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Chapter Five-
Say Goodbye


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“So, what did ya think?!” Nykannis asked once the final episode of Beautiful Guardian Gunslinger Alexis had concluded. “Pretty awesome, right?!”

“Well, it may not have been as whimsical as my favorite magical girl shows, but it was still quite enjoyable,” Violet replied. “Although, Xylannis seemed to be nothing more than a fictional version of yourself.”

“Damn straight!” Nykannis confirmed with a grin. “That’s what makes her the best character!”

“If you say so…” Violet replied. “In any case, thank you for letting me see it. As an avid follower of magical girl series, I’m honestly surprised I’ve never heard of it before.”

“There’s a very good reason for that,” Nykannis explained. “It doesn’t actually exist in your universe.”

“What?”

“It’s from another universe,” Nykannis reiterated. “One that’s over a hundred and fifty years further along the timeline than your own. So even if yours does get its own version, it probably won’t be made for another few decades, at least. Then again…” she muttered thoughtfully. “There are analogs of certain individuals from that universe in this one, existing over a century before their counterparts’ births, so maybe it’ll be sooner than that…”

“Another universe?” Violet echoed, her eyes widening in amazement. “So there really is a multiverse out there…”

“You bet your sparkly ass there is!” Nykannis confirmed. “In fact, if you like cute things so much, I have just the person to help me prove it!”

Tapping a small holoconsole, Nykannis brought up an image depicting several clusters of shimmering spheres, grouped in such a way as to almost resemble trees.

“I surreptitiously inserted a tracking device into the inner workings of his Syllogismobile, so I’m able to follow his various wanderings with pinpoint accuracy,” Nykannis explained. “He makes for such a wonderful source of amusement,” she added with a smirk. “Almost as entertaining as that clockwork kid in Esper Land. Hmmm… It looks like he’s transitioning to a new reality plenum right now. Let’s see where he ends up… Oh, wow!” the mad scientist exclaimed when one of the spheres began to emit a golden glow. “He’s going there?!” A few more taps on her holoconsole, and the image on the main display shifted to a candle-lit corridor inside what looked to be a gothic castle. A stunningly beautiful young woman in a sparkling blue evening robe was walking down it, followed closely by an oversized… bedsheet ghost? With tentacles…? “Nyahahaha!” Nykannis cackled in maniacal glee.

“What are we even looking at?” Violet inquired.

“Oh, you’ll see, Princess!” Nykannis replied. “This is gonna be great!”




Meets




“Hasn’t tonight been simply wonderful, darling?!” the blonde beauty was saying to her sizable companion as she walked along the corridor. “All the various games and activities were immensely enjoyable, and the ambiance is positively enchanting!” she continued to gush, a dazzling smile spreading across her lovely face as she spread her arms wide to encompass their somewhat creepy surroundings. “I only wish we had been able to see a real ghost…” the fair maiden added, her smile drooping into a slight frown of disappointment. “Oh well… Perhaps we’ll have better luck in the art roo… Hm?” she inquired as a steadily growing hum caught her attention. “Whatever could that be?”

The azure-clad maiden’s query was answered a moment later as, with a loud “*VOP!*”, a faint, spinning shape began to slowly materialize a short distance ahead of her.

“I-I don’t believe it, darling!” she cried happily. “An actual ghost!”

As it came into better focus, the blonde beauty saw that the strange, shimmering, semi-transparent object appeared to resemble a gyroscope, and was about the size of an easy chair, or small desk. At its center was what looked to be a control panel of some sort, and a small, cushioned chair. However, it was the figure sitting in that chair that caused the lovely lady to gasp in amazement.

“Oh my goodness! It’s a little dog!” she exclaimed, her enchanting visage taking on a look of delighted wonderment. “A little ghost dog! Oh, and I simply love his outfit! It’s positively adorable! Oh, gosh, darling!” she added as a thought occurred to her. “Do you think he’s a friend of Winston’s?!”

“I do apologize, my dear young lady,” an almost comically refined voice spoke up. “But I am afraid I have yet to make the acquaintance of anyone by that name. Moreover, I have just now arrived in this reality plenum for the first, and quite probably last, time. Thus, I believe the odds of my knowing any of its residents to be exceedingly slim. Furthermore, I am most assuredly not a ghost!”

“Y-You can talk?!” the blonde beauty gasped in astonishment.

“Why of course I can talk, my good lady,” the dog replied. “Why are so many people so astounded by that fact? Oh! But where are my manners? I’ve been babbling away for nearly half a minute, and I’ve yet to introduce myself! A thousand pardons!” Removing his top hat, and giving a small bow, he continued. “Parrthineas E. Doxxon the First , at your service! But you may call me Parr, for short.”

“I-It’s very nice to make your acquaintance, Parr,” the fair maiden replied with an elegant curtsy, before kneeling down to get a better look at both the strange canine and his even stranger contraption. “I’m Olivia Bell, aka Magical Maiden Ethereal Rose, but you can just call me Olivia,” she told him. “And this dashing gentleman behind me is my darling Xolys,” she added, gesturing to the towering bedsheet ghost.

“Thyerg’Xolys, Master of Xhar’doth,” the looming figure intoned in an otherworldly, but still exceedingly polite voice. “It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance as well,” he added with a bow.

“Likewise!” Parr replied, holding out his paw for them to shake.

However, when Olivia reached out to take it, she found that her hand completely passed through the offered appendage, causing the fair maiden to give voice to a startled gasp.

“Goodness me!” Parr exclaimed. “It would appear that I am still somewhat out of phase… Haven’t quite ‘settled in’ yet, as it were,” he added with a chuckle.

“Settled in?” Olivia repeated, looking quite perplexed.

“Into this reality plenum,” he clarified. “That is to say, this universe.”

“Y-You’re from a different… universe?

“Quite correct, Miss Olivia,” Parr confirmed. “You see, I am something of a traveler, although I must admit, not entirely of my own volition.”

“Whatever do you mean?”

“Well, it all began quite some time ago, in a universe most distant,” Parr explained. “I had taken up a professorship at my old alma mater, Fae Creek Academy, and was hard at work on a recreation of my esteemed father’s greatest invention, the Far Prior Machine, when I had a most fascinating conversation with a visiting scientist. Seeing that I had reached something of an impasse in my efforts, they encouraged me to start work on a new project, one completely unrelated to the accomplishments of my renowned progenitor. Thus, inspired by their tales of the vast omniverse in which all possibilities exist and where even works of fiction can be found as fully manifested realities, I resolved to create a conveyance capable of reaching any world I could dream of, and this is the result of that endeavor,” he announced, gesturing to the strange contraption in which he sat. “The Syllogismobile!”

“Oh wow!” Olivia exclaimed, her eyes seeming to glitter with wonderment. “That sounds absolutely fascinating!”

“Indeed it is, Miss Olivia!” Parr agreed. “Unfortunately, my trans-plenumic engineering skills weren’t quite up to the task, and upon activating my cross world conveyance for the first time, I found myself utterly lost, adrift on the turbulent tides of the vast omnidimensional ocean! Now I travel from plenum to plenum, in the hopes that I might some day return to my home universe.”

“T-That’s so very awful!” Olivia cried, her azure eyes beginning to glisten as tears welled up.

“Now, now,” Parr consoled her. “My current predicament, while indeed troubling, is not without its benefits. After all, I do so love exploring, and I now find myself with ample opportunities for such activities!” he noted with a chuckle. “With that in mind, I would be most grateful if you could enlighten me about my present surroundings.”

“Oh! Um, of course!” Olivia replied. “I would be happy to! This is Marrywell Academy, a school for Magical Girls in London, England,” Olivia explained. “Although we’re currently in a castle next to the school that Miss Valeria created for our slumber party,” she added.

“My word!” Parr exclaimed. “This entire edifice was constructed just for a slumber party?”

“Yes, that’s right!” Olivia confirmed happily. “Miss Valeria is so very talented when it comes to building things, so when she found out that my friend Bonnie and I were planning a sleepover in the possibly-haunted music room, she completely demolished it and constructed this lovely castle in its place, all in one night!”

“How extraordinary!”

“It really is!” Olivia agreed with an enthusiastic nod. “Especially since we didn’t know she was the one responsible at first, so I thought that perhaps the rumors about the music room’s haunted piano sending people to another world were true, and that, instead of sending us there, it brought the castle here! Oh! But even if that wasn’t the case, there must still be some truth to it, because you’re from another world yourself!”

“Ah, but I arrived here via my Syllogismobile, and not the transdimensional tune of an enchanted piano,” Parr corrected. “Although it is quite a fascinating coincidence, I must admit!”

“But what if the piano was what drew you to this universe?” Olivia persisted. “You said yourself that you have no control over your destination.”

“Perhaps,” Parr conceded. “But did you not say that the music room was completely demolished?” he asked. “Would not the piano have been destroyed along with it?”

“Well, since it’s a haunted piano, then maybe its ghost is still around,” Olivia suggested.

“A most intriguing possibility, to be sure,” Parr noted. “Though in any case, I must inquire if your universe possesses any means by which I might be allowed to return to my universe of origin,” he added. “You mentioned that this was a learning institution for Magical Girls, correct? And if they are anything like the students of Fae Creek Academy, then they are no doubt in possession of a vast and varied array of intriguing abilities, so would you happen to know if any of your classmates, or faculty members, for that matter, have the capability to transverse the plenumic barrier?”

“Um, well, the students and teachers here have all sorts of amazing powers, but I’m not sure if any of them can travel to different universes…” Olivia replied with an uncertain frown. “And I don’t really know every student and teacher here, so maybe if there’s someone here with a Grimoire involving travel to another world…” she mused. “Maybe someone with an Alice in Wonderland Grimoire?”

“Grimoire?”

“Oh, they’re the enchanted storybooks that give Magical Girls their powers,” Olivia explained. “Do things work differently in other universes?”

“Indeed they do,” Parr replied. “In fact, magical powers are entirely absent in some universes, and even when they do exist, their methods of operation vary quite drastically. For instance, in one particularly peculiar universe, certain young ladies are able to wield remarkable mystical powers, but only until they receive their license to operate a motorized conveyance, at which point, their abilities completely vanish!”

“Gosh… That does sound rather inconvenient,” Olivia noted. “And speaking of inconvenient, now that I think about it, Alice didn’t really have a great deal of control over her travels, so an Alice in Wonderland Grimoire probably wouldn’t work… Oh! But maybe someone who’s good with machines would be better? Someone who could make something like your Syllogismobile!”

“Someone like this Miss Valeria?” Parr inquired.

“Yes!” Olivia confirmed. “She can be a little intense, but I’m sure once we explain things, she’ll be more than happy to—”

“I do not believe it would be wise to seek out Miss Valeria at the present time,” Xolys advised. “She appeared to be rather… occupied when last we saw her.”

“Oh gosh, darling! You’re right!” Olivia noted. “She did say something about having a secret planning session with Charlotte, so we probably shouldn’t interrupt them. Who knows what exciting new activities they’re setting up for us?! Maybe turning the art room into a haunted art gallery, where the paintings come to life?!”

“Dear me, that sounds like the most delightful fun!” Parr declared. “And fret not, Miss Olivia,” he added. “I can simply run a quick scan to determine if this reality plenum can indeed provide the assistance I require.”

With that, the dapper canine produced a wand-like device, featuring four spinning protrusions with a small glowing sphere at the end of each. Three additional, slightly glowing, prongs sat atop it, and as he slowly moved the device across the surrounding area, a faint wedge of golden energy extended from them. After the beam had made a full 360 degree sweep of the corridor, Parr examined a small readout on the lower portion of the device.

“Hmm… Yes, yes, I see…” he murmured. “Well, that is rather disappointing, but not entirely unexpected,” he noted, returning his attention to Olivia once more.

