Ocean Days

by Zesh

A fight with Fisheye ends with the Guardians and Tuxedo Mask being transported to Bikini Bottom. While trying to think of a way to return to Japan and stop the Dead Moon Circus, a botched plan from Plankton causes robots to rampage around Bikini Bottom. Together with SpongeBob, Patrick, and Sandy, the Sailor Team must keep the robots from destroying Bikini Bottom.

44. A Day at the Park

Chapter Forty-four: A Day at the Park

Squidward settled into his bubble bath, letting out a breath he'd been holding since starting his day in the Mermalair. The past two days had been tougher than being crammed in the treehouse with SpongeBob and Patrick in Kelp Forest. He started yesterday by being driven out of his home—the robots had tired of destroying his home, leaving it near shambles, but not touching his bathtub—only to be stung by jellyfish once he reached the Fields. Nature and Squidward did not get along, and SpongeBob and Patrick worsened Squidward's forays into the wild, so Squidward tried to stay inside. Going outside for work, he could handle. He was able to remain unscathed. With the blasted robots about, even his home wasn't safe.

Hopefully, he could steal a few hours of respite. His bath heated and loosened joints. Thoughts of the robots, SpongeBob, Patrick, and those humans whistled out of his head. The world consisted of Squidward and his bath alone.

Hollering from outside. Robots must be electrocuting someone. He slid deeper into his bath. Should've gotten his earplugs.

Rumbling from outside. The self-portraits in Squidward's bathroom shook like pendulums.

"Barnacles." Snatching a towel hanging on the rim of the rub, Squidward stepped out of the tub and then tied the towel around his waist. He couldn't ignore the earthquake.

He walked to the window. Outside, no robots wheeled about. The people in Bikini Bottom weren't so stupid that they ran and screamed for no reason.

Squidward's pupils contracted. His worst nightmare had come true.

A robot at least sixty feet tall rose from the depths of Rock Bottom, grabbing the cliff and pulling itself upright. The robot stretched, yawning, holding an empty metal ice cream cone. It licked its lips, grinning, its teeth filed into points.

That thin, floppy forehead, those black shorts, that giant stomach, its pinkness…

Squidward staggered. No, no, no.

That robot was stomping toward his tiki. The robots must've installed something on that robot to make it know who Squidward was. This robot wouldn't be only annoying. It would be deadly, could kill him while it tried to play with him.

Not bothering to put on clothes, he scurried, fell on his knees, scrambled upright, and sprinted down the stairs. He had to hide somewhere. The robot could destroy his tiki while trying to find him. Windows dotted Squidward's tiki. The robot looked like it was lumbering outside, but it took several-foot-long strides. It'd reach his tiki faster than he could escape.

"Merciful Neptune, save me." Why bother? The egomaniac was probably busy flexing his muscles in the mirror.

He hunkered under his couch. Maybe this robot would be just as much as an idiot as the non-robot version and think that Squidward wasn't home if the octopus remained quiet.

The quaking grew more vigorous. The robot peered into a window in SpongeBob's pineapple, said something like, "SpongeBob?" and then lifted the pineapple, shaking it. Couches, televisions, beds, SpongeBob's foghorn that woke Squidward at four o'clock every morning, fell. Gary didn't fall out. An excellent time for the snail to be out paying the electric bill or however he spent his time during the day.

The robot's eyes reddened. Grabbed the pineapple between both hands and squeezed. Juice leaked out. With a roar, it squeezed harder, and the pineapple exploded in a burst of juice, remnants of furniture, electricity from its lights.

The world dimmed once more. Even though he was close to fainting, Squidward had to run.

He rushed out from under the couch and sprinted toward the door. The robot was stomping toward his tiki. The door had been broken down. The robot glanced down, right at Squidward.

Squidward slid to a stop. "Uh, hi."

The robot grinned, let out something that resembled a laugh. It reached toward Squidward. The octopus shrieked.

---

As they flew back to Bikini Bottom, Michiru carrying Patrick on a wave, they passed over holes in the road, on Rock Bottom's living sand. The place was silent, seemingly abandoned. Mrs. Puff was gone. Hopefully, she hadn't been affected by whatever had happened.

The group asked a fish in Rock Bottom. He blubbered, gesturing wildly, and then fell on his back, eyes blank.

Minako crouched beside the fish, feeling his forehead, his pulse. "Is this thing that scary? And how come didn't see it?"

"It must've emerged somewhere around here." Michiru lowered the wave. She wasn't tiring, but she didn't want to waste energy. "We didn't see any signs of it in the Trench."

Poking his head out of Patrick's pocket, Plankton wiped a tear from his eye. "My robots, so brilliant, just like their creator."

Minako rolled her eyes. She turned toward the dirt. "Maybe the soil would know." Scowled. "I sound ridiculous."

"Anything goes in Bikini Bottom," Rei said. "You sound sensible."

"We've had our differences, the dirt and I, but it might still be willing to answer me." She cleared her throat. "Excuse me, pffith, Mr. Dirt? Uh, Mr. Soil, pffith? However you want to be called, pffith, can you answer a question for me?"

The dirt grumbled, stirred, pushed up from the ground. "Pffith, what do you want—piffith—again—piffith—with you dirty hands?"

Minako twitched. "We're here—pffith—to help you—pffith—you fu—I mean, Mr. Dirt, piffith."

Thank goodness she had a modicum of self-control.

"Who made—pffith—all these holes—pffith?"

The dirt shrunk. "Augh, it was—piffith—terrible. It came outta nowhere—piffith. Just stepped on everything—pffith. Crushed my friends—pffith."

"What did it—pffith—look like?"

"Metal. Pink—pffith. Giant—piffith. Huge—pffith—stomach." He grew a finger, pointed at Patrick. "L-like him—pffith. You, you…" The dirt screamed, blowing raspberries, and slid into the distance, raising two arms that it had grown.

Minako straightened. The group looked everywhere but at Patrick. Michiru stared after the dirt. No one wanted to bring up the obvious.

Patrick patted his hands on the wave, eyes bright. He didn't realize the obvious. Maybe for the better.

"Let's go back," Michiru said. Nothing to do but to return. They could discuss with the rest of their friends.

Michiru guided the wave so far up that, hopefully, others couldn't see Patrick, lest they become afraid, some attacking the starfish out of fear.

As they flew up the cliff, toward Bikini Bottom, Michiru glanced at her fellow Guardians. Both Sailors Venus and Mars panted, faces flushed from exhaustion of fighting the robots, the lasers, VesVes. Sailor Mars shouldered the added burden of fighting Tiger's Eye in her nightmare.

They couldn't handle another robot. Not now. Not by themselves.

At least VesVes was out of the picture, plunging into Rock Bottom's darkness. Michiru felt a faint tug; VesVes lingered about, but she was far from the Guardians and the sea creatures.

Sunlight sparked in the distance, grew, warming Michiru's face. She landed on the sand, Minako and Rei landing on either side of her.

Releasing a breath, Minako started forward, ever the leader. "I can't believe we've been down here for only a little more than a day. Have we slept at all?"

"I've been so uncomfortable everywhere," Rei said, "that it feels impossible to sleep."

Minako lifted her hands over her head, lacing her hands and cracking them, arcing her back. "I'm kind of hoping that no one else is at Shady Shoals when we get there. I really wanna sleep for a little while." She rubbed her eyes, yawning, not trying to politely hide her yawn. Either she was really tired or really rude. "Usually, I'm all for staying awake to have fun, but this, this is something else."

She had a point. Michiru had been in Bikini Bottom for only a few hours, but it felt as though she'd been down here for several days.

The group walked on in silence. On top of the wave, Patrick grinned at the holes in the ground. Bikini Bottom was as desolate as Rock Bottom had been. The robot had scared everyone into hiding.

They reached the rest home. Thankfully, no robots were around. Maybe they had followed the giant robot wherever it had gone. Its tracks led away from Bikini Bottom, into the countryside. With the robot away from others, perhaps the group could rest for a few minutes.

Michiru lowered the wave. Couldn't keep it up forever. "Time to get off."

Patrick pouted but rolled off the wave, landing on his feet. If others saw him, would they attack, thinking that he was associated with the robots?

"Patrick, why don't you go play in there?" Rei pointed to a bush.

"With you?"

"No, by yourself." Coughed. "I mean, I'm exhausted. I'd rather get a few minutes rest."

"Okay." He skipped inside the bush.

Plankton called, "Well-played."

Michiru nodded. "That should keep him out of others' sights for a while."

Placing her back upon the rest home's wall, Minako slid down, sitting, releasing a gargantuan yawn. "Yeah. I don't know about you guys, but I can't handle one more thing until sle..." She closed her eyes, let her head hang down. She rose and fell, snoring softly.

Michiru's eyes softened. Despite being Guardians, all of them were growing teenagers. Adults talked about the energy that teenagers and children had, but they had their breaking points.

On the other hand, Rei blinked rapidly, fighting to stay awake in front of her mentor. Her brow was creased in concentration.

"Trying to sense where our enemies are?" Michiru said.

Rei started, blinked her red-rimmed eyes more rapidly than before. "Uh, yes, I am." Her eyes sharpened. "I can feel them faintly, but I can't tell where exactly." Sighed. "My powers have been known to be wrong sometimes."

"Hm." Michiru stepped beside Rei as Patrick poked his finger out the bush to draw in the dirt, humming. Was he drawing pizza? "I can't feel them, either. My powers aren't nearly as strong as yours, though."

