2973/Orange Sweeping

Orange Sweeping
Date of Scene:	12 March 2026
Location:	Plot Room 1
Synopsis:	Thanks to a hunch from Glimmer, Coco, Homura, Madoka, Usagi and Amy are able to prevent Sheshe from drawing too much power out of the Indian Ocean.
Cast of Characters:	Coco Delrieu, Madoka Kaname, Usagi Tsukino, Amanda Faust
Tinyplot:	An Ocean Aria

---

Coco Delrieu has posed:
For those who have been hanging out around Coco, they may have been noticing that her illness still persists, and while she has been looking after herself, occasional raspy coughs have started shaking her throat, combined with a slight pinkish tint that has appeared to the whites of her eyes.

Despite her situation, she hasn't really stopped looking for the Black Beauty Sisters, and frequently talking with Hippo and all of the other Mermaid Princesses. She has started talking with Glimmer too since then, and while she couldn't deny feeling tense about it, the pinkette had offered her help too in tracking down the Black Beauty Sisters.

Can she really say no, when there are two demons rampaging who knows where?

She did talk about it with Seira, and most of the resistance actually came from Coco. Even if it was a flimsy alliance, Seira didn't want to throw away any chance of stopping Sheshe and Mimi from resuming full activity.

That still left the yellow mermaid unconvinced, but she promised her to work extra hard at gathering her heart fragments. She wasn't sure she had said the right thing, given the brief look of uncertainty that had appeared on Seira's face.

At least she would hope that the activities with the Minidokas would help cheer her up a bit.

That did turn out to be the right call, in the end. A message from Glimmer almost threw Coco off her chair when she read that the Etherian had seen Sheshe advancing through the Indian Ocean with a remora youma.

Coco's hands started shaking when she read it had been sucking and blasting away the ruins of the Indian Kingdom. Was walking through the debris of their home too beneath her?

<<Please come. Glimmer found Sheshe, moving through the Indian Kingdom with a youma.>>, she quickly texts to their group chat. She doesn't even worry about where. By now, they have all gathered at the Shed many times.

"Hello, everyone", she greets her friends, standing up from the grassy patch in front of the Shed, and brushing a bit of dirt off her skirt. "Thank you for coming again. Do we go then?", she quickly asks.

Seira waves too, looking at them one by one. "I appreciate it too. Even if I haven't started living there yet, I still consider it my home, and I want to help however I can in protecting it."

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    "It's your territory by right," says Homura, standing next to Madoka. The two of them would not refuse a call to action from Coco. Especially not with the BBS running amok and causing them even more problems.

    Madoka glances towards Coco, and Medo sits on her left shoulder scratching her chin, but for the moment the pink girl is keeping any concerns about her health to herself. However, her ability to keep a poker face is D grade on a good day, so she instead focuses on the portal and the immediate threat they're about to face.

    Kamiko sits on Madoka's right shoulder and waves at Seira. "We'll send those dummies packing. Don't worry about it. Right, Doka-chan?"

    With a smile, Madoka nods. "Right! Ready to go whenever you are, Coco-chan."

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Usagi arrives at the Shed with an air of weariness that's perhaps not entirely unexpected - this weekend she had been partially possessed by the ghost of a friend's mother, then she had bought a house in a swindle that left her tired and proud, and now -

"If they want energy so much, we'd give them some if they'd just quit being violent about it," Usagi says, frustration evident in her voice as she enters the Shed. "If they'd just live in peace with everyone, we'd share! I've got enough power to throw around, why not stop the fight before it starts?"

But no. But no, because for some reason, some people just wouldn't stop unless they were forced to, even if the ones forcing them didn't even want to be doing it.

"Hi, everyone. Let's go run them off again!"

Amanda Faust has posed:
Text from AMY:
What was Glimmer doing in the Indian Ocean?
Nevermind, on my way

    As before, she hurries across campus in henshin, and -- oh Coco and the others are still outside. Amy stumbles to a stop, she was expecting to rush through the door and dash straight to the portal. She gives Coco and Seira a questioning look, and nods in agreement with Usagi's words. "Right? I wish people were willing to see they'll have a better chance finding happiness without hurting as many people as they can, but..." she shrugs. "If they thought that way they probably wouldn't turn to Dark Energy in the first place..."

