_{@Majoras End@ERode}

Veronica gave Fine a small nod. “Mimoku will be made aware once I get inside her mind. There’s an extensive amount of protection on it, but it shouldn’t take more than a few days. I’ll keep you posted.” Veronica was not the trusting sort, but she did get in contact with a lot of Puchuu. Shady lot of creatures, but they were at least predictable in their goals. They were primarily interested in the destruction of monsters. The worst ones might be pragmatic in their approach, but they were far more likely to screw their own girls than the agents of another. They had their reputation to uphold, after all. Mimoku was one of many who kept in contact with her after she left the mint.

Myria was starting to get annoying. There wasn’t any reason why Veronica couldn’t get everyone to mayor park this instant. But she preferred to use her powers as seldom as possible. The reason why she only ever used the cradle to carry Trixy places was to give the illusion it was an artifact she had. Fortunately the ride was smooth, the seats were comfy, and Veronica was in good company. She would tolerate her behavior for now.

“A skeleton key?” The Cradle may have been a massive trove of treasures, but Veronica was unwilling to part with the good stuff. Though there was also a lot of junk. Stuff left over from completed operations and trash Veronica was en route to deposit. “Hmmm, I might have something.” Veronica looked around the Vehicle. Maura and Elise were sitting at either side of her while Myria and Fine sat in the front seat. “You two seem to know each other. Are you both Mimoku’s girls? If so, I haven’t heard much about Myria.”

---

_{@Erode@Ariamis}

Su shot Helga a glare. She was irritated with Helga sure, but ever since she walked into the rave, Helga had been badgering her to do things. We gotta find Mika! We gotta get out of here! we gotta run away from the troll! It was just getting a little tiresome with everything else going on.

---

Monarch Artificing was never a quiet place. If Aria wasn’t working on meeting the demands of her clients, she was trying to make bigger and better fairy butterflies for her artificing. Which would in turn make more and better products, which would enable her to make larger butterflies still. At some point she would need to move into a bigger shop just to house them all.

Even if she was busy, it had been business as usual for the past few months. The strangest request she got was from Makoto, who hadn’t been back for a while. Which was a shame, because while Aria loved butterflies most of all, a squirrel’s tail was fine too.

Just last week she had encountered that group that was escaping the ascendancy. That was kind of scary. She’d just as soon not have Beacon snooping around her shop. Not that they’d find anything, but it was just uncomfortable to have that going on. Like what if they did find something? Crooked cops plant stuff all the time.

No point dwelling on what could happen. Aria polished a gourd with a rag before setting it on a display rack beside a glass vial and a beaker. A smile crossed her face.

*Crash*

Aria looked over her shoulder, only to see her largest butterfly had knocked over a glass beaker on another shelf with a flap of its wings. Might be too early to move, but she considered expanding into the basement.

---

Nuncio had walked out of Eli’s sight before stopping. ”Huh.”

The mafioso looked down at Sammy, then hugged her close to his chest. He was unhappy that Eli and Mariette didn’t trust him, but he also realized there was nothing he could do on his own. He wasn’t safe anywhere in Penrose, and it wasn’t like he could take a taxi or a train with a white tiger in tow. His only option was to rely on others again.

It was embarrassing, but if Eli was offering to build him a place, then he should probably take it. Hopefully Mariette had a good payment plan. He was broke and couldn’t afford anything up front. Not until Brittany purchased a few more of his pluses at least.

Diving in to grab Ishtar had been a bit of a risky move and reaching out had reminded her of her sore arm. The barbs had grazed her a bit as well but her outfit took the brunt of that. Being focused on getting the one girl out Raven didn't expect to have anyone else touch her, so when Hudie put her hand on her back there wasn't time to try and exclude and the three blinked away. Feeling that more of her mana had been used than expected she knew at that point that someone else would arrive with them. The Beacon girl would prove to be more swift than expected as by the time Raven got herself turned around the edge of a fan was poised to remove her head. "Eee. I d-don't want anything." She would back away and holds her hands out where they could be seen. "I'm Janet and Jenna's new ally. They were trying to save her so that's what I was doing." At this point she was perfectly fine with letting the Beacon girl take over. Carrying around another person all the way to HQ sounded exhausting. There was also no telling how she would be received showing up with their frozen and cursed leader. "You can take her the rest of the way right? I have to get back to the fight."

To some extent the rest of what was going on at the park wasn't that relevant to her. Ishtar had been the main point of defense. There was still was more that the twins had been trying to do but that had fallen apart. The two other girls she had met though seemed to want to save some of the others. Even if one of them was kinda the enemy. The whole fight seemed to have spiraled out of control once attacks started flying. The least she could try and do was keep people from dying like Deni said. Breaking away from Hudie, Raven would transmute into her animal form and fly back into the park. She didn't want to waste a bunch of mana constantly teleporting if she could avoid it. From her literal bird's eye view she could see that things looked like they were starting to shift against the horror. The dragon looked to be taken down, the Timber was occupied, and the Wolf would probably be getting a lot more focus shortly. To some extent she felt that the wolf should be her priority as it had been using spirit attacks against the defenses. She had an idea on something she could try but it wasn't guaranteed to work.

Mia's efforts would make accomplishing that goal though, having reclaimed some of the park with nature's revitalizing power. Speaking of, Faith was apparently aiming an arrow at two other girls she didn't recognize at all. She wasn't really sure what to do in the moment and circled down closer to try and listen in on what was being said.

---

Having reached the peek of his flight upward, Shane would begin to fall back down toward the ground. The monster queen breaking free from her restraints though gave him enough options to avoid plummeting all the way down. He'd survive, probably get caught in the trees, but the job wasn't finished yet. The severed chains provided the needed material though. Reaching out with his magic he magnetized the links and drew them to himself. Using one of the longer ones he would whip it out to the anchor and it would hold with the magnetism. Swinging down he would twirl around the larger link and cling onto it to avoid falling after coming to an abrupt stop. "Oof! Definitely going to have to figure out a better way to do that in the future." The method was not as elegant as what a true Metal user would have been able to achieve but it sufficed.

Amaryllis had already gone past him by this point and as Shane began to scale up to the ship he could see that the girl was trying to offer a White Coin to the queen. If it were accepted it would be a much better end to the fight, he thought than many alternatives. Seeing as there was still chance that the queen wouldn't take the magical item though he readied to launch another of the two rods he hand left.

“Majority of the city’s civilian populace had already been evacuated a couple months back,” Tux replied, waving away whatever heroic concerns Annabelle. “And Beacon’s still got the numbers to handle the situation, with assistance from other benign magicals.” Or well, that was the hope. Though the Shadow Unit had ramped up its recruitment practices recently, they were still pitifully undermanned. Experienced magical girls weren’t going to give up regular payment for something as noble as government work, after all, while it was always difficult discovering locations of Puchuu contracts. Big Sis had the intuition for it, but that was her ‘talent’ alone; the rest had about as much luck digging for gold in the desert.

“Haven’t had the chance to extensively test their security, but monsters showing up nearby their HQ may cause them to recall their patrols instead. Might be more trouble than it’s worth.” The masked girl pulled her hair back into a tight ponytail, evidently tired of her hair being plastered against her face. “Mission’s got three objectives. In order of importance…Beacon has a surveillance network that, at minimum, covers the city of Penrose. Getting access to that would benefit our future operations the most. They’ve also got a teleportation system set up; getting a blueprint of how that’d work could put an end to all this travelling. You two should have been briefed on incident in Ethiopia, yes? We’re looking for information on their ‘super weapon’.”

Tux coughed a couple of times. More water would have been good, but she had already moved onto the ‘pose coolly on top of a building overlooking their target’ segment of the mission, and couldn’t find it in her heart to backtrack.

“If everyone’s been keeping quiet, Beacon shouldn’t know a thing about us. They’re working against monsters and the corrupted, but that doesn’t mean they’re working for humanity. Not if they’re run by Puchuus, at least.” Creepy little mascot lifeforms, the lot of them. “And I’ve been around for a week. Ever since word of the lich incident got out. Now…”

Really was getting cold. She clenched her fists a couple of times, getting back some circulation.

“Let’s get started. Valentine, you lead. Annabelle, follow up. I’ll watch our backs.”


"I'm new!" Myria chirped, humming happily now that Veronica promised something interesting to get back at that rancid basement-dwelling magical bitch with. "And Fine's old!"

Fine smiled, bemused. "Mimoku picked her up a couple months back; she's been a hassle ever since. Works hard though. Gets in over her head often."

"I do not! Those were...tactical scouting missions."

"Your wet underwear speaks otherwise."

The car almost missed a turn as Myria wheeled around, embarrassed and furious. Her magical instincts kicked in though, and the car drifted on rainwater instead, a fine mist splashing upwards as it did so. "That was from the rain!"

The silver-haired dame shook her head, her smile retained. "Cute kid, really." She peered out the window, at the fluctuations of magical power and the shockwaves of force that caused sheets of rain to bend. "Looks like we're almost there."

"Yeah, you bunch want a dynamic entry, or should I just park like a normie?"

It took more effort than she would have liked but Ashlyn was able to keep the biting retort on the tip of her tongue to herself. She hated dealing with the preachy types; they always seemed to forget that everyone’s got a sob story. That doesn’t mean everyone is going to go out and indiscriminately murder because of it.

Instead she would reply to the question that was posed to her “Yes, I don’t know anyone within the magical world who hasn’t killed someone” Would be the reply “And I am including you in that statement.” She would add on with a slight glare. “But I get the feeling you’re more asking if I’ve killed a civilian.”

To that, she would take a deep breath before replying. “I hope not. But I don’t know. I know I’ve wanted to. The asshole who was abusing my sister for example; I would have enjoyed ripping his throat out most likely. I didn’t though. Still thinking of dropping by when he gets out of prison in a few years though, might be worth see him freak out when he sees me across the street not aged a day despite the decades.”

“I do hope that you weren’t trying to insinuate that killing someone alone makes me a monster.” Ashlyn would say after shaking that thought away “As I’m almost positive you have a larger body count then I do.”

---

Flying through the air due to the sudden onset of Vine Viva could only lament the fact that her bike would be unusable in the coming days.

Finding herself wrapped with the abmonial grasp of the twisted Ent. Viva had no fear. For it would be less than trivial to simply slide between the grip of the monster, as she was no longer restricted to the form she normally wore. She was much more a kin to a slime or a shape shifter than anything else at this point. She released her spell watching with a macabre fascination as the vines and fluids of the creature withered away.

Then she heard the tale tell sounds of fire. The popping and crackling of the inferno spreading, and that caused a fresh injection of fear into her heart. Her instincts screamed at her, as he mind blanked for a moment at the rapidly encroaching heat and the excruciation pain that the flames brought with them. In that moment of hesitation she would engulfed in the fire. It would be the longest moment of her life, but then came the cold focus.

After all, this thing still dared to attack her son. With focus came hate and hunger, and with those she was able to banish her fear and panic at least for now.

Grosket had hidden its twisted and debased flesh underneath a layer of plant life, but that layer of protection was gone, yet the flesh remained. That was what Viva dug into, like demented worm. She tore open an entry way and borrowed deep into the abominations body, ripping muscle fibers and tearing ligaments as she invaded its body with her own profane magic

”Taste a Mother’s hate as I feast upon your Heart!”

