2785/A Game of Pawns
From Radiant Heart MUSH
| A Game of Pawns | |
|---|---|
| Date of Scene: | 15 October 2025 |
| Location: | Plot Room 1 |
| Synopsis: | Seriss is closing in on her endgame; and there's just one last thing she needs, and it takes a major ritual involving a lot of energy. She relies on her creations, Clothos and Lachesis to protect her; but the heroes intervene to strip Seriss of her protections, closing in on and endgame of their own. |
| Cast of Characters: | Molly Skyline, Rashmi Terios, Miho Inada, Ikiko Hisakata, Amanda Faust, Hotaru Tomoe, Usagi Tsukino, Mamoru Chiba |
- Molly Skyline has posed:
Things have been quiet lately.
Well, maybe that is entirely relative. Seriss Nyx has been quiet lately; since the efforts to rescue Molly from the dream loop she'd been imprisoned in, nothing has been heard from Nyx; not an attack, not a phonecall, not even a sighting. One might almost be forgiven for thinking that she's simply taken Molly's body and left.
Almost.
After another perfectly ordinary day at school speant learning about math problems and reading the best of Japanese literature deemed safe for teenagers, the day concludes in the most ordinary of fashions. Homework is finished, video games are played, TV is watched, and probably at least some students actually go to bed at a reasonable hour. (But where's the fun in that?)
it happens precisely at midnight.
A wave of dark energy washes over the city, drawing inwards towards a particular point in on of the industrial parks. As it passes the power flickers, eventually just becoming a full blackout for block around the focal point. It feels like mystic fingernails getting drawn across the chalkboard of the world, to those attuned to feel it, while most people are just left complaining about the power outages and why doesn't the city fix this stuff.
But for those who can feel it, it's a clear signal. Something is afoot.
- Rashmi Terios has posed:
When you're a mahou...
A lot of things can keep you up at night. Vending machines on the attack, fine-tuning your latest alien-magitech project, turbo-kappa drag-racing over the riverfront, your best friend *still* being used as a meat puppet for a cosmic and *extremely petty* horror...
...Calculus exams...
Regardless, there's plenty of reasons to be awake and alert at midnight; at the moment, Rashmi was *about* to wind down with a light novel and a cup of tea before bed, when the wave of dark discharge washed out. And even as Nicomachea's alert began to chime in her head, she sighed her teenageriest sigh, and waved him off. << I know, Nicomachea, I know... I guess sometimes we just *can't* have nice things. >>
From there it was a simple hop to open her dorm window, crawl out onto the (mostly decorative) balcony, henshin, and fly off in pursuit of the epicenter of the blackout, scanning for allies along the way.
If they're going to bring another of Seriss' monsters down, they're gonna need a *good lot* of firepower.
- Miho Inada has posed:
It's been one of those things for Miho. She has always felt bad for not being able to help out as a Mahou as much as she would like. And then there was what happend to Molly. That really hit home with her. Especially after finding out about her body being held hostage by a demon. And she didn't go help out with the Witch a short time ago. And that was asking Amy to let her come with them to hunt a witch. This time...She will go out. And stop Nyx. Anyway she can. Molly needs to come home.
Miho feels the pull of dark energy. Something big is going on. She gets out of bed, and opens the window. Her Dormmate looks at her. "Just be back by morning. Must be a really cute boy for you to sneak out at Midnight.", her dormmate teases. Miho shakes her head as she takes a breath. "Really?" "Really. Be back by sunrise."
Miho hops out, and runs a short distance before she henshins. As she changes, her body starts to freeze, and shatters. The water freezes again, and turns to snow flakes. Its starts to fly away. Yukihime sets her mind on finally doing her duty as a mahou. The snow flakes fly towards the epicenter.
- Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Ikiko Hisakata had been planning on getting a full night's sleep tonight, but the sensation from the dark energy wave easily woke her up. "huhwha-?" she stammered, flailing in her blankets and grabbing her alarm clock to check the time. Dark energy? Midnight?!?
Thaaat can't be good.
A quick silvery glow and a quiet window-exit later, Cute Wolf Tsukiko is bounding across the rooftops, heading towards the source of the dark energy wave. << I'd like to file a magic noise complaint against whoever is behind this, >> the wolfgirl semi-grumbles to Rashmi on the comms net after mentally waving 'hello' to Nicomachea's scan. << Preferrably with my foot. >>
- Amanda Faust has posed:
Unfortunately, what with school demanding she be up early, Amy is in bed.
BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP.
"ARRRRGH." Amy groans as she wakes up, by now associating power outages with Seriss Nyx. "Not again!"
Check outage map. Shut down computer. Amy raises whoever she can who's up by communicator or text.
> It's gotta be Seriss again, <X> industrial park.
A small rocket takes off from the roof of the dorms, flying across the night sky.
- Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Hotaru Tomoe had been resting rather well, all things considered. She didn't want to get up, nope, not at all.
That is... until she'd just had this.... feeling. That something was very, very wrong. Something she had to deal with.
And she groaned, eyes opening. Looking at the clock. Why in the world was she up at THIS hour?
She rolled back over and--
NOOOOPE. She felt that chill again, shuddering, as there was that flickering that even without power could still be felt. She gulped.... And one henshin pen later and Sailor Saturn was leaping out of a window and racing out the streets.
She was sure the others would understand, as she headed towards the source of the trouble... Leaping from rooftop to rooftop...
- Usagi Tsukino has posed:
It's midnight.
Usagi should be asleep in bed, dreaming to be ready for school tomorrow. Should be, because she's not asleep, though she is in bed, her head tucked on Mamoru's chest, listening to him breathe steady and soft, a little smile on her face, because he's worn out and resting and okay, does it matter if she nods off a little in homeroom if it means she gets to listen, a little longer?
Apparently it does, because into the quiet of the bedroom comes Luna, padding near-silently through a crack that appears in the doorway.
