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A golden goblet swayed in the dim light. It was filled to the brim with viscous blood that slowly dripped from it's sides. When a droplet would fall from it's teetered side, it would be caught in the lips of the girl holding it. The girl swayed the goblet some more as she sat on her throne; a baroque construct adorned with statues of horned women praying to a being of claws and spikes, tendrils and many eyes. There was not a sight more pure.

Yes, such a display deserves nothing more than the purest of offerings,
Justine pondered as she took another sip, letting the delicious crimson substance fall to her tongue. She savored every tasting, knowing it would honor her father, who was the purest of them all. He would appreciate it.

"Justine...It's...Dark..."

The red-eyed heard the whimper of a young girl in the shadowed corner. However, she she simply smiled in responses. The anguished voices were like music to her.
"Yes...It is. Let it embrace you. Soak in it's splendor. Become pure...my dear sister."

"...Justine...I understand..."

The door to the chamber released light as it opened, and shadowy figures could be seen bowing before her. "My Lady, they have gathered as Helga foretold; all of the magical girls of Penrose, and even some from out of town." Justine smirked.
"Excellent. The Puchuu did just as I wanted the rodent to do. Now then, is she ready?" Another girl bowed deeply. "Yes, my Lady. She will not fail." Justine giggled.
"Wonderful. And Sonia is still searching for the Reflective Witch?"
The third girl bowed, launching back into standing straight.
"Yep, she says she's hiding in a pocket or something, and that we'll soon be ready, tee hee~"

The red-eyed girl simply smiled.
"Very well then. Depart immediately once you are." The first girl spoke up: "But what of the Grail? Surely you won't send any of the low-ranking girls against someone of her power?" Justine laughed. "Oh, She can take care of that."
The other girls gasped. "You don't mean...?" Justine nodded.
"It is fine. After all, if she were to become...agitated, it won't affect our plans at all."
All of the girls before Justine shivered, even the third one who has shown only joy.
"Ohhh...Let's hope it doesn't come to that...She leaves a huge mess when she gets angry..."

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Victoria was uneasy. She was a simple girl, with a simple goal of uniting the magical girls under a single cause. Ever since she heard from her Puchuu that dangerous forces were afoot she decided she had to do something. Even if it was a hopeless cause, she had to try. Isn't that what being a Magical Girl was all about? So she had her Puchuu send a message to anyone who could hear it, asking them to listen to her request. And...she got what she expected; the Beacon girls and monsters talking back to each other. She was about to speak up herself when she saw that Furor and Janet actually shook hands.

"Yes, we did it!" She took her Puchuu in for a hug. "We managed to make a truce! I'm so hap-" She was then interrupted by a loud voice, and she fell from her ice pillar due to being startled. "Oof!" She hit the grass, her head still spinning. She then stood back up, and held her head. "Geez, what have I gotten myself into..." She walked closer to the Beacon girls. "Anyway, I'm glad we managed to form a truce. Let's work together, ok?"

@PlatinumSkink

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Once Mariette finished sending her message to Victoria, she felt a disturbance. Soon, the disturbance spread to around her, until it seemed as if the apartment she was staying in was shaking. Then, the oval mirror began glowing in the colors of the rainbow. In a blinding flash, a group of people appeared before the mirror, seemingly bickering among themselves. The black-haired girl who was speaking had her arms at her sides, balled up into fists.
"Damn it Sonia, how hard could it be to find her? Don't you know how to-Oh." She had a surprised expression, and then turned towards Mariette and the twin monsters.

She was talking to a hooded girl wielding a large, intricate staff. The girl called Sonia then scoffed. "See, Minnie? Even if it was difficult, I told you I could do it." The third girl with them stared at Mariette the entire time, smiling with her shark-like teeth bared. "Hey, who cares about that? Now we found Miss Hideyhole~"
The girl took a step forward, her clawed arms extended in front of her, grinning with disturbing glee. "And she even has minions of her own! Yep, she's perfect!"

There was a bit of a realization going through Mariette as the disturbance spread, and she naturally turned to look in the direction of the mirror as it was being channeled. The mirror was her tool, a gift from Asengav, so that someone else was using it was mildly insulting. That before the problem that they were infiltrating her inter-dimensional home. That in itself was a criminal offense, if common law had applied to magical housings. Deni and Eli were considerably less calm about this, the two mostly black amorphous harpies with white faces spinning about in alarm before they located the intruders that had just come out of the mirror.

Five eyes looked, a neutral eye from Mariette, a curious and surprised pair from Deni and a frowning alarmed pair from Eli, all gazed at the three intruders. They allowed them to finish their little routine, before the more talkative of them raised their own voices.

‘Hey, we got uninvited guests.’ Deni stated, curious in her voice, leaning lazily and relaxed back onto her gelatious wings gazing at the three.

‘That's really too bad, we only had a picnic packed for three, there isn't enough so that we can share.’ Eli said, her voice more irked than the contents of her words might suggest, her harpy body obviously on edge and ready unlike her twin.

‘You really should warn us ahead of time, then we could have had tea for you too!’ Deni grinned at them, not seemingly taking this as seriously as she maybe should be.

‘Now, I guess I have to add you to the list of people who can find us.’ Eli said, reaching for the pen and paper which had a list of people before she started writing. ‘Sonia, Minnie and... what's your name?’ Eli turned her head and asked the third girl while her wing was writing their physical descriptions onto the paper.

‘...’ Mariette, meanwhile, simply kept a steady gaze locked onto the three of them where she was still seated, one arm locked around her stuffed bunny, momentarily letting her minions talk. If she needed to, she'd raise her voice, but currently she was simply awaiting the reason why they had appeared in here.

