For a moment it looked like things would hold just long enough to get more information. Sadly no, the energy in the room resonated with Cindy and she had taken off with a small entourage. "Oh brother." He didn't see much chance of stopping her without just cause. He hurried off where Cindy directed.

"Ah good, you're awake. I need you to pay close attention." He approached the cage and gave it a light jolt to bring the girl to full attention. "I don't know what you thought was going to happen, but your little stunt has riled up Cindy. If you wanted us to go after Beacon then you should have been more careful. Now she's off to go kill your friends. I'm not too keen on the idea myself so I suggest you tell me how to get in contact with them before she gets there." Most of the statement is purposely vague, trying to get the girl to lean one way or another. The confusion, personal connection, and urgency of the request should get a response that would guide his Power of Friendship well enough.

Back the way he'd come the rave sounded like it had kicked into high gear. He'd never personally been to one before so it could just be a normal thing.

_{@PlatinumSkink@ERode}

Nuncio was too engrossed in Fabio’s patrol to bother with snacks.

”Hey, they talkin’ about Sammy?”

Small twerp wasn’t a descriptor Nuncio would ever use for Sammy, but he could picture others doing it. He was surprised she had lasted this long. Regardless, knowing she was still around brought a smile to his face. They had done it. However, Nuncio’s artifact failed to bring up the invisible string, which Fabio clawed apart after setting it off.

”I know ya saw that one Fabio, come on!” The cat looked up to see the approaching magical girls. ”Plan B it is, get ya butt in gear, Mariette!” Nuncio stood up and held his hand over Rosa’s head. The white tiger grew in size as his beast magic took hold of it. Even her crossed eyes seemed to straighten. ”We’ve got a sharp blade and a hungry cat ovah here!” Tigers were strong, but they were ambush predators. A well placed portal would be all the tiger needed for a good sneak attack. It was already hunching it’s back for a mighty lunge.

Fabio’s enchantments were waning, but he still attempted to keep as much distance between himself and his pursuers as possible. This wasn’t his first time being chased.

---

_@twave

For a moment there, Cindy looked like she might have reconsidered going off by herself. It made Tetrad wonder if she and Ronin simply stuck to their guns and tried to talk her down if it would have worked. Maybe, possibly, but that man and the outer alliance seemed intent on going no matter what. There would be time to analyze the mission later. Veronica seemed to have a contingency for this, so there wasn’t any point dwelling on it now. At least she got some information to help her understand the situation.

And even if that acid slurping jock in the suit turned out to be an animal, there was another guy here that looked kind of fun. She’d at least have to dance with him. After the mission, of course. She’d at least have to get his number.

Tetrad walked up to the doorway where Shane had gone. She hadn’t been granted acess to the room, and she wasn’t about to sneak her way in. But if this guy was able to investigate, maybe she could help him out.

“Hey handsome!” Tetrad shouted past the doorway. “The phone and charm aren’t hers, so it’s likely she’s not affiliated with Beacon. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was brainwashed. Seems to be a regular thing in Penrose, right?” Tetrad winked. “If you find anything interesting, let me know.” Tetrad hurried towards the dance floor. If she wanted to join up with Ronin, she’d need to be near Trixy when it happened.



_{@PlatinumSkink@AtomicNut@Ponn}

This was the first time Cindy had seen Lotus smile. ”Hmmm, you have made a wise choice. I am ready to depart intermediately.”

”One moment, I need to make a quick call to a bestie~” Faith whipped out her phone and promptly dialed Connie’s number. She might have gotten Connie, she might have gotten a recording, but she’d leave the same message. ”I’m going to go to the park with Cindy. I hope you enjoy the rave sweetie, tell me all about it when I get back~!”

She closed her phone and wandered after the others.

---

Veronica’s eyebrows raised bit by bit with every absurd thing that happened. Cindy running off to kill the cardinal, Justine showing up, Eli being here, and then Dolly going poof out of nowhere. Veronica wondered what the point of having a disguise was at all if everyone just knew where you were. Not that she had been quiet after entering the rave, but it had only been a few seconds and a harem’s worth of girls had appeared around her. Baffling.

There was something off about how casually Justine mentioned that Veronica was ex-Mint. It wasn’t secret knowledge, but wasn’t something she would know without doing a bit of research. It was possible she had been in Penrose all this time, though it was far more likely that the Mint was somehow involved with this.

_{@FamishedPants}

“Change of plans, I’m capturing Justine.” It did not seem like killing Justine would do the trick. Not today. Her being here had piqued Veronica’s interest, and that was always worth exploring. “Sam, Sonia is in Justine’s vicinity. She’s proven to be exceptional at kidnapping, and I’d like you to intercept her before she can stop me or nab Eli.” Time girls were hard to deal with. Unless you had your own, that is.

But this was still a problematic situation. Even if Sam was enough to fully intercept Sonia (of course she was) Justine was not your average foe. Even Veronica was unsure if she could reliably defeat Justine without an advantage. If the Mint was present, they could use a fight between the two as an opportune time to take one or both of them out. And helping the Mint was the last thing Veronica wanted to do. She needed a way to weaken Justine before a fight could even start.

She had ideas, ones that sounded reliable. Back when she was a Mint coinbroker, she had gotten the chance to talk with the Bate twins and their encounter with Caroline. Sam’s report when Eli and her were fighting Caroline also yielded interesting info. Even more was gathered when she interrogated* Jannet after Justine was defeated. There was also Father’s entire mission. She couldn’t say her plan was foolproof, especially if some of the parameters changed. But even if it failed, it would confirm something very important.

<sub>*This is something that happened entirely OOC. More details if Jannet’s twins ever encounter Veronica : 3

@ERode</sub>

Veronica looked away from Justine and instead locked eyes with Dolly. “I do not believe now is the best time, but we may if you’d like.” She looked towards the stage. Vi-chan was about to sing. She hoped Sam was in position, because she couldn’t stall forever.



Betty had a lot of random thoughts. They tended to lead her to doing impulsive things. Like tackling good girls like Amaryllis or kicking random metal spheres because they could be bombs. But not all of her random thoughts were so dark. Sometimes they could be wholesome.

She believed in the red thread of fate. That two people are destined to come together at some point and entirely change each others lives. There was something comforting about knowing that things would eventually work out for people. It also gave Betty a feeling of control over her own life. She had yet to meet the person who she was tied to. She didn’t think it was Binky. She was a nice girl, but Betty also thought that she deserved someone who wasn’t mixed up in all this underhanded stuff. But what fascinated her more than her own red thread of fate was Veronica’s.

The woman was a mystery, She didn’t seem to care for people too much, but it was hard to picture her as anything but lonely. There had to be someone in this world who could make her heart whole. Someone who could put a smile on her face with a simple joke. And now, with so many people present, Betty wondered if it was one of these people who were standing around Veronica.

_{@PlatinumSkink}

That was when Veronica stepped out from in front of Dolly, and placed a hand on Justine’s shoulder.

No way.

“Of course, Justine.” She had her back to Sonia while she spoke. “You’re so much more than a common vampire.”

No. Way.

“I’d be lying if I said there was a moment I stopped thinking about you.” A warm smile crossed Veronica’s face. “Your intellect, your strength…”

No!

“…How could I possibly deny…”

Way!

“…That I love you.”

Betty nearly passed out when she heard the words. Her heart was pounding. She couldn’t understand why Veronica would order her killed if she felt this way. Maybe Justine and Veronica broke up in the past, and it was only in seeing her again that she was able to forgi-

“Don’t resist, Betty.”

What?

Betty hadn’t realized it, but while one hand was on Justine’s shoulder, the other one was on the back of Betty’s head. Before she could make a guess as to what would happen next, Veronica brought Betty and Justine’s lips together in a kiss.

What. The. Heck.

Veronica had forced her to give her first kiss to Justine. This was horrible! Well, not really. Justine wouldn’t have been Betty’s first choice, But there were a lot of choices after Justine. Betty found herself drawn to strong people and Justine certainly fit that bill. But there had to be a reason behind this. Veronica said not to resist, so she decided to make the most of it. There was no way Betty could keep kissing Justine like this though. Strong as she may be, it was still Justine! She had to do something, like pretend it was someone else. Betty forced her eyes closed and tried to think of people she’d rather kiss than Justine that was still close to Justine in shape. There had to be someone. She had a connection with someone recently. Who were they?

Yes, yes! It was all coming together now.

It was cold out. Betty was wounded and vulnerable. She had been attacked by a Mint agent, and then rescued afterwards. Her savior was conflicted, as she didn’t like Veronica but understood that Betty was a kind soul. There was a lot of anger there. In the end, she hoped that they would meet again. And then she left. No, she didn’t leave. Not in this version of history. She approached Betty. She wanted something.

A kiss.

Betty relaxed, surrendering herself to Justine Katelyn. She stretched an arm around Justine’s Katelyn’s head. Her other hand stroked the webbing in Justine Katelyn’s wings before coiling around her waist. She didn’t know what Justine Katelyn was wearing. It was frilly and fancy, and felt soft against her skin. Wait, yes she did. It was a wedding dress! Justine Katelyn desired more than a simple kiss, she wanted her everything. The only thing that might complete this moment were if Justine Katelyn used her claws to mark her flesh.

She didn’t remember being this way before she was a magical girl. This music made her feel more altruistic than normal. Her alliance was to Veronica, but she didn’t mind helping others either.

_{@Majoras End}

“Vi-chan appears to be whipping everyone into a frenzy. All agents without orders should focus on bringing her down.”



Well, this wouldn't do. It would take some doing, but Mac could keep Justine from meeting the most humiliating defeat of her life.

First was to deal with the "love" coming Justine's way. Because Mac could manipulate nearly every sensation Justine could feel, it was possible to cut off most of the sensations Betty was giving her. That would give her the upper hand in resisting Betty, and a chance to counter attack.

Beyond that, Mac needed to draw Justine and Betty out of Veronica's grip with her gravity magic, while also pressing against Veronica's hands enough that she still thought she was holding onto the two magical girls. Normally Veronica would be able to see her using her magic like this, but she was basically double incognito now, and it was unlikely that she would notice her with all the other spells and such going off.

She also created an illusionary knife to distract Samantha, making it come from another girl present.

It was a lot of bullshit to do, but it was the only way for Veronica and Silhouette to blunder so badly. Or shit GMing.

Basically everyone active atm. Too lazy to get the headers.

It probably was obvious Eliza was tired. With all that's happened during her time as a magical girl, things seemed to get worse by the day, subtly or otherwise. Her stress stemming from this manifested into her dark magic, after all. It was a miracle the witch was distracted during the mess that was the "assassination attempt", but she couldn't help holding onto the meditation stone in her pocket with one hand.

She was snapped out of her thoughts with Fine grabbing her hand, asking for a dance. Eliza chuckled, a hint of pink tinting her cheeks. "I'd love to."

Things seemed to be going smoothly, over all.

...and then the frenzy started.

"What the hell?!" Maura, having kept watch by the entrance, had ducked into the closest shadow to avoid getting caught in the madness. Once Veronica's orders were heard, the necromancer started giving orders to her half of the team. The scarlet twins rushed to form barriers around the group and anyone else who wasn't corrupted, then using their healing magic to clear the minds of anyone they could. Valerie and Evelyn, the latter having ditched her disgused form, were doing their best to resist their mental mutations; Destroying as much bottles as they can, and eating the bottles whole, respectively. Amanda was helping those sane in the head escape, while North was trying to help break up any fights with her wind magic. "We gotta do something!!"

"Tch- She's gonna get us screwed over before Beacon will!" Eliza looked to Vi-Chan from the dance floor, then back to Fine. "We gotta stop her, follow me!" The witch's disguse dissapeared to her normal transformed state, and grabbing the other girl's hand, she carefully navigated through to the stage.*

_{*If there were no further obstacles in the way, Eliza would fire a temporary silence curse at Vi, or atleast her microphone, if there's anyone else attempting to shut her up.}

Askefye was having fun, but once Vi-chan took the stage, she was going to set this whole world on fire!

The thrum of the synths, the scream of the guitars, the roar of the bass! Each step mesmerizing, each phrase goading, racing through her brain like a dopamine rush. She didn't even have veins any longer, but who the hell cared at this rate! It was a rocking rave, and as her sisters began to rampage, Askefye laughed, her voice sinister and innocent!

She laughed, and then she unleashed.

