicately painted stall. "Amy here," she said.
Luna's voice startled her. "Oh thank goodness!" the black cat exclaimed.
"Luna, why are you calling? What's wrong?"
"It's Serena; something terrible has happened."
"What?! Is she all right??"
"I don't know. It looks like she swallowed an entire bottle of her mother's sleeping pills. She was rushed to the hospital by ambulance just a few minutes ago." The Lunar Cat sniffled in sadness. "Amy, it looks like Serena just tried to kill herself."
Amy's eyes filled with tears at the thought. "That's horrible, Luna. It must be a mistake. Serena would never..."
"She was very upset last night, and I just dismissed it as one of her moods," the cat began to cry harder.
"Don't cry, Luna, it's not your fault."
Luna paused for a moment, trying to regain her control. "I'll meet you there."
Sammy watched as him Mom paced back and forth in the waiting room. I can't believe this has happened. Why would Serena do something stupid like this? I mean, I knew she was ditzy but this goes way beyond!
Doctor Anderson walked into the waiting room and approached his mother. "Serena is going to be fine," she declared calmly. Him mom sank into a nearby seat and sighed in relief; Sammy even found himself doing the same. "We had to pump her stomach, but she'll survive. She is a very fortunate young lady. If you hadn't have found her so quickly, the results would not have been the same."
"Thank you, Dr. Anderson," his mother responded with great emotion. "Can I see her now?"
"Yes, you can but she's sleeping right now. Try not to wake her." The doctor led them to the room where Serena was resting. "When she is awake, we will determine our next course of action."
"I understand," responded Sammy's mother. She turned to her son and said, "Sammy, I want you to wait here. I'm going to need to talk to Serena alone."
Sammy nodded. He knew his sister would be okay, so he was satisfied with the opportunity to hog the TV channels on the small TV in the waiting room. "Sure thing, Mom!" He waved good-bye to her as he went to find the TV's remote.
Tuxedo Mask settled onto the rooftop of a high-rise building. I don't understand, I'm certain I felt Sailor Moon was in trouble, but I don't sense anything anymore... He surveyed the bustle of morning activity in the city, but still he could not detect Sailor Moon's location. Well I can at least try her usual haunts. Perhaps, she took care of the problem without me. But even that was strange, he usually only knew to go to her when she was in acute danger. He stood up and quickly leapt onto the next rooftop, silently pledging to find out what was going on.
Rei ran out her school and down the street. Leave it to the Meatball Head to screw things up! "I'm on my way now, Amy. I'll be there as fast as I can!" To think Amy actually believes that we pushed Serena to suicide. That's the most STUPID thing I have ever heard. When I get my hands on that meatball head...
Serena's eyes opened and winced at the light in the room. Oh great, they didn't work. Why can't I just finish it once and for all? She heard her mother's voice and wondered what was going on.
"Serena, you're awake. Hi honey. You're going to be just fine now. Everything's going to be all right."
"Mom?" her daughter asked, confused. She didn't recognize the room she was in. Whose bed was she in?
Serena's mother took her hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. "Don't be frightened, sweetie, you're in a hospital room. You had a close call today."
The girl began to cry in earnest. IT didn't work again! Why can't I just die? I don't wanna do this anymore! She let go of her mother's hand and rolled onto her side, putting her back to her mother. "Just leave me alone, Mom. Leave me alone."
Her mother gasped in shock; she couldn't believe what her daughter had just said. A firm hand on her shoulder caused her to look up. Doctor Anderson motioned for her to go into the hall.
"She is obviously very upset. Let's leave her alone for a while. We need to down and have a talk about what we will do from here."
"But that's my baby. How can I leave her? She needs me."
The doctor shook her head. "It's best to leave her alone right now. Come, I'll get you a cup of coffee and we can talk. She's being well supervised. Nothing will happen while we're gone. We can talk in my office." Putting an arm around the tearful woman's shoulders comfortingly, she led her towards her office.
Amy ran into the Emergency Room went straight for the triage nurse. The young, blonde nurse she knew as Cindy greeted her cheerfully. "Why hello, Amy! What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in school?"
Amy shook her head. "No time to discuss my absence now, Cindy. My friend Serena was brought in here, fourteen years old, blond, possible overdose of sleeping pills."
"Yes she was, Amy, but don't worry, she's fine. Your mother is taking good care of her."
"Can I see her?" She gave the nurse her best pleading look, knowing that full well this was against the rules.
Someone burst into the Emergency Room doors, knocking into a nurse who just happened to be walking by. "Sorry, lady, where is she?!" she shouted.
"Rei! Over here! Stop that!" she said, pulling Rei over to the desk. "You can't just come in here shouting!" she scolded.
"Okay, you two, but just for a minute or two. She's in Emergency Room B."
"Thanks Cindy, we won't be long," Amy responded, dragging Rei down the corridor.
Jadeite appeared on top of Crossroads Junior High. He watched the adolescents scurry to their pathetic classes. What a waste of time... The Negaverse could teach them so much more. A figure appeared behind him and he turned his head to acknowledge her presence. She had to be one of the most repulsive of Beryl's minions, and he swore her hair looked like rotten seaweed.
"I want you to attack the school below, to cause panic and fear amongst those stupid children," he said, turning his head to study the scene below.
"I do as I am told, My Lord Jadeite, but why?" she asked, a ball of flames appearing suddenly in her hands. "I am capable of so much more destruction!"
"You question my orders, Pyro-Head?" He turned to watch the homely Negaverse monster back away respectfully.
"No, My Lord, of course not. I live to serve the Negaverse."