---

“I will do what I can” Penny would promise with a nod to Goblina even as the mechanical girl turned to leave herself “But I fear we are already too late” She would add solemnly. “Keep those here safe, I’ll be back”

With that she Would race off into Penrose. He first goal was not the Park though, for she truly didn’t think she would be of any use there. No she was off towards Beacon HQ, she had a pick up to make.

---

Madness. That was a good way to describe this night. Utter madness. Penny was never more glad for her mechanized nature than she was right now. She was still tapped into the network of the entire city, feeding information to Beacon about hot spots that needed immediate help, or hijacking girls’ phone calls to get them out of harm's way if she could. All the while she was racing across the city at frightening speeds. Time was against her at the moment, which seemed to be a recurring trend for her this winter season, so many places to be and so many things to do and hardly enough time to get them all done.

Still, the madness worked in her favor in this one instance. Making it to the lab where Binky was at was easy, no one stopped her to ask questions, most barely gave her a second glance. Everyone was suddenly knee deep in the fallout of the Rave, and the truly horrific loss of life that happened there. Then there was the mess of what happened at Penrose Park adding yet more work to everyone’s pile. It wasn't going to get easier any time soon either, but that was one of the reasons why Penny was here.

Quietly Penny entered the Lab and a soft pulse of Sound she located her target and strode with purpose towards Binky, making her presence known shortly afterwards “Binky! Were you able to finish my request?” Penny would ask the moment she could see the perpetually tired researcher. Binky wouldn’t notice much out of the ordinary with Penny when she turned to regard her, save for the cloth bandage that the robotic girl had covering the majority of her right arm.

Binky was startled by Penny’s greeting, having been absorbed in her use of a microscope. “Aaah!” She screamed, spinning on her chair wildly until Penny stopped it with a precise grab. “Oh, Penny! It’s been a while!” She turned to search through the clutter on her desk. “So uhh, your request...Ummm...Yeah, the Red Coin.” She moved over to a large box filled with all kinds of junk. ”I think I put it here...” She haphazardly climbed into the box. “So, uh, was the party fun?”

“No,” Penny would say succinctly as she followed Binky. “Elvira triggered a riot using sound magic designed to incite Monstrous instinct to uncontrollable heights. Then the leader of the Penrose Independant triggered a psychic WMD, only for an unknown third party to reply with a large-scale Lightning assault.” Her explanation was curt, and painfully blunt, yet also oddly distant. The robotic girl seemed distracted, her gaze often darting around tracking things unseen.

“The riot is still ongoing, to say nothing of the other emergencies still taking place.” Penny would flinch slightly and grip her bandaged arm for a moment before shaking it off.

Binky paused at the brief but powerful revelations, and visibly cringed. “Oof, that’s rough, buddy.” She went back to her search, throwing out a kitchen sink from the crate. “So Penrose has gone to hell in a hand basket...” She paused with a sigh. “...Again. Well, what else do you expect to happen when you give magic to a bunch of people unaccustomed for them? It was only a matter of time before we started waving nukes around like big o’l di-Oh there it is!”
She stood up from the crate, and showed the Red Coin to Penny. “Now, in theory, this Coin should fuse you back with your other half without any side-effects...But I haven’t had time to test it on any twins or anything, so the practical result may differ.” She scratched the back of her head. “S-So yeah, best of luck in using it.”

“I’m in a position to assume that Penrose never quite left the first hand basket” Penny would say with no small amount of annoyance “At least that is what it seems like some days”[/u][/color] She would add as she reached out for the Coin, rolling it over her fingers as she listened to what little info Binky had to offer nodding her understanding as she did. She could feel the subtle changes in the coin, which reassure her it would work, but also knew that with magic most anything was possible.

“If you were to hazard a guess, what kind of repercussions could there be for using this coin?” Penny would ask returning her gaze to the sleep deprived researcher, which if she bothered to think too hard about would likely dampen her hope of this working out.

“Hard to say,” Binky answered, rubbing her eye with the back of her hand. “Maybe it refuses to work, or it blows up, or the fusion fizzles out half-way and you turn into a freaky Siamese twin thing, or it screws up the soul, resulting in you turning into a horrible abomination...Not that it actually would do that, that’s just in, uh, horror movies. And, uhh...If it does fail, at least then we’ll know, and the next girl who rips her soul in half but wants to recombine anyway will have a better chance with the next version, right?” She turned away and picked up a big stack of books.

“Anyway, I’m super busy, so I gotta get back to my work. See ya later.”

Penny simply nodded at all the various far end failure states that the coin could hold. None of them really settled in as true possibilities though. Closing her hand over the coin she slipped it into her chassis tucking it away until it was needed. “Thank you again Binky.” She would say as she started turning to leave so that Binky could get back to her work.

“I’ll be back in a couple days so that we can go looking for Betty” Penny would mention over her shoulder before continuing on her way out. It was time to meet up with her other half.

---

Penny hardly waited in putting her next step into motion, the moment she was off of Beacon property and away from scrutiny she dug deep into what little magical ability she had. Focusing everything she could on her other half, and the small vital piece of metal that they carried with them.

Had she another option she would have taken it, but they weren’t answering their phone. They weren’t responding to any of the messages, and they weren’t in Penrose. Penny didn’t have the luxury of waiting either. So once again she pushed forward with her magic in ways that she knew wasn’t human, but then again perhaps that was for the best as she wasn’t human. So, with eyes closed, she reached out for the call of Metal between her and a Key that had been once upon a time gifted to her and in some way was still.

Still, when the pain hit she wasn’t surprised. She didn’t falter however, just kept her focus and continued to harmonize with the Key to a lock that existed in the space between where she was and the far side of the door she was trying to walk through. An event that would normally take only a few seconds stretched into one that took minuets, but Penny was in fact rewarded with the tale-tell click of a lock being thrown open.
Blindly she walked forward feeling the world drop away behind her as she stepped into an apartment that was painfully familiar to her, and only once she had made it through the threshold did she allow herself to reopen her eyes and give any attention to the pain she was suffering from.

The jagged crack that ran the length of her arm now bleed freely, staining the sheets she had wrapped around it a vibrant red. An oddity to be sure, but Penny always knew that she was still connected to her other half, who was still fully human. This wound was just a warning of the increasing damage that their soul was being put through.

Looking to the rest of the apartment, it would seem as if it was untouched. But there was a heavy air of depression and a thick smell of oil. And it wouldn’t take her long to see why.

Sitting on the couch curled up into a tight ball sat her other half, eyes puffy and red from crying. The human half’s right arm was a mangled mess, as black viscous oil leaked from the various cuts that littered her arm. To say nothing of the numerous burns and bruises that littered her body. To add to the desolate appearance she seemed to be staring brokenly at a pendant that sat on the coffee table not far from her position on the couch.

“You were right” The human girl on the couch would say, her voice hoarse, and filled with devastation. Fresh tears would start to fall as she spoke.

“Jason…” The robotic girl would take a tentative step forward, her mind rapidly churning through all the possible reasons the scene in front of her could come to pass.

“She left me again. I killed Iesud for her. I tore away from you, and Alicia. Yet she never stayed. She was always off, talking to others, working with the Mint, or preparing things. Why didn’t she stay with me? She said she loved me. Why did she lie?” ‘Jason’ would ask not really expecting an answer her gaze still fixated on the once enchanted amulet that sat on the coffee table.

“Iesud. That’s why you forced the Power isn’t it.” The machine would ask instead of answering. There was no reason to retread old arguments. Not here, not now. Slowly it moved to sit next to its human half, even as Jason would simply nod their answer.

“We are dying aren’t we” They would ask in response. They were in pain, a deep unmistakable pain, that grew and faded as they both bleed out each other’s life sustaining fluids

“Yes. Our soul was always going to be unstable due to the split. Not it is falling apart.” There was no need for any deception between the two of them. Besides they knew each other too well for anything other than honesty at this point.

“It feels like it” Jason would say before turning to look at Penny “Is it bad that I’m looking forward to the end?”[/b][/color]

“I don’t think so” Penny would reply after a moment her thoughts lingering on all the terrors and traumas that the human next to her had undergone within their year of magic. “I’m sorry” She would add after a moment of silence.

“You have a fix don’t you” Jason would say more then ask the crack on her voice at the thought of having to keep going on unmistakable.

“It can be used as a way to fix us both” Penny would agree with a nod “Or it can be used to fix one of us”

“I don’t have to go on Penny?” the Human would ask quietly after a moment, fragile hope lingering within their voice.

“Not if you don’t want too”

More tears, but these are at least tears of relief. “Thank you”

Penny moved to say something, but what eluded her. Instead she would simply nod, and let her human half take from that what they wanted. It was truly settling in, that here in a moment it would only be one of them left. The machine hadn’t fully comprehended what that would mean until just now. That Jason, the first person they had ever known, the person they had spent their entire life with was going to be gone. She wanted to feel sad, but instead she felt relieved, as soon Jason would no longer be in pain. She did build herself off of their mind after all, so perhaps it wasn’t that surprising.

“Are you ready?” Penny would ask softly as she offered her hand to Jason, the gleaming Red Coin sitting innocently within her palm, ready to start the process that would bring this chapter of their lives to a close.

Jason hardly waited, reaching to clasp her remaining good hand with Penny’s out stretched one almost before the mecha girl had finished asking. A charged red glow would engulf their hands the moment they were intertwined. “Set me free Penny” Jason would plead turning to catch Penny’s eyes finally looking away from the dead Hero token for the first time.

“Good bye Jason” Penny would say her voice catching slightly as she spoke. After all this good bye was much more permanent than any other would be. Then the red glow would flare up, drowning the room in harsh red light and words no longer mattered.

---

_{@Ariamis & @AtomicNut+@BrokenPromise}

Although a fight was never over until it was over, Silhouette could tell this fight was headed towards its climax. The Monster Queen had sustained many injuries from Sil and the others and seemed to be getting more desperate by the moment. But with this many magical girls teaming up, was that even surprising? Sure, they were far from cohesive and she was sure if she didn't devote a good majority of her attention to watching out for the others that she might end up incurring some friendly fire, but the results were still satisfactory, so far.

In her time as a magical girl, she had yet to once see a trained team of magical girls that rivaled the discipline of her squad from her human days in the special forces unit she'd once been a part of. What made them special was their knowledge of each others' strengths and weaknesses, and their ability to play off of that. Absolute trust in each other's skills, too.

In contrast... well, the Ascendancy seemed to be a group cosplaying as trained soldiers, from her limited exposure to them. She could show them a thing or three in that regard. She'd need a squad though, but Amaryllis wasn't Cradle and she had a strong feeling her knife would somehow find its way into Blair's back if they went that route? Well, getting intimate with the one person she could deal with was probably best. Perhaps instead of beating up Trixy and calling it training, she could beat up Trixy while also training?

Or maybe she should just beat up Trixy?

Given the girl's current reaction to Mariette's appearance, Trixy was making it difficult to not think that the best course of action.

Trixy, most people prefer not to ally with those that shoot at them.

Silhouette waited atop the wrecked warehouse in the cold rain. The Monster Queen had for the briefest of moments been occupied, so seeing what Trixy's actions resulted in was her objective for right now. Aggression by Mariette would, unfortunately, result in retaliation. But Sam hoped it wouldn't come to that, as the girl would be better as an ally than a corpse.



