It was a crisp April day in the Big Apple. The last bits of winter’s chill were still in the air, but even a two-foot blizzard wouldn’t stop The City that Never Sleeps. Something that would, however, was on the horizon.

Brittany was getting her daily walk in, with Spark riding in her purse. She often wondered about the looks she’d get if people could actually see her magical mascot, but the dragon was invisible to anyone except magical girls, so it was all a moot point. Suddenly, two things happened at the same time: Spark sniffed the air, and her cell phone rang.

“I think you miiight want to get that, Brit.”

She checked it, and it was an alert. A monster attack? Here, in New York?! I don't think we've ever had one. Central Park... we're close... Spark glanced at his charge. "Alright, Brit. This is it. No more talking, the real deal. You ready?"

A deep breath to steady her nerves. "I am. Magical Girl! Blazing Heart! Burning Bright!

Spark rose up and breathed a jet of flame over her. Inside, her clothes shifted, and she could feel the magic awaken inside her. Finally, the flames subsided, and for the first time, Blazing Heart stood ready to fight evil and protect the innocent.

"Time to go to work."

---

Emma Lawson sighed as she watched Victoria, her daughter, play with her ex-husband's dog, Rex, accompanied by another dog and her owner, the brunette with shoulder-length hair a few years younger than herself.

"Here's your coffee."

A black-haired man with a beard said, as he put down a coffee cup in front of her. The man then looked at Emma, before turning to Victoria, then back to Emma again.

"What? You're staring daggers at them," he asks.

"I'm not staring daggers, just looking," Emma denies. The man sighs, "Yeah, I know. But you got a resting bitch face, you know that, right?"

"Gee, I don't know. It's not like SOMEONE mentioned it like, oh, I don't know, almost every chance he got when we were living together."

"What? You nagged me about my fashion sense all the time. Only seems fair."

"Yeah, well...saying you have a fashion sense is a bit too generous. Let's just put it that way."

"Hey, utility and comfort over style. It ain't too bad of a fashion philosophy."

She sighed, biting back a retort, as she chose to drink the coffee instead. It was good. Exactly how she preferred it.

"Better? Good coffee, right?" the man asked her. Realising she had a smile on her face, she composed herself as she looked away, "W-Well, this IS a cafe business. It's only to be expected you've got good coffee."

"Ah. Geez, still can't just be honest, can you?" The man remarks with an exaggerated sigh as he takes a seat beside her.

Biting back the only because you can be so infuriating at times! retort, Emma—as before—took another sip of her coffee. Despite the trades of witty remarks, there was an understanding between the two that it was mostly not serious, most of the time, anyway. Still, the back-and-forth conversations between them has always reminded Emma of days past, and she was not particularly feeling nostalgic.

Her ex-husband, Richard, spoke again, "Okay, seriously, what's up? I know trading barbs are just what we communicate mostly, but you seem a bit moody today. Something happened on the business trip?"

She shook her head, "No...it's just..." taking another glance at their daughter who was playing with the brunette and their dog, she sighed, "I didn't know she'd be here."

Richard looks at her with confusion, "Caroline? What's wrong? You guys have met before, pretty sure you two hit it off even. Vicky mentioned she wanted to teach Rex new tricks, so I figured I call in Caroline since she's free. Luna—that's her dog—won some sort of competition or something."

Suppressing a twitch of annoyance, Emma sighed again. She knew her former husband didn't do it deliberately. He was just...dense. It was true that it has been about 4 years since they amicably filed for divorce, and they've been cordial since. And yes, she had met his new girlfriend and even made fast friends, but having her here, along with the two of them and their daughter felt...intruding for some reason. It was probably that she just hadn't gotten used to it, after all, objectively speaking it should be no different than having any other friend present, but still, it was...somewhat complicated.

"...Wait, you're not...?" Richard trailed off, leaving the question hanging in the air. Emma denied it immediately, "Nope. Absolutely not. Listen here, it's just—"

Her words got cut off, as she felt a familiar sensation before a voice rang out in her head.

"Emma. I feel a monster just appeared. It's umm...somewhere around that big park near your home?"

It was Faniel, the self-proclaimed Angel of Judgment who had lent her power to Emma so she could become the Magical Girl Inquisitor.

Big Park in Manhattan...Must be Central Park. It's gonna take a bit of time from Brooklyn. Well, with a car, anyway.