Coco Delrieu has posed:
<PHONE> Coco texts: She wasn't there. Michel helped her get a better grasp on her scrying powers. Something like that.

"Thank you, I am so glad to have you here", Coco smiles widely when she receives the eager answer to her call. Really, she is so lucky to have friends so nice with her. Would she have gotten this far without them? Not without many more hardships than what she actually experienced, she is sure. She shifts slightly away, a faint warmth rising to her cheeks, and lets out a soft, raspy cough.

"I don't think they'd stop there, Usagi-chan. If they actually restore themselves, the Black Beauty Sisters aren't going to live in peace." She gives a small smile to the other blonde, turning back towards her.

"I too wish they would, and I am not going to stop trying to purify the dark energy out of them, but before Gaito's fall, he promised them a part of the Earth. That's who we are dealing with. Let's do our best, but keep our guard up", she warns, but the last words come out a little throaty. Maybe there will be a solution like that, when they have finally put a stop to this.

Their defense should be able to manage for now, at least. Still, she couldn't deny it made her nervous.

"Seira, please." Coco turns to the Indian Ocean princess, who closes her eyes humming. A second later a rainbow point forms in front of them, and orange starts pushing the seven colours to the edges, quickly expanding in a swirly portal large enough to let one person through.

Coco is the first to step through, followed by the ghostly mermaid, quickly traversing the dream corridor on the other side. For about twenty seconds, her steps on the intermittent stones is all she can feel. Then she reaches the other end, and the familiar embrace of water greets her, and she sighs out a bit in relief at the cool sensation.

The unwelcome sight of Sheshe doesn't escape her, standing just next to what looks like a tall grey woman with a fish head, both turned away from the dream corridor. There is a noise like a suction machine, and a giant boulder is lifted from the ground and sucked into the grey woman's mouth, only to be blasted away from her and Sheshe's paths mere seconds later.

Coco's yellow eyes, slightly reflecting the light of the corridor a little more than normal, seek the others, waiting to see if they are ready before transforming.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
Amy, Madoka, Homura, and Coco are a good team for fighting those awful sisters - together they've knocked them back before, after all. It's just... the answers make her sigh, quietly, and in the back of her mind she has the thought of giving them a piece of the Earth, alright, the mint-and-chocolate Earth in Moon Space's sky to sit underneath in an aquarium -

But trapping whole sentient beings in her dimension to the left is not much better than killing, and she's terribly, awfully afraid, in the most tired of fashions, that that's where this will all lead anyway.

Not the thing to focus on now.

Walking through the familiar portal space behind the others, she grips her compact, and on sight of the youma and Sheshe, nods grimly, clutching her broach.

"Let's stop this," she whispers, before ducking down as low as she can to transform.

Moon Crystal Power, Make Up!

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    "Yes, if only people wouldn't pick stupid fights that don't solve anything. The world would be a lot better," says Homura, not hiding the harshness of her opinion. Madoka scratches the back of her head and laughs a little awkwardly.

    The portal opens, and Madoka and Homura glance at each other. Homura decides to henshin before leaving, and Madoka henshins with Medo as well. Kamiko trails behind the pair as they walk through the Dream Corridor.

    There is a tense quiet between them as they walk over the stones, following Coco's lead. When they finally touch water, Madoka smiles for a moment. Sure, she's had a lot of fights under the sea, but also she's had good times here as well. Plus, this is the kind of place her friend lives. Or more precisely, it's the kind of place where Seira would live if she was allowed a normal birth.

