1773/B-Point: The Main Event

B-Point: The Main Event
Date of Scene:	15 July 2024
Location:	Paris
Synopsis:	Having quite literally devoured the heart of Metallia, Queen Beryl has become something more than the sum of both their parts, a towering figure set on destroying all Paris if that's what it takes to get rid of her enemies. But our heroes won't let that happen. With so many brave hearts gathered, so much determination put into the fight, it's inevitable that victory comes. Goodbye Beryl. You won't be missed.
Cast of Characters:	Beryl, Amanda Faust, Hinote Kagari, Madoka Kaname, Phantom, Makoto Kino, Glimmer Brightmoon, Naru Osaka, Kazuo Saitou, Coco Kiumi, Mamoru Chiba, Usagi Tsukino, Zoisite, Kyouka Inai
Tinyplot:	Dark Kingdom Finale

---

Beryl has posed:
Beryl pulls her hand back from Chaar's destroyed half a body, where it had been, writhing shadows clinging to her arm before they are consumed within her.

    "Oh, you fools. But I should be thanking you. You fought so hard to get here and yet, what you actually accomplished... was allowing me to absorb Metallia with the minimum of effort. I can feel... the power... coursing through me. But now I have bent her power to my will. The power I have sought for so, so long... is finally mine."

    Her eyes flicker brilliant red and her skin begins to turn from pale to a sort of bluegreen hue. "Finally, I have obtained the true power of darkness..." The ground starts to rumble, a bit like an earthquake, and there's a sort of psychic, spiritual pressure that makes everyone present want to shudder from it. Dark Energy erupts in a volcanic display, before collecting into long thin tendrils on the ground, which spiral and wrap around Beryl while the rumbling intensifies - before a powerful surge of dark energy blasts a hole in the roof, ripping all the way up until it's out of the depths of the Dark Kingdom and clear to the city of Paris above. Whatever was standing above the cave (or as 'above' as anything can be relative to a shard of the Dusk Zone)in Paris proper is simply obliterated by the phenomenal wake of energy.

    And when the energy dies down, all that is left in its stead is a truly massive black bloom - a closed up flower, but truly titanic. The sky should be filling with the colors of morning, but instead the only color above is darkness, shades of black purple and grey, as the City of Lights finds its power inexplicably dying out. The entirety of Paris - and at this rate soon maybe the whole world - feels to those who are energy-sensitive as though the world was pulled into an extra strength dusk zone. To those who aren't - to the Parisian Civilians - the world simply grows black as they collapse, their energy drawn into the giant vile flower.

    The combination of the flood of Dark Energy and the sapping of the energy to feed the flower starts to cause cracks to appear in builds, and Paris itself starts to crumble, one building at a time.

    The flower finally unfurls and within the petals and stamen rises a tall, tall, Eiffel-Tower tall Queen Beryl, hair flared outwards and upwards a sickly green. Dark Energy crackles off her body before snapping to the ground like lightning, adding to the destruction, like even her massive body cannot contain the vile power within fully.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy looks when the smoke clears. Even the cruise missile wasn't enough?! But the rest of it all happens so fast, and finally, finally, the last DG Girl seems to fall. She lets out a sigh of relief... and then stiffens as she hears the voice cry that it isn't over--

    And then it is over, because it's the beginning of something worse.

    She lands by Usagi and Mamoru. "Heal." She states, then, in a softer tone, "If you can spare it. I-I can fight on this way if needed." There isn't time for her to say everything she'd like to. She moves broken arms and stands on torn muscles, somehow, and while speaking she pulls a pair of grief seeds from her pocket, using one and then the other to purify her SOUL of corruption.

    She might not get another chance, so she'd better do it now.

    And she sees the ghost of Haruka hand him her sword, and can only wonder despairingly: "No... how many more?" How many more will they lose?

    There probably is not time to heal. "It's fine. I had to ask!" She stares up at. Giant plant. Giant Beryl. There isn't time for many words, though, as she's soon frantically dodging the rain of dark lightning! "How do we fight her?!"

Hinote Kagari has posed:
When Beryl appears, Pulp Noir draws his revolver up and tries to give a wry grin. "Finally, Sweetcheeks! Havwe we been looking for you..!" he says. But before he can do anything else... there's a hole in the roof. And he's jumping out quickly, coat flapping behind him as he lands in...well. It WAS Paris, like, a few moments ago.

He frowns as he looks up and suddenly, There's indiscrimate lightning and he starts moving to avoid blasts as best as he can, even in his ragged state.

He tries to shoot up at massive Beryl, but that might be like a mosquito bite to her right now.

"Well. This is freaking horrible." he says.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
FROM LAST EPISODE

    Madoka and Homura dive under Glimmer's shield, and hide within the Live Stage provided by Coco. Every little bit helps, and while Homura has a shield of her own she's better off not burning her own magic.

    Several attacks, and several dire sacrifices later, the Wall of Lava has been pierced. Yet, Madoka and Homura can't feel happy about it. More death, more losses, more people who wont be around for the next crisis assuming that they even win this one.

    NOW

    As Homura's many failures can testify, victory is never guaranteed in times like these. Nor can it be taken for granted. Yet, progress has been made, and a villain falls... only to be replaced by another. Everything that was already so wrong has suddenly become much, much worse. Whatever hopeful aura Madoka brought along with her seems a small, flickering light in the vast, oppressive spreading darkness.

    "There she is," mutters Homura, watching as Beryl usurps Metallia.

    "Right. Of course she'd show up now," agrees Madoka.

    Homura reaches into her shield to start digging around for a new weapon. "I have to admit I wasn't expecting her to eat the demon. I thought it'd be the other way around."

    Madoka opens small Labyrinth portals around herself as bits and pieces of brassy Familiars form around her like armor. "It doesn't change anything. We came here for Beryl and Metallia. We'll finish this, and hopefully it'll be the last time."

    Homura produces and cocks a shotgun, hesitating for a moment at Madoka's words. "... yeah." She glances down at her own Soul Gem. Roughly halfway dark. Madoka holds a Grief Seed over the purple diamond-shaped gem before placing the fallen soul back inside her private little world. "Ready, Homura-chan?"

    Homura nods and grabs Madoka's hand, holding her shotgun in the other. "More than. Let's go."

    The two flicker and are suddenly gone, only to suddenly reappear on the surface, standing back to back. The crumbling of towering buildings makes Madoka flinch, but Homura says, "Don't get distracted! It's nothing you haven't practiced for."

    Madoka hesitates for a moment. As if anyone can really practice for something like this. "Y-yeah..."

    What happens next is complete chaos. Madoka and Homura vanishing and reappearing over and over, traveling from rooftop to street to crumbling wall, hopping and moving in a way that looks suspiciously like teleportation but is very distinctly not.

    With each flash of the pink and purple pair comes an absolute torrent of fire. Rockets, missiles and conventional gunfire from Homura, and an endless amount of arrows from Madoka. An army of Familiars appears all around Kaiju Beryl, setting themselves against her knowing full well that they can likely to little more than distract, yet fighting with all of their might regardless. Such dutiful small little eldritch soldiers.

Phantom has posed:
Hope Witch has help inbound.

After Beryl's reveal and the magical girls launching their assault, a sinister portal in the shape of mirrored coffin, typical of the Phantom Empire, materializes above the battlefield. Through it emerges a dark figure resembling a Pretty Cure, but veiled in ominous attire. Her hair, tied tightly in a high knot, flows in a cascade of deep purple, contrasting starkly with her piercing red eyes. Clad in shades of darkness, her vest, boots, arm warmers, and hair ribbon are all in a somber black, with a long vest featuring an imposing collar and sleeves in indigo. A short, loose skirt of darker indigo completes her attire, marked by oval-shaped brooches and hair clips.

As she lands with calculated grace, she swiftly slides into position, raising her hands with a commanding gesture. Above and below Beryl, a luminous five-pointed star materializes, radiating with an otherworldly glow. With a forceful motion, she brings her hands together in a resounding clap, channeling her power into the incantation: "Tender Falling Starburst!"

Stars cascade downward, striking Beryl with a hard impact as the attack reaches its climax. With agile prowess, she leaps back to join her allies. In a swift metamorphosis, her appearance shifts, taking on the familiar guise of Phantom as he prepares his next move. "Continue your assault. Obsidian's support is severed," he announces to the assembled magical girls and boys. "I'm here to deliver the news," his voice laced with determination, fueled by a quest for retribution against those who harmed Chiyo.

Makoto Kino has posed:
Everything happens so fast. Everything happens so much. There's no time to process any of their losses - Uranus and Neptune, Guardian Shokupan, Jolly Roger. The horror of Beryl's actions.

There's the enemy. There's the threat.

"We fight her the same way we fight everything else!" Sailor Jupiter is in the air again, lifted by the wind that even now smells faintly of flowers despite the overwhelmingly oppressive energy rolling off of Beryl like an almost physical weight. "We've fought big things before--" her voice is strong and carrying, steady even as she dodges bursts of Dark Energy. "It just means she's a big fat target! Supreme Thunder!"

The sky answers, dark clouds boiling out of nowhere to block out the view of the bruise-purple sky. Then lighting up with a CRACK of thunder, unleashing a full-sized lightning bolt from above, a bright white-hot pillar of electricity coursing down to the lightning rod that is Beryl's towering figure.

Glimmer Brightmoon has posed:
Glimmer Brightmoon blinked a few times, glancing to Hope Witch and Homura from under her barrier as the.... as ALL of that started going off. Slow, deep breath. Then... "Hey, Spinerella, Netossa, you two got something you wanna share with the rest of your team?" she asked before sighing. "Right, those who need a lift, grab on. I'm going up in a few seconds!" she yelled, holding her hand up before... After a few seconds, teleporting up, to drop them off on the top layer.

Then teleporting off again. To appear by her head and shoot a blast of light at her face from the side. "HEY! New purple girl! *I* was going to tell her Obsidian fired her! You totally stole my... wait, have we met?" she asked. Something about that girl was... oddly familiar. She should-- WAIT!

And teleported again, back to ground level before she could get smacked. As it was...

She really couldn't do this much more. She was almost out of juice and she needed to recharge... Or...

... Or maybe try some... ulterior methods.

Naru Osaka has posed:
There's not a lot of question about WHERE things are happening. There's been fights and Fights and now there's going to be a FIGHT. Lunar Knight has been elsewhere, probably fighting other things, but she's certainly here now. Dealing with things is going to have to happen later, there's a queue for the mourning, the truama, the crying. They'll get to that, but there's bigger fish to fry right now.

Really. Really big.

Lunar Knight draws out her Big Freaking Sword and takes a deep breath. Beryl might be huge, but ultimately when one is a melee fighter, the tactics are pretty basic.

Pointy end in the other guy.

Lunar Knight straightens her armour, taking just a moment to work past her 'this is gonna suck a whole lot' sense before she's off. She bounces on the balls of her feet a few times before bouncing off to dodge some of the worst of the crackling dark energy to head in to start getting that giant sword into Beryl.

Cause this is a Great Idea (tm)

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
Kunzite pauses in the dark, moving to fetch something from the broken and irregular stone; then he rejoins Endymion and Sailor Moon, moving slowly at first - testing his limbs and joints, being sure that they function before trusting them with weight. Nothing fails him, not yet. He's not entirely sure about his ribs on the side where the canister crushed into him, but breathing only aches, doesn't actually stab, and he can still handle the weight easily enough, can still manage the leaps and landings that will let him chase the others up out of the dark. Good enough.

And then Amy is voicing a despairing wonder, and Kunzite answers her in a steady voice: "Every one of us still alive right now is a victory. Hold on to that."

There's anger in that voice, but it's gentled enough to be clear it's not anger at Amy. It's anger at Beryl, at Metallia, at Beryl - always at Beryl. Using the lessons he's learned; burning clean the dark energy that went through his shields, collected alongside the lava's heat. Changing them to something he can use.

