1822/Meaniedokas at the Mall

Meaniedokas at the Mall
Date of Scene:	02 August 2024
Location:	Four Clover Mall
Synopsis:	A youma starts trouble at the Mall and gets pasted by Gretchen's Vending Machine Familiar. Then her Familiar goes out of control and several magicals work together to take it out! Gretchen starts talking about her plans to those who ask. Sailor Moon, Sayaka, Amy, Molly, Weisser Ritter and Pulp Noir all have very pointed questions to ask the wayward X-Chara.
Cast of Characters:	Madoka Kaname, Molly Skyline, Usagi Tsukino, Hinote Kagari, Sayaka Miki, Sequoia Maybach, Amanda Faust

---

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    It's a relatively normal day at Four Clover Mall. Shoppers are milling about, stopping to look through windows, going in and out of stores. A little girl is putting change in a vending machine. A youma is standing on top of a table and shouting his grievances into the sky.

    "Things just haven't been the same since Director Berly left! We used to be cool! We used to just roll up on a place and say, 'Give me your energy!' and people would get scared and fall over! Now I gotta scrape by on these low-key 'freelance jobs' because Eclipse 'doesn't have a place for me'."

    The youma looks like the most generic monster imaginable. Like someone made a prototype or a proof of concept and then promptly forgot about it. A cross between an imp and a zombie with dried up pale flesh, bat-like ears in shape more than texture, blank yellow eyes and literally no other identifying features. The platonic idea of a borrowable asset from Obsidian's Inhuman Resources. He shouts to a mostly uncaring, unaware crowd.

    A squeaky voice starts arguing back. "First off, it's BERYL, not BERLY. Secondly, it's OBSIDIAN, not ECLIPSE. Thirdly, she didn't leave, she DIED because she was DUMB."

    The most generic youma in the universe looks at the voice who dared to talk back to it, seeing Gretchen and two other X-Chara hovering around a vending machine and a frustrated little girl whose snack money just got eaten. He plants his hands on his hips and rolls his eyes dramatically. "Uh, I'm pretty sure I remember Director BERLY's name correctly, and I'm also pretty sure I know the name of the company I work for. The rumors surrounding her death are greatly exaggerated. She's just on vacation!"

    Tia, the parasol wielding X-Minidoka, shouts back, "Be silent and begone, uncouth creature! We are dealing with a matter of vital importance, and haven't the time for your shenanigans!"

    Rens, ignoring the exchange, studies the stuck snack in the vending machine, sympathetic to the plight of the little girl who has just been robbed. "You would think they'd design these machines a little better. A shame, really. Quality sacrificed on the altar of mass production."

    Gretchen crosses her arms and turns to Rens, boasting, "In my world we can have a vending machine that doesn't steal anyone's money!"

    The youma, realizing that it's being ignored, gets indignant. "I'm not uncouth! I'm a proud employee of Eclipse! I got test subject of the week just 5 weeks ago!" The X-fairies continue to ignore him, focused way more on the vending machine issue and trying to figure out how to help the little girl get the snack she is rightfully owed. He goes on, "You know what? I feel like you aren't showing me my due respect! Maybe I should take your energy!"

    Everything suddenly goes silent. The normies still go about their business completely unaware of the magical discourse, yet somehow the room gets so quiet that one could hear a pen drop. Gretchen shoots a glare across the considerable 100 meter distance between the vending machines and the food court table that the youma is standing on, and the more he locks in on those tiny little angry eyes the more the universe itself seems to... rumble.

    "Say again?" asks the X-Witch, at the increasingly stubborn youma who totally isn't getting nervous about this tiny fussy thing glaring at him. No, not at all. He shifts uncomfortably yet seems resolved to firmly stands his ground.

Molly Skyline has posed:
Molly Skyline has been about in the mall all afternoon, doing a bunch of milling about of her own -- and a little shopping. Her raggedy black knapsack is slung as ever over one shoulder, currently laden with a new Pathfinder book and a selection of automotive magazines, mostly focused on racing. The purplenette is currently eating a chocolate bar as she walks along (a peach flavored Kit Kat as it turns out) while fiddling with her phone (There's gotta be another Snorlax around here somewhere) and somehow managing to pay attention to where she's going and not run into any of the people milling around.

Which eventually brings her to the food court where the Youma is hanging around on a table shouting at people, and some Charas are busy trying to help out a little girl who's money got stuck in a vending machine. Molly takes note of both, as she finishes off the last of her Kit Kat and tucks the wrapper into a waste bin -- always clean up after yourself -- and just shrugs, for the moment. There's no need to intervene with the vending machine, it looks like it's handled and she doesn't want to insinuate that it isn't. As for the Youma shouting about how much better things were before...

"Hey, you're being a tosser," she calls back to him, and shakes her head. "Look... could you keep it down? I'm gonna order some noodles and I'd really like to eat them in peace, alright?" She glances up from her phone, and ohs, "Hey there we go another Snorlax, finally."

And for a moment, Molly is entirely focused on catching it, but then there's the threat about draining energy. And Molly's head snaps back up, and the phone is tucked away.

"What did you just say?" she asks, her tone of voice entirely hardened. "No no no, you don't go making threats. Do you need a lesson, or are you just gonna leave, now?"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Usagi Tsukino is at Four Clover Mall for the most honorable of reasons - last minute birthday gift shopping for her fiance, because what if the birthday present she already got him isn't perfect? What if it's subpar? What if she finds something better, today, now?

