View source for 2015-12-05 - The Beast Without 4

{|class="toccolours" cellspacing="2"
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! style="background:#CC6699; border: 2px #CC0033 solid; font-size: 110%;" align="center" colspan="2" | '''Title: The Beast Without 4'''
|-
|'''Summary''':<br>
''Following the advice of the Sea Dragon God, the magical girls try to save the Vermillion Bird, whether it wants to be saved or not.''
|-
| '''Who:'''<br>
[[Kuniko Saito]], [[Usagi Tsukino]], [[Garnet]], [[Lera Camry]], [[Michiru Kaioh]], [[Fuu Hououji]], [[Hikaru Shidou]], [[Takeo Akamizu]], [[Haruka Tenoh]]

GM: Madoka Kaname
|-
| '''Where:'''<br>
Test-of-Courage Cave, Okinawa
|-
| '''OOC - IC Date:'''<br>
12-05-2015 - 09-13-2014
|-
|}
[[Category:Logs]]

 &lt;Pose Tracker> Madoka Kaname [Ohtori Academy (9)] has posed.

PREVIOUSLY ON BATTLE FANTASIA

On the way to Okinawa, an aircraft full of elementary school students is intercepted by a massive and horrifying creature called only the Vermillion Beast! National catastrophe is narrowly averted by the efforts of the magical girls, who drive the Beast off. She warns that she will return to claim what is hers.

THEN

The Beast reappeared on a daily excursion to a major shrine in the Okinawan capital of Naha, clearly targeting the golden pendant of one first-grader, Mina Korsuke. Again she was beaten back; afterwards, the shrine maiden suggested the girls consult the nominal local spiritual patron, the Sea Dragon God.

SO

The girls tested themselves against water and fire and time, penetrating deep into the dark and damp caves in which the Dragon was said to be enshrined. After placating its distaste for dealing with foreigners (as anyone outside of the ancient lands of Kyushu would be, in its estimation), the Sea Dragon God revealed that the Vermillion Beast had been corrupted and was being controlled by some external force. So too did this ancient being offer to help cleanse the Beast -- an effort that will require Beast, golden pendant, little girl and Dragon God, all in the same location.

NOW

Approached by friendly magical girls who had rescued her before, Mina is totally willing to go to what she thinks of as the Test-of-Courage Cave, pendant in tow. She has said it was inherited from her grandmother, but is unwilling to discuss it further (or show it around).

Helpfully, much as it did back in Naha, the pendant is beginning to glow, glorious and radiant in its golden luminescence. It's far brighter than the sunrise, which is still only hinting at the gloomy blue-gray-purple bruises of the horizon. The tide is out, making access to the Cave easier than usual. It can't be seen from the entrance, but it isn't that far within, and little Mina has set her chin courageously, prepared to dare the cavern all on her own.

And while some girls might prefer to face the darkness with her, that may not be a good idea -- because a sky-shattering shriek is already rending the air, and The Vermillion Beast is soaring across the seascape towards the cave. It's still too far away to be engaged; there is, rather unusually for this lifestyle, a little bit of time to prepare. (But just a little!)

OOC: If you missed the last part, you're welcome to be attracted to the scene by the sound of the screaming gigantic monster.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Takeo Akamizu has fully healed himself.
}}

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Michiru Kaioh has fully healed herself.
<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry has fully healed herself.
}}

 &lt;Pose Tracker> Fuu Hououji [Infinity Institute (9)] has posed.

After meeting with the Sea Dragon God, the Wind Knight would have done what she could to spread the word around that as much help as was available would presumably be welcome for confronting the Vermillion Beast for the final battle. An actual strategy meeting would have been nice, but the field trip schedule didn't allow enough time to try to organize it - so the Wind Knight settled for relaying the request, directly and indirectly, to as many magical girls as she knew how to contact.

And the time has arrived.

The Magic Knight of Wind is preparing to enter the cavern with young Mina when the shriek rips through the sky above. That's enough to make the Wind Knight stop and look up, grimacing. Describing the cave as a 'test of courage' seems far more apt now than it did five minutes ago, in her opinion. "Everyone, prepare yourselves!" the Wind Knight calls out to her allies, her bow and quiver materializing. She may have to switch to her sword later, or to depending fully on her magic, but archery will take less toll on her energy reserves than flinging high-powered spells with abandon. She already knows what she's going to open with, and is preparing to cast it as soon as the beast descends into a more suitable engagement range ...

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji has fully healed herself.
<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji transforms into Magic Knight!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Takeo Akamizu [Ohtori Academy (11)] has posed.

Yupp. The beach. That was the life for one Takeo Akamizu and his boon companion and bestest pal, Sparkles the Horse. The two fo them were lounging enjoying a sunset, as Takeo sipped at a caffenated soda concoction and Sparkles lay in the sand sipping ... An Apple Juice in a coconut.

Takeo sipped his drinka s the sound came over the area and the shadow of the Vermillion beast passed over him. He sets the drink calmly aside, not removing hsi sunglasses. "Snap crackers." He states in a relaxed tone.

Sparkles neighs in response.

"I suppose we need to armor up. Help save the day?"

Another Neigh.

Takeo sips his drink and sets it aside with a sigh. "Let's do this." He replies in a deep smokey voice.

Soon, lightning beigns to arc down as Takeo starts walking in the direction the beast went. Each bolt of lightning forming a piece of armor with each strike. Finally, as a blue cloak billows out, he holds his hand out to catch a bolt of pure white lightning. With a brilliant flash and a roar of thunder, he flourishes Arondight, formed from the captured lightning bolt, and leaps backwards to land on Sparkles.

"Let's go!" Lancelot cries in an excited ready tone.

Sparkles blinks in surpirse, having spent that entire time sipping her apple juice, clearling thinking the transformation woudl take longer. She hops up and nods, before leaping forward ina s pray of sand, heading for wahtever waits them where the Vermillion Beast heads.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Takeo Akamizu transforms into Lancelot!
}}

 &lt;Pose Tracker> Lera Camry [Infinity Institute (10)] has posed.

Lera Camry isn't really ready for the Vermillion Beast. She doesn't know how to be ready for such a monster, with biology that defies common sense. She reasons, though, that a shield could help. After all, the dragon said both he and Mina would need to be protected. She knows which Device may be better suited for that. She hefts the warhammer-shaped Device up, resting it across her shoulder one-handed.

She looks down at Mina, flashing her a quick smile. Then, she lifts her head, and looks up, letting out a long breath. She hears Fuu's command. "I'm ready! Ground?"

&lt;Ready.> The Intelligent Device's core, held in the clockwork structure that makes a facsimile of the hammerhead. &lt;It's approaching. Keep it off the girl and the spirit.>

"We got this, y'know?" Lera says, with a sheepish grin, then she looks at the entrance of the cave, and waits. That scream is bone-shaking.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry transforms into Barrier Jacket Aphelion!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Garnet [None] has posed.

Garnet looks up at the Vermillion Beast circling the sky. It won't be long now... Though her instinct is to stay close to Mina, she decides it would be better to weaken the beast before it even gets to the cave. The spirit, though direct, was not overflowing with details of exactly how close the beast needs to be for the ritual to take place, but it would be best to subdue it before then, and the cave should provide adequate shielding for both Mina and the Sea Dragon God.

Given that he was here last time to meet the God, she's a little surprised that Steven didn't force himself along to the main event, but she's glad he stuck to spreading the word and staying safe. It almost ate him once.

Never again.

She concentrates and summons her gauntlets, clanging them together in determination.

She locks her focus on the beast, if it stays up there, she'll be able to study it and its behavior. If it descends, she'll be on top of it before it hits the ground.


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Michiru Kaioh [Infinity Institute (11)] has posed.

Michiru Kaioh had seen the beast before. Not with her eyes, but in the world of dream. There was a night, not too long ago, where she laid upon a towel, paintbrush in hand - guided by her subconcious as she strokes the brush across the canvas time and time again. A touch of her companion on her shoulder - her hair touched by the salty sea air here on Okinawa.

A breath in, a breath out.

Michiru looks back towards the painting, and stares at the eyes that have taken form.

But that was yesterday - and yesterday is gone.

Michiru had not noticed the girl that an errant brush stroke had given vague form to. There was only the beast, in her eyes. But it was not Michiru that faced it now.

The other magical sorts stand on the beach - and Sailor Neptune suddenly stands beside them - leaping from a hidden perch that she had viewed the arrival of the beast from. Hair tossed by the wind, jewel in her tiara sparkling like the sea before them - her eyes were as cold as the sea as well. Breath in, breath out.

Neptune tenses, preparing herself.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Garnet transforms into Garnet's Got Gauntlets!
<br>COMBAT: Michiru Kaioh transforms into Sailor Neptune!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Usagi Tsukino [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.

It's been a bad day for Usagi Tsukino. "I don't see why you can't put the bandaid on yourself." A tired response that's mostly mumbled, "Everyone knows it helps more if someone else does it Luna." "It's just that it's..." After getting stuck to cat fur /three times/ adorable little paws finally work the bandaid on the small cut. It had a little smiling bunny head on it. "...it's really hard with paws!"

A new enemy, one who had really hurt Ami. She really had a lot on her mind that she should be thinking about... should be discussing with Luna right now. But instead, with no pronouncement, she simply fell limply onto her side on the bed, and was out before she hit the soft surface of the hotel bed. "That girl..." Luna sighs with no small amount of affection, hangs her head, then begins the arduous task of also working the covers up and over her in their hotel room when...

SCREECH

The aftermath of a shriek that could in no way match it from the rudely awakened girl left Luna flung across the hotel room and upside down and Usagi impotently whining, "Oh come on!"

It's just a small protest, because a Sailor Senshi definitely shows up to the cave quickly enough. "Oh everyone's here - wait you're going in there alone!?" Sailor Moon looks at Mina in shock while pointing at the cave. "It looks really scary! You must be really brave!"