Blazing darkness plumed out from her, racing to every corner of the main hall. Immediately, the cages were burnt off, smashing into the ground and releasing the rampaging beasts within. Shadows abound, Vi-chan's form could no longer be seen, part of her magical efficacy ruined by the sudden cloak of shadows that blinded all equally. But it hardly mattered. The mental pollution was only the trigger, and now that every other dark or monstrous girl had been injured or wronged in some way, had their inhibitions removed and their cravings stoked, they could practically fuel themselves! The smoke stung the eyes, irritated the lungs, caused more to rage. A bar, filled with alcoholic drinks, exploded! The air vents, the wind magic of some less fun brethren, only fed the fire further, oxygen growing thinner and thinner as the temperature rose. What was a rave without some violence? What was a rave without some chaos?

Askefye continued to burn. She was the first to pull the trigger, but soon, others would join in, a cannibalistic nest of snakes, tearing each other apart for dominance and order, for pleasure and for madness.


There went her dance.

Had her Puchuu recommended the rave to her, knowing that it'd happen? Or was this all her and her shitty luck's fault? A wry smile crossed her features. Probably both. No crying over spilt milk, however. With a gentle twist, she broke herself free of Eliza's grasp, at the same time leaving a link of water connecting the two.

"I'll cut a pat-"

Then, darkness consumed all, and fire seared all.

Fine breathed out, allowing more of her magic to course through her veins. Fine mist formed around her and Eliza, a temporary shroud to cool the area around her. The rave had essentially been plunged into a black out, only brief flashes of fire, lightning, and other energy-based magics lighting up points, but every magical girl had ways of working around such insignificant problems. For Fine, the same mist that shielded the pair from the rising heat became her method of sensing immediate dangers. One monstrous girl stumbled backwards, and suddenly found herself being flipped into the air. Another magical girl swung out with her greatsword, only to find her arm dislocated in three different ways. It was convenient, being a stranger to Penrose. The only magical girl she knew in the area was busy being a deviant elsewhere, and the only magical girl she cared about was connected to her by a blue string of magic.

Fine was fine then. Setting a quick pace that emphasized evasion and redirection rather than focused brutalization, Fine kept her eyes closed and her mind focused on her magic, as she worked to guide her not-girlfriend-but-possible-acquaintance-with-future-benefits through the rapidly imploding rave.

"Goodbye, then~"

Hilaria turned around and began walking, her eyes focused on the ground. What Aurelio had said was pointless. How could he possibly think he could impart meaningful advice to a being such as her? To her, his entire lifespan is but the equivalent of blinking one's eyes. He was still just a child and the very fact he bothered trying to give her advice was more than enough to prove it.

Of course... that didn't change the fact he was correct.

Emotions were volatile if they were not let out every now and then. She had seen it too many times to count. Repressed desires leading to frustration, bottled-up frustration turning to anger, and anger turning to violence. Violence that could be directed towards anyone, including oneself.

It was imperative that you were true to yourself. Because if you're at the point where you can buy your own bullshit, then you're probably too far gone.

She couldn't fool herself yet and pretend like she didn't understand what she was feeling. Such a rookie move would be akin to forgetting to turn the safety off before trying to fire a weapon. Yeah, she had a pretty good idea of what she needed to do now. She had to act upon this feeling in her chest, and that would require a bit of effort that she normally wouldn't spend on another.

But how could she ignore what she wanted?

For the past few centuries, doing this sort of thing without some form of compensation was out of character for her. She wasn't going to do this for food, for potential future jobs, or anything like that. She was going to do that because if she didn't, something irreplaceable might be lost. The commotion beginning from the warehouse she saw in the distance told her as much.

In a moment, her dress was replaced with her signature armor, and in her hands were her shotgun and scutum. Loud thuds followed each of her steps that began increasing in pace as she sped into a sprint, her course now determined. She didn't have too much time, but if she hurried, she knew she could make it there, even if only at the last second. And that would be enough.

Not enough. Not good enough. But It could not be helped. At least things were going Reaver's way for a change. Cindy seemed to have been spurred by the samurai's dedication of all things. Call it serenpidity. More people, more unknowns to deal with it. Reaver just stoically followed after the wake of Cindy and what it seemed a small retinue following her. Prying her from followers, sycophants or masters of courtly intrigue was going to be fairly difficult, in a sense. There was always the "helpful idiot" or the "smug knowitall" who wanted to put the finger in everyone´s pies. Still, it wasn´t a mission killer. Yet.

He began chanting while running. "Awaken, my blade!" He said, as his sword and assorted body armor materialized as he followed through the corridor chasing Cindy, his semblance full of determination for the fight to come. There would be more chances. The time deadline was crucial, but the mission was even more so. It was better than failing both and exposing himself altogether, he thought while chanting a mind reinforcement.

Mind fuckery was a staple of Beacon, and he did not want to become a love freak serving one of those thots like a lobotomized servant. So he reinforced his mind the first time he had a chance when chasing the Lightning Queen. Afterwards, he grabbed his phone, with the pretext of taking a look at the navigation maps, and sent back a quick string of characters to his last sender. "2 $ pp". Two- money- people. Too Many People. Hopefully the other hunt would get the hint and don´t be surprised by it. "Is this this way?" He added. "God, I hate navigating Penrose." He added out loud, with the nav application open now, before pocketing his phone again.

Plan B and C were forming on his mind. Retreat wasn´t even considered at this point, not with Viper having followed through her part of the help. Odin, why these thots must make things so difficult? Too many playwrights and too little actresses. Still, no plan does survive contact with the enemy. He just needed to rouse more enemies if need be, and wait for the chaos to unfold.

---

Good, just a little more. He could see Alexander trying to rein in that Sparky-chan and save her from her own giddiness... And then the rave exploded. "Fuck." She muttered to Connie. "Change of plans. Bunbun-chan, let´s Haul Emily's shapely ass out of here." She said as she redoubled her efforts, and then made a point to make Alexander notice him by giving him a good kick in the foot.

"OI! Stop zoning out! It´s too late. You don´t wanna be monster gal chow, do ya, buddie? So make a riot shield like the pigs have with your barriers, secure a path for the exit, and let´s get the fuck out of here, bud! You can´t afford to worry about these crazy bitches anymore!" Sakura said to Alexander. "Lily! We´re leaving! Stop staring at the pretty bitch and let´s go!" She finished as she gritted her teeth. If only she could find a respite to transform...

"Well, thank you for letting me know," Alicia responded with her best effort at a calm demeanor. Still, Trixy had raised her curiosity. One might have considered it idle chatter, but typically 'party' and 'assassination attempt' did not naturally go together. It seemed to indicate at least that she knew more than she was perhaps letting on. It might not be worth pursuing at the moment, but it was something to keep in mind.

So as Samantha returned, the Seraph would provide her own knowing response in turn. "Still, it's all a bit odd. You go to the trouble of setting up a secret party with a secret address, fill it with people hostile to the Ascendancy, then you do the equivalent of throwing up a big neon sign that says 'hey we're over here'. I could probably pick up this aura halfway across town. Makes you wonder if this event is a bit more than it seems."

For a few moments she watched the dancing as FanFan and Trixy got into it. At the very least they could spare that much time, especially with how much her comrade was getting into it. But eventually she would dismiss herself, nodding to Leena as she did so. "I'll catch up. Just have some things I need to do first, people to meet, you know how it is." With that she slipped off, headed towards the various side rooms and the back of the hall for a bit of detective work.

But she did not make it very far before the lights dimmed and the music faded. Eyes wide, she turned towards the stage and the girl who emerged there. "No no, it's too soon. That isn't enough time." But there was nothing she could do about it, as events continued at their own inexorable pace.

As if hearing her inner thoughts, things got worse. Music rang out, her Spark flaring in response. Yet she was not the main target of it anyway as bedlam and violence began to spread. Girls went crazy, fighting each other and lashing out with their powers. A bar exploded, fire and darkness everywhere as the lights failed.

Dodging back, Alicia transformed into her magical girl outfit to handle this new, drastic, situation. Her Third Eye kicked in, cutting through the magically induced darkness and removing it as an obstacle to her moving about. The fighting was still a problem, but at least she could see it coming. Dimly, she heard Rachel's comment over her comms, a spike of worry lancing through her. This was dangerous by itself, but she still had not seen any indication of what the Mint was up to. What if there was more? "Vi's an empath," she said over the radio, coughing and trying to make herself heard over the music. "She's got this entire place going crazy. You send girls in here they're going to be walking into a warzone. We need to contain it! Leena, make sure FanFan is alright. Penny, please tell me you're recording all of this."

If someone was going to try and use this to make them look bad, she at least wanted it to be difficult for them.

For now she moved, Requiem's Dawn in its sword form and ready to act as she pushed forward towards the back rooms. This was not over yet, and she was not going to rest easy until she was sure that every threat had been dealt with - whether that was Vi or someone else.

---

"Ren," the older man replied, shooting her a crooked smile. "I could always say something profound about us all being travelers on the journey of life, if you'd prefer. Besides, a tourist has his tricks. I'm a bit more sturdy than I seem." He'd have to be, to hang out with magical girls on any sort of normal basis.

Finding themselves suddenly addressed by another pair, Ren shifted to look at the duo before tipping his head. "Ladies." He would allow Liss to explain the situation, figuring they would pay her more attention than they would him. In the end it was a bit of a moot point as the concert finally began.

An eyebrow rose as the song began, a call to abandon inhibition and follow the desires of the heart. Reaching into his pocket, he felt for his car keys as the violence soon began. "Looks like that's my cue to-"

Then the bar exploded.

Thrown bodily through the air, Ren slammed down with the air driven out of him. Pain flared through his torso, but he was disoriented enough to the point that he didn't have the attention to acknowledge it for a few moments. Man he hadn't felt like this in ages, not that that was a bad thing. He didn't exactly enjoy feeling like this.

Grunting, he slowly stirred and dragged himself over to a nearby table through grit teeth. Definitely some broken ribs at the very least, lacerations, plus who knew what else, but at least he wasn't on fire. Taking a deep breath he began to focus his inner energy, turning it to healing himself to the point where he could even walk. He just hoped he had the time to do so, with everything else going on

Due to her Drone’s minute size slipping between the various rooms and side halls within the warehouse was a simple task. She lost some time making sure that the coast was clear at times to make sure that it wouldn’t get blindsided again. It was hardy little thing but it wasn’t able to take too many hits regardless.

Still slipping between the rooms Penny was able to more accurately scope out what was going on within the building. She noted Eden, in one of the rooms, along with the strange artifact that she held as well as Sasha and another girl she didn’t recognize. Not seeing anything else she moved on.

The room with Shane and the disorientated girl also was noted, but once again she moved on not seeing anything to stop and witness. She made it just in time to witness Cindy leaving with her retinue, of which she only recognized Ronin.

‘What’s going on here?’ Penny would wonder tempted to send the drone after them, but held off she should be able to track them down again later on since Ronin was in the party. She had the tiny samurai’s number after all. Instead she returned the drone back to the main hall, just in time to witness the eponymous Vi-chan taking the stage.

At first nothing really seemed a miss, Penny lacking any audio feed back wasn’t really captivated by the dance routine so instead she went back to scouting the place out, keeping an eye out for Alicia and on Veronica.

But then she witnessed what was happening and just like that all of Penny’s respect of Vi shriveled and died, for she saw the chaos starting to spread from her vantage point with her drone. She knew, even without being able to hear, what was happening. She felt sick, even though she was physically capable of being so. Then she heard the order from Rachel and knew that she could no longer simply sit still and watch.
“Fuck That!” Penny’s voice raged across the comms as she exploded into action. She wasn’t stationed with the rest of the Ascendency, so none of them would be able to stop her; scarcely a second after the order given out Penny was down the side of her building and racing at full speed towards the Rave, her thrusters leaving a blinding trail behind her.

She knew things were going to be bad, but this was so much worse then she had expected.

She didn’t bother slowing down for the door. Tearing through the thing like it was little more than paper, the extra metal wrapped around her as she rushed though. Originally she had planned on going through one of the side walls, but knew better now that she had gotten some Recon done. That very same recon played double duty as the black smoke enveloped the room, as alongside the endless amount of sound echoing throughout the room meant that Penny still had a perfectly clear image of everything going on.

She stood out within the smoke as well, as her eyes were glowing white as she had pulled her Spark close to the surface ready to ignite it into a brilliant blaze, there was a second point of white as well as she revealed her purification amulet awash with its own simple glow.

First order of business was shutting down the music. It was the source of the insanity; she could tell that the moment she had broken into the place, could feel the blackened tempo trying to dig into her mind and had it been a few weeks ago she knew that she would have turned this entire place into a crater because of such. Now she simply launched her arm at the ceiling, dragging herself above the packed masses below, swinging towards the stage where Vi was singing.

Mid way there would be a thunderous roar, as Penny fired her Gauss system down at Elvira seeking to strike her down. And quietly her Drone would dock once again within her frame, it’s mission done, for now.