    When they notice Sheshe and her youma, Hope Blossom stands close behind Coco and peeks around her, while Homura hangs back a moment and pulls a rifle out of her shield. The two of them are quiet while waiting for the others to henshin. At least it didn't take them long to find the enemy.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Would Amy have gotten so far without Coco? Even if they've been a bit more distant since Gaito, Coco's been at her side countless times, helped her find herself and get her bearings in this world of magic, and Coco's song has saved her from needing grief seeds at inoportune times that only weren't notable because they were avoided thanks to Coco. Going all-out against Beryl as she did, she might well have Witched without the mermaid princess's help.

    "He promised them a part of the Earth? Which part, what are they hoping to take over?"

    Once the portal's open, she shifts her clothes from school uniform to a slightly aquatic-adapted version of her henshin, as before, and charges through.

    It's a tense twenty seconds as they race through the dream corridor. Amy wonders what they'll find on the other side. Hopefully not the ruins of a mermaid city, with bodies in the streets...

    To her surprise, they appear behind Sheshe and her youma, apparently unnoticed. Lucky!

    Amy conjures an artillery cannon, then dismisses it as she thinks better of it and waits for the others to henshin before starting the fight.




Much later, in the dorms:
    A student walking down the hall startles at shrieked words from behind Amy's door: "She has SCRYING POWERS?!"

Coco Delrieu has posed:
Whatever Coco might have to say about the situation with Glimmer, it is convenient that they get to just... show up behind them. Usually they are the one getting surprised with a youma attack. This is a nice change of pace. And with everyone getting ready to transform, she isn't being left behind either.

The yellow mermaid doesn't answer Amy's question. They have bigger trouble on their hands, and she doesn't really know the answer either. Their gloating hadn't been that specific.

Curving her hands in a vague x-shape around her shell locket, yellow light radiates in around Coco, and a kaleidoscope of colour flourishes over her form. "Yellow Pearl Voice!" Soft light spreads from her, and her tail splits into two human legs, taking a solid stance on the ground.

The rainbow energy glimmers and clings, warping into pale yellow boots that flow into overlapping fabric. Rising up, a golden yellow dress and a short yellow pleated skirt blossom onto her and her pearl gleams and expands, settling comfily into her hand as her trusty E-Pitch microphone, with the yellow jewel nestled safely in the head's center.

The light of their henshins mix, and shine just bright enough to cause Sheshe to turn around in a snap, placing a hand on her youma's shoulder. "The squad has arrived. Get ready." Her blue eyes shine brightly with excitement, and for a moment, a red glow surrounds the shadowy silhouette.

"I see you are with us, Mermaid Princess. What, were the beds so uncomfy you couldn't rest?", she sneers, looking at Coco with a lifting of her lips that only briefly exposes the wavering essence of her teeth. "Don't worry, we have an accomodation worthy of you and your friends too."

She isn't sure if anyone here was in the group that ruined Mimi's efforts, but that's no matter. They will see why it's better not to all the same. With a snap of her fingers, there is a veil of dark energy that quickly grays out their surrounding, and they can feel the oppressive feeling of a canopy of dark energy.

A quick look may give the magical heroes the distinct feeling that this is not like a barrier, but nonetheless there is a subtle pulsing sensation, and the feeling that this space is inimical to pure energy.

Coco's skin shivers unpleasantly at the dark energy sensation, and she forces a deep breath, trying to ignore the magical field Sheshe has brought. She had no idea she was able of anything like that. Guess there is a reason why she was the one to lead hers and Mimi's charge.

A harp shows up next to the water demon, and its strings, thin and not unlike razor wire, detach itself and extend towards Sailor Moon, trying to cut her at her arms.

Sheshe snaps her fingers again, and the French horn that appears next blasts a sound wave that curves rapidly and tries to strike Coco and Puella Red from behind.

The youma makes her move too, and there is that sucking noise again. A big piece of marble disappears inside the youma's mouth, and is then blasted at Hope Blossom and Homura, displacing a huge amount of water in its course to them.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Homura's eyes narrow as Sheshe turns around. So they were noticed. Well, what's done is done. When Madoka hears the anglerfish demon's mockery, she frowns at her and says, "Don't be mean! It's your fault anyways."