Minnie squeed. "Oh, they're so adorable! Do they squish squish if I hug them?" The third girl laughed. "Ha haa, I wonder what they taste like~" She got an angry look from the two other girls as a reaction, and she promptly closed her teethy mouth. "Oh damn, we could have gotten sandwiches if we sent a message first! Sonia, why didn't you do that!" Minnie pouted at Sonia, and the hodded girl simply shook her head. "Oh, quit playing around. We are on an important mission from our Lady, we must stay focused." The third girl pointed a claw to herself when Eli spoke to her. "Oh, me? I'm Helga!" She answered with a cheer, clapping her claws together. "But you can call me Helgz." Again, she got an angry look.

Sonia sighed. "Anyway, we have important matters to discuss with you, Reflective Witch. We have recently learned of the powers you possess, and have gained the attention of our Lady. She wants to offer you a chance to co-operate with her." "She has big plans, but they're ruined if all the magical girls start meddling," Minnie added. "So if you can give us a hand with them, then the Lady will reward you." Sonia nodded. "We know of the Horror you serve, and our Lady thinks that our objectives match. I think we can mutually benefit from this alliance." Helga came closer, and extended a single claw at Deni, attempting to poke her, until she also spoke. "You got a neat apartment, by the way! Must be hell to pay the rent though!"

Deni smirked at Minnie's reaction to them, while Eli looked a slight bit uncomfortable, finishing up writing their descriptions after having noted Helga's name.

‘We're kinda fluid, so yeah, we'd shape a bit if you squeeze us~’ Deni kept her smile looking at Minnie. Meanwhile, Eli was busy flinching a bit at Helga's reference to eating them.

‘Eh, I'm pretty sure we're not particularly tasty... Also, we could destroy your stomach from within.’ Eli cautioned, frowning with an unconvinced look that was somewhat on edge, but not necessarily hostile.

‘I'd wager we taste like water and corruption~!’ Deni grinned, before turning to her twin. ‘Hey, Eli, let me taste.’ Deni then promptly attempted to take a bite out of her sister's wing, but Eli retaliated by entirely deforming her fluid wing out of the way and back into her body, giving Deni a disapproving glare.

Deni was a little unprepared to be poked at, but just smirked as her outside fluids were poked. It was sticky magical fluid keeping her together. ‘If we call serving Asengav the "rent", since this apartment is a byproduct of the powers he provides, then yeah, it's pretty fierce~!’ Deni naturally responded.

Meanwhile, it was up to Mariette to actually respond to the offer.

‘...’

Though, actually, Mariette had been distracted, momentarily looking out through the portal. ... Though, even with all that, there was a situation in here that she had to deal with, too. Mariette turned her face to Sonia, gazing at her with the eye not under an eye-patch, still squeezing her stuffed bunny.

‘An alliance would be acceptable. However, it now seems that you know a lot more about us than we know about you. Could you introduce yourselves, as well as the cause you serve?’ Mariette spoke to them calmly, keeping her attention focused, just in case. This was hardly an ideal place for a battle should someone attempt to preemptively attack.

Minnie stared at the twin harpies, her eyes sparkling. "Ohh, can I take them home with me, Sonia? Pretty please?" Sonia slapped the gothic lolita girl. "No. This is no time for fun. This is serious business." "It's always serious business with you around, sheesh," Helga said as she picked a tooth with her claw. Sonia continued speaking. "I am glad to hear that we have an understanding. The only thing you need to learn about us is that we serve a grand purpose, and that you should be thankful to us for letting you partake in it's fruition." Minnie pouted. "Uhh, Sonia, that's a bit harsh, don't you think? We could say, like, that we're remaking the world." "Hmph, you do the talking then," Sonia scoffed, crossing her arms, seemingly offended. "Point is," Helga intervened, "Our Lady will soon put her plans to motion. All you gotta do is be ready to fight when it's time."

"Now then, I believe it is time we were on our way. As to how we will contact you in the future..." Sonia opened her palm, revealing a small black crystal, with a dim light inside. "This magical item will let us send messages between us. It should be easy to keep in your person at all times." "And it can also be used as an earring decoration!" Minnie intervened. "Yeah, if you wanna be a fashion disaster, tee hee!" Helga gigled. "Alright, enough. Now then, goodbye, Reflective Witch." With that, the three girls disappeared as quickly as they arrived.

‘Sorry~ Can't go with you, we already belong to our mistress over there~’ Deni grinned at Minnie's little outburst and gestured towards Mariette. Then, they simply listened to the rest. Eli was taking notes of what they were saying, writing it down on the backside of the paper, keeping her eyes focused. Mariette sat still, gazing at them with her one visible eye. When the small black crystal was shown, Mariette absent-mindedly opened a little portal that swallowed it and it reappeared dripping down into Eli's wing, the harpy a little surprised to have been entrusted with it. Otherwise, Mariette acknowledged what they had said, and then they vanished. There was a bit of silence after they had vanished.

‘Sooooooooo.’ Deni broke the silence. ‘What do we make of this?’

‘Someone wants to use us as their pawns.’ Eli stated, inspecting the crystal with her Third Eye for anything suspicious.

‘Huh. Weren't WE the ones that were gonna use people as pawns?’ Deni asked, a little bewildered.

‘Yes. But, apparently, there's someone else that is running the show.’ Eli said, her eyes now also trailing to the portal, and the scenes that were taking place outside...

‘Huh. Uh. So, are we going to let ourselves be used?’ Deni asked, looking to Eli. Eli in turn looked to Mariette, causing Deni also to look at their mistress. Mariette honestly was quite comfortable with just letting the two of them discuss things, but, okay. It appeared they were looking to her, now.