She gives Takeo, then Lera a look, "Right. We'll take care of things out here! You... don't have anything to worry about!" But then she catches a glimpse of Sailor Neptune, "Oh! Sailor Neptune!" She waves a gloved hand excitedly at her, "You're going to be lending a hand today!?" Maybe the prospect of fighting alongside her manages to dispel some of the dread she feels.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Usagi Tsukino transforms into Sailor Moon!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Kuniko Saito [Infinity Institute (11)] has posed.

Kuniko Saito has taken advantage of prep time, for if there is one thing you learn in the kitchen, it is that time is precious. (As is thyme. But they're not, directly, correlated.) After giving Mina an encouraging smile and a thumbs up, she had gone into a fury of -- mime, apparently, to those on the outside.

Though the warm and complex fragrances of preparing food do emanate from the Mise-en-place, subtly so.

When she hears the shriek she startles, looking upright.

"This time," she says, "we're the ones who have the advantage of surprise." Right? RIGHT? She sounds like she's whistling past a graveyard, probably because the vermilion beast is a. huge and b. coming right for them. She looks to Lera, to Fuu, as if for reassurance.

Then she grips something firmly. There is a faint smell on the sea air - the smell of coffee being given a treatment in hot water. It is a strange thing, perhaps, to do when faced with such a beast - but that's the way of the Poissonnier Kuniko!


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Madoka Kaname [Ohtori Academy (9)] has posed.

The sight of the Vermillion Beast in full detail is enough to sear the tapestry of memory. The mind flinches away from it, because it's horrible to bear. Instead, her appearance is best captured in snapshots, pieces of the puzzle, parts of a greater, more awful whole.

She has two sets of wings (one with razorblade feathers, one with bat membranes), /and/ a set of fuzzy arms for good measure, which she might have taken off of Bigfoot, if Bigfoot were the size of Godzilla. That doesn't stop her from having talons, too, metallic and bloodied and strange and sharp, sharp, sharp.

Her teeth are sharper still, and most of her head is taken up by that gaping maw. The rest are eyes, eight of them -- any that have been previously injured seem to have somehow regenerated.

And everything is red, dripping red, ghastly red. There are so many distinct shades of the color in such a tight density that looking straight at the beast is rather like gazing at a Magic Eye... other images surface slowly and nebulously, then disappear in an eyeblink, replaced by new patterns.

What isn't red is the helicopter that comes sailing out of nowhere to hover above the Beast; it is chrome. There's some shouting -- impossible to hear what's being said -- and then a beam of blatantly magical light comes flying out of the cockpit to encompass the massive beast.

The light is yellow, and it causes the beast to be momentarily orange. As the light fades, though, the beast darkens, her red becoming tainted with shadow, flickering and strange. She screams again, and then dives directly at the beach... and the cave.

Mina Kuroske disappears into said cave, but a moment later is riding a wave back out of it. She's glowing a vivid green that is familiar to some as a mark of the Sea Dragon God's power. Her eyes have rolled back in her head, and her necklace is blazing an equally brilliant gold as the one that came from the helicopter.

&lt;&lt; Protect her. >> The voice comes out of nowhere and everywhere, is elicited from the heart. It is ancient and powerful and intense -- and at the moment, very slightly strained.

A moment later, the Beast overhead pauses, wings flapping -- and the helicopter fades away into invisibility and inaudibility through some arcane or technological arts of its own.

Of more immediate interest is the way that the Beast's throat is bulging with coruscatingly powerful crimson energy, of the sort that nearly brought down an airplane. And then it comes in like the tide, slamming everyone and everything down with terrible, agonizing force.

OOC: Each round someone can protect Mina, first-come first-serve, no repeats until everyone's had a chance if they want one! Please declare your interest as it comes up.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Honoka Yukishiro transforms into Mina and the Sea Dragon God!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname transforms into The Vermillion Beast: Unleashed!
}}WARNING: You have transformed into a Supercharged Henshin Mode. You may not immediately use a Finishing Attack; please use a Special or Free attack this round instead.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname transforms into The Vermillion Beast: Unleashed!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has fully healed herself. She is now ready to take on 8 opponents!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Red Rain on Kuniko Saito.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Red Rain on Sailor Moon.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Red Rain on Sailor Neptune.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Red Rain on Garnet.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Red Rain on Lera Camry.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Red Rain on Fuu Hououji.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Collateral Damage on Honoka Yukishiro.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Red Rain on Lancelot.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji narrowly dodges Madoka Kaname's Red Rain, taking 26 Fatigue damage!  Fuu Hououji's Fade ability activates!  Fuu Hououji's Flash ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Lancelot fails to dodge Madoka Kaname's Red Rain, taking 38 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon perfectly dodges Madoka Kaname's Red Rain, taking 0 Fatigue damage!  Critical Dodge!  Sailor Moon's Fade ability activates!  Sailor Moon's Flash ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji covers Honoka Yukishiro for Madoka Kaname's attack, Collateral Damage, taking it upon themselves instead!
<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji narrowly counters Madoka Kaname's Collateral Damage, taking 11 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji's counterattack, Gale Arrow, partially gets through, doing 14 Fatigue damage to Madoka Kaname!
<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito fails to brace Madoka Kaname's Red Rain, taking 39 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Garnet perfectly dodges Madoka Kaname's Red Rain, taking 0 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!  Critical Dodge!  Garnet's Fade ability activates!  Garnet's Flash ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry narrowly dodges Madoka Kaname's Red Rain, taking 7 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Neptune narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Red Rain, taking 16 Fatigue damage!  Sailor Neptune's Block ability activates!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Lancelot [Ohtori Academy (11)] has posed.

Lancelot comes riding onto the scene, Arondight trialing tracers of lightning flickering off the white blade of evil's bane. He rides low in Sparkle's saddle, and holds the balde to the side, which was when he noticed the incoming doom from Vermillion Beast. He however is riding too fast toward the danger, and finds himself and Sparkles barraged by the Red Rain.

Sparkles Rears, and Lancelot winces, but manages to stay in the saddle despite the strikes that hammer into the pair of the,. He holds Arondight toward the flying behemoth and he cries out, "LIGHTNING!" Sending azure bolts of lightning toward the Vermillion Beast in the form of crackling bolts of lightning.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Lancelot has used Lightning III on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Lancelot has finished attacking.
}}
{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly dodges Lancelot's Lightning III, taking 8 Fatigue damage!  Madoka Kaname's Fade ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Flash ability activates!
}}

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Hikaru Shidou transforms into Magic Knight of Fire!
<br>COMBAT: Hikaru Shidou has fully healed herself.
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Hikaru Shidou [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.

Hikaru Shidou was here. At least she was near the cave. But that's no longer the case.

Instead, she is the Magic Knight of Fire, and she too has arrived, albeit rather late for some reason. Nevertheless, her sword is in her hand and her look is that of determination and power! She's not backing down, not in the least bit! She's got a firm grip on her sword and a spirit that's burning like the fire she controls. "I'm ready and willing!"


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Fuu Hououji [Infinity Institute (9)] has posed.

It might be just as well that they *didn't* have much of a chance to strategize, the Wind Knight reflects ruefully as the Vermillion Beast descends upon the cave and turns loose its wrath upon everybody there. No plan of battle survives contact with the enemy, after all - and any painstakingly-crafted tactics would just as likely be blown to bits by the eldritch horror's wrath.

Those thoughts go dashing through her head in much the same manner that the Wind Knight physically scrambles to try and avoid the barrage of the beast's breath attack - but not just for her own safety, either. She's trying to interpose herself between the beast and little Mina, and gets seared badly for her trouble en route. She *stops* moving as she gets into position over the little girl who's aglow with the Sea Dragon God's power, turning her attention skywards -

"Gale Arrow!!!"

- and unleashing her first shaft of the night, virtually straight upwards, with quickly-gathered wind magic surrounding the arrow to stabilize and accelerate its ascent. The spell seems to help pierce through the beast's saturation fire, too - and makes the resulting barrage somewhat more bearable for the Wind Knight as she bodily protects Mina to the best of her ability.

That still hurt more than a little bit, though. The Wind Knight shakes her head, taking a couple of deep breaths, then focuses her attention skywards again as she calls out, "Winds of Admonishment!!" and unleashes her binding tornado. Admittedly, it hasn't been the most effective spell against the Vermillion Beast in their last two encounters - but she figures it's better than not even *trying* to slow the beast or to hinder its movements at all. Any advantage the magical girls (and guys) can bring into play has to be an asset ... right?

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji has used Winds of Admonishment on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly braces Fuu Hououji's Winds of Admonishment, taking 5 Fatigue damage!  Fuu Hououji is Psyched!  Madoka Kaname's Block ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Parry ability activates!  Cripple applied to Madoka Kaname!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Sailor Neptune [Infinity Institute (11)] has posed.

It was a nightmare made real - one that tore from the fragments of her mind - but in her ancient heartNeptune was used to seeing the patterns in the unknowable - the secrets in the unfathomable.

And still the sight of the creature made her heart twist in her chest. Wetting her lips with her suddenly dry tongue, Neptune glances towards... Moon. Moon was here. There was something hidden in Neptune's features - locked away behind the false smile on her eyes. Her features were cold, impassive. But she inclines her head towards the Moon Princess.

"Indeed I am, Moon," she says, her voice soft, if a bit intense.

Eyes lift to the creature again. Protect her, the voice says. In Neptune's heart, she refused. She would protect everyone in the world.

That sounded better than protecting just one, no?

The pulsing red of the energy washes over her, stinging hands and arms and face and soul. And Neptune calls to the sea they stand beside. Water - pure waters of Neptune - gather in her hands, and she flings them, two thin lines of dancing water to arc across the sky and towards the Beast - leaving a scent as pure as a rainfall in their wake.

And perhaps, if you listen close enough - the sound of violins.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Sailor Neptune has used Current Crossing on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Neptune has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname perfectly dodges Sailor Neptune's Current Crossing, taking 0 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!  Critical Dodge!  Madoka Kaname's Fade ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Flash ability activates!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Lera Camry [Infinity Institute (10)] has posed.

