1392/A (Whale)Bone to Pick

A (Whale)Bone to Pick
Date of Scene:	08 April 2024
Location:	Yumegahama Aquarium and Marine Center
Synopsis:	Chambers, a member of the Red Tree Board, shows up at the Aquarium to attempt to steal a baby beluga whale with her Tourist Cogs! Coco and Cho team up with Yuuto to stop Chambers' dastardly plan to make the whale into a whalebone corset and makeup!
Cast of Characters:	Yuuto Shiraishi, Cho Konishi, Coco Kiumi

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Yuuto Shiraishi has posed:
The big story the last few days from Yumegahama Aquarium has been the baby beluga whale that was rescued from the beach and is currently being restored to health at one of the special medical units at the aquarium. And it was going really well - until tonight. Appearing outside the aquarium, a tall, noble woman with fair skin, in a dress straight from the Industrial Age, all petticoats and lace of black appears. She wears a wide hat and a mask, and carries a fan with her.

"O~Ho ho ho ho!" she cackles out cheerfully! "I hear that you have a present for me! A whale that I can make a new corset from and of course make up! It will be a treasure I cannot pass up! O~ho ho ho ho!" Sweeping out her hand, she calls out, "Become another cog in the machine! GEAR UP!" She throws out several cogs, sticking to tourists, that suddenly transform into tall cog-like creatures, wearing large fish hats, and carrying nets and harpoons!

Yuuto was on a date with Coco, who has said she wanted to talk to the Beluga and make sure it was okay. As they're walking, Tinker suddenly alerts the Steam Sentinel. "GADGETS AND GIZMOS! There's cogs nearby, Yuuto! You need to transform!" Yuuto blinks a few times. "Right now?" he asks, confused.

"Yes! Go!"

"Sorry, Coco!" Yuuto gives Coco a quick kiss on the cheek and is running off to find a place to transform!

Cho Konishi has posed:
Cure Wukong had been resting. Why?

Wuwu's orders.

Something something, tense, something something, acting responsible, something something, can you at least try and do your homework late?

And Cho had, finally, agreed to use her powers in the frivolous and relaxed manner of... taking a nap. On a magic pink cloud.

Was it a gross abuse of her powers? Ehhhh... not as much as Wuwu would like, but baby steps. You couldn't make her a slacker like Wuwu overnight!

The cloud she was resting on started to vibrate and her eyes glowed golden for a moment. "Hmm? Oh, right, let's go."

The cloud took off, like a bolt! Flying through the air! It was great!

What was NOT so great was that Wukong was NOT on it. She let out a shriek, flapping her arms as she suddenly found herself plummeting hundreds of feet towards the ground... and then a moment later the cloud zipped back by, snagging her out of the air. She let out a sigh of relief. "Well, I'm AWAKE NOW!" she snapped at it as she sped off towards the trouble!

Coco Kiumi has posed:
An injured baby beluga being found is a pretty big deal, so it is only natural that Coco would want to check on it and make sure it was recovering well. The young whale may be very distressed too between the injury and the unfamiliar environment, and so she intends to talk to it and maybe offer the beluga her song to make her feel better. With Yuuto deciding to tag along, she bought tickets for two, but she didn't really have the time to actually approach the poor anymal before a cackling woman that just walked out of a museum wants to use the baby beluga for her own twisted fashion sense.

Burning with indignation, Coco only barely pays attention to what Yuuto is telling her or Cho's presence and the mermaid instead addresses that relic of begone times. "To play with someone else's life just because you want to be more beautiful, your soul is as withered as your beauty. I am the mermaid princess of the South Pacific Ocean, and I won't let you hurt that baby whale any further!"

The shell locket opens as she brings her hands around it in a curved x to channel the melodious magic of the seven seas. "Yellow Pearl Voice!" she declares, the pearl in her shell locket responding to her will and starting to shine with a yellow light.

A kaleidoscope of colours covers Coco's clothes as those change into a left glove adhering to her arm with a pattern made up of water ripples on her left leg a stocking has shown up with the same water ripple pattern, while on her right hand and on her legs a yellow glove and boots with flowy extensions show up.

Corals radiate outwards from her neck, covered by a transparent veil with brown pearls and white stars decorating it, the same decoration that is applied to the layer of fabric extending backwards and downwards from above her skirt, another layer with the water ripple pattern on the outside extending in much the same way from below the skirt.

The pearl then expands in an E-Pitch Headset that descends on Coco's head, the yewel nestled safely on the right side, as well as a yellow blouse with a yellow skirt.

