“Sorry, Pinky, but I’ve already got the best setup I could want in a backwater reality plenum like this,” the mad scientist explained, not sounding sorry in the slightest. “Although… You mentioned two employees of yours who fancy themselves scientists. Let me have a little chat with them to see if they’re not complete amateurs, and if they have anything interesting to offer, we can work out a little quid pro quo arrangement. I borrow them to assist me with something I’m working on, and you can borrow my super-scientific genius for ONE project. That sound good?”

”Mmmm, that might be difficult.” Oros rubbed her chin. ”They are my co-managers at the hotel. While they are both accomplished magi researchers, one runs an artificing shop strictly for their own profit while the other does research for a third party. That sort of stuff isn’t part of the contract. So any ‘squid pro quo’ is going to be between you and them. Furthermore, while I can see you’re cute you haven’t given me any reason to believe you have the big galaxy brain you claim to have. I know what those two are capable of, and you think you’re better than both of them without having ever met them?” Oros chuckled. ”Oh I got it now. Yea, you gotta make me something. And then I’ll arrange a meet up for you three. I’ll grease the wheels a bit of course, just to ensure things go smoothly.”

Nykannis ground her teeth as Oros expressed doubt in her abilities. “Okay, Miss Magical Girl Deadpool, you wanna see why I’m the Queen of the Mad Scientists?!! Why I’m the most brilliant mind this reality plenum has ever seen?!! FINE!!! I’ll make whatever crazy reality shattering invention you want! The more challenging the better! Well, within reason, of course,” she added, her voice taking on a regretful tone. “See, the deal I made with the Grand Magistrates stipulates that I can’t make any major changes to the universal status quo, ESPECIALLY where Penrose is concerned, so, yeah…”

”Yea, they can be sort of a bummer to work around. I find it’s easier to ask for forgiveness than permission with those dudes. But let’s see…” Oros exhaled and thought. This was her one chance to ask for almost anything. ”Alright, this might be a little crazy, but you’re the queen of maid scientists, right Nyan? Should be possible. You ready?” She nodded. ”I want a back scratcher!” After a short pause, she tipped her head. ”Like, a robot maid! Yea! A cute, robot, maid! Maybe a cat maid? A personal assistant, that’s also a back scratcher and shit!”

“A maid?” Nykannis deadpanned. “All my vast, super-scientific knowledge, and you want me to make you a MAID?!!”

”I trust it will be unlike any robot cat maid I have ever seen!”

“ Fine…” she exhaled in weary resignation. “I’ll make you a damn maid. Cat ears, cat tail, cat collar, fetishistic outfit, the works. So, you want this thing to look organic or mechanical?”

The question caused Oros to stop and think, which Nykannis was pretty sure she didn’t do often. ”If it’s indistinguishable from a living person that’s pretty cool. Who doesn’t want a cute maid? Then again, I can just hire a cat maid easily enough. Having clearly metallic features allows me to show off, but it could be a problem if normies come around.” Oros placed her outstretched hand on top of Nykannis head and gently patted it. ”Nyan? Have you ever noticed that when you go to a fancy restaurant the menus are really small, they don’t make special orders, but the food is always really good regardless? You seem like you know what you’re doing. It doesn’t even have to be a cat girl if it’s awesome!” Her smile got wider as she continued to pat the scientist’s head. ”Is that unreasonable? I could go for something easier if you’d prefer.”