Emily acknowledged that the soul-zapping beam coming from the horror had been stopped, but that did not mean Sakura hadn't been reckless. If it were just one big monster, one foe, then Emily might not be so worried, but there were multiple! Using all your mana in these situations was very dangerous and there were few things in the world Emily wanted to see less than Sakura being in such a dangerous situation.

"Just don't do something like that without a good backup plan!" she warned and was ready to once again pick Sakura up and jet away when she saw the beam coming, yet it was blocked by Shoggy. "Oh, thank you so much...?"

Upon abandoning her more... 'aesthetic' or 'palatable' form, Shoggy sprinted (or crawled?) at the other horror in what was perhaps the least 'okay' thing Emily had bore witness to in some time. It wasn't like she hadn't seen a digusting, mortifying horror before, and she had actually seen worse... it's just that she wasn't desensitized to such things, either, even in her lengthy time as a magical girl.

But she shook her head. No matter what form it took, Shoggy was helping them and was a friend! "L-lets focus on the wolf!" Emily suggested as she took off behind the crawling mass of nope, ready to blast it with a stream of fire when the opportunity presented itself. "It looks like there's only one more foe after this one!"

But... was that right?



Viper was the fulcrum of Hilaria's rage. Without her, there was no proper outlet for the ancient. She was nothing more than a berserker without purpose and she would merely destroy whatever she could. As sad as the state she was in was, she couldn't merely snap out of it, either. That chance had come and gone.

So, yet again, Hilaria threw herself at something with no purpose other than to destroy it, though she was looking a little less bulky now that the dragon had perished.

Connie and Mia would feel something collide with the beanstalk and then begin to rapidly ascend it, leaving small purple fires in her wake, which would begin to spread around the base of the stalk. Before she made it to the two at the top she suddenly decided to press her feet up to the stalk and pushed off with incredible force, aided by her gravity spec, right towards a new target, Faith!

After hearing Connie’s confusion, Faith had lowered her bow and was composing herself to explain the situation. Though she was able to spot Hilaria soaring towards her.

”Wha-!”

The fairy hopped into the air. She attempted to glide out of the way, but Hilaria’s mastery over gravity allowed her to adjust her flight path. Faith strummed her harp to throw chords of music in between herself and Hilaria. But the enraged magical girl would not be slowed down. She tore through the musical shield as if it were nothing but string, and wrapped her arms around Faith’s torso. She screamed as the two descended to earth. Fortunately they weren’t very high up, but they still sunk into the grassy dirt because of the rainfall.

Faith was momentarily in a state of vertigo. The pain wrecking her back was almost enough to make her black out. At that moment, it was all she could focus on. She couldn’t even recall what had hit her, or how long ago it had happened. Though the pain subsided and sensation returned to her. Her vision was blurry, but she could see a dark shape moving in front of the moon. Her arms had been flung over her head, and every breath caused her stomach to touch something metal and cold, but that sensation would go away. Metal hands uncoiled from around her waist and something shuffled to its feet.

”Mmph…”

Faith blinked a few times, and the dark shape took form under the lunar light. It was coming back to Faith now. The danger hadn’t passed. The berserker stood up up with relative ease. She towered over Faith, baring her teeth menacingly. Faith could feel her heart sink into her chest when she realized Hilaria wasn’t done with her. The berzerker needed no provocation, she just descended. Faith reached out in an attempt to stop her, but Hilaria caught her arm and rolled Faith over onto her stomach. She was covered in mud, but neither she Faith or her attacker cared about that. Her harp had been flung from her hands, and laid just out of reach. That didn’t stop her from reaching for it, but her bicep was seized, and now both of her arms were pinned over her head. Hilaria had Faith trapped between her knees, and had sunk into the earth a good bit. There wasn’t any way she could escape. Faith attempted to turn her head so that she could look over her shoulder, but all that greeted her was the menacing glare of the berserker. Her heart beat out of her chest when she felt Hilaria’s warm breath on her neck. Her teeth were still stained with Viper’s blood, her heart was still filled with anger. The dragon descended on its prey.

Faith screamed.

In all honesty, Celia didn't really plan ahead with this. Getting knocked aside by the wind, she used her regeneration powers to regrow the scales she lost. Yet she stayed where she was. Looking around, she didn't know who was the biggest threat there. The mint assassin left, she lost her second option, the tiny samurai girl had downed the larger dragon easily...somehow, the gorilla-ent-thing was on fire? Maybe it was the wolf she had to fight- Wait, some eldtritch thing beat her to it.

God, this was confusing.

The draconid watched carefully, avoiding any attacks her direction. Like a real dragon awaiting the first strike, she searched for someone, anyone or thing that seemed like a worthy opponent. Then Celia heard a scream, and her pupils turned to slits when she saw Hilaria attacking the fairy girl. How obvious. The knight was the source of her rage, after all.

Celia cloaked herself in a crimson flame, and tackled the other monstrous girl away from Faith.

---

"Whatever works I guess. Maybe you can run one of the horrors over?" Eliza joked, opening one eye to look over at Myria. The witch had her arms crossed; observing the fight via scrying magic, and giving updates on it to the others. Well, Maura and Veronica, atleast.

"Looks like they're holding out...somewhat okay. Ronin managed to defeat one, so they got an upper-hand now."

“Perhaps.”

Anyone who worked under Veronica knew that the one thing she despised above all else was insubordination. That went double if you were a cradle agent. Deni had refused to follow the others back to fight the monster queen. It might have turned out that Deni made the right choice, but it was anyone’s guess if that would sway Veronica’s mind about it.

“Well Myria, you know what you’re getting paid for this ‘taxi.’ All I’m going to say is you’d better make it worth my while.”

"Think we'll get there in time to help?" Maura asked.

"As in before they take out the horrors, or before things get worse? Beats me either way. If anything we can deal with the dude that decapitated Cindy." Eliza shrugged, tapping her foot impatiently. "I'm more than willing to bust someone's head open after tonight."

---

Lily was heavily injured, having broken enough bones to end an athlete’s career. But that pain only drove her forwards in hot white anger, her hair having risen up from the static electricity she now emitted.
”No we’re not! Your friend’s still alive!”
She screamed back as her ascent slowed, but it seemed the rocker girl wouldn’t listen. As she stopped at the apex of her magnetic jump, she was about to pull an arrow when her eyes flared open at the sight of her beginning her final song, as spirits gathered in a storm and the music grew louder and louder.
”Wait, don’t do it!”
As angry as she was by them causing havoc and tormenting a poor young girl, what made her livid was the fact she would end it all in an instant. She couldn’t let it happen; she needed to answer for the wrongdoings she had done. But what could she do? In just a couple of seconds, Zophia would blast her with a shredding wave of music in a pointless, bitter self-sacrifice.

”No...If only I have more...Time...”
Then, it hit her. She drew an arrow with a wicked, sharp clock-hand as a tip. It was risky, but in her heart she knew she had to try; it was the only way she could save her life.

It was her chance to overturn fate itself.

”FINAL FLASH!” She yelled, and with a single thrust, drove the arrow into her chest. At that moment, as her body incurred the mortal wound, time stood to a still, freezing all into place; Zophia’s song turned silent, Alex and his duplicates were left mid-punch and move, and even Amy and the rest of the minions and fairies did not move a muscle.
However, Lily knew this tranquility would be the most fleeting of moments, and immediately transformed her bow into a staff, and shot a bolt of lightning at Zophia.

Alright, I managed to-NO!

But at that moment, Lily’s hopes were dashed, as the moment the bolt of electricity left her staff, it was also frozen in time.

No, I need...Just a bit more-!

She grit her teeth, blood dripping from the corner of her lip, as she pushed her mana as far as she could by propelling herself magnetically forward. Every second, she could hear her heartbeat pounding against her chest, the only sound she could hear in the stillness outside time.

She had reached the stage...But that was the moment her her mana was about to end. She was doomed to fail from the very start, having expended far too much from her earlier fighting, but even so, she continued running up to Zophia, dragging her broken leg behind her; maybe it was her anger towards the dark magical girl’s selfishness, or maybe it was her foolish belief that she could save her, but she continued moving her body, right up to her.

She needed to see Zophia eye-to-bloody-eye as she received her punishment for failing to save her.

But just as she released her spell, it did not end as she expected it to; instead Lily found herself unable to move, and realized she too was caught in the stopped time.

”H-Huh? But why...”

She felt a familiar warmth in her, and realized that Ixion had possessed her body, and perpetuated the spell in her absence. She felt the Lesser Force’s crackling being envelop her soul in his embrace.

”Lily...” She heard Ixion speak to her in her soul, and in her mind’s eye saw herself sitting in a field of roiling clouds, leaning against the sitting Lesser Force’s sitting equine form. She looked back, and felt him nuzzle her cheek.

”You are the Bringer of Balance, Lily...”
The moment he said that, a window into Lily’s real eyes were opened, and Lily saw a slowed vision of the moment Zophia would release her soul storm. Ixion then stood up, and slowly walked away on the clouds. Lily was distraught.

”Wait, you don’t mean to...”

”I must go now, Lily. You...Have taught me much about humanity. How in the face of adversity, you keep believing in correcting the balance. You have protected this world...Now, I shall protect yours.”
Lily stood up, tears in her eyes.

”Please, Ix...Don’t go.”
The Lesser Force turned his head back; his eyes twinkled, emanating bittersweet joy.
”Continue to bring balance to the world, Lily. Fight for justice.”
And then, the Lesser Force began glowing brighter and brighter, starting from the tip of his jagged horn, and running through the rest of his body with the force of a lightning storm, until her vision was overcome in a flood of yellow light.

”Farewell.”

When time resumed once more, Alex saw Lily suddenly right in front of Zophia and struck by the dark magical girl’s ultimate attack, causing her to fall down on the spot, like a marionette with its strings cut off; her right leg was bent at an awkward angle due to her broken knee as she transformed back into human. Zophia then also fell, having drawn her last breath.

Not soon after, Amy claimed her own life in grief. The pool of blood had reached Lily’s position as it flowed from her corpse.

In the end, Lily’s gamble to save the two had failed...And she had paid the price.

---

“I don’t need to explain my reasoning to you,” Sharron replied coldly, and proceeded to listen to the rest of Ashlyn’s answer. When she was done, the Ascendancy operative was contemplating what hse heard. “I see. So that is your answer.” She stood up, though it was a bit troubled as she wobbled, her feet unsteady. “I have now heard enough.” Then, she began limping to the exit door. But just before she left, she turned back one last time to look at her. “When we next meet, I hope it won’t be in the field of battle.” And with that, she opened the door, and left the Interdimensional Home.

---

Hudie withdrew her fan from Raven’s neck before she finished her first sentence.
“The twins?” She could be heard muttering, but she waited quietly until Raven finished before she spoke again. “Very well. I will deliver the Cardinal back to HQ. You go back and assist our forces back at the Park.” She then took Ishtar’s body, carrying it in her arms as she proceeded to swiftly run.

---

Helga rolled her eyes at Su’s biting remark. “Navi? Am I some car device for you?” It seemed she didn’t get the reference, but the message still came across. “Fine fine, I’ll stop nagging. Let’s just go!” Using Su’s wind magic, the two easily outran the grumpy troll that came barreling at them from under the bridge, swinging a wooden stool on his other hand after throwing the milk pail.