The Live Stage gently envelopes Coco in its white light, and the sphere shines bright in the room of the aquarium. "Legend of Mermaid: Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!", Coco exclaims, her purifying voice showing a nostalgic melody of stars that shine like pearls, a wondrous light released from them, an adventure filled with miracles like the kind mother wishes for everyone in her heart, a love that will unfailingly be reborn after the storm.

Yuuto Shiraishi has posed:
Once he's behind a display where he can safely change, Yuuto winds the watch on his wrist to set it to noon. Lifting it into the air, he calls out, "Steam Sentinel Propel!, Evil's Time IS UP!" And the Steam Sentinel's gear appears around him. On his loco-motion skates, he comes out from behind the display, racing towards the Cogs.

"A Steam Sentinel?!" Chambers calls out. "I thought we left you all in Gearwork! No matter, I will make sure to have you in a cage too! You will be another cog in my father's machine and Red Tree corporation! O~hohoho!" she calls out, as one of the Cogs tries to throw a net over the Steam Sentinel - just to barely miss as Yuuto fires upon the Cog, striking it and knocking it backwards.

In the meantime, a pair of Cogs are trying to get their nets into the recovery tank to try to capture the poor baby whale and wrap it up to take away!

Chambers glances upwards, noticing the little cloud and the screaming person on it. "Oh, how annoying! I shall have to teach them proper manners! DARK FAN!" Whipping around the fan that she held in her hand, she sends out a dark wave of red magic towards Wukong's cloud, attempting to knock the Cure off of it!

Then ... someone... dares to call... Chambers... withered?! The Victorian dressed woman shrieks, "WHO DARES?!" she cries out, and then swivels around on the mermaid. As Coco starts to sing, the Victorian villian grows more angry. "Cut out that racket! It is not proper! It is trash music! I'll silence you! Cogs! Destroy her!" The two remaining Cogs start to moves towards Coco, holding their harpoons and nets, trying to get in close to try to stop Coco's song, even if it's starting to show that it has an effect, the cogs on their forehead starting to show signs of damage and cracking.

Cho Konishi has posed:
Cure Wukong had VERY strong opinions about trying to silence Coco. Those opinions were, generally, 'Get bent'.

So she said, so let it be written.

And so it was that Wukong's cloud would do a sudden U-turn, as Wukong flew OFF it! It would then turn and fly straight forward to slam into Chambers! It... wouldn't do much other than be an incredibly mild and poofy distraction, but it might cause her like. Ten seconds of annoyance.

In the air, however, Wukong drew her staff from behind her hair and swirled it, using it as a shield while she plucked some hair with her other hand, blowing on it and scattering it to the wind!

What would be considerably MORE destructive would be the pair of Wukongs that sprang from said hair to land on the Cogs approaching Coco, before they poofed into pieces of hair.

Another distraction. And Wukong was in the air, but hey! She WAS here!

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"I already told you I am the mermaid princess of the South Pacific, so you can consider yourself a brutish trespasser with a cackling too, and I won't let you hurr", Coco glares at Chambers, in between her song. pool "The sea is perfectly peaceful without you to disturb its waters. If you really want start a storm, a miracle of lights will occur."

Coco gives Cho a smile when she notices she is here too, and that only serves to make the mermaid more determined than ever, letting it show in the notes of her song, that contain tenfold the passion as before, creating a protective layer than would be able to defend itself against the rushing enemies, just to give Cho extra time to intervene and send then packing.

Yuuto Shiraishi has posed:
"Aim for their cogs!" Tinker calls out. Who's Tinker? For the one that has not met him, Tinker is a five inch tall fairy that is very portly, has a beard, wears coveralls, has a tool belt and carries a seven-inch long pipe-wrench. "Destroy the cog, they return to normal!" he encourages.

As Propel's Cog manages to get back on it's feet, Propel is racing in, bringing up his blaster. He fires a shot, clipping the cog on his forehead, it cracks and it shatters, falling to pieces as the human it was on turns back into a normal human.

The cloud poofs into the Victorian woman and she breathes it in, gasping. "It smells so... pure! Gross!!" She shudders, trying to wave it off with her fan, even as she notices Propel's shot. "O~ho ho ho! I'm not done with you, Steam Sentinel!" Sending out a wave towards Yuuto, the dark energy smacks into him, knocking him to the side before the cloud covers Chambers again, causing her to shriek in frustration.

The two cogs that the Wukongs are attacking receive more damage to the Cogs on their heads, further breaking down the control that Chambers has over them, while the remaining two are starting to get their nets onto the beluga, which is clearly distressed and not happy about this situation.