“Easier?” Nykannis spat, as if the very concept was deeply repulsive. Or maybe that was just her response to the sensation of Oros’s hand on the top of her head? Probably both. “You’ve already set the bar so low, it’s practically underground! But I get it, you want me to take this mundane, stereotypical concept and do something creative with it. Okay, I think I have an idea on how we might do that,” she added. Activating a small holographic display and producing a circuit-covered stylus, the mad scientist began drawing up plans and scribbling down notes. “Keeping in mind your various fetishes and need for this thing to be able to interact with normies, here’s what I was thinking.” Manipulating the holodisplay, she pulled out a 3D model of her idea for Oros to examine. “First we have the maid portion. Basic moe, cat girl maid. Shy personality, underdeveloped body, and fully organic, although the ears and tail are fully detachable, in case you need to prove she’s ‘really human’ to any over-inquisitive weebs. I will mention that she incorporates some ridiculously advanced nanotech, allowing for a variety of interesting applications. In particular, she has an energy to matter conversion unit, which should allow her to produce whatever food, drink or other mundane item you want, with the item in question materializing in her hands. Naturally it also works in reverse as well. But you wanted something a little more ‘outside the box’ than just that, right?” she added with a smirk. “Well, that’s where the second part comes in!” Snapping her fingers, there was a bright flash, after which, the 3D model’s appearance had changed significantly. “With a simple command phrase of your choosing, your cat girl maid will become a magical girl. She’ll be a disgustingly kawaii genki girl when she’s in this form, with a VERY cheery personality, great for annoying people you don’t like. While I’ve given her a limited amount of Metaphysical Aetheric Numinosphere Accelerator, she’ll still be a joke compared to what a regular magical girl is capable of, so just keep that in mind if you plan to put her in a combat situation. So, whadya think?”

”Yea, that sounds good! The nanomachines should prevent her from getting hacked or frying due to simple static electricity.” After nodding a few times, Oros looked away from the hologram and at the scientist. ”And this will 100% be able to scratch my back, right?”

“You saw the claws, didn’t you?” Nykannis replied with a wry grin. “Well, if everything meets with your approval, there’s just one last thing to take care of.” Spreading her thumb and forefinger, the mad scientist created a rectangular holographic window in front of Oros. “Sign here,” she instructed, handing the beast girl her stylus.

Oros twirled the stylus in her hand before holding it over the pad. After staring at it for a moment, her expression soured. ”Ehh, I dunno.” She pulled her hand away. ”I mean, we have plenty of Non-Patron Champions, or NPC’s if you’d prefer, back in Penrose. I doubt my patron could handle another one.” With a sigh, she handed the stylus back to the doctor. ”Perhaps another time.” She extended her other hand towards Kate, which had a business card in it. ”If you find yourself in the area, I could definitely put you to use. Though it might be a bit before I have anything worthwhile for you to do. While Penrose might be dangerous, I do have a safe place for you to sleep at least. Our breakfasts are nothing to shit on either.”

“What the hell?!” Nykannis snapped. “Ya make me do all that work, and now you don’t want it?! Well guess what?! I went through the trouble of designing it, so you can bet your ass I’m making it and bringing it with me to my chat with your two ‘scientist’ pals!”

”So my patron won’t have to control it?” Oros reached for the stylus.

Meanwhile, Kate was far more receptive of Oros’s offer. “Thanks,” she told the pink-haired girl with a smile as she took the offered business card. “And here’s my contact info,” she added, handing over her own card. “I gotta say, I’ve been kinda curious about the Golden Trove ever since that one girl on Glimmer gave it such a glowing review.”

”You won’t be disappointed!” Oros said with a wink before sucking the card into her hammer space and looking back at the scientist. ”Gib pen!”

“Your patron?” Nykannis asked with a raised eyebrow. “What the hell do they have to do with anything? You’re the one who’s gonna ‘control it’,” she added, returning the stylus to the now quite insistent Oros. “If it helps, think of it as more of a familiar than a full-fledged magical girl.”

”Oh, that does make sense now.” Oros held the pen. She still didn’t look like she was ready to sign. But her expression softened until she looked sullen. ”Nyan, I do have to admit that you are a genius. You really pumped this concept to 250%. I can also see that while this is far below your abilities and probably a simple thing to do, you’ve become attached enough to it that you can’t allow yourself to not complete it. I know why that is, but that’s not really important.” She handed the stylus back to Nykannis a second time. ”You’re tailoring this creation to me like a fine suit, but you don’t have all the measurements. As an example, I have a hammerspace that lets me carry around all the mundane shit I need. A familiar doesn’t have to do that for me. You probably couldn’t tell by our conversation, but I’m also really good at being annoying. I probably don’t need a familiar that can do that. We just need to spend more time together.” She presented Nykannis with a business card. ”I agree with what you said earlier. You can meet the three of us at the Golden Trove with your maido prototype, or however that works. Binky Is the creator of the red coins you see around Penrose and also co-created the white coins with Beacon. Aria is a member of the Gourd. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.”