Rei smiled, glanced at the ground. Too modest to agree. A good trait for a princess to have.

Maybe the younger Guardians needed mentorship, not coddling. Long before meeting the Outer Guardians, they had taken care of themselves.

Michiru cupped her hands behind her back. "In a way, I'm glad we were all transported down here. We've been forced to work together, much different than only being together."

Rei's smile broadened. Talking was making her more comfortable. "That's true. I never thought I'd fight alongside only you, Michiru-san." More softly, she said, "It's been an honor."

"Same to you."

Her cheeks pinked, but she managed to keep looking Michiru in the eyes.

"I'm also glad we have times like this, where we can stand and talk without distractions, with no one around," Michiru said. "Or, in this case, listening." Behind them, Minako was curled up, head tucked into her chest. Patrick's hums grew a bit louder. He found drawing in the dirt more interesting than the two Guardians' conversation. Michiru didn't care what Plankton thought, or if he could hear them. "Because now I can talk to you candidly."

Rei's breath hitched, so small and quickly that one normally wouldn't hear it, the bit of comfort she'd gained draining. "Y-you mean, you haven't been talking to me candidly already?"

"Fair to think that. I did call you needy. But you're self-sufficient. Besides, needing your friends isn't bad. Not to make excuses, but I think that my powers aren't the only things being amplified down here. I think my moods and feelings are starting to become more extreme, too."

"Bull…" Minako mumbled, sounding half-asleep. Kept snoring. Was Rei and Michiru's conversation leaking into her dreams, or was she awake? If she were awake, Minako would give the two privacy. Minako may act like an immature, annoying little girl sometimes, but not so much that she'd intrude on Rei and Michiru.

"I'm going to be open," Michiru said. "Remember my outburst in Rock Bottom, toward both you and Minako? I think that was more than my own annoyance. I usually don't snap like that."

Rei fixed her expression into a neutral one.

"Then again, maybe it's my imagination, and being down here has shown me that I'm not as mature as I thought. You watch me closely, Rei, and I know that you admire me. You've been trying to hide how observant you are of me, but it's hard not to notice."

Rei bit her lip. "I'm sorry for being so rude to you, staring at you openly. I think…I really like you, Michiru, and I want to be like you. You already know that, but…"

Michiru squared her expression. "I'm not perfect, Rei."

Rei blushed more deeply. "You seem perfect. I mean, you have everything together." She peered up at Michiru, a rare display of shyness. "You're beautiful, you're elegant, you're graceful, you're a great violinist. You're always calm and never—um, hardly ever—lose your temper. Actually, I think your powers may be affecting your mood because I've never seen you lash out. Even though you're calm, you show so much passion for being a Guardian."

"You want to be like me, don't you?"

Rei nodded, tapped her fingers, glanced at her fingers and then folded them.

"You're beautiful the way you are, Rei. It's fine to have role models, but there's nothing wrong with you and nothing about you that needs to be changed. Hold your head up high."

Rei looked at Michiru squarely instead of trying to hide behind nothing.

"I don't want you to be like me. Frankly, no one does. Everyone loves you for who you are, not for being Michiru 2.0. There are things I admire in you, too. I love your passion, and I wish I showed passion more often, like you do. The only time I ever show a lot of passion is with Haruka and when children fall asleep during my music lessons."

A smile, almost a grin, broke through Rei's sad countenance.

"That's another thing I wish I had: a beautiful smile like you."

Rei's smile widened. Finally realizing that, as Rei Hino, as Sailor Mars, she had her own strengths that she brought to the Sailor Team. No one was an island, and their weaknesses were balanced by others' strengths.

"Anyhow, I'm sorry to take away what little time for rest we have away from you." She gestured toward Minako, hair curtained around her face. "If you're tired, go ahead and rest. Thanks to my powers, I'm hardly tired, so I can keep watch."

"Thank you, Michiru-san. You don't have to apologize for helping me. I… You're great. Truly."

"You are, too, Don't ever forget that or let anyone tell you otherwise."

"I wo…" Rei covered her mouth just before yawning.

"You'd better get some rest."

Rei nodded. As soon as she sat beside Minako, not caring that sitting in dirt was inelegant and dirty, the rest home's door opened, and Rei started. Out came Setsuna, Ami, SpongeBob, Chibi-Usa, and Hotaru, fresh from the Mermalair. They looked as ragged as Michiru's team. Ami had bags under her eyes.

SpongeBob skipped ahead of the group. He and Patrick were full of energy, although SpongeBob had mentioned that the unemployed Patrick slept as least twenty hours a day. Maybe being a Bikini Bottom native meant that he wasn't as susceptible to fatigue as the humans.

"Wonderful, you made it back." SpongeBob jumped, feet fluttering like a butterfly's wings. "And you all look ravishing."

Rei raised an eyebrow. "Are you being sarcastic?"

Chibi-Usa rubbed her eyes. "SpongeBob's never sarcastic."

"True."

Minako rubbed her eyes, let out a yawn more gargantuan than the first one. "Aw, man, what's with the noise?" She smacked her mouth. Michiru scowled. The blonde was growing more irritating by the minute. "Mama, are you trying to wake me up with the T.V.? I may love T.V., but that strategy won't work this time." Crossing her arms, she curled more into herself, and snored softly.

"Should we leave her alone?" Ami said.

"All of us could use the sleep," Setsuna said. "Minako has the right idea."

Rei stood, brushing the dirt off her legs and skirt. "I can't sleep with so much…talking around me." She let herself smile. "I'm glad that you all made it safely."

Hotaru giggled. "I'm glad you kept your sanity."

Rei flinched. "Well…" Between Patrick's antics and her nightmare, she'd nearly lost it a few times.

Snapping his head up from his dirt portrait of himself eating pizza, Patrick rocketed out of the bush, to SpongeBob. He grabbed SpongeBob's hands, and the two danced in a circle. Michiru almost told him to get back in the bush, but no fish had passed the rest home since they'd arrived.

"SpongeBob, you're back," Patrick said. "From the Mermalair. The place I wanted to go. But you won the game fair and square. The least you could do is tell me about it."

SpongeBob wiped a tear from his eye. "It was more beautiful than the sun shining on a greasy krabby patty." His voice cracked. "It looks exactly the same as it did when we went down there together, but, but, its beauty is indescribable. Do you see these tears even the thought of the Mermalair brings to my eyes?"

Patrick's eyes welled up. "Oh, my goodness, I do, and your testimony is bringing tears to my own eyes." The two collapsed onto each other's shoulders and sobbed.

Hotaru cocked her head. "Do they cry for everything?"

"Not usually," Ami said.

"Maybe they're sleepy," Chibi-Usa said.

"Maybe it's how they always are," Rei said.

Minako swatted at her ear. "All right, I'm up, Mama. Geez." Yawning, she clambered onto her feet, reaching toward the nonexistent television. "The T.V. is so loud. Turn it off." Michiru would've thought that hell would've frozen over before Minako spoke those words.

Minako parted open her cloudy, uncomprehending eyes. "Where am I?" Blinked. "Oh. Yes. Hi, everyone." Not self-conscious about acting foolish. "Chibi-Usa, Hotaru, Setsuna, Ami, SpongeBob, you're back already." Her eyes narrowed into slits. "Some of you making it known very loudly. But I'd rather wake up to see good news instead of bad."

"The Mermalair was a lot of fun." SpongeBob fisted his hips, Patrick prancing about him. "We even got to fight the bombastic, diabolical Prawn."

Patrick froze in mid-dance. "The Prawn that does heinous deeds like shrinking people's clothes in the laundry? That Prawn?"

Michiru pursed her lips. If only the Guardians' enemies messed with people's laundry instead of seeking the universe's destruction.

SpongeBob nodded, expression grave. "Yes, Patrick. That Prawn."

"However did you defeat him, with his dastardly laundry-destroying techniques?"

He paced back and forth. "It was a long and arduous battle. Prawn broke out of his prison, fortunately while we were there, so he didn't have the chance to go to the laundry room this time. He used his funnel-horn thing to blast out supersonic waves."

Patrick blanched. "You mean, the supersonic waves he used to make Mermaid Man dance a flawless tango in episode seventy-four?"

"That very one. This time, not only did it make us dance all kinds of dances, it almost destroyed our hearing."

Patrick shook his fist. "The fiend."

SpongeBob jumped backward, feet fluttering once more, landing beside Ami, who blushed. "Thankfully, Ami here transformed into Super Sailor Mercury, defeating Prawn with her new weapon, the Mercury Harp."

Minako scrambled two inches in front of Ami. "You did? I didn't even notice."

Rei glared at Minako. "And you had the nerve to tease Patrick about not noticing your own upgrade."

She waved her hand dismissively. "That was different."

"How?" Michiru said.

Ignoring the question, Minako said, "That's great, Ami-chan." She grasped Ami's hands. "Now there's one more of us with her Super form."

Ami did look the same, save for her longer bow at the back of her skirt, but she was emitting a more powerful aura. She stood taller. Maybe being with her own mentor, Setsuna, had instilled confidence.

"Congratulations, Ami," Michiru said.

"Thank you." Ami's energy fed off Michiru's. A faint, blue glow surrounded her. With Michiru and Ami near each other, and both women with their Super form…

Couldn't be arrogant. Anything could happen.

"You have a new power now, too?" Rei had sunk. Perhaps wondering why she hadn't gotten her new powers when she'd persevered through a manipulation of her dreams while Minako and Ami had endured similar trials. Rei couldn't compare herself to them, though. Perhaps her Super form couldn't be awakened in Bikini Bottom.