Coco's song increases in intensity and actually seems to push back the Victorian-garbed woman for a moment, cracking the cogs on the two that are attempting to capture the beluga. But Chambers? She becomes angry. Flipping open her fan, she frowns beneath her mask. "You want a storm?!" she asks, as she brings the fan about. "Then a storm you shall HAVE!" she cackles again, before calling out, "INDUSTRIAL HURRICANE!"

From her fan, a large, forceful wave of energy pierces through the cloud, perhaps dispersing it as the wave of energy rockets, a massive burst of dark energy at a speed of almost 200KmPH as it is aimed at the live stage, looking to strike Coco directly! Let's see who's layer is stronger!

Cho Konishi has posed:
Cure Wukong blinked. Wait, just destroy the cogs? That didn't seem so hard! Even she could do that!

She let out a whistle and her cloud left the woman alone, flying up to her and allowing her to land on it.

She then pulled out a big clump of hair, tossing it around and forming half a dozen clones!

... One of which started to head off to their ice-cream serving job.

The rest of them just... belly flopped at the poor woman.

She, meanwhile, dives down. Spinning her staff around, she tried to baseball swing both of the cogs from the Cogs assaulting the whale. "Leave the whale alone! Hasn't anyone ever told you it's not nice to run around as a fail whale?!"

... That pun was *awful*. Just. *So bad.*

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Chambers' assault directly clashes with the repelling layer Coco had coated the the Live Stage with. The dark energy wind presses violently against the sphere of white light, refusing to get pushed back, even as Coco's heart pains seeing the Cogs being very close to capturing the whale.

The mermaid princess can do nothing as the barrier cracks and crumbles under the assault, each and every onimous sound grimly letting it know what is about to happen. When the barrier ultimately cedes, Coco gets hit by remainder of that impressive strength.

She is barely able to see it approach her as she gets the air knocked out of her lungs, sending her flying into the water of a nearby reserve, bruised and battered by the attack of Red Tree's second in command.

Yuuto Shiraishi has posed:
The two Cogs are so busy with trying to capture the whale that they don't really get a chance to defend themselves from the attack from above. As Cho slams down onto the first one, the cog cracks and shatters, falling into pieces as the human it possesses returns to normal, with Cho moving to try to repeat the process. This one brings around his harpoon and manages to deflect the attack, his sword held ready to fight in a rispote stance. But he's probably not that good. And that terrible pun has left it temporarily disoriented!

And then the music stops.

Yuuto can barely hear Chambers' cackling laughter as the live stage is taken out and Coco is thrown back. "COCO!" he yells, wanting to run to her side, to protect her... but he has to focus. Slamming down on both guns, he starts firing blast after blast at the General. "It's me you want, come get me!" Another pair of blasts fired.

Chambers brights, "O~ho~! That one means something to you, does she?! Give me the fairy, or I'll finish her off!" she threatens, getting ready to send out another hurricane blast towards the mermaid.

"I'm not giving Tinker to you!" he growls, both of his blasters joined together as he swivels around and aims. "PROPEL BLAST!" A large energy shot flies towards Chambers, who takes the hit with her fan and is knocked back. "Not. Good. Enough. Steam Sentinel." she growls.

But Yuuto wasn't looking to stop her by himself - he was distracting her so that hopefully Cho can rally Coco and the pair of them could attack.

Cho Konishi has posed:
One down, one to-- or not. The staff was knocked aside by the sword! No matter, she spun the staff and--

The music stopped.

THE MUSIC STOPPED!

Wukong glanced back, her eyes going wide when she saw her friend getting knocked back across the water. Her shield shattering.

For a moment, Wukong had that panic flood her. her best friend, killed by--

But that fear was wiped awat a moment later.

NO. Right. They'd done a whole thing. Coco had eaten the peaches of immortality from the fairies. Sure, she wasn't immortal, but magical boys and girls could take a lot.

But that didn't mean that kind of stuff didn't hurt.

And then this.... this woman... was THREATENING her?! To get to the fairy and--

Chambers was threatening to finish off Coco.

She gripped the staff. Then... "Here, catch," she said, lightly tossing it to the cog before leaping away.

The staff, at least, if it was caught? ... Was going to not be moving anytime soon. It was light as a feather to Wukong. It was like trying to move a mountain to others.

Her focus, however, was on Chambers.

She leaped into the air, chucking out more hair as she went. Except this time she didn't launch the clones in an attack. Instead, she was using them as stepping stones, which she used to kick off of to rise higher and higher...