“So, you didn’t find anything that might help?” the blonde beauty inquired.

“No, I regret to say I did not,” Parr replied. “Yet, I would not say my visit here was entirely bereft of value. After all, I was provided the opportunity to meet a most charming young lady and her imposing consort,” he added with a wink. “Now then, it would appear that the possibility particles by which my conveyance is powered are almost fully replenished, but before I depart, I should like to learn a little more about you and your fellow students. That said, would you be so kind as to answer a few questions?”

“Oh, of course!” Olivia agreed with a nod. “What would you like to know?”

“Most splendid!” Parr declared, clapping his paws together excitedly. “To begin, you had mentioned that magical powers were bestowed by enchanted storybooks in this universe, and I was curious as to what your tale might be.”

“It’s an altered version of Beauty and the Beast, Olivia replied. “It’s a story about an imperiled maiden, who gets transported to another world and is saved from some horrible villains by a gorgeous creature. She and the creature become the closest of friends, and she decides to stay with him for the rest of her life.”

“What a fascinating tale! And I assume Master Xolys is the creature in question?”

“Yes, that’s right!” Olivia acknowledged.

“How very interesting…” Parr mused. “In that case,” he added, turning to gaze up at Xolys’s towering form. “Are you the same being from the original tale, or simply a recreation of him, formed via the magic of the tome?”

“I am indeed the same being,” Xolys confirmed. “As a pandimensional entity, I am capable of transcending time and space, allowing me to exist in multiple realities simultaneously, albeit only via the link of an enchanted storybook. Thus, I cannot travel the myriad reality plenums freely, nor can I enable my dearest Olivia to visit Xhar’doth, no matter how much we both might wish it,” he added, tenderly wrapping a tendril around the fair maiden’s elegant hand.

“I see… And this maiden from the tale, she was the Olivia of your prime universe, correct?”

“Yes,” Xolys replied with a nod. “We share a special bond, she and I. Throughout all the realities in which I exist, she is present as well,” he explained, while Olivia smiled up at him. “Thus, our connection shall always remain.”

“My word! How sublimely beautiful!” Parr gushed as a tear glistened in his eye.

“Do you have a special someone Parr?” Olivia asked.

“Thankfully, I do not,” the canine traveler replied after wiping his eye with a handkerchief. “I can only imagine the anguish they would feel at my sudden disappearance, waiting and wondering when, or even if, I would ever return! Still, I was fortunate to have many dear friends, like my old roommates, Miss Sarah and Miss Mela,” he added with a wistful smile. “They both had such intriguing abilities!”

“What could they do?”

“Well, Miss Sarah could shapeshift into any animal, while Miss Mela could turn into an apple!”

“An… apple? Olivia asked with a confused frown.

“Yes, indeed!” Parr confirmed. “A talking apple, with a face and everything! It was really quite extraordinary!”

“Gosh, that must have been quite something!” Olivia marveled. “I know someone who can turn into a tiger, but I never considered someone turning into a fruit or vegetable before… It doesn’t really seem like it would be particularly helpful…”

“You know, if memory serves, I believe she actually started life as an apple, so it would perhaps be more accurate to say she was able to turn into a human,” Parr noted. “Oh, but since we’re on the subject of abilities, what are some of the magical talents of your classmates?”

“Let’s see… There’s Wilhelmina who can summon ghost sailors and enhance the abilities of her allies, Chinami can become a very powerful knight, Tesni can summon a staff that can grow very large, Nessie can control water, and my roommate, Suzuya, can turn into a fox girl with lots of really soft tails and fire magic! Oh! And then there’s Miss Reinhardt! She can actually improve the capabilities of our Grimoires! It’s just too bad her power only works on enchanted storybooks… Otherwise, she might have been able to help fix your Syllogismobile…”

“Fear not, Miss Olivia,” Parr reassured her. “I have no doubt that I shall one day cross paths with someone who can provide the solution I seek! In fact, the wise scientist who inspired me to construct my Syllogismobile in the first place was an accomplished omniversal traveler herself, so there is even a chance she may be the the one to help me return home at long last!”

“Oh, gosh, I truly hope so!”

“As do I! And now, Miss Olivia, Master Xolys, I must bid you both a fond farewell! With luck, we may yet cross paths again at some point in the future! Tally ho!”

An instant later, there was the sound of a loud “*VOP!*”, and the next thing the blonde beauty and her sizable companion knew, both Parr and his Syllogismobile had vanished without a trace.

“Oh my goodness, darling! That was absolutely amazing! Olivia gushed. “Oh, I simply cannot wait to tell Suzuya all about it!” she added with a happy giggle, before sobering slightly. “I only hope Parr can find his way home soon… I know he enjoys exploring new places, but I could tell he misses his old friends a great deal.”

“I am sure that in the fullness of time, he shall indeed attain that goal, my sweet,” Xolys told her gently.

“You’re right, darling. And who knows? Maybe his friends are searching for him right now! I’d like to think that’s what our friends would do if we ever got lost in the omniverse, and I’m just so happy we’ve made so many wonderful ones in our short time here at Marrywell!”

“Yes, the decision to come here has truly brought with it a great many blessings, indeed,” Xolys agreed. “It pains me greatly to think of all the years you were forced to spend bereft of friendship, and thus, I am so profoundly happy that you have been granted such admirable companions at long last, my sweetest rose.”

“Thank you, darling,” Olivia said, standing on her tiptoes to give him a kiss. “And just think! If all this could happen at the site of the old music room, imagine how much fun a sleepover in the art room will be!”




“NYAHAHAHA!!!” Nykannis cackled as she deactivated the interdimensional viewer. “He’s such an IDIOT!!! That stupid mutt seriously thinks he’s gonna get help from the same person who sabotaged his pathetic little contraption to BEGIN with! Nyahahahaha!”

“And I take it that person was you? Violet asked pointedly.

“Of COURSE it was!” Nykannis replied between bouts of maniacal laughter.

Why?

“Because it’s fucking hilarious! He actually succeeded in building a fully functional Syllogismobile, and he STILL hasn’t figured out what I did to it! It’d be SO painfully easy to fix, too! Yet here he is, blindly going from world to world, hoping that he’ll just happen run into a person who can actually help him. And the REALLY great part is, when he finally DOES, he’ll realize just how much of a colossal moron he really is, and even THAT probably won’t break him, because he’s just THAT FUCKING CLUELESS!!! Nyahahaha! See?! It’s comedic genius!”

“No,” Violet corrected in an icy tone. “It’s sadism.

“Whatever,” Nykannis replied flippantly. “I wouldn’t expect a goody-two-shoes like you to understand. Anyway, I think we’re done here,” the mad scientist added, while hopping off her command chair.

“Is this the part where you erase my memory?” Violet inquired with a notable lack of concern.

“Normally, yes,” Nykannis confirmed. “But I’ve decided it would probably be best if I held off on that,” she added. “See, I’ve been thinking, Princess, and I’ve come to the conclusion that if I did go through with wiping your mind, somehow, someone would find out about it. That’s just the way things work in this reality plenum, especially where your girlfriend is concerned. And that’d be considerably worse for me than if I just let you leave as-is, so that’s what I’m gonna do.”

“How very magnanimous of you,” Violet replied in her typical cool tone.

“I’d like to think so,” Nykannis agreed, completely ignoring the heiress’s sarcasm. “Although I’d appreciate it if you never speak a word about anything that happened to you today.”

“There is no need to worry about that,” Violet replied. “I believe we have suitably reconciled, and as such, you have my solemn vow that I shall never reveal any of the actions you felt justified to take against me.” Then, smiling broadly, and giving a playful wink, she added. “Like, it’ll be our super duper special wecial secret wecret~! (giggle!)”

“Yeah, I think it’s time for you to go,” Nykannis muttered, while opening a crackling portal.

“And this will take me back to Penrose?” Violet asked.

“Yep,” Nykannis confirmed. “To the same rooftop you met Phase Two on. Although…” she added, pulling up a small holo display. “I might know of an even better destination…”










Even as her botanical barrage laid waste to the club soldiers and their armored vehicles, Gaia’s eyes widened in a mixture of shock and horror as she watched the vine tendrils she’d sent to ensnare the scarecrow be corrupted by the bizarre monster and turned against her.

“W-What?!” the verdant maiden gasped as the twisted vines wrapped around her and then began swiftly draining away her mana. “H-How is this even possible?!”

A feeling of profound exhaustion flooded the nymph-like beauty’s rapidly weakening body, while her once vibrantly green skin dulled to a sickly pale brown and her luxurious emerald tresses withered into dry, brittle, blackened strands. Indeed, it felt as though her very life force was being sucked away, and it wasn’t long before she was struggling just to breathe. However, just when it seemed like she was about to pass out, Gaia heard a voice calling to her. A moment later, comforting arms were holding her in a protective embrace, the mystic power flowing through them filling her with energy and vitality once more. Sighing in welcome relief, the verdant maiden watched as her rescuer’s power disintegrated the corrupted vines in a flash of emerald light, even as a small, mouse-eared girl moved in to eat engage the scarecrow.

“You are most welcome, Annabelle,” Gaia told her fellow Wood Mage with a warm smile when the girl thanked her for taking such good care of her sunflowers. “And thank you for saving me from that hideously corrupted foliage,” she added, gripping her staff and taking up position next to Annabelle. “It would be my great honor to fight these defilers of Mother Earth at your side!”

Looking out over the battlefield, Gaia saw that Mayra had recovered from her earlier soaking, and was now augmenting the botanical bombardment with fire magic.

“Good thinking, Mayra,” the verdant maiden told her draconic friend. “I am most grateful for your assistance as well!”

Charging up Nature’s Blossom with mystic power, Gaia was just about to fire off a blast, when she heard Justine call out. Not only had the flyers penetrated their defenses, but they were also armed with bombs…

“Connie!” Gaia called over her ear piece. “Airborne troops have breached the barrier and are dropping bombs on the town! Get to the evac shelter as fast as you can!” she instructed. “And I thought you said you could handle them, Justine!” she added with an annoyed scowl as she aimed her staff at one of the spade soldiers and fired a condensed blast of emerald energy. Hopefully, it would be strong enough to not only eliminate her aerial adversary, but also push him away from the town to explode over his fellow soldiers…

Meanwhile, the power boost provided by the Angel of Hope allowed the new arrivals to finally finish off the strange, armless girl.

“You are most welcome, valiant champion!” the heavenly beauty told Nefer after the Egyptian-styled girl thanked her for the help, the cheeks of her radiant visage reddening slightly in response to the mysterious maiden’s flirty wink. “It brings this humble servant such great joy to know that her meager assistance was put to such splendid use!”

However, her jubilation was short-lived.

From her vantage point high above the battle, the Angel watched its latest developments unfold with increasing concern. Even though a vast number of enemies had been eliminated, the Wonderlanders’ artillery bombardment continued, causing a breach in the barrier that a squad of flying spade troopers had slipped through to wreak havoc on the town.

Fuck… That blood magic bitch is clearly no match for these guys. I mean, they’ve got rotary cannons and rocket launchers, for shit’s sake! And here I am, forced to be a useless fucking pacifist! Well, at least I can try to save some of these kind and helpful souls from these vile villains’ senseless savagery!

Waving her radiant staff over the besieged town, she sent a swarm of glowing spheres racing towards each of those working to evacuate the populace. The barriers they generated would not be particularly strong, but they would serve as adequate protection from shrapnel or flaming debris.

That should help for the time being. Still, I would have thought Miss ‘One Woman Army’ would have made it to the artillery by now… What the fuck’s taking her so long?