"Emm? You all right?" Richard asked her. She nodded, as she took out her phone from her pocket, "Yeah, sorry. Just felt my phone vibrating."

After pretending to look at it for a bit, she schooled her expression into an apologetic one, "Sorry, uh...I have an office emergency. I gotta go, I'll pick Vicky up later tonight."

Richard frowned, "I thought today was your off day because you just went on that business trip."

"It's an emergency. It's kinda in the definition, that usually kinda implied not being planned?"

"Smartass. And here I am worried they're overworking you...Fine, go on then. Don't push yourself though, if it gets too late, I can bring Vicky to your place tomorrow morning."

"Yeah...I'll call you later if it comes to it. Thanks."

After saying goodbye to her daughter—and somewhat more awkwardly to Caroline—Emma drove into the closest parking facility, before ducking away into an empty corner.

She took out her sword-shaped keychain. The keychain shined briefly before what looked like a living angel plushie appeared beside her, floating.

"Ready?" Faniel asked her.

Emma nodded, "Yep."

She then closed her eyes as the keychain shined once more, all the while growing into a real sword as the light enveloped Emma and Faniel. A while later, a winged orange-haired magical girl in silver armour stood where Emma and Faniel were. Neither Emma nor Faniel but an amalgam of the two, Magical Girl Inquisitor.

"...Yet another one of these evil forces. Well then...Beginning the crusade, Deus Vult."

Inquisitor then took off into the sky, garnering some looks as people watched what looked like an angel soaring through the air.

Violet sighed as she massaged the bridge of her nose. Although it was only at its halfway mark, her day had already been replete with an uninterrupted series of board meetings, business meetings, reports from various section heads, and videoconference calls with the CEO of Mishima Motors and the Republic of San Borleo’s President-for-Life. The rest of the day promised to be more of the same, with several additional important meetings, culminating in a fancy dinner with the mayor at one of the city’s most exclusive dining establishments. Yet, at least she could savor this brief, fifteen minute respite as she had her meager lunch of an energy bar and protein shake. It was a time for her to rest her eyes and refocus her mind for the tasks ahead. However, this precious period of peace and quiet was soon interrupted by a sugary sweet voice echoing in her mind.

“Golly gee whiz, sweetie!” the voice exclaimed. “Like, a super duper meanie monster just appeared in that pretty green rectangley place in the middle of your city and is making people super duper unhappy!”

“A monster in central park…?” Violet wondered aloud.

“Yepperoo!” the voice confirmed, its sweet tone filled with urgency. “You, like, have to go there and help them!”

At first, Violet wanted to refuse, to say that some other magical girl could handle it, but then she remembered that there weren’t any other magical girls confirmed to be active in the city. There were rumors, of course, but nothing definitive, which meant she really had no other choice…

“Very well,” the heiress said with a firm nod, before pressing a button on her desk. “Melissa, I shall be indisposed for the next hour,” she told her secretary. “Please inform Amanda that I will need her to represent me at the Polybius Software acquisition review.”

“Of course, Miss Covington,” Melissa replied.

While the acquisition was a major boon that would certainly bolster their video game development subsidiary, Covington Arts’, already prominent position in the electronic entertainment sector, the meeting itself would be a relatively simple affair. Thus, Violet was confident that Amanda, her most trusted and capable subordinate, would be more than up to the task.

After ensuring that she had complete privacy, the heiress took a deep breath and began to recite the incantation that would transform her into her magical alter ego.

“Hearts, Candy, Sparkles, and Balloons~! Teehee~!” Violet began, her mature and stoic voice shifting into a far more childish and cutesy tone with each new syllable as shimmering pink energy swirled around her, completely transforming her body and clothes. “Sunshine, Glitter, Unicorns, and Rainbows~! Taaa daaa~! Magical Girl

is heresie~! (giggle!)”

Upon the completion of her transformation, the hyperactive and whimsical girl the refined heiress had become wasted no time in jumping up and down in childish delight, her big eyes seeming to sparkle with tiny hearts and stars.

“YAAAAY~!!! Playtime waytime in the parky warky~! Playtime waytime in the parky warky~! Tee-hee~!” she cheered, clapping her hands together. “Magical Dream Princess wuvs playtime waytime~! (giggle!)”