"The power is out," she says, and Usagi groans, not over-loud, but enough that if Luna's voice hadn't woken Mamoru, this should. "You know what that may mean."
Her phone beeps, just a moment later, and Usagi grimaces.
"I sure do. Mamochan, come on - it's probably stupid Seriss again."
It is, of course.
Moments later, Sailor Moon joins her friends by way of rooftop travel.
- Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Mamoru likes Luna, very very much. He loves cats. He loves Usagi. But he also loves sleep and getting up ain't it. So yeah, he grumbles too, initially trying to ignore Luna, then being very reluctant to let Usagi go as she gets up-- his fingers take too long to trail of her arm, her hand.
Then he almost gets tangled in her hair and suddenly he's very awake, and the power's out and there's the foul miasma of evil in the air, and the world is holding its breath when Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen take to the rooftops.
<< Moon and Mask are on the scene! >> comes his mental voice into Rashmi's telepathy spell.
- Molly Skyline has posed:
Fairytale books are full of pictures of witches; usually doing their cackling evil in a forest glade or a fanciful abode, grinning over a cauldron that bubbles with some vile slumgullion, rife with noxious odors and forbidden ingredients.
None of that is present here.
In the midst of the industrial area is whta had formerly been a factory, left over the ages to crumble on land nobody wanted to buy and clean up for something new. Nobody except Obsidian, it seems. Laying haphazardly across the ground and draped over walls and through windows are a myrid of power cables, many of them glowing from the amount of energy thrumming through them, and all of them converging on a single spot, inside the ruined building an exposed to the sky by the crumbled roof. In the middle of it all stands Seriss, clad in her gaudy barrier jacket. The Cygnus Lich, her corrupted device is clung across her back, and she stares intently into a blinding convergence of mana and energy that roils in front of her and the impetrably dark center within it.
As the heroes approach, a pair of large monoliths descend, rocketing downwards and glowing with heat as if they had plummeted straight down from orbit, taking up positions near Seriss like a couple of oversized bodyguards.
"Sentry mode," commands Seriss, noting the arrival of... interferance on her Battle Visor. Little time for chit-chat today, afterall. "I have no time for children. Keep them away from me at all costs. I must complete this ritual."
<< ## AffIRmATIVe ## >> chimes in one of the weird creations.
"Lachesis, defend. Clothos, attack anything that gets close."
- Rashmi Terios has posed:
With every new signature identified and added to the comms net, Rashmi feels her heart getting lighter and lighter. << Red-chan, thank goodness. Tsukiko-chan, hi again! And... Yukihime-chan! >> Rashmi's voice is surprised by Yukihime's apparent intent to join, but it's the pleased kind of surprised, when a friend you hadn't seen in awhile shows up to lend a hand. << Saturn-chan! Oh thank goodness... but be careful, okay? Oh Moon-chan, Kamen-kun, thank you *so much.* If my readings are right we-- >>
Her running account is cut off, as the monstrous obelisks drop from the sky to take up protective post around Seriss.
<< --we have a change to do some *real damage,* hopefully enough that she doesn't want to push it herself. Yukihime-chan... This is gonna be a rough fight. Try not to get hit by anything if you can possibly help it, don't be afraid to call out for help if you need it, okay? >>
Pulling up short for a moment, she surveys Seriss at frantic work, and the guardian monoliths. Would it be worth trying to bypass them and attack Seriss directly, interrupt her work...? ...No. No today Seriss gets to learn what happens when you don't care about your toys.
<< ...Our targets are her monsters, >> she declares grimly. << *Get'm.* >>
- Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Sailor Saturn raced towards them, eyes going up at the sight of the descending monoliths. Ugh... So ominous and imposing... Once, she would have really liked those. Okay, a part of her kind of did... But she hated them because they were a part of THAT department. The WORST department. the department that held that THING impersonating HER family. HER daddy.
<< Hey everybody. Got woke up too, huh? >> she asked before yawning into the comms... she didn't mean to.... she just... couldn't... not...
Saturn was still eepy. And even if she was stil here, and ready to go.... she had still been woken up and this was FAR past her bed time. << Why can't they ever attack during regular scheduled hours? I have class in the morning... I'm so sorry, they're... so rude... >>
She didn't rush in yet, though. Because... well... she WAS tired, and sluggish. And knew she still wasn't the best fighter, yet. She had good shields, at least. And was still waking up. And she wasn't very familiar with either of these monsters. So for not the moment, she held back and waited for an opportunity.
- Miho Inada has posed:
The snow flakes gather on a nearby roof. They turn into a mini blizzard that freezes together. Soon the snow takes the form of Yukihime in a crouch. She takes a deep breath, and lets it out slowly. There's the slight plink as she feels the telepathy take hold. Its been awhile for her. As Yukihime looks around, she holds out her hand, and blows some snow off of it. It forms into a couple of birds, and bunnies. She sends the birds into the air to watch around the area from the air. The bunnies scout the ground.
<< It has been awhile since I have helped out. And I'll be careful! Also, hey Red! Its been a minute! >> Yukihime takes a breath as she calls out 3 beads that quickly form into wolves that take defensive positions around her. The mahou takes a moment to pull out some earbuds. Thank god they use Telepathy. That means she can have some music on while fighting. The funny thing is? The first song that pops up on her ear buds? Its the song she retired after hearing about Molly.
"Seriss Nyx! Release my friend!", she yells out. "I will not let you continue to use her body!", Yukihime hisses out. What can Yukihime do to stop Seriss? The mahou shakes her head a bit as she focuses a bit. The ice Mahou looks at the giants. She blinks a little bit. << I really need Anti Kaiju gear, don't I? >> Yukihime accidently thinks out.
- Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Tsukiko waves to the others as they draw within visual range of each other. << So glad to have plenty of backup, >> she admits on the comms net, noting the various arrivals and thinking in terms of what she knows of their fighting styles. With multiple targets and a modest gap, that means that Red-chan can really let loose with her arsenal on one target without making the other one too hazardous to melee... and Kamen's presence means emergency medical assistance is on hand, if it comes to that.