"That's right." Ami plucked a few strings on an invisible harp. "I have an attack called, 'Mercury Aqua Rhapsody.'"

"It was the attack that put Prawn back behind bars," SpongeBob said. "Or, in this case, a case of ice."

"I couldn't have defeated him without your help."

"Ami did the brunt of the work."

She bowed her head. "SpongeBob, please, it wasn't just me."

"She's being modest," Setsuna said. Ami's blush spread to her neck. "Her attack was the catalyst to defeating Prawn."

"That'll be a big help going forward." Minako clapped her hands. "I can't wait to fight alongside each other. Then we can combine our attacks."

In their unity, they'd compensate for one another's weaknesses. Michiru didn't voice her thoughts. Didn't want to make Rei feel more inadequate than she had to already.

"The others must be on their way." Setsuna craned her neck to gaze up the looming, misty mountain in the distance. "Sand Mountain looks big, but it can't be that large."

"I sure do hope nothing happened to them up there," Minako muttered. "At least, nothing like what happened to Sandy, Mako-chan, and I in Goo Lagoon."

On its peak, an explosion rocked the world, Chibi-Usa staggering, catching herself on Setsuna's sleeve. A roar pierced Michiru's ears, and silhouettes fell from the mountain.

"What's happening?" Chibi-Usa started running toward the mountain. Setsuna caught her by her shoulders, drew her back. "Mama, Papa, no!" She kept trying to run, dragging her feet in the dirt, and jerk her hands out of Setsuna's unwavering grasp.

"I'll go over there and see what's happening." Michiru took to the air, Chibi-Usa's sobs almost making her hug the young-minded Guardian. Thankfully, Sailor Pluto was there to fill the maternal gap.

The mountain appeared to be farther than it appeared, taking several minutes to arrive where the figures had fallen. The figures wound up being Usagi, Mamoru, Makoto, Haruka, and Sandy, all standing and well, with an unconscious PallaPalla in Haruka's arms. Mamoru was leaning on Usagi, signifying that they had strengthened their relationship.

Michiru landed. Haruka looked first, her eyes lighting in that way that Michiru loved, the way that was reserved for only Michiru.

Haruka took Michiru in. "Look what the cat dragged in. How are ya, babe?" She winked. Michiru loved it when Haruka winked.

Michiru waved her hand as though swatting a fly. Couldn't let Haruka get too big-headed. "I'm great. Everyone else is waiting at Shady Shoals', but we saw the explosion and figured someone ought to see what was happening. Everyone over there is pretty tired."

Makoto turned. "Understandable."

Usagi and Mamoru turned, too.

Mamoru was pale.

Usagi was paler.

A sinking feeling niggled its way into Michiru's heart. Managing to keep her voice level, she said, "Usagi, Mamoru-san, are you two…okay? Actually, is everybody okay?" She glanced at the unconscious PallaPalla.

The looks that Makoto, Usagi, and Mamoru made did not bode well.

"We'll explain when we get back to the rest home." More quietly, she said, "So we don't have to explain again."

Makoto nodded too quickly. Something very bad had happened. While Usagi and Mamoru had healed their relationship, more problems had popped up.

No rest for the weary.

The group returned to Shady Shoals. Once again, the Sailor Team was together. If Chibi-Usa did noticed her mother's and father's ragged appearances, she blamed their sweatiness and panting on fighting robots nonstop for over twenty-four hours. Or she was in denial.

Setsuna released Chibi-Usa, and she rushed to her parents, outstretching her arms to embrace them.

Usagi shoved her away, the weak princess not only almost knocking herself back, but nearly felling Chibi-Usa.

More tears filled Chibi-Usa's eyes, her relief at seeing her parents replaced with pain. "Mama, Papa, why?"

Usagi coughed. Hacked. Couldn't stop. Heaved.

Just like Mamoru.

Patrick raised a fist. "Need me to punch your back again?"

Rei faced him. "That won't help." She gaped at Usagi, face falling, as did Minako's. Chibi-Usa broke into a fresh round of tears.

Usagi drew back her head and, sure enough, blood was splattered on her sleeve.

Everyone stared at Usagi, silent, like the world had stopped.

If she hadn't coughed in front of everyone, would Usagi have said anything about Mamoru's disease spreading to her?

Hopefully, no one would ask the minefield of a question.

"Did, did this just start happening to you?" Chibi-Usa's voice was below a whisper.

"Yes. It did." Usagi stepped back. "I'm sorry, Chibi-Usa, but you shouldn't come near us. I didn't mean to shove you so hard, but we have to make sure that you don't catch this disease."

Chibi-Usa didn't try wiping the tears from her face.

"It started happening on Sand Mountain." Mamoru shrunk, as though he didn't want to be seen. "After she'd been near me for a while." He slid his hands into his pockets. "It makes sense that she'd catch my disease after spending time near me. None of you have been as close to me as Usagi's been. The rest of you had better stay away from me, too."

"And me," Usagi said softly.

Chibi-Usa didn't move. Took a small step toward her parents.

Usagi raised her hand. "Chibi-Usa, please."

Chibi-Usa shut her eyes, choked on tears. "Why do these things keep happening to us?" Her voice had broken, threatened to grow into a wail. "We're not doing anything wrong."

"Small Lady…" Setsuna said.

"All we want to do is live in peace. That's all we have been doing. But there are so many enemies coming against us for no reason. Why can't we live together, without fighting all the time?"

Setsuna crouched in front of Chibi-Usa, stroked away the tears. "Small Lady, I've watched many things happen over the centuries. Unfortunately, no matter how much time passes, humans don't change. History repeats itself. I've found that the number one reason why people do bad things, why wars begin, is because of greed. They're not satisfied with what they have and want more. Even so, greed can never be satisfied, no matter how many things they get. So they keep trying to get more and more, regardless of others' feelings and who they hurt in the process. I wouldn't be surprised if the Dead Moon Circus was here only to gain the Moon Kingdom."

Chibi-Usa sniffled. "But we could share with them."

"They want it all for themselves. Not to help others with what they gain, but for their own selfish enjoyment."

"And they're hurting us and other innocent people to do it."

Setsuna's eyes softened. "Unfortunately."

Chibi-Usa glared at the ground, balling her hands. "Is this what people are really like? Always stepping on people trying to get more even though getting more is meaningless?"

The silence grew more absolute than before. SpongeBob and Patrick were quiet.

"This conversation's gotten too deep for me," Plankton whispered.

"I also saw a lot of good during my centuries guarding the Space-Time Door." Setsuna ran her hands through Chibi-Usa's hair. "I've seen people try to save strangers from natural disasters like hurricanes and tsunamis. People set aside their differences and work together to raise money for struggling patients with terminal diagnoses. People care for the needy the way they'd care for their own family. Small Lady, even with their flaws and greed, at their core, humans are good and kind-hearted. Never lose faith in people, like I made the mistake of doing when I was first appointed to guard the Door and had watched human behavior, their tyranny over several decades. It's a hard pit to dig yourself out of, and you isolate yourself when you do. We aren't meant to be alone. No matter how people treat you, no matter what they do, always believe the best of them and treat them with compassion."

Chibi-Usa's tears slowed. She nodded.

Sandy, Makoto, Mamoru, and Haruka explained the events on Sand Mountain. They had become separated while sliding down one of the slopes, fought robots and PallaPalla, JunJun, and Hawk's Eye. PallaPalla had manipulated Sandy's dream of bringing together land creatures and sea creatures into a nightmare of Sandy's invention killing instead of saving. Although Sandy didn't detail her nightmare, her expression grew as dark as the sky before a storm, like she was about to unleash a storm herself.

Minako tried to say brightly, "Well, Sandy, no matter where we take you, everyone loves getting their hands on you. You're popular with the robots and the Dead Moon Circus." She sounded so serious that no one responded. All Minako's comment brought to mind was that the Guardians should stay away from Sandy so the squirrel wouldn't be attacked anymore.

With her lasso, Sandy lashed the sand, whipping up dust. "I'm tougher than y'all think I am. I'm from Texas, I know y'all can't tell Texas from a hole in the wall, but we Texans are real tough, riding bulls, fightin' them fist-to-hoof. So don't y'all worry your heads `bout me. I'll be fine. I am fine."

Haruka leaned onto her right foot. "You're not just saying that, right? Or just trying to convince yourself that you're okay?"

Sandy squared her expression at Haruka. "O' course not."

By the way the two stared at each other, Haruka must've gone too far in Sand Mountain. Michiru had told Haruka to rein in her bluntness many times.

"Sometimes, things have a deeper effect on us than we realize at the beginning, when they first happen." Hotaru's rare voice felled a reverent silence over the group. "We often don't realize how deeply they cut until later, maybe when we're alone, maybe when we're in a crowd, maybe because we're in shock when it first happens. But don't deny your feelings, Sandy. I've been down that road. Worse, I've traveled that road alone, with no friends or family to help me along or travel with me." She smiled at Chibi-Usa, the dam behind her friend's eyes having shut for the time being. "Now I have people who are helping me in so many ways. So if you ever need to lean on us, feel free to. Don't suppress your feelings like I did."

"Thanks," Sandy said. "All o' y'all are so sweet, y'know that?"

Plankton covered his antennae. "All this sweet is sickening."

Disregarding Plankton's comment, the group kept retelling what had happened on the mountain, that they had captured PallaPalla, fought a yeti that had swatted them down but not before making it explode, and ended up down here.