---

Elsewhere within the Rave Two others would near instantly fall under the sway of the maddening rhythm. Ashlyn would be the first to fall under the music’s influence and she forced herself to a stand as she slammed her hands together causing blue purple flames to begin manifesting around her, before they would condense into three armor clad Oni.

Each Oni would then Race outward spurred on only by their summoner’s mental orders. There were those within here that were in need of protection, and it was Ashlyn’s duty to save them, all of them. with another pair of gestures glittering red translucent walls would begin raising from the ground around those fighting, cutting them off and imprisoning them.

Then the Smoke would fill the room, and all Ashlyn could do was summon more Oni, most remaining as simple flickering spirits sent out to find those that needed help and guide them back to her, but on occasion another armor clad one would be crafted and sent off to intervene to protect some unlucky soul based of the information she received.

Monica would last only a few moments longer then her large friend and only because she wore enchanted earrings, blessed with purifying properties. It was enough for her to set into place a mental routine, a mental program to over write her motivation.

She would reach out, mentally, to those that were crying out in pain or in panic and relay a message to them ”I’m here to help” She would tell them “Trust the Purple Oni and follow the Red walls they will lead you to safety” And then she would reach out for the next person who needed help and repeat that message.

Those that would need more assistance she would ping Ashlyn, with their location and fall back into searching for those that needed help. She could do nothing else until more of the lost lambs made it to her at which point the next step of her mental program would kick in and she would lead them and Ashlyn back into one of the far rooms. One she had previously taken over to help those who partied a little too hard. Where everything would continue from there until the room got too full for more people, but even then there was another step to the plan, but that step could wait until it was needed.

Dorothy was absolutely about to dash off in whatever direction available to her, when Aurelio slammed his cane down and magical energy was spent, and-

‘EEP!’ Dorothy cried out, covering her head, totally thinking she was about to be struck… when instead the magic made a defensive barrier and shielded her from Kimble, instead. ‘Eh?’ Dorothy looked around in surprise, her eyes eventually settling on Aurelio as he calmed down Kimble and then once again started talking to her. The rabbit-girl blinked a bit at the mention that Kimble used to be a cat-girl… She also looked a bit confused by the multiple hims, but she’d seen Duplication powers before, so…

‘Ah…!’ Dorothy made a noise as Aurelio held up the White Coin, the rabbit-girl gasping a bit on the distance, feeling its power even from over here. ‘It’s… it’s the real deal…’ she muttered, breathing a bit in excitement as Aurelio finished her explanation. The rabbit swallowed.

‘The quicker the better. I don’t like Beacon, but if it means losing my current form… er, I won’t have to hunt other Monster Girls, will I…?’ Dorothy shook her head. ‘N-nevermind that! I… I take the first option. Bring it to me… please,’ Dorothy requested, sitting there all tense and ready to attempt to escape at any moment’s notice.

With that, and with Kimble hopefully standing by, Dorothy waited with bated breath as Aurelio had his clone collect the coin and start moving over the short distance over towards the rabbit-girl…

‘Oooh… It’s really happening…’ Dorothy said, lifting her hand to accept the coin. ‘I never thought… that just by asking… I could finally be free from-’

The first warning Aurelio got was his Awareness picking up on something rumbling underground. His second warning was, perhaps, sensing the emotions of someone exceedingly, exceptionally Excited, coming from underground.

A magical charge went off underground, and suddenly part of Penrose Garden was covered by an orange magical barrier, a dome showing up above the heads of Aurelio, Dorothy and Kimble, locking them in with decent room for them to be locked in even if they’d made a daring escape somehow.

Then, suddenly vines shot out of the ground, each of the vines holding a rocky item of some sort. One was right by Dorothy and clone-Aurelio. Two was by Kimble (and other clone-Aurelio). Two was by real Aurelio. Five in total.

Three went off, one at each area. They sent a dizzying pulse of energy that gripped at the conscience of those hit by it, magically inducing them to fall asleep, depending on their vitality and resistance to magic. Given ShineSpark, Aurelio and Kimble would probably be moderately immune. However, Dorothy collapsed unconscious as soon as the wave hit her as the waves went through her mentally unshielded body, unless somehow protected.

The two remaining by Aurelio and Kimble then went off. The wood carrying them shaped as to only blast the contents in the rough direction of the two. The contents were a large amount of grey, sticky half-fluid that were launched at respective individuals at the speed of a detonated grenade, seeking to impact or cover the individuals in question. The moment it hit something, it’d stick like a powerful adhesive, harden into rock at a blinding rate and become exceptionally heavy, intended to seal them in place and stop them from interfering. It wasn’t something they couldn’t break through eventually, but would they break through quick enough? If blocked by a magical wall, then the fluid would harden into an actual actual wall at the place it was blocked, which would also block their ability to interfere with what happened next.

With a burst of earth flying out of the sites of their emergences, three individuals broke through the ground, propelled by wooden torpedoes that dug them out of it and promptly cracked open upon reaching the surface.



They were but shades. Vague outlines of people that were disguised behind a dose of magic to avoid identification. Still, each of them had a very specific mission in mind.

One of them had giant clawed hands and a shower of metal floating about her, she stopped between the action and Aurelio. She was going to keep a close eye on him, and fire metal shards if he tried to get close.

The one with a mess of something sticking all over her stopped between Kimble and the action. She held forth her hand and a forest of vines sprung up from the ground to capture Kimble, or at the very least hold her on a range until they were done.

The last was a blur, blasting off at ridiculous speed towards the Aurelio clone with the White Coin, wherever it was right now. She had but one goal; recover the White Coin. She’d unleash a Barrage of brutal, merciless punches if the clone still held it, and if it was otherwise dropped she’d bolt with immense speed to catch it, aided by Awareness.

Outside the barrier, things crawled out of the ground. Tree-monsters, growing to large sizes as the minions of the Wood-specialized girl set themselves up as a barricade facing outwards around the barrier placed themselves to be in the way in case of outside reinforcements. They were not as strong as their ogre-sizes would imply, but they were intimidating, and sure to cause any reinforcements to think twice. Not that it entirely mattered, because the timing of this assault meant there were few reinforcements to be had, everyone busy in other directions.

What answer did Aurelio and Kimble have to this attack?

@Ariamis@Shifter_Master

---

From the other perspective…

‘It’s… it’s the real deal…’

‘That’s the signal! And he’s bringing the coin over with a clone! This almost literally couldn’t go better! Get ready!’


‘Alright,’ Freya said, looking towards the two others in their dug-out underground cavern. The furred lamia with red eyes looked at the eyepatched girl with metal limbs and her wooden, tree-monster companion. ‘You know what to do,’ she said.

‘We blow up bombs, then I keep my Third Eye on Aurelio, Esther holds off Kimble, and you obtain the White Coin, then I Overcity Shift us for the getaway. Deal!’ Jelena summarized happily. They’d previously been told it was just Aurelio and Kimble.

‘…’ Esther merely looked on silently, the tree-monster’s gaze practically dead.

‘Just don’t hurt Dorothy,’ Freya said. ‘She’s played her role well since Ronja collected her, no need to aggravate her fate further with injuries. Mistress Mariette likes rabbits, after all, so better not draw her ire.’

‘Will avoid, ma’am!’ Jelena called happily, saluting with giant metal hand. ‘…’ Esther did not. Regardless, Freya took it as acknowledgement.

‘Alright, gems first!’ Freya said, and the three of them picked their gems. It was the same gems Mariette had obtained from the trade with Shion prior, able to be filled with magic of other specializations and then used. And so, the three of them clasped their hands on the gems and activated their Illusion-magic. Their forms changed, disguised, dark. Now, one could still see the magic they used, but their forms themselves were secluded.

‘Esther, barrier and bombs!’ Freya then commanded of Esther, and…

Esther had numerous of her wooden vines enclosed on rocky objects. They were traps created by their resident trap-master, the “Artificer”, Taihei. First, Esther shot up the barrier-artifact with her vines, which activated below ground, sealing the area around both the individuals on the ground and those hiding beneath it. Then, she shot up the Sleep Pulse Grenades and the sticky grenades with no better name. They did have more of them, but it turned out only two potential threats appeared. With Absolute Direction and guidance from the cyan voice, Esther knew exactly where to make the bombs break out to then detonate.

‘And now, US!’ Freya called, preparing her claws.

‘Let’s gooooooooooooooo~!’ Jelena called, so excessively excited.

‘…’ Esther wordlessly obliged, sealing the three of them inside wooden torpedoes that launched up to the surface. She sent Freya directly at the White Coin, she sent herself between the White Coin and Kimble, and she sent Jelena between the White Coin and Aurelio. Then, it was simply a matter of breaching the surface while Esther called out her minions to surround the barrier, and the event was underway.

In a room with computers somewhere, a girl tapped a specific button.

‘The operation is underway, Mariette. So far so good.’

… And that’s when she got word from a different audio-speaker that something else was off.

‘… Also, Eli’s in trouble! Vi started singing, and-’

---

Grrr.



Mariette had previously accepted a snack from Amaryllis after having looked curiously at the magic that she’d prepared on the east side of the warehouse before closing said portal. She tasted the thing while watching Fabio traverse the insides of the warehouse, hearing some valuable intel, and then triggering a trap. This, almost simultaneously as Mariette got a very irritating report through the tiny communicator she’d put in her ear previously today, perhaps should have mentioned that in case Nuncio has super-cat-hearing or something.

She threw a portal open, a gate for Nuncio and Amaryllis to head through to rescue Fabio and attack if they so decided.

‘Go! I’ll be right behind!’ Mariette spun towards the party warehouse, grabbing her hand-mirror weapon and directing it towards it. ‘I just need to save Eli first…!’

She had got the report that Justine was there before, but it hadn’t sounded like she needed to save her quite yet. Now, however, when Eli would be on the brink of going insane? A completely different story…!

@BrokenPromise@ERode

---

Eli frowned at Justine’s demand.

‘Hmpf. Such a meeting can be easily arranged. Go stand still on a rooftop somewhere, we’ll see you,’ Eli replied, a bit more confident now with a guard.

Then Dolly showed up out of nowhere. Huh. Eli didn’t know what to make of it. Then… Veronica enacted her plan, however that went, but Eli staggered back. No time to remain, she had to get out of here…!

… Then Vi showed up, and Eli had to turn to look for at least a bit. Was the war starting? Where they announcing their crusade on Beacon? What would happen? Eli was somewhat excited to find out, it’s what she was there for, after all…

She didn’t predict that. She didn’t predict that at all.

Listening to Vi’s music… it wasn’t even to her taste, and yet… ‘Urk,’ Eli fell onto her knees, which were partially dissolving. She was shaking so hard, tiny form on the floor. So… so hungry. Anyone touched by her slime-body would feel the fluid cells she was composed of trying to digest them at this point. Everyone looked so delicious… Eli dissolved her eyes, not wanting to be tempted. Yet, her body sensed them… basically walking pieces of nutrients… It was usually kept at bay by Mariette feeding her regularly, yet… Why was this? Numerous brawls were heard, darkness covered the room, she felt the scent of fire…

H-hadn’t Cindy said they’d declare war? Why was this descending into a mad party were allies were going to die, then? Was this a trap? Was this actually done by someone who wanted monsters to kill one another, or was this actually Vi’s idea of a good time? So… hungry… it was all Eli could do to just remain in place and have the overall shape of a human body slowly break apart as her monster-instincts were trying to take over…

And then, unless someone else had interrupted or there’s some magic-repelling that she didn’t know about, Mariette located Eli using Absolute Direction and a portal opened beneath her, intent on swiftly letting Eli fall through the portal to right in front of Mariette before closing it again in a hurry, which would be quickly followed up with retrieving meat from her Hammerspace Handbag to feed to Eli with.

@Ariamis@BrokenPromise@ERode

---

‘Okay! Let’s go!’ Ronin called as it seemed they were going. She hurried after Cindy through the secret passage towards Penrose Park, enhancing her body to run faster with Reinforcement magic and keeping an eye on her companions.

That’s all I got for her.

@Ariamis@AtomicNut@BrokenPromise

---

Somewhere else. In a completely different world, unconcerned with what was happening at the rave, a woman was alone with her boredom…

…

… Oh?

Something was going on outside.

Someone… was visiting.

A… spirit mage?

… Interesting…

…

… Let’s tease her a bit…

---

Poly waddled through the vent without issue, waddling forward and dropping down the vent with no traps going off. The ball then waddled left towards the back of the painting that blocked the entrance to the room. Since nothing else was happening, the corpse-doll reached to grab the painting-

A powerful magical energy suddenly swept the area, pouring out from the mirror and reaching beyond the room itself all the way off to where Myria herself was standing. There was a very sudden change in what the spirits told her, their movements suddenly more erratic and what they told more focused.