While all this was transpiring, Connie was trying to overcome one of her biggest challenges- socializing with someone she’d never met before. Thankfully, even in light of her clear nervousness, things seemed to be going rather well, with the ghost boy finding her timid and anxious nature endearing. However, before their conversation could get too far, the pair heard Justine’s warning about the flying spade soldiers, which was immediately followed by said soldiers opening fire on everyone below with an assortment of powerful weapons.

“Eeep!” Connie yelped in startled surprise as Oliver scooped her up and began running to the evac shelter even as a nearby building exploded. A moment later, she heard Gaia through her ear piece, telling her to get to safety. “I-I-I k-know!” she told her worried friend in a panicked and shaky voice. “I-I’m o-on m-m-my w-way t-there r-r-right n-n-now!” she added, the attacking soldiers, coupled with the fact that she was currently being held in the arms of someone she had only just met, bringing her nervousness to a fever pitch. Indeed, she had only ever been carried in such a way on precious rare occasions, and never by a boy! Needless to say, the chalk white cheeks of her mask seemed to be turning a brighter shade of crimson with each passing second. And although the shelter did seem to be the safest place in town, Connie could only wonder how long that would remain the case…




As it happened, help for that particular problem was on the way, even if their sense of urgency left a little something to be desired. Thankfully for all concerned, they were about to receive a bit of unexpected assistance…

As the Beacon quartet’s enchanted van sped along, those inside would hear an annoyingly high-pitched voice cheerfully call out, “Hyiiiiiiieee~!” A moment later, a colorful rainicorn pegasus pulled up beside the vehicle’s passenger window, with a smiling pink-haired girl riding atop it. “Like, Magical Dream Princess heard that this towny wowny with a really funny namey wamey that Magical Dream Princess totally wotally forgot is in lots and lots of trouble wouble, and, like, you need to get there super duper fasty wasty, so, like, she’s heresie weresie to helpy welpy~! (giggle!)” the whimsical girl declared. “But, like, she needs your helpy welpy, too~! So, like, if everybodywody thinky winkies super duper happy wappy thoughts about getting to the towny wowny right nowie, Magical Dream Princess can, like, makey wakey a magical wagical dreamy weamy portal wortal thingie wingie to take you right theresie in a blinky winkie~! (giggle!)”




Back at Bolorton, a concealed spade soldier was taking aim on Gaia even as she blasted his squad mate. However, before he could fire, a baleful beam of yellowy-green incandescent annihilation stripped the skin from his bones and then his bones from existence, until all that was left was a wisp of dissipating dust on the wind. Simultaneously, a series of crackling nega-matter vortices tore open inside a half dozen approaching tanks, savagely twisting and warping them into inconceivable geometries as the very fabric of reality itself was brutally rent asunder. In mere seconds the once imposing war machines had become little more than knotted strings of metal, scarcely thicker than a human hair…

“Hey, guys,” an amused voiced called out. Need a little help?
Banter and Boardgames


It was honestly rather surprising to Ashley that Veronica seemed so nonchalant about letting her go off into the darkness and play board games, of all things, with one of the most infamous Depraved espers on the planet. Even if she was only doing so to make sure Gale was safe (even more so, now that the bluenette had begun laughing like a complete lunatic), the Knight of Tomorrow would have expected Veronica, head of GEMINI operations in Pax Septimus, to at least be fairly antagonistic towards Oros, and yet, they had interacted as if they were old acquaintances, perhaps even friends! In fact, even with the harp and it’s mysterious owner still laying on the ground, unsecured, Veronica had chosen to depart, trusting the remaining agents to handle the matter, almost as if Oros was a fellow agent herself…

Could that really be the case? Ashley wondered. Is Oros actually a deep undercover agent?

Regardless, with nearly everyone present being dangerously low on mana, and thus in no position to resume hostilities, it seemed a relatively moot point, although that still didn’t make its possible implications any less unnerving. And the same could be said of the lingering darkness…

“Do you happen to know why this darkness hasn’t gone away yet?” Ashley asked Oros. “I thought it would have cleared up once the Diver was defeated.”

”You thought wrong, clearly." Oros stretched her arms out with a groan. ”You know how when a monster stabs you the wound persists even after they’re slain? This must be the same way. The diver’s magic didn’t darken the sky, their magic did something that darkened the sky. It’ll clear up eventually. Probably."

”Of course it will!” Stacy said with a level of certainty children used when talking about santa. ”As bad as things get in Pax Septimus, they always bounce right back! Now, does anyone have a place where we can play board games? I have the games, buuuuuuuut I don’t think most places are going to have power.”

Marrie didn’t respond right away, fidgeting with her clip light a little for a moment, before finally saying, ”Should be able to get a generator from a store if we need. I don’t really know of anywhere with its own power supply.”

“I suppose that would work,” Ashley replied. As it happened, she did know of at least one place that would have a backup generator, but she highly doubted one of the most wanted espers in the world would be welcome inside GEMINI HQ…

”You girls are something else! I thought you’d be against stealing a generator." Oros shrugged her shoulders. ”Though it does look like the end of the world. I doubt anyone will really care if we borrow a generator for a time. Just gotta get some gas or something to power it up. It’ll be an adventure!"

Stacy threw her arms into the air. ”Like the zombie apocalypse!”

”Sort of, yea." Oros gazed into her sword. ”Why don’t we drop by the local Wally World? Any supercenter worth their salt should be a one-stop-shop for everything we need. It’ll even save Stacy a trip home to get her board games."

”I was intending to pay for it, but I guess that most people wouldn’t really care given the circumstances.”

Although Ashley hated to say it, Oros actually had a good idea. Well, except for the whole “steal the generator” bit. “You know, we don’t even have to take it out of the building,” the Knight of Tomorrow spoke up. “We could play our board games in Wally World itself,” she suggested. “Don’t you think that might have a better, um, ambiance, anyway?”

”Yes, I think the inside of a Wally World would have a bit less blood and such. Even though red is kind of a romantic color." Oros placed a hand on Marrie’s shoulder. ”And we can, like, leave some money or some shit if that makes you happy."







Maybe Oros’s plan wasn’t that great after all.

Turns out, all those plagues happening one after the other tend to drive people to places of safety. Not only were people flocking to Wally World, but many of the patrons there refused to leave. Many had taken out electric lanterns and were “camping” in various corners of the store. Others were trying to call loved ones or eating produce right in the isles.

”Well, whatever." Oros groaned. She placed a shopping bag filled with junk food on a picnic table. It was for sale, but the scrambling employees were more concerned with restoring power and managing other customers. ”You guys get everything you wanted?"

”Yup!” Stacy had gone shopping for some board games, which were piled at one end of the table. ”I’m just going to need a moment to set something up. I don’t normally play with so many people.”

Marrie had found a few electrical lamps, similar to what some other people were using, and brought them over. ”Are we still going to play here, then?” she asked.

“I think that’s our best option,” Ashley replied. “We’re in something of an out of the way corner, so as long as we keep to ourselves, I don’t think anyone will bother us.”

At least, I hope not…


It also technically wasn’t stealing if nothing left the store.

”What’s a good ice breaker?" Oros popped open a bag of chips. ”So Marrie, what sort of stuff do you do for fun? You don’t strike me as the sort who lives to be an esper."

”Ah, well..” Marrie looked around, sort of at a loss. It’d been a long time since she’d gotten to explain her passions. ”I’m sort of a computer nerd, and I love art. Especially, like, drawings and paintings. I’m not… the greatest or anything, but I don’t know many artists who are proud of their own work, heh. She nearly continued, but figured that explaining that most of her work was either written fanfiction or sketches of said fanfiction wouldn’t be the best way to start off a conversation like this. ”Honestly, aside from tracking Justin’s stuff, I haven’t had time to really do much of anything other than esper work recently. Plus, even if I didn’t need the income from it, I had to help out Stacy and Pac-a-Fist, since… Yeah. So I’ve had a lot of stuff coming before having fun on the priority list.”

”That’s a shame. I’ll have to look at something you made sometime." Oros grinned.

Ashley shot an annoyed glare at Oros when the pink-haired girl casually revealed what was apparently Gale’s real name, but as she listened to Marrie describe her hobbies and lack of time to pursue them, the Knight of Tomorrow realized that not only did the bluenette not seem to care about the revelation, but secret identities themselves were kind of pointless when dealing with someone with Oros’s supposed abilities. And there was another very pertinent reason to revert to their mundane forms as well, one Ashley had completely forgotten about until just now…

“Um, not to interrupt, but do you think we should revert back to our mundane forms?” Ashley inquired tentatively. “Normally I’d be against revealing our true identities, but I’m pretty sure Oros already knows exactly who we are, and I don’t really think we should be playing games, or sitting in these chairs, while being covered in blood and… other things…

”Most people who have been outside are covered in blood, but… yeah, makes sense.” Marrie looked around, and finding that nobody was looking their way, reverted from her esper form.

The cultist scoffed. ”No one’s going to ask me to leave if I stay like this. Besides, I’d like to keep the mystique my true form holds alive just a bit longer."

Stacy was sitting beside a pile of wet wipes, which were red with blood and stacked up almost as high as she was. But her skin and hair looked pristine. Well, as pristine as it can look when you’re a zombie

”Wew! That stuff runs right between your toes!” With a flick of her wrist, two mats skid across the picnic table. They were checkered boards, one white and black and the other red and black. Once she pressed them together, Stacy started to place checkers and chess pieces on the board. ”Normally I’d suggest we play Monopoly, but they don’t have my favorite expansion packs in stock, so this will have to do.”

Oros looked at the board games. ”There were no board games for four players? I thought I saw twister there somewhere. Playing two separate games is kinda weird."

”Silly! This is a four-player game! The idea of chess is to capture your enemy’s king by moving them into checkmate. The rook moves in straight lines, bishops move diagonally, horses move in ‘L’ pathways because they’re losers-”

”Right, but what are the checker pieces for?"

”You mean the serfs? They are interesting in that they move diagonally, but only one step at a time. And they can capture many pieces at once by hopping over them like a frog! Oh! But they can only head up the board, but if they reach the other side they can become barrons, which look like two serfs stacked on top of each other.Those can move diagonally in any direction.”

The serfs were set up in a standard lattice formation, with the chess pieces nestled in among them. One side had all black pieces, while the other had white chess pieces and red serfs.

”So we play as teams or some shit?"

”Yup! One team has a player commanding the royal army while another controls their serfs. Turns alternate between white, black royalty, red, black serfs.”

”That’s fair.” Marrie replied to Oros’ comment on not transforming. As she listened to Stacy’s explanation, she was pretty impressed. ”You came up with a way to fuse checkers and chess, huh? That’s pretty smart. But, uh… It seems like it’s just the two games simultaneously?” She took a closer look at the boards.

“Whatever…” Ashley responded to Oros with a tired sigh, before returning to her mundane self. “And if anyone asks why we’re so clean, we could just say we were inside when the blood rain started,” she noted. “Or that we used some of those… she added with a slightly concerned frown as she glanced at the mountain of bloody wipes Stacy had created.

The zombie girl hadn’t changed back either, but Ashley wasn’t going to ask for an explanation. Gale, or rather, Marrie, looked pretty much the same as her esper form, with only a few cosmetic differences, like hair color, but maybe Stacy was embarrassed by her real appearance, or even physically impaired to such a degree that she wouldn’t be able to play the game she was setting up. And what a game it was…

“Um, did you make those rules up yourself?” Ashley asked once Stacy had finished going over how the game worked. “They’re very clever,” she added with a small smile. “So, uh, how did you want to decide on teams?”

Stacy shook her head. ”I wish I could take credit, but this is how chess is supposed to be played. Though it’s a game that’s been around for a thousand years or so. It’s natural that the game would evolve and become more simplistic. There is something romantic about two brains duking it out, but classical chess was always designed to be played this way. as far as player order goes, I think I’ll let someone else work that out.”