‘We have no reason to believe their objective has anything to do with ours.’ Mariette started. ‘We have no obligation to follow their directions. But, we do need allies. We should not waste an opportunity to get closer to our goals. We will continue with our mission as normal, and when we're contacted we'll reevaluate our position depending on the situation. We can have demands of our own. We'll continue as normal for now. Eli, I want you to examine the means they used to infiltrate our home with your Third Eye. Deni will continue scouting the city under the cover of Darkness magic. We're going to need all the intelligence we can get. But, for now, we will continue inspecting the meeting, see it to its conclusion.’

Deni smirked as Mariette took control and Eli nodded to her commands, and so it was. They were all a bit more on edge, as their home was no longer safe, but regardless... They had a mission to fulfill.

@Landaus Five-One

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Fiona suddenly heard a loud knock on the front door of her mansion. It sounded like it came with enough force to splinter the wood of the door's frame. It was followed by another, cracking it audibly, until the third knock caused it's seams to break, resulting in it falling down on the floor. When Fiona came to see what the source of the ruckus was, she saw her: the red-haired woman seemed to glow with a faint light as she entered the darkened foyer, stepping over the ruined door. She looked up at Fiona, and her intense eyes conveyed pure arrogance. "You're Fiona Grail, right? You sure got a nice house. Would be a shame if something happened to it, heh heh..."

Fiona looked startled when she heard her name called by the red-haired woman who approarched her. "Who are you? And I am Fiona," Fiona replied back. Her faint purplish blue aura fluctuates in its own way. She had no idea why this woman approached her in the Grail Estates. "Nina can you come here?" Fiona asked.

Nina heard her name called by Fiona and walked towards her and noticed the red-haired woman and the faint glow surrounding her. "Fiona, what have you gotten yourself into this time?" Nina asked. Her voice had annoyed tone to it but after the incident with the Infinite Dragon anything is possible. She stopped right by Fiona's legs and purred. "Why are you here?" Nina asked towards the woman.

Fiona looked down at Nina and calmed down a bit. "I don't know. I never met this woman before," Fiona replied to Nina. She looked back up to the woman. She was scared but felt a calming presence around her. Her mark was glowing a faint color of greenish platnium. "Zargoth...," Fiona thought to herself. She cupped her hands in front of her but kept her eyes on the woman.

The woman smirked, and then pointed her finger at Fiona. "I'm only going to say this once, so listen up. My boss wants to work with you. She has heard of how strong you are, and of the magic you possess. She wants you to work for her. And she said she would reward you, whatever that means." The woman scoffed. "Of course, you could decline." She stepped closer to Nina. "But if you do, it means you're useless to us. And I promise you...you don't want that. So what's it gonna be? Should be an easy answer, huh?"

Fiona heard what the woman said and took it to heart. She smiled gleefully at what she said at the end. "I needed to get out of the house anyway. It gets boring all I do is watch cartoons anyway. Therefore, I will help you out. The answer is yes," Fiona said. She uncupped her hands and looked at the woman with happiness. Her aura stopped fluctuating but it had an odd sense of depth to it. "Can I get your name now? I gave you the correct answer," Fiona said. She was extremely curious in who this woman's name was.

Nina stepped back slowly and looked up at Fiona and was worried. She was hardly the voice of reason for Fiona. "Fiona, you should have told me you were bored," Nina said, annoyed.

Fiona looked down at Nina and smiled. "I know, but that meeting was quite not something I would have went to. I have enough meetings with my corporation's council members," Fiona said. She was speaking the truth there. Her body language had an air of boredom to it.

The bold woman gave a small laugh. "You made the right choice. Here, take it." She threw a black crystal at Fiona. "We'll use it to contact you, so keep it on you." She turned around and took a few steps, before turning her head back at her, whisking her long hair. "Name's Curie. You better remember it, cause if you ever cross us...I'm coming for you." And then, she walked away, leaving behind the broken door.

Fiona caught the black crystal and heard the woman's name and smiled slightly. "I will remember your name," Fiona said. She had a smile across her face and enjoyed the chance to meet someone else. She sighed at the broken door but remembered the staff will clean it up anyway. "Black Crystals are very pretty," Fiona thought to herself.

@canaryrose

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In the midst of the conversation the Beaconites had with Chloe and Furor among others, Natasha spotted that one of the girls in their group stayed silent the entire time. The pink-haired girl looked like an elementary schooler, and dressed in a frilly pink dress with hearts decorating it. She also wore a little red backpack. One would have easily assumed her to be lively and social based on her appearance. Instead, she stared at the grass the entire time, her arms at her sides. She hasn't looked up once, even when the booming voice of Laat'AlOfan roared in the sky, to which she only shivered in response to.

Natasha swiveled around to face the girl, smiling brightly and perhaps a little bit fakely. "Hey, I'm Natasha! Call me Nat or Tasha, whatever works. What's your name?" she chirped, her seemingly inherent cheer still reflected on her young face.

The girl didn't seem to hear Natasha, until she heard her whisper: "I'm...chosen." She continued looking at the grass, as if her life depended on it.

Nat's smile faltered for a moment, leading to a fairly befuddled face. However, only moments later, her smile returned. "A-are you deaf? Or just shy? I know lots of shy people, I had this one friend before this whole magical girl business and she was the shiest girl like, ever..." Tasha said, making an effort to fill the silence with a soliloquy about one of her high school friends.

"And that's why you never bungee jump at a country fair!" Nat finished, grinning from ear to ear.