After they made their escape, Helga sighed. “It blew up into a goddamn gang war, complete with some crazy spells thrown around. You heard the announcement after all the lantern heads got wrecked, right? Who’d have expected the PI to pull that off, huh?”
She then listened to Su speak, only to blink as she brought up Justine. She bit her lip, looking awkward as she averted her eyes. “That was...Well, as you might remember me mention, I, uhh...was alone for a long time. Every day I feared that Beacon would catch me. I was so desperate, I was willing to believe in the first helping hand that came my way. And well...It just so happened to be Justine.” She then turned her eyes back to Su with a concerned look. “But you gotta understand! Justine told me she wanted to end the suffering I, her, and everyone else were in! She was the kindest person I knew at the time...I believed in those words.” Her voice turned morose. “Not only did she provide a hideout safe from Beacon, she also gave me meaning; until then, all I did was try to survive. But working for her, I felt like I could help others like me who were still fearing for their lives. That’s what I meant.” Her voice turned bitter. “But it was only when I failed her that Justine showed her true colors, and abandoned me, not to mention her perfect world...I was so stupid for ever believing in her.”

---

Leena, while momentarily faltered by the blast of fire that erupted from Hyun Long, managed to recover on top of a rooftop, and saw as the ghost ship carried the monster queen farther away. “Damn, this is getting crazier by the second. Who brought a freaking ghost ship here?” She muttered. “Focus, Leena!” Rachel would yell at her as she passed by her. “Follow me!” She left her platforms lingering just long enough for Leena to hop up using them, allowing her to rejoin the fight.

The Ghost ship, though unnaturally damp on its keel,with plenty of barnacles clinging, soon began to dry up from Hyun Long’s flames, and then caught fire. But just as Hyun Long had gripped a board and was about to pull it off, she was startled by Mariette’s sudden appearance. Like a squid hiding under a rock, the monster queen scuttled to the other side of the ship to avoid her initial blast of light, only to get struck by more beams that appeared below her, scorching her corruption-imbued flesh and destroying her tentacles in droves.

Hyun Long screeched, about to counterattack. At that moment, Alicia began her attack, shooting up at both Long and Mariette with arrows of exploding light. When another tentacle opened it’s maw, about to blast fire at the dark magical girl, Trixy shot at her with her seed shot. Before Mariette could fully escape using her portals, the vines had caught Mariette’s arm long enough for the fire blast from Hyun Long’s tentacle to hit it with her flames and for Alicia to hit with an explosion from one of her arrows. As a result, Mariette managed to escape, but her arm was left with painful third-degree burns, destroying her sleeve in the process, and leaving it numb and crippled.

Even after she left, Hyun Long continued to be struck by Alicia’s explosive arrows proving to be effective against the clinging monster queen; one by one, she lost tentacles that kept her hanging on to the ship, until only a couple were left. Hyun Long looked desperate as she swung her hands up at the partially loosened, burning floorboard, still clinging to her hunger even as the cold death of falling from such a height loomed below her.
But then, Amaryllis arrived, and the monster queen’s eyes flashed with fright as the Knight of Rose approached her. She growled, ready to attack, when the just magical girl gave her one last chance at redemption, presenting the White Coin. She looked at it, seemingly confused.
Then Amaryllis saw, for the first time, how Hyun Long’s eyes seemed to gain new life.
“Q-Quell...This...” She slowly uttered. “...Hunger...”

At that moment, one of her few remaining dragonhead tentacles stopped latching onto the ship, and lunged at Amaryllis’ hand holding the White Coin; with a great crunch, the jaws clamped down over the hand, and bit it off, eating it and the White Coin in the same bite.
The monster queen’s expression then turned slack, as white light now poured from her eyes.
Her final tentacle loosened its grip on the ship, and she closed her eyes; like a falling star, she was bathed in white light as she rapidly plummeted, loosened from Amaryllis’ chains by the transformation into a regular-looking girl.

But before she hit the ground, she was caught in Leena’s arms, landing on a more flexible barrier Rachel cast that absorbed the impact. The Inquisitor glanced up at Amaryllis, her gaze still cold. Yet, the Knight of Rose could feel that it wasn’t malice or disapproval that colored those eyes, but respect.
“A bold move, Knight of Rose, but a stupid one. Nevertheless, I am grateful for the assistance you gave to me today.” With that said, she turned away. “There’s a situation still at the Park, correct?” She asked the gas mask wearing girl, to which the latter nodded. “Yes, Inquisitor. A horror has manifested three Avatars, of which one has been destroyed.”
The Inquisitor landed down into the rave. “Go there and assist the operatives on the field. I need to personally oversee the cleanup here. Paladin Seraph!” She raised her voice to reach Alicia. “Deal with the corrupted who participated in the monster queen’s neutralization.” Having said that, she began collect the various Ascendancy corpses, teleporting them back to HQ.

---

Nightwing's dark skin ran with black veins as she pushed her Dark magic to it’s limits, injecting curses into Grisbar in a flow of foul vapor. Yet, it turned out to not be enough against the dragon; she was thrown off, and turned back to human, a punkish-looking girl with a pale complexion. However, as her vision dimmed, she saw what looked like a tiny doll perform a glistening slash.
“There...It’s....dead...” And so, her eyes closed.

Elora, even when she was knocked off of her cyber box and surrounded by the animal spirits, did not seem to falter. While it seemed like she was a hostage without her weapons, she continued typing away on a holographic keyboard that was emitted out from a tiny device embedded in her clothes, continuing to direct the cyberbox far above to shoot at the spirits and collect data on the Horror Avatar. “The wolf monster is located behind a cloaking veil. Extend your attacks beyond the first target,” she broadcasted using a microphone that extended from her collar, and transmitted through a loudspeaker installed on the cyberbox. The cyberbox also cast a spotlight, aiming it at the wolf Pillar Druid’s true location.

As Grosket was assaulted by Viva and Reaver, Tsuki came in with an incredibly powerful blast of pure magical force. “Magic Missile!” She screamed as she delivered the destructive spell;
like an entire legion of spears were shot out from a cannon, the blast shredded through the weakened ent’s trunk-like body in a scattering, causing it to collapse on itself.

When Alexander saw Lily get knocked back, limp and with a clearly broken leg, he suddenly got extreme tunnel vision "LILY!!!" He sprinted over to her as fast as he could. 'Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuck! Don't let this be what it looks like.' Once he reached her, he final noticed that she had be de-transformed

'Please just let her be unconscious' getting on his knees, he began to work his healing magic on her 'What even happened to her!? I didn't see any-is that a stab wound!? When did she get that!? Oh fuck, her leg is fucked up pretty bad. Wait...why are my legs wet?' he looked down to see that he was actually in a pool of blood 'W-when did that get there!? Fuck it, it's not Lily's, so I'll worry about it later. Dammit Lily, this is all your fault! I didn't use to care that much about people, but now look at me! I'm so angry and scared I just want to break something, or someone. But I don't have a target to vent all these feelings on, so I just got to deal with it. Except I don't know how to fucking deal with it!' Her stab wound had been fixed by this point, and he was roughly halfway done fixing her leg, however in the middle of his work, his vision suddenly started to get blurry, and his face also got cold 'Dammit what's happening to me!?' He tried to rub his eye in hopes that it would fix the blurriness, but he very quickly noticed something 'Wait...am I fucking crying!? Dammit Lily, how are you doing this shit to me!?' a few seconds later, he had fixed up her leg, along with other various smaller wounds on her body. Picking her up in a bridal carry, he started running "I need to get you home..."

WOADIDYOUSEETHATIJUSTCUTADRAGONINHALFWAITREALLYDOIACTUALLYHAVETHATKINDOFPOWERWOAHIMAFRICKINBADASSDRAGONSLAYERDENIWOHOO

Ronin gently sheeted her sword on the other side of the dragon’s head, her expression barely able to keep moderately cool, as she turned to Nightwing to make sure she was alright and not had died for some reason. Except, she quickly didn’t have time for that, for now she looked back to see where Faith was, and-

‘-!’ Ronin did not have the time to think another coherent thought before she’d taken off at a dramatic speed, charged by her own Reinforcement magic. She basically threw herself with all her might to grab Faith and pull her away from the beast currently trying to feast on her, a highly inefficient Reinforcement barrier trying to fit itself in-between them to give her the needed time.

[@people at the park]

---

So, Mariette was about to fire at Hyun Long… when her awareness picked up that she was being fired upon. Immediately she dropped, except what was actually happening was the portal on the ground-floor of the nearby building rose to bring her back, and at the same time she was opening a portal to block the incoming vines… except she failed somehow, and it caught some part of her, pulling at her, but instead of pulling her off the platform she’d already headed a bit of distance down the portal and was pulled into the side of the midair doorway, opening additional portals to block herself from being pulled over the edge. She grunted in pain before a blast of light burned the vine off her, and she descended into peeking at the scene.

Except, somehow, she was caught anyway and her arm was burned off. Somehow.

---

‘… There are evil-looking magic crows looking at me!’ Eli suddenly stated, looking over at the rooftop of the warehouse, lifting her slime-hands to raise Reinforcement barriers around her, just in case.

---

‘There are evil-looking magic crows looking at Eli!’

Mariette heard in her ear. Her mind was barely functioning right now, though, too busy dealing with massive pain. Out of sheer desire not to let Eli get kidnapped, a portal opened directly underneath Eli leading to right beside Mariette, intended to recover Eli. She needed Eli’s healing anyway.

Thanks to gravity, Eli seemed to be falling through the portal to Mariette’s side. Though she seemed to get hung up on something as only half of her body came through the portal before bouncing up, like a convict hanging from a noose. With a flustered sound, Eli fired something, then she and a wolverine tumbled through the portal. It had a hold of her neck and it wouldn’t let go. Even as blood poured out of its rib cage, it thrashed and attempted to drag Eli further away from Mariette.

That was when it happened. Doors opening up, shutterings lifting , sewer lids sliding away. Wherever a wolverine could come from, there was one. Eli hadn’t been able to notice them before, but the area was now suffused in magical energy. The wolverines were the minions of a magical girl.

Everyone knows about the honey badger, but the wolverine, sometimes called a glutton, is no slouch either. While wolverines don’t boast the same defensive abilities, they can get twice as big and can run quite a bit faster too. While a honey badger can run at about thirty-two kilometers per hour (twenty miles per hour), a wolverine can run forty-eight kilometers per hour (thirty miles per hour) and blow past them. But what really makes them dangerous is how powerful they are for their size. They have huge appetites and often chase big game like moose, caribou, and mountain goats. They are also capable of fighting other vicious predators like wolves and bears. Inuit natives of Alaska reported that a half-ton polar bear once crushed a wolverine to its chest, but then dropped dead when the cradled beast tore out its heart. Clearly they were dangerous without magic. There were five wolverines now.

Five wolverines, and one man.



”Mariette? Not who I was expecting to run into.” Only Vermin killer’s coat shrouded everything but his head and an arm, which was on something in his coat. ”Though it was a chance encounter I was prepared for.” The crows swarmed overhead, circling in the rain. It was hard to tell how many there were. ”It was only a matter of time before Asengav threatened Mint operations.” He stopped walking, but the wolverines only inched closer. ”Though perhaps even a vermin can be spared, so long as it is useful.” He grinned. ”You will tell me exactly what happened here, as well as identify everyone you worked with. If I am satisfied, you can help me with a job and I’ll let you go.”