Oros shook her fist. ”Yea! that was a lot of dialog Stacy spat out. Maybe you guys could pick up the slack a bit? Though if you want my opinion, hmmm." She scratched her chin. ”Part of me thinks Marrie and I should be on the same side, but Ash is such an adorable onesan I couldn’t get upset if they were on the same side for this."

”I don’t mind either way. It’d be fun to play with or against someone called ‘insane,’ I think. Maybe we should go with the third option and have you and Orion be a team?” Marrie slightly smiled at the idea. ”Though maybe that would be unfair to you two, since there’s the most friction between you two.”

“I don’t really mind who I’m teamed up with,” Ashley replied after the others had made their suggestions. “But if it’s too difficult to decide, perhaps the teams should be chosen randomly?”

”Regardless of what we do, I’m sure we can get along fine.” Stacy nodded at Ashley. ”How would we go about randomly selecting teams?”

”I guess… Well, we could play multiple games and switch? That way we’d all play alongside everyone? Doesn’t even have to be the same game after this, just something with teams.”

“I guess…” Ashley conceded. “But that still leaves the problem of choosing the initial teams… How about this,” she suggested after a moment’s thought. “We place two black checkers and two red ones in a cup and blindly draw one apiece.”

Stacy gave Ashley a thumbs up. ”Works for me! We just need a cup now. Anyone got one?”



Before long, everyone had drawn their checker.

”Yes! Red! just like the color of my voice!" Oros had been the last to draw, but they had decided to reveal their hands once everyone had their checker. ”I hear going first is quite the advantage, in high tier play anyway."

A black chip danced between Stacy’s fingers. ”I’m the most experienced here, so I don’t mind a handicap.”

“I got red,” Ashley announced, unable to keep a tinge of disappointment out of her voice.

Marrie simply held up the final black checker. It was going to be a very interesting match if not only was her opponent “insane,” but also teamed with someone who didn’t like her. Their team chemistry was liable to explode.

Oros only roared with laughter. ”Oh man! I guess it’s going to turn out just like Marrie wanted." She held her chin. ”Since we’re six pages in and nothing’s happened, how about Stacy and I play as the serfs?"

”I’m fine with that.” Stacy sat down on one side of the board. ”The other chess pieces have quite a bit of strategic depth, but as you’ll soon see, the serfs are no pushovers.”

”Exactly why I picked them." Oros looked to Ashley. ”You can feel free to start interrogating me so that your boss doesn’t get upset that you spent your evening playing games instead of filing reports."

”So, do we just… play chess? While you guys play checkers? And then something happens to make them interact?” Marrie asked.

”Yup!” Stacy nodded. ”You probably noticed the serfs can only ever threaten half of the board due to only ever being on one color. But that changes once you get some barrons. I’ll elaborate once we get one.”

”I guess we’ll find out as we play.” Marrie moved over to the chessboard.

Six pages? Ashley wondered. What does that even mean?

Then again, Oros was completely insane, or at least, was pretending to be. Either way, nothing she said could be trusted, which made her offer of allowing Ashley to “interrogate” her seem like nothing more than a fool's errand. Still, there really wasn’t much else to talk about, and if Oros actually was some sort of undercover agent, then perhaps this was her way of passing on vital information. Indeed, when viewed through that lens, even her most unhinged ramblings took on a new, and far more significant meaning…

“Okay, well, for starters, what were you doing while we were fighting the Diver?” Ashley inquired. “You looked pretty beaten up back on the rooftop, so I imagine whatever you were up against was fairly formidable.”

”I had it all under control, thank you very much!" Oros sneered. ”I trust Gemini at least knows what Marrie has been telling everyone already? Then you should be aware that the Hand exists. They were the ones responsible for this attack." Marrie and Ashley had moved their first pawn. The larger board and number of pieces was going to make this game of chess considerably slower. ”I was doing battle with their secretary, Glex. I’m sure she was despatched to prevent me from participating in the fight, as she left as soon as the Diver fell."

“The Hand?” Ashley repeated with a confused frown. “I’ve heard the name before, but that’s all I really know. Are they a monster, a depraved esper, or something else?”

Whoever, or whatever they were, if Oros was telling the truth and the Hand really had orchestrated the Diver’s arrival, then they were a threat several orders of magnitude greater than Justin, or anything else in the city, for that matter. Thus, gaining whatever information she could was a top priority.

”They’re a group. Organization? Cult? Secret Society? Something like that. The hand consists of just six members, but each of them is a big shot in Pax Septimus. Not even I know who all of them are, but that kinky vampire was one of them for sure." Oros made a potato chip dance along her knuckles. ”Couldn’t even tell you what ‘finger’ they were supposed to represent. But I’m sure the others were out and about tonight. Someone must have spotted them." She looked back over to Marrie. ”Okay so like, what do you like doing in your spare time? You seem like you enjoy spending time on computers."

”Well, I did call myself a computer nerd.” Marrie replied. ”Usually, if I have free time and I’m not drawing or writing on my desktop, I’m learning new programming languages.” She put her arm on the table and rested her head on her hand. ”Or talking to my mom in a chatroom, I guess. But usually I keep the programming to work-related stuff, nowadays.”

Stacy wrapped an arm around Marrie. ”Well that’s good that you keep in touch with your mother at least! I haven’t seen mine for a while. Mothers are the sort of people that you take for granted, you know?”

Oros moved one of her pieces with a snort. ”Not like anything lasts forever. But what do you plan on doing with all of those computer languages?"

”Mm. It’s been a while for me, too.” She was about to ask about Stacy’s mother when Oros added in. ”Oh, well… I really want to make an AI. Like, a real one. That’s my dream goal, but I doubt I’ll ever get there.”

“An AI?” Ashley spoke up, Marrie’s revelation breaking her out of her internal musings on the Hand. “That’s quite an ambitious goal,” she told Marrie with a smile. “I’m really impressed. But, um, back to the Hand,” she added, glancing at Oros, while moving a rook. “Before today, I would have said the idea of a secret society covertly controlling every antagonistic faction in the city was nothing more than an unfounded conspiracy theory, but with the recent concerted assault against GEMINI forces, it seems much more believable. With that in mind, which of the members do you know, and was Penny once among their number?”

”Repeating what I already know is such a pain in the ass." Oros took a deep breath. ”I already mentioned Glex and you’ve been acquainted with Justin. The remaining ones are a behemoth, probably Tony if not someone higher up, whoever’s doing the capacitor-in-head thing, and some guy who reads books on the beach. Maybe." She rolled her eyes. ”And of course you’d bring Penny into this. It’s possible she was part of the hand, but I doubt she was an important member. My bet is that the hand found it beneficial to give her the spotlight. She gets to be public enemy number one and the hand avoids exposure. Now where was I?" Once again, Oros’s eyes returned to Marrie ”So this AI, what would you wanna do with it? Like, would you make a robotic cat maid or would you go full Somnium Files and give yourself a cute virtual assistant that can be mapped over the real world with augmented reality?"

Marrie listened to Oros’ explanation. She didn’t really follow what she was saying, but she figured she’d find out what she meant eventually. ”I don’t want to like… subjugate it. I just want to do it to prove it can be done. That there can be life that isn’t carbon-based or magical. I… I guess I just want to do it for the sake of doing it, and to make sure that the first person to manage it doesn’t screw it up by not giving it empathy or something. The singularity is scary.” There was a hint of excitement in Marrie’s voice now.

”It’s not really subjugation if it enjoys doing it, right?" Oros propped up her head with her hand. Her fingers smeared the blood on her face. ” You say you don’t want to subjugate it but then you also want it to have empathy. Sounds to me like you want at least a small hand in guiding how this thing behaves."

Stacy jumped one of Oros’s serfs. ”I don’t think anyone wants to make a rogue AI.”

”That’s sort of my point, nobody wants to give their creation unrestricted freedom." Oros smiled. ”I mean look at roleplayers, especially the play-by-post kind. I’m not going to say what they do is anything like making an AI, but they are making artificial people with artificial personalities. Doesn’t feel too removed from making artificial intelligence."

”But they have near perfect control over their creations.” Stacy raised an eyebrow. ”I don’t think roleplayers and AI engineers are all that similar.”

”They’re plenty similar. So are parents now that I think about it." Now that it was Oros’s turn, she looked over the board with a grin. ”They all want to live vicariously through their creations." She picked up her checker and jumped a pawn. ”Children are conditioned to behave a certain way." Then a serf. ”As are programs..." And another one of Stacy’s serfs. ”As are characters." Oros lifted her hand off of her piece. ”That’s why Mary Sues are so prevalent. People can’t help but make perfect versions of themselves. I’d be willing to wager the main reason Marrie wants this AI of hers to have empathy is because it’s something she has. You wouldn’t hurt a fly unless you absolutely had to."

”I guess that’s a fair assumption. I want it to have empathy partly because it’s part of the only way I know to live, which is as a human with it, and because if it doesn’t have it, it might get all Terminator-y.” Marrie replied. ”Good move, by the way.”

Ashley listened to Oros and Marrie’s little chat, while moving her chess pieces as appropriate. Marrie’s enthusiasm was genuinely inspiring, but what Oros had said about the Hand still weighed heavily upon the young agent’s thoughts. She was aware of Tony, of course, and had read a few reports on the bizarre cyborgs appearing around the city, but Glex was another matter altogether. Ashley had seen the name before, but precious little concrete information was known about her. Yet, that meager knowledge still painted a highly disturbing picture…

Then there was the mention of a behemoth among their ranks. As far as Ashley knew, all behemoths were little more than mindless beasts, driven purely by instinct. The possibility that one was not only intelligent, but also a major player in the power structure of the city’s underworld was worrying in the extreme…

Still, there wasn’t much to be done about that now.

“I think it’s good you’re putting so much thought into this,” Ashley told Marrie. “I’d be happy to help out if you ever need any assistance,” she added. “And if you ever decide to join up with GEMINI, you’d have access to a wealth of additional resources.”

”Oh my! you’re rotten!” Stacy laughed. ”The only way the government would fund something like that would be if they could make robot soldiers, or robot espers. I don’t think going for that would end very well.”

Oros nodded. ”Yea, we don’t need Penny 3.0 to show up. And if she does, I’d just as soon she not be affiliated with one of the two big factions in Penro- Uh, Pax Septimus."

Marrie was silent for a moment. It probably wouldn’t be the best idea to say her opinions on the government. ”Aside from a supercomputer, I don’t know what they could really do to help. I wouldn’t be okay with other programmers working with me, so I don’t think it’d be worth it. But I appreciate the offer!” Marrie said as she made a move in the game.

Ashley frowned as her offer was shredded to pieces and then some.

“Okay, I understand,” she replied once everyone had voiced their opinions. “You’d like for this to be a personal project that you can accomplish on your own,” she added, turning to Marrie as she lined up a bishop for an attack on one of the girl’s pieces. “But I don’t really see how employing robots to eliminate monsters would be a bad thing,” she continued. “I mean, as long as they were properly controlled and used responsibly, they would be able to save a lot of lives.”

”I mean, that’s subjugation of non-organic lifeforms, isn’t it? Unless their AIs are so primitive that they can barely manage to fight things… Which sort of defeats the point of using robots. If they’re smart enough to fight monsters, you’re losing robot lives in place of human lives, and that’s probably bad PR in the opinion of AIs like the kind I want to make.” Marrie replied. ”I for one welcome our new robot overlords. Heh.”

”Why do I get the feeling Wall-E is your favorite movie? And also, what the hell are you doing, Stacy?" Oros pointed at the board. ”You haven’t moved your back line yet!"

”That’s part of my strategy!” Stacy continued to wear a pleasant smile.. ”You seem smart, so you can probably understand what it is.”

”Yea, with the back line filled, I can’t get any barrons. That’s just the sort of thing I’d expect Maverick Alternative to do."