The girl slowly raised her head up, but not to look at Natasha as the Beacon girl expected. Instead, she looked at Victoria, who came closer. For a fleeting moment she could see how a smile played on her lips, her eyes devoid of emotion, as she ran up to Victoria. Before anyone could react to what happened, the girl stabbed Victoria in the stomach with a magical knife.

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"Ungh!" Victoria reeled in pain, her eyes widening at the horrible sight before her; the pink girl's eyes seemed to go wild as she pushed the knife deeper. "HERETIC!" She screamed, and enveloped her weapon with magical light, causing Victoria to shake as a burst of magic pierced her. "PRAISE BEACON!" Victoria then fell, and her life ended before Natasha's very eyes.

Natasha, who looked shocked for a moment, jumped into action, and shot forward, grabbing the girl's wrists and pinning her to the tree.

"Why," she breathed, looking incensed, "Did you do that?"

The girl only gave the smallest resistance when she was pulled, smiling in glee the entire time, her eyes still dull. She giggled, and once again screamed: "PRAISE BEACON!" Then, a strange sound came from her; it was like a clock ticking in her backpack...

Natasha removed her hands for just a moment, raising them up and then calling a sort of metal to her hands, only to wind it around the girl's wrists and ankles and to atach her to the tree.

"If I were you, I wouldn't try to get free. Victoria was innocent- what you did was wrong. Now, I can't kill you- but I certainly would if I could."

"HERETIC!" The girl screamed back at her, and continued giggling. The ticking sound seemed to accelerate and turn louder, and as it did she began laughing mad. "HAHAHAHA! DIE, HERETICS!"

Natasha, still looking incensed, ran to the backpack, zipping it open. She rifled around for a moment, before picking up a bomb. "Shit..." she whispered. "My engineering expertise is finally useful, it seems." Taking a glance at the anonymous crazy, she took a closer look at it, and seeing the nuclear symbol, she screeched.

"FUCK! FUCK, SHIT, FUCK!" Nat screeched. She quickly began to take it apart, using both her hands and powers to disable it. She tore it apart, ignoring curious stares from the others. When done, she dropped it onto the ground and furiously jumped on it. The glowing core resembling a jewel shimmered for a moment as it was thrown out of the contraption, before it's light dimmed down as the girl stomped it.

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The giggling girl bound to the tree then suddenly turned quiet, lowering her head. She was still smiling. "Hee...Hee...HERETICS!" Then, she was surrounded by a bright light, and her body was suddenly skewered by multiple spears made of magical light. "PR....AI..SE...BEA....C-c...on..." She managed to gurgle out before she slumped, ending with the same fate as Victoria.

Natasha, seemingly not caring, dusted off her hands, her face streaked with grease as the result of hurriedly taking apart a bomb.

"Whelp. That's my good deed for the day, I guess. Hey, Janet, Alicia, I just disabled a bomb and pretty much saved the whole city! Wanna head home with me? This whole alliance thing is probably not going to happen now." Natasha shouted. "Better not let Mrs. Hawthorn and Mr. Hawthorn- or, I mean, Mom and Dad, see this grease. Bleh."

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Justine giggled as she held her cup of blood in her hand, having listened to the reports she got from her loyal servants.
"So the Chaotic Seraph Angel and the Reflective Witch have both agreed? Simply sublime." She was content to hear that her plan to turn the most powerful Magical Girls of Penrose into her pawns has worked out.
"And Stephanie was also a success?" "Yes, my Lady," a shadowed Magical Girl spoke while kneeling before her. "It took me a couple of weeks, but she finally failed to resist the mind control, and the alliance has failed, as per your will." Justine smirked deviously.
"Excellent. Anything else?" She asked innocently.
The Magical Girls kneeling before her shook; none dared to speak of what also transpired, until Helga announced: "Oh, and Curie put a nuke in her pack! Tee hee~"

Justine simply stared for a moment, and then giggled, sipping her goblet of blood with glee. Her expression, however, was not an amused one, but rather, an agitated one. And soon, it turned into a blazing inferno of rage when she threw the goblet at Curie, who knelt before her, covering her in crimson liquid.
"YOU DID WHAT!" She shrieked. "YOU ABSOLUTE FOOL!" She rose up from her throne, her expression of nightmarish design, and stomped on Curie's face, causing her to grunt in pain.
"Do you have any idea what would have happened if that bomb was set off?" She then twisted the boot on her face, causing her to whimper in agony.
"It would have ruined my plans!"

Curie braced her teeth, and spoke through them: "B-But Boss...You told me that the Magical Girls were a problem! I thought you wanted to get rid of them! Besides, it was a really small bomb, it would have only wiped out the park!" Justine kicked Curie off, letting her fall backwards from the throne.
"You idiot! Even if it would have only destroyed the park, that would have been far too many casualties! You know what I need, Curie! I have no use for irradiated remains! Do you understand!"

"Curie...Is a...Naughty girl..."

A voice could be heard from the shadowy corner.

"Can...Caroline...Play...With Curie? Can Caroline have...Sweet...Red?"

"Not yet, my dear sister," Justine responded firmly. She walked over to Curie, her red eyes glowing with malice.
"First, you must understand that the use of your powers in that way is expressly forbidden, and only used as a last resort. Understood?" Curie trembled in shame, and the rest of them shook violently out of pure, distilled terror. "Lady Justine is...super scary!" "To think Curie made her so mad!"

Justine then returned to sit on her throne. "Caroline, take her away. Make her understand how we are not to be trifled with." Curie's eyes widened. "Please, no...NO!" But before she could utter another word, she was suddenly dragged off by a red flash, the two disappearing from the throne room, leaving only Justine's giggles to echo in the chamber.