    The sickly strange darkness that falls over the area does make Madoka double take for a moment. This is already a magical place, and it might become home to a magical society again one day, but the thought that it might be a barrier makes her both concerned and relieved. At least, until she realizes that it's not a barrier, just a dark field. In which case she is only concerned and now moreso.

    It really does not feel good here. Especially not for Madoka. Homura notices how her partner is taking it and steps in front of her protectively. The Puella watches as the youma takes a bite out of marble and spits it at the two of them. Holding up her shield, a shell of purple magic flares out in front of her, softening the blow somewhat as the marble chunk impacts her buckler. The blast sends her back into Madoka, and the two of them tumble backwards until they grip each other and manage to right themselves.

    Homura then glares at the youma and aims her rifle at the monster. "You have to be one of the weirdest creatures I've ever seen, and I don't say that lightly." She squeezes the trigger and shoots at the remora youma, still standing in front of Madoka while the pinkette gets her bearings. Kamiko decides to hide in a Labyrinth because she really does not like what's going on here.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Sheshe turns around. Dammit. Amy should've just blasted a while she had the chance, even it would've been full magic cost. (Although... without calling out, she couldn't really do that much damage anyway...) "Tch." She conjures her usual shoulder launcher, and glances uneasily at Yellow Pearl Voice, hoping for music. She doesn't have a grief seed right now, but even so, with Coco's song she can afford to hit pretty hard if she has to.

    As the grey not-a-barrier forms, she just shoots. At least Sheshe will have to react, or be knocked back by the explosion.

    "Tch, first the haunted house and now this? Why's everyplace wanna drain me?!"

    Amy's suspicious of that sound wave -- a split second after it seems to 'miss' her, she realizes no one is standing in that direction and turns around, just in time to use an explosion to launch herself towards Coco and knock them out of the way. Coco can easily swim even if she's horizontal, but Amy's left disoriented for a brief moment.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
The - no, it's not a barrier, but it's something, a field like an Eclipse Zone, and Sailor Moon grimaces, and reaches for her Moon Scepter, calling it back to her hand, light gathering at the end.

"Right," she mutters, squinting at the harp, and then raises her Scepter. "Alright, since you're not giving us anything to work with, we're just going to have to do the hard way!"

Light gathers at the end of the scepter, blasting for the conjured instrument even as some of the wires strike her arms, winding -

"Not like this! You should have asked for help and been friendly, instead of doing all this bullshit!"

Sailor Moon's the kind of girl who usually curses during texts and is more polite in person, but she's tired and now she's being drained and now - now this is all really, really annoying.

"Because Dark Energy is a one trick pony!" She calls to Amy as she yanks her arms winds up freeing herself at the cost of losing her glove to the wires.

Coco Delrieu has posed:
"Paradise of the Sun: Pichi Pichi Voice, Live Start!", Coco utters with a scratchy undertone to her words that follows her into her song. The harmony comes out dissonant in places, and there are moments in which Coco is clearly holding back a cough.

Let's go on an adventure beyond the sun and wind
I will show you a place where we can go
And we can open the door
To paradise

When I first saw you
The angels were smiling down on you
The heavens ring with celebration
People are born holding just one treasure in their hands

I will never forget the feelings from that day
Still flowing in my heart
Dear my songs

In the middle of our journey
Heading for the land of the sun
Without a map, we head to the Promised Land
This great story will take us to a future without limits
I'm sure all our dreams will come true
So smile!

Coco accompanies it with an actual smile at her friends, and the same peaceful aura spreads nonetheless, lessening fatigue. The Live Stage gets reinforced against the French horn attack, repelling it just enough to direct it to the side of the glowing sphere of light. The purifying song dissipates some of the dark canopy's oppressive sensation, and the youma's face twists into a pained grimace.

"This is horrible! What even is this?", it comments, and look back at Sheshe's relaxed face. "Go ahead, and just ignore it, this is your duty", she commands uncaringly, "Really didn't this, did you?", Sheshe answers Homura's comment in place of the shoulder, gripping the creature's shoulder even tighter. "Too bad that's all you will get to do."