Haruka's eyebrows arched. "Hopefully, everything's all right up there."

"Don't worry," SpongeBob said. "They have an emergency crew that can fix anything within twenty-four hours, guaranteed or your money back."

Ami's expression blanked. "Whose money?"

"The taxpayers, of course."

Sandy kicked at the sand. "Shucks, I sure wish things worked that way up in Texas. Us taxpayers would be gettin' money back all the time. Bet those taxes wouldn't be higher than prairie grass durin' harvest, neither."

A scream came from their right.

SpongeBob gasped. "Squidward?" He pointed toward the distance, where rusted machines, small factories pumping out smoke, reddening the sky, were erect. "It sounds like he's in the industrial park."

Patrick jumped up and down. "The park? I wanna play, I wanna play."

"I don't think we'll get to play today, Patrick. Not in a horrifying place like the industrial park." His voice shook. Fear?

He deflated. "Aww. I really wanna play."

"Squidward?" Haruka said. "You mean that grouchy octopus?"

"That's the one," SpongeBob said. "He's actually really squishy."

"That's enough yappin'," Sandy said. "If Squidward really is in trouble, we'd better go see what's happenin'."

Minako frowned at the unconscious PallaPalla in Haruka's arms. "We might as well bring her with us. I'd rather her be with all of us than with only a few. We can easily overpower her and the rest of the Circus if they find us. Besides, I'm tired of always separating from you all."

The rest of the team agreed. Perhaps Minako wasn't that incompetent.

With SpongeBob's guidance, the group flew toward Bikini Bottom's industrial park, Michiru carrying SpongeBob, Patrick, and Sandy on a wave. Michiru offered to carry Usagi and Mamoru, but they refused.

"You don't have to act strong all the time," Haruka said. "We're your sworn protectors; we'll always worry about you. If you need to rest, then rest."

The couple had then let themselves ride on the wave. As they neared the park, the air grew stale, stuffy. An acidic, smoky smell filled Michiru's nostrils. She wrinkled her nose.

"The air's getting to you, huh?" Haruka's mocking laugh turned into a cough. Not the gut-destroying coughs that afflicted Usagi and Mamoru.

The couple had whitened, both stiff with trying to hold in their breaths. Their affliction might be worsened by the atmosphere they were entering.

"Maybe you two should go back," Michiru said. "The industrial park doesn't seem like it'll be friendly to anyone's lungs."

"I'll be okay," Mamoru said. "But, Usa—"

"I'll be okay, too," Usagi said, voice hoarse. "Don't worry about us."

"It's hard not to," Makoto said.

Usagi smiled sheepishly. "Are we that obvious?"

"I wouldn't call it obvious," Ami said. "It's, well, it's worrying." Putting it mildly.

"We can keep going," Usagi said, stubborn to the end. "I promise you, we'll be okay. Please don't worry about us," she repeated, as if the more times she said it, the more her friends wouldn't worry.

From some feet away, Chibi-Usa watched her parents. Hadn't been able to hug them since reuniting with them. "Mama, Papa, I don't want you two to get hurt when you don't have to."

"We'll protect you, Chibi-Usa," Mamoru said. "We're stronger than you think we are."

Chibi-Usa's eyes glistened. Unconvinced.

She was realizing that her parents weren't invincible. A frightening realization to reach.

Regardless, she said nothing, and the team kept flying. Sandy stood, riding the wave like a skateboard. Might as well squeeze some fun out of their situation.

The sky's red hue deepened into a crimson that blossomed across the sky, covering the flower-like clouds. The air became hazy, thicker and heavier than a mist, nearly crushing.

Hotaru panted, growing pale herself.

Chibi-Usa flew close to her friend. "Are you okay? Is it the air?"

Hotaru nodded. "I've always been frail, but I've survived through many things. So…" She smiled wryly. "I'll be okay." A refrain that might not be the best to say.

Chibi-Usa bit her lips at her parents. "Just like them, huh?"

Hotaru bowed her head. "Maybe."

Clanking and the crunching of gravel reverberated, the sound like someone crunching popcorn in his hands and then opening his hand, raining the remains into buckets. Trucks drove the gravel out of the park, perhaps to build new roads.

"Our taxpayin' dollars at work," Sandy said.

Chibi-Usa shuddered. "I'd never want to play in a park like this."

"Being crushed by concrete while at the park." Hotaru tapped her chin. "A real possibility."

The park was crisscrossed with roads, trucks carrying gravel, broken cranes, green sludge driving to and fro, dumping their contents into different areas for the undersea world's sustenance. The sludge bubbled in ponds, steam rising.

"I'm kind of afraid to ask," Ami said, "but what's the sludge for?"

"For…industrial things, of course," SpongeBob said. "It is an industrial park." He squeaked. "A terrifying industrial park."

Haruka's brow creased, while Michiru managed to keep focusing ahead. Whatever had happened to him must've been traumatizing.

"In other words, he don't know a thing." Sandy's frown deepened at the sludge. "And neither do I. They build stuff here, but that's all I know." She elbowed the sweating sponge. "SpongeBob and I had a lot o' fun here right before I went hibernatin'. We skateboarded, bungee-jumped, and did all sorts o' stunts. I'm bleedin' with excitement."

SpongeBob shook. "Filled with excitement."

"Point is, SpongeBob and I survived. I'm sure we will, too."

"Barely survived." SpongeBob's voice had heightened.

"I've never researched industrial parks," Setsuna said. "I have heard that they're incredibly hazardous to your health." She glanced at the struggling Usagi and Mamoru, both wavering in the air, struggling to keep afloat. "Probably not the best thing to say or the best place to be right now."

Usagi's laugh sounded like a wet cough. "Nonsense. We have superpowers."

"Our powers may be great," Haruka said, "but they don't protect you from everything."

They reached an area that resembled an arena, a giant sink with a drain in the middle in the middle of six platforms, two of which were circular and were erect in the corners, two other square-shaped platforms still, and the final two conveyor belts. Above the bathtub hung a funnel, a chain beside it. Whatever poured from that funnel could not be good.

Sandy leaped off the wave, landing on her feet on a motionless platform, Squidward running upon it, heart beating out of his chest. He skidded to a stop as SpongeBob and Patrick jumped off the wave and landed before the octopus. Mamoru guided Usagi into the air. Michiru retracted her wave.

Squidward clutched his chest. "Boy, am I glad to see you."

Makoto placed a hand on her hip. "Never thought I'd hear those words from you. Something really bad must be happening around here. But we haven't seen any robots."

"Oh, trust me, they're here." Squidward placed a hand on his heart, took a breath. "In fact, I was just running from one that, that…" A shudder rocked him. "It's one of my worst nightmares come true, right up there with my clarinet coming alive and swallowing me whole."

"Whoa, Squidward," Sandy said. "Didn't think you had an imagination like that with your plain, square self."

"Yes, yes," Squidward said, too afraid to care that Sandy had insulted him. "Anyhow, this robot's been 'playing' with me since it brought me here. It's as bad as how SpongeBob and Patrick hound me all the time. Which makes sense."

"What do you—" Ami said.

"Hound, like a dog?" SpongeBob said. "That's good."

Squidward shook his head rapidly. "It's awful. Its idea of playing is much deadlier than you barnacleheads' ideas ever could be."

Minako raised a hand. "Back up. First of all, how did you get here? Second of all, what is this robot?"

He stomped his feet. "You barnaclehead, I told you, I'm this robot's prisoner. What made you think I'd come to a filthy place like this out of my own free will?" He let out a breath, Minako glaring but letting his frustration go. Under the circumstances, his anger was justified. "It all started when this robot had come into the residential area of Bikini Bottom briefly and tried to find SpongeBob." His eyebrows arched at SpongeBob. Did he care for the sponge more than he let on? "It… I'm sorry, SpongeBob, but it destroyed your home. Gary wasn't inside."

"Eh, no problem. I'll plant a seed and grow a new house."

Ami's expression blanked once more. "G-grow a new…" If only houses worked like that on land.

Squidward held his head. "Right after I had gotten back from Sand Mountain after trying to relax from the trauma and annoyances I endured in the Mermalair, like those cowboy robots sicing their robot dogs on me and darn near biting my butt off. I mean, I don't wear any pants as it is, so you can only imagine my pain. I won't be able to face another dog for a long time, just like how I'll have a hard time facing a jellyfish." His eyes grew distant. "And in Sand Mountain, those robots attacked me. It's like I'm a magnet for whatever trouble comes to Bikini Bottom." He spread his arms. "And now a robot who's as obsessed with me as SpongeBob and Patrick. Before you two got here, it was spinning me around, trying to play a twisted version of hide and seek, trying to make me jump inside the toxic waste and find it and then spitting green goo at me when I wouldn't come. It's trying to get me to find it now. Thankfully, it loves food more than me, so its ice cream is distracting it. But with its short attention span, who knows how long that ice cream'll keep it busy?"

"What exactly is this robot, Squidward?" Michiru said, keeping the impatience out of her voice.

"It's—"

Out of the boiling sludge behind the platform on which Squidward and the Sailor Team stood arose a mountainous Patrick-like robot, steaming goo cascading off its glinting metal body. It gripped an ice cream cone topped with green goo.

On its back was taped a "Kick Me" sign. Either the sign was someone's joke, or a weakness was under the sign, and someone had tried to cover the weakness in the worst way possible. The sign could also be a trick to lure and harm enemies.

Patrick's eyes brightened. "Hey, that robot looks like me. How cool is that?"

"Not cool." Minako unhooked and pulled her Love Whip taut. "Not cool at all."