However, the small girl’s jubilation quickly turned to confusion.

“But, like, how does Magical Dream Princess get theresie weresie~?” she wondered tilting her head in puzzlement, before grinning broadly as a rainicorn pegasus with butterfly wings suddenly appeared before her.

“Pretty witty horsey worsey~! (giggle!)” the whimsical girl squealed, running over to the colorful creature and giving it a big hug. “Can Magical Dream Princess ride you~?!” she asked excitedly as she rapidly bounced up and down on her short legs. “Can she~?! Can she~?! Can she~?!”

The rainicorn pegasus nodded and winked at her, creating a spray of glitter, which swirled around the giggling girl and lifted her onto the colorful creature’s back.

“YAAAAY~!!! (giggle!)” MDP cheered, before bending over and giving the rainicorn pegasus a big hug. “Oooohh~! So softy wofty~! (giggle!)” the whimsical girl cooed as she nuzzled her mount’s prismatic mane. “Okie dokie, horsey worsy~!” she declared with a big smile. “It’s timey wimey for funsie wunsie, so giddy widdy up~! (giggle!)”

✩✩✩

“WEEEEEEEHEEEHEEEHEEEEE~!!!” MDP cried in unabashed joy as she and her mystical mount sped through the sky, leaving a trail of prismatic glitter in their wake. “Faster waster, horsey worsey~!” she told the rainicorn pegasus, while rapidly kicking her tiny legs against its sides. “Faster waster~! (giggle!)”

The whimsical girl had no idea who or what would be waiting for her when she reached the park, but whatever the case might be, MDP was positive that not only would they want to be friends with her, but they would also have lots and lots fun together!

---

Heidi took another sip of her coffee, and checked her phone. The original plan was for several teacher to meet at this cafe for a chat. However, several of them had had to cancel due to their children, and the whole thing had been called off. Heidi sighed. She had not had great luck with men. She had a few steady boyriends in college, but ever since she became a teacher, she just didn't have the patience to try to get to know men beyond the superficial icks that annoyed her on the first few dates. She used to have so much fun spnding hours chatting to her boyfriends about nerdy things. Now, the last thing she wants after getting home from school is anything interrupting her hard-earned peace and quiet.

A beeping sound came from her handbag. Her instictual thought was that it must be her phone. But she was holding her phone. She opened her handbag to find that the headset was flashing. So, it wasn't a dream. One week ago, a robot really had appeared in her apartment and given her this headset. On some level she knew it was real, every time she fished in her handbag and caught a glimpse of the headset, but she didn't want to think about it. The robot had told her some very outlandish things about her being chosen as a 'champion of Light', and she refused all of its suggestions and instructions at the time. She placed the headset over her ear, and adjusted the mic to the levelof her mouth.

"Apollo, Champion of Light. It is time for you to be called upon as I had forewarned," spoke a monotone robotic voice on the other end. "A Monster of Darkness has appeared nearby and your assistance will be required."

She was about to refuse when an alert displayed on her phone. It was an exactuation order. The monster had appeared in Central Park. It could hurt people, and riculous as all of this business was, if she had the power to help, she was obligated to. Plus, there was a small, deeply buried part of herself that still wanted to be a Magical Girl. She spoke back into the headset.

"I'm on my way. Cyclops, meet me there."

She finished her coffee, and put down the money and her tip onto the empty plate, before getting up from the seat, pocketing her phone and immediately flagging down a passing taxi.

Sienna had gotten herself a well-deserved day off. It was not that she did not love spending time with her children or Arthur, but at the same time, she had reasoned that everyone needs some alone time, which her family graciously gave her. They were safe now, surely hanging out at some sort of arcade or having a fun activity at home, a thought which made her heart ache. Her boys grew up so quickly, after all... in just a couple of months, even her youngest would focus on something else. Even he would get tired of hearing her stories and then she truly would have nothing left.

She should have felt happy about her day. She should have indulged herself with shopping or meeting up with old friends, but Sienna knew it would only make her more miserable. After all, she would have to keep up the facade in front of them, so what was the point? At least she could let her imagination loose as she walked in Central Park, the location giving her some piece of mind. It let her forget about the concrete jungle around her, not to mention that some of the more obscure paths would lead her far away from people. There, Sienna could sit down to think about what to do next.