Before swirling and spinning down at the girl.

That was right.

It was the return of the orbital elbow drop. Except Cure Wukong had learned from the last time it happened. So as she plummeted from above, instead of coming down on Chambers elbow first...

Instead she came down with her heel first, the orbital axe kick!

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Under the water, Coco is gasping for well, not air, but breath, and looking around the blurry walls of the reserve as she recovers from the impact of the attack with every part of her body aching and rebelling, she recollects herself and a Live Stage takes once more shape as the mermaid princess calls upon it. Slowly she raises out of it, and Aqua Regina's name is called, Coco praying to her for courage and resilience.

The answer she gets is much more than she would have expected however when the mother's sweet voice resounds in her ear. "My mermaid princess, the fight is not done yet. Rise, and save that innocent whale from the grasp of evil. Take heart, because you are one of my seven beloved daughters, and I am always with you, Coco."

"Aqua Regina...", Coco smiles with relief and renewed vigour, the embrace of those words in her heart giving her a heartbeat infused with the transpared love of the seven seas. "Thank you." The White Stage shines brilliantly as Coco wills it upwards and the Pearl glows with it when a halo of yellow light descends, unlocking the everpresent current of hope that is Aqua Regina's gift to them.

The Sound of the Bell of Hope ~Love Goes On~: Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!

As the Live Stage shines with a brilliant white, the song of the seas seas fights the darkness with purifying splendor.

"You were just having the wrong dream...
The whereabouts of your love and the mystery of your memories
Were pierced by cold loneliness,
And you were suffering."

"Hidden in your blue eyes
Was a beautiful heart that seemed it was about to break."

"In the broken sky are the tears you've cried.
You don't have to hide all of your sadness."

"Let's end this wrong dream...
Forget everything and sleep bare.

When a new dreams dwells inside of you,
You can become free."

Yuuto Shiraishi has posed:
The cog is hit by the cane - as he catches it and *crunch* he's dropped to the ground, trapped beneath the staff and unable to move, just a mass of arms and legs as he is firmly stuck.

And then Cho seems to retreat. And Chambers cackles. "O~ho ho ho! You see, Steam Sentinel! Your friends are abandoning you!" she calls out towards Yuuto. "Now give me the fairy!" she orders again.

As his most powerful attack is shurgged off, Yuuto isn't sure what to do. His attention is on Chambers, but he's looking towards where Coco went down, in quiet prayer that she be alright. That he hasn't caused her to be hurt, that she knows he'd be right there is he could... and then the music starts anew. And there's that heavenly glow as his intended rises from the water, engulfed in her full Super Idol form. And the song she sings is a rallying cry, a song of love and hope and being free, and it strikes Chambers, causing her to recoil at the feelings of warmth and safety and a bright future that Yellow Pearl unleashes... and Coco is bolstering her boyfriend's heart as well. But there's no need for more...

Because a shadow forms over Chambers. As it grows, it momentarily blocks out the sun. It's Cure Wukong - possibly on fire from her re-entry as she descends upon the General. Chambers manages to bring up her arms as a shield and the heel slaps into the fan and crossed arms, driving Chambers into the ground as it cracks and craters beneath her.

As Cho bounces backwards from the strike, Chambers in on her knee, her mask is cracked, showing one pretty eye beneath it. She knows that she can't take too much more of that and seeing that capturing the whale is out of her hands, she frowns. "I will remember this, Sentinel! I will have my revenge!" And with that, she teleports away, leaving the remaining cog to transform back into a very confused tourist.

Yuuto is immediately skating towards Coco as soon as Chambers teleports away, and if he brings himself to a halt as he sees her, eyes looking her over behind his visor. "Are... are you alright??" he asks worriedly as soon as the song is over.

Cho Konishi has posed:
Cure Wukong learned from this!

First, the axe kick? MUCH nicer than the elbow drop. WOO!

Second? STILL hurt! She bounced back, landing on the ground and... just dropped, laying there for a few moments. Then she let out a low, gentle whistle. Her cloud came to her and she clambered on with a groan, giving the softest little chuckle. "W-woo..."

Her cloud just, very slowly, began to float towards them. Aches, bruises and all.

"Is... is the singiest mermaid okay?" she called out. "We saved the whales, wooooo!"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"Yes, I am alright", Coco smiles shakily at Yuuto, even if she presents clear bruises on the parts of her clothes that show her skin. "I just need a bit to recover. I am just glad it's over, and that baby whale is saved. Right, Aqua Regina?" Coco asks for confirmation, looking at the center of the room.