Sailor Moon's response only makes Sheshe laugh more. "What, is this really your limit to understanding me, or Mimi? Your rules don't work with us, princess", she says derogatorily. "It's only a one trick because why perfect anything else when it works.

At her words, the veil of darkness shimmers a little, and a thin line of white light starts flowing towards Sheshe, and then another, and another. Coco brings a hand to her forehead, feeling the pulse of her fever worsen. "You ok, Red?", she asks weakly when she sees Sheshe's attack land and leave her disoriented.

There is a little bit of energy leaving her too, not really enough to make it hurt normally, but she doesn't have that benefit currently. She still looks at the lines of energy coming from the environment, eyes wide with understanding. "Oh, you don't get to do that too!"

The others can too feel that pull, but it's very easy to ignore and resist, and while the subtle drain occurs, there isn't as much power going into the dark harp, and Sailor Moon's attack easily destroys it.

The youma inhales sharply, trying to get another piece of stone to use as ammunition against the magical girls, but instead ends up pulling Homura's attack to her faster, and the missile crashes against the fish, yanking it away from Sheshe's grip, and sending it crashing against the very stone it wanted to suck.

"Why don't you pay more attention!?", Sheshe shouts furiously, and she extends an arm, and from her dark hand, tendrils strike out, hanging themselves into the youma, and forcing her up with a flow of dark energy.

The red demon snaps her fingers again, and the surviving French horn turns towards Homura blasting that same recurve sound wave, trying to get past her guard and strike at Hope Blossom. "I remember this. You were always trying to defend that pinkette. Someone special?", she asks gleefully.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    They're all getting drained, which is expected from Dark Energy, but that doesn't mean Madoka and Homrua like it. Coco is coughing, and the fact that she always gives off an impression like she's trying to hide it or distract them from it is really not reassuring. Especially not with Medo being the one influencing Madoka right now.

    The youma getting a mouthful of ammo reminds Madoka of a video game she's played recently.

    They don't have time to think about that though, because now the French horn is blasting them. Homura holds up her shield, expending more of her precious Soul Gem to endure the effects, but the consistency of the sound waves prevents her from attacking back.

    Is Madoka someone special? Homura bares her teeth at Sheshe. She really doesn't like the way she's asking that. Feeling a veiled threat, she returns with one of her own. "Special? Well... I mean..." Her eyes glint. "I'd kill for her."

    As much as Homura is on the ropes right now, she does have two advantages. For one, she is keeping most of the pressure off of her partner. For another, getting blasted by a purifying attack doesn't really harm her. So when Madoka places her hands in a heart shape over her Humpty Lock, she can just aim through Homura to target Sheshe and her youma beyond.

    "Negative Heart: Lock on! OPEN HEART!" shouts Hope Blossom, sending a wonderful white and rainbow blast of purifying energy into the air and especially at Sheshe. Will it work against the field? She doesn't know, but she hopes to find out.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Oh, Coco was fine. Amy sails through the Live Stage feeling silly.

    Of all things, Amy's mind latches onto 'dark energy is a one trick pony' and imagines it as a KKF pony-- no NOT NOW ADHD

    Focus on Coco's song. Adventure, the world we could show you if only you'd let us show you the promised land... yeah, very on-point for the banter between Sailor Moon and Sheshe right now.

    She stands up from the ground with some sand on her, answering Coco's concern with "I'm fine."

    "But Dark Energy isn't good at everything. And if you want to be a good villain, shouldn't you have some backup plans?"

    I'd kill for her. Amy wonders just how Madoka and Homura became so close... and remembers being ready to throw her life away to stop Otto if it came to it.

    Then Madoka's readying a finisher, and Amy refocuses her attention on Sheshe. "For example, did you ever figure out how to make that shield of yours last against--"

    Neutron Piercer!

    BANG, BANG, BANG, to the beat of Coco's song, the cannon Red's holding fires three APFSDS rounds like giant darts, and then disappears as missile racks appear all over her body.