In the room, there was an obsidian mirror, a portal to another world… and magical energy was slowly flowing into it, so slowly that it wasn’t even noticeable. Energy being gently guided through, and also catching some spirits that were wandering too closely. Through the portal, was… darkness. An unimaginable darkness, undescribable by the words of the spirits, their voices fearful. And, in front of said darkness stood a woman, idling, humming. She turned her head, looking curiously out through the mirror, and Myria somehow felt herself being watched, despite hearing all this only through the voices of the spirits. The woman smiled, a sweet little motherly smile, and reached forward with her right hand-

and Myria felt a chilling, ice-cold hand gently caress her left cheek from far too far away.

After having caressed a bit, she reached forward her left hand and gave something back to Myria. It was the spirit hand she’d put in Poly… and all the fingers on the hand were broken.

d o _n o t ^v i s i t _u s a g a ⁱ n
_o r y o ^u w _i l ^l b e _d e s t r ^o y e _d

And with that, the figure smiled so kindly at her before she faded away.

@ERode

---

The girl in the cage snapped to attention from the jolt, wincing in pain. “Ah! What...What is this place? Why am I in a cage? And who are you?” She seemed confused beyond belief. However, she was also deathly afraid as she leaned herself against the back of the cage. “Who’s Cindy? What Beacon? I remember...I was driving down the street to get groceries when a little girl jumped on the hood. She...She was immodest in dress, I think, perhaps a cosplayer, but next thing I know I woke up here. I think she knocked me out!” When she heard Shane demand a contact, she quickly patted herself down. “What is this black coat?” She quickly removed it, revealing that she was not a magical girl, but a civilian. “They must have taken my phone and wallet. Oh, this sucks...”

Despite wanting to pay attention to the girl, each moment increasingly told him that she was not part of Beacon. Worse still she was a civ used as a pawn. He was glad he only used a bit of a shock to speed things up. Great. First things first. He sighed a bit and visibly relaxed to put the girl more at ease. ”Alright, I think someone’s played an awful prank on all of us. Let me get you out.” He turned and headed to the door. ”Jane, let her out. She isn’t part of Beacon, or even a MG. We’re being played!”

Jane sighed, and opened the cage, resulting in the girl running right over to Shane and hugging him.
“Thank you! I was so scared!” She trembled as she held him, and then just as quickly released him. “So uh, what is happening here? Can I go home now?”

Though he couldn’t see what was going on in the other parts of the warehouse, it sounded like things were getting unusually rough, it hadn’t quite exploded at that point though. ”You’re going to want to get out of here before whoever did this finds out the jig is up. I need to go stop my friend from doing something we’ll regret. Jane could you please help her outside and get her number in case we need proof?” He motioned that he needed to go and took a tight grip on his spell book. He didn’t wait for a response before he took off running back to the room with the secret door. As he passed anyone still remaining in the room he managed a couple short sentences. ”Someone used an ordinary girl to attack Cindy. Someone wants her out there.”

Roughly shoving the door out of his way he opened his book and the magic began to well out of it. Firmly planting his hand against the pages the lightning arced and jolted through his body. Not waiting for anyone else he accelerated down the tunnel with the boost of his magic. Whatever may be happening at the warehouse will have to be handled by someone else. While he was quick, the others had a head start on him. Cindy was going to get there first. There was no way of knowing where anyone else he knew was. Debating internally for a moment he pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

Soon, Shane heard Sylvia’s voice on the other hand. “This is the Penrose Beacon support line, how may I help you?” She asked in a neutral, mildly uninterested tone. Shane could hear mechanical sounds in the background, like the turning of bolts and welding of metal.

Oh good, someone familiar at least. ”Cindy Ford is on her way to Penrose Park to attack the Cardinal. Someone planted a fake Beacon member to attack her. I don’t know who but someone is out to incite a war.” He continued running but stayed on the line.

Sylvia seemed to have taken a sip of coffee in the midst of listening to Shane, as the sound of a spit take could be heard. “WHAT? Why is she there?” Soon, the sound of rummaging scrap metal followed by running steps were heard as she continued talking. “I’ll get back to you in a moment!” Then, she suddenly hung up the call.

Pulling the phone away from his ear he glanced at the phone briefly. ”Note to self: Get more people’s numbers.” This was bad, but if anyone could beat them there it was Beacon. He just hoped it wouldn’t make things worse.

With the rise of Elvira's corruptive song, Eden's gaze pulled away from the artifact that hovered mere inches above her flesh. In spite of the rhythmic, pulsating vibrations of the music, she could feel the thrum of the cube through the air, seeping into her void. Artificing was outside her realm of expertise. Judging the quality of a magical construct was beyond her. Still, she could appreciate the craftsmanship that went into making such a thing, from its aesthetic to its purpose.

But the wave of mental interference forced her to focus on other things, other problems. Now that Elvira had made her presence public, it was only a matter of time before someone, Beacon or otherwise, attempted to take her out. The magnitude of the party made hiding in plain sight the most effective infiltration method, for anyone who wanted to stay low profile but maintain a front row seat for persons of interest. It would have been no surprise if someone had already made a move, Eden imagined.

"I suppose it's about that time then," Eden muttered, allowing the cube to float just above a table nearby, beside a medium sized case. She pushed the rising need to devour from her mind, and rolled her shoulders into a stretch. A cloud of black formed around her body, and twisted into a sphere that coated her form in its depth. The single overhead light that gave the room its illumination flickered in response, as its brightness dimmed, absorbed by the void. Her magic flared, bolstering the Psychic defences placed around Hyun's mind to shield her from the influence of the song, and within moments of the darkness appearing, it vanished again, leaving a girl standing in its wake.

The ears atop Eden's head twitched with their newfound freedom, released from the confinement of her sealed form. With a final stretch, the joints in her elbows clicked, and she sighed, allowing her arms to drop against her sides, and into the multilayered frill of her dress. The smoke dissipated from sight quickly, drawn back into her body in all but one place, where it coalesced behind her, in a writhing, half-formed construct. It, too, disappeared, though slowly, sucked away into the blackened armour of a claw, attached to her body from the base of her spine via an arm. It hung above her head for a moment, clenching and unclenching into a fist, until it relaxed, and swung around beside her, moving as though it were the tail of a cat, or the stinger of a scorpion.

"Christine, if you see anyone suspicious around the back rooms, help them navigate back to the party, if you could."

"Guess we're onto part two if she's singing," newly unsealed, Eden stepped to the left of the table, and flicked the metal latches holding the case shut. Held within, exposed to the light above, was a violin and its bow, beautiful polished, with the initials CM engraved into the upper bout. Alongside it was a miniature piano, nestled into the protective material of the case. She carefully removed each piece - placing the piano on the table, beside the artifact, and withdrawing the violin by the neck. As she did, she paused for a moment. The sound of the explosion caught her ear, as did the presence of Mecha-Penny's mind within the venue. "And that's the start of part three. Four shouldn't be too far off, but how about a song to pass the time - hmm, let's see, how about... Cynthia, bitte spielen sechsundzwanzig."

"Ooh, nice choice. Alright, I'm starting now." a voice began from within the piano. Almost immediately, the sound of small gears turning within gently filled the room, overshadowed by Elvira's music, but present nonetheless. Something clicked into place seconds later, and Eden moved the violin upwards, so that her chin laid against the rest, while her other arm placed the bow against the strings. Isolated within the room, encompassing and absorbing the muffled sound of Vi-chan's song, Eden and the piano began to play.



Eden's psychic message reached Christine's ears moments late. She and her clones had already begun to move in on a suspicious individual by the time the words came to her mind. Somebody was making their way to the back rooms, where Eden and the Monster Queens had been stationed. A small unit of five had broken off, led by the real Christine herself, until the target had been surrounded; her duplicates had been spread all throughout the corridors surrounding the main venue, and within moments of the orders being given, the squad had arrived.

"You're Alicia, right?" one of the duplicates called out, as she approached Alicia from the corridor she was walking through. Another walked beside her, blocking off the way forward. At the same time, she could hear the footsteps of more approaching from her rear - another three. With her Third Eye, it was easy to tell which were duplicates; the one approaching from behind, on her leftmost side, was the only real Magical Girl present. "Are you lost? Vi-chan doesn't really want people back here, so if you wouldn't mind returning to the party, we'd appreciate it."



Somewhere, somehow, Katelyn could feel herself being violated in the mind of another.

A shudder ran along her body as Elvira's song began, clawing at her Mental Mutation in a way that she had seldom felt for years. Beneath her sealed form, Katelyn could feel her wings and tail tugging at the prison of disguise and fabric. Much like her desire for domination, to be in charge, they yearned to feel the air. But in spite of it, she grit her teeth, and drank deep from her glass. An idol song was far from enough to bring her back to that level. She had faced far worse temptation in her life, from Joyce, from Sharr, from Beacon. Elvira was nothing in comparison.

However, as the cloud of black erupted through the venue, she was given no choice. Remaining sealed gave her an apt disguise, and with the aura that surrounded the warehouse, she reckoned that she had nothing to worry about from Third Eye users. But the suit was precious to her, in a sense. It was a memory of her past, where she had come from, painful though it was to remember. She was loathsome to let it be marred with some girl's magic, let alone in such a location.

Rivulets of electricity ran across her body, until the suit transformed moments later until her dress. From beneath the fabric, her yellow scaled wings unfurled fully, encompassing the small space behind her until they touched the wall, and her tail snaked out from her back and down the chair, to circle around her leg out of the way. Katelyn twisted her head in a circle, loosening her neck as best as possible. She grabbed at her water, and finished the glass, before shooting a glance to a nearby bartender, visibly shaken by the outbreak of chaos, to refill it.



"Wh-what do you mean stop her? Surely we've gotta get out of here, right?" Thalia called out to Alex, over the din of the song. Knowing few people, she had stuck with Lily as best as possible for the duration of the rave, but as the rave broke down into madness, her mind became conflicted on what to do. She could feel her Mental Mutation reacting to the magic within it, but the desire that it brought out was unfamiliar - the need to be in control. In the back of her mind, the feeling of her past mutation still lingered. The Vixen still lingered, though barely. She was only familiar with the desire the hunt and kill. And yet another part of her wanted to flee. The Thalia that no longer wanted to fight.

As magical darkness in the form of smoke billowed out in front of her, blocking her view of the rave, a spark of panic lit in Thalia's chest. With no need for oxygen, the smoke had no effect on her as she breathed, but the lack of vision perturbed her. She needed to know what was happening - where people were, what they were doing, what the state of the rave itself was. Without the information readily available, she felt trapped. Unable to escape inevitability. Railroaded.

"I'm gonna get a view from up top! Try and help people get out - if people want to attack the rave, now would be the perfect time!" she shouted towards Alex, Lily, and Sakura, before turning her back, and jumping. A wave of force radiated out from her feet as she left the ground, creating a small explosion of air and a rush of wind that briefly cleared an area of the smoke in its wake. With the aid of magical propulsion, Thalia rapidly reached the roof of the rave, only to spot Mecha-Penny a short distance away, moving in the direction of the stage. With another, small blast directly upwards, she stabilised herself in the air, and then changed directions, exploding towards the rafters directly above the stage, no doubt faster than Penny could swing.

"Penny!" Thalia called. Her shoes skidded across the metal rafter as she came to halt, directly above the stage. Her new magic was handy, she found, especially for navigation and traversing distances. In many ways, she missed the versatility that Beast Magic had afforded her, but the Oddball Specialisation she had found herself in possession of granted many of the same freedoms of movement that Beast enchantments did. In a number of circumstances, it was even better. "What's going on? I-is it Vi-chan causing all this? - I thought this was meant to be a party to show that we're not evil, but this... this isn't right!"

Shion returned to Penrose after a short few days elsewhere, Ko sitting on her shoulder, quite a bit less money in her name, and quickly sent a message up the P.I. chain. "Back in town." is all it said. She wondering what she should be doing. After all, leaving clones in Penrose while she was away was unfortunately not viable. And to be honest, she didn't really feel like making more yet. So instead, she simply wandered the streets of Penrose at full power for the first time... ever, really.

_@ERode

Su nodded when Lei mentioned that their name wasn’t their real name. “Of course, I doubt many girls use their real names.” Su was a rare exception because she had no family aside from Boteg, Helga, and Mika. She had retained her original memories and those of several other woman, but their families had been dead for a long time.

When she laughed at Boteg’s choice to come here, Su rolled her shoulders. “He’s genuinely afraid of such encounters, but has come here to get revenge. Only the revenge ended up serving itself without his intervention so...” Su trailed off. She wondered how much longer Boteg was going to stay here. Leaving Penrose would be a good move for her family but she’d also grown attached to the place. There were people here she’d hate to leave behind.