Well, better make sure it's not needed.
<< On it! >> the wolfgirl calls on the comms net, mentally highlighting Lachesis while dashing forward, darting towards the defensive bodyguard in an effort to split its attention in order to open up a gap for the others.
- Amanda Faust has posed:
<< Maybe it being 'the witching hour' is actually magically significant? ...Or maybe it's so that everything will be deserted... but why would she care... Hey Yukihime! >>
Amy doesn't wait. Rashmi, up in the sky, and the others approaching from the dorms, hear the tell-tale sound of Amy firing a recoilless weapon from the rocket she's riding in on.
Seriss has a giant, 3kg needle of heavy burning metal try to skewer her at mach 5, THEN hears the sound of firing catch up, and then another flechette follows a half-second later.
<< That should keep her on her toes... I was hoping to expose any hidden defenses she's got. >> Amy transmits telepathically, as the rocket she's sitting on streaks towards the air over the ritual site.
- Mamoru Chiba has posed:
<< Of course <3 >> "Well! All right then! Mind if I show them what happens when you play in another child's dirt?" Tuxedo Kamen asks rhetorically, leaping down from the roof within sight of the monsters and landing in a crouch. He holds his hands to the ground, building up a charge, glowing, glowing brighter-- and then he calls out, "Tuxedo la Smoking Crater!" and slams his fists down.
There's a rumbling, and then the ground beneath Clothos literally just explodes violently upwards.
- Usagi Tsukino has posed:
There's Seriss Nyx, with not just one, but both of her terrible creations. The woman who has stolen and reshaped not only Molly's body but her device has decided to dismiss them, and Sailor Moon - who has pushed her to fury with purification before - follows Rashmi's lead.
Her monsters have been vicious, terrible things, a nightmare to defeat. If they defeat them first, leave the bodysnatcher alone to face them, she won't stand a chance. Sailor Moon believes this, the way she had believed that Beryl could be destroyed, that Sunset of Shimmer could be stopped, that the world would keep spinning again and again.
"Moon Princess Halation!"
Which is why she, like her husband, goes right for the throat, purifying silver light blazing forth, surrounded by spiraling pink beams, star and crescent moon constructs of energy launching like shrapnel aimed right for Clothos.
This is how you take down a boss swarm - focus in on one enemy at a time!
- Molly Skyline has posed:
<< ALERT: INCOMING PROJECTILE. NEUTRON WALL DEPLOYED. >>
Cygnus Lich hasn't finished giving his warning before Amy's mach 5 needle slams into an energy field that crackled into being around Seriss, and the impact blasts shrapnel and kinetic energy in a cone to either side of her, severing energy cables and blowing out the wall in that direction, all while blowing out the Neutron Wall entirely in the process. Seriss herself has to work to keep her balance. Power arcs like purple lightning, making everyone's hair stand on end before Seriss holds out her hand, attracting what is leaking out into the air and redirecting it back into the dark sphere she is gazing into so intently.
"Clothos. Lachesis. Release all restraints. No retreat. Do what I created you for." She glances away from her work, briefly looking up in Yukihime's direction. "Your friend is dead," she hisses. "You should find something more productive to do with your remaining time."
Lachesis drops down to conceal Seriss from view; its surface ripples with energy and it erects a barrier around itself and its creator. A barrier that leaves Clothos outside of it.
Clothos, still hovering higher up in the air hasn't had time to properly consider an attack when the very ground erupts beneath it, pelting the weird creation and scoring it, while Usagi's silver halation slams into the side of it; together the two attacks hammer a deep crack into the surface of the creation, threatening to spread nad spiderweb.
<< ## STyX AfLAmE ## >>
Clothose shudders under the impacts, but it isn't finished. Across its surface mouths with mismatched arrays of teeth, some humand and many beastial all crammed together behind various sets of lips all open up in front of purple energy wells, and beams of energy lance out, striking either the heroes or points near them and arcing furiously, sizzling and cracking with the sustained assault.
Lachesis, meanwhile, finds itself assaulted by Tsukiko; the shield it has erected glows with the impacts, and the monolith visibly pours more energy into it to keep the barrier up.
<< ALERT. SATURN IS PRESENT. >>
"Noted," Seriss snaps, refusing to have her attention drawn away from her work. "Lachesis, prioritize defending against attacks from Dr. Tomoe's daughter."
- Rashmi Terios has posed:
Rashmi smiles wryly as the opening attack round staggers Seriss (thank you Amy-chan), distracts Lachesis (this is why you have a speedster) and withers Clothos' own defenses. Time to make the followup *hurt.*
<< We'll want to focus fire on one, then switch to the other, >> she calls, back on the move. << Moon-chan and Kamen-kun did *great* hammering on Clothos, so let's start with that one! >>
...Which will have to wait a moment, because the abomination in question is opening *too many mouths* and *every mouth is breathing agony laser.*
No amount of fancy flying and momentary shields will stop *every* one, but it does at least keep the damage to a minimum, and give time for Rashmi to find a better vantage point. At which point she pauses, reconsiders, and slots a module into place, running the numbers in her head and mostly on her Device. ...Yes, there should be enough energy for this...
<< *BONG!* >> << BURST INDEX: EXA GLACE -- BOOST UP >>
Half a dozen golden wisps materialize around Rashmi, then streak out to their targets, delivering a rush of energy, a cool icy elemental tinge, and the feeling of raw power, barely restrained under a thin shell. The next attack her friends make after receiving this boost will not only include the sticky, hampering ice Rashmi has used to such effect... but also be delivered with a punch like a careening truck.
It's not... *quite* exploding ice, but it's close enough.