"A helicopter...?" Lera asks, softly, gawking up at it. Her hammer sinks slightly, the hammerhead touching the sand below. Then she grits her teeth, as she sees the beast dropping down. She grits her teeth, as crimson energy comes raining down -- and she takes to the sky, even as she hears the dragon. 'Protect her,' its spirit says. She can do that.

&lt;Look out!> Ground chimes. &lt;It's strong. Let's smash it.>

Lera grits her teeth and nods, before she swings her hammer back, and motes of golden light begin to draw into the clockwork structure of the hammerhead. Lera grits her teeth as she flies upward; she sees Fuu's arrow shoots up past her. A magical circle, Midchildan runes spinning inside it, forms underneath her feet; her feet land on it, boots colliding with the magical circle with a spray of light.

She turns on it, then strikes her hammer-shaped Device into it. A line of light tears across the air, shooting out waves of lava-like energy, exploding straight towards the creature.

&lt;Fault Siege!>

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry has used Fault Siege on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry has finished attacking.
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Garnet [None] has posed.

Garnet watches the beast, and the helicopter, noting its involvement for later, but not taking her eyes off of the beast as it builds its energy.

Remembering how much damage it was capable of causing, she focuses her Future Vision on the spread of the blast. Just enough time to read it! And so when the blast descended, everywhere it was, Garnet was not, weaving through the waves of red energy with an unearthly precognitive grace.

Rather than begin her assault immediately, she focuses her precognition on the creature directly. She hadn't in her last encounter, and it may be critical to understand its plan of attack, what magics may be augmenting it, or possible ways to subdue it in time for the ritual. Whatever the future reveals, it is much too grave of a threat to rush in unprepared.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly braces Lera Camry's Fault Siege, taking 10 Fatigue damage!  Lera Camry is Psyched!  Madoka Kaname's Block ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Parry ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Garnet has used Future Vision on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Garnet has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly dodges Garnet's Future Vision, taking 0 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!  Madoka Kaname's Fade ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Flash ability activates!  Analysis performed by Garnet!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Sailor Moon [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.

Neptune's features just look so cold as always. But Sailor Moon doesn't seem perturbed about that. If anything, she seems happy about her response, not really sensing the feelings Sailor Neptune was having right now, "That's a relief! I just know we'll manage to protect her, now that you're here!"

The beast shows up again, as Sailor Moon suspected they might, even as she silently hoped they wouldn't. But what's more interesting is the helicopter that appears. Initially she looks horrified, as she waves at it frantically in an attempt to get it to retreat... but... the Vermillion Beast isn't attacking it! After a moment, the waving fades away and she's instead squinting, with one hand shielding her eyes, "What are they doing to it?"

Which is when the magical light comes out of the cockpit and she turns her head away just in time to see Mina vanish. "Good l-!" Only to see her back out, glowing green with power, "W-What happened...?" But the command that rings from everywhere and nowhere was one she felt within her heart already. Her hand grips the rod within it resolutely, "We definitely will!"

Fine words, but the crimson energy that rains down upon her puts it to the test immediately. It blasts the ground right beside her first, and Sailor Moon recoils, while standing on one leg, "Not this again!" But she's cut off by the sheer amount of energy, causing her to immediately turn into a frantic run which takes her behind one of the worn away Shisaa statues guarding the cave.

She ducks behind the pedestal in the back, and presses her back against it. Only when the onslaught dies down does she dare to peek her head out, and only just a little bit. Putting a hand against her chest, she takes a deep breath of relief. And then shoots a thumbs up at the Magic Knight of Wind for having successfully cut off the projectiles heading for Mina. "Good work!"

Something at this battle continues to needle her at the back of her head, like there's something that's wrong about it and not quite as straightforward as it appears to be, especially with the helicopter... but... "Don't you think you're going a little too far over this!?" She shouts at the beast as she gets back to her feet and is back up and around out of cover. "Now would be a really good time to learn when to quit!"

She presses both hands to the brooch at her chest, which shines with a pinwheel of silvery luminescence. "Moon Sparkling-" She spins around once, holding out a hand at the creature, "-Sensation!" Silver intermingles with pink, creating vivid beams of shimmering radiance that all curve about in different directions, before trying to converge in a shining blast of cleansing power.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon has used Moon Sparkling Sensation on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon has finished attacking.
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Kuniko Saito [Infinity Institute (11)] has posed.

The energetic force of the Vermilion Beast washes downwards on Kuniko. Even a chef cannot dodge every harm that pours into the kitchen. Kuniko sags underneath that radiance, sinking down to one knee in the sand as pain - yes indeed! - comes to her.

The pain is enough that if she'd begun to notice the helicopter, she doesn't keep doing so. And yet, the pain fades, and Kuniko drags herself back upright, breathing heavily.

It is bad enough that she has othing to say. But she does have orders coming up -- and the coffee is poured. One of the cups of Espresso is sent towards the Crystal Gem; another towards the man on a horse. But one final cup, decorated on reflexive whim with a sprig of mint curled into the shape of a crescent moon, goes to -- well, with that decoration, you can probably guess! (It's Sailor Moon.)

"You think you'll beat us so easily?" Kuniko finally manages to groan out.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito has used Espresso Service on Garnet.
<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito has used Espresso Service on Lancelot.
<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito has used Espresso Service on Sailor Moon.
<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon accepts Kuniko Saito's Espresso Service, taking 0 Fatigue damage!  Sailor Moon is Cheered!
<br>COMBAT: Garnet accepts Kuniko Saito's Espresso Service, taking 0 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly braces Sailor Moon's Moon Sparkling Sensation, taking 8 Fatigue damage!  Madoka Kaname's Block ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Parry ability activates!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Madoka Kaname [Ohtori Academy (9)] has posed.

Tears leak out of Mina's eyes as she's protected by the Magic Knight of Wind. It's easy to mistake them for fear or sympathy, but they are neither -- she isn't seeing any of this, and what she's feeling, acting as this strange torchbearer -- or perhaps literally the torch -- of the Sea Dragon God's power, it is being held in thrall that is making her cry.

"I-it's... beautiful..."

Or maybe not. Who knows what wonders she's witnessing, what her experience is? It must be otherworldly, indeed.

Whereas fighting the Beast is a profoundly visceral and in-the-moment experience. She ducks under Sir Lancelot's lightning bolt, which clips a few feathers which go tumbling towards the sea, and uses the Magic Knight of Wind's tornado as an updraft to make a wide, banking turn directly out of the way of Sailor Neptune's powerful waters, a desperate measure to avoid a power, recognized.

Lera's lava wave, on the other hand, she faces straight on. It's not comfortable to bathe in, but the heat does mostly dissapate against her shadowy bulk. Her eyes -- all eight of them -- narrow against the screen of smoke that erupts from the muted conflagration.

A smokescreen which is penetrated by silver-pink beams of moonlight, which knock a few more feathers off her mighty bulk. These join the others in descending faster than the Beast herself, and this time they're a little bit different from before; in previous fights, the razor feathers have sprouted vengeful personalities and fought independently like little animated knives.

This time, they also sprout three slitted red eyes, and black, shadowy arms and legs. The feather becomes the torso of each soldier in a tiny army, ready to beat and batter and rend and tear their enemies apart, be they high (they also get black wings) or low (and black feet).

While people are busy fending off the shadowy feather legions, the Beast finishes closing with the beach, furls her wings to accelerate to blinding speed, and closes her massive and awful maw right around the place where Mina was standing, much too quickly to react to or prevent.

Unless you're Garnet, in which case you saw this happen a few seconds before it actually did, and could take action accordingly.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Maroon Mayhem on Lancelot.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Maroon Mayhem on Kuniko Saito.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Maroon Mayhem on Sailor Moon.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Maroon Mayhem on Sailor Neptune.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Maroon Mayhem on Garnet.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Maroon Mayhem on Lera Camry.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Maroon Mayhem on Fuu Hououji.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Collateral Damage on Honoka Yukishiro.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has finished attacking.
}}
{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Sailor Neptune narrowly dodges Madoka Kaname's Maroon Mayhem, taking 20 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!  Tangle applied to Sailor Neptune!
<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry perfectly braces Madoka Kaname's Maroon Mayhem, taking 0 Fatigue damage!  Critical Brace!  Lera Camry's Block ability activates!  Lera Camry's Parry ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Maroon Mayhem, taking 10 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!  Tangle applied to Sailor Moon!
<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Maroon Mayhem, taking 8 Fatigue damage!  Tangle applied to Fuu Hououji!
<br>COMBAT: Garnet perfectly dodges Madoka Kaname's Maroon Mayhem, taking 0 Fatigue damage!  Critical Dodge!  Garnet's Fade ability activates!  Garnet's Flash ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Maroon Mayhem, taking 11 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!  Kuniko Saito's Block ability activates!  Kuniko Saito's Parry ability activates!  Tangle applied to Kuniko Saito!
<br>COMBAT: Garnet tries to cover Honoka Yukishiro for Madoka Kaname's attack, Collateral Damage, but cannot get there in time!
<br>COMBAT: Garnet tries to cover Honoka Yukishiro for Madoka Kaname's attack, Collateral Damage, but cannot get there in time!
<br>COMBAT: Garnet covers Honoka Yukishiro for Madoka Kaname's attack, Collateral Damage, taking it upon themselves instead!
<br>COMBAT: Garnet fails to brace Madoka Kaname's Collateral Damage, taking 19 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Lancelot accepts Kuniko Saito's Espresso Service, taking 0 Fatigue damage!  Lancelot is Cheered!
<br>COMBAT: Lancelot narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Maroon Mayhem, taking 7 Fatigue damage!  Lancelot's Block ability activates!  Lancelot's Parry ability activates!  Tangle applied to Lancelot!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Sailor Neptune [Infinity Institute (11)] has posed.

Power unapplied is scarcely power at all. The Beast dips her strike, and the return - the darkness, the shadow of the enemy - swarms her. A cry leaves Neptune's lips - and admist the scoring that the shadow-things were giving her - she glances towards Moon. Faith in her. Moon had seen her fight before no doubt, but Neptune purses her lips.