"How'd the robots manage to build a Patrick-like robot?" Ami said, Robo-Patrick stretching and burping. Booming, supersonic waves pulsed from its mouth, nearly bowling Michiru over, Chibi-Usa gripping Setsuna's arm. "When the Sandy robot was built, Sandy was stashed inside the robot and hooked up from the inside."

Setsuna rubbed her chin, watching Robo-Patrick licking its ice cream and then belching. At least the real Patrick had a bit of manners. "Maybe their technology is growing more sophisticated, and they're now able to create robots based off of only seeing fish and people alone."

"Patrick," Rei said, "did the robots do anything to you when you fell down that chasm in Rock Bottom?"

"Hmm." Patrick eyed the sky. "I was walkin' through with Tiger's Eye and then a crane came through the wall and knocked me on my back and then a pretty red light lit me up."

"Sounds like it analyzed you." Setsuna gestured toward Robo-Patrick catching a falling drip of goo with its tongue. "Hence the Patrick robot being built."

Robo-Patrick looked over its shoulder and bared its teeth that were filed down to points. It pounded its chest, roaring.

Chibi-Usa shrank. "It sounds like Patrick."

"That robot's acting just like Patrick, too," SpongeBob said. "So if it's acting just like Patrick, then it must have weaknesses that are just like Patrick's too." His brow furrowed. "Weaknesses, weaknesses…" He turned toward Patrick. "Patrick, what are your weaknesses?"

"I can name a few," Rei muttered.

"Uh…" Patrick fidgeted. "I dunno."

Rei sunk. "How helpful."

"Did you expect him to have a whit of self-awareness?" Squidward said. "He's barely aware enough to get dressed in the morning. And even then, he gets only halfway dressed." He was one to talk.

Robo-Patrick leaped and then landed in the middle of the arena, near the drain. Pounded its chest once more. Ready to fight when the Sailor Team hadn't thought of a plan of attack.

Michiru raised her hand to summon a wave. "I'll go first." Her voice reverberated, taking on a godlike quality. Chibi-Usa gaped, forgetting a princess' manners.

Ami stepped beside Michiru, her Mercury Harp materializing in her hand. "I'll fight with you, Michiru-san."

Rei stepped back. There was no longer an opportunity to fight alongside her idol. Ami and Michiru fighting alongside each other made more sense than Rei and Michiru collaborating. Besides the weakened Usagi and Mamoru, Rei, with her weakened powers, should be one of the last people to fight.

On the tip of his finger, SpongeBob spun a bubble bowling ball. "I will, too."

Patrick's bottom lip quivered. "Even against me?"

"Well, it is a robot version of you."

"But it's me. You'd fight me?"

Saving SpongeBob from answering, Robo-Patrick licked its sludge cone and spat out a glob of sludge. The group jumped to the sides. The glob splattered on and melted part of the platform, dripped into the sludge below.

"Ooh!"

The group turned toward the voice. Behind the fence encircling the arena stood a fish wearing a bowtie and suit, Johnny Elaine. A microphone had descended from a crane, hovering near Johnny's mouth.

Minako looked the fish up and down. "How did he get all the way over here?"

"It made sense that he was in the Poseidome," Rei said, "but what's he doing here?"

"And it's too dangerous here," Mamoru said.

"Especially just to point out the obvious."

"Be nice, everyone," Ami said. "He could be here for a good reason."

Squidward clasped his hands. "To record our heroic adventures? I'll be famous."

Haruka hefted PallaPalla, straightening the circus member in her arms. "Might as well look on the bright side."

"Looks like SpongeBob and his friends are in for a rough ride," the announcer said. "Especially if they're too busy insulting me instead of fighting this giant robot."

Filled with power, nothing or no one could distract Michiru. She motioned toward herself, summoning an ocean wave. Time to test her full power.

"Everyone, stay back." Michiru's hair flowed upward more quickly, and her eyes lightened into turquoise.

Scrambling from behind them, Squidward telling everyone to keep him away from Michiru. Flattering.

Michiru summoned her mirror, and the ocean, the waves, the energy of the sea surged in response, ready to obey. The power that Michiru would have living inside of her if she sucked in the energy instead of used it…

Couldn't be selfish. Had to focus on Robo-Patrick.

"A moment's hesitation could be deadly for either our heroes or the robot," Johnny said. "It's hard to tell which."

Not only was the fish's commentary wasn't adding anything, like the commentary on Haruka's beloved car races.

Michiru summoned the wave. It towered over the group, several times the size of her regular wave, even larger than the waves she had summoned in Rock Bottom. Instead of feeling like power was being sucked out of her, she felt like energy was flowing inside.

This feeling that was close to a high, a power that she could get drunk off of, that she could use to rule, that she could use to protect, that she could use to instill fear, that she could use to instill a sense of security, she didn't want to let it go. Once they left Bikini Bottom, the power would disappear.

Trying to ignore the selfishness that threatened to derail their fight, Michiru threw the wave toward the robot. Robo-Patrick squared itself, hunching over and spreading its arms like an American football player, metal teeth gritted. It glanced at the sludge surrounding the arena. Jumped backward, into the pool of sludge as the wave approached it. It crouched, dunking its hands under the sludge and then threw goo like a child, building a wave that rivaled Michiru's in size.

No one would outmatch her.

Pulsing more energy, the wave grew larger than the robot's, enough to destroy not only Robo-Patrick's inferior wave but also Robo-Patrick itself.

Her wave engulfed the robot's wave. Michiru's grin broadened. She hadn't needed her fellow Guardians' help to defeat this robot.

She could save Bikini Bottom on her own.

No, she couldn't get ahead of herself. She may have destroyed Robo-Patrick, but—

Michiru's wave began flying backward. Her own wave combined with the green sludge roared into her, slamming her into SpongeBob and Ami, an, "Oof!" coming from SpongeBob. Because Michiru had rejected their help, not only had she been unable to destroy Robo-Patrick and its wave, but she'd also hurt two of her friends and counting.

Screaming from behind, scrambling on the metal platform, heels click-click-clacking on the metal in an attempt to get away before being caught in the fray. No point in her teammates trying to catch them; they'd only end up hurt, too.

"The girl with seaweed hair tried to harness the power of the ocean," Johnny said, "but ended up hurt instead, with her own attack being turned against her. That's gotta sting the dignity and the body."

It did. Her pride and, more importantly, her friends had been hurt, slicing her to the bone.

She'd always thought of herself as willing to sacrifice herself for the greater good. As soon as she'd tasted power, she'd become selfish, thinking that she could defeat the robot on her own.

Defeating one enemy for her exhausted teammates was a noble thing to do. Michiru hadn't tried to defeat the robot alone to help her friends but to see how much power she wielded. From the outside, Michiru looked selfless, but her motives were impure.

Michiru had no right to criticize Minako. Sailor Venus acted out of love, out of a desire to protect.

She owed Minako an apology.

A wind gusted, colliding with Michiru's, Ami's and SpongeBob's backs. The wind stopped the three, making them hover in place, but it felt like concrete walls were crushing Michiru from both sides.

"Wow!" Johnny said. "The girl with hair that's as brown as a hamburger patty—what are those patties made of?—is summoning some kind of wind? Storm? Who knows?"

An obvious, descriptive narrator. Even better.

SpongeBob cried out. "Ah, the humanity, it burns. I feel like I'm the jelly in a seanut butter and jelly sandwich."

"Do you taste good?" Patrick, of course. Someone's comment about food wouldn't be complete without Patrick commenting on it, too.

Someone gripped Michiru's ankles. Sailor Neptune parted her eyes. Below, Haruka pulled Michiru down by the legs. The heavily breathing Mamoru did the same for Ami. Rei had joined them, perhaps wanting to free her mentor, but being left to help SpongeBob.

Michiru could only see the wall of blue and green before her; the thick, concrete-like gust of wind behind her; and her friends below, tugging at their teammates' ankles to free them from being crushed into a unique sandwich that Robo-Patrick would have no problem eating. Lights flashed through the wave—her fellow Guardians attacking Robo-Patrick.

Michiru was tugged free from the sandwich, falling atop Haruka.

A grin snaked onto Haruka's face. "Nice position, don't you think?"

"Would you rather me be on top more often?"

"Oh, yeah."

"Do you want me to be involved, too?" came Mamoru's muffled voice from below Haruka. Under Mamoru, Ami groaned.

Michiru and Haruka rolled off Mamoru. He staggered onto his feet.

"Did we hurt you?" Michiru said.

Mamoru brushed dust and debris off his pants, frowning at green sludge splotched onto his tuxedo. "Not any more than I've been hurt already."

Above, the gust of wind crushed SpongeBob between itself and Robo-Patrick's wave.

"I feel like mayonnaise," SpongeBob shouted.

"You transformed from jelly to mayonnaise?" Patrick said from behind the group. "Are you an instrument, too?"

"Every time he opens his mouth. I feel like I lose I.Q. points." Rei popped SpongeBob out, catching him in her arms. The wave and the gust of wind clashed, a boom reverberating. Robo-Patrick and Sailor Jupiter roared.

"Amazing," Johnny said. "Here, we have a fight to the brink, for love, happiness, and freedom in the industrial park. All their friends have been freed from becoming a not-so-tasty sandwich. Now what will our heroes do?"

Sailor Neptune lessened her energy so that her wave wasn't as powerful, only for the green to grow more dominant in the blue-green mixture. While Sailor Neptune was weakening her wave, Robo-Patrick was pulsing more sludge into it.