When Eli fell down, her arm had transformed into a sawed-off shotgun for close combat blasting, just the thing to ram up the chest of a creature trying to kidnap her and then fire. Being slime, being bitten in the “neck” didn’t exactly hurt her, but she was panicked regardless as she fell to the floor. She gave an alarmed yelp as the wolverine still pulled at her…

Except, that’s when an explosion of tentacles burst out into all directions from a very much not-in-the-mood Mariette. Tentacles struck out against the approaching wolverines, and two utterly pierced the closest one holding Eli and ripped it apart to pull Eli close, Eli herself startled at Mariette’s ferocity. Underneath a portal was opening for them to escape across town, while Mariette glared threateningly at Vermin Killer and her still-fine hand wielding her hand-mirror glowing up with a Light-magic blast. The eyes warned that should he try something, she’d blast him. She was in no mood for negotiation.

Vermin killer countered by whipping something out of his coat that flew in her direction. She felt her mind being stabbed with shards of glass, and held her head to keep the pain at bay. All of her portals disappeared in an instant and her tentacles recoiled in their advance.

‘KAH!’ ‘M-mistress!’

Mariette cried out in pain as the shattered mirror cut into her sixth sense that she used for her portal navigation got cut, and she fell into her knees with any portals she was forming cracked open at the seams, while her tentacles jolted like pained limbs, writing shadows around her. Reacting instantly, the completely unaffected Eli jumped to place herself in-between Mariette and the Vermin Killer, aiming her gun-arm at him and her other arm shapeshifting into a reinforced shield to protect her mistress, but her expression was panicked, she knew she couldn’t protect Mariette if Vermin Killer actually attacked.

”It was hard to get much out of Justine’s castle after it was destroyed, but we were able to divine how the inside of the castle looked. Did you know she had shattered mirrors in all the hallways?” Vermin killer adjusted his hat. The crows descended to his position, surrounding him. It remained to be seen what they would do. ”Let me tell you what happened here. You aided some magicals in a raid on one of our strongholds. They killed one of the magical girls on guard and stole resources that didn’t belong to them.” He gazed towards the blood stain where the wolverine used to be. ”In addition to this, you’ve killed one of my underlings. I can appreciate when vermin bites back, but this does not bode well for you.” He fret his brow and turned back to Mariette. ”But I’m not a heartless person. I’m willing to forgive this if you help me. The Dreamscape Almanac, I require it for a time. After which it shall be returned to you.”

Mariette raised a pained glare at him, very much irritated about having to experience this setback. Still, the price he was asking for… the Dreamscape Almanac? What could the Mint possibly want such a thing for? Still… that was a cheap price to pay. She’d already had the contents of the Dreamscape Almanac copied, for an entirely separate reason, so she’d effectively be giving up nothing by handing it over, her own copy still in her library. She hardly had a choice in this situation.

‘… Eli, go retrieve it,’ Mariette said eventually.

‘Kh…’ Eli made a less than pleased noise about the command to leave her mistress side. But… ‘… Where is it?’ she eventually asked, because she honestly didn’t know.

‘The shelf with books in my room. You’ll find it decently quickly,’ she said. She then glared at Vermin Killer. ‘Would you… put that away a bit? I can’t send her home while you’re pointing it at me…’ Mariette grunted out at him.

The Vermin killer didn’t budge an inch, but a crow hopped next to the shattered mirror. ”Nothing funny, please. It’s not the only one I have.” One of the wolverines crept closer to Mariette, but ultimately kept its distance. The crow picked up one side of the mirror and tugged at it, pulling it further away from mariette. ”Far enough?”

Mariette nodded, and with some pain she then opened a portal into her Interdimensional Home on the floor, and after a last worried look at Vermin Killer Eli jumped through, after which Mariette rerouted the portal to a wall in the adjacent building, not wanting a link to her most important place manifested near a would-be enemy.

The portal girl then stayed silent, crouched as she was still feeling intense pain, her tentacles lying dormant around her, but not extinguished. If she was ambushed after handing the book over, they’d be her only defense. Except Eli, of course. A number of seconds later, she switched the portal again and Eli came through, holding the book in her slimy hands.

‘… This, was what you wanted, correct?’ Mariette asked, grabbing the book from Eli with her good hand, offering it forward for her attacker, her expression still irritable.

The waters of a stone basin rippled against a draft of wind, obscuring for a moment a dimly lit room, littered in debris and bodies, reflected through the depths of the pool. Up the legs of the structure, and inwards to the centre of the bowl, a hundred faintly illuminated runes cast a thin, but constant, trickle of light, forming out of the holographic waters, to create a glow around the edges of the carved stone - spilling out onto the dusty ground around it. The sand smeared across the masonry, held tight in the various craters of the rough carved surfaces, until the black rock had been transformed into a grey-beige under the faintly green sunset.

"You just don't understand how to give in, do you?" began the voice of a woman, who hung over the edge of the pool, staring into the waters. A mess of red spilled forth from her head, caught perpetually in a silent gust, where it trailed freely in the air with a steady stream of sand, picked up from the dunes encroaching on every side of the relic. A wasteland that held only the girl, and the remnants of ancients long dead. "A king who relies on sacrifices to reach their goal is destined to lose everything. I... thought you knew that well, and yet... Sasha..."



"Not half bad," called a girl's voice, just off from the side of the ruined remnants of the warehouse. As she spoke, she stepped out from the shadow of one of the other warehouses, entering into full view of all that remained around the site of the rave. Her voice matched the one in the psychic message that followed the psychic attack, while the black dress she wore, and the armoured claw that swung around behind her like a tail, were easily recognisable to any of those who entered the room where Hyun Long has been found. The charring of her skin, and the chunk of flesh torn from her shoulder appeared to have vanished, as though she had never truly suffered any such injury. The girl on the floor of the rave had looked as dead as the rest of the assorted bodies, but as she was, there was practically no indication that she had even been in the warehouse, save the faint smudges of dirt and ash faded into the pitch fabric. "I wasn't sure this many of you'd come out in one piece for a moment there, but I had a feeling you'd win. Admittedly the White Coin wasn't the path I thought you'd take, but I suppose in the end it's as good as killing her - they both save me from having to bring her under control myself, so that's a positive on almost every front."

While she spoke, Eden continued walking towards the group. Her hand clasped tight around the handle of a case, somewhat scorched and damaged, but in tact. It swung with each step, in time with the movement of the clawed hand, swishing rhythmically just behind her, but after a certain distance, it became rigid. The claw curled over her head, fingers extended, and almost directed at the various individuals present, as though keeping over watch of the former battlefield. Once she was merely a dozen feet away from those on ground level, she stopped.

"Before any of you decide to pick a fight you'll lose, I gotta ask something," Eden started, whilst systematically looking between Silhouette, Alicia, the other Beacon agents, and the newly Purified Hyun Long. "Annoyingly, Cindy Ford ran off before I could ask her to stay at the rave, and it looks like she's further away than I can see. You mentioned the Avatars of a Horror at a park. This evening has been, well, a bit of a fucking trainwreck, and I don't really wanna spend too much time looking for her, so have you got any idea if that's where she ended up?"



Christine, for all the experiences in her life eclipsing those of most ordinary adults, was still a child. Compared to those of the same age, she was inexperienced in a great many things. Her days were spent working on whatever was required of it, be it editing a new story, or tutoring a new recruit. It was a life she chose readily when given the choice, but it lacked a great deal when compared to the lives that most others led, even within the same fields - both journalism, and the acts of a Magical Girl. Her Puchuu, an owl looking creature that went by the name Ellie, had been the one to save her physically on the day of her transformation, but he rarely came by, having found better and more talented girls to occupy his time with, and yet she did not consider him her saviour. That belonged to Eden.

Girls her age would have visited beaches dozens of times in their lives. They would have developed their understanding of sunbathing, of the appeal to swimsuits, of their love for the heat of the sun, and the chance to relax from their busy lives. Christine had never been, had never learned those things. She had traded a normal life for one at Eden's side, learning and growing in ways that the majority could never dream of, but she did wonder, once in a while, what kind of things she was missing. On her days off, she did what could be considered normal, but without the normal friends with which to enjoy them, she relegated herself to reading, or gaming.

Her eyes opened abruptly, recovering from her drowsiness almost instantly as she recognised the heat that collapsed upon her skin, and the light that bled through the gaps in her eyelids. She sat upright, eyes locked onto the approaching Mika, on edge and prepared to draw from her Hammerspace at the first moment of trouble. But instead of acting, she paused. The girl before her was Mika - Olympia had met with her a number of months prior, to discuss The Vixen. She had been there at the rave, confronting Alicia Hayden in the hallway. Presumably, then, she had been the one to rescue her.

"I'm... Christine," she answered, glancing around the coliseum she found herself in. After the blinding shot from Alicia, Christine had little memory of the remainder of the fight. Her gun had been knocked from her hand, and she herself had been pinned to a wall. Had Eden succeeded in destroying the Ascendancy ambush, she wondered. "I dunno what 'ree-see-pee-see' is, but if you're trying to say it's peanut butter, I guess I'll have that one. Thanks. You're, uh, Mika, right? - where exactly are we?"

_{@ERode@FamishedPants@twave@Crusader Lord@Flamelord}

Even if Trixy’s vine shot didn’t score a hit, it at least did half of what she wanted by stopping Mariette from firing on Hyun. A dopey smile crossed her face as she watched the portal witch escape. It wasn’t the best outcome, but Hyun had a chance now.

Though Sil’s transmission turned that smile upside down.

"O-oh." She hung her head. Trixy thought she had really been on fire during this mission, but she hadn’t considered that Mariette might not realize her intentions. It would be harder for cradle to settle things peacefully with her now. Especially since Beacon opened fire on her. But the alternative was chancing Hyun turning into some rotisserie chicken.

Which was appetizing, but there was something to be said for a cutie as well. Trixy extended her arms to catch her, but Lenna had a height advantage thanks to some barriers that Trixy’s arms just couldn’t match. Not that it mattered too much. Trixy just didn’t get to hold girls very much, unless it was during a fight, or her date was smacking her around. But it was enough just to see Amaryllis’s gambit pay off.

Veronica’s voice echoed in the minds of all nearby cradle agents. “Done? Preparing evac, stand by.”

The situation only got more grim when Trixy heard Rachel’s orders.

"Deal with?" She stood up a bit straighter. "Waddaya mean? You got a new cutie for your squad, courtesy of everyone’s teamwork!" The cradle was opening up under Trixy. Bubbling tar that was darker than the dead rave. "I mean, I’m not going to pretend that there aren’t some horrible corrupt girls out there, but look at what we just did together!" Trixy spread her arms and gestured at everything. It didn't matter that no one was looking at her. "She was eating people a few seconds ago, and look! Are you telling me that she gets a chance and we don’t? I mean-" She half choked. "Is this really how it’s going to be? Us versus them to the very end? ...Can’t I bury my friends first?" Trixy’s voice cracked. She placed both of her hands on her gun. Cereza and Cerise’s bodies had gone somewhere, but she couldn’t disobey Veronica. It was bad enough that she disappointed Sam, and not becoming a corpse herself was a top priority.

"Sam, can you get away? Veronica’s pulling me out."