”Um…”

”It’s fine." Oros placed her arm around Ashley’s shoulder. ”Ashley is a cool agent. She’s not going to blow you up if you seem like a good egg. If she has a hate boner hard enough, she’ll even work with espers on Gemini’s kill list."

Ashley frowned at Marrie’s response. That wasn’t exactly what she’d meant, but before she had a chance to say anything, Oros returned to being her typical unpleasant self, causing Ashley’s frown to turn into an annoyed scowl.

“W-What are you even talking about?” she asked the pink-haired lunatic, while pulling away from her as much as possible. “I’ve never done anything like that!”

Oros grinned. ”Didn’t the two of you beg me to save Klava?"

“A-And you’re a Maverick?” she added, turning to Stacy. “I-I thought you were a Freelancer… But I guess it’s fine,” she said with a tired sigh. “After everything that’s happened today, I don’t see why we can’t remain civil towards one another for the time being. And I wasn’t suggesting using sentient machines as expendable cannon fodder,” she told Marrie. “I was actually thinking of the possibility of having a single sentient AI controlling multiple robotic units remotely. That way, no robot ‘lives’ would be lost, and it would also ensure that no organic lives would be needlessly endangered either.”

”So, like… ants? I mean… I guess we can’t know what it’d feel like for it, so I can’t throw out the idea… I guess that’s something to ask when possible.”

”Man, this get together was a great idea. A shame it's just us here." Oros pushed her thumb against the hilt of her sword and gazed at the blade. ”Eh?" She raised an eyebrow. ”Finn? What are you-" Her eyes went wide as she cut herself off mid sentence. ”Why…did…he…" She stood there frozen in shock.

”What happened?” Stacy didn’t sound all that concerned. ”This Finn fellow, is he in trouble?”

”...Heh." Oros’s grin swiftly returned. ”Guess it doesn’t matter how many worlds we jump. You’re always gunna get your ass murked." She stepped away from the table and nodded to everyone present. ”I hate to leave a date early, but I’ve gotta save a friend and avenge another. Maybe we can do this again some other time?" Oros didn’t wait for a response, and started to casually walk towards the exit.

“W-What’s going on?” Ashley asked as Oros got up. “Is Finn okay?”

The last she’d seen of him, the boy was chasing after Betty, which meant that all kinds of unpleasant consequences could have very easily ensued…

”For the moment." Oros flashed a grin. ”That’s gunna change once I get to him though."

“What are you planning to do?” Ashley asked warily, while rising to her feet and fixing Oros with a stern glare.

”Not sure yet. But I’m in a rush, so just look over the obituaries tomorrow if you’re curious." She didn’t stick around long after that. She was sprinting straight for the exit. Even without the assistance of any melodies, she was much faster than your average esper.

“What?!” Ashley gasped, her eyes going wide.

The next thing she knew, Oros was sprinting for the door…

“I-I’m sorry, but I need to go after her!” the bespectacled brunette told Marrie and Stacy, before shifting to her esper form and running after Oros as fast as her legs would allow.

The Knight of Tomorrow had no idea how she would go about stopping someone as powerful as Oros, if she could even catch her in the first place, but for Finn’s sake, she had to at least try…


Olivia hadn’t gotten far when a voice called out from behind her. Whirling around, she was greeted with the sight of…

“Bonnie!” the blonde beauty exclaimed with a happy smile. “And you’re Tesni, correct?” she asked, refocusing her energetic attention on Bonnie’s companion. “It’s very nice to see you again! Liv? Is that a nickname? Oh, gosh! I’ve never been given a nickname before!” Olivia gushed as if it were the greatest thing to ever happen to her. “Well, at least not a friendly one… Hmm? Oh, Suzuya?” she repeated when her roommate was inquired about. “Um, she said she had a few things to work on but, oh! There you are, Suzuya!” the azure-clad maiden noted with a surprised giggle as her roommate appeared from behind Xolys’s bedsheet-covered form.

Bonnie then suggested exploring the castle as a group, causing Olivia’s already jubilant demeanor to brighten even further. “Oh, yes! I think that would be much more enjoyable!” the Ethereal Rose agreed, completely oblivious to the fact that Bonnie seemed far less enthusiastic about the whole “mysterious castle” thing. “And those torches will provide the most enchanting ambiance!” she added, turning to her roommate. “Thank you so very much, Suzuya! And this is my first sleepover, too!” she told Tesni. “I just brought a pillow, since Darling’s cozy tendrils are better than any blanket, especially when warmed by his eldritch flames!”

It was around then that a startled-sounding Bonnie said something about a pool. Looking in the redhead’s direction, Olivia saw that, sure enough, the was a large pool at the center of the castle’s courtyard, shimmering as it reflected the moonlight. But what was it for? After all, it was a bit too chilly to go swimming. Still such questions would have to be answered at a later time, as another new arrival chose that moment to announce her presence, and she didn’t sound particularly happy…

“Chinami!” Olivia greeted the knightly maiden with her usual cheer, although her running hug was stopped in its tracks when she saw the young woman’s annoyed scowl. “Oh, gosh! I’m so sorry! I called you Chinami instead of Camelot!” Olivia hastily apologized, the fair maiden erroneously believing that to be the cause of her friend’s less-than-pleased demeanor. “I completely forgot you prefer to go by your Magical Girl name whenever you’re transformed… Oh! But isn’t this castle simply amazing?!” she added, her eyes glittering with excitement the moment Camelot mentioned their unexpected surroundings. “I don’t know for certain, but I think the haunted piano brought it here,” she explained. “You see, according to the rumor, the piano can transport people to another world, but maybe it can also bring parts of other worlds to this one!” she continued to eagerly ramble on. “I mean, how else could such a lovely and enchanting castle like this just appear out of nowhere?!”

Olivia’s excited babblings were brought to a halt with Charlotte’s arrival, the “totally not a teacher” making a few playful comments, before heading over to where a large couch sat before a crackling fireplace. However, someone else was already there, their Egyptian-themed form rising up to reveal Marrywell’s student councilor, Mika Fang. And reveal turned out to be exactly the right word, as the young woman’s mummy costume was almost scandalously skimpy, providing yet another piece of evidence to support Xolys’s opinion that Marrywell’s faculty were a rather unorthodox bunch. And that was without even getting into the costumed canine accompanying her…

“Oh my goodness!” Olivia cried at the sight of the dapper-looking dog. “He’s so cute! And I just love his little monocle!” she added, hurrying over to get a closer look.

* * *

Chapter Four-
She Blinded Me With Science!


* * *


Violet couldn’t believe her eyes.

Over the past few hours, the heiress had been shown wonders and horrors beyond her wildest imaginings. She had seen biomechanical monstrosities being grown in bubbling vats of glowing liquid, while moon-sized omninoughts hovered overhead. She had seen monolithic mobile fortresses guided by soultech AIs, and capable of unleashing multiple megatons of destructive power every second. She had seen tri-plenumic perpetual motion machines, polyphasic transdimensional techno-wraiths, technomystic teleporters, tetra-tachyonic time machines, hyper-quantum infinity colliders, vita-voltaic resurrection wells, poly-harmonic trans-planar psionic pulse conductor choirs, and a staggering variety of death rays too numerous to count.

Then, of course, there were the obligatory galaxy-shattering doomsday devices, but even they seemed insignificant when placed against the awe-inspiring grandeur of the Lab itself, the sprawling technoscape that, at times, almost seemed like a living creature, and was so stupendously vast, it even had its own weather. Indeed, it had been while their shielded counter-grav platform was passing through a torrential downpour of glowing, green liquid that Nykannis had informed her that she had saved the best part of the tour for last. As arcs of actinic, yellowy-green lighting crackled around them, Violet couldn’t even imagine what could possibly surpass all she had already witnessed, and yet, when they finally arrived, the young heiress found herself presented with a sight that made all the harnessed hypercanes, self-replicating energy-to-matter nano forges, and hyperdimensional quantum singularity cosmic string projectors pale in comparison…

“Y-You… You… have a petting zoo?! Violet exclaimed, her eyes going wide.

“That’s right,” Nykannis said with a grin. “Whatdaya think, Princess? Cute enough for you?”

“T-They’re… They’re… Adorable! Violet gushed, her normally cold eyes seeming to sparkle with glee as she ran to the edge of the forcefield bubble, which enclosed the various bizarre creatures.

“Just reach in and grab a bunch,” Nykannis instructed. “You can put them on here,” the mad scientist added, gesturing to a hovering table that had just popped into existence.

Not wasting a moment, Violet did as instructed, grabbing two armfuls of the wriggly creatures, and pulling them from the containment dome.

“T-They’re so soft!” the heiress exclaimed joyfully.

“Yep,” Nykannis agreed. “Perfect for cuddling,” she added as Violet proceeded to do just that, hugging several of the little creatures, and lifting them up to nuzzle against her cheek.

As Violet showered them with affection, the strange little things cooed and trilled happily, bringing an even bigger smile to the heiress’s face.

“Oh~! You are just the cutest little thingy wingies~! (giggle!)” Violet squealed, her voice becoming cuter and more high-pitched as she continued to snuggle with her new friends. “Yes you aresie~! Yes you aresie~!”

“Glad to see you’re enjoying yourself,” Nykannis noted with a sly smirk.

“Mmmhmm~!” Violet agreed, her eyes half-closed in blissful contentment. “I just wuv them soooo much~! (giggle!)”

However, her bliss soon turned to alarm, when the creatures’ contented coos were replaced with anguished cries. Opening her eyes, Violet saw to her horror that her various little friends were beginning to slip through her fingers and messily dissolve into puddles of goop.

“N-No!” she cried, still not fully believing what she was witnessing. “W-What’s happening?! T-They’re all dying! Why?!” she demanded, glaring at Nykannis with tear-filled eyes. “Why are you doing this?!”

“To see the look on your face,” the mad scientist replied, her own face set in a smug grin. “But don’t worry, Princess,” she added, tapping a small holodisplay. “They’re all perfectly fine, see?”

As Violet watched, swirling vortices of yellowy-green energy reassembled all the various creatures, who were soon emitting a chorus of happy trills and coos once more.

“There, good as new,” Nykannis declared. “I made every single one of these little guys, so of course I can remake them! Nyahahaha! In fact, they don’t even remember getting dissolved in the first place!”

For a few moments, Violet was silent as she took in everything she’d just experienced. The “Queen of the Mad Scientists” certainly lived up to her title. Nykannis was staggeringly powerful but could also be staggeringly psychotic, and, not for the first time, Violet found herself wondering if she should be impressed or horrified…

“So, now that you’ve had the tour, whadaya think?!” Nykannis was asking. “Most amazing stuff you’ve ever seen, right?! I bet it makes everything your supposedly brilliant mind has ever come up with look like a bunch of pathetic tinker toys!”

“Nykannis… What you’re capable of… it’s… it’s unbelievable…” Violet told her after a moment. “You could solve so many of the world’s problems, end so much pain and suffering… Yet, you could also add to them, or even destroy the planet completely. Is that why you haven’t shared any of these developments with the general public, despite your obvious desire for recognition?”

“That’s part of it,” Nykannis conceded. “I’ve taken a more direct approach on countless other worlds, and even quite a few versions of this one, but I suppose you could say I have a vested interest in making sure this particular iteration stays relatively intact, at least for the time being. Besides, the Grand Magistrate would rather I not disrupt the status quo too much,” she added. “And pissing him off would be a very bad idea.”

“The Grand Magistrate?” Violet asked with a raised eyebrow.

“No one you need to worry your ditzy little head about,” Nykannis replied with a dismissive wave of her hand.