In the mean time - he's staying as close to Endymion as he can manage. Following his prince's lead. And carrying, still, the canister under his arm, mostly under his cape.

Now with a pirate hat on it.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
There is a relief as the oppressive power of Metallia starts to dim down, signifying the end of their ordeal. She couldn't believe how unrepentant she had been to the end, well, not really, she can and she is believing it, with how much she could have stopped at any point and even now that she has finally been backed into a corner, she doesn't look she has any intention to stop. But it is almost the end, they have all done their part to reach it, even if she doesn't really want to imagine how the following days will have to be. With everyone that is now gone, there will be a lot to account for, nevermind that she has failed Erika twice in a single day. Some friend she is.

Guess their little idol project ended before it could even start. So focused on whether she could die, that she only thought about making sure the group could continue without her. And instead she has to stick around, watching the body of her friend when they will carry it off somewhere. She has never really been to a human funeral, and it wasn't an experience she was looking forward to, but now she will have to experience that too. Even if, with how long lived mermaids are, it was going to happen sooner or later. "I am sorry", she whispers to nobody in particular before looking again towards the source of their misery. She will purify all of the dark energy out of her, but she doubt much will be left out of it, and she is not sure she cares right now.

Before she can even say anything, there is a hand piercing through Chaar's body, consuming it and making it dissipate like it wasn't ever there. The gloating figure of Beryl cheerfully lays out just how good the situation is for her, and then she turns into that closed flower, with the huge spike of dark energy that makes her shudder to her core. And that titanic figure blooms before their group, an impossibly imposing figure. Can she even do anything? She may as well be a mosquito buzzing somewhere in the distance if she tried singing now. What can any of her specialty accomplish now?

"Everyone that can't fly, please follow the trail of Live Stages", she tells the rest of the group. "This requires for a spectacular encore from all of us. Let's hang in there, we can all do this. Beautiful Wish: Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!"

I wake up, hearing my name in someone's voice.
Floating above the blue waves within the sea's cradle.
I dreamt.
Somewhere in this sea, someone's speaking in an arguing voice.
From a crying heart, love can't be born.
Only sadness overflows.

From the fragments of a beautiful wish of the sea,
There are feelings of wanting to be born, embracing light.
In the orange sea, blending into the sunset
the tears of the world sleep.

Was the world being born what called me...?
At the bottom of the deep sea, I could hear a voice.
No matter how dark, or painful place I'm in...

From the fragments of a beautiful wish of the sea,
There are feelings of wanting to be born, opening away from the darkness.
And in the purple sea, blending into the morning glow
my wishes broke through.
Some day, the source of all fights and sadness
will all vanish. That day will come.
I want to sing with a singular love... in the blue sea...

Someone sweetly spoke out my name.
So they would know of my wish.

From the fragments of a beautiful wish of the sea,
There are feelings of wanting to be born, embracing light.
In the orange sea, blending into the sunset.
La La La...

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Prince Endymion -- Mamoru -- his eyes go wide at the spectral Sailor Uranus in front of him, wordlessly holding out her sword. His eyes well up and he reaches out and takes it, nodding once, firmly. He knows what to do with it.

From anyone else's perspective, he looks like he's suddenly about to cry at nothing, and then reaches forward, and is abruptly holding a sword of light -- Haruka's -- and nodding at nobody.

It takes him a second for him to look at Amy, and as he focuses on her, he says gently, "You're not the boss of me." But he sheaths the light-sword next to his belt and takes her hand anyway, and there's a golden glow that surrounds them and he's not even looking at Amy anymore as he heals her, the power of the Earth itself coursing through her, an empty grief mixed with an incandescent fury all that he's noticeably feeling through the contact.

He's not looking at Amy because he's looking at Beryl, growing up and up and up; he flinches as she breaks through the cave roof and indeed breaks through reality, pouring dark energy and dusk zone nastiness into the real world, into his planet's space.

"Midnight Paris," he murmurs. "It's going to be an adventure getting to where I can use this, Haruka-san."

Finally, he squeezes Usagi's hand and glances back to her, letting go of Amy's hand and taking Kunzite's instead. "Let's go," he says, and he closes his eyes for a second-- two seconds-- then! There's a flash of white-gold light, and the three of them are gone.

More like on the surface! And running back a lot, probably, given the collapsey streets--! "I really miss being able to fly, sometimes," Endymion says, armor clattering a little as he lets go, turns around, and puts his fist to his chest, glowing again. "Tuxedo la Smoking Bomber!" he cries out, flinging his hand out towards the kaiju Beryl, taking a page from Jupiter's book.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
It's like some sick game. Again, there was this moment of hope, this moment of 'is this it? is it over, did we win?', only for it to be swiftly followed by the situation becoming impossibly more utterly fucked.

There's Beryl, in the flesh, Beryl, with Metallia's power, Beryl, with her hand covered in red like Usagi's had been, and then she says that all they've done is let her finally have the power she wanted, and she starts to grow.

An honestly? Sailor Moon freezes for second, one thing ringing through her head -OH, COME ON!

And then she unfreezes, as Amy lands in front of them, making a sincere request for Mamoru's help and asks how are they going to fight her and -

"By throwing everything we've got at it," she says, knowing that's not really an answer, but there's light overhead, and that means Beryl is in Paris, and that means she's with people. Giant, and powerful, and she never cared about people in the first place, and now there are so many innocent lives at risk -

"Nothing's changed! So what if she's bigger now? We came here to win, and we still will!"

This, with her voice pitched loud, and near her, Sailor Venus, Sailor Mars, and Sailor Mercury raise their voices in agreement, launching themselves up and after Madoka, Homura, and Pulp Noir.

"Crescent Beam Shower!"

The familiar beam of light fires from Sailor Venus's outstretched hand, and splits apart into a dozen golden beams of light, striking Beryl places.

"Fire Soul!" Fire Soul Bird!ds atop a rooftop in Paris, looking out at the horror and ancient enemy and scowling viciously. Flames pierce the ofuda, become a great bird of flame, and fly for Beryl's face.

"Shabao Spray Freezing!"

Sailor Mercury isn't using her most powerful attack, no - but she's laying down a freezing, chilling mist of bubbles that will stick and freeze to Beryl's skin on contact, and obscure her vision, hopefully giving this tiny army of David's some measure of protection against Goliath.

Down in the pit, Sailor Moon squeezes Endymion's hand, and then they are teleported up, and she doesn't laugh, but she smiles, as she says, "I bet you'll get it back."

And then she is separating from him too, Crescent Wand in hand, and she races forward to launch into the area, carving a spiraling set of circles of golden light in the air -

"Moon Healing Escalation!"

Dozens of beams of silver light fire at Beryl, striking for arms and chest and cheeks and every bit that they can reach.

Zoisite has posed:
Up on a rooftop amidst the rapidly crumbling Parisian skyline stands another of the Shitennou, his cape whipping about behind him in the wind. Zoisite's green gaze searches the streets, searches the gaping hole that Beryl has blasted from below, until he sees a flash of golden light.

And then suddenly he alights on the ground, a flurry of sakura petals surrounding the cluster of Prince Endymion, Sailor Moon, and Kunzite. Wordlessly, Zoisite nods to them and joins at his prince's pace, his own sword glinting in the shadowy light.

Beryl has posed:
    For Homura, the last time anything shrugged off projectile fire this easily was... her last attempt to take down Walpurgisnacht. She's not just titanic in size, she's titanic in power. Some of the familiars don't even succeed at annoying her - they are obliterated by the quasirandom sparks of Dark Energy that erupt off the super-sized Beryl's body. Others simply degrade upon coming too close - the Dark Energy is at its strongest directly around Beryl.

    Similarly, the Tender Starburst impacts a sort of invisble spherical shield around Beryl before hitting her directly, and her dull, hate-filled eyes roam over the various coming annoyances. Jupiter's lightning follows in exactly the same spot as the Tender Starburst and it's the combined force that requires Beryl to expend a modicrum of effort towards reinforcing the shield, which means that her eyes move slightly upwards.

    Henshin Armor seems to fair the melee attackers a little better getting in close than the Familiars do - though they can feel the increasing sense of spirtual unease, like wading into a pool of slime with their soul, as they get close to the monster that was Beryl.

    Instead they find that barrier at the level of her skin, resisting their strikes and reminding them that in this moment, they stand in the presence of a true demon.

    But it's by combination of everyone's work - those swinging fists and blades up close as well as those shooting beams and bullets and blasts from afar - that constant pressure on the passive barrier Beryl seems to have - that causes just a few blasts, a few bullets, a single sword swing to beak through and collide with Beryl herself.

    The attacks, the insults, the 'sweetcheeks' (she's not sure which to file that as). This mostly serves to make her eyes light up with pure, vile rage. "How dare you challenge your Queen, gnats." Beryl's voice booms from above, sending sound waves to bones and the negative energy backing it up causing a slight headache until the sound ends. "BEGONE." she says, and sweeps with her left hand, fingernails like claws, like someone dusting off a table. Only this is no mere table dustoff - a torrent of Dark Energy like a sandstorm appears from nowhere and assaults the city, and several of its assembled defenders, with hurricane-force - in a moment, another block of the city, its ancient architecture and modern buildings, as well as all of its nonmagic inhabitants, is swept bare to the rocky ground itself - in a moment, there is nothing but perhaps a few battered warriors in a block-sized divot.

    "I do not need Obsidian. I do not need Endymion. I have all than

Beryl has posed:
"I do not need Obsidian. I do not need Endymion. I have all that I need here, in my hands!" And she outstretches her hands, gnarled clawed fingers at either side, before lightning-like Dark Energy begins to course between them, followed shortly thereafter by a globe of pure blackness - as it grows in size even for those attuned to Dark Energy like Phantom, looking at it feels wrong, makes one sick to their stomach. As she collects energy it grows, distorting the air around it...

Phantom has posed:
Phantom's words sliced through the tense air like a dagger. "Then you should be quicker in your duties," he retorted sharply to Glimmer, his tone cutting through any pretense of patience. His gaze, sharp and unyielding, bore into hers as he braced himself to leap into action once more. "Maybe if you were," he continued icily, "your friend would not be dead now."

As he readied himself for the next attack, Phantom's transformation began anew. The stark monochrome of his form melted away, replaced by swirling hues of dark turquoise and black. His once-short hair flowed into a longer mane, and his attire shifted into flowing harem pants. In this altered state, he became Cure Denial, a beacon of determination amidst the chaos.

Bounding through the live stages provided by Coco, her words echoing in his mind, Phantom approached Beryl without hesitation. Anger fueled his movements, each leap carrying him closer to his target. Memories of Chiyo, now a painful catalyst driving his resolve, propelled him onward. Bursting through the opening and into the streets, Phantom gathered his power, forming a ball of water with focused intent.

"Focus your attacks together!" His voice rang out with command, a rallying cry amidst the battle. "If we can punch through the... uuuuungh." Suddenly, a wave of intense pain gripped him, and the facade of Cure Denial fell away. Phantom doubled over, clutching his stomach as sickness overtook him. "Her dark magic... it's wrong. Polluted. Corrupted," he managed to gasp out, his voice strained but resolute, speaking to whoever could hear above the din of battle.

In that moment of vulnerability, Phantom's revelation underscored the stakes of their conflict. The battle against Beryl and her malevolent forces had reached a critical juncture, where each moment could mean the difference between victory and devastating loss.