    MAHOU MISSILE MASSACRE!

    A swarm of dozens and dozens of minimissiles spreads out and then homes in on Sheshe from all angles! And a few of the missiles veer off towards the youma's mouth just in case it's thinking of trying anything.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"My understanding is that you're a selfish, self-absorbed user who'd rather take from others than live in peace, but I am trying to understand you, and how it must feel - to be so weak, and afraid, and be given everything and have it all taken away," Sailor Moon's voice had started scornful, but softens into sympathy, by the end there. "Because Gaito took away your power, and now you're looking for it again, but there's something you just don't understand, about all this..."

And the drain is there, pulling power, but there's something that Sailor Moon has in droves, unwanted, undesired, but has: power. Sheshe drains power, and Sailor Moon stands against it, furious.

"We're not people you can break down and swallow."

She slashes the air, and silver light blazes out, a sustained beam of purifying power barreling right for the Beauty Sister.

"Moon Princess Halation!"

Coco's voice soothes and strengthens, but there's weakness to it, scratchiness, and she worries. So the best thing to do is what she always does: finish the fight.

Coco Delrieu has posed:
Sheshe grits her teeth when Hope Blossom's purification blasts at her from behind Homura. The veil of darkness over this section of the Indian Ocean vastly reduces, concentrating it directly over the group of combatants, and a particularly intense shroud covers Sheshe specifically.

The youma starts sucking again, trying to gather as many boulders as it can from the ruins, but the Mahou Missile Massacre wrecks through them all, and even though the current it created managed to pull the missiles away from Sheshe, nothing reduces the concentrated fire power, and blast against it again and again, leaving it a wreck against the seabed of the Indian Ocean.

The energy drain is continuing, but the white and rainbow blast of purifying still continues with no indication it's lessening in any measure. The silver light of the Moon Princess Halation reaches for the defending black Beauty Sister at about the same time, and the two flows of energy merge together, doubling in size and then some.

Many cracks start forming and filling with white in the protection Sheshe has formed over herself, and the connection she has formed with the youma inverts, becoming a flow of energy that flows from the remora to the red demon.

Even if you can't see it, there is a treasure deep in your heart
I will never forget the feelings from that day
Opening my heart wide
Dear my place

The bells of hope are ringing, and the doors to our fate are opening
I'm sure we will reach the last paradise
Even if a ray of sadness overwhelms us, we'll keep swimming
From the bottom of my heart, I have to keep believing...
In myself

Over the rainbow
A new tomorrow's being born
Hear it loud
In the middle of our journey
Heading for the land of the sun
Without a map, we head to the Promised Land
This great story will take us to a future without limits
I'm sure all our dreams will come true

The power she has instilled inside the youma is quickly diminishing, but a lot of isn't returning, purified by the song of the Seven Seas even as it struggles to go on. The same is happening to the fish's shape, returning to the small remora she always was, and the shadowy tendrils retreat reluctantly, left without energy to drain.

With a loud crack, the shroud of darkness breaks and fades, and though the combined purification doesn't reach Sheshe, the zone of darkness ends, and so is the drain. Coco wipes sweat away from her brow, sighing in relief and looking warily at Sheshe.

The Black Beauty Sister gives a brief glance at Sailor Moon at her defiance, squinting at her, then goes back to look at Homura with a smile. "Hey, I get you", she says, looking unperturbed by Homura's threat. Her eyes don't show any sign of the mirth she had a second earlier, though.

"It was always just me and Mimi making it up the ladder, and she is dear to me, and I respect you. How about this then? I let you and your girl go, and in exchange the two of you leave us alone. Honest promise." She raises both hands next to her head, though their shadowy essence kinda mixes, and makes it hard to tell where one begins, and one ends.

At the same time, there is a flicker of orange energy behind the water demon.

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    "No thanks," says Homura. "I've had my fill of making deals with devils. Besides, I don't really think you're in a position to bargain."