“I-I am not ditzy…!” Violet protested. “A-At least not currently…”

“Yeah, I know,” Nykannis replied. “I only said it to annoy you. But, seriously, you shouldn’t concern yourself with the Magistrate,” she added. “I mean, you’re pretty much the living embodiment of the saying ‘ignorance is bliss’, after all. Or is that not why you enjoy being Magical Dream Princess so much?” she asked pointedly.

“I…” Violet began to protest, before stopping herself. “You’re right,” she conceded softly. “Being Magical Dream Princess does allow me to forget about my many worries and obligations. I suppose you could even say I often prefer being that way, but I know that some things do need to be taken seriously, and I am not particularly fond of how disoriented my memory and overall mental state become,” the heiress added with a frown. “But, thankfully, I have so many wonderful friends to help me. For the longest time, I had always sought to be perfect at everything, relying on my own innate talents and hard work. It wasn’t until I became a magical girl that I was able to see the real value in having friends I could rely on, who I could trust to be there for me even when I was at my weakest and most vulnerable,” she explained, a warm smile spreading across her face. “Friends like that are one of the most wonderful blessings in the world, and one I cherish with all my heart.”

“All that ‘power of friendship’ crap sounds like something from right out of a cheesy magical girl show,” Nykannis remarked snidely.

“I suppose it does,” Violet replied. “And I suppose that makes me childishly naive, but I honestly couldn’t care less about what you or anyone else thinks of me,” she added firmly. “I’m tired of hiding who I really am. I’ve spent all my life pretending to be what other people want me to be, terrified of showing my true self, but not any more.”

“Wow… That was some speech, Princess,” Nykannis noted, while slowly clapping her hands. “It’ll be interesting to see if you can put your money where your mouth is,” she added. “I mean, I know how much of a big deal having daddy dearest’s approval is for you. But for the protagonist of some disgustingly sweet kids show, I’d give that performance a nine out of ten. Oh, and speaking of magical girl shows,” the diminutive doctor continued. “Did you know that, once upon a time, yours truly was actually in one?”

You were a magical girl? Violet asked incredulously.

“Of course not!” Nykannis retorted. I was a mad scientist! And not just any mad scientist, either!” she clarified, holding up a finger for emphasis. “I was the main villain of the show! But I got to team up with the heroine during the series finale in order to help her save the universe, and my epic awesomeness totally overshadowed her in every way! Nyahahaha! Hey! Wanna watch it together?!” the mad scientist asked excitedly. “Then you can see exactly what I’m talking about!”

“Um, I-I suppose,” Violet replied, a bit taken aback by her “host’s” enthusiasm, although when it came to someone as egomaniacal as Nykannis, she realized it probably shouldn’t have been all that surprising. “May I ask the name of this show?”

“It’s called Beautiful Guardian Gunslinger Alexis,” Nykannis replied as she set up a small viewing area in front of a massive, panoramic display screen. “But don’t worry about her! she added. “The real star of the show is my character, Doktor Xylannis, the greatest mad scientist of them all! Nyahahaha!”

As Nykannis continued to cackle away, Violet reflected on just how utterly bizarre this whole experience had been thus far. When she was ambushed by the mad scientist’s minions, she never would have imagined it would lead to watching the finale of a magical girl show she’d never even heard of before, and the heiress couldn’t help but wonder how much stranger things might get before she returned to her ‘normal’ life…






Chickens?! What kind of idiot attacks with fucking chickens?!

Sure enough, a rather sizable flock of chickens was now racing across the flaming field to swarm the monstrous lion, while an enchanted bull slammed into one of the nearest tanks, knocking it over. A bit closer at hand, Mayra engaged the scarecrow with her flaming talons, while a second draconic girl, one of the new arrivals, teleported next to the armless girl and delivered three swift sword strikes, before blinking away just as the Angel’s barrier enclosed the strange monster.

But all that paled when compared to Penny…

“Mother’s Mantel…” Gaia whispered, her verdant visage a mixture of awe and horror as she watched the mechanical monarch plow her way through the monstrous lion and then the rest of the Wonderland forces beyond like a runaway freight train on steroids.

The poor chickens never stood a chance and were swiftly fried to a crisp.

“Good heavens!” the Angel gasped, placing her hands over her mouth, while her eyes widened in shock. “Such atrocious violence!”

Holy fuck… The only other time I’ve ever seen that kind of raw power was during the wendigo attack… Seriously, who is this girl?

Then she remembered the message the robotic girl had sent her.

Pfft… Like I’m seriously supposed to stop that? Yeah right…

Though I suppose helping the poor thing will please Master Chiichuu, who will then reward his humble servant with the most rapturous feelings of bliss!

I am seriously gonna murder that fucking fur ball one of these days… (sigh…) Well, on the bright side, at least her warpath’s going in the right direction, so maybe I won’t actually have to intervene…

Who am I fucking kidding…


Meanwhile, Gaia’s water cannons were succeeding in freezing the giant tin man in place, rust spreading across its towering form even as another new arrival peppered it with a spray of bullets. However, with the guidance of the scarecrow, the tin man blocked the brunt of the water torrent with its free arm, allowing its axe arm to make a mighty swing against the sunflower, chopping it down in one powerful sweep. The toppled plant ended up falling right on top of Mayra, pinning the draconic girl to the ground, while also having the added detrimental effect of drenching her in a deluge of water.

Blast… Gaia hissed.

However, while all this was transpiring, the artillery’s continued bombardment had created a few cracks in the twin protective barriers, allowing a squad of flying spade soldiers to slip through. No sooner had they done so, then one of them employed a rotary cannon to unleash a hail of enchanted bullets upon the Angel of Hope. Thankfully, before the heavenly beauty even realized what was happening, a crimson shield appeared before her, fully blocking the incoming fire. A moment later, the source of the blood barrier revealed itself.

“Thank you so very much, kind champion!” the Angel told Justine with a radiant smile. “This humble servant is most grateful for your generous assistance!”

Holy shit, that was close… These fairytale rejects sure are sneaky fuckers…

The vampire girl proceeded to inform them that she would attend to the aerial threats, but even as she said this, a spade trooper fired a missile at the base of the nearest sunflower, causing it to collapse. Gaia, who had ascended the flower to gain a better vantage point of the battlefield below, found herself falling along with it. Dispelling her staff, the verdant maiden leapt off the falling flower and onto an intertwined column of thick vines rising up from the ground, which she promptly slid down until she was kneeling upon the soft soil.

“That’s it, she seethed, turning a harsh glare upon the advancing Wonderland forces. “Now, I’m mad…

Taking a deep breath, Gaia closed her eyes as she gathered her mystic power. Conjuring Nature’s Blossom once more, the daughter of Mother Earth raised the verdant staff above her head and rapidly twirled it in her hands, before forcefully driving it into the soil before her. The moment she did so, her eyes shot open, now glowing a vibrant green.

“Despoilers of field and flower,” she uttered, her normally tranquil voice rising to a far harsher intensity. “Taste the full force of Nature’s Fury!”

With that, several glowing tendrils of mystic power shot out of Gaia’s floral staff, the life energy surging across the battlefield, touching every plant, from towering sunflower to humble blade of grass, and even the seeds still wrapped in the soil’s warm embrace, filling them with renewed strength and vitality. The toppled sunflowers were knitted back together, rising up and off of the once-trapped Mayra. Restored to their original splendor once more, the mighty flowers joined their companions in unleashing an all-out Barrage of mystic beams, corn cob missiles, pea pellets, and water jets. The latter were directed entirely at the tin colossus, although Gaia was mindful to keep the torrents well away from where Finn and his diminutive ally were assaulting the metallic monstrosity. Simultaneously, a pair of vines shot out to pull Mayra clear of the deluge, so as not to get dangerously soaked, while another set of verdant tendrils wrapped around the scarecrow and attempted to fling him into the nearest patch of still-burning field, where the fiery dragon girl could hopefully put an end to him.

Even as this transpired, the Angel’s attention was drawn to where the second draconic girl was seemingly being devoured by the yellow brick road the armless girl had conjured.

“My heavens!” the angelic beauty cried in alarm, desperately wishing to help, but being utterly unable to do so. Indeed, it was all she could do to maintain and strengthen the barrier imprisoning the now injured, but still very much alive, armless girl, who, despite her imprisonment, had shown herself to be fully capable of engaging the town’s defenders with her magic.

Stupid fucking pacifistic powerset… Sure would be nice to go on the offensive right about now…

Thankfully, yet another new arrival made his presence known, rescuing the dragon girl, and shattering that segment of the brick path with a mighty blow from his fist. The strange Egyptian-themed golem was soon joined by a gun wielding young woman, and the Angel of Hope wasted no time in granting them her aid.

“Please allow this humble servant to bestow her blessing upon you, most noble champions!” the heavenly maiden called, as a sweep of her glowing staff sent a trio of empowering energy beams shooting towards Nefer, Akhenaton, and Kiyome. The three recipients of this blessing would find not only their physical abilities magnified, but a shimmering field of protective energy surrounding them.

Hopefully that’ll give them enough of a buff so they can finish off that armless bitch…

Back in the besieged town itself, the ghost boy was introducing himself to Connie. The nightmare girl was only vaguely aware of Crimson Cradle, a few mentions from Amanda being the rough extent of her knowledge, but since her dream magician friend was apparently a member of the organization as well, she figured Oliver was probably safe enough, despite his somewhat spooky appearance.

“O-Oh! U-Um, t-that’s okay,” the timid girl stammered out a response. “I-It’s n-nice to m-meet you, O-Oliver,” she added, her mask forming a tentative smile, while her trembling hands continued to nervously fidget with her hair. “I-I’m C-Connie. I-I’m h-here with s-some f-friends,” she explained. “T-Thank you f-for h-helping e-evacuate the t-town. I-I just h-hope everyone’s g-going to b-be all r-right…”


A coordinated attack? That was why their backup had taken so long to arrive? The very idea that all the disparate monster factions, and even non-sentient beasts could all work together in such a way was highly unsettling, but the apprehension it generated was as nothing when placed against the far more relatable horror that came next. Breacher’s daughter (Mika, was it?) was still conscious, and had just heard what had happened to her mother. The pain and fear in the girl’s trembling voice wrenched at Ashley’s heart. She wanted to comfort the girl somehow, but the new esper’s swift departure made that impossible, and if Fable’s brusque response to her attempts at reassurance was any indication, that was probably for the best…

I really am useless here, aren’t I?

“Oh, um, thank you,” Ashley replied to Silhouette, her fellow agent’s words of approval breaking her out of her despondent ruminations just in time to notice Oros, of all people, emerging from the darkness.

W-What’s she doing here?!

Even as Ashley wondered this, the pink-haired Depraved esper began explaining how the Diver was different from normal behemoths, in that a grimoire served as its “heart”. In fact, Oros almost made it sound like someone had designed it that way, an insinuation that had all kinds of unfortunate implications…

Still, this was Oros the Mad talking, and the Knight of Tomorrow knew it would be wise to take anything she said with a grain of salt. Such was her line of thinking as Oros and Veronica had a little chat, but when the pink-haired lunatic addressed her by name and brought up a possible “date”, Ashley’s expression noticeably darkened into an annoyed scowl.

“The later, she hissed through gritted teeth, before attempting to compose herself when Veronica inquired about her relationship with the infamous esper. “That’s correct,” Ashley acknowledged. “As hard as it is to believe, she actually saved Gale and I from a group of Depraved espers,” the Knight of Tomorrow added, gesturing to the blue-haired esper nearby. “She said she wanted to go on a date with Gale as payment for her help, and I wasn’t about to leave her alone with someone with Oros’s reputation.”