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
A dark shield that's all too accustomed to sandstorms blunts the worst of the dark energy around one moving cluster of fighters. "Hands?" Kunzite echoes, making it a question to Endymion and Zoisite beside him. Or - her shield was close to her, wasn't it? And not all of her is close to her body, right now. They'll need some way to cross the distance, but --

He coughs, and gestures one-handedly, fining down the curve of part of his shield by Zoisite, making a lens out of it. A focusing tool for energy that passes through it; ready to add, as well, the purified energy and the extra heat he has captured. "Or hair?"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
That kind of rhetoric deserves only one sort of response, if you ask the Soldier of Wisdom.

"The only gnats present are the remnants of those that have been eating at your clothes," Sailor Mercury calls out, summoning to her hands the Sage Lyre. "Shouldn't a queen care about her appearance?"

She, along with Sailor Mars and Sailor Venus, will continue laying down supporting fire and providing distractions for the others!

Naru Osaka has posed:
Having gotten all up close and personal, Lunar Knight is amongst those who are tossed aside by the barrage of negative energy, tossed aside like a child's toy in a hurricane. She lands awkwardly and gets back up to her feet with a mutter of 'why.. why do you have to be like this?' asked rhetorically under her breath.

Lunar Knight makes use of the Live Stages scattered around, bouncing up from one to the next to get into a different position for a follow up.

Lunar Knight waits for others who are attacking directly, to time her swing with that Giant Sword to have many of them come in at the same time. It's much harder to focus on each of them when they all come together.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Amidst all the darkness, the rumbling of breaking masonry and eldritch thunder, the onrushing wave of Dark Energy that flows out over the city, there's a sudden, brilliant spike of bright gold. It's accompanied by a sharper, more whip-like crack of thunder that's somehow distinct from the ominous rumbling which seems omnipresent in the vicinity of the monster herself.

    The source of both light and noise reveals itself to be a certain red-haired, sunglass-wearing reprobate who always shows up late for parties. Stellar appears out of literally nowhere directly in front of Prince Endymion, right after he fires off his laser (luckily) and right before the torrent of Dark Energy washes over him (also luckily). Both arms come up and cross in front of her, flaring with crackling golden light traced with orange flares. The hazy outline of a larger dome flickers in front of her as the Dark Energy impacts the shield and is forced to flow out and around it like a tidebreak. If they are close enough to the Prince, both Kunzite and Zoisite will benefit from this as well, as the nature of the flow causes a larger cone of shielded space to develop behind her before the Dark Energy comes back together.

    Once it's past, Stellar lowers her arms, still glowing, to her sides and turns to gives a wry look to Endymion. "Sorry I'm late, boss.. got scattered far afield on the initial teleport, and that thing-" a gesture towards the towering monster behind them, clearly meaning Metallia more than Beryl, "has been screwing up my magic sense something fierce. I've been looking for you guys for hours. She uh... kinda made herself hard to miss though."

    She turns back around to face the monster then, dusting off her coat with one hand casually. "I'm here now, anyway. Not bringing much offensive power to this fight but.. I'll do what I can to keep people alive." Her eyes, grey but flickering with flashes of gold, track the combatants closer to the monster- there's Moon, Jupiter, others she doesn't recognize clearly. She nods her herself, and then is gone again, vanishing to re-appear on another hunk of destroyed building closer in, crouching and looking for opportunities to assist where she can.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    "Glimmer told us already," shouts back Hope Witch to the sudden dark Precure. Another coffin mirror. Well, perhaps Obsidian doesn't like those who get too ambitious. Maybe they just don't like being outclassed? She is, for the moment, quietly grateful for the crabs-in-a-bucket situation they apparently have going on over there.

    Homura gives Glimmer a sideways glance. "Are you talking to us? Ask Sailor Moon about reincarnation later."

    Sure, let's all pretend that's what they were talking about. No one notice the fact that Homura wasn't even there during the trip into the echo of the past. Clearly Madoka told her about it, right?

    Seeing the Familiars charge and fall against Beryl is, sadly, no surprise. Those things are good for youma fights, but for here they serve better as coalmine canaries. Merely getting close to Beryl is bad. Yikes! At least Hope Witch is learning that through expendable minions instead of finding out after she stuck her face in it.

    As for the small arms fire getting shrugged off, well... Homura, as mentioned, has fought Walpurgisnacht before. It's bad for her, but it's no surprise. It would've been too easy if it had simply worked.

    The sudden dark energy sandstorm with gale force winds, on the other hand, is a bit more of a problem. Something that vast and wide isn't something that can be merely dodged even with timestop. Madoka's own reality-distorting bubble has shrunk even further under Beryl's overwhelming oppressive fire, but it still grants her the ability to form a solid wall of Labyrinth matter to at least give her something resembling a shield against the darkness. Homura stands with her and behind her, holding up her shield as a flash of purple surrounds them both. Darkness and evil power tears its way through the faltering shield, but yet more matter is brought up to replace it. MAdoka

    Hope Witch looks in horror at the aftermath of the attack. Yet more dead, all of them innocent. The majority of them probably not even aware of what happened to them. Just... suddenly passing out and then gone. Just like all the times before when...

    Homura squeezes her shoulder to bring her back on task. Now is not the time for a traumatic trip down memory lane.

    Madoka watches as Phantom's true form is revealed and, despite herself and whatever transdimensional beef she may have with him, she kinda feels a slight bit of pity.

    The sphere of darkness growing in Mega-Beryl's hands is... cause for concern, to say the least. The Dokahomu pair looks up at what they can only imagine is another terrifying attack. Hope Witch shouts over the wind. "We have to stop it!"

    Homura shouts back, "Come with me!" Hand in hand, the two vanish again, reappearing on a Labyrinth-made platform high up in the air.

    Madoka clutches the Humpty Lock in her hands and whispers, "I'm really sorry, Gretchen-chan... I said that I wouldn't, but..."

    Homura interrupts, "She'll understand. Now, just like we discussed!"

    Again their attack comes out in a flash. There was no 'Open Heart' callout this time. Just a sudden spray of rainbow-colored rockets and arrows aimed at the gathering mass of darkness forming in Beryl's hands. They can't allow her to finish whatever spell she's casting!

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
"I am so glad she said she didn't need me," Endymion says fervently, absolutely snapping himself into the moment, shoving literally all emotional reactions to everything away into a box under the bed.

The waves of crushing dark energy-- it's a good thing Kunzite's shielding them, and an even more fun good thing that Stellar shows up out of nowhere and shields as well: the prince doesn't have any better a reaction to being dripping with the stuff than he ever has had. "Yeah perfect Kunzite. Hair, because-- Zoisite, I choose you!"

Did he just--

He claps his hand on Zoisite's back, and he floods Zoisite with his power.

"Wait did you call me boss...?" he asks Kyouka after she's already left.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    'You're not the boss of me' actually makes Amy look appropriately embarassingly chastised as he starts healing her, even after she was so rude. "Please. I'm sorry. You're, you're right, I've forgotten my manners..." She closes her eyes and focuses on the feeling of the Earth flowing into her. The feeling of a welcoming home like she never had for so long. It brings tears to her eyes. "Thank you. Good luck." Her eyes meet Sailor Moon's, but she has no response to Moon's answer. Although her expression looks doubtful that throwing literally everything she's got at Beryl is a good idea.

    And then she's dodging darkness bolts. She flies to the provided live stages, smiling and waving to Yellow Pearl Voice and...

    ...Okay she's not sure what to do to attack Kaiju Beryl? Half-baked plans start to form in Amy's brain, like shooting a Davy Crockett into her mouth or something, if she can even do that.

    So for the moment, she flits from live stage to live stage with the non-flyers, watching for any attacks coming for them she might be able to do something about, somehow.

    She cannot do anything about the hurricane except brace and fly against it enough to end up battered rather than... needing to regenerate.

    She flits among the others who end up in the rubble. Wincing whenever she sees the mundanes that didn't make it. Her soul gem darkens, slightly. "Are you all alright? I can fly, I'll get you to a healer if needed, M, Madoka can portal, I'll tell her..." She can maybe personally carry one person up with her.

    As for herself... she's not sure what to do to Beryl as she makes her way back up towards the head, but when she sees the familiar Open Heart, she raises the oversized launch tube and fires, a missile flying up and arcing towards the same point, splitting into dozens of tiny anti-tank warheads just before impact in hopes that the darkness won't stop all of them!

Makoto Kino has posed:
In the wake of the storm of dark energy, Sailor Jupiter makes a hard landing near Sailor Moon and the other senshi, somewhat the worse for wear but still undaunted. She sweeps a look over them, assuring herself that they're all still all right - then she's launching herself into the air again, fists sparking in the gloom.

"You don't have anything!" she shouts back at Beryl. "Everything you think you've grasped - it'll slip right out of your hands!"

Thunder booms again, the dark clouds strobing. Sailor Jupiter grasps at the air, as though throwing something with all her might, and with each gesture another lightning bolt stabs down from the sky - again and again, lighting up the darkness, each strike hammering at that same spot.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
The dark energy sandstorm whips and whips, and Sailor Moon is one of those buffeted, skidding back as the feeling of wrongness surges -

But the Silver Crystal glows on her Crescent Wand, held tight in her fist, and she calls out, hurriedly -

"Moon Healing Escalation!"

And carves the circle directly in front of her. Silver mists, and those beams of light, blaze out, and the purifying power wars with the aura of twisted darkness, trying to alleviate the pressure on their souls for the moment.

She can't focus on the destruction of an entire city block, on how many people could have been inside, on what could have happened to them - not now, not when it's do or die, as she can practically hear Inai-sensei saying.

Following almost literally in Lunar Knight's footsteps, she too bounces atop Live Stages to get up higher than the base of Beryl's evil new flower, and as they near each other, she calls, "Hey, want a boost? You're Lunar Knight, so let's have some Lunar Shine!"

Around Naru's Big Fucking Sword, she carves a familiar circle of light, and the Silver Crystal glows and so will the blade, with purifying energy.

"Try it now!"

Zoisite has posed:
"Oh, definitely hair," Zoisite agrees as he, rather pointedly, flicks a strand of his own perfectly coifed mane over his shoulder. After the shields have done their thing, Stellar gets a quick but approving lift of a chin in her direction, and then just as sharply, Zoisite's cutting a look across to Endymion.

Did he just--

The energy lens in front of him, the hand on his back flooding him with energy, well... it's a perfect setup, isn't it? And oh, how much Zoisite has dreamed of this moment. Of doing precisely this, exactly this.

His hand lifts, suddenly filled with glowing sakura petals. They blow from his hand, passing through the focusing power of Kunzite's shield-lens, already bolstered with the golden-white energy from Endymion. As if on some hidden wind, or perhaps under their own power, they drift up into the heavens, far far above them. Upwards, and upwards... until they swirl around Beryl's monstrous head, a mockery of a crown.

Zoisite's eyes glint.

"Sakura Conflagration!"

Each petal bursts as if they were a self-contained explosive device, wreathing Beryl's hair in flame.

Glimmer Brightmoon has posed:
Glimmer Brightmoon held both her arms up, crossing them over her chest as the torrent of dark energy flows over her. Ow ow ow ow ow. Owwwwww.

And soon, she was on her knees, panting, hurt, trembling... She... she was too powerful. Too strong. How could they--

Oh. OHHHH. Dark Tender's words echoed in her head. "Oh. You. BITCH!" she snapped. "FINE! You want to see what a *real queen* does to protect others?! You selfish, arrogant, pompous hideous BANSHEE?" she yelled. SHe began to glow bright pink, her lights emblazoned with the bright light as... Oh gosh, the moonstone began to get even brighter. RIP Takashi's retinas.

She swirled her hands in a tight circle. Forming a magical circle. It started from her... and then began to expand, the circle getting wider and wider as it spread out...

Until it enveloped all of them. Beryl. The sparkles...

And then a wall of light rose up around it. Wings of pink extended from her back, as she panted, focusing all of her energy into this spell, her hands moving from 12/6, into a total circle to 6/12.

A wall of pink light appeared, trapping them all inside with Beryl...