Michiru stepped to the side, away from the roaring powers. Sailors Venus, Chibi-Moon, and Moon fought against Robo-Patrick, the robot swatting at them, brow creased as it tried to concentrate on fighting Sailor Jupiter's storm gale.

Opening its mouth, it looked at Chibi-Usa, sucked in air, and blew out ice, encasing Chibi-Usa in a block of ice, her expression frozen in a glare and a gawk. She plummeted. With its free hand, Robo-Patrick caught her.

"Chibi-Usa!" Usagi and Mamoru cried at the same time. Mamoru took to the air, moving as though a curse wasn't fatiguing him.

Robo-Patrick licked its sludge and spat out a glob. The sludge slammed into Mamoru's chest and sizzled, hurling Mamoru backward.

"Damn you!" Makoto's gust quickened but didn't gain ground against the robot's wave.

"Our heroes are fighting valiantly," the announcer said. "Even though they're outnumbering this robot, it's giving them a run for their money."

Maybe the beginning of the end had been marked by Michiru trying to defeat the robot alone.

Hopefully, they'd emerge from the battle with their lives.

---

Beside her mentor, Rei stood, watching Mamoru barrel backward, Sandy standing behind the gale, Hotaru standing beside her, at a shaking Squidward's side, an unconscious PallaPalla laying beside her. Plankton cowered behind her leg. Makoto was putting her all into the storm she'd summoned, but the robot's wave wasn't weakening.

Rei had to save her friends because they'd saved her countless times. Even Patrick. He had a protective instinct, a loyalty toward his friends. He had been strong enough to save her from Tiger's Eye. It was time for her to be strong enough for her friends.

But she wasn't.

Her flames weren't powerful enough. Why hadn't she gotten her upgrade in Rock Bottom?

Thank goodness this fight didn't lay wholly with Rei. Her friends weren't damaging Robo-Patrick much. Even Michiru hadn't been able to put much of a dent in it.

Beside her, Michiru looked…dejected. Or was Rei imagining things?

Mamoru hurtled past Rei. Haruka caught him by the arms. Usagi, Setsuna, and Hotaru flew toward the ice-encased Chibi-Usa clutched in Robo-Patrick's hand.

Robo-Patrick bared its fang-like teeth.

Out of the corner of her eye, Rei saw PallaPalla stir, sit upright. Sandy glared at the Dead Moon Circus member, paws so tight around her lasso that veins protruded.

PallaPalla shook her head rapidly. "What is going on?"

Sandy snarled. She hadn't forgiven PallaPalla. "Stay down, varmint."

Robo-Patrick roared, and Makoto's gust crashed backward, into Makoto. The Guardian tumbled, head over heels, her gale ceasing, sludge that had been whipped up splashing back down, disintegrating parts of the platforms. Yelping, PallaPalla bounded away from the splashing sludge. Sandy stayed close to PallaPalla, watching the Dead Moon Circus member more than the sludge.

The robot jumped, tugged at the rope hanging from the arena's ceiling. A siren sounded.

"Gah, no," Minako said, arms twitching toward her ears, Love Whip clenched in one of them as she'd repeatedly launched ineffective lashes and beams against Robo-Patrick. "Sirens are never good down here."

More green sludge cascaded from the funnel hanging from the ceiling, filling the floor. The ice-encased Chibi-Usa dropped into it. The ice thawed, leaving Chibi-Usa in the steaming sludge. Screaming, she jumped out of the boiling sludge. Rei's hairs stood on end. The Guardian of Flames would hear that scream and see the sludge-covered Chibi-Usa in her nightmares.

Usagi, Setsuna, and Hotaru neared her. Chibi-Usa raised a hand. "Don't come near me. It'll get you too." Tears disappeared into the sludge engulfing her face.

Robo-Patrick pounded its chest.

"And the robot celebrates its win over the formerly adorable but now scary-looking little girl," Johnny said. "An impressive victory."

Rei growled. Maybe she should set Johnny on fire to shut him up.

"Don't you have something better to do?" Makoto barked, summoning another gale.

"What, and miss this valuable news coverage?"

"He has a point." Haruka placed Mamoru on the metal platform, behind Makoto. "Nothing this entertaining is probably happening anywhere else in this goshforsaken place."

Robo-Patrick crouched, hurling a wave of sludge against Sailor Jupiter's gale. Sailor Jupiter cringed. Sailor Uranus flew beside her.

"World Shaking!" A beam of bronze light combined with the gale, driving the wave backward. Robo-Patrick growled, throwing more and more sludge onto its wave to enlarge it.

Patrick stared, slack-jawed, the sludge and the park's lights reflected in his dark eyes.

SpongeBob tugged at Patrick's arm. "C'mon, Patrick. What're your weaknesses? If you were a giant robot, how'd you defeat you?"

Drool leaked from his mouth. "Uhhh…" He kept saying, "Uh," like he didn't know any other words. From the starfish's pocket, Plankton glanced from Patrick to the robot to Patrick.

"Want PallaPalla to get him to answer? PallaPalla can show him his dreams and nightmares so he can find his own weaknesses."

"Don't you dare move." Makoto's voice chilled Rei. Rei couldn't recall a time when she'd seen Makoto this upset.

Sailor Venus kept buzzing around Robo-Patrick, launching her attacks ineffectively, Robo-Patrick swatting at her, all the while fighting against Makoto and Haruka's golden gale.

Rei slapped Patrick, twisting his neck sideways. "This is not the time for you to be stupid."

Patrick blinked several times. "Huh?"

"Patrick, we need your help," SpongeBob said. "Think as hard as you can. How'd you defeat yourself if you were a robot?" He pointed to Robo-Patrick, straining against Makoto and Haruka, swatting at Sailor Venus with its ice cream cone, Usagi, Setsuna, and Hotaru helping Chibi-Usa to the platform, where Usagi healed her daughter's burn.

"Patrick loves food," Rei said. "If we could find some food that'd distract Robo-Patrick…"

Ami's expression brightened. "Or we could take away his ice cream cone."

Sandy lassoed the air. "I can take care o' that."

"Oh, I get what ya mean," Patrick said. "You should've just said you wanted to know what I like and hate in the first place. I'd hate to get hit in the head with a giant coconut. Unless my son or daughter did it. Then I'd know that they're spending their time wisely."

Rei groaned. "Should I have expected anything more?"

Sandy lassoed the metal cone. Robo-Patrick's eyes bulged, and its wave faltered, letting Sailors Uranus and Jupiter's combined attack advance. Her lasso fastened around the metal cone and drew it back. Robo-Patrick tightened its grip on the cone.

"We have a tug-of-war, folks," Johnny said, Sandy trying to wrench the cone out of Robo-Patrick's hand, the robot trying to keep its grip on its cone. "All for a glop of sludge on metal. Have our heroes lost their minds, or are they executing some sort of master plan?"

"Venus Love and Beauty Shock!" Sailor Venus drew back her Love Whip and launched a golden beam that smashed the robot starfish's side. Robo-Patrick staggered, and its grip loosened from the cone enough that it let go. Sandy pulled back the cone. Robo-Patrick released its hold on its wave, loosing Haruka's and Makoto's golden gale into the robot's chest. It barreled backward, hollering, falling into the sludge yards away, sludge rearing like a tsunami. Robo-Patrick yelped, jumped up, reaching for its backside.

"Their attack made it fall onto its 'Kick Me' sign," Ami said.

"That's gotta be a self-destruct." SpongeBob raised his bubble wand. "If we can press it a few more times…"

Haruka stepped beside Michiru, while Sailor Jupiter stalked to PallaPalla. Rei did not want to know what sort of thoughts were running through Makoto's head, perhaps visualizing hundreds of ways to kill PallaPalla slowly.

"That must be its only weakness," Ami said. "No wonder we couldn't damage it earlier. It must be nigh indestructible in other parts of its body."

"But Mina-chan and the others attacked its backside several times," Rei said. "How come their attacks weren't effective?"

Plankton poked his head out of Patrick's pocket once more. "Maybe my robots inherited the genius of their master, their overlord, their ruler—"

"Enlighten us," Haruka said flatly. "Who is that again? It's certainly not you."

"Don't interrupt me. It'll do you well to listen to people smarter than you." Plankton cleared his throat. "Anyhow, my robots must've installed some sort of defense mechanism around that sign to keep it safe. Sure, the weak spot looked obvious, but the weak spot wasn't as weak as it appeared."

Rei turned her attention to Robo-Patrick. Recovered, Chibi-Usa sat upright, Usagi, Setsuna, Haruka, and Mamoru surrounding her, watching Robo-Patrick whip its head in all directions.

"Trying to find your ice cream cone?" Patrick cupped his mouth to make sure his stupidity endangered his friends and allies. "I know where—"

Haruka slapped a hand over Patrick's mouth so hard that the slapping noise reverberated.

"What was that?" PallaPalla said. The glower that Makoto gave PallaPalla could've shattered mountains.

"Watch your power, Haruka," Michiru said. "I understand you wanted to keep him quiet, and for good reason, but haven't we had our talks about using excessive force?"

Haruka smiled slowly.

"Does everything have to be a euphemism with you?"

Robo-Patrick's eyes locked onto the cone that Sandy managed to hold, despite the cone being nearly twice the size of her paw. Its eyes reddened, and it charged, sloshing sludge in both directions like a wave runner cutting through the sea. Squidward hollered.