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Lily was a bit apprehensive at first at Isana's rude behavior, but when she said they could be allies, she was overcome with joy. But then, she was startled by the booming voice that resounded from the heavens, and looked up to see a literal god talk from above; she has had her share of unusual sights ever since she became a Magical Girl, but this was the first time she ever saw a deity. It was more than she expected, and the usually energetic girl held her hands close to her chest, unsure of what to think when it disappeared.
"Scary..." She mused to herself. I'm glad you're not scary like that, X.
The Lesser Force neighed silently.

Brushing aside the strange apparition, Lily turned around to see if Chloe was still conversing with the Beacon girls. She kept thinking of how they would now be a team, ready to deliver justice and become true friends in the process. Now, nothing could go wrong. Until that hope was shattered.

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The sight that next beheld her was something she could never forget; Victoria was stabbed, and the park seemed to fall into a panic when a bomb was discovered in the attacker's possessions.
"H-Huh? Victoria!" She blurted out, and attempted to also run to the scene, only to be held back by Alex, telling her they had to go.
"But-But I-!" She stuttered, trying to get her words through, still struggling to get free. She saw how both Chloe and Isana quickly fled with looks of surprise and fear, respectively. Then, she gave up.
"So it's hopeless, huh? That Magical Girls could...*sniff*...work together..."
Filled with grief over Victoria's death but not willing to lose another friend, Lily summoned Ixion and escaped the park with Alex, tears flying off her cheeks as she did.

---

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The two quickly rode to the edge of town, and it was there that Lily stopped. She had stopped sobbing by then, but her face was still slightly red from the crying.
"This is where I picked you up, right? Well then...I guess this is goodbye..." She said, and looked away, not willing to look Alex in the eye, or an equivalent of one.
"Ugh, why did this have to happen..." She slouched over her bike handle.
"No matter what I do, I'll always be alone..."

Alexander cursed to himself 'if I just leave her like this...I'll never forgive myself. Dammit, how do you make a girl stop crying?' Being woefully out of his element, Alexander did the only thing he could think of; he hugged her
"look, it's...it's not that bad. I mean sure; Beacon is full of self-righteous assholes, and the people who don't look fully human anymore may have made some questionable life choices." It was at this point that Alexander realized that what he was saying wasn't really comforting.

"Dammit, I really suck at cheering people up. I mean just look at me; I'm a jaded grouch. You're the cheerful one, it's practically a fundamental law of nature. Grass grows, birds fly, and Lily is insufferably peppy. So when you get like this...it feels like something something in the world is broken. So just cheer up...please. You're not as alone as you think."

The implications of his last sentence suddenly hit him
'why did I say that!? I bet it's Sol's fault, he's starting to get into my head...stupid Sol.'

Lily shivered from the sudden hug, but didn't resist; usually she would have slapped the boy for something like this, but now, just once, she wanted to not be alone.
"H-Hey, stop that..." She said in a low voice. "I know for a fact you're not one of those magic clones, so..."
She listened to his words in silence, and she couldn't help but give a weak chuckle.
"Heh...I...guess you're right. Being like this just isn't me, huh?" Then, he said something that could be interpreted as romantic, and she blushed.
"W-What!" She turned Ixion back into his ethereal form, causing Alex to fall, and stood over him with her fists at her sides.
"Hey, don't try that funny stuff with me!" But then, she couldn't help but smile; by doing this kind of stuff, he helped Lily forget her grief, and she couldn't hate that. She then offered a hand to him, and lifted him up. "But...thanks for cheering me up. I appreciate it."

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Alexander sighed in relief as he took her hand and got up "Good. I have no idea what I would have done if that didn't work. I'm really not good at this heart to heart stuff. See what happens when you get depressed like that; it messes with the natural order of this and it makes me...all mushy like that. That's something that I don't think either of us want." Taking a little time to brush himself off, he changed topics.
"So now what? If it was just me, I'd head back home and binge watch some really awful movies while eating an entire carton of ice cream. But...well...it's not just me. So I'm kind of at a loss here."

Lily pouted, feeling a bit awkward at the way she reacted.
"Hey, let's just forget this happened, okay?" Then, she tried to return back to bring her old self, but her smile was still a bit forced.
"Well, I'm the kind of girl who doesn't need to sleep OR eat. Well...Maybe a little, but it's like one hour every couple of days, and like a single leaf of bread in a week. I usually just travel from place, so I don't really have a home to return to. Isn't that cool? I'm like the Lone Wanderer or something?"

Alexander chuckled.
"Only you could find being homeless cool. Yeah, I don't need a lot of food or sleep either, but I spent my entire first life being a dirt poor orphan, so if I want to splurge on comfort food and a home, then I'm going to. Cable too, I had no idea how awesome having cable was before." Alexander shook his head as he remembered when he first discovered the wonders of cable TV. He then suddenly had an idea...more of an urge, that he felt compelled to act on.
"So...look. If, if you ever need a place to stay...I...I wouldn't mind if you crashed at my place. I mean, it's safer then the streets, and I'd never forgive myself if I didn't at least make the offer."

"Yeah, cable's great...I remember how I watched a lot of Sailor Moon growing up..." She reminisced, before she coughed.
"I mean, all the cool and modern cartoons nowadays like Adv-Adventurers, yeah, hehe!" Lily laughed a bit, but it came out a bit stilted; Victoria's corpse in the grass was still fresh on her mind, and she dwelt on it for a moment until Alex brought something up. Lily was flabbergasted.
"W-What? You really mean it?" She came closer to him, her face once again inches away from his.
"Hmm, well, isn't that very gentlemanly of you...Or are you up to your old tricks again?" She turned around.
"Okay, I'll crash at your place." She leaned her neck and gave an evil smirk.
"But if I catch you doing anything...I'll kick your ass." She giggled.
"Alright, let's go!"