And, hopefully, shielding the civilians. Cutting Beryl off from them...

And trapping Beryl in there with them.

"A queen... protects... others... who can't... protect themselves..."

Those who looked, might notice there were no more civilians within the giant, pink barrier... But Glimmer fell to her knees, the pink energy disippating from her. "T-that... that was all of it. I-I'm... I'm sorry Bow..." she whispered. She held out her right hand, trying to gather some dark energy. Damn it. She wished... she'd had Takashi show her how....

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco frowns when Phantom reveals himself, unveiling the mystery of who the girl was, and she is very tempted to switch one of the Live Stages he hops in to a trapping one, a safety measure since she doesn't want him to be causing any issues with his reputation. There is something to be said about how she didn't instinctually withdraw her consent for the Live Stages' magic to prop him up. She doesn't want someone like him either to plummet to the ground, even if the fact he uses the powers of his victims so liberally still leaves a bad taste in her mouth. He is being on their side, at least for now.

A feeling that is nothing compared to the anguish the gathering dark energy Beryl is holding causes, almost feeling like her heart and her pearl are under assault by the encroaching darkness, even if that is just the prelude to the attack. Even if the sea is stormy, and brings us closer to defeat, I look at love in the eyes, that makes us fight, with the power it gives. Her heartfelt desire calls upon a series of 4 Live Stages to deliver the purification of her voice into the sphere of darkness, crashing theor small mass of white light into the huge sphere, hoping to abate it even partially.

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Pulp Noir has weird, out of date insults in his vocabulary as a 1920's detective. But that's besides the point, he can feel that...thing Beryl is charging. It feels wrong, so he raises his gun and starts firing strong spurts of water into the orb rapidly with others, maybe they can pop it in her face like a balloon.

"Working on it!" he calls out as someone calls out to focus attacks together, drawing his fedora up and looking upwards.A

"Looks like your times running out, Sweetcheeks. I don't think anyone is gonna forgive you here." he says, as he buffets against dark energy lightning as best he can just by moving positions when he's able.

Beryl has posed:
    There's a lot of chaos, of destruction, of snarls from the super-size evil queen. But now, she fixes her gaze on various individuals to respond to them, as that terrible sphere grows, suspended between her hands.

    "Aren't you the so-called Guardian of Intelligence? If you were so smart, you would be kneeling!" she says to Mercury.

    The energy Madoka is forming to try and cancel the blast is a threat, but Beryl is still only one (giant) woman. Her eyes roll towards the Puella and the Bearer before a burst of rockets detonate against her shield, drawing her attention away. And then her attention is drawn even more heavily - given that a rain of hyper-powered sakura petals is going for her upstanding hair. Most of them are being banished by her barrier, but not all of them, and it's smoldering up there, but she can't exactly drop what she's doing.

Beryl has posed:
    Beryl's eyes roam to Glimmer's location. "Giving your power away to protect others is worthless. This corrupt world will never reward you for such gestures." She says. And then she blinks again. "Aren't you one of Riventon's runts? Pathetic, like him. Worthless, like him."

    Still, that barrier is strong but permeable now, and some of the attacks against her orb are landing - some of the energy Madoka is sending, some of the blasts by Pulp Noir, some of the purifying energy of Yellow Pearl Voice - and everyone is still working together against the titanic monster. She can feel even her grip on it slipping, can feel it weaking. She can also smell her burning hair, and that's not a good thing either.

Beryl has posed:
    Her eyes fixate on one blonde twintailed enemy of hers, the one across all of the gnats she hates the most. The energy within her hands won't wipe out her enemies like she intended but it's enough to solve at least one problem, even with all of the attacks on it preventing her from charging it to maximum strength. She raises her hands and then thrusts them forward, and that sphere of vile, wrong, distorted energy rockets out at lightning-speed towards Sailor Moon. "DIE JUST LIKE THE MOON KINGDOM DID."

    It's after that attack is launched that the Lunar Knight's opening presents itself and she can deliver a crushing moonblade strike to her opponent, but it may be too late for the one she is protecting. After throwing the sphere, the monstrous demon woman is visibly exhausted, but puts her hands in position to attempt to charge it up again.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    As Hope Witch fires her Open Heart, she realizes something important.

    There is so much ambient darkness in this region that even pumping raw purifying power through her Heart's Egg isn't enough to even phase Gretchen. The X-Chara, by nature, could never really get rid of her darkness, but she never really wanted to embrace it either. She's always tried to maintain a delicate balance, and Beryl's power is pushing it hard in the opposite direction. Besides that, judging from Phantom's reaction, what Beryl is doing is somehow even more gross than normal dark energy.

    Upon noticing this, Hope Witch understands. Even if Gretchen isn't ready to be fully purified yet. Even if her heart is not in order. Even if she has doubts and reservations regarding her deepest, most powerful dreams...

    She doesn't have to hold anything back.

    Homura looks down at her Soul Gem, and tries to hide its darkness level to stop Madoka from worrying, but her partner sees right through it. Madoka shakes her head and tells Homura, "You've done enough. Thank you for trying so hard for me up until now, but I don't want to lose you here."

    Homura shoots back, "You can't ask me to retreat! Not after..."

    "I'm not," corrects Hope. "I just want you to hold back for a moment. Use one of my Grief Seeds. Gather your wits and let me take point."

    The two vanish through an opalescent portal. Another one opens near Glimmer, but only Hope Witch emerges. Her Familiar-made armor is glowing with rainbow light and sparkles, and she reaches out her hands to weave her Labyrinth magic into Glimmer's Barrier. Strengthening its walls, pushing back even harder against Beryl's power, and filling the area with a pure indomitable feeling of confidence, faith, and above all else: hope. They will make it through this. There will be a tomorrow.

    "I hope you don't mind if I piggyback off of your spell," she tells the Etherian princess, before pumping ever more power into the barrier, turning it into something more than a shield to keep innocents safe, but an entire zone of light and hope to make Beryl's life even worse.

    And true to her choice, Madoka is holding nothing back. Rainbows and heart shapes fly all over the place, coming at Beryl from multiple directions. All the while trying to give her friends and allies just a little bit more optimism to help them get through this.

Phantom has posed:
Now that he had Glimmer's undivided attention, Phantom locked eyes with her as she unleashed her formidable power. Despite the intense discomfort gnawing at him, he knelt resolute, his mind racing with a sudden realization. Drawing in a few labored breaths, he steadied himself and fought through the waves of nausea threatening to overwhelm him.

"You really want to prove yourself...?" Phantom's voice cut through the chaos, strained yet unwavering. With a gasp, he finally managed to pull himself upright, his gaze unwavering on Glimmer. "Then let me transform you. You'll gain more power, strength beyond measure. You can become the Queen you've always aspired to be."

He paused, waiting for her response, his resolve palpable despite the pain. "Just relax," he urged softly, sensing her hesitation. "You may feel some discomfort."

Lifting his gauntlet, Phantom's voice resonated with authority as he called forth his mystic incantation. "ETERNAL GAUGE!" Four bolts of crimson lightning surged forth from his very being, arcing toward Glimmer with precision. They enveloped her form in a dazzling display of energy, weaving a cocoon of transformation around her.

Within moments, the energies subsided, leaving behind a majestic sight. Where the Queen of Brightmoon had stood, now lay a half-transformed figure encased in a coffin-shaped mirror of royal purple, adorned with crimson ribbons that fluttered in an unseen wind. It was a sight both beautiful and ominous, a testament to the power now coursing through her.

But the transformation was not complete. Emerging before the coffin, a new, darker Glimmer emerged, a towering embodiment of malevolence and strength, its mere presence enough to challenge even the likes of Beryl herself.

Phantom stood firm, his gaze shifting between Glimmer's coffin and the Dark Glimmer. The battlefield had shifted, the stakes heightened. In this moment, Phantom's gamble could either tip the scales of fate or plunge them deeper into peril.

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
Hair on fire: check. Sailor M--

No. There are people by her. They don't have to try to cross the entire distance to protect her.

Which is why Kunzite's hand (the one not attached to the arm holding the canister) falls on Endymion's shoulder, to help bolster him against flinching, to make the energy he's purifying available to his prince. He glances across at Zoisite on Endymion's far side, and even here, even now, he manages to keep his voice steady. Perhaps aided by the rainbows and heart shapes. "She's getting distracted," he says. "Let's keep it going."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Stellar has only just settled on a perch on a destroyed building, her eyes focused on the monstrous Beryl. A snarl of anger curls her lip, though she's got no illusions the massive woman is paying her any particular mind. "I owe you a bus trip, bitch." She mutters under her breath, but she knows better than to rush forward and try to do... anything. There's nothing she could do to harm the monster. Her only goal is to try and make sure the people who can don't bite it before they give Beryl what's coming to her.

    She tracks the growing energy ball Beryl is forming, even as the others attack it. That'll be trouble, she can tell, and that's why she's looking right at it when Beryl suddenly raises her hands and launches it. Right at Sailor Moon. Her favorite student.

    The ball of wrongness is fast, but nothing's faster than Stellar, not when she has line of sight and a mind to intervene. Before Moon has more than a chance to even register the attack directed at her, Stellar is between her and the onrushing ball, and again her arms come up, golden light flaring along their length all the way to the elbow as she channels the magic she has into shields of pure, iridescent light.

    In the moment before the projectile hits, she says over her shoulder to Moon, "Make sure you finish this tonight. I know you can."

    Then the ball of concentrated Dark Energy hits her. She knew it was going to be powerful but this.. this is something else. For a long moment, it seems like the sphere of black energy simply halts in midair, still spinning and undulating, but frozen in space. The place where it touches Stellar's upraised arms becomes a hissing, crackling, roiling tumult of black and gold spraying in all directions. Stellar grits her teeth, feeling the immense power in the attack directed against her own, pushing on it, applying pressure, pressure which seems to grow and grow and grow and she can feel it cracking. She knows enough to know that this is only going to work for a moment. She can't stop something this powerful.

    So she does what she can. She shifts.. just a fraction, one foot moving painfully, achingly slowly to the left. It all takes only a few seconds, but to her the crushing pressure seems to last an hour before... it breaks. There's an earsplitting crack as the shield shatters, a brilliant flash of gold so bright it momentarily blinds anyone looking in that direction and then... the orb of darkness is going on again, barely even slowed.

    However, it's trajectory has been shifted. Shifted ever so slightly to one side, so that it misses Moon by inches. It may still cause damage, but it won't hit it's target.

    Stellar, meanwhile, is blown off in the opposite direction by the detonation of the shield and the furious energy as the sphere flies by. But she can't get completely clear and as she spins and tumbles to the ground, there's something wrong with her silhouette...

    One of her arms is completely missing, sheared off at the shoulder.

    Even as she tumbles to the ground, she hisses a ragged curse, the pain dulled only by momentary shock. Her eyes find Moon, making sure she's still alive, as she struggles on her side weakly. "Up to you now.. kid," before she grits her teeth and slams her glowing, remaining fist against the opposite shoulder, the faint hissing barely audible amidst everything else as she cauterizes the wound herself lest she bleed out.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Mercury doesn't dignify Beryl's suggestions with a response. She only plucks her Sage Lyre and continues to strike with Shine Aqua Illusion. Likewise, Sailor Venus and Sailor Mars keep up the pressure, throwing out "Crescent Beam Shower!" and Fire Soul Bird! as often as they can build the strength to do so, helping to batter at the shield.

"SAILOR MOON!"

They cry out, seeing the enormous attack heading their friend and princess' way!

Glimmer Brightmoon has posed:
Glimmer Brightmoon gave a light growl, looking up at Beryl. "Go to hell. Being a queen isn't a right. It's a duty. You've never been anything more... than a pretender. A distraction. Obsessed with what will *never* be yours. Demanding others serve you because you're too greedy to ever put in the effort... required. Queens... true queens... don't get to be selfish. They... don't get to break down. They don't get to hurt until everyone else is safe. And we certainly don't. Get. to. Stop. No matter how much we want to..."