    Madoka notices the flicker of orange behind Sheshe and wonders for a moment. Could that be a part of Seira? She didn't think that Sheshe and Mimi were working with Michel, and in fact she's still reasonably sure they aren't or Glimmer wouldn't snitch on them. Did they steal something from the angel, then?

    She taps her branch bow, and one of Kamiko's Witch Stickers appears on it. They share a silent telepathic conversation for a moment that their friends might overhear.

    Madoka thinks, < Behind her. Is that...? >

    Kamiko hms, then says, < Well... only one way to find out! >

    A tiny Labyrinth portal appears behind Sheshe and a squad of tiny Familiars pour out. Four of them buzz around Sheshe's head while the fifth investigates the glow behind her.

    Because the Familiars can be swatted away by Sheshe like flies, Madoka decides to provide a distraction by firing an arrow at the angler demon. When it gets close to her, it explodes like a firework spreading pink sparks everywhere.

Usagi Tsukino has posed:
"No," Sailor Moon says, and her voice is flat, now. The deal wasn't for her, but she'll speak up anyway. "You'd rather eat whole kingdoms than stop, and a deal with you is just a promise waiting to break. I won't let you try to hurt my friends."

The Moon Scepter vanishes in a sparkle of light, and Sailor Moon turns in a sharp spin as the Spiral Heart Moon Rod replaces it.

The energy drain has stopped, the dark field has faltered, and Sailor Moon is stronger than so many get to be. She has power to throw around, and while she doesn't want Sheshe or Mimi dead, she does want them stopped, and so far, nothing seems to be stopping them. Maybe a little overwhelming force will at least slow her down, for a while.

She spins, and spins, and the hearts begin popping into the air around her, the ribbons of her bow flaring, her skirts twirling, and a pink heart poofs into existence and begins to grow to huge size, the height of a city bus, easily, and it spins and spins until it's forming a vortex in the water.

Sailor Moon points the Spiral Heart Moon Rod directly at Sheshe.
[Ransi(#ffffd7,")]Moon Healing Escalation!"

The great pink heart flies for her with the speed of a bullet train, where unless dodged somehow, it will crash through her until her body forcces out an outline.

Amanda Faust has posed:
    Amy watches her missiles fly towards Sheshe with expectant determination, only to look shocked when the Remora youma uses its control over the water to draw the finisher meant for Sheshe. It's not a bad trade, really, but every time one of her called attacks doesn't hit the intended target she feels keenly the measure of her soul spent on it. Thank goodness for Coco's song lessening the cost this time!

    "Are you kidding? That's just giving you what you want. We might as well say that we promise not to attack you if you go back to being fishes! And I mean, we wouldn't attack you then, but also, you get nothing you want."

    Amy takes a breath, and holds her hands out in a heartfelt plea: "Can't you listen to her song? If we work together we could reach a better world... your heart is a treasure as much as anyone else's, but you make us fight you instead of treating it as such!"

    Amy sighs. "I guess that's why we have to keep swimming... So that one day, whoever's alive then can see that future without limits where all dreams come true..."

> Behind her. Is that...?
    << Is that what? I have no idea. >>

    Amy conjures her pistols, ready to help distract Sheshe from the familiars--

> Moon Healing Escalation!
    New plan!

    Neutron Piercer!

    Amy dismisses the pistols and summons her recoilless artillery cannon, calling out the attack and firing one, two, three APFSDS rounds like giant darts at mach 5, hoping to break Sheshe's shield and make her take the full brunt of Sailor Moon's attack without it!

Coco Delrieu has posed:
Coco's eyes widen as she stares at Sheshe offering Homura a deal. Or is it a truce? Is she really being sincere here? Well, Sheshe would have much to gain from it, so it's not out of the possibility, but she doesn't really know.

The yellow idol gives Homura a nod when she turns down the deal, and when Madoka creates a telepathic link, she follows it up with << I think you did the right thing. They betrayed Gaito too anyway. >>

The Black Beauty Sister gives Puella Red and Sailor Moon an oblique stare. "That offer wasn't for you, or Sailor Moon, or the Mermaid Princess. I was only talking to the Panthalassa girl. And there is nothing for us in your idea of peace, or the Mermaid Princesses'."