- Miho Inada has posed:
Yukihime glares at Nyx for a long moment. "You will not use my friend's body to harm others! It ends tonight!", she glares. For a second, she starts to dance before she holds her head. It pounds viciously as words come to mind. The ice mahou takes a deep breath, trying to settle her mind. Yukihime breathes out again, but a blue fog comes out her mouth. "I will not fail again. I won't hesitate to save others...", she hisses. The mahou glares a bit.
"Yokai Musuame, Yukihime."
Yukihime raises her hand into the air, and her 3 wolves go back to being beads, and the other beads join them. They circle before flying into the air into the clouds. Yukihime holds her hand in the air as she holds her naginata. The wind starts to pick up, and howl as the clouds start to flash lightning and thunder. Yukihime is breathing very heavily as she focuses. Soon snow starts to gently fall down before a heavy thunder snowstorm starts. It focuses around around Yukihime.
"Guardians of the Ancient Forests, awaken from your slumber. Gather to me."
Yukihime is soon swallowed up by the raging snow storm she created. She hisses a bit as she tries to control all the snow and ice that's surrounding her at the moment. It's gonna take her a minute to finish up. She sends out a quick message. << Umm, I'm gonna need a few seconds...Sorry! >>
- Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Sailor Saturn watched them unleashing attack after attack on Clotho... and... rested on her glaive... Blearily. She... really was tired. A LOT more tired than she wanted to admit. WHY was she so tired? This sucked...
WHO ATTACKED AT MIDNIGHT ON A SCHOOL NIGHT?!
Prioritize defending from attacks from her, huh? And Clotho... She hmd...
She took a slow, deep breath and slowly held up her glaive. << Sailor Moon, Tuxedo Mask. I'm gathering as much magic as I can and I've been working with Sailor Uranus, Neptune and Pluto a lot more lately. When the first goes down, do you think you'd be willing to try directing your attacks with my own, and see if we can try to topple the second one before it has a chance to properly ready itself? >>
She packed a punch, but she was at least a lot better at doing it than she used to be... and working with them, well... She hoped she could take Seriss Nyx by surprise. Maybe... Give her something nasty.
- Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"Your youma SUCK, Nyx! And you suck even worse! What's it like," Tuxedo Mask calls out cheerfully as he pulls up his cape to shield himself from the laser vomit of Lachesis, ducking and weaving so he doesn't have to shut up, "to suck so hard vacuum gets jealous? To know beyond the shadow of a doubt that no matter how hard you try, you'll lose ignominiously and we'll forget you were ever a problem less than a year after we've got Molly back?"
Ooh. +Ice ++Kinetic on his attack? Mamoru feels the rush of gifted power like a breath of fresh wintry air in the slog of the dark energy that surrounds him, and for a half-second he considers using it on Smoking Crater again, but you know what--
--how about a kinetically explosive magic-breaking ice rose flung at hurricane slingshot speed?
To the face. The face of mouths. Possibly the back of the throat of one of those mouths. He aims wonderfully but there's a lot of unpredictable movement. And also agony lasers.
<< Absolutely. That should be one heck of a combo! I'll assume you're taking point, then. >>
- Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
The monstrous disco ball of purple lasers is tricky to dodge, even for someone as agile as Tsukiko, but the distance from the offensive monolith gives the wolfgirl enough fractions of seconds to avoid any direct hits. She sends a mental double-acknowledgement to Rashmi, one for the targeting and the other for the power-up, then considers targets and tactics for a moment while feinting at Lachesis...
Tsukiko gives a sudden hunter's grin, then charges forward with the Exa Glace gathered on a cocked fist, ready to slug the shield of Lachesis--
--but instead, she charges past that target--
--throws the Exa Glace at Clotho--
--then does a flying kick to spike the force of the Exa Glace into Clotho as a small detonation to launch the wolfgirl as a mahoujin cannonball back at Lachesis.
That should keep the defensive obelisk guessing!
- Amanda Faust has posed:
The shield somehow redirects the energy of Amy's attack into force that cuts cables? Interesting. Amy wonders if there's a way to use that...
She dismisses the weapon and holds a grief seed to the gem on her arm. Corruption filling almost a fifth of her soul gem bleeds away -- she may want to keep topped off if she can.
The rocket's here. Amy drops off as it flies on overhead, taking aim at Clothos-- << Roger that, focusing--aah! >> only for her to change whatever she was about to do to a point-blank explosion knocking her back away from the lightning as she falls, and fires a shell that explodes into glittering chaff to try and draw the lightning.
The large rocket swoops down and around, passing under Amy as she uses it as a stepping-stone to hop down to the ground before bracing herself with a massive artillery cannon on her shoulder.
<< Focusing Clotho, aiming for the crack! >>
BOOM! BOOM!
Two more hyperkinetic, denser-and-far-harder-than-lead flechettes fly from discarding sabots, aimed at the crack others' attacks put in Clotho.
Rashmi's magic reaches her. Amy takes in a breath of cold air and
*BOOM!*
Amy wonders what happens if the force of a careening truck is added to a cross-section only two or three centimeters across, and looks forward to finding out!
Even if the magic doesn't work that way, the results are bound to be cool!
...Pun not intended, but Amy is fine with it!
- Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"You think we're going to give up on Molly? Over you?" Mamoru might be going for vicious mockery, but Usagi is all incredulous scorn. "We killed your boss for Hotaru, but we're supposed to turn tail and mourn our losses instead for you?"
Perhaps it's true that couples think alike, because as Mamoru's icy role flies, Usagi feels the boost of ice and kinetic energy and reaches for her forehead, tiara transforming from skin-warmed metal energy, and throws her first attack, the one generally considered the weakest -
"Moon Tiara Action!"
And the cosmic energy flies, pastel colors and shimmery light and most of all, icy. When it strikes Clothos, dead in the center of those spreading cracks, ice crackles and bursts, filling those gaps and expanding them.
"You're not good enough to scare us off!"