Slowly, she got to her feet. Sure, she was out of magic, but... Phantom had an option. She cocked an eye. "Prove... myself? Huh? Oh... hey! I remember..." And she had a few flashbacks to Shadowweaver. And as much as she hated her sometimes... she HAD given her some things. And right here, right now?

She took that hand, hypothetically.

And soon, there was a new glimmer. Taller. Darker. Blacks replacing pinks, dark greys replacing whites. A crown of gold on her head. Metal shoulder and wrist guards. And a cruel look in her eyes. "Oh... wow. You know what, Phanny boy? I think... this is going to be fun~"

And then a moment later, she disappeared in a flash of darkness, only to appear in front of Beryl's face. "Hey, LOSER!" she yelled. "Let's see who's HARDER!"

And then she headbutt her. Except, when head connected with head, dark energy erupted out from the blow, with enough force to level a horde tank. Dark!Glimmer, however, just laughed, before teleporting to a nearby building?

Licking her fist...

And then trying to teleport to her shoulder and punch the licked fist RIGHT INTO HER MASSIVE EAR! "Wet Queeny!" she called out.

Zoisite has posed:
Zoisite is not so undignified as to let out a whoop of success, certainly not. But he is pleased, for it is assuredly a moral victory to set that dreadful hairdo aflame.

Who knows what effect it will have, but seeing it has bolstered Zoisite's spirit immeasurably. And now is the time to share that reinvigorated energy. Following Kunzite's lead, he turns and steps to cover Endymion's flank, a delicate hand reaching up to grip steady onto his prince's upper arm, near his shoulder.

"We're with you," he says, as he too opens up the threshold of power between himself and Prince Endymion.

Only to rapidly pull away as a shadowed shape falls over them, his hand lifting up to redirect that energy towards the assailant that means to strike at them while they are vulnerable!

...except it's just Nephrite. "You have spectacular timing," Zoisite drawls.

The last of the remaining Shitennou forgoes a greeting to instead lay his hand upon Endymion, between the shoulder-blades. "My power is at your disposal, my prince!" he calls out, as Zoisite too retakes his former position, hand to arm.

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Beryl is exhausting. That's good. But they're exhausting too. They've been at this too long. Everyone. Pulp Noir draws his fedora down again as draws into his coat and pulls out one of the .45 pistols, to join his Revolver, and he starts firing, as she tries to charge up again.

"No, I don't think so, sweetcheeks." he says lowly. "We'll not be doing that again." he says as he just fires into the spot the ball would be reforming.

He's bolstered by Madoka's attacks, looking like rainbows and stars. "Heh." he goes.

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
There's so much going on. SO MUCH. And no-- NO-- Usagi-- but there are people by her, he sees Stellar jumping to protect her, and Kunzite's hand's on his shoulder, reminding him to focus, focus. Focus through the terrifying reality of kaiju Beryl in Paris. Focus through-- oh god focus through Kyouka getting hit bad there's no time to do anything for her, he has to later, later, oh god, oh god--

Focus through whatever the hell is going on with Glimmer that seems like a bad idea, focus through oh it's much easier to focus in the Hope Zone... and there's Zoisite's hand on his arm, and he nods firmly. And then Brian Blessed comes up behind them and there's a warm hand between his shoulderblades, and he can almost feel--

Endymion smudges his face worse as he dashes the back of his grimy hand across it, getting rid of whatever's in his eyes that's making his vision wavery. Then his hand goes to his chest. He takes a deep breath, closes his eyes, lets his strength and the strength of his men-- his friends-- the other parts of his soul-- gather in his fist.

"Tuxedo," he starts, then flings his glowing hand out in front of him, opening it wide.

"La Smoking," he continues, voice getting louder and more strident, and a growing ball of energy forms in front of it--

--and then he yells out, the force of the laser blast enough to kick him back a little into Nephrite's steadying hand, "BOMBER!"

Naru Osaka has posed:
There's a moment where the Lunar Knight has to make a choice. Press the attack while Beryl is starting to show cracks. She's showing bits where she's tiring. But GIANT BALL OF AWFUL aimed directly at Sailor Moon.

Lunar Knight has only a moment to wince as she watches Stellar take the brunt of that attack, and she is absolutely not looking to see how awful it is. She is 100% not going to turn her head and see if Stellar is in an unmoving crumpled heap as she fears, she is going to dig out some utterly misplaced bit of optimism and just assume everything is Fine(tm) over there and lunge for Beryl. She is not looking. That just needs to get in line with all of the other horrific everything. There's a list.

Instead, Lunar Knight cries out and finds another chunk of energy to launch herself, and that Big Freaking Sword into one of those cracks in Beryl's existance. There's gobs of hurled energy going towards her, and her swing is timed to follow after some of that energy, just to make it all that more emphatic.

Makoto Kino has posed:
Fast as lightning--

"NO!" The shout is Sailor Jupiter's, and she's already diving, plummeting from on high like a meteor but still not fast enough--

Stellar is there instead. Stellar, with her shield, protects Sailor Moon from that terrible dark blast... if not without cost.

Jupiter lands a split second later, gravity once again bringing her down hard, and her hands catch Sailor Moon's shoulders. Too late to protect, but not too late to strike back.

The Leaves of Oak flare bright emerald green. Electricity coils and crackles over her shoulder like a mantle, fans out from her back into the air like spreading wings.

They call it out at the same time, voices in unison.

"Moon Thunder Dragon Escalation!"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
    DIE WITH THE MOON KINGDOM, Beryl screams, and Sailor Moon roars back,

"NEVER!"

And then there's that great ball of energy, that Beryl's been charging and charging and it fires for her and it's massive, like something out of a video game only worse because that massive attack is coming directly for her and she's not sure what to do, and -

And there's nowhere to go, it's too large, filling the street -

Stellar. In front of her, arms crossed, golden shield at the ready, tanking the blow, holding for her and encouraging her and -

"Inai-sensei -"

Finish the fight. Finish the fight, she's trying, she's trying and she's got to and she steps forward, halting, not sure what to do but unwilling to flee from Stellar's side and then the ball breaks through the shield and connects with Stellar and the wind pressure whirls and pulls at them and then -

The massive ball of dark energy flies away, striking at Sailor Moon with only the faintest of dark energy strays, practically a love-tap compared to -

There's blood, of course. There's a lot of blood, Inai-sensei is missing an entire arm, and she starts to run to her, but Stellar calls to her and gives - it's not advice. It's not an order.

It's just basic truth.

"JUPITER!"

A command, a plea, a demand, but it's not necessary, because Makoto is there, because Makoto is with her, and she grabs her hand, and the Silver Crystal flares with light, bright as the full Moon, and their voices cry in unison.

"Moon Thunder Dragon Escalation!"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
An uneasy glance is reflected to the queen Phantom has created and infused with dark energy. Should she actually have tried to trap him? She really hopes he has taken into account how volative dark energy is, since he at least seem to be on their side, at least for the day. Can they not get more problems for the day, at least?

"The Tale of the Seven Seas ~Pearls of Mermaid~: Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start! The mermaid princess sing of the story shimmering beyond the seven seas that leads all lives to paradise, of the lute's melody that on the beach at dawn reawakens the memory of that hometown's sweet lullaby, giving assurance than even when the sea is stormy, bonds and heartbeat will still be conveyed.

That song promises that before long, the sadness of the seven countries will become a song and cross the seven seas, becoming love by the time the large rainbow fades away, at the end of the dreams an overflowing rain of happiness. All that purification is channeled into keeping the oppressive atmosphere as bay as much as possible, keeping away the weariness.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy flies. She's just one gnat and Beryl is focused on others. Hopefully people with barriers blocked that attack on Moon, it's hard to see from up here.

    She glances at her soul gem. Nearly a fourth dark again already. She holds a grief seed to it as she flies.

    And then she's a gnat in Beryl's face.

    And she hasn't actually come up with a better plan than try to shoot the most powerful explosive she can make into the dark Queen's mouth.

    A second ticks by. Another. Hesitation will kill her. Using too much magic will kill her.

    Although. I guess if I Witch up here, maybe the others won't get caught in it.

    That is not a thought that keeps your soul gem bright.

    She touches the grief seed to her SOUL.

    She has to make sure this gets through.

    Missile racks appear all over her body and fire a salvo of dozens of little missiles. And then they fire again, since no one else is up here, she'll have to break through that shield on her own. God she hopes that that's enough. A huge artillery launcher tube appears on her shoulder, braced by thrusters, and she can feel an intense amount of magic draining out of her. Please let it be enough.

    It's not a cannon this time. The missile fires. And it's... smart-ish? It's getting where it's going. it's not going to detonate uselessly, it's going to try to get into Beryl's mouth, or go off in her hand if she grabs it or something.

    It is, magically, far more perfect than any conventional explosive at converting matter to energy. Amy's not actually sure how powerful that will even be...

    Powerful enough, because she doesn't feel so good. She falls through the air, soul gem black, corruption leeching into the grief seed, keeping a sliver of red...

    By the time anyone catches her, the grief seed has stopped working, but there's a fourth of her soul gem left. It's not over, yet.

Beryl has posed:
    The world expands and Dark Energy fights what might be called Light Energy but is more accurately Life Energy - that normal, peaceful, hope-filled energy that challenges darkness, that fights it by nature. In some places within the barrier the world is visibly warping as the two directly opposed energies swirl around each other like fighting dragons. In other places things are dimmer or lighter, depending on which form of energy is more dominant in the area.

    Beryl is more than just a little distracted. She is angry - she is fury incarnate, filled to the smoldering tips of her hair with Dark Energy and devoid of reason, she snarls like a beast in a cage. Fire and Beam crash against the demon-woman's barrier which seems to be more of light grey than pure black like it used to be. Smoking Bomber crashes into it, Terrible Glimmer's fist crashes against it near the ear, Pulp Noir's rounds start to punch against it and then through, each percing round leaving a crack which is oddly visible in the air, in her barrier. All the while the Yellow Pearl Voice's song continues to bolster the assembled mostly-heroes.

    Amy Faust is there, throwing her very soul into her attacks, and so too are Jupiter and Moon - a giant Eastern Dragon formed of lightning and purification comes down from the heavens and strikes as Beryl's head seems to be the focus of the puella version of an entire modern artillery divison's full force at the same time. There's a sound, it's like a shattering sound but tone shifted to about the same level as nails on a chalkboard and the super-monster-demon-woman's barrier very visibly breaks, shatters into not-quite-real shards that flicker into dark energy and dissolve.

Beryl has posed:
    "NO! I HAVE THE ULTIMATE POWER. IT ISN'T POSSIBLE TO DEFEAT ME! I CANNOT LOSE! NOT NOW. NOT EVER! I WILL REDUCE EARTH TO ASHES AS I DID IN THE PAST. STARTING HERE AND NOW!" Beryl shouts, abandoning all pretense of defense, crackling terrible energy between her hands and shooting out a veritable lightning storm of Dark Energy, pushing back Terribad-Glimmer and everyone else near - but not before her focus is broken momentarily by the empowered strike from the Lunar Knight's blade, a strike that cleaves clothes and draws blood with no shield protecting her. A precious delay, a vital delay. A breif delay... before she attacks again, before the terrible uncontrolled constant barrage of Dark Energy begins afresh, a moment to all get together, a moment to stand against her. A moment to go for the cross-shaped mark on the Queen's forehead, the mark of Metallia, visible now, feet below her still burning hair.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Perhaps somewhat incredibly, although only to those who don't know her well, Stellar is not actually unconscious... though that's about all one can say for her at this point. She's managed to struggle up to her knees in the pile of rubble, superficial scratches and wounds from her impact with the ground marring her face though of no concern compared to the entire missing limb she is currently not letting herself focus on.