Their conversation would be put on hold when Vi started playing her music. “This sensation!” Su placed a hand on her head. It felt like her envy was acting up, but she had nothing to be envious of. Lei had nothing that she wanted, so Su couldn’t understand where these negative emotions were surfacing.

Then the smoke and fireballs started flying. It was time for a swift transformation.

“When you die, you rejoice, and the world cries!”

A twister briefly enveloped Su’s body before revealing her transformed state. Before the black smoke could wash over them, Su created a current. A swirling draft that drew the smoke up and towards the nearest vent. The rave was massive, so there was no way Su could cover the entire thing at once. But it was a simple matter to keep the immediate area free of smoke. The wind current was (hopefully) strong enough to draw the fireballs up and away from herself and her companion. Otherwise she could change her strategy and create a vacuum to smother them.

“Lei Zi.” Su spoke with authority in her voice. “Your god has you here to partake in this carnage, but there are those I wish to save from it.” Su stepped away from the wall. “Protect me from incoming threats, and I’ll protect us from the fire and smoke. Hopefully we can join up with my family shortly.” She hoped Lei Zi wasn’t too drunk to fight. It sounded like some girls were coming for them. It was getting pretty hot in here too...



_{@Flamelord@FamishedPants}

"Eh?" Trixy was hanging off the side of the ceiling mount when Alicia started accusing her of doing stuff. She didn’t really understand it. "Well first of all, I am not involved with the set up of this place. Secondly, you sound like a spy. If you’d like to investigate something however…"

Oh, Vi was playing music.

"Cool tune, it’s making me hungry though."

Someone else was being an arsonist A-hole. filling the area with smoke and fire. She couldn’t see Samantha or any of the other girls.

"Alright! We’ll talk later babe. It's okay to post you on Glimr right?"

The only answer Trixy got was a fireball knocking down a distant cage. At which point, she swung herself back up. By now, she had heard Veronica’s order. In a flash, her stylish outfit disappeared and her normal magical girl outfit was back on.

"Right, gotcha. Can’t believe I’m putting down an idol, but Shade can replace her I’m sure."

Trixy seemed to be safe from the fireballs for the moment, as well as the angry monster/dark girls below her. But the smoke was going to be a problem. Some seeds appeared in her hand, which she held up to her face. The seeds matured into plants, with their roots and stems locked together around her face. It looked like a dog muzzle made out of weeds. On the inside though, there were flowers and leaves. Trixy was able to keep the smoke out of her lungs this way. The plants could take the carbon dioxide outside the mask and turn it into oxygen. It probably wasn’t suitable for long term use or in more hazardous environments, but for now it got the job done. Her proudest feature with the mask was that she had slipped an apple seed, and could now grow apples inside the mask any time she got hungry. And this music was making her very hungry.

Om nom nom nom.

She crouched on the ceiling mount and took aim at Vi. She was hard to see, even with the help of her magical scope. Normally it could easily divine the location of a target, but this magical smoke seemed to be presenting some interference.

"Taking the shot!"

Trixy fired a tried and true acorn bullet at Vi, center mass. She had learned her lesson from her fight with the weretigers, and wouldn’t expect her bullet to do much on its own. Regardless if it hit Vi or the stage, it would grow into a large mass of knotted roots, sprawling across its target. Regardless where it landed, Trixy hoped to limit Vi’s mobility on stage.

_{@Shifter_Master@Vocab}

Her head twitched when she heard something smack into the ceiling. With her scope, she could tell it was a grappling hook of some kind, and they looked to be swinging in Vi’s direction. Might have been reinforcements, might have been an other assassin.

Until someone racing along the rafters called her Penny, and seemed confused about the situation.

"I think *chomp* Vi lied to us." Trixy was mostly responding to show she wasn’t a threat.

She knew that it was only a matter of time before someone destroyed the ceiling mount she was standing on. Trixy dove off of her perch and created a vine to swing behind Penny. Not so close to provoke an attack, and hopefully far enough away that the other girl wouldn’t attack her. Mostly Trixy wanted to make sure she wasn't between Vi and an incoming projectile.

Damn, Fuji were just nice eating apples.



_{@Rune_Alchemist}

There was no doubt that Rina would catch up to Mika. She was a dexterous magical girl, but she’d need to transform first. All she had to do was enter the venues in the back of the rave to find a safe place for it. Fortunately, it seemed like Mika was headed that way too.

---

She had to be here somewhere.

Mika had committed Alicia’s scent to memory. It wasn’t an “if,” but a “when” she would decide to screw with things again. As soon as Mika got to the back rooms, Vi’s music started to play. She looked over her shoulder when a metal cage crashed into the ground, half crushing a dark girl.

“Beacon.” She growled before entering the back rooms.

_{@Vocab@Flamelord}

It didn’t take Mika long to follow the trail right to a gathering of Cristines and Alicia. Mika slid her hands into her claws scraped them together. This caused some sparks to fly into the air. Not that her adamantium claws could be split by anything, it was simply the magic within them reacting.

“Couldn’t resist, could you?” Mika observed all the duplicate girls. “Are you going to move, or do I need to make you move?”



_{@FamishedPants@ERode@Flamelord}

All Dusty wanted to do was survive the night.

Now fights were breaking out, and someone was spreading magical darkness everywhere. It wouldn’t be long before it reach them. Trixy wasn’t one to despair without due cause, but there wasn’t much Dusty could do when she was blinded and without magic. At least she could still hear. She sighed and approached the bar.

"Alright Shade, let’s save some lives."

It was really all Dusty could do at this point. If she could get someone outside, that would have at least give value to her being here. Before the lights went out, she had a chance to examine everyone at the bar. The man looked like he was able to move, but Dusty figured the half-drunk magical girl might need a hand. Not only that, but her burping and whining was easy to find in the darkness. That was totally the only reason Dusty picked Liss over the other guy.

"Okay, let’s get you upstairs!" She pulled Liss’s arm around her neck and attempted to help her off of her stool. "Now if we just keep walkin-"

That was when the bar exploded, throwing everyone who stayed too close.

At least my face didn't disintegrate this time.

As she and Sakura carried Emily through the crowded rave, Connie felt her phone buzz, but she didn’t have time to answer it. Whatever it was could hopefully wait. Emily was becoming worse by the second, and they needed to get her to a healer as quickly as possible. Connie felt a glimmer of hope when Sakura seemed to have found who she was looking for (And was that Lily with him?), but that hope was incinerated a moment later when Vi-Chan appeared and everything went to hell in a hand basket. Everyone seemed to be going insane, explosions were going off all around, and thick clouds of smoke were beginning to envelop the entire dance floor. Sakura was loudly advocating for them to make a run for the exit, and Connie fervently agreed with that plan. This was exactly the kind of situation she most assuredly never wanted to be in, but she tried her best to keep calm for Emily’s sake. She couldn’t freak out now. She had a friend to save!

That’s when she remembered Mia. She was still in the game room! Connie briefly considered trying to find her, but she realized there wouldn’t be any time for that. In any case Mia was an experienced magical girl, and Connie was certain that her friend could take care of herself. Or, at least, she hoped she could…

---

Back in the game room, Gaia and Angela continued their duel. Having gotten a bit hungry, Angela had summoned her Puchuu to go fetch her some pizza and a drink. Before leaving on his errand, the surprisingly personable little creature had asked Gaia if she wanted anything for herself, and so the verdant magical girl had requested a few slices of veggie pizza and a fruit drink. A short while later the creature returned with the food, but Gaia had scarcely finished one slice before the sounds of a massive commotion could be heard emanating from the main hall.

Then the explosions started.

“I am afraid I must concede this contest to you,” Gaia informed her opponent as she gracefully stood up and made her way to the door. “It sounds as though something seriously wrong has occurred in the main hall, and I need to make sure my dearest friend is all right.”

“Well that’s a weak excuse,” Angela noted contemptuously. “If your friend’s a magical girl, then shouldn’t she be able to take care of herself?”

“She is still very inexperienced,” Gaia explained, “and she frightens very easily. Moreover, I have personally vowed to keep her safe, and that vow takes precedence over all else.”

“Wow, taking the moral high ground, huh? I figured as much,” Angela added with a dismissive roll of her eyes. “From the moment I first saw you I knew you’d chicken out when things got rough. I hope being able to hold your wimpy friend’s hand makes up for all the humiliation you’re gonna get on social media when I tell everyone how hard I crushed you.”

“I don’t use social media,” Gaia replied in an icy tone. “And what of you, ‘Best Magical Girl’?” she asked pointedly. “Do you not wish to show off your prowess by helping those in need?”

“Ah, it’s probably just a little drunken brawl,” Angela said with an unconcerned wave of her hand. “Let me know when a horror gets summoned or the Ascendancy shows up, then I might actually decide to go and save everyone’s asses.”

“Very well,” Gaia acceded, with a smile utterly devoid of warmth. “I also figured as much.”

Leaving the mouthy brat behind, Gaia quickly made her way back to the main hall, nimbly avoiding the various dark magical and monster girls who were in the process of beating the crap out of each other. Once she arrived, she gasped at the sight of utter chaos that greeted her. With few exceptions, the various patrons of the rave seemed to be going completely insane.

One of the bars was blazing like a bonfire, in front of which a tall young woman with large horns was using her katana to strike down any who came near her. Towards the center of the floor, a knightly girl in crimson armor could be glimpsed fending off a mob of monster girls with the help of barriers provided by a girl dressed like a belly dancer, before clouds of thick smoke obscured their battle. Meanwhile, a patchwork monster girl was lobbing Molotov cocktails while being controlled like a puppet by strings of dark energy emanating from a crimson-eyed witch sitting in a corner.

And over all of this chaotic insanity was Vi-Chan’s song, which clearly seemed to be the source of the madness. Regardless, Gaia knew she couldn’t do anything about it at the moment. She needed to find Connie, and fast. Just then, a glowing angelic figure swooped into the room, brilliant light radiating from her in all directions.

---

“Good heavens!” the angelic girl cried out in anguish as she saw the chaos and carnage unfolding around her, tears streaming down her radiant face. “Such clamorous discord and strife! So many tortured souls! My heart aches for them! I must do all in my power to ease their suffering, to save as many as I can!”

Raising her hands up, she conjured several shimmering spheres of luminous energy.

“Radiant Barriers!” she shouted as she sent each sphere racing to the locations of the various bars, whereupon they would form powerful barriers to protect them from the heat, as well as contain the explosions that had already occurred.

“I am so sorry my precious sisters!” she cried, placing her hands over her heart. “I allowed myself to be distracted by such petty concerns that I failed to guard you from this threat! I failed you in your time of greatest need! I humbly beg your forgiveness, my sisters! I pray for it with all my heart! And I make you this solemn vow: I shall make up for my grievous error! I shall not rest until I have saved you all!”

Summoning even more mystical power, until she glowed with blinding light, the angelic girl then released that power in a massive expulsion of restorative magic.

“BE HEALED!!!” her voice boomed over the tumultuous din as waves of healing energy washed over the crowded dance floor. This energy not only mended physical injuries, but also the mental and spiritual wounds inflicted by Vi-Chan’s song. Of course, this reprieve would last for mere moments, before the effects of the sinister melody returned once more. If any victory was to be attained, then the dark idol’s demented performance had to be stopped, and quickly.



It was then that she caught sight of two figures rushing towards the stage in what seemed like an attempt to do just that. Reaching out an elegant hand, she blessed the pair with greatly increased speed and agility. “Strike true, my sisters!” she called out to them. “For the sake of all gathered here, I pray for your success!”

^{"May the flower of your heart be reflected in my Silverlight."}
Her bag of chips was dropped into her backpack, and the Knight of Rose stood up. Rusted petals fell under the waning winter moon. Her Sword rasped as it sliced through space, its appetite sharpened by blade-oil and whetstone. Everyone deserved a chance. She reminded herself that, but the Knight wondered how much she'd really be able to hold back.

"Thank you, Mariette. If you require assistance, feel free to request my favour once we've concluded our discussion with those base thugs." Her amethyst eyes slid off to the white tiger before her, and she met Rosa's gaze. A nod. They both had their blades, hm? She let out a deep breath, closed her eyes, and allowed her Sword to light up her darkened world. And with a burst of speed, she shot out from rooftop into the warehouse, her knee crashing into the face of the Mint operative closest to the portal. They went flying back as the Knight of Rose landed, heels clicking against concrete, moonlight spilling out behind her from the portal.

"May the flower of your heart be reflected in my Silverlight!"

Silvered ivies bloomed in her wake; soon, they too will be bathed in the rust of blood.


Overhead, clouds were gathering, broiling, the light of the moon obscured by swift thunderheads. A storm was converging, icy winds whispering through the streets of Penrose. The rain would come soon, striking down with bone-chilling cold. And then, within the rain, lightning and thunder, crackling through the heavens.