It reached for the cone. Sailor Venus flew sideways, out of the robot's path. A black beam burst from Sailor Pluto's Garnet Rod—Dead Scream—but Robo-Patrick batted the beam away.

PallaPalla snatched the cone out of Sandy's paw. "PallaPalla commands you to obey her alone."

"Are you an idiot?" Sailor Venus shouted.

Squidward and Sandy scrambled away from the Dead Moon Circus member. Makoto followed Sandy, and Ami jogged alongside Squidward to shield him.

Robo-Patrick leaped, reaching for its cone. PallaPalla's pupils contracted.

Makoto dove, tackling PallaPalla. A millisecond later, Robo-Patrick slammed onto the back of the platform, snapping the platform in half, leaving Ami, Rei, Haruka, Michiru, SpongeBob, and Patrick on the front half and Squidward, Makoto, Sandy, and PallaPalla on the other. Both halves teetered in opposite directions, toward the sludge. Robo-Patrick crashed under the sludge. The group scrambled to avoid the splashing sludge. A drip landed on Rei's arm, and Rei yelped.

Makoto and PallaPalla tumbled on the falling platform.

"You saved PallaPalla. Even though PallaPalla wouldn't have saved you."

"I thought I'd never save you, too." Makoto jumped upright, wrenched PallaPalla into one hand and grabbed Squidward's arm with the other, pulling the octopus forward. Haruka whisked Sandy into her arms, flying off the falling platform.

A tear dripped from the announcer's eye. "Friends saving friends, friends saving enemies…" He sniffed. "The most beautiful thing I've ever seen." Without covering it, he blew his nose. An image Rei could've done without.

Gripping SpongeBob's arm, Ami flew into the air. Together, Michiru and Rei carried Patrick. From above, they watched both halves of the platform fall in the sludge. Robo-Patrick stood, sludge pouring off the robot.

Robo-Patrick swatted at Rei, Michiru, and Patrick. Rei and Michiru flitted sideways, taking Patrick with them, but Robo-Patrick slapped Rei, the impact as hard as being crushed by three metal walls. Her hand popped off Patrick's arm, and she flew, the world darkening.

Michiru wouldn't have let Patrick down.

Rei wasn't as strong as she thought. Wasn't as strong as the others believed. Wasn't as strong as Michiru had told her.

Couldn't open her eyes. The robot's creaks, her friends' shouts, all faded.

---

Propped up on Michiru's quickly summoned small wave, Patrick watched Rei fly with her eyes closed. Amazing that she could fly without seeing where she was going.

Ami called Rei's name. When any of the Guardians called another's name, something bad had happened. Patrick called Rei's name, too, because it seemed appropriate.

"Can't move…" came Mamoru's faint voice. He was paler than Patrick's butt after a long winter. Usagi looked pale, too. They were useless. So was Patrick, not being able to fly.

A hawk swooped into the park.

SpongeBob dangled his feet, Ami holding him by the arms above the sludge. "Hawks don't live in Bikini Bottom."

Plankton peered out of Patrick's pocket. "Is that Hawk's Eye?"

"Another eye that isn't an eye?" Patrick said. Setsuna flew, gripping Rei by the shoulders and stopping her flight, leaving Chibi-Usa with Hotaru and Usagi standing on another platform that they had jumped onto.

"Hawk's Eye! PallaPalla's really glad to see you."

Makoto's expression hardened at the hawk. Maybe it'd been part of whatever happened at Sand Mountain.

Robo-Patrick reached for Sandy and, by extension, Haruka, the sludge cone gripped in Sandy's lasso. Haruka flew sideways, trying to dodge, but the hawk dove toward Haruka, jabbing its talons into her forehead. She faltered, and Robo-Patrick gripped Haruka and Sandy in one hand.

"A potentially fatal distraction from a random hawk's sudden appearance could doom our heroes," Johnny said.

"That's how you do it." Was PallaPalla's voice weaker?

Makoto punched PallaPalla's forehead, and her head hung down once more. "Shut up." She'd knocked PallaPalla unconscious.

Robo-Patrick roared in their faces, bits of green sludge splattering them.

Haruka reared back. "How does a robot's breath stink?"

Robo-Patrick's hand jerked toward its "Kick Me" sign. Sailor Venus hovered behind Robo-Patrick, running her hand along the length of her whip.

"One of SpongeBob's little human friends takes advantage of the distracted robot and goes for its weak spot," Johnny said.

Robo-Patrick's grip on Haruka and Sandy didn't loosen. Patrick would never let go of food, especially food that had been stolen from him. Anger would cause him to do his best to get that food back and make sure that he never lost it again.

In that way, food wasn't a weakness, but was a strength, as the Guardians had failed to realize.

Before Patrick could voice his unknown insight, Robo-Patrick tightened its grip on Haruka and Sandy, and their hollers pierced the air. Mamoru and Usagi said naughty words about their weaknesses. Chibi-Usa joined them in cursing.

Hotaru raised her glaive. "Silence Glaive Surprise."

The hawk flew away from the oncoming beam shooting forth from Sailor Saturn's glaive—looked like the only attacks the Guardians had were beams, which hadn't proved helpful. Smoke burst forth with the beam, fogging the area, so much so that Patrick's eyes watered. The beam crashed into Robo-Patrick's backside, and the robot collapsed onto the broken platform, shattering the platform into more pieces, and into the sludge, splattering the group.

Patrick hollered, the sludge feeling like it was burning through Patrick's skin. His holler joined the others—couldn't tell exactly who, but it seemed as though PallaPalla had awakened once more, based on the way she was screaming. The hawk was gone. Must've gotten out of the way before the sludge could reach it.

Robo-Patrick bounded onto its feet, eyes deepening into crimson.

They'd been fighting for such a long time, and Patrick hadn't attacked at all. He hadn't even been able to help the group with finding and exploiting the robots' weaknesses, other than the "Kick Me" sign. The sludge had awakened Rei, too, since she was hollering with the rest of them.

Patrick had to stop being a load.

Robo-Patrick turned once, twice, and then began to spin, pelting the group with more sludge and chunks of the platforms it broke.

Patrick found himself screaming alongside his friends, the sludge making his skin smoke, making it feel as though his skin were disintegrating. The world dimmed. Couldn't sleep now.

A crow's caw came from the distance. Another caw joined it.

Their caws were the last sounds Patrick heard as the world faded alongside the cacophony of the robot's boops and beeps and everyone's hollering.

The pain faded, too. Maybe Patrick had gained superpowers of his own, the power of self-healing through being around others with superpowers all the time.

Let your eyes close, Patrick. Don't fear the darkness. Embrace it. The soft, childlike voice calmed Patrick. He let his eyes close, but he saw two crows that morphed into miniature, winged fairies with black hair. In one of their hands materialized a crystal.

Hey, Patrick said, I thought fairies were supposed to look different. Even though he tried to speak out loud, he ended up speaking in his head, without opening his mouth. Which was good. Patrick found trying to communicate with words hard sometimes because he was a genius and simplified everything. For some reason, people couldn't understand his simple speech.

The fairies nodded. They understood.

We aren't fairies, one said. My name is Phobos, and this is my sister, Deimos. We're Rei's crows from Japan.

Uh-huh. So now you're in my mind. But you guys could be part of Dead Moon Circus, like Tiger's Eye ended up breaking into Rei's dream and hurting her real bad.

We aren't the enemies. Please trust us.

I can't. Lots of people have told me to trust them so far, and they ended up hurting my friends.

The fairies smiled. One said, We've been watching from afar, and we can tell that you've grown wiser. Because we've been with Rei since she was a little girl, we're telepathically linked with her. We can see what she sees, hear what she hears. We've watched her relationship with you grow. A giggle. She used to abhor you, Patrick, but now she likes you. A lot.

Patrick warmed. Weird, since he couldn't see his own body. Maybe he couldn't feel pain because he'd lost his body. That's good. I like me a lot, too. He tried to nod but, being bodiless, he couldn't. Okay, I'll trust you. You sound trustworthy.

The fairies exchanged looks. Even in Patrick's dreams, others were confused by him.

So if you're Rei's crows, why didn't you go straight inside Rei's head?

Your closeness with Rei reflects her maturity, a maturity that she didn't gain by being around us. That's why her Sailor Crystal appeared to us only when we were close to you, not Rei. It's better for you to present her with her crystal. We're here only to explain what his crystal is, so you can give it to her instead of accidentally throwing it away, thinking it to be useless.

I don't understand a word you're saying.

Patrick, Deimos said—the other one. But they both looked the same. Your concern for Rei and her concern for you has caused the Sailor Crystal to physically manifest itself. By giving her the Sailor Crystal, she'll become Super Sailor Mars. With her newfound powers, she'll be able to finish the fight against your robot self.

We can't control where the Sailor Crystal manifests itself, Phobos said. Patrick, it's chosen you to be Rei's presenter.

I still can't understand you. Is it because we're not physically talking?

We can feel your confusion. That's what makes communicating this way better than talking out loud. We don't necessarily need words to communicate.

Uh…

Phobos and Deimos giggled at the same time. Creepy.

Don't worry, Patrick. We'll make things simple for you. Give the crystal to Rei. She'll know what to say to transform into Super Sailor Mars.

Patrick understood that.

Good, you understand.

But I didn't say I understood.

That's the beauty of telepathy. Both fairies bowed. It was nice meeting you, Patrick Star, they said at the same time. Creepier and creepier. Here. They held out the Crystal, and Patrick's hand appeared, taking it. Now, open your eyes, and save Bikini Bottom.