    There's pain, lots of pain, but so much adrenaline pumping through one's system does wonders to keep it at bay, enough to stop her blacking out though her teeth remain gritted and she's breathing in quick, uneven pants that signify what a struggle it is to remain upright, even only on her knees.

    She doesn't try to go any further. She's not foolish enough to think she can contribute further. But she watches, and she wills, for whatever it's worth, for this colossal hag to get what's coming to her.

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
That's a lot more dark energy flowing out, around-- but Beryl is visibly staggered, despite the size and power of her. And the mark is showing on her head now, just as it showed on Chaar's head, and it makes an extremely convenient target. He takes a half-second to breathe as Beryl bellows out her defiance, and decides her words aren't important at all. He has better things to do than think about the things she's already done, the pain she's already caused.

"Okay-- let's all go help Moon! EVERYBODY! Let's do a massive team attack! Call out your strength and lend it to Sailor Moon!" calls Endymion, bellowing it out almost as loud as Nephrite can, but not quite. He's scrambling over rubble before he remembers he can superjump, and then quick glances back at Kunzite, Zoisite, and Nephrite, just to give a smile-- and then vaults, sailing through the air and landing with only a slight wobble next to Moon and Jupiter.

He immediately holds out his hand, then holds out another to the rest of the mahoujin, gesturing for people to come closer. "Link hands, or hold shoulders, or anything like that -- any kind of contact you can manage, leaning or elbows if you need your hands, anything -- and call out your power! Or an attack! Or anything! Just lend it to Moon, she can tank the focus--!"

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    With her Hope Zone established, Hope Witch watches as Beryl starts to lose it. Trading away all defense in favor of attacking... Madoka's eyes widen as she panics, trying to figure out in mere moments just how exactly she should fight against this... How she should survive' it. Her mind races...

    ... Only for all time to stop as she feels the familiar warmth of her darling's hand. "I know this looks bad," starts Homura, "but think about it. She's in a one vs. many fight. In situations like this, she'd want to keep her defenses up while wearing us all down. In her rage, she's given up that advantage. So we need to act on this opening."

    Madoka looks around at the timefrozen battleground, at all of her friends and allies, frozen in this desperate moment almost like a photograph or a painting. Her eyes settle on Sailor Moon for a moment, before saying, "Her. She should be the one to finish this. It was her kingdom, and her people..."

    Homura closes her eyes. "Normally I wouldn't choose my tactics based upon sentiment, but... in this case you're right. Are you going to help her?"

    Madoka nods, then takes Homura's hand. Hope Witch looks at the purple Soul Gem and sees, for the moment, it's shining bright. As the two look into each other's eyes, Madoka softly suggests, "Let's go together."

    In the normal flow of time, Madoka seems to flicker away from where she was a minute ago and is now standing behind Sailor Moon, with Homura at her side. The two of them aim their hands at Sailor Moon's back, each of them pouring their energy into whatever attack she's preparing.

    "Do your best!" says Madoka cheerfully.

    Homura, in tire tones, says, "We have faith in you."

Glimmer Brightmoon has posed:
Glimmer Brightmoon couldn't help it. She LAUGHED. She actually LAUGHED. "Ultimate power? Oh, please. You're just the ultimate *bitch*." She teleported up, onto her head. "You're so big, awkward and clumsy that I could fight you all day and you couldn't land a hand on me." Teleported to her shoulder, checking out her fingers. "Is this why you were sooooooo whiny all the time?"

Teleporting to the other shoulder. "Man, you're like Shadow Weaver, minus the charm." Teleporting again. "Why don't you just start whining about it?" Teleport. "How your people didn't twust you, how dey didn't wespect you," Glimmer said, teleporting and yelling in a mocking tone, this time directly in front of her, before flashing her with a blast of dark energy to the eyes. "Calling yourself a queen? Please, you're about as queenly as a dried up cheeto with poorly done makeup." Teleport again, blasting her a few times in the ear. "But oh noooooo," Teleport on top of her head again, blasting down. "You're sooooooo big and scawy! Like a tractor in a poorly fitted dress." Teleport again, under the chin and uppercut to the explosive fist! "Sure, it might do a lot of damage when it falls over, but it ain't exactly the scariest thing yah ever saw!"

She does not join in the big, explosive blast... However, when she does hear it coming, she'd teleport away at the laaaast possible moment... to land on Phantom. Well. "Catch me~" she called, to, hopefully, land in his arms.

And flip Beryl the bird while sticking her tongue out.

Naru Osaka has posed:
They are making progress. Beryl is coming down. Her shield shatters and Lunar Knight doesn't even blink at the shards of it, the dark energy not quite there pieces flowing around her. She almost growls as she watches all of the defenses go down and she doesn't quite just charge. Everything worked so much better when she lets others give her more energy to channel into her blows.

"Moon!" Lunar Knight calls out. "Charge me up, I'm going in!" Becuase what does a Knight do for her beloved Moon.. go right in, stand in front and level a BFS at a very lovely and obvious target that Beryl has provided.

Lunar Knight bounds her way over to Moon, to ensure that they get the timing just so before she launches herself, sword first at the giant demoness.

Makoto Kino has posed:
It's there - an opening. A place to focus all their strength. Sailor Jupiter doesn't budge from her place behind Sailor Moon, backing her up as much literally as figuratively. The hand that Moon reached for stays firm and steady on hers, and her eyes never leave that mark on their enemy's forehead, even as she reaches out her other hand to whoever will take it - one of the other senshi, one of the shitennou, someone else?

The Leaves of Oak shine brightly, but her tiara has vanished. In its place, the mark of Jupiter glows from her brow with that same emerald light, the color of green growing things, of sunlight through healthy leaves. Her power, the power of storms and the power to weather them - of lightning and deep-growing roots and leaves and flowers seeking the sun - all of it pours into Sailor Moon.

"Jupiter Power!]"

Phantom has posed:
Powering up Glimmer had taken a lot out of him. Maybe he has one more. Closing his eyes, he rifles through his pretty cures. And finally comes upon one that he can use. Transforming one more time, he shifts into Cure Unlovely, the reds and blacks coming out to light. As she arrives, she turns her LovePreBrace.

Cure Unlovely first summons her LovePreBrace, by spinning around a couple of times. Later, she stops and activates it by touching it, and by rotating the colors in it, she causes a small explosion, and then she hits it. She then rotates both of her arms, and in the end opening them, as a big heart appears in the top of them. She then puts the heart in front of her, and hits it, as punching it, which then seals the enemy, eventually purifying it.

"Love, return to the heavens!"

And with that, she's spent and turns back into Phantom, just in time to catch Glimmer when she fals towards him.

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Pulp Noir's detective sense tells him that the mark on Beryl's head is a big glowing weakpoint and he raises his guns and is about to shoot powerful jets of water when Endymion calls out to join with Sailor Moon.

So he grabs the nearest person's hand. (Whose!?) and joins, concentrating, trying to give power. He doesn't have a cool call out. Instead her says "Come on, let's take this big gamble, and show Sweetcheeks whatfor! You only live once!" he says as he transfers energy along to Sailor Moom.

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
Endymion decides Beryl's words aren't important. But they hit a little harder on one of the people with him. "The only thing that ever let you get the upper hand for a moment was our falling for your lies," Kunzite snarls at Beryl. "Not this time!" And then he's moving, too, going to join Endymion, seeking a place in the chain, in the network ... not using up a precious close-by position when he's still carrying that canister. He hesitates the barest instant to let things fall into place.

Also to reach for the pirate hat on the canister, and take it off, and prop it on his own head. Before he reaches for Zoisite's hand, linking in through him.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Was that the barrier breaking? Good... But where's the kaboom? There was supposed to be an Earth-shattering kaboom! Did she just... not hear it? Admittedly she's not even sure what it would sound like.

    Amy's eyes open and she looks up at... Coco? "You caught me again... just like back then." She smiles. "I'm not a Witch, right?" She looks at her soul gem. Not empty. But that's both of her grief seeds used up... she slips the one whose name she doesn't know back into her belt pouch. And the red that's there is kind of dark. She's seen so much death. Is she really cut out for more of this?

    Someone is calling for them to lend Sailor Moon all of their energy. Amy looks at her energy. At least if she did that, she wouldn't have to face any more death...

    But the thought of a Witch attacking her friends NOW, of all times, snaps her out of it. And, alert, she can feel an immense amount of her own power still out there...

    The missile, after plinking off the barrier before it shattered, is circling around for another pass. Amy can reach out and adjust its target... but to where?

    ...She had definitely better not let it detonate outside Beryl. Stick to the plan, it'll have to be good enough.

    Whenever Beryl shoots her mouth off during this upcoming attack... Amy also shoots Beryl's mouth off. The missile tries to fly right in, and then...

    Well, it's kind of fitting, isn't it?

    Puella Magi are created so that the hearts of young girls can be burned to keep the stars from going out.

    So let the magical energy of a young girl's heart be converted to create a tiny new star for a fraction of a second, inside Beryl.

    "Boom." mutters Amy.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Amy's fall is remedied in a rush by Coco zipping through the air, the bird's eye view the mermaid princess has been keeping on the scene enough to notice the red spot of her friend driven to unconsciousness by her own attacks among the many colourful explosions, a frown on her face when she notices the state of the redhead's Soul Gem. She looks anywhere in the hopes she would have a Grief Seed on her, but there is none she finds, very little separating it from Amy's death. She is not going to let this stand, there has to be something she can do!

And yet all she can do is hope her purification magic will slow it down enough to stop it from ever reaching the critical point. "Wake up, Red!", Coco exclaims shaking her shoulders, before she glances at Beryl. "You are safe here, ok?", she reassures Amy, whether she is able to reply or not, leaving her to float in the Live Stage.

Unclasping the Sealing Key from her neck, she feels it expand as she calls to the power within it, finding confidence in the embrace of Aqua Regina. Holding the long staff in her hand, she prepares herself. "Let's do this! Key Rod, Release!", she exclaims, the Key Rod now glowing as a wave of purifying light bolsters the one brought in by her singing.

Zoisite has posed:
It's only Endymion scrambling away that severs the connection with the rest of the Shitennou, Nephrite and Zoisite both. Kunzite is already leaping ahead to join so they both nod and, capes flaring in the wind, move to relocate so they can join in the massive linking of hands and arms to share power with Sailor Moon.

They could have words with Beryl. Zoisite, in particular, looks like there is a comment on the tip of his tongue. But Kunzite says exactly what needs to be said, and then they're all touching again, funneling their powers together with Prince Endymion to send to Sailor Moon.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
They hit her with everything they have, and the shield breaks.

It's one of the most beautiful things Sailor Moon has ever seen - the sight of that green and pink dragon twisting in the air, crashing through Beryl's shield in conjunction with everyone's attacks, everyone's will -

Beryl screams, but it's the screams that show her weakness, the screams that make it clear that she's feeling the pressure, and as the world flickers between darkness and light, between midnight purple and warm pinks as Life Energy fights Dark Energy, the Crescent Wand in Sailor Moon's hand does more than glow - it grows, into a long staff, as the crescent moon blade so that it's gem setting can fit -

And in that new fitting, the Silver Crystal blossoms from the shape of a simple crystal bud to an open lotus.

Sailor Moon herself glows - literally glows, as her fuku becomes a mass of reddish pink ribbons, and then a greater mass still, of white skirts and fabric, of a dress with an empire and golden embellishments at the bust, as golden hair becomes silver and longer and the tiara vanishes, replaced by the sigil of the crescent moon on her forehead.

Princess Serenity twirls the staff in her hand, as her mother had, millennia ago, staring down a demon, sealing her away to save an entire galaxy.