Her life needed change, that much was clear. She felt she could not last much longer this way, as her creativity wanted, nay, demanded to be set free in some form and while she did indulge in make-believe with her children, not to mention her hidden sacred texts, her efforts were not enough. Her soul yearned for something else; Sienna only had to figure out what it was unless she wanted to rot away in a cage of her own making.

Seeking out a lonely bench, the woman took her seat and set down her bag, taking a drink from her bottle of water. She then closed her eyes to listen to the sounds of Central Park, trying to soothe herself with nature, but... something did not feel right. The more she paid attention to what should have been chirping birds in the background or noises that reflected animal life, the more she realised that there was a deathly quiet in the air. Normally, she would have chalked it up to the quiet before rain, but this felt different. Almost tangible.

"Maybe I should leave?" she wondered out loud, but shook her head. No, she had to get some peace and quie-

Screams echoed. Something smashed and cracked into thousands of pieces. A familiar feeling rose in her heart; a monster attack.

Sienna froze. The screams came from but a hundred or so metres away at most. She could feel them echo in her bones as her imagination conjured a scenario all too familiar: the enemies of humanity appearing out of nowhere, then terrorising people with all their might. And even though she knew the best thing she could do was run away, her legs refused to more. Indeed, Sienna felt as though she had been glued to her bench as claws sunk into her metaphorical heart, eyes shutting as though they could keep away the sounds of panic.

Had one peaceful day been too much to ask for? She only wanted some time to think for herself, but now... she was in danger. And she just could. Not move. Perhaps it was because she had never been so close to an attack, or because she thought of the innocents caught up in it, desperately wishing, no, praying that a magical girl would arrive in time to save people. More importantly, the magical girl would also save her and for a moment, Sienna would get a glimpse of what her life could have been if she had contracted.

She got a book to the face instead, resulting in a completely unintentional backflip that could have won her a figure-skater's award. It happened so quickly that Sienna did not even have the time to cartwheel her arms. The force of the impact spun her in place several times before she landed on her back, splaying out in what could be only called a magnificent T-pose, her eyes spinning from all the spinning involved.

"There is no time to explain, so please make a contract with me before more people get hurt!" Something rather loud and panicked called out near Sienna's face, who was quite busy watching the world revolve around her as though it were a carousel, thank you very much. She certainly had no time, nor the focus necessary to listen to a single word right now, never mind a sentence, an explanation or people getting hurt. After all, stars pretty!

"Oh for... Not again! I thought I had it fixed this time!" The voice complained before something bright filled Sienna's vision and the world stopped spinning.

"Right, let's try again. Sienna Hawthorne, please make a contract with me! Quickly, before the monster grows too big to handle!"

"What?!" she asked, eyes widening as she took in the floating tome before her. For the moment, she even forgot about the monster rampaging in the background as she tried to figure out what was happening.

"Please don't delay! Just know that I'm a mascot and I have chosen you as a magical girl! Now please make a contract with me so we can save those people!" The tome begged her with all of its might and though Sienna doubted herself for a split second, something deep inside of her responded to that call. Perhaps it was her awe for magical girls and the thought of becoming one proved far too overwhelming. Maybe it was her true self, locked away for all this time, screaming for a way out from her ordinary, grey and grey life. Or it could have been her desire to protect her family from harm. Whatever it was, the moment she reached out for the tome, magic started to flow between the two of them.

"Excellent! Normally, I'd give you the introductions, but I'm afraid we don't have time for that, so you'll have to learn on the fly. Please just think of a name and an appearance, fixate them in your mind, then let the magic do the work for you." Even though the tome blitzed through the explanation, Sienna understood it and did as asked... but unfortunately, while the book's spiel had worked on dozens upon dozens of magical girls before her, Sienna was an adult woman who just happened to possess the imagination of someone half her age.

"Wait... what's happening?" Motes of sickly yellow light started to gather around Sienna as she formed the picture of what she wanted to become. "I... don't think this... this is the right colour..." The skies darkened as magic gathered in the air. "Why... the heck... how... unprecedented..." The grass around Sienna's feet started to wither. "Sieanna Hawthorne, please stop!"

Too late.

With an explosion of sickly yellow, a new magical girl was born in Central Park. And her name was...