Type: Horror (Greater Horror)

Name: Cthulhu

Personality: Untold millennia of knowledge and understanding, maddening levels of raw magical power that makes even other Greater Horrors quake in fear, and a legend that even among humans is better known than many…all wrapped up in the body and personality of a friendly, super humanophile, happy, annoying, and ditzy party girl. She is happy to help her friends, enjoys finding and making new 'besties', loves to party and play about like a wild child, and beyond terrible spending habits and annoying behavior isn't honestly a threat to humanity at large.

Though while this is her up front, do not be fooled...she may walk among mortals, she may sound like an idiot party girl, but when she gets truly serious or angry she is very far from something to ever want to mess with. It is there that those unfortunate will witness the true might of the lord of The Sunken City, the wrath a true eldritch horror from beyond reason, and the ire of an abomination beyond anything mortals can comprehend. Beware, beware, the might of the dread lord Cthulhu!

Appearance:

(Current Avatar) https://i.imgur.com/sKeNDZl.jpg

(True/Real Body) https://i.imgur.com/bfCjMub.jpg

History: An ancient being originating from an ancient and powerful race from far beyond the stars, a malignant Greater Horror of solar scale that in its youth sought to seize the Earth in particular and create a civilization in its own image upon the land and waters. It fought off other Horrors seeking to pierce into its territory on the then-prehistoric Earth, took on the Gods, and founded the ancient city of R’lyeh from which it began to build its own civilization in prehistoric times. Despite its war against a large assembly of Deities, and in the final struggle an alien deity descended upon her as the great meteor that destroyed the dinosaurs.

The end result was not the Horror’s death, but rather her main body being put into a hibernation-like sleep before being interred within R’lyeh and sunk deep underwater/underground beneath what is now in modern times the South China Sea. Down there her lingering people slithered, at least the scant remnants of what once a people, along with other strange creatures, some early 'prehistoric humans', and even some aliens that had migrated to worship her with great reverence.

From beneath the waves Cthulhu slept, though far from ‘actually dead’ Cthulhu's mind began to wander about and examine the planet as it changed. She became ever the more curious about humans, proper ones especially, as they rose up and dominated the planet by modern times. She even over the years visited some humans in their dreams to speak to them, and talk to them to try to understand them. Her curiosity in time grew into affection, and from an affection into a deep-seated and genuine love of humanity and its civilization upon the face of the Earth.

Though among those she talked to was included a ‘certain dreamer’, who took what he’d learned about Cthulhu’s ‘embarrassing edgy teen years’...and then published it with some twists, removals, and embellishments to become a famous author. The Greater Horror was an amount offended by this, especially as it began to cause a rise in 'crazy cultists', but also ultimately decided that she had to step in more directly. To better ‘be’ among humans and appreciate them, she projected her mind and had it take on a human-shaped avatar/container! Though despite becoming a sort of caring patron of humanity, even if from the sidelines on occasion, she also ended up a rampant humanophile and ditzy ‘party girl’ who’d help magical girls and even other groups like the deities she once fought so long ago.

What a twist.

Resources: Being a Greater Horror and the legendary Cthulhu, she had continued to accrue a wealth of resources that she is capable of providing or drawing upon. This includes an immense amount of wealth, magical girls/boys, magical coins, genuinely good followers, spawn, and other such general resources. Though this also does in the end include ‘pesky pseudo cultists’ who arose due to the work that ‘certain dreamer’ and one or two other ‘crazy assholes’ whom she holds a special loathing for even now.