Penrose, once again, was in flux.

Penrose, once again, was alit.

Underground, Lei Zi furrowed her brow. The chaos was drawing them all in now. Horrors, Lesser Forces, Deities, Beacon, Puchuus. A rave was for relief, for release, but when one tried to control individual, unaffiliated magical girls within this arena, even Patrons would feel incensed, displeased. She had expected the Ascendancy to break in, but she hadn’t expected anyone to be as bold as to try to control a group of corrupted magical warriors for their own ends. It was a powder keg, but much more dangerous than she presumed.

Darkness consumed, and barriers raised up everywhere. Many tried to quell the madness of the music, but even more embraced the insanity, the sheer firepower of magical girls turning everything into a destructive mess. The dragon priestess grimaced; fireballs scattered away from Su Feng’s swirling drafts, but they exploded with more force after, consuming the influx of wind to further empower themselves. Crazed Warriors ripped through the smoky darkness too.

“Find your friends then, but after that, I will do what I must,” Lei Zi spoke. Tendrils of lightning crackled around her, forming into serpentine dragons. Even in the darkness, their light provided illumination. “Let’s move.”

The first magical girl to charge for them dropped moments after, a lightning snake slipping into their body and locking up their muscles. The second met a similar fate; the third lacked muscles, so Lei Zi made her evaporate.

“It’ll only get louder. What can you do to summon them?”


“Fuhue?”

One moment, Liss was sitting on a stool, crying about lost chances at redemption and fights that will have to be delayed until the following year. The next, she was sent flying away, shards of glass shattering against her skin as the bar exploded. Against the backlight of the flames, a monstrous magical girl was swinging her sword madly, while her buddy, the old-ish man, was on the ground as well, bleeding in a way that only humans could.

Liss was tough. She had to be if she wanted to be what she wanted to be. An explosion or two meant nothing to her, and once electricity surged into her body and all her six senses fired up to life in response to the danger, she broke out of her drunken stupor fast enough. Springing onto her feet, she slapped her cheeks, dodged a fireball, scryed swiftly, and then paled.

“Oh shit! We don’t have time at all!”

With one arm, she picked Dusty up, tossing the nice girl over one shoulder. With another arm, she picked Ren up, tossing the nice man over another shoulder.

“This warehouse is gonna get sealed off! The Ascendancy’s going to break in and a nuke’s gonna go off!” She swallowed. Even with hyperaware senses, she still couldn’t discern where exactly they were supposed to run to. But that just meant…she had to run everywhere!

“Hold on tight!”

Electricity wreathed her form as her muscles turned taut as a mountain. Gritting her teeth, Liss ran head-first like a raging bull, using her thick skull as a battering ram to knock anyone else in her way. It was good, then, that another magical girl temporarily removed the madness that afflicted people. During that moment of confused tranquility, the girls in Liss’s way got absolutely trampled.


Myria paled at the description, the image of that woman. Her knees wobbled, before she fell right on her butt. Hurriedly, she cut her connection with her spirits, but knew that it was too late. She was spotted. She was found. She was fucked, in a way that she never had been before. Something warm leaked between her legs, but she hardly noticed. A touch, like an ancient, ancient death, pressed against her cheeks. She sniffed, shivered, but didn't dare move until the hand disappeared.

Her flesh-hand plopped down on the ground, broken in a million different parts. She didn't touch that either.

She sat there, for a long time. Slowly gathered herself. Slowly put herself back together. Slowly, slowly...

---

Myria went up the stairs, through the hallway, down the corridor, into the lobby, and pushed open the door, her eyes still raw, her cello case dragging sadly behind her. Outside, Gerard leaned against the Bentley, smoking a cigarette. He stopped though, when he saw her.

There were many things her servant was bad at, but she kept him around for one purpose.

For a hug.

"Oujo-sama," Gerard murmured, stroking her head, "would you like a change of underwear?"

The dark magical girl's face flushed, and she pushed him away, with such force that he broke through the car's window and tumbled into the backseat. "N-no I don't! Idiot!"

Next time! She'll do her prep work, level up even more, and then next time, she was definitely going to raid that shut-in's place, take all the stuff, and make her piss her panties and cry in her servant's arm!

Stepping into her car with a 'Hmph!' and revving up the engine, she slammed the pedal to the metal and roared off! Moments later, the rain came down.

Considering the fact that she was able to acquire a drink (and apparently a pizza) from the bar in a rather short amount of time with no hassle whatsoever, Samantha knew something had to be brewing in the background. Still, she was limited to reacting to what came her way, so she'd play the waiting game as long as necessary, and she may as well watch Trixy enjoy herself while she did so.

When Vi appeared on the stage, Samantha couldn't help but scoff at her behavior. She could at least try to spice the idol flavoring up just a bit, yeah? Shade would probably do better. It didn't help that her music was irritating. At least the hard drink she just finished was good. It felt rewarding. And speaking of rewards, the one she received for downing the drink was a hard straight to the face by some magical girl she didn't recognize in the least, breaking her glasses.

"...You're fucking kidding me, right?"

Samantha's head snapped to one side, but she didn't stumble. The other girl hadn't decided to stop there, throwing a wild hook to which Sam responded with an even quicker glass mug to her face, shattering it, but Sam wasn't letting her off with just that. She grabbed the girl by her shirt and pulled her in, headbutting her and most likely breaking her nose in the process, and she fell to the floor unconscious.

She began rubbing her head. "Belligerent drunks are just the wors--"

Samantha wasn't able to finish the thought before one of the cages fell and crushed some girl, along with most of the party turning into some gimmicky WWE Pay-Per-View event with roars, grunts, and screams filling the air just as quick as the black smoke that also followed. She briefly glanced over the girl she just knocked out, and sighed. She would've preferred this one to just be some inebriated troublemaker, but that was asking for too much, supposedly. In a blink of the eye, Samantha let go of her party attire and returned to using her normal outfit, though she was bitter about it. It wasn't hard to tell who started this commotion when she had begun feeling irritated the second Vi started her routine.

Damned brat, starting shit like this! I'll drag her across this dancefloor by her intestines!

Oh, wait. No, that's not good at all! Silhouette reigned herself in. Aggressive thoughts were what Vi was going for, wasn't it? She needed to remain composed, or she'd lose herself just like all of those other girls right now. That was the last thing she wanted. Now that something had started, the Cradle would respond to it. And, sure enough, Sil got her orders from Veronica.

Capture her?

It was hard to tell if her dismay was a result of Vi's influence or not. Still, it was an order, so she'd take out any frustration on the girl she was intended to deal with, Sonia. Sam had since buried her nose in her coat and did her best to deal with the irritation as she made her way towards Veronica's area, aided by her link with the Cradle. It was the only way to really see through the crowd and the smoke that filled it. Her focus was on avoiding conflict and, if attacks came her way, those too. As much as it pained her to right now, she did not retaliate and instead continued running, but with the entire club in an uproar, those looking to a fight were obliged long before they could entertain the thought of chasing Sil.

Keeping her mind off the violence here would help her from falling prey to it as well. Thankfully, she was worried about something and could divert at least some of her attention to it instead of the ballroom blitz.

Rip... and tear through these... err, I mean, keep the essentials of what I taught you in mind, Trixy. And make sure you ki--keep safe.

Silhouette grit her teeth. The violent thoughts weren't subsiding, and she couldn't exactly distract herself, could she? If that was the case, then she needed Vi to be put down and she'd have to be satisfied with fighting Sonia until then. And, having finally made it within proximity to Veronica and Justine, she spotted Sonia.

This was good because if Sil did NOT spot Sonia, Veronica's unique approach to being a wingman would've evoked some questions even under such dire conditions.

The abundance of pointless fighting would make her job easy. After all, even if you ignore the sporadic spell-slinging, the girls just throwing their entire weight into punches and falling down when they missed were abundant. It was done with admittedly more effort than she'd like because of Vi, but Sil was able to manipulate nearby girls in such a way to further separate Sonia from her liege. A girl might find herself punching way quicker than she normally would be, or one might be reacting abnormally slow. Either way, these would contribute to people stumbling into Sonia, or blocking her path in one way or another.

When enough distance was created, Sil finally appeared before the other Time girl. "Enjoying the party?" she asked Sonia, cracking her knuckles.

Sometimes, means to an end were fickle and subtle. Every now and then, it was asked for a creature to put aside customs and goals in order to make ends meet. Such was the law of the universe, as imperfect as its vast cosmos. The puchuu known as Umukamui scorned altruism, and saw emotions as a nuisance rather than a boon. His soldiers were means to an end, that was what it all was about.

Even though, it was vexing that due to unforeseen circumstances, he was at risk of having his last card perish not in a battlefield of his own choosing. Such was the upheaval of chaos within Penrose, and such was his intention to rectify the situation. Even if it meant talking with those he once scorned for treading upon him and his allies.

The small creature teleported to an unknown, astral location. It brought… memories, not altogether, pleasant, if one could use such a label.

“Greetings… Beckoners.”

Far above Earth, beyond the conflicts of mortals and the threats plaguing a singular city, there were the Beckoners. They stood apart, a guiding force that sought to lead all mankind to its better nature. For all conflict, for all tribulations, they had endured and looked to the future.

Arriving where they dwelt, Umukamui would find a council assembled to meet with him. Where normally it would have been the Puchuu who oversaw Penrose, it had been expanded to account for the presence of the Ascendancy in the city.

The place shone, as close an approximation to the archetype of ‘Heaven’ as one could imagine. Yet not all of the Puchuus looked like angels. Some bore armor, looked like canines and felines and avians, Yet all shone with an inner radiance given form in this place. They stood nearby to his arrival, formed in a semi-circle around where he was.

“Umukamui, our fallen brother. It has been a long time since we last interacted,” the angel sitting at the head of the council noted. Next to it was a Puchuu in a military outfit, or as close an approximation as could be made for their smaller forms. “What brings about this return? Still seeking to maintain a misguided balance?”

“An interesting way to put it...brother.” Umukamui relented, his neutral tone wavering for the slightest moment. “Your information might be dated. Libra is no longer operable. Whatever Adjudicators existed are long gone, either as free agents or the beacon. I am simply, as I always have tried, to seek means to an end.” The puchuu talked. “Due to ...special circumstances, our paths realign. Opportunity or conflict. I am seeking the answer to that.”

“Libra may be gone, but that does not tell whether you have abandoned the ideals that formed it in the first place,” Colonel Cuddles charged with a frown.

Ignoring the comment from the one at his side, Justice Cinnamon focused on the latter half of what Umukamui had said. “By that I assume you mean the imminent conflict in Penrose between Beacon and the self proclaimed Queen that resides within the city? What is your interest in this coming struggle?”

“My last active agent is right now sandwiched between the forces of the two. For rather painfully obvious reasons, I seek not to lose it in this game of thrones you are plotting.” Umukamui said. “Personally, I am against it. Queens can be bargained with. Ravenous beasts can only be exterminated. However, I am in no position of ever influencing or rallying anyone else.” Umukamui admitted. “Even if i were to scrap the bottom of the barrel and talk with the black ones.”

”That is most regrettable, though not unexpected,” Justice Cinnamon replied with a sigh. Many have found themselves caught in the middle of this conflict, a thoroughly needless situation.”

A Puchuu that looked similar to a chinese dragon spoke up from off to the side. “The hand of dark forces has been divined to be at work in these events. Even if you turned to those of the night, they would likely be of no aid to you or those you guide.”

Glancing over at the others on the Council, Colonel Cuddles then spoke up. “That may be the case, but what is it you want from us specifically? Being caught in the middle of a struggle that you are unable to cope with is not something we can prevent, at least not for your sake alone.”

“Safe passage for my agent. And I would agree to rally forces for the time being. I would also extend the offer to those in middle ground. As you know, my network, even if it is dregs of what it used to be it is quite extensive.” Umukamui added. “Conflict and occupation need a campaign of recruitment to avoid… backslash. The emergence of a queen seems to my opinion, that someone has left middle ground untreaded.”

”Beacon has suffered many setbacks in recent months, at least in Penrose….” Justice CInnamon admitted with a frown.

That in turn earned a firm response from the Colonel. “It is difficult to recruit when a majority of the magical girls in the city vanish for months on end, the reason we were sent here to restore order in the first place. Though it seems many magical girls have forgotten that fact.”

A Puchuu with the head of a lion and glowing wings leaned forward. “This agent of yours, has she been tainted by corruption? If not, then I see no reason to prevent her having safe passage from the oncoming action.” There was some muttered conversation between the gathered Puchuu, but it seemed to be a general consensus among them.