Naru calls to her, her oldest friend, her best friend, and the Crescent Staff gleams and so does the Lunar Knight's sword, glowing fit to cut through the darkness.

"Take this, Naru-chan," she whispers, just for the two of them. When Naru strikes, following the blast to come, it's with the purifying power of the Moon.

In a call to action, a call to unite, Endymion calls to everyone. Asks them to give their power, to help her put a stop to this, and he comes to her side, and she smiles at him, at the warmth of his hand on her shoulder, gifting the power of home and Earth and growing things and Jupiter is already there, squeezing her hand, helping her steady the staff - offering the power of the storm and of flowers seeking the sun.

With Jupiter comes Mercury and Mars and Venus, offering their hands, their power, the symbols of their planets glowing on their foreheads.

At Princess Serenity's back is Hope Witch and Homura-chan, their power flowing to her, the grand hope of a new tomorrow, a new day, the drive to push forward, and there is the flow of water and the will to investigate from Pulp Noir and the shine of Zoisite's sparkling fire, the cooling, protective shadow of Darkness from Kunzite, and she feels it through him, the incorrigible strength Jolly's smile and the sea at her back, the sunbright cheer of Rashmi's foxfire -

More and more, as others come, as they call their power, and it flows into her -

"Everyone," she calls, and her voice is strong and steady, the moon sigil glowing a shining silver on her forehead, the Silver Crystal in it's bloomed form glowing fit to rival the sun, and there is the feeling of it, blowing back towards them, the feeling of light and love and the surety of knowing life will prevail, life will continue, this will not be the end, this will never be the end -

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Princess Serenity levels the staff at Queen Beryl's forehead and the light from the Silver Crystal glows pink -

Glows fiercely, defiantly, pink, and it grows, and it grows, and it grows, until there is a bubble of light the size of the bubble of darkness that Queen Beryl spent so much of her energy on, and it fires, crackles of energy crawling over it like lightning, silver and gold and all the colors of the rainbow, the colors of all their power -

"Moon Healing Cosmic Escalation!"

Beryl has posed:
    They can see it. They can all see it - the way Beryl's hate-filled eyes start to open wide. She remembers that staff. Beryl and Metallia - BOTH remember that staff, remember being sealed. "NEVER AGAIN! I WILL NEVER AGAIN BE CONTAINED!" Beryl howls, Metallia howls, they scream it together. Beryl flexes her fingers, tries to unleash a torrent of energy once more - finding it disrupted by Pinky Love Shot, and she'd probably say something about the name except that then she is rocked by Terribad!Glimmer's forceful uppercut - already having been pestered extraordinarily by her. Another growl of extreme frustration - opens her mouth and for just a moment, she sees the missile, a fraction of a second too late - magic mixes with chemical reactions to cause a truly forceful detonation within her and the growl of anger turns into a howl of pain, her head rocking back again, but she brings it forward and dark energy STILL crackles between her fingers even as it seems like smoke curls from the edges of her lips.

    The escalation comes, a sphere that breaks away from Princess Serenity and all of those lending her power, rising into the air, brilliant and bright in flickering multicolor, a Lunar Knight following just behind it.

Beryl has posed:
    Beryl screams, Metallia screams, the two of them consumed by the light as the Lunar Knight's stab finds a home in the center of that crossmark, like a guided missile following the path of the Key Rod's mark, with no barrier standing. The force of that purifying sword blow rips the two nemesis apart from each other

    The world is brilliant and bright and Metallia pulls away from Beryl's body - the demon itself trying to escape, to still survive yet again - but it is held back by the combined barrier made up of Glimmer and Hope Witch and so much Life Energy - and then the orb of brilliant multicolored hope that had struck Beryl in the head catches up with the demon and overwhelms it, pressing it violently against the barrier, the Hellspawn that was once sealed within the sun not being sealed again this time, but being utterly erased by the kaleidoscopic mix of hope and rightousness and protection of the future from so many hearts.

Beryl has posed:
    The flower she erupted from has wilted, the giant gone, the demon erased. Less her power, but still clinging to life, perhaps due to some true, undying hatred in her heart driving her forward. A sword, black and twisted like her heart that she draws from nowhere, she rushes fast, so very fast, towards the object of her most hate - because now Sailor Moon is not Sailor Moon but Princess Serenity.

    STAY DEAD THIS TIME, MOON RUNT!" she calls as she rushes up and tries to behead Serenity in front of everyone with a two handed horizontal stroke, the sword leaving a trail of darkness in the wake of its crystaline edge.

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Last time-- last time, it didn't go this way. In some memories, Endymion swung first, after Beryl tried to get him to give up. In some memories, she went after Serenity like this -- in all of them, Endymion died in front of Serenity.

It's going to happen again, isn't it? He steps in front of Moon, sword drawn, ready to at least parry this time instead of block, that's an improvement, but the biggest difference...

...the biggest difference is that this time, as she's rushing so quickly, Endymion draws another sword, and as he reaches up like lightning to shove Beryl's sword out of the way with his own, that new sword -- bright gold light, shining and calling with it the strength of the mightiest wind, ghostly and empowered and swift -- lunges up to go straight through Beryl.

Just like hers went through Endymion.

As the inevitable surprise begins to flash across her face and sound goes away for a split second, the wind from the sword blowing their hair back away from them, Endymion leans in to push the sword in up to the hilt and murmurs, "Earth says hello."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
They've done it. The attack lands, the monster screams, and the barrier holds as everyone's power, everyone's strength, burns away the demon Naru's sword cleaves from what remains of the witch, Beryl.

There's an instance, as the woman rushes her, corrupt sword in hand, hate in her eyes, that Princess Serenity pities her. It's just an instance, the difference between Princess Serenity and Usagi Tsukino - the Princess who felt that peace was the ultimate way, and the girl who's learned to fight to protect all that she loves.

It's that girl, clothed though she is in Princess Serenity's clothes, warm in her glowing skin, who follows up Endymion's cheeky last words.

"The Moon says goodbye."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    'Stay dead this time, Moon Runt!'

    Homura appears behind Beryl with a sparkling rainbow shotgun to the Queen's head. "No, you."

    Madoka is right next to her, rainbow arrow drawn. Hope Witch tries to find the words to say, but she's never been one to deliver clever one-liners before offing someone. Instead she says, "The kindest thing we can do for you is to make this quick."

    Then they both unleash sparkly rainbow hell. Rainbow buckshot and sparkly arrows. Over and over again. It's not that either of them are particularly vindictive about this, but neither of them are naive enough to think that Beryl will go down from a single shot. Even as she is now.

    After tossing her gun aside to pull out her golf club, Homura comments, "Seriously though. This could have gone so much differently, yet you're still being a creep about literally everything."

    Madoka holds her black branch bow in hand. "Yeah. That's weird, stop it."

    Then, both out of ammo, they resort to melee strikes. And they're not going to stop until they're sure.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Stellar is watching all this unfold from several yards away. She may have stopped the bleeding from the lost arm, but she's still in rough shape, and she's wavering on her knees as she watches the impressive lightshow and it's inevitable results. She gives a grunt of satisfaction when Endymion rams his sword through Beryl's chest. Not the bus trip she was promised but it'll do, yes, it'll do.

    "Knew you could do it," She says, but her voice is weak and there's nobody near enough to hear her anyway. "After all, you're-"

    Whatever she was going to say is lost in a mumble as she crumples to the side in a heap, the victory relieving the tension which was all that was keeping her upright.

Phantom has posed:
In the midsts of this, Phantom dismisses the coffin that Glimmer was in to return her to normal. "Revenge complete. Sleep well, Chiyo." he says quietly as he turns and opens a portal to return to the solitude of the graveyard.

Cool guys don't beat a dead horse.

Makoto Kino has posed:
Endymion acts, as some part of Sailor Jupiter knew he must. The Lunar Knight acts, her blade bright with the light of the moon. That twisted black blade will never find its mark.

Jupiter doesn't press the attack, not now. There are plenty of others on hand, still standing, to ensure that Beryl meets her end. Sailor Jupiter holds her position, watchful, ready to move if needed--

Because even once it's cut off, the head of a dead snake can still sometimes bite.

Glimmer Brightmoon has posed:
Glimmer Brightmoon grinned as they just started beating the girl. "Oh, I am so here for that. That witch has been SO rude all the time," Teleport and...

She just joined into the kicking and beating of the body. This was kind of fun. Curb stomp the false-queen!

She only got one kick in before she was de-mirrored. And then she stumbled out, wobbling a bit before...

Splat. Falling over. "O-ow... that... that did... not feel good... I think I might... urgh..." And she covered her mouth with her hands. "Hrrrg... Oh, is this what being sick feels like? Guh... I... so need to recharge... yeah... beat her ass girls... woo..." She was just gonna... kneel here for a moment. Then, well...

Then she finally started to cry. Hanging her head, the tears starting to go down her cheek. "Bow..." she whispered. "W-we did it... we.... we did it..." she whispered.

Now? Now she could grieve. Now she didn't need to be a queen, and focus on a kingdom that needed her. Now? She just had to be Glimmer and her hands gripped her shoulders as she, silently, shook and sobbed, tears streaming down her face.

Kazuo Saitou has posed:
There is no more dark energy falling on them to purify and reuse. Kunzite has no power source remaining; no power in his reserves remaining - nothing but enough strength to keep standing.

And one more gift from a friend.

He squeezes Zoisite's hand gently, then takes his own back, laying it on the canister he's holding. Shadows flow from it, dim the light until it vanishes; till he lifts his hand, and a ball of white-gold energy the size of a young woman's head forms above his palm. As if struggling against its own surface tension, the sphere grows larger for an instant, quivers...

Kunzite looks ahead, at the Prince of the Earth, protected by the Sun. At Beryl, who took the Sun's twisted, darkened energy and tried to use it to destroy the Earth. His voice is very quiet, as he takes the energy and fines it down, focuses it so that its effects will be concentrated. Tiny. Nonlethal to the living, to the people driving the attack home with blades and fists. But every crystal and stone Beryl has, every item she might have hidden some last-ditch spell in to try to save herself and come back again...

"Solar Buster."

The sphere collapses as a coruscating beam of golden light lances out, all of Rashmi's saved energy collected into one point, then focused into a beam that dances over the witch-Queen's jewelry, leaving tiny, fierce explosions in its wake.

There will be a future. And it will be one without Beryl in it.

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Pulp Noir watches Beryl become a normal woman again. He purses his lips bemusedly as he drops his guns to the ground with a clatteer and kisses his fists as his palms ball up into them "Come on, lefty ans righty."

He runs into the fray with others as he says. "Sorry Sweetcheeks, this is your stop~." he says as he throws an uppercut, trying to break a jaw. He'll throw his other fist as a follow up as he continues the beatdown there.

People like this don't deserve to utter last words.

Naru Osaka has posed:
As her sword strikes true, Lunar Knight.. Naru.. lands with knees bent, almost upon those knees a little ways away. She tries to scramble up, to put herself between Beryl and that horrible sword and Serenity, but there's not a hope of her moving that quickly.

Nor is she fated to. This is a moment etched in time and memories, even if its not quite the same each time. This is a moment for a Prince and his Princess, and there's almost a breath where things look like they could go terribly wrong.. and then there's a moment of things going right. Very right. Oh so very right.

There's plenty of people beating the everyloving snot out of Beryl at this point, and the Lunar Knight is hardly going to miss out on getting a few more hits in. She might have cleaved the giant Beryl, but there's more where that came from for the normal sized Beryl too.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
The time for tension is over as Beryl is separated from the power she ardently desired, and she is left heavily diminished in all possible senses of the word once the last inkling of Metallia's presence fades away. Not that it stops her from being a danger, as she tries to kill Usagi even now that she lost.She really had to be the usual monstrous jerk to the end, had she?