Trixy had no intention of firing on anyone, but this wouldn’t be the first time her plans blew up in her face. She was on the other side of the barrier she had made earlier, and all of the beacon girls were above her. So long as she was ready to fire on any Beacon coming through the hole, it should make her a bit harder to reach.

"Cereza, Cerise, I’ll bring you justice."

---

_{@AtomicNut@DarkwolfX37}

Did the fight end? Yes. Did it end without any of her opponents dieing just like she wanted? Yes. Was it a satisfying conclusion she could be proud of? Hell no!

Tetrad had difficulty processing what even happened. The timid bear/bird girl suddenly went into mom mode, and then there was a spirit rip move, and that trap came back, and then, what the hell even was that? When did she walk onto the set of a sitcom? Exit stage right! Now now now!

“NO!” Tetrad marched towards Jimmy. “No I agreed to ONE date! I don’t even think I did that, but you know, I’m doing it anyway! Because you stopped attacking.” Her eyes were as wide as saucers. Tetrad pointed at herself with her thumb. “I had everything under control! You could have run! I didn’t ask you to put yourself in danger. And those 'hints' were pretty crappy FYI!” She lifted her finger up in front of Jimmy’s face. “ONE! O-N-E ONE! That’s what we start with.” She spun on her heel so that her back was pointed towards Jimmy. “You only get more if I enjoy it, alright? And quit looking so pathetic!” She shuffled her cards about until she had a few blue ones, which she tossed in Jimmy’s direction. “Kingqueen69 right? I’ll send you a message later.” She really wasn’t interested in Jimmy, but contacts were contacts.

She glanced at Shion. Not the most social sort. Thanks to her link with Veronica, she knew a bit about the girl. Shion was being chased by the mint, which should mean she could be an ally of Cradle. But this seemed like a weird time to exchange contact information. Not only that, but it was clear she was a solitary type that didn’t like working with others. A bit on the grumpy side too. At least that was the vibe she got. But just walking away was the N.E.E.T. thing to do.

“So yea, that was a really cool attack. I’m sure it would have screwed up any other magical girl.” Tetrad gave Shion a thumbs up. “Did you need any help healing up?” Her eyes shifted side to side, then she leaned in close to speak quietly. “Alright so I’m at least fifty percent sure this guy is going to try and slip me a mickey, so if you wouldn’t mind exchanging phone numbers with me, I’d feel a lot safer. Also, who knows? Penrose is a small place. We’ll probably be bumping into each other a lot.”

---

Talking directly with other patrons was not something that happened very often. Usually getting a horror to appear for any reason was an accomplishment in and of itself. Though when you start throwing around terms like “overt interference,” you’re bound to shake someone’s tree.

Something was burning up as it passed through the atmosphere. A pink lotus mounted on a flesh bud zoomed towards Lei Zi. Air friction had set it on fire, but this just seemed to change its color rather than burn it. The lotus pedals and flesh all turned black before arriving at their destination.

A few meters away from Lei Zi the burning abomination floated. Once the fire burned out the black flower started to bloom. The inside of the bloom was a dark crimson, but the real star of the show was the pink haired girl that sat in the center.

The shrine maiden in black uncrossed her legs and stood up. She used her katana’s scabbard to support herself as she raised. With a yawn, she straightened out the rim of her skirt. She examined her effects, straightening every bell and bracelet she wore. At no point during her self inspection did she release hold of her scabbard, but she made no effort to draw her weapon either. After straightening out her back, she stepped out of the flower.

“The first Oros, Hand of the collective entities known as Aighorost, stands before you, to remind you that they will not all be conceived for another ten-thousand years.” She placed a hand on her hip. “I want you to think about how childish a newborn is, and then realize they are ten-thousand years younger than that. You think they’re going to give a shit about what number Lei Zi you are or what type of force your god bears? They can’t even change their diapers!” Oros took the hilt of her blade and pulled it part way out of the sheath. Some images flashed across the blade. “Well whatever. The babysitter’s here to spar words with you.” The blade slid back into the sheath. “Pretex is a pretty word, but I think ‘excuse’ works better. One of these super dangerous horrorlings shit the bed already, and they haven’t killed any magicals yet, right?” She rolled her neck before reaching inside her uniform to scratch her breast. “Even if they did, horrors drop monsters in this shithole all the time. Don’t see anyone crying into the heavens about it though. This whole thing just feels like a waste of time. But hey, since we’re on the topic of ‘interference,’ let's talk about that rave that went tits up.” Oros pulled her hand out of her uniform and sniffed her fingers. A smile crossed her lips. “Tian Rong sent his lighting directly into that pit of debauchery and murdered ‘em by the dozens. Wasn’t that ‘interference,’ or is he above other patrons in all this?”

“Horrors do beget further horrors and monstrosities,” Lei Zi replied. “But calling forth such powerful monsters remains taboo. All Patrons, Horror or not, are expected to operate within the rules of this ‘chessboard’, lest all caution be thrown into the wind and Patrons go to war in place of their so-called Champions. If you’re the caretaker of one not yet born, then surely you know this much.”

The shrine maiden placed one hand to one side, her other hand to the other.

“Competence may be granted. Power may be granted. Safety may be granted. All within limitations that a human soul can bear.. Aighorost, however, deigns to fight in place of their warped child, when their power, no matter how infantile the wielder, can see that girl whisked away instead. If that’s not flagrant interference, what is?” She neither smiled, nor frowned. “My lightning has always been a boon of Tian Rong’s. Though my emotions may have gotten the better of me, the power I displayed with the help of my artifact is not on the realm of a Deity, but rather within the realm of nine generations of magical girls. Does that answer your concerns, Oros?”

Oros was staring at the moon, picking her nose and flicking what she found into the night. She wasn’t even facing Lei Zi as she spoke.

“Right right, flatulent interference, I didn’t forget what we were talking about.” Oros’s pulled out a scroll while her lotus lily floated towards Lei Zi. “Firstly, I’d like to show you the Patron Doctrine of Fighting, herein referred to as the PDF.” She held it out to Lei Zi and tapped the parchment with her finger. “A blessing is placed on a person or place, and has ‘subtle but real effects.’ Killing a shit-ton of magical girls is about as subtle as your outfit.” She hid the PDF. “But of course it’s not enough to participate in this game of ‘chess’ with just one rulebook. The Grand Magistrates, or GMs to save time, have made supplementary documentation to over rule the PDF to better maintain the ‘game’ we’re all playing. I’m referring to the Doctrine of Combat Supremacy. Herein referred to as the DOCS. And if you look at this scroll-” When Oros read the document, her eyes bulged out of her head. “What trickery is this?!” She grit her teeth and turned to look at Lei Zi. “Oh you Grand Magistrates are a sly lot! I know Tian Rong is one of them! I know how they work! Aighorost was one not long ago…” She shoved the scroll between her breasts. “Well whatever, I should have known they’d pull a fast one on me. Playing with causality and the space time continuum to retcon things.” She looked up into the heavens and screamed. “All those mother-trucking gorelions! I still remember their textured tongues sliding along my back! Pulling us into the dark abyss of their necks! A single pillar druid couldn’t beat one of them! How do you justify this Grand Magistrates!? Howwwwwww?!” With a sigh, she folded her arms. “Where were we? Right, not all patrons can rush to save their champions, and Aighorost is one of them. Pretty sure he doesn’t give a shit if Faith’s there or not. Someone smacked Aighorost and now they’re just screwing around.” She used her thumb to press the rest of the scroll down. “But whatever, I play your game this time. No more horror avatars going forward. Does that work for you?”

“That’ll work wonderfully,” Lei Zi replied. She had been silent and unmoving as Oros began her theatrics, the neutral expression of watching someone else go on a temper tantrum settling over her features. Yes, Aighorost was a child, or even less than that. Kicking against his ‘cradle’ was understandable, doubly so when his caretaker was also a child. “And I hope you continue to operate within the bounds of both the PDF and the DOCS moving forward. They are, after all, mere guidelines working within the rationale of the Realm’s Precepts, which encompasses the Laws of Magic.”

Down below, it appeared that Aighorost’s ‘fit’ this time had been summarily dealt with by the magical girls in the area.

“Do well to educate your Patron, Oros. Horror though they may be, it’d be a cruelty to watch an unborn child be cannibalized after being laid low by penalties they do not comprehend. And perhaps you’ll be there to give Justine her dues too.”

Oros was nodding along to Lei Zi. “Yea I’ll get right on-” She froze. “Hold up, that shit stain is still alive?” Oros picked up her katana and slid it out of the scabbard to examine the blade again. “A lot of people are still alive? I saw the city was mostly empty and-” She slid the blade closed. “Shit, I’m not gunna cry. I’m not!” She placed a hand over her mouth. “Alright, this is. This is interesting.” She folded her arms again and huffed. “I dunno if Faith is going to make it, but it’s clear Aighorost is gunna need help with this sector.” Oros was about to leap off the edge of her lily pad, but stopped. “Right, I need to submit some documentation to the Grand Magistrates before I join. What a pain.” She grabbed Lei’s hand and shook it. “Thanks for calling me here. Seems like a lovely place. Kicking Justine’s ass sounds like great fun.” She jumped back into her lotus, which closed up and blasted back into the sky.

“Remember,” Lei Zi called out as Oros left. “Get it approved first with the Office of Certification before submitting it to the Credence Scrolls. Not through Private Mail.”



_{@AtomicNut@Ponn@FamishedPants}

The spirit wolves did not idly stand by while Elora typed on her keyboard. They had set upon her, and were biting into her flesh with every stroke of the keys. When she ignored them and continued deploying countermeasures, they got more aggressive. One bit onto her hand and crushed her fingers in its grasp. Another bit into her jacket and tore it off of her back. A third wolf grabbed her by the hair and ran backwards, carrying her deeper into the park as other wolves nipped at her legs and arms.

Ampodryl stood its ground as Shoggy approached. She had been able to deflect its lasers into its eyes, causing the creature to wince. Then Shoggy became something more, something sinister, she was lashing out in Ampodryl’s general direction. The great wolf was more agile than many would assume, and was able to leap clear over Shoggy and land behind her.

This would have been a great time for Ampodryl to sweep its tail at Shoggy, or pounce on the exposed Emily and Sakura. But it was instead looking in the direction of Faith. Ampodryl was blind now and could only hear the sound of his champion. It didn’t turn around, instead "looking" in the direction of its champion.

But shoggy did turn around, and burned through the wolf’s leg.

Ampodryl struggled to stand. Souls swarmed around its form, but this was just a bold display of power before it charged forwards. Only three legs. Just three legs, but it could still run. It didn’t get much further before Shoggy burned off it other hind leg. Ampodryl’s torso slammed into the ground. It seemed to flinch, like a living creature might. But its rear quarters were not required to survive. Furthermore, they were not required to run. Even if it had just two paws left, it could still drag itself forward. Ampodryl had managed to pull itself to the halfway point. Shoggy would not let up her assault, angry as she was. She continued to blast it over and over again with light beams. The heat got so great that the hound’s evergreen coat caught fire. One had to wonder why such a sadistic creature was doing this. Ampodryl may have been trying to score a kill. It could have also been concerned for Faith. But surely a horror wasn’t capable of feeling compassion. Even Oros felt confident that Faith meant nothing to her horror as a whole. If she was wrong, then it was possible horrors could become something more than horrors. Such a thought was sheer blasphemy though.