Clearly the only thing to do was shop around and reassure herself that everything was fine, actually, everything was fine and would be fine and she didn't have to worry at all!

"Hey, baka Usagi, what do you think is the deal with that guy?" Shingo Tsukino's squeaky, obnoxious little voice cuts through the chaos of her panicking thoughts, grounding her. In return, she flips his baseball cap off his head.

"Hey, don't call me that you little - what guy?"
    he youma guy, of course. That's what Shingo points too, the most generic looking youma that she's ever seen and of course it's shouting about Beryl (Berly, lol), and talking to -

Gretchen? And the other missing chara. Greaaaaat.
Herf course the one day she's saddled with taking her little brother to the mall a youma decides to shout its grievances to the uncaring world at large. Because why wouldn't it?

"... I don't know, but I'll take care of it. Here, just, go get a snack at the food court, I'll catch up, okay? Go, go, go!"

"What? Hey, why do you - whoa is this -"

"3000 yen. Keep the change. I'll catch up with you!"

Shingo runs off. Nothing like the greed of a kid to make sure you had room to henshin!

Sailor Moon will be on the scene....soon. Surely, nothing will go wrong before she's ready!

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Hinote Kagari senses chara, so he's seeking it out. And that's when he runs into the Gtrechtrio. He grimly ahs. "I see." he says as he moves to approach the trio near the vending machine when Tracy stops him, who is floating next to him.

"Hey, kid, there's a more pressing problem."

"Oh my god. It looks so. Generic. Who is this guy?" he asks, scratching his head, as he moves to disappear behind a mall map and---

Pulp Noir appears on the other side, as he draws his fedora down, as he does, and walks cooly towards the youmna.

"There going to be a problem here, you mook?" he asks, pointing for dramatic effect.

Sayaka Miki has posed:
Sayaka walks into Four Clover Mall, the cooling power of the mall's AC not really making her register any relief. Now what was it she had to find? Ah, right, her parents were running short on coffee and had asked her to buy some for them. She is probably going to get a little bit of each type: the bluenette has never seen them stick to a specific type, ever.

She yawns, a hand rising to rub away the sleepiness from her eyes. "While we are here, why don't you buy some chamomile?" Ula suggests, poking her head out of Sayaka's bag. "I don't think it would help. But I will try", the bluenette whispers back to the fairy mermaid. A thought silencer would be more useful than that, she thinks. She almost misses the debate going on if not for the feeling of Labyrinth magic she is familiar with spiking up slightly.

Her tired gaze settles on the quarreling youma, Gretchen and company. Is this where she has been all this while? Picking a fight with youmas? "Gretchen, what are you doing?" Sayaka remarks, walking closer to the Dark Mini Madoka. "Madoka is really worried about you. I am sure that talking with her is a better use of everyone's time than picking fight with unremarkable youmas."

Sequoia Maybach has posed:
    The mall is always a fun time. Now, see, Sequoia Maybach and a couple of her friends decided that today of all days would be a good day to hit up the mall and do some shopping. So the silver-haired girl is arriving just now, a little early, for her designated hangout time and arrives to...
    Uh...
    What the hell.
    The most blandest youma is RIGHT THERE standing on a table yelling about someone called Berly, X-charas are arguing with it, then ignoring it.
    The poor girl dang near drops her purse just staring at this as it goes so quiet.
    Sequoia holds up a finger thoughtfully.
    "Nope." She says pointedly, and starts to wwwwwwaaaaalk away when the shield-shaped charm hanging off her purse pings at her.
    "There's no way that thing can cause any trouble." She says to the Device currently yelling at her IN HER MIND in Belkan.
    "Just look at it, it's so... Bland."
    More Belkan yelling ensues.
    Sigh.
    "Fine, fine." She says ducking around a corner for a place to hide and do her transformy thing.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    In line at the sandwich shop, a blonde college student and her date are having a conversation about exploitative gachas and arcade games, after concluding that the youma is some kind of weird performance.

    The darker-haired of the couple is opining, "A-Anyways, I never played Tower Topper again because I kept having the nagging feeling that the game hadn't played fair. Plus, it's not like the top prizes were that great anyways. I mean, who would even want some noname-brand MP3 player? Smartphones were a thing even when we were little kids."

    "It's a shame you didn't grab yourself a soda earlier. It might help you wash down the sour grapes that have been stuck in your throat all these years. Plus, there's no way to lose to a vending machine."

    Amy, who is striding past them at just that moment in henshin, overhears and reflexively observes: "YEAH YOU CAN! It could eat your money!"

    The two turn and look at her, just as the silence falls across the room.

    Amy sweatdrops. "Um... don't mind me, I am a just-passing-by magical girl here to VANQUISH EVIL!" she replies, resuming her striding forward and putting one foot on a food court chair while posing dramatically as if it is indeed part of a performance.

    The Puella Magi points at the youma. "And YOU are, um, bothering these people! ...Not very well actually! Like, what happened to the thing where the moment one of you shows up just like, everyone falls unconscious? ...Wait, Gretchen?!

    Amy looks shocked to have again encountered the X-Chara on her own... confronting a youma?

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    'Hey, you're being a tosser.'