"Stay focused!" she admonishes Moon, bringing up her foot to batter one of the shadow-things away from her. A left hook against the face of one of those things - and Neptune dips her hand low - water rushing around her hand, summoned again from the pure heart of Neptune. Inside the ball of water, glowing with an ethereal light - Neptune's hand clenches into a fist. Rising up, and battering a shadow away from her - she flings the ball of energy at the rear side of the Beast - unknowing of the creature's mission to consume poor Mina.

But it had to be destroyed. That first ball - released with a twirl, was joined by a second, those waters forming a second ball around her other open fist in moments before it was released.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Sailor Neptune has used Harsh Harsh Neptune on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Neptune has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly braces Sailor Neptune's Harsh Harsh Neptune, taking 5 Fatigue damage!  Madoka Kaname's Block ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Parry ability activates!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Lera Camry [Infinity Institute (10)] has posed.

Lera's eyes widen sharply, when she sees the limbs and eyes that the feathers sprout when they come flying for her. The girl takes a step backward on the magical circle that she uses at a platforma s they fly in. Broken Ground, however, is more certain of what to do. His electronic voice calls out, with a crackle of static: &lt;Lantern Mode!>

The hammer separates into clockwork parts, reforming a circular framework around the crystalline AI core -- which it connects to -- and then shimmers. A shield of glowing green light appears, and then Ground calls out again: &lt;Protection!>

The feathers slam into the barrier of green light that explodes off the shield. They are quickly repelled, hurled backward by the barrier. Lera lets out a soft sigh, before she nods, fiercely. "All right," she says, "good work Ground! You really are a shield, y'know?"

&lt;No argument. It-->

"Gh!" Lera grunts, eyes widening, as the creature speeds up faster than she imagined. She sees the jaws clamp down over where Mina had been; she cries out, sharply and panicked: "No!"

Then she jumps off the magical circle, flying down towards the ground below. Lera pivots at the waist and throws -- and the newly formed shield goes flying off, spinning rapidly. The green light around it glows and burns brighter, until it surrounds the entire thing in a deep green field of energy. The shield slashes by in an arc, before it comes back towards Lera, even as she lands on the beach with a crunch.

&lt;Sentinel Arc.>

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry has used Sentinel Arc on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname fails to dodge Lera Camry's Sentinel Arc, taking 33 Fatigue damage!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Lancelot [Ohtori Academy (11)] has posed.

This time the due of Sparkles and Lancelot associates manage to avoid the incoming doom rays form the Vermillion Beast. The warhorse wheels around on the sand and begins to climb up a pathway to series of bluffs that give the Kngiht a litle more height.

At the zenith of the climb, hte pair leap into the air with supernaturally powered and magical Horse legs, to being Sparkles and Lancelot closer to Vermillion Beast. As they soar past the creature, Lancelot let's loose with a strike of hsi sword powered by a bolt of lightening.

The pair land in the sand, and the warhorse slides to a stop ina s pray of beach sand. He looks up at the creature and nods once. "Do it again Sparkles. We gotta keep that thing occupied!"

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Lancelot has used Lightning Slash on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Lancelot has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly dodges Lancelot's Lightning Slash, taking 10 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!  Lancelot is Psyched!  Madoka Kaname's Fade ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Flash ability activates!  Blind and Stagger applied to Madoka Kaname!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Garnet [None] has posed.

Garnet still benefiting from her Future Vision trance, dodges the Vermillion Beast's attack literally with her eyes closed, her concentration on the beast's future allowing her to see its strikes at her before they arrive, and weave out of the way accordingly. It's going straight for the child, as she might have suspected but hoped wasn't true. Though they had only interacted briefly at the airport, Garnet feels a soft affection for Mina, perhaps her innocence reminds her of Steven, or deeper still the innocence of all humans, and why even though they may stray, they all possessed such a wide eyed view of the world at one time. It is perhaps to be envied (Homeworld is bereft of such a thing) , but absolutely something to be protected.

Garnet rushes to her aid, a cup of coffee smacking her in the face and splashing all over her, but not breaking her rush to Mina's Aid. She drinks coffee for breakfast, but unfortunately now is not the time for what FEELS like it was a sublimely prepared treat.

Maybe the Beast will appreciate the toasted flavor notes, since Garnet leaps into its open maw gauntlets first, lodging herself in it and using the force of her rush to hold it back! Given its strange anatomy this was not as clean of a feat as she would have liked and she is struggling to find the correct way to brace its maw, taking a nice crushing in the process.

She groans but struggles to maintain a composure of unrelenting strength!

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Garnet has used Jawbreaker! on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Garnet has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly braces Garnet's Jawbreaker!, taking 9 Fatigue damage!  Garnet is Psyched!  Madoka Kaname's Block ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Parry ability activates!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Sailor Moon [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.

Espresso levitates to her. "Oh hey thanks!" She looks into the cup, a delighted grin on her face, "Oh you made this custom for me! Magical cooking is the best! Thanks Kuniko-chan!" She takes a long sip, eager for the pick me up after the battle with Eudial's Daimon that nearly trounced them outright.

When the feathers come, she kind of expects them to act as before, little pinions that seemed to be like dancing daggers but...

"W-What!?" Which is when she's swarmed by an army of tiny feather people, flying around her like bats, and around her feet. She sweeps the Moon Rod this way and that trying to slap them out of the air, as various cuts spring up all around her fuku! "Stop it! The only feathers I wanted to be attacked by on this vacation are in pillows!"

A call from a more serious minded Senshi, Neptune, tells her to stay focused but, "As if I could! There's way too many of these chibi-feather things!" In the midst of all of that... the Beast dives for Mina, a crimson blur in the air, and Moon certainly can't get to her in time... but she didn't need to, because Garnet fortunately saw was there in time and leaps right into its jaw! "Don't you dare eat her! Sailor Moon-"

She takes the opportunity to leap as high as she can, while being harried by the little feather demons, before descending, with a foot outstretched to try to strike the side of its head, and thus give Garnet some assistance. "-Kick!" Trademark of Sailor Moon, in no way copied from a dazzlingly bespectacled idol of hers.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon has used Sailor Moon Kick on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly dodges Sailor Moon's Sailor Moon Kick, taking 8 Fatigue damage!  Sailor Moon is Psyched!  Madoka Kaname's Fade ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Flash ability activates!  Stagger and Stun applied to Madoka Kaname!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Kuniko Saito [Infinity Institute (11)] has posed.

And this time, the feathers again, which Kuniko does not like ONE LITTLE BIT. But who is she going to file a protest with, exactly?

They're even worse this time around. Caught as she is on the beach, Kuniko is faced with only one choice. These things won't eat - her dishes are powerful but still bubbling - she'll have to resort to knife work. She reaches over for the well-worn carving knife - almost a scimitar - she's used on shawarma in the past.

And snicker snack! Whick, swish, whack! Parry, thrust, chop - and for a heartstopping moment the creature's about to lunge to the cave. "Sh--"

But Garnet's on the case.

Kuniko starts running towards the massive thing's side anyway. One of the things on her grill is whipped off - Halloumi cheese, rich and meaty. She rips the squares of the hot sheep-milk cheese off with her teeth, breathing in their savor and the strength they grant as she grips both of them in her hands. The skewers glitter with tiny scraps of Terroir.

Stiff, grilled Terroir!

From here her goal, at least, is simple and clean: get those skewers into that red, red leg (arm? she's not entirely sure) and ... ... hope!

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito has used Halloumi Cheese on Skewers on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname perfectly dodges Kuniko Saito's Halloumi Cheese on Skewers, taking 0 Fatigue damage!  Critical Dodge!  Madoka Kaname's Fade ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Flash ability activates!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Fuu Hououji [Infinity Institute (9)] has posed.

Ah yes, the independently-animate feathers. The Magic Knight of Wind remembers THOSE terribly well, and her response is straightforward enough: she casts a whirlwind barrier around herself, to try and minimize the damage.

It backfires a little bit, though; the 'feathers' hit the barrier, but they actually fly even faster around the Wind Knight as a result, preventing her from moving around effectively. That could be somewhat problematic if she doesn't figure out a way to disrupt their flight more effectively.

For now, the Wind Knight keeps the whirlwind shield in place, raising her bow and drawing another arrow, letting the next shaft fly with little more than her will and her skill to guide its flight. Those are usually a sufficiently potent combination, though: she remembers quite clearly putting an arrow into one of the Vermillion Beast's eyes.

She's aiming for a different eye this time .... she thinks she is, anyway. Honestly, the monster has *more* than enough eyes, so it's less about blinding it than trying to distract it from little Mina.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji has used Trick Arrow Shot on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname fails to dodge Fuu Hououji's Trick Arrow Shot, taking 17 Fatigue damage!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Hikaru Shidou [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.

Finding that she's not being attacked would be a relief to the Fire Knight, but it's not. Her allies are under attack, and she needs to help them in this battle. She raises her hand to summon the magic of fire around her. "We'll burn them to a crisp!" She says to no one in particular, although the Wind Knight might hear it. Regardless, the flames form in an arrow shape above her. "Let's see how it likes a little of THIS!"

The monster had best watch out, since there's fire coming at it in an arrow shape and it's coming up fast!

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Hikaru Shidou has used Fire Arrow on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Hikaru Shidou has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly dodges Hikaru Shidou's Fire Arrow, taking 11 Fatigue damage!  Madoka Kaname's Fade ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Flash ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Haruka Tenoh transforms into Sailor Uranus!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has adjusted her boss levels. She is now ready to take on 10 opponents!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Madoka Kaname [Ohtori Academy (9)] has posed.

With the impacts of tsunamis from one direction, and a massive battering ram the other, Sailor Neptune and Lera Camry momentarily sandwich the Vermillion Beast between twin balls of watery energy and a shimmering green shield, respectively.

And with the sound of terrible strain, Garnet's gauntlets grasp the edges of the Beast's maw and try to hold them.