“This new recruit used to be… what one would call a criminal, a misfit of society. In less than a month she has assisted in the cleansing of a horror without faltering, and rescued a magical girl with someone named Penny Asimov, without even wavering the slightest. I even doubt she can be corrupted at all easily, having built a resistance to strife all over her past life.” Umukamui said. Sakura was a nasty puchuu kicker, but she was no stranger to violence. His only doubt about her complying would be if she was ordered to slay someone who appeared to be innocent on sight. But even those cases were far and few between.

”All are capable of redemption, her past as a criminal is no issue so long as she continues trying to move beyond that to become a better person,” Justice Cinnamon noted with a nod. ”It is very noble of you, particularly considering your previous reputation.

Chinese Dragon, also known as Light Heart, nodded in agreement. “We had been informed of the encounter the pure form of Penny Asimov had had with a magical girl named Sakura, but we were unaware that she was one of yours. This is interesting.”

Colonel Cuddles returned to the more important matter at hand, examining Umukamui through a skeptical eye. “When you say ‘rally forces’, what would that entail in your mind? I assume you will forsake your previous method of double dealing in every situation, at the very least? You were lucky to escape proper punishment the last time around, and the Ascendancy will not abide interference in its operations for the sake of a false status quo.”

“Different times require different methods. The world of humans was in chaos when Libra was at its zenith. Now, the world is light, there is no need to … control the few shades that still exist. Humans do it themselves quite admirably, if I must say. Using the power of the sun to slaughter kin like cattle. Dealing with the Mint was only my last resort this time around.” Umukamui shrugged. “And Colonel… if I am struck down, Libra´s prized boon, Unity, and the method that is behind it, will be lost to oblivion alongside me.” His eyes met the Colonel with a piercing gaze.

“There are others. Like my comrade Jonald. Others who have been also watching with paternalistic eyes ever since apes became men, such as gods... Half of them roughly, would understand the need of this kind of campaign. The other half, I foresee rallying them to the Mint, the Horrors, and the Lesser Forces stupid enough to think they can take the whole weight of this world upon their shoulders. Even we puchuus are a lousy clout at the best of days, but I can sway some , hopefully.” He paused.

“Every right hand needs a left hand.” He concluded. “I aim to avoid unnecessary and inefficient fighting.”

There was silence amongst those gathered as Umukamui went about his plea, his beliefs, and his assurances. Time would tell whether he was correct, how many Puchuus would be swayed to stand on their side in this coming crisis, while how many would be seduced by deceit and destructive lies. But Beacon held out hope that their wayward brothers would heed the call, and choose the path of the righteous.

”You speak with wisdom,” Justice Cinnamon noted after a few moments. ” Perhaps your time of hardship has done you some good. Rest assured, now more than ever we need to look to those willing to stand and resist the forces of evil. Whether that be through direct confrontation, or the guidance of those who can direct the ones who can to the threats that we now face.”

Huffing, Colonel Cuddles looked about. “Let us deliberate then. We shall provide you an answer shortly.”

With that they turned to each other, debating the merits and overall strategy to employ when it came to Penrose. Whether they needed help, how far to go, and the like. Umukamui would be forced to wait as they sought to reach a consensus.

“mmm.” Umukamui added, as he peeked on the lower world. He always kept tabs of his agents. And mid deliberation was no exemption.

After several minutes the discussion came to an end, the Council turning back to Umukamui. ”Very well,’ Justice Cinnamon said aloud. ” We accept your proposal. Your agents shall have safe passage, and our people shall provide you with aid when it is needed. In return your magical girls shall work with ours, and you shall work to recruit other Puchuus to the side of the light. Does that sound correct?

“As straightforward as it could be.” Umukamui said as he addressed the council. “Now if you will excuse me, there is...no rest for the wicked. As it has been said.”

”Of course. May the light guide your path. Justice Cinnamon agreed, the council watching as Umukamui departed. Now, to address the next item that required their attention….

@PlatinumSkink@Ariamis

Being more aware of the world was a gift that Aurelio was always a fan of having, it helped with noticing the subtle details and variations of people and their emotions, made performing sleight of hand easier, and in times like this made it all the easier to start working against sudden ambushes that Beacon tended to get targeted with whenever the villain of the week cooked one up.

Thus when the magical field sprang into existence fired off a simple flare of shock from his cane, it did nothing but sail far into the sky, for it was only step one for the moment.

The next action he took was when the Vines erupted out from the ground, and he was acting even before the vines would discharge their payload. His Blue clad copy would rush forward and jab his cane into the ground as he took up a position in between Dorothy and the vine causing a blue bubble to expand out and surround the two of them in an attempt to block any possible assault form the thing, sadly he hadn’t been expecting a mental attack so wasn’t successful in protecting the Bunny girl.

The Clone near Kimble also moved into a position to block any possible attacks and simply jumped in front of the grey goo and let himself be immobilized by it “Good to know” He would say aloud before it would poof into nonexistence no longer being of any use.

The real Aurelio would be a mix of his two clone’s actions, as he would stab the green wall he had conjured with his can before swing it about himself, the shield turning into a large curtain as he did so. The curtain would split into two halves with each one wrapping about one of the vines that erupted near him.

“And now for the reveal!” He would quip as the earth then disgorged the foes that had sought to trap them and once again his awareness paid dividends to help him process everything, and he had to give them credit for a plan well thought out. He wasn’t sure if it would work in the long run, but then again he tended not to bet against himself.

Of with his colored clone, the blue hued variation was finding itself pushed mercilessly by the superior physical capabilities of his adversary, but at the same time said figure would be finding him to be annoying difficult to actually hit. As he never sought to strike back at her, only dodging or deflecting the incoming blows, and to make things worse a scattered mess of circular magic barriers capable of blocking her attacks were floating around him only adding to his defensive capability. “You know, attacking people like this isn’t very nice” He would go on to say as he continued to dance away from the attacks. “And if you wanted a White coin yvou’re going to have to get in line” He would add with a large grin as he spun the coin across his fingers having noticed the girls focus on the small magical relic.

As he dodged another blow his cane would start glowing a deep blue.

“I have to congratulate you for this plan” The real Aurelio would say as he maintained his readied position but didn’t move towards the one who was obviously marking him more watching his clone defend itself from the third attacker. “Good coverage from the outside, likely mind tampered bait, and even effective team work.” His smile however was blatantly mischievous, as he seemed utterly unaffected by being caught out so effectively. “It would likely have worked against anyone else, but the thing is... I am the Great Aurelio!” As he called out his name he would pull his curtain of Determination over himself.

At the same time his blue clad clone would flip the White Coin in to the air in front of him lightly just there was a flash of white light and in an instant the Blue was replaced with White as Aurelio just kept grinning. “Sorry to steal this dance but your last partner just lacked stamina ya’ know?” He would say cheerfully as he caught the coin his clone had flipped.

At the same time as Aurelio re-positioned himself his curtain would dissolve revealing the blue clad clone in the middle of it firing off a pair of spells, both its own Compassion and with the remnants of the Determination, towards its original and Kimble. Speed, Strength and durability, all were due for a raise once the green and blue spells landed. “Never take your eyes of the magician” The Clone would say with soft smile, knowing it was likely to be taken apart by the metal shards the original was being watched with, which was fine by it, as he was more or less out of juice as it was.

---

"Trouble with boss!" One of the numerous clones would say as they all felt the shock disperse in the air "Prep for Teleportation!" They would go on to say grabbing hold of the other beacon members as they started up the sequence to teleport all of them to the real Aurelio's position.

The phone based clone would type out one last reply before pocketing the phone.

"When it rains it pours. Got caught up in something myself, I'll be there as soon as I can!"

Lily was excited upon seeing Vi-chan take to the stage, having been a fan of hers ever since she discovered her Glimmr channel. Sitting by Alex and Thalia, she felt like this would be the highlight of the entire night, seeing such a talented idol welcome her real fans. But it didn’t take long before her feelings of adoration were replaced by a storm of confusion and panic as her true colors were shown, and the rave had turned into a nightmare.

”Wh-What is this? Why is Vi-chan doing this?!” She asked out loud from Thalia, followed by a scream as she was shoved off her seat by a dark magical girl who happened to be tussling with another one and accidentally hit her elbow. Lily however made an expert recovery and performed a side roll, summoning her magical weapon as she stood back up, not affected by the smoke in the slightest. She saw as Alexander restored a girl who assaulted her out of her senses, and helped her back up. Just like always, she was quick on the uptake when the situation was on.

”Got it!” She shouted over the music, and saw as Thalia jumped up. She took the ring, and slipped it on the finger, cartwheeling to avoid a sword slash from a deranged magical girl as she initiated her transformation, knowing Alex would throw a shield around her.

”Let my spirit gallop across the clouds, and strike my foes down with thunderous applause!”

Once Lily was ready, she made a sweeping kick to trip a monster girl about to bite her, and drew her bow. She was relieved, both from feeling Alex’ magic empowering her, and also by knowing the insanity could be reversed. She flinched as another attack came her way from yet another rave attendee, but a mysterious pair of red-headed twins had protected her with barriers.
”Thank you!” She shouted, and three lightning arrows appeared between her fingers. But then, she heard Sakura’s voice.
”I agree, we can't stay here!”

Trusting Alex to cover her, Lily took aim at the stage, and shot a Barrage at Vi-chan at the moment a dark magical girl was about to drop an ice block on her; it was regrettable to attack someone who was only singing and dancing, but she could not risk the siren song playing any longer than it had to, lest even more people succumbed to it’s temptation. Then, after she had taken her shot, she grabbed Sakura, and slung her over to have her ride in a piggyback.
”I-I could try my Getaway spell to get us out of here!”
She suggested jumping with Sakura to avoid a curse thrown at them.
”Never tried it before though!”

---

“Alert! Alert!” Sylvia called out through the audio broadcast network in the Beacon HQ as she ran to the teleporters. “Calling all girls for immediate rescue of Carinal Ishtar!” She arrived in the laboratory, where Janet and Jenna were, and briskly walked up to them. “This is an emergency! The Cardinal is under attack by Cindy Ford at Penrose Park!” She first grabbed Janet’s wrist, and then Jenna’s, lifting them up from their workstations. “You’re coming with me to save her, orders or not!”

---

Elvira had never felt as terrified as she did upon starting her performance, and seeing the absolute pandemonium that ensued. She saw as a girl frothing at the mouth was stabbed, creating a pool of blood that was illuminated by the floor-embedded lights. She saw as smoke and fire engulfed the hall, and how the panic-stricken retreated to the corners, only to get cut down by the mob, like lambs to the slaughter. And then, there were the meddlers. Some chose to wade through the crowd, like Eliza. Others, like Penny and Trixy, chose to take the high road, and attempted to shoot at her. Unfortunately for them, Elvira had planned ahead for such interference; she had invited her most loyal fans to the very front of the stage using a private Glimmr post, and asked them to keep her safe from stage intruders. These girls placed barriers and formed a defensive wall, their swords and guns drawn to intercept any who dared to run up to her. The barriers were broken by Lily’s barrage, shattering them to pieces. However, it wasn’t enough to deter them from sacrificing themselves for Elvira, as one girl jumped up and attempted to deflect Penny’s gauss cannon shot. She failed, and the shot blasted right into her, but as a result Elvira was spared from the attack.

As the song entered the breakdown part, Elvira went into a music-assisted speech of sorts. She saw Trixy aiming at her. In response, Elvira summoned her gauntlets and attempted to deflect the shot, only to end up tangled in roots that burst from the seed.

"Don’t stand for oppression! Penrose is ours! Go out there, give them annihilati-!" She shouted in rhythm even as she struggled against her bonds, only to be silenced by Eliza’s muting curse on her microphone; she sweated, her expression one of pure dread as she saw pursuers closing the distance. But then, by pure stroke of luck, the spreading fire had reached the stage, burning the roots off.
Spurred on by her fortune, she fled; she made an exit stage right, casting some filament threads as trip wires behind her to impede any pursuers as she ran through an opened metal door that promptly shut behind her.

Though it seemed like the song would end after Vi stopped singing, the cold truth was soon realized by all; it started automatically again on the enchanted loudspeakers, complete with her singing; she had made a recorded copy of the song in advance, and made it loop, perpetuating the mental influence even as the Ascendancy had begun culling the crowd with cold efficiency. Those who were previously cured of the magic had once again been affected by it, while those already affected began suffering from more adverse effects; now all monster girls without protection or countermeasures were forced to act on their Mental Mutations, in any manner possible. As per Elvira’s instructions, the maddened crowd split; some stayed to fight the Ascendancy, while others teleported or zipped away with a Getaway spell, most likely continuing to cause chaos in Penrose at large.