A glow of white light shines there, an imposing woman woman with extremely long blonde hair appearing from within it, holding a winged scepter. "She has indeed been repelled, and that whale young is now safe", she smiles before turning to look at the three mahous. "Thank you for your help, children of the land and Coco. I sensed the great evil that filled that woman's heart, preying upon the most innocent of creatures, and I am glad the two of you were there to help Coco."

"Steam Sentinel Propel", the deity's blue eyes looks at him when he is called. "Yours is a case that is usually cause of alarm for the 7 kingdom. Heartbreak is a dangerous force for a mermaid princess, and that could easily mean catastrophe. Despite that dark shadow, I do not feel that extend over the two of you, even if you have earned Coco's heart."

"And I remember you, Cure Wukong, you who stopped history from claiming the heart of one of the few that similarly shone with love. The faceless demon was relentless and crafty, but you reached out in extremis when everything was about to be lost, giving back that cruel mockery of the venerated mermaid her dignity."

Aqua Regina smiles at the two when two white glows detach from her scepter, descending towards Yuuto and Cho. "You who are respectively Coco's love and most trusted friend, you have my most profound thanks for showing that that land and sea still have cause for companionship. Take those white pearls, and may they one day help you back against the darkness."

Yuuto Shiraishi has posed:
Seeing how banged up that Coco is, Yuuto reaches up, caressing Coco's cheeks. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry." he says worriedly. "I should have warned you..." How could he have known? It was the first time he's ever come across Chambers, truth be told. And he was about to say more when there was a new voice. As Aqua Regina speaks up, what is one supposed to do when standing before the queen of the ocean and the 'mother' of your girlfriend?

Then she speaks to him, pointing out her concerns that he was going to break Coco's heart somehow. He shakes his head, his hand settling into Coco's. "I want to spend my life with her, your Reginaness." What else would he call her? He doesn't know the etiquette! "I will continue to always try to earn what she has given me and what I gave her in return."

And then.. there's a presentation of a pearl. His hand only leaves Coco's for a moment to accept the gift with a grateful nod of his head. "I will stand by Coco's side for as long as she wishes to have me." he promises.

Cho Konishi has posed:
Cure Wukong let out a sigh of relief when she saw her friend was okay. That magic peach was definitely one of the best investments she'd ever made in terms of magical girlness.

However, when she was given a pearl, she blinked a few times and stared at it. And then her face went scarlet. "O-oh, I didn't... I mean... I was.... but ummmm.... w-well, if you're sure," she said sheepishly, grinning at it. "I'll keep it safe, always."

She then glanced to Yuuto and gave a light snicker. "You better! If you don't, I'll come and bop you with my sti-- OH CRUD I NEED TO GO GET MY STICK!" And off she zoomed on her cloud, snatching it up. "Whew, right where I left it. Randomly on the ground. So... are you two okay then? Need any more help from your local neighborhood Wukong? Or, ummm, you, your... goddessness?" Pause. "I promise not to try and break your heaven. I've only done it to one so far. And I think that's one more than I needed."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"I do not really fear what may happen now. I just wish the two of you happiness. There is something that marks the turn of the tide in your tale. I feel it."

"Your heart is as pure as the purest feather", Aqua Regina tells Cho with a smile. "Do not fear upsetting me, or fighting Heaven. Nobody knows what the future holds, and you may actually be one day called to replicate the feat of your namesake."

"Coco, Noel is rebuilding her kingdom now. Don't forget that the other mermaid princesses are with you in the defense of the seven seas. But I must go now, treasure each other's bonds, and never forget to hold pity in your hearts." And with that she is gone.

"I won't forget it", Coco whispers before turning to Yuuto and Cho. "So Aqua Regina's blessing? I am so glad we get to be together!", she exclaims, pulling the two in an embrace unless they don't want to.

Yuuto Shiraishi has posed:
Yuuto is in a bit too much shock to really even fight (if he wanted to. He didn't) Coco's pulling of him into the group hug and he places a kiss to Coco's cheek. "That's great, Coco!" he says cheerfully. "But for now? I want you to get checked out for injuries to make sure you're okay." comes his worried retort.

Cho Konishi has posed:
Cure Wukong was happy to get a big hug from her best friend, squeezing her back. She did, however, agree with Yuuto's statement. "I... think that's not a bad idea. I'll keep an eye on the whale, just in case anything comes back, okay? But I imagine it'll all be fine now."

In the end, they'd won! And now she had a magic pearl. She wasn't sure what it would one day mean, but she knew one thing.

It'd probably be fun finding out.