"I think you have caused enough deaths. I would say to learn when to stop, but making air relieve thirst would be easier and more fulfilling", Coco grimaces, the last push of all her magic directed onto one target, the purification joining in with everyone's effort.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy's been in worse states! Her soul gem was lower than this by the time they finally got her to a Witch for the first time.

    She's safe here. That is such a nice sentiment in the middle of all this death and destruction that she sleepily hugs Coco, smiling, before her thoughts snap her back to full wakefulness and she directs her bomb into Beryl.

    She smiles as she sees it strike too. Even a giant super-magic-roided-up-demon-empowered-BBEG felt that.

    Sailor Moon calls out for energy she's not sure she can give. But the feeling of light and hope washes over her all the same. And seeing the power of hope brightens her spirits, and her soulgem... although it darkens again as she thinks of all those who didn't make it.

    As Beryl shrinks, Amy stands and walks to the edge of the Live Stage to keep track of her. And then...

    She's running at Sailor Moon with a sword.

    Amy just. Reacts. Holds out her arm. Giant recoilless cannon. Fire. The ground near Beryl EXPLODES.

    She leaps down beside the others. "'Welcome to Earth.'"

    Without explanation, she switches her costume to the fake Sailor Senshi one. JUST TO CONFUSE BERYL.

    Madoka and Homura unload. "RIGHT?" Sailor ??? agrees.

    She approaches, and considers summoning a weapon, but.

    It's kind of just sad. Beryl is, finally, defenseless, and, aren't the others doing enough? She shouldn't killsteal.

    ...After a few seconds, she decides you know what? It doesn't hurt to make sure. She conjures a pistol and makes sure to put several rocket-bullets through the brain and the vicinity of the heart. Just to make sure.

Beryl has posed:
    Stellar wasn't the only one who was perhaps being driven on by intensefeelings alone - and maybe for Beryl it was more literal. With a gleaming sword in her stomach she staggers, backwards, and is about to say something before she's cut off by the sound of gunshots at her face, and it's actually really horrifying how that doesn't directly kill her - but maybe she'd wish it did.

    Her last words are almost more of a gurgled last gasp but even that is cut off by Pulp Noir's uppercut. A blast of collected crashing energy, another gift from a friend fallen, reaches out and shatters all of the gems that make up Beryl's ostentatious jewlery at once, depriving her of any second chance.

    There are glorious deaths, and there are honorable deaths, and then there is this death which is truly neither. A death by a thousand blows is the death that Beryl recieves, on the ground, gleaming sword still implaneted in her as other swords and golf clubs and fists and boots and blasts and cold words are put to her body.

    And maybe with all of the disgust and disdain heaped upon her, maybe helped along by a heaping of confusion from Amy Faust in final moments... perhaps in some way, the vile woman's infinite hatred is finally quelled - and that hatred was what was holding her together against all of the dark energy, against all of the energy of entropy and destruction she contained within her once-human body. And without that hatred to hold her together the Dark Energy does what it does - it destroys.

    The Not-a-Queen's body cracks across the skin and everything - from clothes to blood to bones - begins to dissolve into a black mist, wisping around the sword, and the blowing away like ash in the wind.

    Here today, in Paris, one of Humanity's oldest enemies has finally been not sealed - but removed. Queen Beryl, and her benefactor/pupeteer/puppet Metallia, both removed from the board.

    Though the cost of that was high... now that Beryl and Metallia are gone, the collected group are standing in a Paris that hasn't looked this bad in at least 60 years if not longer - chunks of it are missing entirely, smoke rising from absolute destruction. They are together, but each of them can keenly feel the sting of those who are not there - emphasized in so many ways, including the canister of energy that shattered Beryl's possible backup defenses and the gleaming sword that still stands where her body disolved, and in the hearts and minds of those standing here even more keenly.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
As her friends, allies, and even semi-enemies join in on ensuring that Beryl is dead, Princess Serenity watches, staff in her hands, Silver Crystal still glowing.
The woman is dying, dead, fated to end with no one's sympathy, no one's love, her memory doomed to live only in nightmares and insults -

It's precisely what she deserves.

But as she looks around her, at the people she loves, with their wounds and their hurts, the grief in their hearts and the ache in their souls -

As she looks around at the devastation wrought, at the city blocks leveled and the buildings destroyed, at the evening sun, for it is only six in the evening in Paris, France, there were so many people, there were so many people all around -

The barriers went up after Beryl emerged, after her sandstorm of Dark Energy, and though the civilians are gone, now, spirited away outside the barrier, they were here. They were here, in these buildings, on these streets, walking their dogs, riding their bikes, driving their cars, laughing with their children, kissing their partners, taking their photos, they were living, they were living, they were living -

In the darkness below, there are the bodies of those who have fallen and those who have frozen, gone, still, cold, and they were living, they were living.

They were all just living, until this one woman's hate ruined everything.

"It's not enough," Princess Serenity whispers the words, in the silence after Beryl dissolves into nothing more than dust. Her voice raises. The staff is raised too. "It's not enough!"

And light shines, silver and cool and gentle, like a kiss on the forehead, like a blanket tucked in, like a loved one, promising there will be more fun in the morning.

The light grows, radiating out from the Silver Crystal, falling over the gathered Mahou and then the hole where Beryl emerged and then the streets where they fought and then the buildings that collapsed and it passes through the barriers, it passes through them with ease, for it is life and light and love and it spreads over all of Paris, visible to the naked eye - visible to the recording devices of so many satellites, there will be so much messy, mixed up footage, later, a moment where an entire portion of the globe is lit silver and soft -

When the light fades, Paris, France, is an untouched city. The buildings are whole and the streets are intact and people walk their dogs and laugh with their children and sing.

Nothing hurts, at all. The injuries are gone, as if they never were, aches and pains erased, metaphorical batteries replenished. Stellar's arm is attached, as it should be, as if it were never missing at all, and standing, clutching the Crescent Wand, no longer a staff, with the silver crystal a bud once more, no longer a fully bloomed lotus, is Sailor Moon.

Smiling.

Tears in her eyes.

Raising a gloved hand, she wipes the tears away.

"Everyone," she calls again, "I hope you're not too tired. We have some friends in the catacombs, and I don't think they're going to be very happy waking up down there."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Homura and Madoka don't stop their assault until Beryl cracks and turn into dust, and only when she's gone gone do the blows stop coming. Madoka looks down at the space where Beryl was with sad eyes, not at all grieving her death but more... empty and confused by the fact that someone so full of hatred and entitlement could even exist.

    Sensing Madoka's sorrow, Homura reaches out to grab her shoulder and says, "Listen... about the others..."

    Homura is cut off as she and Hope Witch both watch as Princess Serenity perform a miracle. Damage is undone, batteries are recharged, and the dead are brought back to life.

    Homura's purple eyes watch on, at first with shock, and then with fury. Her hand grips her golf club tightly. Words escape her.

    Madoka tilts her head. "What's wrong, Homu-chan?"

    Turning to Madoka, Homura asks, "Could she always do that?! Could she..." The black-haired girl sputters, cold eyes filled with a fury that only she and Madoka can fully understand.

    Hope reaches out to touch Homura's cheek and says, "I don't know, and neither do you. Don't blame yourself. Just move on." Then, not wanting to let her girlfriend dwell upon past mistakes for too long, Hope walks up to Sailor Moon and says, "Okay, let's go get them. We'll need them to teleport back home, right?"

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    There's some serious silver glow, and Stellar finds herself waking up on the ground.. ground which is, it must be said, significantly less rubble-strewn than it had been when she lost consciousness.

    She also realizes that her arm is back when she reflexively reaches up to touch her own face, to rub her eyes, and a moment later it registers that she's doing it with the hand that should be missing.

    She climbs slowly to her feet, slightly unsteady but no longer in pain and remarkably whole.

    "Cool." is her only remark. Hearing Moon's remark about people in the catacombs, she calls out, "I can help with that, now that the magic interference is gone." And she turns to do just that. They can celebrate once everyone is accounted for.

Hinote Kagari has posed:
When all is said and down, Pulp Noir finds a piece of rubble to sit on, and take off his fedora a moment to rub his hair before replacing it back onto his head, brim low. "Well. That needed doing. Thanks everyone." he says grimly.

Then there's a bright light. And he stands up. "Huh?".

Power courses through him. His ragged clothing looks new again. And the world is okay again, as Paris becomes Paris again. And Sailor Moon says something hopeful.

"Don't worry, I'll help find them." he says. "After all. I'm one of the world's greatest detectives. After all." he says coyly.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
The light that washes over things does the unthinkable as the destruction reverts so much better than what a barrier would have accomplished, even more so, because even death gives in and walks back on its steps, letting the ones who had walked into its final embrace go back towards the light, all injuries too, no matter how significant, disappearing into nothingness.

It is a sight that fills the heart with joy, and Coco, stands there incredulous to her own eyes and heart, looking over at the ones who got brought back. Sure she knew that Usagi brought Mamoru back, but this is so much bigger, on such a large scale. What has she done exactly? How much has she invested for it, drawn from her own reserves in addition to what enabled this return.

"Are you ok?", the concerned princess moves closer to the one of the moon, checking over if she is about to collapse at any moment, though no doubt Mamoru would catch her if it happened (unless they collapsed in each other's arms? Coco wouldn't exclude that.)

Amanda Faust has posed:
    And then that light. Not an accident this time, but Serenity has decided *this was not enough* and changed the world. As before, Amy's soul gem shines brighter than ever, a deep bright red. Her spirit is lifted. She has to wonder, can it really be that...

    Friends in the catacombs. Waiting for them.

    Amy smiles. She steps over to Madoka and Homura. "It happened once before, but not like this." She assumes Homura's talking about how their soul gems are full. Overfull, even. And she presses the grief seeds of Jaidyn and Mettaton into Madoka's hand before walking on to hug Princess Serenity.

    "...Thank you. I... I was so..." She struggles to Words. "...Thank you for making things right. You... you made it Magical Girl. I... Let's go find our friends."

    Although she will take a moment to also hug anyone else who would like, too.

    -- MEANWHILE --
    Paranoia and mistrust have escalated in the vicinity of Obsidian Tower. It's not been a fun time for anyone! Except maybe the villains chilling there watching as whatever the hell is going on does their job for them. It's like people just can't understand eachother, and so they assume the worst, and that drives people to say things, do things, that only make it worse and oh there's so much negative emotional energy in the air it's probably wonderful if that's your thing.

    And then suddenly all of that just sort of. Stops. The rampant darkness pulls into itself, collapses into somewhere inside the tower as Keaka GASPS and sits up, checking her lack of Beryl-wounds. "What the... What just..." Her gauntlet chimes cheerfully. "I don't know, but welcome back!"

Mamoru Chiba has posed:
Not a queen, never a queen, Beryl's body crumbles to dust and blows away around the sword of light still stuck through her body. Something glitters on the ground, and Endymion crouches to pick it up in his dirty hand after sheathing his own sword.

Then-- Usagi makes a true miracle, a bigger miracle, the biggest of miracles; Mamoru puts his fingertips on the ground, armored knee against it, to watch as she puts this corner of his world back together. So many people...

...and there, bright in the back of his heart, is Jadeite, alive again.

It's perfect, it's too much, it's perfect, and the Prince holds his hand over his heart, the glittering crystal hidden within his fist, and he closes his eyes. When he opens them again, everyone is fresh and clean, none of the grime and blood and salt of battle on any of them. He looks at Zoisite, at Nephrite-- he locks eyes with Kunzite.

He's out of tears.

He stands and drops back to Tuxedo Kamen, masked and gloved, and he steps over to clutch Sailor Moon in a tight hug, just for a second after she makes her announcement-- and he lets go when she does.

He has someone to find.