Additional Info: She still talks to properly sane humans, having connections in the mortal world, and even has some legitimate worshippers out there she does give some guidance to in order to keep them from ‘acting like lunatics’. The Sunken City itself is also a magical hub of activity for many of those who work for her or as her magical girls/boys especially. It is ultimately a full-fledged city down there, of course, though there is a solid party culture that rises up when Cthulhu herself visits with her avatar.

-She allows many other patrons to help her ‘clean up the crazies’ as they pop up (as she puts it). Because after a long time of trying to suppress them (with great exasperation at the task), ultimately, is a task that became too bothersome. These only also ever increase her irritation with 'that dreamer' who she holds 'slandered her and created stupid cultists' with his work in the end. Yet she still does perform ‘cleanup work’ from time to time, naturally, as a way of trying to keep things orderly. Of course it has taken a long time to convince many others of her sincerity, and while she's had a level of success it's not like she has reached everyone either…all in due time, eh?

-She has also worked with the local Beacon Branch in Hawaii a few times, legitimately helping them on the side, though if asked about her or the “Honolulu Beach Vacation Incident” the members of that branch just tend to just sigh aloud in response.

-Her avatar's presence is not itself actually maddening or harmful to others, but even “The Infinite Abyss” has been annoyed to death by her to the point of considering her becoming literal ‘anathema’ to it.

Cthulhu fhtagn r'lyeh~

Name: Annabelle "Anne" Murgang
Age: 18
Gender: Female
Appearance:
Casual
Transformed

Specialization: [ODDBALL][BLOOD]
Annabelle manipulates blood -plain and simple. Drawing it in whipping strands, or flinging it as a crystallized shard, her element is used in much the same way as a Water specialist would. Fortunately for other magical girls and monsters, it seems her purview is limited only to blood which she can see, or her own; she won't be crushing someone's organs simply by looking at them. However, an interesting quality of it is her ability to draw strength from allies who verbally agree to the action, as if welcoming a vampire into their home.

By sacrificing her own health, Anne can bolster her manipulation of blood itself, be it her own or another's. She has never had to test the depths she can take it, but Anne assumes she could put herself on death's door to weave incredibly powerful magicks.

Weapon: [Melee/Ranged - "Red Clouds"]
Annabelle's weapon "Red Clouds", appears to any eye as a mere greatsword, but hides within its many folds the ability to transform into a massive arcane firearm -and not in the way you might expect. Red Clouds' power draws upon Anne's own, and that means through her blood. Rather than hosting a menagerie of complex machinery beneath, it holds a reservoir of blood which can at any time burst from its cage and envelop the weapon, turning it into the crystalline red form of a large-caliber cannon.

Transforming is not its only ability, however, and the blood she supplies to Red Clouds can also simply increase the cutting strength of the weapon. Coupled with her Third Eye Power, the mere striking of this weapon upon her foes can instantly reveal useful bits of information to her about the target.

Power: [THIRD EYE] [Utterances of the Crawling Blood]
At the temporary expense of her health, Annabelle can saturate the battlefield with nigh-on invisible strands of her blood. Intangible to physical touch, they serve as a kind of arcane, pervasive measurement device which relays all kinds of information to her. From the heart rate of another entity, to the merest increase in magical power, Anne can maintain an incredible level of awareness in the area. One would be hard-pressed to try striking with the intent of being undetected or unexpected. Outside of battle, a weave of these strands is held close to her body. It's power range is diminished in this form, but requires next to no effort for her to maintain.