    The youma twitches. Tia giggles. Rens is ignoring the exchange to calculate the precise amount of force at the precise angle needed for a plan that has just occurred to her. The little girl is happy that tiny fairies are helping her in her time of need and either doesn't seem to notice that they are radiating darkness or don't care.

    The generic youma turns to Molly, shaking his fist. "I'll toss you!" Pulp approaches and he shouts, "I am the problem, and there's no solution!" To Amy, "Oh yeah? Well I'm bothered, too! "You know what? I think you all need a little reminder! A reminder of just how powerful I can be."

    As for Gretchen? She is glaring. She is seething. Her eyes dart towards Sayaka for a moment, but all she says is, "If she's so worried then she should get her act together."

    The tiny Witch raises a hand, and as the youma rants about how great it is and how it's going to show everyone, a portal large enough to fit a person opens up behind and above him. Out from it drops what could only be described as a Witch's idea of a vending machine.

    It looks like something painted with water colors on black paper, covered in 'scratches' that don't really make sense for a three dimensional object. It has several holes by which it could dispense snacks or sodas, and the glass window shows all manner of chocolates and candies and sodas dancing in circles with huge not-at-all-creepy smiley faces on them. It crashes into the ground behind the youma, confusing it for a moment as it turns around to ask indignantly, "What the heck are you?"

    Gretchen's voice is still, and calm, and quiet. Yet despite this, anyone in the mall's food court with magical senses can hear her as if she were standing right next to them. "Something far more useful than you will ever be. A vending machine that doesn't steal money!"

    The youma opens its mouth to say something, but the mechanical merchant interrupts it by launching a soda can directly at the center of its chest, knocking it off the table and onto the ground. "Hrrk! But I... I am..."

    Gretchen crosses her arms and glowers at the youma while her Vending Familiar glows dark and starts draining the monster's energy. Mr. Generic turns slowly into dust. Then, the Vending Machine's aura expands to start draining the entire food court.

    Gretchen blinks at the problem she just caused, looks around nervously, and says, "Oh shoot..."

    Rens adjusts her glasses, "Well, it's not stealing their money. Just their energy."

    Tia clears her throat and says, "I don't suppose you could fix it, dear?"

    Gretchen turns to the other two and says, "Nope. Honestly, it's a vending machine. It was probably always doomed to be evil."

    The youma, just before finishing its disintegration, turns to the X-Trio and asks, "Who... who are you?"

    Gretchen hesitates, then looks at the other two minidokas as her voice returns to normal. "You know, we don't really have a name for our group."

    Rens taps a pen against her temple. "Hm. Badokas, perhaps?"

    Tia ahems. "I like the idea? I hate how that sounds."

    Gretchen considers for a moment, then huddles in closer. "Okay, I got it. Since we're all mindokas, how about..."

    Whisper whisper whisper. A moment later; Gretchen, Rens and Tia pose dramatically as they announce their new group name in unison. "We are... The Meaniedokas!"

    

    Between all the shaking and rumbling and other space warping, the little girl's snack falls down from where it was stuck and she gleefully retrieves it. "Yay! Thank you magic fairies?"

    Tia turns to glance down at the child and says, "Of course, though um... perhaps you should go find your mother?" and starts shooing her away from the sudden rampant Vending Familiar.

Molly Skyline has posed:
"Oh, *I'M* the tosser now, am I?!" Molly plants her hands on her hips indignantly. "I don't think you have the faintest clue of the subtle meanings of the word, oh *Tosser* who standing on the tables shouting at people about draining their energy! I--"

And at that moment, a portal opens, and a vending machine... of all things, falls out of it. An evil vending machine, that shoots cans at it, and then promptly... wrecks the generic Youma. With a soda can.

"...Okay I gotta tell Hinoiri about that later," she muses, "That's an even weaker hit point total than her one which at least took a quarter-strength barret."

She pauses, looking to the side and flashing a grin, waving quickly to Usagi, and then to Amy, "Hey you two! Looks like there's youmas here. This ornery vending machine just took out a corporate employee, so, looks like capitalism is briefly on our side. Oh the irony."

Molly plucks the blue jewel off her ear and summons Starcrash, her staff, as she henshins into her barrier jacket. She holds off from lifting off the ground for the moment though. "Starcrash, charge Stellar Pulse, twenty barrets, just in case," she instructs.

<< ARMED >>

"Uhm, hopefully someone can do the... y'know... fight-zone thing. Because I actually can't."

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Pulp Noir is about to just punch this thing's lights out and call it a night because he feels he'll crumple to the floor like the youma did yesterday, and he's balling his hands into fists when.... oh.. oh did Gretchen just make a youma?

An actual one that's a threat, and draining the energy of the youma, killing it, before it goes off to drain the rest of the food court.

"This is a headache, look, You three. Kaname-san is worried about you. Did you just call yourself the 'Meanie dokas? It's clear you're still thinking about her. Don't need to be a detective to figure that out." he says from under his fedora...

Before he throws a punch into the vending machine's side, answering Molly. "Nope. Sorry doll."

"But I can punch it's fricken light's out." he says, throwing a mean right hook, brawl style.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy watches Gretchen summon a... vending machine-ish familiar and vanquish the youma. She claps, then shakes her hands a little. "Okay! That was pretty impressive."