"How foolish of you, enemies of humanity, that you have not counted upon the arrival of my magnificent self... for I, Her Eternally Exalted Excellency, The Diligent Dealer of Death, Decay and Devastation, The Righteous Regent who Reminisces of Ravaging Rebellions with Relentless Rows of Revenants, Magicae Mortem Puellae Quae Dominatur Arcem Loculis, shall render onto you the greatest gift which can be offered by entropy: death!"

Something that any well to do traveler will try once in their life is staying at a hotel. Nothing really beats sleeping in a clean bed, especially when the hosts keep the place tidy. Though such establishments are far from economic, and they let you know it any way they can. Red carpets, raised ceilings, and seats with uniquely shaped cushions that beg you to comment on how fancy they are. Those are just some of the cosmetic designs for the main lobby. Others will go a step above and provide art pieces, ornate chandeliers, nothing was too pretentious. There was a certain allure to being the most luxurious hotel in a city, and the competition was fierce in a place like New York. The Big Apple had everything provided you had the cash.

Isra Mahmud decided to check in at the recently constructed “New York Ambrosia.” The Ambrosia wasn’t any more luxurious than any of the other super luxury hotels. It offered a great view of the city, top tier room service, and was expensive enough to keep all but the elite from entering its glass doors. Those were all nice features, but what sold Isra on it was its proximity to other places of interest. There was a bus station nearby that regularly made routes to Cherry Grove Beach, and also made bar hopping while enjoying New York’s nightlife a lot easier. The Ambrosia also had an indoor swimming pool, and the hotel’s exclusivity meant that it was never crowded. With any luck, she’d be able to party like she did when she visited Cancun.

Well, maybe not quite that hard.

But that was for later. For now, Isra was still recovering from her trip. She was reclining in a Jacuzzi with the water jets turned up to full. In addition to this, she had dropped no less than four bath bombs into the water with her. They tumbled through the water, rolling from jet to jet as they hissed and filled the tub with bubbles. Different colored soaps mixed underwater while their fragrances mixed in the air. Strawberry, Banana, Lime, Evergreen. Maybe that last one should have stayed out, but she still thought it smelled fine.

But Isra wasn’t here to just enjoy herself. This was very much a business trip, and her boss was never too far away.

Ira’s eyes wandered over to her make up mirror, which was vibrating just a few inches away from her head. She knew better than to keep her boss waiting. She reached for the make up mirror and flipped it open. Sure enough, there on the mirror’s reflective surface was a tiny scientist, and not just because they were appearing on a three inch round mirror.

”Doctor."

“Bath time’s over, Isra,” Doctor Nykannis, Queen of the Mad Scientists, told the bathing beauty with a maniacal smirk. “Another monster has just appeared in Central Park, and as usual, I want you to retrieve its Heart Crystal before any other magical girls show up and make a nuisance of themselves. Remember, the acquisition of those crystals is your top priority,” the Monarch of Mad Science noted with a raised finger. “But as long as it doesn’t compromise that objective, feel free to flaunt your reality plenum-shattering, Challenger-grade, super-scientific abilities to your heart’s content, preferably by making a certain pink princess of dreams bawl her pathetic little eyes out. Anyways, that’s all for now. As always, I’ll be watching your performance, so make sure not to disappoint me.”

With that, the image of the diminutive doctor winked out.

”Huh."

This was how most “conversations” with the wise scientist seemed to go. She would appear, make a specific, if verbose request, and then hang up without waiting for a reply. She chose to ignore all the red flags in her message, like how she knew she was taking a bath or the involvement of multiple other magical girls. Isra had to wonder if she had become the star of a reality TV show and just didn’t know it yet. Maybe things would make more sense after she encountered the “pink princess of dreams.” But that was unlikely. If anything, things had been making less sense as she went along. But she got to live like a princess every day so it was hard to care.

It did seem like her bath would have to wait. That was fine. The room would be waiting for her when she got back, and the fun of bath bombs watching them dissolve anyway. But now it was time to transform. She stood up, and the bubbles clinged to her body in such a way as to not get this RP locked by the mod staff. She then started to dance. Her hips shifted left, then right, Her arms were locked and she waved her fists up and down in front of herself, like she was shining someone’s boot. And then…

Her body burst into a hundred metal scarabs and raced into the ventilation system. The bath bombs finished dissolving, but the Jacuzzi’s jets continued to run.