Perks:
[Enhanced Sustenance] - Anne's specialization has trained her body, physically, to be adept in manipulating her own physiology. Her cells run more efficiently, to the point where they both require and spend less energy to do the same things another magical girl would. Useful as it is in a tight and prolonged situation, Anne nevertheless has three meals a day more often than not, and isn't wanting for more. Sometimes you just like to eat, right?
[Dual Weapon] - Unusual transformative properties allow her weapon to morph into a fully-functional arcane firearm.
[Absolute Direction] - The details of how Anne manages to have such a keen sense for where things are around the city is a closely-kept secret. Regardless of the medium, Anne can be relied on to search for particular objects or people, so long as it's something she understands, of course.
[Interdimensional Home] - A well-designed and furnished apartment that Anne likes to call the "Strifeless". She has only one rule for guests; leave behind your troubles before stepping inside. There are plenty of places to crash on, despite it being only a studio. A wall is dedicated to candid photographs she has taken with other friendly magical girls.
[Hammerspace Handbag] - Worn as a sidebag, Anne keeps a number of small but useful items for nay occasion.
[Ally - 'Big Sis'] - Anne's superior, the experienced magical girl known to her only as "Big Sis", serves as her connection to the deepest, darkest corners of the US government. She is the one who freed her from the shackles of a life serving the Puchuu, and gave her the opportunity to fight for humanity itself. While warm and smiling, Anne is sure that Big Sis hides a lot of skeletons in her closet.
[Blood Magic] - Anne's specialization allows her to fuel her magic with her own blood, not just with another's. In fact, she is most potent when sacrificing her own health in battle.





Fighting Style:
Annabelle is fast and unrelenting -the nature of her magic is like a ticking clock, and in that doomed nature does she fight with every fiber. As her vitality is drained, things must end quickly before her initial advantage is diminished by a conversely disadvantaged healthiness. Her strikes are brutal, direct, always aiming to thoroughly destroy the target before it can test her dwindling stamina. Close-quarters or at a range, the ferocity of her attacks is never different. Blood is thick, and in the quality her comparisons to water are similarly shifted. Where someone of more graceful design would flow like a river through the battlefield, Annabelle is like a mudslide, rolling over anything and everything, but flowing through nonetheless. To call her a brute would be a mistake -even a mudslide is difficult to avoid if it's already upon you.

Personality:
Perhaps reflecting her mission statement, Annabelle is a congenial young lady who loves other people. Making friends is not merely a boon to completing her duty as a NEXT agent, but is what she genuinely loves to do regardless. Her preponderance of smiles and quicker-than-most comfort with hugging makes her someone that is difficult to hate unless you're a grump. Generous and kind to anyone who can muster a measure of respect and friendliness back to her, Annabelle is also a great ally to have, rarely turning down a plea for help. In turn, those she calls friends receive only her utmost effort... and her utmost violence.

Against evil, or anything that would do harm to the innocent, she is merciless and cruel, savoring in the quashing of things that would disrupt the otherwise warm life she seeks for herself and society at large. To her, monsters and evil-doers deserve nothing but to be turned into a river of flesh sailing down its own blood into the sewer drains. Betrayal is, unfortunately, something she would call 'evil', and one would be careful not to do such a thing to her. It wouldn't be inaccurate to call her a yandere whose obsession clings to friends, rather than a lover.

History:
It was a cold afternoon. The park was empty. No one was willing to go out and play, or jog, or eat when the weather was so dreary. Annabelle was out, though. Tucked away in a warm coat, she felt the nip in her thighs dressed in her shorts and thighighs, but didn't seem to mind. Her chin was buried into the collar of the coat, her hands in the pockets.

She was simply traveling from a friend's house back home, unable to get a ride back. There, on the hill, was an odd sight. It looked as if someone had left their stuffed toy beneath a tree, sitting alongside what looked like a... sword. Perhaps one of those foam *ERF toys? The weird structure of it certainly looked comical enough, like a movie prop for some Kamen-type show.

Anne walked up cautiously to the thing, more curious about the weapon than the stuffed animal. But as she reached for it... the toy's head turned to look up at her. She jerked back.

"Aha. Well that was certainly quick. I didn't need to look long. You girls just drop right into our laps like it's destiny. It is destiny, isn't it?" It spoke. At least, she heard it. The small creature's mouth did not move, but she heard it. Anne looked around, thinking at first that this thing was simply stuffed with a walkie-talkie. It turned and walked closer to Anne in a fashion unbecoming of the usual crappy toys she's seen in commercials. It walked... like it was a living breathing thing.

"Tell me, Annabelle, have you ever wanted to have superpowers? To fight real bad guys?"