    And then it starts draining everyone's energy. "Uhhhh... Can't you put it back in your labyrinth or something?"

    The two bit characters from earlier are now staring at the scene in that brief moment between 'oh shit magic is happening' and the veil or unconsciousness kicking in. The dark-haired one rubbing their chin thoughtfully. "How are they doing this? It's not holograms..." The blonde girl looks on in shock, then grabs their arm. "Analyze later. We need... to go... now..." and they pass out from energy drain as everyone else does.

    Amy has to admit that Badokas and Meanie Dokas are catchy, but... she does give Gretchen a disappointed look. "You really turned villain? Come on, can't we talk about this? I don't want to fight you..."

    Although, Gretchen's not the one directly taking the energy, is she?

    "...But I have no such compunction against your familiar!" She glances behind her to check civilians aren't right there, then summons her rocket launcher and...

    Waits for the little girl to get clear as Rens shoes her away...

    ...And then FIRES at the vending machine familiar! BOOM!

    Hopefully one of them can do barriers? Amy shakes her head apologetically, "NOPE!"

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
The Meaniedokas.

There is really and truly only one thing for a teenaged magical girl to do in a situation like this: grab her broach in one hand and her phone in the other! Opening her phone's camera, Usagi starts recording, even as she hunts around for a space to hide out and transform - luckily, there's plenty of people here, from Molly (gets a wave back!) to Amy to Sayaka and Pulp Noir, so it's not like there's a pressing reason for her to need to transform -

Aaaand then the Labyrinth-born Vending Machine starts energy draining. She can feel it, tugging and pulling at her for all she's worth, and see people in confusion starting to sway and stumble -

Including Shingo, who's at least at the far end of the food court, cheerfully blowing his bribe on Korean-style corn dogs. Those sound so, so good.

Dropping behind a planter, she grabs her broach and transforms in a bright burst of light. Sailor Moon is on the scene!

Sailor Moon... cannot make a barrier.

"Not me either," she says with a grimace, but uh - honestly Amy and Pulp Noir seem to have the vending machine youma under control, so she dashes over the Meaniedokas.

"Hey, can we talk about all of this? You know, as colleagues? I'll buy you a snack!" Gretchen likes snacks, maybe her bandmates do too?

Sequoia Maybach has posed:
    Hah hahhhh a lot happens.
    Sequoia darts around a corner and there's a flash of white light as her clothes are instantly replaced by her Knight Armor and the shield charm on her bag becomes a full sized TOWER of a riot shield.
    "... Why is that a VENDING MACHINE?" She blurts at the sight of the new youma that takes out the bland one.
    "Crap crap crap what do we do?"
    <KAMPFEN.> Her shield replies.
    "Yes but I don't LIKE fighting."
    But then the overears Molly.
    The fight-zone thing...
    A barrier!
    "Hey."
    <JA?>
    "Can we put up a barrier like that?"
    <JA!>
    "Okay do it."
    <JAWOHL!> her riot shield complies with an announcement og <GEFANGNIS DER MAGIE!>
    The color washes out from the world as a barrier is put into place, rendering collateral damage both in property and civilian a moot point.
    Sequoia looks pleased with this.
    "Nice."
    <GERN GESCHEHEN.>

Sayaka Miki has posed:
Sayaka pushes back a wave of tiredness while Gretchen just ignores Madoka's efforts. "What has happened to you, Gretchen? You know that Madoka is really trying. I am not sure how these X-Charas convinced you, but if you hear each other out, you can still reach a reasonable conclusion."

"Hey, Gretchen, don't you think this is too much?", Ula says, floating out in the open. "Why don't we go for ice cream and talk about it? We don't have to go to Madoka yet."

Sayaka frowns at the tiny mermaid. She understands what she is trying to do, but she is not really sure keeping her away from Madoka is going to help. Mr. Generic gets completely ignored up until Gretchen summons that vending machine and pulverises it.

That is one less problem. His background yelling was mixing uncomfortably with her lack of sleep. She is about to talk back to Gretchen again when the vending machine familiar's aura covers the entire food court. "Please, put it back, Gretchen", Sayaka tells the meanie doka with a veil of disappointment. It doesn't really look like she has any regard for what it's doing.

A glance at her Soul Gem makes Sayaka decide she is going to stay on the conservative side with magic, as much as she doesn't really want to think about that entire subject. A quick blue flash and the Sharpsong Puella summons a single sword to her, with which she immediately jumps towards the youma, trying to strike.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Gretchen glances over at Molly as she asks for a 'fight-zone'. A part of her wants to be mean and draw her into her Labyrinth, but... she actually doesn't like the fact that this Familiar is acting on its own. So she and the other two hang back unhelpfully while Noir opens up with a right hook.

    The punch impacts the glass of the machine youma, and all of the smiley faces on the little treats dancing inside of it turn to frowns. A pair of accordion arms grow out of the sides of it and it swings right back at the private eye.

    Gretchen winces and flails her arms. "Stop it! You did enough! I made you! You gotta do what I say!" she yells, to no avail. Non-magical mall goers all around the food court start passing out, and little throw pillow familiars appear beneath them so that they don't fall too hard. Why does Gretchen care? Because they're the Meanie Dokas not the Total Jerk Dokas.

    Rens clears her throat and says, "If I may? I suspect that your frustrations which such devices in the past has resulted in a disobedient machine."