Of course that deal wasn't going anywhere, so it's a shame. Guess she will have to pack it up and go away. Maybe there will be an occasion some other time.

Coco holds back a snort when she hears Sheshe refers to Homura like that, and watches Madoka's familiars approach the demon from behind. She wants to know what is up with that too, and considering Sheshe previously got some of her powers too, she doesn't have a good feeling about that.

When Madoka's familiars get close enough, they can find it's just dark energy being released from Sheshe's body, and doesn't really resemble Seira's heart fragments despite the colour.

When the volley of attack by both Sailor Moon and Puella Red starts crossing the distance between them and Sheshe, the orange energy intensifies, and they can all feel themselves start slowing down. Or rather, even the water flow is, and Homura might be able to understand this is time being manipulated.

Time is still flowing however, even at a reduced speed, and the group can perceive Sheshe waving at them and leaping out of the attack's range before disappearing.

With her absence, the seconds start flowing normally, and the attacks land against the seafloor. "That was a power from the Orange Pearl", Coco says with a grimace.

Amanda Faust has posed:
<< She thinks Akemi-san is a Panthalassa? >>

    Amy fires and--

    Everything is moving in slow motion, except her perception. It's kind of fascinating to see her supersonic attack slowed down like this. Sheshe is still moving at normal speed, and basically taunts them before leaping away and teleporting(?)

                   --time is flowing normally again. Amy doesn't even bother with the followup shots, there's nothing to shoot.

    Well, now she's glad she didn't have a whole finisher launched at Sheshe -- at least the missiles hitting the youma did something.

    She lets out a breath she didn't know she was holding. "So... does that light mean everything is gonna go slow-motion again, next time we see it?"

    Amy looks at the others. "Well... at least we didn't get hit too bad, it seems like? And we stopped her attack on the mermaids..."

    Amy turns to Coco, smiling. "I liked your song, too. I hope Earth can one day reach that future."

    A glance down at her soul gem finds it about a tenth corrupted. Not bad.



    "...Is Akemi-san part Panthalassan? How can we tell?"

Madoka Kaname has posed:
    Panthalassa. Right. Homura does kinda look the part. She reaches up to her hair, looks at it for a moment, and then flips it behind her.

    Of course, she does this in the sea, so the hair hangs in the water for far longer than it would in the air, and Madoka gets a front row seat to how pretty this looks. It's only at this point that Homura becomes aware that her habit would maybe not have the same result it usually does.

    Kamiko is a little disappointed that they aren't getting a heart fragment today, but that orange glow is similar to the pearl somehow.

    Now time is being manipulated, slowing down, and Homura immediately reaches for her shield but she's too late. Sheshe is gone.

    When Coco confirms that it was power from the Orange Pearl, Kamiko appears out of her Labyrinth portal and says, "Um... do you think maybe they have a heart fragment... or were they drawing that power from this location? Can they do a thing like that? I didn't see a fragment on her."

    Homura turns to Amy and says, "A case of mistaken identity. I'm pretty sure if I had Panthalassan powers I wouldn't be able to make a contract."

    Well... reasonably sure. Who knows?

    "... I know my parents are native Japanese. It's very unlikely they're some castaways from a long lost undersea kingdom, and I'm reasonably sure they didn't adopt me since I look like my mother."

    That's a bit more solid proof.

    

Coco Delrieu has posed:
<<It's not really a problem. Just a confusion.>> Coco explain to Amy. Were all problems this simple, they could simply let it be and it would fix itself, or just end forgotten.

She swims closer to Madoka, and look at Kamiko quietly. "I think it's just like the case of the Live Stage projectiles. She probably absorbed it from this place", she rasps. Which is troubling enough if they just keep doing it.

She doesn't comment on Homura divulging a bit more about her heritage. She is the expert there, and she doesn't think the contract would have worked either. Or even if it would, she assumes there would gave been a sign that Homura would have known.

Well, no matter, time to go back.