<<Absolutely! You bring your power and we'll bring ours! I think Clothos is going to go down... let's kill the other.>>
- Molly Skyline has posed:
<< ALERT >>
"Ignore the insults of children," Seriss snaps, interupting whatever her device had been about to say. "Let them whine about pathetic little Molly all they want." While magic spells and earth-shaking impacts are being traded mere feet from her, Seriss ignores it all, focusing entirely on her task. Could the heroes truly not mind their own business for one evening? Of course they couldn't. "Cygnus, leave Clothos and Lachesis to take care of themselves, they are perfectly capable. Your priority is my defense. Stop anything that gets past them, defensive measures only. Tonight we sow the seed of our victory."
<< AFFIRMATIVE >>
Beyond Seriss' focus, the effects of leaving Clothos without defenses while being required to attack is becoming costly, and thanks to Rashmi the bill is running up fast. Amy's rounds impact the weird creation, hammering it like hammers against a cracked anvil, widening the extent of the damage. As debris and... teeth clatter to the ground, Mamoru's rose digs its stem into the face of the thing and explodes, almost knocking it off kilter, and leaving it in the worst position to receive Usagi's cosmic strike, and the cracks audibly shatter and widen, splintering across the face of the monolith; all culminating when Tsukiko hurls her Exa Glace at it, before going back to tormenting Lachesis.
And that leaves a hole in it.
A hole, bit enough that something inside sticks a hand out through the hole, scrabbling for freedom even as the outside air burns it. But somehow, the monolith holds true to its machine in spite of its hissing and struggling prisoner.
<< ## TARtARuS Swa##rm ## >>
Its mouths close, then open again, vomiting forth clouds of... not wasps. Tiny rockets with wasp wings, all glowing purple that zip off in random trajectories to explode in and around and near the heroes. But before the attack even finishes,
<< ## TETRa AGoNI####er !!*---- FAlsE entRY ## >>
The mouths are suddenly filled, each with an eyeball staring out, that fire beams of energy in random directions. Some cut, some burn, some freeze.
<< ## ASSISTan#### PleASE --#- ANNIHILATE ## >>
The last word is creamed hard enough to shake the masonry of the ruined building; black oil oozes out of the cracks, and the eyes turn purple and explode, sending shockwaves out in all directions.
<< ## HaTE YOU aLL ##-.!#, TERmINaTE ## >>
The shockwaves abate, and it... pauses, apparently unable for the moment to make good on its threat. But something inside it is building.
<< ALERT -- CLOTHOS INTEGRITY CRITICAL >>
"Let Clothos look after herself." Seriss shakes her head. "We are so close."
- Miho Inada has posed:
The snow storm starts to calm down, and takes shape as Yukihime walks out of the storm. Her breathing is very heavy at the moment. As she walks out, the ground around her seems to freeze. As she walks out, Yukihime's appearance seems interesting. Its like there's fur surrounding her for a moment, before the fur seems to move to the sides of Yukihime...
"Dire Wolf."
As Yukihime continues to walk out, 10 very large wolves come out. Ice and snow Dire Wolves. Each wolf has a prayer bead on its forehead that seems to pulsate with magic. Yukihime stops as she raises her naginata up with one hand. The dire wolves howl before the beads pull the magic into them, and fly around Yukihime's naginata. The air around the beads seems to freeze a little bit as it leaves a blue tail around each bead as they fly around the naginata. Each bead has something of a wolf head around it.
"BARRICADE!"
Yukihime sees the attack coming. As she yells out, she points the naginata around at the heroes. The wolven heads launch out, and create a crystal around the mahou. Hopefully it'll be strong enough to protect everyone, while giving them time to heal up/charge up for big attacks! Yukihime leans against her naginata, refusing to go down. "I will protect everyone!", she says. As soon as the attack settles, Yukihime lowers the ice crystal barrier. "F-finish it!", she calls out vocally.
- Rashmi Terios has posed:
That is... a *lot* of murder coming their way. And while it's probably *survivable,* dealing with an attack that dense is going to have to....
Oh.
Rashmi has, amusingly enough, been encased in ice, before. The novelty here is that she can still *move,* and *act.*
<< Holy wow, >> she says into the comms net. << This is what you've been working on, Yukihime-chan?! This is *good* work! >>
But weathering that storm of magical assault, on that many targets, *cannot* be good for one's long-term prospects, so best take care of things as quickly as possible.
The moment the crystal recedes, Rashmi has her hand out toward the gaping hole in Clotho, with the struggling creature inside.
<< *BONG!* >> << SOLAR BARRET -- BLAZE SHIFT >>
What follows is a rapid-fire stream of flaming Barrets, set for as much power as the simple spell can bring, when all tracking ability is sacrificed, and each shot that hits its mark spreads burning golden fire, with the intent to turn that hole in the monolith into an oven.
Rashmi will be *damned* if Clotho survives long enough to release its self-destruct.
- Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
Having a defensive shell of ice around her is different, but Tsukiko is used to buffs enough by now to not think it too unusual. The fact that it moves with her is unexpected, but definitely appreciated by the speedster wolfgirl!
<< Thanks, Yukihime! >> Tsukiko calls out on the comms net, going back to pummeling Lachesis in an effort to keep it from protecting Clotho. She's just glad that there's enough mahoujin with strong ranged attacks to outrace the offensive monolith's self-destruct.
- Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Oh. Oh that is a LOT coming their way. Sailor Saturn hesitated, readying to drop her glaive and prepare a silence wall. But... Rashmi could handle it, right? She was a very defensive mage, but... but she needed to fight here, too. They all did. And Rashmi was more experienced in fighting, so maybe--
But before she had to forsake her plan, YUKIHIME made the choice for her. Once again reminding her of the strength of the sparkles... there were always more to cover them when they needed it. Ice enveloped them and Shielded them from the assault. With doggies! Well, wolves. But those were like, bigger doggies.