Patrick opened his eyes, still sitting on Michiru's wave. How much time had passed since he'd fallen unconscious?

The pain that had faded in the dark world with Phobos and Deimos crashed into Patrick at once, and the starfish yelped.

Robo-Patrick staggered around, eyes whirling.

"The robot's made itself dizzy," Johnny said.

Rainbow light emanated from Sailors Moon's and Chibi-Moon's Moon Kaleidoscopes, onto the group that had been pelted by sludge. The burn marks disappeared from Patrick's skin.

"Patrick, what happened?" Rei said as SpongeBob said, "Are you okay?" Rei's eyes drifted to the Crystal he cupped.

"What, what's that?" Rei said, her eyes aglow with the Crystal's red light.

Patrick held out the Crystal to her. "For you. Some fairy-crows came and gave it to me to give to you. Said somethin' about me being close to you."

Rei's mouth parted. "Phobos and Deimos? I thought I'd heard them cawing, but I thought I was going crazy. They appeared to you?"

"That's right."

Robo-Patrick collapsed onto his bottom, sludge splashing.

Smiling, Michiru placed Patrick on a small, circular platform. Rei landed in front of him. He stepped before her, holding out her Mars Crystal. "For you."

Rei grasped it, and the world changed.

---

Rei had never thought that Patrick would be the one she'd grow closest with in Bikini Bottom. When she'd first landed in Bikini Bottom, if someone had told her that Patrick was the one she'd learn to not only tolerate but befriend, she'd have called the person crazy and done all she could to avoid the starfish. But now, counting how many times she'd saved Patrick, how Patrick had saved her, how they'd worked together in Downtown Bikini Bottom and Rock Bottom, Rei wasn't surprised. She wasn't annoyed or embarrassed for him and his shenanigans.

She was proud to call Patrick Star her friend.

The heart-shaped Crystal, the burning, passionate love she held for Patrick and every one of her friends, brightened. The desire to protect them leaped inside of her, like she'd stoked the flames with coals.

This was the feeling she'd been seeking, the feeling that had faded when she'd come to Bikini Bottom, the desire to save these creatures nonexistent. SpongeBob, Patrick, and Sandy had the mercy to save the humans without knowing them, the possibility of their eating the sea creatures or destroying Bikini Bottom.

They'd fought for her. Time for her to fight for them.

She held the Crystal to her chest. "Mars Crystal Power, Make-up!" Flames so great that they poured into the underwater world, enveloped and strengthened her. She could keep her eyes open and, through the flames, watch Robo-Patrick climbing onto its feet. Patrick jumped, clambered onto the robot's shoulder, punched the robot. The robot punched Patrick, its fist encompassing his whole body, and the starfish flew backward. Haruka caught him, but he jumped out of her arms, the other Guardians protesting.

Patrick pounded his chest, expression the fiercest Rei had seen. "C'mon and play with me. You're not gonna attack Rei while she's gettin' stronger." He was putting his all into protecting Rei. The fire grew.

While Patrick distracted his robot self, pummeling and stomping on it, Rei could attack from a distance. One shot was all it took.

She closed her eyes, imagining her quiver and arrows, drawing back an arrow and letting it loose, into the bullseye, like she'd done so many times at home and school.

A strip of the surrounding flames shaped into an arrow. She gripped it.

The Mars Arrow.

The flames around her faded, revealing her clad in her sailor suit, the bow on her skirt elongated. The power was nearly overwhelming.

"Rei." Michiru stepped behind her. "I'm so proud of you, how far you've come. Your spiritual insight, warning us of danger, of what truly lies in others' hearts, has been invaluable. You have a passion that no one else can rival. Channel that energy, the love and passion you hold from your heart."

Rei focused on Robo-Patrick, real Patrick hanging on his robot self's shorts. The robot repeatedly slapped Patrick. Robo-Patrick sloshed about, splashing Sailor Venus with sludge, keeping her at bay. Patrick kicked the robot's backside, and the robot turned, its backside facing the Guardians, stupidly thinking that it could end Patrick.

Patrick had turned the robot right where he needed to be turned.

"Your greatest power lies within your heart." Michiru took Sailor Mars' arms, guided her hands over Rei's heart. "Draw an arrow from your chest." The arrow lengthened, more flames bursting from her heart. "With all your heart and soul, make it stronger."

Rei could see Robo-Patrick before her, its sign the clearest she'd seen. She could see Patrick pounding at the robot. Could see Patrick saving her from her nightmare, saving Chibi-Usa, conquering his fear of the darkness to save Plankton. Could see Michiru encouraging and challenging her. Usagi saving Rei from loneliness. Minako saving Rei from graveness, showing her how to live joyfully, no matter the situation.

The flames thickened, but Robo-Patrick grew clearer, and Michiru was not burned.

Michiru squeezed Rei's arm. "Let it soar."

"Mars…" The flames brightening Mars' eyes and cleared the way. "Flame Sniper!"

She loosed the arrow, and more flames shot with the arrow. The flames engulfed Robo-Patrick, and he dropped and rolled on the ground, releasing Patrick. The arrow was flying straight ahead, about to pass over the robot. No.

Patrick leaped up, grabbed the arrow, the flames gathering about his hand and snaking over his arm, threatening to crisp him into a blackened shell. As quickly as he grabbed the arrow, he threw it toward the sign just as the robot's backside, the sign visible, faced Patrick. The arrow pierced through the robot's sign, through the robot. Wires blossomed from its holes, and electricity crackled about. Hollering, the robot rolled onto its back.

Before the electricity could reach him, Patrick pinched his nose. "Geronimo!" He jumped toward the sludge. Sailor Neptune launched a wave, and it swept under the starfish, carrying him to the platform where she and Rei stood.

No god was around to suppress the imminent explosion.

"If it explodes, it'll destroy this whole park," Sandy said. "We gotta stop it."

Squidward turned in all directions. Searching for an escape route? "You mean you all have to stop it. I'm getting out of here. Somehow."

SpongeBob raised his bubble wand. "Now it's time for me to help. I tried this attack out in the Mermalair, but I think I've perfected it. "

Ami stepped beside him. "I think I can help you."

SpongeBob blew a bubble, a motor on the bubble's back. At the same time, Ami launched several bubbles, her bubbles being absorbed into and growing SpongeBob's. She launched another one, hovering it beside SpongeBob's. His motor bubble launched forward, ahead of Ami's, grew a hand and gestured toward itself, as though it were telling Ami's bubbles to follow it. Ami stroked her Mercury Harp, enlarging her bubble. SpongeBob's bubble combined with hers, and a motor popped at the back of it. The combined bubble jetted forward.

"Hyperspatial Sphere Generate!" The air within the bubble shifted, darkened, preparing to whisk Robo-Patrick into another universe.

"You didn't tell me we were naming this attack." SpongeBob moved his wand, controlling the bubble. "Let's call this the Hyperspatial Sphere Cruise, a hybrid of my new Cruise Bubble and your attack."

The combined bubbles immersed Robo-Patrick. Light shone from the cracks zigzagging in the robot. It pounded its chest, a noise of distress and anger tearing from its throat. It reached toward Squidward and SpongeBob, lip quivering. "P-play…"

Squidward huddled against Makoto. More lights shone through the robot. More electricity pulsed around it. Chunks of it broke, crashed onto the jostle the bubble encasing it.

It burst. Sweat glistened Ami's brow as the Sailor Soldier worked to suppress the explosion. SpongeBob grinded his teeth, eyes watering, the sponge stepping backward. Pieces of the robot pinballed around the bubble. SpongeBob waved his wand upward, and the bubble flew into the sky, taking the rattling robot's remnants. The bubble disappeared in the distance.

Ami slowly lowered her arms. SpongeBob wiped sweat from his forehead.

Robo-Patrick was finished.

A tear dropped from the announcer's eye. "Another beautiful display of teamwork from SpongeBob—well, mainly Patrick and those two girls in the red and turquoise sailor suits. But I suppose the others did well, too."

A vein protruded from Minako's forehead. "You suppose. You suppose?" She lashed the air with her Love Whip, not showing love. "I'll show you what 'suppose' looks like."She ran her hand along her Whip.

"Let's just sit." Usagi panted. "Sit and rest."

Rei wanted to sit. Badly. If she wasn't careful, she could collapse from exhaustion.

At the end, the robot had sounded like it could talk in an understandable language, had a conscious, but she was too tired to decipher why.

PallaPalla gaped at the explosion and at Makoto. Hawk's Eye was gone, perhaps waiting for a more opportune time to attack.

Suddenly, PallaPalla paled in comparison to the tiredness about to crush Rei if she didn't close her eyes soon.

"We all look like hell," Makoto said. At least Rei didn't have to feel bad about being the only one. Even though she'd gotten her upgrade, she didn't feel more energetic.

Patrick walked to her. "Thanks, Rei." He fisted his hips, fisting Plankton as well, Plankton squealing in pain. He took his hand off his "future master." "Oops. Sorry about that. Anyway, Rei, now I know for sure that you aren't Manray and will never become Manray."

"What was your first clue?" Rei said, but her voice didn't have a snap, she was so tired. The fact that she still became angry at Patrick showed that their relationship would never be perfect, but they'd be close. Forged by trials, they would be friends for the rest of their days. No matter how far apart they were physically, they would always hold each other in their hearts.

At first, she would've been ashamed to call a stupid anthropomorphic starfish her friend. Now, she didn't want Patrick out of her life.

Rei wrapped her arms around Patrick and pulled him close.

Thank goodness Patrick Star was her friend.