18 | Female | GEMINI | Vision of Tomorrow
Implements of Tomorrow | Wand, Shield | Arcane | Tune of Tomorrow
Raiment of Tomorrow | Stride of Tomorrow
Light of Tomorrow | Light | Power of Tomorrow
PRO-TEK 4000 Defensive Surgery Implement | Kevlar Coat, Kevlar Padding, Clip Light
[Reveal (2), Purity (4)], Damage (2), Damage X (6), Shield (4), Reflect (4), Heal (6), Major Heal (18), AoE (2), Powerful (0), Piercing (2)

DAMAGE: B | SPEED: E | SENTINEL: C | 750

PHYSICAL: E | ARCANE: C | CHAOS: B | 6


“Then, a really nice tourist took our picture, and then we went to the Sherlock Holmes museum!” Olivia told Xolys, as she prepared for the upcoming sleepover, the eldritch beast listening to the blonde beauty’s happy ramblings in polite silence.

“It sounds like the two of you had a very enjoyable day,” Xolys noted.

“We really did!” Olivia agreed, her eyes sparkling with delight. “And I’m so very glad we didn’t have any surprise rainstorms,” she added, picking up her umbrella, which had now become an elegant parasol. “We only had a single umbrella, and it would have been rather awkward for both of us to try and squeeze under… Oh my gosh!” Olivia gasped as a small white rectangle fell out of the umbrella. “Another letter!” she exclaimed excitedly. “And it’s addressed to you, darling!”

“Curious…” Xolys replied as he took the envelop and sliced it open with a scythed appendage. “Ah! It’s from Master Xozooth, my old instructor, and the original Master of Xhar’doth!”

Your instructor?” Olivia asked, frowning in puzzlement.

“Why yes, my sweet,” Xolys replied. “We all have much to learn in our youths, and I was no exception. In fact, I would not be Master of Xhar’doth today, if it were not for Master Xozooth's exemplary tutelage. Still, he was a rather mischievous and unorthodox teacher,” the gentleman horror reflected. “Not unlike some of Marrywell’s own faculty. We were actually quite good friends, although we haven’t spoken in several millennia,” the eldritch beast added as he unfolded the letter. “I wonder what he has to say…”

After a few moments of silence as he read the letter, Xolys’s imposing form began to slightly quiver, which soon turned into far more pronounced shuddering, as the monstrous horror unleashed a hearty laugh.

“Oh, that devious rascal!” he declared, once his laughter had finally subsided. “I see his sense of humor is still very much intact!”

“What did he say?” Olivia inquired as she leaned over to take a look at the letter, only to find that she couldn’t make an ounce of sense out of the strange symbols inscribed upon the piece of parchment.

“Roughly speaking, he said, ‘You are stupid!’,” Xolys replied, incinerating the letter in a burst of blue eldritch flame.

“T-That’s it?” Olivia asked, not at all comprehending how such an insult could in any way be considered funny. “But that’s so horribly rude!”

“Now, now, my sweet,” Xolys reassured her. “It isn’t nearly as offensive as it seems. Much of the humor and hidden meaning is lost in translation, and very hard to explain to anyone not versed in the intricacies of Non-Euclidean geometry.”

“I see… Well, I suppose I shall have to take your word for it… But wait! How do you suppose the letter got in my umbrella in the first place?”

“You mentioned leaving it behind in the restaurant,” Xolys pointed out. “Perhaps the letter was inserted then?”

“Oh my gosh!” Olivia gasped, placing her delicate hands over her mouth. “Do you think Kate could have done it?!”

“It is a distinct possibility,” Xolys noted. “But I wouldn’t fret, my sweet” he added, placing a consoling appendage on her shoulder. “Xozooth would often employ all sorts of people to carry out his various pranks, most of whom were almost entirely unaware of what he was actually having them do. So even if Miss Kate did convey this message, I doubt her intentions were in any way malicious.”

“I suppose you’re right…” Olivia conceded, her demeanor brightening up once again. “Um, darling…?” she asked as she watched Xolys produce a large white sheet with two black circles colored on it and drape it over his sizable form. “What are you doing?”

“So as not to intimidate any ghosts that may appear, I thought it prudent to wear a disguise,” Xolys explained. “This way, they shall be lulled into a false sense of security, allowing you more time to observe them.”

“Oh, you’re just so clever, darling!” Olivia gushed, while giving her consort a brilliant smile.

“Thank you, my sweet,” Xolys replied, the eldritch beast not having the heart to tell the endearingly naive beauty that the real reason he had chosen to wear a disguise was to keep from unnerving the other girls with his monstrous appearance. “Now, then, let us be on our way.”

“Yes, let’s!” Olivia agreed, wrapping her free arm around one of Xolys’s tentacles, while the other held a comfy pillow.







“You know, it’s too bad Helmi probably won’t be joining us tonight…” the azure robe-clad maiden noted in a sullen tone as they walked along, her mouth drooping into a frown. “I haven’t really talked with her in quite some time, and she was the one who told me about the possibly-haunted classrooms in the first place!”

“As much as I hate to say this, I think that it may be for the best that Miss Wilhelmina refrains from joining us tonight,” Xolys replied. “From what little I know of her, I do not believe she is particularly enamored with the idea of possibly encountering ghosts, or any supernatural phenomena in general.”

“Oh, don’t be silly, darling!” Olivia playfully admonished, while giving voice to a melodious giggle. “She summons all those spectral sailors during battle! How could she possibly be afraid of ghosts?”







After careful consideration, Olivia and Bonnie had decided upon the music room as the venue for their slumber party, in large part because the rumors surrounding it were the most long-standing and well-defined. It also didn’t hurt that Olivia was particularly fascinated by the idea of being transported to a fantastic world and exploring it with Xolys and her other friends. However, when the incongruous pair reached the location where the door to the music room should have been, they were instead greeted with a drawbridge, leading to the open gates of a gothic castle…

“Oh my goodness!” Olivia exclaimed in utter astonishment. “Wherever could this enchanting structure have come from?! It certainly wasn’t here yesterday! Unless…!” she gasped as in idea occurred to her. “That’s it! The haunted piano! Instead of bringing us to another world, it brought part of another world here! Oh, this is just so incredibly exciting!” she gushed as she practically dragged Xolys along after her, the fair maiden’s eyes sparkling with jubilant anticipation of what wondrous discoveries lay in store…


Even as blasts of neon energy dug ever-deeper into the Diver’s massive form, Ashley was dimly aware that a pair of equally massive wings had appeared behind the creature, and were now carrying it (and everyone on it) further into the sky. This was bad. The tenth, and final, plague would soon begin, and over a thousand lives would end. They had to move faster! With Ashley’s help, the cat girl had reached the harp that served as the monster’s heart and grabbed hold of it. But she didn’t seem to have the strength to destroy it, or pull it out. Not only that, but she and Ashley were both starting to sink into the behemoth’s molasses-like body…

That was when Ashely heard the sound of a loud crack. Looking up, she was barely able to see the Diver’s head falling off its shoulders. Before the Knight of Tomorrow could fully register what she was seeing, Leroux’s war pick shot out to imbed itself in the behemoth’s rapidly descending cranium. Despite the Diver’s myriad supernatural abilities, in this instance, at least, it was still beholden to the laws of physics, and Leroux clearly intended to use that fact to her advantage. Quickly comprehending the armored esper’s plan, Ashley tightened her grip on the cat girl, while pushing away from the Diver with every last ounce of strength that remained in her legs. Gritting her teeth as her body was stretched to its limit, Ashley felt her grip about to give out, when, all of a sudden, the harp was finally yanked free, and the chain of espers holding onto it was sent plummeting to the ground below.

D-Did we do it…? Ashley’s dazed mind wondered, even as she fell to her impending death.

It was so dark, she was so tired, and the wind and rain rushing by her was so loud, that Ashley didn’t realize a giant inflatable bag had manifested to keep her and the other falling espers from having a very fatal meeting with a building’s roof until she had landed on it with a loud “Thump!”. The impact was far from pleasant, and the force of it knocked the wind out of her, but Ashley knew she was still alive, from the painful soreness suffusing every inch of her battered body, if nothing else. Slowly making her way off the bag to stand on wobbling legs, the Knight of Tomorrow saw Veronica emerge from the darkness, asking about Breacher. Before she knew it, Fable had stepped up to their leader and begun explaining what had transpired, his voice filled with anguish, with rage.

Stepping up beside him, Ashley placed what she hoped was a reassuring hand on the boy’s shoulder. She should have been the one to tell Veronica the somber news, or Leroux, or Silhouette, not their youngest recruit, not a child! And yet, Fable had been the one say it, to convey the terrible truth, without sugarcoating a single awful piece of it. Was it bravery, youthful impetuousness, or something else altogether? Whatever the case, Ashley’s admiration for the boy had grown considerably.

However, as she listened to Fable speak, the high-tech heroine found herself increasingly troubled. The darkness still persisted. But why? If the Diver had perished, shouldn’t it have dissipated by now? And even if they truly had killed the behemoth, had they done so in time? Ashley had no idea, but she was sure of one thing- it wouldn’t be long before she found out…



18 | Female | GEMINI | Vision of Tomorrow
Implements of Tomorrow | Wand, Shield | Arcane | Tune of Tomorrow
Raiment of Tomorrow | Stride of Tomorrow
Light of Tomorrow | Light | Power of Tomorrow
PRO-TEK 4000 Defensive Surgery Implement | Kevlar Coat, Kevlar Padding, Clip Light
[Reveal (2), Purity (4)], Damage (2), Damage X (6), Shield (4), Reflect (4), Heal (6), Major Heal (18), AoE (2), Powerful (0), Piercing (2)

DAMAGE: B | SPEED: E | SENTINEL: C | 750

PHYSICAL: E | ARCANE: C | CHAOS: B | 6



Over the next few days following her field test, Nova Lux’s common room had almost become Dana’s home away from home. Everyone was telling stories about how their exams had gone, with questions, answers, and a particularly unfortunate hamster flying left and right, along with no small amount of boasting and, occasionally, grumbling…. Indeed, it seemed that an unlucky few cadets had actually failed their exams, and as the school’s resident living ray of sunshine, Dana found herself working overtime to brighten their spirits with friendly hugs and optimistic words of encouragement. Still, it was the tales of victory that really filled the cheerful Norban with eager excitement…

“Really?! The Amara Volkov?!” Dana exclaimed when Priya had revealed the identity of her instructor, the sunny sharpshooter’s golden eyes seeming to gleam even brighter than usual. “That’s so freakin’ cool! Y’know, Shel and I just watched the episode of Guardian Gunslinger Alexis she cameoed in a few days ago! The part at the end where Alexis and Amara team up to take down that swarm of cyber-bugs has gotta be one of my favorite moments of the entire series! Check it out!” she added, turning to face some of the poor souls who had yet to see the episode in question. “So, Doctor Xylannis unleashes this army of Cybugs to wipe out the military research base on Delta Primus, right? And Alexis and her team jump into action to stop ‘em, but they can’t take out the queen’s control node, ‘cause even though Alexis can make the shot, her pistols don’t have the range, which is when Amara makes this super dramatic entrance and is all ‘Leave that to me’! It was just so freakin’ badass! So, like, anyway, she lines up to take the shot,” Dana continued, excitedly acting out the scene by holding up an imaginary sniper rifle. “And Alexis is using every trick shot she knows in order to keep the Cybugs from swarming her, and then finally, Amara fires, and the camera follows the shot all the way to the queen’s control node, until… BLAM!!! It takes the thing out, causing the mother of all shockwaves to race through the Cybug army and make all their heads explode! Doesn’t that sound absolutely AWESOME?!! she asked, her gleeful visage looking over each of the gathered cadets in turn, most of whom were too stunned to answer.

Or were desperately trying to keep from laughing their heads off…

Once Dana had calmed down from her little “performance”, she listened with rapt interest as Penny gave a synopsis of her own exam.