More than that, Clotho was going down, and she could trust the others to end that. She took a slow, deep breath. Before swirling her glaive. She'd practiced for this. Trained for this. When she'd first met Seriss Nyx, it hadn't been her. It had been Saturn, the ancient one. The one who had been ready, and intending, to obliterate herself, and an entire star system, to end the threat... Now? It was Hotaru... but Hotaru had practiced, and trained.
More than that? Now she was with her prince and princess. And not willing to sacrifice herself... not standing in front of them... but besides them... And as everything tore into Clotho...
Her glaive spun and... Then she unleashed all of her power into her glaive, purple energy swirling before she launched it all at once in a swirling disk. It flew through the air at Clotho...
Before it spun AROUND Clotho, the discus shape going around the great monster to go STRAIGHT at Lachesis! << Sailor Moon! Tuxedo Mask! Now! >>
""Silence Surprise--
- Mamoru Chiba has posed:
@emit
<< Oh hey, thanks Yukihime! That's really impressive! >> Tuxedo Mask's warm mental 'voice' comes over Rashmi's telepathic comms. He nods firmly to Sailor Saturn and to Sailor Moon, then starts charging his own laser while the agony lasers pour out and zort off of Yukihime's wolves, off her barrier. Then Mamoru's voice comes again, for the combo is starting, << Everyone look out-- Tsukiko look out! >>
Look out?!
Saturn's glaive spins, twirls, and then she floods it with her energy and sends it whirling like a helicopter into a disc-- as it passes, a bright burst of white-gold energy joins it, crackling and expelling a rushing wind of force that kicks up dust and makes loose costume or uniform bits whip wildly around.
"Smoking--" he cries out after Sailor Saturn, and he passes the metaphorical baton to his beautiful wife, the inimitable Sailor Moon.
- Usagi Tsukino has posed:
The weird creation with its teeth and agony beams, it might be firing upon them, but Sailor Moon has withstood a lot. They have fought many things, and though it hurts, she's a crybaby, and she's been one her whole life. She'll be one longer, too.
So Clothos' agony beams and desperate final attack are not enough.
But Clothos is weakened, and abandoned. Clothos has had her attention - and Sailor Saturn and Tuxedo Kamen have both raised their energy.
Sailor Moon's Cutie Moon Rod shimmers and shines, swapped in an instant for the Spiral Heart Moon Rod, and she swings an arm out in an arc, high and open, thrust out fully, and twists in the air, her own magic gathering, preparing, bracing herself -
And there's cold in the air, snow and ice and a gathering storm, and oh does she trust and love storms, thanks to Makoto, and Yukihime is given an extra measure of trust, for this, as her storm resolves into great wolves, each of them lunging forth to protect from Clothos' efforts, and the Silver Crystal shines in her heart, her energy syncing with Mamoru and Hotaru's, Earth and Moon and Saturn creating a three-part harmony.
"Thank, Yukihime! We won't let your protection go to waste. Seriss, you're about to see the cost of abandoning your allies to their fate! This is just one of the reasons you'll fall while we rise!"
Saturn calls first, and then Kamen, their voices filling the air, and her command closes out the attack:
"Spiral"
The spin concludes, and the great Heart bursts forth, swarmed by a great cloud of smaller ones, purple and red and gold, ribbons and spikes and rose petals fluttering about them, and they fly forth to strike Lachesis - and explode.
That really is a surprise!
- Amanda Faust has posed:
"What the hell...?" breathes Amy as something tries to break free of the sarcophagus.
But she has no time to think about that because ROCKET WASPS.
ROCKET.
WASPS.
She rocket-jumps, is chased, uses explosions to redirect herself in midair, even has the rocket fly by and grab her and the rocket wasps are all the while inches behind.
She can't avoid the rockets and the beams.
"AAAGH!" The Puella Magi screams briefly as she's cutburnedfrozen-- but despite the opportunity for Seriss's creations, barely any of the beams reach Amy, and when the pain isn't followed with more, Amy looks back in amazement to see the attacks blocked by a barricade of magical icy dire wolves.
Just like against Walpurgisnacht, icy shielding saves her when she most needs it. << Yukihime... again, thank you... >>
Pain numbed, clutching to the rocket arcing its way back to the battlefield, Amy has a few seconds to plan.
"SERISS NYX!"
"Treating everyone as beneath you will lead only to your own destruction!"
Amy shouts, standing atop the rocket flying through the air.
"Not just Molly... Everyone you want to use, and harm, and everyone you will... for them, we'll defeat you!"
"TAKE THIS! The feelings you don't understand! Our love, our anger, and all of the sorrow you've inflicted!"
As Amy flies towards the top of Clotho, the sense of an incoming attack is impossible to miss.
She drops off of the missile, tumbling through the air right in front of Clotho, and she thrusts out one hand and releases a point-blank hyperkinetic jet of superheated metal that appears as a blast of shining orange light. Maybe half as powerful as what she used on Socrates, but as the recoil spins her in the air she throws out her other arm and does it again, and again and again as she falls, a series of five blasts down the front of Clotho's face.
REPEATIIIIIING BLAZEEEEEEEEER!
BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG
She doesn't quite stick the landing after that, falling over on her back and it's a good thing she's wearing her helmet.
And then the missile has circled around and as the nosecone makes contact with Clotho there's a flash of light and one more shaped charge explosion, bigger than the ones before it, and then Amy needs a moment.
- Molly Skyline has posed:
<< ## As###s##an## CRITIcAL ERRor ## >>
Clothos doesn't manage to say anything else. Amy's assault hammers into the monolith's exterior, blasting cracks into holes and sending black ichor spraying out the front and back of it. Rashmi's barrets slam into the monstrosity, blasting into the holes her friends have made. The strange creation glows orange from within and flames lick at the outside of the carapace, and abruptly it plummets from the sky, landing with a heavy crash and shattering, collapsing into a heap of pieces and wriggling black ichor.