Jadeite sighed, annoyed that he would have to explain himself. "See the creatures below?" he asked, pointed to the students who made their way obediently to their classes. "They are adolescents, full of energy and spirit. They are made to behave and listen to their elders. They are forced to waste their potential in boring classes where they sit and stare at a teacher all day, wasting that wonderful energy on inertia."
Pyro-Head smiled revealing disgusting teeth that made Jadeite cringe. "So we will cause chaos and panic among the stupid children, compelling them to use their wasted energy."
"And then, we will collect it," the blond General of the Negaverse said with an evil grin. "We will soon bring forth the Negaforce!"
Tuxedo Mask landed on rooftop of Crossroads Junior High, in his final attempt to locate Sailor Moon. He still had this nagging feeling that she wasn't well. While he didn't see the Sailor Moon or the Sailor Scouts, he did see an ugly Negaverse monster attacking the students who were attempting to enjoy their lunch hour.
"I'm Pyro-Head, feel my fire!" she shouted, sending her fireballs coursing towards the unsuspecting students. Young girls and boys started to run, screaming in fear.
She raised her hand, about to send forth another bast of fire, when something landed at her feet. She looked down to see a delicate crystal rose, and then heard a male voice.
"How dare you destroy the peace of a student as they relax during their lunch hour?! I am Tuxedo Mask, and I will stop this viscous attack!"
Pyro-Head watched as an annoying man in a tuxedo, wearing a top-hat and white mask jumped off the gymnasium roof. "You stop me?!? Don't be ridiculous, I'm Pyro-Head!" She laughed and launched a fireball in his direction.
Tuxedo Mask gracefully avoided the fireball, thankful that it only hit the school wall. He launched a few roses towards the Negaverse minion and gasped as they were incinerated by its next attack. "Sailor Moon, where are you?"
Rei and Amy entered Serena's room, only to find their friend, staring blankly at the blue-green painted wall. "Serena, are you okay?" Amy gently asked her friend.
Serena didn't say a thing, only continued to stare blankly at the wall. She didn't even look over her shoulder to see who was talking to her.
Rei sighed and stomped over to the bed. "Are you a nutbrain, Serena? OD'ing on sleeping pills? What the hell is going on?" She grabbed Serena by the shoulder and pulled her onto her back.
The blond teenager looked up into Rei's angry face and began to cry. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I can't make it stop. I can't save the day... I'm so sorry. I failed. I couldn't do it."
"What are you talking about? What do you mean you can't save the day?"
"The day, I can't save it. I can't make it stop. I can't save anyone. I'm a failure. I'm sorry." She began to sob, and covered her face with her trembling hands.
Amy pulled Rei away from the bed, and leaned over to comfort Serena. "It's okay, Serena, everything is going be okay..."
"No, it won't!" Serena suddenly shouted, pushing her blue haired friend away. "I tried to stop it, but I couldn't. It didn't work!"
Amy looked over her shoulder and motioned for Rei to find a nurse. "Nothing's wrong, Serena, you're in the hospital. You didn't do anything wrong."
"Everything's wrong! Nothing is right. I ruined everything and I can't make it stop! Make it stop. Please make it stop! I CAN'T MAKE IT STOP!" she begged Amy.
Amy backed away from the bed in horror at her friend's behavior. She didn't know what to do; she had never seen Serena react this way. She watched helplessly as a redheaded nurse came into the room. She gently pushed Serena down into the soft blankets. Despite Serena's loud protest, she gave the teenager a shot.
After a few moments, Serena quieted and fell peacefully to sleep. The nurse motioned for both girls to follow her out of the room and both stunned teenagers did.
"You can both wait in waiting room. It's just around the corner. I think Serena's younger brother is there."
"That's just great," complained Rei, "Serena's going nuts and we get to wait with the twerp!"
They waited for what seemed like hours, watching Sammy flick channels as if the TV was going to blow up the next day. Rei tried to get him to watch only one show, but they only ended up fighting about it. Amy tried to stop them but soon gave up. She understood that they were both worried and decided to leave them alone. She only wished she had thought to bring some homework to take care of.
Finally, tired of the racket, she handed Sammy some money. "Here's a five, Sammy, why don't you go to the cafeteria and get yourself a snack."
"Hey thanks, Amy, you're the best!" the boy answered. He waved good-bye enthusiastically as he left the waiting room.
Luna quickly entered the room, careful not to be seen. "I never thought he'd leave, quickly put on the local news. I was listening at the nurse's desk when I heard."
Rei clicked on the local news channel and they all gasped at the sight before their eyes. It was the image of Crossroads Junior High, totally devastated. A tearful reported described the scene:
"This is the schoolyard of Crossroads Junior High where a terrible attack by a hideous monster has reeked havoc upon this school. Earlier today, the students were attacked by a red skinned, fire-throwing monster that sucked the energy out of her helpless victims. She has been quoted as saying, 'I will bring forth the Negaforce!' This reporter wonders, what is the Negaforce and where did this hideous monster come from? Will it ever be stopped? At this time, policy and local military personnel have mobilized against this new threat."
The camera panned to the scene of a stretcher being loaded onto an ambulance. An arm dropped from under the white sheet, wearing a seared black material, its hand encased in a tattered white glove.
"Oh no!" gasped Amy.
"Tuxedo Mask!" Rei exclaimed in horror.
The reporter continued, "Medical emergency personnel have failed to reveal the identity of this brave man who lost his life in a heroic attempt to protect the children of this school."
"He's dead!" gasped Luna. "We have to stop that Negaverse monster!"
"Or else she'll destroy the entire city!" exclaimed Rei.
"And," concluded Amy, "the Negaverse will win!"