She was taken aback and speechless. Her hands had long since been removed from her pockets, and were now vaguely shielding herself from the strangeness.

"What kind of robot is this?" she asked to herself.

"Oh, I'm no robot. I'm very real, actually. I'm a puchuu, here to make you a magical girl. Or perhaps... you're here to become one."

"I'm not sure what you mean. Is this part of a TV show?" she asked, still defiant of the supernatural nature of the scene.

"My my. What a bother. Always so oblivious. I suppose it's not your fault. Let's not beat around the bush. I have a magical weapon here without an owner, and it needs to be put into the right hands to fight against evil!"

Anne's eyes followed to the sword. It looked... suddenly quite deadly and genuinely sharp then. Too real to be a toy.

"You want me... to be like one of those anime girls, all cutesy and magical?" she hummed.

"Now you're catching on. It's easy! All you have to do is pick it up, and you'll be well on your way to an amazing adventure."

She was still skeptical, but the bizarre appearance of this little creature, the brazenness with which it spoke, and the dichotomy of the sword all told her this was either a strange choice of reality TV theme, or it was... the truth. Anne approached the sword and hesitated for a few seconds before lifting it up. The blade slid out of the dirt, clean as a whistle. It was heavy, and then it became lighter. It almost felt... weightless, and yet the solid build betrayed that feeling. Cold hard steel.

"What am I suppo-" Anne stopped short as she turned back to the puchuu. Without a sound, a tall girl with long, blonde braids was standing there. In her clenched fist was the small white creature, strangled worse than any creature had the right to survive from. She was smiling at Anne, uncaring of the mangled furball she so violently crushed.

Were the woman instead a more intimidating man, she might have been more inclined to lift her new weapon up, but she was instead perplexed.

"Hello, Annabelle. Nice to meet you. I'm glad I caught you in time," the young lady said. She was dressed in a kind of modified military uniform, looking halfway between a race queen and an officer. Unceremoniously she threw her hand up, tossing the white creature aside before manifesting a handgun out of thin air. Three well-placed shots pelted the creature in its oversized head before it could even hit the ground. It exploded, but there was neither blood nor gore. It fell limply onto the grass.

"Don't worry about that thing. It was never your friend. How about you listen to a fellow human instead?" The woman smiled more warmly than anyone had ever smiled at Annabelle before. She was inviting. She wanted to trust her.

"It'll be much more enjoyable."

Name: Valentine Achill
Age: 18
Gender: Female
Appearance:
Character Sheet

Specialization: [DARKNESS]
Valentine's specialization is an all-out offense on her victim's senses and courage. If Darkness is an element used to achieve stealth, then Valentine is so potent in its effects that the very nature of it spread from her own body into the surrounding world. Valentine does not skulk about, dancing from shadow to shadow, she makes everything shadow. Valentine can cause entire rooms to become a void of blackness, or lay curses upon specific individuals to cast them into blindness. Even worse, the realms she creates come chock full of horrors -malignant, skittering monstrosities that give no quarter to the prey stuck in their void.

Weapon: [Ranged - "The Wretched"]
A bulky revolver of pure chrome. Utilizing the weapon requires preparation, as is not especially effective for prolonged battles. Valentine can compress her mana into pre-made shells for the gun, but can only fit nine shots into the revolving barrel. Limited in immediately available shots, it makes up for the drawback with utterly devastating firepower.

Power: [TENTACLES] [Razorbath]
Unfortunately for others, Valentines writhing tentacles aren't the smooth kind -they're the barbed wire kind. Though they are unlikely to be used as useful extra arms for picking up items or grapple-hooking her to higher spots, they are effective as additional weapons. Razor sharp and flexible, even passing glances by the wires are enough to savage their targets. Woeth be the victim who is snared head to toe in their violence.