“Wow, Penny,” the cheerful Norban said with a giggle. “Your test sounds like somethin’ straight outta a horror movie! Y’know, once Halloween rolls around, we should totally get Yagami to set up a haunted house!” she added. “Anyways, at least now I know where your recent hatred for rodents came from!”




The end of exams also heralded the start of a two-week break, during which Dana found herself spending much of her time alongside Penny, while attending Priya’s exercise group. Vanna’s roommate, Cara Kelly, was also present, and Dana wasted no time in getting to know the redhead better, both in and out of combat. As it turned out, her first name was actually Nora, but she preferred to go by her middle name to preserve the “sweet alliteration”, something Dana wholeheartedly approved of.

However, it was just as the break period was starting to wind down that the biggest surprise came…

“A party?” Dana asked, as she took a closer look at the text Nicole had received. “On a boat? And we’re invited?! Count me in!”



After doing some research, Olivia finally found the perfect place for Suzuya to try pizza for the first time. Located on Baker Street, just across from the Baker Street tube station, and only a short walk away from the Sherlock Holmes Museum, L’Antica Pizzeria Da Michele was widely considered to make the best pizza in London. Their Neapolitan-style pizza, while incredibly delicious, was also noted to be easy on the stomach, something she knew Suzuya would be grateful for. It was a rare sunny day, with clear, blue skies, but Olivia had still decided to bring an umbrella, just in case.

“I haven’t really read too many Sherlock Holmes stories,” Olivia was saying in her nasally voice as the pair entered the restaurant. “But Edgar Allan Poe wrote quite a few detective stories, so I thought I’d give some Holmes stories a try. They were actually pretty interesting! Plus, I really enjoyed reading Neil Gaiman’s ‘A Study in Emerald’, which combines Holmes with H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos!” she added excitedly. “So, yeah, I think it would be really fun if we could visit the museum later!”

The restaurant they found themselves in was rather small, although Olivia had mentioned that most of the seating was actually in the basement. Still, with it being such a nice day, the bespectacled brunette picked an empty table by the window, right next to a wall upon which the words “I want someone to look at me the way I look at pizza” were spelled out in bright neon letters. It was also hot, the large oven taking up the center of the room emanating the warmth of a bonfire. Yet, on such a crisp day, the heat was quite appreciated, at least by Olivia.

“You know, I’ve never actually had a genuine Neapolitan pizza before,” Olivia noted as they sat down. “So this will be my first time, too!”

Suzuya was unsurprised to find Olivia had no issue keeping up conversation even as Suzuya was taking in all the sights without the filter of concern over Pageless to dull the surroundings. A pleasant day on the town, no Merrywell or Magical Girls to worry over, and the even sunnier disposition of her roommate to keep things lively. She'd done a little looking into pizza after accepting the invitation and the pictures of greasy, starchy discs of pizza wider then she was did little to fill her with confidence.

Olivia's words of reassurance, however, did. Trusting that she wouldn't steer her wrong and had put thought into this she went along with a small smile and her hands clasped before her. Her eyes bounced from the museum across the way to Olivia herself, finding it odd that- of all things- Olivia wasn't a blonde out of her transformed state. "We'll enjoy it together than...you know, it's a little funny, but I don't think I realized you wore glasses until today. I'm a little used to you being transformed to keep Xolys out and about. It's almost like we match."

Suzuya nudged her own frames higher up her nose for emphasis, her expression soft yet tentative as she tried to keep Olivia engaged as the warmth of the ovens washed over them. A comfort that reminded her of being enveloped in her Grimoire, but seeing as they actually wanted the staff to see them, neither had come with tails or tentacles in tow. "Sorry, I got a little distracted. I actually rather like books...I guess that's no surprise given who we are...though my knowledge of Western literature is a little limited."

Would Olivia think less of her for not knowing? Feeling herself flush with color she looked down, fiddling with her napkin rolled around a bundle of steel utensils. "Not that I haven't heard of Sherlock Holmes. He was, umm, done by that guy who wrote Hamlet, right?"

“Oh gosh! You’re right!” Olivia exclaimed with a smile when Suzuya pointed out how they both wore glasses. “And I suppose I am often transformed,” she conceded. “I just love being able to have darling Xolys around to chat with, but I wanted this to be a girls’ day out,” she added. “A special treat for just the two of us! Plus, for some reason, Xolys didn’t think they’d let him in here… He can be so silly sometimes!” she said with a giggle that came out as more of a snort.

Then Suzuya mentioned the author of Sherlock Holmes…

“Oh, no,” Olivia corrected, her expression one of cheerful amusement. “Hamlet was written by William Shakespeare. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote Sherlock Holmes. Well, the original stories, anyway,” she clarified, adjusting her glasses ever so slightly. “Like I was saying earlier, lots of other people have written about him over the years. So, um, what kinds of stories do you enjoy reading, Suzuya?”

The image of Xolys stooped over their table did bring a giggle to the blonde easterner, and it was so easy to see Olivia oblivious to anyone's concerns about wayward claws catching a waiter trying to shimmy past his impressive body. Suzuya was finding herself desensitized to him readily enough, in part because her transformation got her through the initial shock, but mostly due to coming to know him as a person on his own. It was more awkward to think of him as a summon who disappears when Olivia isn't in a ball gown then as someone she'd usually see passing her in the hallway.

"Oh. My mistake. My english is adequate but my knowledge of the culture is...limited, to say the least." She sighed, not feeling judgement for her error but not feeling great about it either. Still the pleasant atmosphere kept the wall flower from drawing inwards and she met Olivia's eye with a small smile. "I like short stories. The kinds where every paragraph can have a dozen different meanings and you can pour over them for hours analyzing how different interpretations change the entire context of what has come and will follow it. There's this writer in Japan who was one of our first to reach world wide acclaim, Ryunosuke Akutagawa, who did a whole lot of them. My favorite was In A Grove. In a way it's also a detective story but the reader is the detective and everyone's testimony is suspect. It even got made into a Kurosawa film!"

“Oh wow! That sounds really cool!” Olivia gushed. “I’d really like to read that sometime! Did you know Edgar Allan Poe mainly wrote short stories as well?” she asked. “He even once said that he thought all stories should be short enough to be read in one sitting. I don’t know if I completely agree,” she continued. “I mean, there are a lot of benefits to getting invested in a long novel as well, but I can still see where he’s coming from. Oh! So does that mean your favorite genre is mystery fiction?!”

"I don't think I'd want every story that short either. Sometimes you need a book worth coming back to sitting after sitting with more to offer, no?" Suzuya's expression steadily brightened as they talked, her fidgeting hands going still as she left the crumpled napkin lay across her lap. "And yes, I do enjoy mysteries. Not so much murder mysteries but...the stories were someone grapples with the morality of something and there is no right answer. Even horror has a tantalizing mystery to the unknown, though when it turns out to be a monster in a rubber suit I tend to lose interest, movie or book regardless.”

“I suppose that makes sense…” Olivia conceded with a thoughtful frown, before quickly brightening up again. “But even then, some of those monsters do look kind of cute. Still, I agree, the most interesting creatures are the ones your own imagination can come up with,” she added. “That’s what I love so much about eldritch horrors! They’re just so interesting, they defy description!”

"We have these books. They’re like comics but read right to left. You'd like some of the horror ones. Junji Ito would be something you and Xolys would enjoy, now that I think about it." The blonde wondered if she could get one mail ordered for her, and was reaching for her phone when she smelled a fresh whiff of tomato and saw a man walking up with their order. The hesitancy she felt about it didn't seem to rear up this time and she adjusted her glasses. "I'll find you something of his another time. For now we should enjoy our meal."







“That was great, wasn’t it Suzuya?!” Olivia was saying as they stepped out of the restaurant. “The perfect flavor, yet not overly filling in the slightest! In fact, I think that was the best pizza I’ve ever had in my entire—”

“Um, excuse me,” an American-accented voice called from behind them. “I, uh, think you forgot this.”

Turning around, Olivia was greeted with the sight of a short-haired young woman with a camera hung around her shoulder, and holding…

“My umbrella!” Olivia gasped. “Thank you so much!”

“Don’t mention it,” the girl replied with a chuckle.

“I know it’s absolutely gorgeous out right now, but I’ve learned that the weather can change quite rapidly here!” Olivia explained, sounding very serious. “Why, just a few weeks ago, some friends and I were walking through a lovely park on a sunny day, when, all of a sudden, a terrible storm blew in, and we were all completely soaked!”

“Yikes…”

“Oh! I’m so sorry!” the bespectacled brunette gasped as a thought occurred to her. “I never introduced myself! I’m Olivia, and this is my friend, Suzuya.”

"It's nice to meet you." the blonde chirped, radiating contentment after discovering the simple joy of seasoned tomato and cheese settled in her stomach.

“Same here.” the girl replied with an easy smile. “I’m Kate.”

“It’s very nice to meet you as well, Kate!” Olivia added in her typical, over-enthusiastic manner, although Kate seemed to be more amused than bothered by it. “Um, judging by your accent, and that camera, I’m guessing you’re a tourist?”

“Yup,” Kate confirmed. “And I may be goin’ out on a limb, but I don’t suppose you two are from around here either,” she added with a grin.

"No, we're actually students studying here abroad. I've only been here in London a little over a week." Suzuya chirped, finding the tourist a friendly enough face. While there was yet to be a cloud in the sky it would have been dreary to be caught by a sudden storm and getting soaked outside her Magical Girl state. "You're having a good time seeing the sights?"

“Sure am,” Kate confirmed. “This isn’t my first time in London, but even when I visit someplace more than once, there always seems to be something new to discover.”

“This is actually our first opportunity to explore the city since we arrived,” Olivia explained. “And there are so many interesting places to check out and exciting experiences to have! In fact, Suzuya just finished having pizza for the very first time!” she added happily.

"H-Hey, don't go telling her that. People might think I'm some kind of country bumpkin!" The blonde laughed, sticking a finger into Olivia's side for embarrassing her with her ardent sincerity. "It, was, pretty good. Wonderful even. Though I still feel the need to walk it off, so we were going to visit the museum over there."

“Ooohh… Sherlock Holmes, huh?” Kate noted with a grin. “Nice. Say, before you head over there, would you like me to take your picture in front of the restaurant?” Kate asked, pointing to it with her thumb. “Havin’ pizza for the first time is an experience you should have a memento of.”

“Oh, yes! That would be wonderful!” Olivia gushed. “Don’t you think so, Suzuya?!”

Grinning with a giddy sort of energy Suzuya squeezed in closer to the brunette, the London light striking their glasses as the frames bumped against each other with their proximity. "Sure, a picture sounds fun. It'll be nice to make a pleasant memory."

“Okay,” Kate said with a chuckle as Olivia leaned in and placed her arm (!) around Suzuya. “Say ‘cheese’!”

"Cheese!"

*Snap!*

“Looks good,” Kate told them as she inspected the image on her camera’s display. “I just sent it to your phones, if ya wanna see for yourselves.”

“O-Our phones…?” Olivia asked, somewhat surprised to see that she had gotten a new message. “But how did you…?”

“This is a pretty special camera,” Kate explained with a wink, while patting the device in question. “I got it custom-made. I guess you could say I’m somethin’ of a world traveler, so havin’ a top notch camera is pretty important. It’s not much good for selfies,” she added with a chuckle. “But I’m not really into that kinda thing anyway.”

“Gosh… That’s really cool!” Olivia marveled. “And the picture looks great, too!”

“Thanks! Well, I’m gonna get goin’ now,” Kate said as she readjusted her camera strap. “I hope you two enjoy the museum!”

“You’re welcome! And I’m sure we will!” Olivia called. “This has been such a great day already, hasn’t it Suzuya?” she noted, giving her friend a big smile, before looking back down at the picture on her phone’s display screen. “I’m going to cherish this day for the rest of my life!”
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