With a lightning-spitting sword, slim-heeled moonboot, blast of flame and simple, precise arrow speeding towards the triply-immobilized Beast, this could be a turning point of the battle --

-- but then something else happens to change everything.

Mina's arms raise over her head (so, at about Garnet's waist-level). It would be wrong to say that she raised her arms, because while she is no puppet, she is certainly acting in concert with forces much larger and older than her young and tiny frame. And the lambent green flame filling her roars out, all at once, from beneath her fingertips and out of her eyes and ears and mouth and nose, streaming upwards to engulf the Vermillion Beast.

The Beast shrieks unholy murder and explodes into shadow... shadow which settles all around, hiding the cave and the beach and the sky. This might as well be another planet. It's dark, but it's also... different.

In the distance, to the south, golden veins pulse sparks towards some distant glow. They roll over hills and trenches and valleys which are very, very faintly outlined in gray, shadow on shadow creating this whimsical landscape. It is rather blocky and angular, low-resolution compared to the impossibly detailed perfection of real life.

And then, just after enough time has passed that it seems almost quiet here, those razor-feather-soldiers leap out from every direction. They don't attack the girls, though... they plant their palms on the ground and flood the golden river with shadow, swirls and whorls of black traveling gently -- no, not gently at all -- towards the distant pillar of light.

---

The vision shatters, the sun rising over the beach a blinding orange as the Vermillion Beast seems to reform itself out of shadow about fifty feet higher than she was before, but now with a strange, creeping infection of her wingtips, wherein she is just a little bit green. Mina still is too; there is more wonder to be wrought.

&lt;&lt; He resists my power, but she welcomes it. You must subdue her. >>

While incorporeal, the sword and flame and kick all passed straight through the Beast, but Fuu's arrow is still flying upwards, and buries itself in one of her eyes.

Something is different about them; their pupils aren't red or green, but black.

Except for the one that is nothing but flaming ichor now, that is.

With a wickedly fast spin, the Beast tries to close the distance to Mina again. Her hands are out, grabbing at Lera and Sailor Neptune, trying to yank them out of the way. Her batwings beat a massive blast of air to try to blow Garnet back with the power of tortured air.

Her tail spreads wide as she angles her talons below, as well, in an attempt to slash the Magic Knights off their feet with one, and catch the one riding a pony with the other.

And from her eye, terrible burning tears drip down towards the heads of the Poissonier and Sailor Moon... and Mina.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Scarlet Slash on Lancelot.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Burn My Red on Kuniko Saito.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Burn My Red on Sailor Moon.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Amaranth Arms on Sailor Neptune.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Wingbeat on Garnet.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Amaranth Arms on Lera Camry.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Scarlet Slash on Fuu Hououji.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Scarlet Slash on Hikaru Shidou.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Collateral Damage on Honoka Yukishiro.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Neptune narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Amaranth Arms, taking 6 Fatigue damage!  Sailor Neptune's Block ability activates!  Stagger, Stun, and Trap applied to Sailor Neptune!
<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito narrowly dodges Madoka Kaname's Burn My Red, taking 15 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry narrowly counters Madoka Kaname's Amaranth Arms, taking 3 Fatigue damage!  Lera Camry's Reverse ability activates!  Lera Camry's Tactician ability activates!  Stun and Trap applied to Lera Camry!
<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry's counterattack, Mantle Heart, interrupts, doing 0 Fatigue damage to Madoka Kaname!
<br>COMBAT: Lancelot narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Scarlet Slash, taking 13 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!  Lancelot's Block ability activates!  Lancelot's Parry ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon narrowly dodges Madoka Kaname's Burn My Red, taking 11 Fatigue damage!  Sailor Moon's Fade ability activates!  Sailor Moon's Flash ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji perfectly dodges Madoka Kaname's Scarlet Slash, taking 0 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!  Critical Dodge!  Fuu Hououji's Fade ability activates!  Fuu Hououji's Flash ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito covers Honoka Yukishiro for Madoka Kaname's attack, Collateral Damage, taking it upon themselves instead!
<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Collateral Damage, taking 3 Fatigue damage!  Kuniko Saito's Block ability activates!  Kuniko Saito's Parry ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Hikaru Shidou narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Scarlet Slash, taking 14 Fatigue damage!  Hikaru Shidou's Block ability activates!  Hikaru Shidou's Parry ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Garnet fails to dodge Madoka Kaname's Wingbeat, taking 17 Fatigue damage!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Lancelot [Ohtori Academy (11)] has posed.

Taking off like a gunshot, Sparkles begins to climb that bluff agian, hooves pelting the sandy floor and sending up sprays of sand in her wake as she moves with incredible speed. The slash coming in is noticed, and Lancelot calls out, "Keep going!" Then he stnads in teh stirrups and leaps off Sparkles.

The Kngiht is not exactly what one would call graceful, but he moves with a certain form as he leaps from Sparkles' back. He brings Arondight in front of him and puts all his might into the parry, sneidng up a veritable lightning shower as bolts of the azure power crackle in every direction. He flips onto the tail, and begins running up it, looking down to note where Sparkles is, and then calls out, "BLADEFURY!"

Lighting once again erupts from the blade as Lancelot becomes a whirling dirvish, slashing at every bit he can find. He leaps off the tail and slashes at the monster's arms, and legs. At a wing, and the the base of the tail as he falls back toward Sparkles.

Sparkles keeps on going as instructed, and Lancelot, as per the plan begins to descend toward his trusty companion and warhorse.

Who stops in a spray of stand, allowing Lancelot to spread eagle plant himself in the sand of the bluff in a muchroom cloud of sand.

Sparles jsut gives him a look as the sand slwoy drifts downa round the pair that says: "What? You're heavy, and in armor. Catching you would have HURT."

Lancelot spits out some sand.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Lancelot has used Bladefury on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Lancelot has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly braces Lancelot's Bladefury, taking 14 Fatigue damage!  Lancelot is Psyched!  Madoka Kaname's Block ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Parry ability activates!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Lera Camry [Infinity Institute (10)] has posed.

Shadow shoots all around, changing the world around them. Lera's head turns, staring at the pillar of light -- and the rush of feathers to it. She isn't sure, really, what Mina -- or perhaps the dragon spirit -- did. She looks up, though, peering as the Vermillion Beast reforms in the air, and she gets a good look at the thing, before it comes crashing down towards all of them. A hand reaches out for Lera.

"Look out!" she yells, as she flies backward. "It's changed somehow, I'm not sure, but--be careful, everyone!"

&lt;Here it comes!> Broken Ground chimes. Lera nods, sharply; the Intelligent Device responds to her unspoken command. A circular barrier flashes up in front of her, surrounded by six glowing balls of green light that brighten and lighten until they turn golden. They push forward as one, catching the claw and holding it at bay. &lt;Mantle Heart!>

The claw slams into the barrier; it crackles and shudders, but holds it at bay only barely. Lera drops back into the sand, kicking a cloud of the stuff up. She grits her teeth, then holds her hand out to the side. &lt;Onager Mode.> The shield-shaped Device shifts back into a hammer, appearing in Lera's hand with a shimmer.

The clockwork hammerhead splits apart, as Lera goes running across the ground towards the Vermillion Beast. She looks at her, gritting her teeth, and then shakes her head. "We're not gonna let you near her!" she yells, as she jumps -- and bounds into the air, swinging her weapon backward.

She brings it down before she closes in with the creature. The hammerhead's exposed crystal shimmers -- and then looses a large ball of shimmering golden energy. It rolls, before it crashes down like a meteor -- or, rather, like a lava bomb. Globs of molten magical energy erupt and shoot into the air, falling down like streamers.

&lt;Magma Bomb!>

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry has used Magma Bomb on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry has finished attacking.
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Garnet [None] has posed.

Garnet holds herself against the jaws, bracing against them with all her might until there's just... nothing. The jaws in her hands, the very beast itself dissipates into shadow, and Garnet watches the unfolding scene in cautious awe as Mina channels the Sea Dragon God, the golden lights appear, the feathers attack it, and the Vermillion Beast's reformation, like a phoenix of pain, rising again to plunge itself into the depths of its own misery.

Garnet is not as quick this time, and she is caught aside in a buffet of the Beast's dreadful wings! She attempts a leap into the current, to ride its winds with complementary motion downward to safety, but is caught up in it instead and is skipped across the ground like a stone, skidding to a painful, eventual halt.

Garnet hops to her feet with a pained grunt, and concentrates, an orb of bright reddish purple electric energy forming between her hands! Once it's gotten to the size of an average dumpster, she shoots it at the Beast's back! If memory serves it won't stop it, but it might just divert its attention enough to help the others protect Mina and the Sea Dragon God.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Garnet has used Adamantine Spark on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Garnet has finished attacking.
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Sailor Neptune [Infinity Institute (11)] has posed.

The Beast reforms from the shadow - the suffocating shadow that filled her senses. That filled with those minions of the dark and twisted, minions of the void itself, it felt like.

Neptune did not know where to strike. So she swings - swings a fist this way and that, aiming at this feather and that. Neptune was standing in front of Mina, that was correct - less to protect the girl, and more because the Beast would have to cut through her to get to her. And so the Beast does - that massive yank to pull her off of her feet and toss her to one side - another clarion call in the back of her brain to the waters of her homeworld, and...

It was quick, sharp, and accurate - at least she hoped on the last one. It was a thin blue beam that lanced from Neptune towards the Beast's side, before she struck the sand again.


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Kuniko Saito [Infinity Institute (11)] has posed.

The vision washes over Kuniko even as her efforts are momentarily for naught. She staggers to her feet during it, surreal though it is. Gold and gray is glimmering. The feathery creatures are... polluting the water? Kuniko can't take it in.

The voice encourages, urges them. And the beast presses forwards! Kuniko momentarily regrets being silly enough to run round the front of the creature, but it's getting nearer to the innocent form of Mina.

What can she do? Her heart pounds. One of those tears falls on her, splattering on her uniform - it might resemble spilled tomato sauce momentarily but the heat, the pain, the sorrow of it are far too strong for mere marinara. Kuniko grits her teeth as the pain surges. Another droplet of suffering threatens to fall --

And fall it does...