---

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At Alexander's place, Lily barged to the kitchen the first moment she could, and began stuffing her face with all kinds of food. "Mm, this is so...delicious! It's been so long since I got some ice cream! Yum!"

"You don't waste any time, do you?" Seeing Lily rush to raid his fridge, all Alexander could do was raise an eyebrow "Still, I have no one to blame but myself." Kicking off his shoes, Alexander made his way to the TV and sat down on the couch. Remote in hand, he turned it on and started looking for something to watch.
"Now, let's see......Aha! Crappy B-movies, jackpot!" Pausing the movie so he could grab something to snack on from the kitchen, he walked in on Lily stuffing her face
"Well someone's hungry."

"Hey, I...*nom*...Only eat stuff like bread and fruits. I can have a moment to enjoy myself, right? Besides, as a Magical Girl, I don't have to worry about my figure at all!" She said proudly while swiping her hand down her side.
"I can eat all I want, and still stay fit as a fiddle!" After she piled a ridiculously high sandwich, she hopped on the couch, hogging it all for herself.
"Ehh, this movie's kind of crap," she commented while she kept eating.
"The guy's acting like a piece of lumber. Ehh, I'll just go to bed." She hopped off, and went to Alex's bedroom.
"I'm taking this, so you can sleep on the couch, right? Thanks!" She exclaimed with a cheer, and then shut the door on him. "Goodnight!" He heard her greet from the other side.

Alexander meanwhile was baffled "Huh. Someone just raided my fridge, and stole my room, yet I don't want to throttle them. Is...is something wrong with me? Bah, It's nothing some cheesy movies won't fix. Now back to mocking people for being horrible at their jobs." And with that, Alexander resumed watching his movies, with a tub of ice cream at his side.

---

The next morning, Lily groaned as she crawled out of the bedroom; her hair was messy, her clothes were wrinkled, and as she saw Alex still sleeping she realized her glasses were sitting crooked on her nose...Wait, glasses? "Aaahh!" She screamed, causing Alex to wake up. The both of them saw how they looked untransformed, and Lily ran off to the bathroom, blushing like a tomato at the embarrassment.
Oh crap crap crap! He saw me without my cool and cute costume! Ughh, this is horrible! I look like such a loser!

"Geez, what is wrong with that girl?" Alexander shook the remaining sleep out of his head 'although, I didn't expect her to wear glasses. I would have thought that our magic would have fixed that...or is it just when transformed...or does transforming just hide things like glasses. Screw it, it's too early for this.' Getting up, he walked over the the bathroom door, "You okay in there Lily? Did something happen?"

Lily soon opened the bathroom door, and walked out with grace, back in her transformed state.
"Why of course not, Alexander. Lily Lightning is always okay! Haha!" Then she smiled.
"So, that's how you look like without your mask, huh? The glasses are...Well, a necessary item in order to correct eyesight, yes indeed. Anyway, let's start patrolling for monsters; now that the park incident caused most of the Magical Girls to flee, it's up to us to keep the city safe, right? Alright, let's gooo!" And with that, Lily left with gusto, back to her good old self again.

Alexander reached up to his face to feel his glasses.
"Huh...Forgot I had these. Wonder why Sol makes me wear them. It's not like I ever needed glasses, and these aren't even real." he poked their plastic lenses. After he transformed, he went outside to meet up with Lily.
Still, it was surprising to find out that Lily is transformation shy. Or, does her transformation make her naked? I mean, I've heard rumors about transformations like that, but I never thought they were real. Or...maybe she's transformation shy. Man I don't know, girls are weird.

Background Music

In a higher plane of existence, in a realm filled with brilliant, blinding light, resided the Beckoners; the spiritual guides of the Beacon, who watch over and nurture the magical girls who have been chosen to act out the their holy will. But, tensions were turmoiling between some of these Beckoners, as they converged in a great temple of ancient Greek architecture, made of gold and marble and reaching an unmeasurable distance into the heavens.

"So Janet has not fallen from grace?" a Beckoner resembling a small lion cub asked. "She is untainted by the darkness?"
"Of that there is no doubt," the angelic Beckoner who scolded Janet then spoke. "However, I worry for her resolve; I believed that by granting her the chance to redeem herself after such a life, she would be the most pious of chosen. However, it seems her mind is clouded and unsure. She may falter if not properly supported by other chosen." "Well, she has now successfully integrated into a group, yes? Guided by her peers, she will surely find her light."

"Rather than her, we have to speak of the chosen who ruined the alliance!"
"To think that one of our own would commit such sin," the lion Beckoner spoke. "And let one of the chosen to destroy an entire community. What is the human's name? Raphael, you were present with your chosen, yes? Did you see her?"

The bestial Beckoner nodded. "Yes, I did. It was Stephanie, chosen by Samael." The Beckoners turned towards the cat-like Beckoner, who was calmly sitting. "Why did you let this sacrilege pass, Samael! You were trusted with keeping her on the path of righteousness and purity, yet you let her fall to such depravity!" Samael only stared back, stoic like death itself. "It was not by Stephanie's will that she has sinned...The Spark has failed us."

"So you mean to say...?" Samael nodded. "Yes Michael, it has happened again...Let us pray that our chosen, pure of heart and innocent of soul, can end this menace, before the land is wreathed in blasphemy..." Michael turned silent. "So, it has come to this then...To protect this human community, we must find any who are willing to aid in our mission. And it seems there was one entity that shares in our love for humanity. Have the chosen summon this god, and let us judge them."