Blind, lame, and burning. It only had one option left. Souls welled up around Ampodryl’s mouth, and a large, shining blade appeared in its maw. As this abomination’s last act of defiance, it drew in all the souls around itself to prepare its hidden technique: the sword of souls. With a mighty heave, the cursed blade spun as it closed in on Hilaria’s position. That was all it would do. Having used the last of its strength, Ampodryl howled at the moon. Just as Shoggy finished incinerating it. The rest of its charred needles fell to the earth, and the green flame that burned in its breast went out. All that was left was the chared remains of a tree that looked like a dog. Mother earth’s growth returned to the last segments of the mayor park, making it look like new again.

The hole in the sky closed up. The moon looked down on everyone like the giant eye of a horror before being shut out by the clouds.

The horror had been defeated.



It was fine.

Without Mac's intervention, Faith would survive. Though just as a precaution, she was able to use her gravity magic to hold back Hilaria's jaw for cutting all the way into Faith's spine.

This was the end of the battle. Everything should play out just as her patron willed it now.

Her mana was running low, and she really needed to be elsewhere. It would not be good if Lotus woke up right now.

---

Oh. Ooooohhhhhhhhhh. Magic hurt, just like a punch to the gut. In this case, however, literally so. Not that she enjoyed it coming from one of those pricks she and the others had run into earlier, but more than that she was just glad Amaryllis was ok. The moonlight warrior was nothing short of the closest she had to a friend here, perhaps, aside from that maid girl...albeit the maid lass had left her and had to deal with her own issues. She could respect it, but it wasn't like it didn't hurt either. They would need to talk, really, at some point about all of this. And more. Argh.

Even so, the pirate could only recover for a moment and admire the Rose Knight as she watched the action going on above. It was almost disorienting with how much was going on all at once. The voices calling out around her all over the place, the fire on her patron's body as she heard it roar out into the night with a truly bone-chilling 'creak' of fury, the sudden glow of a white light as the monster queen was seemingly purified, and more was a lot to take in. Like a movie playing out before her eyes. Albeit she didn't know what kind of movie, but she hoped it wasn't just another horror movie. Please not another sitting up in a horror's mess with people trying to kill her. Please.

Not that the tension in the air was any less thick than a stick of butter still, at least at this point. And from what she could hear from the Beacon girl who had 'healed' her things weren't likely getting better anytime soon.

"Wha' in tha' bloody ell' is this bout' dealin' with people like mah'self? We jus' got done fightin' ah' bloody monstah' queen, not tha' biggest part oh' this mess, and ya' jus' ealed' me!"

The pirate spoke as she stood up once more, looking over at Rachael with slight glare of frustration, frustration at the mess this entire event had become. So many were involved it was hard to keep track, and frankly she was here to both do her magical girl job and try to back up the one person she trusted most around here. Simple as that. Yet as another voice choked out in response as well, the dark magical girl's eyes darted over to Trixy in a hurry. It was really one thing after another today. Yet with some obvious haste Sophia quickly jotted over to the Cradle girl, or at least as close as she could safely get without making anyone trigger happy (she hoped).

"Lass! Lass!," she said, trying to get the other girl's attention away from the sky and towards her, "If ya' friends' bodies were down heah', mah' patron's gottem' safely stored ah'way till' this mess is ovah' with. Jus' didn't want em' ta' get swept up bah' some Horrah' er' monstah' queen, jus' find meh' latah' and e'll give em' to ya' fer' ah' proper burial."

Hell, her accent felt even stronger for a moment there. Was it the stress and all of this? Probably.

Meanwhile a potentially forgotten presence seemed to stay in the area as she watched on with the proceedings. Her eyes seemed to glisten with excitement, at least at how things had gone, before she seemed to finally calm down a little and walk out to where others were on the warehouse floor. As if announcing herself after a bit of sideline spectating. More or less, however, she seemed to keep a certain upbeat mood despite the chaos going on around her. As if she was perfectly at home among it all, perhaps, though such an assumption could be readily argued for or against right now.

Not like Lei Zi wasn't handling some of the obvious the political stuff already. She could tell. Such a stickler, but rules were there for a purpose as well when it came to being Patrons. Hehe~

"My my, such a happy ending for that little monster and you don't even want to wait for everything to finish up before you round up corrupted girls? After healing one yourself? So impetuous and pragmatic, and yet not so surprising at all for someone from the Ascendancy to order on the spot~"

Cthulhu's voice called up to Rachael in a crystal clear tone, almost teasing as the Greater Horror stood there with her hands behind her back and rocking on her heels. No fear at all, really, not even a hint of hesitation in calling such things out. But while this was one thing, the horror was also doing a little investigation of her own.

Inside of mind of Hyun, a voice would call out that rang in her head in an almost valley-girl-like tone.

'Congrats on the purification! You have a neat little choice before you as well, so make sure to use it wisely with your new self.

On that note, I am totes still recruiting magical girls to keep humanity safe, and many of the other Patrons can vouch for me on that even if they don't like it! Having a girl with that Shinespark in her would, like, totally act as more proof to the few snoody pricks left who think I'm evil!

But it's your call, girlfriend, so do what you want and own it! I'm just doing me~ Not sure what those Beacon girls will want to do with you, though, but whatevs.

Otherwise just wanted to hop in and say hihi, and good luck with thiiiiiiiings~!'

...Of course she'd try to recruit someone by speaking to them in their mind. Albeit it wasn't direct interference, just some nice talking! She knew the rules, oh she knew the rules, but more hands to help keep this place and others safe was always a goal! Or what was that human saying? "Any poll's a goal"? Meh. She could think on that bit more later.

@BrokenPromise@Ariamis@Erode

---

@Flamelord (Consider Serenity looking to Alicia as she catches her breath, trying to soak in things as she processes Rachael's command somewhat less approvingly. My brain is burning out irl as i type this due to a myriad of things...and i will catch her up better next post. Yes. Please. DX)

And then…

Silence.

The bittersweet peace of a haunted battlefield was only pierced by the faintest of wails of tiny mourning creatures, having assisted with horror what was the death of their favorite entertainer. Corpses grew cold, as girls were depowered and a young boy searched frantically for an exit, fed with conflict. Mother stared at daughter. Daughter stared at mother. Yui had sheltered the worst bits of the carnage, but Ai had seen enough. She was somewhat shaken and aghast.

“I’ve had enough…” The beauty snarled, memories of a past life, a harsher life resurfacing. But even she, was stopped short.

Amidst them all, a new figure appeared. Silver haired, blue-eyed. It had been a mere curiosity at first, despite the ongoing battle against the horror. Umukamui could not field more effectives and interference was tricky, so all the puchuu could do was sit, wait and plot. Such as a calculated example of goodwill. Those Beacon types loved compliance by using these methods of keeping a family safe. Umukamui never imagined they would be taken to the Overcity by a trio of horror servants. But where there was strife, there was opportunity. He had learnt that much.

“Landlady!” said Ai, recognizing the figure that not long before had brought grave news before the Yamamotos. That ice-cold woman had delivered severe blows, with the death of the father of the house, Sakura, and the acknowledgement that now the flat belonged to her ilk.
“As if things could not get…any better.” Yui said, her face scrunched up in disgust, as she eyed the woman who, not a minute before had appeared out of thin air.

“The exit is around that way… Butterfly shop, If I am not mistaken. Tell them I sent you.” She pointed, as she eyed both the Yamamotos, and the fleeing Alexander.

They didn’t waste a second thought, running away on quick feet.

Eyeing Lily, the straightforward one, who had quite never been hostile at any of his forms, he brushed her hair as Alexander flew past. A good addition to the team, she would have been, had she not left midway to the struggle. And now... Umukamui could feel no patron enforcing this girl.

“Open for recruiting huh.” Kamy said to herself, noting to extend a decent offer to the now patronless girl for services rendered. A card with a phone number materialized in Lily’s pocket.

“Thank you, landlady!” Ai said, as she was hushed away by her own mother, being dragged away from the madness. Another potential Umukamui noted. Recruiting a sizeable force was an act of balancing. Her father turned magical girl would be peculiarly…incompatible with this kind of recruiting.

It was then when Kamy noticed something else. The last of these three girls had awoken, and was crying softly, hugging herself to the remains of her old comrades. Pebbles wobbled up and down as her powers misfired, and she still had a terrible case of electrically combed hair.

_{“Gone…they’re gone….uhhhuhuuhhuuu”} Tenebra babbled as she rocked back and forth, failing to notice anyone else in the vicinity. Not even Alexander. Not even Lily. Not even the Fairies and not even Umukamui.
_{“I…don’t wanna do…it…anymore…”} She said, as she twitched. Dark claws of her eldritch master digging deep down in her mind, in her psyche. _{“I…wanna…die…”} She wailed.

Kamy tilted her head, as she focused. “Star Eater… we meet… again. The dances of karma spin many threads indeed.” The Puchuu turned woman spoke, to no one in particular. “Yes, yes… but how about leasing me the this one for the time being?” Umukamui said. “It’s not like you expect to gain much, your power was cut to one third in this city.” Kamy said, eyeing the gravity girl.

The dark thrumming ceased, as the mark of the horror left the girl’s body, leaving the silver haired girl dazed. Her eyes finally noticed the form of Kamy. Silver hair. Blue eyes. Same as Tenebra's. The mind under duress worked. She jumped to conclusions.

“Mom! You’re back! It was so scary, scary! Everyone is dead! That zapping girl killed them! And the dark voices would not stoppp!” She bawled, her response prompt as she buried herself into Kamy’s bosom.

Umukamui was a level headed creature. An alien of unfathomable whims and reasons. But even him… sometimes had peculiar, more relatable reactions. Shock, for starters. Followed by anger. You’re soiling my best human female simulacrum with your body fluids you loud, spitting, mewling human larva!. Still, as if by trained by a reflex, her hand went to comfort the extremely confused girl as she kept mourning.

“It will be okay. “ Kamy cooed. Soft words worked wonders when it came to herding confused young human larvae. “I am here. I won’t abandon you.” She said.

“Now please make a contract with me and become a magical girl.” She added with aplomb.

---

Jimmy looked at the parcel that the other girl handed her. What were these, casino coin chips? He couldn’t make sense of half of the magical girl minds sometimes, but he accepted all that was given so… he took the reward to himself.

Jimmy then smirked, addressing Tetrad. _{“Fine… you drive… a hard…bargain…”} He acquiesced without too much fight, as he summoned his willpower to stand upright. The fact that Tetrad had decided to show her back to him was a sight to sore eyes. Or limbs. Or broken teeth.

“It's Kingqueen34, not 69! 34!” He corrected. And the Grand Succubus Herald made himself scarce.

---

Sakura stood still, as she watched her ally go. Relentlessly rolling. Zapping. Fighting. Winning. Even despite the last desperate sword attack.

“NANIIII??!!!!” She shrieked, a high pitched squeal that added to her disbelief, and then looked at Emily. “…Is Shoggy a Banchou or something!? Can I become boss at this rate?” She sputtered at the spectacle, wondering what in the hell was the deal with the shifty rat. If she had just pulled a magical girl who could stomp horrors while being one herself, what was next, interdimensional pocket bags that released Shinigami on flaming motorbikes?