Into a steel pot, held up with both hands! "Hah!!" Another splat, this time getting a little out on Kuniko's cheek.

"... I don't know who or what you really, ultimately are... I don't know why you're fighting. I know you're strong... but you're threatening a young girl... someone under my protection!! You endangered dozens of my juniors! I'm not letting you closer to her --" Kuniko drops the pot onto the stove (on a dead burner, thankfully) within her Mise-en-place, and reaches over for something else.

She lays her hands on what feels like an oaken stick. What she ends up swinging upwards, like a titan flyswatter, is a long-handled baker's tool - a wooden panel on the end of that long handle, sized suitably for twisting pizzas. Her goal is simpler though: smash it up into the Beast's face.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Sailor Neptune has used Gentle Undertow on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Neptune has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito has used Boop the Snootle on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly counters Lera Camry's Magma Bomb, taking 22 Fatigue damage!  Lera Camry is Psyched!  Madoka Kaname's Reverse ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Tactician ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname's counterattack, Red Rain, partially gets through, doing 19 Fatigue damage to Lera Camry!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly braces Garnet's Adamantine Spark, taking 8 Fatigue damage!  Madoka Kaname's Block ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Parry ability activates!  Diversion applied to Madoka Kaname!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly dodges Sailor Neptune's Gentle Undertow, taking 11 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!  Madoka Kaname's Fade ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Flash ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname fails to brace Kuniko Saito's Boop the Snootle, taking 22 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!  Stagger applied to Madoka Kaname!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Sailor Moon [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.

One moment her boot is impacting it, the next, the Vermillion Beast is screaming and everything is so dark and different and alien and... she lands upon sand that doesn't feel right, but she can't parse that, because her eyes face South and look in wonder at what this vision is showing her, even if she's not sure that it's a vision, "Where are we?" Bright gold rivers turn to shadowy black and they're swimming and...

It's like seeing the world collapse into shards of glass and Sailor Moon has to rub her eyes and blink thrice to make sure she's back where she is. She hear's a voice thunder in her thoughts and... when she looks up into the eyes of the reformed shadow beast she pales a shade or three. 'It's changed somehow!' Lera says and Moon's only response is to cry out, "It's even scarier than before!"

It's enough of a delay that she has to scramble away really /really/ fast in order to prevent from getting burned by the dripping tears. Even so she get splattered a bit, causing little wisps of smoke to appear on her wherever they fall. "It's still going for her!" Fortunately... Kuniko is right there, talking about protecting her juniors and it's really just the coolest thing in her eyes. "W-Whoa... wait to go senpai!"

Placing a hand on her brow, a gem adorned tiara becomes a shining disk in her hand. "Moon Tiara-" Crooking back a hand, she snaps her wrist forward. "-Action!" It arcs around forward and then curves about to try to cut it off... and again she holds her breath for a moment or three as she worries about whether it'll miss or not.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon has used Moon Tiara Action on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname fails to dodge Sailor Moon's Moon Tiara Action, taking 53 Fatigue damage!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Sailor Uranus [Infinity Institute (11)] has posed.

Sailor Uranus stands atop the edge of the ravine, gazing down at the chaos below, arms folded. Her eyes seek with hawklike precision, flicking from feather to girl to beast to odango, all equally dispassionately, until she catches the sight of a certain shade of teal that she knows like the inside of her own eyelids. It took her longer than usual, because there was, after all, seawater nearby to confuse her search.

Uranus recognizes this beast. A painting of it was leaning against the desk in her hotel room for the past few days, after all; created in a fit of foresight by her partner. She hears Sailor Moon's whining response to Neptune's exortation, but she is already taking steady steps backward, watching the Beast. When she has enough distance, she takes a running start, bootheels biting the sandy half-grass atop the ravine as her arms knife the air. She hits the edge like a fighter jet at the end of its carrier, her knees tucking, her arms spreading for stability. Then, juking one knee up and one knee down with equal violence, she rotates in the air, plummeting down elbow-first toward the soaring monster below. She is aiming for the back of the neck.

"Neptune!" she cries with a cold, wry casualness in the midst of her attack. "You didn't wait for me?"

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Sailor Uranus has used Meteor Slam on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Uranus has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname fails to brace Sailor Uranus's Meteor Slam, taking 49 Fatigue damage!  Sailor Uranus is Psyched!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Fuu Hououji [Infinity Institute (9)] has posed.

A direct hit, a perfect shot; if the Magic Knight of Wind weren't entirely focused on this moment, she might regret that this wasn't a proper competition in which she made a shot like that. Of course, if she weren't entirely focused on this moment, she might very well miss the fact that the Vermillion Beast is trying to slice her into pieces.

She does not miss that relatively critical detail, though - and she *MOVES* at just the right instant, breaking out of the encircling feather-creatures and bolting well clear of the beast's own slash. The voice of the Sea Dragon God reaches her ears and heart, and the Wind Knight glances away for a split second. "Subdue ... ?" Her attention settles briefly on Mina, and she wonders what the draconic deity of the depths is talking about ... is she accepting too much of the god's power, trying too readily to channel it in her own defense? Mediums need to train for years, after all - literally for longer than Mina has been alive on this world - so it would make sense.

But there isn't a lot that the Magic Knight of Wind can think of to do about that right now .. except to help bring down the Vermillion Beast all the faster. She *could* cast Winds of Admonishment on Mina herself, but would that actually help?

She just keeps her ears perked for further details, in case anyone can make better sense of that than she could. She also launches a few more arrows towards the Vermillion Beast - not aimed quite as precisely as her earlier shot, mostly because she can't afford to put that much attention into single attacks right now. As long as they hit the monster and hurt it some more, that's enough.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji has used Basic Archery on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly dodges Fuu Hououji's Basic Archery, taking 7 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!  Madoka Kaname's Fade ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Flash ability activates!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Madoka Kaname [Ohtori Academy (9)] has posed.

The battle renews like the tide. Lancelot and Kuniko slash and bash respectively from behind and afront, and it's remarkable to see this boy in armor and girl in an apron -- its own kind of armor -- scoring hits all over a creature the size of an airliner.

The Vermillion Beast has had about enough around the time that Lera lobs a lava bomb at her face, though, and blasts it away with another one of those horrible red energy bursts from her throat, then spins on a wingtip out of the way of Sailor Neptune's slender beam -- she /really/ seems willing to go to some trouble to get away from that watery doom, because it sends her straight into Sailor Moon's tiara and leaves her wide open for Garnet's orb to explode against her back, too, while Fuu clips off a few more feathers (to possibly problematic effect).

The tiara's passing leaves the fiery green infection on the Beast shining more brightly than ever, and she screeches a mangled and twisted noise that sounds like two voices.

&lt;&lt; mInE-- >>

And then Sailor Uranus' elbow, which has maybe one percent of the diameter of the creature's neck, makes its impact. There's a sound not unlike a sonic boom as the two separate, the Vermillion Beast instantly slammed onto the sand.

Grit flies in all directions, an instant sandstorm whipped up and dying as quickly as the lifespan of a bubble. The impact sends Mina flying head over heels, and towards some dangerous rocks!

Strangely detached from the endangerment of its host -- or shaman -- or whatever connection it has to the little girl -- the voice of the Sea Dragon God burbles forth. For once, it isn't talking to its allies.

&lt;&lt; You do not belong here, on my islands. You are not part of my beginning. These are not your southlands... how long has it been since you roosted at home? >>

There's a second explosion of green fire, and all goes dark.

---

In that strange otherspace, a third actor, naturally green, has infected the streams. It pushes into the black and gold whorls and separates them.

&lt;&lt; Remember who you are. >>

The gold sparkles, twinkles... blazes.

And with a feeling of pure maliciousness, the razorsoldiers leap upwards, merging hands and arms to become a chain, a net, a cage of knives.

---

As the sands die down on the beach, Mina's necklace is once again a molten star of gold, and the Beast struggles to balance its weight on wings and arms and talons, to drag itself through the sand towards her.

But she's held back by her own feathers, which sprout perpendicular and furious, trying to stab into the ground, to hold fast to the island even if that means anchoring straight through fingers, shredding wings, splintering talons. Shadow bleeds in between them, trying to overwhelm that flowering green light wherever it blooms upon her form.

&lt;&lt; MINE! >>
&lt;&lt; NO!! >>

Mina, still overcome with godly presence, murmurs weakly, "...grandma...?"

And then the shadowblades strike out in all direction, trying to turn their Beast-tree into an impaled garden.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: FINISHER! Madoka Kaname has used Ruby Rampage on Kuniko Saito.
<br>COMBAT: FINISHER! Madoka Kaname has used Ruby Rampage on Sailor Neptune.
<br>COMBAT: FINISHER! Madoka Kaname has used Ruby Rampage on Sailor Uranus.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Carmine Claws on Fuu Hououji.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Carmine Claws on Sailor Moon.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Carmine Claws on Garnet.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Carmine Claws on Lera Camry.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Carmine Claws on Lancelot.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Carmine Claws on Hikaru Shidou.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has used Collateral Damage on Honoka Yukishiro.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Hikaru Shidou fails to dodge Madoka Kaname's Carmine Claws, taking 38 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Garnet narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Carmine Claws, taking 10 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Neptune narrowly dodges Madoka Kaname's Finisher, Ruby Rampage, taking 54 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!
<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Carmine Claws, taking 38 Fatigue damage!  Lera Camry's Block ability activates!  Lera Camry's Parry ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Carmine Claws, taking 11 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon covers Honoka Yukishiro for Madoka Kaname's attack, Collateral Damage, taking it upon themselves instead!
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon fails to dodge Madoka Kaname's Collateral Damage, taking 19 Fatigue damage!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Hikaru Shidou [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.