Background Music

A couple of days later, Justine decided it was time to see if her plans would be advanced by a couple of interesting individuals, and extended her open palm. One of the Magical Girls then placed a black crystal on her hand; it was larger than the ones given to Mariette and Fiona, and split upwards into four sharp points.Justine swept her hand, and Magical Girls bowed and left the chamber as well.

Justine laughed a bit as she used a bit of her magical power to awaken the power of the crystal. Soon, Mariette and Fiona both felt their own crystals faintly vibrate and shimmer with a black light. When they lifted them up, they saw a magical hologram emit from the top of the crystal; it was a single red eye, glowing with palpable power.

"Greetings, Reflective Witch, and Chaotic Seraph Angel. I am Justine von Visceral, a Magical Girl with a dream to fulfill. If you are listening to this, then it means you have agreed to a mutually beneficial alliance. You see, there is something I require....Blood."
She paused for dramatic effect.
"Yes, that's right...the blood of Magical Girls. It is of no matter how you acquire it, only that you do so in vast amounts. In return, whatever is your heart's desire, I shall grant it; wealth, fame, family, friends...I can give all of these things." The red eye seemed to swirl with fire.

"So, what say you?"

---

At the time of the call, at midnight... Mariette had been trying to sleep. Both her minions were out scouting the city under the cover of the night and Darkness magic, while Mariette lay in the spare bed in Joe's apartment clutching her big stuffed bunny, desperately trying to get some shut-eye despite the flowing powers of Asengav within her keeping her awake against her will, hearing the whispers of nothingness... While Eli normally held the crystal, it was decided that having it while scouting was a terrible idea so Mariette slept with it lying beside her pillow. Pyjamas had no pockets, after all.

... Then she felt the vibration and her hand went to grab the black crystal, her eyes part-open as she sat up still clutching her bunny with her other arm, looking with a troubled expression as the message came through. Untransformed right now, she had blonde hair and put on her glasses that had been lying on a table beside her, staring forward at the red eye which had formed over the crystal. She then listened, considering what was being said. Justine von Visceral...

Blood of Magical Girls, huh. How distasteful. Not that it really mattered, her own goals weren't exactly sparkling clean, either. But, relevantly enough, this meant their goals didn't necessarily clash. She needed blood for something? Fine. Just as long as Mariette also got what she needed. Which, incidentally, wasn't any of the things Justine had mentioned herself being able to provide.

‘I can accept these terms. In exchange...’ Mariette considered. It wasn't that simple a matter. She could but ask for what she needed, but then, could she trust Justine to deliver? She didn't want to let Justine in on her ultimate goal. A way around it was to ask for power, Asengav had only given her so much to achieve her goals, but would she want the power Justine could provide? ... Not necessarily. She didn't want to place herself in a situation where Justine could easily pull her plug...

‘... I'd like a force to call my own, in any shape you can provide. Monsters, other girls, any such... which I can then use to achieve my own goals.’ ... Yes. Using minions to achieve her goals, them not knowing what the greater purpose might be, she could then easily discard them if they turned traitorous. This worked. Mariette nodded to herself. ‘Provide me that, and I will provide you blood.’ Mariette told.

---

Fiona was walking around her home with the black crystal in her hand. She always had trouble sleeping but she was happy to hold something different for a change it excited. She walked in front of a mirror in the bathroom and looked at the black crystal. She smiled and wondered what kind of necklace could fit this piece of jewelry.

She heard a familiar voice within her head. It was Zargoth and he was quite curious where she got the black crystal in her hand from. "Ah, that is a communication device. Who gave it to you?" Zargoth asked curiously.

The black crystal in Fiona's hand started vibrating even before she could answer Zargoth. A voice came through and the person was named Justine von Visceral. She smiled at the name of the person who sent Curie to her. She listened intently with what she had to say but this peaked Zargoth's interest more than Fiona's because of what Justine wanted Blood. The aura surrounding Fiona changed slightly into a blackened purplish aura that only happens once Zargoth uses his conduit spell on a champion. She was being used as a conduit for Zargoth's immense will and fortitude.

Zargoth spoke through Fiona to the person on the other side of the crystal. "Ah, you must be the one who sent my Champion the communication device the little black crystal. Blood is all you require and you will get what you want. In return, I will allow my champion to speak for herself in what she desires the most. Justine, it is nice talking to you. Your name feels familiar somehow."

Fiona's entire body returns to the normal glowing color of her aura. The conduit spell, which Zargoth had used on her was quite powerful in allowing him to speak through her. She was confused in what Zargoth meant at the last part of his point. She had a smile nonetheless and is unharmed from the conduit spell in question.
"Fame and Friends is all I truly seek Ms. Visercal. As you heard what Zargoth had said through me. I am grateful for this chance to gather what you require," Fiona said. Fiona looked at the black crystal intently.

The voice of Zargoth entered Fiona's head. "I'll use that Conduit Spell sparingly, my champion," Zargoth said kindly. His voice was proud in what he had accomplished during his sleep and he had accessed the most potent of his spells and all of them aren't dangerous to his champions.

Fiona smiled and she remembered something. She was looking at the Black Crystal intently. "Ms. Visceral would it be alright if I put this crystal into a necklace?" Fiona asked, curiously.