    Tia chimes in, "Perhaps a bit of testing before deployment would be advisable?"

    Gretchen rubs her tiny forehead as she responds to various questions. To Pulp, she says, "Yeah, we think of her. We think of her and get mad." To Amy, "I'm not a villain! I'm enlightened!" Then after, a pause, she turns to her X-sisters and asks, "Did that sound villainy enough? Am I doing a good job?" They both cheer her on and applaud her before she turns back. "Anyways! I've always been filled with dark energy. From the very start! This was our fate, Amy. Witches and Puella always fight."

    Tia notices Sailor Moon taking a picture and does a glamorous hair flip. At the mention of bribery, the three of them just raise their tiny eyebrows in synchronous. Gretchen crosses her arms and shakes her head. "No bribes! What could you possibly give us that Doka wouldn't spoil us with already? We want something that Madoka could never give us."

    o Ula and Sayaka, Gretchen looks a little sad for a moment, but she shakes her head. "This is the way it has to be. If there were any other way, we would have found it already. I'm tired of our Bearer failing me over and over, and the fact that she's failed these two as well is just too much!"

    Gretchen looks up as a barrier suddenly forms, and looks almost a little relieved. It would be super dumb if she had to provide a collateral damage prevention zone for her own youma. Then again, that's kinda what Witches do already, right? The rocket slams into the Familiar, shattering the glass that Pulp had started to crack, causing the large and heavy machine to stumble backwards on a pair of feet that it totally didn't have a second ago. Sayaka's sword hits home, scattering tiny frowning snacks all over the barriered mall floor.

    "It's starting to modify its own parameters," observes Rens. "How much control do you really have over your Labyrinth?"

    Gretchen watches as the vending monster rights itself and says, "Y'know... not as much as you'd hope."

    The Familiar makes a few highly distorted beep noises as it raises its accordion arms high. From the broken glass window it fires a torrent of frowning snacks at its attackers; specifically Pulp, Amy and Sayaka. Possibly Molly too if she's standing too close. It slowly turns from side to side, sweeping her snack beam across the entire food court!

    Good thing most of the civvies aren't here.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
The glamorous hair flip is dutifully recorded, and Sailor Moon offers Tia a thumbs up, because honestly she really is lovely, especially for such a minifigure.

If only her offer of a bribe was going as well. The youma is, for the moment at least, being well-handled, between Pulp, Amy, and Sharpsong, and the creators are the real problem. But if they won't go home and they won't be bribed...

"Well, what do you want, that Madoka-chan couldn't give you? I mean, that's why you're doing all this, right? You said she failed you, so that must mean there's something you want that you don't have... is it something any of us can help you have?" A beat. "Besides draining energy?"

She could purify the three minidokas, but she's confident that that's the wrong move. Being purified could change hearts, but only if it was accepted. Otherwise, it would just get rid of their dark energy, and lead to the three regaining it over time.

"You're not really mad at any of these people after all, you're mad at Madoka-chan. So why make trouble for all of them?"

Molly Skyline has posed:
<< MANA DRAIN DETECTED >>

"Oh fantastic." Molly almost doesn't notice Usagi taking a picture, and manages to strike a pose just in time; but that can only last for a moment, because she's got slightly more pressing concens than trying to look attractive to other girls in a picture. Once the barrier goes up, translucent purplish wings manifest behind her back and she lifts off, moving up towards the ceiling; unfortunately there is a ceiling (though... strictly speaking, now that the barrier is up, there doesn't really... *have* to be one), and watches as Noir punches the vending machine.... and all the little snacks inside get frowny faces.

"Wait, is that thing a hive mind?!" She retreats back a foot, "so we're fighting the Borg crossed with Capitalism. That's like... The Ultimate Evil! And it despenses stale chips and bad cookies! And punches people! WELL." She tilts her head to one side, until she can hear the vertebrae pop against each other. "Starcrash, advise on mana drain, give me intervals."

<< CONFIRMED >>

"And," she adds, pointing her staff at the vending machine now that it's... a bit more of a target. "Come on, give me a shot," she mumbles, as it manouvers around with Noir. While she's waiting, she glances over in Gretchen's direction, "This was a terrible idea by the way."

Ahh, there we go. "Fire!"

A series of Barrets all come rifling out of Molly's staff; twenty of them, one after another in rapid succession, all blasting away at the Youma and the area around it.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Noooo, curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal, dark energy creature!

    "Literally yesterday you saw what ...Sunbreaker's creation did!" Amy shouts, unsure if there might be someone here who doesn't know Hinoiri. "Maybe this is a problem with dark energy creatures? It seems like they also tend to come out kinda dumb and single-minded..."

    I'm not a villain! Did that sound villainy enough? Is... Gretchen acting on the dream of being a villain? Or is following the tropes just how she thinks it works? Amy wonders.

    And she's saddened to hear that Gretchen feels failed. Maybe she has been. Amy sighs. "You shouldn't--" call yourself a Witch, you're not that bad. Amy thinks, but... Maybe that's the wrong tack to take.

    Amy now dramatically sighs, briefly closing her eyes, and holding her empty fist to her chest. "But why?!" She dismisses her launcher and holds her other hand up at her side, fingers curled upward. "Why side with Witches? What's so great about them?"