The Fire Knight is trying to plan her course of action when she's attacked again. She tries to get out of the way, but her dodging skills are not up to par this time around. Instead of moving out of the way, she gets caught and clawed. Yelping as the claws pierce through her armor and into her flesh, the Fire Knight drops to one knee briefly, feeling like part of her body is on fire. Ironic, considering she's the Magic Knight of Fire. But she eventually accepts it and gets back up.

"I made a mistake that time, but not this time!" The Fire Knight yells as she readies her sword and attempts to rush in and strike at the beast with her sword. No magic this time, just a good old-fashioned sword strike.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: Hikaru Shidou has used Sword Slash on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Hikaru Shidou has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Lancelot narrowly dodges Madoka Kaname's Carmine Claws, taking 28 Fatigue damage!  Critical Hit!
<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Finisher, Ruby Rampage, taking 28 Fatigue damage!  Kuniko Saito's Block ability activates!  Kuniko Saito's Parry ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji narrowly braces Madoka Kaname's Carmine Claws, taking 15 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Uranus narrowly dodges Madoka Kaname's Finisher, Ruby Rampage, taking 99 Fatigue damage!  Sailor Uranus's Flash ability activates!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Lancelot [Ohtori Academy (11)] has posed.

Performing a kip-up in armor is not easy, but Lancelot performs one regardless and spits out mroe sand. "Never gonna get that all out of my mouth..." He mutters at the grinning Warhorse, whom he mounts quickly with another spit of sand form his mouth. He nods once. "Let's give this thing our all okay Sparkles?" The Warhorse nods and the two take off, leaping at the end of the bluff toward the creature.

In mid air lightinng begins to slam down on Lancelot, "CHARGING!" He cries as the leap takes him closer and closer to the Vermillion beast.

Hundreds, if not thousands o lightning bolts rian down on the Knight's blade as he sails through the air. Each eirily silent, and each causing Arondight to glow brighter and brighter in the night's hand.

At the last second he leaps from Sparkles agian, apparently not having learned his lesson from last time, to look the beast in the eyes as he creis out in defience, "ASSAULT!"

Then Arondight lashes out toward the monster's snout, unleashing a torrent of lightning bolts, and each one raining a thunderous BOOM as they explode from the blade. The reprecussion of the blasts send waves crashing to the shore and dissipate a cloud lazily drifting by.

Lancelot plants two booted armored feet on the thing's cheast and push off, spiraling as he does to land in the sand in a crouch, even as Sparkles lands near him. Arondight steams in the air from the sheer power it had released. He pants heavily and looks up to see if this monstrosity still stnads.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: FINISHER! Lancelot has used Charging Assault on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Lancelot has finished attacking.
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Lera Camry [Infinity Institute (10)] has posed.

Lera watches, staring and forgetting where she is for a moment, as the creature drags itself towards Mina after that final display. Shadow bleeds out, while the shadowblades hover in the air. "Grandma...?" Lera repeats softly, her amber eyes widening; then she shakes her head, quickly, as the shadowblades come raining down across the battlefield.

Towards Mina, too -- and she realizes she's too far away. "We gotta keep her safe! It's--it's almost--"

&lt;Protection!> One of the blades slams down into a shield of green light that appears over Lera's head; then it tears through, the shield shattering like glass. It cuts into Lera's shoulder. She stumbles away, hissing, and stares at the Vermillion Beast. She can buy a little time, perhaps. "Ground, can you--can you manage something? We gotta hit it, so Mina or the Sea Dragon God can--can do something, y'know?"

&lt;I'm the perfect shield, Camry.> He pauses. &lt;Shields are good for smashing too.>

"All right, uh," she says, "let's do that!"

She swings the hammer down, pointing it straight towards the Vermillion Beast. The hammerhead splits open again. Motes of light begin to draw in, green and golden, and swirl together. A duo of control rings, filled with Midchildan runes, begin to turn and rotates around her. Then, a shockwave bursts out from Lera's feet, throwing sand to and fro. She swings the hammer down, the halves split around the, and a massive beam of light fires from the opened chamber.

&lt;Strata Excelsior!>

A beam of golden light, tinged a deep forest green at the center, shoots out of it. Inside of the beam, phantasmal bits of energy -- shaped like rocks, and with sharp edges -- fire, as she fires a beam that is equal parts supersonic lava flow at the Beast.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: FINISHER! Lera Camry has used Strata Excelsior on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Lera Camry has finished attacking.
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Garnet [None] has posed.

Garnet is delighted to see her attack connect and distract, and affords herself a rare smile. It quickly changes to a grimace when she sees what the Vermillion Beast is going through. It's... not so different from a Gem monster after all... the bestial writhing of demented pain and suffering is a familiar sight in the course of attending to her solemn task to subdue them. A crimson claw of feathered blades strikes for her, and she raises her armored fists to absorb the blow, which they do but not enough to entirely escape the pain they carry, not only of the physical claws, but the sharp, flailing despair of its twisted heart.

This beast must also be subdued, and it's about time Garnet took the matter into her own hands.

She focuses on the power of the cosmos, letting them flow in and enhance her inner strength, and her Gauntlets grow to four times their size!!! She takes a deep breath and channels her magic into them, striking it over and over until its submission, her gauntlets glowing trails and bursts of purple-red magic, visually accenting the small sonic booms of each rhythmic hit!

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: FINISHER! Garnet has used Omni Beat Mania on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Garnet has finished attacking.
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Sailor Moon [Juuban Public School (9)] has posed.

Sailor Moon catches her tiara on it's return flight, putting it back to her brow where it glimmers and retakes its place just as two voices as one, twisted and wrapped around each other resound in her hair and the paradoxical dissonance and synergy just take her off guard, wincing at the mere word.

Uranus arrives with a thunderous blow that sends a Vermillion Beast to the sand, a shockwave that billows twintails behind her. Sailor Moon looks delighted as she looks between her and Neptune, "You're both here in Okinawa. Great! Between selfish surfing crabs, a witch stealing hearts, and this... we really do need all the help we can get!"

Sailor Moon really doesn't know what's going on in the drama between the three actors. She remembers the source of all life vaguely from the lecture, the Priestess. She remembers that Okinawa has been constantly invaded but she doesn't really get how the acts interact.

So she doesn't really get why it's own feathers are acting like that, what that ethereal voice implies. Whether it's trying to /hold fast/ to the island or if they're rebelling against it and making a cage to imprison it.

Instead she just goes on instinct, she hears the voice of a little girl, murmuring, "Your..." She's almost struck into inaction by the thought, but she's already running.

Carmine claws rake against her as she runs. She intercepts the strike in part with the Cutie Moon Rod, but the strength of the creature manages to press it back, sending her stumbling a step. Shadow blades are blooming up everywhere and seem like they're turning on the beast but that makes the area a nightmare to navigate.

So she makes a leaping tackle for Mina, now more little girl than whatever deific force was behind her and all that green fire. Her arms encircle her and bear her to the ground, just as the world becomes a silhouette of shadowy ethereal blades that rake her back. Her whole self seems to arch and spasm, her mouth open in a silent shriek, before she falls still for a moment atop the smaller girl.

Opening her eyes a moment later, she looks at the smaller girl and says, "It'll be alright..." Tears fall, mostly from the pain. "...I don't really understand what's going on but it looks like you've done your part. You've been so brave. S-So I think I can be a little braver too. If you think that... your grandmother in there somewhere... then I'll..." She slowly unwraps her arms around Mina, then picks herself up, "...do whatever I can to help her!"

It's hard to stand tall when you're hurting so badly, but she tries, raising her rod over her head, it glimmers, as if it were drawing distant light within itself, the ornament chiming in clarion answer. She flourishes the rod side to side, before drawing the rod back behind her, "Moon Princess-" She casts her arm forward, pointing it out in front of her, "-HALATION!"

The regal rod, for a princess who would call herself anything /but/ regal, works its magic, as motes of pink move forth in a spiralling tunnel that leads the way for cerulean stars and crescents of energy that builds upon itself more and more until it becomes so bright that it looks like a detonation of purest white.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: FINISHER! Sailor Moon has used Moon Princess Halation on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Moon has finished attacking.
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Sailor Neptune [Infinity Institute (11)] has posed.

In a moment, all was a garden of shadows - of blades, of sharp things - no sooner did she feel that swell of pride at the blow that Uranus struck - that Neptune's eyes settle upon the short-haired woman. A secret little smile breaks the ice of her expression - but it was no warmer than the look before.

"Of course I waited for you," she says. "But you were being far, far too slow," she admonishes.

But there was no hiding that hint of pride in her tone at the blow.

But there was a time for pride. There was also a time for pain. The creature shows her the latter. Sharp things to pierce her, blades to slash her and send red into the white and sea foam colours of her uniform.

Neptune cries out in anguish, her body jerking involuntarily with the pain - far beyond much of what she experienced in recent memory. Red and black warred at the edges of her vision, threatening to steal her conciousness away as she finds... something in herself.

She pushes off of the ground with a foot - and bounces away, twirling in midair as another slash finds nothing but air - and cannot find the sea with its blade. And when she lands again, her eyes go towards Uranus. Grievous injury. Damage untold, and spoken in crimson upon the flesh of both senshi.

Neptune holds out her hand. She expects Uranus to stand again. She believed utterly that she could. When Uranus touches her hand, she clasps it fiercely for a moment.

Neptune dips her head - and breathes out, feeling the iron of her blood filling her senses. She casts it out. Casts it out and grounds herself to the touch of the other, the touch that grounds her to... times before. Ancient times.

She draws her hand away from Uranus - and lowers her hand towards the ground, fingers brushing through the sand. More water comes. Not from the sea - at least this sea. The water shines with reflected starlight, and crashes around her and through her, leaving her entirely dry. The waters of Neptune again.

Neptune rises again, strength filling her battered form. The wave crashes again, and she lifts her hands up to meet it, the waves depositing a ball of the clearest blue in her hands - shining with the light of a thousand stars. Wrists touching together, Neptune intones, tearing her focus away from Uranus.

She trusted her to follow. "DEEP..."

And in a moment, she would lower her hands, to push that ball towards the creature, taking a step back so that Uranus could get into position. "SUBMERGE!"