<< CLOTHOS HAS BEEN DESTROYED >>
"Noted," Seriss snaps in a tone of voice that suggests she didn't really pay any attention to what Cygnus Lich just said. And indeed, it's likely she didn't; she's focused entirely on reaching into the dark, energy-wreathed space in front of her. "The Gloom Zirconium is almost finished. Hotaru... this will be my gift to you."
The battle isn't over, but already, some of the heroes have wisely shifted their assault towards Lachesis, and the greatest of the three creations shudders under the impacts, ill-prepared to receive them.
<< ALERT. WITHOUT CLOTHOS OR ATROPOS LACHESIS IS HIGHLY VULNERABLE. >>
"NOTED," Seriss snarls. Has she really heard it? Or is she entirely focused one what she is drawing from her nearly completed ritual?
<< ## DaRK DEfEN-- ## >>
Too slowly, Lachesis tries to defend against the thrice-fold assault from Mamoru, Hotaru, and Usagi. Perhaps it was distracted by Tsukiko; perhaps it was formulating a strategy to deal with Yukihime. But it was too slow, and the combination of Glaive Enerrgy, White-Gold blasts, and the Heart Spiral drive it back, resulting in a fissure running across the entirity of the beast from top to bottom.
<< ## EMeRGENcY PRO####---#cOL __ # ANNIHIlATE ## >>
Across the monolith's face, eyes with teeth in place of lashes open up, glaring balefully at the heroes. Eyes that glow with rage and dark energy. And while Seriss' focus is entirely elsewhere, so elsewhere that she isn't even bothering to respond to the insults hurled her way, her toy, left to fend for itself... is vulnerable. Nicomachea will certainly detect that.
Now is the moment to strike.
- Rashmi Terios has posed:
Everybody, absolutely everybody, has given it their all tonight, and as Clothos crumbles into meat and stone and broken purpose, Rashmi closes her eyes and allows herself one breath. Just one.
Because there's still work to do.
<< If anyone else still has gas left in the tank, >> she says gently, << Let's finish this. Kamen-kun, could you look after Saturn-chan and Yukihime-chan please? >>
And Seriss *isn't even paying attention.* That's irritating. And also worrying. But the plan must be stuck to, and the plan *requires* that Clotho and Lachesis both fall. And there'll never be a better opportunity than tonight. So...
"Verbal Command," she says, hanging in the sky and staring down at the last of Seriss' monstrosities. "Accumulator Purge."
<< *BONG!* >> << COMMAND INPUT EXECUTE, >> intones the Device. << PURGE CHANNELS GREEN. ALTERNATE GRIMOIRE LOADED. AWAITING COMMAND. >>
Holding one hand over Nicomachea's 'pages' as they flutter and turn, her other hand sweeps out to point at the biggest crack in Lachesis she can orient on. There's a hissing, rushing noise, and a ball of golden energy about the size of a basketball floats in front of her outstretch palm.
"SOLAR BUSTER!"
<< SOLAR BUSTER >>
The ball of energy collapses to about fist-sized, then lances out and down, a coruscating golden beam that tracks from one side of the break to another, lasting perhaps ten seconds... but ten seconds of a Bombardment-class attack, even a baby one, is still enough to do *ruin* to constructions not created to be truly alive.
And that's before the explosions that follow in the beam's wake.
- Miho Inada has posed:
Yukihime is blushing pretty good back there. The big thing though is that spell has drained her almost entirely. She's only standing cause she's leaning on her naginata. Her arms are heavy, as is her head. << Thank you, everyone. >> she comms. The girl sounds very exhausted. She takes a few deep breathes. The mahou looks at the monolith. "Oh for the love of...Just explode or something!", she says. Yukihime gathers a little bit of snow off the ground, and makes a snow ball. She chucks it weakly at the monolith still standing as its blasted! She at least got a snowball in!
<< Quick question? Does anyone have a ride back to the school? >>
- Amanda Faust has posed:
Amy groans. Right, there's another one. And Seriss is yammering on, damn it... Whatever she's doing really must be going to do something terrible.
Amy raises some kind of hand-cannon oneshot grenade launcher and
PFOOMP!
She miscalculated, somewhere, or her aim was off, although at least she's able to cancel or delay the impact detonation of what looks like an RPG round as it hits the ground nearby with a CLINK and rolls in a tiny circle.
Amy groans, and looks at her soul gem. Almost half corrupted after everything, and she just purified it, dammit...
A bunny noses her.
It can't actually heal her that fast, but she can't help feeling better as she pats it, takes a breath, and gets to her feet with a grunt, cradling the snowbunny in her left arm.
"Just die already." She conjures a repeating grenade launcher in her right hand and just keeps firing grenades at Lachesis to add to everything.
<< ...My ride just exploded. >>
- Hotaru Tomoe has posed:
Sailor Saturn fell to her knees and just... she was gonna need a minute after that... Before she looked left. Right. Left... Okay... nobody was looking...
...She totally, subtly...
Flipped Seriss Nyx the bird. Just for a moment. Just a second.
She was tired. It was past her bedtime. *She had school tomorrow*. And she was TIRED. And GO AWAY AND GIVE THEM BACK MOLLY! She quickly eeped and hid her hand in her lap if Tuxedo Mask came near her, though, whistling innocently and slightly nervous sweating.
- Ikiko Hisakata has posed:
<< One final strike, >> Tsukiko replies in agreement to Rashmi. The wolfgirl has plenty of momentum from her near-constant skirmishing with Lachesis, and while maintaining her speed unassisted after a Silver Wolf Tackle is nigh-impossible...
...it still means she can get one heavy shot in.
Tsukiko accelerates to her top speed, cornering sharper and sharper, keeping her ears tuned to Rashmi's charge-up. As soon as the Pagemage starts calling the attack name, the wolfgirl launches forward in a silvery blur, striking a different major fissure in Lachesis a hairs-width ahead of the Solar Buster, and skidding to a halt a safe distance away from the explosions.
<< Okay, now I'm basically out of stuff in my tank, >> she grins wearily to Rashmi.
- Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Usagi isn't running on empty... but she's not got enough in her for a full complete fight with Seriss Nyx now, especially when whatever she's doing is so important she'd leave her monsters to die.
But she has enough to make it hurt. To finish the job with her friends, she hopes.
"My mama always tells me to pay attention to what she's saying," she offers, and the Spiral Heart Moon Rod flashes. "But if she met you, she'd see how great a listener I really am. You don't even know what you're losing here."
A chill creeps across her skin at the absent, cruel comment, the realization that what distracts Seriss Nyx is something that threatens Hotaru, and almost certainly for Saturn or Mistress 9.
It's the deciding factor in what she does next, which is flip open her compact, the Silver Crystal flashing brightly.
"Moon Princess Halation!"
- Molly Skyline has posed:
Seriss withdraws her hands from the swirling mass of energy, and as she does it dissipates in a flash of blinding light. The power cables spark and melt to slag as a wave of energy courses through them, away from the ritual, leaving the dark sorceress clutching her prize; a gleaming, faceted black jewel. She holds it up proudly, smiling at her sucess... at least until she fully takes in the cost.
Lachesis plumets to the ground under the weight of the heroes' combined assaults. On impact it splits down the middle, and with a wailing inhuman shriek it falls apart. Chained and bound inside, a creature contained in the black ichor that now splashes everywhere howls; an otherworldy demon, it claws and scrabbles at the air as its body calcifies, going stiff and finally crumbling.
<< LACHESIS HAS BEEN DESTROYED >>
"I can see that!" Seriss snarls. She clutches the Gloom Zirconium in one hand, and draws Cygnus Lich with her other. "Gamma Ray Burst!" she rages.
<< ARMED >>
Sparks fly off of the device, and the head of the staff glows with a furious build up of energy, as the sorceress scans for a target.
No.
Now is not the time. Regain focus. Examine the situation coldly. Victory has been earned today, even if the cost was... high.
"You'll pay for this," she rages, as purple wings snap into being and carry her up into the air. "You think this will go unpunished? You will pay. You. WILL. PAY."
With a last glare at those assembled, Seriss takes on a purplish glow and duskports away, leaving the devestation of the battle behind.
- Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Lachesis goes down, dying in a horrific reveal, a creature within the defenses, twisting and writhing and turning to stone and it's gross enough that Sailor Moon twists away, face horrified.
Her horror isn't enough to distract her from the threat that is Seriss Nyx, and they're exhausted but determined, because they had been exhausted in Paris, and they had fought -
But when Seriss Nyx is gone?
<<Do you think Obsidian makes them practice those kinds of speeches?>> The kind of laughter that comes from snatching victory. <<Let's get out of here and back to bed already...>>
She's taking the long way home, to make sure Hotaru gets there.'
- Rashmi Terios has posed:
<< Actually I think it comes with the Dark Energy, >> Rashmi muses, slumping as she lowers herself to the ground. << It's like those American pill ads: 'Beware of side effects: Sudden mood swings, burping acid jellyfish, severe monologuing, dry mouth (probably because of the jellyfish), insomnia...' >>
...Okay yes Rashmi is just a *little* punchy, but how long has it been since she had a win *this* big against Seriss? Never, and so between being on the low end of her mana tank, hungry enough to eat through a tank made of ramen noodle cakes, and the adrenalin-crash... It's allowable.
<< What scares me is, did anyone else hear Hotaru's name from her while she was *completely ignoring us killing the heck out of her monsters?* >>
If anyone *does* need assistance getting home, she's perfectly happy to supply a carry, or a Flier Fin and patient instruction on how to fly Device-style; being a support Device allows Nicomachea a fairly broad array of ways to help other people.
- Amanda Faust has posed:
They let Seriss complete her 'gift for Hotaru' in return for the chance to take down Lachesis.
Amy can only hope it's worth it.
Why are there humanoids in ichor inside the sarcophagi? How was that useful to their operation? Amy does not understand dark magic.
It's disgusting and disturbing, but after some of the things she's seen Witches do...
...
Seriss is mad. Amy smiles. That's a good sign that they've made real progress.
Gamma ray burst.
Those are concerning words, and Amy cannot even begin to calculate just what possibly-magical gamma rays will do to people but ionizing radiation strong enough to harm them is... not something she wants to see Tuxedo Mask having to heal the results of.
She looks around in a panic. Too many people...
Yukihime is nearby and leaning exhaustedly on her naginata. Amy rushes over to stand in front of her, then thinks to shout "Get down!" and then imagines Seriss throwing the attack in the air and adds, "Minimize your cross-section!" which is, perhaps, advice that can only be understood if you were already considering doing that.
When Seriss does fly into the air Amy just looks more concerned.
...And then she's gone, and after waiting several seconds for any sort of delayed attack to go off, she lets out a breath she didn't realize she was holding and drops to her knees.
She drops back down to her base henshin, and pulls the Bog Witch's grief seed from her belt pouch, cleansing the corruption from her soul gem.
It stops at around an eighth corrupted. Amy's hand goes back to her belt pouch, drawing forth the other grief seed and frowning as she remembers the encounter with the child-Witch. She touches it to her soul gem, drawing out the remaining corruption.
Her soul gem is pure.
She puts the grief seed back in her pouch. << Is everyone alright? ...Yes. I heard. I don't know what she just did, but it's not good. But she was mad that she lost her creations. She didn't expect that. ...I just hope we made more progress than she did. >>
...She walks over and picks up her unexploded ordnance from earlier (the grenade launcher vanished after Lachesis burst open.) "Huh. Can I just...?" she tries holding it to her belt and adding a loop to hold it.
<< I don't suppose anyone does have a faster way home than running? Oh thanks so much, Rashmi! Now we can go home and get some sleep... >>
Her face brightens even more at a thought, and she smiles. << Oh... then we can tell Molly the good news right away! >>