    Red eyes watch Gretchen as Amy fishes for information.

    Only to be pelted with snacks! "Gah!" Amy ducks and upends the table next to her as a shield. If the snacks are like. Their own mini-familiars that then attack her or something, she summons the like. Tiny missile nailgun thing she used against Jumeau. Which isn't very effective if they can dodge much.

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Pulp Noir gives a wry smirk at the machine... until it grows arms, punches him right in his center of gravity and sends him flying backwards across the ground just as the barrier comes up.

He coughs and gets up from underneath the table he'd slid under and his eyes go wide as he kicks it over and uses it for cover as a snack beam fires at him next.

"Look, don't make me send you up the river." he says over the table as he draws his guns from underneath his coat and pops up from over the table as he fires powerful jets of water into the air towards the vending machine.

"There's nothing wrong with going back. Kaname-san is worried about you three." he says.

Sayaka Miki has posed:
Is she really trying to make herself a villain? She can't really believe this whole talk about Puellae and Witches always being to fight, and the fact Gretchen actually asked if she was villainous enough really was excessive.

"Gretchen, I don't think I need to remind you about what a Witch looks like", Sayaka replies with a hint of melancholy. "You are not a Witch, you are our friend. Please, stop this. If you three are hurting, we can get to solve it."

Can she though? She had failed to protect Bow. What makes her think she is any good at this?

The vending machine's snacks hit their target, Sayaka grimacing as bruises appear and disappear when her healing magic kicks in. She has to be more careful not to get hit. That was an unnecessary waste. This time she doesn't attack directly, but instead jumps back and rapidly tosses the sword towards the vending machine, augmenting the speed of the throw with magic.

"It's actually complicated, Moon. Are you aware of why Charas become X-Charas?" Sayaka chimes in on the question.

Sequoia Maybach has posed:
    Amid all the chaos of a rampaging vending youma, Weisser Ritter- that is Sequoia- has the time to raise her hand like a girl in a classroom setting.
    "Who is Madoka and why are you mad at her?"
    With that out of the way there's a slight problem.
    The youma is attacking.
    For a beat, she kind of watches, absolutely entranced, as frownie snacks go flying.
    "--Chain it down." She decides.
    <JAWOHL OFFIZIER.> Her shield once again complies as the silver-haired girl points at the vending youma.
    A triangular Belkan magic sigil forms beneath it, chains of white light lashing out to try and pin and bind the vending machine into place so others can hopefully get a good hit or two in on it.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Gretchen gives Sailor Moon her full attention for a moment, hovering ominously before saying, "No. No, there's nothing you can give us. We will never be happy. Not in the way that Brai, Medo, Lydian and Sio are. Not in the way that Hoshi is. The best we can do is escape. Dull the pain. Find relief in small joys while trying not to think about the day we get completely forgotten for good. That's why we need to create our own paradise."

    Tia twirls her little parasol and adds, "We may not be terribly angry at these civilians, no, but we are angry at the world. That's why we need to create a new one! This is for their good as well as ours."

    Rens smirks a little too arrogantly. "With enough power, we can create a perfect paradise. One where no one has to suffer."

    At Molly's criticism, Gretchen shouts back, "It's my first time, okay?!"

    Gretchen turns to Amy and asks, "Why side with Witches? Well... that's simple." She points her finger at Amy. "Witches are victims too, and there's no one who has the power to advocate for them. No one except for me. Sure they may be big scary monsters, but deep down... well... you know." Gretchen glances towards Sayaka, and then back at Amy. She doesn't go into detail and, really, she doesn't need to. "Madoka-chan probably could help them if she really, fully accepted me. But she's not there yet, and I'm not sure she ever will be. I gotta take that matter into my own hands. My better world can make things better for them, too. They wont have to hurt any more, and they wont have to harm anyone else!" She then points to Sayaka and says, "But I am a Witch! I am the Witch Kriemhild Gretchen, and I will create utopia!"

    To Weisser, Rens replies, "Shes our Chara Bearer and we're mad because she's not following her dreams. It's complicated. We Chara represent her dreams, and if she abandons those dreams then it's we who suffer."

    As for the Vending Machine Familiar, well... it's having a bit of a rough day. Energy barrets buffet it, keeping it off balance as it staggers backwards. Water jets blast into the open snack cavity where the window used to be, tearing a hole straight through to the other side. Sayaka's thrown sword pins it down, just long enough for Weisser's chains to wrap around it and hold it still.

    Rens watches as the vending machine youma gets tied up and shakes her head. "Disappointing. Oh well, back to the drawing board."

    Gretchen, feeling defensive, says, "It lasted longer than Sunny-chan's!"

    Tia adds, "You totally schooled that other youma!"

    The vending machine, now vulnerable, starts lashing out in desperation. It flings frownie snacks all over the place, covering the ground in them. Once the floor is saturated with snacks, they all start to explode with violent dark energy.

Molly Skyline has posed:
"OKay so first of all," Molly calls back to Gretchen, "Your Youma isn't using the energy it's collecting, it oughta be doing something for defense rather than just letting us pummel it for starters. Oh, and on that note, Starcrash? Charge Solar Beam."

<< ARMED >>

"See, and... probably you should GAH!" Molly stops as snacks start flying around everywhere, with their little angry faces and everything all over them.

