The next day four girls sat amid a busy arcade staring intently at their drinks. Lita and Mina lay on the table resting their heads on their arms. They fiddled with their straws randomly. Amy couldn't even keep the contents of her book on her mind. She finally laid ­1984 down in frustration. Raye and Serena, as usual, were engaged in a staring contest, but beads of sweat shone on their foreheads and few words were said. It had been a merely two hours since they had gone to bed the night before.

Finally, Raye backed out of her battle of wits with Serena and sat back in her chair with a fixed expression on her face.

"Okay, I give up! I don't understand it either, okay? But that's not important now." Serena opened her mouth to gloat, but chose to bite her tongue instead.

"What we need to do is come up with a plan. They're gonna finish what they started," Raye continued.

"Have you sensed any strong presences in the fire recently?" Amy asked.

"No, none at all; they must be in a dimension I can't sense. So, I wouldn't be able to tell when they plan to attack again."

Lita pounded her fist on the table in anger.

"Dammit! They could be getting stronger as we're here sitting thinking about it! I thought the Negaverse was toast already!" Lita cried out. Mina patted Lita on the back to prevent more stares from being directed at their table.

"Well, they're back. And this time we'll finish them off," Mina said coldly.

Flashback

A forest green colored female stood on top of a building in the western part of the Juuban district. She had long cotton candy colored hair with a feathered tiara extending from her temple. Her clothing was skimpy, as if she was posing for the cover of Sports Illustrated. On her feet she wore high heels that matched the color of her swimsuit. From the back of her suit extended wings like that of a dragonfly. Below her on the basketball court stood four more girls of similar dress, but with various different colors.

"We're the last remaining generals of the negaverse; the doom and gloom girls," they had said.

"Go ahead and fight us if you wish. But you won't win!" the purple leader jeered. The sailor scouts stood across from the trio on the ground. A mixture of fury and confusion rose in their eyes.

"Wanna bet?" Mars said as she got into a fighting stance. "Mars Flame Sniper!" The girls watched helplessly as the attack faded as soon as it made contact with the quartet. Raye cringed at her weakness. Sailor Moon bit her nails.

"I was ho-ping we wouldn't have to go through this again. Why couldn't they just send the weaker minions and gradually get harder like they usually do?"

Next Jupiter tried to get a shot off.

"Jupiter Thunder Clap!" she yelled. When her attack mimicked Mars, she grumbled in dissatisfaction. It didn't help that the doom and gloom girls stood there, watching them as if they were nibbling puppies.

Mercury decided to take a more practical approach and whipped out her portable computer. As she clicked away, Mina tried to think of a plan.

"I-I can't find a weakness in any of them…," Mercury interrupted.

"But that can't be," Mina cried in astonishment. Jupiter merely gritted her teeth.

"Is that the best you can do?" the doom girl in magenta asked.

"You might as well forfeit," the leader put a hand in the air, "because you've already lost." At the end of her sentence she thrust a plum ball of energy at the scouts. Venus, Mercury and Jupiter managed to avoid the full brunt of the attack. Sailor Moon solely stood in place, completely unprepared for the onslaught. Out of instinct, Sailor Mars through herself in front of Sailor Moon and took on the attack full force. She stumbled slightly to the ground as her knees buckled.

"Mars all you all right?" Venus asked. The other scouts uttered similar sentiments. Raye gradually regained her balance and stood up.

"Whatever you do, don't underestimate them."

"Wanna give a try, Ivy?" the leader asked another girl clad in light green.

"My pleasure, Fuchsia." Ivy, put both her hands straight in front of her and let green clouds of energy shoot out toward all five of the scouts. Serena looked at the ball of energy; she looked at Sailor Mars struggling to stand in front of her; she wondered where Tuxedo Mask was and if he would come to save her at this moment; she wondered if he could save her. Suddenly, as if strengthened by some imaginary thought, she lifted her Moon Scepter. She jumped in front of Mars and spun the golden scepter. In seconds, the attack had been disintegrated and the scepter alone remained in its golden brilliance.

"Hmmm, I guess the little one has more power than she looks," Ivy said disinterestedly. Another girl in teal stepped forward.

"I guess it's my turn." She scanned the girls and slanted her eyes when she saw Lita. She could sense her high energy levels and liked the challenge.

"Here goes," Teallie said as the created a blue fire and launched it at Sailor Jupiter. Mercury sensed Teallie's focus and threw in an attack of her own.

"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody." Surprisingly, it was a direct hit.

"Good work, Mercury," Mina congratulated. Mercury smiled back.

"It seems their defenses are down when they are making an attack." All the scouts nodded.

Following their queue, the scouts waited until Teallie revved up an attack meant for Mercury and Venus.

"Oak Evolution…"

"Flame Sniper…"

"Attack!"

Fuchsia narrowly dodged the double attack, but the one known as Peach was sent flying backward.

Reclaiming her footing, Peach stood upright and wiped a green drop of blood from her mouth.

"Why don't we stop playing and put these little gnats to bed?" Peach suggested venomously. In response, the doom girls sent a flurry of energy at the unsuspecting scouts. The element of surprise proved on the Negaverse's side as all the scouts were thrown roughly into the pavement behind them. Once the air cleared the girls could be seen strewn across the pavement. Mercury typed at her handheld computer furiously.

"Their attack doubled!" Mercury cried in astonishment.

"That's right, girlie. We were just playing before, but expect no mercy now," Fuchsia stated.

The battle went on until the wee hours of the morning. Finally, when it reached dawn, the fighting ceased.

"We'd love to continue this game…" Ivy began.

"But we have some affairs to attend to," Lavender finished. The doom and gloom girls turned around as if about to walk away.

"Oh, but don't think we won't be back to finish you off," Fuchsia added over her shoulder. Finally, they vanished leaving only the frustrated and broken Sailor Scouts in their midst.

End flashback

Serena determinedly slurped the bottom of her glass in a futile effort to get another drop of lemonade.

"Well, there's no point in sitting around here looking depressed. Let's go!" Serena's upbeat attitude only received disdain from her friends.

"Come on!" she reiterated yanking Raye out of the booth.