---

Helga, like Valerie and Evelyn, also made an active effort to resist her Mental Mutation; she stomping on the floor and holding her head, though it wasn’t enough to keep her disguise on; soon enough, sharp claws emerged from her hands, and a toothy smile replaced her normal one.
“Su! This music, it’s...Driving me crazy! Literally!” She screamed, amplifying her voice so it carried through the cacophony. Then, remembering the battle with Endsinger, Helga performed a sound-muting spell on herself, placing her hands on her ears. She also reached out Valerie and Evelyn, applying the spell on them as well by touching their ears. Instead of complete deafness like last time, however, she was able to mute the specific frequencies of sound related to the song. It resulted in a crippled hearing ability, but it was an improvement over not hearing any sounds. Most importantly, the spell could no longer affect them. “Out, now!” She shouted to them, and headed for the nearest source of swirling wind; she already knew who attempted to clear the smoke from the area.
“Su! Where’s Mika?” She shouted to her, and used her claws to strike back against a dark magical girl with a scythe, kicking her away with a followup. “We gotta get her and run!”

---

FanFan and Leena, upon hearing Rachel’s order, immediately cast off their disguises, revealing themselves as agents of the Ascendancy. They summoned their weapons, ready to take on the hordes of the corrupted that snarled with bloodthirsty fury when Leena spotted Alicia running to a side corridor.
“Go after here, I’ll cover you!” FanFan shouted, and brought her mighty metal arms to bear, uppercutting a troll girl. Leena nodded, and took off
“Stop right there, corrupted scum!” She shouted at Mika upon spotting her creeping towards Alicia, having drawn her blades. “You make another move towards her, and I’ll cut you down!”

---

Justine’s lips curled into a delighted smirk upon hearing Veronica agree with her, seemingly ignoring the hand on her shoulder. Sonia’s eyebrows furrowed, but she found herself swept back by the shifting tides of ravers.
“So you know your place after all~,” she spoke with a bit more energy than before; though she kept her composure despite the song’s influence, a small part of her did come to change, most apparent in her widened smile and attentive gaze. But as Veronica continued…

“...!”

Justine flinched from Veronica’s confession, giving the other vampire the chance to throw Betty right into her embrace.

“Mmmh!”

Justine was surprised; anybody would be if they found their lips locking with another one’s without as much as a meaningful exchange in looks. The nails on her fingers extended into sharp points as they trembled on her fingers, and Justine’s eyes widened in shock.
Meanwhile, Sonia and Silhouette met. However, Sonia simply shook her head in response.
“It is a bit too wild for my tastes, especially now that the trap has sprung,” she stated, pointing towards a monster girl who charged at her with a lifted axe. Without another word, she summoned a taser in her hands and shot it at the assaulter, shocking her to the point she fell.
“If your plan is to obstruct me from my duties, I’m afraid it is a futile endeavor.” Sil then found herself under attack by another dark magical girl who had decided to summon her pistol and shoot at her at random. The next moment Sil turned back, Sonia had disappeared into thin air.

Suddenly, two sharp fangs punched Betty’s lips, paralyzing her on the spot as dark magic flowed into her veins. Justine closed her eyes, savoring the bloody kiss that ensued. Betty’s expression had changed after Justine removed her lips; she had a blank, hazed look in her eyes, and a trickle of blood bled from her lips, staining her chin.
Justine gigled afterwards, wiping her mouth with a handkerchief.
”Mm...It has been quite some time since I have last fed on something so fresh,” she simply stated, and offered her turned hand to Betty.
”Thank you for the gift, Veronica; it was very thoughtful of you to give me a new servant.”
in response, the katana-wielding bodyguard clasped her hand over it; her mind had been taken over by Justine, and no longer answered to any mental communication.
”In the past, my heart might have been wrenched by such false romance. But now, it is only true love that may sweep me off my feet.”
The elegant monster girl turned to see Eli disappear into a well of darkness with a look of disappointment.
”You have only delayed the inevitable, Vermillion. Mariette will answer for her crimes soon enough.”
She scoffed as noises came from the rave entrance; they saw a squad of Ascendancy girls rushing down.

“Anyway, I would love to stay and chat more, but I am afraid this party has turned a bit too frantic for my fancy. Toodles~” Sonia teleported next to her, and took Justine’s hand; in the next blink of an eye, the two of them had disappeared before their very eyes, taking Betty with them.

As the Ascendancy squad came closer, Veronica saw who the members in it were; at the front with her shield raised and lance pointed was Juliana and Sharron the rapier-wielding girl, followed by Delphi and Violette, their weapons glowing with blue and purple hues as they prepared powerful spells. “Surrender now!” Violette screamed out over the music. “Or face judgement by the sword!”

Another Ascendancy squad crashed through the ceiling, as Paula the metal fist-wielding girl made a dramatic fist-down tripod landing right in the middle of the main hall. She was followed by Vivi who slowed her descent by blasting water from the soles of her feet, and the triplet girls, who acrobatically swung down from the rafters, with one staying up there. “Lower your weapons or die!” Vivi shouted in turn, and glanced up; a careful eye could see the glint of Kai’s scope as she aimed down from the crack in the ceiling.

Outside, Rachel listened as the announcements came; they also worked as code phrases for when they would enter the warehouse. She nodded to herself, and closed her eyes as she held her hand out. After a deep breath, she intoned the prepared spell:

“Gibbet.”

A great magic circle appeared, surrounding the warehouse. Up from the sigil, a wall of light began rising from all sides, until they closed up to a point at the very top, surrounding the warehouse in a magical dome and sealing off the surface exits. This was not your average magical barrier, but a mighty cage capable of withstanding attacks that could decimate a city block. Only a large group of magical girls who repeatedly unleash their most powerful of assaults can hope to breach such a defense.

Afterwards, Rachel turned and saluted a saluting Beckoners.
"Inquisitor, there has been a change in mission parameters," it stated, and after some whispering Rachel nodded. "Understood. I will let out agents know." She put a finger to her comms unit. "Attention agents. A girl in a bunnysuit named Sakura and her entourage are to be rescued from the scene. Over."

---

Kimble was taken by surprise by the ambush that burt from the ground, her face painted with shock. “Aaah!” She was hit by the sleep-inducing bomb, but the ShineSpark had protected her, guarding her mind with a flash of light that repelled the vines away with explosive force. However, the attack still distracted Kimble, and she didn’t see the followup spell. Aurelio came to her rescue in the form of a clone that took the hit, dropping the grey slime in its tracks.
“Thanks, Aurelio!” She shouted, and smiled as she felt his empowering magic boosting her.
“Now let’s teach these thieves a lesson!”
A whirlwind of green gales erupted from her feet as she lifted up to avoid the initial wave of grasping vines. “Too slow!” She mocked, and using her sickle, performed a spinning combo; empowered by Aurelio, she shot out cutting winds with every rotation, extending her reach to sever the forest of vines, like a scythe that repas through fields of wheat. Then, seeing the wooden assailant exposed, she launched a cross-shaped projectile of cutting wind, aiming to cross-slash Esther and cut her into pieces. “Oniii Girii!”
It was at that moment when the rest of the Beacon squad had shown up, Sally with them. They were distracted by the sentries that were summoned around the area, however, so they have yet to reach the battle. “Hang on, Aury-poo!” Sally screamed out, letting her Shamrock Shooters sing.

---

Fabio managed to run and avoid the attacks of the two dark magical girls, using the small spaces in the warehouse like between crates and under shelves to his advantage. However, the two girls were crafty, and managed to trap the poor cat in a corner. “There! Shoot it!” One of them called out. The other took aim, and-

*CRUNCH*

At that moment, a giant white tiger had suddenly leapt from a portal, ambushing the gun-wielder and pouncing on her. With another crunch, the limp girl was thrown away. The other girl swung down with her sword in an attempt to decapitate the tiger, only to be met by Amaryllis’ knee of justice; she had struck the flower embedded in the girl’s eye, sending her flying back against a pile of crates that toppled over her.
“Ngh…Ajna!” She cried out, followed by cutting through the crates. “Set the place to blow!”
She then lunged forward with her blade, followed by another strike; Amaryllis found her opponent skilled in both the blade and footplay, elegantly flowing from one swing to another.

“Who’s there!?” Amaryllis heard a familiar voice, coming below from a nearby descending staircase; it was Sammy. “Get me out of this den of mobsters!” Amaryllis and the white tiger heard footsteps: the patrollers would soon reach the interior.

---

Cindy was the first to reach Penrose Park, where Ishtar was; she was kneeling on the ground, praying with her eyes closed. “Ishtar the Vile!” Cindy called out to her with a pointing finger. In response, Ishtar lifted her head up, seeming confused. “Oh...You must be Cindy Ford. May I ask why you’re here?”
Cindy was followed by Reaver and Ronin, who had reached the Park by this point.
“Of course you’d know my name, you treacherous snake!” A snap of electricity ran across the ground around her vicinity, as she walked towards the Cardinal.
“You attempted to assassinate me with a cruel cloak and dagger! How dare you!”
Ishtar’s mouth opened in surprise. “What? You must have misunderstood-”

“Oh, so I misunderstood the attempt on my life? You would claim it was an accident, or mere jest?” Cindy grit her teeth, and for a moment they resembled vertical waves of electricity.
Now Shane had reached the Park followed by Goblina riding the centaur girl.
Ishtar kept her hands clasped, but her eyes had now opened; everyone present who looked at her would feel a great sorrow welling up from within themselves, and tears beginning to form in the corners of their eyes.
“I have done nothing of the sort, Cindy. I only wish to bring peace to this city.”

Cindy, however, was not convinced. “Peace? PEACE?”
By that point, anyone else who followed Cindy into the tunnels had reached the Park.
“My people have suffered as they have been hunted and slaughtered like mere cattle, and you call that peace!
I have seen how the weak and helpless have been scattered aside like mere trash on the side of the pavement! Is that what peace means to you? You’re only satisfied once all of us abnormal folk are swept under the rug, enslaved or six feet under! But no more! We have a right to live!”

She charged up energy in her hand, and Ishtar stood up, looking concerned as she gazed at Cindy.
“For your crimes against the magical kind, I sentence you to die!”
Ishtar held a hand out.
“You’re making a mistake! Cindy, please, stop this!”
Cindy stomped the ground, and caused a thunderclap.
“Beacon’s campaign of oppression and tyranny ends tonight, Ishtar! Off with your head!”
She then launched her projectile, and Ishtar jumped back to avoid it. However, the projectile was aimed to hit the ground right at her feet, and it exploded, sending her back.

At that moment, a squad of Beacon girls had teleported in; Sylvia, who had summoned a gatling gun, accompanied by Janet and Jenna. “Cardinal Ishtar!” She yelled as she saw Ishtar lying on the ground, and turned her gun on Cindy; she grit her teeth in anger.
“Get away from her, you bitch!” She then yelled, and opened a hailstorm of bullets at Cindy and her companions.

Wildfires were a curious thing. All in all their components and different timings were rather harmless. Dry vegetation, winds... a spark somewhere. But when all of them were at the right time at the right place, it would erupt into an inferno. Despite others...attempts to quell the incoming conflict, Reaver witnessed firsthand how the first blows with Ishtar were exchanged, so sudden as to put her reeling in the ground.

Good, it was a matter of time before the battle would be over. Maybe even before everyone else came in. Reaver frowned upon the sudden appearance of reinforcements on Ishtar's side. Had it been Chloe? Was there a sellout among Cindy's forces? It did not matter. He had to think quick, and act even faster. He could ride on this momentum, and given the hostility of the newcomers, stoke the fire even further.

Spreading his barriers in front of Cindy and the assembled others, Reaver snarled as he yelled at the top of his lungs. "For the Queen! Death to Ishtar!" mirroring Cindy's passion, and hoping that what he had been told that Reinforcement types actually encouraging others to action were not just empty words. "After me!" He continued, as he began running towards the source of fire, barriers being deployed and regeneration taking care of the rips and tears in his face.

This... is... what it feels to be alive. This is all for Odin. But it's not enough. I crave more. More flesh. More fear. More blood. I hate your holier than thou types. I hate the mental attack you just did. Reaver thought mentally as he reached with a hand to his face. The mental reinforcement was holding. He could do this. Let's play. Let us appear as if to run wild. If there's pure white, a black stain will stand out even more! His heart thrummed, as his emotions overtake him. Flesh changed shape. Hand sharpened into claws, that gouged deep marks on his own face as he ran towards Sylvia.

A wet rag. Bloody, landed at the feet of the Beacons soldiers.

On closer inspection it was not a wet rag... but the mangled remains of Reaver's face.

An otherwordly guttural roar was heard.

The creature once known as Reaver pressed on, faster and deadlier than ever, ready to tackle the Beacon assailants and cut and bite their flesh.