Perks:
[Sorcery] - Even before becoming a magical girl, Valentine was already unraveling the secrets hidden within reality. It was unfortunate for that said dabbling ended with her own unintended, current predicament.
[Flexibility] - Perhaps it is because of the horrific nature of her powers that Valentine quickly found her body to be capable of easily freaking others out with her uncanny flexibility.
[Healing Artifact] - A reminder of the power that Big Sis has over her, the artifact contains the imprisoned Horror which had initially give her the powers of a magical girl. Now relegated to the status of a mere utility trinket, Valentine can channel mana into it to forcibly draw out a healing aura from the horror.
[Fated] - Valentine can't even begin to understand her task, but she could feel it in the back of her head when the horror first spoke with her. Perhaps it is because the thing is now imprisoned that she can't quite get a grip on what her destiny was supposed to be.
[Gifted] - Normally the Darkness element is known to be a domain of stealth and debuffs, but Valentine has managed to channel the nature of fear into the shadows, spawning horrible creatures to assail her enemies within the blackness.
[Ally] - Big Sis is Valentine's 'ally' if only because she gives her things and tells her what to do. Valentine knows what lies behind the government official's eyes, and it is not something she truly wants to serve. Nevertheless, she begrudgingly follows orders, never mind that she was given no other choice.
[Familiar] - A black doberman dog named "Maskim". Capable of shifting into a human form for short periods of time.





Fighting Style:
Rather than relying on skill or strength, Valentine relies on casting her targets into a state wherein they are unable to fight back. Once her target is just right -just the right amount of lost, just the right amount of unaware, just the right amount of inundated- Valentine strikes with focused, powerful attacks. Before and after, she is evasive and defensive, always waiting for the right moment. Face-to-face, she is less than capable, and so Valentine actively avoids such confrontations. If she cannot avoid it, she uses everything in her arsenal to break combat and reset.

Personality:
Short of temper and patience, Valentine is quick to lash out, and difficult to make friends with. she appears as the kind of young woman who clearly doesn't want to make friends, or else finds it very hard to muster the will to... or perhaps its a lack of courage. If one is around her long enough, they can clue in on her jumpy nature. Despite her specialization, Valentine is easily startled by things she doesn't immediately expect. The veil of toughness collapses during horror movies, or when spooked by hiding individuals looking to prank her.

Valentine definitely tries to hide this part of her, and a few well-placed but undeserved punches usually serves her well in dissuading what few friends she has from trying to pull something on her again. Though she protests a lot, and seems lazy, ultimately a good kick or urging can get her onto her feet. She hates staying in one place for long, anyways.

History:
If she had it her own way, she'd just be a sorceress. If she had it her own way, she'd still be learning whatever the hell she wanted. If she had her own way... she wouldn't be tossed about this stormy underworld.

Valentine was once a simply curious, and perhaps devilish young lady who had both a profusion of time and the lack of sense to stay out of trouble, which she spent on diving into that which normal humans weren't supposed to. For her efforts and flagrance, Valentine was rewarded with servitude under a Horror, turning her into a magical girl pawn to be used for whatever alien means her 'patron' prescribed. She nevertheless considered herself fortunate that this was her fate, as opposed to a sudden loss of sanity or life to the cosmic entity.

But even that change in lifestyle was not enough, it seemed, and the universe saw it fit to throw her further astray with a much closer-to-home entity in the form of the US government, and a woman whose eyes never truly looked as friendly as they tried to seem.

Another magical girl by the name of 'Big Sis' approached Valentine and dictated the ultimatum; join her group, or be hunted down for her status as the servant of an evil entity. What an option. Of course, Valentine couldn't complain if but in that she now had to serve such a scary lady and the government, of all things, but ultimately she couldn't care less who it was. It wasn't as if she was living a free life anyways.

Valentine joined the NEXT Shadow Unit begrudgingly. Parts of being a servant to the horror -namely being able to work alone- still appealed to her. The horror that once pulled her strings was summarily 'taken care of' as Big Sis described it, and Valentine did not question things when a strangely familiar sensation came to her after Big Sis placed a peculiar artifact into her hands one day. That was the end of that chapter.

And thus began a new one.

Their memory is more important than what they were.