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: FINISHER! Sailor Neptune has started a combo targeting Madoka Kaname!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Fuu Hououji [Infinity Institute (9)] has posed.

The shadowy blades lash out in all directions; the Magic Knight of Wind hunkers down, trying to take as much of the assault on her armor as she can, but she doesn't have anything even remotely resembling a helmet to protect her head with. She just has to hope she'll be fortunate.

One horribly violent onslaught of dark blades later, she wonders just how fortunate she was; several blades missed her armor and hit, not her face, but her left arm, largely disabling her as far as archery goes. With that painful realization, the Wind Knight allows her bow and quiver to vanish. She *did* luck out enough to not get her head taken off or laid open, but blood is dripping into one eye now - which would also rule out launching any more arrows: she needs depth perception to aim properly.

Well, it's not like she still needs to hold back to the point of depending on archery at this stage, is it?

"EMERALD CYCLONE!!!"

Those words and an exertion of will summon up the full fury of the storm, but the Wind Knight focuses her attack against a particular 'point' - the source of those blades, as well as she can establish where they came from. The Vermillion Beast may still be the target of her spell, but whatever launched the barrage of solidified and sharpened shadows - she's *certain* that is the corruption of which the Sea Dragon God spoke.

And if the corruption is being separated from the Vermillion Beast, then it's the corruption which the Magic Knight of Wind desires and intends to assist her allies in obliterating.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: FINISHER! Fuu Hououji has used Emerald Cyclone: Focused on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Fuu Hououji has finished attacking.
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Kuniko Saito [Infinity Institute (11)] has posed.

Kuniko smashes her paddle, unfortunately, after several blows - but the improbable success of the measure makes her grin, a little deliriously, with triumph. Then the creature erupts - Kuniko twists, and that lashing blade of shadow hits her, yes.

But it gets her in the side. The one that isn't scarred! Her eyes flatten with the sudden eruption of pain, the feeling of bloody cold, but... She's had worse, she tells herself, and Mina's no doubt watching...

So is Sailor Moon. The Magic Knights. Others. Kuniko makes herself be quiet. Keeps herself from crying out. Her grandmother's in there somewhere, she thinks as Sailor Moon speaks to Mina.

"Heh. Well," Kuniko says, lowering her head. "... if there's a grandmother in there, I suppose I should prepare... a grandmother's set." And her hands come up, working in that virtual space.

What comes out emerges quickly enough. It's an arranged tray - a cup of green tea in an earthenware cup, a small dish of rice crackers, and as the centerpiece a piece of baklava, drizzled with fresh honey. But wait - She's poured out the honey in a shape that echoes that pendant which Mina has held so precious.

Kuniko sets the tray down on the sand before her, squatting on one knee and straining as she rises. The Terroir of the wildflower honey she's decorated glows in the shadow of those - well - shadows, a faint hint of gold. With THAT done, Kuniko staggers to the side, finally letting herself clutch at her wounded side and grinding her teeth til the feeling passes.

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: FINISHER! Kuniko Saito has used Plum and Raisin Baklava with Wildflower Honey on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Kuniko Saito has finished attacking.
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Sailor Uranus [Infinity Institute (11)] has posed.

Uranus twists like a gymnast in the middle of the tallest leap of her floor routine as she separates from the Vermillion Beast, striking down in the middle of the inlet with a splash of her boots that sprays a disk-shaped hollow of water into the shallow flow for a moment. She flips her head up with a grin, eyes shifting to her left to meet Neptune's sidelong.

"You always complain about that," she says, to the admonishment about being too slow. "But you always like it better that way in the end."

The wounded Beast has lost many feathers, and none of them seem pleased about that. Suddenly the air is full of them, and Uranus, who landed right next to the Beast's flopping form, is suddenly surrounded by them, the air churning as with pirhana. One moment, she was in the midst of a brash triumph, the next, the oxygen itself had turned to blades. Dodging simply meant choosing areas of lesser density; success was measured not by avoiding pain, but by reducing the frequency of the constant cuts and gashes opening up all over her body.

You really put your foot in it now, Tenoh.

The onslaught is dense and unrelenting. Each time Uranus strikes out with a fist or elbow, it comes back with a red weal. Pummelled and torn, she begins to move more slowly, until a strike to the back drives her to her knees, and then a gash across the side folds her over. The cloud grows dense and choking around her now-immobile form. An interminable few seconds later, she is lying face-down in the water, limp.

She drifts. Her shoulder touches a stone.

"KUH-HUUUuchk!" Uranus jacknifes her head up from the water, shoving a gloved hand into the silt below. Her tall, powerful body moves with a drunken irregularity as she lurches up, dragging a cascade of seawater along with her. She is gripping Neptune's hand before she knows she reached for it. Her sleek, pain-corded jaw is limned with sand as her eyes meet Neptune's, then flick to the side, to their enemy.

"All right," she mouths, but does not say, as she understands Neptune's intention. Her glove creaks as she grips Neptune's palm with all the ferocity left in her tremulous strength.

As she turns away, side by side with her partner, Uranus lifts her arm, a hitch in her posture as she draws her savaged body erect, dropping her chin as her wrist dips, a star of primal energy igniting before her knuckles. A deep rumble answers from beneath her feet, and as she clenches her teeth with the agony of summoning such power when she can scarcely summon breath, a scintillating golden orb draws up before her face. Her eyes snap open as she closes her fingers, the orb reacting by condensing and emitting a pulse of force.

"WORLD!"

Uranus throws her arm down, driving the straining orb into the earth, where it surges through water and sand alike in a salt-scented, yellow-gleaming spray, released to follow and support Neptune's.

"SHAKING!"

{{Quotation|1=<br>COMBAT: FINISHER! Sailor Uranus has joined the combo started by Sailor Neptune!
<br>COMBAT: COMBO! FINISHER! Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus have used Deep Submerge! and World Shaking! on Madoka Kaname.
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Neptune has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Sailor Uranus has finished attacking.
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname fails to brace Lancelot's Finisher, Charging Assault, taking 120 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname fails to brace Lera Camry's Finisher, Strata Excelsior, taking 130 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly braces Hikaru Shidou's Sword Slash, taking 3 Fatigue damage!  Hikaru Shidou is Psyched!  Madoka Kaname's Block ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Parry ability activates!  Stagger and Stun applied to Madoka Kaname!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname fails to brace Garnet's Finisher, Omni Beat Mania, taking 96 Fatigue damage!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname narrowly braces Fuu Hououji's Finisher, Emerald Cyclone: Focused, taking 11 Fatigue damage!  Madoka Kaname's Block ability activates!  Madoka Kaname's Parry ability activates!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname fails to brace Kuniko Saito's Finisher, Plum and Raisin Baklava with Wildflower Honey, taking 74 Fatigue damage!  Tangle applied to Madoka Kaname!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname fails to brace Sailor Moon's Finisher, Moon Princess Halation, taking 189 Fatigue damage!  Madoka Kaname is unable to keep fighting!
<br>COMBAT: Madoka Kaname fails to brace Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus's Finisher, Combo: Deep Submerge!, taking 201 Fatigue damage!  Madoka Kaname is unable to keep fighting!
}}


 &lt;Pose Tracker> Madoka Kaname [Ohtori Academy (9)] has posed.

It is a cruel sort of providence, perhaps, that there are so many blades trying to pin the Vermillion Beast in place, to prevent her from reaching Mina and the pendant, because it winds up being these shards of shadow struck by the many furious assaults.

From Lancelot's holy sword slicing them off of her snout, to Lera's magmabeam melting some caging her talons -- Garnet shattering blade after blade on one of the batwings, Sailor Moon instantly cleansing the other with a single, white-cold-as-the-surface-of-the-moon-warm-as-the-surface-of-the-heart blast -- Sailor Neptune's tsunami crashing across one impaled, furry arm, the wave tearing knives free, while Sailor Uranus forces the other to shake so violently that the razors slide straight out of it and clatter onto the beach -- the Magic Knight of Fire cuts at one feathered wing, while the Magic Knight of Wind summons her eponymous element to blow away the blades upon the other -- and light from a beautifully served tray forces the shadows on the tail to release and attend.

And as the Beast is freed from these constraints, the green growing on her every strange appendage glows brighter and brighter, and she moves faster and faster, plunging down the beach towards Mina and the necklace.

At the moment that they reach each other, there is a final blaze of green...

...which gradually, as it swarms all over the Beast, eradicating every trace of shadow...

...changes to pure and lambent gold.

Like the cracking of an egg, the light spills off of her, and the creature that spreads her wings within is still powerful and strange but certainly no longer a Beast. There are no hairy arms and no batwings, and no razors either. Only brilliant plumage and marvelous eyes, and the rushing, beating sound of mighty wings.

She does not remain, the Vermillion Bird, but instantly arrows off towards the south, over the horizon in a heartbeat. The only trace of her left to make this battle more than an illusion is a magnificent feather, one of her smallest, which is thus about the size of Mina's head. It drifts down from the sky into the hands of the girl, whose pendant -- sans glow -- is wrought in the precise likeness of the bird. There is no further trace of the Dragon's presence; he has already retreated.

But the impact of these events remain.

As with the first-grader, who wavers on her feet, then wobbles outright. "No," she explains shyly. "That wasn't grandma. But I felt... a familiar feeling... that reminded me of her." The grandmother who bequeathed her that magical pendant; who knows what stories that legacy has yet to tell?

Distantly, an airhorn blasts, the absolute final wakeup call for the sleepiest of sleepyheads on this, the very last morning of Okinawa. Today they go home, on planes unlikely to be accosted by any Beasts. But first -- the beach is sparkling, breakfast is the freshest of all fish and fruit.

And there is still time to buy a souvenir at the airport.

---

The shadowy blades have already melted into the sea, which hungrily churns them into the depths, never to be seen again. But their wielder, and former owner, yet remains. Did he watch all of this from his high helicopter saddle? Is he, even now, storming about, mourning the loss of his weapon, his investment?

Or is he content in the knowledge that while they may have freed one, he still has three?

TO BE CONTINUED...