---

The flaming eye bounced slightly in place from Justine's sinister laugh, slightly echoing in the rooms of the two Magical Girls.
"Excellent. So one desires tools of war, and the other tools of peace? How amusing. Oh, and it is very nice to meet you, Zargoth~" Justine paused. The two could hear her sip something.
"Very well then. For you, Reflective Witch, I shall grant soldiers; willing to fight and die for you, hm hm~" The eye blinked.
"And for you, Chaotic Seraph Angel, I shall grant companionship; loyal and amicable, who will speak praises of your name. And of course, you may wear the crystal however you wish. I will have my servants pick up the first delivery within a fortnight. It is a pleasure working with you. Now then, goodbye~"
And with that, the eye closed, and the crystals turned off.

"Soon..." Justine whispered.

"Soon, you will be pure, Caroline..."

---

‘...’

Mariette didn't say a word as she got her response. It appeared she had delved into something dangerous. This had always been dangerous, but it now became even more so. She had to consider the possibility of being betrayed at any point. However... for this fortnight, she would do her part as Justine's pawn, for it could turn out to pay off in the end. For now... Mariette put the crystal back beside her pillow, put her glasses beside her on the table and crashed her head down on the pillow while clutching her bunny to desperately try to get some shut-eye. She'd need to start acting as soon as Deni and Eli reported back. She feared she might not get any sleep before that happened.

... Getting blood from Magical Girls within the city would be too dangerous, it'd attract attention. Fortunately, Mariette was a master of portals. There was more than one place to collect Magical Girls from in the world, and Mariette was a very capable huntress, with both Absolute Direction as well as Darkness magic and the Third Eye at her disposal via her minions to set up ambushes. Yes... This would work. She'd make her base of operations in Penrose, but she'd portal to other cities to hunt for Magical Girls on her pastime, never to the same place twice, always hunting for those she knew she'd easily take. Deni and Eli would scout, and then she'd open portals to kidnap the girls before anyone was the wiser, and then they'd easily subdue the girls for Justine to leech their blood...

Mariette gave a little smile where she lay, squeezing her stuffed bunny while trying to sleep. Did she dare think hunting Magical Girls would make for a fun pastime?

---

Fiona looked at the black crystal for a bit and noticed it was an earring and she smiled at that. She heard what Justine had said and smiled. She put the black crystal on her ear because she has no real pockets in her monster form. Her patron's voice appeared in her head. "Champion, it looks beautiful on your ear. What are you going to do?" Zargoth asked.

Fiona looked at the mirror and smiled for a second. "Zargoth... I will figure it out since I do have time to do this," Fiona said. She walked out of the bathroom.

Zargoth's voice was still there. "I guess it is time to send out the Void Dragons then," Zargoth said. His tone of voice was excited because the Void Dragons follow his will to the letter. "The Void Dragons are better than those pain in the ass Infinite Dragons," Zargoth said, his tone of voice clearly annoyed when he brought them up.

Fiona walked towards her room and was afraid. "What have you done to the Infinite Dragon that I made lose an eye?" Fiona asked curiously. The words of the Infinite Dragon triggered her self-preservation instincts, and caused her to feel the fear of death again.

Zargoth's voice lingered in her mind. "Oh you will enjoy what I have done with him; the loss of his eye will be a constant reminder to never trifle with a champion," Zargoth said. His tone of voice was delighted. "I think it would be better for you to think on strategies of how to catch magical girls in Penrose. I will worry about the outside world," Zargoth said. He then cut himself off, and disappeared back to his own realm.

Fiona heard her patron and smiled. "Wonderful... I must say," Fiona said. She walked into her room and sat down at her desk. She laid her head down on it and tried to think of what her patron had asked her to do. For her plans to hatch, she would have to bide her time, but soon she would set out on the hunt.

Background Music

During one of their patrols, Lily decided to stop at a rooftop, and take a short break from the constant movement they have made. They haven't had that many monster sightings, and the few that they found were quite miniscule and weak, so she was feeling a bit let down.
"Bweh, Why's it small fry all the time? I fought some big ones when I first entered the city, so where have they all gone?" She was leaning against the railing, and looked down at a small park, filled with cheerful children having fun. One of the kids even had an older sister with short black hair with them; the fact that she would spend time playing with her family like that was something she found heartwarming. Though the longer she looked at her, the stranger it seemed; she wasn't exactly dressed for the weather, and she kept wandering around the park as if she wasn't accompanying anyone.
"Huh...Is she actually an only child?"

Background Music

She didn't have much time to dwell on that mystery when she heard a strange sound, and turned around. She gasped when she saw a portal open before her, two figures appearing from it's depths. She stared curiously at the strange pair of girls, wondering what they were going to do. One of them was short, with adorable over-sized sleeves that hid her hands and made them look like wings; at least, that's what Lily thought. She seemed really cute, until she noticed that her dress was embarrassingly translucent and dripped a black liquid, which caused her to reel back a bit.
Is that girl...Covered in tar? Then her attention was taken by the taller girl, who was very pretty, and obviously a Dark Magical Girl; her attire and moody atmosphere couldn't be mistaken. But, unlike Chloe, she seemed to be quite reserved.

At first Lily was tense, with her hands balled up into fists, expecting a spell to be launched at her. But the mysterious girl didn't do anything of the sort, and simply stared at her, clutching a doll. Was she shy? Well, Lily wasn't going to let that get in the way.
"Hi there!" She greeted her with a smile, waving her hand. "Since you didn't attack, it means you want to talk, right?" She took a step towards the two. Lily then pointed at the short girl. "Uhh, not sure if you noticed, but, you got some...stuff...on you, hehe."
She blushed a bit, hoping she didn't embarrass the girl too much.
"So anyway, name's Lily Lightning. Nice to meet you! What's your names?"