“Tell me you saw that, Emily. Tell me. For my sanity’s sake.” She couldn’t completely believe. It was somewhat sad the not-beast had carried itself while looking at Faith, but the disco rolling doom jello seemed to be the highlight in Sakura’s mind, so-

“Fuck, Emily! Evade!” She said as Shoggy, bereft of a target, engaged the group at cruise speed and...

...just kind of stopped short before the two. And began to tremble and shudder, making some awful squelching sounds. As if it was to give a giant, eldritch sneeze. The pulsating creature then... expelled the form of the monstergirl once more, while the remaining carcass of the ooze that should not be evapored into tar-like ichor.

Shoggy...now being whole herself again, blinked twice, and tilted her head. "Where is the doggy?" She asked in confusion.

Sakura facepalmed heavily. "Dead." And then she pointed to the obvious. All transformations had a toll. And Shoggy was particularly jarring. And horrifying.

"Get some fucking clothes." Sakura said, pointing at the monstergirl's naked form, before trying her best to summon whatever pitiful magical juice she had to manifest a pretty blanket to cover the naked horror girl.

Admittedly, Shane had not been that confident that Hyun Long would take the coin. So when she did, taking a little extra in the process, he watched as the monster girl was engulfed in light and brought into Beacon's fold. Powerful things those White Coins. Not really for him though. The monster queen defeated there was still something of an aftermath in the form of fire that threatened the ship. Well then. Having already climbed most of the way up it was a short trip to close the distance. It was a fair bit toasty this close to the burning hull. Hooking an arm around one of the links he casually flipped through his spell book. "Let's see here. Ah there we are." He would reach with his free hand and pull out a ball of lightning. Raising it up he would feed it more magic and it would expand. As the edge came in contact with the fire the electrical charge would disrupt the chemical reaction fueling the fire, snuffing it out almost instantly. After encompassing the fire and putting an end to it Shane would draw what was left back to himself. "You know if you just sailed in water like a normal ship you wouldn't have to deal with fire like that." He wasn't entirely sure who he was talking to but who cared.

Glancing back down he would see that someone else had arrived. Unlike probably everyone else he wasn't familiar with the person, her voice, or what she'd done. He had left before the bell tolled. Actually, he barely heard what was said now. Not that it really mattered to him in particular. Turning he would stare out toward the park. Things didn't look to be going to hell in a hand basket from this vantage point. Not that things generally were what met the eye when it came to magical girls. He would take out his phone briefly and send off a message before making his way down, intending to head back to the park to see how things were there.

_{@BrokenPromise@Shifter_Master}

Splinters, blood and flesh clouded Reaver's vision for a few moment, as the might of combined attacks fell his opponent. Battered and bruised beyond belief, he first rolled into the ground, extinguishing the fire, and then limped to his feet, clutching one of his many wounds and cuts. That was it. There would be no further fights. Bravery was already growing into recklessness territory, and other people were getting involved.

That new girl... well, monster-girl, as his third eye told him by the way she had changed shape and burrowed herself into the creature without doubt had been quite the boon. And he was grateful. Flexing his mind, his berserker thirst subsumed into that of a dark gallant knight persona. Perhaps this newcomer could be befriended and favoured, filling in the gap that Chloe's lack of concern for his efforts had emptied. There was neglect play, and there were neglecting duties and commitments. Something that Reaver did not take kindly.

Scooping the girl's warped form in his arms, he pushed himself to bring his healing forth with reinforcement. Not that it'd do much in the sorry state he was, but the intention mattered.

"I am grateful for your assistance, my lady. Now let us leave the battlefield, once and for all." Reaver said, as the ugly regeneration of his was slowly bringing his body to a working state. He grunted, strained under the effort of carrying someone bridal style despite the heavy wounds, and then put his still working legs to work, as he left, the barriers weakened enough for both to retreat safely.

And yet... why did this girl seem so familiar? Had he seen her somewhere? He could not place a finger on what it was, but he had this gut feeling that somewhere, in the past, they had met.

Shion was confused. At least this girl seemed nice enough. She shook her head at Tetrad's question about healing and laughed at her comment about Jimmy. "Sure, I guess." she said before writing down her phone number and handing it to Tetrad. "Good luck on your date." she managed before the pain she had been putting off overcame her and she passed out.

Ko took a defensive position next to her and began putting away the bottle and Fielder. She smiled to Tetrad when she finished. "Thank you for your help. If you hadn't attracted that guy, I don't know what would have happened to Shion."

---

@BrokenPromise

As Raven moved closer the conversation was suddenly cut short as Hilaria made an epic leap and took the fay girl out of the air. "Faith!" Despite being a raven she could still speak just fine. Following closely after she would flinch as she watched them land. Right away he monstrous girl being right on top of the fey. There wasn't a lot of time to act, but she was a little lost on just how to deal with the situation. She'd hoped to have gotten into a skirmish or two before being thrown into a total cluster like this. Didn't help that Hilaria was practically a raging animal at that point. Celia and Ronin came into to try and stop the rampaging magical girl. None of the three of them struck Raven as all that capable of fighting someone as tough as this. Though what did she know?

Her vision as a bird gave her a pretty clear view of the park at large. The horror in its death throes unleashed a sword made of souls, something her magic made her acutely aware of. "Less than 24 hours and I hate this city already." By this point she didn't know if anything else was going to be thrown their way. Much more teleporting and she was liable to end up with one hell of a headache. Yeah, not happening. She never intended to get mixed up in the whole thing. She would have a word with the twins, only they had no way of knowing what was going to happen. She better get something out of sticking around and saving people's butts. Diving to the ground out of the path of nonsense she transformed and spun with her scepter in hand. "Einherjar, lend me your aid." From the tip of her weapon a wisps of magic would break free from the gem and rush toward the magical girls. The berserker was about to learn from whence the term came.

Feet from the conflict the magic would form and take shape of a full grown woman dressed for war. Charging in the warrior uppercut and drove her shield under Hilaria's head to break her free from the others. The soul blade fast approaching, the attack moved into a grapple, the warrior attempting to maneuver the monstrous girl into the horror's last stand. Being the sole beneficiary of Raven's magic the summoned woman's strength exceeded that of your ordinary human.

Arrows found their mark, Alicia’s contribution to their success as the ability of the Monster Queen to resist was limited more and more. It prevented her feeding on the corpses, and increased her desperation as Amaryllis approached for her own play. At that point the Seraph ceased fire, allowing events to play themselves out.

While she was not entirely sure what had happened from the angle that she had, it looked like it had been painful for Amaryllis. Yet no one could deny the results, as the Queen was purified by the power of the White Coin. Alicia relaxed then as the girl fell from her perch on the ship, and was caught by Leena.

“Good job,” she called to Leena, before shifting towards Amaryllis in turn. “To you as well. I appreciate the willingness to go that far of your own volition. The right path is often not the easiest.”

Of course, lest things be wrapped up too quickly she was confronted with Rachel’s demands. That caused Alicia to pause, looking over those who were present right now for that criteria anyways. Obviously Amaryllis herself wasn’t a part of that, and the lightning using boy who had helped out didn’t seem like he fell under that either. Which just left….pretty much every other non-Beacon member here.

Still, she hesitated. Her bow did not rise as she stepped towards Sil and the others. After all, they had helped. She felt a bit obligated to give them the opportunity to run away before she tried anything. She probably couldn’t have stopped them all if they tried regardless.

Before she had the opportunity to do another, a new arrival and a familiar voice brought her to a halt.

Turning, Alicia’s gaze narrowed as her grip tightened on her bow. Once more, magical wood was put to the test against anger induced strength. So, she had Regeneration and had survived the lightning. A Monster, in both the literal and figurative sense of the word. What she had wanted, had come to pass all along.

What Eden said was basically irrelevant, passing by unnoticed by the Seraph as her fury rose to a breaking point. “You…..” she muttered, tears budding in the corners of her eyes before her voice rose with pointed accusation. “You did this. You killed them!”

No more thinking, no more repression. Now was just action, and anger, a righteous fury that would no longer be sated. “I'll make you pay, you bastard!”

Her wings flared wide, the full brunt of their illumination directed at Eden to blind and disorient her. She knew that the girl had some sort of Regeneration or quick healing, but that was fine. It just meant that Alicia had to keep hitting her until she went down and stayed that way. Any thought of the others present or her instructions had vanished. There was just this fight.

An opening volley followed as she dug into her Blood Magic. Fortunately she had not spent much in the previous fight against that girl and her clones, so she still had a decent amount to draw on. And she would use as much as she had to to make Eden pay.

A palm extended to her bow, four thin beams of light striking out and sweeping across in alternating horizontal swipes. Said beams were spaced that they would create four equal sized Eden sections, though that would have required sustained damage that was unlikely to happen in this situation.

It wasn’t enough, she knew that. Twirling her bow, she let it channel her magical energy to a different part of her body. Wings flapped forwards, casting orbs outwards towards Eden and her immediate vicinity. Some exploded. Others erupted in short range beams of light that provided a chaotic mix to their longer ranged counterpart, though they soon faded. But that was made up for by the sheer quantity.

Was it excessive? Maybe. Did she care? No. Anger flowed through her veins and fueled her actions. Revenge and retribution were the sole motives driving her actions. Whatever it took to avenge their deaths.

“Burn for your sins!” she cried, face contorted with the pure emotions raging through them. Let them burn, until nothing was left.

_{@BrokenPromise@Ariamis@ERode@Crusader Lord@FamishedPants@Vocab}

Faith had screamed.

Oh, what joy was this! A crimson line streaked down her mouth, dropping onto the defeated, injured girl's back as Hilaria savored the taste, lightly shuddering as she did. It still did not compare to Viper, but few things would. Her suffering and flesh were simply divine. Faith could be compared to a quick lunch at a fast-food joint, but could she honestly be called Hilaria if she did not partake of a free meal before her?

Was it anger driving her now, or an insatiable taste for blood? To even Hilaria, it would be impossible to tell. She only understood violence right now, and all that can be assured is that if Faith wasn't dead already, Hilaria's next bite would correct this. The armored berserker dove back in to claim yet more of her flesh when suddenly she found her attempt impeded by a barrier. It immediately cracked and shattered as it resisted her brutal strength, but lasted just long enough for Celia to grab Hilaria's attention.

Far as she was from subtle, the flaming Celia did not go unnoticed and Hilaria raised her hands to catch her, stopping the charge without ceding any ground, in spite of the immense heat the flames were giving off. The searing pain the bands imparted was far worse, and she was built for these sorts of things, after all. Hilaria acted as an immovable wall and Celia, a pebble. And since the two were grappling above Faith, it would have been impossible for Ronin to relocate her downed friend. That is until another pebble was thrown at the wall.

Rather than overpowering Hilaria, what disrupted her most was her head being snapped back by the shield blow, causing her body to also reel back a little. The last bit of the druid's power had now sapped away, and her skin returned to being (mostly) normal, Hilaria's madness the only thing left empowering her. Assuming Celia did not change course, she would find this provided an opportunity to wrap her arms around the berserker's waist, and the two of them successfully would manage to begin pushing her back, clearing the area above Faith and allowing Ronin to continue with her rescue attempt, granted something else didn't interfere.

As she clashed with the two on her, Hilaria either didn't know about or didn't seem to care of the oncoming attack from the dead wolf. Instead, she would try to take one of her clawed hands and dig it into the side of Celia, and both the girls near her would feel a force pulling them into her.