<< ROUND SHIELD DEPLOYED >>

As Starcrash makes that automatic decision on his own, a bubble pops up around Molly, and most of the snacks (The ones that didn't already hit her) go bouncing off it; and luckily she's in flight, so she's above the explosions when they go off.

"Uhh, yeah, as I was saying, y'know, maybe give it some defense next time, maybe make it more efficient, it clearly can't deal with flyers like me, uhm... what else. Oh! Yeah, you made a *Youma*, people who do that..." She sighs softly, "Usually are trying to make a Utopia for a specific group of people, which is usually a Dystopia for everyone else. C'mon, once we're done smashing this thing to bits, maybe we could all sit down together, have some noodles, and have a little chat?" As she speaks, she levels her staff at the vending machine. "Well, time to burn down capitalism. Fire!"

Once she has her moment, the artillery mage opens fire with a superheated blast of sustained energy. And when it's over, Starcrash chimes in once again;

<< MANA RESERVES AT FIFTY PER CENT >>

"Well, bugger."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
This part isn't being recorded. Sailor Moon has put away her phone, and she looks at Gretchen with - not pity, but genuine and true sorrow, as she describes her pain, her anguish. As she says there is nothing for her but a doomed escape, until the day she disappears.

That's... awful.

"And you blame Madoka-chan for this?"

But it's not a real question, because that much is clear. Whether Gretchen is honest or merely thinks she's being honest, it's clear that as far as she's concerned, Madoka-chan could have more power, but doesn't, and that makes her an enemy, now. It's sad, considering the minidokas are so clearly a part of her friend, but -

"Then you should hide in your Labyrinth for a little while, Gretchan," the nickname is utter sadly, "Or Kriemhild Gretchan, if you like that better. Because your youma is causing trouble and first time or not, we've got to solve it. I know you don't like purification."

It's their only warning before Sailor Moon turns to the youma - leaving her back open, a sign of trust, a sign she doesn't expect the three Meaniedokas to attack her - and summons her Crescent Wand.

"Moon -"

A circle of golden light is carved into the air itself,

"Healing -"

Silver mists flood from the golden circle, and beams of light fire from the drawn end point.

"Escalation!"

The poor trapped vending machine is blasted with purifying light and bathed in mists of more of the same.

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Pulp Noir blasts holes through the machine with his BLAZING AUTOMATICS and Tracy is proud. Still, he listens to that all and says. "Yeah. You're as crazy as a bedbug, chief." he says. Pulp Noir doesn't have a big finisher. He does have ridiculous numbers of water guns.

Which means he pops back up over that table with this ridiculously large revolver and as candy explodes around him, fires the large pistol at the vending machine, smacking it with an equally large jet of water.

Somewhere. Inside, he wonders if Tracy feels like that, too? It makes him hesitate just a little as he lowers the gun after he fires before addressing the X-chara.

"What do other charas think of this?" he asks. "Besides your X-ed selves?"

Amanda Faust has posed:
    With how this sort of seemed like a silly act, Amy was expecting... well she's not sure what she was expecting, but something like if Amy said she identified more with fae or aliens or robots or something because she felt like she didn't fit in with humanity for so long.

    She's not expecting actual sympathy for the witches' plight which is, in truth, pretty terrible.

    Her expression goes neutral, then solemn as Gretchen points out that deep down, every Majou is a former Mahou Shoujo.

    Amy nods, dismissing her weapon and dropping her arms to her side. "Alright, you make a good point." She approaches. "Well, I guess I've got a vested interest in this Utopia, so: How are you going to achieve this with dark energy? And how do we stop your new world from..." She waves vaguely at the vending machine. "...Doing that? Ack!" And then she's showered with exploding candies and has to leap up onto a table.

    "It would be bad if the forgotten went there only to suffer when it attacks them, right?"

Sayaka Miki has posed:
Sayaka stops when Gretchen claims for herself the name of Madoka's Witch, the one she risks becoming in those alternative worlds where she stipulates a contract with Kyubey. "I hear you, Gretchen. But Madoka agrees with that! Do you see this?", the bluenette Puella whispers as she approaches the the Meaniedokas.

"You were there when I showed the dormant Grief Souls I am keeping custody of to Madoka, when we decided we would try to find a way to save them. Do you think we don't mean it? Please, work with us" Sayaka pleads only to Gretchen's ears, not that she expects this tentative of convincing her to go any better.

And anyway, they have a Youma to finish, though, and it's now or never, pinned to the ground as it is. Blue energy forms into a greatsword in Sayaka's hand, the huge cutlass pointed at the pinned vending machine. "Shooting Stinger", she murmurs, hurling it with incredible force and speed at the youma.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Gretchen sees Sailor Moon's back and, for a moment, feels insulted. As if she isn't regarded as a serious threat. She doesn't actually attack her in the back, though. Why not? Because Sailor Moon is cleaning up her mess and it's bad manners to be mean to those who fix your problems for you. Rens and Tia don't either because they don't feel like flagging themselves for direct PvP.

    Instead, she turns to Molly and shouts, "Nuh uh! My cool world is gonna be cool for everyone. It'll be a place where everybody plays nice!" Which is totally not a series of words that a would-be tyrant has ever said before.

    To Pulp, Tia lilts, "Depends! One cannot generalize too much. However, a Chara usually expects their Bearer to follow their dreams. As for those who become X-Chara... sadly, most of them scarcely think at all. Aside from their rage."

    To Amy, Gretchen gives her a sideways glance. "It's hard to describe. There are things about Witches that are... hard to explain to someone who thinks like a human, and I don't wanna explain too much. With enough power, I bet I can pierce a Witch's heart and reach their true selves. Normally, that power would come from my Bearer, but without her... I need to find supplemental sources." To Sayaka, she adds, "I know you mean it. I wanted to work with you. I really did, but fate isn't that kind. Not to us."

    Gretchen then glances at the Vending Machine Familiar and winces. "I just... need better control or something. I don't know. How does Sunbreaker control hers?"

    Rens clears her throat, "Well, considering yesterday... and also the story you told us about the game show... and well..."

    Gretchen mentally goes through the checklist of all the times this particular plan has gone wrong and just throws her hands into the air. "Okay, okay, I get it. Copying dummies is dumb! We need a better plan than this."

    So saying, Gretchen notices that Sailor Moon is serious about purification, so she opens a Labyrinth portal and starts dragging Rens and Tia into it. "We gotta go! She means it!" The two X-Minidokas comply and the trio vanish through the portal.

    The Vending Machine Familiar cries out as a torrent of attacks pile on top of it. Superheated energy, purifying light, high pressure water jets, and a glowing blue greatsword. Each attack shatters and burns and destroys the magical machine which eventually starts to leak 'fumes' of darkness before going up in a puff of black opal-esque smoke.

    When the smoke clears, Gretchen's portal opens up near the ceiling and she shouts down, "This never happened!" before ducking back in and vanishing for real.

Molly Skyline has posed:
Molly's beam tapers off and stops firing, the attack being one of several that has left Capitalism (the name Molly has, in her head, given to the vending machine youma) an absolute smoldering ruin. And then just a puff of smoke.

"Okay, so but think abou-- oh dang it, they're gone alreay."

Molly's wings slowly carry her back down to the floor and she touches down... surprisingly gently, given her usual habits in flying around. She sighs softly, and shakes her head. "Starcrash, dissipate the shield," she instructs, sounding exasperated. "And, has the mana drain ceased?"

<< AFFIRMATIVE. MANA DRAIN CEASED. RESERVES AT FORT-- >>

"It's okay, I think we have time to recharge, but thank you," Molly interupts, as the bubble of energy around her winks out, along with her wings. "Well," she adds, looking back and forth, right and left. "I mean... I guess that wasn't so bad?" She shrugs her shoulders.

"...Anyone want noodles?"

Hinote Kagari has posed:
Pulp Noir frowns as he says to the air, cooly.... as the vending machine explodes into energy....

"That totally happened and is going in my case notes." he says as he reaches into his coat, produces a notepad, and indeed takes the note. When he's done, he looks up to Sailor Moon and frowns a little. "A Witch. Isn't that one of those things. Like. With that. Invisible carnival a while ago?" he asks in confusion as he takes these notes too.

"I can go for some grub." he says as he looks up at Molly. "Which place?" he asks.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    A world for everyone! Reach a Witch's true self... Amy nods, seriously.

    How does Sunbreaker control hers? "BADLY!" Amy shouts, as the fight goes on.

    And then they're going. "Hey, wait, no, don't copy anyone! Don't go, we can talk about this!"

    This never happened!

    Amy throws up her hands with a 'SERIOUSLY?!' expression.

    Then she turns to look awkwardly at Sailor Moon and the others, like she's expecting to get told off.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
The Meanie Dokas dive through the portal in time to avoid being purified - and when it's over, the vending machine youma is gone, and Sailor Moon has plenty to think about.

"...I'd love noodles, but I'm here with my little brother," she admits to Molly, rubbing the back of her neck. "Before the barrier went up, he was off by the corn dogs, and I gave him enough yen he probably bought enough to get sick off of."

Bribery had worked, but at what cost? Had she truly thought her plan through?

Pulp Noir questions her about the carnival and Witches and she winces, just thinking about that experience. "Yeah. They're... monstrous beings, that hurt and kill people. But they're tragic ones too, so I guess it makes sense for Gretchan to feel sorry for them..."

And then there's Amy, looking a little hang dog, but Usagi can't blame her, considering the secret they both know. She smiles faintly at her friend. "If you can get her to talk to you some more, that might help Madoka-chan convince them to come home."

Sayaka Miki has posed:
She wanted to work with her. Of course she did. Gretchen had been nothing but sincere when she could, completely unlike Kyubey. And she had always had Madoka's best interests in mind. Perhaps fate really is unkind to them specifically. Or kind and unkind at once. It's complicated.

At Pulp Noir's question, Sayaka approaches him and talks in a low volume to him. "What I am about to say has to stay a secret at all cost. A few already know, but it becoming widespread is dangerous." She takes a deep breath, hoping she is not taking a misstep.

"Witches are Puellae that have either exhausted their magical energy or fallen to despair. Sometimes a combination of both. It's a miserable experience. When you are a Witch, you can only focus on your worst memories and relive them constantly."

She looks at her Soul Gem uncomfortably. "Kyubey set us up that way, to harvest energy. We are being really careful with our Grief Seeds, to avoid filling the Soul Gem, and we are trying to save those who have fallen too."